57: Chapter 57 Pay-to-Win Makes Me Stronger

Ji Ruxue stood by the edge of the pool and took out a Formation Plate from her storage ring. It was the sub-plate of the Heaven-Severing Pulse-Cutting Array that Gu Sheng had spent fifty million destiny points to exchange.

She tossed the Formation Plate into the Dragon Transformation Pool.

The Formation Plate dissolved upon contact with the water. A complex pattern of Formation lines lit up at the bottom of the pool, rapidly spreading beneath the entire Secret Realm.

Outside. Beneath the Great Xia Imperial Palace.

The mother-plate activated simultaneously. A massive suction force erupted from the plate, frantically devouring the dragon vein essence that the Great Xia Dynasty had accumulated for tens of thousands of years. Golden Dragon Qi flowed along the Formation lines, continuously pouring into the System space.

The top floor of the Star-Plucking Tower.

Gu Sheng watched the energy bar on the System panel rise rapidly.

[The Heaven-Severing Pulse-Cutting Array is operating normally. Estimated time to drain the Great Xia dragon vein: half an hour.]

[Ding. Plundering the Great Xia Dynasty's Foundation. Obtained 100,000 destiny points.]

Gu Sheng toyed with the teacup in his hand.

"One hundred thousand points. I wonder what Xia Ruotian's expression will be if he finds out the family fortune he worked so hard to guard has been emptied by me."

The System's mechanical voice sounded.

[Host, don't be happy too soon. Xia Ruotian has already sensed that something is wrong.]

The Royal Hunting Grounds.

Xia Ruotian, on the high platform, suddenly stood up. He felt it. Great Xia's national fortune was draining away at an extremely fast speed. The kongtong seal fragment in his palm vibrated violently, letting out a wail.

"You're looking for death!"

Xia Ruotian took a step forward, directly tearing through the Void Realm to forcibly enter the Secret Realm.

His Saint pressure was released without reservation, and the sky over Heavenly Saint City instantly darkened. Thunderclouds rolled as the Heavenly Dao issued a warning.

Inside the Star-Plucking Tower, Xuan Kong blocked the window, resisting this world-destroying pressure.

Gu Sheng sat in a grandmaster's chair.

"He finally took the field. The show begins."

Inside the Secret Realm.

The dark red sky was torn apart. A majestic figure descended above the Dragon Transformation Pool. Xia Ruotian looked at the half-dried pool water and at Ji Ruxue and Xia Qingmoon standing by the pool.

His gaze fell upon Xia Qingchen's headless corpse without lingering. Whether the imperial descendants lived or died did not matter; that was the rule. But touching Great Xia's dragon vein had touched his reverse scale.

"Everlasting Gu Family," Xia Ruotian's voice was cold, laced with killing intent, "how bold of you."

The Saint pressure locked onto Ji Ruxue.

Ji Ruxue's back remained straight. Her Foundation Establishment Stage cultivation was less than an ant before a Saint, but she did not retreat a single step. The frosty nine provinces let out a crisp sword hum, contending against the pressure.

Xia Qingmoon spoke up under the pressure.

"Father, this is a deal between this child and the Gu Family. The Gu Family helps me ascend the throne, and I grant them the Opportunity of the Dragon Transformation Pool."

"Fool," Xia Ruotian looked down from above, "what they want is not an Opportunity, but the Foundation of Great Xia. Today, I shall slay this person of the Gu Family and see if that so-called Everlasting Gu Family dares to come out and demand them from me!"

Xia Ruotian raised his right hand. A giant hand of Spiritual Qi that covered the sky condensed in mid-air, carrying an aura of total destruction as it struck down toward Ji Ruxue.

Just as the giant hand was about to fall.

A gray sword light slashed out from the Void Realm.

There was no grand momentum, no brilliant light and shadow. There was only killing intent purified to the extreme.

The giant Spiritual Qi hand was split in two from the middle. The collapsing Spiritual Qi turned into a gale, sweeping through the entire ruined palace.

The Void Realm cracked open.

The Blind Man, holding a rusted iron sword, stepped out. His eyes were still closed, and his coarse linen clothes fluttered loudly in the wind.

"Heavenly Secrets Pavilion," Xia Ruotian looked at the Blind Man, "you are also one of the Gu Family's people?"

The Blind Man did not answer. He raised the iron sword in his hand, the tip pointing at Xia Ruotian.

His Creation Realm Peak cultivation erupted fully. Yet, that killing intent made Xia Ruotian, a Saint Early Stage, feel a fatal threat.

In the Star-Plucking Tower, Gu Sheng watched this scene through a light screen.

"System, can the Blind Man hold out?" Gu Sheng asked.

[He can't. Between the Creation Realm and a Saint, there is a natural chasm. The Blind Man can delay for the time of one incense stick at most.]

"One incense stick is enough." Gu Sheng stood up. "The Formation still needs a bit of time to finish draining the dragon vein. Xuan Kong."

Xuan Kong, who was squatting in the corner smoking dry tobacco, stood up straight.

"At the Young Lord's command."

"Go to the Heavenly Secrets Pavilion. Open the Formation core of that Nine Heavens and Ten Earths Immortal-Slaying Array. Prepare to receive guests." Gu Sheng issued the order.

Xuan Kong took the order and left.

In the Secret Realm.

Xia Ruotian laughed out of extreme anger.

"A mere Creation Realm dares to draw a sword against a Saint. Today, I shall let you know exactly who is holding up the sky of the Central Province!"

Xia Ruotian held the kongtong seal fragment. With the Human Emperor's Qi bolstering him, he threw a punch.

Space collapsed.

The Blind Man swung his sword to meet it. Gray Sword Qi collided with the golden fist shadow.

The entire Secret Realm shook violently. The earth cracked, and the distant ruins collapsed in swathes.

Ji Ruxue protected Xia Qingmoon as they retreated. The Formation in the Dragon Transformation Pool operated to its limit, and the pool water dried up at a visible rate.

"Almost there." Ji Ruxue stared at the bottom of the pool.

The more Xia Ruotian fought, the more alarmed he became. The blind man before him was clearly only at the Creation Realm Peak, but the trajectory of his sword strikes completely defied the Heavenly Dao Laws; every strike went straight for his vital points. This wasn't a spar; it was a fighting style intended for mutual destruction.

"Madman!" Xia Ruotian activated the Kongtong Seal, and a golden light shielded his entire body, blocking the Blind Man's fatal sword strike.

He turned his head to look at the Dragon Transformation Pool. The water had already reached the bottom.

"Stop for me!" Xia Ruotian abandoned the Blind Man and rushed straight toward the Dragon Transformation Pool.

The Blind Man's figure flashed, blocking Xia Ruotian's path once again. The iron sword swept across, sealing off all ways forward.

"Get out of the way!" Xia Ruotian was thoroughly enraged.

The Blind Man was knocked back a hundred feet, blood overflowing from his mouth. But he did not pause, raising his sword to charge once more.

Just then, a blinding white light erupted from the bottom of the Dragon Transformation Pool.

The Heaven-Severing Pulse-Cutting Array had finished its operation.

White light filled the Dragon Transformation Pool. The Heaven-Severing Pulse-Cutting Array operated to its peak.

"Stay your hand."

A hoarse, aged voice penetrated the Secret Realm barrier, coming from deep within the Great Xia Ancestral Land. There was no pressure in the words, yet they carried a power of rules that brooked no disobedience.

The golden Dragon Qi that had been surging out along the Formation originally came to a dead halt in mid-air. Immediately after, the Dragon Qi surged backward, returning to the bottom of the Dragon Transformation Pool in a manner that defied common logic.

The Formation lines of the Heaven-Severing Pulse-Cutting Array shattered inch by inch.

Xia Ruotian stopped his offensive and put away the kongtong seal fragment. He looked toward the void and bowed respectfully. This was the true Foundation of Great Xia, a Saint King Old Ancestor who had lived for an unknown number of years.

The Blind Man leaned on his rusted iron sword, coughing up a mouthful of blood. For a Creation Realm to withstand a Saint, he had already reached his limit. Ji Ruxue stood protectively in front of Xia Qingmoon, gripping the frosty nine provinces tightly. This had actually exceeded their range of response.

The top floor of the Star-Plucking Tower.

On the System interface, the rapidly rising destiny points stopped and even began to be deducted.

[Host, that old fossil from the Great Xia Ancestral Land has made a move. With the Will Manifests as Law of a Saint King level, the Heaven-Severing Pulse-Cutting Array was forcibly erased.]

Gu Sheng leaned back in the grandmaster's chair, watching the dragon vein flowing backward in the light screen.

"It can't escape." Gu Sheng pulled up the System mall. "The great era has not yet arrived, so a Saint King cannot come out. He can only shout from across the void. So you want to compare numbers?"

"Exchange for two Saint Realm Character Cards."

Two dark-gold cards formed within his Sea of Consciousness.

[Character Card: Chen Yi. Cultivation: Saint Middle Stage. Traits: Qimen Dunjia, Formation Great Grandmaster.]

[Character Card: Ye Guyun. Cultivation: Saint Middle Stage. Traits: Sword Opens the Heaven Gate, Peerless Slaughter.]

"Deploy to the Secret Realm."

By the Dragon Transformation Pool.

Xia Ruotian straightened up and looked at Ji Ruxue and the Blind Man.

"The Old Ancestor is merciful and will leave you with intact corpses." Xia Ruotian raised his hand, preparing to completely obliterate these people.

Space cracked open without any warning.

Two figures, one in green and one in gray, appeared out of thin air.

On the left was an old man in a Daoist robe, toying with a few ancient coins in his hand. On the right was a one-armed old man draped in a sheepskin fur coat, carrying an ordinary iron sword.

The moment the two landed, Xia Ruotian's protective golden light was directly crushed. He retreated several steps, a sweet taste rising in his throat.

Two Saints.