A Pawn's Passage

Chapter 1353: Provoking a God

After all, the Northern Continent was the domain of the Holy Court. The Evangelical Ministry did not fully represent the Steam Evangelical Sect, and other reinforcements outside its command were rapidly arriving.

Among them was Cardinal Bishop Joseph Norman.

After a series of upheavals, he could no longer sit idly by.

Once Joseph arrived, even if Qi Xuansu was infinitely close to immortality, he would have little chance of survival, just like Chen Shuhua.

Yet, Joseph failed to arrive in time because someone intercepted him.

It was Huangfu Ji.

By himself, Huangfu Ji was no match for Joseph. It would take at least three of him. However, Huangfu Ji had other means. He had not brought so many people merely to deal with a few cannons. He had come prepared to confront an Immortal head-on. It was only because of Qi Xuansu’s actions that his plan had not been carried out earlier.

When Huangfu Ji learned that Qi Xuansu had already taken action, he did not rush to assist. Instead, he stationed himself along Joseph’s inevitable path—the shortest route.

In Huangfu Ji’s judgment, the battlefield was too chaotic to allow direct arrival via methods like the Yin-Yang Gate, so flight was the only option. If Joseph rushed at full speed, no one else could keep up. In other words, he would be alone, eliminating other variables.

As Huangfu Ji expected, a vast streak of white light soon approached rapidly.

“I’ve been waiting for you.”

As Joseph flew in, Huangfu Ji, who had long been waiting, shouted, “Get into formation!”

Without exchanging a word, seven figures rose into the air simultaneously, arranging themselves in the pattern of the Big Dipper. This was the Seven Star Net Formation.

The Seven Star Net Formation corresponded to the seven stars of the Big Dipper. Dubhe, Merak, Phecda, and Megrez formed the “Dipper Head,” while Alioth, Mizar, and Alkaid formed the “Dipper Handle.” Among the seven stars, Megrez shone the dimmest yet lay at the critical junction between the head and the handle, making it the most vital position. Thus, it must be occupied by the most powerful cultivator. Within the handle, Alioth was central and was taken by the second strongest.

Huangfu Ji, having the highest cultivation level, occupied the Megrez position, commanding the entire formation.

The seven-man Seven Star Net Formation roared into motion, the Dipper Handle pointing toward Joseph, drawing in the surrounding elemental energy and rapidly converging around the seven at its core.

In an instant, the winds and clouds shifted. The clouds in the sky seemed shredded by an invisible blade, scattering and reforming. Though dark clouds filled the sky, golden sunlight pierced through the gaps, forming exactly seven pillars of light stretching from heaven to earth.

Then, fierce winds arose, forming countless vortices that gradually converged into towering tornado columns reaching into the sky. This cycle repeated endlessly. Seven massive tornadoes descended, mirroring the seven golden pillars in a dazzling spectacle.

Joseph stood within it, his robes flapping violently in the raging winds.

If an ordinary Heavenly Being faced this formation, they would immediately feel suffocated.

As the stars shifted, the one at the Alkaid position faced Joseph. The power of all seven gathered into one, forming a phantom crimson sword. With a distant point toward Joseph, torrents of elemental energy turned into a descending red beam, transforming the area within 300 meters around him into a sea of fire. The sky itself turned blazing red, like a magnificent sunset of burning clouds.

These flames, suspended in midair, had no physical source but were burning endlessly.

The rising heat distorted Joseph’s figure, making it seem blurry.

Within the sea of fire, Joseph simply raised a finger. Like the miracle recorded in the Holy Scripture, the raging inferno split cleanly in two.

Huangfu Ji continued to shift the formation. As the stars rotated, Alkaid retreated and Mizar advanced, forming another phantom sword, this time, ice-blue.

Winds rose and clouds gathered.

The gloomy sky turned pale as countless white particles fell. Soon, snowflakes turned into hail and icy spikes, raining down endlessly and turning the world into a frozen domain.

But being an Immortal, Joseph was unfazed by this. All ice and snow within 10 meters of Joseph melted instantly, unable to approach him in the slightest.

The formation shifted again. At the Phecda position, a golden-white sword formed. Countless silver glints appeared, like fine needles or ox hair. But upon closer inspection, these were countless miniature flying swords, each as thin and short as a needle, densely packed beyond counting, like a drizzle of metallic rain covering the entire sky.

Huangfu Ji knew that ordinary methods would be ineffective on an Immortal, so he stopped advancing cautiously and suddenly accelerated.

A violent gale howled between heaven and earth, condensing into wind blades that shot toward Joseph.

The formation shifted again. The Dipper Handle retreated while the Dipper Head advanced. At the Dubhe position, a brilliant point of light suddenly appeared, drawing in all surrounding light toward itself.

Then, countless dazzling rays were pulled from the seven golden pillars of light descending through the clouds. They intertwined and converged into a single point, blazing like a miniature sun, impossible to look at directly.

The miniature sun rapidly condensed, shrinking until it became a tiny point of light the size of a soybean.

Countless beams shot into the heavens, like light and vapor, weaving into a vast heavenly net that descended toward Joseph from above.

This heavenly net, woven from light, descended slowly but covered an immense area, like countless fireflies dancing across the boundless sky.

The heavenly net was vast, yet nothing could escape it.

This time, the Alioth position shifted, and a vast surge of energy rose from the ground below.

Thousands of crisscrossing lines emerged from the earth and rose upward, forming yet another densely woven net—the earthly net.

Needless to say, with both heavenly and earthly nets converging, one would find it almost impossible to escape.

While the heavenly net descended slowly, the earthly net rose at incredible speed.

Combined with the raging winds of Phecda and the sword rain of Merak, Joseph was completely trapped in place.

As Alioth retreated, Huangfu Ji at the Megrez position finally appeared before Joseph.

With the support of six Zaohua-stage Heavenly Beings and the formation, Huangfu Ji was now also infinitely close to the level of an Immortal.

He showed no fear. Instead, he was exhilarated, unleashing his strongest technique—the Three Sacred Fist.

The palm strike appeared effortless, yet it carried the power to shatter mountains and split peaks.

Joseph’s figure retreated like rolling thunder across flat ground, barely avoiding the strike. The palm brushed past him and struck a nearby mountain, producing a thunderous explosion as rocks tumbled and dust filled the air.

When the dust settled, the mountain had been pierced through, leaving a massive five-finger-shaped hole, so much so that one could see straight through to the other side.

Huangfu Ji struck out with another palm.

Above, winds surged and clouds churned, dragging massive cloud masses downward into a gigantic whirlpool in the sky.

Below, he drew upon the earth’s energy, turning it into a surging yellow mist that rolled violently like the legendary underworld.

It was a magnificent sight.

Such methods had already transcended the realm of Martial Arts Practitioners and instead resembled those of Qi Refiners. This was only natural, as Tantai Yun came from a Qi Refiner lineage and cultivated the Taisu Mystical Arts, making her one of the few who could shift lineages. This was also why the Three Sacred Fist had such a high barrier. How many Martial Arts Practitioners could truly comprehend Qi Refiner techniques?”

Aside from prodigies like Tantai Yun and Huangfu Ji, perhaps only natural-born and manmade Banished Immortals could achieve this. Even natural-born Banished Immortals might fail, while only manmade Banished Immortals could do so with certainty.

Joseph had no choice but to face him head-on, enduring the crushing pressure like millstones grinding against him as he charged straight at Huangfu Ji.

Huangfu Ji did not evade either and struck out with a punch.

Their fists collided. Huangfu Ji’s entire body trembled violently. His straightened arm bent under the impact, muscles tightening, veins bulging, and fine streaks of blood seeping from his skin.

Huangfu Ji felt the strain deeply. Even with the formation’s support, he was not an immortal, and confronting Joseph head-on was extremely taxing.

He clenched his teeth tightly, refusing to let the blood in his mouth spill out.

The complete number of body spirits within him shone brilliantly. His bent arm suddenly straightened, forcing Joseph to step back, his radiant wings trembling behind him.

But that was all. Their fists did not separate. They entered a contest of strength, waiting to see who would falter first.

As a Cardinal Bishop, Joseph’s primary strength lay in the Holy Court’s divine arts.

Endless radiance gathered in Joseph’s eyes, growing brighter and brighter.

Even while enduring crushing force, Joseph could still defeat Huangfu Ji head-on.

In an instant, everything Huangfu Ji saw was flooded with light, like rivers surging backward and waterfalls cascading down in overwhelming brilliance.