Splitting the Heavens

Over a dozen starships from the Essence Frontier Heavenly Field had attempted to bind the Spirit Ark piloted by Shang Xia and Su Chi using void chains from various directions. Before they could stop it, a majestic cloud fortress rose from within the Spirit Ark, swallowing it entirely while repelling all the approaching chains.

"Rank seven talisman!"

Qin Ming snorted coldly once. Facing the oncoming cloud fortress, he once again formed seals in the air with his hands.

A radiant light emerged from the void, forming an invisible wall of origin qi. The charging cloud fortress was instantly compressed as it distorted. Its speed slowed greatly.

At the same time, the jade Ruyi, previously deflected by Shang Xia, had already returned to Qin Ming's hand. Without a second word, he hurled it at the top of the cloud fortress.

Naturally, Shang Xia never expected that he could withstand a strike from Qin Ming, who had the strength of a high-level Sage now that he had the assistance of his Heavenly Field.

The Seven Star Mace emerged from the fortress as well, but upon clashing with the descending jade Ruyi, the mace was instantly knocked back at an even faster speed. It was accompanied by a muffled grunt from within the fortress.

It was obvious that Shang Xia had suffered a quiet setback in that exchange.

Moreover, the jade Ruyi didn't stop. After striking down the whip, it continued descending into the fortress, smashing through the upper layers of cloud and faintly revealing the Spirit Ark's mast.

Yet even so, Qin Ming had not succeeded in shattering Shang Xia's rank seven Myriad Tinted Cloud Talisman in a single strike.

In the next moment, the Spirit Ark that was flying at maximum speed, rushed into Qin Ming's domain.

The cloud fortress weakened once more, and Qin Ming's domain continued eroding the power of the talisman relentlessly.

Bolts of reddish-gold lightning suddenly exploded from within the massive cloud fortress.

The erosion effect that came from Qin Ming's domain abruptly slowed.

Next, boundless starlight rained down through the cloud torn open by the lightning. They tore into Qin Ming's domain. Shang Xia was risking it all as he clashed with Qin Ming domain-on-domain.

It was the classic tactic where he would lose as much as he gained.

Though Qin Ming believed he held the upper hand, he had no desire to engage in a war of attrition. Especially considering his inner qi had not yet fully recovered after forcefully returning from the Nebula Forbidden Region. As the Spirit Ark drew ever closer to his actual self, Qin Ming finally chose to retreat.

The next instant, the shattered cloud fortress, wrapped around the Spirit Ark, passed through the void beside him. Despite Shang Xia's best efforts to resist and weaken the opposing force, the fortress was torn further apart by Qin Ming's assault. The power of the Myriad Tinted Cloud Talisman was on the verge of collapse.

However, the protection of the talisman allowed the Spirit Ark to break through Qin Ming's interception completely unscathed!

Things weren't over yet. Though Qin Ming refused to crash into the Spirit Ark, he was still capable of pursuing and delivering a final strike.

Shang Xia remained behind to block Qin Ming's pursuit, buying time for the Spirit Ark to fully escape the range of the Essence Frontier Heavenly Field's influence.

It was just that after doing so, his condition was worsening. Even though he was no weaker than a normal fifth star Qin Ming, that wasn't the ordinary Qin Ming he was dealing with. With the support of the Heavenly Field, Qin Ming could be considered a formidable expert even among high-level Sages. Under his relentless assault, Shang Xia was beginning to falter.

Just as Shang Xia was considering whether to summon the Crimson Soul Tablet to fend off the next round of attacks, a sudden change occurred. One of the large Star Ships that was trying to flank him was pierced by an unseen attack. Though it didn't immediately disintegrate, it sustained serious damage and began spinning through the void.

On the other side, a medium Star Ship in the vanguard was directly obliterated by a beam from deep in the void. Even the True Immortals on board were slain instantly.

"Who's there?!" Qin Ming cried out in fury. He immediately disengaged from suppressing Shang Xia, retreating to a safe distance while scanning the surrounding void with suspicion. Even though he was asking, he had a pretty good idea of who was attacking his fleet.

It wasn't just him. Shang Xia, too, had guessed who had interfered in the last moments and was already contemplating their intent.

Of course, such a golden opportunity wasn't something Shang Xia would let slip. As the Spirit Ark continued speeding deeper into the void, farther and farther from the Essence Frontier Heavenly Field, Shang Xia remained cautious, staying alert for any further moves from Qin Ming while making his escape.

Qin Ming simply stood in the void as he watched Shang Xia and the Spirit Ark disappear into the distance.

Meanwhile, the Essence Frontier Heavenly Field fleet that had been attempting a pincer maneuver regrouped behind him after the sudden assault.

Once they stabilized and reformed into a coordinated formation, two high-level True Immortals stepped off and went to meet up with Qin Ming.

"Sage, shall we give chase?"

"Sage Qin, what shall we do now?"

They asked in unison.

In the end, Qin Ming merely sighed. "I miscalculated. With three Sages working together, there is no point in chasing them!"

The high-level True Immortals exchanged glances and saw clear fear in each other's eyes. They wisely chose not to speak further.

Qin Ming's gaze remained fixed on the direction where Shang Xia and the Spirit Ark had vanished. A strange light flashed in his eyes and no one knew what he was thinking about.

Moments later, a high-level True Immortal couldn't help but ask, "Sage Qin, are we really just going to let this go?"

Qin Ming chuckled softly. "There's no rush. Since our objective in the Nebula Forbidden Region has already been accomplished, we can settle this account a few years down the line."

The two behind him looked at each other again. In the end, one of them exclaimed, "Sage Qin, are you about to take that step?!"

Qin Ming finally smiled with a trace of pride. "Thanks to these people, I've completed the final piece needed to advance to a high-level Sage. Within three to ten years... I will surely step into the sixth star of the Martial Emptiness Realm!"

Under their watchful gaze, a trace of worry flashed in Qin Ming's eyes, but there was a hidden trace of darkness in them.

...

As Shang Xia remained behind to cover the Spirit Ark's escape, he only returned after they traveled hundreds of thousands more miles into the void, and he was sure Qin Ming was no longer in pursuit.

Even though he stepped onto the Spirit Ark again, the speed did not decrease. It continued to speed into the depths of the void, away from the Essence Frontier Heavenly Field. Su Chi was still controlling the Spirit Ark, and Shang Xia stepped into a cabin to recover.

Only when they finally neared the borders of the Original Star Corner again did Su Chi finally relax. However, before he could say anything, Shang Xia had reappeared on the deck.

"Both of you... Since we're already here, why not show yourselves?" Shang Xia turned calmly to the side as he spoke. His tone was flat, betraying no emotion.