Chapter 155: Joining Forces?

Four statues of the Four Symbols stood at the four cardinal directions.

In an instant, the roars of dragons and tigers, the cries of the Black Tortoise, and the shrill calls of the Vermilion Bird resounded through the air.

These four Gates of the Mysterious Female transformed into a platform.

This platform stood proudly in the void, boundless both above and below, materializing out of thin air.

Various hazy and distorted divine lights mingled, majestic and grand. Starlight cascaded from the heavens, where countless stars flickered and dissolved endlessly.

The starlight and divine light converged into a river of stars suspended above this platform, transforming into a divine fetus.

The primordial breath of that divine fetus surged into the sky, piercing the firmament, appearing both mystical and overbearing.

"That is... the Fetus of Primeval Beginning?" Fu Xuan recognized the divine fetus, his lips parting slightly as his heart pounded violently.

The Fetus of Primeval Beginning was one of the primordial origins.

It symbolized the chaotic state before the heaven and earth were opened, before the primordial chaos was divided, formless and qualityless.

"If I can monopolize the Fetus of Primeval Beginning, I will have absolute certainty in shattering the Gate of the Mysterious Female!" Fu Xuan concluded, sensing both the Fetus of Primeval Beginning and his own burgeoning power.

On the other side, Xu Zhong had also arrived at his own conclusion.

"Calamity fortune, such dense calamity fortune energy!" Xu Zhong felt like a fish in water.

A continuous stream of calamity fortune energy converged toward him, pouring into his body and transforming into his source of power.

In a single instant, it propelled him to the same level as Fu Xuan.

"Power is surging upwards!" There was no Golden Elixir within Xu Zhong's body, and his internal Dharmic powers bore no distinction between acquired and innate, so realms were out of the question.

He could only infer his own realm based on his combat strength.

He looked toward the other three directions.

Spiritual senses constantly collided and clashed within the void.

They all knew that their counterparts were enemies, mortal foes.

The White Tiger was positioned in the west, and the first thing that came into view was the eastern position, the Azure Dragon symbol, and the Eastern Gate of the Mysterious Female.

Beneath that Azure Dragon, there was only a single Qi practitioner.

"Su Jie?"

The identity of that Qi practitioner was self-evident.

Upon his person hung only a single tassel, and when probed with spiritual sense, the characters inscribed upon the tassel could be discerned: Azure Dragon True Inheritor.

Su Jie slowly opened his eyes, and all the spiritual senses that had fallen upon him were ignited instantly.

Xu Zhong turned pale with fright and hurriedly shifted his gaze elsewhere.

Moving from east to south was the Vermilion Bird position, the Southern Gate of the Mysterious Female.

Beneath the Vermilion Bird, there was likewise only a single Qi practitioner.

That person was clad in a black robe, exuding an evil aura and an indescribable overbearing and bewitching charm, resembling an outer-domain heterodox demon.

The physical space he occupied was filled with treacherous light that could distort all spiritual sense power.

When spiritual sense invaded, it was instantly distorted, and in the next moment, Xu Zhong felt as though he had plunged into a demon's lair.

He resolutely withdrew his spiritual sense and looked to the north.

To the north was the Black Tortoise position, the Northern Gate of the Mysterious Female.

This was the Gate of the Mysterious Female with the greatest number of people.

There were as many as nine individuals here, and their cultivation levels varied. Chen Taifeng, Ji Lin, and Li Yuanhua were three of those nine.

In total, counting them, there were fourteen Qi practitioners who had entered this place.

Among these fourteen, the strongest were undoubtedly Fu Xuan, Su Jie, and the mysterious black-robed figure.

There were no Qi practitioners surpassing the Inner Scenery realm, whether due to the restriction of laws or simply because their cultivation was capped at this level.

Xu Zhong withdrew his spiritual sense and saw the short figure beside him sidle up. "I am Huang Feng, a Qi practitioner from the State of Yu."

Not knowing Huang Feng's schemes, Xu Zhong felt confident in his current formidable strength, believing this Qi practitioner named Huang Feng could do nothing to him.

"Xu Zhong, a native of Yangshuo in the State of Yu!" Xu Zhong cupped his fists and said.

Hearing this, Huang Feng's expression brightened. "I hail from Nine Dragons City, so we should be considered half-hometown folks. Since we're compatriots, I won't beat around the bush. How about we join forces?"

"Join forces?" Xu Zhong looked at him. "What qualifications do you have?"

Huang Feng chuckled softly. "Your power is like duckweed without roots, fluctuating wildly. Although it is currently immensely powerful and comparable to the Inner Scenery realm, as your power waxes and wanes, you will eventually return to your original realm. When that time comes, you will be nothing more than an ant, an ant that can be crushed with a simple pinch. What confidence will you have then to contend against *him*?"

He puckered his lips, signaling the person he was referring to.

Fu Xuan let out a cold snort but restrained his killing intent.

He was already the target of public enmity, and before the situation became clear, he still needed to act low-key.

The main reason was that Xu Zhong had risen with the tide, riding the wind on the back of calamity fortune energy, possessing strength sufficient to rival his own.

Otherwise, the moment he descended upon this place, he could have directly blasted Xu Zhong to death on the spot.

Hearing this, Xu Zhong laughed heartily. "And do you possess the strength to deal with him?"

Huang Feng opened his mouth, unable to utter a word.

"You don't have the strength to deal with him, and neither do I. Do you really think joining forces gives you that strength?" Xu Zhong shook his head. "Since even by joining forces we cannot deal with him, what is the point of joining forces? Besides, you are insidious and cunning, with too deep a scheming nature; I cannot trust you."

Huang Feng could sit back and reap the fisherman's profits once, and he could do it a second time.

Xu Zhong would never turn his back on such a person.

Huang Feng's expression shifted. "In that case, so be it!"

He then bypassed Xu Zhong and sought out Fu Xuan.

"Senior Fu, I..." Before he finished speaking, his eyes suddenly widened, and he slowly turned his head around.

Fu Xuan then saw a fist-sized bloody hole appear at the back of Huang Feng's head, from which bolts of lightning burst forth, echoing with the sound of thunder.

"You..."

That was Huang Feng's final last words as he collapsed heavily to the ground, his fresh blood flowing toward the Primeval Beginning Divine Fetus.

"I didn't expect you to be so ruthless!" Fu Xuan looked at Xu Zhong. "However, someone who plays both sides and jumps back and forth like him truly deserves to die!"

"He certainly deserved to die, though not merely for playing both sides." Xu Zhong and Fu Xuan exchanged a knowing smile.

Huang Feng had approached him using the assassination of Fu Xuan as a bargaining chip.

Thus, when he went to find Fu Xuan, his bargaining chip must have been the assassination of Xu Zhong.

Leaving such a person alive would only spell disaster.

On this point, both of them understood each other implicitly.

The blood-drinking Primeval Beginning Divine Fetus seemed to undergo some changes.

A continuous cracking sound rang out as numerous fractures suddenly appeared on the surface of the Primeval Beginning Divine Fetus, from which wisps of primordial light shot forth.

"Blood! It needs to drink blood to grow stronger?"

Almost everyone present witnessed this scene and instantly stood to their feet.

However, they were unable to leave their respective zones.

If they wanted to make the Primeval Beginning Divine Fetus evolve, they could only kill people within their own zones.

The Qi practitioners beneath the White Tiger, Azure Dragon, and Vermilion Bird gates had it easier, as there were only one or two Qi practitioners in each, leaving little room for chain-of-suspicion paranoia among them.

However, the Qi practitioners beneath the Northern Gate of the Mysterious Female (Black Tortoise) were numerous, harboring treacherous hearts and ulterior motives.

Although everyone knew that the other three gates held powerhouses, and understood the logic that only by uniting could they deal with the opponents on the other sides, promises were merely spoken words, and Daoist oaths could even be erased through secret arts.

The moment the Primeval Beginning Divine Fetus was stained with blood, a chain of suspicion had already formed.

You could ensure you wouldn't make a move against others, but you couldn't guarantee others wouldn't move against you.

Even if you could guarantee others wouldn't move against you, the other party couldn't guarantee whether you would move against them.

Through such endless repetition, this chain of suspicion could stretch on indefinitely, until someone could no longer restrain themselves and struck first, completely detonating the chain of suspicion—and at that time, blades would be stained with blood.

There was no shortage of powerful figures beneath the Northern Gate of the Mysterious Female.

However, it lacked the Inner Scenery realm.

Beneath this Gate of the Mysterious Female, the strongest only reached the Qi-Leveling (Qiwu) realm, while the weakest were in the Vehicle-Riding (Chengwu) realm.

The first to make a move was Shi Yao.

Shi Yao had already recovered his Outer Scenery realm and had even advanced a step further, coming within a hair's breadth of attaining the Qi-Leveling realm.

Demonic qi surged to the heavens around him, permeating an indescribable, overbearing, and tyrannical presence as he swept his gaze across the crowd and bluntly declared, "Which of you wants to die?"

"It is not yet your turn to speak here!" A dignified voice rang out. The speaker was an elderly man looking spirited yet physically decaying, his entire body covered in deep wrinkles.

He was the most powerful Qi-Leveling realm Qi practitioner beneath the Northern Gate of the Mysterious Female.

A terrifying demonic qi emanated from him, and as he opened his eyes, two bolts of lightning shot forth directly toward Shi Yao, only to be shattered by a cold snort from Shi Yao.

The elder's original form was a great mountain, which had absorbed the essence of the sun and moon over countless years, eventually gaining sentience and embarking on the path of cultivation.

Yet all things in the world must decay and die, and even a mountain was no exception.

The wind called time had blown away the mountain's edge and extinguished its vitality.

This mountain demon, just like a mortal, had begun walking toward death.

"Could it be that only an old mountain demon on the verge of rot is qualified to speak?" Shi Yao had snowy white hair, a robust physique, and a broad back like a tiger's, speaking with a resonant voice full of vital energy.

"What is going on?" Li Yuanhua looked at Chen Taifeng beside him with a somewhat strange expression.

At this moment, Chen Taifeng was the backbone of their trio.

Having made it this far, Chen Taifeng had played a tremendous role.

"I feel something is wrong. Let's fall back a bit and not get close to them," Chen Taifeng lowered his voice to a whisper.

The three of them remained silent, quietly retreating behind the others.

"It seems you are courting death!" As the mountain demon's voice fell, fluctuations of innate qi erupted from his body.

The two clashed like sharp needles against the mallow awn, murderous intent filling the air as they prepared to strike.

However, in the very instant before their magical techniques collided, both abruptly altered their targets, turning to launch a devastating assault on the other nine people present.

The two individuals closest to them were instantly blasted into bloody residue, their life force flowing toward the Primeval Beginning Divine Fetus.

"Just as I thought!" Chen Taifeng let out a cold snort. "Those two demons were indeed putting on a show, colluding all along."

"Three-Talent Sword Array, rise!"

Three swords flew out from within his body. These three swords were naturally formed, crafted from highly unusual materials, and the fluctuations they emitted were completely beyond what his own cultivation could nurture—they must have been treasures bestowed by his clan.

Ji Lin and Li Yuanhua also possessed similar magical treasures.

These magical treasures allowed them to withstand the onslaught of Qi-Leveling realm Qi practitioners and even retaliate using that momentum.

A chaotic battle erupted beneath the Northern Gate of the Mysterious Female.

Meanwhile, the Qi practitioners beneath the other three Gates of the Mysterious Female looked on as bystanders.

The calamity fortune energy on Xu Zhong's body was gradually dissipating.

"You have trapped yourself in a cocoon of your own making!" Fu Xuan felt the waning power upon him and spoke slowly: "You initiated the slaughter, but you cannot stem the outflow of your own power. You are growing weaker, and I can now harvest you."

Xu Zhong shook his head. "You will not harvest me!"

"Damn it!" Fu Xuan cursed. "I hate clever people!"

The treasures on Xu Zhong certainly tempted Fu Xuan, but not at this moment.

When he had first entered this place, striking down Xu Zhong would have been effortless because he was weak then.

Yet at this moment, even with his power ebbing, Xu Zhong possessed the strength to resist.

The moment he revealed his Golden Elixir and that "supreme demonic treasure," it would inevitably draw the covetous eyes of others.

No one in the Inner Scenery realm could remain unmoved by these two treasures.

While Fu Xuan's own combat power would swell upon acquiring these supreme treasures, he would simultaneously become the target of public criticism.

Not to mention the Northern and Southern Gates of the Mysterious Female, Su Jie alone at the opposite Eastern Gate of the Mysterious Female possessed enough strength to give him a headache.

If he were truly cornered by a group attack, he would undoubtedly die.

Under these circumstances, he neither dared nor could kill Xu Zhong.

A living, mobile treasure was far better at drawing everyone else's attention away.

Xu Zhong chuckled at Fu Xuan's curses. "So, shall we join forces?"

Before Fu Xuan could reply.

In the next instant, a massive millstone descended from the heavens.