Direct Blast

Seeing the three Grand Ancestors' faces sink like still water, Xuanyuan Yunting, Gongsun Yanguang, and the other family heads of the five great clans on the high platform, along with the clan elders behind them, instantly caught the scent of danger.

They stood up in unison, looking up at the sky with grave expressions, the spiritual power around their bodies fully gathering momentum.

Everyone else stood up in bewilderment, raising their heads to look at the sky. But in their vision, the sky above remained a clear blue with white clouds. It was boundless and windless, without even a trace of a breeze, let alone any threat.

"What's going on? There's nothing up there!"

"Even the five family heads have stood up. Something major is definitely about to happen!"

"Hurry up and stand guard, be careful not to get caught in the crossfire!"

Amidst the discussions, Gu Changyuan had yet to make a move. He was waiting.

A few breaths later, the runes of a teleportation array high up in the sky suddenly surged with light.

A moment later—

Three silhouettes slowly emerged from the array.

They were three men of varying heights, all clad in long black robes.

The black robes were made of a peculiar material that seemed to devour light, the hems fluttering without any wind.

Hoods concealed most of their faces, revealing only the faint outlines of their jawlines.

But the most striking feature was the pattern on their black robes—

Golden lines traced a twisted design across their chests, converging and connecting on their backs to ultimately form a sinister character: "Emperor".

People from the Immortal Realm's Imperial Court.

A surging aura emanated from the three of them—it was the aura of Immortal Kings.

But the moment this aura rushed out of the array, it was ruthlessly suppressed by the worldly laws of the Jiuxiao Realm, instantly plummeting until it stabilized at the peak of the Half-Immortal realm.

As the three stepped out of the teleportation array, the massive formation began to shatter, turning into countless motes of light that dissipated into the void.

The leader among them raised his right hand and gave a gentle wave.

A power of law spread out from the three of them, instantly enveloping their surroundings.

Wherever that power of law passed, space began to distort and blur, ultimately turning into a patch of chaos—not true chaos, but an eerie state caught between existence and non-existence.

Looking from the outside, that patch of space seemed to have been erased from the world; nothing could be seen, and nothing could be sensed.

Having done all this, the three were just about to investigate the situation in the lower realm.

However—

"Hmph."

A cold scoff escaped Gu Changyuan's nose.

He raised his right hand toward that concealed patch of void.

"Since you're already here."

His voice was not loud, but it echoed through the heavens like a peal of thunder!

"What's the point of hiding?"

As his words fell—

His right hand suddenly clenched into a fist!

"Roar—!!!"

A heaven-shaking dragon roar abruptly exploded.

Above in the firmament, the void was violently torn open.

A massive purple-gold dragon head fiercely charged out from the spatial rift.

The dragon head was terrifyingly huge, easily a hundred fathoms wide! Its horns were towering and majestic, its whiskers flying in the wind, and its dragon eyes were like two purple-gold suns, exuding a suffocating coercion!

The dragon's maw opened wide, revealing fangs as sharp as swords.

Carrying a might capable of destroying the heavens and exterminating the world, the purple-gold dragon head viciously bit down toward that hidden void!

"Bang—!!!"

The heavens collapsed and the earth shattered!

In that instant, the entire sky above Tianji City was violently ripped apart.

That patch of void, shrouded and rendered invisible by the power of laws, shattered inch by inch under the bite of the purple-gold dragon head.

The chaos dispersed, the laws were annihilated, and three wretched silhouettes were forcefully blasted out from the fragmented space.

"Pfft!"

The three black-robed figures shot out wildly from the shattered space, but they were not launching an attack; rather, they were being forcibly knocked down from a height of ten thousand fathoms by that terrifying impact.

Like kites with their strings cut, the three of them wildly spewed blood all the way down. Their hoods were blown back in the blast, revealing three pale and contorted faces.

The expressions on their faces were nothing short of spectacular.

There was the extreme astonishment of being seen through the moment they arrived, the wretchedness of having their barrier broken and suffering heavy injuries, and a profound sense of disbelief and shock.

They were Immortal King experts personally dispatched to the lower realm by the Imperial Court. Their mission was to purge the members of the five great families in the Jiuxiao Realm, pulling them up by the roots.

Even under the suppression of the lower realm's laws, their spatial secret arts were virtually invincible, impossible for anyone to break.

But who could have imagined that right upon stepping into the Jiuxiao Realm, before even catching a glimpse of their targets, they would be exposed on the spot, and their proud secret art would be broken in a single move.

They looked down at themselves, then up at the black-clad figure standing below with his hands clasped behind his back, their eyes filled with incredulity.

How... how is this possible?!

The three exchanged glances, each seeing the same shock in the others' eyes.

Meanwhile, down below, the moment Zhuge Dancheng, Gongsun Xiangming, and Xuanyuan Feiyue clearly saw the attire of those three figures—

Their expressions instantly turned as dark as ink.

That twisted "Emperor" character pattern, those black robes—they were all too familiar with them.

It was the Imperial Court!

Zhuge Dancheng made his move.

The aura around him erupted explosively, like a volcano that had been dormant for ten thousand years suddenly blowing its top!

Although that aura was suppressed to the peak of the Half-Immortal realm by the laws of the Jiuxiao Realm, its essence was still that of an Immortal King, a terrifying existence capable of making the world change color!

"Wild dogs of the Imperial Court—die!"

He roared furiously, his figure transforming into a streak of light as he took the lead in charging toward those three Immortal Kings of the Imperial Court.

Gongsun Xiangming and Xuanyuan Feiyue followed closely behind.

The three auras intertwined and converged in midair, forming an apocalyptic torrent. Wherever it passed, the void crumbled inch by inch, leaving behind pitch-black rifts.

The expressions of the three Imperial Court Immortal Kings changed slightly.

Having just been blasted out of their concealed state by Gu Changyuan's strike, they were still somewhat disheveled. But they were Immortal Kings after all, and they steadied their minds in an instant.

The leader scoffed coldly, his hands forming hand seals—

"Hum!"

A dark gold barrier of light instantly condensed in front of the three of them!

The light barrier was translucent, its surface swirling with countless profound runes. Each rune trembled slightly, exuding a heart-palpitating pressure.

"Boom—!!!"

Zhuge Dancheng's sword was the first to slash against the barrier.

It was an ancient, unadorned longsword with a broad and thick blade, dark red light flowing along its edge.

That was his natal sword, condensed from his own Immortal King Dao rhythm. Even though it was suppressed, its sword intent remained terrifying.

The moment the sword light collided with the barrier, a visible shockwave rippled out in all directions.

Wherever it passed, the void undulated violently like the surface of water, even forming dense, fine cracks.

The golden barrier trembled violently, the runes on its surface flashing madly as cracks spread outward like a spiderweb.

But—it held firm.

Zhuge Dancheng's eyes narrowed. Without losing any momentum, his second and third sword strikes fell in rapid succession.

"Boom! Boom! Boom!"

Gongsun Xiangming arrived at the exact same moment!

He did not use a sword.

His weapons were his fists.

"Hah—!"

He let out an explosive shout, throwing a fierce right punch.

On that fist, purple-gold light shone as blindingly as the scorching sun. That was the "Purple Apex Golden Body" he had cultivated for tens of thousands of years, allowing him to clash with all myriad laws using nothing but his physical body.

"Bang!!!"

The punch slammed into the barrier, causing the entire shield to shudder violently as the cracks instantly expanded several times over.

Gongsun Xiangming remained expressionless, his left fist immediately following up with another strike—

"Bang!!!"