171: Choices and the End

Since there was nothing good in the treasury, Renn decided to dismantle it himself.

The Holy Lord's Palace, which was full of treasures, became the target of Renn's demolition. Several high-level mages were extremely skilled at dismantling the place, and a large amount of Transcendent Material was stuffed into spatial rings and packed away.

Kapdo worked the hardest at the dismantling. He had already discussed it with Renn; after obtaining this batch of Transcendent Material, they would start building the first Mage Tower in the Red River Territory.

As a mage, who wouldn't want to own a Mage Tower?

Kapdo once owned his own Mage Tower, but it was gone now.

The reason he was so excited now, besides for himself, was more for Cecilia. Kapdo hoped to secure more resources and benefits for Cecilia before he passed away.

Materials from the Holy Lord's Palace were packed into spatial rings one by one and quickly taken back to the Red River Territory, after which they would return to the Holy Mountain to continue dismantling.

Renn and the others kept traveling back and forth between the Holy Mountain and the Red River Territory, and the Holy Lord's residence visibly shrank before their eyes.

Some people on the Holy Mountain were extremely dissatisfied when they saw Renn's actions. The Holy Lord's Palace was a sacred site in their hearts, and now it was being forcibly demolished by Renn. This was a huge blow to them.

Some people rushed up to argue with Renn. Renn had Prague clear away these troublemakers, and those stubborn individuals who wouldn't listen were directly sent flying by Renn.

Renn's actions also made some of the Holy Mountain's people unwilling to migrate, but Renn didn't indulge them; if they didn't want to move, then they didn't have to.

The Plane Passage was already overcrowded and blocked. Renn had too many people and too little time; he didn't care about this small amount of population.

While he was dismantling the place, Renn also had an unexpected harvest. In the Holy Lord's residence, he found several unused lair cores.

Besides the lair cores, Renn had an even greater harvest: the collection of books and knowledge once owned by the Holy Lord.

Renn discovered a study within the Holy Lord's Palace, and inside he found a large number of precious classics and various books of knowledge.

This included the Breathing Techniques and other secret arts practiced by the Three Great Tribes, as well as various secret arts mastered by tribes that had already disappeared from this Sub-plane.

Although most of these secret arts were not of a high level, they greatly enriched Renn's collection of techniques, giving the Professionals of the Red River Territory more choices in the future.

In addition to the low-level techniques, Renn also discovered the Breathing Technique and Meditation Method practiced by the Holy Lord.

To his surprise, this Holy Lord, whom Renn had never met, was actually a dual-cultivator like himself, being both a Warrior Class and a Spellcaster, and both had reached the Legendary Realm.

Renn couldn't help but marvel at that Holy Lord's powerful strength and terrifying talent.

Yet, even such a brilliant figure was helpless in the face of the world's collapse, turning into fragments instantly before the space storm.

The Sacred Heart Breathing Technique and the Sacred Heart Meditation Method—looking at these two Legendary techniques in his hands, Renn's breathing quickened. They could be considered Renn's greatest harvest so far.

With Legendary-level techniques, Renn felt a bit more confident about breaking through to the Legendary Realm in the future.

It wasn't that practicing a Legendary technique guaranteed a breakthrough to the Legendary Realm; high-level secret arts did have a great auxiliary effect, but it wasn't absolute, especially for breaking through to the Legendary Realm.

However, Legendary techniques could provide Renn with different ideas and paths to try, increasing his chances of a breakthrough.

After putting all the books from the entire study into his spatial ring and ensuring not a single one was left behind, Renn continued the demolition.

Time passed day by day. The Holy Lord's Palace was not small, and transporting it solely with spatial rings took a lot of time, but it was the fastest method currently available.

Five days later, Renn and the others finally finished dismantling and emptying the Holy Lord's Palace. At this point, a large pit was left on the platform at the top of the Holy Mountain; Renn and the others had even dismantled part of the foundation and taken it back to the Red River Territory.

"Finally finished moving it all!"

"Now that we're done here, there aren't many valuable places left on the Holy Mountain. Some Magic Arrays and certain special buildings still have some value and can be dismantled and taken back to the Red River Territory."

Kapdo was still eager for more, wanting to scavenge more resources.

Fiona, acting as a guide, led Renn and the others to various parts of the Holy Mountain, and the group continued their endless cycle of moving, moving, and more moving!

Meanwhile, on the battlefield between the eastern humans and the Chaos Demons, the Great Elder looked toward his target with a determined gaze. He was already surrounded by the corpses of Chaos Demons and Holy Mountain warriors.

More than half of the Holy Mountain's elders had already died in battle, and the remaining ones were all heavily injured.

As for the Human Legion, their losses were even more severe. Less than a quarter of those who could still stand and fight remained.

After continuous, high-intensity combat without rest, even the most valiant warriors could no longer hold on.

The Chief of the Wind Riding Tribe stood behind the Great Elder, covered in blood, looking at the Great Elder's back with a complex expression. Beside him was an elder who also hailed from the Wind Riding Tribe.

Among the Holy Mountain's elders, only two were from the Wind Riding Tribe; the other had already died in battle not long ago.

"Great Elder, we have held out here long enough. The world is about to shatter; our mission is complete."

"The messenger eagles have brought word that the Holy Mountain and the Three Great Tribes are all migrating westward toward the Plane Passage controlled by the Lord of the White Wolves. Should we..."

The Wind Rider Chief's words were cut short by the Great Elder.

"We must hold our ground here. It takes time for our kin to evacuate. With so many people moving, passing through the Plane Passage cannot be completed in just a few days."

"Right now, the area around that western Plane Passage is likely overcrowded. Everyone is waiting to leave this world; we absolutely cannot let these monsters interrupt them now."

"If we leave this place, these monsters will soon chase them to the west. When that happens, the chaos among the kin waiting to leave will result in countless deaths."

"Besides, can we even leave now? Those monsters won't let us go!" the Great Elder said with a look of resolve, watching the Chaos Demons gathering once again to pounce.

The Wind Rider Chief and the elder beside him exchanged a glance, their eyes flickering with uncertainty.

"Kill! For our kin, for our home!"

The Great Elder once again charged toward the Chaos Demons without looking back. The warriors of the Holy Mountain likewise charged forward with total disregard for their own lives; by now, they had put life and death aside.

"Go!"

Not long after the Great Elder charged forward, the Wind Rider Chief, who had been behind him, did not choose to follow. Instead, he and the elder beside him chose to turn and flee.

The talent of the Wind Riders allowed them to fly and leave the battlefield quickly. In just a few breaths, the Wind Rider Chief and his companion disappeared over the horizon.

The Great Elder, who was in the middle of fighting, along with the remaining warriors, watched the Wind Rider Chief and the other man disappear. The Great Elder frowned slightly but then stopped worrying about the two fugitives, focusing all his attention on the battle before him.

The Wind Rider Chief's desertion did not shake the Great Elder's heart. On the contrary, it made his strikes even more violent, and a large number of demons fell before him.

However, not everyone possessed a mind as steadfast as the Great Elder's. Many were affected by the flight of the Wind Rider Chief and the elder, especially the warriors from the Wind Riding Tribe.

This immediately caused a gap to appear in the already precarious battle line, and a large number of Chaos Demons broke into the Holy Mountain army, slaughtering everyone in sight.

After the Great Elder finished off the enemies in front of him, he charged into the swarm of Chaos Demons again to fight with all his might. The few remaining elders did the same.

After an unknown amount of time of bitter fighting, the Great Elder struggled to his feet. Covered in blood and filth, he stood in the center of the battlefield. Around him, there were hardly any figures left standing.

The warriors of the Holy Mountain army had all fallen on the battlefield. Severed limbs and corpses were mixed together, resembling a scene from hell.

"Lord Holy Lord, I have done my best!"

Looking at the scene before him as the shadows of the distant Chaos Demons began to reappear, the Great Elder looked up at the sky. It was as if he had returned to that clear afternoon many years ago when he first met that brilliant person whom he would admire for his entire life.

The roars of the Chaos Demons pulled him back to reality. Looking at the loathsome monsters, the Great Elder wiped the blood and filth from his face and then launched his final charge.