Splitting the Heavens

Although Shang Xia could sense traces of the Star Origin Lord's Starlight Clone in the nearby area of the seven suns, it was still not easy to pinpoint his current whereabouts.

The key issue was that Shang Xia didn't want to expose himself prematurely, lest the Star Origin Lord's Starlight Clone deduce even more.

That was because Shang Xia himself wasn't sure how deep the connection between the Star Origin Lord's Starlight Clone and his true body ran.

At the very least, Shang Xia's External Avatar was unable to share the connection with his true body.

Although Shang Xia didn't believe the Star Origin Lord's Starlight Clone could either, it was best to be cautious just in case.

As he pondered this, Shang Xia piloted his small Star Ship closer and closer to the void surrounding the Essence Chong Heavenly Field, entering the region framed by several stars

In more vivid terms, Shang Xia and the Essence Chong Heavenly Field now lay nestled within the 'ladle' of the Big Dipper.

Shang Xia had originally intended to charge into the Essence Chong Heavenly Field to stir the hornet's nest. That way, he could verify whether the second star Pei Ji was stationed within the Heavenly Field and potentially lure out the Star Origin Lord's Starlight Clone.

However, just as he neared the domain, he came to a sudden halt. Staring into the void toward Essence Chong World, his expression grew uncertain.

"There are hidden formations set up in the surrounding void of the Essence Chong Heavenly Field..." He muttered.

Shang Xia was certain these methods weren't laid by Pei Ji, who was a mere second star Sage. Even he himself had almost been fooled by them.

Whether they were set up by Yuan Ling in secret or by the Star Origin Lord's Starlight Clone was still unknown.

If it was the former, so be it. But if it was the latter... Things would become very interesting.

Shang Xia wasn't a Formation Master and wasn't particularly skilled in restrictions or formations.

But after seeing enough of them over time, he had developed a sharp eye for distinguishing subtle patterns.

And those hidden formations weren't just passive alerts or surveillance. They included far more advanced mechanisms. In fact, they seemed to be forming a network, where activating a single one would cause a cascading effect.

"A shame I didn't bring Chu Jia this time. She'd definitely spot more than I can."

Clicking his tongue in frustration, Shang Xia maintained a safe distance from the Heavenly Field and began silently circling its perimeter in the void. Before long, he confirmed that those hidden formations extended through the void.

That made Shang Xia increasingly certain that these arrangements were anything but simple.

"Is the Essence Chong Heavenly Field scheming something? Or is someone scheming against them?"

He truly couldn't say.

At first, he had thought it best not to stir things up. But now, he began to believe that disturbing the peace was exactly what he needed to do.

Having made up his mind, Shang Xia immediately turned and flew away from the four stars.

Who knows how much time passed?

In a distant asteroid belt, millions of miles from the Essence Chong Heavenly Field, a rogue meteor suddenly spun out of control. Colliding with at least a hundred others, it triggered a chain reaction.

Those shattered pieces then struck others nearby, quickly disturbing a vast asteroid belt that stretched across countless miles, filled with tens or hundreds of thousands of rock fragments. The chain reaction grew into a massive surge, shifting and spreading like a migrating shoal in the deep ocean.

The asteroids gathered momentum and direction. Before long, they became a sweeping meteor storm crossing the starry void.

As the storm raced through space, many meteors burned out along the way. But the remainder only grew faster and more powerful, forming blazing trails that stretched nearly a thousand miles across, heading directly toward the Essence Chong Heavenly Field.

This immense meteor storm quickly alerted all hidden presences in the region.

On ancient suns, dark spots appeared. Flames on them trembled as if the stars embedded in the heavens themselves were shaking. Nearly imperceptible divine souls spread wide across the area, clearly probing for something...

And finally, the last to react, Essence Chong Heavenly Field itself, plunged into full-blown chaos and panic.

Hundreds of Star Ships, large and small, were hastily summoned. Led by True Immortals, they charged out of the domain in disarray, heading straight toward the incoming meteor storm.

One by one, meteors were blasted apart, bursting into dazzling firework-like explosions in the void. But many more required multiple cultivators working together to destroy, and the largest among them could only be shattered by groups of True Immortals.

Even so, the shattered meteors made up only a small fraction of the storm.

Worse yet, from time to time, Star Ships failed to evade impact and were obliterated by the streaking fire. Few survived.

By this time, the meteor storm had already entered the area surrounding Essence Chong Heavenly Field, an area laced with concealed restrictions. Hundreds of meteors exploded mid-flight, unleashing powerful spatial ripples that obliterated the hidden formations.

As nearly a hundred Star Ships from the Essence Chong World, still chasing the storm and trying to break its momentum, witnessed this, they hesitated. Their efforts to destroy meteors faltered for just a moment.

Perhaps even they hadn't known that such a massive web had been laid around the Essence Chong Heavenly Field.

Now the meteor storm was right on the threshold of the domain's protective barriers. There was no hope of stopping it completely. Still, dozens of Star Ships instinctively continued intercepting it, even if their attacks felt as futile as throwing cups of water on a raging fire.

The Heavenly Field's protection couldn't erase a storm of this scale. Even after being torn through, the meteor storm had only diminished by about a third.

But by then, the Essence Chong World's most critical defensive barrier had already been lost.

From the Essence Chong World and neighboring Spirit Light World, countless Star Ships swarmed out to join the battered fleet beyond the barrier. Yet their efforts seemed even less effective.

Then came the appearance of multiple Elysium True Immortals. They stood atop their heavenly screens as immense waves of energy from their Elysiums surged into them.

But everyone already knew the truth. Even they wouldn't be able to stop the inevitable.

The meteor storm was going to hit both worlds.

The Essence Chong Heavenly Field was going to suffer devastating damage.

No... Perhaps one last sliver of hope remained!

The Essence Chong World's only Sage, the second star Pei Ji, might still return in time with the teleportation back to his world.

Perhaps, through his soul's connection to the World Origin Source, Pei Ji had already sensed the looming catastrophe!