Dawn broke as the moon set and the stars faded.
The high city of the East Desolation had collapsed. Early winter waters surged, flooding the Demon Suppression Abyss...
Yao Xiqiao was ultimately no match for the Water Qilin.
Defeated!
On the eve of the city's fall, he withdrew, taking several thousand disciples with him as he abandoned the city and fled.
“He ran!”
“Haha!”
“What a coward!”
The Water Qilin laughed wildly, giving chase.
“White-hair, if you have the guts, don't run! Let's fight another three hundred rounds!”
Yao Xiqiao turned a deaf ear. Dragging his heavily injured body, he tore through space in a frantic sprint.
Back in the former Demon-Slaying City, the teleportation formation was reopened.
A curtain of light fell, connecting to the Northern Borders tens of thousands of miles away.
“Fall back.”
“Defend the mountain gate with your lives.”
He did not fear death, but he could not win. If they stayed, they would all die, and that would be meaningless...
Yao Xiqiao's flight was normal to the Water Qilin. He had done well to last this long.
But to Bai Ze and the others, it was unexpected.
In the Northern Borders, when had the Wendao Sword Sect ever shied away from an enemy's edge?
From the sect's ancestors down to the ordinary foundation establishment disciples, they always fought to the death and never retreated a single step.
Today, they had actually abandoned the city and fled.
It was a strange sight.
Did they truly not fear the flames of war devastating the vast Northern Borders?
Without overthinking it, as the Water Qilin disappeared over the horizon riding the massive waves of the Yuan River, Bai Ze gave the order.
“Kill!”
“Trample the Northern Borders!”
A million demon beasts broke through the city passes. In a grand and mighty surge, they leaped over the Demon Suppression Abyss, submerged the Demon-Slaying City, and flooded past the former boundary mountain.
Like a stampede, they headed straight for the mountain gate of the Wendao Sword Sect.
After ten thousand years, they had returned.
“For the tribe!”
“For the Emperor!”
“For the glory of our race!!”
They shouted and charged, the earth shaking and the beasts' roars reaching the heavens.
...
The far north.
The piercing cold wind wailed as the dark sky gradually brightened. In that snow-covered world of men, the hundred-thousand-mile ice field was a landscape of pure white.
Ravines turned into abysses, and a thousand peaks collapsed into the plains.
The thunderous sounds of collision had not been heard for a long time. Terrifying figures faded into the dust, leaving only streaks of light to cut through the final remnants of the night.
Stepping out of the far north, they shot like meteors toward the southern heavens.
There were hundreds of them.
...
Outside the mountain gate of the Wendao Sword Sect, the vortex of the heavenly lightning tribulation finally exhausted its energy after half an hour. It dissipated.
The massive pillar of lightning, losing its source of power, grew thinner and thinner until it vanished completely.
Everyone breathed a secret sigh of relief, especially the Saints who had been chased by Li Qingshan for a long time. All of them felt as if a heavy burden had been lifted.
They turned back in mid-air, just as the disciples within the Wendao Sword Sect were standing on their tiptoes to look into the distance.
Their gazes fell upon the wasteland where the lightning had finally vanished.
There, dust rose high and rocks were scattered everywhere. Residual lightning flickered within, occasionally making a crackling sound.
They held their breath, their eyes filled with uncertainty.
Was he—that madman, that freak—still alive?
The wind rose again.
An aura of tribulation transcendence slowly began to spread. Through the dust, a flickering silhouette slowly crawled to its feet.
Yes, he was alive.
He had truly passed the lightning tribulation in such a manner.
He had reached the tribulation transcendence stage.
The invading powerhouses narrowed their eyes and furrowed their brows, their expressions turning extremely grim. There was no disbelief, for they had witnessed and experienced the entire process.
There was only shock.
Nothing more.
A monster—a monster who already had some fame—had created a new legend today.
Triggering a tribulation in the middle of a chaotic battle, enduring heavenly thunder, and showing no fear in the face of attacks.
He had ascended to tribulation transcendence.
Jiang Wanyin was relieved; the experts of the Wendao Sword Sect were pleasantly surprised...
The Wendao Sword Sect had produced another tribulation transcendence expert after nearly a thousand years.
If not for the war, the bell of the Immortal Pavilion should have tolled six times.
The disciples of the Wendao Sword Sect were jubilant. From their initial uncertainty to growing conviction, and finally to absolute certainty, their joy was beyond words.
“He's alive!”
“So cool!”
“Martial Uncle Qingshan is too powerful...”
Elsewhere, the blood-stained girl also let out a breath. “Whew... thank goodness...”
In the wind and dust, the young man's tribulation transcendence aura leaked out. He let out a furious roar as the great wind surged.
“Ah!”
The dust cleared, and a ripple spread through the mountains. Naked, he stood upon a peak of charred earth struck by lightning, holding his long sword high as he glared at the world.
“Who else!”
He was showing off big time.
But the onlookers, even the Saint old-timers, could not help but feel admiration.
Indeed. Who else?
In the ten thousand years of Fanzhou, who could be like him, using such a mad and fearless method to endure the lightning?
Not to mention the demon race, who were known for their physical strength, or the spirits who were born as the darlings of heaven and earth—even they could not do it.
Terrifyingly powerful.
The description was not an exaggeration.
However...
What if he succeeded? What if he did it?
It was true that he had created a miracle and a legend. But in the end, he was only in the tribulation transcendence stage.
And the early stage at that.
Did it have any impact on this battlefield? What could he change?
He could change nothing.
Just now, when the lightning tribulation was raging, they had to avoid his edge for fear of provoking heaven's wrath. Now that the lightning had faded, what could a mere early-stage tribulation transcendence expert do?
Even Saints were no match for them; a puny tribulation transcendence cultivator could be suppressed with a flick of a finger.
Contempt, disdain, loathing, and resentment flickered in their eyes.
The old monsters who had been chased by him for half an hour regained their composure, and their killing intent surged...
However, before the chaotic battle could resume, a curtain of light suddenly fell upon the mountain gate plaza of the Wendao Sword Sect. The light rose, obscuring the dawn.
The powerhouses looked into the distance, and the disciples turned their heads.
At a glance, they recognized it as a teleportation formation.
“A one-way teleportation formation?”
“Is it reinforcements?”
“There's more?”
The crowd was dazed and confused, unable to guess why the formation had appeared or where it was connected...
The invading enemies looked solemn. They wondered if the Wendao Sword Sect still had a trump card.
But the expressions of the Wendao Sword Sect experts turned extremely grim. Only they knew that the sect had no reinforcements.
The light had originated from the East Desolation.
Was it victory? Or defeat?
A second later, one figure after another stepped out of the light. They were covered in dust and looked quite disheveled.
Some were pale, some had weak auras, some clutched their chests, and some leaned on each other for support.
The white-haired man leading them had a large patch of crimson on his chest. After taking a few steps, his figure began to stumble...
Seeing this, everyone realized what had happened. The invading enemies looked relieved, their faces filled with mockery, ridicule, and triumph.
What reinforcements? They were nothing but a defeated army that had abandoned their equipment.
Clearly, in the struggle for the East Desolation, the Wendao Sword Sect had lost.
To the invaders present, this was a great victory and joyful news.
The East Desolation had fallen. The Wendao Sword Sect was teetering on the brink.
In the far north, the demon qi was fading. It was likely much the same there. Even if Li Qingshan had ascended to the tribulation transcendence stage against all odds, what could he do?
“The Wendao Sword Sect's fortune has run out.”
“Tsk tsk, Bai Ze is something else, to be able to beat Yao Xiqiao so badly?”
“This is getting more and more interesting...”
The old monk chanted a Buddhist name. “Amitabha. Little Benefactor Jiang, why not surrender?”
Jiang Wanyin remained silent, her eyes dark.
On the plaza, the disciples who had just stepped out of the teleportation gate had not yet recovered from the slump of defeat when they saw the tragic state outside the mountain gate.
Everyone's expression was solemn and filled with anger. They could see that while the battle in the East Desolation was brutal, the war at the sect was even worse.
There was no fear in their hearts, only hatred at this moment.
Wen Qingxue ran forward and supported the heavily injured Yao Xiqiao, who could barely stand.
“Ancestor.”
Yao Xiqiao waved his hand. “It is nothing.”
Then he sent a divine sense transmission, saying shamefully, “Senior Sister... I'm sorry!”
“I couldn't hold it!”
Rate on N.U.
