Chapter 1231: Solid Egg

Chapter 1231: Solid Eggs

Yuan Shan Su’s voice reached the ears of everyone present.

Eyes met eyes, each silently weighing their own judgments.

Yet deep in his heart, Xu Qing understood one truth clearly: having entered the Fifth Star Ring and drawn upon its resources for his own growth, he must abide by its rules.

As both Provision Envoy and Logistics Envoy, his presence on this battlefield carried a duty that could not be shirked.

Gaining deeper insight into the shifting tides of war would merely ease the burden of his tasks—and better safeguard his life.

With this thought, Xu Qing spoke slowly.

“Stay vigilant. Split into small squads, advance at intervals, deploy scouts, and maintain constant contact.”

“Zhou Zhengli, you handle the arrangements.”

Zhou Zhengli immediately assented. Knowing the team far better than Xu Qing did, he swiftly divided their eighty-odd members into five groups, forming disciplined battle arrays.

He assigned over ten cultivators—those excelling in stealth and speed—to scout ahead, behind, and to both flanks, watching every subtle shift in their surroundings.

Then Xie Lingzi and the others unfurled their treasures, cloaking the group’s aura. Xu Qing himself raised a banner, veiling their presence and concealing their trail as thoroughly as possible.

Having done so, they began their march.

Their caution soon proved its worth.

Half a month slipped by like a breath.

Overall, their journey—marked by frequent teleportations—had proceeded smoothly. Whenever they sensed something amiss or encountered unfamiliar terrain, they detected it early and chose alternate routes.

Their concealment grew ever more refined with each passing day.

Along the way, Xu Qing also beheld the Dao Banners.

Since their current location lay in the rear-left flank of the greater battlefield—firmly within the cultivators’ domain—each universe here housed a single Dao Banner.

These banners took the form of colossal altars, each rivaling a star in size, above which floated a silver war banner.

That banner was the Dao Banner of the Fifth Star Ring—brimming with overwhelming celestial essence, ceaselessly erupting with power that sent tremors through all living beings.

Wherever a Dao Banner stood, the celestial essence within that universe remained unbroken and inexhaustible. No trace of foreign corruption could seep in; all things tied to the Divine were suppressed beneath its might.

Consequently, many cultivators had stationed themselves near these banners.

During their passage through over a hundred universes, Xu Qing’s group directly witnessed or indirectly sensed more than a hundred such banners—some vast, some modest, sized according to the scope of their dominion.

Moreover, the Dao Banners served another crucial purpose: they maintained seamless communication among the cultivator armies, ensuring no disruption in coordination.

Thus, as they pressed onward, Zhou Zhengli doubled as their communications officer, liaising primarily with other logistics squads sharing their mission.

Time flowed once more, and another half-month passed.

Continuing their relentless advance, Xu Qing’s group traversed countless universes like fleeting shadows, moving from the rear of the left-wing theater into its central region.

Beyond this expanse of several hundred universes lay their destination—the frontlines of the left-wing theater.

Yet here in the central zone, both the excitement radiating from Xie Lingzi’s broken sword and the concentration of foreign corruption Xu Qing sensed had risen significantly.

Now, as they raced forward in utter silence, Zhou Zhengli’s expression abruptly changed. He transmitted a mental message instantly:

“My lord, one of the logistics squads I previously contacted has vanished without a trace in this central sector… Either their external communications were mysteriously severed—or they’ve met mortal peril!”

A heavy silence fell over the group.

“The bait has worked,” Xu Qing murmured, narrowing his eyes. “The fish have taken the hook.”

Without needing further orders, the entire squad intensified their caution. They minimized fluctuations in spiritual energy, increased spacing between members, and pushed their concealment to its absolute limit.

Especially before and after each teleportation, their vigilance peaked.

At times, sensing even the faintest anomaly, they would unhesitatingly choose alternative teleportation arrays—even if it meant taking circuitous detours.

Each member kept their cultivation circulating within, ready at any moment to unleash their full strength.

A full month passed thus.

Though fortune—or perhaps their meticulous caution and flawless concealment—had kept them safe thus far, the intelligence Zhou Zhengli received from outside painted an increasingly dire picture.

Of the hundreds of logistics squads dispatched, nearly half had already suffered enemy ambushes!

Some were annihilated before they could send even a single distress signal. Others managed to call for aid—but their ultimate fates remained unknown.

Yet the identity of their attackers had become clear.

They were the Divine!

Not those fighting on the frontlines, but hidden agents—Divine operatives secretly embedded throughout the left-wing theater by unknown means.

These spies had lain dormant, well-concealed, with no reason to reveal themselves—until now.

For reasons yet unclear, they had begun striking proactively, targeting logistics squads one by one, weaving a dark net over the entire central region of the left-wing theater.

Even Xu Qing’s group, despite their extreme prudence, could not evade fate forever.

After months of unbroken safety, they finally encountered the Divine.

The first to sense the anomaly was Xie Lingzi, scouting the right flank.

Xie Lingzi himself stood at the peak of Sovereign-level cultivation, mere hair’s breadth from Quasi-Immortal status. With his broken sword, he believed he could contend even with a Quasi-Immortal.

He also wielded puppetry arts—not alone now, but accompanied by two formidable puppets.

Thus, assigning him to the right-flank reconnaissance was only natural.

His broken sword, shrouded in mystery, seemed bound to him by threads of life-and-death karmic fate. In that instant, the blade’s overwhelming surge of excitement sent shivers down Xie Lingzi’s spine.

Without hesitation, he recoiled backward.

Almost simultaneously, waves of Divine aura tore through the void, materializing out of nothingness. The moment they appeared, they unleashed cataclysmic power—

A storm of crushing force, laden with dense foreign corruption and Divine might, surged toward him with annihilating intent.

The two puppets beside Xie Lingzi strained to evade and unleashed their full strength—

Yet against this sudden Divine assault, resistance proved futile.

In a heartbeat, their bodies withered, their forms and spirits utterly erased.

As for Xie Lingzi himself, he spat out seven or eight mouthfuls of blood. Only by wielding his broken sword did he barely dodge the first wave of annihilation.

Retreating rapidly, his pupils contracted sharply as he urgently messaged Zhou Zhengli:

“Encountered Divines—seven Divine Platforms, twenty-three Flawless!”

The instant the message flew, Xie Lingzi shot backward—just as behind him, the roiling foreign corruption erupted anew, unleashing terrifying Divine fluctuations that surged toward him like an oceanic tempest.

It was about to devour him whole.

Xie Lingzi’s eyes burned crimson—life and death hung by a thread.

In the next instant, a figure appeared behind Xie Lingzi with speed beyond mortal perception, seized his shoulder, and yanked him backward without warning.

He was ripped clean from the maw of annihilation. The newcomer then raised his left hand and pressed it forward against the churning tempest of divine breath.

“Seal!”

At that single word, the fabric of space-time thundered into motion. Layers upon layers of cosmic order unfolded, converging into an overwhelming spatial suppression—

Halting the storm of divine breath in its tracks.

The moment they clashed, a cataclysmic shockwave erupted, sweeping outward in all directions. Yet the newcomer stood unmoved, immovable as a mountain, while the divine storm trembled and shattered into fragments.

Revealed within were thirty divine beings—each uniquely formed, yet all radiating terrifying power.

Their eyes locked in unison upon the figure before them.

Long hair flowed like midnight rivers; black robes draped his frame; his beauty surpassed even starlight. Standing there, an aura surged from him—infinitely close to that of a Lower Immortal.

This presence sent ripples through every flawless divine heart present—even the seven Divine Thrones flickered with golden light in their eyes.

At that same moment, a whistling roar echoed behind Xu Qing.

Chains of Order descended in an instant, encircling the heavens and earth. Within them strode Xing Huanzi, stepping upon the links themselves.

Giant trees sprouted spontaneously across the starry void, as if striving to become an endless jungle. Upon one such colossal trunk stood Yuan Shan Su, her gaze cold and unwavering.

And high above, a massive eye materialized in the firmament, fixing its stare upon the battlefield.

Seated cross-legged within that eye was Zhou Zhengli.

Poison seeped through the air; killing intent spread like wildfire.

Other Ascendants unleashed their own unique Authorities, weaving together into a crushing pressure.

Beyond them all, a colossal sea-weed unfurled completely, forming an impenetrable blockade.

It no longer resembled a divine ambush—it looked far more like Xu Qing’s group was hunting gods!

Soon enough, the sea-weed began contracting violently inward. Every Ascendant within launched their deadliest techniques, and Xing Huanzi’s faction held nothing back, fighting with full force.

Amidst the roaring sword-qi of Qian Jun Bi Yi, the divine beings’ minds trembled.

Especially unnerving was the eerie eye born of Zhou Zhengli’s Authority—it seemed to foresee each god’s move and divine right, disrupting their actions while constantly revealing their intentions to all allies. This threw the gods into even greater chaos.

But what shook their very souls most of all… was Xu Qing himself!

His bell silenced all.

His iron skewer left trails of fallen deities wherever it passed!

And layered around him, space-time itself resonated with the will of myriad realms, overwhelming everything.

Thus, after but an incense stick’s time had burned away, when the sea-weed finally unfurled once more, Xu Qing and his companions emerged one by one.

As for the gods who had ambushed them here?

They had vanished without a trace.

Yet if one listened closely—if one sensed deeply—they would find that each member of this group now carried an aura subtly stronger than before.

As though they’d just feasted royally.

“Truly,” Li Mengtu licked his lips, “living, healthy gods yield the richest, most exquisite Source Essence.”

“But alas,” he added regretfully, “the larger battle remains uncertain. If we shine too brightly, we’ll surely draw focused attention from the divine side…”

Xie Lingzi, already healed of his wounds, echoed the sentiment with a sigh.

Yuan Shan Su pondered silently; Qian Jun Bi Yi brimmed with eagerness.

Xing Huanzi, however, remained expressionless.

Zhou Zhengli merely shook his head.

“It is only because our Lord exists that this victory came so easily. But my foresight just now revealed something grave—the leader of this divine raid was a True God, accompanied by several peak-tier Divine Thrones.”

“If we encounter them…”

Li Mengtu fell silent.

Xu Qing glanced calmly at them all, then spoke softly:

“As before—remain cautious, stay hidden, and press onward.”