Chapter 437 - 436: The Supreme Ancestor’s Array, Four Cultivators Challenge the Demon Emperor

VROOOOOOM!

Emperor Tianxu’s Qilin aura erupted in a brilliant wave of golden light. His cultivation surged back to the Peak of Void Refinement, and the golden halberd in his hand released a deep, resonant hum as the weapon’s dormant power awakened.

The cracks in his armor remained, but the spiritual Qi flowing through his body had regained its former depth.

Beside him, Emperor Nanheng’s Vermilion Bird flames burst into a towering inferno.

Her damaged fan trembled as the restored laws allowed her to summon a portion of its original power. Crimson fire spread around her body, forming the outline of a majestic bird whose wings illuminated the astral debris.

Although the artifact had suffered severe damage during the earlier battles, her cultivation had returned to the Peak of Void Refinement. It gave her enough strength to participate in the formation.

Emperor Beiming’s restoration was equally dramatic.

The Black Tortoise shield expanded behind him, its dark surface growing until it resembled a mountain suspended in the void. The enormous phantom of a tortoise emerged from the shield, spreading a defensive aura across the surrounding space.

Beiming’s cultivation returned to the Peak of Void Refinement, and the heavy pressure of his restored bloodline steadied his battered body.

For the first time since the calamity began, the three Emperors had recovered their full strength.

Yet the sight before them quickly reminded them that restored cultivation alone would not be enough.

Hovering in the astral void ahead was the Supreme Grand Elder, surrounded by a storm of sickly gray light. His newly regenerated body appeared stronger than the frail figure that had spent three millennia in seclusion, but his skin was already showing faint cracks beneath the pressure of his unstable cultivation.

The energy around him bent the surrounding space, drawing fragments of ancient stone into a slow orbit around his body.

His aura was unmistakably that of the Early Stage of Body Integration.

However, the gray radiance surrounding him carried the clear signs of decay. It pulsed irregularly, growing brighter before dimming again, as though the energy sustaining his breakthrough was being consumed from within.

Every fluctuation caused the surrounding space to tremble, and his expression revealed that he was fully aware of how little time remained.

"Ancestors be praised," Emperor Tianxu said, bowing deeply despite the restored power coursing through his body. "Supreme Grand Elder, you have achieved what we believed impossible."

"Save your breath, Tianxu," the Supreme Grand Elder replied.

His milk-white eyes remained fixed on the massive spatial rift hanging above the Barrier Realm. Through that opening, the four humans could see the Hollow Beyond, where colossal demonic arms continued dragging the remaining Wonders toward the abyss.

The sight was so overwhelming that even the restored Emperors felt their confidence falter.

The Whispering Mirage Woods stretched across an immense sphere of emerald light. The Primordial Volcanic Forge blazed like a captured star, while the Continental Land carried entire mountain ranges and ruined empires within its expanding mass.

Farther away, the Floating Mountains were being pulled toward the same rift, their sealed Golden Gate still standing at the summit.

The demonic hands showed no sign of weakening.

"My time is incredibly short," the Supreme Grand Elder stated. His gray aura flickered as another portion of his lifespan disappeared into the forbidden method. "I have forced my way into the Early Stage of Body Integration, but the Demon Emperor who just emerged possesses a foundation far denser than mine."

"His aura carries the weight of the Middle Stage of Body Integration, and my current cultivation cannot withstand him in a direct confrontation."

Emperor Beiming’s expression darkened.

"Then what do you propose?" he asked. "Even if we combine our strength, we cannot overpower an opponent whose cultivation is a full stage beyond yours. The array may increase your output, but if his foundation is truly that terrifying, we could all be killed before we accomplish anything."

"We will not challenge him directly," the Supreme Grand Elder answered.

He raised one skeletal finger and pointed toward the enormous demonic hands. His expression remained cold, although the gray light in his eyes revealed the strain of maintaining his temporary breakthrough.

"The enemy is attempting to remove the Wonders from the Nine Provinces. Those structures are connected to the foundational laws of our world, and he is using their removal to gather materials for a purpose we do not yet understand."

He paused, allowing the three Emperors to examine the situation.

"If the Wonders are pulled completely into the Hollow Beyond, the damage to the Nine Provinces may become irreversible. Our objective is not to defeat the Demon Emperor in a single exchange. We must disrupt his control over the harvest, even if only for a brief period."

"If we can sever his grip or destabilize the spatial compression surrounding the Wonders, the resulting backlash may injure him."

Emperor Tianxu’s eyes narrowed as he considered the proposal.

The plan was dangerous, but it offered a target that could be reached without directly confronting the enemy’s full cultivation. The enormous hands were projections of the Demon Emperor’s authority, yet they were also the instruments through which he was carrying out the harvest.

If their movements could be interrupted, the consequences might force him to divert his attention.

That brief distraction could be more valuable than any direct exchange of attacks.

"The Supreme Ancestor’s Array," Tianxu said, understanding the intention. "We will gather our remaining imperial foundations and use them to amplify your attack. If the array can stabilize your output, you may be able to strike through the dimensional rift without exposing yourself to the Demon Emperor’s full power."

"Correct," the Supreme Grand Elder replied. "The array was designed for precisely this kind of emergency, although its original purpose was to defend the Nine Provinces against an invasion from beyond the world. We will use it to gather the combined strength of the three imperial bloodlines and concentrate that power into a single conduit."

Emperor Nanheng looked toward the damaged Vermilion Bird fan in her hand.

"The array will drain our foundations," she said. "If we use it at full power, we may lose the strength required to defend ourselves afterward. And if the enemy breaks the formation, the backlash could destroy our cultivation entirely."

"That is a possibility," the Supreme Grand Elder acknowledged. "But if we do nothing, the Nine Provinces will be harvested before we can mount another resistance. Our strength is already insufficient to fight him directly, and the world we once protected is being dismantled before our eyes."

His gaze swept across the three Emperors.