Undying Life

Chapter 936: Twists and Turns

Sima Yuan made a sudden grab with his palm, immediately drawing the attention of the surrounding powerful figures.

"Bastard!"

A chorus of enraged voices erupted from the assembled ancient immortals.

The Qiankun Cauldron was a prize everyone had agreed to leave untouched, out of mutual respect and understanding. Anyone attempting to seize it would become the common enemy of all ancient immortals. At this moment, it still belonged to the Primordial Holy King, and thus was under Zhong Shan's protection. No one had any objections to this arrangement. Until the battle's outcome was decided, no one was to make a move, not even Sima Yuan, who was allied with the Primordial Holy King.

Sima Yuan moved too quickly. Having prepared to snatch the Qiankun Cauldron, he acted with the utmost speed. By the time the other ancient immortals noticed, his palm was already near Zhong Shan.

With a resounding explosion, the gigantic palm that Sima Yuan had formed disintegrated. He was sent flying backwards by a powerful surge of hostility.

Sima Yuan couldn't believe that the last person on the mountain, Zhong Shan, could wield such immense power.

As Sima Yuan was sent flying, the ancient immortals closed in on him, glaring at the one who had broken the unspoken rules.

Before the Qiankun Cauldron, a long purple tail emerged in front of Zhong Shan, exuding a powerful sword energy that had blasted Sima Yuan away.

The Baji Heavenly Tail?

Standing on Zhong Shan's shoulder, the Baji Heavenly Tail exuded an air of arrogance, casting a cold gaze at the surrounding ancient immortals.

At this moment, the Baji Heavenly Tail no longer had much to gain from consuming ancient immortals. Thus, the longing gaze it once had when facing Yan Hui had vanished.

Zhong Shan's divine beast, the Baji Heavenly Tail?

Everyone looked towards Zhong Shan's shoulder. How had it appeared? It seemed to have materialized out of thin air.

The Baji Heavenly Tail had blocked Sima Yuan.

Although Zhong Shan had become the center of attention, no one made another move. They waited for the outcome of the battle between the Primordial Holy King and the Ancient Buddha of the Burning Lamp.

Sima Yuan, however, was now deeply guarded against by the ancient immortals. He was a destabilizing element, attempting to seize the Qiankun Cauldron, and had earned everyone's distrust.

Remarkably, Sima Yuan appeared uninjured. Everyone looked towards the Purple Cloud Sect Master, as both had been wounded in their recent battle. Were they merely putting on a show?

Sima Yuan glared at Zhong Shan with hatred. He should have listened to his son, Sima Qing, and eliminated Zhong Shan earlier to avoid this situation.

Suppressing his frustration, Sima Yuan flew towards a distant mountain peak, joining the ranks of ancient immortals competing for the Qiankun Cauldron. Besides the Burning Lamp, Zhong Shan now faced seventeen ancient immortals as adversaries.

Sima Yuan lightly tapped his foot, sending a subtle energy through the mountain into the earth, where it vanished.

In a remote and desolate valley to the south, surrounded by mist as if shrouded in a grand formation, Zhong Shan would have immediately recognized the feng shui array as identical to the one Sima Zongheng had used earlier.

The valley was filled with soldiers of the Primordial Holy King, or more precisely, the Sima family's private army.

A man in a red robe stood guard before a small formation. Suddenly, the formation glowed brightly.

"The master has sent a message. It's time. The Qiankun Cauldron has been lured into the formation by the master!" the man in the red robe exclaimed excitedly.

"Start the formation!" The man in the red robe stood up and waved his hand.

"Yes!" The disciples of the Sima family immediately began setting up the formation.

This scene unfolded in dozens of different places. Clearly, this was a meticulously planned scheme, a grand feng shui array designed by Sima Yuan long ago, aimed specifically at the Qiankun Cauldron on Fang Mountain.

As formations were set up in one place after another, in the west of Fang Mountain, Sima Zongheng lay crippled, his cultivation destroyed by Zhong Shan, paralyzed on the ground with a face full of hatred.

Reflecting on his encounters with Zhong Shan, Sima Zongheng was filled with regret. A harbinger of disaster? A nemesis? Was Zhong Shan truly his nemesis? Why did misfortune strike him every time he crossed paths with Zhong Shan, one disaster after another?

The thought of this filled Sima Zongheng's chest with even more frustration. Several times he wanted to spit out blood but managed to suppress it.

At that moment, a faint green light suddenly emitted from beneath a nearby corpse.

Sima Zongheng lifted the corpse, revealing a small glowing formation that had been hidden underneath. Zhong Shan had not discovered it earlier because the corpse had covered it.

Seeing the glowing formation, Sima Zongheng couldn't hold back anymore and spat out a mouthful of blood.

The master's grand plan had begun, but in his segment, there was a critical failure. The feng shui array had been destroyed by Zhong Shan.

"Oh my god, why am I so unlucky?" Sima Zongheng coughed up another liter of blood and fainted.

In front of Fang Mountain, the fierce battle continued. The dominance of the Primordial Holy King seemed to inspire everyone. Ten tails? Was he truly the foremost ancient immortal?

With a tremendous explosion, the blue light in the sky abruptly dissipated. The twenty-four Dinghai Pearls shattered, and the Ancient Buddha of the Burning Lamp was struck into the ground, creating a massive crater.

The body of the Ancient Buddha of the Burning Lamp was completely charred, turned into what seemed like a piece of blackened coal, exuding a deathly aura.

In mid-air, the Primordial Holy King let out a slight breath, his ten tails swaying majestically behind him, exuding an aura of absolute dominance.

A moment of silence fell over the powerful beings, including all the ancient immortals, who silently gazed at the Primordial Holy King.

Then they looked at the Ancient Buddha of the Burning Lamp on the ground, now a piece of charred coal.

Had the Ancient Buddha of the Burning Lamp been defeated?

The Primordial Holy King appeared slightly fatigued, while the Ancient Buddha of the Burning Lamp was in a far worse condition.

Fight? Who else would dare to fight?

Just as everyone hesitated.

"Crack!"

The piece of charred coal that was the Ancient Buddha of the Burning Lamp suddenly made a crisp sound.

Everyone looked and saw a crack appear on the surface of the charred body.

A crack?

"Crack, crack, crack..."

A series of cracking sounds followed, and spider-web-like fissures spread across the charred surface. A vibrant life force began to emerge from within the deathly aura.

"Life force?"

Almost everyone's faces changed. The Ancient Buddha of the Burning Lamp wasn't dead?

With a snap, a small piece of the charred surface fell off, revealing tender white skin underneath. The skin of the Ancient Buddha of the Burning Lamp?

Suddenly, a massive aura burst forth from within the charred body, sending waves of immense energy sweeping in all directions, pressing heavily on everyone's hearts.

"Ancestral Immortal?"

Someone exclaimed in shock.

"Boom!"

A massive explosion scattered the charred remains, and an overwhelming surge of green energy enveloped the Burning Lamp. Above the green energy, a green lamp reappeared.

Wasn't that green lamp destroyed by the Primordial Holy King earlier? How had it restored itself?

Under the shroud of green light, the ancient immortals sensed something ominous for an entire incense stick's time. Even the Primordial Holy King widened his eyes in disbelief.

"He's broken through?" The Primordial Holy King muttered incredulously.

"Bang!"

With the dispersion of the green light, the Burning Lamp was revealed.

The Burning Lamp had recovered completely, looking radiant and unscathed, exuding a brilliant light.

"Amitabha!" The Burning Lamp suddenly intoned a Buddhist chant.

"Thank you, Primordial Holy King, for helping me understand life and death!" The Burning Lamp said calmly.

"Understanding life and death and achieving the level of an Ancestral Immortal? No, an Ancestral Buddha?" The Primordial Holy King frowned deeply.

No one expected this twist. Just when he had almost dominated the competition, the Burning Lamp broke through at the last moment? Achieving the level of an Ancestral Immortal? Was it really that easy?

The ancient immortals were equally stunned, staring at the Burning Lamp. His luck was extraordinary.

"I told you, the Qiankun Cauldron is destined for my sect. Primordial Holy King, it would be wise not to persist," the Burning Lamp said with a smile.

The twenty-four Dinghai Pearls had shattered, but it didn't matter. For the Burning Lamp, the gain of becoming an Ancestral Immortal was more significant than ten sets of Dinghai Pearls. Besides, wasn't there still a supreme treasure of a sage in front of him?

The situation grew even more bizarre. Moments ago, the ancient immortals were guarding against the Primordial Holy King. Now, they were all wary of the Burning Lamp.

An Ancestral Immortal was different from an ancient immortal. Even the weakest Ancestral Immortal was still an Ancestral Immortal, the highest level below a sage.

With the Burning Lamp reaching the level of Ancestral Immortal, who could still fight for the cauldron?

"Ancestral Immortal? I refuse to believe in your luck! Great Perfection Divine Palm!" The Primordial Holy King shouted in anger.

As he spoke, the Primordial Holy King struck at the Burning Lamp with all his might.

With the strike, ten palms appeared from different directions, crashing towards the Burning Lamp.

At the center of the ten palms, the Burning Lamp chanted calmly.

"Using this move again? It could have killed me earlier, but now it poses no threat." The Burning Lamp said lightly.

"Boom!"

Before the ten massive palms, which sealed off the sky and the earth, could hit the Burning Lamp, he suddenly vanished. The ten palms collided and neutralized each other, causing ripples in space.

"Boom!"

The Burning Lamp mysteriously appeared behind the Primordial Holy King and delivered a fierce strike, sending the king flying. In mid-air, the Primordial Holy King split into two, revealing both himself and the Nine-tailed Princess.

With one strike, the ten-tail fusion was broken.

The Primordial Holy King and the Nine-tailed Princess landed on Fang Mountain, both with blood trickling from their mouths. They glared coldly at the Burning Lamp.

"Your distraction prevents you from ever fusing permanently. At most, you can combine the ten tails for a short time, isn't that right?" The Burning Lamp said with a faint smile.

Now dominating the scene, the Burning Lamp was determined to claim the Qiankun Cauldron.

"Ahhhh!"

As the Burning Lamp was about to seize the Qiankun Cauldron, a scream echoed from afar.

At that moment, everyone noticed that the sky and all directions were suddenly filled with a thick yellow fog.

The person who screamed was now engulfed by the yellow fog, and from the fog emerged a ferocious yellow dragon.

Had that person turned into a yellow dragon?

Not just him. Anyone touched by the yellow fog painfully transformed into yellow dragons, unaffected by any protective shields, all morphing into yellow dragons.

"Masking the heavens, reversing forms? Is this a feng shui array?" The Burning Lamp frowned in astonishment.