Chapter 784: Arrival

The Xuan Yang Elder, who had fled from the battlefield, was in terrible pain; though he had survived, his body had nearly been pierced through by that crimson-gold arrow, and though it had not touched his skin, the crimson-gold divine light had inflicted severe damage.

"Wah!"

A mouthful of blood nearly spewed forth, speckled with flecks of crimson-gold radiance.

Clearly, the arrow's power had seeped into every part of his body; if he did not expel this force promptly, it would not merely be a matter of injury—he might even lose his realm.

"Xuan Yang Elder, what's wrong? Are you all right?"

"Xuan Yang Elder, you're injured."

Back at his cave dwelling, several Tribulation Crossing cultivators rushed over; seeing Xuan Yang Elder's condition, all were stunned.

They all remembered how just moments ago, Xuan Yang Elder had teleported away to intercept the Earthly evolutionist—how could he now return in such a battered state?

"I've suffered a great loss this time; the opponent's strength far exceeds expectations, and he wields a supreme treasure—the Killing Qi." Xuan Yang Elder's face was grim: "Remember, on the battlefield, never provoke this man. A Mahayana sword cultivator has already been slain by him—if any of you accidentally cross paths with him, don't blame me if I don't come to your aid."

As he spoke, he waved his hand and unleashed a surge of magic power, projecting Li Yi's likeness into the air.

It was a warning to others: pay close attention to this man.

As for Ye Jingtian, though his strength was considerable, Xuan Yang Elder did not consider him a threat, so he said nothing more.

"What? This man killed a Mahayana sword cultivator? Have Earth's young evolutionists grown this powerful already?"

The others were stunned again, and they etched Li Yi's face deeply into their memories.

But soon someone sensed something amiss and spoke up: "Xuan Yang Elder, I seem to recall this man—he's called Li Yi, isn't he? Back when the Xuan Immortal World first connected with Earth, weren't we sent a team to negotiate? Then a battle broke out, and the entire team died."

"And the culprit was this Li Yi—he's still wanted by the Xuan Immortal Continent."

With this reminder,

the other cultivators suddenly remembered.

But as Tribulation Crossing experts, they rarely paid attention to such minor matters; after all, hunting down an Earthly evolutionist held no interest—they received no rewards, no divine artifacts—so the matter had been forgotten.

"This is the same Li Yi from years ago? How did his strength advance so fast—he can now kill a Mahayana cultivator?"

A few years meant nothing to cultivators—it was merely a single meditation session, even less than that.

Yet this man had leapt beyond Mahayana.

Is this cultivation?

In Earth's terms, this is cheating.

But upon closer thought, though Li Yi's progress was astonishing, so too were the new Earthly experts—within just a few years, they had reached levels comparable to Soul Transformation and Tribulation Crossing.

Everyone fell silent.

For they realized a critical truth.

Earth's evolutionists, who cultivated multiple paths simultaneously, were beginning to unleash their true potential; while cultivators grew strong through decades or centuries of accumulation, Earth's evolutionists continually produced new masters without end.

In just a few years, they could match what you had spent decades—or even centuries—struggling to achieve.

In another decade or two, the balance of power might reverse entirely.

"No wonder the True Immortals allied with the Demon God Realm to crush Earth's evolutionists." Now, the others began to understand why the great sects of the Xuan Immortal Continent had united and launched a full-scale invasion of Earth.

If we don't eliminate these evolutionists now, when Earth grows strong, it will be the Xuan Immortal Continent that faces invasion.

This potential is too terrifying—it must be crushed early.

"For the next few days, keep a low profile. I must heal. If the cross-border battlefield reopens, each of you be cautious." But Xuan Yang Elder had no interest in discussing this—he was suffering terribly from the lingering crimson-gold divine light within him.

He needed to heal immediately.

So after giving brief orders, he returned to his cave and entered seclusion to recover.

Meanwhile,

Li Yi and Ye Jingtian arrived at Earth's frontline.

Before them stretched a black Great Wall, winding like a dragon, encircling the boundless earth; it was constructed of nanometal components, etched with countless great arrays.

Some of these arrays felt familiar to Li Yi—they were not from the Xuan Immortal Continent, but from the End Dharma Dao world, unmistakably the work of the Bald Daoist.

There were also traces of technology, such as energy shields.

Beyond the black wall, the earth was shattered, all life gone; signs of battle were everywhere, and even parts of the black wall had been severely destroyed—despite special materials, the damage had never been repaired.

"Li Yi, follow me." Ye Jingtian led the way, flying toward the surveillance drones near the black wall.

Sensing their arrival, the drones flapped their wings and flew over, immediately scanning the two.

Due to the AI, Earth's databases were unified; they quickly confirmed Li Yi and Ye Jingtian's identities, so the surveillance drones did not trigger alarms—they simply opened the way.

"The black wall is only the outermost ring; the real frontline base lies ahead," Ye Jing said. "Normally, great demons and cultivators won't cross this wall—otherwise, Earth's experts will strike them together."

"Of course, some can't resist the urge and sneak across to ambush or retaliate."

"In short, here, you're always at risk of attack—even while sleeping, a flying sword might strike from a thousand li away. There is no truly safe place."

Ye Jing's expression was grim.

They continued flying forward.

At this point, Li Yi saw buildings where evolutionists lived—simple cultivation huts; he sensed evolutionists inside, absorbing cosmic energy.

He also saw evolutionists clad in tattered battle armor, sitting on rocks, seemingly lost in thought about the future.

The further they went, the more buildings appeared.

But many were damaged; given the battlefield's nature, repairs were not prioritized—evolutionists didn't care for comfort, and would simply lie down anywhere to rest.

Soon,

Li Yi felt he had entered an energy field.

"A Strange Object's energy field," he immediately recognized—it was someone placing a Strange Object within the frontline to provide abundant cosmic energy to evolutionists.

And there were many such fields.

A casual spiritual sense scan revealed at least twenty to thirty.

Clearly, Earth had emptied its vaults to win this cross-world war.

"Someone's here to meet us," Ye Jingtian suddenly halted midair and said.

Li Yi looked in one direction.

A figure flew from a building, and before reaching them, a loud laugh rang out: "Ha! Ye Jingtian, I knew you'd end up on this battlefield sooner or later! How's it going? Did you write your will? Prepare to die?"

"Zhao Shiwu, you're still alive? Last time you said the battle was going badly!" Ye Jingtian frowned.

"I've always had good luck—why would I die here so easily?" The man named Zhao Shiwu was tall, with short red hair—a result of gene-boosting serum.

Ancient characters were engraved across his body, glowing faintly like runes, radiating immense power.

Clearly, besides evolution and gene arts, he also cultivated a mysterious path.

His strength was no trivial matter—he rivaled ordinary Mahayana experts.

"Is this one also here to reinforce the frontline with you?" Zhao Shiwu turned to Li Yi, his smile fading slightly, his expression turning serious.

A strong one.

And terrifyingly so.

That was Zhao Shiwu's first impression of Li Yi—just being near him made his hairs stand on end, as if he faced not a man, but a primordial dragon of the wilds, capable of shaking mountains and rivers with a single gesture.

"This is Li Yi. He's extremely strong. I'd be dead already if not for him killing a Mahayana cultivator," Ye Jingtian said solemnly.

No need for elaboration—just highlight the key point: Li Yi could kill a Mahayana cultivator.

"Li Yi? I think I heard some top experts from Golden Academy mention him—weren't you the one who earned merit on the Demon God Realm frontline?" Zhao Shiwu recalled, and praised: "Indeed a top-tier expert. Welcome to Earth's frontline. With your two joining us, the pressure on the cross-border battlefield will ease significantly."

He was courteous not merely because Li Yi was powerful, but because he had earned merit—he was no coward who fled across worlds.

Here, men like Li Yi were deeply respected.

"You're too kind. I've merely done my small part," Li Yi said.

"You speak so formally—you didn't learn that on Earth. You must've crossed into some ancient world," Zhao Shiwu laughed.

Ye Jing said: "Enough, Zhao Shiwu. Get us settled. We didn't come here to chat."

"Right. Come on, follow me. I'll take you to meet the frontline commander and update you on recent developments. You're new, but with your strength, you'll likely be on the battlefield soon—hope you kill plenty of enemies and slow the invasion."

As he spoke, he led them toward a special building.

It was the command center.

The last gathering point of Earth's elite combat force.

(End of Chapter)