268: All sides are flat!

Western Regions, ancient desert road, the setting sun like blood.

The strong wind whipped up sand, hitting the dilapidated mud walls with crackling sounds.

Chu Chunqiu, dressed in a shabby Taoist robe with a vermilion wine gourd hanging from his waist, leaned against a broken wall, gulping down wine. The strong scent of alcohol almost overpowered the earthy smell in the wind.

His eyes were hazy with drink, and he wore his usual lazy smile, as if the tense standoff before him had nothing to do with him.

His Little Junior Brother, Song Zhen, who was far behind, watched his Senior Brother nervously. The man opposite him was a top expert of the Demonic Cult!

Opposite Chu Chunqiu, the First Demon Lord of the Demonic Cult stood with his hands behind his back, his body exuding an ominous demonic aura, as if he had merged with the desolate desert.

Further away, a strong demonic aura soared into the sky, but it did not advance, presumably waiting for them to fight to a mutual destruction.

He was not in a hurry to act, because his mind was more focused on the blood-red network that covered the heavens and earth.

When the blood-light shot into the sky and the resentment filled the world, the First Demon Lord's lips, hidden beneath his hood, curved into an arc of uncontrollable excitement.

“Do you feel it, Chu Chunqiu?!”

The First Demon Lord’s voice was filled with suppressed excitement, “The Great Blood Refinement Array of Myriad Souls is complete! The overthrow of heaven and earth is today! The so-called order you painstakingly uphold is nothing but a mantis trying to stop a chariot!”

Chu Chunqiu let out a burp, slowly took another sip of wine, and mumbled:

“What’s the rush… The stage has just been set, and the performers haven’t even warmed up their voices yet… *hic*… You, the audience, are already captivated.”

The First Demon Lord snorted, about to scoff, when sudden changes occurred in heaven and earth!

The originally rampant blood-red pillar of light violently swayed, flickering erratically. The blood-red network covering the heavens and earth emitted an ear-piercing wail, cracks spread, and the immense resentment and bloody scent began to wildly recede and dissipate!

The First Demon Lord’s body trembled violently. The demonic energy around him fluctuated dramatically like a punctured balloon. He looked up at the sky in disbelief, hissing:

“Impossible! This… this is…?!”

In contrast, Chu Chunqiu still looked drunk. He even tilted his head back and took a large gulp of wine, wiped his mouth with his sleeve, and the lazy smile on his face gradually turned into undisguised mockery.

“See? What did I tell you?”

Chu Chunqiu shook his wine gourd, his laughter slurred with wine, and even more with a knowing mockery, “The song isn’t even finished, and the stage has already collapsed.”

“Steal the power of heaven and earth, reverse the creation of the universe, break through the first-grade shackles? Heh, you Demonic Cultists, you just love to dream these foolish, delusional dreams! It didn’t work a thousand years ago, do you really think it will work now?”

“How can my old man’s grand scheme for the world be fathomed by mere demons and monsters like you?”

He stood up. Although his steps seemed unsteady, a clear, sword-like glint flashed in the depths of his eyes:

“Now, it’s time to wake up from your dream! You, First Demon Lord, will you lie down yourself, or do you want this Daoist to help you lie down?”

The First Demon Lord was both shocked and enraged. Feeling the disappearance of the power augmentation, and even the faint backlash, although he didn’t know what had happened with the High Priest, he knew that the tide had turned.

Facing this unfathomable Chancellor’s eldest disciple, he had lost most of his fighting spirit and only wanted to escape as quickly as possible.

Southern Border, within the Hundred Thousand Mountains, a miasmic, dense forest, dark and profound.

Colorful poisonous mist permeated the forest, interwoven with strange insect chirps and low incantations.

A woman, dressed in indigo Miao ethnic attire, with a graceful figure and a beautiful face that carried a hint of aloofness and mystery, was concentrating on casting spells.

She was precisely the Chancellor’s third disciple, Su Wanqing.

Her fingertips danced, and streams of pure light cleverly combined with the surrounding witch-gu power, transforming into countless intricate light threads and insect shadows, assisting a middle-aged man in front of her, who wore a Great Qian second-rank official robe and exuded a profound aura.

Their opponent was the Third Demon Lord of the Demonic Cult, a master at controlling poisonous creatures and vicious gu, who moved stealthily through the forest.

Previously, with the augmentation of the great array, his gu poison had greatly increased in power, putting immense pressure on Su Wanqing and the second-rank official.

When the blood-red network began to collapse, the Third Demon Lord, who was controlling a giant shadowy centipede to launch a fierce attack, was stunned, and his offensive also slowed down.

“Witch God’s blessing, the formation has reversed!”

A High Priest from a local witch-gu tribe who had joined the Great Qian and was assisting them, keenly sensed the weakening of the evil power in the world and shouted in surprise.

A sharp glint flashed in Su Wanqing’s beautiful eyes. Although she only had third-rank cultivation, her sensitivity to energy fluctuations was extremely acute.

She immediately seized the opportunity and cried out clearly: “Lord Lin, now is the time!”

Lord Lin, the second-rank official, was also a veteran of many battles; how could he miss such a golden opportunity?

He roared, unleashing all of his true essence, which transformed into a brilliant fist-seal, like a scorching sun breaking through the mist, directly striking the Third Demon Lord’s body.

Su Wanqing simultaneously changed her hand seals. The pure light merged with the witch-gu power, no longer simply for defense and assistance, but transforming into chains of runes imbued with purifying power, coiling around the shadowy centipede and the poisonous miasma surrounding the Third Demon Lord.

“No! My power!”

The Third Demon Lord discovered in horror that not only had the array’s augmentation disappeared, but even the demonic cultivation techniques he practiced were suppressed and backlashed by some force.

Under the combined fierce attack of Lord Lin and Su Wanqing, as well as the defection of the surrounding witch-gu power, he barely managed to resist a few moves before his protective demonic aura was shattered by the extremely yang and rigid fist-seal.

Immediately after, he was entangled by Su Wanqing’s purifying chains. Amidst his shrill screams, his demonic body was rapidly purified and dissolved, finally turning into a wisp of black smoke that dissipated into the forest.

Su Wanqing gently exhaled a breath of turbid air, sweat beading on her forehead, but her eyes were bright.

She and Lord Lin exchanged glances, both seeing relief and the joy of victory in each other’s eyes.

Northern Border, Shanhai Pass, fierce wind and snow.

The city walls were covered with thick ice and snow, and the cold wind was like a knife.

A young man with a strong scholarly demeanor but a face as resolute as a rock stood with his hand on his sword.

He was the Qingyang Sect Master, the second-rank expert Sect Leader Fang Xiaolin!

Standing beside him were his Vice Sect Master, Chen Qingxuan, and Li Mu’s strategist, Fan You.

Outside the Pass was the Heavenly Tribulation Dojo left by Li Shengyuan, and further away, Demon Barbarians were gathering again, with demonic clouds churning. However, compared to the other locations, the offensive here was much weaker.

Not only was Shanhai Pass currently attracting too many experts because of the Heavenly Tribulation Dojo, but also because the Six Demon Lords of the Demonic Cult had been personally slain by Li Shengyuan. The Demon Barbarians Outside the Pass had also been scared off and dared not easily invade, only daring to observe from a distance first.

Sect Leader Fang Xiaolin held the fort here. Although he felt pressure, the defense line remained stable.

When the blood-red sky curtain that enveloped his heart violently fluctuated, finally dissipating inch by inch like shattered Colored Glaze, and the suffocating resentment in the world rapidly receded, Sect Leader Fang Xiaolin’s hand, tightly gripping his sword hilt, slightly loosened.

The three looked towards the Central Plains, and a subtle sense of relief appeared on their resolute faces.

“Chancellor… succeeded.”

He murmured in a low voice, as if a heavy burden had been lifted.

Although the pressure in the Northern Border was relatively smaller, if the great array had fully formed, the consequences would have been unimaginable.

Now that the gloom had dispersed, his duty to protect could finally be temporarily eased.

Sect Leader Fang Xiaolin turned and said to the generals behind him in a deep voice: “Pass down the order: the Demonic Cult’s main force has collapsed. Strengthen vigilance to prevent a counterattack from the remaining enemies!”

Jiangnan, battlefield ruins.

The blood-red hue completely receded, and the sky returned to its usual clarity, but the scarred earth spoke of the ferocity of the battle that had just taken place.

Li Shengyuan sheathed the Zhenyuan Sword and the Zhanyuan Blade, and the sharp sword intent and blade aura around him slowly receded.

Ye Hangzhou withdrew his spirit array, and Luo Qingwan also dispersed her clear, cold moonlight and sword array.

The three stood on the ruins, looking at the place where the Second Demon Lord and that transformed being had been annihilated, their expressions relaxed.

“Finally… it’s over.”

The black crow on Ye Hangzhou’s shoulder slumped down, its tone carrying a hint of fatigue, but more so, relief. It had been terrified just now, fearing that Ye Hangzhou wouldn’t be able to protect himself.

Ye Hangzhou looked at Li Shengyuan and Luo Qingwan, but did not speak. The limp black crow helped him say: “Chancellor Teacher’s calculations are flawless. This time, to reverse the situation, we owe it to the preparations he made in his early years.”

Luo Qingwan nodded slightly, a hint of admiration on her beautiful face:

“As the Great Qian’s guardian, the Chancellor is far-sighted and beyond our reach. I just didn’t expect that the core of this great array would truly be found and destroyed in one fell swoop!”

Li Shengyuan wiped his sword and blade, then continued: “The High Priest stole from heaven and earth, acting against the natural order; he deserved this retribution. However, after this battle, various places across the world have probably suffered considerable damage and urgently need to recover.”

He looked up at the clear sky, his gaze profound: “But, now that the gloom has dispersed, it is time to rebuild the mountains and rivers. With the Chancellor at the center, and my fellow comrades striving in all directions, the sky of this Great Qian will not fall!”

Looking back now, it is likely that the Chancellor had already begun to prepare countermeasures for things like the bone god encountered earlier.

His own journey to the Northern Border, Senior Brother Chu Chunqiu first going to Jiangnan, then to the Western Regions—all of this was probably arranged by the old Chancellor… Li Shengyuan looked back towards the capital, as if he saw the old man who often wore a kind smile on the Immortal Ascension Platform.