Chapter 1172: Bloodlight in the Great Hall

“Zzzz…”
“Zzzzzz…”
Forty-nine flames raced around the great hall in all directions, moving at the speed of thunder. They crossed and intertwined, seemingly without any pattern, yet seemingly following certain rules—profoundly mysterious.
Ye Gucheng and the other Heavenly Dao masters each focused on a different direction, their eyes sharp as if trying to see through the walls.
The vision of these Heavenly Dao masters was far more keen than that of ordinary Mythical Realm experts!
Although the true nature of the divine swords was obscured by the sparks, the rust falling off and the sound changing from chaotic to unified allowed them to gradually sense the growing intensity of those forty-nine fierce blades. The sword energy surrounding the hall also began to coalesce from its once boundless state…
Without the guidance of the Thousand-Faced Fox, the group of Heavenly Dao masters gradually realized this was the buildup before the activation of the sword formation!
“Be careful!”
Ye Gucheng’s gaze turned solemn as he issued a warning in a deep voice, “The divine swords form a sword formation, which amplifies their power. Unless we can completely destroy those forty-nine divine swords, we will be trapped here by the formation.”
“Are you sure destroying all forty-nine divine swords is the only way to break the formation?”
Elder Qin was the first to show concern, speaking urgently, “Creating a top-grade divine sword involves extremely complicated processes, with almost all impurities removed from the blade. Destroying such a complete divine sword is incredibly difficult! Unless one possesses a legendary ancient divine sword, it’s impossible to destroy these swords in a short time.”
“That’s right,” the Evil King agreed. “Even those of our level, if we went all out, couldn’t leave any trace on those divine swords.”
As soon as he spoke, Bi Xuan glanced at them coldly:
“I know a bit about divine swords. Even the best of them… can’t withstand the erosion of time. Impurities will gradually accumulate, and eventually they’ll completely decay. Even if they were once top-grade divine swords, they’re surely no longer intact now.”
“What does the Martial Lord mean?”
“Top-grade divine swords may be hard to destroy, but an incomplete one might not be as hopeless…”
“That’s correct,” said the Mysterious Fanged Man for the first time, his loud voice filled with authority and an unchallengeable tone. “When inferior-quality divine swords are forced to form a formation at a speed faster than that of top-grade ones, in the environment of the Earth’s core magnetism, they’re not as indestructible as you think.”
“What do you all think?”

“From ancient times to the present, the Desert Imperial Palace has not been opened for the first time. Perhaps others have entered this place before us, and the Sword Array may have been activated more than once as well.”
Ye Gucheng showed signs of joy.
Amidst the discussions among the several Heavenly Dao masters, the ominous shadow hanging over the nearly 200 Mythical Realm experts in the hall faded considerably.
Only Kai Xin was not convinced by their arguments, his expression remaining as solemn as ever.
It was all because of the Thousand-Faced Fox’s explanation regarding the Earth’s core magnetism: These divine weapons were forged using Earth’s core magnetism, making them top-quality divine weapons! Within the Sword Array, saturated with Earth’s core magnetism, they were akin to being nurtured day and night within their “mother body,” ensuring their quality remained unchanged. The group of Heavenly Dao masters likely sensed that this array posed a threat to them, so they secretly united to use their subordinates, sacrificing some of their lives in order to find a flaw in the Sword Array.
However!
The power of the Tian Gang Sword Array was extraordinary; even the Heavenly Dao masters dared not underestimate it. At such a time, it was necessary to boost everyone’s confidence—otherwise, even if everyone sacrificed themselves, they might not achieve their goal.
Kai Xin believed that Aosaya had also received secret messages from other Heavenly Dao masters, but he didn’t reveal it. Aosaya had promised to protect him, but when both were faced with life or death, Kai Xin would never rely his life on another person.
Just then…
In the hall, a fire serpent suddenly stopped swimming. The abrupt halt instantly tightened everyone’s nerves, and they looked at one another.
Swish!
All the rust on the sword blade was removed, revealing a blade whose sharpness was unmistakable. It emitted a intense cold glow, giving the impression of being blinding to the touch.
“Form the array!”
Wu Zun snapped orders, and his group of Mythical Realm experts quickly formed a circular formation, each ready to face a formidable enemy.
At the same time, the group around Master Qin also formed an array.
The other Heavenly Dao masters, aside from the Evil King and the Dark Queen who brought their disciples, were alone, but with fewer distractions, they stood still, remaining calm.
The Sword Array was now ready for action—what followed would surely be a fierce assault like thunder and storm. Kai Xin didn’t dare neglect it. He quickly focused his mind, expanding his spiritual perception to its limit, tightened his grip on the Tian Jing long sword in his hand, and slowly closed his eyes.
In an instant!
He entered the most profound state of tranquility. Without using his eyes, he relied solely on his spiritual perception to sense everything around him.
Swish!
The moment the sound of the long sword cutting through the air rang out in the hall, Kai Xin’s ears trembled slightly.

“Here it comes!” Bi Xuan shouted loudly, yet his body didn’t move an inch. The second, third, fourth… forty-nine divine swords shot out one after another from all directions, targeting different spots inside the hall. The fastest way to damage these divine swords was through intense impacts! A middle-aged man accompanying Bi Xuan was the first to confront the first divine sword. Relying on his mastery at the peak of the Mythical Realm, he boldly chose to confront it head-on. He selected the perfect timing and angle, seizing the moment when the sword passed by, and swung his sword at its blade… *Thwack!* A sharp, piercing sound resounded throughout the hall, marking the beginning of the battle between the martial artists and the Tian Gang Sword Formation. The divine sword that missed its target was struck even faster and flew back in the direction it came from. This man’s success undoubtedly boosted the confidence of many Mythical Realm experts present, who became even more determined and eagerly faced the divine swords shooting in from all sides. During the first round of attacks, the seven Heavenly Dao experts didn’t even intervene, and all forty-nine divine swords were intercepted. “This sword formation made from forty-nine top-grade divine swords is nothing more than this!” With the number of Mythical Realm experts in the hall being several times that of the divine swords, many didn’t even get a chance to act, leading them to feel that this sword formation was overhyped and prompting them to become impatient and eager to try. The seven Heavenly Dao experts were also very surprised that such a formation couldn’t cause any damage. However! Happy, Osaaya, and the Face-Shifting Fox didn’t show any signs of contempt or relaxation right away. The three of them had formed their own small team apart from the main group, creating an independent battlefield, which meant they received relatively more protection from the Tian Gang Sword Formation! They were attacked five times. Apart from the Face-Shifting Fox, who only endured one attack, Happy and Osaaya each actively intercepted two attacks. On their first attempt, Happy didn’t dare to be overconfident or appear too aggressive in front of the Heavenly Dao experts. Like the others, he used celestial crystals to deflect the divine swords one by one, with no trace of elegance in his actions. His caution was due to the presence of a mysterious and powerful figure among the eight Heavenly Dao experts—Green Armor Fanged Man. His strength was terrifying; even martial master Bi Xuan seemed to be under pressure. How could this not shock him? Another reason was simple… Among the over a hundred powerful figures present, only Happy was a player. Naturally, he couldn’t remain as calm as the others.

After all, this task was set by the system for the players. The players were the ones who activated the Tian Gang Sword Formation and thus the focus of attention. If they became careless or underestimated it, the chance of dying in a forbidden-area mission was 100%! So from the moment the Tian Gang Sword Formation was activated, Happy was always prepared to reveal his identity and activate his true energy field. Hiding his identity was no longer important. Even if activating his true energy field would reveal his identity to powerful figures like the Evil King and the Dark Queen, it paled in comparison to the treasures in the Desert Palace. In contrast, Osaaya was the only one among the eight great Heavenly Dao masters who took action, and her methods were truly impressive. “The characteristic of the Tian Gang Formation is that it becomes stronger the more it fights, with increasing lethality and more complex tactics. Never take it lightly…” At this point, the Face-Shifting Fox glanced at the others in the hall out of the corner of her eye and sneered disdainfully, “These idiots are already slacking off. They’ll regret it soon.” “Stop talking, it’s coming!” Happy, as usual, kept his eyes tightly closed and sensed the movement coming from above, quickly lowering his voice to warn them. The Face-Shifting Fox immediately fell silent. Whoosh!! This time, the first target of the divine sword’s attack was from Happy’s side… As the divine sword flew down from above, Happy quickly determined its trajectory and target—the Face-Shifting Fox. With a step, he replaced the Face-Shifting Fox in the targeted position without hesitation. The speed of the divine sword was astonishing; it took only a blink of an eye for it to appear before them. “Perfect timing.” According to the Face-Shifting Fox, the second round of attacks should be stronger than the first and not so simple. Happy didn’t dare be careless and cautiously tried to counter it. A sharp sword energy arc was drawn precisely with the sweeping sword motion, striking fiercely at that fierce glint of light! As soon as he swung the sword, Happy realized something was wrong! The moment he acted, the energy field in the hall shifted, and that fierce glint suddenly turned into a swirling mass of sword light. It was like a sword in mid-flight suddenly changing direction and spinning in place. Although it was only a brief pause, it was enough for the incoming sword energy to pass by, then return at its original speed as a mass of sword light sweeping past Happy’s body. “This…” “Master, be careful!” Both the Face-Shifting Fox and Osaaya sensed the anomaly at the same time, but it was already too late to warn him!