Chapter 563: Invasion [Combined]

"Ancient Qingyuan Sect?"

"That's right. Are you also familiar with this sect, Lady Lingyan?"

"The reputation of the number one sect in the ancient human world—I naturally know a little."

"I never expected the Qingyuan Sect's mountain gate secret realm to be within the Five Elements Mountains."

"Brother Qin, tell me in detail what you know."

Qin Ming then recounted to Yue Lingyan the entire story of how the Shendao Mountain had seized the Five Elements Mountains' fourth-rank spiritual vein and discovered the Qingyuan Sect's secret realm.

After all, she had shared with him such crucial upper-tier cultivation world intelligence and gifted him so many treasures.

He owed her a proper return.

"Lady Lingyan, I suspect with near certainty that the Blood Realm's Blood Refining Devil Gate is targeting this secret realm?"

After speaking, Qin Ming asked with a hint of concern: "And will this Blood Refining Devil Gate's descent into our realm spiral out of control?"

After all, he was still seeking the chance to condense his Nascent Soul in Da Jin.

"You need not worry about this, Brother Qin. The power between realms is immense—even a devil sect from the upper realm must use a special item called a 'Descent Talisman' to descend, and even then, it faces numerous restrictions."

"The Blood Realm has some connection with the Li Dynasty, allowing only a small number of devil sect disciples to descend. For now, large-scale invasion of the human realm is impossible."

"Moreover, the duration of the descent is limited."

"Even in a devil sect as powerful as the Blood Realm, Descent Talismans are exceedingly rare. Moreover, devil lords whose cultivation exceeds the Golden Core realm cannot use them to descend, or they risk being repelled by the realm's power and possibly getting dragged into the Void Chaos and perishing," Yue Lingyan explained with wide knowledge.

Qin Ming finally understood—the Blood Realm's devil sect's descent into the human realm was indeed restricted.

Only a fourth-rank beast saint could have such insight. Her perspective was truly unmatched.

"Still, the Blood Refining Devil Gate disciples who descend are no ordinary lot. Most are prodigies of extraordinary talent, and some are even powerful devil sect holy sons or holy daughters. Though only at Golden Core peak, they carry the core transmissions of the Blood Refining Devil Sect and can unleash abilities rivaling those of Nascent Soul cultivators."

"Historical records of past great calamities even mention entire human Nascent Soul sects being wiped out."

Qin Ming immediately asked: "If they're so powerful, why did the Li Dynasty choose to invade the Zhou cultivation realm instead of Da Jin?"

"Besides, Shendao Mountain is secretly funded by the Yin Devil Sect, and the Qingyuan Sect's secret realm lies precisely at the border between the two nations."

After pondering for a moment, Yue Lingyan said: "I believe the first reason is fear of the Li Fire Palace. Though it has declined, its founding ancestor's life-soul lamp is said to still be burning."

"Second, Da Jin has the Ten Thousand Dao Merchant Society, which is rumored to have a Nascent Soul elder in its back."

"If they unite, even the Li Dynasty would find it hard to conquer."

"But Zhou is different—it has only the Xuanqing Monastery as a Nascent Soul sect, with shallow roots and only Cold Crow Elder, a Nascent Soul beginner, to hold it up. If the Li devil sects join forces with the Blood Refining Devil Gate, it will be unable to stand alone and face collapse."

"The Da Jin cultivation realm will remain safe—at least for the next few decades."

"If the situation changes, Brother Qin, you are always welcome to come to my fox clan—I would be delighted to have you stay as long as you wish."

"Thank you very much, Lady Lingyan."

After hearing her analysis, Qin Ming's doubts were greatly eased.

He also felt fortunate to have met Yue Lingyan—ordinary cultivators could never gain access to such upper-tier cultivation world intelligence ahead of time.

This gave Qin Ming precious time to prepare in advance.

Many dangers could be avoided.

In the cultivation world, low-level hermits often miss critical opportunities because they learn of such upheavals too late, becoming cannon fodder for major sects.

'After this season's spiritual crops are harvested, I must quickly dispose of them and leave.'

Qin Ming conversed with Yue Lingyan for another half day, then took his leave.

As he departed, Shi Tian Shu looked back three steps at a time: "Little Silver Fox, be sure to come visit us at the spiritual fields if you have nothing else to do!"

"Brother Shi, take care—I will definitely come," Little Silver Fox waved farewell.

Immediately, Qin Ming and Shi Tian Shu transformed into a streak of azure light and vanished into the horizon.

…

Blood Realm.

Black clouds churned and surged; countless thunderbolts flickered and vanished within the oppressive clouds, filling the air with a sense of destruction.

Above the heavens, behind the dark clouds, two crimson moons hung, eerily conspicuous.

Around the platform lay an endless abyss, surrounded by pitch-black mountain peaks.

CRACK! Lightning from above continuously struck the black stone peaks, seemingly absorbed without a trace. Colorful lightning also flashed within the unfathomable abyss, flickering and dying out.

On a black stone platform engraved with devil runes, over a dozen devil sect disciples stared downward.

These chosen Blood Refining Devil Gate disciples all had bloodthirsty excitement gleaming in their eyes, restless and eager.

"Senior Brother Jiang Yuan, here is a small token from this junior."

"I didn't secure a descent slot, but my Ten Thousand Souls Devil Banner still lacks hundreds of high-rank cultivators' essence souls, a dozen Golden Core soul cores, and several devil materia. I'll be counting on you for this, hehehe!"

A short, horse-faced cultivator respectfully handed a small sack of black crystals to a young cultivator with black horns sprouting from his head.

The devil cultivator called Senior Brother Jiang had skin as pale as paper and a frail, gaunt frame, as if he could be blown away by a breeze.

His eyes glowed with an uncanny aura, and a sinister smile curled on his lips.

Yet his aura had already reached the terrifying peak of Golden Core, and he stood only one step away from condensing a devil Nascent Soul.

Jiang Yuan took the crystals, weighed them in his hand, and his smile deepened. "Brother Xing, you really are willing to spend heavily? Such a large quantity of high-grade devil crystals—I accept your request."

"I can guarantee the number of cultivator flesh and essence souls, but the celestial materia you requested—I cannot guarantee I'll obtain them all."

"The items needed to upgrade your core devil artifact are hard to come by!"

The horse-faced cultivator chuckled bitterly: "The elders said that near this descent's Li trial realm, an ancient Qingyuan Sect secret realm has emerged."

"That's why, whereas previous descents had only five slots, this time there are eighteen."

"Aren't all the elders' favorites also heading for the Qingyuan secret realm?"

"Otherwise, why would Sister Lan, who had been in seclusion for years, break her meditation to descend?"

"Besides, after so many years, the human realm must have produced many rare treasures."

"Senior Brother Jiang gets the meat—I'm content just to sip the broth."

Jiang Yuan grinned wickedly, flicking his crimson tongue over his lips. "Since you're so considerate, I'll agree."

"Thank you, Senior Brother Jiang!"

As they spoke, a streak of black light pierced effortlessly through the thunder from afar and landed directly on the platform.

The light faded, revealing a cold, elegant woman with a graceful figure, skin like congealed jade, clad in a black silk robe etched with devil runes, barefoot.

Her expression was blank, her gaze deep as a frozen pool, standing in midair, looking down upon them with calm authority.

"We bow to Senior Sister Lan Bing!"

The Blood Refining Devil Gate cultivators on the platform immediately bowed deeply.

"Oh? Sister Lan, didn't expect you to join the fun too?" Jiang Yuan smiled.

Lan Bing raised a delicate eyebrow, her voice icy: "If Senior Brother Jiang is going himself, how could I not come out for some activity?"

At that moment,

an elderly man in dark robes appeared behind them, holding a compass, and addressed the group:

"The time has come! Descend quickly!"

"Pay attention—the convergence of realm forces lasts only ten years. At that time, regardless of your situation, you will be forcibly recalled by the Holy Sect, unless you perish."

"How much you gain during this period depends entirely on your own fortune."

With that, the elder began chanting a mysterious devil incantation, activating his compass.

Instantly, a jet-black radiance erupted from the compass and struck the center of the platform.

WOOOO! Countless runes spiraled upward from below, drawing in the energy of heaven and earth.

The dozen or so devil sect true disciples each withdrew an ancient, dull-yellow talisman and poured spiritual power into it.

WHIRRR! WHIRRR! As the Descent Talismans glowed, black beams of light descended from the heavens, striking each devil disciple directly.

"Sister Lan, once we descend, shall we join forces?" Jiang Yuan asked telepathically before activating his talisman.

"If we work together, no one in the human realm will be our match."

Lan Bing remained silent, unmoved, seemingly uninterested. "No need. I have my own mission down there. Better to go our separate ways."

With that, she activated her Descent Talisman. As the black radiance descended, her figure vanished from the platform.

Jiang Yuan merely smiled indifferently, then activated his own talisman.

…

Elsewhere.

After several days of flight, Qin Ming headed back toward the Five Elements Mountains.

Along the way, he noticed numerous low-rank beast beasts fleeing frantically from the Zhou border inward.

As if fleeing something.

He furrowed his brow, silently wondering: 'Could the war be arriving this quickly?'

Qin Ming immediately pulled out a map, studied it briefly, and fixed his gaze on the tri-border region.

"Yunlan Xiancheng of Zhou."

It was not far from his current location—he decided to investigate.

Qin Ming rode his Silver-Winged Frost Bee for two days until he reached the border between Zhou and Da Jin.

A modest-sized xiancheng came into view.

He immediately retracted his Silver-Winged Frost Bee, concealed his presence, and descended.

He saw that Yunlan Xiancheng's protective array was fully activated; the cultivators within were on high alert, lined up along the city walls.

More startlingly, tens of thousands of refugees had gathered outside the city, mostly low-rank cultivators and commoners, yet some Foundation Establishment cultivators were among them.

"Help! It's terrifying!"

"Those demonic cultivators are slaughtering and bloodily purging the people of Great Zhou! How cruel!"

"Disciples of the Yin Demon Sect feed the flesh and blood of cultivators to demonic corpses and puppets—truly devoid of humanity!"

"Even Golden Core families cannot withstand the offensive of the Great Li demonic path; three families have already been wiped out in just a few days!"

"Please, my lords, show mercy and let us in!"

The refugees, having barely escaped death, wailed across the land.

"Master, there are so many refugees from Great Zhou—it seems the words of Silver Moon Elder were true: the Great Li demonic path has begun invading Great Zhou."

The Devouring Sky Rat sat on Qin Ming's shoulder, shielding its eyes from the sun as it gazed into the distance. "Surely the demonic cultivators of the Blood Refining Sect should be arriving soon?"

Qin Ming gazed at the terrified refugees and sighed. "Yes, it seems so. Those demonic cultivators routinely poison life, using the souls and flesh of cultivators to enhance their demonic cultivation or forge demonic weapons—wherever they pass, all life is laid waste."

"The flood of refugees pouring into the border indicates Great Zhou's situation has already begun to deteriorate."

"Will Great Jin simply watch as Great Zhou falls into the hands of the demonic path?"

"After all, this is a heavenly demonic calamity that comes once every thousand years. If Great Zhou is swallowed, even though Great Jin is powerful, it may not be able to remain untouched," said the Devouring Sky Rat, stroking its chin.

"This is beyond our control, but for the Great Li demonic path to conquer Great Zhou will take time. I'm certain the Flame Palace and the Ten Thousand Paths Trading Society won't stand idly by."

Qin Ming lingered here for half a day, quietly questioning several wandering cultivators who had fled here, before departing with a thoughtful expression.

Several days later.

Qin Ming returned to the spirit fields of Five Elements Mountain, where the war was still distant and no obvious anomalies appeared.

"Master Lu, you're back!" Old Jia hurried forward with a beaming smile to greet him.

"Hmm. Have there been any unusual developments while I was away?" Qin Ming asked coolly.

"All is well in the spirit fields, Master."

"I mean within the Silver Moon Market—haven't you heard any other news?"

Old Jia froze. "Master Lu, you mean…"

Seeing the man's utterly clueless expression, Qin Ming realized the news of the demonic invasion of Great Zhou had not yet reached here.

He then walked through the Five Elements Mountain market and found that even the cultivators here remained unaware of the demonic invasion.

Clearly, it would still take time to reach Great Jin.

After all, the territorial expanse was too vast.

Yet Qin Ming had already noticed that prices in the market had begun to rise subtly—likely tied inextricably to the war beyond.

The great powers controlling the cultivation world had clearly sensed something amiss.

But they had not leaked any word.

He first sought out Hua Tianxiong, pulled him into the Small Spirit Realm, and asked: "Hua Tianxiong, have you learned anything about the cultivation world of Great Zhou?"

"Huh? Master, you already know? I was just about to report this to you—recently, when I spoke with Elder Gan of the Flame Palace, he let slip some high-level information."

"He told me to temporarily abandon business in Great Zhou—it seems war is coming."

"There have already been minor skirmishes."

Hua Tianxiong replied respectfully.

Seeing Hua was also in the dark, Qin Ming said:

"This isn't just minor skirmishes—it's likely the Great Li demonic path intends to swallow Great Zhou whole."

"If the orthodox sects don't unite to resist, the fall of Great Zhou is merely a matter of time."

"What? Fall of a nation?!"

"Master, is it really that serious? What exactly is going on?"

"The Great Li demonic path's invasion of Great Zhou is tied to the once-in-a-millennium Heavenly Demonic Calamity."

"Pass this intelligence on to Su Yuqing—he must prepare in advance."

"Also, deliver the contents of this storage bag to him as well."

Qin Ming pulled out a jade slip and a storage bag.

Inside the storage bag were the shape-shifting demonic herbs he had acquired on this journey, along with other spirit materials for refining a Nascent Soul Pill—he had several sets of materials and could further accelerate their growth using the Codex.

Su Yuqing had given Qin Ming a family heirloom as a gift.

He couldn't let the man suffer a loss.

"Yes, Master!"

"Oh, Master, while I was in Zhongzhou at the Flame Palace, Master Su asked me to deliver this to you." Hua Tianxiong pulled out an exquisite jade box and handed it to Qin Ming.

He opened the box and saw two spirit-filled Bodhi seeds lying inside.

"Taiyi Bodhi Seeds!"

Thus, three of the five main ingredients for refining the Nascent Soul Pill were now gathered—only the Five Element Spirit Ginseng and the Ten-Thousand-Year Green Spirit Saliva remained.

……

(End of Chapter)