Chapter 1570: Crowfire (I)

The sky shone with Bright Light, while the surrounding peaks lay in shadow.

Clouds drifted in the air as mountain ranges pierced through heaven and earth, the world above and below suffused in gold. Countless strands of golden light descended like mist, cascading in glassy, iridescent hues. They fell in their hundreds and thousands like a rain of stars, illuminating the vast platform below as though it had been carved from crystal and filling it with bright light.

Li Zhouwei stood bathed in that celestial radiance, his halberd resting lightly at his side. As he lifted his gaze, he saw the multicolored lights in the sky gradually dispersing and falling toward different regions. Wanlin Heaven, long silent for countless years, was stirring back to life.

"What a grand revelry..."

The moment he entered this place, Li Zhouwei immediately sensed the difference. Certain formations and treasures within this grotto heaven were still in effect. But most striking of all was the severed connection to the great void. From his Shenyang Mansion to his true body, everything had been confined within this grotto heaven.

It was much like the [Realm of Sun and Moon Radiance], and he showed no surprise. Like every Purple Mansion Realm cultivator arriving in Wanlin Heaven for the first time, his first thought was of a way out.

"If I can't connect to the great void, then I can't come and go freely. Entering is easy, but leaving likely comes down to two methods. One is through the grotto heaven's external exit. The other... would require a great void traversal technique."

He raised a hand, about to test a divine ability, when his gaze suddenly sharpened.

Threads of golden mana, faint as smoke, drifted from his palm, trying to rise toward the ceiling of the grotto heaven. But with a single thought from Li Zhouwei, they were swiftly drawn back under the control of his divine ability.

He closed his eyes and examined the sensation closely, and a conclusion quickly formed in his mind.

There is a binding and absorbing force within this grotto heaven, likely the lingering effect of some formation or treasure. It stretches endlessly, reaching the ultimate limit of completion... constantly attempting to draw in and absorb the mana of my divine abilities. If a Foundation Establishment Realm cultivator entered, they would be drained of mana and die within three hours...

Fortunately, the suppressing force here was not particularly strong, and his body was formidable. Even before he had cultivated his Body Divine Ability, such interference would not have driven him away, let alone now. At most, his movements were less fluid than in the outside world, and his spiritual sense was confined to ten meters.

At full strength, it posed no issue. But if a Purple Mansion Realm cultivator were to be gravely injured and subjected to this constant suppression, their mana and divine abilities would suffer a severe loss. More terrifying still, within this grotto heaven, a Purple Mansion Realm cultivator's Shenyang Mansion remained within the body. If that body were destroyed, the Shenyang would have nowhere to flee, not even into the great void. It would be exposed directly to this suppressive force, rendering any escape methods useless...

Though it offers boundless opportunities, it is also a disguised death trap. Even without relentless pursuit from enemies... one could easily perish from injuries alone! As for spiritual sense... that is of little consequence.

Lowering his gaze, he saw colors of divine abilities scattered across the ground. The grotto heaven was vast, and the Purple Mansion Realm cultivators in the sky shared an unspoken understanding. Upon landing, each released the radiance of their divine abilities, shining brilliantly like lotus flowers blooming across the earth. This marked their territory and prevented accidental encounters due to the limitations of spiritual sense.

After all, at this moment, opportunities lay everywhere. None would deliberately converge on the same location and risk unnecessary losses.

Li Zhouwei had not chosen at random. Upon entering this realm, he had swept his golden gaze across the surroundings. With a single sweep of his ability to search the unseen, he had selected a nearby peak where the aura of formations was strongest. It shone with brilliant light and appeared to be a grand palace aligned with the path of [Auspicious Essence].

As the various lights illuminated his face and he drew closer to the ground, he made no move to land. Instead, he raised two fingers to his lips and gently blew, sending forth a dense surge of heavenly light.

The heavenly light split into three and descended from the sky. It struck the three peaks flanking the palace with a thunderous crash, occupying them first and giving the illusion that they were already claimed. Only after setting this precaution did he calmly descend toward the palace itself.

Tap.

He landed lightly onto the mountaintop platform, and twelve lampstands lit up in unison, blocking the glasslike radiance descending from the sky. The palace before him rose tall and magnificent, its flowing colors like rippling water casting over his figure.

Li Zhouwei raised his brow and saw a stele standing upon the platform, golden words dancing across its surface.

[Palace of Sacred Offerings].

The palace carried an imposing presence. The platform was vast, and upon it stood a dazzling and radiant golden palace. Descending from the platform along the slope of the mountain were eight smaller palaces, each gleaming with brilliant light.

As Li Zhouwei stepped forward, a pale white light barrier instantly rose before him. Streams of Auspicious Essence swirled within it, constantly separating the inner and outer auras. He gauged it briefly with his spiritual sense and nodded inwardly.

As expected, it is formidable!

This formation originated from [Auspicious Essence] and far surpassed the [Zhaoguang Profound Purple Spirit Formation] on his own lake! Li Zhouwei had never seen the [Profound Turtle Mansion-Stabilizing Spirit Formation], so he could not compare them directly, but if he were to dismantle this formation by himself, not only would it cause a tremendous disturbance, he had no idea how long it would take.

However, Li Zhouwei had examined it before landing, so he did not find it troublesome. Instead, he formed a seal lightly and activated his divine ability.

Since this was within a grotto heaven, the palace's original owner had never intended for the formation to defend against external enemies. Its primary purpose was to aid cultivation and isolate internal from external influence. Its formation nodes were the eight smaller palaces scattered across the mountain, allowing it to cover a wider area and envelop the entire region in refined energies to support disciples in their practice.

Li Zhouwei’s eyes gradually glowed gold, and [Heavenly Radiance, Hidden Light] surged forth from the center of his eyebrows like a golden pillar piercing through the mountains. It struck the nearest small palace with a thunderous blast, shattering its formation to pieces.

Without hesitation, he turned slightly, and the radiant golden beam swept across the mountains. The sounds of destruction echoed one after another as his figure transformed into a streak of golden light, weaving through the mountain range. In mere moments, he returned to his original position.

All the smaller palaces scattered across the mountains had been reduced to ruins and thoroughly stripped of their contents. Shimmering Bright Yang light coalesced in his hand, supporting eight long incense sticks with golden bases and silver patterns.

These eight smaller palaces seem to be places of ritual worship... Though their patterns and designs differ, each one contained a stick of golden-patterned mystic incense...

Li Zhouwei did not know their purpose, but after examining them closely, he concluded they were likely Purple Mansion Realm mystic incense. He casually stored them in a golden box before turning his attention back to the formation.

The formation's brilliance had already dimmed, its divine ability no longer apparent. Yet it still maintained a connection to the divine ability deep beneath the earth. This allowed the formation to retain a measure of strength, prompting him to assess it carefully.

"When ancient cultivators constructed a grotto heaven, they often engraved formation foundations at its base using great divine ability, known as the [Profound Foundation]. The formations built upon the mountains could then directly link to Wanlin Heaven's Profound Foundation and draw reinforcement from it... that must be the case here."

"The foundation of Wanlin Heaven is truly profound. Even though its owner had little intention of defending against enemies and the formation nodes have been destroyed, merely maintaining a link to the [Profound Foundation] still leaves it with Purple Mansion Realm power..."

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