Chapter 1252

Zhao Lian Yun explains that their trap is the fate reversing sacrificial refinement formation, learned from love Gu’s own activation. Sun Ming Lu built it from over ten Immortal Gu, irrigating it with the water of Reverse Flow River and working the plentiful dao marks of that domain, which gives it extremely astonishing power. Yu Yi Ye Zi asks if this is the legendary river. Zhao Lian Yun confirms it is the river recorded in The Legends of Ren Zu, one of three obstacles standing inside the Door of Life and Death together with Dang Hun Mountain and Luo Po Valley. Bu Zhen Zi sighs that this secluded domain of heaven and earth now sits in Old Ancestor Xue Hu’s hands; Ren Zu himself passed the other two obstacles but failed at this river. Mu Ling Lan, a Spirit Butterfly Valley supreme elder whose sect’s information gathering skill has taught him many secrets, recalls that even Thieving Heaven Demon Venerable, who moved those other two obstacles out, never managed to take this one. ^{ch. 1252}

Bu Zhen Zi asks how to break the formation. Zhao Lian Yun calls breaking it nearly impossible: no rank eight Immortal Gu goes into this super Gu formation, yet it draws on Reverse Flow River so fully that even a rank eight invader would be trapped inside. It has completely remodeled Snowy Mountain blessed land, its fifteen peaks now cores that sort each invader onto a matching-rank peak. Gu Immortals holding the formation cores are amplified, a rank six gaining rank seven might and a rank seven a tremendous boost short of rank eight, and the formation also imitates Regret Pool with mysterious time path abilities. Its truly wicked core is that any Gu Immortal who dies inside becomes a sacrifice feeding Lady Wan Shou as she refines Ma Hong Yun at the center. That is why Hair Mistress’s body turned to ash and her soul must have already dispersed completely. Sun Ming Lu, Northern Plains’ top formation grandmaster, shunned the demonic path and turned down Xue Hu’s repeated invitations, relenting only when Xue Hu’s love for Lady Wan Shou moved him to help her build it; the group now judges him not good. ^{ch. 1252}

Love Gu’s rank nine strength, greater than the whole formation, brought all five together at the ninth peak. With it inactive now, Zhao Lian Yun confirms that leaving this peak will scatter the group. Bu Zhen Zi, tasked with escorting both her and love Gu, frowns deeply: extremely bad news. He offers his own immortal aperture as shelter instead. Her own aperture is only a phantom aperture from Heavenly Court. The attempt still fails: none can even open their own aperture’s entrance, a flaw Sun Ming Lu planned for. ^{ch. 1252}

The good news is that no reinforcement and not even the rank eight Xue Hu can move against them, since Reverse Flow River’s rule fixes each peak lord to one peak and sends only rank eight invaders to him. Even so, Snowy Mountain blessed land remains a solid fortress. Xue Hu feels extremely confident behind it and makes no effort to hide his refining of fortune rivalling heaven Gu, which he might not manage to conceal anyway. He is not merely unafraid of attackers but waiting for them, since every death inside the formation, ally or enemy, feeds that refinement. Bu Zhen Zi suggests they wait for reinforcements. The others agree, though Zhao Lian Yun frowns since Ma Hong Yun still sits at the center peak behind Xue Hu regardless. ^{ch. 1252}

In black heaven’s Luck Suppression Heavenly Palace, South Desolation Immortal reports finding a small group inside Snowy Mountain blessed land. He knew Central Continent’s Gu Immortals had entered the spaceless tunnel, but not of the mishap there; expecting their bulk, he found only this handful, Zhao Lian Yun among them. Love Immortal Gu, carried by her, is the reason he woke. Yao Huang frowns that not every Central Continent Gu Immortal has appeared. South Desolation Immortal admits it might be a lure, though no rank eight Gu Immortals or Immortal Gu Houses are in sight, and rules that they watch from the side while this group fights Snowy Mountain, until the larger Central Continent force appears. Yao Huang agrees, but privately wonders whether their own side has an insider inside Snowy Mountain blessed land. ^{ch. 1252}