Splitting the Heavens-Chapter 2178: Knock KNOCK BITCHES

“How can a stowaway from the Star River appear here?”

The question rose in Shang Xia’s mind, followed by a deeper sense of dread.

He had crossed blows with someone in the Star River back then, Sage Star Thief. Though Shang Xia had appeared to have the upper hand in both encounters, he knew well that he had relied on help each time.

In true combat, when it came down to pure strength and mastery, he had ultimately been at a disadvantage.

After all, Sage Star Thief was not only a Sage at the grand completion stage but also possessed the Eternal Golden Boat and had spent many years navigating the Star River, mastering its currents and tides of space and time far beyond what Shang Xia could match.

The presence hidden within the Essence Jing World could not possibly be Sage Star Thief, yet the title of Star River Stowaway was the same for all of them.

From their previous exchanges, Shang Xia had learned that Sage Star Thief had once participated in the invasion of the Chaotic Sea of Stars more than 1,000 years ago. But at that time, he had entered from another Star Field entirely, and without bringing his Eternal Golden Boat along.

Now, for him to be trying so desperately to locate and re-enter the Chaotic Sea of Stars from within the Star River itself rather than through other Star Fields suggested only one thing. Someone, or something, was barring his way.

And now, the fact that Shang Xia had immediately sensed a Star River Stowaway the moment he entered the ruined Essence Jing World seemed to confirm that suspicion.

However, this stowaway was not like Sage Star Thief from ages past. The one Shang Xia discovered brought an Eternal Golden Boat, and it was still with him.

It seemed that the Eternal Golden Boat had not fully entered the Essence Jing World but was wedged within the spatial passage connecting the Illusory Sea of Stars and the Chaotic Sea of Stars.

Because of that, the trapped Eternal Golden Boat had become a stable bridge between both sides, allowing a steady flow of Illusory Sea of Stars cultivators to cross over into the Chaotic Sea of Stars, or more precisely, into the Essence Jing World itself, where they quickly joined the battle.

That was why Shi Guan and the Essence Jing Heavenly Field had been able to hold out against the combined assault of the other Heavenly Fields of the Heaven Observation Star Region. The situation had even begun to turn slightly in their favor.

In fact, if Shang Xia had not returned from the Star River when he did, Kou Chongxue had been considering calling his External Avatar from the Essence Luxuriant Heavenly Field to provide reinforcement.

Shang Xia’s arrival immediately altered the flow of the battlefield. Several Sages who had been locked in direct duels, instinctively shifted their engagements away from him, whether they were from the Illusory Sea of Stars or the Heaven Observation Star Region.

Among the many clashes, the fiercest battle was between Gu Yi and Shi Guan!of

Back when the Star Origin Lord had attempted to locate Shang Xia’s Fate Stars, Gu Yi had launched a surprise attack on him but had been gravely injured in retaliation.

Shang Xia had assumed that after that defeat, Gu Yi would have to rest for a long while. Yet now, he had returned to the battlefield.

Although his strength at the sixth star had not completely recovered, the vigor of his attacks showed that he had healed at least 70 or 80 percent of his wounds.

What truly astonished Shang Xia, however, was that Shi Guan was holding his own against Gu Yi with pure power alone.

Once a fifth star Sage, no one knew when Shi Guan had stepped into the sixth star, matching Gu Yi.

Judging by the instability of his aura, he had advanced only recently and had yet to stabilize his cultivation. In combat strength alone, he was clearly inferior to Gu Yi, who had been at that level for many years.

But within the Essence Jing Heavenly Field, Shi Guan could draw upon the strength of his Heavenly Field, bolstering his combat ability.

It was fortunate for Gu Yi that the Heavenly Field was riddled with holes and fractures, its structural integrity crumbling by the moment. Otherwise, Shi Guan’s advantage within his own world might have made him nearly impossible to overcome.

The catastrophic destruction of the Essence Jing Heavenly Field, however, was not only the result of the combined siege by the Heaven Observation Star Region’s Heavenly Fields and the clashes of multiple Sages. It was also due to the presence of that spatial passage deep within the Essence Jing World, a rift linking two entire Star Fields, and the continuous influx of origin qi from the Illusory Sea of Stars that was flooding into the Chaotic Sea of Stars.

This flow of origin qi devastated the Essence Jing Heavenly Field, especially its core, the Essence Jing World itself.

Worse still, the spread of the Illusory Sea of Stars’ origin qi through the Heavenly Field, and outward into the greater Heaven Observation Star Region, had weakened the Essence Jing World’s Will, causing its entire Heavenly Field to falter.

Apart from the duel between Gu Yi and Shi Guan, there was another massive battle.

One was a high-level Sage from the Illusory Sea of Stars, and the other side boasted Kou Chongxue and the Giant Ape Emperor fighting side by side.

Though Kou Chongxue remained at the fifth star, his combat strength was formidable, and the Hidden Frost Sword in his hand gleamed with unmatched sharpness. With the Giant Ape Emperor’s aid, he was able to barely hold back the enemy.

Yet Shang Xia could see clearly that the Illusory Sea of Stars cultivator’s strength was heavily suppressed.

Even though Shi Guan had betrayed the Heaven Observation Star Region and sacrificed his world’s foundation to open that spatial passage, the Essence Jing World’s Will could not be deceived. It continued to reject every foreign invader.

Moreover, the Illusory Sea of Stars’ experts clearly struggled to adapt to the conditions of the Chaotic Sea of Stars, limiting their performance further.

Elsewhere, Sage Jin and Zhuo Gudao of the Essence Hong Heavenly Field were also battling fiercely against another high-level Sage from the Illusory Sea of Stars.

Thanks to their efforts in nurturing the Essence Hong Heavenly Field’s growth over recent years, the Heavenly Field’s foundation had strengthened considerably. Both of them, once outsiders who had seized control of the Heavenly Field, had finally earned partial recognition from the Essence Hong World’s Will.

That recognition allowed Sage Jin, who had only recently recovered to a mid-level Sage, to regain his full strength, his once-unstable cultivation solid and vibrant.

As for Zhuo Gudao, his lifespan had once been nearly spent, but after receiving Shang Xia’s secret art that extended it by 20 years, he had since achieved a breakthrough to a mid-level Sage. With renewed vitality, his longevity had once again increased.

Shang Xia had worried that after the Dipper Star Formation was destroyed, the extension he granted might end prematurely. But it seemed his fears were unnecessary, Zhuo Gudao’s life force was steady for at least several more decades.

The two of them, both mid-level Sages, fought with perfect coordination, enough to withstand a high-level Sage on their own.

Meanwhile, Sage Kun of the Essence Tong Heavenly Field and Hong Jing of the Essence Xia Heavenly Field were each locked in combat with their own counterparts from the Illusory Sea of Stars.

Beyond these titanic clashes, the outer void surrounding the Heavenly Field had become a vast warzone of True Immortals and Star Ship fleets. The armies of the Heaven Observation Star Region’s Heavenly Fields fought against the defenders of the Essence Jing Heavenly Field and the Illusory Sea of Stars’ reinforcements.

Yet, unlike the precarious situation within the core battlefield, the conflict outside leaned heavily in favor of the Heaven Observation Star Region. Their True Immortals and fleets had seized the advantage, even encircling portions of the enemy forces.

Several massive fleets, each led by Super Star Ships under high-level True Immortals, had combined to form battle formations. They bombarded the Essence Jing World from afar, preventing newly arrived Illusory Sea of Stars cultivators, emerging through the Eternal Golden Boat, from entering the fight.

It was in the turbulent chaos that Shang Xia descended directly into the battlefield.

Ignoring those fighting around him and the Star Ship battle formations sealing the sky, he rushed through the torn barrier of the Essence Jing World and entered its core.

Before space mended itself as Shang Xia emerged, a newly advanced Sage from the Illusory Sea of Stars screamed as Shang Xia’s Seven Laceration Sword slashed him apart.

The man’s body burst into shimmering bubbles that tried to scatter and escape, but the next moment, Shang Xia’s sword qi fragmented into countless threads of light. Each beam carried a unique sword intent, piercing through every fleeing mote until the entire sky of iridescent bubbles burst apart. As a burst of inner qi filled the void around them, it was a clear sign that a Sage had fallen.