Splitting the Heavens

From beginning to end, the one who intercepted and tangled with Sage Zhuo had only been Shang Xia's External Avatar.

Originally, after undergoing some improvements, Shang Xia's External Avatar had already broken through the limitations of a typical clone. While maintaining independent consciousness, it still possessed combat strength equivalent to a second star Sage.

But after Shang Xia personally restructured his External Avatar based on the principles of his Heaven Liberation Talisman, he gained even more formidable power, even reaching the level of a third star Sage.

And it wasn't just Shang Xia's External Avatar. The Ying Brothers and the Giant Ape King, each supported by their respective World's Will, already possessed Sage-level strength. After activating Shang Xia's extremely newly crafted rank seven Heaven Liberation Talisman, their strength surged significantly.

The same was true for Huang Jinghan, who had temporarily taken command of the Hidden Frost Sword. With the boost of Shang Xia's talisman, he gained access to true power at the level of a Sage. With Kou Chongxue's inner qi sealed in the sword, he could even briefly suppress Shang Xia's External Avatar in terms of raw power.

Of course, it was only a short-term burst. But even so, it was more than enough.

With them laying a coordinated trap supported by the massive battle formation, the Sages of the Original Stars Corner couldn't stir up much trouble.

Under the concerted assault of four Sage-level experts, each at or above the second star, they were caught off guard and suppressed instantly.

And through all of it, Shang Xia never took direct action. That meant no one had realized that the Essence Luxuriant Fleet still concealed a peak fifth star Sage who was likely just one step away from entering the high-level Seven Star Realm!

"Actually, I did make a move in secret," Shang Xia admitted casually. "It's just that no one noticed."

He continued, "That third star cultivator ultimately failed to draw on the power of his world to activate his escape technique because I secretly interfered with the link between his anchored soul and his true body. That allowed the Hidden Frost Sword to destroy his soul."

His External Avatar gasped in shock, "Interfering with the link between their anchored soul... The final life-saving escape technique of a Sage. You actually managed to do that?!"

Shang Xia merely smiled slightly.

Something clicked in the mind of his External Avatar. "Is it the fifth form of the Seven Star Mace Technique?"

A strange smile appeared on Shang Xia's face, and his External Avatar couldn't help but continue, "Don't tell me you have already become a high-level Sage?! If you were still able to provide your inner qi to me, the Ying Brothers, the Giant Ape King, and Huang Jinghan, and still had the strength to intercept their connection to their origin world... Unless you became a high-level Sage, I can't think of any other explanation."

Shang Xia chuckled and waved his hand. "You're mistaken. The third form of the Seven Star Mace Technique, Guided Dipper, has been able to interfere with the connection. It's just that up to now, I only used it two or three times."

Upon hearing the explanation, his External Avatar looked like he wanted to roll his eyes.

The forceful connection with their world was nearly every Sage's final trump card for survival. It was only used in the most desperate situations.

Moreover, each activation came at a massive cost to the user's origin world. It would heavily damage the World Origin Source.

Under such circumstances, how could the escape technique be used lightly?

"What about that fourth star Sage? Why didn't you try to stop him?" Shang Xia's External Avatar asked again.

Shang Xia laughed dismissively. "Killing a third star Sage was already enough to shock those watching us. As for the fourth star Sage... Yeah, I might have been able to stop him, but doing so would definitely reveal my presence. Besides. Once he was wounded and terrified, he posed no further threat. Under those conditions, keeping my identity hidden was far more important."

Shang Xia's External Avatar thought for a moment before snorting, "You really are cunning!"

...

The interception launched by the Sages of the Origin Stars Corner ended with one dead third star Sage, a fourth star Sage who barely escaped death and had to activate his final escape technique, and another running away. The fact that the third star Sage was killed before he could activate his final escape technique shocked the Sages of the various Heavenly Fields.

This massive fleet, whose origins remained unclear to those in the Origin Stars Corner, had demonstrated power strong enough to intimidate every Heavenly Field there.

As the fleet carrying two Spirit Worlds accelerated into the distance, no other factions dared to recklessly intercept them.

The Star Ships once again activated their cloaking and protection formations and the entire fleet eventually disappeared into the void. The trailing Spirit Worlds also disappeared.

Soon after, the high-level True Immortals on the major Star Ships gathered on the You Continent.

At that moment, whether it was the Ying Brothers, the Giant Ape King, or even Huang Jinghan and the other elites from the Essence Luxuriant Heavenly Field, all wore expressions of awe mixed with fanaticism upon seeing Shang Xia again.

Shang Xia, aware of what they were thinking about, only spoke once everyone had assembled. "The reason I've called you here is to talk about the Heaven Liberation Talisman."

Everyone quickly straightened their expressions once he started speaking. Huang Jinghan looked around at the others, then slowly asked, "Sage Shang, is there something wrong with the talisman?"

Shang Xia nodded slowly, then shook his head. "Yes and no."

Seeing their puzzled looks, he continued, "I imagine all of you have previously come into contact with Seventh Order energy. Now that the talisman has raised your cultivation to that level, you've surely realized that the power you wielded was different from what you've encountered before."

Ying Lianquan immediately said, "Exactly. When I activated the talisman and was empowered by your inner qi, it truly felt like I had ascended to the Martial Emptiness Realm myself. This was unlike any prior experience with borrowed Seventh Order energy. Even when our worlds granted us the strength of Sages, we knew it didn't belong to us."

Ying Lianxi nodded in agreement. "Indeed! At that moment, it genuinely felt like I had become a Sage. When the talisman's effect wore off and my cultivation receded, I felt an overwhelming sense of loss."

Shang Xia nodded and said solemnly, "That is exactly the hidden danger I came to warn you about." He paused for a moment, then explained, "This talisman does offer you the benefit of experiencing the Martial Emptiness Realm ahead of time. It will help when you truly attempt to advance. But the power it grants is based on my inner qi. That means your perception of the next level is influenced by me. While this might not affect your initial breakthrough, it will almost certainly hinder you when trying to go further."

Shang Xia spoke with sincerity, but those present didn't seem particularly concerned.

To them, even though they had reached the upper levels of the Martial Void Realm, the Martial Emptiness Realm still felt like a distant dream.

If there was even a small chance to improve their odds of reaching that level, why would they worry about what came afterward?

In fact, those who hadn't taken part in the earlier battle, such as Xiao Yugang, Gao Qin, and Song Zhen, were already itching to ask Shang Xia for a Heaven Liberation Talisman to immediately experience the power of a Sage.