Hearing the voice, Yuan Jinsheng, who had been lying motionless in the pit, found a flicker of light returning to his dimmed eyes. The sight of the group, seemingly unaffected by the Destruction Stones, also surprised the Grandmaster.
However, with his formation nearing completion, he didn't halt his ritual. With the Destruction Immortal on the verge of being summoned, these people were no more than ants, easily crushed once the ritual was complete.
The cultivators within the protection of the Green Jade Lotus quickly realized the danger. One of them, scanning the surroundings, suddenly pointed toward the pit in the center of the cavern, exclaiming, "It's Yuan Daoist!"
Everyone followed his gaze and saw the pit containing Yuan Jinsheng, battered and exhausted. They also noticed that despite their arrival, the Grandmaster's incantations only quickened, prompting a sense of urgency among the group.
Though they weren't sure exactly what the formation was for, it was evident that whatever the Grandmaster was doing needed to be stopped.
Immediately, the ten cultivators unleashed a barrage of powerful spells from within the protective barrier of the Green Jade Lotus, all aimed at the Grandmaster.
However, once the spells left the protective barrier, the surrounding Destruction Stones hungrily absorbed their power. By the time the attacks reached the Grandmaster, they had been so weakened that he waved his hand dismissively, scattering them without a second thought.
Realizing the ineffectiveness of their spells, the three Nascent Soul cultivators immediately launched a mental assault with their divine senses. Surprisingly, while the lesser cultivators within the formation fell to the ground, clutching their heads in pain, the Grandmaster remained unmoved. It was as if their divine sense attacks had struck an unfeeling stone, with no impact whatsoever.
Divine sense attacks are meant to clash with the target's own divine sense, but to have no response at all—even against a more powerful cultivator—was unheard of. This lack of reaction deeply troubled the ten cultivators.
While they had the Green Jade Lotus to move freely within the Destruction Stone-filled cave, its protective field had limits. Outside its range, they would still be susceptible to the overwhelming force of the Destruction Stones.
As the Grandmaster's ritual neared completion, their options were becoming limited. They could not let the formation activate, but getting too close to the Grandmaster might spell disaster. Meanwhile, their spiritual energy reserves were limited, and in this environment, they had no means of replenishing their energy.
The situation reached a stalemate.
The Grandmaster, sensing their hesitation, sneered internally. Knowing they feared his formation, he continued his ritual without concern. The ten strands of red threads, along with the two wisps of energy—one blue and one golden—began to converge once more.
"Just a fraction of a second left," the Grandmaster thought as his hands moved faster, pushing the final elements of the ritual closer together.
Seeing the near completion of the formation, the ten cultivators were in a panic. Finally, one of the Golden Core cultivators, his face resolute, stepped forward and said to the group, "I'll confront him! Lend me your strength!"
Without waiting for a response, he stepped out of the Green Jade Lotus's protective barrier, knowing that his spiritual energy reserves would deplete quickly. He raced toward the Grandmaster, hoping to disrupt the ritual in time.
The others immediately resumed their barrage of spells, attempting to delay the Grandmaster.
As the Golden Core cultivator moved deeper into the cave, he felt the Destruction Stones drain his power with every step. His body grew heavier, and fatigue set in rapidly. Nonetheless, he pushed forward, fighting against the oppressive force that surrounded him.
Finally, he reached the Grandmaster and raised his hand for an attack, but his strike hit nothing but air. The Grandmaster before him shimmered and dissolved into a mirage. The real Grandmaster had moved to the opposite side of the formation.
The cultivator spun around and charged again, only to strike at another illusion. This repeated several times, with each failed attempt draining more of his energy. Though the Grandmaster's ritual was briefly delayed, the effort was taking its toll on the cultivator.
Meanwhile, the Grandmaster, growing impatient with the interruptions, glared at the fallen Destruction Cultivators who had been incapacitated by the Nascent Souls' divine sense attacks. They were useless, mere dead weight.
With no help from them, the Grandmaster paused his ritual. He turned to the Golden Core cultivator and began to gather dark energy in his hand. Now that he was within the Destruction Stones' domain, there was no need to hold back.
A small, black orb of destructive energy formed in his palm. Seeing this, Jiang Sisi, the disciple holding the Green Jade Lotus, immediately sensed danger. A single hit from that orb could likely destroy the protective field of the lotus.
She quickly transmitted her concerns to the others through her divine sense. Hearing this, the remaining cultivators instinctively moved further back to protect the lotus.
The Grandmaster, unaware of the exact nature of the Green Jade Lotus, had no intention of wasting his energy attacking the group in the protective barrier. His target was the Golden Core cultivator who had dared to confront him.
With a casual wave of his hand, the black orb hurtled toward the Golden Core cultivator. The man raised his hand in a desperate attempt to block it, but no spell he cast could withstand the devouring force of the black orb.
The orb resembled a bottomless abyss, swallowing everything in its path. As it flew toward him, the cultivator felt a wave of despair wash over him.