Chapter 285: Ang Xiao Enters the Game!
Just as Suo Huan failed in his quest for gold and the three parties feasted together, [True Lord Angxiao Biri] finally made his move. The overseas regions instantly became the focal point of the world.
Simultaneously, several True Lords were struck with astonishment.
"[Angxiao]... Is he abandoning [Flowing Water]?"
"Or is he certain that [Flowing Water] remains undisturbed—that Suo Huan cannot shake it, let alone affect his late-stage Golden Core position?"
"Where does such confidence come from?"
This situation differed entirely from before. Chongguang's previous failure stemmed from lack of preparation and informational disparity. But this time, multiple factions had joined forces to leverage Suo Huan's actions to destabilize [Flowing Water], fully intending to topple this Fruit Position. Even if [Chen Earth] were altered in its Yin-Yang attributes and [Flowing Water] forcibly sealed away, [Angxiao] would still inevitably suffer a cultivation regression!
How could he remain indifferent?
Unless... he had already resolved to exchange [Heavenly River Water] for it? But Fruit Positions were not so easily interchangeable!
Or perhaps... he wasn't truly [Angxiao] at all?
Did he harbor another scheme?
At this moment, countless True Lords engaged in divination and deduction, yet all heavenly secrets remained obscured. None could discern the true cause and effect.
In that fleeting instant, the three True Lords present made their decision.
"He must not succeed!"
Beyond them, numerous other True Lords also acted. The scene of besieging [Angxiao] from the past reappeared as they surged toward the overseas regions!
"Xuanyuan! Mingzhu! Yuanxu! Aid me this once!"
The Dragon Lord's voice boomed across the skies. After a brief pause, three more Dharma Bodies rose from the Four Seas Sect, intercepting three of the attacking True Lords.
"Only this once."
"After today, Mingzhu and the Dragon Clan owe each other nothing."
"Ah, this old bone of mine..."
For a time, the entire Foundation Establishment realm seemed to blur under the clash. Over a dozen True Lords unleashed their power, their auras intertwining as if kneading heaven and earth into chaos.
Under the influence of the [Great Sea Water] Fruit Position, the overseas regions underwent endless transformations. Each True Lord's intervention birthed a new phenomenon—volcanic eruptions, islands emerging, frost descending, seaweed spreading—slowly eroding the overseas space like fire scorching the heavens and boiling the seas!
Such marvels persisted for nearly half an hour.
The Four Seas Sect's fierce resistance exceeded all expectations. Combined with Tian Qiu's impeccably timed gold-seeking attempt—coinciding with Suo Huan's—he ultimately succeeded.
Boom!
With a deafening roar, the Netherworld's gate solidified completely. Behind it, [True Lord Angxiao Biri] grinned fiercely and stretched his palm toward the sky.
"...Don't even think about it!"
Almost simultaneously, every True Lord erupted in fury. Their overwhelming might shattered the blockade formed by the Dragon Lord and the three other overseas True Lords, forcibly separating [Angxiao] from [Heavenly River Water].
In the next instant, [Heavenly River Water] remained unharmed.
But [Flowing Water] stirred.
"Tch... This damned Knowledge-Perception Obstruction again!"
Only then did the three overseas True Lords—whose physical forms were closest and whose attacks had been most violent—realize they had unwittingly overlooked Suo Huan.
Yet upon reflection, confusion arose.
"[Heavenly River Water] was merely a diversion. He still desires [Flowing Water] after all—but what leverage does he possess? Did he truly believe we wouldn't notice his scheme involving Suo Huan? That single [Heavenly Virtue Beneficent Divine Water] was already isolated by our precautions..."
Yet in the next moment, every True Lord's expression twisted abruptly.
Under [Angxiao]'s influence, [Flowing Water] actually shifted course, plummeting straight toward the newly opened [Netherworld] gate!
This defied all reason!
[Angxiao] had only interacted with Suo Huan once, gifting him but a single [Heavenly Virtue Beneficent Divine Water]—which the True Lords had already neutralized.
How had he achieved this?
Among those present, only Suo Huan understood perfectly, his eyes burning with hatred: "I've seen it... I saw it with you that year, my lord!"
He had simply forgotten.
It was the day the [Huanxu Realm] collapsed! This very lord—[Angxiao]—had appeared once before, imparting a technique to him.
"The 《Myriad Spirits Return to Ruins Dao Scripture》!" Suo Huan gnashed his teeth: "That was never a gold-seeking method derived from the [Huanxu Realm]! You disguised it as a realm's legacy and bestowed it upon me. This scripture was never about seeking gold at all!"
This was the source of Suo Huan's despair.
He realized he had never escaped the True Lord's control—remaining a puppet on strings, manipulated at will.
"Beast... You absolute beast!"
Precisely because he comprehended everything—knowing he never stood a chance at obtaining gold—Suo Huan erupted into hysterical screams upon failure. Overwhelming helplessness consumed him, leaving him powerless as [Angxiao] now used his cultivation as a sacrificial offering.
Yes, a sacrifice!
The so-called 《Myriad Spirits Return to Ruins Dao Scripture》 was fundamentally a method to offer a cultivator's entire being to a Fruit Position, triggering its descent!
Whoosh!
In barely an instant, Suo Huan's physical body and cultivation burned away, leaving only a soul clinging to Metal Essence within his Blessed Land.
And because only his soul remained...
The [Netherworld] manifested!
As an otherworldly cultivator's soul, Suo Huan was an anomaly in this realm. Naturally, the [Netherworld] sought to guide him into the cycle of reincarnation—now actively opening its gates!
And behind these gates stood another [Angxiao]!
He seemed long prepared. The moment the [Netherworld] gate opened for Suo Huan, he reached out to seize the descending [Flowing Water]!
Time itself seemed to freeze.
The Dragon Lord—who had resolved to gamble everything—felt only icy dread piercing his bones. Instinctively, he lowered his gaze toward another [Angxiao] within the Dragon Palace.
To be precise, an avatar [Angxiao] had refined from Chongguang's Dao Calamity.
At this moment, the figure stood with hands clasped behind his back, leisurely admiring the spectacle in the skies—never once glancing toward the Dragon Lord.
Closing his massive golden eyes—each as large as a mountain—the Dragon Lord clung to one final shred of hope and whispered:
"[Angxiao]... You promised me earlier..."
"What?"
Only then did [Angxiao] spare him a glance—his calm expression resembling someone observing a mudfish thrashing in a pond.
"You address me as [Angxiao] yet still don't understand?"
"I am a Saint Sect True Lord at late-stage Golden Core. As all know, I do not keep promises."
The next instant, time resumed its flow. [Flowing Water] had already arrived before the [Netherworld] gate as [Angxiao] smiled and reached to claim it—
Then his expression twisted violently!
Without hesitation, he flung the [Flowing Water] away, attempting to sever the connection—but it was too late.
Boom!!!
A sudden, catastrophic transformation erupted!
The once docile [Flowing Water] surged violently like a bursting dam, unleashing overwhelming force directly into the [Netherworld]!
Accompanying it was a long-suppressed, maniacally joyous laughter:
"Hahahahaha!"
"[Angxiao], do you like this gift I prepared for you?"
This deranged laughter was unmistakably familiar to every True Lord present—even [Angxiao] himself momentarily froze in shock:
"Xue Feihong!?"
In the next moment, the supposed [Flowing Water] Fruit Position shimmered as if shedding a veil, revealing its true form.
"That's not [Flowing Water]... It's [Stream Under the Ravine]?"
It was [True Lord Qingcheng Feixue]!