The Seven-Colored Lotus floated in mid-air, blooming with multicolored radiance. Qingqing sat cross-legged upon it, her eyes slightly closed. Bathed in the seven-colored light, her figure grew ethereal, as if merging with the lotus itself, becoming ever more pure and holy.
Outside the Seven-Colored Lotus, a layer of mist enveloped it. This mist seemed to form its own separate realm, appearing like a vast, evolving full moon. Its surface shimmered with flowing halos and flickering light, akin to brilliant stars—a truly wondrous sight.
This was a Formation.
Named the Star-Moon Illusion Array.
Lady Water Mirror knew that once the Seven-Colored Lotus appeared, a struggle for it would be inevitable. Therefore, she had secretly laid down the Star-Moon Illusion Array at the first opportunity.
This Formation was created by her disciple, the Floating Life Emperor. It contained countless profound mysteries and possessed immense power. Once someone mistakenly entered the Formation, it would be like falling into a labyrinth of star and moon illusions—easy to enter, but difficult to escape. At this very moment, the Founding Elder of the Eternal Life Pavilion, the Centrifugal Fairy, and others were all concealed within the Formation's positions. Should anyone intrude, they would use the power of the Star-Moon Illusion Array to attack them.
The Star-Moon Illusion Array was formidable. If it had been personally laid by the Floating Life Emperor, everyone in the Eternal Life Pavilion believed that figures like the Purple Poison Ghost Emperor and the Three-Eyed Demon Lord would be trapped within, unable to escape.
Unfortunately, the Floating Life Emperor was not present.
Although Lady Water Mirror was a Heaven-Mandated Empress and the Floating Life Emperor's master, her comprehension of the Great Dao of stars and moon was not as profound as his. Thus, the Star-Moon Illusion Array she laid naturally could not compare to his. Fortunately, with the Founding Elder, the Centrifugal Fairy, and others hidden within the Formation, they could better unleash its power.
Even so, unless absolutely necessary, Lady Water Mirror would not easily allow the Three-Eyed Demon Lord, the Purple Poison Ghost Emperor, and others to intrude into the Formation. Therefore, she, along with Water Moon Bodhisattva and the Five Monsters of Heishan, were blocking everyone outside the Formation.
At this moment.
Water Moon Bodhisattva was blocking the Purple Poison Ghost Emperor.
The two were locked in fierce combat. The Purple Poison Ghost Emperor sought to break into the Formation and seize the Seven-Colored Lotus but was firmly held back by Water Moon Bodhisattva.
Throughout the myriad heavens and worlds, anyone who had heard of the Purple Poison Ghost Emperor would regard him with trepidation.
The Purple Poison Ghost Emperor was sinister, ruthless, and notoriously venomous. His level of danger ranked among the highest in the Nine Netherworlds, the Nine Heavens, and even the myriad realms.
This was not solely because he was a Heaven-Mandated Ghost Emperor, but because of one word: poison.
The Purple Poison Ghost Emperor was also known as the Ghost Poison Patriarch. His entire life had been spent dealing with various poisonous auras—either refining this poison or absorbing that one.
Rumors held that his physical body was intensely toxic; contact alone meant certain death. Not only was his flesh poisonous, but his Violet Palace Dantian, his internal organs, his pores and acupoints, his blood, even his hair—all were toxic. It was said that even his breath contained deadly poison, and the magical treasures he refined were, needless to say, utterly saturated with venom.
Most famous were the Myriad Gu Soul-Chasing Needles he refined. Over the years, from the Nine Heavens above to the Nine Netherworlds below, countless experts had perished by these needles. An Emperor of the Nine Heavens, once struck by a Myriad Gu Soul-Chasing Needle, secluded himself for tens of thousands of years and had yet to fully recover. This alone demonstrated the terrifying nature of the Purple Poison Ghost Emperor's needles.
Yet this was not the most frightening aspect. The most terrifying was his unparalleled skill in planting poison. He once planted poison within the very origin of a World. Not long after, all living beings in that World died from the poison, leaving not even corpses behind. The flowers, plants, trees, mountains, rivers—the entire World withered and decayed into desolation within a short time.
Speaking of the Purple Poison Ghost Emperor, one must mention a terrifying incident from the early Ancient Era.
It was well known that the Great Wasteland experienced spatial storms of varying scales at intervals, often caused by spatial instability.
No one was unaware of how terrifying spatial storms were. Since antiquity, countless Worlds and immortal realms had been swept into spatial storms and utterly annihilated.
Therefore, whenever a spatial storm appeared in the Great Wasteland, everyone would unite to disperse it, and they had to act immediately. For once a spatial storm formed, it would grow larger and larger like a rolling snowball.
It was said that in the early Ancient Era, a spatial storm once occurred in the Great Wasteland.
As before, after the spatial storm appeared, everyone joined forces to suppress it. But just as they began, someone discovered they had been poisoned. Before long, their Violet Palace Dantians began to rot. Everyone who had gone to stop the spatial storm died—all poisoned, losing their combat strength, and finally torn to shreds after being swept into the storm.
Because the spatial storm was not stopped in time, it grew larger and larger, drawing one World after another into its vortex. None who went to stop it survived.
In the end, it took the intervention of a Patriarch from one of the Thirty-Six Cave Heavens, the Shangqing Cave, to finally quell the spatial storm.
How many Worlds and immortal realms were swept into that spatial storm, no one knew. How many living beings perished within it, even fewer could say.
The only known fact was that an entire Heavenly Domain, ravaged by the spatial storm, looked as if it had undergone divine judgment—everywhere lay ruins and desolation.
Only afterward did people learn that poison had been planted within that spatial storm. And the one who planted the poison was none other than the Purple Poison Ghost Emperor.
Since then, both the Nine Heavens and the Thirty-Six Cave Heavens and Seventy-Two Blessed Lands had hunted the Purple Poison Ghost Emperor.
However.
The Purple Poison Ghost Emperor was elusive and unpredictable. Even when he appeared, he operated within the Nine Netherworlds. The experts of the Nine Heavens above could do nothing against him. Moreover, the Purple Poison Ghost Emperor served under the Green Lamp Ghost Emperor. With such a powerful patron shielding him, anyone from the Nine Heavens or the Nine Netherworlds who wished to move against him had to carefully weigh the consequences.
Although Water Moon Bodhisattva spent most of her time in seclusion and rarely concerned herself with worldly affairs, she had heard of the Purple Poison Ghost Emperor's reputation. Not only had she heard of him, but she had also clashed with him back in the Primordial Era. Therefore, she was no stranger to him. Knowing this old poisoner was despicable and sinister and intensely toxic, Water Moon Bodhisattva acted with extreme caution.
"Water Moon Bodhisattva, it has been many years. I never imagined your cultivation would grow even more profound," the Purple Poison Ghost Emperor said, a sinister smile playing on his lips. His body exuded a sickly green mist that shifted and writhed like billions of venomous insects, a truly horrifying sight. His figure flickered, several times attempting to shake off Water Moon Bodhisattva and charge past to seize the Seven-Colored Lotus, but each attempt ultimately failed.
If facing anyone else, the Purple Poison Ghost Emperor would not be so cautious. But against Water Moon Bodhisattva, he dared not be the slightest bit careless. Especially when Water Moon Bodhisattva summoned her sacred Buddhist whisk, it sent a chill of fear straight to the Purple Poison Ghost Emperor's core.