Staying in the sect, controlling beasts and cultivating immortals

The miasma was as black as ink, so thick it was almost solidified, and the air was filled with the pungent smell of decay and the corrosive effects of strong acid on corpses. This was one of the perilous strongholds of the Rift Sky Alliance's outer defenses of Burial God Ridge—Dead Wind Valley.

As its name suggests, the valley is perpetually swept by withering gales that can scrape bones and erode souls. The wind carries visible, decaying particles, which are highly condensed fragments of the Dao of Annihilation.

A grotesque bone tower, hundreds of feet tall and built from the bones of countless enormous demonic beasts, stands in the center of the valley. The tower is entangled in a thick, viscous, and decaying energy stream, which is one of the two core bone towers of the "Thousand Miasma Annihilation Array" set up by the Rift Sky Alliance.

Two dark green figures, almost blending into their surroundings, moved like the most agile geckos, slithering along the cold, slippery, moss-covered valley walls. They were the elite of the Miasma Clan's "Rotten Swamp Thunder" action team—the Shadow Eater "Night Owl" and the Lightbringer "Azure Firefly."

They were covered by the "Dust-Shaping Robe" personally applied by Elder Qingyan, which could maximally avoid the erosion of the withering Dao and the regular scanning crystals of the Rifting Heaven Alliance.

However, facing the Bone Tower at the core of the Dead Wind Valley, the omnipresent desolate gales and the enormous "Eye of the Burial God" scanning crystal at the top of the tower, which flickered on and off, still made them feel as if they were walking on thin ice with every step.

"The base of the tower, the third, seventh, and eleventh joint rune rings, have the most chaotic energy flow. They are the nodes of the 'Thousand Miasma Annihilation Array' energy circuit, and also the relatively weak seams."

The owl's thoughts are silently transmitted to its companions through the unique network of plant roots in the hummock forest.

His eyes gleamed with a faint green light, a gift from the innate environmental perception of the Miasma Spirit Clan.

Qingying nodded, her slender fingers forming a mysterious hand seal in front of her chest. A miniature "purification light seed" formed from a fragment of the Pure World Green Lotus seed quietly appeared in her palm, emitting a soft yet resilient emerald light. It barely managed to create a weak halo with a radius of less than three feet around them, slightly repelling the most deadly withering gale.

"Prepare for action."

Target: the seventh sacrum of the base of the tower.

Night Owl, armor piercing; I, purification and annihilation!

The two exchanged a glance, their bodies instantly tensing up like venomous snakes gathering their power.

The moment the scanning beam of the Eye of the Burial swept across the other side of the tower, the Night Owl moved!
He transformed into a dark green afterimage that clung to the ground, moving at incredible speed. In his hands, two poisoned bone blades, crafted from the roots and stems of strange plants and animal bones, wielded the unique purifying and corrosive power of the Miasma Spirit Clan, and he stabbed fiercely at the seam of the complex rune ring on the seventh bone segment of the tower base.

The purifying power attached to the bone blade clashed violently with the annihilating energy of the Bone Tower, emitting a teeth-grinding hissing sound and billowing black smoke.

"Enemy attack! Deathwind Valley Node Seven! Shadow Eater!"

The Eye of the Burial God at the top of the tower suddenly burst into a blinding red light, and a shrill alarm sounded throughout the valley.

Almost simultaneously, the tower hummed, and several black chains condensed from pure withered Dao principles shot out from inside the tower like venomous pythons, heading straight for Night Owl!
"Hmph!" Qingying snorted coldly, slamming the Purifying Light Seed in her hand into the ground. A burst of emerald light erupted, not attacking the chains, but rather digging deep into the polluted earth surrounding the tower base like roots.

"Purification - Root Cage!" Countless tough, steel-like plant roots, radiating a purifying glow, burst forth from the soil and instantly entangled the black chains.

The power of purification clashed violently with the Dao of Withering, annihilating each other and emitting a hissing sound, temporarily slowing down the chains.

But that one breath of time gained was enough for the night owl!
A fierce glint flashed in his eyes, and he let out a low roar as the muscles in his arms bulged, unleashing the purifying and corrosive power on his bone blade to its fullest extent.

"Open it for me!" With a dull tearing sound, he pried open a palm-width gap at the seam of the seventh joint rune ring!
Within the crevice, the violent and chaotic gray energy seemed to have found an outlet, surging out wildly!

"Now!" Qingying clasped her hands together, compressing all the remaining power of the purifying light seed into a highly refined emerald beam of light, which shot into the crevice with perfect precision!
"boom--!!!"

There was no earth-shattering explosion, only a muffled sound so deep it could stop your heart, like the simultaneous groans of countless bones.

The emerald beam of light suddenly spread out from inside the tower base, and wherever it passed, the violent withering energy melted and purified as if it were ice cubes thrown into boiling oil!
The rune ring at the seventh joint instantly dimmed and shattered! The entire Bone Tower shook violently, the Eye of the Burial God at the top of the tower emitted an unstable, flickering red light, and the energy flow wrapped around the tower became extremely chaotic, sliding towards the edge of losing control!
"Success! Retreat!"

Night Owl grabbed Qingying, whose face was pale from exhaustion, and the two turned around without hesitation, disappearing back into the thick miasma and howling death wind.

Behind them came the mournful cries of anger and despair emanating from the Bone Tower, signifying the destruction of the array nodes, and the aura of the Burial God Guards, carrying intense killing intent, rapidly surging in from the direction of the valley entrance.

Almost at the same time that the mournful cries of the Bone Tower in Dead Wind Valley were heard, another strategic stronghold in Burial God Ridge—Broken Ridge Cliff—was met with a devastating blow!

Broken Ridge Cliff, as its name suggests, resembles the broken spine of a giant beast, stretching across the main road leading to the core area of ​​Burial God Ridge.

This is the garrison hub of the Rift Sky Alliance's Burial God Guard. The cliff face is carved with countless caves, filled with the Ruins Annihilation Cannons and Skeleton Catapults that shimmer with a cold, eerie light.

A thick, gray light curtain, formed from withered Dao principles, enveloped the entire cliff face, radiating a suffocating, deathly pressure.

"Breaking Army - Arrowhead! Pierce it through!"

Wang Cheng's signature thunderous roar drowned out the shriek of the space jump engine!
From the direction of the Purple Mountain Barrier, dozens of assault ships, which had been urgently modified by Mo Heng and covered with ferocious "Return to the Void Barrier Armor", appeared above the Broken Ridge Cliff like steel giant sharks pouncing from the abyss, tearing through the withered mist!
The main gun at the bow of the ship was already fully charged, shining with a destructive gray-purple light that was a mixture of chaos and annihilation.

Wang Cheng stood at the very front of the bridge of the flagship "Overlord Blood". He was shirtless, and his newly formed chaotic bone arm was now swollen to its limit, covered with dark gold scales. What extended from the front of the bone arm was not a hand, but a huge energy blade burning with crimson gold Overlord Blood flames!

He himself was the sharpest and most ferocious arrowhead of this broken sword!
"Fire! Blow that turtle shell to smithereens!"

With Wang Cheng's command, dozens of thick, gray-purple beams of light tore through the sky and slammed into the withered light barrier of the Broken Ridge Cliff! Deafening explosions continued one after another, the light barrier twisted and rippled violently, and the areas hit instantly caved in, emitting a cracking sound as it shattered under the strain!
The cannons on the cliff immediately returned fire, with pitch-black annihilation beams and huge bone spears burning with a ghastly green soul fire raining down on the assault fleet!

"Ruined Wall! Full Power! Charge Formation! Hold!"

Wang Cheng roared.

The Void Armor covering the surface of the assault ship lit up with complex gray patterns, and a distorted Void Force Field appeared around the hull, deflecting, absorbing, or annihilating most of the incoming attacks.

Although blinding sparks kept bursting from the armor, the ship shook violently, and even some of the outer light assault ships were blown up by concentrated fire, turning into brief fireworks in the night sky, the entire wedge formation, driven by Wang Cheng's fierce will, still charged forward and crashed into the shaky light screen!
"Boom——!!!"

A deafening roar, more terrifying than all the previous explosions combined!

The assault fleet, led by the "Bloodthirst", was like a red-hot iron piercing butter, tearing a huge rift, burning with crimson gold and grayish purple flames, into the withered light screen!
Wang Cheng was the first to be hit. The giant blade formed from his Chaos Bone Arm unleashed a world-shattering power, cleaving several cannon emplacements blocking the gap, along with the cliff behind them, into dust!
"Charge! Demon Slayer Army! Annihilation War Puppets! Crush all enemies in our path!"

Wang Cheng was the first to rush into the interior of the Broken Ridge Cliff. His Overlord Blood Burning Heaven Domain was unleashed with a roar, and the crimson-gold flames, carrying the domineering intent to burn everything, swept through the broken cliff passage!

Closely following behind were the elite of the Demon Slayer Army, roaring with the phantom of the giant wolf of the army, and the Annihilation War Puppet, whose movements were accompanied by heavy metallic scraping sounds, whose body was covered with Void Resistance Armor, and who wielded the Annihilation Great Blade!

Brutal boarding action and street fighting erupted instantly in every corner of Broken Ridge Cliff!
The explosions of chaotic energy, the roars of the power of the void, the collision of metal, the shattering of bones, the roars of warriors and the screams of the dying intertwined, turning Broken Ridge Cliff into a furnace of flesh and steel!
Wang Cheng was like a ferocious beast in human form. With the swing of his chaotic bone arm, even the sturdy armor and the powerful commander of the Burial God Guard were easily torn apart!

He perfectly fulfilled his mission of "drawing fire and creating chaos," pinning the most powerful mobile force on the outskirts of Burial God Ridge—the main force of the Burial God Guard—to the meat grinder-like battlefield of Broken Ridge!

Deep within the Purple Mountain Barrier, a massive light screen projected by the Guixu Star Orbit Compass floats above the control center.

On the light screen, a three-dimensional model representing the core area of ​​Burial God Ridge, the "Burial God Bone Domain," is undergoing dramatic changes.

Countless gray-red dots representing the defense of the Sky Rift Alliance are surging wildly toward the area representing Broken Ridge Cliff, the direction of Wang Cheng, and the direction of the Death Wind Valley and the Miasma Spirit Clan.

Near the Death Wind Valley node, a huge, chaotic dark spot appeared in the vast energy network representing the "Thousand Miasma Annihilation Array," indicating that the Bone Tower had been destroyed.

Mo Heng sat cross-legged at the core of the compass, his face paler than usual, even showing a hint of ashen.

His ten fingers moved rapidly through the air like butterflies flitting among flowers. Each tap activated the projection of the Myriad Transformations Returning to the Void Furnace, channeling pure Returning to the Void power into the entire Purple Mountain Barrier, maintaining the stability of the barrier. At the same time, he commanded the Void Crossbowmen of the barrier itself to conduct precise suppressive fire on some secondary nodes on the outer perimeter of Burial God Ridge, relieving the pressure on Wang Cheng and the Miasma Spirit Clan.

"General Wang has successfully broken into the Broken Ridge Cliff, drawing more than 70% of the enemy's main force! The destruction of the Dead Wind Valley Bone Tower node has been confirmed! Energy disorder level 89%! 'Rotten Swamp Thunder' was a success!"

A cultivator from the Guixu Camp, responsible for compiling information, reported in a hoarse voice, his voice filled with excitement and exhaustion.

“Very good!” A glint flashed in Mo Heng’s eyes, but then his brows furrowed and his gaze was fixed on the core area of ​​the Burial God Bone Domain model.

There, the energy nodes representing countless colossal skeletal golems, along with the destruction of the Bone Tower and the surrounding chaos, began to show unusual, deeper, and darker energy fluctuations, as if a sleeping behemoth had been disturbed and was about to awaken.

"The activation speed of the skeletal golem horde is accelerating... nearly 30% faster than expected! The leader of the Sky Rift... just what exactly is he accumulating in the core of the Bone Domain?"

He suddenly looked to the other side.

Chen Xueqing sat cross-legged on the illusory image of the jade lotus platform. This image was much more solid than before, a result of absorbing the fortune of Qingzhou and the chaotic source essence within the Guiyuan Formation.

Her eyes were closed, and the Pure Lotus floated above her head, casting a soft emerald light that not only enveloped her but also deeply merged with the Void Barrier of the entire Purple Mountain Fortress, infusing it with a tenacious life-purifying power to resist the increasingly terrifying withering and annihilating will emanating from the core of Burial God Ridge.

Her face was still pale, but her breathing was more stable than before. However, a deep worry was gathered between her brows. This worry did not come from herself, but she clearly sensed that in the deepest part of the Burial God Bone Domain, an ancient and evil will that made even the Pure World Green Lotus instinctively tremble was rapidly gathering!
"Fairy Xueqing, the annihilation will at the core of the Bone Domain is rapidly increasing! Is the leader about to launch ahead of schedule?" Mo Heng's voice entered Chen Xueqing's sea of ​​consciousness directly through the formation.

Chen Xueqing didn't open her eyes, but the light of the Pure Lotus flickered slightly, and a clear yet solemn voice echoed in Mo Heng's heart: "It's the key... the 'handle' of that remains... it's being forcibly activated, resonating with a deeper 'source point'! It's calling... calling for that 'door'! Brother Yu... he must be faster!"

Just as the Bone Tower was mourning, the Battle of Broken Ridge was raging, and the Purple Mountain Barrier was operating at full capacity, a solitary figure, like a ghost, pierced through the relatively weakened core defense of Burial God Ridge due to the chaos on the outside, and silently stepped into the true forbidden land of death—the Burial God Bone Domain.

Yu Changsheng.

His imperial robes had long since turned to ashes in the previous battle, replaced by a simple battle suit temporarily formed from the blood of the Chaos Emperor and the gray-white Dao principles of the Returning Void Array, which clung tightly to his strong body covered with purple-gold cracks.

With each step he took, the ground beneath his feet, heavily polluted and crystallized with black, glass-like material, slightly sank. The emanating aura of death attempted to erode him, but was forcibly repelled by the chaotic imperial essence flowing within his body and the power of returning to nothingness emanating from the Extinction Sword.

He gripped the cracked, dimly lit Sword of Annihilation tightly in his hand. The core of the Returning Void Star Orbit Compass at the hilt, however, seemed to sense something and was pulsating at an unprecedented frequency, emitting a faint gray light that was a mixture of longing and vigilance.

Before me lay a veritable hell of skeletons. As far as the eye could see, there were massive, mountain-like skeletons of creatures in various shapes and sizes.

There are the spines of giant beasts winding like mountain ranges, leg bones like pillars supporting the sky, and fragments of wing bones that can cover the sky when spread out... These skeletons have been around for countless millennia and have long lost their original color, presenting a deathly gray-white color, as if all vitality and time have been drained away.

The surface of the skeleton was covered with mysterious black patterns, which were the activation runes for the "Skeleton Golem" laid down by the Sky-Splitting Alliance. (End of Chapter)