Chapter 1130: Hollow Spirit State Divine Damnation

Ye Mo had completely forgotten about time; he didn't even realize his herb king spirit range had drastically shrunk. Had he noticed the diminishing range, he might have stopped immediately, as the Bitter Bamboo was fundamental to his cultivation. Without the herb king spirit range, the Bitter Bamboo would die.

Cultivation was timeless, even within the time formation disk. Ye Mo felt his cultivation essence reach its peak, incapable of further increase. He suddenly opened his eyes. He was at the nascent soul state, level nine peak stage, and was shocked by the length of his cultivation.

Initially overjoyed, his elation quickly faded. He saw his herb king spirit range had shrunk by almost 20%. He knew he needed substantial spirit chi, but not this much; less than 1% of the herb king spirit range would have sufficed to reach the nascent soul state peak stage. Undeniably, the time formation disk was responsible. Using the herb king spirit range to power the time formation disk must have yielded a significantly higher time difference ratio, but he only had one such range.

He swiftly put away the spirit attraction formation and the time formation disk. Continuing this way, his herb king spirit range would soon vanish entirely. If that happened, how could his Bitter Bamboo survive? The herb king spirit range was precious, but its loss was acceptable—the Bitter Bamboo's safety was paramount.

Ye Mo estimated he'd spent approximately three years in solitary cultivation, perhaps slightly less. He wondered how much time had elapsed outside. After using cleansing spells, he learned he was about to face divine damnation. He possessed ample Hollow Meridian pills, but hadn't yet decided where to undergo it; first, he needed an escape route.

He figured he'd been beneath the crevice for at least a few months and that the two hollow spirit state cultivators were gone. Returning to the crevice, he found only a large, empty space. Life force was considerably diminished, a consequence of the depleted herb king spirit range.

Subconsciously releasing Zi Xu, he attempted to fly, but the powerful suction force remained. He knew that even with his current power, he couldn't ascend. Reaching the hollow spirit state was his only thought. He realized he still wouldn't be able to fly up even then, but the hollow spirit state was more than ten times stronger than the nascent soul state.

He began setting up spirit gathering, lightning attraction, and lightning storage formations. Without the latter two, he would have perished during his previous annihilation divine damnation, and who knew if it might return?

At that moment, countless cultivators thronged outside the Zhou River Swamp, some even attempting flight above it. They'd heard of a newly discovered ancient ruin. The news spread after Earth Demon Sect cultivators were stealthily observed and exposed by lower-level cultivators.

As the news spread, the tale grew wilder, eventually encompassing low-grade cultivation artifacts and a heaven-grade cultivation method. Eventually, even cultivators from 7-star and 8-star sects arrived, but only the Earth Demon Sect elders felt disheartened. They'd initially come for Ye Mo, intending to trap him, and secondly for the ancient spirit herb garden. But now, everything was exposed.

Despite this, they could only feign ignorance. Hunting Ye Mo was a considerable undertaking, and they dared not mention the spirit herb garden. This attracted even more cultivators to the Zhou River Swamp, revitalizing Mang Mountain Town.

However, after several months of searching, cultivators found nothing but high-level swamp spirit beasts. Some were considering departure when the sky above the swamp suddenly darkened, and lightning bolts crackled.

"What's happening?" All the cultivators gazed at the sky above the swamp's depths.

"I know—it's divine damnation!" one cultivator shouted.

"Who's undergoing divine damnation in the swamp? A spirit beast, perhaps?"

Nine baby arm-sized lightning bolts struck the swamp. A deafening rumble echoed, shaking the ground far and wide.

"Someone is undergoing divine damnation beneath the earth…"

"No, some spirit beast."

"It can't be a spirit beast; this divine damnation is terrifying! Just the first bolt is this thick—how fearsome will the later ones be? Is someone reaching truth realization state, or is a spirit beast reaching level 10?"

The divine damnation caused widespread alarm. The Earth Demon Sect's hollow spirit state elders' faces changed; they'd initially suspected Ye Mo, but the power dispelled that notion. This divine damnation was truly terrifying.

Unexpectedly, a second wave followed the first without pause, clearly intent on killing its target. The cultivators were terrified, yet none left. Such a divine damnation was unprecedented; they yearned to witness its target.

This was, of course, Ye Mo's divine damnation. After consuming a Hollow Meridian Pill, he'd also chewed a Bitter Bamboo leaf to prevent a Heart Demon tribulation.

He relaxed slightly seeing the lightning bolts were still baby arm-sized, the same as when he'd broken through to nascent soul state. He hadn't feared this at the golden core state peak stage, much less now. He unleashed Zi Xu and countered with purple sword rays. He knew from experience that Illusion Cloud would be less effective against the divine damnation.

Purple lightning exploded around Ye Mo. He blocked five bolts from the first wave with Zi Xu, absorbing the remaining four with the Three Birth Chant. His power increased dramatically. This divine damnation had bolts of the same size, but was far more powerful than the golden core state divine damnation; yet, the first wave didn't faze him.

Then, the second and third waves struck, but these bolts were thicker than the first. Ye Mo deflected nearly ten bolts, but the rest struck him, causing minor injuries, which he quickly absorbed.

The fourth wave hadn't yet fallen, seemingly gathering strength. Ye Mo remained still; his spirit gathering formation, powered by tens of millions of spirit stones, formed a protective mist. However, he didn't use the octagonal cauldron, knowing he'd benefit more from absorbing the lightning directly.

The sky grew darker, occasional sparks signaling the approach of more powerful lightning. Outside, the cultivators were astounded. Even hollow spirit state cultivators doubted they could withstand the first three waves. It must be a supremely powerful being undergoing divine damnation.