Chapter 247: Sovereign of the World (16) — Returning to the Homeland (2)

Centuries passed in the blink of an eye. Jiuyou stepped into Spiritual Abyss City once more.

The mountains, rivers, and overall layout of the city remained largely unchanged, yet it was several times more prosperous than before, the entire city brimming with a vibrant, worldly charm. As the years went by, the once-strained relationship between the Lingchuan region and the Heavenly Abyss Sea had long since eased, leading to a constant stream of traveling cultivators.

Over the past few centuries, the two great regions mutually exchanged what they had for what they lacked, allowing resources to circulate freely. Even though private schemes and friction over interests were unavoidable, it did not hinder the overall trend. By drawing on strengths to offset weaknesses, not only did the Cultivation World fully recover its former vitality after the great war, but its overall foundation steadily climbed. Today, the number of Nascent Soul cultivators hidden in the Abyssal Sea and Lingchuan had reached an impressive six to seven hundred, making both regions far stronger than in the past.

People bustled through the city streets. Cultivators hurried along, busying themselves with their training and daily affairs. Jiuyou landed quietly in the marketplace, flawlessly concealing his aura. As he blended into the crowd, not a single person noticed this strange traveler who had suddenly appeared.

Ignoring the surrounding clamor, he walked straight through the crisscrossing streets and alleys, arriving at the center of Spiritual Abyss City before the Ancient Teleportation Array that spanned the two realms.

This place was normally bustling with noise year-round, yet there were no crowds lining up before the array at the moment. Clearly, it was still too early for the great array's next public activation.

An observant Golden Core guard captain saw Jiuyou standing motionless before the array for a long time and hurried forward, his posture exceedingly respectful. "Senior, do you wish to use the Ancient Teleportation Array to travel? To tell you the truth, this array just completed a cross-realm teleportation a few days ago. Its next public activation will not be for another five full years. You can rent a cave dwelling in the city to cultivate in peace and apply for a Token in advance. The earlier you apply, the further ahead you will be in the queue, saving you from a bitter wait."

Seeing this, the guards behind the captain all stood in solemn respect. Anyone their captain would bow to and call "Senior" had to be a top-tier figure at the Nascent Soul realm or above. They were absolutely not someone low-level cultivators like them could afford to offend or carelessly judge.

Faced with their well-intentioned advice, Jiuyou's expression remained indifferent, his tone devoid of the slightest ripple. "Since when were there so many tedious rules?"

Before his words even faded, he ignored everyone's stunned gazes. With a calm and unhurried gait, he took a step forward, walking directly into the very center of the ancient, majestic great array.

The guards were left dumbfounded, their faces full of bewilderment. Since ancient times, this cross-realm Ancient Teleportation Array had always required standard Tokens, the cooperation of multiple people, and the activation of formation nodes layer by layer. There had never been a precedent of a single person activating it on their own—this was an ironclad rule known to everyone in the Cultivation World.

But in the very next second, a shocking scene unfolded.

Jiuyou raised his palm and turned it slightly. Spiritual light flickered from his fingertips, and a trace of exceptionally pure Deity Transformation Dao rhyme flowed out quietly. He could effortlessly control the even older, far more complex primordial teleportation array on Baijing Island. This formation before him was nothing but child's play.

Rumble!

The long-silent ancient array awakened instantly. Formation patterns lit up layer by layer, and dazzling spiritual light swept in all directions. Dense clusters of ancient runes flowed upward in succession. The roar of grinding gears and the booming resonance of surging spiritual energy echoed endlessly. This entire great array was actually being forcibly activated by his solitary power!

All the surrounding guards froze completely in place, their eyes wide with disbelief.

The world knew that this array's barriers were formidable and its laws naturally formed. Even the seven peak Nascent Soul grand cultivators of the current Cultivation World could never activate it alone. Yet, this cultivator of unknown origin before them had shattered an eternal law with just the raise of his hand!

Amidst their terror, three streaks of escape light tore through the air from the distant edges of the city, speeding over with a fierce and imposing might.

"Audacious lunatic! Who dares to privately activate the ancient array?!"

A furious shout exploded in the air, echoing across the surroundings.

The arrivals were the three Middle Nascent Soul Stage cultivators stationed to guard Spiritual Abyss City's Teleportation Array. They had managed the array's order for years and commanded immense authority. But when the three landed and clearly saw the scene within the array, the fury on their faces instantly froze, replaced by extreme horror.

In the center of the great array stood only a single person!

One person suppressing a formation, one person shaking an ancient law!

Such unimaginable means had long since exceeded the limits of what a Nascent Soul cultivator could comprehend.

Before the three could calm their minds and voice their demands, Jiuyou, standing within the array, carelessly raised his eyes.

Just a single glance.

In an instant, the world darkened, and all spiritual light in the surroundings vanished. The three Nascent Soul cultivators felt their souls plunge into an endless ice cavern, into a gloomy abyss. In the unseen void, a supreme, golden, and dazzling giant eye suddenly manifested to cover the heavens. It looked down upon all living things, its gaze as piercingly cold as the judgment of the Heavenly Dao, firmly locking onto the very origin of their souls.

A bone-chilling pressure shrouded their bodies, sealing off all their movements, all their words, and every chance of escape.

Under the might of this single look, these three grand and mighty Middle Nascent Soul Stage experts went as stiff as clay statues and wooden carvings. Their souls trembled endlessly, their breathing nearly stopped, and boundless awe and terror welled up from the depths of their hearts.

This was simply not a power a Nascent Soul cultivator should possess!

An unknown amount of time passed before the array's spiritual light blazed to its peak. The sky-filling runes surged upward, and a blinding white light wrapped around Jiuyou's figure. In the blink of an eye, he completely vanished into the formation.

The supreme pressure fully receded, and clarity returned to the world.

Only then did the three Nascent Soul cultivators gasp heavily for air. Their backs were already drenched in cold sweat. They stared with lingering fear at the now-empty great array, their faces pale, their minds severely shaken.

Even now, they still dared not believe that such terrifying pressure had actually been emitted by that man. Just what kind of divine existence was he?

At the exact same moment, in the Heavenly Abyss Sea's Abyss Spirit City.

The cross-realm Ancient Teleportation Array that had been completely dormant, with its previously dim and obscure formation patterns, unexpectedly lit up in succession without any warning.

Many cultivators lingering and waiting in the city narrowed their eyes. A sharp-eyed cultivator suddenly cried out in a low voice, "Look! The array's spiritual light has awakened! This formation clearly just activated not long ago. According to the rules, shouldn't it take at least a few more years before it can be used again?"

As his words spread, countless nearby cultivators turned their heads. The entire plaza instantly erupted into an uproar. Everyone's gaze locked firmly onto the central great array, filled with suspicion and utter bewilderment.

Under the stunned gazes of the entire city's cultivators, boundless radiance suddenly erupted from within the formation. A dazzling pillar of light pierced through heaven and earth, shooting straight into the clouds and causing the surrounding void to tremble slightly.

The phenomenon alarmed all directions.

Three streaks of light tore through the sky at breakneck speed. It was none other than the three Middle Nascent Soul Stage cultivators guarding Abyss Spirit City's great array. Standing mid-air, their expressions were exceptionally solemn as they stared fixedly at the abruptly rising pillar of light, their hearts filled with shock and wariness.

"How bizarre! Just what kind of incident happened over in Lingchuan for them to dare trigger the two-realm great array on their own?"

No one answered. There was only the increasingly blazing spiritual light of the formation.

A moment later, the sky-piercing blinding light slowly receded and faded completely.

Light and shadow shifted in the center of the great array. A tall, straight figure in golden robes, moving with an unhurried gait, slowly stepped out from the dissipating spiritual light. With an aura as deep and unfathomable as the abyss, he stood quietly at the center of ten thousand gazes.