Chapter 426 The Siege of the Outer City, the Heavenly Emperor's Personal Guards Block the Way

Hongmeng Canyon, the dark night was lightless.

The Reverse Dao Allied Forces gathered here to rest and reorganize. No one spoke; only the sound of weapons being wiped and the faint noise of Medicinal Pills being consumed floated in the night. Everyone knew that tomorrow's battle would determine the layout of the entire Hongmeng Universe for the next ten thousand years.

Nightmare sat alone at a high point in the canyon, eyes closed as he regulated his breathing. The Dao Reversal Origin within his body surged like a river, faintly resonating with the Laws of the Hongmeng Universe.

Before dawn arrived, he opened his eyes.

"The time has come."

His voice wasn't loud, yet it clearly reached the ears of every Cultivator in the canyon.

Thousands of figures rose simultaneously, their black robes like a moving shadow in the gradually brightening sky.

No mobilization speeches, no swearing-in ceremonies. This army had long been tempered through countless slaughters into an iron discipline—wherever the Lord pointed, the blade followed.

Nightmare rose into the air, his gaze casting a thousand miles away.

There, the outline of the Divine Court's outer city had already appeared in the morning mist. The thousand-zhang-high city walls were built entirely of Grandmist Divine Stones, their surfaces covered in ancient Formation patterns, currently emitting a faint golden halo.

Atop the city walls, dense crowds of figures could be vaguely seen.

"The Hongmeng Divine Court Grand Formation... activated by a hundred Hongmeng Celestial Venerables working together." Demonic Flames flickered in Nightmare's eyes. "They are certainly willing to pay the price."

He raised his hand, his voice spreading throughout the entire army:

"Break the city."

There were no extra commands. Thousands of Reverse Path Cultivators surged forward like a black tide, extremely fast yet orderly and silent.

---

Atop the outer city.

Three men clad in golden armor with sharp auras stood side by side; they were the commanders of the Heavenly Emperor's Personal Guard—Qin Zhen, Bai Lie, and Chu Feng.

All three possessed Early Stage Supreme Realm cultivation, and the hundred personal guards under them were at the Peak Hongmeng Celestial Venerable Realm, making them one of the Divine Court's most elite combat forces.

"They're here." Qin Zhen narrowed his eyes at the moving darkness in the distance.

"Tianwei, Zhenyue, Tianshu... thirteen outposts, all destroyed in one day." Bai Lie's voice was cold. "This lad's methods are ruthless; he cannot be left alive."

Chu Feng gripped the long halberd in his hand: "The Heavenly Emperor has ordered that if the outer city is lost, we shall present our heads to him."

As the words fell, the black tide had reached three miles from the city.

Nightmare's figure appeared at the very front, standing in the air level with the top of the wall.

Qin Zhen took a step forward, his golden armor gleaming coldly in the morning light:

"Reverse Path scum, you dare covet the Divine Court headquarters?"

His voice boomed like thunder, and the pressure of a Supreme swept down:

"Today, we shall let you be buried beneath this outer city!"

Nightmare glanced at him.

Just one glance.

Then, he moved.

No nonsense, no standoff, he didn't even wait for the army behind him to arrive—he alone turned into a bolt of black lightning and lunged straight for the top of the wall!

"Arrogant!" Qin Zhen roared, striking out simultaneously with Bai Lie and Chu Feng.

Three beams of golden divine light shot into the sky from the city wall, transforming into three giant swords that slashed toward Nightmare with an aura of destruction.

Nightmare neither dodged nor retreated. He gripped his right hand, and the Dao Reversal Reincarnation Unity Blade materialized. Facing the three giant swords, he delivered a horizontal slash!

"Clang——!!!"

The sound of clashing metal echoed through the clouds, and the violent energy impact caused even the city walls to shake violently. The three giant swords were actually forced back by this single strike, cracks appearing on their blades.

"How is this possible?!" Bai Lie's pupils shrank suddenly.

A combined strike from the three of them was enough to heavily injure an ordinary Middle Stage Supreme, yet they were forced back by a single person with one blade?

Nightmare's figure had already reached the top of the wall. Demonic Flames erupted from his body, transforming into three black Dragons that pounced toward the three men respectively.

Qin Zhen bellowed: "Form the Formation! Personal guard, assist me!"

A hundred personal guards simultaneously circulated their Cultivation Techniques, pouring majestic Divine Power into the three men. Their auras surged, and a phantom of the Heavenly Emperor appeared behind them, increasing the pressure by another thirty percent!

"Heavenly Emperor's Personal Guard Formation—Slay the Rebellious!"

Golden Formation patterns spread from the top of the wall, enveloping Nightmare. Within the Formation, Laws twisted, and countless golden chains seemed to grow out of thin air, coiling around Nightmare's limbs.

Nightmare looked down at the golden chains wrapping around his wrists, a trace of mockery curling at the corner of his mouth.

"Borrowed power is, after all, borrowed."

The Demonic Flames around him suddenly surged. The pitch-black fire spread back along the chains. Wherever it passed, the golden chains melted rapidly like ice meeting fire!

"Not good! This flame can erode the Formation's Origin!" Chu Feng was horrified.

"Retreat!" Qin Zhen decisively ordered.

But it was too late.

Nightmare's figure flickered and appeared in front of Qin Zhen. The Reverse Path blade pierced out silently, aimed straight at the core of his Dantian.

Qin Zhen fully activated his protective divine light while swinging his sword to block—

"Puchi."

The tip of the blade pierced through the divine light, the armor, and the flesh.

Qin Zhen's movements froze. He looked down. The Reverse Path blade had sunk three inches into his Dantian, and Demonic Flames were frantically devouring his Supreme Origin from the inside.

"You..." He opened his mouth, and blood gushed out.

Nightmare pulled out the blade. Qin Zhen's body slumped down, the divine light in his eyes quickly fading.

"Commander Qin!" Bai Lie's eyes nearly split from rage as he lunged with his spear.

Nightmare stepped aside, dodging the spear tip, and his left hand shot out like lightning, grabbing Bai Lie's neck.

"Crack."

The sound of the neck bone breaking rang out crisply.

Bai Lie's eyes widened. Until his death, he couldn't believe it—he couldn't even survive a single move?

Seeing this, Chu Feng turned and fled, heading straight for the Inner City.

Nightmare didn't even look; he threw the blade with a backhand toss.

The Reverse Path blade turned into a black light, arriving first despite being launched later, piercing through Chu Feng's back and emerging from his chest.

Chu Feng staggered a few steps and collapsed to the ground, his life force extinguished.

All three commanders had fallen.

From the moment Nightmare boarded the wall to the deaths of the three men, not even ten breaths had passed.

The hundred personal guards on the wall were terrified. Some roared and lunged forward, while others turned to flee.

Nightmare no longer paid them any mind. His gaze turned toward the faint golden light curtain on the wall—the core eye of the Hongmeng Divine Court Grand Formation was right at the top of the gate tower.

He rose into the air and headed straight for the Formation eye.

"Stop him!!" a personal guard screamed hoarsely, and dozens of them desperately formed a Formation to intercept him.

Nightmare didn't even strike. The Demonic Flames around him naturally spread out like a black ripple.

"Ah——!"

The Cultivators touched by the Demonic Flames saw their bodies quickly shrivel and decay, turning into fly ash. In the blink of an eye, more than half of the interceptors were dead or injured.

By this time, the Reverse Dao Allied Forces had attacked up to the base of the city.

"Break the Formation!" Nightmare's voice carried down.

Thousands of Reverse Path Cultivators struck simultaneously. All sorts of Divine Abilities, Magic Treasures, and forbidden techniques blasted toward various weak points of the grand Formation—these weak points had been clearly marked in the detailed maps of the outer defenses long ago.

The Formation's light flickered frantically. Under the pincer attack from inside and out, it finally couldn't hold on.

"Boom——!!!"

Amidst a thunderous roar that sounded as if the heavens were shattering, the faint golden light curtain exploded into a sky full of light specks.

The Divine Court's outer city had been breached.

The remaining personal guards and defenders on the wall fled in all directions, only to be hunted down like grass by the Reverse Dao Allied Forces, leaving no survivors.

Nightmare landed on the Peak of the gate tower, looking down into the city.

Beyond the outer city was the even more towering and solemn Inner City, with higher walls and denser Formation patterns.

His gaze passed through the Inner City, as if seeing the Heavenly Emperor Hall that stood in the deepest part of the Divine Court, emitting a terrifying aura.

"Clear the outer city. In one hour, attack the Inner City."

His voice was calm, yet it made the hearts of all the Reverse Path Cultivators who heard it shudder.

"Yes!"

The slaughter continued.

Nightmare stood quietly on the gate tower, looking toward the Inner City, the Demonic Flames in his eyes growing even more intense.

He knew that the real tough battle had only just begun.