Chapter 960

Otherwise, like other Sacred Domains, if they sensed trouble, they might just leave at once.

Like Old Lady Hai, she didn't go do hard labor.

But she didn't leave either.

Because the Purple Cloud Divine Lord had already transferred her remaining one strike to the Flame Empire.

Old Lady Hai actually had some spirit—she said nothing, took the veiled girl Luo Yi, and went straight to Mengying, declaring she was willing to hold down a region for the Flame Empire until that one strike was used up.

Of course, "one strike" here refers to an attack against peers of equal level; if some petty thieves dared to intrude, killing them casually wouldn't count.

Immediately after, these warriors, stripped of all weapons, boarded sandships and began transporting northward toward the Flame Empire.

There, a vast mountain range stretched over a thousand kilometers, blocking north-south traffic.

Mengying planned to carve a wide road through this mountain.

Although the Flame Empire lacked large machinery, the power of its strong warriors and mages was far from negligible.

One Fifth-Rank warrior, wielding a specialized tool infused with magical substance, could remove a massive chunk of rock from the mountain in a single strike.

Even First-Rank warriors could carry two or three hundred kilograms; the pure strength of a Fifth-Rank warrior was already terrifying—two Fifth-Rank warriors working together were more efficient than a small excavator.

Tunnel reinforcement relied entirely on Earth-element mages.

Earth-element mages could alter the density of soil and stone; even in areas prone to collapse, they had nothing to fear—High-Rank Earth-element mages could solve any problem.

According to Mengying's estimate, this three-million-strong army could tunnel through the entire hundreds-of-kilometers-long passage in less than a year.

When that was done, they would naturally receive new missions.

The entire northern road system of the Flame Empire would depend on them!

Although these warriors were immensely powerful, Mengying wasn't worried they'd cause trouble.

Mengying assigned only a ten-thousand-strong army to monitor them.

Even when fully armed, they couldn't defeat the Flame Empire.

Now that their weapons and gear had been completely stripped away, and even their god had submitted—what could they possibly do?

If they dared to stir up trouble, Mengying wouldn't hold back!

Thus, this massive war came to an end.

This war gave Mengying a clearer understanding of the Flame Empire's military strength.

It also greatly benefited the Holy Maidens—their combat experience was honed in battle, and each Holy Maiden's rapid advancement in power was now fully stabilized.

Immediately after, Mengying dispatched a flying ship, guided by several Purple Cloud Empire warriors, toward the east.

Although the Purple Cloud Divine Lord had ceded half of the Purple Cloud Empire to the Flame Empire, the transfer wouldn't be completed so quickly.

Right now, the Purple Cloud Empire must be in utter chaos!

The civilians in the ceded half must remain, but the nobles would inevitably relocate.

And all of this would take time.

Mengying planned to wait until the Purple Cloud Empire sorted itself out before sending her main army over.

But she wouldn't give the Purple Cloud Empire too much time—she feared they'd stall.

"This loss is too great!"

In the Heavenly Realm, the Purple Cloud Divine Lord had abandoned pursuit of the Eternal Night Goddess.

So many Divine Lords were chasing her—his absence wouldn't matter.

The ten Divine Lords of the Purple Cloud Pantheon gathered together, each with faces heavy with dread.

"Divine Lord, is the Flame Lord really that terrifying?"

At that moment, one of the Purple Cloud Pantheon's Divine Lords asked.

The Purple Cloud Divine Lord lightly swept his hand, summoning several glowing dots.

The Divine Lords took the dots, fused them together—and instantly, every one of their faces turned extraordinarily expressive.

They were recordings by the Purple Cloud Divine Lord: Lin Yan instantly slaying two Divine Lords within the sun!

"Those were two Divine Lords from different pantheons—one nearly equal to me in strength, the other slightly stronger—but both were obliterated in an instant by the Flame Lord, who even reversed and chased down their divine realms."

Said the Purple Cloud Divine Lord.

The other Divine Lords of the Purple Cloud Pantheon all drew sharp breaths.

Each of their faces, moments ago heavy with dread, now filled with relief.

"Though our losses were great, at least we preserved half our realm—if not, we'd face pursuit by a fourth-tier Divine Lord. If we didn't want to die, we'd have to seal our divine realm forever, hiding every trace—but we'd lose our realm entirely. Which outcome do you prefer?"

Asked the Purple Cloud Divine Lord.

The other Divine Lords reconsidered—it truly was the best possible outcome.

They should actually be grateful they hadn't known about the Flame Lord before—it was unintentional provocation.

Unlike the previous two Divine Lords, who had targeted Lin Yan's divine substance deliberately—though they simply didn't know his strength.

Both acts were provocation, but their nature differed; combined with the Purple Cloud Divine Lord's ruthless self-preservation for himself, his pantheon, and his empire, he saved his life.

Otherwise, Lin Yan's temper wouldn't have been so mild.

"Divine Lord, will you still pursue the Eternal Night Goddess?"

One Divine Lord asked.

The Purple Cloud Divine Lord said: "No. The Flame Lord's realm borders the Eternal Night Empire. Though this realm may not be the Flame Lord's only one, his relationship with the Eternal Night Goddess is unpredictable—perhaps he has designs on the Eternal Night Empire, or perhaps the Eternal Night Empire sought his aid. Either way, we must not interfere further."

After speaking, the Purple Cloud Divine Lord scanned the room and added:

"To the east of the Purple Cloud Empire lies the Wild Zone; to the south are several small nations. Send forces to expand eastward and southward, develop these wild regions. For now, avoid all contact with other Divine Lords. Don't speak of today's events. Don't reveal any information about the Flame Lord or the Flame Empire."

"On one hand, the Flame Lord may not wish us to spread his name; on the other…"

The Purple Cloud Divine Lord paused here, then said:

"I won't be the only one to bear this loss!"