NOVEL NEXT Chapter 527: Underlying Currents Surge
Ten years of time, for an ordinary Great Realm, have already transformed everything and everyone, yet for powerful living creatures, it is merely a brief rise and fall in the river of time, vanishing in the blink of an eye.
As the predetermined time for the Heaven Burial Ceremony arrived, the invisible barriers and the constraints of laws enveloping the Space-Time Battlefields began to thaw like melting snow, gradually collapsing.
The first to open was Battlefield No. 5.
When the Light Gate to the outside world re-stabilized in the starry sky, representatives of various forces, sect elders, and even some emissaries of ancient clans outside couldn't help but hold their breaths, their eyes fixed closely on the exit.
Streams of light flowed, and one figure after another staggered out, either with withered auras or heavily scarred, their eyes filled with the dazedness and numbness of having survived a calamity.
Xue Qing's figure slowly stepped out. She had changed out of her blood-stained battle robe into a fresh and neat cloud-white outfit, her long hair simply tied behind her head, revealing a face that was delicate yet radiated a cold demeanor.
The aura around her had thoroughly stabilized at the peak of the Martial Saint Second Layer, having already touched the threshold of an even higher realm.
At the moment she left the battlefield, her immense blood and energy erupted like a volcano, instantly burgeoning under the watchful gazes of the crowd, stepping into the Martial Saint Realm Third Layer, radiating waves of terrifying oppression.
A strange, empty space formed around her.
Neither the living creatures who had just come out with her nor the cultivators waiting outside dared to approach within a hundred miles of her, their gazes filled with awe and deep dread.
Finally, as the Light Gate dissipated, a commotion broke out under the starry sky, each side's strong ones bearing expressions of disbelief.
Upon entering, there were over 1,740,000 elites from various sects and families, but now, less than 100,000 emerged alive!
Moreover, among them, the majority were martial cultivators, with living creatures from other Taoist orthodoxies making up scarcely one in ten.
Such casualties were excessively severe, never had any previous Heaven Burial Ceremony seen such a heavy blow.
For some mid-sized sects and families, such losses could almost be called catastrophic.
Soon, as numerous living creatures all walked out, some news from the battlefield began to spread madly.
What caused these terrifying casualties was neither the environment of the battlefield nor evil demons, but just one person.
Xue Qing.
In the past ten years, she almost single-handedly slaughtered over a million living creatures from various races, nearly sweeping across the entire Battlefield No. 5.
Wherever she went, it was a bloodbath.
Regardless of the opponent's origin or cultivation, anyone who dared to show the slightest hostility towards her, and then took action, became a spirit under her blade, a stepping stone for her to stabilize her realm and hone her martial path.
Slaughter God, Asura, countless titles filled with fear and dread were bestowed upon her, yet no one dared to call them to her face.
At the peak of the River of Space-Time, the projections of several Ancient Ancestors bore slightly grim expressions.
From their respective clans, quite a few prodigious champions also participated in this grand contest, now are nowhere to be found, clearly having perished within, becoming the backdrop to Xue Qing's glorious achievements.
Previously they only observed the battlefield casually, not keeping a constant watch on Xue Qing's every movement, the result now coming out is naturally somewhat unexpected.
"Martial Ancestor..." One Ancient Ancestor, enveloped in shimmering starlight, slowly spoke, his voice somewhat cold: "The child from your pavilion, her tendency to kill is rather too ruthless."
"Indeed." Another Ancient Ancestor spoke, saying softly: "Some grievances, this action perhaps goes a bit too far?"
The projection of Sun-Eroding Cry was indifferent, cold as ice, unmoved by the tragic scene below and the Ancient Ancestors' questioning.
He didn't even glance towards them, just plainly spoke:
"On the road of contesting the Tao, the strong live, the weak die, it has always been so, a celestial principle justified, do I need to remind everyone of this truth?"
He paused slightly, his gaze sharp as a Heavenly Blade, sweeping over the several Ancient Ancestors present with dissatisfied expressions, a slight curve at the corner of his mouth, nearly provokingly saying:
"If you all are dissatisfied with this outcome, and think my Martial Pavilion's disciples acted improperly, feel free to reveal your true selves and engage in a Tao contest with me, how about it?"
His gaze was like a blazing sun, dazzling and scorching, faintly exuding an almost excited battle intent, seemingly eager for someone to step out now to fight with him, ready for a challenge.
Scanned by his gaze, several Ancient Ancestors felt a chill in their hearts, subconsciously averted their eyes, remaining silent, and spoke no more.
Recently, Sun-Eroding Cry had just used thunderous means to slay the Xu Family Ancient Ancestor Xumi Sheng, at the height of fierce might, shrouded in killing aura, no one wanted to provoke his ire at this moment, to mess with this God of Slaughter over some already fallen juniors.
Subsequently, the other Space-Time Battlefields also successively opened.
Battlefield No. 3, No. 4, No. 2, No. 1…. the situation of casualties varied but was not drastically different.
The cultivators who finally came out alive from each battlefield mostly ranged from hundreds of thousands to a million, with the overall attrition rate generally exceeding 50%, or even higher, showcasing the brutal nature of this Heaven Burial Ceremony.
Some changes occurred in Battlefield No. 1, with several top-class prodigious champions reaching Eighth Order Ninth Layer Perfection accidentally breaking through during bloody battles, stepping into the Ninth Order.
Though their strength surged, their cultivation also exceeded limits, losing the eligibility to enter the Heavenly Palace, leaving regrets behind.