A streak of light shot from south to north at tremendous speed. Wherever it passed, wind roared, clouds spread, and the sea churned. It flew in a straight line without the slightest intention of turning. Even when it crossed into territories with flight restrictions, it did not slow in the least.

This triggered an alarm in a major sect, and an Adept flew into the sky to confront the intruder. Yet upon seeing the source of that streak of light, he gasped in shock and hurriedly retreated. It was not a cultivator's light at all! It was clearly an avian Demon King, fleeing desperately while being gnawed at by countless ghosts!

"Which devilish powerhouse is hunting a demonic beast with methods like this? Wait, hold up..."

To his shock and disbelief, the Adept noticed a human seated atop the Demon King's back. He swallowed hard, then turned and flew back in as if nothing had happened. It was a great day to be temporarily blind.

***

On Heavenjade's back, Luo Chen sensed her condition and couldn't hide the concern on his face. "Senior... do we really have to go this far?"

Han Zhan's voice drifted over. "He Yuan was formidable to begin with, and now he's possessed by Blood Nightmare. If he catches up, we're dead, both of us. And he's not the only one after you. In your state, you won't get far. There's only one way I can think of to go faster than Adepts, which is to use this Myriad Soul Devouring to force out Heavenjade's potential and have her use Ninety Thousand Li. That's the only way we have even a chance to escape."

Luo Chen fell silent and looked down at Heavenjade, who was visibly struggling. She appeared extremely miserable. One after another, ghostly souls emerged from the Myriad Soul Banner and clung to her body. They devoured her flesh while also feeding her some kind of black energy. Under this stimulation, Heavenjade could use Ninety Thousand Li to the utmost, and her speed surpassed anything she had ever achieved before. It even exceeded Luo Chen's speed in his Sky Roc True Form!

By his estimation, no Adept could match this speed, and it was only slightly inferior to a Sage. However, once the effect ended, Heavenjade would be completely exhausted and might even harm her future cultivation.

"Master... I'm fine," Heavenjade said with effort, her voice carrying a trace of pain amid the howling wind.

Han Zhan said calmly, "If you feel bad for her, make it up to her later. Give her some supreme-grade Spirit Passage Pills and Imperial Nectar."

Luo Chen forced a smile and gently stroked Heavenjade's feathers. In the end, he said nothing more. He only looked back toward Coldlight Island with a cold gaze. "The Qian family, Hundred Craft Mountain, the Tempered Edge Workshop, and Devil's Snare... All of you, be sure I will remember this grudge."

There was no harsh tone, only a quiet murmur. Yet the cold in it cut straight to the bone!

***

On Coldlight Island, in Jadecold City, inside a dim secret chamber, three figures sat together. Suddenly, a man in blood robes groaned.

The woman across from him opened her eyes and frowned. "What's wrong?"

Blood Nightmare opened his eyes and said calmly, "Nothing. One of the Blood God Clones I just refined made a mistake... it almost slipped out of my control."

At the mention of the Blood God Clone, the third person—an elderly man with an ethereal bearing—opened his eyes, and a trace of wariness flickered within them. The Primordial Devil Sect had once stood as the foremost of the Northern Sea, and many of its techniques had spread beyond its borders. This was especially true for the highly practical methods of the Blood Sea lineage, as well as the crafting of soul refinement artifacts. Yet these techniques had been nothing but bait, deliberately released to select talented individuals from the masses. The true core secrets had never been made public. Among them, the method for creating Blood God Clones stood at the very heart of the Blood Sea Lineage.

It was said that Grand Elder Blood Sea had practiced the Blood God Scripture to major mastery and commanded three thousand six hundred Blood God Clones. Apparently, the scripture described this state as "The blood sea will never run dry, and the Blood Gods shall never perish." That was the very foundation of his confidence when he ventured into the depths of the Sunken Sea. Yet he was an Ascendant; meanwhile, Blood Nightmare had already dared to refine Blood God Clones at the Nascent Soul Realm!

Fairy Jadecold, who knew more of the inside story, said bluntly, "What did you expect when you refined Blood God Clones at the Nascent Soul Realm? They're bound to be unstable, and backlash is only to be expected. And you sent it out right after you refined it? The fact it didn't break free on the spot means you were lucky."

Blood Nightmare snorted. "My cultivation is none of your concern. Let's talk about what comes next. The fish has taken the bait."

Fairy Jadecold replied calmly, "With bait like Godslayer, it'd be weird if someone didn't bite. But whether we can reel in the big fish... that depends on whether we have the strength."

"As long as the three of us are working together, that will be more than enough," Blood Nightmare said with confidence.

The elderly man who looked like a transcendent immortal asked slowly, "What you're relying on are Blood God Clones, right? After that little mishap just now... are you sure there won't be more problems later?"

Blood Nightmare glanced at him without anger. "Silent Fate, don't compare my Primordial Devil techniques with your little Penglai tricks."

Silent Fate frowned but did not argue. The devil sect had long since faded into the past. There was no need to argue over what was already gone.

As they chatted, Jadecold suddenly turned stiff and said, "Mulan Gaoxiong has been caught. It's time."

Blood Nightmare Devil's Snare revealed a sinister smile. He rose to his feet and his blood-red robe billowed. "In that case, let's ignite a war between the righteous and devilish forces!"

Silent Fate stood up as well, flicking his fly whisk behind him. "It's time for the Penglai Immortal Sect to officially announce our return to the Northern Sea."

A moment before, within a cave residence in Jadecold City, blood-red light had flared without warning. A sharp sword light pierced through the defensive formation and shot straight into the sky. The dense crimson glow spread across the city, visible for thousands of li.

Inside the cave, Sage Mulan Gaoxiong of the Blue Sea Alliance stood in terror. His forehead sported a vertical slit that seemed like a third eye at first glance, but then turned out to be a wound caused by sword energy. Blood dripped down beyond his control. The blood-red sword in his grasp trembled violently as a devilish will surged within it and struck at the Nascent Soul in his Purple Palace.

"That bitch set me up!" cursed Mulan Gaoxiong.

Without another thought, he rushed out of the cave and flew straight toward a palace in the main city. He had to leave Jadecold City at once with the teleportation formation and head to the Blue Sea Alliance to seek the Ascendant. Only someone like that could resolve his condition. "Activate the teleportation formation!"

The cultivator in charge of the teleportation formation looked troubled. "The teleportation formation has malfunctioned. It can't be used right now." 𝗳𝐫𝚎𝗲𝚠𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝘃𝚎𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝗺

Mulan Gaoxiong froze for a moment, with disbelief written across his face. He rushed into the grand hall and examined the formation himself. It truly could not be used. But it was obviously not the result of a malfunction—the formation had been clearly damaged by someone!

Something's wrong. Something's terribly wrong.

Jadecold City upheld neutrality. Its teleportation formations were managed by city cultivators and also regularly inspected by other forces. Before the auction, this formation had been operating normally. Yet at the very moment he needed it, it had been destroyed.

A sense of foreboding rose in his heart. Without thinking further, he shot straight into the sky and abandoned any thought of informing the Blue Sea Alliance cultivators who had come with him. However, just as he was about to leave the airspace of Coldlight Island, a voice sounded behind him. "Fellow Daoist, please wait a moment."

Mulan Gaoxiong turned abruptly and saw an old Daoist holding a fly whisk, smiling at him. "Fellow Daoist Silent Fate, since when does the Penglai Immortal Sect dare meddle in the affairs of the Blue Sea Alliance?"

Just then, a female voice came from Silent Fate's side. "As one of the overlords of Coldlight Island, I can't help but wonder: How come you're leaving without a word? Was my hospitality lacking?"

"Bitch, I haven't even settled accounts with you yet, and you dare talk about hospitality? You really have a death wish!" Mulan Gaoxiong glared at her with fury written all over his face.

Fairy Jadecold nodded slightly. "So you did hit a problem with the sword. Then your Nascent Soul must already be damaged. You can't even bring out your full strength, can you?"

"So what about it?" Mulan Gaoxiong looked at the two as a powerful energy wave spread out. The surrounding spirit energy was stripped away, leaving only his own attribute. It was his Nascent Soul Domain!

The Domain spread outward and broke the restraints the two had placed on him. Mulan Gaoxiong snorted and turned to leave. "If I want to leave, none of you can stop me!"

The next moment, a deep crimson light appeared around him, transforming into an endless sea of blood that rushed in from the direction he intended to flee in. The arrogant voice of Blood Nightmare echoed from behind him. "Fellow Daoist, you should stay! This war needs a sacrifice, and a mid-stage Nascent Soul like yours is perfect!"

In an instant, the three Sages activated their own Domains and collided violently with Mulan Gaoxiong's. The spirit energy split apart and stood in stark opposition. The great battle erupted amid shouts and curses.

Jadecold City, the largest city of the southeast that had stood for a thousand years, collapsed almost immediately under the shockwaves of the clash. The entire Coldlight Island shook under the force of a Sage-level battle, and countless cultivators fled in panic.