"Senior Zi, don't act." Seeing that things were turning dire, Chu Feng sent a secret voice transmission. "Senior Ying hasn't used his full strength yet, and I keep feeling that the Soul Mansion Sect's sect master is so fearless precisely because he has hidden trump cards of his own."
"If the two of them each unleash their true abilities, then their strength will completely overshadow that of ordinary second-grade True Immortals. At that point, if you're on the battlefield, you'll only be a distraction that Senior Ying has to worry about."
After hearing Chu Feng's words, Zi Xunyi — who had been itching to join the fight — gave up the idea of entering the fray.
She understood, too. Although she didn't know what trump cards the Soul Mansion Sect's sect master still held, she knew full well that Ying Mingchao was a True Immortal who had awakened God's Bestowed Power.
That fact had long been spread by the Prophecy Master. It was common knowledge throughout the Hundred Refinements Ordinary Realm.
It was precisely because Ying Mingchao was a second-grade True Immortal who had awakened God's Bestowed Power that people regarded him as the strongest cultivator in the entire Hundred Refinements Ordinary Realm.
Presumably, the reason the abbot of the Buddha Light Heavenly Temple and the sect master of the Sword-wielding Immortal Sect had not used force to stop Ying Mingchao earlier was also out of fear of his true strength.
But because this fact was known to all, the Soul Mansion Sect's sect master certainly knew it too — and it was for this reason that Zi Xunyi felt Chu Feng's reasoning was sound.
Since the sect master clearly knew that Ying Mingchao had awakened God's Bestowed Power and was no ordinary second-grade True Immortal, yet still carried himself with such unwavering confidence, then he… must possess some means of countering Ying Mingchao.
At that thought, the hand gripping the Ancestral Armament tightened even further. Chu Feng could even hear the cracking sound of Zi Xunyi's knuckles.
"Senior, we don't need to enter the fray directly, but we can still help Senior Ying Mingchao," Chu Feng transmitted secretly once more.
"What do you mean?" Zi Xunyi asked, a glint of light appearing in her eyes.
"Since you, Senior, have also received Master Kaihong's inheritance, I was wondering whether you might know this particular formation."
Chu Feng then described a formation to Zi Xunyi.
Zi Xunyi did not know this formation, but she was, after all, a highly skilled Spirit World Master. Even from Chu Feng's verbal description alone, she was able to grasp the general structure.
Following that, Chu Feng and Zi Xunyi began to quietly set up the formation. The reason it had to be done in secret was to avoid drawing attention.
At this point, the alliance army had already crumbled. For the sake of personal gain, even the abbot of the Buddha Light Heavenly Temple and the sect master of the Sword-wielding Immortal Sect were siding with the Soul Mansion Sect.
If they discovered that Chu Feng and Zi Xunyi were setting up a formation that would benefit Ying Mingchao, no one could say whether they would step in to stop them.
Therefore, the formation had to be arranged in secret. Fortunately, both Chu Feng and Zi Xunyi were masters of barrier techniques. While silently arranging a formation within one's own body did increase the difficulty, with the two of them working together — each handling half — given enough time, the formation could be completed.
Though this stalemate between Ying Mingchao and the Soul Mansion Sect's sect master, with victory and defeat impossible to call, was driving Zi Xunyi and Chu Feng to distraction…
Those who had been blinded by greed, hoping to obtain the path of martial cultivation from the Soul Mansion Sect's great formation, were secretly rejoicing.
At first, when Ying Mingchao and the Soul Mansion Sect's sect master had just begun clashing, they had been afraid — afraid that Ying Mingchao would simply cut down the sect master on the spot. After all, Ying Mingchao was universally acknowledged as the strongest cultivator in the Hundred Refinements Ordinary Realm.
But now it seemed the two were evenly matched, and with the abbot of the Buddha Light Heavenly Temple and the sect master of the Sword-wielding Immortal Sect showing no intention of intervening, they naturally felt much more at ease.
Rooooar—
But just then, a roar like that of a savage beast suddenly echoed from within Ying Mingchao's body.
At the moment the roar sounded, the shadow of a massive beast appeared in the sky above. Its aura was oppressive, as though it would devour all living things, sending many of those present into cold terror, their bodies trembling uncontrollably.
BOOM—
Almost simultaneously, an explosion rang out from within the two fighters' battleground. The Soul Mansion Sect's sect master had actually been knocked back.
Not only knocked back — there was now a bloody hole in his left chest. His left side had been pierced clean through, and traces of blood were clearly visible at the corner of his mouth.
And as for Ying Mingchao, he was now completely different from before. His eyes had turned an emerald green, and even his teeth had taken on a bestial shape. That green aura, like emerald flames, coiled and writhed around his body.
The Ying Mingchao of this moment was several times — no, many times — more powerful than before.
"God's Bestowed Power?!"
Upon seeing this scene, everyone was shaken to their core. They had nearly forgotten — Ying Mingchao was no ordinary second-grade True Immortal. He was an existence who had awakened God's Bestowed Power.
Most importantly, they had only heard about it before, so there had still been a measure of doubt. But now they were witnessing it with their own eyes. How could they not panic?