138: Chapter 138: Marching into the Black Abyss, First Battle a Success

Ten days later, at Zhenmo Pass in the Tiannan Realm.

This pass was situated on the frontier bordering the Tiannan Realm and the Black Abyss Star Domain, originally just one of the outpost fortresses defending against the invasion of the "the end" fiends.

Since the founding of the All-Heavens Anti-Calamity Alliance, with Lin Wan elected as Alliance Leader and the strategy of taking the initiative to launch an attack on the "Black Abyss" set, this pass had been rapidly expanded and reinforced, becoming the assembly point and departure base for the Alliance army.

At this moment, inside and outside Zhenmo Pass, flags were fluttering, and war clouds gathered.

In the sky, countless giant flying Magic Treasures, war towers, and floating fortresses, flickering with various spiritual lights, blotted out the sun and floated in the air.

There were the "Emperor Yan Immortal Ships," "Pill Tower Cloud Ships," and "Earth Vein War Chariots" of the Tiannan Alliance; the "Nine Heavens Thunder Boats" of the Nine Heavens Realm; the "Xuanhuang War Chariots" of the Xuanhuang Realm; the "Heavenly Yao Warships" of the Ancient Demon Realm; and countless Cultivators and Yao Race members riding Magical Artifacts and Spirit Beasts, forming battle Formations, their auras connected, and their Killing Intent soaring to the sky.

On the ground, it was equally crowded with people, clad in bright armor.

There were Human Race heavy infantry phalanxes in heavy armor holding giant shields and long spears; Yao Race cavalry riding war beasts, coming and going like the wind; Formation Masters wearing dharma robes and holding Formation Plates, ready to deploy large-scale war Formations at any time; alchemists carrying Pill Furnaces and medicine pouches, responsible for treating the wounded; and countless logistical supply teams transporting mountains of war supplies.

A rough estimate put the total number of the Alliance army gathered here at over ten million!

Among them, countless Nascent Soul Stage Cultivators, tens of thousands of Soul Transformation Stage (General-level) experts, and even hundreds of Void Refining Stage (King-level) powerhouses!

Furthermore, there were top-tier "Quasi-Immortal" level combatants such as Lin Wan, Ye Qingxian, Emperor Yan, Daoist Leixiao, King Zhenyue, and Long Huang presiding!

Such a scale and such strength could be called an unprecedented grand occasion for the Tiannan Realm and its surrounding Star Domains!

In the center of the army, a ten-thousand-zhang high war fortress, seemingly cast from a single piece of black divine iron and covered in profound dao rhyme patterns, floated in the air.

This was the war form of the "Demon Suppression Hall," a mobile war fortress Lin Wan had personally refined over seven days of painstaking effort, using his own "Chaos Samsara Dao Fruit" dao rhyme combined with a sliver of aura from "samsara mirror" fragments and massive amounts of rare Materials. He named it the "Chaos Samsara Hall."

The "Chaos Samsara Hall" was not only Lin Wan's vehicle and command hub but also a war fortress integrating attack, defense, movement, concealment, and deduction.

Inside the hall, there were several high-powered war Magical Artifacts and Formations, such as the "Chaos Annihilation Cannon," "Samsara Purification Formation," and "Existence Definition Field," which Lin Wan had created by combining the characteristics of his own Dao Fruit specifically to target "the end" fiends. Their power was astonishing.

At this moment, Lin Wan stood with his hands behind his back on the "Star Observatory" on the top level of the "Chaos Samsara Hall," overlooking the endless Alliance army below that looked like a torrent of steel.

He wore a black battle robe, his long hair draped down, his face calm, and his eyes deep, as if he could pierce through the void and stare directly at the terrifying "Black Abyss" Star Domain in the distance, which was shrouded in dense "the end" auras.

Beside him, Ye Qingxian, Emperor Yan, Daoist Leixiao, King Zhenyue, Long Huang, and others were also fully geared up, their auras composed, ready to set out at any moment.

"Report to the Alliance Leader!" A Void Refining Elder wearing the attire of the Heavenly Secret Pavilion quickly ascended the Star Observatory and bowed to report, "The three armies have finished assembling! All war supplies have been checked and verified! Each army's battle Formation has been practiced to proficiency! We are ready to set out at any time!"

"Hmm." Lin Wan nodded slightly, his gaze sweeping over the crowd, and he said in a deep voice, "This battle is the first after the founding of our 'All-Heavens Anti-Calamity Alliance,' and it is of great significance. Everyone, are you ready?"

"Fight! Fight! Fight!"

Below, the ten million troops shouted in unison, the sound like thunder shaking the firmament, and boundless Battle Intent gathered, dispersing the dark clouds in the sky and revealing the clear heavens.

"Good!" A cold glint flashed in Lin Wan's eyes, and without further hesitation, his voice was not loud, but it clearly spread throughout the entire battlefield, reaching the ears of every soldier, "Send troops to the Black Abyss, suppress 'the end'! This battle must be won!"

"Victory! Victory! Victory!"

The mountain-shaking and sea-roaring shouts rang out again, morale high as a rainbow.

"Depart!"

Following Lin Wan's order, the ten million troops, like a waking dragon, began to slowly move out.

At the very front was the "Vanguard Breaking Formation Army" led by Ye Qingxian, composed of Tiannan Sword Cultivators and Nine Heavens Thunder Cultivators, who excelled in assault and long-range strikes. They rode the fastest flying Magic Treasures and Thunder Boats, turning into a silver-purple torrent that tore through the void, speeding towards the direction of the "Corruption Swamp."

Following closely behind was the "Main Central Army" led by Emperor Yan and King Zhenyue, composed of Tiannan heavy infantry, the Xuanhuang Mountains and Rivers Army, and Cultivators skilled in Formations. They excelled in both offense and defense and were steady and solid. Riding massive war towers and war chariots, they moved forward steadily like moving mountains towards the direction of the "Void Rift Valley."

As for Lin Wan himself, he sat in the "Chaos Samsara Hall" with Long Huang, leading the "Demon Suppression Guards"—a force composed entirely of Soul Transformation Stage or higher Cultivators trained by him personally, equipped with special "Purification Talismans" and "Annihilation Arrows"—along with elite Yao Race from the Ancient Demon Realm and some mobile forces from the Tiannan Alliance. As the "surprise force" and "feint" main force with the highest mobility and most concentrated combat power, they headed aggressively towards the "Extinction Star Domain" directly in front of the "Black Abyss"!

The three armies, like three sharp daggers, stabbed fiercely from three different directions into the core area of "the end" in this Star Domain!

The "the end" camp obviously did not expect that the "All-Heavens Anti-Calamity Alliance," which had just been established and in their eyes was nothing but a loose sand, would dare to take the initiative to attack so decisively and boldly, and that as soon as they made a move, it would be a three-pronged attack, pointing directly at their vital points!

For a time, in the outer periphery of the "Black Abyss" Star Domain, those strongholds and fortresses that originally served as stepping stones and forward bases for the "the end" army were all in emergency under the thunderous strikes of the Alliance army, and requests for reinforcements flew like snowflakes into the depths of the "Black Abyss."

In the direction of the "Corruption Swamp," Ye Qingxian took the lead, her "Qingxian Sword" unsheathed, the sword light like a reversed galaxy. Wherever it passed, whether it was "Corruption fiends" or the priests and sacrifices of the "Void Church," they all melted like ice and snow, turning into fly ash under the sword light containing "Purification" dao rhyme. The Thunder Cultivators of the Nine Heavens Realm drew down the thunder of the Nine Heavens, turning it into a thunder prison covering ten thousand li, blasting the outer defense line of the "Corruption Swamp" into a thousand holes. In just one day, the vanguard army had broken through several outer defense lines of the "Corruption Swamp" and arrived at its core area—the "Temple of Decay"!

In the direction of the "Void Rift Valley," Emperor Yan and King Zhenyue fought steadily. Emperor Yan personally led the "Emperor Yan Immortal Ship," using the Immortal Capital Formation as a foundation to build an impregnable defense, resisting the tide-like, diverse "Void" creatures pouring out of the "Void Rift Valley." King Zhenyue commanded the "Xuanhuang War Chariots" and the "Mountains and Rivers Army" to form the "Mountains and Rivers Formation," drawing on the Dragon Qi of the earth veins to cooperate with Emperor Yan, pushing forward step by step. At the same time, the Formation Masters accompanying the army continuously deployed various sealing, isolation, and Purification Formations, beginning to attempt to cut off and interfere with the spatial channels of the "Void Rift Valley," preventing the arrival of "the end" reinforcements. Although the battle was deadlocked, the Alliance side, relying on tight Formations and exquisite coordination, firmly held the upper hand and was slowly gnawing away at the outer areas of the "Void Rift Valley."

And the route led by Lin Wan, which went straight to the "Extinction Star Domain," encountered the fiercest resistance.

The "Extinction Star Domain" was the gateway to the "Black Abyss" Star Domain and the base camp of the "Hall of Annihilation" under the command of the "Holy Master." It was garrisoned year-round by the "Annihilation Legion," the most elite force of the "the end" camp in this Star Domain, known for their fearlessness and expertise in "Annihilation" dao arts, and was also presided over by powerhouses from the "Hall of Annihilation."

When the Alliance army led by Lin Wan, with the "Chaos Samsara Hall" as the core and the Ancient Demon Realm Yao Race as the vanguard, just stepped into the outer periphery of the "Extinction Star Domain," they were met with crazy resistance from the "Annihilation Legion."

Countless "Annihilation Warriors," clad in black bone armor, holding bone blades and bone spears burning with gray flames, with cold and dead auras, surged out like locusts from planets that had been completely eroded by the "the end" aura and turned into "Dead Stars." They formed battle Formations and charged fearlessly at the Alliance army. There were even massive "Annihilation Behemoths" like mountains roaring and galloping in the starry sky, and every impact made the void tremble.

"Kill!"

Long Huang let out an angry roar, manifesting his hundred-zhang true Dragon body. His crimson-gold dragon scales shone in the starry sky. With a wave of his dragon claws, hundreds of "Annihilation Warriors" were torn to pieces. The Yao Race from the Ancient Demon Realm behind him also manifested their true forms—there were giant apes roaring at the mountains, golden rocs spreading their wings to cover the sky, and Yao pythons spitting poison mist... They fought with the "Annihilation Legion," and the scene was extremely tragic.

"Demon Suppression Guards, form up! 'Light of Purification,' fire!"

Lin Wan stood on the Star Observatory of the "Chaos Samsara Hall," his expression calm. He was not in a hurry to make a move himself but was calmly commanding the battle. Following his order, the "Demon Suppression Guards," whom he had trained himself and equipped with special "Purification Talismans," quickly formed a profound battle Formation and activated the Talismans simultaneously.

In an instant, beams of pure, holy, milky-white light containing "Purification" dao rhyme shot into the sky from the battle Formation of the "Demon Suppression Guards," like countless sharp swords of light, piercing into the battle Formation of the "Annihilation Legion."

"Chi chi chi—"

Wherever the "Light of Purification" passed, the gray flames on the "Annihilation Warriors" met their nemesis and quickly extinguished. Their extremely hard black bone armor began to dissolve and disintegrate under the illumination of the "Light of Purification." The dense death aura within them, representing "the end" and "Annihilation," melted like ice and snow and was quickly purified and dispersed.

"Ah—!"

Countless "Annihilation Warriors" let out shrill, unearthly screams. Under the illumination of the "Light of Purification," they were like ice cubes splashed with strong acid, quickly dissolving and disintegrating, turning into wisps of black smoke and dissipating into the starry sky.

Just one round of volley fire, and ten thousand "Annihilation Warriors" were wiped out! And on the side of the "Demon Suppression Guards," casualties were minimal!

"This... what kind of power is this?!"

"How can it so effectively restrain the power of 'Annihilation'?!"

"The Alliance Leader's Divine Might! The Demon Suppression Guards are mighty!"

The Alliance army, especially those Cultivators and Yao Race who were seeing the power of the "Light of Purification" for the first time, were all shocked, and then erupted into thunderous cheers. Morale instantly soared to the extreme!

"Hmph! Mere trifles!"

Just at this moment, a cold snort, like a thunderclap, exploded in the starry sky. I saw that in the depths of the "Extinction Star Domain," on a huge, pitch-black planet that seemed to be piled up from countless bones, a terrifying figure slowly rose into the air. This figure was shrouded in dense gray mist, its aura as vast as the sea, and it was several times stronger than the four "Void Divine Generals" from before.

"Hall of Annihilation, Third Divine General, 'Bone King'!" Long Huang recognized the person, his expression solemn. This "Bone King" was the third-ranked powerhouse of the "Hall of Annihilation." His "Annihilation" dao arts were superb, and he could control endless bones to fight. He was fearless and extremely difficult to deal with, a terrifying existence at the Middle Stage of "Quasi-Immortal"!

"Mere light of Purification, and you dare to show off before this King? Let me show you what true 'Annihilation' is!" The Bone King's voice was hoarse and grating, as if two bones were rubbing against each other.

With a wave of his hand, the massive bone planet beneath him shuddered violently. Countless pale bones peeled away from the planet's surface like a tidal wave, converging and combining in the starry sky to form a 'Bone Giant' ten thousand zhang tall, seemingly pieced together from the bones of billions of living beings, radiating an overwhelming aura of deathly silence and destruction!

"Roar—!" The Bone Giant roared at the sky. In its hollow eye sockets burned two clusters of eerie green Soul fire. Its massive bone palm, carrying the might to destroy the heavens and earth, slammed down fiercely toward the "Chaos Samsara Hall" and the Alliance army surrounding it! Wherever the bone palm passed, space seemed to freeze and suffer annihilation, appearing with greyish-white cracks!

"A Quasi-Immortal Middle Stage Bone Puppet?!" A cold glint flashed in Lin Wan's eyes, but he did not panic. With a thought, the "Chaos Samsara Hall" beneath him jolted violently.

"Chaos Annihilation Cannon, First Form, Annihilation Spear, fire!"

Hum—! On top of the "Chaos Samsara Hall", a massive cannon turret covered in profound dao runes suddenly lit up with a blinding grey light. Boundless "Annihilation" dao rhyme surged from Lin Wan's body, pouring into it, condensing, compressing, and finally transforming into a grey light spear only the thickness of an arm, yet condensed to the extreme, seemingly capable of piercing stars and ending all things. It shot silently from the cannon's muzzle, heading toward the sky-covering bone palm!

"Sss—" There was no earth-shattering explosion, no dazzling light. The instant the grey light spear made contact with the massive bone palm, it was like a hot knife cutting through butter. Without a sound, the massive palm, composed of billions of bones, incredibly hard, and containing the power of "Annihilation", was easily pierced by the grey light spear! The light spear did not lose its momentum, piercing along the palm, the arm, and the torso, finally exploding thunderously at the head of the Bone Giant where the Soul fire burned!

"Boom—!" A pure grey ripple, representing "the end" and "Annihilation", spread in all directions from the center of the light spear's explosion. Wherever the ripple passed, the Bone Giant's massive body crumbled and annihilated inch by inch like a sand sculpture, turning into the finest dust that drifted in the starry sky. Along with it, the Divine Thought and "Annihilation" power attached by the Bone King were also annihilated and purified!

"Pfft—!" In the distance, the "Bone King", whose mind was connected to the Bone Giant, suddenly spat out a mouthful of grey-black blood. His aura withered instantly, and his eyes were filled with unbelievable horror.

"This... what kind of power is this?! It can actually annihilate my Bone Giant and even backlash against my true body?!" The Bone King was both shocked and furious. His Bone Giant was built on the bones of a star, nurtured and refined for a thousand years with his own "Quasi-Immortal" Middle Stage "Annihilation" Dao Law. It was indestructible and contained the true meaning of "Annihilation". Ordinary "Quasi-Immortal" attacks could hardly damage it at all. Yet, that unremarkable grey light spear of the opponent not only easily pierced and annihilated it, but the "Annihilation" dao rhyme it contained seemed even purer and more profound than his own! How is this possible?!

"How does the 'Chaos Annihilation Cannon' taste?" Lin Wan stood atop the "Chaos Samsara Hall", his voice transmitting calmly. "However, this is only just the beginning."

Before the words fell, the "Chaos Samsara Hall" vibrated again.

"Samsara Purification Formation, activate!"

Hum—! With the "Chaos Samsara Hall" as the center, the starry sky for ten thousand li suddenly lit up with countless mysterious and complex Formation patterns. The patterns intertwined, forming a massive, illusory "mirror surface" that seemed capable of reflecting all heavens and cleansing all things. Within the mirror, the figures of those "Annihilation Legion" warriors still charging madly were reflected.

The next moment, the mirror rotated, and a strange, invisible fluctuation containing dual dao rhymes of "Reincarnation" and "Purification" rippled out like water waves, covering the ten thousand li of starry sky.

"Ah—!" Those "Annihilation Warriors" swept by the ripples suddenly stiffened. The greyish-white Soul fire in their eyes jumped and swayed frantically, as if they had seen something extremely terrifying. Immediately after, the "the end" aura on them, like ice thrown into a raging fire, quickly melted and evaporated. Their bodies also began to collapse and disintegrate, turning into the most primitive death energy containing no "the end" attributes. Then, under the guidance of this strange fluctuation, like a hundred rivers returning to the sea, they were slowly absorbed and refined by the Formation core at the bottom of the "Chaos Samsara Hall".

In just a few breaths, more than one hundred thousand "Annihilation Warriors" were reduced to nothing under the shroud of this "Samsara Purification Formation". Their Origin energy was instead absorbed by the "Chaos Samsara Hall", replenishing some of the consumption!

"This... this is impossible! What kind of Formation is this?! It can actually directly purify and absorb the power of 'the end'?!" The Bone King was terrified. He could feel that the "Purification" dao rhyme contained in the Formation had a deadly restraint on him! Moreover, it seemed to involve higher-level mysteries regarding "Reincarnation"!

"It's not over yet." Lin Wan's voice sounded again, calm but carrying a trace of unquestionable majesty. "Existence Definition Field, local deployment—this Star Domain, prohibit 'the end' erosion, prohibit 'Annihilation' spread, prohibit 'Void' existence!"

As his voice fell, a mysterious and unfathomable strange fluctuation, seemingly capable of rewriting rules and defining "existence", spread from him as the center to the surroundings. Wherever the fluctuation passed, the starry sky seemed to be covered by an invisible, pure "Domain" containing no "the end" attributes. Within this "Domain", the grey flames on those "Annihilation Warriors", as if having lost their fuel, quickly extinguished. The "Annihilation" aura they radiated, as if isolated and purified, quickly weakened. Even their very existence began to become unstable and blurry, as if they might be repelled and erased by this "Domain" at any moment!

"Existence Definition Field". This was the most profound and terrifying prototype of a Divine Ability created by Lin Wan after initially fusing with the "samsara mirror" fragments, gaining a deeper understanding of the "existence" dao rhyme, and combining it with his own "Chaos Samsara Dao Fruit"! Although limited by his own cultivation, the range, intensity, and duration of this "Existence Definition Field" were limited and consumed a huge amount of energy, but on a local battlefield, it could have an oppressive effect almost like a "Law"! Especially when confronting enemies like "the end" which inherently carried strong attributes of "erosion", "distortion", and "negation of existence", the effect was even more significant!

"This... this is impossible! This is... the power of rules?! Who... who exactly are you?!" The Bone King was completely terrified. He could feel his connection to this starry sky being rapidly severed and stripped away! The "Annihilation" power within him was being suppressed and weakened! Even his own existence began to feel a trace of instability and repulsion! This had already exceeded his understanding of the "Dao"! This was definitely not a power that an ordinary "Quasi-Immortal" could possess! Could it be... could this person have already touched the realm of a "True Immortal"?!

"Who I am is not important." Lin Wan stepped out of the "Chaos Samsara Hall" and stood in the air, looking calmly at the terrified Bone King in the distance. "What is important is that this place is the territory of my Human Race, and it will not tolerate you demons running wild. Today, I will use your blood to sacrifice to my Alliance war flag!"

As his voice fell, Lin Wan's figure moved and he had already disappeared from where he was. The next instant, he appeared a hundred zhang in front of the Bone King. Without any flashy movements, he simply pointed his fingers like a sword and tapped lightly toward the Bone King. "Chaos—Return to Ruins!"

A greyish, strange point of light that seemed to encompass all things and yet seemed capable of ending all things flew from Lin Wan's fingertip. Initially, it was only the size of a grain of rice, but the moment it flew from his fingertip, it swelled in the wind, transforming into a slowly rotating, miniature "Chaos Black Hole" that devoured all light, sound, energy, and matter, seemingly capable of returning everything to "nothingness", and silently enveloped the Bone King!

This was one of the killing moves created by Lin Wan, combining the three dao rhymes of "Chaos", "Annihilation", and "Existence"—"Chaos Return to Ruins"! Once this move was unleashed, it could turn all things into Chaos and return them to nothingness. It was the most pure and ultimate destruction!

"No—!" The Bone King felt the threat of death and let out a desperate roar. He tried his best to activate his own "Annihilation" Dao Fruit, setting up layers of bone barriers, grey flames, and Annihilation Divine Light in front of him, attempting to block the terrifying "Chaos Black Hole". However, everything was in vain.

Wherever the "Chaos Black Hole" passed, the bone barriers disintegrated silently, the grey flames extinguished instantly, and the Annihilation Divine Light was swallowed up completely like a clay ox entering the sea. It seemed that in front of the "Chaos Return to Ruins", all powers with "the end" attributes were like meeting their nemesis, unable to withstand a single blow!

"Pfft!" In just a single breath, the multiple defenses set up by the Bone King were pierced through by the "Chaos Black Hole". Immediately after, the black hole expanded, swallowing his entire body along with his terrified and desperate Primordial Spirit in one gulp! There was no screaming, no explosion, and not even a trace of energy fluctuation leaked out. When the "Chaos Black Hole" slowly dissipated, only a negligible amount of dust remained in place, drifting away with the wind.

The "Hall of Annihilation" Third Divine General, the "Bone King", had fallen! Both body and Soul were destroyed, leaving no bones behind! The entire process, from Lin Wan's attack to the Bone King's fall, took only a few short breaths! A powerful demon of the "Quasi-Immortal" Middle Stage had been killed by Lin Wan with a single finger, so casually that it couldn't even put up a decent resistance!

Silence! A deathly silence shrouded the entire battlefield. Whether it was the Alliance side or the remaining "Annihilation Legion", both were stunned, dumbfounded, and lost the ability to think by this sudden, clean, and near-crushing kill.

"Alliance Master... is invincible!" It was unknown who first came back to their senses, letting out a shout trembling with excitement. The next moment, cheers like a landslide and tsunami erupted from the Alliance army, resounding through the starry sky! "Alliance Master is invincible! Alliance Master is invincible! Alliance Master is invincible!" Morale instantly soared to its peak! All Alliance soldiers looked at Lin Wan with eyes full of fanaticism, awe, and incomparable confidence! With such an incredibly powerful Alliance Master leading them, what were mere "the end" demons worth?!

Conversely, on the "Annihilation Legion" side, after witnessing their own Divine General being so easily slaughtered, they, who had already suffered heavy losses and low morale due to the "Purification Light", "Samsara Purification Formation", and "Existence Definition Field", completely collapsed. Like headless flies, they fled in all directions, only to be chased and annihilated by the high-morale Alliance army like chopping melons and vegetables. The outer defense line of the "Extinction Star Domain" was routed in one battle! The Alliance army had won its first battle, a complete victory!

"Pass down the order: the entire army will rest for half an hour to count the battle results and treat the wounded. After half an hour, continue to advance, target—the core of the 'Extinction Star Domain', the Hall of Annihilation!" Lin Wan withdrew his finger, as if he had just done an insignificant thing, and his voice calmly spread across the battlefield.

"Understood!" The Alliance army responded in unison, their voices filled with high fighting intent.