The Nethersoul and Darkyin Formations were the two grand formations of Hopeless Major, second to only the Netherdark Formation. They were derived from their namesake, the Netherdark Formation.
As the supervisor of the Nethersoul Formation, the Daredevil King revealed to the Autumn King that he wanted to defect to Origin World with it. Thus, the two entered the formation to subdue it together.
Daredevil activating the formation as soon as they set foot inside took the Autumn King completely off guard. He was trapped, but remained alive since the formation was incomplete without the major’s command seal. It couldn’t release its full power.
Though Qing Yu was newly arrived in Hopeless Major, comparatively speaking, she wasn’t a complete greenhorn. She could easily sense danger lurking in her surroundings and the unfriendly gazes watching her every move, so she’d never partitioned out the power within the command seal.
She’d be signing her own death warrant if she did so.
Power descended from the command seal and made the Nethersoul Formation whole, enabling it to unleash its entire strength. Its soulfire condensed into dark purple souls that furiously gnawed away at the Autumn King’s soul.
The Autumn King wailed and shrieked, having no way to withstand the formation without his bamboo scroll.
Qing Yu and the little fox arrived at the banks of the formation.
“Greetings to the eminent one!” Daredevil quickly dipped in a bow.
Qing Yu’s strength was acknowledged by all after she defended against a blast from the Nineworld Origin Cannon and severed three of the World King’s limbs. With her leniency over pursuing the insurrection and lack of punishment for Hopeless Major veterans, it raised her popularity to new heights within the faction.
“Mmhmm.” She waved a hand for him to relax. “Well done, Daredevil King. I now give you full control and authority over the Nethersoul Formation. Use it to refine all of the replicas that this Autumn King has stashed away outside.”
“Understood!” Daredevil was dumbfounded by the turn of events. He was just an overseer, so command over the formation had never lain in his hands. He directed thirty percent of the formation’s power at most.
With the eminent ruler giving him full control, he grasped real authority and his status in the major would rise tremendously.
Apart from Qing Yu, the strongest within Hopeless Major were the Profound, Yin Yang, and Soulmask Kings. The remaining kings were evenly matched, but there were still differences among their prestige and standing. He would shoot ahead of the others now that he commanded the Nethersoul Formation, and he would also receive more cultivation resources.
Most importantly was that the Nethersoul Formation was one of the crucial major formations and it was connected to a third of the rest of the major’s factions. Daredevil’s strength would be bolstered by it in turn, giving him sufficient support to be on even footing with the three strongest kings.
Of course, this was a reward for his successful ploy in trapping the Autumn King. Thus honored for his accomplishment, Daredevil bent his mind to refining his quarry.
Ninth step kings possessed countless replicas and hid them in any conceivable spot as failsafes against the final end. However, one could use the king’s body as a medium to refine all of the replicas if there was a strong enough formation as a container.
That was how the Immortal Region had killed the last Hopeless Major ruler. A grand formation of ninety-nine kings had suppressed the eminent ruler and refined all of his replicas and contingencies.
The Nethersoul Formation was also equipped with the same ability.
……
The main palace of Hopeless Major.
The Turtledove and Windcall Kings stood with their hands behind their back and sniffed superciliously at the disorganized Hopeless Major disciples below. Things were just as the Kaleidoscopic King had said, on the brink of collapse. Many people scuttled around with strange expressions and unsteady mindsets, plainly thinking of defecting.
The Turtledove King was a seventh step king that would be as lofty as the sky in any other part of the Hongmeng. As elusive and mysterious as dragons, a seventh step king could sweep through tens of thousands of regions and be the overlord of them all.
But in a place like the Ten Valleys of Evil and the Immortal Region, while they weren’t as common as cabbage, they were very ordinary.
“Hopeless Major, your eminent ruler destroyed our great treasure—the Scroll of Shepherding Immortals. We don’t need your compensation, just the remnants of the scroll.” The Windcall King assumed a regal stance as he scanned the faction’s territory with a greedy look. In his eyes, all of this would belong to Origin World before long.
After receiving guidance from Origin World, the personality flaws in Windcall’s duplicate of greed were almost imperceptible. If he could recover the faction’s dignity in Hopeless Major, the Kaleidoscopic King was sure to reward him with more treasures and help him become a regular person.
He might even be able to regain his other three duplicates.
Windcall raised his chin higher when his thoughts traveled here; the Turtledove King nodded approvingly to himself. There was nothing more humiliating for Hopeless Major than a third step king swaggering around their land.
Messengers were always spared in war, not to mention that Origin World and Hopeless Major were still allies in name.
“Pfft, it’s just a ripped up painting. We also have your World King’s legs and arm, do you want to take those back with you as well?” jeered a first step king walking up to them. He looked Windcall up and down and snorted, “Well? Do you want a package deal with the legs and arm?”
“Bastard!!” Windcall and Turtledove cursed. How dare Hopeless Major mention this again?! They were on the verge of destruction and still dared anger Origin World? Weren’t they afraid of Origin World calling the other valleys together and swallowing them whole?
“Hahaha!!” the first step king belly laughed. “Swine of Origin World, our eminent ruler just cut off the legs and an arm of yours and defeated your Nineworld Origin Diagram. You have incredibly thick skin coming back to throw your weight around!
“We haven’t gone to you yet to demand an explanation, but you come wanting those fragments! Do you think Hopeless Major is a pushover?!”
“Bah! If you weren’t still our allies in name, the two of you wouldn’t be walking out of Hopeless Major today!”
“Hoi, they have to leave behind their legs and an arm at least, no?”
“So… the same as the World King then?”
“Hahahahaha!!” Countless cultivators exploded into laughter, mocking and insulting the Turtledove and Windcall Kings with all their might.
Hopeless Major had repressed its feelings for too long!
After all these years of being besieged on all sides, Qing Yu’s sudden heroism with injuring the World King and nullifying the Nineworld Origin Cannon directed morale to soaring heights. This dream-like victory felt surreal, which was why there was a peculiar atmosphere drifting through the major.
The Turtledove and Windcall Kings had gravely misunderstood general sentiment.
