172: A gathering of geniuses

Evening.

Above Qingsong City, the originally hazy sky was suddenly dyed a deep, heart-palpitating crimson.

It wasn't a sunset glow, but pure, viscous crimson Devilish Qi, as if blood drops could drip from it.

This Devilish Qi didn't spread out; instead, it surged down from the depths of the firmament like an inverted waterfall, condensing and taking shape a thousand zhang above the ground.

Buzz—!

A pressure as heavy as an abyss and as tyrannical as a demon god descended upon the entire Qingsong City without warning.

The market's clamor instantly fell silent, pedestrians on the streets froze in place, countless Cultivators turned pale, the circulation of their spiritual power became incredibly difficult, and those with weaker cultivation felt their legs go soft, almost collapsing to their knees.

This pressure wasn't deliberately targeted; merely its naturally emanating Aura was enough to suffocate Cultivators below the Body Integration Stage.

The crimson Devilish Qi churned, eventually condensing into a boundless Blood River stretching across the sky.

The Blood River was not inanimate; within it, billions of wronged Souls seemed to be silently wailing, imbued with endless Battle Intent and resentful will.

The river water surged, emitting a low, thunderous roar that made the entire city tremble slightly.

“Splash, splash...”

Above the Blood River, waves rolled, carrying an object.

It was an enormous chariot.

The chariot was carved entirely from a dark red divine jade, shaped like a ferocious beast's head, emanating an ancient, noble, and terrifying Aura that made one's Soul tremble.

There were no Vicious Beasts pulling the chariot; only nine giant pythons, formed from pure Blood Demon Devilish Qi, coiled around it, their cold vertical pupils looking down upon the myriad living beings below, exuding monstrous ferocity.

Before the chariot, the Void Realm slightly twisted, and two figures appeared silently.

The one on the left wore dark golden armor, was exceptionally burly and muscular, with a face as hard as iron, and held a ferocious giant axe that was half a head taller than himself; dark, dull blood light flowed on the axe blade, as if it had drunk the blood of all spirits.

He merely stood there, like an unshakeable primordial demon mountain, his Aura ferociously unparalleled, clearly a Body Cultivator expert in the Body Integration Late Stage!

The one on the right appeared much more effeminate. He wore a dark robe embroidered with strange blood patterns, was pale and beardless, with an almost demonic handsomeness; between the opening and closing of his narrow eyes, a heart-palpitating faint light flickered, as if it could pierce through people's hearts and see through the essence of their Souls.

He held no weapon, only a small, exquisite blood-colored jade fan gently swaying, each sway causing subtle ripples in the surrounding space. His Aura was also as deep as the sea, revealing him to be a Demonic Path expert in the Integration Stage Mid-Phase!

These two, like two guardian demon gods, protected the blood-jade demon chariot.

Inside the inn room, Xiao Zhuo suddenly opened his eyes, emerging from the world of white mist.

A flash of blood light flickered in his eyes, and he instantly sensed the terrifying pressure that enveloped the entire city, as well as that somewhat familiar yet aloof and superior Aura.

“Blood River paving the way, nine pythons pulling the chariot... It's Cao Yunqing!” Xiao Zhuo's voice was low, betraying no emotion, but a hint of something unusual flashed in the depths of his eyes. He had originally thought this Second Saint of the Blood Palace was low-key, but he didn't expect him to be so ostentatious in the outside world.

Qiao Zimo happened to push the door open, and upon feeling the pressure, his face also changed drastically. He quickly walked behind Xiao Zhuo and whispered, “Master, it's the Second Saint, Cao Yunqing! He actually came personally!”

“Hmph, quite a display.” Xiao Zhuo snorted coldly, his gaze piercing through the window towards the Blood River and demon chariot stretching across the sky. “It seems he's most likely here for the enlightenment tea tree in the Myriad Ages Evergreen Realm as well.”

Just as the entire Qingsong City was awestruck by the phenomenon of Cao Yunqing's arrival, hundreds of miles away from Qingsong City, in a desolate Gobi Desert.

Two streaks of light tore through the sky, one black and one white, leaving long trails..

One person was seven chi tall, with a rugged face, a wide mouth, and a lion-like nose, his coppery bell-like eyes flashing with fierce light as they opened and closed, like a primordial Vicious Beast choosing its prey.

It was Old Demon Tian Tu!

Half a step behind Heaven Slaughter was a man in a moon-white long gown.

This man was tall and straight, with a handsome face, a faint smile playing on his lips, gentle eyes, and held a jade-boned folding fan with a lifelike landscape painted on its surface, exuding a scholarly Aura, like a refined Young Master well-versed in literature.

However, if an expert observed closely, they would find that deep within his gentle eyes was an eternal chill, and a hint of sinister calculation that made one's Soul ache.

He was Zou Yulang, in the Middle Tribulation Crossing Stage, skilled in Formation and poison arts, meticulous in thought, and ruthless in his methods, he was Ye Kongwu's sharpest “strategist.”

“Hmph, this display by Cao Er is so ostentatious, I can smell the show-off from hundreds of miles away!” Heaven Slaughter's voice was like a great bell, carrying undisguised contempt and brutality. He looked up at the sky-obscuring Blood River in the direction of Qingsong City, his Battle Intent surging in his eyes.

Zou Yulang gently fanned himself, smiling, “Brother Heaven Slaughter, there's no need to mind. Cao Yunqing's visit is likely to enter the Myriad Ages Evergreen Realm to obtain enlightenment tea leaves, which has nothing to do with us. Our goal is the Blood Sea; let's not create extra trouble.” His gaze swept across the distant horizon, as if he could already see the undercurrents of various forces surging within Qingsong City.

At this moment, on the roads leading to Qingsong City from the edge of the Boundless Green Sea, undercurrents were also surging.

A team moved silently, led by a stern-faced young man in blood-colored tight clothing, his eyes as sharp as knives, his body emanating an extremely condensed killing intent, each step seemingly treading upon a mountain of corpses and a sea of blood.

The attendants behind him also exuded a fierce and murderous Aura.

They were elites of the Slaughter Demon Palace, their identities revealed by the ferocious beast-head plaques hanging from their waists.

On the other side of the sky, cold winds gusted, and black mist swirled.

Within the mist, several floating black coffins were vaguely visible, overflowing with Death Qi.

Sitting atop the black coffins were several black-clad figures, led by a gaunt young man with a paper-white face and sunken eyes, holding a soul banner, his body exuding a dense Death Qi.

On a large river near the Boundless Green Sea, a small boat silently glided amidst the mist.

Standing on the boat were several Cultivators in gray-blue robes, led by a young Cultivator with an ordinary face but eyes as deep as an ancient well.

Their Aura was restrained, but wherever they passed, the water beneath their feet rippled strangely, and the faint wailing of resentful spirits could be heard.

In another direction from Qingsong City, dust rolled. A group of burly men, with Qi and blood like Dragons, were striding forward.

Most of them wore animal skins or simple armor, with ancient totem patterns painted on their exposed skin, each step on the ground causing a dull echo, full of primitive power.

The leader was a nine-chi tall young giant, like an iron tower, carrying a door-sized giant axe on his back, his eyes wild.

Running alongside this group of big men was a bald, muscular man, his Aura deep, with a faint overflow of fierce Qi. As Qingsong City grew closer, his gaze became extremely sharp.

Meanwhile, within Qingsong City, deep within the City Lord's Mansion, Immortal Master Profound Bone's gaunt fingers gently tapped the table, a sinister arc forming at the corner of his mouth: “The Second Saint of the Blood Palace... What a display of power. It seems this water is muddier than this old man thought. Your Highness, Third Holy Son, I wonder if you will appear?”

His Divine Sense, like an invisible spider web, quietly covered an area of a thousand li, patiently waiting.

As the Myriad Ages Evergreen Realm was about to open, countless Prodigies from the top forces of the five major states of the Blood Demon Realm gathered, and undercurrents had already converged into a surging vortex at the edge of the Boundless Green Sea.

A storm was imminent.

And Xiao Zhuo had already left the inn, finding a rented Alchemy room to begin Alchemy.