The Nine Heavens Grand Formation was Grandmaster Wu Liang's magnum opus, the crowning crystallization of a lifetime's mastery of formation arts. It comprised nine layers of interlocking arrays, each connected to the next in an unbroken chain—hence the name Nine Heavens.
For this formation, Yang Kai had squandered nearly everything he'd gained in the Primordial Heavens. An ordinary person simply wouldn't have the nerve to attempt such a thing. But when the investment was this enormous, the returns couldn't possibly be small.
The formation could be divided into three parts. The first was its foundation—three layers of arrays designed to gather and channel spiritual energy, drawing upon the power of the stars to keep the formation running. This section possessed no offensive capability whatsoever, but a towering edifice begins at ground level, and this part was the bedrock upon which the entire Nine Heavens rested. Day and night it siphoned the energy of distant celestial bodies into the formation, maintaining its ceaseless operation, while excess power was stored away for emergencies. Moreover, these first three layers could self-repair—so long as the damage wasn't too catastrophic, they would gradually mend any breaches on their own.
The second part served as defense, again consisting of three layers. The first provided concealment; once activated, it rendered Void Land invisible to all detection. Anyone without a solid foundation in formation arts would never find Void Land's location, let alone discern its true state. The second layer generated illusions—those who entered would be beset by phantoms, unable to tell north from south. The third was pure protective shielding. Yang Kai had once been taken by the Landlady to visit a master artificer, where he'd specially commissioned two powerful Artifacts. One of them, the Heavenly Net Umbrella, had been installed by Grandmaster Wu Liang as the eye of this defensive array.
The Heavenly Net Umbrella alone had cost a fortune. Grandmaster Wu Liang had once declared that with this defensive layer active, even ten mid-grade Open Heaven cultivators attacking together for ten days and ten nights might not break through—a testament to its formidable strength. With Void Land now bristling with capable fighters, who would be given ten days and ten nights to attack with impunity?
As for the final three layers—these were the true offensive arrays. The vast majority of the celestial energy harvested by the Nine Heavens was stored here. Three layers, three modes of transformation, each more powerful than the last.
The Slaying Heaven Sword, forged alongside the Heavenly Net Umbrella, had been placed by Grandmaster Wu Liang as the eye of the second offensive layer. The eye of the first layer was not a single Artifact but countless of them—spoils Yang Kai had harvested after slaying powerful enemies beyond the boundaries of the Great Ruins. These items were useless to keep but too valuable to discard, so repurposing them to fill the formation was a perfect match.
As for the final offensive layer—this was Void Land's killing blow. It would not be deployed lightly, not until the very last moment.
After the Nine Heavens Grand Formation had been completed, Yang Kai had once mused that if some blind fool ever attacked Void Land, he would teach them a harsh lesson—and test the formation's true power in the process.
But that was merely idle fantasy. No one actively hoped for enemies to come knocking at their own headquarters.
Yet today, here they were—coming in force, and in great numbers at that!
Yang Kai was profoundly grateful that he hadn't been stingy back then, that he had agreed to let Grandmaster Wu Liang construct the Nine Heavens Grand Formation at Void Land. Without it, given the sheer numbers and caliber of today's invaders, Void Land—even with several hundred additional Open Heaven cultivators—would have stood no chance. Only by holding the high ground and defending could they turn the tide.
Standing within Void Land, Yang Kai gazed coldly out into the void beyond. He held the formation's jade control token, giving him intimate awareness of every shift and tremor in the arrays. His fingers unconsciously rubbed together. Though Void Land had been forced to reveal some of its hand in order to rescue Lu Xue and the others, they had immediately retreated afterward. With such a show of weakness, he could only hope that old dog Kong Feng wouldn't disappoint him by holding back.
Behind Yang Kai, the twin protectors Yue He and Mo Mei sat cross-legged in quiet meditation, recuperating from their injuries. The Elders from the Elder Hall, all Fifth-Order Open Heaven cultivators, were similarly engaged in urgent restoration of their Yuan Qi.
Further back, more than three hundred Open Heaven cultivators of various ranks stood ramrod straight, faces grim, a killing aura permeating the void around them.
Nearly all of Void Land's Open Heaven cultivators had come from Dingfeng City. They owed their survival in the Blood Monster Cave Heaven entirely to Yang Kai, who had removed the Blood Dao restrictions binding them and provided them with proper living and cultivation conditions. Their smooth, unharmed advancement to the Open Heaven realm was likewise thanks to the spirit pills Yang Kai had bestowed upon them.
It could be said that Yang Kai himself had forged their present achievements.
After breaking free from the shackles passed down through countless generations, after finally arriving in this outside world, they had barely begun to witness its wonders—and now someone had the audacity to come knocking with hostile intent. How could they possibly endure that?
Thus, though this was their first battle since ascending to the Open Heaven realm, every single one burned with fighting spirit. Void Land was the land where they would live and raise their descendants for generations to come. They could not simply take from this place forever—now was the time to give back. Only by protecting this land would their children and their children's children endure in peace.
Every pair of eyes was fixed upon Yang Kai, waiting for a single command before they charged out and hacked those intruders to pieces.
In that moment, Yang Kai's low voice cut through the silence: "They're coming."
Outside Void Land, over a hundred members of Green Mist Hall, led by two Third-Order Open Heaven cultivators, advanced toward Void Land with dark, reluctant expressions. That Elder Gao had deserted during the battle and been ruthlessly killed by Kong Feng—an example that had terrified Green Mist Hall to the core. Even the other factions that had been considering retreat no longer dared make a move.
Kong Feng's cruelty had struck fear into their hearts. Each one dreaded being the next to suffer.
But Green Mist Hall had drawn the short straw as the vanguard, and punishment came in the form of being sent by Kong Feng to test the Nine Heavens Grand Formation's strength.
The two Third-Order Open Heaven cultivators seethed inwardly, but the situation left them no choice. They dared not rebel, and could only lead their hundred-plus disciples to the edge of the formation.
After a brief hesitation, one of them let out a deep sigh: "Blessing or curse, there's no avoiding it. Let's go."
With a desolate expression, he was the first to charge into the formation. The others, seeing this, steeled themselves and rushed in after him. The clouds and mist surged around them, and in moments they had vanished without a trace.
On the Heavenly Sword Alliance's tower ship, Kong Feng turned to look at Luan Baifeng: "Junior Sister Luan, everything depends on you."