Starting as a prodigy wanting milk? A world-destroying deception in the opposite direction.

"Suppress them!"

Shen Zhen's fingertip flashed with white light, unleashing a sharp blade of psychic power that simultaneously severed the green ropes binding the old woman and the gray phantom of the Illusionary Desire Demon.

The old woman collapsed to the ground, her chest heaving violently.

The man, whose eyes had cleared, looked at his own fist, then at the old woman's pale face, his expression filled with horror and remorse. He knelt down with a thud: "Mother! I'm so sorry!"

"Cleanse your mind and dispel delusions!"

Shen Zhen chanted a spell, and the aura of his mental power spread out, like warm water flowing through people's hearts, awakening the people around him who were being subtly manipulated.

Some people, upon regaining their senses and realizing they had hit their loved ones, immediately burst into tears; others, gazing at the mess on the ground, felt their legs go weak.

Lei Lie pounced like a tiger towards the densest phantom in the fog, leaving only one sentence amidst the whistling wind of his blade:

"Xiao Shen, lead the rookie squad to protect the people."

"Understood!" Shen Zhen's gaze swept across the room quickly, her words flowing rapidly.

"Li Qingyan and Zhou Shi, guard the east side!"

Zhao Huaijin and Lu Renjia, the west side is yours to handle.

Lu Renjia nodded, and he darted out like a ghost. His short knife showed no fancy moves, only a simple and deadly glint. The filth that rushed towards him vanished upon contact.

As he passed by Chen Xi, he saw several ghouls swarming towards her.

Watch out behind you.

As Lu Renjia swung his short sword, those lingering memories vanished instantly.

Chen Xi was stunned for a moment, then nodded gratefully to Lu Renjia.

"Chen Xi, Qi Xuejian, first find those who have been deeply corrupted, Wu Xian assists them."

As soon as Shen Zhen finished speaking, a child rushed toward the black mist with empty eyes.

He lightly tapped the child's forehead with his toes, instantly catching up. He then lightly tapped the child's forehead with his ruler, and a flash of white light appeared. The child cried and rushed towards his mother who was rushing to the scene.

The situation appeared chaotic, yet order was being maintained amidst the disorder.

Just as Zhen Nian Tang and Jing Xie Si were barely managing to stabilize their defenses, the black mist in the sky surged violently once again, as if a giant beast was stirring within it.

Shen Zhen's heart skipped a beat.

A sense of oppression far more sinister than that of Yi Hui swept over us.

Hundreds of figures, indistinct and shadowy, slowly emerged from the mist.

They were all dressed in uniform black robes, their faces covered with bronze masks that gleamed coldly in the dim light.

The leader was tall and imposing, with strange patterns on his mask. Just by standing there, the surrounding mental energy seemed to freeze, and his strength was unfathomable.

Shen Zhen's gaze quickly swept over the people beside him, then returned to two of them:

One man pointed his long sword diagonally, exuding a calm and composed demeanor; the other stood with his hands behind his back, yet a sharp edge was hidden within him.

The figures and demeanor of these two people gave him a strange, vague sense of familiarity, but he couldn't remember where he had seen them before.

If they were to remove their masks, Shen Zhen would definitely recognize the two people. These two were Song Yue and Chu Yan, whom Shen Zhen and his group had encountered on their way to Zhangjiawan.

The remaining men in black robes silently dispersed.

They either wielded strange magical artifacts or formed bizarre hand seals. Although they remained silent, their well-trained and chilling aura was completely different from the chaotic Yi Hui.

"The divine ancestor has descended, and all beings worship him!"

The masked man at the head spoke, his voice carrying a strange penetrating power that drowned out Yi Hui's whispers and the cries of the people.

"He sent me to save you!"

"Break free from heresy, join us, and become faithful believers in God!"

"Divine Child! Divine Child!" the black-robed believers shouted in unison, their voices filled with fervor.

"Follow the Son of God and be freed from suffering!"

No sooner had he finished speaking than a commotion broke out on one side of the square.

Several civilians, their eyes burning with fervor, broke free from the Zhennian Hall disciples' attempts to restrain them and rushed towards the man in black robes.

"I want to join them! The temple is full of frauds!"

One of the middle-aged men roared and picked up a stone from the ground, throwing it at the guardian spirits protecting the formation.

"The divine child said he can be freed from suffering, so don't stop me!"

Caught off guard, the Zhennian Hall disciple was hit on the shoulder by a rock, causing the formation to momentarily loosen.

More and more people, misled, began to stir, and whispers arose among them:

"Perhaps the divine child is real."

"The temple can't protect us at all."

"..."

Internal chaos spread instantly.

Mu Qingfeng's expression turned solemn, his mental power surged, and he shouted loudly to stop:

"Do not be misled by heresy! God's grace protects all living beings; how can we allow false doctrines to deceive the masses!"

Then he looked at the masked man in the lead:

"You heretics, how dare you bark so wildly, distort the truth, disrupt the ritual of worshiping the gods, and blaspheme against divine grace!"

"Blasphemy against divine grace?!" The masked leader sneered, his voice full of mockery.

"What you call divine grace is nothing but a lie to deceive these ignorant masses!"

Only I, the Son of God, can lead you to the true God and free you from your illusory fate!

As soon as he finished speaking, the masked man on his left stepped forward, his psychic power surging, and an aggressive aura swept over him.

"Those who refuse to join will become sacrifices to God!"

"That's right!" The man to the right of the masked leader formed hand seals, and complex array patterns appeared on the ground.

"Xuanjizi, set up the formation!"

"Seal off the square! Don't let anyone escape!"

The masked man named Xuanjizi nodded, his hands rapidly changing hand seals, causing the array patterns to glow brightly.

An invisible barrier instantly rose up, firmly sealing off the entire Qitian Palace Square and cutting off the flow of mental energy between the inside and outside.

"heresy!"

Yue Kunlun roared and charged at the masked leader with his sword. The golden sword energy carried a world-destroying force, and the filth along the way was instantly turned into green smoke when it struck.

"Zhennian Hall is here; how dare you act so presumptuously!"

"Foolish!" The masked leader simply waved his hand, and a gray psychic force condensed in his palm, colliding with Yue Kunlun's sword energy.

"boom--"

With a loud bang, a shockwave swept outwards, and Yue Kunlun staggered back two steps, his chest heaving violently, his hand holding the knife trembling slightly.

"So strong!"

He was shocked. His full-force sword energy was easily neutralized by the opponent's casual strike, and he was even shaken so badly that his blood and qi surged.

This level of strength far surpasses my own; I never imagined that the heretics would have such a powerful figure.

Just then, a majestic cold snort came from above the altar:

"presumptuous!"

Chief Celestial Official Gu Qing, dressed in a crimson robe, slowly walked out.

The mental energy surrounding him was as heavy as a mountain, and wherever it passed, the restless mental dust became calm.

Behind him, his deputy Su Wenyuan, eldest son Gu Chengye, and second daughter Gu Qingshuang stood in a row, their expressions solemn, their mental energy connected, forming an invisible pressure.

"You heretics!"

"A bunch of rats living in the gutter dare to call themselves divine children?!"

Gu Qing raised his hand and waved it, and golden psychic power transformed into a giant palm that slammed down on the masked leader, blotting out the sky.

The masked leader dared not be careless. He formed a hand seal, and a gray barrier appeared in front of him. The barrier was covered with strange patterns and exuded a chilling aura.

The barrier trembled violently, cracks spread rapidly, and the masked man's sleeves were torn apart by the force of the palm strike.

Gu Qing was also pushed back half a step by the recoil, a corner of his crimson robe was torn by the airflow, and a trace of blood spilled from the corner of his mouth, clearly indicating that he had also suffered a considerable impact.

The two stood facing each other, the air currents generated by the collision of their mental powers sending shivers down one's spine, creating an atmosphere of extreme tension.

"Gu Qing, I've long admired your name; I've come today to learn from you!"