"How can this be?"
Mo Chenzi exclaimed in shock, immediately materializing a massive energy hand that roared forth to pursue the fleeing Formation Flag.
At that very moment, eight more earthen-yellow energy hands abruptly manifested around Mo Chenzi, each seizing one of the remaining eight Formation Flags.
The appearance of these eight energy hands was utterly sudden, as if born from nothingness without any forewarning. Thus, Mo Chenzi had no chance to block them.
The moment these hands grasped the eight flags, they completely erased the eight Soul Power imprints that were on them.
These Soul Power imprints had originally been taught to Mo Chenzi by Shoudi Laoren himself. Now, with Shoudi Laoren instructing Ye Yunfei on how to break them, the process was naturally effortless.
In fact, when Shoudi Laoren had first forged these nine Formation Flags years ago, he had secretly embedded a strand of his own Soul Power aura within them as a contingency plan.
However, after both Shoudi Laoren's physical and Soul Body were bound and suppressed by those pitch-black chains, Mo Chenzi could completely control his soul and dictate his life and death with a mere thought. As such, Shoudi Laoren had been rendered utterly unable to make any moves or activate any hidden measures.
After all, when a living being's Soul Body is controlled by another, even the greatest abilities or most numerous tactics cannot be utilized.
Now, with Ye Yunfei's assistance, Shoudi Laoren quickly guided Ye Yunfei to break all nine of Mo Chenzi's Soul Power imprints on the Formation Flags, completely stripping Mo Chenzi of his authority over the Earth Formation.
"Not good! It seems I can no longer control these nine flags."
Feeling that his connection with the nine flags had been severed entirely, Mo Chenzi's pupils contracted sharply. Energy surged turbulently within his body as he let out a thunderous roar of fury.
"Shoudi Laoren! What trickery are you playing?! Did you cut off my connection to these flags? You will restore my control over them immediately, or I will scatter your soul to the winds!"
Mo Chenzi bellowed, his roar reverberating through the subterranean world.
At this moment, the nine Formation Flags, each grasped tightly by a separate earthen-yellow energy hand, swiftly retreated from Mo Chenzi in different directions.
In his alarm and rage, Mo Chenzi split into eight doppelgangers. Together with his main body, they pursued the nine scattered flags.
He knew perfectly well that if he could not regain control of these nine flags, his mastery over this grand Earth Formation would be lost.
For years, he had controlled this massive formation as effortlessly as a fish swims in water, mastering it fully. How could he be willing to relinquish this authority now?
Both his main body and his eight clones exerted their utmost to chase down the nine flags.
Mo Chenzi was the grand elder of the Divine Sword Sect. His true body was in fact already a Chaos God. With his power, capturing nine mere flags should have been trivial.
However, Ye Yunfei had now seized complete control over the entire Realm-Stabilizing Dragon Vein Formation. He commanded all the energy and laws of this continent.
The nine earthen-yellow energy hands were each formed by one of the continent's dragon veins, which were faster than Mo Chenzi within the depths of this world. Therefore, neither his main body nor his clones could catch up to the nine flags.
Boom! Rumble...
Mo Chenzi was completely enraged. Surging Sword Dao energy erupted from his entire form, transforming into a sky full of razor-sharp sword glows that coalesced into nine gigantic hands radiating terrifying Sword Dao energy. These hands ruthlessly grabbed for the nine flags.
Boom! Bang! Crash!
Nine more earthen-yellow energy hands manifested, each intercepting one of the nine sword-derived energy hands Mo Chenzi had created. A total of eighteen colossal energy hands from two opposing factions collided violently.
Instantly, this portion of the underground world shook fiercely under the impact of the fearsome battle energy. At that moment, a violent earthquake struck the entire Sword Realm Continent, causing the vast land to tremble dramatically. Numerous fissures tore across its surface, while immense waves of combat energy soared skyward.
However, the Sword Realm Continent was an extremely ancient land. Over vast epochs, it had evolved into a highly advanced continent, possessing a variety of powerful energies and laws, along with potent self-regenerative capabilities.
Thus, the continent quickly began self-repair and restoration. In moments, everything returned to normal.
"Old dog Mo! You acquired control over this Realm-Stabilizing Dragon Vein Formation through despicable means, coercing Senior Shoudi Laoren, yet in all these years you never truly grasped its profound mysteries. Today, you have completely lost control of this Earth Formation. From now on, I am its master."
Just as Mo Chenzi was frantically searching the underground world for the traces of the nine Formation Flags, Ye Yunfei's voice rang out, echoing through the subterranean caverns.
Simultaneously as Ye Yunfei spoke, the majestic phantom shadows of the Nine Dragon Cauldrons materialized, while rivers and oceans of earthen-yellow earth qi energy surged forth.
For a moment, it seemed the entire Sword Realm Continent was resonating with Ye Yunfei's words, its very essence pulsating to the rhythm of his declaration.
"So it's you causing trouble, you little bastard!"
Mo Chenzi instantly recognized the voice as Ye Yunfei's.
"Little beast! How did you learn about Shoudi Laoren's existence? Have you made contact with him? Where is he now?"
Mo Chenzi roared furiously.
"No! Someone of your power couldn't possibly have rescued Shoudi Laoren right under my nose, let alone sever my connection to those Law Chains. It must be that old geezer Sword Elder meddling behind the scenes!
Ha! I haven't even moved against your Tianjian Sect yet, but you have the sheer audacity to provoke me first. Excellent! This means the Tianjian Sect seeks its own annihilation and has no further right to exist.
Sword Elder! Hand over Shoudi Laoren immediately! Otherwise, I will lead my forces at once to raze your Tianjian Sect headquarters, exterminate every lingering ghost and wanderer of your sect, and truly sever your lineage!"
Mo Chenzi channeled all his perception abilities, yet could not sense the slightest trace of Shoudi Laoren's aura. Furthermore, the nine Formation Flags had long since moved far beyond his reach, disappearing without a trace.
Standing in the underground world, Mo Chenzi unleashed the vast tide of his Soul Power, but could detect nothing. In his rage, he roared,
"If I can no longer control this Earth Formation, then I shall destroy this underground world altogether!"
By now, Mo Chenzi had entered a state of uncontrollable fury.
Boom! Rumble...
He struck once more. A billion dazzling sword rays erupted from his body, each carrying terrifying Sword Dao energy.
Mo Chenzi's main body was a Chaos God. The power of that realm was absolutely terrifying.
As Mo Chenzi unleashed his full fury, all the earth and rock in the vast underground area around him instantly shattered into dust. Then, they vaporized completely before vanishing into nothingness.
Within moments, an immense tract of the underground world was utterly destroyed, leaving behind only empty void.
"Do you truly think you alone can destroy the subterranean world of the Sword Realm Continent? Don't be so naive!"
Ye Yunfei responded with a cold laugh.
As soon as his voice faded, Ye Yunfei simultaneously resonated with the Nine Dragon Cauldrons. The nine ancestral dragon veins deep beneath the Sword Realm Continent reacted at once. Ten thousand massive Earth Dragons, arrayed according to the profound layout of the Realm-Stabilizing Dragon Vein Formation, transformed into an immense Earth Dragon Battle Array. With claws and fangs bared, they surged toward Mo Chenzi like a rolling tide.
A few dozen or even a hundred Earth Dragons would have been negligible to Mo Chenzi, swatted away casually. But now, more than ten thousand had gathered for the assault, and even more were rumbling toward him, resonating with the dragon veins all around.
At this moment, every vein, every Earth Dragon, every earth energy and earth law in the underground world, even the energy-crystal ore veins buried deep below, released torrents of power.
Innumerable sharp, colossal stone formations took shape. Thick layers of rock coalesced into gigantic stone fists that pummeled Mo Chenzi with terrifying force.
Boom! Rumble...
An endless expanse of rock, energy, and laws all combined according to specific patterns, launching a savage collective assault against Mo Chenzi.
Huge stone fists whistled through the air toward Mo Chenzi. Roaring Earth Dragons charged at him with murderous intent. Countless earthen-yellow earth-law chains clattered into existence, forming massive, sprawling law-nets that trapped him from all sides.
Though Mo Chenzi was a powerful Chaos God with tremendous combat power, Ye Yunfei now controlled the Nine Dragon Cauldrons and thus the entire Realm-Stabilizing Dragon Vein Formation in battle.
Every trace of energy and law throughout the Sword Realm Continent could be mobilized by Ye Yunfei at will.
"Damn it! Shoudi Laoren, you've regained your strength!"
Confronted by these terrifying coordinated attacks, Mo Chenzi began to panic somewhat.
He assumed this was Shoudi Laoren controlling the Earth Formation against him, refusing to believe that someone of Ye Yunfei's cultivation level could master the formation so completely in such a short time.
Having controlled the formation himself for so long, he understood its power perfectly. It was even capable of breaching the barrier deep within the continent's heart.
More importantly, Shoudi Laoren had once been among the most renowned Divine Earth Masters in the Chaos Void Sea, comparable to him in both fame and combat strength.
If Shoudi Laoren truly had recovered his strength, then Mo Chenzi now faced a powerful enemy. Given what he had done to the old man all these years, Shoudi Laoren would never spare him.
Boom! Crash! Smash!
An inexhaustible tide of Earth Dragons surged in, encircling and assaulting Mo Chenzi.
Though he was a Chaos God, under the relentless attacks of this Earth Formation, Mo Chenzi quickly found himself overwhelmed and forced into steady retreat.
Meanwhile, in a certain secret chamber within the headquarters of the Tianjian Sect, Shoudi Laoren sat cross-legged at its center. A thick iron pillar stood behind him, with over a dozen jet-black chains piercing through both his physical form and Soul Body, still binding him.
Sword Elder, along with more than a dozen other Remnant Souls, stood in a circle around him. Each Remnant Soul held a longsword that emanated an astonishing presence.
Apart from Sword Elder, all the other Remnant Souls came from higher echelons of other relatively powerful Sword Dao sects within the Sword Realm.
Leaders from these sects had covertly arrived at the Tianjian Sect, each bearing the highest-grade treasured sword from their respective sects.
These sect leaders had all been teleported directly to the Tianjian Sect headquarters by Ye Yunfei, leveraging the Earth Formation's capabilities. Therefore, the Divine Sword Sect remained entirely unaware that so many Remnant Souls from various other Sword Dao sects had now gathered within Tianjian Sect's domain.
Long ago, the Dark Sword Guard of the Divine Sword Sect had managed to move across the Sword Realm undetected precisely because of this Formation's secret teleportation. Now that Ye Yunfei had mastered it, he could naturally teleport other sect leaders silently into the Tianjian Sect headquarters as well.
"These chains are indeed artifacts from the Great Netherworld. Moreover, they belong to that vile, shadowy category specifically designed to control Soul Bodies."
After a period of careful observation, Sword Elder spoke in a measured tone.
"We must destroy these artifacts swiftly. Given Mo Chenzi's power, it likely won't be long before he can once again sense and reassert control over them."
Shoudi Laoren said, his face heavy with concern. Though temporarily freed from Mo Chenzi's immediate grasp, the threat of re-capture loomed ever large in his mind.