Daoist Zhenyi had long spoken of the proverb: if the lips are gone, the teeth will be cold. The Sin Abyss was powerful, and Old Demon Ye was full of ambition; once the Heaven-Traversing Alliance was destroyed, the day of reckoning would not be far off for the Lesser Cold Domain either.
Upon hearing the Red-Haired Ancestor's command, the Nascent Soul experts of the Lesser Cold Domain swiftly grasped the stakes involved. Deciding to obey, they did not even have time to recall their magic treasures before wheeling them around to render aid.
The grievances between the two domains could be settled later; right now, they absolutely could not let the Sin Abyss wipe out the Heaven-Traversing Alliance.
At that very moment, the Sin Abyss cultivators' offensive finally crashed down upon the heads of the Heaven-Traversing Alliance.
A dark demonic tide cascaded from above, engulfing them.
The defenses they had hastily erected were swept aside like dry rot.
Heart-wrenching screams shook the soul.
Nascent Soul experts who had looked imposing and majestic only moments earlier were now reduced to lambs led to slaughter. Swallowed by the demonic tide, beset by rampant evil, their fates hung in the balance.
Once this massacre ran its course, there was no telling how many would survive.
As for the Core Formation cultivators, likely not a single one would remain.
Thud! Thud! Thud!
Reinforcements from the Lesser Cold Domain finally arrived, cleaving into the demonic tide to rescue their allies.
Qin Sang and the other Core Formation cultivators from the Lesser Cold Domain were utterly powerless to intervene in a battle of this scale, able only to look on from afar.
Everyone was terrified. Only when they saw their own Nascent Soul experts respond in time—promptly executing the traitor and shattering the Sin Abyss's ambush—did they steady their nerves a fraction, tensely tracking every turn in the battle.
Yet witnessing the tragic plight of the Heaven-Traversing Alliance, they could not help but feel a chill of shared vulnerability.
Qin Sang was the most composed among them. Only he knew Chenyan was secretly a Nascent Soul cultivator. With the Wuji Sect Master's plot exposed, escaping with their lives should not be difficult even if their side suffered a defeat.
He strained his eyes to peer outward, but the camp of the Heaven-Traversing Alliance was mired in total pandemonium, offering only indistinct glimpses through the chaos.
He watched as one of the alliance's Nascent Soul cultivators, attempting to dodge the demonic tide, inadvertently strayed outside the protection of the Lesser Beichen Star Element Formation. Before he could fly more than a short distance, he vanished into thin air.
At the precise instant the man disappeared, a faint, almost imperceptible ripple flashed across his body.
"The Wind of Nihility!"
Qin Sang turned pale with fright.
That man was a bona fide Nascent Soul expert, yet upon encountering the Wind of Nihility, he had been entirely defenseless, swept into nothingness without a trace of bone or ash left behind—not even his Nascent Soul had managed to escape.
The sheer might of the Wind of Nihility was horrifying beyond belief!
No wonder the Lesser Beichen Star Element Formation had nearly collapsed earlier when merely grazed by it.
Next, Qin Sang saw a divine general brandishing a halberd burst free from the demonic tide. The man was covered in wounds, without an inch of unblemished flesh, and a gory hole gaped through his abdomen.
The halberd in his grip was equally battered, its tip snapped and its divine light dim.
He had clearly escaped only at tremendous cost.
Yet before the look of relief could fully spread across the divine general's face, countless demonic fiends pounced from the dark tide. Wholly undeterred by his strikes, they were savagely relentless, surging forward wave upon wave to tear into his flesh with gaping maws.
Alongside these fiends, innumerable bizarre chains surged into the air, coiling around him like swarms of demonic serpents.
Struggling frantically to fend them off, the divine general fell into despair.
The scene was grotesque, sickeningly drenched in blood.
Seeing that he was about to be torn to shreds by myriad demons, he suddenly let out a roar and slapped his palm against his crown. A burst of azure light flared at his Baihui acupoint, and a Nascent Soul leaped forth.
Clutched in the Nascent Soul's arms was an ash-white, fracture-riddled mirror. Its eyes darted with intelligence, and with a swift glance, it shot toward the Lesser Cold Domain's side without hesitation.
The moment the divine general's Nascent Soul appeared, the demonic fiends reacted as though beholding the most tantalizing delicacy in the world. Their spectral eyes flushed crimson, and letting out bone-chilling screeches, they gave frenzied chase.
Myriad fiends vied for the prize.
The gruesome spectacle sent a shiver straight down Qin Sang's spine.
The divine general's Nascent Soul dodged continuously, but its room for maneuver shrank with every passing breath. Just as it fell into despair, a jade ruyi suddenly sailed through the air, showering azure light as it slammed aside the fiends, shattered the chains, and forged an open path.
The one who had intervened was none other than Daoist Chongyi.
"Many thanks for saving my life, Fellow Daoist."
Still trembling with shock, the divine general cupped his hands in gratitude.
Daoist Chongyi gave a nod, continuing to wield his jade ruyi to rescue others.
The divine general huddled in a corner to nurse his wounds.
Ordinarily, a solitary, disembodied Nascent Soul would easily draw covetous eyes. Right now, however, no one dared commit such a brazen taboo; they could only mask their greed and steal a few extra glances.
One by one, the Nascent Soul experts of the Heaven-Traversing Alliance were pulled from the brink.
Every single one was in a wretched state, with virtually none emerging unscathed.
As anticipated, the Core Formation cultivators had long since perished, their origin souls devoured by the fiends unleashed by the Sin Abyss—a truly miserable end.
Qin Sang felt a quiet surge of relief. Fortunately, he and Yunyouzi had stumbled upon the Sin Abyss's scheme by chance, or they might very well have shared the grim fate of the alliance's Core Formation disciples.
Beneath the towering six-armed demonic shadow, an emaciated elder robed in black clutched a black stone sculpture.
Carved upon the sculpture was this very six-armed ancient demon, rendered with such lifelike eyes that it exuded an uncanny malevolence.
"You two old coots certainly have the devil's own luck!"
The elder cursed under his breath, his expression dark. While this surprise raid had achieved considerable success, it still fell far short of what had been envisioned.
At the very least, settling both domains once and for all was now impossible.
A golden opportunity like this would never come a second time.
Feeling a deep pang of regret, the elder hesitated briefly before barking in a low voice, "Enough! Time is running out for the ancient demon's projection. Lingering any longer won't let us kill many more anyway—destroy their Lesser Beichen Star Element Formation!"
The cultivators under his command promptly carried out the order.
In the next instant, thick demonic energy erupted from within the six-armed demonic shadow, surging violently toward its six arms. The shadow then raised all six arms high as one and brought them crashing down like a colossal sledgehammer against the Lesser Beichen Star Element Formation once more.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Heavy blow after heavy blow landed.
The six-armed demonic shadow battered away like a madman, sparing no thought for expending its core essence.
Within the formation, the Beichen star dimmed with every single strike.
At last, under the final crushing impact, a corner of the star chart collapsed. The Beichen star grew unimaginably faint, teetering on the verge of extinguishing altogether!
Its energy drained past the limit, the six-armed demonic shadow swayed unsteadily, thoroughly brittle.
The emaciated elder swept his long sleeve. "Withdraw!"
Disciplined to a fault, the Sin Abyss cultivators promptly recalled their fiends and chains, beating a silent retreat.
The Sin Abyss had actually retreated. But just as looks of delight surfaced on the crowd's faces, they noticed the sudden anomaly in the Lesser Beichen Star Element Formation.
"Not good!"
The collapse of the Lesser Beichen Star Element Formation was already unstoppable. The Red-Haired Ancestor and Daoist Zhenyi were thoroughly alarmed, straining with all their might to stabilize the formation as they shouted urgently, "Quick, enter Ziwei Palace!"
Deprived of the Lesser Beichen Star Element Formation's protection inside the immortal array, only death awaited them.
Even in retreating, Old Demon Ye had not forgotten to deal them a venomous parting blow!
With no time to regroup, everyone frantically spurred the crippled spiritual formation, racing against the seconds for their lives.
As the formation disintegrated around them, cultivators were annihilated one after another by the Wind of Nihility.
Dongyang Bo could not hold the line alone, leaving Chenyan unable to hide her strength any longer. Revealing her Nascent Soul cultivation, she stepped in to shield Qin Sang and the others. At long last, they reached the edge of the immortal array. With the Lesser Beichen Star Element Formation torn to shreds, the cultivators could no longer stay grouped and could only drift with the chaotic currents.
Just as they were about to step into Ziwei Palace, Granny Jing's voice transmission suddenly rang in Qin Sang's ear.
Chapter 567