Chapter 73: The Sky-Stabilizing Instrument

Having expended immense energy, she had absolutely no way to change direction again.

She instinctively shielded Shen Zhaoqing with her body, bracing herself to endure the blow.

Ling Shuangjue’s expression also darkened. She turned and unleashed a sword strike, a crimson sword glow arcing through the air. Yet, when it cleaved into the colossal rock, it merely chipped off some fragments, unable to move it in the slightest.

‘It’s over!’

Shen Zhaoqing’s mind went blank, already feeling the suffocating pressure bearing down on her.

It was in this critical moment.

A figure, clad in profound black, surged in from outside the cave entrance like an arrow flying against the wind, without the slightest warning.

The figure was not tall; in fact, she appeared somewhat slender beneath the giant rock’s shadow. However, the aura emanating from her was like a spear piercing the very heavens.

Tuoba Yanxue.

“General!”

From outside the cave, the Azure Wolf Iron Cavalry’s desperate cries echoed.

But Tuoba Yanxue paid them no mind. She didn’t know why she had charged in.

Perhaps it was a general’s sense of responsibility, unwilling to see anyone perish unjustly within her jurisdiction. Or perhaps… in the moment she saw Shen Zhaoqing about to be crushed, her mind flashed back three years, to that snowy night when her husband, on his deathbed, clutched her hand, his breath faint as a wisp of smoke, yet his dying wish filled with infinite longing.

–”Find her…”

She could not let her die!

“Hah—!”

Tuoba Yanxue let out a deep roar, her entire body’s vital energy burning to its peak in an instant. She possessed no spiritual power, no magic tools; all she had was a mortal body forged through a hundred refinements to the pinnacle of martial arts.

She stomped her feet violently, causing the rocks beneath to crack inch by inch. Her entire being launched upward like a cannonball, actively meeting the colossal, death-bringing rock.

She used her own back, her mortal flesh and blood, to forcibly bear the weight of that small mountain.

Pfft—!

The sickening crunch of bones, dull yet sharp, clearly reached everyone’s ears.

Tuoba Yanxue spat out a large mouthful of fresh blood. Her body, clad in sturdy profound iron armor, twisted and deformed instantly under the absolute force, embedding deeply into her flesh.

Yet, her feet remained firmly rooted to the ground, holding up a sky of… life for those below.

Gu Chang’an and Ling Shuangjue were stunned, their eyes wide with unparalleled shock.

“A mortal…”

To be able to unleash such terrifying will and power.

“Go!!!”

Tuoba Yanxue’s voice was hoarse and distorted, every word laced with blood foam.

Gu Chang’an reacted instantly, no longer hesitating. She embraced Shen Zhaoqing and Yuange, then shot out like lightning through the gap Tuoba Yanxue had created.

Ling Shuangjue followed closely. The moment she burst out, she glanced back at the figure still struggling to hold on, and for the first time, a hint of respect appeared in her blood-red eyes for a mere mortal.

Demonic Energy was injected into the Abyssal Slaughter Sword without restraint, and the sword body shot out fiercely behind Ling Shuangjue.

“Go!” This time, it was Ling Shuangjue’s soft exclamation.

Boom—!!!

The second they rushed out of the cave entrance, Tuoba Yanxue could no longer hold on.

With an earth-shattering roar, the entire mountain peak completely collapsed into a chaotic ruin of rocks.

****

Outside the Ten Thousand Beast Spirit Mountain, the wind and snow persisted.

The survivors, having narrowly escaped death, hadn’t even had a moment to catch their breath when a group of Azure Wolf Iron Cavalry, clad in profound armor, surrounded them with reddened eyes. Deputy General Zhang, leading them, trembled as he spoke: “General, she…”

Before he could finish, a massive stone in the rubble was violently pushed aside.

Tuoba Yanxue’s figure staggered out from the pile of rocks.

She was covered in blood, her left shoulder blade completely shattered, pale bone shards piercing through her flesh. Her entire left arm hung limply, clearly ruined.

But she was still alive.

She merely wiped the blood from her face with her uninjured right hand, which was still fine.

Her icy gaze swept across the entire scene, finally settling on Shen Zhaoqing.

“General!” Deputy General Zhang and the others rushed forward to support her.

“I’m fine.” Tuoba Yanxue pushed them away, her voice hoarse but still steady. “All forces, be on alert.”

Everyone: “…”

‘This is called *fine*?! Your bones are sticking out, big sister!’

Shen Zhaoqing looked at her miserable state, a swirl of complex emotions churning within her. Yet, a sudden, inexplicable palpitation made her abruptly lift her head.

Unbeknownst to them, the wind and snow had ceased.

The surrounding air grew thick and oppressive, as if even light itself were distorted by some invisible force.

A gentle, pleasant female voice, tinged with a hint of icy amusement, leisurely echoed from the nearby fir forest.

“As expected, Senior Sister’s plan still had a flaw.”

The voice was unhurried, as if commenting on a poorly played game of chess.

“It seems I’ll have to clean up the mess.”

As her words fell, a figure slowly emerged from the forest.

It was a young woman, appearing no older than sixteen or seventeen. Her neat, short silver hair gleamed with a cool light against the gray sky. She wore a modified white miniskirt uniform from the Heavenly Derivation Pavilion, revealing a pair of straight, slender legs, and practical short boots on her feet. A gentle, harmless smile graced her face, and her star-blue eyes seemed to hold the entire night sky, pure yet profound. Yet, the appearance of this seemingly innocuous young woman instantly caused Gu Chang’an and Ling Shuangjue’s expressions to sink.

They could sense that behind the seemingly calm forest, at least five powerful auras above the Void Realm were hidden.

The newcomers meant trouble!

“Heavenly Derivation Pavilion members?” Gu Chang’an spoke coldly, her Frostbright Sword emitting a clear, ringing hum as she shielded Shen Zhaoqing even tighter.

“Precisely.” The silver-haired young woman smiled gracefully at Gu Chang’an, performing an impeccable salute befitting a fellow cultivator. “Luoxinghe of the Heavenly Derivation Pavilion greets Senior Sister Gu of the Qingyun Sect.”

Her gaze then swept past Gu Chang’an, landing on Shen Zhaoqing behind her.

That gentle smile, upon encountering Shen Zhaoqing, gained a subtle, underlying ferocity.

It was an undisguised fervor and determination, like a feline seeing its perfect prey.

“The Dao Source Body shouldn’t be running around outside.”

Luoxinghe’s voice remained gentle, yet her words sent a bone-chilling coldness through everyone present.

“It’s best for you to return to the Heavenly Derivation Pavilion with me and be made into a ‘Sky-Stabilizing Instrument.’ That is your true destiny.”

‘Sky-Stabilizing Instrument?!’

Shen Zhaoqing was utterly bewildered, but just hearing the name, she knew it was definitely nothing good. ‘What kind of instrument? Most likely some kind of experimental apparatus that requires live human sacrifice.’

She knew it. These charlatans from the Heavenly Derivation Pavilion, starting with that old hag Yan Wusheng, were all bad news.

“Delusional!” Gu Chang’an roared, her sword intent soaring to the heavens.

Ling Shuangjue didn’t even bother with pleasantries; a crimson killing intent already began to condense around her.

Having just learned the truth of how they had been played, and now another ‘just in time’ appearance from the Heavenly Derivation Pavilion. It was time to settle both old and new scores.

Even the severely wounded Tuoba Yanxue struggled to grip her Azure Fang Battle Blade, murder glinting in her wind-swept eyes.

Regardless of what these cultivators were fighting over, Shen Zhaoqing was the “auspicious omen” of her Yan State in the northern territories, her deceased husband’s final wish. No one would take her away under her watch.

Luoxinghe seemed completely unfazed by the killing intent of the three formidable figures. She merely shook her head regretfully and spread her hands.

“It seems you all prefer a forced toast to a willing one.”

The moment her voice fell.

Buzz—

A soft hum reverberated through heaven and earth.

Above everyone’s heads, a massive net of light, large enough to envelop a ten-mile radius, had silently unfurled at some unknown point.

That net was woven from billions of dazzling starlight threads, each strand flowing with obscure yet powerful laws.

The starlight flowed, forming an incomparably profound Diagram of the Zhou Tian Stars. A terrifying aura, capable of sealing all things and offering no escape, descended from the sky, engulfing everyone within it.

The Net of Heaven and Earth had been cast.