Chapter 570: It falls far short of the three‑legged golden crow

As the cultivators of the Heaven Sect Alliance finished gathering, a tense atmosphere spread throughout the alliance.

They knew that what they would face was not only a direct confrontation with Blood Shadow and Heaven's Initiation, but also possible internal divisions. Jing Yufei stood on the Heaven Dao Platform, his gaze firm; he knew this was the crucial moment to display the alliance's cohesion.

"Fellow cultivators, this battle concerns the survival of the Heaven Sect Alliance and the future of the entire Tianji Shengyu." Jing Yufei's voice boomed, penetrating every cultivator's heart, "We may have differences and conflicts, but before the common enemy we must set everything aside and unite."

The cultivators' eyes flickered with determination; they knew that no matter how internal strife played out, when facing external enemies they must stand together.

The alliance's cultivators began deploying according to the predetermined tactics: some took charge of the frontline assault, some handled rear support, some guarded the flanks, forming a strict and effective combat system.

And in Blood Shadow's dark hall, Xingchen's plan was already ready, his eyes flashing with a cunning light; although the Heaven Sect Alliance was strong, its internal contradictions and lack of trust would be their greatest weakness.

"Pass on my order: Blood Shadow's elite units shall immediately infiltrate the rear of the Heaven Sect Alliance, cut off their supply lines, and sow chaos." Xingchen's voice carried a hint of cruelty, "We will strike them a deadly blow when they are most vulnerable."

At the same time, Youming wore a playful smile on his face in the Netherworld Palace of Heaven's Initiation.

"Heaven Sect Alliance cultivators, do you think only you know how to play internal strife?" As his words fell, his sharp eyes flashed with a mischievous glare, "Let them see what true chaos is."

Youming clapped his hands, and Heaven's Initiation's elite spies and assassins began covert operations, targeting the core members of the Heaven Sect Alliance and those cultivators who played a key role in the alliance.

Youming's plan was to sow panic, causing the Heaven Sect Alliance to collapse from within.

Soon the battle was on the verge of breaking out, and the cultivators of the Heaven Sect Alliance engaged in fierce combat with the forces of Blood Shadow and Heaven's Initiation.

The brilliance of spells and treasures illuminated the entire battlefield, with cultivators from both sides fighting for their survival.

However, as the battle progressed, chaos began to appear in the rear of the Heaven Sect Alliance.

Blood Shadow's elite units appeared like ghosts, cutting off supply lines and creating a chain of chaos.

The alliance's cultivators began to feel pressure, not knowing where the enemy was hidden nor what would happen next.

At that moment, Heaven's Initiation's spies and assassins also began to act, assassinating some of the alliance's core members, causing the alliance's command system to fall into greater chaos.

Jing Yufei stood on the Heaven Dao Platform, his face grim; this battle was far more difficult than he had imagined.

He took a deep breath and then shouted loudly, "Fellow cultivators, do not panic; we must remain calm."

However, at that moment, a startling piece of news reached Jing Yufei's ears.

"Alliance Leader, it's terrible— a tide of ferocious beasts has emerged at the edge of the Heaven's Pole Mountain Range and is now advancing toward us, its numbers far exceeding our expectations!" a cultivator's voice carried a hint of despair.

Jing Yufei's heart sank instantly, his face turning an even darker shade of iron-blue; at this critical moment he made a bold decision.

That was to divide forces— part of the cultivators would continue fighting Blood Shadow and Heaven's Initiation, while another part would turn to oppose the beast tide at the edge of the Heaven's Pole Mountain Range.

"Boom—"

However, as the Heaven Sect Alliance cultivators had just set out on their march, looking up they saw ten great demon cranes appear in the sky.

These demon cranes were huge in stature, their wings black as ink, their eyes flashing with an eerie red light.

Their appearance seemed to add ten blazing red suns above the firmament, emitting demonic fire that spread across heaven and earth, enveloping the entire battlefield in scorching heat and fear.

Wherever the demon cranes passed, the once lush vegetation sprouted terrifying flames amid nameless dread.

These flames differed from ordinary fire; they seemed to possess their own consciousness, able to spread rapidly and devour all life.

Demonic fire condensed into fireballs that fell from the firmament like the judgment of the apocalypse, mercilessly destroying the Heaven Sect Alliance cultivators' formations.

Countless cultivators uttered shrill wails; many of them had not even had time to react before being swallowed by this sudden demonic fire.

The flames devoured their treasures, scorched their robes, and even directly struck their flesh, causing unimaginable pain.

"Don't panic, everyone, quickly form a defensive formation!" Jing Yufei's voice rang out amid the chaos, his figure appearing especially resolute in the firelight.

Under Jing Yufei's command, the cultivators swiftly formed a defensive formation.

Some of them produced defensive treasures, forming curtains of light to try to block the demonic fire's erosion, while others began casting water-element techniques, hoping to use water currents to extinguish the raging flames.

However, these demonic flames were not ordinary fire; they seemed to possess strong resistance to water-element techniques, and the cultivators' counterattacks did not achieve the expected effect.

The fireballs continued to fall like raindrops, each explosion taking the lives of countless cultivators.

"Use earth-element techniques! Quick!" Jing Yufei issued another order; water can overcome fire, but in this situation perhaps earth-element techniques could better isolate the flames.

The cultivators immediately responded; the earth-element technique practitioners among them began casting spells, and walls of earth rose from the ground, forming fortresses that isolated the demonic fire from the cultivators.

At the same time, some cultivators began setting up formations on the earthen walls to strengthen their defensive power.

As the earthen walls were built, the spread of the demonic fire was finally checked.

The cultivators could catch their breath, but their faces remained grave; this was only a temporary defense, for the ten great demon cranes still circled in the sky, ready to launch another attack at any moment.

Jing Yufei's gaze remained locked on the demon cranes in the sky, his heart filled with worry.

The power of these demon cranes far exceeded his expectations; if a countermeasure were not found quickly, the entire Heaven Sect Alliance would face the danger of annihilation.

"We must find the demon cranes' weakness and eliminate them!" Jing Yufei secretly resolved, began recalling records from ancient texts, seeking any possible method to counter the demon cranes.

At the same time, he also observed the demon cranes' behavior, trying to discover their weaknesses.

Under Jing Yufei's command, the Heaven Sect Alliance cultivators began to launch a systematic counterattack.

Some cultivators began attempting to attack the demon cranes with long-range spells, while others sought opportunities to prepare for close-quarters combat.

The battle was extraordinarily fierce, as the demon cranes in the sky and the cultivators on the ground engaged in a life-and-death struggle.

Fireballs and spells intertwined, forming an apocalyptic scene.

The clash between the demon cranes and the Heaven Sect Alliance cultivators had already entered a white-hot stage.

The ten great demon cranes circled in the air; their cries were like thunder, deafening, each cry accompanied by a powerful sonic attack that shook the cultivators' minds.

The demon cranes' talons were razor‑sharp; a single swipe could split mountains and rend stone; wherever they passed, demonic flame surged like a torrent, scorching the ground until it cracked, magma gushing from the fissures, the scorching magma winding and coiling like a fire dragon, as if it sought to devour all things in the world.

Faced with such a formidable foe, the Heaven Sect Alliance cultivators showed no hesitation, engaging the ten great demon cranes in a death‑struggle.

Some cultivators unleashed the Breaking Ice Divine Palm; pushing forward, an icy‑blue radiance surged, bitter cold pressing forward, frost spreading at visible speed, colliding with the demon cranes' demonic flame, producing a hissing sound as the opposing forces of water and fire intertwined on the battlefield.

The cultivators of the Nine Heavens Sword Gale brandished their flying swords; sword light flashed like lightning, cleaving the firmament, sword qi soaring to the nine heavens, opposing the demon cranes' talons.

Wherever the sword gale passed, space seemed to be torn apart; the mighty sword intent made even the demon cranes dare not look down upon it.

The cultivators of Wind Thunder Extreme Lightning became messengers of thunder and lightning; their speed was extreme, like lightning in a gale, they darted across the battlefield, each appearance accompanied by thunderclaps and flashes, their attacks swift and precise, striking straight at the demon cranes' vital points.

These divine abilities pierced the eight directions and the cosmos, battling the ten great demon cranes to the point of being inseparable.

However, although the cultivators' divine abilities were mighty, the demon cranes' power was equally not to be underestimated.

The demon crane's demon fire collided with the cultivators' divine abilities, producing huge explosions, each like a small heavenly disaster, shaking the entire battlefield.

Jing Yufei's figure stood out prominently on the battlefield, holding a long sword condensed from spiritual qi, its blade flowing with golden light; each swing carried a sound of tearing the air, clashing head-on with the demon crane's attacks.

"Fellow cultivators, we cannot let the demon crane's flames devour our alliance base!" Jing Yufei shouted loudly, his voice full of encouragement, "Let our divine abilities become the light that resists darkness, and let these demon cranes witness the might of the Heaven Sect Alliance!"

Under Jing Yufei's encouragement, the cultivators' morale greatly increased, they began to cooperate more tacitly, and the coordination of their divine abilities became more exquisite.

Some cultivators attracted the demon crane's attention on the front lines, while those in the rear seized the opportunity to unleash powerful divine abilities, aiming to inflict heavy damage on the demon crane.

At this moment, in the Youming Palace of Heaven's Initiation, Youming stood before a huge treasure mirror, observing the battle in the Fire Realm.

A faint cold smile curled at the corner of his mouth, his eyes flashing with a cunning light.

In the treasure mirror, the battle between the Heaven Sect Alliance's cultivators and the ten great demon cranes grew increasingly fierce, while he seemed to be enjoying a splendid drama.

"The demon cranes are formed from the demon fire condensed in the Fire God Demon Abyss; their existence transcends life and death."

Youming spoke softly, his voice tinged with pride, "Even if they fall, they can be revived with the aid of the Fire God Ink Abyss in Heaven's Initiation."

"These demon cranes are immortal beings; who dares to contend with them?"

Youming's finger lightly traced the surface of the treasure mirror, as if touching the silhouettes of those demon cranes.

"The demon crane's havoc, but it was never said they are immortal." Youming continued, his eyes revealing a hint of contempt, "Heaven Sect Alliance cultivators, do you think you can block the demon crane's attacks? Your resistance is merely futile."

On the battlefield of the Fire Realm, wherever the demon crane passed, everything was swallowed by its demon fire.

Those cultivators who dared to defy heaven were, without exception, turned to ashes by the demon fire.

In the demon crane's cries, there was indifference to life and mockery of death; they were like messengers of the grim reaper, proclaiming the doom of the Heaven Sect Alliance cultivators.

Although the Heaven Sect Alliance cultivators were brave, in the face of the demon crane's immortal nature, their efforts seemed insignificant.

Each time a demon crane was struck down, its body would recondense in the demon fire, becoming stronger and more ferocious.

Jing Yufei looked at the scene before him, his heart filled with anxiety; the Heaven Sect Alliance cultivators were falling one after another.

And among the Blood Shadow, Xingchen stood upon the Summit of the Stars, his gaze piercing through layers of mist, observing Heaven's Initiation's actions.

In his brows and eyes flashed a cold, sharp light, while complex emotions surged in his heart.

He never expected that Heaven's Initiation would actually release such an unparalleled ferocious creature as the demon crane; this move undoubtedly pushed the entire situation of Tianji Shengyu toward a more dangerous brink.

The demon crane's pure demonic flame, its power so great, could distort the orbit of the blood moon.

The blood moon, to the Blood Shadow, is not only the destination of all spirits, but also the source of their power.

Xingchen deeply knows that the blood moon's orbital track is intimately linked to the Blood Shadow's power; once affected, the Blood Shadow's plan will suffer an immeasurable blow.

"The blood moon is the destination of all spirits, the Blood Shadow is the salvation of all beings." Xingchen murmured to himself, his voice carrying an unquestionable firmness, "If the blood moon grand plan is disturbed, it will be unable to deceive beings into seeking refuge under the blood calamity grand plan."

"At that time, the number of sacrificed living beings will certainly be affected, and the Blood Shadow's power will also weaken accordingly."

Xingchen's gaze was gloomy and cold; he knew that no one could destroy the blood moon calamity, for it is the fundamental basis of the Blood Shadow's strength.

The blood moon calamity is not only a symbol of the Blood Shadow's power, but also the key to their control over all beings' fate.

Once the blood moon calamity is destroyed, the Blood Shadow's layout in Tianji Shengyu will suffer a severe blow.

"Convey my order: the Blood Shadow's elite cultivators must act immediately." Xingchen's voice echoed in the dark hall, the command like a sharp sword pointing straight at the heart of Heaven's Initiation, "We cannot stand by and watch Heaven's Initiation's actions; we must act to protect the blood moon calamity from disturbance."

Following Xingchen's command, the Blood Shadow's cultivators began to gather secretly.

They moved like ghosts through the night, preparing to counter Heaven's Initiation's actions.

These elites are the finest of the Blood Shadow, possessing great strength, swift action, and expertise in concealment and assassination.

Xingchen stood upon the Summit of the Stars, his gaze piercing through layers of mist, as if he had seen the Youming Palace of Heaven's Initiation.

He knew that Youming would not stand idly by the Blood Shadow's actions; the battle between the two would unfold in silence, a contest over the fate of Tianji Shengyu.

"The blood moon calamity is the foundation of our Blood Shadow; anyone who dares to destroy it will be punished by the Blood Shadow."

In Xingchen's voice lay a hint of ruthless resolve, as firm as steel, "Heaven's Initiation's Youming, do you think only you play with schemes? The Blood Shadow's wrath will be a burden you cannot bear."

Under Xingchen's command, the Blood Shadow's elites began to interfere with Heaven's Initiation's actions.

They secretly sabotaged Heaven's Initiation's plans, weakened the demon crane's power, and even directly assassinated its high-level members.

The Blood Shadow's actions were swift and effective, like ghosts in the night, leaving people unable to defend against them.