Chapter 643: Calamity Star

"You wretched beast, how dare you～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～"

The sudden change infuriated the two Wu clan members. They were already aware of the death of their comrade who had been dealing with Tian Xiao and the others, but they hadn't addressed it because they had more pressing matters to attend to. Their ancestral task was of utmost importance, and failure was not an option. Besides, among the two of them, the stronger had to confront Nangong Sheng, while the weaker one, who was on par with the deceased, would have met the same fate if sent.

Now, one was dead, and the other was gravely injured. The lead Wu member was enraged and unwilling to abandon the coveted Earth Book before them.

"吒～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～"

With a furious shout, the lead Wu's body suddenly expanded, powerful energy radiating in all directions, with visible tendrils of dark energy swirling around. His body grew to a towering height of a thousand feet, his staff enlarging accordingly and floating beside him. He reached out and grabbed the dragon's tail, yanking it forcefully.

"吼～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～"

With a thunderous roar, the yellow dragon, which had been trying to escape, was pulled back. The dragon, still clutching the Earth Book in its mouth, glared furiously at the giant Wu.

"昂～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～"

The yellow dragon roared, swinging its powerful tail towards the Wu.

The battle was about to erupt when Nangong Sheng, weakened, trembled slightly and disappeared from the scene, abandoning the Earth Book.

"Chase him down and kill him! He's under my 'Pulverized Soul' spell now. His soul is shattered like dust, and his power is barely a fraction of what it was!" the thousand-foot Wu commanded his companion.

"Yes!" The other Wu quickly pursued.

Thus, the colossal Wu faced off against the five-thousand-foot giant dragon, commencing a new, ferocious battle.

Nangong Sheng had clung to the Earth Book for a reason; with it, he had a sliver of hope. Without it, he was doomed. He had opened the Earth Book and knew its contents; the Wu would never spare him knowing this. Desperate, he had chosen to fight to the death, but the enemy was overwhelmingly strong.

Upon escaping the black hole, Nangong Sheng noticed something unusual about the surroundings, something that even prevented him from reaching the Great Thousand World. He knew that if he made it there, numerous powerful beings awaited him, and he would be torn apart.

As the greatest formation master in the world, Nangong Sheng, though not highly knowledgeable about Feng Shui, could still read the energies. He quickly identified a flaw in the Feng Shui formation, where energies were mysteriously leaking in one direction.

Dragging his exhausted body, he rushed towards the flaw.

This Feng Shui formation could obscure heavenly secrets and defy nature, but Nangong Sheng, with his celestial life, was unaffected by the formation's yellow smoke. Despite being weakened to a fraction of his power, he remained intact due to his celestial nature. Anyone else, even a top-tier Heavenly Extreme cultivator, would have perished.

The Wu clan's Pulverized Soul spell was terrifying.

Nangong Sheng hastily set up numerous formations to distract his pursuer and continued fleeing.

At first, Nangong Sheng's array formations worked, but gradually they lost their effect. The Wu clan member who had been in a daze due to Nangong Sheng's formations began to smirk coldly.

"So, there are no other living beings around, only you? If that's the case, I don't need to trouble myself with your tricks. I'll just track your soul's imprint. Let's see how you escape now," the Wu clan member sneered.

Nangong Sheng felt an increasing sense of danger as his pursuer drew closer. With no other choice, he activated a secret technique, sharply increasing his speed. However, his soul, already fragmented, suffered even more from the exertion. His vision blurred, and in a desperate sprint, he managed to temporarily shake off the Wu clan member.

But Nangong Sheng knew he was growing weaker by the moment. As he approached the gap in the Heaven and Earth Urn, his strength finally gave out. In a state of semi-consciousness, he transformed into a falling meteor, crashing towards the ground.

After more than two days, Zhong Shan slowly awoke. Though not fully recovered, he regained about fifty to sixty percent of his strength. He got up and stepped outside.

"Your Majesty, you're finally out!" Jiu Laotou exclaimed with joy.

Everyone gathered around, their faces filled with relief and happiness, except for Gu Qianyou, who looked slightly pale.

"How is everything?" Zhong Shan asked Gu Qianyou.

"These past two days have been exhausting. Setting up the Feng Shui formation wasn't easy," Gu Qianyou replied with a bitter smile.

Zhong Shan, feeling concerned, gently held her hand, giving it a comforting squeeze. His gesture made Gu Qianyou blush slightly.

"Zhong Shan, something big happened outside. A gigantic Feng Shui formation!" Xianxian called out urgently.

"Oh?" Zhong Shan raised an eyebrow in surprise.

The group then detailed the events that had transpired outside. Zhong Shan analyzed everything carefully in his mind while his counterpart in the yang realm began questioning the Clay Bodhisattva.

After hearing Zhong Shan's account, the Clay Bodhisattva was astonished. "Your Majesty, are you saying there's a gap of about two hundred miles in Shenxiu's 'Dragon-Trapping Urn Array'?"

"It seems so," Zhong Shan nodded.

The Clay Bodhisattva's expression turned peculiar. "Shenxiu's lifelong reputation has been completely ruined by Your Majesty and the Empress!"

"How so?" Zhong Shan asked, puzzled.

"This array is one of the most powerful of Shenxiu's lineage, and it consumes an enormous amount of resources—spirit stones and endless materials, enough to make anyone envious."

"Oh?"

"To put it in perspective, the materials and spirit stones used could buy five imperial dynasties!" the Clay Bodhisattva explained.

"Five imperial dynasties?" Zhong Shan was taken aback.

Zhong Shan understood the significance of the Clay Bodhisattva's words. The resources were not only the spirit stones and materials of the royal family but also those of the common people. The total consumption was unimaginably vast.

"However, for the Earth Book, it's all worth it," the Clay Bodhisattva added. Even immortals from the Great Thousand World coveted the Earth Book. Exchanging such resources for it was indeed worthwhile.

"But it seems that Your Majesty and the Empress have destroyed it all!" the Clay Bodhisattva said.

"Oh? Didn't the living beings ultimately transform into the yellow dragon?" Zhong Shan asked.

"They did, but it won't last. If there were no flaws, the yellow dragon's power would remain unchanged. However, with that gap, the essence of the formation is leaking out. With each leak, the yellow dragon's strength weakens. Eventually, it will completely collapse," the Clay Bodhisattva explained, looking at Zhong Shan with a complex expression.

Although the Clay Bodhisattva did not dare to speak it aloud, he continually marveled at His Majesty's identity as a "calamity star." Wherever Zhong Shan went, trouble followed. This time it was the "Dragon-Trapping Urn Array," previously it had been the siege of Nie Fancheng at the Ten Thousand Pill Conference, the catastrophic end of Elysium, and the closed-mouth meditation of the Return to Origin Buddha. Each encounter with His Majesty resulted in these renowned figures of the world meeting their downfall, one after another, in a manner that was earth-shattering, soul-stirring, and unforgettable.

As Zhong Shan absorbed the situation, far to the south of the Underworld's grand formation, Shenxiu observed the array before him. He held a piece of jade in his hand, using it to control the yellow dragon within. In front of Shenxiu, an image conjured by magic showed the yellow dragon battling the Wu clan member.

Ye Qingcheng watched with satisfaction.

"Gathering countless strong figures and three Heavenly Extreme cultivators, this yellow dragon's power is indeed extraordinarily formidable. Even that transformed Wu is no match, retreating step by step!" Ye Qingcheng said with satisfaction.

"Yes, it's mainly due to the power of the grand array. The strong figures are merely there to bind the spirits. As long as the array stands, the yellow dragon's power remains undiminished, and there's no doubt about securing the Earth Book," Shenxiu said with a pleased smile.

"Indeed, many thanks to Master Shenxiu for this!" Ye Qingcheng also smiled contentedly.

Suddenly, Shenxiu's expression changed.

"Master Shenxiu, what's wrong?" Ye Qingcheng asked in confusion.

"It's not right. The essence of the formation is leaking. Leaking? How could this be?" Shenxiu kept examining the jade in his hand, unwilling to believe it.

"Master Shenxiu? What's the problem?" Ye Qingcheng asked again.

"There must be a flaw in the array. Someone did not set it up according to specifications!" Shenxiu's face turned grim.

"Impossible. I meticulously selected all the principal formation setters for the sixty-three positions," Ye Qingcheng said immediately but still furrowed his brows, starting to believe Shenxiu.

"Hurry, we need to find and fix it before it's too late!" Shenxiu urged.

"Alright, let's each take a side!" Ye Qingcheng responded promptly.

The two then quickly moved along the sides of the great urn, trying to find the source of the problem as fast as possible.

At the 'Excess' position, Zhong Shan understood everything.

"Forget it, this isn't our concern. Qianyou, activate the formation one last time, and I'll take us out," Zhong Shan said decisively.

"Alright!" Gu Qianyou nodded, making one final push with the formation.

Then, on a white cloud, Zhong Shan lifted everyone. While others couldn't distinguish directions within the Feng Shui formation, Zhong Shan's shadow body had no such restrictions. The cloud flashed, heading towards the outer edge.

Meanwhile, on a mountain peak at the formation's boundary, a purple-haired man's face lit up with joy.

"The enemy's Feng Shui formation is weakening? Good, good, it's almost done!" the purple-haired man exclaimed in delight.