To the native demonic beasts of the Howling Moon Mountain Range, human cultivators were truly nothing more than unwanted guests.
And those who came to invade and conquer Howling Moon were the worst kind of unwelcome intruders.
From that perspective, Ao Xiao's words held considerable truth.
Regrettably, there were matters where reason held no sway.
For living space, for cultivation resources, and for the grand path to immortality, what Han Zhan had to do today was turn the tables and establish dominion over Howling Moon!
He raised his hands toward the empty air.
A series of low hums echoed from the void.
From the earth that had just collapsed and shattered, dense ripples of dim light suddenly welled up, surging toward Qianye Peak like rolling waves.
Within that eerie radiance, five cross-legged figures sat holding sharp swords, gazing coldly through the moonlight at the majestic, middle-aged man draped in golden robes.
"A puppet sword array?" Demon Emperor Ao Xiao raised an eyebrow.
Han Zhan smiled faintly and nodded. "Fellow Daoist has a keen eye. This is precisely my refined Liangyi Wuxing Array. With five late Golden Core sword-cultivator puppets as its foundation and drawing upon the energy of this area's Tier 3 spirit vein, the array's might rivals that of an early Nascent Soul cultivator."
The middle-aged man sneered. "You don't truly believe you can stop me with such shallow tricks, do you? Besides, you may have the Five Elements, but where are the Two Modes of Yin and Yang?"
Han Zhan shook his head and sighed. "Your arrival was well within my expectations. How could the preparations I made be so rudimentary?"
As he spoke, a flash of black light shimmered from his body.
A black puppet appeared, stepping up to stand side by side with him.
Seeing this, Demon Emperor Ao Xiao's expression changed slightly.
A Nascent Soul-stage puppet!
In this manner, one dead and one living, it could form the Yin-Yang array eyes together with Han Zhan.
Combined with the five late Golden Core sword-cultivator puppets, the Liangyi Wuxing Sword Array was fully formed!
Its power was bound to far exceed the ordinary early Nascent Soul level.
Though Ao Xiao had assumed human form two hundred years ago and awakened his bloodline heritage, if he were to fight a pitched battle under these circumstances, his chances of defeat far outweighed victory.
He had thought that their first encounter had already laid bare the other party's true depth.
Back then, he had bested him by three moves.
This sudden descent had been meant to catch his foe unprepared.
He had never expected such an elaborate formation to be waiting for him.
For a moment, Demon Emperor Ao Xiao found himself in a dilemma.
Seeing him caught in hesitation, unable to advance or retreat, Han Zhan made no move to strike first. He merely used his divine sense to command the five puppets to wildly devour the spirit energy of the earth veins, keeping them poised to unleash an attack at any second.
The two sides were locked in a stalemate.
Yet the army of demonic beasts assaulting the encampment did not halt.
Moments later, tens of thousands of demon wolves surged forward like a tidal wave.
Luo Chen, who had just been marveling at the sheer breadth of Han Zhan's divine sense—controlling six puppets alone to hold back the wolf emperor—paled drastically at the sight.
He wanted to lead the alliance disciples to withdraw.
Yet it was glaringly obvious that retreat was impossible.
Over on the Falling Cloud Sect's side, Cheng Yan was already leading his people into the fray.
"The defensive array has been breached and needs time to repair! Everyone, join me to hold off the enemy! We must keep the beast tide outside our defensive perimeter!"
At Cheng Yan's command, the gathered cultivators roared in unison.
Luo Chen drew a deep breath and looked back.
He knew that when Demon Emperor Ao Xiao had descended, that furious strike had been far deadlier than it appeared.
He had not imagined that a clash between Nascent Soul-level powerhouses would shatter the main base's defensive array with its mere aftershocks.
At this point, retreating to the rear was practically no different from standing on the front line.
The only thing left to consider was...
*Whoosh!*
A pair of wings unfurled below.
Zeng Yilong's body trembled slightly, his face a mixture of dread and excitement.
From his posture, he was already braced for a desperate battle.
Luo Chen sighed inwardly.
*Forget it. Since it has come to this, let us fight!*
With a low shout, Luo Chen stepped out from the crowd.
"Take good care of yourselves!"
As he spoke, he had already drawn the Profound Fire Sword and slashed forward, unleashing a crimson sword qi dozens of zhang in length.
Bolstered by his magic power, it swept through low-tier demonic beasts like an unstoppable gale!
Just then, two early Tier 3 demonic beasts locked eyes on him and lunged straight in his direction.
Gritting his teeth, Luo Chen cast two successive Blazing Sun Arts, momentarily halting their charge. With a flick of his wrist, a disc resembling a full moon settled into his palm.
Infused with his magic power, it rattled incessantly with sharp clicks.
Soon, curved moon chakrams shaped like leaves detached from the disc, expanding and multiplying under the flow of his magic power.
In the blink of an eye, three hundred and sixty-five chakrams orbited around him.
Not only that.
Behind his back, the Moonbreaker Wings, though not yet nurtured for long, were already activated, casting two illusory wing-shadows.
The moment he struck, he went all out!
It was not that he was overreacting or using a butcher's cleaver to kill a chicken.
The sheer number of demonic beasts storming the base was simply overwhelming.
The count of Tier 3 beasts alone was no less than twenty!
Meanwhile, the Golden Core cultivators stationed at the base amounted to barely ten people at most.
Subtracting the two array masters who had to stay behind to repair the formation, the numbers were even smaller.
In other words, every Golden Core cultivator currently holding off the beast tide had to face two to three enemies of equal standing!
This battle had descended far too abruptly!
Not far off, Cheng Yan, who was suppressing three mid-tier wolf kings single-handedly, seemed to still have strength to spare.
His divine sense swept across the surroundings, assessing the overall battle.
When he saw Luo Chen deploy all his magical treasures, sweeping through the battlefield with ease, he could not help but nod with inward approval.
As expected of the former number one Foundation Establishment cultivator of the Jade Cauldron region!
Even after forming his core, his combat prowess remained formidable, still carrying a trace of the grandeur with which he had once dominated a whole territory and suppressed those of his own tier.
This meant Cheng Yan would not need to divert attention to watch over him.
However!
When Cheng Yan's gaze shifted to the rear of the beast tide, where three late Tier 3 wolf kings glared hungrily, poised to strike at any moment, his heart sank.
*This battle is dire!*
*Junior Brother Han Zhan's cultivation lags behind Demon Emperor Ao Xiao's. Using the advantages of terrain and human harmony to set this array and hold him off means he cannot spare any hands to aid us.*
*Then our only option is to stall.*
*Stall until the defensive array is operational again!*
*Stall until the cultivators of the Sword-Bearer Hall return!*
***
Thousands of li to the southwest of the main base.
Two battles of differing scales were raging fiercely.
The larger one was the seven sects assailing the mountain, besieging Mount Jihuang.
The smaller one was over a hundred cultivators of the Sword-Bearer Hall intercepting reinforcements from the Aoxiao Wolf Court.
The latter clash had erupted swiftly.
And it had ended just as fast!
As a brilliant sword light flashed across the battlefield, obliterating the final Tier 3 demon wolf, the ambush drew to a close.
Late Golden Core cultivator Wei Wuya stepped forward with a smile.
"Fellow Daoist Linghu, the mission is complete. Shall we head over to assist the Star Moon Divine Hall next?"
As he spoke, the other cultivators of the Sword-Bearer Hall turned their eyes toward them as well.
As the most elite unit in this opening war,
the Sword-Bearer Hall of the Nine Sects brought together elites from nine Nascent Soul supreme sects and several major Golden Core sects.
Within their ranks, there were more than a dozen Golden Core powerhouses alone,
and well over a hundred Foundation Establishment experts.
Such a force could deliver a decisive blow at a critical juncture.
If they joined the fighting at Mount Jihuang,
the siege that had dragged on for days would surely be resolved with ease.
Hearing the suggestion, Linghu Jie was somewhat tempted.
As the leader of the Sword-Bearer Hall, he held the authority to act as circumstances dictated, taking action first and reporting later.
Helping was entirely feasible.
The Star Moon Divine Hall, in particular, maintained good relations with the Falling Cloud Sect.
Helping them take Mount Jihuang would make them neighbors, allowing the Falling Cloud Sect to legitimately take them in as vassals later on.
It was just like the past relationship between the Jade Cauldron Sword Sect and the Yan Alliance.
Just as he was about to make a decision, his eyes shifted downward toward the ground.
*Swoosh!*
A yellow light burst from the soil, shooting straight toward him.
Magic power surged in the air.
Catching the yellow light with one hand, Linghu Jie raised his other to hold back the others.
"Do not worry, it is my Falling Cloud Sect's sound-transmission puppet."
Everyone breathed a sigh of relief and looked over, discovering a tiny yellow pangolin.
Though small, its grade was exceedingly high—reaching Tier 3!
Wei Wuya remarked in admiration, "Using a Dark Yellow Pangolin as a sound-transmission puppet—your sect is truly lavish!"
Linghu Jie smiled faintly and flicked an incantation gesture.
As if receiving a secret code, the yellow pangolin chattered and opened its mouth.
The pitch was shrill, but the cadence was distinctly human, carrying unmistakable urgency.
"The sect is in peril, return immediately!"
Linghu Jie's expression darkened instantly.
The main base was less a coalition base and more the Falling Cloud Sect's own stronghold.
The other sects were all encamped separately outside.
Only the Falling Cloud Sect and the Sword-Bearer Hall were stationed in the area around Qianye Peak.
Now that the Sword-Bearer Hall had deployed, nearly ninety percent of those left behind were disciples of the Falling Cloud Sect.
Considering the Golden Core cultivators dispersed to Moonbreaker Immortal City and other posts, fewer than ten Falling Cloud Sect Golden Cores remained at the base!
Receiving a message that "the sect is in peril"—he understood what that meant better than anyone.
Hearing those words, the others could not help but exchange glances.
Lin Qingxuan frowned. "No wonder the reinforcements sent by the Wolf Court were so frail this time. They were merely bait!"
Wei Wuya nodded. "Once beasts assume human form, their intellect is in no way inferior to our human race. Last time they used Mount Jihuang as bait to ambush our Sword-Bearer Hall. This time, they lured our Sword-Bearer Hall away to draw the snake from its hole, directing their main attack at the base camp instead. They mean to strike straight at the heart!"
Nalan Feng of Liusen Studio asked in confusion, "But isn't Zhenren Han holding the fort at the base? How could they dare?"
How could they dare?
Was the answer not glaringly obvious?
Naturally, an expert of the same tier had personally stepped onto the field.
With a grim face, Linghu Jie hesitated not a moment longer and swept his arm outward.
"Leave the battlefield as it is."
"Everyone, follow me to reinforce Qianye Peak!"
"Any losses incurred will be compensated by my Falling Cloud Sect afterward!"
With that order, he bolted forward.
The rest hurried to keep pace, abandoning any thought of gathering the spoils on the ground.
Leading the charge, Linghu Jie was consumed with anxiety.
*I only hope the sect holds out and does not suffer too many losses!*
***
"Kill!"
"Kill!"
"Slaughter every last human!"
"Roar!"
Across the battlefield, wolf howls rolled on like crashing waves.
The voices of low-tier Falling Cloud Sect disciples were just as ceaseless, only theirs were cries of agony and despair.
Puppets normally treasured as precious assets were smashed to pieces under the onslaught of beasts that outnumbered them many times over.
In just a brief span of combat, the casualties among low-tier cultivators had already reached horrifying heights.
If it had ended there, it might have been bearable.
Yet even in the clash between high-tier cultivators, the scales of victory were tilting.
*Boom!*
A Tier 3 puppet self-detonated!
A powerful shockwave swept in all directions, killing an early Tier 3 demon wolf on the spot while taking down dozens of low-tier wolves with it.
Naturally, in the process, not a few Falling Cloud Sect disciples were caught in the blast and perished.
"Disciples, forgive me."
A pale-faced Golden Core Master of the Falling Cloud Sect murmured, his face steeped in remorse.
He had had no choice.
Besieged by a pack of wolves, self-detonating his prized puppet had been his only recourse.
Under normal circumstances, trading a puppet to eliminate a wolf king of equivalent tier was well worth it.
Yet now, his enemies were not just one.
The next instant, two enormous dark shadows pounced from the sky.
The Falling Cloud Sect Golden Core Master controlled two flying swords, striking back at both simultaneously.
To command two flying swords after self-detonating a puppet bound to his mind and sustaining severe injuries proved that he was indeed formidable.
Yet he was already at his wit's end.
A piercing screech suddenly detonated.
It struck him with dizziness, shaking his divine soul.
By the time he forced his senses back, his two flying swords had already been knocked flying to who knew where.
And those two demon wolves matching his cultivation were already right upon him.
One unleashed towering demonic qi to suppress his magic power, while the other swept past, tearing him to shreds.
He did not even manage to self-detonate his golden core.
Having succeeded, the two wolf kings caught their breath briefly, then turned their bloodthirsty eyes across the battlefield, each picking a new opponent before charging forward.
This sequence of events had unfolded with blinding speed.
Yet it fell within the sight of every Golden Core cultivator!
Cheng Yan's expression shifted drastically. After forcefully pulverizing a mid-tier wolf king, he cast a venomous glare at the three late-tier wolf kings far behind the lines.
Just now, it was one of them that had suddenly let out that screech, shattering the balance of the fight.
That act had caused one of his junior brothers to fall without the slightest ability to resist.
Yet he could only watch.
He could do nothing but watch!
Engaged in combat with two wolf kings, Luo Chen naturally witnessed this as well.
A flicker of relief rose in his chest.
He had maintained an aura of the first layer of Golden Core, drawing the attacks of two early Tier 3 wolf kings.
Under the guise of exerting his full strength, he had maintained a stalemate.
Had he stood out more earlier,
those three late-tier wolf kings might very well have targeted him instead.
Yet he soon realized good fortune would not last forever.
One of the two wolf kings that had just freed themselves was charging directly toward him.
*Holding back two wolf kings without killing them is already my limit.*
*With another one joining in, if I do not use my full strength, I will surely suffer for it!*
*I can hide my abilities no longer!*
Luo Chen's eyes turned icy, and the wings behind him shuddered violently.
In an instant, he broke out of the two wolf kings' encirclement and soared high into the sky.
Such extreme speed caught his two foes off guard.
Earlier, Luo Chen's speed had seemed only a fraction faster than theirs.
If he had unleashed this speed from the start, then they...
"No!"
"Careful!"
Luo Chen could not understand their wolf tongue, nor did he care to.
Rising straight into the sky, one hand drew a circle with his sword while the other pressed down fiercely.
The Blazing Sun Art erupted!
The Innate One Qi Great Handprint slammed down with a thunderous roar!
After unleashing two attacks in succession, his magic power hitched, yet Luo Chen ignored the sharp pain lancing through his meridians and forcefully channeled the energy stored within his golden core.
Hand seals fluttered from his fingertips, leaving behind a blur of afterimages.
Above the battlefield, an illusory mountain materialized, flowing with molten rock and radiating terrifying heat.
The tremendous suppressive force bore down so heavily that low-tier demon wolves and cultivators within a hundred li could hardly lift their heads.
Luo Chen barked a low cry.
"Landslide!"
In a flash, the illusory mountain exploded!
Terrifying destructive might concentrated into a single point.
The wolf kings, who had just scrambled out from beneath the barrage of the first two spells, looked at this cataclysmic strike with eyes wide in sheer terror.
*Boom!*
A deafening explosion rang out in all directions, far louder than the previous detonation of the Tier 3 puppet.
With a single strike!
The two early Tier 3 wolf kings were annihilated without the slightest resistance,
leaving behind only an immense crater in the ground.
Right at that moment,
the third Tier 3 wolf king charging toward him had already reached close range.
It froze for an instant, then erupted with towering demonic qi, hurtling straight at Luo Chen.
It wanted to seize this opening to slay this treacherous human.
"Die!"
Watching the massive demon wolf bear down on him with lightning speed, Luo Chen's expression grew solemn.
Unleashing three powerful arts in such rapid succession had not depleted his reserves excessively, but mobilizing his magic power so quickly had created a brief vacuum.
However!
Anyone else in this situation might have been forced to wait for death.
He was different.
Though he could not immediately draw upon the magic power within his sea of qi,
the more than seven hundred acupoints he had opened also stored abundant pure magic power, an amount no less than what his qi sea held.
After all, this had once been what he called his second sea of qi.
With a single thought, all seven hundred-plus acupoints vibrated together, and magic power surged forth like spring water.
The purple-gold chakrams hovering above his head shot forward like a formation of wild geese, shifting patterns continuously as they cut through the air.
*Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh!*
Extreme sharpness sliced through the void,
forming a web waiting for the wolf king to plunge right in.
Right then!
*Howl!*
Another piercing screech, thin as thread, slipped into Luo Chen's ears.
His entire body stiffened.
The Heavenly Moon Purple Gold Wheels in midair ground to a halt, ceasing their spin.
Not far away,
Cheng Yan, who had just slain another Tier 3 wolf king, witnessed this and bellowed, "Watch out!"
Alas, his warning came too late.
Without their master's control, the chakrams stopped rotating, leaving gaps in the net.
Bolstered by this support, the early Tier 3 wolf king closed to within ten li of Luo Chen without the slightest hesitation.
It opened its jaws to spit out a Whirling Moon Slash, shattering the chakram formation.
Its massive wolf frame followed close behind, bringing a claw crashing down.
At that very moment,
a black halo flashed across Luo Chen's body and vanished.
He snapped his eyes open, staring deeply at the demon wolf king right before him.
This time, it was the opponent's turn to freeze solid.
With one hand held vertically before his chest, an azure screen of light unfurled like glazed glass, easily deflecting the spent momentum of the Whirling Moon Slash.
With his other hand curled into a loose fist, the chakrams that had tumbled toward the earth in disarray shot back in unison, wrapping tightly around the demon wolf king.
*Squelch...*
Grating sounds tore the air endlessly.
Flesh and blood splattered; fur was stripped away.
Bones shattered completely, and the demon core ruptured.
As the demon wolf king howled in agony, a murmur of surprise drifted from the rear of the battlefield.
"That human was actually unaffected by my wolf howl."
"No matter. I shall make the move."
A deep reply rumbled as the three late-tier demon wolves overseeing the battle finally moved.
The foremost wolf, its fur gleaming like cast gold, stepped forward and bounded straight toward Luo Chen.
Behind him, another black wolf king glanced at the companion who had loosed the successive howls.
"Third Brother, the Falling Cloud Sect has no moves left. Eldest Brother and I will sweep the field. Stay in the rear and keep doing what you did, and make sure to slay more of the human Golden Cores."
The wolf addressed as Third Brother flicked its tongue, licking its lips.
"Fine, I understand. These human cultivators truly possess formidable souls. To think a mere first-layer—no, second-layer Golden Core cultivator could resist my soul attack."
Just as the black wolf king was about to leap forward, he paused.
"Do not provoke that old man. Though he is aged, his divine soul surpasses ours. Beware a backlash."
"So naggy!"
"Hmph!"
The black wolf king shook his head. Disregarding this third brother who was the most favored by their father emperor, he picked an opponent and charged ahead.
Yet as he flew, most of his attention remained on their eldest brother, who had moved first.
Earlier, that human cultivator had slain three of their kin in one breath, giving a massive boost to human morale.
Their eldest brother was stepping in precisely to erase him.
*Among the three of us brothers, Eldest Brother possesses the strongest physique. Slaying him should be effortless!*
***
Having wiped out three wolf kings in a single burst,
casting three large-scale spells, deploying three magical treasures, and even drawing upon his trump card, Mirror Flower, Water Moon,
Luo Chen, even if not spent to the dregs, had entered a state of absolute weakness.
Yet under these circumstances,
no other demon wolves on the battlefield moved against him.
What seemed bizarre was actually tension stretched to the absolute limit.
For a beam of golden light was ripping through the darkness, chasing the stars and the moon as it charged directly toward him.
That brilliant mass of golden light was immense, like a golden sun blazing through the night.
Surging demonic qi whipped up terrifying gales wherever it passed.
Overwhelming divine sense locked recklessly onto Luo Chen, leaving him no path of escape and no way to evade!
"You forced my hand!"
Luo Chen gritted his teeth and let out a low roar. Instead of retreating, he charged suicidally toward the golden light.
Seeing this, Cheng Yan shouted from afar,
"Do not!"
Yet Luo Chen seemed not to hear.
He rushed forward with increasing speed.
And upon his body, a frantic transformation was taking place.
His Daoist robes burst to shreds!
His body expanded violently!
Reaching forward with both hands, sharp claws appeared that seemed capable of tearing the sky.
Streams of vigorous blood qi swirled around him, forming pure white plates of qi armor that encased his entire frame.
When man and wolf were thirty li apart, a colossal figure resembling a great roc suddenly manifested in the night sky.
Its height had already reached four zhang!
However!
"Still not enough!"
Luo Chen's eyes widened in fury. An immense tide of blood qi flooded into the Moonbreaker Wings, causing them to swell and stretch to their absolute limit, like wings that spanned the heavens.
Luo Chen, who had initially been dwarfed by the golden wolf, shook his wings and now stood only a third smaller than his foe.
His speed multiplied several times over in an instant!
If that had been all, it would already have been astonishing.
Yet Luo Chen did not stop.
Stimulated within his sea of qi, his natal true fire erupted outward, enveloping his entire body.
In an instant, a creature magnificent as a great roc, with wings like clouds hanging from the sky, stood upon the battlefield.
He was cloaked in a halo of teal and crimson, standing proud like a god of fire.
At this point, the transformation was complete.
The distance between them had closed to within ten li, and the furious momentum of their charge meant this clash could not be halted.
Beneath the night sky, two enormous figures—one gold, one red—
hurtled together with unyielding resolve and collided with a deafening crash.
*Boom!*
A blast of fury like a volcanic eruption slammed outward in every direction.
With the collision as its epicenter, billowing shockwaves rolled outward.
The dark clouds in the sky were violently torn apart, revealing the clear, bright moonlight.
The nearby skirmishes between humans and wolves were forcefully blown apart.
Upon the earth, a horrifying crater a thousand zhang deep caved in like an abyssal pit.
Flames roared fiercely!
Teal fire surged ceaselessly toward the golden light, striving to refine and consume it.
Yet after merely an instant,
that teal-and-red figure shot backward like an arrow loosed from a bowstring, plunging straight back into the human base camp.
The golden shadow stumbled back dozens of paces in the void.
It shook its head violently and braced itself, surging its demonic qi outward to extinguish the bizarre flames that lingered on its body, trying to burn its flesh.
Only then did it come to a halt, gazing toward the figure that had been hurled back over a hundred li.
"What a physique!"
"Come at me again! Again!"
The wolf's roar boomed across the wilderness.
Answering it was a brilliant screen of light that rose from the ground, illuminating the dark night.
The Falling Cloud Sect's defensive array was finally restored!
Cheng Yan shouted, calling upon the surviving members of the Falling Cloud Sect to fall back within the array.
Tens of thousands of wolves pressed their encirclement with all their might to prevent their retreat.
Three massive demon wolves, leading a host of Tier 3 wolf kings, closed in together.
"The humans' turtle shell cannot hold us!"
"Charge inside and slaughter every last one!"
Chapter 502