Volume One: The Cloudmist Immortal Palace Chapter 130: The Duel Between the Void-Cleaving Gourd and the Sea-Calming Pearl

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Chapter 130: The Void-Slaying Gourd Versus the Sea-Calming Pearl

At that moment, dark clouds blotted out the sun above the Southern Palace of Immortals, while blue rain poured down in torrents. After the Chief of Rain Lake recited the Rain-Calling Incantation, this little world was plunged into utter calamity.

The Chief of Rain Lake had, of course, intended to target Elder Guo. The blue rain was meant to suppress Elder Guo’s wood-element immortal arts. However, after Elder Guo promptly raised six gates of talismanic light, the rain became completely ineffective. Every drop was blocked by the radiant gates.

Yet the range of the blue rain essentially covered the entire immortal palace realm. Those seemingly beautiful raindrops were in fact extraordinarily corrosive. Flowers, grass, and trees were not the only things they could erode—even iron and stone were corroded beneath them. Thus, the mountains and rivers that had resembled an immortal paradise were now utterly devastated.

In the blink of an eye, the immortal mountains and jeweled towers had been reduced by the blue rain to barren hills, ruined walls, and shattered remnants. The spirit lakes and immortal ponds, once as clear and lustrous as jade, had become stagnant pools exuding a nauseating stench. The peach-blossom grove, once beloved by the disciples as a gathering place, had turned into a withered wasteland. Even the divine-wood bridges suspended between the mountains were now tattered and dilapidated, like rotten timber mottled with decay.

The immortal paradise of old had become, in the space of a single day, a foul-smelling ruin and accursed wasteland.

Across the various immortal peaks, the elders desperately raised protective immortal barriers, yet they were pierced by the blue rain before they could offer even the slightest protection. This was rain summoned by a High Immortal. How could the power of mere Golden Immortal elders possibly withstand it?

One elder of the immortal palace clenched his fists and sighed bitterly. “Are we truly to see the ten-thousand-year foundation of our palace destroyed today? This is rain from the apocalypse!”

“The four great powers have assembled their strongest forces and marched upon our palace. This was a deathtrap from the very beginning. Their target is Zhou Hao. That scoundrel is the greatest sinner in the entire palace!” another elder cursed furiously.

“The elder is right. This is all the fault of that ill-omened Zhou Hao. Because of his mistake, everyone in our immortal palace must accompany him into the grave. Even a thousand deaths would not atone for his crimes!” several disciples echoed.

“I am ashamed to have been his fellow student. How could such a man ever deserve to become an immortal? As expected, those clowns who rise from the mortal world are good for nothing.”

“After today, that dog Zhou Hao should be reviled for a hundred thousand years! Even as a ghost, I will never let him go!”

For a time, outrage swept through the crowd, and once again every accusation was directed at Zhou Hao. The resentment of the entire immortal palace was laid at his feet.

Yet Zhou Hao, the one supposedly responsible for it all, presented an entirely different picture. Through the gates of talismanic light, he could clearly see the mountains and rivers beneath the rain. Those immortal lands were precisely the sacred places he treasured most. The sight drove him nearly mad with hatred.

“No. I’m going to fight my way out. Those bastards have turned the Cloudmist Immortal Palace into this. I won’t spare them.” Zhou Hao clenched his five fingers into fists until his knuckles turned white, and a constant series of cracking sounds rang out. He felt a blaze of fury surging within his chest, ready to erupt.

“Do not act rashly, young man. As long as the core formation remains intact, this realm cannot truly be destroyed. For now, the most urgent task is to stop the rain. I am, after all, a plant-element immortal, and this rain is extremely harmful to me.” Elder Guo gazed solemnly at the deep-blue curtain of rain outside the radiant gate.

“Rest assured, Senior. Although I cannot deal with those High Immortals, I can still subdue this insignificant blue rain. I absolutely cannot allow it to continue its rampage.” Zhou Hao nodded.

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With that, a gourd appeared in Zhou Hao’s hand. It was seven inches tall and entirely pale yellow. He removed its stopper and recited the incantation. In an instant, an invisible vortex spread outward from the mouth of the gourd. Then an immense suction force erupted, causing the entire realm to tremble.

The torrential blue rain was drawn wholly into the invisible vortex. One could clearly see that, at the instant the heavens and earth trembled, every raindrop in the world froze in midair. Then, centered on Zhou Hao, the blue rain above and below the void formed two enormous funnels—one pointing downward, the other upward—and all of it was drawn into the yellow-skinned gourd.

“Wonderful! What a miraculous gourd!” Elder Guo stared at the gourd in Zhou Hao’s hand and sighed with emotion. “In my younger days, I heard tales of its legendary deeds. They say it is a treasure passed down through the ages, possessing endless wondrous uses, and that only one destined to it can become its master. The gourd itself also conceals a secret capable of transforming its owner into a mighty colossus of the immortal realm. To witness its splendor today is enough to make my life worthwhile!”

Outside the radiant gate, sunlight suddenly appeared. The storm had passed and the sky had cleared.

Yet eleven savage beasts had already surrounded Zhou Hao and Elder Guo tightly. Upon their backs sat eleven High Immortals, all staring covetously at the seemingly ordinary yellow gourd, their eyes burning with greed.

“Hand over the gourd, and I can promise to spare your lives. How does that sound?” The Chief of Rain Lake extended his right hand.

“Heh, Elder Guo, did you hear that? He says he can spare our lives. The look on his face is so serious that I nearly believed him,” Zhou Hao said teasingly.

“Hahahaha! You are a dignified High Immortal, the Chief of Rain Lake, yet you can still invent such nonsense to deceive a young man. Have you no shame?” Elder Guo roared with laughter, pointing at the Chief of Rain Lake as he rebuked him.

“Hmph. You are right. It is indeed nonsense. The two of you have long since filled me with loathing. Killing you is the only way to appease my anger. In any case, whether you hand over the gourd or not, it will be mine. I alone am its true master!” The Chief of Rain Lake laughed as well, but his laughter was cold and sinister, sending chills through the air.

Beside him, the chiefs of Fire Plain, Thunder Mountain, and Wind Desert exchanged flickering glances and, seemingly casually, looked toward the Chief of Rain Lake.

“Prepare to die!”

With a loud shout, the Chief of Rain Lake flung a pearl into the air. He pointed at it with one finger, and the pearl immediately shot a beam of blue light toward Zhou Hao and Elder Guo. With a sharp boom, it blasted apart the cube formed by the radiant gates, scattering it into a rain of light. Zhou Hao and Elder Guo only realized what had happened afterward and hurriedly fled a hundred yards away.

“An Immortal King treasure?!” Elder Guo was a man of vast knowledge, but even he could not help exclaiming in shock as he stared at the blue pearl in the air.

“You mean that pearl is an Immortal King-grade treasure?” Zhou Hao was equally stunned. At the same time, he understood why the twelve High Immortals had been able to break into the immortal palace.

The deep-blue pearl was smooth and perfectly round, about the size of a fist. Within it was a miniature model of a cosmic sea of stars. That starry expanse was dreamlike and illusory, shifting unpredictably, as though a genuine world were undergoing a cataclysmic evolution within it.

“I understand now. This is the Sea-Calming Pearl, the possession of the Dragon King of the Luo Sea’s younger sister. It must have been lost back then. Naturally, you would have had no chance of seeing it when you went to that great immortal’s cave dwelling.” After a moment’s thought, Elder Guo had pieced together the truth.

“I did hear Senior Dengtu Lang and the female dragon king, Luo Tianyi, mention this pearl. As its name suggests, the Sea-Calming Pearl can suppress an entire sea of stars. With power like that, it could probably destroy not only the tiny Cloudmist Immortal Palace, but this entire starry sky as well.” Zhou Hao frowned.

“That is impossible. Even working together, they cannot truly unleash the Immortal King-level might of the Sea-Calming Pearl. Still, it is an Immortal King artifact, and in the hands of a single High Immortal, it can easily destroy the sun, moon, and stars. Against it, I have no chance whatsoever. Our only hope is your gourd.” Elder Guo cast a glance at the yellow gourd in Zhou Hao’s hand.

“Senior, even if I unleash my gourd with all my strength, it can at most contend with a High Immortal. Their Immortal King treasure should possess power at the level of a Great Immortal. Are you certain we can rely on the gourd to win?” Zhou Hao asked anxiously.

“Do not worry. Since you are the gourd’s master, the upper limit of the energy it can release is naturally determined by your cultivation level. However, I can help you raise your realm temporarily. I expect it will be no weaker than the Sea-Calming Pearl.” Elder Guo waved away his concern.

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With that, Elder Guo transformed into a small tree as tall as a man. Its branches were lush and luxuriant, and its crown spread like a cloud. The little tree took root in the void, while Zhou Hao sat cross-legged beneath it. The purple canopy resembled an umbrella sheltering him. Violet energy billowed around him, immortal mist swirled, and the immense immortal power within Zhou Hao began to rise.

“Putting on an act, are we? Hmph. Disappear!” The Chief of Rain Lake stood atop a flood dragon and pointed with one finger.

Above his head, the Sea-Calming Pearl began spinning rapidly. In the next instant, its body became like a blue sun, casting the sky in a deep and eerie azure glow.

The blue sun emitted a strand of tangible light, like a blue arrow cleaving through the heavens. The elders and disciples on the distant peaks could clearly see it. Its target was Zhou Hao, a hundred yards away. The distance appeared considerable, yet the arrow arrived in the span of a single breath.

Zhou Hao sat cross-legged in the void, watching in every direction and listening to every sound. With one hand, he formed a sword seal. A thread of radiance rose from the mouth of the yellow gourd, and invisible sword energy was summoned from the void, condensing into one snow-white sword-light after another.

At nearly the same instant, the blue arrow collided with the sword-lights. A series of explosions rang out across the sky. Blue and white radiance intertwined, and when their brilliance reached its most dazzling point, the light burst outward and scattered. Several disciples of the immortal palace were blinded by it.

“What a formidable gourd! It can actually withstand a strike from the Sea-Calming Pearl?” Even the Chief of Rain Lake could not hide his astonishment. He knew the pearl’s power better than anyone, yet it had unexpectedly encountered an opponent today. Just how extraordinary was that gourd?

“No matter what, I must obtain it!” The Chief of Rain Lake clenched his fists and once again urged the Sea-Calming Pearl to launch a violent assault.

The blue sun in the air began to rotate on its own, sending out ring after ring of deep-blue ripples. Wherever the ripples spread, the void wailed and the air exploded. Even the ancient sky seemed to crack like a sheet of glass, fissure after fissure appearing across it.

“So you’re finally getting serious?” Zhou Hao narrowed his eyes slightly, while his hands moved rapidly through a series of seals. The thread of radiance rising from the yellow gourd grew to ten yards in length.

“Sever!”

The deep-blue ripples swept across the void. The sky of this little world was splitting apart piece by piece, and the waves were about to reach Zhou Hao.

Yet at that very moment, the thread of radiance in the air revealed an incomparable might. The ten-yard beam was like an immortal sword thrust into the heavens. The instant the ripples touched it, they melted away like ice beneath the sun, vanishing completely into vapor.

Nor was that all. The ten-yard radiance continued forward, annihilating the deep-blue ripples one after another. It swept across the void and struck directly toward the Sea-Calming Pearl. Unfortunately, the pearl itself intercepted it and severed the radiance in two.

At that moment, Zhou Hao, the Chief of Rain Lake, and even the leaders of the other four great powers all understood the same truth: in a battle between their treasures, neither side could do anything to the other. If the fight continued, victory would depend solely on endurance—the depth of their reserves and the amount of immortal power they possessed.

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