On the Immortal Vessel, Qin Qingyue and Wu Zhaohua stood side by side at the prow, silently gazing down at the world torn apart beneath them.
“This world doesn’t seem very large, not even as big as the Eastern Wasteland,” Qin Qingyue murmured softly.
“And why is half of this world turned black?”
The world before them was half dark and half light, with the boundary rippling as if turbulent waves were flowing toward the brightness.
⋯
Bai Lu’s usually cold face showed rare surprise as she whispered, “They are Outworld Heavenly Demons.”
That term only existed in the oldest of ancient texts, belonging to legends long sealed away by time.
“What? These are the Outworld Heavenly Demons?” Qin Qingyue tilted her head and asked Bai Lu.
Wu Zhaohua’s expression also reflected some confusion as she looked toward Bai Lu.
Both of them had only heard the name before, never having the chance to truly understand it.
“A horde of evil demons that corrupt worlds!” The voluptuous Chi Hong answered eagerly.
She was somewhat knowledgeable about this.
In ancient times, the Five Provinces Continent and many other worlds had fought against these Outworld Demons.
But since that great war, the Outworld Heavenly Demons had seemingly vanished, never to appear again, lost to obscurity.
“Yet, it might not be so simple as calling them just ‘evil demons,’” Bai Lu said softly, her voice clear and crisp.
“What do you mean?” Chi Hong asked, puzzled.
Bai Lu stared at the darkness that sucked away all light and replied, “The world is silent; it belongs to no one—not to the Outworld Heavenly Demons, nor to us.”
“They were born to erode the world; it is their instinct. We were born to struggle to survive; that is ours. None of us is a demon.”
The world was silent, belonging to no one.
Qin Qingyue stood tall, her dragon tail flicking lightly, smiling as she asked Bai Lu, “I’ve heard that long ago, the Dragon Clan split, and the White Dragon Clan took the highest positions and therefore more treasures.”
“This included many ancient texts and secrets, is it true?”
Of course, these were merely rumors circulating due to the mysterious yet powerful presence of the White Dragon Clan in the Northern Plains.
Chi Hong looked curiously at Bai Lu as well, for she had heard similar tales.
The White Dragon Clan’s strength remained an enigma to this day.
But one thing was clear: each generation had Supreme Sages at the Great Ascension stage like Qin Qingyue and Wu Zhaohua.
That was terrifying enough to make one imagine just how much the White Dragon Clan took when the split happened.
Bai Lu paused slightly, choosing not to answer Qin Qingyue’s question. Instead, she said softly, “Sect Master Qin, Da Zongzhu Wu; please once again sense Jiang Huai’s location.”
“I and Chief of the Red Clan must stay aboard the Immortal Vessel accordingly.”
Seeing her unwilling to say more, Qin Qingyue did not press further. She closed her eyes and focused, sensing the Black Dragon Mark imprinted on Jiang Huai’s abdomen.
[After a moment, Wu Zhaohua suddenly opened her eyes with a grave expression, and Qin Qingyue’s face changed as well.]
Jiang Huai’s position was moving toward the territory of the Outworld Heavenly Demons.
Zhu Siyao grabbed Jiang Huai’s arm, irritated.
“Why do you need to step forward? Why stay here!?”
“Qin Qingyue and Wu Zhaohua are coming! Wouldn’t it be better if we all go home together?”
She sympathized with this world and pitied the lives adrift like floating duckweed.
But if she had to choose, she would unhesitatingly choose the person beside her—Jiang Huai.
As long as the two of them could safely return to the Five Provinces Continent, that was enough.
“Is your life your own to decide? Why don’t you think about others?!” Zhu Siyao’s face flushed red, as if from anger.
He could not afford to have an accident; he belonged to many, to those who loved him.
Jiang Huai gently pressed his abdomen, his tone calm: “I am not going to die meaninglessly or make a pointless sacrifice.”
He lifted his head, gazing toward the horizon as if piercing through the void.
“This feeling is becoming clearer and clearer.”
“Qin Qingyue and Wu Zhaohua are almost here.”
If Tang Zhaoxue could intercept and buy them some time, and Qin Qingyue and Wu Zhaohua arrived promptly, then perhaps the Xuanxian Immortal Sect might not be destroyed, and all living beings here would still have a chance.
“In that case, I’m going with you!” Zhu Siyao said resolutely, eyes burning bright.
Jiang Huai frowned. “You should evacuate with Mu Nianyan. I’ll go alone.”
“It’s too dangerous.”
Zhu Siyao suddenly smiled, but there was no warmth in her eyes.
“If you knew it was dangerous, you wouldn’t go.”
“No matter how confident you are, it’s still a gamble.”
“You can’t control me! You once said…”
In this world, the two of them had to rely on each other.
Dark clouds hung low, the air thick with a choking stench.
Tang Zhaoxue stood before the city gate, Immortal Sword in hand, dressed in blue robes that blended into the dusk like a cold, still pool.
Her eyes were fixed with unyielding resolve.
Behind her stood the last elders and disciples steadfastly defending the Xuanxian Immortal Sect.
Not far ahead, a surging tide of darkness roiled ominously.
Inside the city, the civilians were steadily retreating.
They had to hold the line until all the people were safely evacuated; for the other areas, she had arranged for orderly withdrawal as well.
Jiang Huai stood beside her, looking at those disciples who knowingly faced death yet remained upright, then back to the frightened commoners supporting each other as they fled.
A complex wave of emotion surged in his heart.
If this were the Five Provinces Continent, this would be impossible.
For many sects, the death of a city’s commoners wouldn’t equal the value of a single Golden Core Stage cultivator.
Yet now, this group of cultivators was ready to collectively sacrifice themselves to protect the people behind them.
The dark tide finally appeared on the horizon, not aimlessly flooding in, but like a concentrated black flood radiating pure malice.
Where it passed, grass and trees withered, rocks decayed, even the light was swallowed and twisted.
Jiang Huai saw the Outworld Heavenly Demons for the first time.
And at that moment, something deeply buried in his blood suddenly awakened.
He trembled all over, his heartbeat drumming like war drums, the sound of rushing blood roaring in his ears.
“What’s wrong with you?” Tang Zhaoxue immediately noticed his abnormality, frowning as she stepped forward, her palm lightly brushing his back, her voice unusually gentle.
“If you can’t bear it, then retreat first.”
She sighed quietly; men could never endure battlefield carnage as well as women.
But the next moment, she met a pair of eyes blazing with a sudden, fierce light.
There was no fear in them, only a nearly bestial excitement, icy and bloodthirsty gleaming deep within.
Jiang Huai breathed heavily, a killing impulse from the depths of his soul wildly clamoring.
This feeling was innate, like a cat playing with a mouse.
As if he was born to hunt these demons.
“I’m fine, I’m fine…”
The bloodthirsty urge grew stronger and stronger in his heart.
His mind remained clear, but all he felt inside was:
Kill kill kill kill kill kill kill kill kill.
Jiang Huai took a deep breath as Yin and Yang energies responded to his will.
The Blazing and Profound Yin streams surged forth from the Chaos Dao Platform, intertwining around him, casting him as both righteous and demonic, his aura suddenly soaring.
He stood at the center of Black and White True Qi, his clothes and hair whipping wildly as if a god or demon had descended.
“If that’s the case, then so be it,” Tang Zhaoxue saw that Jiang Huai’s state was not from fear and returned to her position.
“Rely on the Formation, hold the city walls!”
Her voice was calm and steady.
She pointed her sword, and a sharp sword qi sliced out, instantly staggering back a monstrous leader demon of massive size and grotesque form.
“The Nascent Soul Stage Outworld Heavenly Demons are mine to deal with; you all fend off the rest yourselves!”
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