The Grand Array of Celestial Net and Earthly Trap suddenly halted, leaving the Heavenly Soldiers and Generals who maintained it looking grim. The Heavenly Maiden of Auspiciousness.

Every Heavenly Soldier and General knew the great name of the Goddess Lakshmi. The wife of Vishnu, the ageless goddess born from the Churning of the Ocean of Milk, hailed as the World Mother possessing the highest feminine potential. She mastered transformations, manipulated time, understood the geography of the cosmos, and moved through the netherworld without hindrance. She ascended the heavens effortlessly, unblocked, and even the restrictions set by Saints within the Three Realms could hardly impede her ingress or egress.

The Two Sages of Buddhism had once subdued the Celestial Host with sheer force, transforming demons into Buddhas and compelling them to become the Dharma Protectors. Even Great Brahma, Shiva, and little Vishnu had bowed their heads under the sway of the Two Sages, yet the Heavenly Maiden of Auspiciousness repeatedly escaped their grasp, causing the Buddhist faction endless trouble.

Finally, the Two Sages of Buddhism unleashed their full, thunderous wrath. Forsaking their status as Saints, they manifested their Primordial True Forms, employing the innate laws of the Great Dao to finally restrain the Heavenly Maiden of Auspiciousness and force her submission to the Buddhist order.

Though the Heavenly Maiden of Auspiciousness’s name was not counted among the Twenty Heavenly Protectors, she was still a great divine power praised by all of them.

In her presence, the Grand Array of Celestial Net and Earthly Trap was like a thin veil she could pass through at will—how could it possibly trap her? Even the Two Sages of Buddhism had to revert to their True Forms and borrow the power of the Heavenly Dao rules just to bind her; one could imagine how profound and immeasurable her divine magic truly was.

Among the Protectors, the status of the Heavenly Maiden of Auspiciousness was comparable to that of the Xuan Nü of the Nine Heavens among the Thirty-three Heavens; her standing was exceptionally lofty.

Seeing that it was the Heavenly Maiden of Auspiciousness who had made her move, the Grand Array of Celestial Net and Earthly Trap simply ceased its operation. With her present, the array was completely ineffective, and continuing it would only drain the vital energy of the assembled Heavenly Soldiers and Generals—what good would that do?

Gu Xiechen watched the Heavenly Maiden of Auspiciousness with cold eyes, a bitter taste rising in his mouth. Chamunda and Bhaiya had already engaged a small portion of the power he held in reserve, and it had taken considerable effort to trap them. Now, here came the Heavenly Maiden of Auspiciousness, one who feared no restriction or formation—how could this battle possibly be won?

The Corpse Emperor spat, disgorging the bead that was Bhaiya into his palm. He frowned deeply at the Heavenly Maiden of Auspiciousness, calculating for a long moment before scoffing, “The Heavenly Maiden of Auspiciousness? Can the Immortal Slaying Sword Formation not hold even you?”

The Heavenly Maiden of Auspiciousness smiled delicately, instantly blossoming like a hundred flowers, filling the void with a warm, soul-corroding, bone-melting sweetness. She gracefully bowed to the Corpse Emperor and replied with a smile, “The Immortal Slaying Sword Formation is peerless in the Three Realms, how could Lakshmi endure such a ferocious array? If Lakshmi were to confront the Immortal Slaying Sword Formation head-on, her soul would surely perish; but if Lakshmi chooses not to confront it directly, I imagine the Immortal Inviting Sword Formation also…”

Her words remained unfinished, but their implication was utterly clear. Gu Xiechen nodded secretly. Even with the Five Directions, Five Colors Banners protecting the Grand Array of Celestial Net and Earthly Trap, they could not stop the Heavenly Maiden of Auspiciousness from tracking them down. While the Immortal Slaying Sword Formation possessed the greatest killing power in the Three Realms, its ability to confine was inferior to the Celestial Net and Earthly Trap. Against the slippery Heavenly Maiden of Auspiciousness, it would likely prove inadequate.

After a moment of contemplation, Gu Xiechen looked at Dukat, whom the Heavenly Maiden held in her grasp, and forced a wry smile, “Long time no see, how have you been developing?”

Dukat’s teeth ground together with a sharp snap, spitting tiny sparks from his mouth: “Not bad. It’s precisely because I’ve developed rather well that my controlled children have spread across hundreds of realms and star fields, which is why they targeted me.”

He paused, then continued with a bitter laugh, “They possess a very peculiar divine ability. Though I had manifested countless avatars hidden within the children, they still managed to forcibly extract me. Uh, the soul fragments of Pol Pot and the Feathered Ones have already been separated from me. You need to be careful.”

The Heavenly Maiden of Auspiciousness lightly placed a palm on Dukat’s back, piercing straight through his body. A large spray of metal shards and bloody pulp erupted, and Dukat shrieked in agony, his body trembling violently.

With a soft sigh, the Heavenly Maiden of Auspiciousness frowned slightly, feigning a petulant reproach, “You, you troublesome man! I intend to use you to trade for Chamunda and Bhaiya, yet here you are, leaking our intelligence? If you dare speak nonsense again, I will kill you first and then personally move to rescue them.”

Without giving Dukat a chance to reply, the Heavenly Maiden pointed at Gu Xiechen and shouted, “Gu Xiechen, one Dukat for Chamunda and Bhaiya—do you trade?”

Penghua lunged forward, intending to speak, but Gu Xiechen waved to stop him. After considering for a moment, Gu Xiechen smiled faintly and said, “Trade? Of course, I’ll trade. But I require you to swear that after the exchange, you will not attack us as we retreat.”

The Heavenly Maiden’s eyes sparkled as she gazed at Gu Xiechen and smiled charmingly, “Is that so? No pursuit, then no pursuit. We don’t have the time to deal with you specifically right now. Once we finish what we need to handle here, the next time we come for you, we will be using our full strength.”

Gu Xiechen snorted coldly and put away the Profound Ice Cord. Chamunda, covered in white frost from the severe cold, shivered as he flew to the Heavenly Maiden’s side, glaring viciously at Gu Xiechen while restoring his original human form through gritted teeth.

Gu Xiechen bowed slightly to the Corpse Emperor. The Corpse Emperor smiled faintly and tossed Bhaiya out casually.

A world-shaking roar echoed. Bhaiya, too, used a drop of the Tribulation Blood of the Gods, restoring his flesh in the same manner as Chamunda. He transformed into a giant nearly five zhang tall, returning to the Heavenly Maiden’s side with heavy, booming steps. He nodded firmly to the Heavenly Maiden of Auspiciousness, his teeth grinding with a loud crack.

The Heavenly Maiden smiled and tossed Dukat toward Gu Xiechen. She chuckled lightly, “There you are. Dukat is returned to you, but all his subordinates are ours to claim. Hee hee. We Protectors will not pursue you during your retreat, but if you encounter enemies later on, do not blame us!”

A streak of white light floated from the Heavenly Maiden’s brow, instantly enveloping Chamunda and Bhaiya. When the light dissipated, the three had vanished without a trace. Not a single Heavenly Soldier or General present, not even Gu Xiechen, who had activated his Eye of Reincarnation, nor the Monkey, who exerted his Fiery Golden Eyes to the utmost, detected how they disappeared.

The Clairvoyant and the Clairaudient instantly used their divine abilities to scan tens of thousands of light-years of surrounding void, yet they could not locate the figures of the three.

All the Heavenly Soldiers and Generals simultaneously sucked in a cold breath. The name of the Heavenly Maiden of Auspiciousness was indeed well-earned!

Gu Xiechen let out a long sigh and caught Dukat, who was staggering toward him, asking in a deep voice, “How are you? Is the injury serious?”

Dukat shook his head, his perfectly intact left hand gripping Gu Xiechen’s shoulder heavily. He said gravely, “I’m fine, but you all are about to have trouble soon.”

Blinding white light surged out of Dukat’s body, and his secondary form began to expand rapidly. In the blink of an eye, he swelled into a giant nearly a thousand li tall. His internal skeleton was alloy, intertwined with flesh and blood, the surface of which was covered in a heavy layer of energy. He was a bizarre giant composed of a trinity of machine, flesh, and energy.

Grasping Gu Xiechen tightly with one hand, Dukat shouted fiercely, “This is my brand-new body, an unprecedented, novel life form! I call it the Tri-City!” The perfect combination of flesh, machinery, and energy—is there a more perfect body than this?”

A terrifying power converged in Dukat’s abdomen, and a blinding black light shot out from his Dantian. The projection of a super-black hole, approximately one billion kilometers in diameter, gradually appeared within his body. If this super-black hole broke free of Dukat’s physical restraint, it could directly descend upon this void, swallowing Gu Xiechen and the others whole.

If Dukat chose to detonate the black hole at that moment, it could create an explosion equivalent to the small-scale Primordial Chaos Explosion at the very dawn of heaven and earth. Even a Great Golden Immortal caught within would be annihilated into the tiniest energy particles.

Dukat grinned maniacally, laughing wildly, “Do you know? I am merely a wisp of false soul memory, but they made me realize that I am still a tangible life form! I, Dukat, am still a being capable of enjoying everything!”

Gu Xiechen looked at Dukat with pity, merely shaking his head repeatedly without speaking a word.

Dukat glared at Gu Xiechen in rage, howling madly, “You pity me? Ah? You pity me? On what grounds do you pity me? Hahaha! While I was enjoying those Asura beauties, while I held the life and death of those Yakshas in my hand, while I presided over everything from a position of superiority—you had no idea how satisfied I was, how much I…”

Gu Xiechen spat directly onto his face: “Can your self-satisfaction and self-intoxication finally end? A puppet is still a puppet! No matter how many beauties you enjoyed, no matter how many Yakshas’ lives you controlled, no matter how superior you appeared on the surface, you were still just a puppet!”

Penghua sighed deeply, crossing his arms and tilting his head far to one side, lamenting, “A puppet is a puppet. I thought they gave you so much benefit? What, a few Asura women? I thought you managed to enjoy the Heavenly Maiden of Auspiciousness?”

Dukat was momentarily stunned into silence.

To enjoy the Heavenly Maiden of Auspiciousness? Anyone who dared entertain such a thought would have already been turned to dust by Vishnu’s all-destroying Lotus Fire of Wrath. Penghua was clearly taunting him, mocking him. He suddenly exerted force, crushing Gu Xiechen’s body, and roared, “Then, all of you, die!”

The black hole was about to break free from Dukat’s body restraints and descend upon this void. Gu Xiechen smiled coldly, throwing himself upward, instantly growing to a hundred li in height. With effortless ease, he crushed the hand Dukat used to grip him, and with a backhand palm strike, he struck Dukat’s Adam’s apple, the tremendous force shattering his neck into powder.

Looking at the disbelief in Dukat’s eyes, Gu Xiechen said coldly, “They indeed possess some divine abilities, managing to crack the soul restraints I inherited from the Great Desolate Scripture. However, after all these years, things have changed significantly!”

When Gu Xiechen was young, his cultivation was insufficient, and the restraints from the Great Desolate Scripture he could employ were not very profound. It was natural that Vishnu and the others could break the soul restraints he had placed on Dukat.

If Dukat believed that this alone meant he could surpass the current Gu Xiechen, it was the greatest absurdity, a laughable misjudgment. Ten thousand years had passed. While Dukat’s power had indeed increased enormously, Gu Xiechen had reached a realm Dukat couldn't even aspire to gaze upon. The current Dukat roaring presumptuously before Gu Xiechen was like an ant challenging a dragon!

With one palm strike, Gu Xiechen crushed Dukat’s skull, and an internal force shattered Dukat’s surrounding body. Gu Xiechen casually drew a simple arrow shape in the void and pointed it at the fragments of Dukat’s head, uttering a low command: “Go!”

With crackling explosions, a small bone arrow shot out from Gu Xiechen’s fingertip, trailing dense black smoke as it pierced the void, sweeping up all the fragments of Dukat’s head into the black smoke. A scream of terrified rage echoed from the void. A wisp of residual consciousness within Dukat’s body was utterly annihilated. That small bone arrow, following the psychic tether between Dukat’s nascent spirit, rapidly vanished into the void, speeding toward the source of his soul.

In the distant void, within the magnificent factory complex of the Tri-City, massive ‘Tri-City life forms’ exploded one after another. They began by blowing up at the head, and then their enormous bodies, tens of thousands or even millions of li tall, were pulverized inch by inch.

Dukat’s terrified roars filled the sky: “Save me, save me! He is continuously annihilating my avatars! Heavens, what kind of sorcery is this?”

Countless divine beings among the Protector Heavens frantically scanned the void in alarm, but they could not locate what existence was ruthlessly slaughtering Dukat’s countless avatars.

One great figure after another among the Protector Heavens was alarmed. They too unleashed various divine spells and techniques, attempting to locate the entity attacking Dukat, but no matter how densely their magical powers filled the void, they could not find that terrifying, formless, and shadowless object.

The Tri-City bodies, which the Protector Heavens had expended immense effort to construct for Dukat, shattered one by one. Star-like debris exploded. In the Tri-City under construction, the foundations in dozens of locations collapsed, and the entire Tri-City factory descended into chaos.

In the massive black iron foundation of the Tri-City, a colossal brain, stretching for hundreds of millions of li and composed of metal, flesh, and energy, let out a roar of utmost terror: “He’s getting closer, fast, stop him! He is closing in, he is closing in, he is approaching my core nexus!”

The Heavenly Maiden of Auspiciousness’s melodious voice rang through the void: “What’s the rush? Recall all your residual consciousnesses back to your main brain!”

Countless streaks of white light rapidly flew from all directions toward the Tri-City. All of Dukat’s remaining avatars retreated back.

A piercing screech echoed from all directions. Millions of small bone arrows, shrouded in black smoke, shot out from the shattered Tri-City bodies, carrying an evil aura that stabbed toward the Tri-City.

As the small arrows closed in on the Tri-City, they began to merge gradually. Finally, when only a foot away from the city wall, the bone arrows had reduced to only about three inches long, the thickness of a mung bean.

The Heavenly Maiden of Auspiciousness suddenly appeared beside this small bone arrow, casually pinching the arrowhead with her fingers.

“An interesting witch curse, but it’s not easy to deceive me!”

The Heavenly Maiden smiled sweetly. She lightly tapped the bone arrow, contemplating how to inflict a counter-restriction upon Gu Xiechen.

A shrill, hideous wail startled the Heavenly Maiden so much that she nearly jumped up.

Beneath the Tri-City foundation, millions upon millions of small bone arrows rained down like a downpour onto Dukat’s core brain, which spanned hundreds of millions of li. With every arrow that struck, a pit several li in diameter was bored into Dukat’s main brain. Countless metal shards and fragments of flesh sprayed everywhere. Dukat’s desperate and mournful screams struck the Heavenly Maiden’s face like a series of slaps, enraging her until her delicate, beautiful features contorted into something as ferocious as a night-demon.

“Gu Xiechen!”

The Heavenly Maiden trembled with rage, cursing, “This is not over between us!”

The hosts of the Heavens rushed forward in a flurry, providing clumsy, chaotic treatment, barely managing to rescue a thread of Dukat’s dying, remnant soul.

Given Dukat’s current condition, it would take an unknown amount of effort to nurture and strengthen him, and an untold amount of energy to reconstruct those many colossal Tri-City giant bodies to assist the Heavenly Host in building the Tri-City.

Vishnu’s face turned ashen as he glared at the Heavenly Maiden of Auspiciousness, looking like a ferocious beast ready to tear her apart with its claws.

The Heavenly Maiden of Auspiciousness also glared back at Vishnu with malice. After a long standoff, she let out a contemptuous cold snort, held her head high, turned, and vanished into thin air.

Vishnu, utterly furious, stomped his foot hard and immediately issued an order to pursue Gu Xiechen with full force.