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Within that vast, ancient, and desolate world, the air felt heavy and dim. Standing in it, one couldnât help but feel insignificant. Yet it was not pletely silent, every now and then, faint movements could be heard, as if unseen beasts wandered through the shadows.
Had the middle-aged man not warned them beforehand, the three of them would have taken this world to be real.
âRemarkable,â Xu Zimo murmured in admiration. âA single heart of formation, capable of evolving all things between heaven and earth.â
âNow then, my guests,â the middle-aged manâs voice came from all directions, âthis is a killing formation.â
The moment he spoke, a suffocating aura of slaughter filled the air.
The once-normal beasts began to mutate, their bodies swelling to a hundred times their original size. Land and sky teemed with them, flying creatures, crawling monsters, a tide of countless beasts charging toward the three.
âGood! e then!â the Violet Mist Saint Sovereign shouted, violet radiance bursting around him.
But in the next instant, his expression changed slightly.
âMy Primal Daos are being suppressed. This formation⊠itâs stronger than I thought.â
He could feel it clearly, his mastery over his own Primal Daos was sluggish here, restrained by some unseen power.
âDonât focus on killing the beasts,â Xu Zimo said calmly. âFeel this world itself. You may gain some insight from it.â
The Violet Mist Saint Sovereign and Moonlight Fairy both nodded.
Xu Zimo didnât summon Shadow Tyrant. As a beast lunged, he simply reached out, caught it by the neck, and with a single twist, snapped it.
When the creature died, there was no blood, no corpse, it dissolved into pure threads of formation energy.
Xu Zimo closed his eyes briefly, sensing the essence of that energy, then shook his head.
âIngenious,â he murmured, âbut lifeless. There is no soul in it.â
He knew what he was talking about, the God World he had forged was a living world. Every being there had its own breath of life.
When all the beasts had fallen, the middle-aged manâs voice came again.
âNext es the trapping formation.â
In an instant, the colossal trees of the ancient forest began to sway violently.
Their roots tore free from the ground, and they marched forward, encircling Xu Zimo and his panions. Countless thick branches intertwined, forming a prison of living wood. Even beneath the grass, hidden tendrils crept forward to strike.
âWhy donât you just activate all the forms of your formation at once?â Xu Zimo said.
âIn that case, watch closely,â replied the manâs voice.
The entire world trembled.
An immense surge of spirit energy erupted like a storm.
From the sky came the roars of divine beasts, creatures of myth and legend emerging one after another.
Golden lotuses bloomed from the earth. The heavens turned upside down, rivers of stars flowing across the firmament. The sun and moon rose and fell, cycling endlessly. The seasons shifted in an instant, spring, summer, autumn, winter.
This world was more plete than Xu Zimo had expected.
But to his eyes, it was still only an imitation. A dead thing.
He closed his eyes, feeling the rhythm of its existence.
Then he opened them again, and snapped his fingers.
In that instant, everything vanished.
All illusions dissolved, the beasts, the trees, the sky, the seasons. Gone.
For that brief moment, Xu Zimo became the master of the world itself.
He had taken control of the formation, right out of the middle-aged manâs hands.
âWhatâs happening?â the man exclaimed in disbelief.
This formation world was his creation, his lifeâs work. He knew every thread of its structure. Yet now, standing within it, he felt something foreign, something that no longer obeyed his will.
Because at that moment, Xu Zimo was the one in control.
He opened his hand, and the formation released its hold. The three of them stepped calmly out.
The middle-aged man hurried forward. âHonored guest, please instruct me, how did you do that?â
âBefore that,â Xu Zimo said with a small smile, âtell me your name.â
âMo Changtian,â the man replied.
âShould I call you Mo Changtian,â Xu Zimo said with amusement, âor the Formation Emperor? Though now that youâve attained sainthood, âEmperorâ might no longer be the right title.â
The Formation Emperor, how many still remembered that name?
Back on the Primordial Heartlands, in the Eastern Continent, there had been a Mo Imperial Clan.
Their ancestor was this very man, the Formation Emperor.
In the past, he had left behind the legendary Hexa-Genesis Immortal Formation. It was said the formation could only be broken from outside; anyone trapped within could never escape.
Now that Xu Zimo had seen far greater worlds, he recognized the flaws in it, though back then, he had even recorded that formation into his Astrolabe.
âYouâre from the Primordial Heartlands as well,â Mo Changtian said, realization dawning on his face. He sighed softly. âEach generation brings forth new talents indeed.â
Xu Zimo smiled faintly. Meeting someone from his homeland here was a kind of fate.
Since arriving in the Nine Heavens, he had learned little of the old Grand Emperors from Primordial Heartlands. Those who had reached that level were destined to seek higher realms, likely climbing to the upper domains of the Nine Heavens.
And Xu Zimo knew in his heart. The higher he ascended, the more familiar faces he would meet again.
âPlease, Dao Brother,â said Mo Changtian earnestly, âteach me, how did you seize control of my formation?â
âYour formation is fascinating, Iâll grant you that,â Xu Zimo said. âBut you wish to create an entire world from it. Even leaving everything else aside, thereâs one thing you can never achieve.â
âWhat is that?â asked Mo Changtian.
âYour world operates only under your will,â Xu Zimo said. âThat makes it a dead world. Everything within it follows patterns you set.
âA true world,â he continued, âis unpredictable. It has no set rhythm, no clear path ahead. Every living being follows its own destiny. Thatâs what we call the Grand Dao, infinite Daos, infinite choices. But in your world, though youâve formed living creatures, thereâs no life in them. They move only by your intent. Once I understood your intent, I could take control myself.â
Xu Zimo rarely interfered with the development of his God World for this very reason.
Every creature in a living world must have its own thoughts, its own will. Once that freedom is caged, the world bees nothing more than a lifeless shell.
His words struck Mo Changtian like a thunderclap of revelation.
âThen, Dao Brother,â Mo asked quickly, âis there a way to fix it?â
Xu Zimo shook his head. âYouâre too greedy. A formation-born world, itâs impossible. No matter which path you take, it canât be done.â
He spoke as one who had already walked that road and knew its limits. This wasnât a matter of missing some ponent, it simply defied the nature of reality itself.
Mo Changtian sighed, a faint smile on his lips. âTrue enough. Iâve felt it myself over the years, I must have taken a wrong turn long ago. But after ten thousand years, Iâve grown used to it. Itâs hard to change now.â
âAs long as youâre content, isnât that what matters?â Xu Zimo said with a chuckle. âBy the way, I have a question. Weâre headed to the Huo Heavenly Clan, do you know the way?â
âThereâs no fixed path to the Huo Heavenly Clan,â Mo Changtian replied. âJust follow the direction of the sun. Youâll reach it eventually.â
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