Chapter 232: A Desperate Counterattack!

“Just arrived and already facing a joint assault from two major versions?”

Lu Yan’s heart sank. Without a doubt, this was a hellish start.

The floating fortress from earlier alone was enough to bury most Golden Core cultivators—now, the lineup was even more terrifying.

“If I had undergone a normal version update, as a True Disciple of the Taiyi Sect, I should’ve appeared somewhere in the Immortal Alliance’s territory.”

“But because of my ‘Immutable’ trait, I didn’t change with the update—so I ended up directly in this already-fallen Dongxuan Blessed Land?”

Lu Yan began to realize what had gone wrong.

This entire predicament boiled down to one thing: he lacked information about the Great Collapse Version.

If he had known from the start that this Blessed Land was overrun, he would’ve escaped immediately, rather than getting caught in this deadly pincer attack.

But now it was too late to complain. Lu Yan could only steel himself and deal with the looming crisis.

Soon, however, the Giant Spirit God brought him some more “bad news.”

“In the western sky, the two smaller war fortresses are sub-grade floating bastions from Machine City, the same model as the one you destroyed. Their firepower rivals that of ten Golden Core cultivators in a formation.”

“But the larger one is a satellite-class war fortress—Machine City’s most notorious battlefield juggernaut. It’s rumored to have slain even Nascent Soul cultivators.”

“In the eastern sky is a demigod from the Nation of Gods who has already ignited divine fire. He commands a legion of heroic spirits and is one step away from ascending to godhood once his nation rises into the Star Realm.”

“In terms of strength, a demigod is equivalent to a Nascent Soul cultivator.”

Even though Lu Yan had been mentally prepared, his heart still sank further. He asked in a low voice:

“I thought the Great Collapse Version restricted entry to beings under a hundred years old. You can barely find any Nascent Soul cultivators under a hundred in the entire Xianxia world—so how can Nascent Soul-level powers appear here?”

The Giant Spirit God’s eyes flickered with a light before answering.

“Cultivators of the Immortal Alliance are notorious for their late-stage explosive power. Their lifespans are extremely long, making it exceedingly rare for one to reach Nascent Soul before age one hundred.”

“But Machine City’s mechanical beings derive their power from technology. A one-year-old machine is no different from a hundred-year-old one. As long as their industrial systems and mineral resources remain intact, they can produce an endless stream of war machines.”

“The Nation of Gods follows a faith-based system. As long as they gather enough belief, even ordinary people can rapidly ascend to Saint Domain—on par with Golden Core cultivators.”

“Though the demigod stage is difficult, the sheer size of the Nation of Gods makes it easy for them to forcibly cultivate a few demigods under a hundred years old.”

Lu Yan’s face darkened. So this was the price of cultivating in a late-blooming system like Xianxia.

“Then how can the Immortal Alliance’s Golden Core True Disciples possibly contend with other version factions?”

“. . . Data incomplete. Cannot determine.”

Although he didn’t get the answer he wanted, the bits of information he did gather from the Giant Spirit God gave Lu Yan some mental clarity—better than groping in the dark.

While they spoke briefly, the two forces in the sky fully descended.

“He didn’t run?”

In the clouds above, the demigod narrowed his eyes in surprise.

As a veteran demigod of the Nation of Gods, Kaines had hunted many of the Immortal Alliance’s Golden Core True Disciples, and usually, as soon as he made a move, they would flee without hesitation.

True Disciples excelled in escape—blood escape, spatial teleportation, flying artifacts—you name it. Unless surrounded, even a demigod might not stop them.

Of course, even if Lu Yan tried to flee now, he’d be trapped by the spatial field. Not even Kaines could escape Machine City’s spatial tech.

Elsewhere in the sky, a massive mechanical eye atop the satellite fortress scanned the battlefield. White light flickered as data surged, and the AI’s voice echoed:

“Target: One human cultivator, five ghost cultivators.”

“Human cultivator at Foundation Establishment peak. The other five are early Golden Core ghost cultivators—none qualify as True Disciples.”

“Foundation peak? And five early-stage ghost cultivators?”

Kaines’ expression twisted. “How could such weaklings destroy a sub-grade war fortress?”

The mechanical eye turned, then responded calmly:

“Logs indicate the fortress was destroyed by a chain reactor explosion due to an accident. During the chaos, the enemy breached containment and released a powerful spell at close range, resulting in total destruction.”

Kaines was furious.

“A sub-grade fortress—claimed to be able to hunt True Disciples—destroyed by one Foundation-level and five weak ghost cultivators? Ridiculous!”

True Disciples were Golden Core, yes—but not all Golden Core cultivators were True Disciples. Only the top elites qualified.

If word got out that Kaines had come with an entire legion of heroic spirits just to fight a few ghost cultivators and a Foundation-level rogue, he’d be ridiculed by his peers.

“I’m here to hunt the Immortality Cancer—not play games with ants.”

“Machine City, they’re yours.”

Naturally, the AI didn’t argue. Its mission was to eliminate intruders—whether True Disciples or not didn’t matter.

However, the satellite fortress remained idle to conserve energy. Instead, the two sub-grade fortresses activated.

Red lights pulsed along their surfaces, the cold metallic sheen reflecting the deadly seriousness of the situation. Circuit-like runes flowed like living veins.

In a flash, the fortresses deployed spatial fields—an invisible net closed in on Lu Yan. The very air thickened, his body felt submerged in deep sea.

“Target locked.”

As the mechanical voice echoed from the sky, thousands of drones surged out like metallic locusts, weaving a net of death across the skies.

At the same time, countless laser turrets on the fortresses locked onto Lu Yan. Blinding particles condensed at their tips, lighting up the heavens.

Facing imminent death, Lu Yan’s lips curled slightly.

Only two sub-grade fortresses? They underestimated him. That was their fatal mistake.

Summon the Aura of the Human Emperor!

Lu Yan gripped the Human Emperor Banner tightly. With a surge of power, a black-gold tide of royal aura erupted, blanketing the sky for hundreds of miles.

Even the demigod Kaines and the satellite fortress were temporarily blinded.

Now was the perfect moment to strike.

“Six thousand six hundred ghost generals—answer my call!”

The banner shuddered, and from the void came countless ghostly figures, their bodies translucent, wrapped in Heavenly Dao merit and Human Emperor energy.

As they filled the skies, the Five Ghost Gods returned. The Nine Nether Yin Wind and Ghostfire Grand Array was reactivated!

Roaring winds and ghostly flames surged forward, crashing into the wall of drones. Blue lasers clashed with black-gold tides, shaking the sky and halting the fortress’s first attack.

At the same time, Lu Yan’s hands formed seals, Dao runes flowing from his fingers.

He had learned his lesson. He now knew the weak point of the sub-grade war fortresses.

Heavenly Astral: Triple Kill of the Yin Sigil!

Heaven trembled. The mysterious rules of the universe descended upon the two fortresses.

Heaven’s killing intent shifted stars; Earth’s killing intent stirred dragons and serpents; Man’s killing intent overturned creation.

In that instant, all the one-in-a-million chances of malfunction struck at once.

Control hubs, reactors, factories, energy links—all suffered catastrophic failure.

The sky cracked, space fields collapsed. Drones and cannons spiraled into chaos.

The Ghost Gods pounced.

The Abyssal God tore a portal, transporting the grand array directly in front of a fortress.

The energy shields were torn like paper. Runes and circuits failed.

Ghost generals stormed the interior, shredding everything.

From veil to collapse, the entire attack lasted under thirty seconds.

Even the most advanced AI couldn’t predict a rule-level Divine Ability like the Triple Kill.

Sub-grade fortresses, massive and precise, yet unprotected by rule-level defenses, were utterly countered.

“Alert! System invaded by unknown force. Space field collapsing! Primary reactor 90% damaged! Requesting satellite fortress support!”

Just as the second fortress was collapsing, the AI finally recovered and signaled the satellite fortress.

In the next moment, dazzling golden light split the skies. Cannons roared, tearing through the royal aura and exposing the battlefield.

The mythic satellite-class war fortress finally entered the fight. Towering and vast, it radiated chilling pressure.

“Damn you, insect!”

Above the clouds, Kaines finally acted. Golden light formed a radiant path to the heavens. Thousands of armored heroic spirits marched down with divine weapons in hand, charging the ghost army.

Divine power and royal aura clashed, illuminating the heavens.

But—it was too late.

The two sub-grade fortresses had already become burning meteors, crashing to the ground with thunderous explosions.

Even Kaines was dumbfounded. Lu Yan had destroyed two massive war machines in less than a minute.

The satellite fortress’s AI was more decisive.

“Warning! Target destroyed two sub-grade war bastions. Danger level elevated.”

“Reclassifying target: Immortality Cancer.”

“Initiating: Ultimate Annihilation Mode. Exterminate at all costs.”

As the fortress roared to life, red light engulfed its vast hull. Three core modules activated, warping space with their energy.

Tidal Surge!

Waves of silver-blue energy rolled across the sky, blasting back royal aura and pressing down on the ghost army.

Seal of Spiritual Extinction!

An invisible field spread, draining all spiritual energy within several dozen miles. The Blessed Land became a barren desert.

Spell Annihilation Matrix!

Countless runes formed in the air. Ghostly weapons began to shatter. Even the ghost soldiers’ forms started fading.

The sky itself became a forbidden zone—no low-grade magic, no magic tools.

“Hunter Module…”

Kaines’ eyes flashed with awe. The legendary tool for killing cultivators—many Nascent Soul True Disciples had fallen to it.

Then, tens of thousands of drone hives launched. Each drone carried a neutron annihilation bomb—designed to self-destruct on impact.

Kaines summoned divine power to his warriors, who surged forward like a golden tide, weapons blazing.

“In the name of Kaines—destroy this evil!”

A golden wave of belief took shape, forming a titanic sword that cleaved the Grand Array in two. Over a thousand ghost soldiers disintegrated.

The battle hit its climax. The air around Lu Yan was torn to pieces by clashing powers.

Ghosts fell. The Five Ghost Gods were overwhelmed.

Dodging a dozen suicide drones, Lu Yan bought a sliver of breathing room.

Heavenly Astral: Triple Kill of the Yin Sigil!

But this time—it failed.

The fortress didn’t even tremble.

The three activated modules contained ancient rules—a fusion of technology and the arcane. They resisted the Triple Kill completely.

“This isn’t just a machine…”

Lu Yan’s mind raced. To turn the tide, he had to destroy those modules—and he had an idea.

The Supreme Divine Ability seed trembled. A sealed power began to awaken.

Lu Yan raised his left hand. Countless broken Dao laws wove together, forming a purple vortex in his palm.

Gate of Mystery Womb!

It wasn’t large—barely a meter tall, even smaller than what he’d used in the Demon Version—but empowered by the Supreme seed, it had not diminished in rank.

“Enough!”

Eyes firm, he raised the Human Emperor Banner.

The sky collapsed. A vast continent descended—its soul power blanketing the battlefield.

“A Divine Kingdom?!”

Kaines’ soul was drawn to it. The massive landmass fell like a star, its aura deadly.

In an instant, thousands of heroic spirits returned to him. Divine fire surged, transforming him into a towering godlike figure.

He realized: only full power could stop this falling Divine Kingdom!

But just as Kaines focused on the continent, Lu Yan gave an order.

The Abyssal God tore a rift, teleporting Lu Yan above the fortress.

With the two sub-fortresses destroyed, spatial locking had weakened—enough for small-scale warping.

And that was all he needed.

Above the fortress, Lu Yan unleashed the Gate of Mystery Womb.

The purple vortex radiated a supreme Dao presence. It crashed into the three modules—

Tidal Surge halted.
Seal of Spiritual Extinction shattered.
Spell Annihilation flickered and dimmed.

The Gate of Mystery Womb overrode their rule-level energy.

With no protection, the Triple Kill spell struck true.

Booms echoed as explosions tore through the fortress.

Light burst from every crevice. The entire structure teetered.

Kaines turned from the sky to the exploding fortress, eyes wide with disbelief.

“Impossible! A Foundation-stage brat—bringing down a satellite fortress?!”

Lu Yan seized the moment and gave a mental command:

“Form the Ghost God Array!”

The three surviving Ghost Gods and what was left of the ghost army howled. Their bodies wove royal aura into an intricate formation.

At its center, the Abyssal God’s power surged.

Mid-Stage Golden Core… Late-Stage… Peak!

In an instant, the Abyssal God’s strength skyrocketed.

He raised his arms. Space power exploded.

Space Blade—Sever!

A black gash tore downward, slicing the fortress clean in two.

Metal groaned. Machinery and cores were exposed.

As Kaines stared, shocked, Lu Yan and the Abyssal God formed a portal.

“Go!”

At Lu Yan’s command, the banner swept up all remaining ghost forces. He stepped into the portal—and vanished.

The soul continent dissolved. Kaines realized it had all been a ruse.

If it were truly capable of suppressing him, Lu Yan wouldn’t have run.

“Damn you, Immortality Cancer!!!”

His roar was drowned by the fortress’s final explosion.

The out-of-control drone hives burst like fireworks.

Then, the fortress core detonated.

A supernova of blue fire swallowed the heavens.

Even from thousands of miles away, the light could be seen.

Within half an hour, news of the Dongxuan Blessed Land battle began to spread.

By the end of the day, dozens of version factions within the Great Collapse Domain were shaken.

(End of Chapter)