Elven cultivators

Even at his peak, the shadowy figure couldn't single-handedly withstand the combined attack of more than a dozen legendary powerhouses.

Moreover, this is especially true in cases of serious injury.

As soon as the battle began, he was completely at a disadvantage.

However, all members of the Ring of Annihilation share one characteristic: they possess an exceptionally strong vitality.

Especially legendary powerhouses like him who have become completely undead.

For them, ordinary fatal wounds were nothing more than common injuries.

Unless you use special methods specifically designed to counter the undead, or completely tear their bodies apart and destroy them, you can't truly kill them.

Knowing that he had no chance of survival, the shadowy figure simply abandoned all defense and launched a frenzied counterattack.

He withstood the bombardment of countless laws and, with his last breath, killed four city-state lords before Maris finally seized an opening and pierced his head from behind with a short blade.

A bewitching purple flame then erupted, quickly spreading across the shadowy figure and burning him to ashes.

The shadowy figure's eyes, filled with resentment and hatred before its death, sent a chill down the spine of even the cold-blooded and ruthless Marise.

But she quickly suppressed the fear deep in her heart, and immediately went to Anton's side, kneeling on one knee and bowing her head respectfully.

"Vian City is willing to submit to you, sir. Please spare our lives."

The other six dark elf matriarchs also knelt down on one knee in unison.

The eight surviving city-state lords, upon witnessing this scene, cursed inwardly as "cunning black-skinned bitches," but still knelt down cleanly and decisively, expressing their submission to Anton.

For a moment, only the sound of silent breathing and bowed heads remained in the command post.

Anton gave Maris a deep look and said calmly, "Since I've agreed, I won't go back on my word, provided that you don't have any ulterior motives."

"Tell me, how did you get involved with the Ring of Annihilation?"

The Ring of Annihilation?

The lords were all taken aback, but quickly recovered, glanced at the ashes left on the ground by the shadowy figure, and then looked at Maris in unison.

Under Anton's meaningful gaze, Marise forced herself to say, "They came to us of their own accord."

"About three months ago, that guy... we only knew his name was 'Shadow Skeleton'... suddenly appeared in Vion City, saying he was willing to help us control the Crimson Blood Fertile Land, and... destroy Nine Nether City, on the condition that we assist them in collecting death energy."

Upon hearing this, the lords present all glared angrily at Maris.

If they still don't understand the true purpose behind Maris's insistence on waging war against Nine Nether City by this point, they would be incredibly foolish.

From the very beginning of the alliance, she was not planning for a fair distribution of benefits, but rather using the name of war to carry out sacrifices, using their people and soldiers as offerings.

Despite their anger, with Anton present, they dared not make any move.

They were afraid of angering the man.

Anton ignored the undercurrents between the lords and the dark elves, his expression remaining calm as he continued, "There must be more than just him among the members of the Ring of Annihilation who have dealt with you, right?"

"Yes," Maris replied.

Where are they?

"I don't know either." Maris quickly added, afraid that Anton wouldn't believe her. "It's always been Haiying who meets with us. We only know that he has accomplices, but we've never seen them, so we don't know their whereabouts."

Anton's eyes flickered slightly, but he didn't ask any further questions.

He had already used his divine sense to search the surrounding area and found no creatures that resembled members of the Ring of Annihilation.

Those guys have a much sharper sense of danger than ordinary people, and they've probably already sensed something was wrong and retreated.

Well, the Shadow King should be the mastermind behind this whole thing. The others are probably just minor characters, so it doesn't matter whether they're killed or not.

Without saying anything more, Anton flicked his sleeve.

A curtain of dark, mysterious water silently spread out from the void, like a night tide overflowing a beach, and in an instant wrapped around the wrists and ankles of every lord and dark elf matriarch present.

The water was dark and murky, with a smooth, icy touch. It wasn't constricting or tight, yet it clung to the skin like a living thing, constantly drawing energy from their bodies.

A distinct feeling of weakness welled up from deep within my body.

However, everyone present breathed a sigh of relief.

This at least means that the other party does not intend to kill them for the time being.

After that, Anton raised his hand and waved, and four dark golden guardian deities appeared out of thin air, silently occupying the four corners of the command post.

A cold, heavy aura spread out, like an invisible barrier enveloping all the kneeling figures, making the Dark Elf Matriarch and the lords' backs stiffen even more, and they couldn't help but feel a secret horror in their hearts.

What kind of alchemical golem is this?

The sense of oppression they felt was even more terrifying than the already dead shadow.

After doing all this, Anton turned and left the command post.

As soon as they stepped out of the stone gate, they saw the Second Elder and Roman rushing over.

"The lords of the Crimson Fertile Land are all inside," Anton said succinctly. "You will take them to incorporate the remaining city-states. If any disobey, deal with them directly without further instructions."

Anton then nodded to Roman, then summoned sword light to envelop his body, transforming into a stream of light that soared into the sky and quickly disappeared at the end of the passageway.

Roman glanced at the Dark Elf Matriarch and the lords, who dared not make the slightest move under the watchful eyes of the Guardian General, and clicked his tongue with a hint of regret.

"What a pity, with Anton's move, I have no more battles to fight."

Elena chuckled, "In the Underdark, you're not worried about not having enemies to fight? There will be plenty of opportunities in the future."

Roman thought about it and realized it made sense, and his smile returned.

The Second Elder looked at the two people, shook his head helplessly, and turned to walk into the command center.

"Let's go, there's still a lot of finishing work to do."

……

On the way back, Anton pondered the matter of the Ring of Annihilation.

The purpose of these guys collecting death energy is likely related to opening the Netherworld Dimension.

And war has always been the best breeding ground for death.

The ongoing wars across the continent provide the perfect breeding ground for the Ring of Annihilation to collect death energy.

From this perspective, the current state of affairs on the mainland may also be partly due to the influence of the Ring of Annihilation.

Although the Ring of Annihilation acts in secrecy, it is actually quite powerful; otherwise, it would not be able to hide behind the scenes and stir up trouble.

However, Anton wasn't particularly afraid of them.

The greatest advantage of organizations like the Ring of Annihilation lies in their unknown and secretive nature.

Unfortunately, Anton didn't know much about them.

The Ring of Annihilation probably never dreamed that someone was fully aware of their biggest secret plan.

Moreover, these madmen's weaknesses are quite obvious, making them too easy to target.

Upon returning to the City of Primordial Beginning, Anton headed straight for the Quiet Room.

The war was over, and the subsequent incorporation and takeover would naturally be handled by those below him. He only needed to listen to the final summary report.

He can now continue to focus on his own affairs.

The first one, naturally, is fetal breathing.

After a year, Anton is almost ready to complete his first fetal breathing.

It is estimated that nine fetal breathing cycles can be completed in about ten years.

Then you can start preparing for the conception of the primordial spirit.

For example, to overcome a challenge, one can use methods similar to the "mental demon attraction" to conduct "simulated training" in advance.

Over millions of years of development in the cultivation world, various 'simulation training' methods have naturally been developed to address the challenge of breaking through barriers.

For example, Anton found a formation called the Great Dream of a Thousand Autumns Formation in the Great Dao Jade Slip.

This advanced illusion array is designed specifically for tempering one's character, enduring tribulations, and attaining enlightenment.

Its principle is derived from the saying, "Mayflies are born in the morning and die in the evening, unaware of day and night; cicadas are born in spring and die in autumn, unaware of winter and summer."

The formation forms its own world, and once activated, it will trigger illusory heavenly secrets, peeling away the layers of a person's soul and casting them into an endless cycle of illusion.

Those who enter the formation will fall into an endless sea of ​​illusion.

What may seem like a fleeting moment can endure a century of trials and tribulations.

He may be reincarnated as an emperor, ruling over the world.

He might be reincarnated as a woodcutter, spending his remaining years in the mountains.

They might also become bandits and die in the wilderness.

A dream is a lifetime, a thought is a cycle.

Joys and sorrows, partings and reunions, love and hate, gratitude and resentment—all are real and vivid, gnawing at the mind and tempering the soul.

The most ingenious aspect of the Great Dream Thousand Autumns Formation is that those who enter the formation do not need to worry about losing themselves and becoming walking corpses.

At the end of each lifetime, the illusion shatters, and a clear Daoist sound resounds within the array, like a morning bell and evening drum, penetrating directly into the soul, awakening the true self, and illuminating the true spirit.

When the array light dissipates and the mist recedes, those who entered the array may have only closed their eyes for a moment, but in reality, they have already gone through hundreds of reincarnations.

For this reason, the Great Dream Thousand Autumns Formation is often used by major sects as a rehearsal for Golden Core cultivators before breaking through the "Discernment Barrier," and it is also a required course before undergoing the Nascent Soul Heavenly Tribulation.

If one can use the Great Dream Thousand Autumns Formation to temper one's true nature and self in advance, the chances of breaking through the perception barrier in the future will increase significantly.

Anton has already begun preparing the materials needed to set up this formation.

Once nine fetal breathing sessions are completed and the first hurdle of breaking through the infant stage is overcome, preparations for the Great Dream Thousand Autumns Formation should be nearly complete.

Secondly, one should continue to comprehend the principle of "one sword transforms into myriad techniques".

The second supernatural power he chose was the Northern Darkness True Water.

The Dao essence contained in this supernatural power can instantly enhance the power of the sword light, whether it is to erode and devour or to slow down the momentum.

Although the sword light cannot simultaneously fuse two divine powers, even if the Northern Darkness True Water Dao essence is successfully integrated into the sword dao, it will not bring about a leap in Anton's strength.

But at least it can make his fighting methods more flexible.

The true value of "One Sword Transforms into Myriad Laws" lies not only in the word "transform," but also in the word "myriad."

If one can simultaneously wield 258 sword lights and unleash 258 different divine abilities, coordinating them with each other, then one's combat ability will also be qualitatively improved.

Of course, it's not easy to do this.

Mastering multiple supernatural abilities simultaneously is no easy feat.

Besides cultivation, Anton also needs to find time to refine the Flying Shining Tower.

The clan already has two Flying Radiance Towers, and he is now working on forging a third.

With the experience gained from the previous two towers, the crafting speed of the third Flying Radiance Tower has increased significantly, and it is expected to be completed in another year.