Confrontation

Outside the three-thousand-mile Demon Suppression Abyss, experts from both the Eastern and Western Realms kept a watchful eye.

On the banks of the Wild River, the beast sovereigns of the Eight Tribes were eager to act, constantly using their various racial mystic techniques to monitor the skies.

To the west of Boundary Mountain, the Wendao Sword Sect's Sword Suppression Hall was in a state of high alert. Li Qianshan and the various Pavilion Elders were ready for immediate action, as if a single command could send their long swords sweeping eastward to cleanse the Great Desolation.

The Central Plains had also sent many experts, who lurked along that invisible border outside Boundary Mountain.

However, unlike the Wendao Sword Sect, they hadn't come to prevent a second war between humans and beasts. They were there to provide backup.

The moment their juniors captured that auspicious beast, they would immediately spirit them away to the Central Plains.

As for the wrath of the Eastern Desolation's beasts, the Wendao Sword Sect would have to deal with it themselves.

What did it matter to them if the three-thousand-mile neutral zone or the ten-thousand-mile Northern Borders became a battlefield?

They lacked the courage and audacity to break the taboos themselves, but they were more than happy to see the Wendao Sword Sect and the Eastern Desolation beasts engage in a life-and-death struggle.

They intended to reap the spoils of the contest.

As long as they acted within the permitted rules, the Wendao Sword Sect would have no grounds to settle the score later.

In short, though they came from the Central Plains, they each harbored their own ulterior motives.

Indeed.

The beasts of the Eastern Desolation were much the same. On the surface, the beast gods of the Eight Tribes were loyal to Emperor Bai Ze, but in the shadows, their infighting, schemes, and deceptions never ceased.

Even in this endeavor, they each had their own agendas.

Though their goal was the same—to obtain the auspicious beast—their desired destinations for the creature were entirely different.

They all wanted it.

And they all intended to fight for it.

Acting on Li Qianshan's orders, most of the Sword Suppression Hall's combat force—those below the eighth stage but above the fifth—had crossed Boundary Mountain within two days and headed straight for the Demon Suppression Abyss.

They had only one objective for this journey: to ensure the auspicious beast fell within the Demon Suppression Abyss.

Both worlds wanted the auspicious beast alive.

Yet the Wendao Sword Sect only wanted the beast dead.

Only if the auspicious beast died in the Demon Suppression Abyss could the potential threat be eliminated. For a dead auspicious beast, the beast race, no matter how angry, would not go so far as to tear up their treaty.

The Wendao Sword Sect did not fear war.

But given the current situation, they did not want the sect to be drawn into a senseless conflict.

Regardless of victory or defeat.

The Demon Abyss to the west, the sea monsters to the north, and the Central Plains behind them were all waiting for a chance to take a bite out of the Wendao Sword Sect.

Once mired in the quagmire of war, they could very well fall into an abyss from which there was no return.

The Wendao Sword Sect was upright and unyielding.

However, the Sword Ancestor's long journey inevitably left them with slightly less confidence.

They were unwilling to break this hard-won balance.

Even more, they did not want the ten-thousand-mile Northern Borders under their jurisdiction to once again transform into a battlefield for the various races of Fanzhou.

Inside Demon-Slaying City.

Disciples from the Sword Suppression Hall came to find Xu Xian, intending to take him out of the city.

However, since Xu Xian was in seclusion, they did not dare disturb him and could only remain nearby to protect him in secret.

When they left, Li Qianshan had given a strict order: no matter what happened, Xu Xian must not suffer even the slightest mishap.

Xu Xian's status in the eyes of the Wendao Sword Sect was exactly like the auspicious beast's status to the beast race—the incarnation of a race's fortune.

As the seventh and sixth-stage experts of both the human and beast races continued to cross the borders, the three thousand miles within the Demon Suppression Abyss had already become a scene of carnage.

From time to time, beast kings and beast sovereigns were slaughtered, their carcasses dragged back to Demon-Slaying City.

Naturally, sixth and seventh-stage cultivators also fell, never to return from their journey.

Booms constantly echoed from the distance, and Demon-Slaying City was already in a state of panic.

Some merchants, realizing the severity of the situation, chose to flee the city with their assets to temporarily avoid the brunt of the storm.

Others, less aware, were certain the beast race wouldn't dare leap over Demon-Slaying City and chose to stay behind to watch the spectacle.

Of course.

Even more people, upon learning the truth, felt greed stir within them and resolutely chose to charge into the Demon Suppression Abyss to gamble their lives.

The people were restless, and rumors spread everywhere.

"I heard that auspicious beast is a deer—a white deer. Someone's seen it."

"A white deer?"

"Yes! A white deer."

"It's been three days, how has it not been caught yet? Is that deer still in the Demon Suppression Abyss?"

"Who knows? But I heard this white deer is a creature of pure spirit that can bridge yin and yang and foresee good and bad fortune. It can not only use the power of yin and yang to turn invisible but also sense danger in advance, so it's very hard to catch."

"I heard a dragnet has already been laid outside the city—all formations. I reckon it's the same on the other side of the Demon Suppression Abyss. For this white deer to escape, it would be harder than climbing to heaven. It must still be in the abyss. As for who will catch it, that's anyone's guess."

"The Wendao Sword Sect sent the most people; I think they have the best chance."

"What's the use of numbers? Word on the street is that the top ten of the Earth Rank below the eighth stage in the human realm have all come..."

"Yesterday, a seventh-stage perfection Confucian scholar was killed by a beast. The beast race has sent plenty of their own, too."

"Let them fight, let them fight. The more that die, the better. When it's over, we'll go in. Maybe we can pick up some good stuff."

"Is that all the ambition you have?"

"..."

At the gates of Demon-Slaying City, cultivators occasionally transformed into streaks of light and plunged into the dense forest, while many others returned wounded, looking wretched and covered in blood.

When others asked about the situation inside, their faces were filled with terror. Each was left with lingering fear, saying despondently, "So many... so many great demons have come."

"So many people have died."

Carcasses of massive beast sovereigns and beast kings were also dragged back and auctioned off for high prices.

The days passed like this.

The Demon Suppression Abyss grew even more chaotic. It was already late autumn, and the chill was biting.

Now, the air was thick with the scent of blood and the smoke of battle.

Xu Xian still hadn't emerged from seclusion, and the auspicious beast still hadn't been caught.

Yao Xiaoxiao was worried all day long. Yao Zhijian had left and not returned. Conversely, Wen Qingxue was as steady as an old dog, calmly drinking tea and admiring the moon every day with an unruffled expression.

Business at the forging workshop was better than ever, with orders several times higher than usual.

However, the ten spirit forgers had no heart for forging.

They wanted to leave.

They had requested to see Xu Xian several times to no avail. Each was trembling with anxiety; they feared that leaving without a word would displease Xu Xian, but they also feared the situation would worsen and eventually cost them their lives.

They were agonizingly conflicted.

The storm did not cease, and hearts remained unsettled.

Inside the Demon Suppression Abyss.

Whether human or beast, they searched for that white deer day and night without rest.

They had practically overturned every inch of the thousand miles of mountains and rivers.

Frequent encounters led to fierce battles, with both sides leaving behind a few corpses before hurriedly retreating.

That white deer.

It was elusive.

The entire Demon Suppression Abyss was shrouded in a faint blood mist.

Every time it appeared, it vanished again with incredible speed. After a few days, people began to notice a pattern: this deer only revealed its true form at the transition of the Hour of the Rat each day. At all other times, it was impossible to find.

Both humans and beasts gradually calmed down and began to use forbidden formations and set traps to force the white deer to appear.

This struggle continued for ten whole days.

Demon-Slaying City had completely adapted to the commotion within the Demon Suppression Abyss.

Inside the Cloud Sea Grotto-Heaven.

The construction of Xu Xian's Sword Tower was also nearing its end as the last batch of beast bones was refined.

The second floor of the White Jade Capital was complete.

Above the white gateway, two characters fully manifested.

[Second Floor]

This also signaled that Xu Xian had succeeded.

The youth opened his eyes amidst the clouds, exhaling a long breath of turbid qi as a slight smile touched the corners of his mouth.

A divine light flickered in his eyes simultaneously as he whispered:

"It's done!"