Chapter 889: Formation (1/2)
Chapter 889: Formation
The Pharmacist voice rang out. “Ultus – sharp, Occisus – death, Captus – universal red light, Demortus – the ever changing.” A surge of white light shot out and brought with it a stifling brutal aura. Slashes of Occisus’ energy criss-crossed the breadth of where its aura reached. The stronger her cultivation rose, the brighter Occisus burned.
Lan Qing was last to speak the words. “Immortals, eternal and marvelous, have their robes stained with blood.” The refreshing hue of Ultus arose as though summoned and coiled around him. Turquoise light shot into the sky and all at once the four Banishing Blades began to hum. Though the weapons themselves were yet to appear, all four of their bearers were illuminated by their power.
Halfway through their seclusion the four Paragons saw an increase to their cultivation, especially Lan Qing and the Pharmacist. Both of them broke through to Nirvana and in doing so understood how difficult enacting the Strategy would be. The more they learned of this unique power the more they saw what it would require. The sheer cost in energy was staggering to consider, only a true immortal could reliable stand it. The greatest weapon under heaven was aptly named, and just as dangerous to wield.
After some discussion – and with the help of Xuanyuan Shishi, Jun Yongye and Li Ke – they came to a bold decision. They would give their bodies fully to their swords, so that these great and terrible instruments of destruction would become a part of them.
The benefits of doing this were that they and the swords became inexorably linked. In many ways they became the Banishing Blades, and the blades became them. All the energy within them, including their protogenia and vital energy, could be used to galvanize the weapons. Thus their chances of successfully laying out the Banishing Strategy increased.
However this was not without dangers. After carefully studying the strategy they discovered that once the strategy was unleashed it could not be stopped. The swords would ravenously devour all the energy it could. If it worked all of their problems would be solved. But if it failed the four of them would be the first ones to lose their lives.
Before becoming one with the swords there had existed the possibility they could break off the strategy and at least escape with their lives. Such possibilities no longer existed now that they were united. IF the Strategy became unstable, they would die.
However, despite the dangers all four agreed. The time had come to burn the boats and turn their eyes forward – this was their last resort. People fought hardest to live when they were faced with the certainty of death. If they were given no option of retreat the four sword bearers would be bound to give their all.
This was not to say they didn’t examine contingencies. Triumph or defeat, they would have to submit to the will of heaven.
The four mighty emanations from the blades mingled among one another. Threads of ethereal light spread out from each person and made the scene indistinct. They wrapped around one another until they created a series of mystical runes – four in total, one of each sword bearer. The runes hovered over them causing reality to ripple from the injection of power.
They’d started close to each other, but as the runes appear there appeared a gulf. From outside it seemed large enough to swallow whole planets, and was growing larger.
ξ
Aboard Poseidon.
“Get out of the way!” Hua Li glared at Mo Xiao. His growling voice was anything but tender.
Mo Xiao threw open her arms in defiance. “I will not. I’m not letting you leave. There are already many Paragons looking over them, and besides you’re only in the Realm of Protogenia. Do you think there’s that big of a difference without you there? What does going out there achieve? Can’t you do more good staying here, commanding this bastion?”
Hua Li roared back at her. “Of course not! My friends and compatriots are out there putting it all on the line for humanity, and what am I doing sitting here? I need to be out there too, protecting them. I may not be the strongest of them but any help can make a difference.”
Mo Xiao’s eyes were full of pain. “He’s always been the most important thing to you, hasn’t she. This isn’t about your brothers, it’s about him.”
Hua Li paused for a moment. Glaring daggers, he hissed at her. “Get out of the way!”
“No! You’ll have to kill me first. Those aliens have almost completed their evolution, we should get far away from here. Every asset and every life of Poseidon Group is on this ship, our whole future. If we wait until their evolution is complete it will be too late. If you go out there now how can we retreat?”
“You’re still thinking about leaving, now of all times?” Hua Li screamed. “If you want to leave, then leave. I am not going anywhere, no matter what. I will live or die with my compatriots, fighting to the very last moment. You would see Poseidon Group running away when all of mankind was facing destruction?”