Chapter 174: The war between the saints and the devil begins
Ye Li's action of drawing a clear line between himself and Qin Yixuan and raising the banner of "balanced symbiosis" was like pouring a bucket of ice water into a boiling oil pan, instantly triggering a violent reaction like a chain explosion.
The deep waters of the spiritual world were completely muddied.
The first to attack was the Eternal Temple.
On the seventh day after Ye Li's declaration, the "Valley of Beasts", a medium-sized sect located on the edge of the East Continent of the Spirit Realm, famous for its beast taming and which had made disrespectful remarks to the Temple's messengers, suffered a devastating disaster.
That day, a rain of light descended from the sky. It wasn't an auspicious sign, but a destructive rain condensed from the purest divine power of light, imbued with the will of purification. Countless Temple law enforcers, clad in platinum robes, rode on shimmering light boats, descending like divine punishment, surrounding the Valley of Beasts.
No warning, no negotiation.
The leading Templar Knight raised his longsword, blazing with holy flames, and his voice, cold and solemn, echoed throughout the land: "By order of the Holy Temple, the Valley of Beasts has colluded with Chaos, embraced heresy, and tarnished the light of Order. They must be purified with holy flames as a warning to others!"
"Purification!"
"Purification!"
Amidst earth-shattering cries, a shower of light poured down. Under the onslaught of the holy flames imbued with the laws of order, the protective formations of the Hundred Beasts Valley melted away like ice and snow in sunlight. The spirit beasts ridden by the valley's disciples wailed in agony under the holy light, while those less powerful were reduced to ash. Buildings burned, lives were decimated, and cries, roars, and the blasts of spells mingled in a dirge of despair.
In just half a day, the once vibrant Valley of Beasts turned into a scorched earth, with no grass growing. Only the mirror-smooth glass-like ground burned by the holy flames remained, and the nauseating burnt smell and lingering sacred breath filled the air.
The Temple used this bloody method to declare to the entire spiritual world: Any "heretic" who does not obey the "absolute order" will be ruthlessly "purified"!
And this is just the beginning.
Following closely behind, a tribe in the Western Desert that worshipped ancient natural spirits and was considered to be practicing "primitive worship"; several villages in the Southern Wilderness that studied poisons and were considered "filthy"; and even several small cultivation families in the Central Plains that were judged by the Temple to be "impure in order" due to internal ideological differences... were all purged by the Temple's law enforcement team one after another.
Wherever the Temple's iron hoofs passed, they left behind only silence and "purity." With ruthless efficiency, they enforced their ideal of "order," tolerating no noise or deviation.
Almost at the same time, the Abyss of Ten Thousand Demons also raised their blood-red flags.
Unlike the Temple's clear goal of "purification", the Abyss brings pure disorder and destruction.
In a vast oasis at the junction of the Northern Territory and the Western Desert, the prosperous monk-trading city of "Golden Sands" was transformed overnight into a ghostly den. Thick, inky demonic clouds obscured the starry sky, and countless twisted, hideous monsters surged from the earth like a tide, emerging from cracks in the void. They had no slogans, only frantic roars and a greedy devouring of all living life and energy.
The monks in the city fought hard, but the number of monsters seemed endless. What was even more terrifying was that the demonic energy they emitted was extremely polluting. Once infected by the demonic energy, those with weak wills would soon become demon servants who only knew how to kill, and would turn around and attack their former companions.
Killing, destruction, pollution... When dawn arrived and the demonic clouds dispersed, Jinsha City was left in ruins, blood flowing like a river. Few survivors remained, most of them mad and possessed. A thick grudge mingled with demonic energy, transforming this oasis into a new desolate land.
Similar tragedies unfolded across the spirit world. The forces of the Demonic Abyss spread like a plague, creating chaos instead of order; destroying life instead of conquering territory. They exemplified the concept of "chaos and nothingness" in the most direct way, aiming to drag the entire spirit world into a mad abyss.
The Temple's "purification" and the Demonic Abyss's "destruction" were like two massive guillotines, slashing fiercely at the spirit world from two directions. Smoke rose everywhere, the flames of war spread across the prairie, and countless lives wailed in despair. The once prosperous world of cultivation was instantly reduced to a bloody slaughterhouse.
Balance? Symbiosis? Under the pressure of these two extreme forces, it seems so fragile and luxurious.
Xuanyun Sect, the core of the Wanfa Altar.
Before Ye Li and Qin Yixuan, a massive water mirror hovered, clearly reflecting the tragedies unfolding across the spirit world. The scorched earth of the Valley of Beasts, the ruins of Jinsha City, countless displaced cultivators and mortals, faces filled with despair... Each scene burned their hearts like a red-hot iron.
"We can't wait any longer." A layer of frost covered Qin Yixuan's beautiful face, and the starlight in her eyes flickered violently, containing uncontrollable anger and compassion. "The Temple is killing people indiscriminately, and the Demon Abyss is rampant. If we just sit back and watch, the foundation of the spiritual world will be completely destroyed!"
Ye Li's eyes were as cold as a thousand years of black ice. The aura of the Samsara Sanctuary around her fluctuated slightly, revealing her inner turmoil. "They're forcing us to take action, and testing our limits."
She knew full well that the atrocities committed by the Temple and the Abyss were both a manifestation of their ideals and a provocation and pressure on their newly formed "third camp." If they retreated, the newly united people would inevitably disintegrate, and the ideal of balanced coexistence would become a mockery.
"Protecting the innocent and maintaining balance is our way." Ye Li stood up, his black robe fluttering without a breeze, and a resolute aura emanated from him. "Since the war has begun, then we will... join the game!"
The order was issued quickly.
The Youge's war machine was fully operational. Countless members, clad in standard black robes and bearing a powerful aura, scattered like ghosts across the spirit world, gathering intelligence and sniping lone Temple law enforcers and Demonic Abyss vanguards. The Jiuxiao Heavenly Palace dispatched a large number of monks skilled in purification and healing to the affected areas, rescuing the wounded, purifying the demonic energy, and calming the people.
Ye Li and Qin Yixuan decided to take action themselves to deal with the most difficult situation.
According to the urgent intelligence transmitted by the Nether Pavilion, a massive Demonic Abyss army, led by several demon generals, is emerging from the depths of the Northern Territory's wasteland, heading straight for the "Flowing Wind Plain," the most densely populated area in the Northern Territory and a vital barrier for the Xuanyun Sect! If this army were to enter the plain, the consequences would be disastrous!
"Let's go to Liufengyuan." Ye Li said concisely.
The two men tore through the void and disappeared in an instant.
The next moment, they appeared at the Black Wind Pass, the border between the Northern Wasteland and the Flowing Wind Plain.
By this time, Black Wind Pass had become a bloody battlefield. The Northern Alliance troops stationed there fought fiercely, but their opponents were the surging Demonic Abyss army. Monsters of all shapes and sizes roared, their roars deafening the heavens. The dense demonic energy practically dyed the sky inky black. The coalition monks' defensive line, eroded by the demonic energy and the monsters' frenzied assault, was crumbling. Constantly, monks screamed and fell, their bodies rapidly tainted by the demonic energy, some even staggering back to their feet, transformed into demonic servants.
"Form a formation! Stop them! Never let them enter the plain!" A coalition general, covered in blood and at the early stage of Nirvana, roared angrily and waved the battle flag, but there was a hint of despair in his eyes.
Just when the defense line was about to be breached——
“Buzz!”
A vast and profound will, which seems to be able to stop the cycle of reincarnation and calm the eternity, descends like an invisible sky!
Immediately afterwards, the endlessly brilliant, warm, and purifying and life-giving starlight, like the first ray of dawn, pierced through the thick demonic clouds and sprinkled on the tragic battlefield!
The monsters frantically charging the defenses howled in agony, like ice and snow being plunged into boiling oil. Their bodies quickly melted and vaporized under the radiance of the stars! The dense, soul-destroying demonic energy was also purified and dispelled by this sacred light!
The pressure on the allied monks suddenly dropped, and they looked up in astonishment.
Two figures stood side by side in the sky. One was dressed in black clothes and had black hair, with chaotic light flowing around him, like the master of reincarnation descending; the other was dressed in white clothes whiter than snow, with starlight surrounding her body, like a goddess of the starry sky descending to the earth.
"It's the Samsara Sanctuary! The Xuannv Sanctuary!"
"The Lord of the Sanctuary is here! We are saved!"
The ecstasy and excitement of surviving the disaster instantly overwhelmed all the allied monks.
Ye Li swept his cold eyes over the chaotic Demon Abyss army below and raised his hand to press it lightly.
"Reincarnation... Imprisonment!"
Her words became reality! In an instant, the space within a radius of dozens of miles, centered around her, seemed to have been paused! All the monsters that were charging, roaring, and casting spells suddenly froze in their tracks, as if trapped in an invisible quagmire. Even the demonic energy swirling around them solidified!
Qin Yixuan raised her white hand lightly, drawing the power of the stars in the sky.
"Xuan Nu: Star Rain Cleanses the World!"
Countless beams of starlight, condensed as substance and imbued with the ultimate power of purification, rained down from the sky like a torrential rain, precisely covering every imprisoned monster! Before the monsters could even utter a scream, the demonic thoughts at their core were completely purified and annihilated!
The might of the Holy Land was fully revealed! In just a moment, the massive Demon Abyss vanguard army disappeared without a trace, as if erased by an eraser, leaving behind only the purified and restored spiritual energy of heaven and earth.
The monks of the coalition forces were stunned, and then burst into thunderous cheers.
However, just as Ye Li was using the power of reincarnation to clear the battlefield and sensing the movements of the remaining demonic energy, her brows suddenly frowned!
Deep within the dissipated, pure aura of the Demonic Abyss, she caught a glimpse of an extremely subtle yet familiar rhythmic fluctuation! Within that fluctuation, mingled a trace of an aura that was deeply engraved in her mind and deeply loathed to the extreme!
This aura… was cold, cunning, full of betrayal and malice… Although it was masked by the dense demonic energy and became countless times stronger, she would never mistake its core essence!
It was one of the people who had participated in the betrayal back then! Not Ling Hao, Xuan Cong, or Mo Shang, but another one... the one who was skilled in curses and soul magic, hiding in the shadows like a venomous snake, and who had dealt the crucial blow in the battle that led to her death in her previous life—
"Bone-Eroding Venerable"? !
He's not dead? And... he's joined the Demonic Abyss. Judging by the strength of his remaining aura, he seems to hold a high position within the Demonic Abyss!
Ye Li's eyes instantly became as cold as ice, and the murderous intent almost solidified into substance.
Another name clearly emerged on the list of those to be cleared of blood debts. Finding him might reveal more about the betrayal and the core secrets of the Demonic Abyss!
Amidst the smoke of war, the old enemy finally showed up again.
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