The eight skeletal fiends had just broken free from the great whirlpool when they were about to pounce on Xin Jia and the others. Suddenly, the surrounding dispersed water elemental energy transformed, shifting into countless azure wood elemental forces. Filaments of wood energy condensed into grains of sand-like sawdust. Countless specks of sawdust, trailing long green flames, spun rapidly in the air. In the blink of an eye, a vortex spanning over ten li in diameter, composed of trillions of ceaselessly flowing minute wood shavings, reformed. The eight skeletal fiends, having just burst forth from the white water maelstrom, were immediately plunged into the cyan wood vortex. Moreover, within this vortex, Yimu Divine Lightning incessantly bombarded them, coupled with a fierce gale that whipped up towering flames, cooperating with the Yimu divine abilities to savagely burn the eight skeletal fiends.

The skeletal fiends howled and shrieked, writhing in struggle within the cyan wood torrent. But the suction contained within this cyan wood vortex was more than ten times stronger than the white water whirlpool; how could it allow them to struggle and escape?

Lord Withered Bone erupted in a towering rage. He protected himself with the White Bone Lotus Platform and nocked another arrow on his bone bow.

In an instant, an arrow of light, carrying countless shadowy thunders, struck the cyan wood vortex, causing it to shatter. Countless cyan wood elemental energies scattered across the sky, turning the surrounding world instantly into a layer of jade-like emerald green.

Xin Jia fiercely bit the tip of his tongue again, spitting out a mouthful of vital blood mixed with several slivers of his tongue. Zhao Yi and the others likewise coughed up flesh and blood, merging it into the grand formation, which began to change once more.

The dispersing cyan wood energy ignited into a roaring blaze, accompanied by the sound of immense wind and fire. The cyan wood energy instantly transformed into Bing Huo elemental energy, and (tāo tiān - surging to the heavens) flames erupted outwards. The viscous, almost tangible flames spun rapidly, and in an instant, a fiery vortex twenty li in diameter materialized in the air. The eight skeletal fiends, smoking from being struck by the cyan wood lightning, were poised to strike again with heads shaking and tails wagging, only to let out a lament and be sucked into the crimson vortex of flame.

“Yaaaaahhhh!” Lord Withered Bone shrieked in fury. He pointed at Gu Xiechen through the sky-filling flames and roared, “Youngster, you have infuriated me to death!”

Gu Xiechen sneered and flashed two upright middle fingers, emanating chilling frost.

Lord Withered Bone was utterly enraged. He hadn't expected the Grand Net Array set up by Xin Jia to be so troublesome—truly possessing the essence of a net from which escape was impossible. Given Lord Withered Bone’s overwhelming strength, his divine sense had long since pierced through the cultivation levels of Xin Jia and the others. Xin Jia was the strongest, but his magical power was only at the level of high-stage Jupiter Grade. In other words, Xin Jia possessed only the power of a… tiny, Qi Core realm cultivator!

For one hundred and one Qi Core realm juniors to set up an array that could trap a long-established Evil Path Grandmaster like Lord Withered Bone—if this news spread, while Gu Xiechen would certainly gain immense reputation, Lord Withered Bone's pale bone countenance would be completely disgraced and swept into the sewers.

Roaring in exasperation, Lord Withered Bone once again summoned an artifact—a massive axe made of white bone. Its haft was a bluish-black spine emitting overpowering sinister energy; the bone marrow was covered densely with sharp barbs, indicating the spine of some bizarre, monstrous beast. The head of the axe was composed of countless ribs compressed by magical power, and the blade was a set of wickedly sharp, stark white teeth.

As the Great White Bone Axe appeared, an intensely sharp aura rushed outward in all directions. Lord Withered Bone swung the axe mightily toward the fiery vortex that held the eight skeletal fiends captive.

Xiong Hua shrieked, “Don’t fear this old relic! I have already sent out a distress talisman; Master will arrive immediately!”

After the Battle of Kelenburg Palace, the Corpse Emperor had refined nine distress talismans from his own long hair and entrusted them to Gu Xiechen, Xiong Hua, and the other disciples. As long as the talisman was ignited, the Corpse Emperor, so long as he remained on Earth, would receive the signal and rush over at the fastest possible speed.

Hearing that Xiong Hua had sent the “distress signal,” Gu Xiechen nodded. He placed the Kunlun Sect’s Void-Breaking Celestial Tablet, hidden in his palm, into his Small Qiankun Pouch. With a casual toss, the Cloud-Roaring Bell tumbled into the Grand Net Array. Gu Xiechen shouted sternly, “Xin Jia, trap this old pile of bones to death! Zhao Yi, why are you engaging him head-on? Set up the array, set up the array! Use your magical implements, use your artifacts!”

Xin Jia responded loudly in affirmation. Zhao Yi joyfully caught the Cloud-Soaring Bell as it flew over, shrouded in a white mist. He immediately struck it thirty-six times (six times six)—and vast swathes of white clouds rose up, completely enveloping the entire Grand Net Array. Lord Withered Bone, who was just swinging the Great Bone Axe toward the fiery vortex, was momentarily stunned. A swirl of white mist materialized before him, nullifying not only sight but also preventing his divine sense from penetrating through to see anything.

With a strange howl, Lord Withered Bone prepared to wildly swing the axe forward regardless, but suddenly, one hundred and one flying swords, flying knives, flying axes, flying hammers, flying spears, and flying crossbows, all shimmering with bizarre lights, shot forth from all directions, trailing intense, condensed flames. These flying artifacts radiated light so intensely that the radiance congealed like seven-jeweled glaze, clearly indicating they were superb quality spirit artifacts and divine items, far beyond the common magical artifacts of the current cultivation world. Furthermore, the incantations used to manipulate these artifacts were ancient and profound, and the trajectory of the flying weapons was exquisitely perfect. Every strike made Lord Withered Bone feel utterly unable to resist; the techniques for controlling these swords and artifacts were clearly no ordinary things!

Heavenly Star Gu Xiechen had helped the young cultivators of the Asian Dao Alliance break through three hundred and sixty grotto-heavens and blessed lands, acquiring countless magical artifacts and spirit herbs. But one must not forget: the first to enter those grotto-heavens were always Zhao Yi! With Zhao Yi’s discerning eye, selecting the best three or five artifacts from the hordes of hidden treasures was far too easy!

Three hundred and sixty grotto-heavens—how many treasures had Gu Xiechen truly hidden? Perhaps only he knew! But there was no doubt that compared to Gu Xiechen’s haul, the treasures obtained by the Asian Dao Alliance were merely dregs!

When one hundred and one artifacts were unleashed, Lord Withered Bone was instantly terrified out of his wits! The few artifacts he controlled were his natal artifacts, painstakingly refined over nearly a thousand years of hard work. But no matter how much effort he had poured into these artifacts, Earth’s resources could not compare to those of Heavenly Star, and his cultivation and insight were inferior to those predecessors on Heavenly Star who had already ascended. Thus, not one of his natal artifacts was superior in quality to the one hundred and one flying artifacts currently arrayed against him!

Had it not been for Gu Xiechen fearing that displaying too much wealth might draw unwelcome attention, the artifacts Xin Jia and the others deployed would not have been merely one hundred and one of similar quality, but spirit artifacts three to five grades superior to Lord Withered Bone’s natal ones!

Even so, the one hundred and one artifacts resolutely pierced the bloody light emitted by the White Bone Lotus Platform, fiercely slashing down upon it. With a colossal boom, much of the sinister energy on the White Bone Lotus Platform dissipated, and a trace of blood seeped from the corner of Lord Withered Bone’s mouth; he had sustained minor internal injuries. This was partly due to the current low power of Xin Jia and the others; otherwise, this concentrated assault would have been enough to scatter Lord Withered Bone’s soul, leaving him unable to reincarnate forever!

“Youngster, you have the gall!” Lord Withered Bone raged, wildly hacking out with his axe, fortunately splitting the fiery vortex into dust. This time, Lord Withered Bone did not wait for the array to change again; he compressed his form and lunged toward the eight skeletal fiends. The skeletal fiends also pounced toward Lord Withered Bone, merging into streaks of white light that surged into his body. Lord Withered Bone’s figure suddenly elongated to about five meters tall. His robes cracked and ripped (pā pā pā pā), and countless sharp bone spurs, several feet long, erupted continuously from within his body.

An intense white light, thick with sinister energy, enveloped Lord Withered Bone. Within the sinister aura, Lord Withered Bone yelled madly, “Youngster, I will let you witness the might of Nine Yin Covering the Heavens!”

Accompanied by the kacha sound of countless bones grinding and colliding, the white, sinister light suddenly retracted. A body resembling a towering Tyrannosaurus Rex—minus a tail—appeared within the array.

This bizarrely shaped Tyrannosaurus was completely encased in thick white bone armor. Each piece of bone armor was pieced together from countless tiny bone fragments. Between the skeleton and the marrow, countless blood-colored runes flickered, emitting wisps of black energy continuously. Lord Withered Bone had at least two hundred sharp bone spikes covering his body; white light coiled around the spikes, occasionally shooting out several zhang into the distance.

As Lord Withered Bone shrieked, nine hazy, gray strands of sinister energy shot up from the back of his head, soaring dozens of meters high. The sinister energy coiled and violently twisted above his head, producing a sound like the heavens collapsing and the earth splitting. Vast swathes of Five Elements elemental energy were churned into a bubbling mess. The surging elemental force forced Xin Jia and the others back several steps.

The nine strands of sinister energy stirred violently again in all directions. Wherever they passed, the Five Elements elemental energy shattered. The immense pressure made Gu Xiechen and the others on the roof of the Gu Building feel as if their faces were pressed against an iron plate, making even breathing difficult. Innumerable iron chains coiled toward Lord Withered Bone from every direction, but the chains were pulverized by the sinister energy dozens of meters away from him. Even the lightning summoned from the storm clouds above was repelled skyward by the nine strands of sinister energy.

Xin Jia’s expression shifted slightly. He roared sharply, “Bind!”

Zhao Yi and the others responded in unison, spitting blood onto the flying swords and artifacts they controlled, using these treasures to replace Xin Jia’s iron chains to seal Lord Withered Bone’s surroundings. The power of these excellent quality artifacts was more than a hundred times greater than the carelessly refined chains Xin Jia used! The one hundred and one artifacts merged into a single current, weaving back and forth in the air to form a large net, tightly binding Lord Withered Bone. The nine strands of sinister energy swept around wildly, but every time a flying sword artifact was knocked away, a new one immediately filled the gap in the array.

The Cloud-Roaring Bell continued to chime. The white mist, carrying increasingly dense Five Elements elemental energy, surged inward. A massive vortex composed of five-colored light formed in the sky. The one hundred and one artifacts, bearing brilliant divine light, shuttled back and forth through the white mist and the vortex, engaging in fierce combat with the nine strands of hazy, gray sinister energy. No matter how high the spirit of the nine strands of sinister energy soared, they could never break through the restraint of the Grand Net Array.

Staring at Lord Withered Bone roaring like thunder in a fit of rage within the array, Xin Jia could not help but sneer, “How many ancient great devils and fiends have met their doom under the Grand Net Array? What are you, merely a tiny aberration?”

“Weicha-cha” (the sound of clashing metal), one hundred and eight iron chains shot straight into the dark clouds high above. One hundred and eight bolts of fierce lightning surged down the chains, slamming violently into Lord Withered Bone’s body.