The old woman was caught in the formation's assault. This place subjected her to attacks of heavenly lightning and earthly fire. Dark clouds gathered energy above, while the ground below cracked open, sending waves of scorching heat surging upwards.
Amidst the attacks of heavenly lightning and earthly fire, it would be incredibly difficult for the old woman to open a life gate and escape.
Any slight fluctuation in her aura would trigger lightning from the sky, and the ground could no longer withstand the pressure. If she moved, magma might erupt immediately and swallow her whole.
To engrave the corresponding formation and open a life gate in such a perilous environment required immense sacrifice. However, the old woman had no other choice. To remain there any longer meant certain death when the eruption occurred, leaving her with no burial place.
Now, before the lightning in the sky gathered enough power to pose a fatal threat, she had to act.
Thus, she moved her body swiftly, engraving the formation.
The moment she moved, her aura disturbed the heavens, and a bolt of lightning struck down.
With a deafening roar, the lightning hit her. Sensing the attack, the old woman raised her treasured fan to block it.
After the tremendous boom, her clothes turned to charcoal, and her aura flickered unstably. Even though her treasured fan blocked the lightning strike, it still consumed a vast amount of her energy.
However, she could not stop her actions below; she had to continue engraving the formation. Every second she paused meant the next lightning strike would be closer. After this strike, the dark clouds in the sky needed time to gather energy again, allowing her to engrave a portion of the formation. She couldn't afford to wait even a quarter of an hour.
So, she continued to move rapidly, wielding her treasured fan, leaving imprints of energy within this space. These energy imprints, following her movements, would form a formation to open a life gate, allowing her to escape.
The dark clouds in the sky had not yet gathered enough power to form lightning, so she faced no obstacles during her high-speed movements. Yet, she could feel the ground beneath her becoming softer and hotter. With every step, her feet endured the scorching heat. Although her strength was formidable and she could withstand the high temperatures, it was still a significant drain on her power.
She had to use her own strength to engrave the formation while simultaneously diverting some of her power to resist the heat. Caught between these two demands, her strength was depleting rapidly.
Just moments ago, she had consumed a pill, boosting her strength to seventy percent.
But now, the raging fires beneath the earth had consumed ten percent of her strength. If the lightning in the sky gathered its power again and struck her, she might not be able to hold on for much longer.
Furthermore, she had only completed one-fifth of the formation to open the life gate. It would take some more time to finish it completely. Whether she could endure until then remained uncertain.
The situation had escalated to a point that made the old woman feel incredibly indignant. She was the master of the Huayuan Courtyard in the Qingxuan Sect; even the Sect Master of Qingxuan Sect treated her with deference. Among the cultivation sects in this world, she was considered a prominent figure.
To think that she would suffer such a great loss at the hands of a mere barbarian youth! If this news were to spread, how could she maintain her reputation in the martial world? She would be laughed at mercilessly. If she were to die within this formation, those detestable individuals who had grudges against her would likely publicize the matter worldwide. Even in death, the thought of such humiliation made her deeply unwilling to accept it.
With this thought, she let out a roar, expelling all her pent-up indignation. Then, she unleashed her full strength and moved rapidly, striving to open the life gate and escape sooner. She absolutely refused to die.
This was a price she could not bear under any circumstances.
Just then, the dark clouds in the sky gathered again, and another bolt of lightning struck her. Her clothes had already turned to ashes and scattered in the wind. The old woman gritted her teeth. After this lightning strike, she lost another twenty percent of her strength and could not hold on much longer.
Therefore, she hurriedly took a pill from her storage ring, put it in her mouth, and swallowed it. Her strength increased by another twenty percent. However, at the same time, she coughed up a mouthful of blood. The pill she had just swallowed was a potent poison, and she would never have taken it unless it was absolutely necessary.
Although this substance temporarily boosted her strength by twenty percent, it caused irreversible damage to her body. Her overall strength would decrease by ten percent, meaning that even if she escaped from here, she would never be able to return to her peak condition.
The immense price she had to pay was something she had not anticipated, but it was a necessity forced upon her.
After swallowing the highly poisonous pill, her strength recovered somewhat. Simultaneously, she retrieved a set of clothes from her storage ring and put them on.
Now, the time it would take for the dark clouds in the sky to gather enough power for another strike was sufficient for her to open the life gate. She was keenly aware of this.
Her only remaining trial was the scorching attack of the earthly fire beneath her feet.
The ground was no longer stable. She could only hover in mid-air, supported by her formidable strength, and move at high speed. Her powerful energy was channeled through her treasured fan, forming a complex formation within this space to open the life gate.
The old woman moved ceaselessly. Her formation engraving was nearing completion. The lightning from the sky could no longer strike her, as the dark clouds needed a certain amount of time to gather enough immense power again.
As the final step was completed, a flash of white light appeared, and the life gate reopened. The earthly fire beneath her feet erupted.
Scorching magma surged towards the old woman.
Against the attack of the magma, the old woman swung her treasured fan, channeling her remaining strength towards the ground.
The magma was suppressed, and then a large door opened in mid-air, revealing a steep cliff.
It was as if a door to another dimension had opened.
This was the location of the life gate of the Nine Profound Great Formation.
The old woman wiped the blood from the corner of her mouth and stepped through.
Simultaneously, she gave a bitter laugh, "To force me to this extent, you are the first. The harm I have suffered today, I will repay to you tenfold. I will make you understand the consequences of offending me."
With these harsh words, she vanished into the spatial gate.
The moment the old woman entered the life gate, the surrounding environment changed drastically.
It was extremely quiet. There was no gathering of lightning in the sky, and the ground was perfectly flat. She let out a long sigh of relief; she was finally safe.