Chapter 1854 The stage is set, all converge!

　　Meanwhile, over at where Daoist Priest Scarlet Heaven and the Great Southern Emperor were holding their battle.

　　Daoist Priest Scarlet Heaven no longer restrained himself, using his powers as he wished. His goal was to smash this star field and create a meteor shower as a gift for the Great Southern Emperor.

　　Not wanting to be outdone, the Great Southern Emperor continued to display various techniques. After the destruction of the Heavenly City, the state and strength of the four great emperors inevitably worsened, and the Great Southern Emperor was no exception to this. He was no longer able to display the strength he’d had back during the period of the Ancient Heavenly City; his combat power had been greatly reduced.

　　However, with his rich combat experience and strength that far exceeded ordinary Immortals, he was still able to compete with Daoist Priest Scarlet Heaven over a short period of time through bursts of power.

　　He didn’t need to defeat Daoist Priest Scarlet Heaven, because defeating the other party wasn’t his goal in the first place. As long as a certain amount of time passed, the battle between them would cause the programmed reaction of the current Wielder of the Heaven’s Will.

　　At that time, both he and Scarlet Heaven would become the target of its attack.

　　The Great Southern Emperor didn’t have any intention of dying with Scarlet Heaven, and he was doing all this because he had a way to dodge the attack. Therefore, when the time came, the attack would only hit Scarlet Heaven.

　　In other words, the larger the waves caused by Scarlet Heaven’s actions and the greater the destruction they made, the sooner he would be able to have his plan play out.

　　The two Immortals fought tooth and nail, causing the sky to tear apart and the stars to start falling

　　The stars in the star field became a most pitiful background.

　　“How refreshing! One more time!” Scarlet Heaven Sword laughed heartily, working together seamlessly with Scarlet Heaven while in its greatsword state.

　　I haven’t had such an exciting fight in a long time.

　　Scarlet Heaven and Scarlet Heaven Sword had not encountered such a powerful opponent in a long time, so it’d been quite a while since they had been able to go all out in such a manner.

　　The Great Southern Emperor smiled slightly and raised the pagoda in his hand. Afterward, he poured a steady stream of energy into the pagoda, seemingly preparing to make a huge move.

　　But then, the light around the pagoda suddenly dimmed.

　　Even the body of the Great Southern Emperor began trembling slightly, as if a hidden injury had relapsed. Besides that, the energy that had been gathering and pouring into the pagoda dissipated in large amounts. Although the Great Southern Emperor quickly readjusted himself, a momentary slip-up in a battle at this level could be fatal.

　　Daoist Priest Scarlet Heaven certainly would not miss this opportunity. He wielded the huge Scarlet Heaven Sword, and stepped forward to strike the Great Southern Emperor.

　　He delivered 30 consecutive strikes in a single breath, hammering down the Great Southern Emperor from the starry sky to the earth, from the earth to beneath the ground, and from beneath the ground to the sky once again. Finally, the greatsword swept fiercely, and the Great Southern Emperor was sent into the depths of a glacier, dozens of terrifying wounds clearly visible on his body.

　　Scarlet Heaven Sword said, “That combo was pretty good.”

　　Each strike in that combo carried a horrific might, and it was delivered such that there were no gaps in between, leaving the receiver unable to react or defend himself as he got struck by the sword repeatedly.

　　Scarlet Heaven Sword asked, “What happened to the Great Southern Emperor just now?”

　　A moment ago, it felt as if the other party had experienced something akin to lag in a game.

　　Daoist Priest Scarlet Heaven replied casually, “Perhaps he had a hidden injury within his body, or perhaps his mind is in a mess due to having just awakened. Or perhaps he pushed his magical treasure too much, causing a backlash.”

　　While he was speaking, his attention was locked on the glacier.

　　The aura of the Great Southern Emperor has already recovered. Did the 30 consecutive strikes just now not cause him any serious injury?

　　No, it’s not that he had not received serious injuries… It’s that his injuries recovered in a very short time. Even the Heaven Burning Flame is unable to suppress his ability to recover from his injuries. While Daoist Priest Scarlet Heaven was in thought, the Great Southern Emperor disappeared from where he was, reappearing above Daoist Priest Scarlet Heaven. He then stretched out his hand and pressed downward, with the pagoda quickly ballooning in size. At the same time, the injuries he received from Scarlet Heaven were recovering at a speed visible to the naked eye. However, the Great Southern Emperor’s face was pale; he had obviously paid a huge price. Scarlet Heaven Sword said, “Hehe~ It looks like you used a precious recovery-type magical treasure.”

　　“Then let’s continue.” Daoist Priest Scarlet Heaven squinted his eyes. A battle between Immortals would inevitably lead to a programmed reaction from the Wielder of the Heaven’s Will given enough time, but he already had prepared a way to deal with that.

　　As he faced the pagoda, the fiery red robe on his body began to flutter wildly. The robe enlarged and turned into a giant curtain that covered the sky and the earth. Soon after, the pagoda crashed onto the giant curtain, getting bounced back.

　　At this moment, Scarlet Heaven Sword suddenly said, “Hehe, I think I’ve figured something out.”

　　Its scabbard was still in Song Shuhang’s Inner World.

　　After synchronizing the information with the scabbard, and given how much time had passed, it found something rather interesting. When the Time Box was activated, it was also the time when the Great Southern Emperor suddenly stopped.

　　The Time Box was not a perpetual motion machine. Its energy came from the Great Southern Emperor. “Come, Scarlet Heaven, let’s beat him up! Go and give him another 30 strikes. I’ll create an opportunity for you! I don’t believe that we won’t be able to make him use all of his recovery magical treasures,” Scarlet Heaven Sword shouted.

　　Back in the main hall of the Southern Autumn Temple in the Inner World.

　　Scarlet Heaven Sword’s scabbard said, “Fellow Daoist Chu, please help me change the Time Box’s flow of time! Increase its speed tenfold!”

　　“Tenfold?” Lady Onion, who was possessed by Pavilion Master Chu, looked puzzled.

　　Scarlet Heaven Sword’s scabbard said, “I might have found the source of the Time Box’s energy. It’s most likely the Great Southern Emperor. Try it out. I’ll tell you if it works.”

　　“…” Senior Turtle.

　　The Great Southern Emperor is fighting Daoist Priest Scarlet Heaven, right? If this Time Box were actually using the Great Southern Emperor’s energy… It felt as if its turtle eyes were able to clearly see the future scenario.

　　“No problem,” said Pavilion Master Chu. Then, she applied several daoist seals to the Time Box, enhancing its effect tenfold. Scarlet Heaven Sword said, “Hehehe, that’s it!”

　　Great Southern Emperor, your defeat is set!

　　At this time, the star field that hid the mystery of the Ancient Heavenly City shattered into meteors.

　　Meanwhile…

　　Sage Monarch Seventh Cultivator of True Virtue had finished refining all of the strips of tribulation lightning according to Song Shuhang’s request. Song Shuhang asked, “Senior Chu, Senior White, can that Time Box be used?”

　　Senior White’s clone replied, “Yes.”

　　Song Shuhang asked, “How many spirit stones does it take to activate the Time Box?” Su Clan’s Sixteen smiled. “None.” Song Shuhang asked curiously, “None? Then, where does its energy come from?”

　　Scarlet Heaven Sword’s scabbard replied, “The Great Southern Emperor.”

　　“…” Song Shuhang.

　　Does this count as a long-range attack on the great emperor? This shouldn’t be considered to be my fault, right? “Has the lightning been refined?” asked Senior White’s clone.

　　Song Shuhang said, “Yes, I will send it in immediately. Please help me use the Time Box to minimize the one month needed for the cooling.”

　　“No problem. Just leave it to us,” Pavilion Master Chu said. “While the Great Southern Emperor has not cut off the energy supply to this box, we can use as much energy as we can. We mustn’t miss this rare opportunity.”

　　In a small world in the universe—the Shadow Realm.

　　In this world, all one could see was the color black. The entire world was shrouded in darkness, and it was a mystery whether any creatures even lived in it.

　　In this dark world, a voice suddenly sounded. “You’ve found something related to the (Heavenly Tribulation Grand Banquet)?

　　“Thank you so much, Mr. Almighty Merchant. When you’re sure that the little fellow daoist has made the Braised Heavenly Tribulation, I will give you a reward that you’ll find satisfactory. Of course, I won’t treat that little fellow daoist badly, either.”

　　After billions of years, the only creature that inhabited the Shadow Realm began to move once more.

　　If one were able to see him, they would only be able to stare at his body in awe. As he moved, one would be able to see that his body nearly filled the entire Shadow Realm!

　　At this same time, the fat ball looked at the new clone it had made with satisfaction. It was time for its experiment to enter the final stage, and the fat ball was preparing to send this new clone into the main world’s Beast Realm.