Resonance against the tide, the channel opens

Inside the Sacred Hall of the Xianqiong Forbidden Land, it was deathly silent.

Nightmare sat cross-legged on the cold stone platform, his eyes slightly closed.

Within his body, three strands of Reverse Dao Power—originating from the same source but possessing distinct characteristics: the heavy suppression of the Mortal Realm, the annihilation and erosion of the Spirit Abyss, and the vast chaotic rebellion of Xianqiong—were merging, surging, and tempering every inch of his Meridians and every wisp of his Divine Soul at an unprecedented speed.

The Hongmeng Reverse Dao Demonic Star Flame burned quietly within his Dantian, its color chaotic and profound, as if it contained all things, yet seemed capable of burning everything to ashes.

His Undergoing Tribulation Peak Realm was completely solidified, and it was even slowly climbing toward some unseen limit.

This was a qualitative change, not merely an accumulation of quantity, but a leap in his understanding of the "Reverse Path" itself.

He could feel that he had developed a vague connection with this Xianqiong Forbidden Land, and even with those hidden and suppressed chaotic rules within the entire Three Realms.

It was as if, at this moment, he was the embodiment of the very word "Reverse."

After an unknown amount of time, Nightmare slowly opened his eyes.

Chaotic light swirled in his eyes, then faded away, returning to the calmness of a deep pool.

"It is time."

He whispered to himself and stood up.

With a thought, the imprints of the three dao reversal keys were no longer hidden, slowly emerging from his chest.

Earthy yellow, pitch black, and deep blue-gold—the three-colored imprints shone in harmony, emitting a heart-palpitating fluctuation of the Dao Reversal Origin.

Without needing to be deliberately activated, the moment the three imprints appeared, the entire Xianqiong Sacred Hall... no, the entire Xianqiong Forbidden Land seemed to come "alive"!

"Hum——!!!"

A low hum came from the hall beneath his feet, the surrounding walls, and even the Void Realm above his head!

The ancient and profound array patterns on the floor and walls of the Sacred Hall, which had been dim, were suddenly illuminated!

Deep blue and golden light surged and flowed through the patterns like water, emitting an aura that was of the same source as the three dao reversal keys, yet far more ancient and vast!

These were the array patterns left behind by the very first Reverse Dao Practitioners in the ancient era!

They had sensed the complete Dao Reversal Origin and were thoroughly activated!

With Nightmare at the center, a visible, chaotic-colored Reverse Dao energy storm began to gather and rotate!

The storm grew stronger and stronger, tearing at the space within the Sacred Hall and emitting a "wooing" screech.

The three dao reversal key imprints shone brilliantly, as if three hearts were beating vigorously; with every beat, they caused the ancient array patterns of the Forbidden Ground to resonate, and the energy storm became one degree more intense!

Nightmare stood in the center of the storm, his black robes flapping, his hair dancing wildly, yet his expression was as cold as ice.

He was guiding and controlling, directing the resonance between the power of the three keys and the ancient array patterns toward a clear goal—to tear through the ultimate barrier of this world and open the path leading directly to the "Root"!

However, at the critical moment when the resonance reached its Peak, space twisted violently, and a vague, deep, pitch-black channel shadow began to take shape in the center of the storm—

"Now! Interrupt him!"

"For the Heavenly Dao! Execute the Reverse Path!"

Two shouts, mixed with chilling killing intent, erupted abruptly from the shadows on both sides of the Sacred Hall entrance!

Two figures shot out suddenly like venomous snakes that had been lurking for a long time!

These two were clad in dark golden camouflage Immortal Artifact armor that almost blended in with the surrounding environment; their auras were hidden extremely well, and they only erupted completely the instant before they attacked!

And this eruption was earth-shattering!

They were both unexpectedly at the Undergoing Tribulation Peak Realm!

And they were certainly not ordinary Peak Cultivators; their auras were condensed and vicious, clearly top-tier experts skilled in assassination and infiltration!

Each held a slender, pitch-black, lusterless piercing sword that emitted a deadly penetrating fluctuation; the tips of the swords concentrated a point of extremely condensed Heavenly Dao Law-Breaking Power, specifically designed to break through Protective Aura. From the left and right, like two black bolts of lightning, they stabbed directly at the relatively weak side and back of the energy storm surrounding Nightmare!

The timing was incredibly cunning, exactly at the moment when Nightmare was exerting all his focus on guiding the resonance, with his mind most concentrated on opening the channel!

This was the final hidden sentry planted by the heavenly dao core in the deepest part of the Xianqiong Forbidden Land! It was also the final killing move!

The purpose was to deliver a fatal blow at the moment when the Reverse Dao Practitioner had gathered all three keys and was attempting to open the channel—the moment when he could least afford to be distracted!

Facing this sudden, lethal sneak attack, Nightmare did not even turn his head.

His gaze remained fixed on the gradually solidifying pitch-black channel shadow in front of him.

Yet, a cold, almost cruel arc curled at the corner of his mouth.

"Finally... couldn't hold back anymore?"

Just the instant before the two black piercing swords were about to touch his body—

"Boom!"

With Nightmare at the center, the originally violently rotating chaotic-colored energy storm suddenly contracted inward, and then erupted outward with a hundred times its previous speed!

It was not a chaotic impact, but a precisely controlled... ripple of slaughter!

The Hongmeng Reverse Dao Demonic Star Flame, mixed with the terrifying power of the three-key resonance, transformed into two incredibly solid chaotic fire rings, striking first despite starting later, precisely colliding with the two rapidly stabbing pitch-black sword tips!

"Ssss——!!!"

There was no crisp sound of metal clashing, only a teeth-grinding sound of energy being instantly eroded and dissolved.

The two piercing swords, specialized for breaking Protective Aura, were like ice meeting a red-hot iron the moment they touched the chaotic fire rings!

The Heavenly Dao Law-Breaking Power concentrated at the sword tips couldn't even stir up a ripple before being swallowed and disintegrated by the Reverse Dao fire!

Immediately after, the sword bodies themselves began to rapidly turn red, soften, and twist, eventually turning into two pools of molten iron that dripped onto the ground, making a "sizzling" sound.

The expressions of ferocity and determination on the faces of the two Undergoing Tribulation Peak assassins instantly froze, turning into boundless horror and disbelief!

Their life-bound Immortal Artifacts hadn't even been able to hold for a single breath?!

After melting the piercing swords, the chaotic fire rings showed no signs of slowing down, instantly wrapping around their bodies like two shackles of death!

"No...!"

"The Heavenly Dao is etern..."

The terrified screams came to an abrupt end.

The chaotic-colored flames curled gently.

The two Heavenly Dao sentries, with cultivation at the Undergoing Tribulation Peak, having lurked for who knows how many years as the final killing move, didn't even have time to self-destruct their Divine Souls before being silently burned into two wisps of the faintest green smoke, their Divine Souls destroyed, completely erased from the world.

Only two small piles of crystal-clear, burnt ashes were left in their place, which were then scattered by the residual energy storm, leaving no trace.

Instant kill! A true split-second kill!

From the eruption of the sneak attack to the two being reduced to ashes, the entire process took less than half a breath.

Nightmare hadn't even moved an inch, nor had he interrupted his guidance of the channel.

It was as if he had merely swatted two noisy flies.

"Cleanup complete." Nightmare whispered indifferently, his gaze refocusing on the front.

Without the interference of these two "flies," the resonance of the three keys and the ancient array patterns no longer faced any obstruction!

The chaotic-colored energy storm grew even more violent, and the space in the center of the Sacred Hall was stretched and twisted to a limit!

"Crack... rip!"

Like the loud sound of cloth being torn!

In the center of the storm, the vague channel shadow suddenly solidified and expanded!

A pitch-black channel, three zhang high and about a zhang wide, with chaotic-colored flames burning at its edges, was completely formed!

The interior of the channel was incredibly deep, with no end in sight; only a terrifying aura that made the Soul tremble, as if facing the Origin of all things (albeit a reversed Origin) and the ultimate order, surged from the other end!

The Reverse Dao Channel! Leading directly to where the heavenly dao core resides—the Hongmeng Realm!

The channel was formed, but Nightmare keenly noticed that on the smooth walls inside the channel, there were still some extremely faint, yet deep-rooted, pale golden light spots attached.

These were the Origin imprints left by the heavenly dao core over many years in its attempts to infiltrate, influence, and even pollute this channel; although they could not prevent the channel from opening, they could cause interference, delay, or even expose the coordinates during traversal.

"Hmph, small tricks."

Nightmare snorted coldly, his mind stirring slightly.

A strand of the surging Hongmeng Reverse Dao Demonic Star Flame around his body separated, like a living fire dragon, roaring as it rushed into the pitch-black channel!

The flames swept across the inner walls of the channel!

"Sss sss sss..."

Those pale golden Heavenly Dao Origin imprints, under the burning of the Nidao Demonic Flame, emitted faint, wailing-like sounds, rapidly darkening, dissolving, and finally disappearing completely, purified until nothing remained.

The inner walls of the channel became as smooth as a mirror, with only the purest and most stable Reverse Dao Power flowing through them.

Thus, the channel was completely stabilized, with no further hidden dangers.

Nightmare stood at the entrance of the channel, taking one last look back at this Xianqiong Sacred Hall, his gaze seemingly penetrating through layers of obstacles, seeing the Mortal Realm, seeing the Spirit Realm, seeing the Ten Thousand Demon Valley, and seeing those Demonic Path Cultivators who followed him.

He closed his eyes, his majestic Divine Soul power mixed with a trace of the majesty of a Reverse Path Dominator, transforming into an incredibly clear sound transmission that crossed an unimaginable spatial distance, ringing directly in the depths of the Divine Souls of all core members of the Mortal Realm and Spirit Realm United Demon Alliance, especially the Vice Alliance Leader, the Valley Master of the Ten Thousand Demon Valley:

[I am about to step into the location of the Heavenly Dao root.]

[Upon this journey, I will surely shatter the heavenly dao core.]

[During this time, if any remnants of the Heavenly Dao, or forces affiliated with the Heavenly Dao, dare to take advantage of the opportunity to counterattack or cause trouble...]

[Regardless of whether they are Immortal, Mortal, or Spirit, no matter where they are hiding, once discovered, there is no need to ask for instructions, no need to show mercy.]

[Annihilate them all—kill without exception! Let this serve as a warning to others!]

Brief, cold, domineering, and unquestionable.

Every word seemed to carry the rusty scent of blood and fire.

After making these final arrangements, Nightmare no longer had the slightest attachment or hesitation.

He turned around, facing the bottomless pitch-black channel that exuded ultimate temptation and ultimate danger, his eyes igniting with intense Battle Intent and determination capable of burning the heavens.

"heavenly dao core... Hongmeng Realm..."

He whispered these two names, and then, took a step forward!

His figure submerged into the channel entrance, which was burning with chaotic flames, and disappeared.

After he entered, the pitch-black channel fluctuated slightly, then the entrance slowly contracted, closed, and finally completely vanished into the Void Realm, leaving only the light of the ancient array patterns still slowly circulating within the Xianqiong Sacred Hall, and the lingering, heart-palpitating Reverse Dao aftertaste in the air.

The final battle of the Reverse Dao journey, at this moment, officially begins!