All killed, nothing gained.

“Invading the territory of our Human Race, slaughtering the Bloodline of our kin...”

Chen Yuan's voice was terrifyingly calm. “You shall be annihilated, body and spirit.”

Before his voice faded, the five fingers of his right hand swiftly swept across the ink string sword zither!

“Spiritual Sound Art.”

“Buzz!!!”

The seven zither strings vibrated violently,

thousands of crimson sound wave Sword Qi burst forth from the strings!

In an instant, the Sound Wave Sword Qi transformed into seven fierce, roaring Flame Flood Dragons!

Every flood dragon contained Chen Yuan's sharp Sword Intent as a Quasi-Sword Saint, along with the nascent Law of Fire Sword Dao.

Thousands of flood dragons bared their fangs and brandished their claws, instantly surging into the group of Yao Beasts!

In that same instant, six inches of the nine-inch Golden Core within Chen Yuan's body were consumed.

He had perfectly integrated the Zither Dao and the Sword Dao.

“Rumble—!”

Wherever the Flame Flood Dragons passed, everything turned to ash! Whether it was Foundation Establishment Minor Demons or Golden Core Great Demons,

even Nascent Soul Stage Yao Kings, their bodies instantly vaporized the moment they touched the Sound Wave Sword Qi!

They didn't even have time to scream!

Those few Demon Venerables of the Soul Transformation Stage struggled to resist, summoning Magic Treasures and unleashing Divine Abilities.

But facing the Sound Wave Sword Qi imbued with the power of Law, their defenses were like paper, and their Physical Bodies along with their Primordial Spirits were annihilated inch by inch under the resonance of the fierce flames and sound waves!

The entire back mountain instantly seemed to turn into a massive furnace and a sound wave Hell!

Swathes of Yao Beasts turned into flying ash amid their wails, dropping Yao Beast Inner Cores onto the ground.

Demon Venerable Lian Qing watched, Soul Flying Away and Spirit Scattering!

This Human Race youth before him was actually so terrifying.

“No—!!” He let out a desperate roar, revealing his Yao Beast true form: a fierce Giant Lizard, exhausting all his demonic power to spew out a corrosive torrent of poisonous breath, attempting a final struggle.

Chen Yuan's gaze was indifferent as he watched the dying Demon Venerable struggle, merely flicking his finger.

“Zheng!”

The Sword Finger, like a fine needle, instantly pierced the center of Demon Venerable Lian Qing's brow.

Demon Venerable Lian Qing's massive body suddenly stiffened, his fierce expression frozen on his face, and the light in his eyes quickly dimmed.

The corpse heavily slammed onto the ground, kicking up a cloud of dust.

Seated in the rear, the Yao Emperor who had not yet joined the battle slowly opened his eyes.

“A bit interesting.” He curled his lip, releasing the Aura of the Void Return Realm, crushing down upon Chen Yuan's limbs.

However, Chen Yuan's figure remained completely still, as if a gentle breeze had brushed his face.

The Yao Emperor's dark golden vertical pupils slightly contracted, and a trace of surprise and doubt flashed through his heart.

This person is strange!

Just then, Chen Yuan moved.

His left hand steadily supported the ink string sword zither, while his right thumb lightly pressed the ink jade button at the end of the zither.

“Click!”

With a soft click, the ink string sword zither split vertically, and the silver flood dragon sword fell into Chen Yuan's hand.

The moment the sword entered his hand, Chen Yuan's surrounding Aura suddenly changed drastically!

The majestic Sword Intent of a Quasi-Sword Saint erupted!

A Domain suddenly expanded from beneath his feet, instantly enveloping the Yao Emperor.

Inside the Domain, the scene changed dramatically.

The air was filled with a scorching heat.

The Yao Emperor's expression drastically changed. He felt as if he had fallen into a massive furnace of flames, and the circulation of his demonic power became sluggish. A shadow of death shrouded his heart.

He stared intently at Chen Yuan, who stood holding the sword in the center of the Domain, trying to sense the opponent's true Realm. To his horror, he found that his demonic consciousness was like a stone sinking into the sea—he couldn't see through the opponent's Realm at all.

“A Domain?! This is the power of a Domain that only Mahayana Stage Mighty Figures can initially grasp!”

Turmoil surged in the Yao Emperor's heart, and his voice became sharp due to fear:

“Damn it! How dare your Human Race send a Mahayana Stage Mighty Figure to interfere in this kind of battle?! Do you truly want an all-out war with my Yao Race?!”

Normal warfare is like the conflicts between the Guanghan Immortal Palace and the Kunxu Holy Land—wars fought among the Younger Generation generally do not affect the High Ranks, because the High Ranks are the foundation.

If the foundation collapses, it signifies a devastating blow.

Therefore, suppressing Geniuses and severing their lineage, fighting a War of Attrition that lasts tens of thousands of years, is the norm.

Once the old fellows Pass Away, it's easy to trample the joint camps.

Chen Yuan stood in the center of the Domain, the silver flood dragon sword pointing diagonally toward the ground, its body humming.

He listened to the Yao Emperor's shocked and angry questioning, his face devoid of expression.

Just as the Yao Emperor fully circulated his demonic power, preparing to fight to the death, Chen Yuan retracted his Concealing Cultivation Technique.

Mid-stage Spirit Transformation!

“W-what?!” The Yao Emperor's thoughts nearly stalled, and his dark golden vertical pupils widened. “Mid-stage Spirit Transformation?! This is impossible!!”

How could a Mid-stage Spirit Transformation Cultivator possess such a terrifying Domain?!

How could he, a Void Return Yao Emperor, feel despair before a single sword strike was even unleashed?!

“Ignorant fool. Who said Domains are exclusive to the Mahayana Stage? This Great Cultivator was able to create Domain Divine Abilities back when I was in the Golden Core Stage.” Chen Yuan finally spoke, his voice remaining calm.

Before his voice faded, he moved.

The silver flood dragon sword sliced through the Domain space, and a crimson Sword Light cut out from the silver flood dragon sword in his hand, infinitely expanding in the Yao Emperor's pupils.

“No... I...” He couldn't even utter a complete final word.

The crimson Sword Light swept past.

The Yao Emperor's massive body froze in place, and the light in his dark golden vertical pupils was completely extinguished.

A thin line of blood appeared on his forehead, rapidly spreading downwards.

His massive body crashed heavily to the ground, raising a cloud of dust.

Chen Yuan retracted the Domain; his current Cultivation was insufficient, making its use extremely draining.

Less than two inches of the nine-inch Golden Core within his body were consumed.

Following the Fall of the Yao Emperor, the remaining Yao Beasts completely collapsed, scattering and fleeing in terror.

But how could Chen Yuan let them go?

He stood holding the zither, his five fingers continuously plucking the strings. Even denser Sound Wave Sword Qi swept mercilessly across the entire back mountain like a sudden storm.

A moment later, the zither music gradually ceased.

Apart from the scorched corpses covering the ground, there was not a single living member of the Yao Race left.

The entire army was annihilated, leaving none alive.

A breeze swept past, lifting the ashes from the ground, making a rustling sound.

Song Xu struggled, wanting to get up and salute, but staggered again due to exhaustion.

Chen Yuan took a step, arriving before the Light Barrier. With a casual wave, the precarious Formation quietly dispersed.

He glanced at the unconscious Yan Ran and the severely injured Song Xu, flicking his fingers to transfer two wisps of pure Spiritual Power into their bodies, stabilizing their critical injuries.

“Revered Master... this subordinate is incompetent...” Song Xu was overwhelmed with shame and struggled to stand up.

Chen Yuan waved his hand, his gaze sweeping over the purgatorial battlefield, his voice cold: “It is not your fault. You did very well.”

He felt somewhat fortunate. If he hadn't taken Song Xu in back then, the Yao Beasts would likely have already captured the Far North Land.

He flicked his fingers, sending two Medicinal Pills into the mouths of Song Xu and Yan Ran to help them recover from their injuries.

Immediately afterward, he began clearing the battlefield.

A quarter of an hour later, Chen Yuan landed in the Ancient Immortal Sect's Sect Plaza, opening his palm. He had collected a total of three hundred Golden Core Yao Beast Inner Cores, nineteen Nascent Soul Inner Cores, six Soul Transformation Yao Beast Inner Cores, and one Void Return Yao Beast Inner Core.

Just then, he saw Song Xu.

He watched him walk forward with a desolate expression, one step, two steps, his silhouette lonely and forlorn.

He looked at the corpses of the former Elders and Disciples, a faint glimmer of tears visible on his face.

He suddenly spat out a mouthful of fresh blood and stumbled to the ground.

Suddenly, he couldn't hear anything. He seemed to see himself—that young boy.

My name is Song Xu, a native of Qingfeng Village, located below Langtou Mountain in the Far North Land.

When I was seven, the Yao Beasts rioted.

My parents stuffed me into the cellar, blocking the door with their bodies.

Through the crack, I watched the blood splash onto the snow, a blinding crimson.

Later, an Old Cultivator from the Ancient Immortal Sect took me up the mountain, saying my Aptitude was decent.

I asked him, “Can cultivating immortality kill demons?”

He remained silent.

Three hundred years later, I reached Foundation Establishment.

Two thousand years later, I formed a Nascent Soul.

Four thousand years later, I stumbled upon an Opportunity and finally reached Soul Transformation.

I became the only Soul Transformation Cultivator in the Far North Land and served as the Sect Head of the Ancient Immortal Sect.

Five thousand years later, I turned misfortune into fortune and Broke Through to Void Return.

They all called me Sect Master, Old Ancestor, saying I was the Pillar Supporting the Heavens in the Far North.

But I always remembered the child in the Cellar, and the gradually cooling bodies of my parents.

Revered Master said before he Passed Away that he had fought for the Ancient Immortal Sect his entire life, and he wanted to go see spring outside the Far North.

He eventually died in a Snowy Cave on a Desolate Mountain. When I found him, I realized he had been severely wounded by Yao Beasts and died an unnatural death.

Now, the Ancient Immortal Sect is gone.

I look at the corpses covering the ground—the Elders who guarded this place with me for thousands of years, the Disciples who always called me “Old Ancestor”—all lying here.

One step, two steps.

The wind and snow seemed to return to that night.

I vomited a mouthful of blood and collapsed in the Ruins.

Four thousand years of Dao Cultivation failed to protect anyone I wished to protect.

In the end, it was all for naught.