Chapter Sixty-Six: The False Primordial Spirit Realm

The massive sphere of resentful blood was drawn into the body of the royal ancestor, and with the aid of this secret art, his cultivation soared, breaking through two minor realms in succession to reach a level suspected to be the Nascent Soul stage. Though his nascent soul was not yet able to leave his body, the sheer volume of his vital energy was already approaching that of the Nascent Soul realm.

This ancestor was Li Yuanfen, the great-grandfather of the emperor of the Li royal family of the Mingyue Empire, and one of the two mightiest individuals in the empire. He was chosen as the vessel to inherit the power of the blood sacrifice because of his decisive and ruthless nature, his many methods, and his status as the senior-most member of the royal family.

Although Li Yuanfen appeared intoxicated by his newfound strength, he was, in fact, remarkably clear-headed—a testament to his cunning.

Gongsun Qingyang gazed at Li Yuanfen, whose power now rivaled that of the Nascent Soul realm, and a wave of despair crashed over him, so much so that he did not even notice the trapping formation had already been broken.

The elders behind Gongsun Qingyang, as well as the war mage priest Su Ang, were all trembling with fear. The appearance of someone at the Nascent Soul stage—a legendary realm—was overwhelming. Although not a true Nascent Soul cultivator, Li Yuanfen's oppressive aura and might had already surpassed the scope of the Spirit Infant realm. The overwhelming sense of power left the members of the Netherworld Sacred Land feeling utterly powerless.

Li Yuanfen did not act arrogantly; seizing the moment when Gongsun Qingyang and his three companions were lost in despair, he struck at once with all his might. At that critical moment, an elder reacted, stepping in front of the sect master Gongsun Qingyang to take the fatal blow.

His final words were, "Protect the sect master. Go!"

As his body was annihilated, Gongsun Qingyang was filled with rage and unwillingness. He was told to flee, but how could he escape? The retreat was already blocked by another royal ancestor and two generals.

At this moment of utter desperation, a thunderous fox's cry echoed from within the imperial city. A fox silhouette appeared, standing tall upon the sky—a two-meter tall dragon-fox, none other than Rou'er in her transformed state.

She sent a message to Gongsun Qingyang and the others: "Go quickly! I was brought by Chen Mu to help you escape; we've already broken the trapping formation. Leave the rest to me!"

Gongsun Qingyang stared in astonishment at the magnificent fox shadow. "Fellow Daoist, you..."

"Go! I have my own means of escape! And take Chen Mu with you!" Rou'er barked sharply.

By now, Chen Mu had left the palace and reached the battered, ruined streets outside. The powerful enemies of the Mingyue Empire glanced at him but paid no further attention—for them, Chen Mu was but an ant. Their true focus was the snow-white three-tailed dragon-fox.

Li Yuanfen turned his head and declared, "Submit to me, and I may spare you."

"You counterfeit! Do you actually believe you are truly at the Nascent Soul realm? How ridiculous! Old man, you want me to submit? You're not worthy!" Rou'er mocked him.

"If you won't submit, you'll die!" Li Yuanfen did not wish to waste time suppressing and subduing Rou'er, especially since his current state was time-limited. He needed to eliminate Gongsun Qingyang and the other obstacles from the Netherworld Sacred Land first.

He lunged at Rou'er, throwing a punch with the intent to end this unexpected trouble as swiftly as possible.

Rou'er instantly employed her Phantom Shadow Concealment Technique, blending into her surroundings, her form flickering between reality and illusion.

Unable to lock onto her aura, Li Yuanfen's punch landed in vain.

All present stared in disbelief; perhaps there was truly hope for escape.

Gongsun Qingyang immediately ordered Su Ang to take Chen Mu and flee, while he and another elder would delay the three other Mingyue Empire powerhouses.

Su Ang obeyed, seized Chen Mu, and took to the skies in flight. One of the generals moved to intercept them but was held off by the elder.

Thus, the sect master and the elder became locked in battle with the Mingyue Empire's experts, a deadlock forming between them.

This time, Li Yuanfen changed tactics; if he could not pinpoint Rou'er's location, he would unleash a wide-area attack to catch her regardless.

This time, his attack finally struck Rou'er's true form, sending a fox shadow hurtling into a ruined building. Yet, her physical body was extraordinary, and such damage was negligible. Her original cultivation realm was formidable; it was only her power that had been sealed, preventing her from unleashing her true strength.

"What? Not even injured? What kind of monster are you? How could you take a blow from me and remain unscathed?" Li Yuanfen exclaimed in shock.

Seeing that he could not harm Rou'er, he immediately shifted his attacks toward Gongsun Qingyang. The hasty ambush only severely injured him rather than taking his life.

Rou'er, her expression dark, had not anticipated Li Yuanfen's cunning. She dusted herself off. Though he could not harm her, she too was not strong enough to strike him down.

Only one move could buy enough time for the Netherworld Sacred Land to escape: her innate divine art—the Illusory World Immortal-Annihilating Curse.

Although its name promised the destruction of immortals, with her powers sealed, she could only sap a portion of the enemies' souls and disrupt their vital energy channels, at the cost of her own temporary weakness.

But with the situation as dire as it was, she had no choice. An illusionary realm arose: gold, wealth, power, and strength—within it, the four of the Mingyue Empire found themselves lost in a paradise of pleasure and heroism.

Gongsun Qingyang, suppressing his grievous wounds, rose to his feet. Seeing the enemies inexplicably lost in a stupor, he was momentarily stunned. Then Rou'er’s urgent voice reached him: "I've trapped them in an illusion with my innate divine art—run, now!"

Understanding the situation, Gongsun Qingyang clasped his fists in gratitude. "Many thanks for your life-saving grace, fellow Daoist. I hope you will leave quickly too. Once this tribulation has passed, I invite you to visit the Netherworld Sacred Land as our guest."

With that, the elder of the sacred land took him and fled into the distance.

Outside the imperial capital’s walls, Xu Changye and twenty members of the Nightshade organization, having witnessed their sect master’s escape, cheered. They saluted Rou’er respectfully before beginning their own retreat.

For Li Yuanfen and the other three, caught in the illusion, their souls were steadily consumed, their vital energy rampaging within, placing great strain on their bodies.

However, this state could not last long. Rou’er took the opportunity to escape, vanishing before the four regained consciousness.

Li Yuanfen was terrified; the illusion had gravely injured his soul and thrown his energy channels into chaos, causing frequent internal injuries. What a terrifying spell! He had never heard of such a bizarre art—had its power been even slightly greater, he would have perished.

The others awakened with the same realization, grateful that the spell's power had not been greater, allowing them to survive.

Cursing under his breath, Li Yuanfen gave the order: "Spread the word throughout the entire empire: the Netherworld Sacred Land is savage and inhuman, slaughtering the people of the capital to seize royal power. Even with all our efforts, the royal family could not save the capital, which is now in ruins. All powers of the Mingyue Empire are to hunt down the members of the Netherworld Sacred Land, setting them against each other! I want to see if the Netherworld Sacred Land can endure the condemnation of all!"

Li Yuanfen and his three companions did not give chase—not only were they all wounded, but three of them were seriously injured, leaving them with no choice but to abandon pursuit.

...

A month later, winter had arrived. Rumors swept the empire, claiming that the Netherworld Sacred Land, blinded by the pursuit of power, had committed the atrocity of slaughtering the city. Its followers were either persecuted, forced into hiding, or had defected.

All factions in the Mingyue Empire were discussing an expedition against the Netherworld Sacred Land, though none dared act rashly due to its great power.

The sect master remained severely wounded, his strength barely at the early Spirit Infant stage.

Upon seeing her father so grievously injured, Gongsun Lin had wept bitterly. Now, she devoted herself day and night to caring for her parents, a display of filial love that left Chen Mu deeply envious.

He thought of his own father, Chen Haoran. Once he had avenged himself, he vowed to find his father and, together with his elder brother Chen Feng, rebuild their family.

Now, the leadership of the Netherworld Sacred Land was beset with headaches. External pressure was mounting. Though they claimed the royal family of the Mingyue Empire had sacrificed the citizens of the capital in a blood ritual, no one believed them. After all, many had seen the sect master of the Netherworld Sacred Land marching grandly into the capital, after which the city was left ruined and its people massacred.

Now, they dreaded anyone coming to seek them out. Their strongest members were Song Miao and the elder who had returned alive with Gongsun Qingyang—both at the mid-Spirit Infant realm. If they were to face the entire Mingyue Empire, they would be hard-pressed to cope.

Fortunately, Rou’er had nearly recovered, but she declared she would not help again; from now on, they would have to rely on themselves.

One piece of good news was that after a month of consuming Foundation-Stabilizing Pills, Chen Mu’s cultivation had advanced to the middle Foundation Establishment stage. He could now contend equally with, or even overpower, mid-Core Formation cultivators, who in turn posed little threat to him. Killing a mid-stage cultivator was no longer impossible.

Thus, open conflict between the Netherworld Sacred Land and the Mingyue Empire erupted. Followers and soldiers from both sides clashed in small-scale skirmishes and battles—nothing more than minor conflicts, yet the reputation of the Netherworld Sacred Land had become thoroughly tarnished.

At this time, the four Nightshade Children of the Nightshade organization returned to headquarters, bringing information about the ancient demonic cultivator inheritance sites that once belonged to the Devil Clan.

The ruins lay to the south of the Mingyue Empire, coincidentally just north of the Great Xia Empire, sandwiched between the two great empires.

According to their reports, Great Xia was likely aware of these circumstances. Though they did not know the ruins were those of demonic cultivators, even if they did, they would not pass up the opportunity. What did it matter if the arts were demonic? So long as they were rebranded, or the techniques and secret arts were modified, they could become righteous techniques. If nothing else, they would make excellent subjects for research.