Luo Hou headed straight for a valley in the Western Realm. This place was precisely where the Immortal-Slaying Four Swords and the innate Immortal-Slaying Formation Diagram had formed a sword formation. The reason Luo Hou went to such great lengths to instigate conflict among the three clans and absorb primordial blood to increase his cultivation was not his ultimate goal; the Immortal-Slaying Four Swords and the Formation Diagram were what he truly desired.
The Immortal-Slaying Four Swords were respectively: the Immortal-Slaying Sword, the Slaughter-Slaying Sword, the Immortal-Trapping Sword, and the Immortal-Ending Sword. Together with the "Immortal-Slaying Formation Diagram," they could form the Immortal-Slaying Sword Formation, which, when controlled by a Sage, could not be broken by anything short of the concerted effort of four Sages. However, at present, there was no one to control it.
At this moment, Luo Hou had already entered the Quasi-Saint realm, which was why he had come to subdue the Immortal-Slaying Four Swords. From then on, he already possessed three Innate Supreme Treasures: the God-Killing Spear, the 12th-Grade World-Destruction Black Lotus, and the Immortal-Slaying Four Swords he had just subdued.
Among them, the 12th-Grade World-Destruction Black Lotus had split from the 48th-Grade Chaos Green Lotus. Back in the primordial chaos, the most fundamental 48th-Grade Chaos Green Lotus had been born. The Chaos Green Lotus possessed five leaves, five lotus seeds, and forty-eight petals. Among them, one mature leaf nurtured a mature 36th-Grade Creation Green Lotus, while the other four immature ones respectively nurtured the 12th-Grade Golden Lotus of Merit, the 12th-Grade World-Destruction Black Lotus, the 12th-Grade Karma Fire Red Lotus, and the 12th-Grade Pure-World White Lotus.
Back in the chaos, after Luo Hou and the Law of Fire had inflicted heavy injuries on each other, he had almost been absorbed by Zhang Qing, who at that time was Chaos Sword Qi. Later, after Pangu opened the heavens, Luo Hou accidentally obtained this 12th-Grade World-Destruction Black Lotus, and from it comprehended the path of demonic cultivation, thus giving rise to the later Demon Ancestor Luo Hou. The God-Killing Spear was also a spiritual treasure he had discovered when he obtained the Black Lotus.
Speaking of the Chaos Green Lotus, it had been shattered by the immense impact when Pangu cleaved open the heavens and the earth. In the end, it fell into Mount Buzhou and scattered into more than ten top-tier Dharma treasures. The Qiankun Cauldron was transformed from the lotus pod of the Chaos Green Lotus and was later obtained by Ancestor Hongjun.
For the time being, all of this had nothing to do with Zhang Qing. He was currently struggling against the pressure of Mount Buzhou. As time passed, aside from his cultivation realm still being at the early-stage Taiyi Golden Immortal, both his Divine Sense and physical body had reached peak Daluo. The very instant Zhang Qing opened his eyes, he immediately felt that the heaven and earth had become entirely different.
The pressure of Mount Buzhou had almost ceased to have any effect on him. This trip to Mount Buzhou had already yielded abundant harvests, and it was time to wander off to other places.
Thus, Zhang Qing walked down the mountain step by step, and halfway up met the slack-off Black Dragon. This fellow had actually reached the peak Golden Immortal realm, and was just a hair's breadth away from attaining the Taiyi Fruit of Dao.
Seeing that Zhang Qing had come down, the Black Dragon hurriedly stated that he had reached his limit and could no longer go upward, otherwise he would be crushed to death. Zhang Qing could not be bothered to expose his pretense, so he brought the Black Dragon along as they descended the mountain.
At the summit of a towering mountain tens of thousands of feet high in the Primordial World, an old man with his hair tied in a Daoist bun and dressed in Daoist robes sat cross-legged, as if waiting for someone. Sure enough, after a short while, three figures appeared at the peak.
Among them, an old man holding a willow branch said, "Hongjun, did you bring us here because of that Luo Hou?" As it turned out, that Daoist-robed old man was none other than Hongjun, who possessed the foundation of an Innate Deity.
Yet at this moment, he was only a Quasi-Saint. Hearing the old man's question, he replied, "Yang Mei, don't tell me you didn't know that Luo Hou has already acquired the Immortal-Slaying Four Swords and the Formation Diagram. If he achieves the Sage position first—both of us being survivors of the Chaos Tribulation—do you think he will let any of us go? Time Daoist, Qiankun, what do you think?"
As it turned out, these individuals were all Innate Deities who had escaped the Heaven-Opening Tribulation in the chaos: Daoist Hongjun, who mastered the Creation Jade Disc; Ancestor Yang Mei of the hollow willow tree, who mastered the Law of Space; Time Daoist, who mastered the Law of Time; and Ancestor Qiankun, who mastered the Law of Yin and Yang. Every single one of them possessed the cultivation of a Quasi-Saint.
They were all ruthless figures who had emerged from the chaos; who didn't want to dominate the Primordial World alone? Now that Luo Hou had actually subdued the Immortal-Slaying Four Swords and obtained the Immortal-Slaying Formation Diagram, Hongjun could no longer sit still. Even though he had fragments of the Creation Jade Disc by his side, his Dao was "to merge oneself with the Heavenly Dao," which first required seizing the grand momentum.
Thus, he could not allow anyone to surpass him. Once Luo Hou became a Sage, what the hell was there left for him to merge with the Heavenly Dao? Therefore, he had gathered these three together to discuss how to deal with Luo Hou.
At this moment, Ancestor Yang Mei said, "Before he completely refines the Immortal-Slaying Four Swords, we should just charge right over and have a go at him." As he spoke, he actually took the lead and flew toward the Western Realm.
When the others saw that this fellow was even more impatient than they were, they thought about it and realized it made sense. Four against one, and all with Quasi-Saint cultivation—just get it done, what was there to discuss?
In the Extreme Western Land, the Demon Ancestor Luo Hou was sitting cross-legged atop the 12th-Grade Black Lotus, striving to refine the Immortal-Slaying Four Swords. Surrounding him was a defensive formation he had set up. Each of these Immortal-Slaying Four Swords possessed forty restrictions, making them standard Chaos Spiritual Treasures. The Immortal-Slaying Sword and the Immortal-Trapping Sword had already been successfully refined by him.
The one he currently held in his hand was the Immortal-Ending Sword, and seeing that the twentieth restriction was about to be refined, the defensive formation suddenly shook. Luo Hou hurriedly stopped, stood up, and said, "Which fellow Daoist has come to my Western Realm? Do you not know that this formation has an owner?"
Luo Hou believed that in the current Primordial World, his Quasi-Saint cultivation placed him at the very top; he never expected anyone to dare come here and make trouble for him. The attack outside continued without anyone answering, and Luo Hou knew at once that this was directed entirely at him! Therefore, he put away the Immortal-Slaying Four Swords, summoned the God-Killing Spear, and grasped it in his hand.
He knew that formations were not his strong suit, and this defensive formation only served as an early warning. Judging by the intensity of the attack outside, it would be broken before long. Who was Luo Hou? He was an Innate Deity who had survived from the chaos; how could he possibly resign himself to waiting for the formation to be broken?
With a wave of his hand, he actively dismissed the formation and looked out to see four old codgers occupying the four cardinal directions, each condensing a ball of pure innate Qi and preparing to hurl it inward.
He recognized all four of these individuals. Furious, Luo Hou cursed, "Hongjun, you hypocritical villain, has this deity ever offended you? To launch a sneak attack while I am cultivating is utterly shameless to the extreme!"
He also knew the origins of the other three: they were once fellow Chaos Deities just like him. Were they afraid that once he refined the Immortal-Slaying Four Swords, he would come after them first? "Hahaha, Luo Hou, you maliciously provoked the chaos among the three clans, inflicting towering karmic sins upon the living beings of the Primordial World. Today, you shall return to the chaos!" Ancestor Qiankun was the first to scold him.
Meanwhile, Ancestor Yang Mei flickered the willow twig in his hand, lashing it directly at Luo Hou. He truly was a man of few words and vicious deeds. Seeing the willow twig whip toward him, Demon Ancestor Luo Hou thrust the God-Killing Spear forward in a direct stab. The willow twig and the God-Killing Spear collided, actually producing a deafening crash.
At this moment, Hongjun also cast out the fragments of the Creation Jade Disc, reaching out to toss them so that they hovered directly above Demon Ancestor Luo Hou's head. Laws of gravity descended in waves, and Luo Hou instantly felt as though he weighed millions of catties, his body slowing down significantly in an instant. Following that, the two ancestors of Yin and Yang and Qiankun also seized the opportunity to close in, each employing their methods to besiege the Demon Ancestor Luo Hou.
Meanwhile, Zhang Qing happened to step into the Western Realm. Feeling the fluctuations of the intense battle ahead, he immediately had the Black Dragon stay in place while he concealed himself to observe. Zhang Qing understood that such fluctuations could only be caused by beings above the Daluo realm, and he needed to observe more battles to gain insight.