The Demonic Cultivators, already drained to their last breath, naturally had no strength to resist the attacks of the Tianmomen cultivators.
Even if no Tianmomen cultivator had come to finish them off, they wouldn’t have lasted more than a few minutes.
But even before death, they still left some unpleasant impressions on the Tianmomen cultivators.
Not a single one of these cultivators died at the hands of the Tianmomen cultivators.
Instead, the moment they saw Tianmomen cultivators charging at them, they chose to Self-Destruct with a punch.
The power of the Self-Destruct was minuscule—less than even a Ling King standing right next to them.
These Demonic Cultivators did this for only one purpose: to splash blood all over the Tianmomen cultivators’ faces.
“You’re all going to die!”
“We’ll meet again soon!”
“Let’s go to hell together!”
As the five Demonic Cultivators died one by one in their Self-Destructs, the faces of the Tianmomen cultivators grew ugly.
It was utterly disgusting.
These Demonic Cultivators seemed as though they had been corroded by something, completely devoid of any desire to survive.
At this moment, shouldn’t they be kneeling on the ground begging for mercy, offering up all the Treasures on their bodies to try to awaken a sliver of compassion from Tianmomen?
Perhaps Tianmomen really would be moved and willing to spare their lives?
Though such a possibility didn’t exist—Youye wasn’t the kind of kind-hearted person who kept rats as pets—it was still hard to understand why they wouldn’t at least try.
Fighting desperately at first sight, then cutting their own throats at the end—this completely reckless way of fighting was truly baffling.
Did they really not want to live?
Not even willing to fight for a single chance at survival?
This unnatural feeling left the Tianmomen cultivators unable to comprehend… until they arrived outside the valley that had already been completely swallowed by Colored Foliage.
The Space Shattering before them silently answered their question—why those five cultivators weren’t afraid of death, why they never thought about peaceful coexistence?
Because nothing mattered anymore.
Would kneeling save them? Given the moral fiber of those Demonic Cultivators, they would definitely kneel and seek that sliver of a chance to live.
Only when truly desperate would they fight with everything they had, determined to take their enemy down with them even if it meant dying.
And now, was the moment of true desperation for the Demonic Cultivators.
The Mechanism. Had been destroyed.
There was no turning back. This Mechanism had truly been destroyed!
“Damn it!” Youye’s eyes widened, her pupils trembling violently.
She had thought the Secret Realm might collapse early, but she never imagined it would end up like this.
The Secret Realm could clearly last a few more days, yet the place to pull the Gate had already been devoured by those plants that were consuming the Secret Realm.
Didn’t this mean they had no way to leave the Secret Realm through the Transmission Array?
“Shijie, this… what are we supposed to do?” The other Tianmomen cultivators panicked, finally understanding why those five Demonic Cultivators had said such things.
Yes, in this situation now, didn’t that mean everyone was going to die?
They had clearly killed all the enemies in the Secret Realm, clearly obtained the most precious Treasure in the Secret Realm—two good things combined should have become something even better.
Why did it turn out like this?
The joy of victory suddenly turned into disbelief at the current situation.
The Tianmomen Demonic Cultivators looked around as they stood at the edge of the Space Shattering, searching for any glimmer of hope.
But the more they looked, the more desperate they became. The valley had been completely destroyed, and that Mechanism was nowhere to be seen.
They couldn’t get out!
“Damn Wanhuagu, how dare they deceive us!”
“This has only been ten days! Why can’t we leave the Secret Realm!”
The Demonic Cultivators who refused to accept reality erupted in curses.
Even those who had previously held an understanding attitude toward the Wanhuagu Monsters couldn’t help but join in.
Before, Wanhuagu’s fist hadn’t landed on them, so they could speak with righteous indignation.
But now that they had also felt Wanhuagu’s iron fist, times had certainly changed.
“Don’t panic! Go to the Transmission Array immediately and gather everyone!”
Youye furrowed her brow and cut off the Demonic Cultivators’ discussion. “It’s not time to die yet!”
Everyone was stunned by these words. Could it be that Youye had a backup plan?
“Hmph, I still hold a token in my hand that can allow Master to shatter space and take us away. Now that we’ve obtained the Demon Corpse Crystal, we can naturally ask Master to come and take us out!”
……
“She took the bait!”
Huajian jumped up from the ground in an instant. This was exactly what she had been waiting for—Youye’s words.
Heaven rewards the diligent. Under her constant guidance, Youye had finally brought out the most important thing.
Having the Dragon Venerable shatter space to take the Tianmomen cultivators away—this was the ending Huajian wanted.
Everything, absolutely everything, had been building toward this moment.
“Linglong, send the message quickly. Tell them the big fish is about to take the bait!”
“I know, I’m already sending it!” Linglong had long since taken out the specially made Communication Jade Talisman and injected a stream of Spiritual Power into it.
This Yupai would only send one message—telling the seniors involved in this operation that the moment was about to arrive.
Even if the Magic Path intercepted this Spiritual Power fluctuation, they wouldn’t be able to decipher its meaning, because the fluctuation itself carried no meaning.
It was just a very ordinary fluctuation. Only those holding the special Yupai would know what it represented.
Watching the Tianmomen group rapidly advancing toward the Transmission Array at the center of the Secret Realm through her surveillance, Huajin tucked her hand into her sleeve.
“Let’s go. We’re getting out of here.”
She had no desire to watch a Demon Path Venerable get ambushed up close.
After all, a Venerable was still a Venerable. If she got too close, she might easily be seen through.
If the Venerable took a fancy and swung a palm at her, even if Huajian could survive, Linglong would be reduced to meat paste.
So she figured it was best to hide at the edge of the Secret Realm, or even slip into the cracks of the Space Shattering.
As long as the Tianmomen Venerable couldn’t find them, that was fine.
……
“Is the operation about to begin?” The wooden Token in Huaxinhu’s hand emitted a slight warmth—this was the sect’s elders sending her a message.
The meaning was simple: evacuate immediately, get far away from this dangerous place that was about to become a Venerable’s Battlefield.
As early as a few days ago, the Wanhuagu cultivators stationed here had already evacuated in large numbers.
Now, only she, Huaxinrui, and two other Disciples remained behind.
As for those Demonic Cultivators who had stayed to watch the excitement, Huaxinhu couldn’t be bothered with them.
Using her tail to wrap up the oblivious Huaxinrui, Huaxinhu tossed two fox hairs into the small room, creating the illusion that the two of them were still on duty inside.
Then, she activated her Concealment Technique and silently slipped away from the dangerous area with Huaxinrui.
……
“Raise the City Protection Array’s defense level by one tier. Prepare for the worst.”
“Yes!”
Qian Feixue stood atop the city wall, gazing into the distance, her mind swirling with countless thoughts.
Though she knew full well that the battle erupting in the Secret Realm wouldn’t affect Frozen Winter City, the preparations still had to be made.
She did hope this operation could kill that black dragon outright—cutting the weeds and pulling the roots—but unfortunately, a powerhouse of that level wouldn’t die so easily.
To make a Venerable this close to being a Saint fall would require more than just an Ambush by several Spirit Lords.
It would take a Saint acting in person for even a chance.
And even then, it would have to be done without the target knowing.
Otherwise, if the other party sensed something wrong and fled with everything they had, even a Saint would have difficulty catching up.
So this joint operation between Wanhuagu and the Yaochi Sect would, in the end, only manage to hurt the Dragon Venerable, not kill him.
As for what other tricks lay beyond hurting him, that was a secret not even she knew.
Presumably, the plan jointly devised by the Valley Master of Wanhua and the Yaochi Sect Leader shouldn’t be limited to merely injuring the Dragon Venerable.
Their ultimate goal should be to locate where the Dragon Venerable was.
“A Saint’s thoughts are truly hard to guess…”
……
While preparations for the Venerable battle were quietly underway at various locations outside the Secret Realm, the Tianmomen cultivators inside the Secret Realm gathered around the Transmission Array platform at its center.
They already knew the Transmission Array couldn’t be activated. Now they all stared at Youye with anxious eyes, hoping she would come up with a solution.
“Don’t worry. I’ll contact Master right now. He will definitely have a way to get us out.” Youye was very calm. She wasn’t afraid the Dragon Venerable would abandon her now.
After all, her Mission was already complete, and the Demon Corpse Crystal was already in hand.
As long as the Dragon Venerable wanted this Treasure, he would definitely act to save her.
She sliced open her palm with a wave of her hand and smeared the black blood flowing from it onto a black Scale taken from her Storage Pouch.
Youye respectfully held the Scale high above her head.
The next moment, a ball of pitch-black flame surged out from within the Scale, taking the form of a black dragon on its surface.
A formidable pressure descended upon everyone, crushing them to their knees.
“Master, we have obtained the Demon Corpse Crystal, but Wanhuagu has no sense of honor! They deceived us about the Secret Realm’s time!”
Sensing that the Dragon Venerable was in a bad mood, Youye hurriedly laid out her entire situation first.
She didn’t dare play tricks—like mentioning the Treasure first while hiding the problems.
If she did that, the Dragon Venerable would probably burn her to ashes on the spot.
This Venerable hated it most when subordinates played mind games.
“There’s no way for us to leave here. I offer the Demon Corpse Crystal to Master, but I have no choice but to resort to this lowly scheme and beg Master to act…”
An even more powerful pressure emanated from the Flame Black Dragon, pressing Youye down to the ground as well.
“The thing.”
A cold, snake-like hissing voice sounded in everyone’s minds.
Youye immediately took the Demon Corpse Crystal out of her Storage Pouch and presented it with both hands to the Dragon Venerable.
“The Demonic Qi on it is too heavy, so this disciple could only hide it inside her Storage Pouch.”
The Dragon paid no attention to Youye’s explanation.
It directly used Spiritual Power to lift the Demon Corpse Crystal, examined it for a moment, then nodded with satisfaction.
“Well done. I’ll take it back with me.”
The Dragon absorbed the Corpse Crystal into its body, and its voice gradually became more emotionally expressive.
“Come closer. I’ll take you all out together.”
Hearing these words, the Tianmomen cultivators were overjoyed and, without much thought, moved toward the Dragon.
Only Youye hesitated. No, something was very wrong.
She knew her Master well—the Dragon Venerable was absolutely not such a kind existence.
She had only ever hoped the Dragon Venerable would take her away.
She had never imagined those subordinates would be brought along too.
Even in her wildest dreams, she wouldn’t dare think in that direction.
When something goes against the norm, there must be something wrong.
She looked at the Demonic Cultivators who wore delighted expressions beside the Dragon and couldn’t help but take two steps back, driven by instinct.
And those two steps made the Dragon truly laugh out loud.
“Hahaha, good, very good. I knew picking you out of thousands was the right choice.”
Before Youye could understand what those words meant, blazing black fire suddenly erupted on those Demonic Cultivators.
Amidst the screams rising one after another, the remaining Tianmomen cultivators in the Secret Realm met their complete annihilation, leaving only Youye standing there, cold sweat streaming down her face as she witnessed this one-sided Massacre.
If she had also moved closer just now, would she have been burned to ashes like those cultivators?
“The power in the Scale isn’t enough for me to shatter space and descend. They… had to die.”
The black fire flowing from the Tianmomen cultivators danced wildly through the air, forming an incomparably massive formation.
Youye, standing near the formation, felt an extremely intense sensation of spatial dislocation, as though this space was being overlaid with another.
Thump! Thump! Thump!
Dull pounding sounds echoed through the Secret Realm. Each impact added several more cracks to this already fragile space.
And from Youye’s perspective, the scene was especially breathtaking.
She watched as the space before her shattered inch by inch, pitch-black fire erupting from the spatial fissures, tearing the space apart even further.
Her Master was shattering space with punch after punch to bring her out of here!
In that moment, she had already forgotten how the Dragon Venerable had slaughtered the others not long ago, because she knew she was special—she was the one her Master treated differently!
She even felt grateful in her heart that her Master was willing to personally shatter space just to save her!
It was truly moving.
Boom!
After several consecutive impacts, the Secret Realm’s space finally shattered completely.
A pitch-black void appeared before Youye’s eyes.
A massive Dragon Claw reached out from the black hole. Just as it was about to retrieve the Flame Black Dragon, a sudden change occurred.
Countless Petals appeared from nowhere, surging all at once into the pitch-black void opened by the Dragon Claw.
And on the other side, a massive sea-blue Dragon Claw also tore through space, swinging toward the black dragon’s claw.
“Lingcai! Lan Ling!” The Dragon Venerable’s voice changed drastically. “Damn it, so you two were after me all along!”
It immediately tried to retract its claw, but the sea-blue Dragon Claw gave it no such chance.
As a flash of white light blazed forth, the blue claw became wreathed in Thunder.
A colossal blue dragon revealed its true form, clamping down hard on the black dragon’s claw, refusing to let it pull back.
“Saint’s power?! The Dragon Saint has also intervened?!”
The Dragon Venerable’s voice grew more and more terrified.
It and the blue dragon were old rivals—when it came to raw strength, it shouldn’t lose.
But now it couldn’t pull its hand back, which left only one possibility.
The blue dragon had been empowered.
“You have poisoned your own kind. How could the Saint not act against you! Die, traitor!”