The Old Gods

Chapter 1008 The Pinnacle of Humanity
The arrival of the Immortal Jasmine's afterimage is undoubtedly a visual feast for the world!
She wore a magnificent phoenix robe that accentuated her tall and graceful figure. Her long, jet-black hair was unadorned and cascaded down her back like a waterfall.

That fair and captivating face, devoid of any expression, exuded a terrifying divinity.

What's most captivating are her eyes, which seem to be the complete opposite of the newly arrived young goddess—lacking the smiling, mischievous charm of her eyes.

There was only desolation.

When she lowered her eyes and looked down, her cold gaze seemed to penetrate the skin of all living beings and look directly into their souls.

She stood high in the sky, her phoenix robes fluttering even without wind, revealing a natural nobility that stemmed from the pressure of her power and the unique majesty of a supreme being.

The number of deities within the Burning Gate is not small.

But there are only two leaders among the gods.

Wu Shanshan lowered her head, her body trembling.

Compared to the suffering and worry, she felt more fear.

Unexpectedly, a slight expression appeared on Xianmo's face; she frowned slightly, as if pondering something.

In the eyes of many, the deity seemed somewhat displeased, and the woman on the altar must have committed some heinous crime!

In the dead silence, Jiang Ruyi's brows relaxed slightly.

I remembered!

She finally remembered who the tiny human on the altar was.

Jiang Ruyi couldn't help but feel a touch of emotion.

She is very young, only twenty-three years old, but she has experienced too much.

It seems like we've already lived through three lifetimes.

Human realm, mountain realm, celestial realm.

Every corner of the world is like a long life journey.

She spent the longest time in the human world, and it was also the place furthest from her.

On Mount Holy Spirit, she experienced all the hardships of the world, and when she crawled out of the abyss, it was as if she had already lived a full life.

On the battlefield of the heavens, she led her team to conquer all directions, finding the source of each and every hardship.

Every life-or-death battle with the gods and demons, every divine and evil sculpture shattered, seemed to be an explanation for the cycle of reincarnation.

Therefore, Jiang Ruyi was very emotional.

I'm only 23 years old, and it's only been five years since I graduated from high school, but I've already completely forgotten what I was like back then.

Hmm. It's not important.

Once a passerby, now a part of the common people.

Jiang Ruyi closed her eyes, carefully sensing the power of faith that surged forth from people's prayers, and selected some suitable believers.

With a wave of her jade hand, her phoenix robe fluttered lightly.

A light mist drifted down, settling on the crowd.

A moment later, the stunning afterimage of the fairy jasmine vanished into the world.

As the pressure on Wu Shanshan lessened, she naturally noticed that Jiang Ruyi's gaze had just fallen on her and lingered for a moment.

She also realized that the other person did not recognize her.

The fear in Wu Shanshan's heart gradually subsided, but was quickly replaced by bitterness.

I was so worried before.

Worried about life and the future.
In retrospect, it was all unnecessary.

The gods either don't remember them at all, or they don't care at all.

Just as my father had said on the phone before I left, I wasn't worth being noticed. And so on!

How can I go unnoticed?

Wu Shanshan suddenly remembered that she was still on the altar.

She has no deity to take her in, and no divine power to be used!

Wu Shanshan hurriedly looked up and happened to see Lord Luo Ying slowly getting up.

Wu Shanshan's face immediately turned pale.

Just now, everyone saw Lord Luo Ying bow respectfully to Jiang Ruyi.

Perhaps Jiang Ruyi disdains to pay attention to the insignificant human race, but what about Lord Luo Ying, who reveres them?
"Whoo~"

A wisp of celestial mist descended and merged into Wu Shanshan's body.

Wu Shanshan was both surprised and delighted, almost bursting into tears of joy, realizing once again that she had taken herself too seriously.

The rituals of worship continued, and one group of believers after another were taken in by the gods.

This ceremony will last for three days, and will be held again on the seventh day of the lunar calendar.

There's nothing we can do; there are just too many believers without a master.

At the same time, in accordance with the message conveyed by the Burning Gate, the official authorities of the Great Xia Dynasty have repeatedly emphasized to the public that they must be on high alert on the fifteenth day of the first lunar month.

The battle is not over.

Yes, evil spirits will invade on the fifteenth day of the first lunar month.

There has been no official statement, but the internal arrangements for the Burning Gate have already been finalized.

Regardless of whether the Evil Spear Emperor makes any moves, the Burning Gate will send its demons to invade the human world on the night of the fifteenth.

After all, besides the Great Xia War Zone, there are four other war zones in the world. The special circumstances of the fifteenth day of the twelfth lunar month have already attracted great attention from the extraterrestrial gods and demons.

The lives of billions of people are still in the hands of extraterrestrial gods and demons.

The authorities cannot act arbitrarily.

However, under the absolute control of the Burning Gate, the intensity of the demonic invasion will be appropriately reduced.

The night of the fifteenth of the lunar month was transformed into a training ground and training ground for human warriors.

This decision was made personally by Jiang Ruyi after discussions with several of her advisors.

The sect leader's wife was very responsible and made it clear to her subordinates that once Lu Ran successfully broke through and advanced, she would take full responsibility for everything.

When the truth comes out someday, if the Ran Sect is condemned by everyone, Jiang Ruyi is prepared to take the blame for Lu Ran.

The days passed by.

The Lantern Festival arrived as scheduled.

A host of evil spirits from the Burning Gate, including the Paper Doll, Mud Mountain Boar, Bamboo and Wood Demon, Blood Calamity Dog, and Straw Demon, appeared in the streets and alleys of the Great Xia Dynasty.

Demons primarily reside in the realms of mist, streams, and rivers.

Occasionally, a few Jiangjing Demon Lords would be thrown into the heavily guarded metropolis.

The "tradition" that has lasted for more than forty years has returned.

But they are also very different.

Last year, on the night of the fifteenth of the eleventh lunar month, the human world became a slaughterhouse for demons.

On the night of the Lantern Festival this year, it seemed as if the Great Xia Dynasty was a kindergarten for demons.
Interestingly, as the Burning Gate made its move, the Northwest forces also took action.

However, it is clear that the evil gods of the Northwest camp are also very restrained, and the evil minions that invade the human world are generally not very powerful.

Before the leaders of both sides have determined a victor, it seems that the evil gods are also leaving themselves a way out.
Lu Ran was completely unaware of the commotion and disturbances outside.

He stayed in the remote Holy Spirit Mountain, in his own underground meditation room, and focused intently on breaking through to the next level.

The breakthrough process for those in the Celestial Realm often takes twenty to thirty days.

Every extra second a human's body receives more nourishment, so a shorter breakthrough time can actually be a disadvantage.

Of course, it's difficult for humans to control the length of time.

Even in the majestic Heavenly Realm, one must leave the fate to destiny.

Lu Ran continued to break through and advance day after day until the 21st day of the first lunar month, when an unexpected event occurred!

The first-tier magic artifact, the Blood Crystal Mask, has actually activated its upgrade mode!

Magical artifacts differ from divine weapons in that they are more independent and autonomous.

When casting spells, there is no need to join forces with the master; when cultivating and advancing, there is no need to be in sync with the master's mind.

So when the blood crystal mask suddenly tightened, Lu Ran was startled!
Before Lu Ran could even feel happy, the mask was firmly stuck to his face, getting tighter and tighter until it almost completely sealed his mouth and nose, making it impossible for him to breathe.

It seems like they're about to kill their master.
Unable to bear it any longer, Lu Ran reached out to remove his mask.

However, Blood Crystal Mask is at a crucial stage of advancement and only wants to maintain the status quo, unwilling to leave.

Lu Ran didn't dare to use too much force, for fear of accidentally crushing it.

As the main device and the auxiliary device pulled back and forth, Lu Ran became completely numb.

He is a Celestial Realm cultivator, but he has not completely detached himself from his physical body; he needs to breathe to live!

Lu Ran could forcibly remove the mask, but doing so might ruin the upgrade of the magical artifact.

"Hey~ buddy! Sticking together is fine, but give me some air."

"Buzz~" The blood crystal mask trembled slightly, first loosened, and then stuck firmly to the lower half of Lu Ran's face.

They really only give it once.
They didn't want to be apart for even a moment.

"Hmm." Lu Ran suddenly had a flash of inspiration!
He immediately got up and stumbled out.

After all, Lu Ran and his magical artifact were both in the process of advancing, and he was also shrouded in a mist tornado, so he could not teleport directly and could only move slowly.

Lu Ran left Tianya Residence and ran towards the nearby sea cliff, leading the mist tornado that had descended from the sky, and landed on the beach rocks.

"Wow~"

Waves crashed against the shore, splashing Lu Ran all over.

Lu Ran's divine power surged, and a long, silvery-white fish tail grew from his waist, enveloping his legs and transforming him into a mermaid.

He lay on the rocks, dipped his beautiful fish tail into the waves, and finally "came back to life".

The Shadow Guard members who had escorted them all the way were also a bit confused.

The sect leader was advancing in the right direction, so why did he suddenly end up taking a bath at the beach?
"Buzz!"

The magical artifact's advancement was abrupt, and the mist tornado came and went quickly.

In less than twenty minutes, it had already been upgraded to a second-tier magic weapon.

The blood crystal mask is becoming more and more exquisite!

Its entire body shimmered with an eerie, blood-red light, with strands of blood swaying within, sometimes converging into streams, sometimes spreading into mist that filled the entire crystal surface.

Lu Ran had no mind to celebrate, nor did he have time to ask about the effects of the second-tier magic weapon.

He held fast to his mind and continued to frantically absorb the mist surging from between heaven and earth.

It is compressed and condensed into streams, which then flow into the mighty rivers that flow within the body, and finally merge into the vast ocean.

He filled his entire body with immense divine power, nourishing every corner of it.

Finally, from the vast sea of ​​divine power, wisps of holy spirit energy were extracted to strengthen and transform the physical body.

Lu Ran stayed on the reef for eight days.

The magnificent fishtail of her lower body was also submerged in the sea for eight days.
Until the 29th day of the first lunar month, a powerful shockwave spread out from Lu Ran's body, even shaking the rocks beneath him, causing them to crack like spiderwebs.

"call!!"

"Ah~~~" Lu Ran couldn't help but groan and stretched out his arms wide.

This feels so comfortable!
The physical pleasure experienced during advancement within the Heavenly Realm is something that ordinary people cannot comprehend.

The terrifying physical strength, the extremely abundant stamina, and the almost out-of-control power gave Lu Ran the illusion that he could crush everything in the world.

It was absolutely exhilarating!
On a physical level, it's incredibly pleasurable; on a psychological level, it's even more exhilarating.

This is the third level of the Heavenly Realm!

The pinnacle of humanity!

(End of this chapter)