Chapter 677: Ten Directions Complete Annihilation

Standing in the thick fog, I was quite curious about Elder Chen's methods. The Dream Dao appealed to me second only to the Dao of Fate; observing it would greatly help my future self-study.

After all, since I possessed the Dream Wing Gu, I could travel freely between reality and the Deep Dream Layer. As long as I mastered the Dream Dao, I would effectively control all the resources in the entire Deep Dream Layer.

Ye Qingqiu placed Qi Ying in front of Elder Chen. The Ghost Infant Sect Master instinctively recoiled at the sight of the old man. He tried to dodge, but with all four of his limbs severed, he had nowhere to run.

"The Dream Dao isn't as mysterious as you all imagine. It is merely a minor path," Elder Chen said. His fingers rapidly tapped several major acupoints on the Ghost Infant Sect Master's head and torso. He didn't even use talismans or incantations, yet Qi Ying immediately settled down on the ground. His gaze grew vacant, his eyelids grew heavy, and finally, he closed his eyes and passed out completely.

"Please wait a moment," Elder Chen said, pressing a hand to Qi Ying's forehead and closing his own eyes. About five or six minutes passed. Just as everyone began to wonder what was happening, Elder Chen opened his eyes. "This man's heart is full of resentment, and his will is resolute. His dreamscape is entirely pitch-black and very difficult to enter."

He stood up and continued, "Rifling through his memories in a dream would require a full day and night of preparation. With a great enemy before us, I believe capturing Gao Jian alive is more important."

Hearing this, Ye Qingqiu let out a hearty laugh. "No matter. Once we capture Gao Jian, I'll have to trouble Fellow Daoist Chen to put in the effort."

They went back to discussing their plans to capture me alive. Not a single person noticed that Elder Chen's hand had not unclenched since examining Qi Ying's dream—as if he had made a truly shocking discovery.

Those involved are blind, but bystanders see clearly. Standing far away, I took in the entire scene. Watching the subtle shift in Elder Chen's demeanor left me deeply unsettled.

It was highly likely he already knew I possessed the potential of a fate usurper! He just hadn't mentioned it because of some unspoken concern.

'Elder Chen definitely has ties to the Two-Faced Buddha! His attitude toward fate usurpers is completely different from the sect cultivators,' I thought, unable to figure out his intentions.

Noon had passed. The sun still hung high in the sky, but it was no longer as blinding as before. Instead, it cast a gentle warmth.

After having his disciples wake Qi Ying, Ye Qingqiu straightened his Daoist robes, his expression solemn. "Everyone, the hour has arrived. I am about to activate the array. Before I do, however, I must make one thing clear."

His gaze swept across their faces. "Using Jiangcheng's feng shui layout, I have set up the Ten Directions Annihilation Grand Formation to counter their Ten Directions Ghost Refining Grand Formation. This array required nine hundred and ninety-nine Mystic Yellow Command Flags and boasts immense power. But since it was hastily constructed, unexpected issues are bound to arise during activation. Therefore, I will need the help of my fellow Daoists."

"Since we are already here, we will naturally lend our strength." Daoist Priest Mei's gaze lingered on Qi Ying. The wounds on Qi Ying's legs had yet to fully heal, and some spots were only hastily bandaged. Anyone with eyes could see that the ones who truly injured him were the Profound Truth Sect cultivators.

"Fellow Daoist Mei misunderstands me," Ye Qingqiu said, waving a hand. "I arrived in Jiangcheng a day ago. Originally, I intended to accompany my martial nephew to eradicate the Ghost Mother, but upon arriving, I made a terrifying discovery."

He raised a hand, pointing at the gap between the two great mountains to the north. Following his finger, one could see the eternally flowing river, as well as the millennium-old city resting on its banks. "That city is actually the array eye of a grand formation."

"An array eye? The entire ancient city?"

"Exactly. At first, I didn't dare believe it either, until I walked and measured every inch of the Old Town District myself." A glimmer of excitement surfaced in Ye Qingqiu's eyes. "The construction of this city secretly aligns with the Heavenly Stars and Earthly Fiends. Later, I reviewed maps of the surrounding counties and districts."

He pulled a hand-drawn map from his sleeve, unrolling it to let the others pass it around.

"Connect the constellations I marked, and you'll see that with Jiangcheng at the center, the thirty-six surrounding towns and counties form an unfathomably vast chessboard!" His voice rose slightly. "From the grand scale of a dragon vein to the minute details of a single house—I have never seen a feng shui layout built with an entire city as its array eye! This is a heaven-defying masterpiece! Completely unheard of!"

"A city as an array eye? Are you saying this colossal feng shui layout was artificially constructed?" Leng Qingxuan's Master hit upon the crucial point. "Then why would this person set up a feng shui layout in Jiangcheng? Generally speaking, feng shui terrain is all about life and death. Could it be that someone is buried here..."

He trailed off, saying no more, and instead looked up at the sky above.

"Exactly. What you said is exactly what I am worried about," Ye Qingqiu said, slowing his speech. "The Three Yin Sect's Ten Directions Ghost Refining Grand Formation is their Sect-Protecting Grand Formation. It draws upon the Henshan Yin Vein as its source and has been perfected by their disciples over nearly a century. It is practically flawless. Even with Qi Ying's help, it would be difficult for me to breach it quickly. Because of this, I borrowed Jiangcheng's local feng shui layout, channeling the city's dragon vein and the great river's water veins. Only then did I gain the capital to fight. But doing this comes with immense hidden dangers."

His tone shifted. "Man-made feng shui layouts are usually meant to seal away terrible entities. Since Jiangcheng's feng shui is so extraordinary, rashly manipulating it might release some kind of disaster. Therefore, I need my fellow Daoists to hold the line for me. If anything unexpected happens, I implore you all to lend a hand."

After Ye Qingqiu finished speaking, none of the cultivators present replied immediately. Hiding in the distant fog, my heart pounded wildly as I listened.

'This Ye Qingqiu has some serious nerve. To capture me alive, he actually tampered with Jiangcheng's feng shui layout!' I instinctively backed up a few steps. A long time ago, I heard Blind Liu mention that his ancestors had tampered with Jiangcheng's feng shui to suppress a flood dragon—and as a result, generation after generation of the Liu family had been trapped here, unable to leave.

The current situation was strikingly similar to the past. Ye Qingqiu had also tampered with Jiangcheng's feng shui to deal with me. Would he suffer a disastrous fate as well?

Compared to these outsider cultivators, I knew a piece of information that was far more terrifying. Whether it was the black magician I encountered during the Henshan Psychiatric Hospital livestream or Blind Liu, both had intentionally or unintentionally revealed to me that Jiangcheng was actually a massive tomb!

'When the eight characters gathered and Lu Xing opened the Heavenly Gate at the Lanjiang Dam, I saw a man bound by chains deep beneath Jiangcheng. He should be the master of that great tomb,' I thought, retreating silently and shaking the thoughts from my head. Right now, the most important thing was to escape Jiangcheng.

While Ye Qingqiu explained all this, Elder Chen was the only one whose expression remained calm, as if he had known all along.

"Jiangcheng has a long history, and it is no longer possible to verify who built it. The disasters suppressed within this feng shui layout may have dissipated into the river of time long ago," the Golden Mountain Sect's Daoist Administrator, Xu Yinglong, said, stepping in to ease the tension. "Regardless, the die is cast. Our top priority is to catch that little thief."

"Very well, we have no choice. We will protect Fellow Daoist Qingqiu as he casts the spell." Leng Qingxuan's Master and the Daoist from the Qingcheng Sect voiced their agreement. Elder Xu and the man in the suit merely nodded without saying a word.

Conversely, the scrawny old man who had been playing peacemaker smiled. "Plucking a single leaf to bring the autumn cold. You truly live up to the name Qingqiu. This old Daoist has certainly learned a thing or two today."

"Since no one has any objections, I will now open the altar and begin the ritual." Ye Qingqiu's expression was grave. He waved toward the mountainside, and soon, a Profound Truth Sect disciple hurried over holding a copper basin.

He thoroughly washed his hands in the basin and let them air-dry in the sunlight. Then, he stepped up to the altar and picked up a jade brush. "Heaven is round and earth is square, abiding by the nine chapters of law. As my brush descends today, ten thousand ghosts shall hide and submit!"

From where I stood, I couldn't clearly see what he was writing. I could only hear long stretches of incantations. I had seen these mantras in the Detailed Explanation of Profound Truth Dao Methods before, so I could roughly guess his intentions.

Ye Qingqiu personally drew the talisman, then burned it on the altar table once finished. The talisman dissolved into smoke that lingered without dissipating, enveloping the idol on the altar like a cloud of clear, pure energy.

"Three Pure Ones above, I chant today, walking the Five Sacred Mountains, let the Eight Seas hear and know." He used the burning talisman to light incense, then stepped onto the ritual altar. Standing perfectly between the two great mountains, he completely sealed off the only breach leading to the Three Yin Sect Daoist temple.

"The Heavenly Lord declares: I open the grounds of the ten saints."

"First grade activated, instantly knowing the heavy and light matters within a region."

"Second grade activated, discerning the presence of fortune and disaster in the mortal realm."

"Third grade activated, comprehending all comings and goings of good and evil, and the origins of karmic retribution."

...

Stepping onto the altar, Ye Qingqiu seemed like a completely different person. He continuously chanted incantations, his body shielded by a golden light.

With every line of his chant, the coiled golden dragon surrounding the Three Yin Sect seemed to awaken. One by one, the Command Flags snapped fiercely in the wind. The runes flashed brightly, forming an indescribably oppressive aura.

The sinister yin fog generated by the Ten Directions Ghost Refining Grand Formation was continuously pushed back by the Command Flags, steadily shrinking its area of effect.

'This guy is finally making his move.' Instead of heading straight back to the Three Yin Sect Daoist temple, I slowly retreated along with the receding fog. I kept a safe distance from the sect cultivators, ensuring I wouldn't be discovered while using my Judging Eye to scout their movements.

"Fourth grade activated, illuminating unfulfilled fortune and disaster with the mind."

When Ye Qingqiu chanted the fourth incantation, the pressure radiating from the Command Flags multiplied exponentially, carrying within it a power that didn't belong to the flags themselves.

'Is he starting to draw upon the effects of Jiangcheng's feng shui layout?' I thought. Just four incantations had cleared a quarter of the thick fog—and Ye Qingqiu was acting completely alone.

'It's going to be hard to hold them off. Why isn't Wang Shi ready yet? How much longer is he going to delay?' The fog was dissipating faster and faster. When the sect cultivators stayed their hands, they seemed ordinary, but once they acted, their might was staggering. I had to admit that I'd severely underestimated their strength.

'I can't just let him continue,' I thought as I fled, plunging my consciousness into the Ten Directions Talisman Order. 'Hopefully, this Ten Directions Ghost Refining Grand Formation can give me a pleasant surprise.'

The symbols on my left and right hands controlling the array's life gate and death gate shifted simultaneously. Raising the talisman order high, I activated the grand formation at the exact moment Ye Qingqiu chanted his fifth incantation.

"Leaving not a single breath, as one thought arises, it spans the ten directions, turning the myriad living beings to revere demons and worship ghosts!"