In almost the exact same instant that Meng Hao was reaching out to grab the mirror shard, rumbling sounds could be heard outside of the desert as Bai Wuchen, Sha Jiudong, the Sect Leader, and Jin Yunshan, four Potentates of Planet Vast Expanse, all attacked together!

Their combined attack caused intense, rumbling pressure. This was not the power of one attack, but numerous attacks combined. A mad tempest sprang up that, although it couldn't be said to be Transcendent, it was very close!

A slas.h.i.+ng force like that wasn’t capable of shaking the entire sea of ghosts, but it was so sharp that it could slice right through it.

The combined attack of the four powerful experts was like a blade slicing through bamboo, pus.h.i.+ng ever closer toward the desert area.

Meng Hao ignored the rumbling sounds, and slowly closed his hand. The mirror shard flew toward him, shrinking down at the same time, until it was the size of a finger.

It looked ordinary, like nothing special at all. However, it was possible to detect that this object far exceeded even the most precious of treasures: it held faint traces of the aura of Transcendence.

As soon as Meng Hao touched it, he could sense what were apparently faint pulses of sealing power on the mirror shard, causing him to smile thoughtfully.

This mirror shard had numerous uses, and whoever acquired it would have to research it deeply to ascertain them. Except for Meng Hao. To him, uses which could be determined by means of research were all incorrect as far as he was concerned!

Only Meng Hao could use the mirror shard for its intended purpose. After all, the shard had once been part of the copper mirror, and that copper mirror... recognized Meng Hao as its owner!

Even though he had lost the mirror, and the parrot had erased its mind, that couldn’t change one important fact.... Meng Hao was the master of the copper mirror during this era!

Neither Heaven nor Earth could change that.

Meng Hao looked at the mirror shard, gathered his divine sense, and then performed an incantation gesture with his left hand, pus.h.i.+ng down onto the shard.

As he did, he forced a drop of blood out of the tip of his finger. When it merged into the mirror shard, his mind trembled, and he felt as if his consciousness were inside of the shard itself. Everything around him was rumbling. However, it was in this moment that he suddenly realized that there were certain fluctuations which he could sense, somewhere outside of the necropolis.

They were very faint, but they were there. Meng Hao instantly recognized that they were... the fluctuations of the copper mirror, and the aura of the parrot!

He s.h.i.+vered, and began to breathe deeply. He tried to issue a calling, but the mirror shard wasn’t powerful enough. A few tests all failed.

“Only one shard isn't enough. If I can collect all the shards, though, I will definitely be able to summon the mirror!” His eyes shone with a bright light. Taking a deep breath, he ceased his attempts to call out to the copper mirror, and instead looked around quietly.

Gradually, his eyes began to s.h.i.+ne brightly as he realized that within the starry sky of the Vast Expanse, there were eight locations which all had auras that tugged at him!

One of them was the copper mirror itself, which was the furthest away from him. It was so far that its specific location was difficult to determine. As for the other seven locations, he could sense exactly where they were, even the ones which were far away.

“I found one of the mirror shards in the Mountain and Sea Realm,” he murmured. “At that time, my cultivation base wasn’t strong enough to detect the location of the other shards.” Using his divine sense, he was able to stare directly at... the closest of the mirror shards. [1. Meng Hao collected the other mirror shard in chapter 619]

It was so close, he was almost right on top of it.

“No wonder she knew about the mirror shard,” he thought. “So that’s how it is. She actually has one of the other shards!” His eyes glittered brightly as he realized that the nearest of the other seven mirror shards was right here on the third land ma.s.s, within the sea of ghosts, in the hands of... Bai Wuchen!

Almost in the same moment that he sent his divine sense into the mirror shard, rumbling sounds filled the air as four people appeared, shooting toward him like lightning.

They attacked with full power, blasting through the sea of ghosts and appearing near the desert and Meng Hao. As Meng Hao turned around to face them, they saw the mirror shard in his hand.

In the moment that Bai Wuchen realized what had occurred, her pupils constricted, and she shot toward him, energy surging.

“Please don’t take offense, Ninth paragon....” the Sect Leader said with a sigh. Clasping hands, he began to stride forward.

Sha Jiudong didn't say anything, and as for Jin Yunshan, those veins were still bulging out, and his face was expressionless.

The Sect Leader was behind Bai Wuchen. Next to him was Sha Jiudong, and furthest in the back was Jin Yunshan. They were like four powerful arrows shooting toward Meng Hao.

Meng Hao wasn't too surprised to see all of them attacking. If he were Bai Wuchen, and was able to sense the mirror shard in the necropolis, then he would have made plenty of preparations, including a way to force the other peak 9-Essences Paragons to help.

“I'm not sure what you want these mirror shards for,” he said coolly, “but I have to thank you for saving me the trouble of finding yours.” His expression was the same as ever as he faced the four incoming Paragons. He waved his hand, causing the sea of ghosts to scream as they merged into a tempest that spread out to meet his four attackers.

Earlier, the group of four had attacked and dispersed only one part of the sea of ghosts which had been blockading the area. Now they were facing an attack from the combined power of all the ghosts, which was a force that was completely different than before.

As the sea of ghosts surged toward them, icy coldness froze up everything in the area. But then, a bright glimmer appeared in Bai Wuchen’s eyes. She grabbed out into the air and, all of a sudden, her own mirror shard appeared in her hand!

It was a bit bigger than the shard Meng Hao had acquired. As soon as it appeared, Bai Wuchen spit out some life force Essence aura onto it, then raised it above her head.

The mirror shard flickered brightly, s.h.i.+ning with light that could shake Heaven and Earth. Everywhere it pa.s.sed, the ghosts s.h.i.+vered, then suddenly stopped in place, blank expressions on their faces.

In the blink of an eye, the light had swept about in all directions, causing all of the ghosts to stop moving.

Blood sprayed out of Bai Wuchen’s mouth. Obviously, using the mirror shard in that way came at a heavy price. However, a moment later, she was charging toward Meng Hao again.

The Sect Leader began to stride forward silently, as did Sha Jiudong and Jin Yunshan. The entire group of four pa.s.sed the motionless ghosts to head directly toward Meng Hao.

It almost looked like a scene in which Meng Hao was the guardian of the third land ma.s.s, and these four were invaders who had entered the place after untold hards.h.i.+p, and were now attempting to kill Meng Hao to win their prize.

“That’s not how to use the copper mirror shard,” Meng Hao said, his expression the same as ever. He looked up, clenching his right hand into a fist which he then punched out at Immortal Bai Wuchen.

He immediately resorted to the Devil-Butchering Fist, which contained the embodiment of the G.o.d-Slaying, Self-Immolation, and Life-Extermination fists within it. One ma.s.sive fist strike shook Heaven and Earth, leaving everything trembling.

A huge boom rang out, and Immortal Bai Wuchen trembled. Blood oozed out of the corners of her mouth as she was shoved backward. However, Meng Hao was also forced back, his face flushed. As for Sha Jiudong, he transformed into a windstorm which then hurtled violently toward Meng Hao.

Meng Hao snorted coldly, raising both hands up into the air. At the same time, he transformed into an azure roc which shot forward to meet Sha Jiudong. Ma.s.sive booms echoed out as Sha Jiudong emerged from the sand, staggering backward several paces. Meng Hao also fell back, blood oozing out of his mouth. Then he looked up at the Sect Leader, who had mixed emotions on his face as he stabbed his finger toward Meng Hao’s forehead.

That finger attack was like the might of Heaven, causing incredible pressure to weigh down. However, in that same moment, Meng Hao performed an incantation gesture with his right hand, unleas.h.i.+ng the Essence of the Eight Hex, s.p.a.ce. Instantly, it was as if a separate world had been erected.

The Sect Leader’s finger clearly landed onto Meng Hao, and yet Meng Hao didn’t move a muscle. In contrast, the Sect Leader flew backward, face flickering as he waved his sleeve. As he dodged the Essence of s.p.a.ce, he prepared to make another attack, when all of a sudden Jin Yunshan let out a piercing cry and shot violently toward Meng Hao.

Everyone a.s.sumed that he was just about to attack Meng Hao. But then, he suddenly spun in place. As he neared Meng Hao, he reached out toward the Sect Leader and then jerked his hands apart.

It was none other than his Heaven Ripping magic!

A boom rang out, and the Sect Leader frowned. His hands flashed in a double-handed incantation gesture, causing powerful ripples to spread out in defense. The sudden change in the tide of battle was so startling that the Sect Leader had no choice but to suddenly back up. Sha Jiudong was also prevented from attacking, and Immortal Bai Wuchen was taken completely off guard.

“Jin Yunshan, are you crazy!?!?” she roared in rage. What she had offered Jin Yunshan earlier was so incredible that she had been certain he would be incapable of resisting.

“Nine Essences Redistillation Fruits might be rare in the Vast Expanse,” Jiu Yunhan said, “and if you had actually pulled one out and handed it over, I might have been impressed. But you only offered a lead on how to get one. Your information might be completely accurate, and maybe I really could find that Nine Essences Redistillation Fruit eventually, but... I'm not that kind of person! I've always been righteous, and I already made an agreement with Fellow Daoist Meng to cease hostilities. I take my promises seriously, so how could I possibly go back on my word!?” Jin Yunshan stuck his chin out, looking incredibly proud.

The truth was, he was cursing inside.

“You fool, Bai Wuchen,” he thought as he stood there next to Meng Hao. “Unless you’re absolutely certain of being able to kill Meng Hao, then, well fudge, considering his crazy personality, do you think he would ever let me get that Nine Essences Redistillation Fruit? In the cultivation world, promises are the least trustworthy of all things. I don’t know why the other two agreed with you. The Sect Leader has the Vast Expanse School, and Sha Jiudong is stubborn. But I, Jin Yunshan, am not easily fooled!”