293: Chapter 294 The Rise of Demons and the Decline of the Dao, The Tragedy of Qingxiao!

The fall of Ancestor Cangxuan was like a giant boulder thrown into the already turbulent waters of the Middle Heaven, stirring up a thousand layers of terrifying waves.

The situation throughout the Middle Heaven was bleak and filled with gloom.

The various Holy Lands suffered a massive blow to their Origin Qi because the elites guarding the Ghost Abyss were completely wiped out, causing their control over their respective territories to decline further.

In stark contrast, the influence of the Demonic Path grew immensely.

The return of the Nine Nether Demon Emperor was like a shot of the most potent adrenaline for all demonic cultivators.

With an unprecedented frenzy, they began to seize cities and territories; within just a few short months, they had occupied the lands of several Imperial Dynasties in the Middle Heaven.

Countless Loose Cultivators who were frustrated in these troubled times or blinded by hatred...

...and even some Sect Disciples with impure intentions flocked to join the Ten Thousand Demon Cave like a school of carp crossing a river.

For a time, the momentum of the Demonic Path was unparalleled.

Despite this, the righteous path had, after all, inherited a Legacy of hundreds of thousands of years and possessed deep foundations.

Besides the fallen Ancestor Cangxuan and Daoist Venerable Qingxu, who presided over the Qingxiao Holy Mountain...

...others like Elder Xuanyao of the Qingming Alchemy Mansion, the Sacred Lord of the Yaochi Holy Land, and the Imperial Lord of the Eternal Dynasty were all genuine powerhouses of the Return to One Realm.

Although they usually acted independently and even had petty grievances with each other, they could still barely maintain a united front when facing a major issue of right and wrong like the Demonic Path.

Because of this, although the situation in the Middle Heaven was deteriorating, it had not yet reached the point of total collapse.

However, an even more worrying variable kept all the high-level members of the Holy Lands from eating or sleeping in peace.

That was the Yao Race.

The news of the Nine Nether Demon Emperor's emergence also reached the Western Desert Demon Realm.

The powerful experts of the Yao Race, who were already confronting the Human Race army on the border and had long been unable to restrain themselves...

...became restless upon learning that a titan of the Return to One Realm on the Human Race's side had fallen.

In their eyes, this was simply a godsend opportunity!

With internal strife among the Human Race and the fall of a powerhouse, if they didn't take advantage of the situation now, when would they?

Suddenly, the conflict at the border between humans and Yao became increasingly tense; the Yao Race army could tear apart that fragile balance and launch a massive invasion of the Middle Heaven at any moment.

With a Devil Emperor escaped within and the Yao Race eyeing them from without...

The entire Middle Heaven was shrouded in an oppressive atmosphere, like the calm before a brewing storm.

...

Qingxiao Holy Mountain, Central Hall.

All the surviving high-level members of the Sect gathered together, their faces filled with gravity and concern.

Daoist Venerable Qingxu sat in the main seat; his expression gave away nothing, but a bone-chilling coldness occasionally flickered in his deep eyes.

The death of Senior Brother Cangxuan was a heavy blow to him.

But even more so, it was a source of endless rage.

Two successive generations of leading figures in the Return to One Realm from the Qingxiao Holy Mountain had died at the hands of the Nine Nether Demon Emperor alone!

This blood feud was irreconcilable!

If he, Qingxu, did not slay this devil in this lifetime, he swore he would not be human!

"Revered Master,"

Just as the atmosphere in the hall reached its most oppressive point, a steady young man dressed in the attire of a Saint walked out from the lower hall and bowed deeply to Daoist Venerable Qingxu.

"Now that the Sect faces internal and external troubles and the people are in a state of panic, I wonder if Revered Master has a plan to deal with this?"

The speaker was none other than the contemporary Saint of the Qingxiao Holy Mountain.

After the baptism of war over the past ten years, he had long since shed his former naivety.

He had become increasingly steady and capable, faintly possessing the air of a Grandmaster; recently, on the border, he had personally slain several generals of the Yao Race, and his fame had soared.

Daoist Venerable Qingxu looked at his most prized Disciple, a hint of gratification appearing in his eyes.

Although the Holy Mountain had suffered a great catastrophe, at least there was a successor.

He took a deep breath, his gaze sweeping over all the Elders in the hall, and announced in an unquestionable tone.

"This seat has decided to go to the Demon Realm in the coming days to fight a life-and-death battle with that Nine Nether Demon Emperor!"

As soon as these words were spoken, everyone present was shocked!

"You mustn't, Venerable!"

Old Taoist Zhenxuan was the first to stand up; although he was an Elder, his strength had always been stuck at the Peak of the Guixu Realm.

At this moment, he tearfully pleaded, "Venerable, you are the only pillar of our Qingxiao Holy Mountain! Senior Brother Cangxuan has just fallen; if something happens to you, our Holy Mountain will truly be finished!"

"Yes, Venerable! Please reconsider!"

The other Elders also spoke up in agreement, each one sweating profusely with anxiety.

They were truly terrified.

Daoist Venerable Qingxu felt a slight warmth in his heart seeing everyone's worried faces, but his determination did not waver in the slightest.

He raised his hand, quieting the discussion, and explained in a low voice:

"I understand the feelings of the Elders. But have you considered why the Nine Nether Demon Emperor chose to return to the Demon Realm instead of attacking immediately after killing Senior Brother Cangxuan?"

"Because he has just escaped, and his strength has not yet recovered to its Peak!"

"This is also our only chance!"

"If we wait until he fully recovers his strength, then let alone me, even if all the Return to One Realm experts of the Middle Heaven join forces, I'm afraid they would be no match for him!"

"We are currently racing against time!"

These words plunged the Elders in the hall into silence.

They knew that what the Venerable said was the truth.

But while the logic held up, the risk was simply too great.

"Venerable," an Elder spoke up hesitantly.

"In that case, why don't we ally with the Yaochi Holy Land? If we could persuade that Sacred Lord to act together, with two Return to One Realm powerhouses joining forces, wouldn't the chances of victory be greater?"

"Yaochi?"

Hearing this, Daoist Venerable Qingxu shook his head, an imperceptible trace of mockery flashing in his eyes.

"The Yaochi Holy Land has always stayed out of worldly affairs; unless the flames of war reach their mountain gates, they will never easily take action."

These were just polite words.

What he truly thought in his heart was that the Yaochi Holy Land wished for nothing more than for the other Holy Lands to fight to the death with the Demonic Path and suffer heavy losses.

Then they could sit back and reap the benefits, becoming the sole dominant power.

Count on that group of women?

One might as well count on the Yao Race suddenly having a change of heart and withdrawing their troops back to the Western Desert.

Seeing the still-worried crowd in the hall, Daoist Venerable Qingxu knew he had to give them some reassurance.

"Rest assured, everyone."

He stood up, his voice becoming powerful and resonant.

"I am not going to throw my life away alone."

"Before setting out, I will personally contact the Sect Leaders of the various Holy Lands and unite all forces that can be united to form a Demon-Slaying Army!"

"This time, we will gather the strength of the entire righteous path and achieve everything in one final effort to completely wipe that Devil Head and all his demonic followers from this world!"