While the Righteous and Demonic factions were locked in battle around the Super Gu Formation at the ruins of Yitian Mountain, the fight at another location had finally drawn to a close.
The Jade Pure Dripping Wind Small Bamboo Tower sat completely unscathed, gleaming brilliantly as it hovered silently in midair.
The all-encompassing Purple Blood Pioneer Formation was on the verge of collapse. The river of blood had vanished — only scattered clumps of crimson blood drifted aimlessly through the purple-black void.
Before the Jade Pure Dripping Wind Small Bamboo Tower, the Seven Illusion Demonic Immortal was trapped inside a sphere of wind, unable to escape, forced to surrender without a fight.
The battle was decided.
"Let me see your true face." Wu Yong was still completely unscathed, a flash of green flickering and vanishing from his eyes.
In an instant, the colorful radiance that had cloaked the Seven Illusion Demonic Immortal dispersed abruptly, like clouds parting before the wind.
His true identity was exposed.
The three Righteous Path Gu Immortals present were all stunned.
Qiao Zhicai's eyes went wide. "Yao Geng!" he blurted out.
It turned out the Seven Illusion Demonic Immortal was none other than Yao Geng — a member of the superpower Yao Family, a Gu Immortal.
He had originally been sparring with Wu Yiran to compete for the legacy of Jingyan Immortal. During their fifth exchange, both he and Wu Yiran had suddenly perished together.
His Life Tablet Gu in the Yao Family had shattered. Everyone assumed he was dead.
But who could have guessed that he was actually the Seven Illusion Demonic Immortal?
"Wonderful. Truly wonderful. So the Yao Family is nothing but a den of filth." Tie Mianshen's voice was ice-cold.
Yao Geng forced a bitter smile. "This was purely my own doing. It has nothing to do with my Yao Family."
Seeing that Yao Geng would defend his family even unto death — hardly the behavior of someone deeply steeped in demonic nature — Wu Yong couldn't help but ask with suspicion: "What were you thinking, daring to set this trap against us?"
The bitter smile on Yao Geng's face deepened. "I told you — I'm just a nobody. Or rather, I'm nothing but a chess piece, moved about by someone else's hand. I was forced into this. It has nothing to do with my family."
Wu Yong's expression darkened. "Then tell me — the one pulling your strings, was it that Eighth Transformation Gu Immortal who appeared earlier? Tell me everything you know about him."
Yao Geng threw his head back and laughed, though tears streamed down his cheeks. "What if I told you that I don't truly understand that man either — that my contact with him was barely longer than yours? Would you believe me?"
Tie Mianshen interjected. "Was it because of the Seven Illusion True Inheritance?"
Yao Geng nodded, his expression grief-stricken.
Tie Mianshen sighed. "To receive the Seven Illusion True Inheritance, one must first accept an Information Path covenant. Our clan analyzed it and concluded it was a trap. And yet, strangely, many inheritors of the Seven Illusion True Inheritance never fulfilled that Information Path covenant in their entire lives. It seems you are the first victim."
At this, Wu Yong and Qiao Zhicai understood immediately. The gazes they turned upon Yao Geng now carried a trace of pity.
"Now that it's come to this, there's nothing left to say. The winner takes all, the loser is cast aside. Kill me, torture me — do as you please." Yao Geng slumped weakly, his will to fight completely drained.
"Where is that Eighth Transformation Gu Immortal?" Wu Yong pressed, a growing sense of unease settling in.
Yao Geng held nothing back. "I was the same as you — I thought he was hiding somewhere within the formation. But after you found the critical formation core and even captured me, I finally realized he had long since left this place."
Hearing this, Wu Yong's foreboding deepened.
He barked a sharp command, sealing Yao Geng and locking him inside the small bamboo tower. Then he activated the Immortal Gu House, unleashing its terrifying offensive power.
BOOM!
The Purple Blood Pioneer Formation was shattered, revealing blue skies and white clouds.
The three Gu Immortals saw daylight once more. For a fleeting instant, before joy could even surface on their faces, each of their bodies trembled.
"This is bad — so much time has already passed!"
"The Purple Blood Pioneer Formation doesn't merely contain the mysteries of the Wisdom Path, Blood Path, Illusion Path, and Information Path — it also incorporates Time Path techniques."
Inside this Gu formation, all three Gu Immortals' perception of time had been secretly warped, creating an illusion.
Even Wu Yong had fallen for this hidden trick.
He had believed the entire time that his time inside the formation was not long.
But only after breaking through did he realize, with a jolt, just how many days had passed.
"This is bad — it seems that Eighth Transformation Gu Immortal never intended to fight us to the death. He simply wanted to trap us here. What could his real objective be?" Wu Yong's heart sank as he hurriedly contacted his clan.
The Purple Blood Pioneer Formation had isolated them from the outside, preventing Wu Yong and the others from even accessing Treasure Yellow Heaven, let alone contacting their families.
Now, the three immortals each reached out to their respective clans. Before long, the expressions on all their faces changed drastically.
A flood of information surged into their minds. All three immortals were left dumbfounded — they had never imagined that so many things had happened in just those few days.
Gu Immortals of the Wu, Yang, Qiao, Chi, Chai, Xia, and Ba families were all caught up in the chaos.
Purple Mountain True Lord's plan had been to trap Wu Yong and the others, creating the illusion of Wu Yong's death and triggering political turmoil across the Southern Border.
He succeeded.
The Yang, Qiao, Wu, and other major families, each pursuing their own interests, had set the entire region into turmoil.
Just as they were entangled in their power struggle, a massive force suddenly appeared at the Super Gu Formation and launched a fierce assault.
Upon receiving the snowfall of distress signals, every family was thrown into panic.
"How could this happen?!"
"What insane courage do those Demonic Path Gu Immortals have, daring to launch a frontal assault on the Super Gu Formation?"
"And it's not just them — even Gu Immortals from the Northern Plains have appeared."