The sight unfolding before them was heaven-shaking! The ancient Fire Phoenix had become the embodiment of the grandest fire ever witnessed and began to spread as wildly as a dry forest ignited! The fiery radiance painted their ashen faces and aghast expressions with a scarlet-red glow.
Among the numerous Voidships forced out of their concealment and commencing a tide-like retreat backward, there was one painted scarlet, barring the symbol of the Inferno Solaris Church!
"It's not possible!" A scarlet-robed woman of mature looks, and graying hair, yet still carrying traces of beauty exclaimed disbelievingly. She wasn't very tall, her physique quite petite, but she innately exuded a type of respected charisma etched into her bones. That and her unfathomable aura of the Mystic Dao, signifying her existence as an Earthly Saint, was enough to allow all to know she was a fearsome character.
Huoyan Liulan stood beside her, her expression as equally as pale as the others on board, absolutely stupefied by what she was witnessing. The Fire Phoenix was trying to engulf several starfields in its flames! Was Wei Wuyin mad?!
The scarlet-robed woman—Song Cixi—was a Cardinal of the Inferno Solaris Church, a leading figure whose authority amongst the church was only beneath the Pope himself. She was given the order to be stationed here, awaiting Wei Wuyin's almost inevitable arrival by the Pope. This elusive figure was almost impossible to meet or find, not even the Heavenly Seers and Oracles of the Golden Gate Pavilion was effective, so this order baffled her until she learned of the rumored grudge between the two.
However, she would've never guessed that Wei Wuyin would arrive here on the back of a Fire Phoenix alone and lead a lone assault against the entire Born True Starfield! What the hell did they do to offend him?! Of course, only a fool would think that Wei Wuyin, someone who was a Grand Alchemic Sovereign and had two Earthly Saints at his beck and call, would think he was alone here.
"Should we act?!" Huoyan Liulan's expression was a little fearful as she felt the absurdly high heat touch her skin, granting an additional layer of warmth, despite being so far away. Her heart shuddered at how intense the heat must be.
Cardinal Song's eyes flickered as she observed the situation. She quietly inspected the surrounding Voidships, the depths of her pupils shifting once again with unfathomable thoughts, and she soon shook her head, saying firmly: "Not yet." She knew why no one was acting yet despite all of them being here for a similar, if not the same reason!
"Are we seriously going to wait until then?" Huoyan Liulan understood why the Cardinal wanted to wait! She, like the others, wanted to swoop in and act as heroes in Wei Wuyin's time of need, gaining an advantage as a helper rather than a group of oppressors. It was simply a way to mitigate the offense that they would give Wei Wuyin! But she felt that it was being too reckless, and this was likely to backfire in their faces.
"It's not just that," Cardinal Song confessed after giving Huoyan Liulan a side-long glance. She continued, "It's best to wait and see the—"
Aboard the Imperial Clan's lone Sky Destroyer, Empress Xiaocheng spoke calmly, "—extent of Alchemic Sovereign Wei's power. Our purpose here will be greatly assisted if we understood his limitations. Or do you think Wei Wuyin's only trump cards are two elite Earthly Saints and an ancient Fire Phoenix bred to the levels of an Earthly Saint in power?"
Tian Lingyu softly gulped after receiving Empress Xiaocheng's explanation as to why they weren't acting yet. She wanted to test his upper limits! To see his trump cards! Was everyone else waiting for that too?! She looked at Tian Muyang whose expression was dark, and pale, with eyes that vividly reflected the growing world-searing blaze in the distance.
By this point, Bai Lin's Nirvanic Flames' growth seemed to be virtually endless. At the moment, about five percent of the entire Starfield-wide Defensive Array was being engulfed. Continuous explosions were happening as the barrier tried to mitigate the damage, disperse the fire as it accumulated in heat to protect itself, and weaken the flames trying to invade. It was as if the flames were scouring for a weak point.
The masked figure retreated violently out of terror. Their eyes focused on the barrier, and through the flames, they could still see Wei Wuyin standing upon a burning head of a Phoenix, staring at him as if viewing his soul. Their fleshy heart was pounding so intensely that it felt as if it was going to explode. An urge to scream out swelled within their mind, but it was hurriedly restrained with a mighty will.
One of the reasons why the masked figure was selected as the negotiator was their ability to navigate and discuss. While they had resorted to threatening earlier, that was solely due to external orders, and they wouldn't have done so if they were given full control over how to handle the situation. Unfortunately, the masked figure was a skilled mouth with its voice box gripped.
"Alchemic Sovereign Wei!" The masked figure shouted out, hiding their terror as all flames enveloped every angle of their vision. "Alchemic Sovereign Wei! Our Unchained Heart Sect doesn't wish to reach a point of no return with you!! However we offended you earlier, we're willing to compensate you!!!" Their words grew increasingly intense and louder as the flames' spreading speed increased alongside the sounds of erupting explosions from the blistering heat and defensive power.
They couldn't resist the urge to look around themselves, their Soul of Mysticism Phase level of perception was mighty, and they could see that nearly a tenth of the Starfield's Defensive Array was engulfed!
"WHAT THE FU-" The masked figure yelled out at the ludicrous development. The Starfield-wide Defensive Array wasn't a simple array, and it enveloped the entirety of four Starfields of the original Pentastar Cluster, including the remaining Void-Blank Space, so it was truly hard to fathom how vast this area was. It wasn't even simple enough to use distance measurements. It was simply too freaking vast!
Yet now, ten percent of the array had been enveloped in flames! This meant that should Wei Wuyin want, his Fire Phoenix could engulf and incinerate an entire starfield! AN ENTIRE STARFIELD!
Whoosh! Whoosh! WHOOSH!
Suddenly, three figures arrived, all exuding an unfathomable aura of an Earthly Saint. In the distance, dozens of other figures were approaching as well. They were all Highlords! Genuine Demi-Mortal Lords!
The three Earthly Saints stared at Wei Wuyin, their eyes glinting beneath their masks with killing intent and a little trepidation. Without any audible order, one of the Earthly Saints rushed forward, exuding a defensive sphere of Mystic Power around their body. The glowing blue radiance it exuded revealed it to be Water Power! A mixture of Water Energy and Mystic Power of a Mystic Ascendant Realm expert.
The Earthly Saint shot out of the defensive array where Wei Wuyin stood calmly. He was relatively close to the barrier, likely a few miles out, so to beings like them, it should be easy to arrive. The other two Earthly Saints emanated a silvery light of Spatial Power! They were ready to interfere at a moment's notice, likely to halt any support Wei Wuyin had hidden.
The Highlords didn't assist the Earthly Saints; they soared towards the barrier and began to pour copious amounts of Mystic Power into key areas. They were reinforcing the barrier! The explosions intensified immediately, and the heat that the masked figure felt was reduced by a considerable degree.
"They're making their move!"
There was a Voidship that was of a similar design as the Boundless Martial Sect's Boundless, the gargantuan planet-sized Voidship that awed the world. It was considerably smaller, roughly the size of a large-sized Voidship, but it still contained a similar outward appearance as Boundless. It was called Vastless, and it was one of three Voidships belonging to the Boundless Martial Sect.
The one who spoke was none other than a young girl, looking no more than ten years old, appearing like an actual doll with porcelain-like skin, big, bright eyes, and her flamboyantly pink hair styled into twin pigtails. No one would guess that this small girl was one of the most fearsome characters of the Grand Cyclic Stellar Region!
The Titanic Hell-Crushing Queen!
Da Shan was beside her, but her body was restrained by a rope constructed of dense Mystic Power. Despite her struggles, she was unable to move. While she wasn't in danger here and couldn't be very helpful in a battle of this level, she wanted to at least warn Wei Wuyin about these scheming organizations!
"Don't worry, your little husband isn't so easily taken down." The Titanic Hell-Crushing Queen consoled as her big eyes watched the scene unfold with growing interest.
The Earthly Saint easily bypassed the defensive array and entered the sea of Nirvanic Flames. Their intent was clear: rapidly approach and subdue Wei Wuyin! But just as they left the protection of the defensive array, the eyes behind their mask widened as their pre-established Mystic Ward instantly ignited.
Before the Earthly Saint could take a few steps forward, they were already feeling the incinerating heat of the Nirvanic Flames on their skin! Their defenses melted almost instantly!
"EEK!"
They released a strange, embarrassing cry of choked disbelief and fear as the Necro Energy within them began to burn away. They didn't think for long, already deciding in their heart to retreat. However, a glacial voice resounded beside their ears like a soft, monstrous whisper in the wind.
"Why don't you stay?"
Their eyes bulged behind their mask as they turned violently around and exploded with Mystic Power. But suddenly, they found themselves slowing down! It wasn't by much, but their speed of action was delayed!
KREE!
Bai Lin's cry was world-piercing as gushing waves of Nirvanic Flames began to surge toward the Earthly Saint like a spiraling whirlpool forming with exceptional speed. In moments, the Earthly Saint was surrounded and engulfed. Their defenses were nothing and their Water Power helped very little to resist the Nirvanic Flames' incinerating heat!
The Earthly Saint was instantly swallowed by the Nirvanic Flames.
They vanished.
Gone.
"...!" The two Earthly Saints felt as if thunder exploded in their minds. They could no longer sense the soul aura of their ally!
The masked figure only watched as the Earthly Saint entered the flames and abruptly vanished without explanation. The speed of everything was simply too fast for them to observe, so it sent absolute chills down their spine. "Alchemic Sovereign Wei, is there really no other way?!" They roared out in frantic panic.
The two Earthly Saints glanced at each other.
With gritted teeth, the masked figure continued: "If those flames breach the Defensive Array, trillions upon trillions will die! Do you understand that? Not everyone here has submitted to us! You'll be killing countless innocent lives! We can still talk about this!"
"..." Wei Wuyin remained silent; the flames grew further and further until they covered fifteen percent of the defensive array.
The masked figure's voice grew beastly as his attempt to plead on Wei Wuyin's better nature, finishing off with: "WE HAVE THE SOUL-RISING SAINT! IF YOU CONTINUE, SHE'LL BE THE FIRST TO DIE!!"
"..." The flames began to stop their growth as Wei Wuyin's silver eyes focused on the masked figure. This development caused the spectators to be stunned on the spot! They were threatening the Soul-Rising Saint?! When did they get her? Furthermore, why would Wei Wuyin care about her? Moreover, did he actually stop?
The two Earthly Saints inwardly heaved out sighs of relief. It seemed taking the Soul-Rising Saint alongside their captured Earthly Saints had been the correct decision. After all, the Soul-Rising Saint had connections with Ma Zheng.
Wei Wuyin's voice resounded like a malevolent, dispassionate demon, "She'll have the company of tens of quadrillions of souls; For her, it won't be lonely on the road to Hell."
"...!!!"
The spread of Nirvanic Flames instantly intensified threefold, and the speed already took over thirty percent in a matter of a few seconds!
"YOU! YOU!!" The masked figure was unable to say anything else. The madness!!
The two Earthly Saints realized the killing intent of Wei Wuyin was real, and the defensive array was on the verge of collapse. They hurriedly poured in their Mystic Power to reinforce the barrier, preventing it from collapsing for now. Unfortunately, they weren't capable of handling this by themselves. With haste, they began to send out an urgent transmission.
Within the depths of the Born True Starfield, there was a Shadow Egg, the largest in existence, and it was handling various matters. A violet-robed figure stood upright as they observed a shadowy mirror-like existence. They received the transmission and inspected the state of the array.
"Reinforce the Unchained World Aegis Array," the violet-robed figure ordered.
"We don't have enough power! While the Nirvanic Flames definitely can't be endlessly exuded by that Fire Phoenix, its current strength is enough to breach the array at this rate! We can only delay for a few minutes," was the reply.
"...If he wants to fight to the end, then so be it. Does he truly think we don't know about his rallying of forces? Naive. We'll have to teach him a lesson about our true strength. Summon all non-essential Ascended." The violet-robed figure ordered.
Throughout the Grand Cyclic Stellar Region, every last Shadow Egg received urgent updates on the ongoing situation, including the summons. Void Gates spun to action, and soon hundreds upon hundreds of figures began to arrive inside the Born True Starfield, ready for war.