Starting as the heir of a marquis's mansion, I gained access to a summoning system.

Baidi City was quieter than Dongfang Weiwo had imagined.

This small town on the southeastern border of Zhongzhou seemed to have been forgotten after the merging of heaven and earth—the soldiers on the city wall lazily leaned against the base of the wall and dozed off, the city gate was wide open, and few people came and went.

The street was paved with bluish-gray flagstones, with withered yellow grass growing in the gaps. Half of the shops on both sides were closed, with only a few teahouses and restaurants still open.

But the silence is fake.

Ye Gucheng frowned slightly as the three entered the city.

His spiritual senses, being at the peak of the ninth level of the Grandmaster realm, told him that at least six auras were secretly sweeping over them in the city—one half-step Celestial, two at the peak of the Grandmaster realm, and the rest around the seventh or eighth level of the Grandmaster realm.

However, those auras were extremely well concealed, and if it weren't for his keen sword mind, he wouldn't have been able to detect them at all.

"Which families are they from?" Ximen Chuixue asked in a low voice.

"At least three." Ye Gucheng withdrew his spiritual sense. "One of them carried an aura of frost, which doesn't seem to be from the Central Plains."

Dongfang Weiwo continued walking without stopping, heading straight towards the south of the city.

Half a year ago, Shi Zhixuan explored the ancient formation in three dry wells. Now, those three wells have been sealed off and covered with newly built bricks and stones, but the residual spiritual energy still seeps out and pulsates slowly deep underground.

He followed the pulse until he reached the edge of the wasteland south of the city, where he stopped under a withered old locust tree.

The roots of the old locust tree were mostly rotten, but three tiny symbols were engraved on the surface of the roots that were exposed above ground.

That was a secret mark from the underworld—a contact mark left to him by Shi Zhixuan before his departure, with the symbol pointing downwards to the soil at the base of the tree roots.

Dongfang Weiwo crouched down, covered the ground with his palm, and the power of his dark gold bloodline seeped three feet into the ground, touching a sealed jade box.

He took out the jade box and opened it.

Inside was a roll of silk as thin as a cicada's wing, on which was drawn a complete structural diagram of the ancient underground formation of Baidi City in cinnabar.

Shi Zhixuan's efforts during his six months of infiltration in Zhongzhou are all contained in this picture.

Dongfang Weiwo spread the silk out on his lap, while Ximen Chuixue and Ye Gucheng flanked him from either side.

Under the sunlight, the patterns on that picture were extremely intricate—the array eye was located a hundred feet underground in the south-central part of Baidi City. The array patterns radiated outwards in concentric circles, with the outermost layer covering the foundation of the entire city. The core array pattern at the deepest point converged into a groove the size of a fist, the outline of which was extremely similar to the shape of a human heart.

Heart-shaped.

Dongfang Weiwo's breath hitched slightly. He raised his right hand, a dark golden light swirling in his palm—the power of the Demon-Sealing Bloodline. He vaguely sensed that the size of the groove was somehow connected to the source of his bloodline.

"Is anyone stationed at the core of the formation?" Ye Gucheng asked.

Shi Zhixuan's map did not indicate the distribution of troops, but there was a line of tiny print at the edge:

After the fusion of heaven and earth, the spiritual energy fluctuations at the array's core increased tenfold. The four forces took turns probing. The Taixu Palace occupied the east, the Wangu Sect the west, the Shen family the south, and the gray-robed man the north, each occupying a territory. On the surface, the city appeared calm, but underground it had become a chessboard.

"Each of the four sides occupies one side."

Dongfang Weiwo rolled up the silk and put it into his robes. "The Taixu Palace, the Wangu Sect, the Shen family, and the gray-robed man. These three are local forces in Zhongzhou, while the gray-robed man's origins are unknown. The fact that they are guarding the array's core but not taking it means that the item cannot be taken."

"You can't take it away."

Ximen Chuixue repeated it, his gaze falling on the dark gold in Dongfang Weiwo's palm. Though he was taciturn, a swordsman's eyes were sharper than anyone else's.

Dongfang Weiwo nodded:

"They're waiting for what they can take."

He stood up and brushed the dirt off his hands. "Let's find a place to stay first. The affairs of Baidi City can't be investigated in a day."

They rented a secluded courtyard in the west of the city. It had three tiled rooms and a dry well in the courtyard—a real dry well, without any aura, just an ordinary well.

After closing the courtyard gate, Dongfang Weiwo unfolded the silk pattern inside the house, his fingertips slowly gliding along the direction of the array.

Suddenly, he stopped.

There was an extremely fine crack on the outermost edge of the array pattern. The crack had been reconnected by some force, but in a way that was completely different from the textures of the rest of the pattern—it wasn't a repair, but a deliberate modification. Someone had tampered with this array.

"Was this break already there when Shi Zhixuan left?" he muttered to himself.

The answer is given in smaller print next to the diagram: After the gray-clad man probed first, the array patterns changed. It is suspected that this was caused by triggering the ancient array's defensive mechanism.

After that, no one dared to touch the formation again.

The gray-clad man touched the array patterns, triggering a defensive reaction, and then left.

They did not attempt to break through it by force, nor did they continue to probe; they simply confirmed that the formation was still active.

"They've checked it."

Ye Gucheng stood in the courtyard, gazing at the southern horizon. "Having confirmed that the formation is still operational, I went back to report. The real big fish hasn't arrived yet."

Dongfang Weiwo put away the map, pushed open the door, and walked into the courtyard.

The sun was setting, and the entire city of Baidi was bathed in orange-red light, as quiet as an old painting.

But he knew that too much was buried beneath this silence—three beings of late-stage Celestial Realm or higher were watching the east, west, and south sides of the formation, while an unidentified gray-clad man was to the north.

Each of the four forces has the power to wipe out his entire fortune at this moment.

"Young master."

Ximen Chuixue leaped from the rooftop, sheathing his longsword. "A group of twenty riders is approaching from the east, entering the city. The leader's aura is at the initial stage of the Celestial Realm. Their clothing bears the insignia of the Primordial Divine Sect."

Dongfang Weiwo's brow twitched. The Primordial Divine Sect—the number one sect in the Central Plains, its sect leader at the early stage of the Creation Realm, with over a hundred Celestial Beings within its ranks. Why would their people come to White Emperor City?

"The Stone Pavilion Map says the Taixu Palace is located in the east," Ye Gucheng also walked over, "How did it become the Primordial Divine Sect?"

Dongfang Weiwo remained silent for a moment, then said, "Either the Taixu Palace is just a branch of the Taichu Divine Sect, or the Taichu Divine Sect has already taken over the defense of the east."

The fact that the first person from Zhongzhou personally participated shows that their interest in the ancient formation is greater than outsiders realize.

He looked towards the direction of the east gate.

Twenty riders had already entered the city, their hooves making a crisp yet heavy sound on the stone-paved road.

The leader wore a moon-white robe and had a young face, but his aura was as deep as the ocean, and his initial stage of the Celestial Realm was as stable as a mountain.

The knights following him were mostly between the peak of the Grandmaster level and the half-step Celestial Realm. Each of them had sharp eyes and dispersed into a fan shape to flank the south of the city after entering it.

"They're heading straight for the core of the formation," Dongfang Weiwo concluded. "There will definitely be movement at the core tonight. Let's go check."

As night fell, Baidi City fell into an even deeper silence.

Three figures emerged from the courtyard in the west of the city. Dongfang Weiwo's figure, draped in a dark cloak, blended into the night. Ximen Chuixue and Ye Gucheng moved silently, each using their lightness skills.

They bypassed several visible and hidden sentries in the city and approached the southernmost point of the city's defenses.

The closer one gets to the array's core, the clearer the spiritual energy pulses emanating from the ground become—the pulses are heavy like a heartbeat, each one causing the ground to tremble slightly.

At the edge of the wasteland south of the city, the area around the three sealed dry wells has now been cleared out.

Twenty moon-white banners of the Primordial Divine Sect were planted at the edge of the open space. The Dao patterns embroidered on the banners shimmered in the night breeze, forming a hemispherical protective barrier that completely covered the area above the array's core.

The entire group of riders stood outside the barrier, with the young celestial being at the head standing with his hands behind his back, looking up at the night sky.

Behind him stood an old man in a gray robe, whose aura was as deep and restrained as a still pool; he was actually a mid-stage Celestial Being.

"Uncle-Master," the young celestial being said, turning his head to the old man, "the array's activity level has increased by another 30% compared to last month. If it continues to increase, the array's core may open on its own without the key."

The old man shook his head:

"Without the key, the formation won't open. This is the work of ancient creation, not activated by human effort, but only by the resonance of bloodlines. The Demon God Lü guarded it for a hundred years precisely because this formation cannot be broken by force, nor can it be left unattended."

The young celestial being remained silent for a moment, then suddenly said, "I heard that the person with the Demon-Sealing Bloodline has already entered Zhongzhou."

The old man did not respond. He merely glanced up in the west, a strange light gleaming in his cloudy old eyes.

In the darkness of the distance, Dongfang Weiwo lay atop an abandoned granary, listening to the conversation between the two.

A glint of dark gold flickered in his eyes. The people of the Primordial Divine Sect already knew he had arrived. The tone they used when mentioning the "Demon-Sealing Bloodline" didn't sound like they were searching for a key; it sounded more like they were talking about someone who needed to be found.

"Young Master," Ye Gucheng's voice came from the side, barely audible, "there are also people to the south. The Shen family's banners—three black banners with gold patterns—are being led by a cultivator at the initial stage of the Celestial Realm, accompanied by four Grandmaster-level guards. They're stopping a hundred feet south of the barrier, not approaching."

To the west, the people from the Eternal Sect also arrived—three people, all shirtless, with bulging muscles, surrounded by a pale golden aura of domineering blood.

The middle-aged man at the head of the group was extremely tall, estimated to be over nine feet, and his aura as a Grandmaster at the peak of the ninth level was far more solid than others of the same level, almost approaching that of a half-step Celestial.

He stood on the ridge of a roof on the west side, arms crossed, coldly staring at the barrier of the Primordial Divine Sect, without saying a word.

The north side is the darkest, and there's nothing there.

However, Dongfang Weiwo sensed a vague aura hidden in the darkness—the depth of that aura was far beyond the initial stage of the Celestial Realm, at least the middle stage of the Celestial Realm, and it deliberately suppressed its own spiritual energy fluctuations, leaving only a very small flaw.

If it weren't for his Demon-Sealing Bloodline's extreme sensitivity to changes in spiritual energy, he wouldn't have been able to detect anyone in that darkness.

We've arrived from all four directions.

To the east of the Primordial Divine Sect, to the south of the Shen Family, to the west of the Eternal Sect, and to the north of the gray-robed man. These four forces appeared simultaneously on the same night, surrounding this ancient formation that had been silent for a hundred years.

Then a deep hum came from underground.

As the sound surged up from the depths, the ground of the entire wasteland south of the city arched slightly for a moment before settling back down.

Dust fell softly from the cracks in the bricks of the dry well, and under the moonlight, fine cracks could be seen spreading outwards from the center of the array.

The twenty banners of the Primordial Divine Sect swayed simultaneously, and the barrier light screen flickered violently a few times before stabilizing again.

The young celestial being and the gray-robed old man both changed color at the same time.

"What happened?" The young celestial being whirled around. "No one touched the array!"

The old man did not answer. His spiritual senses swept across the earth like a tidal wave, and after a moment his expression darkened:

"A crack has appeared at the center of the formation. Spiritual energy is leaking out."

The spiritual energy overflowing from the crack was dark gold, thin yet pure, and of the same origin as the bloodline power in Dongfang Weiwo's palm.

Dongfang Weiwo was lying on top of the granary when he suddenly felt a burning sensation in his palm.

He looked down—the dark gold patterns on his right palm were lighting up on their own, resonating with the spiritual energy surging from the cracks in the ground.

That force pulled his bloodline deep into the earth, as if something lost for many years had finally sensed each other's presence.

"Go." He made a quick decision, withdrew his hand, and retreated.

But he was a step too slow.

The aura lurking in the darkness to the north stirred.

A gray shadow streaked out like a ghost, passing directly through the barrier of the Primordial Divine Sect. Before the young celestial being and the gray-robed elder could intervene, it slammed its palm onto the bricks sealing the well directly above the array's core.

boom--

The entire dry well shattered. Bricks and stones flew like rain, and a dark golden beam of light shot up from the bottom of the well, piercing straight into the night sky. The color of that beam of light was exactly the same as the power of the bloodline in Dongfang Weiwo's palm.

All the members of the four factions turned around at the same time, their eyes fixed on the beam of light.

Within the pillar of light, an aged figure slowly rose.

The man wore a gray robe, had one arm, a gaunt face, and eyes as deep as an ancient well.

He hovered in the center of the pillar of light, looking down at the crowd below. His gaze first swept over the Primordial Divine Sect, the Eternal Sect, and the Shen Family, and finally landed on the darkness to the north.

He stared for a long time. Then he spoke, his voice not loud, but enough to make the very foundations of the entire White Emperor City tremble:

"Gray-clad. I have guarded this place for a hundred years, and you have repeatedly come to challenge this formation."

"You've attracted so many people today... What exactly are you looking for?"

In the darkness to the north, the aura finally began to slowly emerge.

A tall, slender man stepped out, his face obscured by a gray hood, revealing only the lower half of his sharply defined features. His aura was deep and unfathomable, indicating he was at the mid-stage of the Celestial Realm, or perhaps even higher.

He looked up at the one-armed old man in the pillar of light.

"Demon God Lü," the man spoke, his voice low yet strangely penetrating, "you've guarded this formation for a hundred years, yet you've never asked what lies beneath it."

"I don't need to ask," Lu Moshen's voice turned cold. "I only need to know that it cannot be opened."

The man in gray chuckled softly: "Are you sure?"

He raised his right hand, and a mark appeared in his palm—a black lotus with an ancient seal character at its stamen. It was exactly the same as the mark implanted in the spiritual platform by the Ten Thousand Demons Sect of Southern Xinjiang.

Lu Moshen's gaze suddenly froze.

In the entire night sky, dark golden pillars of light, twenty banners of the Primordial Divine Sect, the blood energy of the Eternal Sect's Overlord Body, the golden banner of the Shen family, and the black lotus in the palm of the gray-robed man—all the lights intertwined, illuminating the sky above White Emperor City.

Dongfang Weiwo lay prostrate atop the granary, his palms burning hot, the dark golden light in his eyes pulsating in sync with the beam of light. He pressed his right palm firmly, forcibly suppressing the power of his bloodline.

But he saw the black lotus.

That mark appeared on the stone gate in the Northern Frontier, in the Ten Thousand Demons Sect in the Southern Frontier, and now in the gray-robed man's palm—three places, the same brand. What is sealed inside that stone gate? What is the Ten Thousand Demons Sect in the Southern Frontier searching for? What the gray-robed man wants to dig out from beneath the ancient formation is very likely the same thing.

The Demon God Lü guarded it for a hundred years.

The Creator was watching this formation.

Four forces took turns appearing on the scene.

He himself was bound to that dark golden pillar of light, like a string being gently plucked.

"Retreat." Dongfang Weiwo took one last look at the backs of Lu Moshen and the gray-clad man confronting each other in the pillar of light, then silently slid down from the granary and sped off towards the west of the city.

Ximen Chuixue and Ye Gucheng followed closely behind.

The three disappeared into the night of Baidi City.

The beam of light still shot straight into the sky, illuminating half the city. All the spies, informants, and onlookers in White Emperor City raised their heads at the same moment, gazing at the dark golden light, and each relayed the same message to their masters behind them:

"The ancient formation is trembling. Demon God Lü has appeared. The gray-robed man has also appeared. There are others present—it's not yet confirmed, but bloodline resonance has already occurred."

The news spread like wildfire.

That night, all eyes in Zhongzhou were on the same direction.