Yang Hong possessed the Karmic Fire of the Red Lotus and was immune to its searing effects, yet he was pinned in place by the black karmic fire for a full five days!
This time, he cultivated over 60,000 six-grade spirit plants in three days, which involved plundering too much of the world's primordial essence. Coupled with the subsequent slaughter of countless trillions of Gold Devouring Ants, a massive amount of karma naturally descended upon him.
However, no amount of karma could faze him.
After the black karmic fire extinguished, golden merit light once again surged from the heavens and earth, integrating into his body.
"Huh, there's merit?
Is this the first time merit has appeared since the Taoyuan Continent was relocated?"
With merit gracing him, Yang Hong was filled with joy. The cultivation he had rapidly gained by destroying a secret realm was significantly solidified under the nourishment of merit.
The moment he regained his mobility, Yang Hong used an earth遁 skill to arrive above the underground magma layer.
The fiery red magma was covered with a layer of dark gold, making the entire magma layer appear like a golden ocean, spectacular and beautiful, with a touch of opulence.
A piece of good news was that within a 3000 li radius, there were no Gold Devouring Ants left; they had all been annihilated by the [Yin-Yang Taiji Formation].
Furthermore, the power of the entire [Yin-Yang Taiji Formation] had taken a great leap, ascending from a third-grade fusion formation to a seventh-grade formation!
"Hahaha ~ This can be considered an accidental discovery! The Yin-Yang Taiji Formation absorbs some of the spiritual energy from its targets, allowing it to advance slowly.
And this time, the Gold Devouring Ants were drawn by some signal within the formation and rushed in desperately, allowing me to benefit."
"However, such an opportunity is almost impossible to replicate."
He sighed with a hint of regret and quickly used his earth遁 technique to inspect everywhere.
The Gold Devouring Ants in the Lihuo Desert had all been lured into the [Yin-Yang Taiji Formation] and annihilated. What remained were a small number of egg sacs. He searched patiently and meticulously, his divine sense scanning repeatedly.
Only when he was certain that not a single ant egg remained did he truly feel at ease.
"Sect Master ~ We've arrived ~"
"Sect Master ~ Where are the Gold Devouring Ants? I've brought the children!"
"Sect Master, the disciples of Qingfeng Villa report for duty!"
Not long after Yang Hong returned to the surface, all 283 tribulation-transcending realm disciples, 8,829 integration realm disciples, and 40,821 separation realm disciples of Qingfeng Villa had arrived.
They had arrived on 3,000 demonic beasts of seventh-grade and above.
Seeing everyone gathered and arriving so quickly, Yang Hong smiled with satisfaction.
"You're all truly fast. Has it only been fourteen days?"
"Sect Master, it's almost fifteen days. Upon receiving your message, we immediately organized our forces and rushed here day and night.
How is it now? Have the Gold Devouring Ants been trapped by the Sect Master?"
As Ye Yudong and the others disembarked from the demonic beasts, they immediately asked anxiously while beginning to form a formation according to the [Nine Revolutions Sword Lotus] positioning.
Upon seeing the densely packed Gold Devouring Ants in the recording stone, many disciples suffered from trypophobia and retched.
They couldn't bear to look at the images, so one could imagine how much more dangerous the situation must have been for the Sect Master.
Yang Hong smiled faintly and gestured outwards, saying, "I'm fine. The Gold Devouring Ants outside have been mostly wiped out. The remaining ones are in my sealing formation, and there probably aren't many left."
He then said to Ye Yudong, "You've arrived just in time. I'll open a passage through the formation, and we'll go in to see and ensure all the Gold Devouring Ants are eliminated."
"Yes!"
Everyone responded with solemn expressions. They had come precisely to eliminate the Gold Devouring Ants and had already prepared themselves to be swallowed, or even to sacrifice themselves.
"Don't be so tense. Inside, the most dangerous point is the blood pool at the very center. This blood pool was formed by a formation of the Three Sects of the Demonic Path, which turns living beings into blood water..."
Yang Hong briefly explained the situation within the [Yin-Yang Taiji Formation] before he sealed it.
As for the current situation, he actually didn't know. The greatest function of the [Yin-Yang Taiji Formation] was sealing and isolation; it was impenetrable from the outside, and even his divine sense as the formation master was blocked. This was why he could also block the divine sense of a demon.
"Sect Master, rest assured, we will be careful!"
"Right ~ Let's directly set up the Sky Peng Formation before slowly entering!"
Ye Yudong and Jin Jialin said this as they dispersed to re-form the formation. Yang Hong didn't stop them and simply flew onto Jin Jialin's back. Only after the Sky Peng Formation was set up and activated did he begin to cast spells to adjust the [Yin-Yang Taiji Formation].
As he cast his hand seals, a thousand-zhang-wide portal opened in the sky above what appeared to be an empty forest.
"Go ~"
Without Yang Hong's command, Jin Jialin let out a soft shout, and the entire Sky Peng Formation accelerated, passing through the portal instantly.
Once all the people and demonic beasts forming the formation had passed through, Yang Hong immediately sealed the [Yin-Yang Taiji Formation] again.
He wasn't sure if Gold Devouring Ants from other areas would be attracted, so it was best to seal this place first.
"Huh ~ The blood pool is gone!
Why is there a black stone gate?"
Upon clearly seeing the scene within the formation, Yang Hong was stunned. It was completely different from what he had imagined.
He quickly used his [Penetrating Eyes] to scan the surroundings, especially the black stone gate.
"Holy crap! What's going on?"
With just one glance, he couldn't help but exclaim. The ground around them was emitting a faint black aura of fortune, indicating that the ground was an inauspicious place.
But the black stone gate, which clearly exuded a terrifying and ominous aura, was actually glowing with a faint seven-colored light!
This was the second time Yang Hong had seen a seven-colored light since he obtained his [Penetrating Eyes]!
The first was himself.
The knowledge transmitted to him by Dao Tian Jian clearly stated that seven-colored fortune was noble and peerless, obtainable only by saviors.
It was something that could only be obtained by someone who had saved a world. But now, not only did this black stone gate have fortune, but it was also of the highest grade, seven-colored fortune?
This was illogical.
He commanded the Sky Peng Formation to fly into the crater and hover above the black stone gate. After staring intently for a quarter of an hour, he slowly said,
"Ye Yudong, Jin Jialin, send out the tribulation-transcending realm disciples and the fastest eighth-grade flying beasts to investigate the situation beyond the stone gate. If anything goes wrong, retreat immediately."
"Yes ~ Yes!"
Soon, a slender disciple, riding on a Swift Cloud Sparrow of eighth-grade, descended towards the stone gate.
Everything seemed to be going smoothly. The partially open black stone gate was easily pushed open, and the person and the beast entered without any resistance.
Bang ~ Bang ~
In just ten breaths' time, explosions were heard from within the stone gate, followed by the smell of blood wafting out. Gray-black light began to emanate from the open stone gate.
"Squeak ~ Caw ~"
Along with a series of shrill, nonsensical roars, monsters of strange shapes, exuding demonic energy, emerged from the stone gate!
"Bad! It's the Demon Race! Attack quickly!"
Just as Yang Hong was wondering what these things were, Jin Jialin's sharp voice, tinged with a tremor, shouted.
Before he was sealed into the [Five Directions Domain], he had lived for over ten thousand years and had fought against the Demon Race, so his memory of their terror was still vivid.
Even though he was now a ninth-grade Mahayana realm cultivator, he still felt fear.
"The Demon Race?"
"The Demon Race!"
"Attack quickly!"
Upon hearing that it was the Demon Race, both demons and humans unleashed their full power, fearing that if they were slow to act, they would die.
The Demon Race, the public enemy of all life on the Taoyuan Continent. All races with intelligence and heritage would pass down the terror of the Demon Race from generation to generation!