Chapter 71 — The Kui Ox
The Sword Questions the Heavens · Page 3 of 6
But at that very moment, all the black-clad figures laid their hands upon the mysterious objects in the sand.
Instantly the things on the ground blazed with light, a crystalline red glow, and every few yards the red light suddenly shot out sideways, joining in a moment into one body, forming a gigantic red ring of light.
Before anyone could react, that red ring of light sprang aloft as well; countless dazzling red beams shot upward together, forming a spectacular wall of red light that trapped the beast within it, and at the same time streaked straight up into the sky, at last meeting at a single point high above.
It was as though night had lifted its veil, and the darkness too quietly withdrew; in midair a figure slowly appeared.
The Nether King, standing proudly upon an ancient cauldron that floated high in the air, its whole body glowing red, his face solemn, his hands crossed before his chest holding a dharma sign, softly chanting that mysterious incantation.
And all the red light flowed ceaselessly together into the ancient cauldron floating beneath his feet.
Bellow—!
Another roar of furious rage: the beast, surrounded by the red ring, leaped up in anger and charged straight at the wall of light.
High in the air, the Nether King's expression tightened, and at once his chanting quickened.
And the Canglan Sect disciples in the distance stood dumbstruck, forgetting that this was in fact the perfect chance to flee, their eyes fixed unblinking on the scene.
In the sky, as if directly above the Nether King's head, a peal of thunder burst forth, and the beast struck the wall of light head-on!
Boom!
Thunder rolled across the heavens; in an instant the vast, spectacular red wall of light trembled violently, and countless tiny currents, like little lightning bolts, raced this way and that across it with a shrill, piercing sound, so that even the black-clad men standing at the beast's feet, separated from it only by that single wall of light, shook from head to toe.
In midair, the Nether King's face seemed to pale several shades as well!
But in the end, after that violent trembling, the red curtain of light did not shatter; it gradually steadied, while the ancient cauldron beneath the Nether King's feet seemed to shine more brilliantly than ever!
Bellow—bellow—bellow!
The enraged beast had all but gone mad; as thunderclaps burst without cease across the sky, its whole body began to glow with a blue-green light, and again and again it hurled itself at the vast wall of light that held it prisoner.
Wind and rain shrieked across heaven and earth, as though in the highest heavens the Thunder God himself were roaring in fury!
Each rolling peal of thunder seemed to shake Liubo Mountain, to shake the whole sea!
Yet beneath this dread majesty of heaven and earth, that red wall of light, and the ancient cauldron in the sky—who knew whence they came—stood towering and unbroken; little by little, they pressed the beast's ferocity down instead.
Time slipped quietly by, and the beast's charges grew weaker and weaker. Yet the demon cult fared little better: the Nether King, standing on the cauldron in midair, was holding up somewhat better, though his face was ashen—plainly, to bind such an ancient beast by spell, even with the aid of that wondrous treasure of a cauldron, was no light task.
And of the several dozen black-clad men on the ground, more than half now lay fallen, struck dead outright by the clash of those two immense forces. The rest staggered and swayed as well; only a handful of the more powerful ones still held their ground around the curtain of light.
The storm that filled the sky was now gradually subsiding, as if foretelling something.
At last, after one final futile charge, the beast panted, gave a low, hoarse roar, and stood where it was, moving no more.
The Canglan Sect disciples, coming back to their senses, exchanged glances and for a moment could find no words.