Chapter 148: The Array Rises
Things rarely unfold the way people expect. More often than not, fate brushes aside human will.
Shi Yi never imagined things would spiral to this point. The same Huo Ling'er who first told him to run was now standing tall, fiercely rebuking those wavering Human Clan factions who wanted to flee.
But that was just Huo Ling'er being herself.
She loved fiercely, hated fiercely, and never backed down. From the moment the Fire Kingdom's Human Emperor betrothed her to Shi Yi, she already saw herself as his wife—and she would never let outsiders steal the man she claimed.
If Shi Yi hadn't insisted that having children at their age would go against the laws of Heaven, she probably would have "devoured" him long ago. Taken the lead. Might already be walking around with his child by now.
"That's right. Pack it all up. These treasures are ours now."
Huo Ling'er pulled out a beast-hide pouch, opened the narrow mouth, and pointed it at the sky, where hundreds of radiant treasures hovered.
The moment the pouch opened, a powerful suction force burst forth. Within a single breath, the treasures were swept up and stored safely inside.
Shi Yi gently let go of Huo Ling'er's slender waist and turned to face the Human Clan cultivators who still stood behind him—the ones who had chosen to stay. The ones who still believed in him.
The Heaven-Mending Pavilion.
This group had always been Shi Yi's most unwavering supporters, and none more loyal than Xia Youyu, senior disciple of the pavilion. She had never once doubted him.
Zhu Lu Academy.
Their trust in Shi Yi was more reserved. But the Female War God of the academy trusted Xia Youyu—and if Xia Youyu trusted Shi Yi, then so did she.
The Stone Kingdom.
Of all the Human Clans present, the Stone Kingdom's forces showed the strongest support for Shi Yi. From elite noble families to tribal sects, over a dozen factions had pledged their allegiance.
The Fire Kingdom.
Thanks to Huo Ling'er, many factions from the Fire Kingdom also stood with Shi Yi. After all, their princess was now his wife, which made him half of their royal family.
And beyond those:
There were the scattered factions—the rogue cultivators and wanderers, born in the wild, raised in isolation. Like the Fiery Red Bird, they hailed from desolate lands, lacking resources but full of grit.
And finally—
The youth of Shi Village.
There was no need to say much about them. Their loyalty to Shi Yi was bone-deep.
Born in the Great Wilderness, the men and women of Shi Village bowed to neither Heaven nor Earth—only to their Yi Ge'er.
They wouldn't ask questions. If Shi Yi stayed, they stayed.
But there wasn't time to linger. The divine tide was about to break.
Shi Yi had to unite the Human Clan before it was too late.
"It's good that you trust me."
"The divine tide is coming. Hiding won't save us. The strong live. The weak die. I estimate at least ninety percent of those who enter this realm won't make it out alive."
The words struck a nerve.
Shi Yi saw the fear in their eyes. The kind that cuts deep when you realize you're no longer the strong one in the room.
Outside, back in their own lands, these cultivators may have seen themselves as gifted prodigies—boasting of high talent and calling themselves Heaven's Chosen.
But once they stepped foot in the Hundred Fracture Mountains, reality hit hard. Here, Heaven's Chosen were as common as fish in a river.
If Shi Yi was right, most of them were already dead men walking.
But he wasn't here to scare them. He had a way forward.
"Being weak isn't the problem," Shi Yi said. "Cowardice is."
"Everyone has a moment of weakness in their life. What matters is whether your spine softens or stays straight. Lose that, and you'll never rise again."
"What you should fear isn't weakness—it's the unknown. The divine tide is vast and merciless, but if we stand together, the weak can overcome the strong."
"Running will buy you a few breaths, nothing more. The only way to survive is to become the foundation of something greater. To become pillars in a wall strong enough to withstand the storm."
He raised his hand.
In his palm appeared a miniature formation—the Starry Sky Array. It shone like a living constellation, small but impossibly profound.
"Let our bodies be the pillars. Let us bind ourselves to the stars. With flesh and blood, we'll forge a wall to withstand the heavens."
Shi Yi released the Starry Sky Array into the air.
It rose a hundred meters high before blooming outward, growing a thousandfold in an instant. It expanded to encircle every Human Clan force within its reach.
Then came the light.
Hundreds of thousands of beams of starlight descended from the sky, forming radiant pillars that pierced the heavens. The sight was breathtaking—each beam like a bridge between earth and the ancient stars above.
Now it made sense—why Shi Yi had spoken with such confidence.
"Enter the formation!" he called.
And they obeyed.
Without hesitation, they stepped into the pillars of light.
The moment they did, a strange sensation washed over them. Each of them had connected to a star in the sky.
The stronger ones connected to powerful stars. The weaker, to dimmer ones. But each person had their place. No one was left out. No one was useless.
It was like touching destiny.
Distant, yet intimate. Beautiful, like the first time falling in love. A dream brought to life.
"Array—rise!"
Behind Shi Yi, ten blazing suns rose into the sky. In that moment, he resembled the true incarnation of the Golden Crow, his light no different from the celestial suns.
"A mere divine tide... What can it do to me?"
Elsewhere, Shi Hao stood in his own beam of starlight. His pillar was second only to Shi Yi's in size.
But his Ten Heavenly Passages, while brilliant, looked like small lanterns beside his brother's blazing suns. He couldn't help feeling proud... and slightly depressed.
So small. Not even a tenth as bright.
"As expected of my man!" Huo Ling'er smiled. Her own pillar of starlight wasn't large, but it was the closest to Shi Yi's.
"Howwwllll!" The Little Wolf God howled from inside his own pillar.
"The formation was etched into his body… and he can project it outward?" Yu Zimo gulped. "Cousin… how much have you been hiding?"
She realized then—she had never truly understood Shi Yi.
"I knew it!" Hu Niu beamed. "That's my man!"
"Shi Yi is incredible..." whispered Yun Xi, stealing a glance at his profile. Her face flushed bright red.
The Fiery Red Bird nearly ran away—but didn't. In the end, it stayed.
It had a feeling… even if it ran, death would still find it.
"No Human Clan shall be shamed with him standing tall," murmured the Nine-Headed Golden Lion.
As more and more cultivators entered the array, something awe-inspiring began to form above them—a Galactic Barrier, a great celestial dam spanning the heavens.
Built not of stone or magic, but of starlight.
Each cultivator was a pillar. Each star a node. Together, they formed a vast divine structure that connected the heavens and the earth.
And then—
Boom!
The divine tide struck.
It surged through the wide-open mountain gates like a river of silver fire, splitting into countless blazing ribbons that swept across the Hundred Fracture Mountains.
It was chaos incarnate. Death made manifest.
But the starlight wall stood firm.
The first clash had begun.