Among the Ten Great Sects of the Heart Realm Continent, the Six Ancient Kingdoms occupy eight spots!
The fact that the sect he founded could rank among the Ten Great Sects speaks volumes about the strength and influence of the Lord of Nanyun Kingdom. He looked down upon the Lord of Gouxue Kingdom, who, though powerful, was too self-centered. In fits of rage, he would recklessly clash with the Six Ancient Kingdoms and the Black Devil Swamp… Every major calamity resulted in countless casualties across the entire Gouxue Kingdom.
In contrast, Nanyun Kingdom was the most stable and prosperous among the Black Devil Four Kingdoms.
“The Black Devil Swamp… I truly wonder when it will finally be completely eradicated,” the Lord of Nanyun Kingdom mused silently.
He gazed solemnly at the floating Mirror of Heaven.
The three Divine Emperors and five titled kings present were also watching intently.
“My avatar is besieged by twelve Chaos Realm experts, three of whom have reached the ninth layer of the Chaos Realm,” Divine Emperor Chunyu said coldly, his expression stern. “My avatar won’t last much longer.”
His avatar had long been stationed there, dormant and guarding.
Through the avatar, his consciousness could still persist.
But once the avatar was destroyed! Divine Emperor Chunyu would lose all connection to the space-sealed Firestorm City. Without that connection, he could no longer manifest another avatar!
Normally, when a city was attacked, a Universe God’s avatar could easily descend, and even large groups of powerful reinforcements could teleport in from vast distances… That was why few dared to slaughter wantonly within the cities of powerful kingdoms. But this was the Black Devil Swamp’s doing—they had sealed the space before striking.
“Why, why? Why couldn’t my Ying Shan Clan’s countless descendants, and especially that little Snow Eagle, be given more time to grow?” The Ying Shan Matriarch was heartbroken, her fury bordering on madness. Given her temperament, she would have already charged in, but alas—she couldn’t even enter.
“Matriarch,” the Ghost Li Consort beside her transmitted a comforting message.
…
Meanwhile, deep within the Black Devil Swamp, a grand and vast palace stood, its interior adorned with priceless gemstones and intricate arrays embedded into its walls.
An overwhelming aura faintly emanated from the entire palace.
At the highest point sat three figures. The one in the center was a middle-aged man clad in black robes, behind him loomed a massive, eerie six-ringed diagram that slowly rotated, its depths seemingly containing boundless deathly power. Even the Universe Gods present dared not scrutinize the diagram too closely—a mere glance was enough to unsettle the mind and evoke fear.
To his left sat a smiling elder, whose mere presence inspired goodwill, devoid of any oppressive aura.
To his right was a sickly pale man in green robes, around whom coiled a vast, blood-red serpentine phantom.
These three…
Were the three Sect Masters of the Black Devil Swamp, infamous across the Heart Realm Continent. Even the great families of the Six Ancient Kingdoms trembled at the mere mention of their names.
“Haha, striking at Nanyun Kingdom is a rare opportunity. The blood sacrifice will surely draw the attention of many kingdoms,” one of the seven Universe Gods seated below remarked, alongside other demonic overlords. Only about twenty individuals in the grand hall had the privilege to sit.
Most, of course, were merely avatars.
“Smaller kingdoms? Sacrificing one of their cities is hardly worth mentioning. But a blood sacrifice in Nanyun Kingdom? That’s big news. The Black Devil Four Kingdoms will all be watching, and even nearby realms will take notice.”
“We must make it spectacular.”
They chatted and laughed.
They were demons, after all!
Deep down, they yearned for the luxuries of prosperous lands, not the treacherous, unpredictable depths of the Black Devil Swamp. But the Six Ancient Kingdoms demanded stability, needed countless cultivators to thrive—so these fiends were hunted. Some, strong enough, found refuge as guest elders in great families.
Others, too deeply hated, had nowhere to turn but to flee—to gather in places like this, where they could band together.
And slaughtering cities in blood sacrifices? That was their twisted joy. After hiding and running for so long, they relished the chance to bare their fangs at these kingdoms!
“Hmph… Nanyun Kingdom is nothing. Next time, we’ll sacrifice a city from the Xiafeng Ancient Kingdom—that’ll be true satisfaction.”
“Patience, patience. The opportunity will come.”
“Come, let’s drink.”
The Universe Gods and demonic overlords laughed and conversed.
The three Sect Masters seated above occasionally chimed in, filling the grand hall with an air of mirth.
…
Within Firestorm City, inside the Marquis’s estate, Dongbo Xueying’s residence housed the Void God Tower.
On a floating boulder…
A handsome youth in white robes sat cross-legged, a long spear resting across his knees.
“Rumble—”
The space within the Void God Tower surged like turbulent waves, concealing countless undercurrents of tearing force. The sheer power of these rips was terrifying—any ordinary Chaos Realm expert caught within would be shredded to pieces instantly.
Dongbo Xueying, accustomed to long cultivation sessions, considered a hundred-billion-year seclusion trivial. Having only spent fifteen billion years this time, he remained deeply immersed.
Following his past habits, he would only emerge when progress stalled. But now, with frequent insights, he saw no need to rush.
“Xueying, come out, come out now!!!” Marquis Huolie’s urgent voice transmitted.
“Young master, young master, come out!” The demon servant Zi Bai transmitted.
“Young master, hurry! There’s no time left!” Tian Yizhi’s frantic voice followed.
“Let Zi Bai protect you. I’m in trouble myself—barely holding on. Don’t come to me.” Marquis Huolie added another message.
The barrage of transmissions jolted Dongbo Xueying from his cultivation. He was stunned—the urgency in the voices sent a chill down his spine.
“The Marquis is barely holding on?” Dongbo Xueying was shocked.
He wasted no time.
Whoosh.
Grabbing the Crimson Cloud Spear, he stepped forward and appeared at the exit of the Void God Tower. With a rumble, the sealed doors began to part. The moment a sliver of space opened, he flashed through.
Huff.
Emerging outside the tower, he found the usually carefree demon servant Zi Bai in a state of agitation—his fan nowhere in sight.
“Don’t resist. I’ll take you away,” Zi Bai said, preparing to stow Dongbo Xueying into a pocket realm. But then he paused, staring in astonishment.
His young master’s aura…
Chaos Realm?
“Young master, you’ve broken through to the Chaos Realm?” Zi Bai was stunned. His master specialized in the Void Dao—if he had reached the Chaos Realm, his escape abilities would far surpass those of a mere demon servant.
“Yes.”
Dongbo Xueying acknowledged distractedly, his gaze already piercing through the void to the distant center of Firestorm City.
There, a saintly white-robed figure sat cross-legged in midair, a strange black bottle floating before him. A faint ripple emanated from the bottle, enveloping every corner of the city.
“What is this ripple? What does it do?” Dongbo Xueying wondered, sensing no immediate threat.
But soon, he understood.
“Kill.”
With his perception, he could see every corner of the city. He witnessed armored squads rampaging through Firestorm City—each unit, composed of Unity Realm experts, unleashed combat power rivaling the sixth level of the Divine Palace. The defenseless citizens were slaughtered effortlessly.
As they died, an invisible force was drawn through the ripples into the black bottle.
“Blood sacrifice?” Dongbo Xueying realized.
From his readings in the Nanyun Sacred Sect, he knew of the Black Devil Swamp’s blood sacrifices.
In the Chaos Void, slaying Destruction Demons caused their dissipating energy to nourish souls. Conversely, when demons killed cultivators, they too grew stronger.
Thus, when a cultivator’s soul perished, a unique energy dispersed—though in the Chaos Void, only demons could absorb it.
But in the Heart Realm Continent…
Long ago, it was discovered that every living soul contained a trace of the source world’s most fundamental power—and it could be harvested.
‘Blood sacrifice’ was the means to extract this primal energy from countless souls. The core of the ritual was the sacrificial vessel—a treasure so rare that even among the Six Ancient Kingdoms, only three knew how to forge it. The knowledge was that exclusive!
Among the Black Devil Swamp’s three Sect Masters, the Yama Demon Sect Master was one who possessed this dark art.
“Blood sacrifice?”
“A blood sacrifice in Firestorm City?” Dongbo Xueying’s shock quickly gave way to overwhelming rage. His eyes burned crimson.
Though his thoughts raced, only an instant had passed since his emergence.
“Young master, we must flee! I’ve already secured Lady Ying Shan Xiyue in my pocket realm. As for your father, Ying Shan Liehu—he’s likely still at Misty Cloud Pavilion. It’s too far; we can’t save him in time,” Zi Bai urged frantically.
“Dongbo Xueying has been spotted!” A voice cried out in triumph from afar.
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