Staying in the sect, controlling beasts and cultivating immortals

"Your Majesty!" Wang Cheng struggled to his feet, looking at Yu Changsheng, who stood before the sealed sphere, his imperial robes tattered, his body covered in blood, his aura extremely weak yet still as upright as a mountain. His tiger eyes filled with tears, and he knelt on one knee.

Following closely behind were the surviving Guixu Camp warriors, the Demon Slaughtering Army soldiers, and Mo Heng, Chen Xueqing, Gui Yinzi, and others who witnessed all of this from afar within the Purple Mountain Fortress. Their hearts were filled with surging emotions, a mixture of the excitement of surviving a calamity and boundless reverence for the Emperor, which transformed into a deafening roar.

"The Divine Dynasty will never perish! Our Way will endure forever!"

The sound waves pierced through the withered Daoist mist and resounded throughout the shattered sky of Zhongzhou.

Yu Changsheng slowly turned around, his face as pale as paper, but his eyes as deep as an abyss. He glanced at Wang Cheng and nodded slightly.

His gaze swept across the battlefield, confirming that the leader had been eliminated and the potential threat temporarily contained.

Finally, his gaze seemed to casually sweep over the core of the enormous black sealed sphere, where the only secret path to his future lay buried.

Unbeknownst to anyone, in the final moments after this earth-shattering battle concluded, the emperor of the Soul-Suppressing Dynasty was already in the most forbidden place in all the heavens.

On the ruins of Guixu, for himself and for that elusive future, he quietly knocked on a narrow door leading to the "spirit world".

This door is now hidden deep within deathly silence and seal, waiting for the day when the hidden dragon emerges from the abyss and the winds and clouds rise again.

Mo Heng, Chen Xueqing, and the others quickly flew out from the Purple Mountain Barrier and came to Yu Changsheng's side. The gentle light of the Pure World Lotus and the stabilizing power of the Returning Void Formation immediately enveloped him, helping him stabilize his injuries.

"Your Majesty, you..." Mo Heng looked at the huge sealed black sphere, feeling the terrifying and complex energy contained within it, and hesitated to speak. He always felt that the method with which the Emperor sealed it at the end seemed to have an added mystery beyond the principles of the Returning Void Array that he could not fully understand.

Yu Changsheng waved his hand, his voice carrying a weary yet undeniable authority.

"The leader of the Sky Rift has been killed. This is the remnant of the Eye of Return to Nothingness that he attempted to open. I have temporarily sealed it with the blood of the Emperor and the essence of the Sword of Annihilation."

"Mo Heng, this place is now in your hands. Using the Purple Mountain Barrier as a foundation, construct the 'Demon-Burialing and Demon-Sealing Array.' Make sure it is completely sealed off; there can be no further mishaps!"

He gently pointed the now dim and cracked Annihilation Sword in his hand toward the sealed sphere, and a faint gray dot flickered at the hilt.

"Your subject obeys!" Mo Heng bowed solemnly. Although he had doubts in his heart, the Emperor's command was above all else.

Chen Xueqing looked at Yu Changsheng's almost shattered imperial body with concern: "Your Majesty, your injuries..."

"It's alright, my foundation is intact." Yu Changsheng took a deep breath, and the thin chaotic essence in his body struggled to circulate under the guidance of the Emperor's blood, repairing the terrible cracks.

"Wang Cheng!"

"Your subordinate is here!" Wang Cheng forced himself to stand up straight.

"Integrate the Guixu Camp and the Demon Slayer Army, eliminate the remaining Burial God Guards of Burial God Ridge, and take over all the Rift Sky Alliance strongholds!"

"Search for the leader's relics, especially... that fake compass fragment!" Yu Changsheng's eyes sharpened.

"Ghost Yinzi, contact Elder Qingyan of the Miasma Spirit Clan. They made great contributions in this battle, and the Divine Dynasty will surely keep its promise! The Purple Mountain Barrier will provide them with protection and help their Sacred Tree revive!"

As orders were clearly issued, the survivors immediately sprang into action like intricate gears. The deathly silence was replaced by clamor, and the bustling activity of victory began to fill Burial God Ridge.

With Chen Xueqing's support, Yu Changsheng slowly walked towards the Purple Mountain Fortress.

His steps were heavy, but each step was exceptionally firm.

No one noticed that as he passed the enormous sealed black sphere, his bloodstained fingers, hanging at his sides, traced an imperceptible, mysterious path through the void, as if caressing the most precious treasure.

A barely perceptible spatial fluctuation, belonging only to his Purple-Gold Emperor Blood, silently entered the core of the seal, like a stone thrown into a deep pool.

The "Beacon Seed," hidden deep within the broken law of the ascension passage's remnants, throbbed slightly like a sleeping heart awakened by a familiar scent, before returning to the deepest silence.

It merged with the seal, accompanied by the deathly energy, quietly lying dormant, waiting for the day when its master would return in a powerful enough manner to awaken it and take that final step towards the higher heavens.

Yu Changsheng's gaze pierced through the barrier, looking at the Central Plains sky still shrouded in withered Dao principles. Deep within his weary eyes burned a flame more brilliant than the stars.

The summit of this world is no longer the end.

Deep within the Ruins of Return lies a secret path leading to the spirit world.

Plant a seed today, and it will surely break through boundaries and ascend to immortality one day!

The purple light membrane of the Purple Mountain Barrier slowly flowed through the smoke of the Burial God Ridge, illuminating the ravaged land below.

Yu Changsheng stood at the highest point of the barrier. Although his imperial robe was gone, he was covered only by a battle suit formed from the blood of the Chaos Emperor and the Dao of Return to Nothingness. Yet his upright figure was more majestic than the mountains.

His profound gaze passed over the sealed black sphere of the Eye of the Void and was cast toward the wider Central Continent, shrouded in a gray, withered Dao principle.

Three thousand miles away, that land that once nurtured countless glorious civilizations now resembles a giant beast drained of its blood, silently wailing in the gray fog.

Even through the void barrier, the aura of rejection and corruption could still be faintly felt, stinging every cultivator with keen senses.

"Emperor."

Mo Heng's voice was weary but couldn't hide his excitement as he manipulated the Myriad Transformations Returning to the Void Furnace, stabilizing the foundation of the sealing array.

"The leader has been executed, the Bone Domain has been sealed off, and the remaining forces of Burial God Ridge are being wiped out by General Wang."

However, the Central Plains are withering away, and life is dwindling. If it is not purified and restored as soon as possible, it may become a dead zone and even backfire on the fortunes of my divine dynasty.

Yu Changsheng nodded slightly, and the dim yet still majestic phantom of the Chaos Emperor Seal between his brows slowly emerged.

He clearly felt that although the thread of fortune coming from Qingzhou had grown several times stronger after he killed the leader of the Rift Heaven and sealed the Eye of Return to the Void, carrying the joy and expectation of surviving a calamity, its connection with the vast land of Zhongzhou was unusually obscure, as if it were blocked by thick, malicious silt.

"The Rifting Heaven Alliance used all living beings as fuel and the remains of buried gods as a furnace to burn the origin of the Central Plains and feed the evil eyes of the Void, causing the heavens and earth to weep blood and the Dao to wither."

Yu Changsheng's voice was deep and clear, carrying a penetrating power that pierced through space, resounding in the hearts of every soldier within the fortress, and also faintly reaching the distant Central Plains through the resonance of Qingzhou's fortune.

"Now that the Demon King has been beheaded and the Evil Eye has been sealed away, it is time to cleanse the filth and restore life!"

His gaze swept over the core forces around him. Although Wang Cheng's Chaotic Bone Arm showed cracks and his internal injuries had not yet healed, his eyes were fierce, and his fighting spirit was like a volcano about to erupt. He was directing the Guixu Barrier War Puppet and the remnants of the Demon Slaughter Army to wipe out the last resistance.

Chen Xueqing sat cross-legged on the lotus platform, surrounded by the illusory image of the Pure World Green Lotus. Although her aura appeared ethereal and elusive due to the depletion of her source, it carried a calm and resilient quality that came from having gone through tribulations.

Despite his withered face, Mo Heng's eyes shone like stars as he stared intently at the projection of the furnace, analyzing the subtle changes in the energy map of Zhongzhou.

Ling Wuying's figure loomed in and out of the shadows, the metal prosthetic arm at the severed end gleaming coldly. He was giving orders in a low voice to several scouts to conduct reconnaissance deep into the heart of Zhongzhou.

The surrendered Guiyinzi stood by, filled with awe and a hint of expectation.

"Mo Heng!" Yu Changsheng commanded in a deep voice.

"The old minister is here!"

"With the Purple Mountain Barrier as the foundation and the Myriad Transformations Returning to the Void Furnace as the core, immediately deploy the 'Chaos Purification Array'! Draw upon the fortune of Qingzhou as the source, and transform the deathly power of the Void Returning to the Void as the purification guide. The array's core... will be located three thousand miles above the Central Continent!"

Yu Changsheng pointed his finger into the void, and the projection of the Guixu Star Orbit Compass instantly unfolded, precisely anchoring a spatial coordinate.

"This formation is not for killing; it is dedicated to 'sorting out' and 'purifying'. Objective: to neutralize and dispel withered Dao principles, and awaken the dormant spiritual energy of the earth veins in the Central Plains!"

"I will obey the Emperor's decree!" A fanatical light blazed in Mo Heng's eyes.

To unravel the withered principles and awaken the earth's veins! This is the grand undertaking that every formation master dreams of!

His withered fingers instantly danced on the projection of the furnace, and countless profound runes of the Void and spatial coordinates were deduced and combined.

The materials stored inside the barrier and the pure energy crystals seized from the Burial God Ridge were quickly mobilized. Under Mo Heng's command, hundreds of Guixu Camp array masters began to construct this unprecedented purification array, like a precise mechanism.

"Xueqing." Yu Changsheng's gaze turned to the lotus platform.

“Brother Yu.” Chen Xueqing opened her eyes, and Yu Changsheng’s figure was reflected in her clear eyes.

"Your Pure Lotus is the purest and most pristine seed in the world. When the Chaos Purification Array is activated, you must sit at the array's core, using the power of the lotus as the core purification guide to soothe the 'scars' left by the erosion of the withered Dao principles and nourish the first ray of life for the revival of the Central Plains' earth veins."

Yu Changsheng's tone was filled with trust and entrustment.

"This battle is about the beginning of the revival of billions of lives, and your Great Dao will also be tempered and sublimated here."

Chen Xueqing nodded solemnly, the illusory image of the Pure World Lotus shimmered with light, and the aura of the lotus platform became even more refined.

"Xueqing understands and will not fail in her mission." She knew that this was not only an important task, but also an excellent opportunity for her to comprehend the supreme Dao of "vitality emerging from annihilation".

"Wang Cheng!" Yu Changsheng's voice turned cold and menacing.

"Your humble servant is here!"

Wang Cheng responded with a thunderous roar, his voice like lightning, as he had just smashed the last of the Burial God Guardian Fortresses with a single punch.

"After the Burial God Ridge is cleared, lead the Demon Slaughtering Army and the Returning Ruins Fortress War Puppet, splitting into three routes to strike straight into the heart of the Central Plains! One route will be led by you personally to suppress the remnants of the Heavenly Abyss City; another route will be handed over to Ling Wuying to wipe out the remaining enemies of the Flowing Sand River; and the last route, guided by Gui Yinzi, will subdue the old forces of the Valley of Ten Thousand Corpses and sweep away all evil!"

A cold glint flashed in Yu Changsheng's eyes.

"Stop war with war, stop killing with killing! Rupture the last stronghold of the Rifting Sky Alliance, destroy its lair of spreading withered Dao principles, and clear the way for the Purifying Spirit Array! At the same time, proclaim to all surviving sects and scattered cultivators along the way: The Rifting Sky Alliance has been destroyed, and the Soul-Suppressing Divine Dynasty has returned to Central Plains! Those who obey will be protected by the Divine Dynasty's fortune and share the opportunity of revival; those who resist will be regarded as remnants of evil, and...slaughtered...without...discrimination!"

"Your subordinate obeys!" Wang Cheng's eyes blazed with the flames of war, and his chaotic bone arm swirled with dark gold, as if he could already hear the enemy's cries of agony.

Ling Wuying appeared silently beside Wang Cheng, while Gui Yinzi bowed excitedly: "Your subordinate will do everything in his power to atone for his sins!"

"Ling Wuying".

Yu Changsheng looked at the figure in the shadows one last time, "Your 'Hidden Scale' scouts, immediately go deep into the various regions of the Central Plains, draw detailed maps, and mark the gathering points of surviving creatures, the remnants of spiritual veins, and potential allies."

At the same time, an imperial edict was proclaimed: "All those whose hearts are turned towards the light and who wish to assist the Divine Dynasty in restoring the Central Plains, regardless of race, may gather outside 'Tianyuan City.' I, the Emperor, will personally come to bestow upon them a mark of destiny, and they will share in the glory of revival!"

"Your subordinate obeys!" Ling Wuying's voice was resolute. With a flicker of his figure, he had already led his elite scouts away from the fortress, like a drop of water merging into the ocean, rushing towards the gray fog-shrouded Central Plains.

With the order given, the entire Purple Mountain Fortress sprang into action, like a war-driven, resurrected behemoth. Mo Heng's array runes illuminated half of the fortress space.

Wang Cheng's army assembled, and the bugle call resounded through the sky; Chen Xueqing, meanwhile, was meditating, her mind and spirit completely merging with the Pure Lotus, accumulating strength for the impending purification.

Yu Changsheng slowly closed his eyes, his mind sinking into the depths of his almost shattered Dao foundation.

There, the purple-gold Chaos Emperor's blood flowed with difficulty, nourishing the numerous cracks, while a thicker and stronger strand of Qingzhou's fortune thread ran through it, bringing waves of warmth.

He focused his will on the Imperial Seal and, through the threads of destiny, sent a clear message to the distant Imperial Palace of Qingzhou:
'The destiny of Qingzhou rests with my imperial decree!'

'The traitor who shattered the heavens has been vanquished, and the demonic aura of the Central Plains has been initially quelled. Now, we shall lead your glorious national destiny, traverse the boundless star field, cleanse the Central Plains of its filth, and awaken the slumbering spirit of the land!'

'With my imperial blood as the bridge, and chaos as the guide, may I connect the destinies of the two states and reshape the land and its people!'

With his will, the jade lotus platform deep within the Qingzhou Imperial Palace, enshrined at the core of the Chaos Imperial Array, burst forth with an unprecedentedly brilliant and clear light!
As the lotus petals unfolded layer by layer, the wisp of purple-gold light originating from Yu Changsheng's imperial seal at the center of the lotus platform instantly became tangible, no longer a thin thread, but a magnificent pillar of light that pierced through heaven and earth!

boom!
This pillar of purple-gold light, which embodies the prayers of hundreds of millions of people in Qingzhou, gathers the prosperity of the Divine Dynasty, and carries the vast spiritual energy of the Imperial Palace's grand formation, ignored the barriers of space, pierced through the mist of withered Dao principles, and precisely struck the Purple Mountain Barrier, disappearing into the illusory image of the Imperial Seal between Yu Changsheng's eyebrows!

"Ugh!" Yu Changsheng's body trembled violently, and the Emperor Seal instantly turned as red-hot as a branding iron!

An unimaginably powerful torrent of fortune surged in, washing over his crumbling foundation and bringing excruciating pain, but also an unprecedented, vast power that seemed to be connected to the will of the entire world!
He endured the inhuman pain, his hands suddenly forming a hand seal, guiding this vast torrent of national destiny into the core of the "Chaos Purification Array" that Mo Heng was building!
"Charge!"

Mo Heng's hair and beard stood on end, and his withered body erupted with an astonishing aura as he slammed his hands hard onto the Myriad Transformations Returning to the Void Furnace!
Om-!
The entire Purple Mountain Barrier trembled violently, and a powerful energy wave spread outwards.

A formation of light, even more magnificent and profound than the Guixu Wall, spread out in all directions from the barrier in an instant, covering the void for tens of thousands of miles in a flash!

The core of the formation is located three thousand miles above the Central Continent, as specified by Yu Changsheng!

There, a huge, slowly rotating purple-gold vortex appeared out of thin air, and at the center of the vortex was the illusory image of the Purifying Lotus that Chen Xueqing was fully activating!
Bathed in the auspicious energy of purple and gold, the azure lotus shone with boundless brilliance, its petals flowing with a divine emerald light that purified all things! (End of Chapter)