The Battle Begins

"Fellow Daoist, you can actually see through Chanling's concealment technique!" A distinct change came over Jinglin's expression. Daoist Chanling enjoyed great renown, and anyone who crossed swords with him found him exceptionally troublesome to deal with. To make matters worse, he was exceedingly cunning, always avoiding true experts like Old Daoist Zhenyi whenever they crossed paths. Against an opponent weaker than himself, there was simply no contest. Daoist Chanling could withdraw at any moment, always holding the upper hand. Yet here was a demon cultivator who had only recently advanced to the transformation stage, easily piercing Chanling's whereabouts! Nor was it a coincidence. Judging from Mingyue Demon King's tone just now, Chanling had nowhere to hide before his eyes. Jinglin recalled how disappointed he and Si Di had been upon learning the origin of their helper. Only now did he realize how badly they had underestimated this Mingyue Demon King. "My divine ability happens to counter this sort of concealment method," Qin Sang offered as a mild explanation. Jinglin, who had initially been somewhat flustered, was now beaming with excitement. "That old thief Chanling has finally met his match!" He immediately sent a voice transmission to relay everything to Si Di. "How much do the two of you know about Chanling?" Qin Sang asked calmly. Even if Chanling's concealment technique was neutralized, he remained a genuine mid-Nascent Soul expert. Three against three, holding the Cold Bell Grand Array from collapsing would not be difficult. The real challenge lay in forcing the enemy back or defeating them; dragging things into a protracted stalemate left the outcome impossible to predict. One thing was certain: their previous strategy was now useless. With Old Demon Pei operating the Nether Crystal Pagodas to support Chanling from the front, a surprise attack was practically impossible. If a Nascent Soul cultivator were operating the Cold Bell Grand Array, they might have provided some assistance. But with only a Core Formation cultivator at the controls, just keeping their flaws hidden was already an enormous strain; they could offer no real help. "We have fought Sin Abyss for so long that we have a decent understanding of their Nascent Soul cultivators. Aside from that mysterious magic treasure of his, Chanling has never displayed any other formidable divine abilities. Still, he is a mid-Nascent Soul cultivator after all..." Jinglin tucked away his joy. An old demon at the Nascent Soul stage was never to be taken lightly; no one knew whether Chanling was hiding any trump cards. More often than not, he would withdraw with ease long before a fight reached a desperate life-or-death struggle. "Which is to say, you have no absolute certainty either? It seems we can only abandon our original plan—either dig in and hold our ground until reinforcements arrive, or devise another strategy," Qin Sang said in a deep voice. Jinglin was unwilling to give up. "We finally have a helper who can counter Chanling and grant us the upper hand! Abandoning it now would be too much of a waste!" Qin Sang pondered briefly and said, "Chanling and Old Demon Tan will likely try to gang up on Fellow Daoist Si Di. Whichever one of them we attack, the other and the Nether Crystal Pagodas can reinforce in time. Only Old Demon Pei, who is controlling the pagodas, will trail behind. However, if we turn their own scheme against them and target Old Demon Pei, Fellow Daoist Si Di must serve as the bait and withstand the assault of three Nascent Soul cultivators alone. The risk is immense..." "Sin Abyss has always guarded the Nether Crystal Pagodas rigorously. The operator can draw upon the power of the pagodas for protection, making it very difficult to break through them. Still, Old Demon Pei doesn't know that the Cold Bell Grand Array is hollow beneath its imposing exterior. He will certainly coordinate with Chanling and Tan to hunt down Fellow Daoist Si Di. The instant they strike will be Old Demon Pei's most careless moment, which does make it an opportunity." Jinglin hesitated. "Just as you said, Fellow Daoist Si Di's situation would be perilous. We must ask his willingness first." After a silent exchange of divine senses, a look of delight flashed across Jinglin's eyes. "Fellow Daoist Si Di is willing to act as the bait! He recently mastered a new divine ability capable of handling such a predicament. This will be the perfect chance to give Sin Abyss a surprise!" Qin Sang was somewhat surprised that Si Di had agreed so readily. In a solemn voice, he said, "We cannot fail Fellow Daoist Si Di's trust. This strike against Old Demon Pei must not falter!" Jinglin nodded. "We have only one chance. Once Old Demon Pei and the others react, it will be hard to injure him again. My life magic treasure is the Wind Summoning Bracelet..." The two conferred carefully over every detail, swiftly hammering out a plan. While they were conferring, the army of Sin Abyss pressed forward without the slightest hesitation, charging straight toward the sea of mist. *Boom! Boom! Boom!* Three Nether Crystal Pagodas slammed into the ground, swelling rapidly. Black light shot outward in all directions as three impossibly towering pagodas rose in a triangular formation on the battlefield, looking down upon the gathered cultivators and confronting the Cold Bell Grand Array. All three massive towers radiated light. Beams of black radiance flooded heaven and earth, gathering into halos that drifted downward and settled over the Sin Abyss cultivators, cloaking them in a shimmering, translucent film of light. The Sin Abyss cultivators let out a unified, thunderous roar, their momentum staggering. Flying through the air, Old Demon Tan led the vanguard like a sharp dagger, while Old Demon Pei and Chanling were nowhere to be seen. As the Sin Abyss cultivators behind charged forward, they set to work. In the next moment, bursts of multicolored light erupted from the heart of their battle formation. The battle formation of Sin Abyss appeared even more orderly and disciplined than that of the Two-Realm Alliance. These clusters of light represented diverse restrictive spells, Five Elements Daoist arts, magic tools, and magic treasures. Though seemingly chaotic, they coordinated with exceptional precision. With so many powers unleashed, they converged and blended within the Sin Abyss encampment, forming a colossal dome of light that encompassed everyone inside and concealed the glowing film cast by the Nether Crystal Pagodas. They advanced rapidly. Old Demon Tan glanced left and right, barking orders from time to time. Streaks of light flew out from the battle formation and crashed onto the ground ahead. Restrictive talismans were immediately exposed, tearing the earth apart as bursts of lava and thrashing vines surged forth in succession, only for every phenomenon to be swiftly extinguished. Evidently, the cultivators of the two realms had laid traps in advance. Unfortunately, such methods could hardly produce any significant effect against an enemy led by a Nascent Soul expert. Under Old Demon Tan's command, the Sin Abyss cultivators swept clean through the traps like mopping a floor. *Whoosh, whoosh...* The Nether Crystal Pagodas fired beams of black light that congealed in the void into massive, hiltless black blades of sinister power. Straddling the sky, the monstrous blades tilted horizontally the instant the cultivators charged forward, cleaving straight toward the cold mist ahead! *Boom!* The blades sliced directly into the cold mist. As the two forces collided, terrifying shockwaves rippled outward in an instant. The ground shook and the mountains trembled. A gaping breach was torn open in the cold mist. Wherever the blades passed, the vapor grew extraordinarily thin, though the surrounding mist rushed in ceaselessly to fill the void. Urgent chimes rang out from within the array. The power of the Nether Crystal Pagodas and the Cold Bell Grand Array gnawed and wore away at each other. Inside the central tower, the Core Formation cultivator controlling the array core turned pale, gritting his teeth as he held on and strictly obeyed Jinglin's orders to maintain a defensive posture. By now, peering through the thinning mist, the Sin Abyss forces could already see the two realms' cultivators waiting in stern readiness. The defenders had prepared the moment they detected the enemy, their strength gathered and poised to unleash. "Kill!" A chorus of roars erupted from within the Cold Bell Grand Array. When bitter enemies met, hatred flared white-hot! Before the Sin Abyss cultivators could even reach the sea of mist, a blinding glare filled their vision. Countless beams of saber light, sword radiance, and Five Elements Daoist arts surged forth like an overwhelming tidal wave, blasting madly from the two realms' encampment. Faced with such an onslaught, even Old Demon Tan, despite his Nascent Soul cultivation, dared not be careless and prudently pulled back. Guided by his hand, the cultivators united their strength to push the light canopy forward, layering it continuously to shield themselves against the oncoming deluge of attacks.