Chapter 479: Chapter 465: Breaking the 9-Array Map, Seizing the Spirit Pattern Pillars
No one understood the Nine Spirit Pattern Pillars better than Shen Lang.
Ten thousand years ago, before the War Emperor had even appeared, an Array Master from the War God Hall had already used these Nine Spirit Pattern Pillars to dominate all corners of the land.
In the field of Arrays, this powerhouse was none other than the War Emperor’s own mentor!
If there was anyone else within the War God Hall who could easily control these Nine Spirit Pattern Pillars, it would have been the War Emperor himself, aside from that powerhouse...
When Shen Lang was still in the Barbaric lands, he had been ecstatic the moment he heard the news from Shadow Charm!
He had just gained two great generals in Zhuge Xian’Er and Yuan Bupu, and now someone was delivering the Nine Spirit Pattern Pillars right to his doorstep!
Setting aside the secrets within the Immortal Celestial Saber, although these Nine Spirit Pattern Pillars didn’t have a rank like a Magical Treasure Secret Artifact, their function was likely superior to an Imperial Artifact like the Immortal Celestial Saber.
Imperial Artifacts were powerful, but Shen Lang’s current Cultivation made it difficult for him to unleash their true strength.
However, the Nine Spirit Pattern Pillars had far fewer restrictions regarding one’s Cultivation.
With these Nine Spirit Pattern Pillars and Shen Lang’s own terrifying skill in Arrays, he could lay down a massive Killing Array in the blink of an eye and annihilate his enemies on the spot!
One must remember that the Array within an Array in the Dark Moon Abyss, while powerful, had taken fifteen King Martial Realm powerhouses many days of strenuous effort and a vast amount of Spirit Stone Materials to create.
But with these Nine Spirit Pattern Pillars, even if Shen Lang couldn’t immediately set up a Killing Array on the level of the one in Dark Moon Abyss, he could basically handle King Martial Realm powerhouses without needing help from the other Elder Ancestors.
’That old man’s whereabouts are unknown now. Over the past ten thousand years, these Nine Spirit Pattern Pillars have been constantly absorbing nature’s spiritual energy and have had countless Spirit Array Maps added to them by the Artifact Origin Sect, only to now appear before me... Every sip and every peck is preordained, it seems. What in the world are those old geezers from the War God Hall plotting?’
Shen Lang looked up at the sky and activated his Silver Eyes of Truth. He saw rainbow-colored bands of light being released from the Nine Spirit Pattern Pillars, connecting with each other like a giant heavenly net that tightly enveloped the battle stage.
Without his Silver Eyes of Truth, even though Shen Lang knew the Life and Death Gates of the Nine Array Map, and all its flaws, he would have been unable to see through this illusion.
Within this Nine Array Map, illusions sprang forth and Array Maps appeared one after another. Each Spirit Array Map was like a separate cosmos, a unique starry sky.
Anyone whose Divine Sense wasn’t strong enough would be instantly trapped within, as if swallowed by a black hole, never to escape.
Only an Artifact Refining Master with a profound foundation in Arrays could unravel the Spirit Array Maps one by one and neutralize this kind of bizarre and unpredictable attack!
The Nine Array Map within the Nine Spirit Pattern Pillars was not originally intended to trap or kill people.
On the contrary, it was a tool the Artifact Origin Sect used to train its disciples.
Ordinary disciples only had the right and opportunity to study some of the Spirit Array Maps carved on the surface of the Spirit Pattern Pillars.
Only those exceptionally talented Artifact Refining Masters, the disciples whom the Artifact Origin Sect valued and cultivated, were given the chance to enter the Nine Array Map to comprehend the Array Maps that countless predecessors had grasped through their enlightenment of the Great Dao of Heaven and Earth.
Faced with these endless Array Maps, even the most valued elite disciples could only rely on their own opportunities and fortune.
Later on, because of the Nine Array Map’s power to easily crush the Sea of Consciousness of anyone who entered, the people of the Artifact Origin Sect began using it as a tool against other Artifact Refiners.
At this moment, the disciples of the Artifact Origin Sect hated Shen Lang to the bone. How could they possibly give him the chance to quietly comprehend and decipher the Array Maps?
The Celestial Transformation, Earth Transformation, Wind Transformation, Water Transformation... all nine transformations were fully activated. Countless illusions filled the Grand Array as Wind, Thunder, Earth, and Fire all launched themselves ferociously at Shen Lang.
Watching the lightning flash and thunder roar in the sky as water and fire converged, Shen Lang’s expression darkened.
"I didn’t want to make things too difficult for you, considering your deep connection to that old fellow. I never thought you’d try to use this Nine Array Map to kill me outright."
"Is it just because I said a few words that made you lose face?"
"But when you were doing your utmost to mock the Profound Dao Sect, did you ever consider your own faults?"
Shen Lang spoke coldly to the sky.
His words didn’t slow anything within the Array. Instead, the Nine Array Map accelerated, and nine Array Maps materialized in the air, circling above Shen Lang’s head!
Each of these Array Maps was like its own cosmos, filled with stars, its pressure awe-inspiring.
Within the Thunder Soaring Array Map, a massive Thunder Ball was forming, about to blast down toward Shen Lang!
’Playing with thunder against me?’
Shen Lang grinned.
What was the "Thunder Control Divine Technique"?
Just from the name, you could tell it was a Cultivation Technique for commanding thunder!
With a single thought, Shen Lang didn’t retreat but advanced. He activated the Thunder Control Divine Technique, a brilliant light flashing on his right hand as he snatched the Thunder Ball out of the air!
THUD! THUD! THUD!
After stumbling back three consecutive steps, Shen Lang steadied himself and directly absorbed the Thunder Ball into the Thunder Power vortex within his body.
The disciples of the Artifact Origin Sect had clearly thought a Thunder Ball of this magnitude would be enough to obliterate Shen Lang. They never expected such a powerful Thunder Ball would end up as sustenance for him!
The next moment, from the Fire Dragon Array Map, Nine Dragons roared forth, cutting off all of Shen Lang’s escape routes!
Although the Tai Chi Diagram was powerful and could absorb Heaven and Earth Energy, the might of these Nine Dragons surpassed that of the previous Thunder Ball. Since Shen Lang primarily focused on the Thunder Element, he didn’t dare to face these nine fire dragons head-on.
His figure flickered, moving back and forth unpredictably. Incredibly, he managed to evade the Nine Dragons, walking straight through the gaps between the nine fire dragons!
His familiarity with the Spirit Pattern Pillars and the Nine Array Map not only allowed him to easily evade such a powerful attack, but also to unerringly locate one of the Spirit Pattern Pillars in this disorienting place where directions were meaningless!
The Nine Array Map in the sky was merely a projection of one of the Array Maps within the Spirit Pattern Pillars. To break this Array Map and shatter the links of the Nine Array Map, he had to start with each individual Spirit Pattern Pillar.
As if taking a casual stroll through the Array, Shen Lang walked right up to a Spirit Pattern Pillar.
The Artifact Origin Sect disciple next to the Spirit Pattern Pillar stared with wide, unbelieving eyes, as if he had seen a ghost.
Shen Lang couldn’t be bothered with words. He sent a kick flying, launching the person through the air.
With the current strength of his physical body, few Xuanwu Realm powerhouses could withstand such a blow.
Let alone someone at the Spirit Martial Realm Ninth Heaven?
However, the Nine Spirit Pattern Pillars had already been activated and the Nine Array Map had appeared, so knocking out the people next to the pillars was of little use now.
Shen Lang circled the Spirit Pattern Pillar continuously, shifting his position every few seconds to deftly evade the attacks from the sky.
Every time, he correctly predicted which transformation would occur and where the attack would land.
Every time, he dodged a few seconds in advance.
After circling the Spirit Pattern Pillar a few times, Shen Lang stopped moving. He activated the Star Moon Bodhi Prayer Beads to protect his body and then pressed a single palm against the pillar.
Light flashed brilliantly on the massive Spirit Pattern Pillar. The countless engravings of flowers, birds, fish, and insects seemed to come alive, moving in a profound and unfathomable way.
In that instant, his immense Divine Thought surged into the space within the Spirit Pattern Pillar, finding the Main Array Map inside in the blink of an eye—the Celestial Cover Array!
’So the Spirit Pattern Pillar really hasn’t changed much in ten thousand years. Even though I’ve never seen it myself, it’s exactly as the old man described. Hehe, what a stroke of luck.’
It was indeed a stroke of luck.
To focus wholeheartedly on studying the Array Map within a Spirit Pattern Pillar while braving countless massive attacks was something very few people could ever accomplish.
When Shen Lang’s Divine Thought entered the Spirit Array Map, he didn’t need to perform complex calculations as one would with an unfamiliar map. Instead, he found the core of the Celestial Cover Array Map with practiced ease and simply shut it down!
In the sky, one of the nine Array Maps vanished in an instant!
Only eight remained!
Shen Lang repeated the process. His figure moved like a phantom, and in just over ten minutes, he had shut down all the remaining eight Array Maps and knocked out the eight disciples from the Artifact Origin Sect!
At this point, the Nine Array Map was closed. The Nine Spirit Pattern Pillars stood there isolated, yet the hazy, fog-filled Grand Array still remained.
Outsiders could only see light continuously surging from within the Grand Array, but they still couldn’t see the details or know what was happening to Shen Lang inside.
In the stands, Su Wenxuan had lost his composure and was pacing back and forth. The few Elders staring at him were getting dizzy.
Everyone from the Profound Dao Sect had their hearts in their throats.
This was especially true for the upper echelons of the Profound Dao Sect.
Shen Lang’s significance to the Profound Dao Sect, and to them, was unprecedented and would likely never be matched!
If anything happened to Shen Lang, they would probably regret it for the rest of their lives and never be able to forgive themselves.
After all, they had watched helplessly as Shen Lang walked among the Nine Spirit Pattern Pillars, without having had time to dissuade him.
Suddenly, the Grand Array shook violently.
A figure shot out from within, looking battered and exhausted!
Everyone looked closely and saw Shen Lang standing at the edge of the battle stage, drenched in sweat and gasping for breath!
"You... you... how did you get out?" Tong Fan’s voice trembled.
No one knew better than him how formidable the Nine Spirit Pattern Pillars were.
Once the Nine Spirit Pattern Pillars were activated, how could anyone inside possibly get out without permission from the people of the Artifact Origin Sect?
Shen Lang rolled his eyes and said, "I’m a little tired. Can’t I come out for a break? I’ll go back in a bit, don’t worry."
THUMP. Tong Fan collapsed into his seat, his face ashen.
Ever since the nine pillars were created, no one had ever been able to enter and exit as they pleased!
Never!
But...
"YES!"
The Profound Dao Sect was ecstatic. Everyone shouted in unison, their voices shaking the Ninth Heaven!
Shen Lang gave a wry smile, looked around, and waved his hand.
’What’s so great about it? These Spirit Pattern Pillars are still a bit different from what the old man from the War God Hall described. The mechanisms inside aren’t that easy to deal with. Otherwise, why would I have been blasted out by the Array’s attacks?’
’If it weren’t for the insane defense of the Star Moon Bodhi Prayer Beads, I would have lost half my life from that attack.’
With Shen Lang’s current Divine Thought intensity, even knowing all the secrets, simultaneously communicating with all Nine Spirit Pattern Pillars and taking complete control of them was more than just a little difficult.
For the first time in a very long time, Shen Lang was this serious, this desperate, about accomplishing something!
Communicate with the Nine Spirit Pattern Pillars, seize control of them, and master them completely!
’If it really comes down to it, I’ll just have Zuo Wentian come out and assist me.’
’No matter what, I have to get my hands on these Spirit Pattern Pillars!’
This was what he had to do now!
’War Wolf has five great Commanders. Every one of them is strong-willed and immensely talented. With my help, it won’t take long for them to break through to the King Martial Realm.’
’Xian’Er’s ’Night Soul’ has the Four Great Heavenly Kings, all of whom have a King Martial Realm Cultivation... The five Commanders plus the Four Great Heavenly Kings makes exactly nine people!’
’Once I seize these Spirit Pattern Pillars and completely refine them, I’ll spend some time having these nine people merge their minds with one pillar each until they can control them freely... When that time comes, even if I face an Emperor Martial Realm powerhouse, I might not be without the power to fight!’
’The immense power of the Nine Spirit Pattern Pillars will be fully unleashed by me! This grand gift from the Artifact Origin Sect... it really is exciting!’
---A lot of readers have been urging me to release more Chapters, to do a burst release. To be honest, Old Hai is in a tough spot. It’s not that I don’t want to write—I have so many ideas in my head—but I have too much going on at home. I have to run a business and write at the same time, and my kid is always making a fuss. I often get angry, and once I do, my train of thought gets broken for a long time and it’s hard to get it back. Life is really difficult right now... But I won’t complain anymore. I hope everyone will continue to show their support. Every one of your donations, recommendation tickets, monthly passes, and comments is a form of support for Old Hai. Thank you, everyone! You can join the reader group: 8749490, to get the latest updates on my progress. This is the second Chapter for today. I’m pulling an all-nighter, so there will be one more later tonight!
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