Cultivation begins in Qingfeng Market.

They miscalculated.

The Holy Son of All Spirits was indeed injured, but he was far from losing his fighting ability.

The Myriad Beasts Demon Body was severely injured by the Blood Spear of the Luo Emperor Cauldron and is temporarily unusable, but the Myriad Spirits Saint Son's methods are never limited to just the Demon Body.

Qin Tianjun made the first move. The white jade sword transformed into a hundred-foot-long sword light, condensing sword intent into a line, and slashed towards the neck of the Holy Son of Ten Thousand Spirits.

Xia Jin acted simultaneously, his Thunder Sword wreathed in purple lightning arcs, blocking their retreat from the flank. The two, one facing forward and the other to the side, arrived with sword light and lightning almost at the same time.

After a fierce battle, the Holy Son of Ten Thousand Spirits' defensive magic weapon, the Dark Gold Armor, was successfully shattered by their combined efforts.

The armor plates shattered on the ground. But before they hit the ground, the fragments began to reassemble, wriggling, piecing together, and healing like living things. In less than three breaths, the armor was completely restored.

This is more than just a magical artifact. The Holy Son of All Spirits has already merged with the armor and artifact through special means, making him virtually immortal.

The Holy Son of All Spirits drew a short sword from his waist. The blade was jet black and did not reflect light. He raised his hand and swung it.

Xia Jin raised his Thunder Sword to parry, simultaneously activating his defensive magic weapon, which glowed with three layers of spiritual light in front of him. The blade flashed, and the three layers of shields were sliced ​​through like paper. The defensive magic weapon was completely destroyed.

Xia Jin had a gash running from his shoulder to his ribs on his chest, and blood gushed out instantly. There was a black force remaining at the edge of the wound, preventing it from healing.

If Xia Jin hadn't reacted quickly and used the Thunder Sword magic weapon to block the attack, that strike would have been fatal. Even so, the Thunder Sword now had a nick.

The speed of the Holy Son of Ten Thousand Spirits was also ridiculously fast. His short-range bursts of speed surpassed even divine sense lock-on. Qin Tianjun's sword couldn't catch him, and Xia Jin's lightning couldn't lock him down.

He alone has all attributes maxed out: attack, defense, speed, and recovery.

Qin Tianjun forcibly deployed his sword domain. However, he was not Lin Zhao; his domain had not fully recovered and could only extend for a few miles. Countless sword energies flowed within the domain.

Xia Jin's Thunder Domain unfolded simultaneously, with purple lightning arcs intertwining with sword energy. The two domains overlapped, transforming into a sword and lightning cage, which barely managed to trap the Holy Son of Ten Thousand Spirits in the center.

But it only trapped them.

Sword energy and lightning struck him, but his armor withstood most of it, and the remaining wounds healed in an instant. With each swing of his short sword, the power of the cage weakened.

Qin Tianjun and Xia Jin couldn't hold out for long. Activating their magic domains inside the secret realm consumed far more energy than outside.

Finally, Luo Wen forced himself to activate the Luo Huang Cauldron, and the group managed to retreat. Even so, two disciples of the sect were unable to escape and died outside.

After being withdrawn, Luo Wen's expression remained grim, and it wasn't just because of his injuries.

He realized something—the fact that the Holy Son of All Spirits had suffered heavy losses with him last time was likely intentional.

The Holy Son of Ten Thousand Spirits' foundation and recovery ability are far superior to his. His injuries would take him a year to recover, while the Holy Son of Ten Thousand Spirits only needs less than half a month to recover most of his injuries.

If this continues, he will be worn down to death.

But Luo Wen had no choice. He was the only force on the defensive line capable of directly confronting the Holy Son of Ten Thousand Spirits. If the Holy Son of Ten Thousand Spirits made a move, he had to step in.

But the Holy Son of All Spirits hadn't expected one thing.

Lin Zhao and the Hundred Arts Immortal Alliance acted too quickly.

The Hundred Arts Immortal Alliance has already breached one sacred land, and Lin Zhao has breached another.

With the four that had been broken open earlier, only three of the nine holy lands remained in the blink of an eye.

When the Holy Son of All Spirits learned of this news, he recited that name once.

"Lin Zhao"

The voice was soft, as if he were talking to himself.

"Give the order," he said. "The general offensive will begin in three days."

The decisive battle is imminent.

The Holy Son of All Spirits aims to crush the ancient city in one fell swoop and seize the treasures of the last three holy sites. The ancient city must hold him off, buy time, and absorb mortals.

Once all nine holy lands are breached, the Nascent Soul cultivator will intervene, and the battlefield will be completely handed over to the Nascent Soul master.

At that time, whether it's the Holy Son of All Spirits, a cultivator, or a mortal, there will be no difference in front of a Nascent Soul cultivator.

They are all ants.

Heading north from Xuanze City to the defense line, you will pass through two ancient cities controlled by the Luo family.

Each of these two cities has a sacred site that has not yet been breached.

The original plan was to gradually open the secret realm over a year. Now, just six months have passed, and we've visited six of the nine sacred sites.

Lin Zhao planned to take the treasures from the two holy sites along the way before descending upon the ancient city's defenses.

Most of the Luo family members were transferred to the defense line, leaving few people behind, and they couldn't stop him.

The second holy site is located thirty miles east of the city.

A thousand-foot-tall stone mountain, grayish-white in color, shaped like a giant tortoise lying on the ground.

Lin Zhao landed on the open ground in front of the mountain; people from the holy land had already arrived.

People from the Hundred Arts Immortal Alliance.

Ten people. There should have been nine. Originally there were ten. One of them was teleported thousands of feet into the air when entering the secret realm and was instantly crushed to death.

Later, when Lin Zhao heard Su Huai talk about this by the sacred lake, he remained silent for a long time.

But they didn't need him to break the formation; they replaced the dead man with a puppet. The puppet was lifelike and could operate the formation completely.

The disciples of the Hundred Arts Immortal Alliance were all dressed in gorgeous clothes, with brocade robes and jade belts. Some had an ancient zither hanging behind them, some held a painting in their hands, and some had a row of jade talismans hanging from their waists.

Leading the group were a man and a woman, standing at the very front of the line. The man was dressed in white, and the woman in blue.

The two stood together, like figures in a traditional Chinese New Year painting, but the aura emanating from them was that of two completely opposite forces of yin and yang, circulating between each other.

The ten individuals' domains merged into one, covering an area of ​​dozens of miles and enveloping the entire Turtle Mountain.

The Dharma Domain is a pale blue color, and it is gradually eroding the array formation on Turtle Mountain—the array patterns on the mountain's surface are changing from grayish-white to pale blue, and from pale blue to transparent.

Lin Zhaoxian manifested the Heavenly Heart Dharma Wheel, from which five-colored spiritual light surged forth. He was clad in crimson feathers and golden robes, and a layer of fire curtain spread out.

His crimson-gold feathered robe radiated a dazzling light, every feather glowing, and five-colored spiritual light swirled around him like tiny streams of spiritual energy.

He didn't land; he hovered in mid-air, looking down at the ten people below.

His imposing presence alone was more powerful than the combined presence of the ten people opposite him.

The man in the lead frowned, turned and exchanged a glance with the woman, who shook her head slightly.

The man took two steps forward without making a sound and cupped his hands in greeting.

"Zhou Jin of the Hundred Arts Immortal Alliance." He pointed to the woman behind him, "This is my junior sister, Su Wan. Are you from the Cangming Sect, fellow Daoist?"

Lin Zhao glanced at him. "Lin Zhao."

Zhou Jin's smile was perfect, and her words were just right—enough to express goodwill without appearing obsequious.

The implication was clear: we've taken this spot; please find another place, fellow Daoist.

Lin Zhao did not respond.

The Hundred Arts Immortal Alliance appears to be neutral, but in reality, it is colluding with both sides.

The rapid development of the Myriad Spirits Sect in such a short time owes much to the Hundred Arts Immortal Alliance.

If it weren't for the supplies and intelligence they provided, the number of demons wouldn't have expanded so rapidly, and the battle lines wouldn't have collapsed so completely.

This forced Qin Tianjun, Xia Jin, and other sect disciples to put aside matters of the Holy Land and head to the ancient city to join forces against the Myriad Spirits Sect.

They prefer to sit back and watch the tigers fight, then reap the benefits.