A pinpoint of fire seeped through a spot on the umbrella's surface, quickly burning through to form a gaping hole. As the flames spread, the hole grew ever larger. Not only that, the light radiating from the umbrella began to flicker erratically before dimming rapidly.
Madam Lan stared at her Artifact, her eyes full of reluctance and heartache. This treasure had been bestowed upon her by a senior of her sect — it could effortlessly withstand the full-force strike of a mid-grade Open Heaven Realm cultivator. She never imagined it would be destroyed here. Compared to the single piece of seventh-grade Sun Star True Gold she had obtained, she honestly could not tell whether she had come out ahead or fallen behind.
But dwelling on such thoughts was meaningless now. While her mind raced, a thunderous boom erupted, and the umbrella shattered apart. The dazzling radiance it had been shielding from view once again flooded everyone's vision, and scorching power swept outward in every direction.
Shrill screams tore through the air. The Open Heaven Realm cultivators who had been standing closest to the platform were instantly engulfed in raging flames, each transformed into a ball of fire. No matter how desperately they channeled their own power, they could not extinguish the Golden Crow True Fire consuming their bodies.
Those farther away fared somewhat better, but they too were desperately surging their strength to ward off the Golden Crow True Fire spreading toward them.
Auras of world-strength billowed one after another as the phantom images of dozens of unique, miniature Universe Worlds materialized behind these Open Heaven Realm cultivators.
Yang Kai also sensed the danger. He hesitated briefly between the Mysterious World Bead, the Six Harmonies Pouch, and the Mountains and Rivers Bell before vanishing into the Six Harmonies Pouch in a flash. At the same time, he brought forth the Mountains and Rivers Bell, deploying it over the pouch as cover. With these two layers of defense in place, he finally felt a measure of safety.
The next instant, his mind shuddered and his chest felt as though someone had struck it a savage blow. His blood churned and an urge to vomit surged up his throat.
He knew the Mountains and Rivers Bell must have suffered extremely severe damage, and the backlash had affected him as well.
Ten breaths. The Golden Crow True Fire raged for a mere ten breaths.
But after those ten breaths, corpses littered the entire great hall. Nearly half of the several dozen Open Heaven Realm cultivators present were dead — almost all burned to death by the Golden Crow True Fire. Those who had survived were universally injured, their faces pale as sheets.
And this was only because Madam Lan had brought forth her prized treasure to shield them. If that umbrella Artifact had not blocked the fiercest assault of the Golden Crow True Fire, every low-grade Open Heaven Realm cultivator in the hall would likely have perished on the spot.
It was entirely thanks to Madam Lan's umbrella holding the line that the Golden Crow True Fire's power was greatly diminished, allowing most people to survive. The outcome could easily have been total annihilation.
The handful of mid-grade Open Heaven Realm cultivators had suffered no serious injuries, but their expressions were masks of terror. Faced with such overwhelming might from an adult Golden Crow, who would dare harbor thoughts of fighting it?
In one corner of the great hall, Yang Kai emerged from the Six Harmonies Pouch and immediately draped the Shadowless Veil over himself, resuming his concealment.
Fortunately, the chaos inside the hall moments ago had been absolute — everyone had been scrambling to save their own lives — so no one had noticed his situation. Otherwise, an Emperor Heaven Realm cultivator appearing in this place would have been impossible to overlook.
After a brief inspection, Yang Kai's face twitched, and a pained expression crossed his features.
The Mountains and Rivers Bell was as good as ruined. Its surface was covered in scorch marks, and it had lost most of its spiritual resonance. Unless he could find someone to repair it and then spend a lengthy period nurturing it back to health, it would be virtually unusable again.
This primordial extraordinary treasure had been by his side ever since his journey through the Broken Star Sea, and now it was destroyed here. Though he had already steeled himself for the possibility, when the reality was laid bare before him, Yang Kai still felt a pang of reluctance.
But given the situation moments ago, he had simply had no choice.
The Golden Crow True Fire had erupted with unknown power — he had no way to gauge its full extent. He had not dared hide inside the Mysterious World Bead, because once he retreated into the small world within, the Bead itself would be exposed in the great hall, exposed directly to the Golden Crow True Fire. Yang Kai could not be certain whether the Mysterious World Bead could survive such flames unscathed. If anything went wrong, to say nothing of never recovering the herb garden inside, Mu Zhu and Mu Lu were living in there as well.
Hiding inside the Six Harmonies Pouch had been the safest option, and as an additional precaution, he had deployed the Mountains and Rivers Bell over it.
As it turned out, this arrangement had not been without effect. Compared to the universally injured Open Heaven Realm cultivators, he had suffered nothing more than a minor backlash from the destruction of his Artifact, with no other ill effects.
The Mountains and Rivers Bell, that primordial extraordinary treasure, had met its end at last. Yang Kai consoled himself with that thought, but now was hardly the time for sentiment. The Golden Crow had feigned death only to revive itself — the crisis was far from over. If he could not escape this place, his chances of survival were slim.
He turned to survey his surroundings and spotted Wei Que and Tao Rongfang huddled in a corner on the far side, their faces white. By the looks of it, the two of them were in decent shape — there were no visible injuries.
This was likely thanks to his timely warning. When the restrictions on the platform were broken, everyone had surged forward — only the two from Great Moon Province and he himself had retreated. When the Golden Crow True Fire erupted, the others had absorbed the brunt of it, and the further back one stood, the weaker its power naturally became.
Should he go and regroup with them? At a time like this, having two Open Heaven Realm cultivators by his side would certainly improve his odds of survival.
The thought had barely formed when, at the center of the great hall, an overwhelming surge of murderous intent exploded into existence.
Yang Kai looked over in shock. There stood the Golden Crow upon the platform, its golden eyes fixed upon Madam Lan of the First Inn, burning with a hatred carved deep into bone.