Ascension of the Immortal Asura

1123 The Nine-Petal Yang Lotus Pt. 2

The Nine-Petal Yang Lotus burned like a brilliant sun, its light all- encompassing, its heat and intensity beyond compare. It was as if the Yang-Sovereign had just opened up a portal to the deepest, hottest pits of hell, bathing the Yang-Sphere with nearly unbearable heat. Hundred of layers of a spherical formation enveloped the Yang Lotus, each brimming brightly as they struggled against the might of the lotus.

John couldn't help but notice that the innermost formations were showing signs of weakness. Visible cracks coursed through the formation's, looking as if they were about to burst apart at any moment. The energy leaking through the cracks was suppressed by the layers beyond, but even those layers were not able to contain the Yang Lotus fully.

'And that's while it's still contained in that formation. If it was unleashed without restriction, it would burn everything to ashes,' John thought, feeling true awe for the first time in quite a while. After taking a peak over the edge and into the abyss below, John moved backwards a good distance, then looked back up at the Yang- Sovereign and Prime Shadow.

A grim look appeared on the Prime Shadow's face, a look that was not comforting in the slightest. John had never seen such a look on the Prime Shadow's face, who was normally in control of every single thing that happened around him.

The powerful trembling of the Yang-Sphere eventually ceased as the chasm stopped parting, leaving only a deep, ominous vibration coursing through the Yang-Sphere, the source of the vibrations from the Yang Lotus itself. Despite being contained by one of, if not the most powerful formation John had ever seen, its power was still leaking through, unable to be fully contained.

"As you can see," the Yang-Sovereign said calmly, gesturing towards the Yang Lotus far below with his right hand. "The Nine-Petal Yang Lotus is continuing to grow in strength, and has reached a level that even the most potent of formations can no longer fully contain it. By my most recent calculations, it's power will grow to a level strong enough to breach the formations fully in less than a month. I'm afraid I had no choice in this matter but to proceed with my plans."

"This is madness," the Sword-Saint roared, his sword still pointing at the Yang-Sovereign. "It's not too late to stop all this. Release us, let us help you subdue the Yang Lotus, and we can forget any of this happened. No lives have been lost yet. It's not too late to put an end to this madness."

The Yang-Sovereign glanced at the Sword-Saint, his eyes focused on the sword for a moment. "I'm afraid that's no longer possible," he said, his voice almost a regretful sigh. "The only regret I have is that I was not able to convince the Sword-Sovereign to attend this tournament. After I absorb the Yang-Lotus, and after what I'm about to do to everyone here, he will no doubt do his utmost to kill me. He will no longer be my equal after I absorb the lotus, so his death is only a matter of time, but the damage our battle will do the continent will be disastrous."

"Why wait?" the Sword-Saint sneered, his sword tip moving, pointing towards the ceiling of the Yang-Sphere above. "I will destroy this sphere of yours, contact the Sword-Sovereign directly, and have him come here to help us put an end to your madness."

"l would advise against doing that," the Yang-Sovereign replied calmly, then gestured in all directions towards the Yang-Sphere enveloping them. "l have been planning for this moment for a long, long time, and have considered every possible outcome. I have planned for every counter-measure, every contingency, every plan you could possibly come up with."

He then slowly pressed off the ground, soaring into the sky directly over the arena for all to see. He stopped directly above the Yang Lotus and peered down into the deep chasm, eyes glued to the Yang Lotus as if it were a god to be revered.

"The Yang-Sphere's construction was planned for this very day," the Yang-Sovereign continued. "It's been constructed with inbuilt formations, far too profound to be detected, far too powerful to be undone. Sending sound transmissions is impossible..." he paused, glancing quickly at the Prime Shadow, remembering what Grandmaster Darkcloud had done. "Well, nearly impossible...but, even if you do manage to send a message to the outside, its futile. The Yang-Spheres defensive formations have been activated. Not only has space itself been locked down, but any attempt to breach the Yang-Sphere itself will result in a catastrophic explosion, killing everyone for tens of thousands of miles."

Gasps of shock and horror rang out throughout the stadium, as everyone was coming to terms with this ten-ible situation they found themselves in. Many had thought to break free and flee, but the Yang-Sovereign's words crushed those hopes. Those proficient in the spatial Dao tested the Yang-Sovereign's claims, and were shocked to find that they could not burrow into the spatial void like normal.

Even John found his spatial power contained, able to be used, but not able to be used to break through to the other spatial realm.

"You're a madman!" the Sword-Saint roared. "You'd kill your whole sect, your entire legacy? All your greatest geniuses are here. The future of your sect. Even if you succeed, they will no doubt perish in this endeavor."

"I'd rather it not come to that," the Yang-Sovereign said. "Either my plan succeeds, or we all perish. There is no other outcome to how this will play out."

At that moment, John noticed someone approaching him and land nearby. He shared a quick glance with Araxus, whose surprised, almost honified expression revealed that he had no part or knowledge of this plan.

"The Yang-Sovereign has gone mad!" Araxus said to John, his tone a mixture of pain and anger.

"Are we able to stop him?" John asked curiously, hoping for one of the pinnacle geniuses of the sect to have a plan, or an idea of what to do. Araxus' grim expression and shake of his head said otherwise.

"My geniuses," the Yang-Sovereign repeated, then glanced about the stadium. "Elders and disciples of my Yang-Dao Sect. You all have a choice to make today."

Araxus' and the other members of the Yang-Dao Sect tensed up, wondering what the Yang-Sovereign was going to do next.

"The future of the Nine-Dao World will be controlled by us, the Yang-Dao Sect," the Yang-Sovereign continued. "As loyal followers and disciples, I offer you a path to follow me into that future. Recently, each and every member was bequeathed many items, a spatial talisman included."

Upon mention of that, Araxus looked down as he grabbed the ornate necklace he wore, one gifted to him by the Yang-Sovereign during the ceremony two days ago. He and Naelia had shown these gifts to John earlier, but had no idea what the Yang-Sovereign had in plan when gifting them.

"And so, the choice I give you is this; activate your spatial talisman and be taken out of the Yang-Sphere, to be safe from what's to come next. These talismans are the only way out of the Yang- Sphere. All those that do so will be treated as true, loyal followers, showered with treasures and rewards beyond your wildest imagination. Or refuse, and die with everyone else."