All paths vanquish demons, demonic stars resist.

The three-day deadline arrived in the blink of an eye.

Ten miles outside Ten Thousand Demon Valley.

The once sparse camp of the Righteous Path had now merged into a vast, grim, golden ocean.

Above the camp, there was no longer a simple suppression barrier for demons, but layer upon layer of dense, golden Formations shimmering with endless, profound runes!

These Formations interconnected and overlapped, covering the sky for tens of miles, slowly rotating and emitting a terrifying pressure that caused the Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi to stagnate and retreat.

The Ten Thousand Dao Demon-Slaying Array! It had already taken form!

At the center of the great array, a golden pillar of light, purely condensed from the power of the Heavenly Dao Origin, shot into the sky, connecting with the mysterious will above the Nine Heavens.

Beneath the golden pillar of light, Lin Hao stood in the air, the Heavenly Dao Sacred Seal at the center of his brow shining with boundless brilliance, like a humanoid sun.

Clad in golden armor (condensed from the power of the Heavenly Dao) and wielding the qingyang sacred sword, which had been restored to its original state and now adorned with countless golden Dao patterns, his aura was firmly stabilized at the Late-Stage Transformation Spirit, his body flowing with the majestic yet cold and ruthless power of Order.

Slightly behind him to the sides stood Void-Comforter and Venerable Xuanming, both shrouded in a faint golden halo, their auras significantly stronger than they had been three days ago.

Further back were the reorganized Cultivators of the Alliance, with Golden Core Cultivators like a forest and Nascent Soul Cultivators like stars; although their numbers were slightly fewer than in the first battle, each had fanatical eyes and high morale, their bodies covered in the golden light blessed by the Heavenly Dao Sacred Seal, greatly increasing their resistance to Devilish Qi.

What was truly heart-palpitating, however, was the blurry golden figure floating at the very core of the array, at the top of that golden pillar of light—the Heavenly Dao Envoy!

It remained in the same state, shrouded in golden light with an unclear face, but the pressure it emitted felt as if the entire sky were collapsing, heavy enough to make one unable to breathe.

It did not move, merely floating there quietly like a soulless statue, yet it controlled every bit of power flowing through the array below.

Its very existence was the most direct judgment against the rebellious ones.

The time has arrived.

The Heavenly Dao Envoy's hollow, cold voice of Law resonated directly within everyone's Divine Soul, Activate the array and purify the source of rebellion.

As you command!

Lin Hao bowed to accept the order, the golden light in his eyes burning like flames.

He suddenly raised the qingyang sacred sword high, the light of the Sacred Seal at his brow erupting, creating a strong resonance with the core of the array above his head!

Ten Thousand Dao Demon-Slaying Array—activate!

Rumble—!!!

The massive golden Formation covering the sky suddenly accelerated its rotation!

Innumerable runes on the Formation lit up, drawing upon the fragments of the ten thousand Laws from the mysterious void!

Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi of various attributes—Metal, Wood, Water, Fire, Earth, Wind, Thunder, Light, Darkness...—were forcibly extracted and transformed, merging into the Formation to become terrifying pillars of light of various colors, all entwined with the dense power of the Heavenly Dao's order.

Like a galaxy from the Nine Heavens pouring down, or spears of judgment firing, they bombarded the direction of Ten Thousand Demon Valley, covering the sky and the earth!

This was no longer an attack of a single attribute, but a composite destructive strike gathering the power of ten thousand Laws, with the Heavenly Dao's order as its core!

Its power far exceeded that of the previous Qingyun Demon-Slaying Sword Array by a hundred or even a thousand times!

The first to suffer were the three layers of traps Nightmare had laid outside the valley.

Hiss, hiss, hiss—!

The filthy Devilish Qi churning within the Demon-Eroding Pit, under the irradiation of the golden pillars of light containing purifying power, melted like snow and ice, rapidly evaporating and dissipating, while the demonic runes carved at the bottom of the pit shattered bit by bit.

The distorted force field and illusions formed by the Phantom Demon Miasma, under the penetration and vibration of countless beams of light, shattered like punctured bubbles, revealing the true scenery behind them.

The countless poisoned bone spears buried in the Explosive Bone Spear Formation were detonated prematurely by the flames and thunderous beams of light descending from the sky before they could even be triggered, blasting into bone dust that filled the sky, and even the poisonous mist was wiped clean by the subsequent purifying light stream.

In just a single breath, the three layers of outer defenses that Ten Thousand Demon Valley had spent considerable cost to set up crumbled and vanished under this strike, which was like the majestic might of Heaven!

They couldn't even form a decent obstacle!

Inside the valley, the many demonic Cultivators who saw this scene through the array's light shield all turned pale and gasped.

Some Cultivators with only Early Golden Core Stage cultivation and weak wills were so frightened by the golden pillars of light filling the sky and the boundless pressure that their legs went weak and they collapsed to the ground; some even had their Dao Heart collapse and vomited blood.

Even Nascent Soul Elders like Li Xiehe and the Withered Bone Elder had extremely ugly expressions.

The power of this Ten Thousand Dao Demon-Slaying Array far exceeded their worst estimates!

Just then, the endless torrent of light beams, containing the power of ten thousand Laws, slammed into the outermost defense of Ten Thousand Demon Valley—the dark star flame barrier formed by the Ten Thousand Demon Star Array, which had been reinforced by Nightmare!

Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom—!!!

The explosions were so dense that one could not distinguish their sequence, as if billions of thunderbolts were exploding in one's ears simultaneously!

The entire Ten Thousand Demon Valley was shaking violently; cliffs collapsed, and buildings swayed!

The dark star flame barrier was like a lake surface lashed by a storm, creating countless violent ripples, and its light dimmed rapidly at a speed visible to the naked eye!

On the surface of the barrier, star phantoms were constantly shattered by the light beams, and the Demonic Star Flame was neutralized and annihilated by the power of the Heavenly Dao!

Even more terrifying was the suppressing power of Order contained within the ten thousand light beams, which penetrated the barrier and seeped into the valley.

Many low-level demonic Cultivators who were already panicked had their Devilish Qi thrown into chaos by this pressure, their Meridians surged in reverse, and they screamed as their bodies exploded, turning into balls of blood mist!

Even for typical mid-to-late Golden Core stage Cultivators, they felt their spiritual power circulation become sluggish, their Divine Soul feeling as if a giant rock had been pressed upon it, so uncomfortable that they wanted to vomit blood.

Steady! Pour all your Devilish Qi into the array!

Li Xiehe's eyes were wide with rage as he roared, and he was the first to inject his massive demonic power into the array foundation beneath his feet.

The other Elders followed suit.

However, it was a drop in the bucket.

The Ten Thousand Demon Star Array, under the bombardment of the Ten Thousand Dao Demon-Slaying Array, was tottering, and cracks began to spread from the edges toward the center!

At this rate, the array would definitely break in less than half an incense stick of time!

By then, the Cultivators in the valley would be directly exposed to those destructive light beams, and the consequences would be unimaginable!

A feeling of despair began to spread within the valley.

Just at this critical moment—

Hum—!!!

A low, deep hum, as if coming from the ancient starry sky, emanated from the deepest part of Ten Thousand Demon Valley, from the underground secret chamber of the black bone tower!

Immediately following, a jet-black flame pillar, dark and profound yet incomparably condensed, with the trajectories of countless stars birthing and dying within, shot into the sky, ignoring the obstruction of the buildings in the valley, and plunged directly into the core eye of the soon-to-be-shattered Ten Thousand Demon Star Array!

It was Nightmare! He had come out of seclusion!

The moment that black flame pillar entered the array eye, the originally dim and shattering dark star flame barrier, as if injected with infinite vitality, shook violently!

The dim light suddenly became profound and solid!

On the surface of the barrier, the shattered star phantoms rapidly reorganized and were reborn, and the Demonic Star Flame, like a raging fire doused with oil, roared and expanded, its color shifting from dark to an even more terrifying Dark Star hue that seemed capable of devouring all light!

The aura of the entire Ten Thousand Demon Star Array changed abruptly, transforming from passive defense into a living existence imbued with the meaning of annihilation and devouring!

The next moment, the figure of Nightmare appeared at the core of the array as if teleporting, standing in the air inside the now deep and solid Dark Star barrier.

He was still wearing the same black robe, but the flames burning around him were no longer purely dark Demonic Star Flame; instead, they presented a starry sky background, with the stars burning within being more solid and the aura of destruction even greater, while strands of silver starlight flowed along the edges of the flames—it was exactly the Star Demon Flame that had evolved after initially fusing with more star dao fruit Origin!

His aura was firmly stabilized at the Peak of the Late-Stage Transformation Spirit!

After only three days of seclusion, he had actually improved further!

Nightmare looked up, his cold gaze piercing through the Dark Star barrier, ignoring the ten thousand light beams that were still bombarding frantically, and locked directly onto the Heavenly Dao Envoy at the top of the golden pillar of light at the core of the distant array, as well as the high-spirited Lin Hao beneath it.

A cold and mocking curve appeared at the corner of his mouth.

His voice was not loud, but it clearly penetrated the array and resounded in the ears of everyone on both sides of the battlefield, carrying a kind of unruly and rebellious intent that looked down upon the world:

Hypocritical Heavenly Dao, in the name of order, you carry out the reality of suppression, treating all living things as toys and cutting off the path of transcendence for all beings! Today, let me, this source of rebellion, see just how much your so-called Ten Thousand Dao Demon-Slaying is worth!

Before the words fell, Nightmare spread his arms, his Origin Demonic Star dao seed spinning madly, and the Star Demon Flame completely merged with the now fully activated Ten Thousand Demon Star Array beneath his feet!

Demonic Star Devouring Dao—Heaven Swallowing!

He let out a sudden, low shout, his hands grabbing fiercely towards the void!

Instantly, countless tiny, rapidly rotating dark vortexes appeared on the Dark Star barrier!

These vortexes generated a terrifying suction force, no longer defending, but actively meeting the incoming ten thousand light beams!

Hiss, hiss, hiss, hiss—!

Teeth-grinding sounds of erosion rang out densely.

Those light beams containing the Heavenly Dao power of various attributes, the moment they touched these dark vortexes, were actually like clay oxen entering the sea, being forcibly torn and devoured!

Inside the vortexes, the Star Demon Flame burned fiercely, frantically refining and transforming these devoured Heavenly Dao powers!

Although it could not completely devour all the light beams, this move at least neutralized more than 30% of the attacking pressure!

The originally tottering Dark Star barrier had its pressure greatly reduced and quickly stabilized, even beginning to reversely absorb energy from the devoured light beams to repair itself!

What?!

Lin Hao's pupils constricted, and the smug smile on his face froze instantly.

He could clearly feel that the Heavenly Dao power he had drawn upon with the help of the array was being devoured and dissolved by the opponent in a bizarre way!

Presumptuous!

At the array eye, the Heavenly Dao Envoy's hollow voice for the first time carried a clear emotional fluctuation—it was the rage of having its authority offended by an ant!

Its blurry golden figure slowly raised its arm, opened its five fingers towards the direction where Nightmare was, and then, suddenly clenched them!

Heavenly Dao Judgment—Spear of Order!

Hum!

The golden pillar of light at the core of the array suddenly contracted and condensed; endless Heavenly Dao Origin power and fragments of the ten thousand Laws gathered in the Heavenly Dao Envoy's palm, transforming into a terrifying spear that was pure gold, crystal clear, about ten zhang long, with countless tiny chain-like Dao patterns flowing along the spear body!

Once this spear appeared, the world changed color!

The surrounding space seemed to solidify and submit!

The meaning of Order, Purification, and End it emitted was so intense that even Void-Comforter and Venerable Xuanming, watching from afar, felt a stinging pain in their Divine Soul, almost wanting to kneel!

This was the true power of the Heavenly Dao Envoy!

A rule-based strike far exceeding the Transformation Spirit level, touching the barriers of this realm!

The Heavenly Dao Envoy did not hesitate at all, throwing that Spear of Order fiercely towards Nightmare behind the Dark Star barrier!

The spear left its hand, silent and soundless, yet it was extremely fast, as if ignoring spatial distance; one moment it was still in the Heavenly Dao Envoy's hand, and the next, it had already appeared before the Dark Star barrier!

Where the spear tip pointed, the dark vortexes on the barrier capable of devouring the ten thousand light beams, as if encountering their nemesis, all disintegrated and retreated on their own!

The Dark Star barrier itself groaned under the unbearable burden, pressed inward by the terrifying power of Order contained in the spear tip, creating a huge conical indentation, the center point becoming nearly transparent, with cracks spreading rapidly like a spider web!

This spear was going to pierce through the barrier and take Nightmare's Origin directly!

Nightmare's eyes were grave to the extreme; he could feel the destructive power contained in this spear, which was enough to threaten his life!

But there was no fear in his eyes; instead, an even more blazing fighting intent and madness ignited!

Well come!

He roared, advancing instead of retreating, and thrust his palms forward fiercely!

Inside his Dantian, the Origin Demonic Star dao seed and the star dao fruit resonated madly, and all the Star Demon Flame gushed out without reservation, condensing in front of him into a thick, dark star shield with countless star vortexes rotating in reverse on its surface!

At the same time, he forcibly injected a portion of the Heavenly Dao power he had just devoured into the star shield, causing a distorted, unstable dark golden luster to appear on its surface!

Block it—for me!

The Spear of Order stabbed fiercely into the center of the dark star shield!

Time seemed to stand still at this moment.

There was no earth-shattering explosion.

There was only extreme light and extreme darkness, at the point where the spear tip met the shield surface, crazily annihilating, counteracting, and devouring each other!

Sizzle, sizzle, sizzle, sizzle—!!!

A sharp sound, piercing enough to tear the Soul, swept across the entire battlefield!

The pure power of Heavenly Dao order, the rebellious Star Demon Flame, and the forcibly distorted Heavenly Dao power had their most essential and intense collision!

Centered on the collision point, circles of terrifying shockwaves mixed with gold and darkness, filled with the turbulence of destruction and order, spread crazily in all directions in a spherical shape!

Rumble—!!!

This time, the explosion came late, but it was even more terrifying!

Where the shockwaves passed, space twisted and light dimmed; whether it was the light beams shot by the Ten Thousand Dao Demon-Slaying Array or the Dark Star barrier of the Ten Thousand Demon Star Array, they were all torn apart and stirred up by this indiscriminate destructive energy!

Pfft—! Ah—!

Whether it was the Righteous Path Cultivators outside the valley or the demonic Cultivators inside, as long as they were swept by the edges of these spreading shockwaves, the light cases vomited blood and flew backward, while the heavy cases had their Physical Body collapse directly, their Divine Soul destroyed!

Both camps were immediately thrown into chaos, with heavy casualties!

And at the very center of the collision.

The dark star shield emitted a teeth-grinding sound of shattering, with countless cracks appearing on its surface, and finally exploded with a bang!

Nightmare was hit hard, his body shaking violently, and he spat out a large mouthful of blood, his face instantly turning pale as paper, the Star Demon Flame around him suddenly dimming by more than half, his aura withered; he had clearly suffered a serious internal injury!

But that terrifying Spear of Order also exhausted most of its power after shattering the star shield; the golden Dao patterns on the spear body dimmed, becoming illusory and transparent, and ultimately failed to pierce Nightmare, instead dissipating completely a foot in front of him, turning into golden light points filling the sky.

This sure-kill strike from the Heavenly Dao Envoy had been hard-blocked by Nightmare at the cost of being injured!

The smoke and turbulence of energy slowly dissipated.

Nightmare wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth, breathing slightly, looking slightly disheveled, but his back remained straight, his eyes as cold as before, staring fixedly at the Heavenly Dao Envoy and Lin Hao in the distance.

Outside the array, the shock and anger on Lin Hao's face and the fluctuating golden light around the Heavenly Dao Envoy showed that their hearts were not calm.

For the first time, someone had blocked the Spear of Order of the Heavenly Dao Envoy (even if it was just a projection or Clone) head-on!

The first round of the second battle ended with Nightmare slightly injured, the arrays mutually damaged, and heavy casualties on both sides.

But everyone understood that this was just the beginning.

The more tragic slaughter was yet to come.