Chapter 428 Core Palace, Purge of Remaining Forces

The Inner City gates swung open, with no further obstacles.

Nightmare stepped through the city gates, the Reverse Dao Allied Forces pouring in behind him like a black torrent. The Inner City streets were wide, lined with halls and palaces on both sides, with carved beams and painted rafters, magnificent yet exuding a deathly silence.

The core area of the Divine Court headquarters was now like an empty city.

"Search."

Nightmare uttered only a single word.

Thousands of Reverse Path Cultivators immediately split into dozens of small teams, sweeping through the various halls like a comb. The sounds of doors breaking, brief skirmishes, and muffled groans of the dying rose sporadically in the silence before quickly returning to quiet.

Nightmare remained still, his Divine Sense spreading out like a tide, covering the entire core area.

Three breaths later, he opened his eyes and looked toward the northeast.

"The Resource Hall... there's still a rat."

---

The Resource Hall, located in the northeast corner of the Inner City, was nine stories high and built entirely of "Origin Divine Jade," its surface shimmering with seven-colored brilliance. This was where the Divine Court's treasury was located, housing countless resources plundered over ten thousand years.

The hall doors were tightly shut, and there was no one outside.

Nightmare's figure appeared before the hall, and he pressed his hand against the door.

"Buzz—"

The Restriction on the door was instantly activated, and the seven-colored light flared up, forming an indestructible barrier. An ordinary Middle Stage Supreme Realm Cultivator would likely take half a day to break through without special Restriction-breaking methods.

Nightmare merely glanced at it, Demonic Flames flickering in his palm.

"Sizzle—"

The seven-colored barrier melted rapidly like snow meeting fire. The hall doors swung open silently.

Inside the hall, a white-haired old man sat cross-legged on a central jade platform. Three golden Seals floated before him, emitting a dense aura of the Law of Protection.

The old man slowly opened his eyes and looked at Nightmare, his eyes showing neither sorrow nor joy:

"I have guarded this treasury for three thousand years and have never allowed an outsider to take a single step inside."

He stood up, the pressure of the Middle Stage of the Supreme Realm filling the hall:

"Today is no different."

Nightmare said nothing and stepped into the hall.

The old man raised his hand, and the three Seals glowed brightly, turning into three golden chains that coiled toward Nightmare like venomous snakes!

Wherever the chains passed, space solidified and Laws were constrained—this was the "Origin Sealing Divine Soul Chain," specifically designed for Supreme Realm Cultivators. Once ensnared, one's Origin would be temporarily sealed, leaving them at the mercy of others.

Nightmare didn't even look at the chains and continued walking forward.

The moment the chains touched the Demonic Flames surrounding him—

"Sizzle, sizzle..."

The golden chains rapidly turned black, decayed, and snapped, dissolving into nothingness.

The old man's pupils shrank: "Impossible! The Origin Sealing Divine Soul Chain specifically counters all Origin power, how could..."

Before he could finish, Nightmare was already within thirty feet of him.

"Your Formation mastery is decent," Nightmare spoke calmly, "but unfortunately, your Realm is too far behind."

He raised his hand and pointed a finger.

Pitch-black Demonic Flames condensed at his fingertip, like a thin line, silently piercing toward the old man's brow.

The old man roared and summoned his Lifebound Treasure—an Ancient Bronze Shield. Its surface was covered in ancient divine runes, emitting a desolate and heavy aura.

"Clang!"

The thin line of Demonic Flame struck the shield, producing a dull, heavy boom.

The shield did not break.

Just as the old man breathed a sigh of relief, he saw the wisp of Demonic Flame spreading along the shield's patterns like a living thing, covering the entire ancient shield in the blink of an eye!

"Crack..."

Spiderweb-like cracks appeared on the surface of the ancient shield, and then it exploded!

"Pfft!" With his Lifebound Treasure destroyed, the old man's mind was wounded, and he spat out a large mouthful of blood.

Nightmare's finger did not stop; the thin line of Demonic Flame pierced through the old man's protective divine light and entered his brow.

The old man's body stiffened, and the divine light in his eyes rapidly dimmed. He could feel that wisp of Demonic Flame frantically devouring his Divine Soul and Origin within his Sea of Consciousness.

"The Heavenly Emperor... will not... let you..." he stammered out a few words.

Nightmare withdrew his hand, and the old man fell silently, his aura completely gone.

Silence returned to the hall.

Nightmare scanned the surroundings. Countless jade shelves were lined up in the hall, displaying all kinds of Heaven And Earth Treasures, divine weapons, Sharp Weapons, and cultivation Jade Slips. It was a dazzling array, with the light of treasures soaring to the sky.

With a sweep of his Divine Sense, he collected all the items into his portable space.

"Next location."

---

The Council Hall.

Five high-ranking officials of the Divine Court were gathered in the hall, the atmosphere heavy.

"The outer city is fallen, the Inner City is fallen, and the three commanders are dead... We have no way to retreat," a purple-robed old man at the head said in a deep voice.

"Shall we surrender?" another person asked in a low voice.

"Surrender?" The purple-robed old man laughed bitterly. "The Nidao Alliance's methods are ruthless; they leave nothing alive wherever they go. Surrender is also a dead end."

"Then we fight!" A middle-aged man stood up, slamming the table. "Even if we die, we'll take some of them with us!"

As soon as he finished speaking, the hall doors exploded!

Five black-robed figures flitted in like ghosts, the cold light of their weapons glinting.

"Reverse Path thieves, die!" the middle-aged man roared, lunging forward first.

The purple-robed old man and the other three also attacked at the same time. All five were at the Peak of the Hongmeng Celestial Venerable Realm, and their combined power was quite impressive.

Unfortunately, they were facing the "Dark Blade Squad," the most elite unit of the Reverse Dao Allied Forces.

The five black-robed Cultivators didn't even use a combined attack technique; they each simply met one opponent.

Flashes of blades and shadows of swords crossed.

Three breaths later, the five Divine Court officials stood frozen in place, a line of blood appearing on each of their necks simultaneously.

"Thud..."

The five corpses fell to the ground one after another, blood staining the white jade floor.

The black-robed Cultivators sheathed their blades, and one of them took out a transmission Jade Talisman:

"Council Hall, purge complete."

---

The Cultivation Hall.

There were ten independent seclusion rooms inside the hall, each containing a Hongmeng Celestial Venerable Realm Cultivator in seclusion for healing or Breakthrough. The sounds of slaughter outside were blocked by the hall's soundproofing Formation; they were still unaware that disaster was upon them.

Nightmare stood outside the hall and pressed his hand down through the air.

"Boom!!"

The entire Cultivation Hall shook violently, and the stone doors of all ten seclusion rooms exploded simultaneously!

The Cultivators inside were all startled awake, their eyes snapping open in horror.

What greeted them were the pitch-black Demonic Flames pouring into the rooms.

"Ah—!!"

Piercing screams rang out briefly before quickly dying away.

Ten seclusion rooms, ten charred corpses, souls completely extinguished.

---

The purging process was not entirely without incident.

Three Divine Court loyalists lurked in the shadows of the "Archive Pavilion." Seeing that all was lost, they actually tried to detonate their own Origins simultaneously, attempting to perish along with the Reverse Path Cultivators who had entered the pavilion!

The violent energy was about to explode—

Nightmare's figure appeared out of thin air inside the Archive Pavilion, and he waved his right hand.

The Demonic Flames transformed into a hemispherical shield, enveloping the three loyalists and their detonating Origins.

"Boom!!!"

A muffled explosion echoed within the shield; the energy impact was firmly locked inside, without a single bit leaking out.

The shield dissipated, leaving only three wisps of blue smoke behind.

Nightmare withdrew his hand and looked at several clerical Cultivators trembling in the pavilion—their cultivation was low, they hadn't participated in the battle, and they were now slumped on the ground in terror.

"Lord, these people..." a black-robed Cultivator stepped forward to ask for instructions.

Nightmare glanced at them:

"Strip them of their cultivation and expel them from the Divine Court."

"Yes."

He turned and walked out of the Archive Pavilion. Being decisive in killing didn't mean killing indiscriminately. These clerical Cultivators weren't worth his effort.

---

Half a day later.

In the core area of the Divine Court headquarters, except for the towering "Heavenly Emperor Hall" at the deepest part, all other halls and areas were now under the control of the Reverse Dao Allied Forces.

The remaining Cultivators were either slain or stripped of their cultivation and expelled; none escaped the net.

Nightmare stood on the square outside the Heavenly Emperor Hall, with three hundred of his most elite core combat forces behind him.

At the end of the square, the doors of the Heavenly Emperor Hall were tightly shut. The hall was a hundred feet high, built entirely of "Chaos Imperial Gold," its surface flowing with a dark golden luster and emitting a terrifying pressure that made one's heart skip a beat.

That was the aura of the Heavenly Emperor's Origin.

Nightmare looked up at the plaque above the hall doors—the three ancient characters for "Heavenly Emperor Hall," each stroke seemingly containing the ultimate principles of heaven and earth.

The corners of his mouth curled slightly, Demonic Flames dancing in his eyes.

"Finally, we've reached the end."

The three hundred elites silently formed their ranks, their Killing Intent condensing into substance.

They only awaited his command.