Chapter 163: When the Home Is Empty
The true inheritance ground was not in Tai Qiu.
It was hidden within the corpse of an immemorial ruin bat.
When Ju Go followed Fang Yuan's group and arrived, he finally understood why Fang Ming had told him not to rush. The battlefield before him was far beyond the scale of a newly advanced Gu Immortal.
The ruin bat corpse was enormous, lying across the land like a dead mountain. Space path dao marks were dense around it, twisting the surroundings faintly. Phantom beasts surged out in waves, blocking the Gu Immortals like a black sea.
Ordinary phantom beasts were already troublesome. They could turn vague for a short time and avoid attacks. Desolate-level phantom beasts were even harder to deal with, remaining in phantom state longer and forcing Gu Immortals to waste time and methods.
The demonic immortals were practical people. After finding the real inheritance ground, no one wanted to wait.
But wanting to enter and being able to enter were different things.
Explosions rang everywhere.
Phantom beasts attacked without fear. Gu Immortals fought while guarding against each other. No one trusted anyone. Every step forward was followed by a hidden probe, a sudden obstruction, or a cold gaze from another competitor.
Ju Go stayed beside Fang Yuan's group, his expression calm but his heart tense.
Fang Yuan raised his hand.
A strength path giant hand appeared again, sweeping through the air with heavy pressure. Phantom beasts scattered under it, and when Fairy Li Shan's flames spread out to force them to solidify, the giant hand crushed them in large numbers.
Hei Lou Lan also attacked.
She did not show weakness. Her strength path foundation was still impressive, and every move carried solid force. Compared to Fang Yuan's current Giant Hand display, she was slightly inferior in momentum, but she was still clearly a powerful rank six Gu Immortal.
Fairy Li Shan supported from the side, controlling the battlefield without exposing too much.
Ju Go also made his move.
Unfathomable Will Immortal Gu stirred within him. He did not act recklessly, only using it at key moments to disturb phantom beasts and slow their reactions. He did not try to steal attention. His task was to survive, observe, and follow.
Fang Ming had not sent him here to be a hero.
He had sent him here to watch.
Not far away, the Traveling Three Elites charged forward together, their combined method fierce and fast. But the battlefield changed quickly. A desolate-level phantom beast swallowed Han Dong, weakening their formation at once. Lu Qing Ming and Su Guang became desperate to save him.
Unfettered Scholar and Pi Shui Han did not let the chance pass.
They interfered with others while preserving their own strength. When Fang Yuan's group showed too much power, they also turned pressure toward them. Words became blades as sharp as killer moves.
"Are you righteous path Gu Immortals hiding among us?"
"Or perhaps you are not even from Northern Plains?"
The surrounding demonic immortals did not immediately attack, but their gazes changed.
Ju Go's heart sank slightly.
So this was Gu Immortal fighting.
It was not only fists, flames, waves, and immortal killer moves.
A sentence at the right time could isolate a group. A suspicion could turn everyone into enemies. A strong move could scare others away, but it could also make them unite against you.
Fang Yuan remained calm.
More strength path giant hands appeared, forcing even rank seven experts to treat him seriously. His moves were powerful, but Ju Go also noticed the burden. After the giant hands vanished, Fang Yuan's arm showed a faint weakness before recovering.
Power had a price.
Ju Go silently remembered everything.
Within the ruin bat corpse, another battlefield was unfolding.
Dong Fang Yu Liang stood before the final Gu formation, sweat covering his body. His eyes were red from exhaustion, but he continued forcing himself to complete the last step.
Dong Fang Chang Fan's star will watched quietly.
Old Lord Can Yang had already appeared in the hall.
His aura was deep and dangerous, making Tan Wu Feng and Dong Po Kong feel as if death had stepped behind them. He did not attack Dong Fang Yu Liang directly. He wanted the complete inheritance, so he waited.
But waiting did not mean kindness.
Yellow-green flames ignited on Tan Wu Feng and Dong Po Kong's bodies. The two rank five Gu Masters screamed in pain, collapsing to the ground as the fire burned without killing them.
Dong Fang Yu Liang trembled.
The star will's voice was cold on the surface.
"Do not waste time. Complete the formation."
But secretly, it urged him with another message.
Finish it quickly.
Old Lord Can Yang is dangerous.
Only by completing the formation will there be a chance.
Dong Fang Yu Liang bit his lip until blood flowed. His hands moved faster.
Outside, the phantom beasts continued delaying the demonic immortals.
Inside, the final formation neared completion.
Then Dong Fang tribe's Gu Immortals entered the phantom formation.
At first, they believed they were sacrificing for the tribe. Dong Fang Chang Fan's star will told them the formation could kill Old Lord Can Yang and the demonic path Gu Immortals outside. It needed their immortal aperture origin cores as fuel.
They hesitated.
Then one after another, they agreed.
The phantom formation activated.
Their immortal apertures trembled.
Origin cores were drawn out, merging into a blood-colored power within the formation. By the time they realized something was wrong, it was already too late.
Dong Fang Yu Liang completed the final formation and entered the center.
Dong Fang Chang Fan's soul appeared.
It rushed into Dong Fang Yu Liang's body.
Old Lord Can Yang laughed.
"The true traitor of Dong Fang tribe is that beloved Lord Chang Fan of yours!"
The Dong Fang tribe Gu Immortals were stunned.
Disbelief turned into fear.
Fear turned into rage.
But they could no longer move.
The phantom formation changed again. Blood-colored light erupted, spreading outward like a thick veil. In moments, the entire ruin bat corpse was covered.
Outside, the demonic path Gu Immortals stopped their internal probing.
A blood veil had appeared before them.
It was thick, heavy, and filled with frightening power.
Zhuo Zhan charged forward with his hammer, but before he even reached the veil, the blood in his body began spraying out uncontrollably. His expression changed from arrogance to horror as he retreated in panic.
The immortals quickly understood.
Blood path.
Menses Blood Gu.
The formation was not meant to attack them first.
It was defending the possession process.
Long-range killer moves slammed into the blood veil. Waves, flames, lightning, wind blades, and strength path attacks struck again and again. The veil shrank under the assault, but it regenerated continuously.
The demonic immortals grew anxious.
Inside, Dong Fang Chang Fan was being reborn.
Outside, they could only watch and attack.
Ju Go stared at the blood veil, feeling a chill in his heart.
Dong Fang Chang Fan had used Tai Qiu as bait, the teleportation formation as misdirection, the ruin bat corpse as inheritance ground, phantom beasts as guards, Dong Fang Yu Liang as vessel, and even his own tribe's Gu Immortals as materials.
This was wisdom path.
Not kindness.
Not righteousness.
Only calculation.
Far away from the ruin bat battlefield, Fang Ming stood in the darkness near Jade Pool blessed land.
He did not need to see the blood veil with his own eyes.
The timing was enough.
The movement of Dong Fang tribe's Gu Immortals had already changed. Their strongest elders were absent. The responses inside Jade Pool blessed land had become slower. Some defensive arrangements still operated, but without proper immortal control, they were no longer as dangerous as before.
Beside Fang Ming stood Fairy Bian Si Xuan, Fairy Fen Meng, Fairy Huang Sha, and Fairy Qing Suo.
Bian Si Xuan carried Heavy Lifting Immortal Gu.
Fairy Fen Meng carried Inner Strength Qi Immortal Gu.
Fairy Huang Sha and Fairy Qing Suo had no Immortal Gu, but they were prepared with mortal killer moves and one-time-use immortal killer move tattoos.
Each of them had an Ironclad tattoo ready.
Fang Ming waited patiently at the side for Ju Go's signal.