Chapter 263: Ruling the World (32) - Spatial Rift

'Those earlier trials could do nothing against our Deity Transformation cultivation. Since they couldn't stop us, why would the Blood Demon expend so much effort setting up layer upon layer of obstacles? It couldn't just be to give us an initial show of strength. I suspect the true killing array lies right before our eyes.'

Nine Nether thought, casting his gaze into the boundless pitch-black abyss before them.

The three men briefly exchanged thoughts, agreeing to support one another to safely cross this perilous terrain. Their minds made up, they said no more. With a tacit understanding, they leaped forward, flying straight into the depths of the abyss.

Hongce flew at the head of the group. Sweeping out his divine sense, he continuously channeled his divination arts to scout for spatial rifts hidden along the path ahead, avoiding the risk of being swept away by turbulent currents.

Nine Nether and Bai Xuanyi followed closely behind. Bai Xuanyi's face was taut with tension as he kept a constant watch on their surroundings. He already gripped the Nine Dragon Gourd, its surface rippling with a gentle, watery light, ready to unleash a divine ability at a moment's notice. Nine Nether brought out the three golden wheels he had obtained from Linghu Shou. The flying wheels rotated slowly around him, forming a solid barrier that blocked the scattered spatial turbulence leaking around them.

The deeper they descended into the abyss, the more numerous the spatial rifts became. Some of the tears were wide and glaring, exuding a violent, surging tearing force; fortunately, they were visible to the naked eye, allowing the trio to steer clear in advance. However, there were just as many rifts as thin as hairs, hidden in the void and impossible to guard against. Some completely eluded divine sense, only snapping into existence the moment someone stepped close. A single careless step into one would mean their body perishing and Dao vanishing.

For now, the three had yet to stumble into such insidious hidden rifts. Proceeding with extreme caution, they managed to bypass most of the dangers in advance.

As the three continued delving into the belly of the abyss, Hongce suddenly stopped in his tracks. His eyes locked onto the void ahead, his ten fingers flying through incantations as he pushed his divination arts to their absolute limit.

"Something's wrong. Stop at once!"

He shouted sharply, but he was a step too late. Bai Xuanyi had been entirely focused on probing the path ahead and had already darted forward. In that instant, the seemingly calm space shattered. A massive spatial tear emerged like a spinning vortex, unleashing a violent suction that viciously dragged at Bai Xuanyi's body.

Even a Deity Transformation Cultivator could hardly resist such overwhelming spatial power.

Nine Nether reacted with blinding speed. A brilliant golden whip whistled out from his sleeve, wrapping tightly around Bai Xuanyi's waist as he fought to drag the man back. The suction from the rift far exceeded his expectations. An immense force surged up the whip, violently jerking Nine Nether's body in midair. Unable to stop himself, he staggered two steps toward the tear, dragged by the massive pull.

"Damn it," Bai Xuanyi grunted. White light flashed around him as several illusory clones materialized—the escape art he relied on to break free. Yet the moment these clones appeared, they were shredded by the void's suction and swallowed by the rift. The spatial force had already locked onto him; ordinary escape arts were completely useless here.

"Brother Bai, hold steady!" Hongce cried out, his face fraught with anxiety. Abandoning his divinations, he drew rapid patterns in the air, laying down a void array on the spot. The surrounding space twisted and shuddered as four void chains forged from spiritual energy burst forth, tightly binding Bai Xuanyi's limbs. Working in tandem with Nine Nether's whip, they fought to haul him back.

Bai Xuanyi's body slowly began to pull away from the vortex's devouring reach. Just as the situation seemed to be improving, disaster struck. Without a hint of warning, a brand new spatial rift tore open right behind Hongce. His entire focus was locked onto the array, leaving him completely oblivious to the danger at his back. He had no time to dodge before the rift instantly swallowed him whole, vanishing him into the void.

"Daoist Hong!"

"Old Hong!"

Nine Nether and Bai Xuanyi cried out at almost the exact same time, but all that remained was the howling of turbulent currents. There was no trace of Hongce to be found, and no telling where the spatial turbulence had flung him.

With Hongce's sudden disappearance, Nine Nether lost the man sharing the burden of the suction, and the pressure on him spiked instantly. If this dragged on much longer, he would be pulled into the rift as well.

Watching this unfold, Bai Xuanyi's eyes turned bloodshot. He roared at Nine Nether, "It's a trap, it's all a trap! From the moment we stepped into the Mount Tianyuan Mystic Realm, we fell into its snare. That demon has been waiting here to ambush us. All those obstacles were just a smokescreen to deceive us! It was never afraid of us; its true targets were us all along! Daoist Nine Nether, go! You still have plenty of lifespan left, and there is still a sliver of hope for you to escape. You must leave this place alive and reveal the truth to the world! Warn the cultivators who come after us—they must never barge into this place and throw their lives away! Don't worry about me, just go!"

Before his voice could fade, the white light radiating from Bai Xuanyi violently erupted. He actively snapped the golden whip wrapped around his waist. With a lurch of his body, the spatial rift behind him swallowed him whole.

The pulling force vanished in an instant, catching Nine Nether slightly off guard. He shook his head and silently sighed. It was truly hard to fathom the choices these cultivators made when pushed to the brink. Yet, there was no denying that Bai Xuanyi's decisiveness had earned a measure of his respect.

This was absolutely no place to linger. Not daring to delay for even a moment, Nine Nether commanded his three golden wheels to forge a path ahead of him. He followed closely behind them, fleeing at full speed back the way they had come. But the very instant one of the golden wheels swept forward, the void suddenly tore open, swallowing the magic treasure whole.

Before Nine Nether could even steady himself, the void beside him rippled in rapid succession. Rifts tore out of thin air, swallowing his remaining two golden wheels into the void, one after another.

Nine Nether's heart sank. 'This is bad,' he thought, jerking sideways to narrowly dodge a cluster of rifts closing in to surround him.

Such perfectly timed harassment was absolutely no natural spatial collapse—something was clearly pulling the strings from the shadows... Before he could even finish the thought, the space directly above his head violently ripped open, and a massive spatial vortex slowly began to form.

Warning bells screamed in Nine Nether's divine sense. Channeling every ounce of his magic power, he shrouded himself in a thick layer of golden light and hurled out seven or eight defensive magic treasures in rapid succession. They hovered above his head in overlapping layers as he prepared to weather the vortex's suction, desperate to find an opening to escape.

Just as he was about to break free from the vortex's lock, the ground beneath his feet cracked open once more. A massive, opposing repulsive force violently erupted, swatting him straight down and sending him crashing right into the pitch-black tear.