Chapter 2179: Destruction of the Heavenly Field, No One Can Stop Me

Before the heavenly screen of the Essence Jing World closed again, the last sight seen by the elite cultivators of the Heaven Observation Star Region, those who had temporarily sealed the entire area with their battle formations, was a Sage killed by a single sword strike from Shang Xia! His dantian was destroyed and a massive heavenly phenomenon appeared in the void.

A mighty Sage, slain in a single stroke!

Everyone who truly witnessed this scene, including the cultivators from both the Heaven Observation Star Region and the Illusory Sea of Stars, was utterly shocked.

Before the heavenly screen closed again, Shang Xia’s voice had already reached the ears of the True Immortals commanding the Star Ships. "There’s no need to guard the Essence Jing World’s heavenly screen, act as you see fit!"

For a moment, the Star Ships from various Heavenly Fields exchanged glances, uncertain what to do, until the ships from the Essence Luxuriant Heavenly Field moved first. Only then did the others follow.

Yet they did not act entirely on their own. Instead, they reorganized their ships into new formations by their respective factions and sped toward different battlefields to lend support.

If the Super Star Ships of each fleet ran into a Sage in the void, they were sitting ducks waiting to be executed. However, when leading massive fleets capable of forming battle formations, they had enough power to threaten even mid-level Sages!

The addition of several dozen such battle formations eased the disadvantage faced by the Heaven Observation Star Region’s Sages. Still, it was far too soon to say that the tide had turned or that victory was secured.

Outside the Essence Jing World, however, the battle was already tilting decisively. As the enemy’s vessels, both from the Essence Jing World and those from the Illusory Sea of Stars, were successively destroyed.

The situation came firmly under the control of the Heaven Observation Star Region.

But just as they began to stabilize, two mid-level Sages from the Illusory Sea of Stars suddenly arrived as reinforcements.

Their abrupt appearance threw the battlefield into chaos. Even though some of the Heaven Observation Star Region’s Sages had expected as much, the Star Ships were unable to withstand such sudden assaults. One large Star Ship was pierced through, and another was split in half. Many cultivators fled for their lives, but countless others perished.

The remaining fleets hastily regrouped and rebuilt their defensive formations. Even so, three more large Star Ships were heavily damaged before they could fully stabilize and repel the onslaught.

As battle formations made of multiple Star Ships were massive and cumbersome, without cultivators of equal rank to pin down the enemy, they could not keep up with the speed and mobility of mid-level Sages. They were forced into a passive state.

“These people have been hiding among us! They might have come from the Six Essence Heavenly Field!” Gu Yi warned with a grim expression, quickly deducing the truth.

“Not good,” Sage Kun exclaimed, “If they managed to reach here, could others be attempting to unseal the Void Mirage?”

As he spoke, he and Hong Jing retreated together toward the edge of the battle formation, relying on its power to fend off the enemy’s attacks.

Kou Chongxue’s voice rang in their minds the next second. It was calm but sharp even as his sword clashed against the high-level Sage of the Illusory Sea of Stars. "Unlikely. Before I came here, I asked Sage Ya of the Essence Mu World to watch over the Void Mirage. If anything happened there, she would’ve sent word immediately!"

Kou Chongxue had reached the peak of the fifth star, standing at the very edge of becoming a high-level Sage. But the leap from was massive, and at present, he had little confidence of breaking through.

Ever since reaching the fifth star, he could feel the blessing from the Essence Luxuriant World and Essence Luxuriant Heavenly gradually diminishing. Their assistance had reached its limit, and the nourishment they provided was nearly exhausted.

Even if the world continued to grow stronger, its blessings upon him would be faint, no longer the torrent of divine favor he once enjoyed.

In other words, if he wanted to advance to become a high-level Sage, he would have to rely on himself.

Hong Jing asked suddenly, “Sage Ya... She once had the strength of a mid-level Sage, did she not?”

Her tone carried an implied criticism that such strength should not be wasted guarding the Void Mirage.

To that, Kou Chongxue replied, “The Essence Mu World was shattered. She only managed to bring out a fragment containing several continents and it’s barely a Spirit World now. Her cultivation has long fallen and she’s merely a low-level Sage now. Were it not for a Dao Field, she would have fallen further. Even if she came here, she can’t change the outcome of the battle.”

Zhuo Gudao joined in. “Now that Sage Shang has arrived, we can hold our ground for the moment. What worries me is the Star Origin Lord’s stance. He’s been quiet for two years, but don’t forget, his Six Essence Heavenly Field still has many Sages.”

Kou Chongxue quickly reassured them. “Don’t worry. We have someone watching the Six Essence Heavenly Field as well.”

His revelation surprised several of the Sages of the Heaven Observation Star Region. Then one of them realized his meaning. “You mean Sage Shang’s External Avatar is there? Has he recovered?”

In the previous battle against the Star Origin Lord, Shang Xia’s External Avatar had been gravely wounded. If he had truly been restored, that meant another high-level Sage ally stood ready on their side.

However, it seemed as though he was being kept back, to guard against unforeseen threats and would not be joining the battle in the Essence Jing Heavenly Field.

Just then, a deep rumble echoed through the void, shaking the void itself. The vibration disrupted the secret arts of many True Immortals and even weakened the clashes of the various Sages.

All eyes instinctively turned toward the Essence Jing World. The sound had come from within it.

A moment later, the heavenly screen of the Essence Jing World split open once more. World origin burst outward, spraying into the void in great fountains of light.

But along with that surge of energy came several auras, each a Sage emitting a foreign aura coming from the Illusory Sea of Stars.

Watching it unfold, the Sages of the Heaven Observation Star Region felt their hearts sink. So many Illusory Sea of Stars’ Sages had already passed through the rift through the Essence Jing World. It was no wonder Shang Xia, even with his strength at the peak of the Seven Star Realm, could not completely stop them.

With so many reinforcements flooding in, preventing the invasion seemed impossible.

Beneath the shattered heavenly screen, when Shang Xia killed the Sage from theIllusory Sea of Stars, the sight that greeted him made his expression harden.

The number of Sages from the Illusory Sea of Stars entering through the rift connected to the Essence Jing World far exceeded his expectations. Around that passage that spanned several continents, at least five Sages were stationed, each overseeing a portion of the World Origin Source.

Hundreds of cultivators, ranging from the Martial Extermination Realm to the Martial Emptiness Realm, worked under their command, setting formations and channeling spiritual treasures to connect with the spatial rift. A massive formation was slowly taking shape.

Shang Xia was no master of formations, yet his cultivation had reached a level where his intuition was most likely right. With a single glance, he understood the purpose of that array. It was to stabilize and expand the spatial passage, strengthening the link between both Star Fields.

He could not allow that to happen.

If the formation were completed, far more enemies would pour through.

But his presence had already been noticed. Before he could strike, the five Sages of the Illusory Sea of Stars launched a coordinated attack.

Shang Xia raised a sword of starlight and cleaved downward. His Seven Laceration Sword split into five arcs, breaking through all five assaults at once.

Just as he prepared to counterattack, a beam of golden light shot out from the spatial passage, straight toward him.

At first glance, the light seemed ordinary. There was no surge of energy and no ripple in space. Yet Shang Xia’s heart tightened as it approached.

He retreated rapidly, gathering starlight in his palms and transforming it into a single sweeping blade of light. With one precise motion, he struck down upon the incoming gold beam.

Silently, the two lights collided and vanished, leaving nothing behind, as though nothing had ever occurred.

Everyone else might not know what happened, but Shang Xia and the person who launched the attack knew the truth. The expert behind that strike was a grand completion stage Sage who had entered the Star River and mastered the power of space and time.

Without a doubt, the source of that golden light was the Star River Stowaway, the expert whose Immortal Golden Ark was wedged in the passage.

Though the exchange appeared even, both sides were wary of one another, and neither made another move.

However, the other Sages of the Illusory Sea of Stars did not remain idle. The five of them attacked again in unison.

Knowing prolonged battle would only drain him further, Shang Xia started to draw on his inner qi again. Instead of condensing another weapon from starlight, he reached into the void and revealed the Crimson Soul Tablet, now bearing only three remaining cracks.

"An Eternal Artifact?" From within the passage, golden light flared again, and a deep, resonant voice sounded, its tone heavy with astonishment. "No... That’s an Eternal Weapon! How can you possess such a thing?"

Shang Xia did not answer. As the Crimson Soul Tablet emerged completely into view, his inner qi surged to its peak. With a sweeping motion like a cosmic lash, he unleashed his martial intent, Star Shifting Constellation Transformation!

In that instant, Shang Xia felt something stir. As the tablet cut through the air, the shattered void beneath it rippled like cracked ice over flowing water. From the rift came the sound of rushing currents, and faint light shimmered like reflections on a cosmic river.

“This...”

The Star River Stowaway’s voice rose first in shock, then in alarm. "This is the phantom of the Star River?! You can actually summon it?! Everyone, guard the gate!"

His command carried immense authority. The Sages of the Illusory Sea of Stars instantly ceased their attacks and drew back to protect the rift.

At the same time, the passage itself turned fully golden once more. With a crashing sound, a massive golden anchor, bound by heavy chains, shot out of the rift, hurtling straight toward the descending Crimson Soul Tablet, which blazed with the phantom of a falling celestial waterfall!