Longevity Chronicles-Chapter 120 - 111: Xuanpin Heavenly Gate Ten Absolute Array, Infant Mother Seeks Life into Qian’s Embrace

"Although there's no pattern to the tribulations one faces when approaching the Spiritual Treasure, and the severity varies among cultivators, I just crossed the first tribulation, and now the second one is upon me. Could it be that I have too much karma entangled around me, and they know I'm about to leave Southern Yue, purposely coming to stop me?"

"Moreover, this sound of a baby crying, could it be...?"

As the thought crossed his mind, Tao Qian's figure had already appeared atop a towering Ancient Wood in an instant.

Intending to use his naked eye to locate the source of the crying, the crying sound abruptly echoed louder, only to come to a sudden halt.

Just as Tao Qian was puzzled by this, suddenly, within Meiling.

Forests, mountains, hidden valleys... and so on, the Void in each place split open, revealing translucent and jade-like cracks resembling umbilical cords, all appearing simultaneously in an instant.

At a rough count, there were tens of thousands of these "Jade-Colored Umbilical Cords."

And what was even more inconceivable was that these umbilical cords shimmered and revealed infant spirits entirely formed of light squeezing out from them.

"Wah!"

"Wah wah wah!"

The baby's cries truly resounded through every corner of Meiling.

Afterward, these tens of thousands of infant spirits turned into beams of jade light and shot towards the territories beyond Meiling.

This scene directly stunned the many cultivators and ordinary civilians on the mountain paths.

Was this Ten Thousand Infants breaking through?

The common folk within the Pass, upon witnessing this scene, were utterly amazed. At the same time, they took it to be a rare glimpse of Immortal Spells, exclaiming in shock and awe, thinking to themselves that cultivators are indeed transcendent beings.

Yet the cultivators within the Pass, especially those with a bit of knowledge, after their initial surprise, began to question.

Tao Qian could even hear the exclamations of the Loose Cultivators on the nearby mountain paths:

"Is this a move from the Ten Thousand Infant Sect? Why does it appear here, and why is there a need to break through?"

"To cast such Divine Power Skills, the person behind it must hold a high position within the Ten Thousand Infant Sect, maybe even an Elder?"

"Strange, strange, there must be some trickery at play here, we should quickly leave."

"Even a powerhouse from the Infant Sect needs to break through; that area must be unusual, let's not venture there for now."

"Let's just watch and see how it unfolds!"

The Loose Cultivators who had navigated the world year-round might not be impressive in terms of Cultivation Realm, but they lacked neither insight nor alertness.

At the sight of the Ten Thousand Infants turning into jade light aiming to break through Mei Pass, they all instantly realized that something unforeseen was happening that they weren't aware of.

Since it involved such a powerful being, for cultivators of their modest standing, it could likely spell disaster.

So they decided it was best to keep their distance.

And this premonition of the Loose Cultivators was quickly confirmed.

Just as the tens of thousands of infant spirits were attempting to break through the various regions of Meiling.

Suddenly, the massive, previously hidden Array that Tao Qian had sensed, erupted at that very moment.

Boom!

A visible spectral light swept across the entirety of Meiling in a flash.

After that, this incredibly vast area was divided by differing forces into ten block regions.

The tens of thousands of infant spirits were split into ten groups, each trapped within their own block.

Subsequently, all the cultivators within Meiling once again saw the appearance of seven or eight figures emitting intensely powerful auras, revealing themselves above the ancient Boundary Stele and the walls of Mei Pass.

The one leading was an old cultivator who radiated an Immortal demeanor, with white hair and beard.

Clothed in a Star Blue Daoist Robe, he rose into the Sky, surrounded by a dozen Sword Elixirs circling him, their fierce Sword Intent piercing the heavens.

Under the support of the night wind and the moonlight, it's unknown how many civilians developed feelings of reverence and worship.

If there were Immortals, this would probably be the very image of their elegance.

The next moment, this Old Immortal addressed the multitude of infant spirits:

"Mr. Xiao Daoist, all your varied Divine Powers have been thoroughly divulged by your peers, and your whereabouts haven't eluded the Prediction Skills of the Saint Heir, which is why we were dispatched to wait for you specifically here."

"The Saint Heir has asked us to persuade you. With the current situation being settled, and the Elders of the Infant Sect having made their decision, what's the use of just you opposing? Why not give up resistance and follow us back to the provincial capital, the Third Prince may be a little unruly, but he genuinely wants to acknowledge you as his godmother..."

"In your dreams!"

The Old Immortal hadn't finished speaking when he was met with the collective rejection of the tens of thousands of infant spirits.

And he seemed to have anticipated this response, merely adding calmly:

"Mr. Xiao Daoist, you have been escaping within Southern Yue for several days, your methods all expended, and now only this 'Ten Thousand Infant Mother's Umbilical' remains - how could it possibly help you break through this challenge."

"Presumably, you can see that this is the Xuanpin Heavenly Gate Ten Extremes Array. If you were in perfect condition, indeed, there might be a chance to break through, but now you are gravely injured, your realm has fallen. Not to mention breaking through the Ten Extremes Array, it's difficult even to survive; there's no chance for you to summon help."

"After all, you are a senior. We are kindly advising you to return, don't let our good intentions be in vain."

"Pah!"

The response of the tens of thousands of infant spirits was to simultaneously spit.

And then, immediately, all the infant spirits transformed into light and, heedlessly, charged again towards Mei Pass.

That group of cultivators who seemed like Immortals scoffed in unison and withdrew behind the Boundary Stele.

"Activate the Array!"

"Ten Extremes Infant Slaughter!"

"Boom"

As if by the principle of saying and following, the moment the old cultivator's voice faded.

The ten separated areas were suddenly struck by ten unimaginable disasters without any warning.

At this very moment, no matter where you were within Meiling's territory, you could see more than three kinds of horrific calamities.

And Tao Qian, a cultivator with such sharp sight, directly glimpsed which "ten absolutes" exactly were the ten.

The Meiling region was undoubtedly being ravaged by intense fire, frigid ice, golden light, blood transformation, soul downfall, poisonous water, Red Sand, wind erosion, demon engulf, and ghosts devouring... a full ten kinds of disasters.

Fortunately for the commoners and the many cultivators, these disasters had not yet affected them.

All were targeted solely at the tens of thousands of infant spirits.

And because of this, during the onslaught of the Big Array, the wails of tens of thousands of infant spirits nearly made everyone's heart ache with compassion.

Watching those exquisitely sculpted, adorable infant spirits being burned by intense fire, frozen by ice, slaughtered by golden light, dissolved into blood, struck with soul downfall, buried by Red Sand, devoured by Yin demons, gnawed by hundreds of ghosts – their crying sounds of "wah wah wah" constantly echoed throughout Meiling.

Cruel and terrifying.

These sights made the civilians, who had once revered the Old Immortal, shift their gaze bit by bit rapidly into disgust.

And at the same time, somewhere in Meiling.

Tao Qian was in a state of shock, by now he could not fail to recognize.

Behind these tens of thousands of infant spirits, was Master Xiao.

From the brief exchange between the two, Tao Qian could also directly guess the dire straits Master Xiao found herself in after their separation.

"Master Xiao had turned back to the sect to report, only to alarm the so-called Saint Heir, who used some means to sway the Elders of the Infant Sect to stand on Ji Xianxian's side, then turned around to start hunting Master Xiao."

"Although Master Xiao's Cultivation Realm and Divine Power were strong, after struggling for a time, she ultimately found herself at the end of her rope, severely injured, and decided to make a desperate attempt to break through Meiling and seek help somewhere else."

"But this plan was also predicted by the Saint Heir, who had prepared people well in advance and set up the Xuanpin Heavenly Gate Ten Absolute Array, ready to spring the trap."

"And indeed, they had caught Master Xiao."

With thoughts Flashing, Tao Qian furrowed his brows deeply, watching one infant spirit after another die tragically.

Shakes continued within his Divine Soul as if to remind him.

The second disaster was very likely meant for Master Xiao.

Tao Qian strove to remain calm, letting the throbbing in his brow go wild, thoughts churning in his mind:

"Those seven or eight cultivators, judging from the intensity of their pulses and strange auras, appear to have three in the Transcend Mortality Realm, and the rest are all in the Foundation Establishment Realm."

"And this powerful Ten Extremes Array that even Master Xiao herself could not withstand, how am I supposed to rescue her?"

"The first disaster tested my nature, but this second disaster, what is it trying to examine?"

Just as Tao Qian racked his brains, suddenly, right in front of him.

A faint ghostly light appeared and the Void cracked open revealing a fissure, from which a body that even Tao Qian did not dare to recognize tumbled out.

It was a female cultivator, with a face like a fairy from the heavens, her eyes brimming with endless tenderness, wearing the familiar golden embroidery cloud shoulder jade, revealing her enticing fair shoulders and collarbone, with a beautiful halo circling behind her head... if not Master Xiao, then who?

Tao Qian dared not recognize her because Master Xiao at this time.

Not only was her energy weaker than his, but her physical body had also shrunken a lot, no longer like a mother but rather like a young girl who had just blossomed into womanhood, yet her once broad and soft bosom remained unchanged; such a youthful faced yet large bosomed Master Xiao, no wonder Tao Qian dared not recognize.

She was conscious when she tumbled through the fissure.

Seeing Tao Qian's unfamiliar Puppet Master attire, she was first startled, but she quickly seemed to sense something, widening her eyes in alarm, she exclaimed, "It's you!"

Although she was surprised to see this strange junior whom she had dealt with before in front of herself.

But she also knew time was of essence, without the time for anything else, she quickly said:

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"I sought a lifeline with my infant mother's spiritual sense, not expecting to bump into you here, but I should not have brought trouble upon you."

"Just trouble you to find a secluded and secretive place to let me down."

"After that, you should immediately flee far away, it's best to blend in with those passing through the trials, just pretend you never saw me."

"These catastrophes here are too vile, don't overestimate yourself and get involved."

"Remember, remember!"

Having finished speaking, she seemed to have used up all the remaining strength in her body.

So, just as she fell through the fissure, her eyes rolled back and she very straightforwardly fainted in front of Tao Qian.

One must know this place was the tip of an Ancient Wood, situated at a great height.

If Master Xiao were to just fall to the ground like this, given her current state, she might actually drop dead.

Left with no choice, Tao Qian quickly reached out to catch Master Xiao.

Looking up at the "infant spirits" still being slaughtered, he realised that these must have been a distraction deliberately released by Master Xiao.

And again looking from afar at the meiling Boundary Stele, those Transcend Mortality Cultivators who were manipulating the array.

Recalling Master Xiao's instructions before she fell unconscious, he muttered:

"This second disaster, seems more fatal than the first."

As Tao Qian sighed with these thoughts, he had made up his mind.

Holding Master Xiao, he immediately acted upon his thoughts and with a leap from the Empty Demon, both of them immediately started to escape into the deeper parts of the wild and forested wilderness below.

PS: There will be another update slightly later, early-sleeping readers can read it tomorrow.