Chapter 0695: College Disaster
Astral Sage College
The usually auspicious and harmonious atmosphere had turned into one that was chaotic and fear-inducing.
The Gold Gleam and Silver Spark mentors were anxious and frightened, constantly directing students to evacuate from the college. Terrifying fluctuations of energy could be felt from the direction of the Tree of Resonant Power as the experts clashed. A battle of this level was like a calamity come to life. Even though they were a distance away, they could feel a suffocating sense of oppression by merely being in that direction.
It was the Violet Vibrance mentors who were now attempting to intercept the mysterious invaders.
The Astral Sage College's students were the Xia Kingdom's most talented cream of the crop. They were chosen through rigorous selections and a.s.sessments before being able to enter the best college in the Xia Kingdom. After a few years, the youths would shed their immaturity and then become independent elites when released into the greater world.
Unfortunately, the developments of today were not something they had the right or the strength to interfere in.
Even the Gold Gleam mentors were relegated to the periphery, only to maintain order.
In the outskirts of the college, Yu Lang, Bai Mengmeng, Bai Mengmeng, Zhao Kuo, and the rest of the One Star Hall students had gathered as they watched the changing situation. Even the usually thick-skinned Yu Lang seemed a little panicked.
"Mentor, who would actually dare to a.s.sault the Astral Sage College?" Bai Doudou tightly clutched her prized spear as she blurted out the question.
Even till now, she was in complete disbelief. There were individuals crazy enough to cause chaos within the Astral Sage College? One had to know that this was the location with the greatest number of Duke experts in the kingdom. No power within the Xia Kingdom would dare to idly set foot on their grounds. The Bai family she was part of was also considered a lineage with a deep-rooted foundation, but what that meant was that she had an even better understanding of the monolith known as the Astral Sage College.
"I don't know. All of the Violet Vibrance mentors have rushed over, and Vice Princ.i.p.al Su Xin and the rest are partic.i.p.ating in the royal coronation ceremony. I believe they have received the news already and are on their way back. The situation is very dangerous and the enemy is terrifyingly strong. If you're caught up in the aftermath, you will likely be fatally injured, so you must retreat to a safer area," one of the Gold Gleam mentors escorting them stated anxiously. He himself was shocked, but for the sake of consoling the students, he had to maintain a strong front and suppress his true emotions.
He, too, felt that the situation was ludicrous.
This was the first time something like this had happened in the Astral Sage College's history.
At the same time, he understood that the faction leading this invasion had to be unfathomably strong. Otherwise, the support of the countless Violet Vibrance mentors would have stabilized the situation and he would have gotten a message stating that everything was clear... Alas, no such message had come.
This meant that the situation had likely gotten even worse.
What sort of existence could be so domineering that even countless Violet Vibrance mentors were unable to resist?
The Gold Gleam mentor's eyes seemed a little overcast. Someone who dared to strike at the college would not merely be an individual, there had to be a terrifying power supporting him...
"However, we still have Princ.i.p.al Pang, and all of these enemies will definitely be crushed if he comes!" The Gold Gleam mentor was reminded of the college's supporting pillar, and some hope reignited within his heart as he continued to guide the students to a safer location.
……
Astral Sage College, Tree of Resonant Power's Vicinity
The youth with dual pupils surveyed his surroundings. Countless beams of light exuding indomitable presences descended from the sky, attempting to launch an offensive on him, but they were quickly repelled by the corrupted Violet Vibrance mentors.
The two sides clashed and fought bitterly.
"Looking at the countless sage colleges in the East Divine Continent, the Astral Sage College's foundation isn't bad at all. If not for your a.s.sistance in insidiously laying these seeds of corruption, the sheer number of Violet Vibrance mentors alone would have caused me quite a bit of suffering and perhaps even taught me a lesson." The youth shook his head slightly as he praised the defenders.
Shen Jinxiao gave a slight smile. "My Lord, you're too humble. With the Origin Reversion Inst.i.tute's strength, extinguis.h.i.+ng a sage college would be as easy as flipping over one's hand."
The youth sighed. "Secretly subverting things is the way we do it. Doing things directly and blatantly is simply too crude and lacks aesthetic sense."
Shen Jinxiao grinned as he nodded in agreement.
"However, I think that Vice Princ.i.p.al Su Xin is about to return. And I’m sure she has rallied many allies to her cause," Shen Jinxiao reminded him.
The youth cackled. "Just a group of miscreants. We have plotted for so many years, so how could they possibly resist it so easily? The Astral Sage College is definitely doomed today."
"What about Pang Qianyuan?" Shen Jinxiao curiously asked.
When it came to absolute strength, no one in the Xia Kingdom was of concern except for Princ.i.p.al Pang. That man possessed enough power to turn the tides.
The youth smiled indifferently as he replied with utter self-confidence, "The Xia Kingdom is an important aspect of our plan. Perhaps even Pang Qianyuan would never have expected this. He will not be able to resist either."
He no longer explained any more details to Shen Jinxiao, only continuing to walk towards the majestic Tree of Resonant Power.
With each step he took, the Tree of Resonant Power seemed to become more alive, feeling an intense premonition of danger. A moment later, sparkling, translucent, green light poured out of it, converging into a ma.s.sive stream that seemed to form a dark-green talisman almost a hundred meters tall.
This ancient and cryptic talisman then began to radiate endless rays of light. At the same time, the worldly natural energy surrounding it started to be endlessly absorbed.
It gave off an absolute sense of suppression, causing even the void itself to begin to shatter.
Shen Jinxiao was forced to a halt as he glanced at the dark-green talisman with a heavy expression. "I once heard that the Tree of Resonant Power possesses a protective talisman that was pa.s.sed down by the Academic Federation. Now that I've seen it in the flesh, my horizons have been broadened."
Even he could feel a foreboding sense of danger emanating from the talisman, and he understood that it could exert a force that he would be unable to defend against.
"This is the final protective measure the Academic Federation has bestowed upon this high-grade Tree of Resonant Power. Its power is so extraordinary that even I would not dare to touch it," the youth said as he nodded in agreement.
But at the same time, he raised his palm, and the pocket sphere on his wrist flashed. A black jade bottle appeared atop his palm.
The bottle's surface was engraved with an endless number of complicated runic patterns, almost as though it was sealing something within. Shen Jinxiao could feel that the temperature around him had soared at this very moment as well.
The youth formed a hand seal, and corresponding streaks of runic patterns shot forth, landing atop the bottle's surface and causing the existing patterns to glow brilliantly. In the end, all of the runic patterns began to s.h.i.+ft and condense at the neck of the bottle, slowly unraveling the thin film of black light that kept the bottle sealed.
The moment the bottle was unsealed, a single wisp of black flame slowly floated into the air.
The wisp rose with the wind and then quickly transformed into a rotating lotus made of black flames. It emanated a fiendish air, and wriggling lines could be seen atop every flaming petal. If one were to peer more closely, it even seemed to resemble innumerable tormented faces of pain, screaming in endless suffering.
Shen Jinxiao's eyes shrunk and he inadvertently took half a step back. The black fire lotus was extremely weird, and he felt uneasy merely being in its presence. It possessed a deathly aura that even a Duke would not dare to carelessly make contact with.
"This is the Karmic Sinflame Lotus. It is the agglomeration of the world's evil thoughts given physical form. Just brief contact with it would lead to it adhering to you, like gangrene attached to the bone. Even if you were to abandon your physical body, you would find it difficult to get rid of its purgatory flames. I've invested a lot into this for the sake of today."
The youth gave a slight smile as he waved his hand slightly, causing the Karmic Sinflame Lotus to float up and directly touch the dark-green talisman.
Pss.h.!.+
At the moment of contact, s.p.a.ce itself seemed to melt. Although the talisman exerted boundless power, all of its energy was restrained by the lotus. And as the flames fluttered in the wind, everything was burnt into ashes. In the short span of a few minutes, the fear-inducing talisman that had left Shen Jinxiao horrified had been disintegrated by the black lotus.
Yet the lotus still remained after that. It then proceeded to fly towards the gigantic tree that upheld the efforts of countless students and mentors of the Astral Sage College.??e??ℯ?n?ѵℯ?.c??
The youth grinned as he said to himself, "Burn and perish."
Shen Jinxiao sighed as he stared at the Tree of Resonant Power. It was truly lamentable. This was the Astral Sage College's strength and foundation. Who knew how many students and mentors had spent time cultivating here throughout the years before entering the Umbra Cave to do their part.
Perhaps it was for the best. After this, the Astral Sage College's students would no longer need to sacrifice themselves in the Umbra Cave.
After all, the college would become a part of history.
The Karmic Sinflame Lotus shot forth, colliding with the Tree of Resonant Power. But a furious roar resounded at this very moment. "Stop your hand!"
Shen Jinxiao turned to look at the streams of light that were headed in his direction. It seemed as though Vice Princ.i.p.al Su Xin and her reinforcements had finally arrived.