Defiance of the Fall Chapter 1420: Heavenly Descent

Zac took three days to acquaint himself with the arrays. These formations utterly outclassed the setups he made back on Earth, let alone the portable ones from his prior breakthrough. Only the custom arrays he employed in Perennial Vastness could rival them. Remarkably, their patterns shared numerous similarities. The Empire's influence truly permeated nearly every faction in the Multiverse.

Mighty tribulation shields stood ready, complemented by energy-collecting, Dao-boosting, Heart-soothing arrays, plus dedicated formations for each breakthrough phase. Zac had no intention or ability to activate them all, especially those suited to unknown cultivation manuals. The versatile arrays he could utilize were plenty to skyrocket his certainty of victory.

Zac meticulously verified every part of his strategy. He possessed hands-on knowledge of core formation with mismatched bodies from finishing his breakthrough within Terea Wendimar’s memory lantern. Meanwhile, the concluding phase proved simplest, merely requiring materials added in proper sequence. The true test lay in suppressing the rampaging energies from Core Ignition while enduring a Four Desolates tribulation.

Dozens of recordings swapped back and forth to align their insights. The Judgment Plateau within the Mercurial Court stayed mostly unchanged. Rather than seventeen spires hewn from the mountaintop, seventeen pillars rose across the island. They crafted a miniature replica of the Grand Dao and its myriad summits.

During preparations, Zac maintained steady communication with his other self via strands of Mental Energy. After more than a year frequently divided by memories, he had forged a basic Dao Language with Esmeralda’s guidance. Though its core lexicon remained sparse, it handled most breakthrough concerns without routing messages via [Purity of the Void].

In time, preparations concluded. Core formation steps had dominated his focus for months, nearly letting him execute them unconsciously. He had contingencies for most scenarios. Unexpected calamities would demand improvisation.

Zac settled at the central platform's heart and supplied [Void Heart] with Void Cores. Precisely two hours and fifteen minutes passed before he shifted focus to his Duplicity Core. By then, its surface engravings stood finished, brimming with spirituality that flawlessly embodied half his path. His human aspect perceived an elaborate weave of gold and silver, whereas his Draugr side viewed black and steel.

Nothing more could enhance it; no further progress beckoned. The Specialty Core had hit its present pinnacle. Yet, an elusive essence evaded grasp, defying description. It evoked Iz Tayn's words on Autarchy stages: ‘eight was peak, nine is perfection.’ The Duplicity Core radiated that aura of concealed, boundless promise.

Zac suspected the gap stemmed from merely a Late Cosmic Core fueling it. Otherwise, he'd adapt. Chasing flawlessness had doomed myriad cultivators. His foundations stood unshakeably firm already, with any lacks fixable later.

The Duplicity Core sprang to life as Zac inundated it with Mental Energy, voraciously pulling in Void Energy and Dao. A gateway swiftly unlocked, letting Zac exhale in relief. Without the Duplicity Core’s guidebook, it nearly slew him entering D-grade, and he long fretted over its hidden perils. Thus far, it treated Peak D-grade no differently from earlier minor grades.

The Cosmos reacted otherwise. Zac had scarcely launched the Duplicity Core’s formation when prickling dread assailed him. Gazing upward, he spied a fresh star piercing the eternal night. Its crimson glare burned with rage, hurtling nearer at terrifying velocity.

His counterpart faced the identical portent. A quick recording relayed the same glow manifesting high over Dome Lake via [Purity of the Void]. This marked a sharp intensification of their clash. During Middle D-grade breakthrough, tribulation struck only post-Core Ignition.

An opening, perhaps? Tests proved otherwise. The Heavens merely amassed power, decelerating when Zac resisted the Duplicity Core’s tug. Halting the Technocrat Core’s startup proved impossible once underway. Facing tribulation pre-ignition lay out of reach.

Zac dismissed the notion without true expectation. He steadily nourished the Duplicity Core, which unleashed escalating pulses into his Quantum Space. It mimicked a Cultivation Manual’s innate Cosmic Core ignition. Matching his Cosmic Core flawlessly, it equaled a bespoke manual.

Potent waves emanated ever stronger from the Cosmic Core. Then, aurora-like beams erupted from unseen fissures courtesy of Sevona’s blessing. The enchanting inner spectacle nearly distracted Zac from the gathering tempest outside.

The Cosmic Core’s throbs neared mountain-shattering force. Remarkably, perfect equilibrium persisted, no fragment hinting at rupture. Such harmony proved rare even among prodigies, inconceivable for mortals. Absent the Left Imperial Expanse and Outer Courts' boons, Zac's core never would have attained this in eons.

Zac's pulse raced as Duplicity Core vibrations soared to extremes. Instantly, he recognized the double bind. Momentum sufficed for advancing, but flawless unity permitted superior Core Ignition buildup.

A pinpoint assault on a concealed flaw would spark chain collapse into prior breakthroughs' cataclysm: gut-wrenching shrapnel blasts. With supplied arrays and treasures, Zac trusted his handling. Allow prolonged buildup?

Zac doubted his endurance.

Even knowing this, Zac forged ahead. His flawless core crowned lifelong trials and fortunes beyond measure. Yielding it for assured mediocrity repulsed him. No consultation needed with his other half. Zac chased ultimate glory; thunderous firmament wouldn't deter him.

The furious star pulsed, engulfing the world in shadow. Lightnings red cracks banished it swiftly. Swirling clouds blanketed the range, shattering Zac's composure. Not the myriad scarlet bolts veiling it—though vast beyond gloomiest forecasts.

Nor the spine-chilling Four Desolates aura lurking inside. Clouds' descent roused Fuxi Hall's dormant fury. Like a hibernating beast stirred, the range exuded bloodlust rivaling overhead storm.

Zac turned mere spectator in his tribulation. Endless killing intent surged from earth, drawing ancient Faith and Energy hoards across myriad peaks. It dwarfed intersector war spectacles. Unyielding, clouds swelled, hauling infinite might from void. Heavens and Earth clashed, Zac sandwiched between.

Chaos endured seconds before Judgment Plateau quaked. Environs blurred away, intents evaporated. Plateau and clouds alone persisted. Clouds shrank by a third beyond original; Imperial Fate claimed another third, Zac surmised. Overkill lingered, but solely his transgressions weighed it.

The plateau isolated a pocket realm to shield surroundings from breakthrough chaos. Standard for elite factions dodging constant meddling. Zac heaved relief at its flawless function. Briefly, he dreaded entanglement with Limitless Empire's forbidden legacy.

Heavens loathed his Void-tainted path, yet far less than their grudge against the deranged emperor's folly. Reciprocation burned mutual.

“The Earth remembers…” Zac murmured, struck by the statuette from securing his seal's second fragment in the Void Star.

Time had worn the figurine, but its seething Heaven-directed fury endured. It mirrored the just-felt resonance. Likely, a toppled empire's grudge surfaced when Heavenly pressure peaked.

Crucially, Zac resumed course. Duplicity Core completed soul and bloodline draw, now emitting steady throbs prodding Cosmic Core onward. Timing ripe, Zac channeled will into a control array.

Seventeen peaks resonated as abyssal force welled from plateau. Seventeen power streams fused into majestic Primal Dao-like thread. Zac deftly threaded it through Duplicity Core’s portal, instantly adopting his Evolutionary Path’s signature.

Other peaks integrated seamlessly, untainted. Instead, they imbued transcendent quality akin to Chaos Motes bifurcated into Creation and Oblivion. The thread let his Evolutionary Dao encompass all Heavens.

Simultaneously, a matching ward materialized, cradling Conflict and Void of Death. His Draugr side triggered the counterpart core-guard array. Swiftly, Zac invoked [Void Mountain], merging into himself. Outward, its sigil wrought Dao annihilation. Inward, it unified.

Void and Dao blended flawlessly; dual wards unified. Same tactic as past breakthroughs, merely vaster shields now. Zac sensed a pocket Heavens shielding his Quantum Space benevolently.

Zac triggered array controls anew, unleashing torrential Faith Energy via mountain veins. It saturated seventeen peaks until a colossal golden halo blazed overhead. The luminous ring spanned Dao's full palette, Faith dominant.

Imperishable will runes cavorted along currents, halting at cardinal points. Sequentially, four dread sigils burst forth, each pulsing pure Four Laws vibes. Unlike Law treasures, Imperial Destiny reins curbed their aura.

‘Hollow’ warded east with Cosmos Law; ‘Court’ west with Balance. ‘Imperial’ north quelled Impermanence Law. ‘Mandate’ south dominated with Truth Law. Runes' glow fortified the golden ward, supplying its missing depth.

The spectacle screamed supremacy. Barrier embodied Seventeen Dao Peaks; runes the Four Laws. Imperial Faith and Destiny bound both. Limitless Empire proclaimed supremacy over Cosmic Order, exempting citizens from Heaven’s Mandate. Wisely, no overt shield crowned the plateau, honoring tribulation taboos.

Such defiance didn't rile Heavens further. Unneeded—the colossal vortex churned above. Crimson rims darkened to void-black core. Four Desolates eye glared at Zac, challenging territorial overreach. Rules it upheld restrained immediate assault.

“The balance is eschewed!” Zac bellowed skyward.

No System reply echoed, no aloof cosmic overseer amplifying wrath. System exhibited uncanny forbearance through trials, ignoring Authority or Chaos temptations. Consistency reaffirmed: no bailout reliance per breakthrough.

Arrays secured, Zac monitored skies while bracing for repercussions. [Void Heart] timely pulsed, flooding Void Energy to offset losses.

At last, myriad glowing fissures blazed blindingly, transfiguring Quantum Space wondrously. Zac's Void State engaged; twin Warbringer Idols manifested for lucid observation.

Quantum Space expanded solar-system scale, devouring Cosmic Sea energies. Zac instantly gauged its capacity rivaling most Early Monarchs met. Such rewards stemmed from peerless foundations.

Focus locked on Cosmic Core, now ablaze recasting the realm in Evolutionary Dao. Every energy iota mobilized fully, core unyieldingly endured. External influx funneled inward.

Unprecedented, Zac pondered foundation extremes as ominous throbs intensified. Remorse or forced ignition too late—intrusions now equaled annihilation.

Six throbs passed. Sweat streaming, Zac slapped talismans on gut and neck. Head safeguarded paramount; body regenerable. Ninth throb climaxed. Pure energy corona exploded outward, slamming barriers ferociously.

Blast jolted Zac, yet defenses held. He maxed array output, countering expansion for imminent cataclysm. Brighter flash pursued; myriad radiant stars surged from corona haze.

Agonizingly sluggish! Void State nearly faltered at languid paths. Under third would contact barriers before dissipating. Cosmic Core seemed dissolved into starlit droplets. Quantum Space resembled galaxy, stars orbiting stably per Zac’s Daos.

Perfection beyond dreams—even for elites. Pieces pristine, none wasted. Serenity contrasted past infernos, briefly stunning Zac. Yet one constant endured.

Retribution arrived: inky lightning bent on obliterating his feats.