Anyone could become the last hope of the Realm.
But it should not have been Chen Xia.
For Chen Xia truly had no significant connection to the Realm; in other words, the life and death of the Realm had nothing to do with him.
His breaking into homes now was only because of the Big Yellow Dog Demon's heart demon.
He turned his flying sword, pulling it back from the massive figure, his brows furrowed slightly, for there was no fresh blood flowing from the wound, not even a fleeting soul, as if it were a dummy.
Chen Xia pondered for a moment, muttering to himself as if he had gained some insight.
"A corporeal projection?"
The massive figure crashed to the ground, landing within the great formation, lifeless and motionless.
If this was said to be the Master of the Forbidden Zone, it would perhaps be too weak, seeming to be only of a Great Sage's strength, nothing particularly outstanding.
Chen Xia shook his head, not dwelling on it further. He eyed the lowest level of the great formation, his azure robe fluttering as he charged toward the bottom without any caution of breaking the formation, the three hundred million flying swords circling his Celestial Dragon true body, unceasing as they bore the entire formation's onslaught.
Thirty breaths later, he stood calmly at the innermost part, lightly patting his slightly disheveled robe before turning to examine the layout of the entire formation.
It was a supreme formation that condensed inward, absorbing the spiritual energy of Heaven and Earth to suppress what was within, and it also contained several great Daoist techniques. It was likely the handiwork of the other Masters of the Forbidden Zone, and Chen Xia could recognize some of the great Daos involved.
If he wanted to break the formation, he would have to start with the great Daos, first breaking the suppressive great Daos, then find the formation's eye and alter its rotation to reverse the spiritual energy flow. That would be the most stable approach.
But Chen Xia had never been one for stability.
Just breaking a formation, why did it need to be so troublesome?
He raised his broken sword, his Celestial Dragon true body carrying three hundred million flying swords aloft, lightning coiling around it as the flow of time adhered to the blade, ensuring this strike would hit. He raised his head at the bottom of the great formation.
He had found the formation's eye.
Hum.
The sword blade trembled slightly.
The azure-robed figure took a step forward.
The Celestial Dragon raised its head, thunder crashing.
Then came an extremely bright sword gleam that spanned the entire formation, as if intent on piercing through it from the lowest level straight to the top.
Crack.
There seemed to be the sound of shattering.
At the top of the great formation, fine cracks appeared, an inconspicuous sword mark, and then weblike fissures began to spread around the mark, propagating outward, growing more numerous and deeper.
Chen Xia raised his sword, his steps unhurried as he walked downward, and with each step, the cracks multiplied. He took a total of thirty-seven steps, reaching the bottom.
And the cracks followed him to the lowest level.
He sheathed his sword.
Boom!
The great formation instantly shattered into countless shards of great Daos and spiritual energy that scattered across Heaven and Earth. For lower cultivators, these would be priceless treasures beyond their wildest dreams, but to Chen Xia, they held no interest, and he was too lazy to even bother picking them up.
With the great formation dispersed, the Big Yellow Dog Demon that had been sealed within was revealed.
It looked at Chen Xia with a dazed expression, still not quite grasping the situation, and asked in confusion:
"You... what's going on? Weren't you at the Dao Defying Realm? How could you..."
"I got an early update," Chen Xia joked, then turned to gaze at the descending dark canopy of the Heavenly Tribulation, his expression growing solemn as he said:
"Time to run."
The Big Yellow Dog Demon seemed to have expected this, its expression unsurprised and calm as it shook its head.
"They've schemed well. As a Master of the Forbidden Zone, I cannot escape. The Emperor Witch must have emerged from seclusion by now as well. They've plotted for tens of thousands of years, so there's no easy escape."
The Big Yellow Dog Demon sighed, then smiled at Chen Xia.
"I'm truly grateful that you came to rescue me. It feels wonderful to be remembered. But I really can't escape. You should run. I'll cover your retreat."
Chen Xia frowned. "I came specifically to rescue you. At least give me some face and try running with me first. If we can't escape, then I'll shake the Great Emperor directly."
"Shake who?" the Big Yellow Dog Demon asked in response.
"The Great Emperor," Chen Xia replied with only those two words.
The Big Yellow Dog Demon's expression froze for a moment, then it quickly nodded. "Then let's hurry."
Who wouldn't want to run if they had the chance?
As they were discussing this, in the upper realms of the Realm, the Emperor Witch had pinned the Shanshui Quasi-Emperor to the mountains and waters, nearly killing him, but did not actually end his life. Instead, he shook his head and said:
"If you tried to escape on your own, you would have a chance to live. Why don't you cherish your own life more?"
The Shanshui Quasi-Emperor, his white robe stained with blood, the imperial blood dyeing the entire landscape crimson, gritted his teeth and replied: "It's a matter of home and loyalty to the Realm. You naturally wouldn't understand!"
The Emperor Witch fell silent for a moment, then raised a hand to cover his cheek, his voice hollow as he said:
"I understand it all too well, which is why I agreed to their request over twenty million years ago to become the formation's eye for this Realm."
"They said it would only take thirty or fifty thousand years, and they would replace me afterward."
"I believed them, but they deceived me. Twenty-three million years have passed, and no one remembers me, no one knows me, and no one even thinks of me."
The Emperor Witch clenched the hand covering his cheek, gripping his head as if suppressing reminiscence, then asked in a deep voice:
"Now I ask you, who am I? Can you answer that? You only know me as the Emperor Witch, the original formation's eye."
His mournful tone carried sadness as he spoke softly:
"But who knows that I was once a Divine Son of the Divine Realm?"
These words left everyone present aghast, looking at the Emperor Witch in disbelief.
The Divine Realm was one of the great Realms in all the Heavens and Worlds, on par with the Immortal Realm, and a Divine Son of the Divine Realm was a prime candidate to become a Great Emperor in that era.
If what the Emperor Witch said was true, then he was once a renowned genius most likely to become a Great Emperor.
Yet such an existence ultimately became the formation's eye for this Realm.
The Shanshui Quasi-Emperor's expression flickered with surprise, but he quickly shook his head. "You have your reasons, and I have mine. No need to say more. I'm outmatched, so I'm willing to die."
But the Emperor Witch did not move to kill him. Instead, he ascended into the sky, speaking softly:
"I won't kill you. I only wish to regain my freedom and walk the path of emperorship once more, becoming a Great Emperor. These twenty-three million years have let me understand many things. I harbor no resentment toward anyone; I only blame my own youthful naivete."
"The saying that time is the best teacher is indeed true."
"Time has educated me for over twenty million years, and now, I must go and find my own freedom."
He stood beneath the canopy of Heaven, speaking in a level tone words that shocked all the Masters of the Forbidden Zone:
"Sacrifice all the formation's eyes to break the formation."
The Old Dragon's expression was one of horror as it hurriedly said: "Emperor Witch, this goes against what you said earlier about leading us all to break through the Realm, venturing into all the Heavens and Worlds together to become Great Emperors!"
The Emperor Witch turned his gaze toward it, his eyes hollow as he replied:
"It seems you haven't learned any lessons from time."
The Old Dragon wanted to retort, but found itself unable to speak, for blood began gushing from its chest as its heart was crushed to powder, its spirit lake shredded.
And it was not the Emperor Witch who had come to kill it.
It was already in the Emperor Witch's grasp.
"The calamity of the Heavenly Rain Realm breaking the formation's foundations from within, the descent of the Heavenly Tribulation to directly destroy the formation from without."
"And to truly break the formation, the formation's eyes must be killed. I hope you all understand this principle and accept your deaths with understanding."
He turned his gaze back toward the Forbidden Zone, his calm gaze slightly raised.
"A rat has scurried into my home, thinking to steal something? Let me take a look."
With a gentle wave of his hand, the entire Forbidden Zone appeared before him.
Neither Chen Xia nor the Big Yellow Dog Demon showed up.