The Nine Palaces and Eight Trigrams Conceal a Deadly Scheme

Wang Hao's eyes had, at some unknown point, turned into a brilliant pale gold!

[Emperor's Qi-Gazing Technique, activated!]

Wang Hao's vision instantly pierced through those disgusting human faces and the thick black mist. Under the vision of the Emperor's Qi-Gazing Technique, the entire world changed its appearance.

Gone were the terrifying faces and the darkness. In their place were countless threads composed of pale green, malevolent Yin energy. These threads intertwined like a spider's web, and those human faces were nothing more than nodes where the threads intersected.

"I see. The so-called Ghostly Domain is not impregnable; it is like a formation constructed from countless Yin energy circuits."

The golden light in Wang Hao's eyes grew even more intense. He discovered that when Wei Zhongxian attacked with True Qi, those threads would briefly break, but then the surrounding Yin energy would immediately rush in to replenish them, causing the nodes to become even larger.

This meant that blind attacks would only accelerate their deaths!

"Any Ghostly Domain has its underlying logic of operation and rules for killing." Wang Hao's gaze was like a torch, fixed on the flowing trajectories of those threads. "As long as we find the rules and avoid the Gate of Death, we can survive."

Suddenly, Wang Hao noticed that the movement trajectories of several human faces were extremely unique. They did not blindly crash into the protective shield like the others, but roamed according to specific Bagua positions.

"Yu Huatian, drop the True Qi defense three feet to your left!" Wang Hao suddenly ordered.

"Your Majesty?! This..." Yu Huatian turned pale with fright. Once the defense was dropped, those human faces would instantly pounce on them.

"Does My word need to be repeated?" Wang Hao's voice suddenly turned cold, carrying an unquestionable imperial pressure.

"Your subject obeys!" Yu Huatian gritted his teeth and abruptly withdrew the True Qi on his left side.

Whoosh—

Over a dozen hideous human faces instantly lunged in through the gap, looking as if they were about to bite into Wang Hao's neck. Wei Zhongxian's eyes practically split open in fury, and he was just about to block them with his life.

However, a miraculous scene occurred.

When those human faces were merely an inch away from Wang Hao, they suddenly seemed to lose their target. They actually passed straight through Wang Hao's body and then dissipated into the air!

"This..." Wei Zhongxian and Yu Huatian were dumbfounded.

A cold smirk curled at the corner of Wang Hao's mouth. "I understand now. The first rule of this Ghostly Domain: [Line of sight equals lock-on]."

"They have no physical bodies at all. They can only locate us by capturing our fear and hostility towards them! The harder you attack, the deeper your hostility, and the more intently you look at them, the more real they become. Close your eyes, restrain your killing intent, and pretend they don't exist!"

Hearing the emperor's command, although Wei Zhongxian and Yu Huatian were terrified, they still closed their eyes without hesitation and forcefully suppressed the True Qi fluctuations within their bodies.

Sure enough! Having lost the hostility to track, the frantic, gnawing hisses around them instantly quieted down. The human faces seemed to have lost their coordinates and began to wander aimlessly around the three of them.

They were temporarily safe!

But the golden light in Wang Hao's eyes did not fade. He knew this was only the beginning. A Level Six Anomaly could not possibly only have this little trick. He had to find the key to breaking the situation!

Outside the Ghostly Domain, it was a completely different world.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Deafening explosions, like the sky tearing and the earth shattering, went off one after another in the night sky.

The Grand Eunuch Sun Li had gone completely mad. His originally shriveled body was now bloated like an inflated ball, his muscles bulging, and his gray eunuch uniform had been torn to shreds by violent Astral Qi.

Streaks of visible white Astral Qi wrapped around his arms like wild dragons.

"Shatter for me! Shatter! Shatter!!!"

Sun Li let out a furious roar, his fists turning into a sky full of afterimages. Every punch carried a terrifying power capable of destroying cities and pulling up strongholds, smashing fiercely against the massive black, semi-circular energy shield enveloping the tower.

Seventh Stage of the Martial Path, Astral Qi Realm Level Two!

If this level of destructive power landed on the walls of the imperial palace, it would be enough to forcefully collapse a section of the wall.

However, although the black barrier of the Ghostly Domain caved in and fluctuated violently under Sun Li's frantic bombardment, rippling with pale green waves, it remained as tough as ever!

"Director! We are here to help you!"

Pei Jingzhe led the Embroidered Uniform Guards and rushed up as well. Hundreds of guards formed a battle array, gathering all their True Qi onto Pei Jingzhe alone.

"Slash!"

Pei Jingzhe shouted angrily, and the Xiuchun blade in his hand erupted with a brilliant blade aura dozens of feet long, fiercely cleaving against the barrier of the Ghostly Domain. At the same time, Cao Zhengchun, Hai Dafu, and several other top experts unleashed their ultimate killing moves without holding back.

Boom—!

The entire earth trembled. But after the various lights dissipated, the black barrier had only thinned slightly, and then it immediately drew countless amounts of Yin energy from the ground, instantly restoring itself to its original state.

"Damn it! This beast is connected to the Yin Vein of the South City! With external forceful attacks, unless it's a Grandmaster of the Eighth Stage of the Martial Path, it's absolutely impossible to break it in a short time!" Sun Li's eyes were bloodshot, his fingernails digging deeply into his flesh, dripping with blood.

His Majesty was still inside! For every extra second delayed, the hope of His Majesty's survival grew slimmer!

An unprecedented panic shrouded the heart of this number one expert of the Inner Palace.

Meanwhile, inside the Ghostly Domain.

Wang Hao had no idea that his subordinates outside were so anxious they were almost ready to slit their throats in apology. All his energy was now focused on the Yin energy network before him.

Although closing their eyes and giving up resistance temporarily saved them from being devoured by the swarm of ghosts, the crisis was not over.

Because Wang Hao saw through the Emperor's Qi-Gazing Technique that the surrounding malevolent Yin energy was slowly compressing. It was like a meat grinder that was gradually shrinking. Once the concentration of Yin energy reached a certain critical point, the temperature in the Ghostly Domain would definitely drop to the extreme, and they would be frozen alive into ice sculptures.

He had to take the initiative and attack!

"Since the Ghostly Domain is like a closed formation, it must have a 'formation core,' which is where the main body of this anomaly is located."

Wang Hao looked at the pale green threads before him, analyzing calmly. Among the tens of thousands of intricate lines, he began to look for patterns.

This was the benefit of being a bookworm in his past life. When encountering some difficult knowledge in novels that he happened to be interested in, such as the I Ching, he had memorized it thoroughly, and now this knowledge was coming in handy.

"Three lines on the left, the flow rate is slow, Yang is declining and Yin is prospering, corresponding to the Gate of Death."

"Five lines above, flowing in reverse, corresponding to the Gate of Fear."

"..."

Wang Hao's mind at this moment was like a precise supercomputer, frantically calculating the massive amount of information. Gradually, the golden light in his eyes grew brighter, and a Nine Palaces Bagua array map, hidden beneath the chaos, slowly took shape in his mind.

"I see! Before its death, this anomaly was probably a master who understood Qimen Dunjia. After death, its obsession turned into an anomaly, arranging this Ghostly Domain into a living formation of the Nine Palaces Flying Stars!"

A cold, icy arc curled at the corner of Wang Hao's mouth.

If anyone else had encountered this thing, even a Martial Dao Sixth or Seventh Stage expert would have been trapped to death by this complex array. But unfortunately for it, it met Wang Hao, who not only possessed the dimensional-strike-like skill Son of Heaven's Qi Observation Technique, but was also well-versed in the Book of Changes!

Wei Zhongxian, Yu Huatian, hear my command! Wang Hao suddenly spoke.

Your servants are here! The two immediately roused their spirits. Even with their eyes closed, they were ready to strike at any moment.

There is no need to keep your eyes closed. Open them and act according to my instructions.

Wei Zhongxian, take three steps forward, turn left, and at a forty-five-degree angle above you, use three-tenths of your true qi to fire a finger strike!

Although Wei Zhongxian did not understand the reasoning, out of absolute obedience to the Emperor, he abruptly opened his eyes and did as instructed without hesitation.

Swish!

A streak of Sunflower True Qi shot out, accurately striking a spot in mid-air that seemed to be nothing but empty space.

Pop!

A crisp shattering sound rang out. Immediately after, in Wang Hao's eyes, dozens of Yin energy threads in that area collapsed instantly, and the surrounding black mist that had been steadily closing in actually retreated by two meters!

It worked?! Wei Zhongxian was overjoyed.

Cut the chatter! Yu Huatian, five steps to your back right, crouch down, and thrust your sword three inches into the ground with all your might!

Slash!

Yu Huatian moved like a startled swan, piercing his sword into the ground. Instantly, a shrill, ghostly wail echoed from beneath the earth, and a large swath of the black mist on the right dissipated.

Keep going! Wei Zhongxian, retreat two steps toward the Qian position! Yu Huatian, advance four steps toward the Zhen position!

Under Wang Hao's god-like perspective and commands, Wei Zhongxian and Yu Huatian were like two precise surgical scalpels, flawlessly severing the Yin energy nodes of the eerie domain time and time again.

The originally lifeless and highly oppressive eerie domain was forcefully carved open by Wang Hao using this masterful butchering method, carving out a safe passage!

And amidst the continuous severing of nodes, Wang Hao's gaze finally locked onto the source where all the threads ultimately converged.

Hidden there was the true body of this Level Six Anomaly!