Chapter 60: Sparing Them Is the Final Mercy

"Goo‑dong."

Uncertain who it was, they swallowed hard, breaking the suffocating silence.

"Just… just now… who on earth was that?"

A divine maiden's voice trembled, and her eyes still held deep shock.

"I don't know… Zui Province, no, even the whole Sanqian Zhou has never heard of any Dao tradition with such terrifying depth!"

"Using nine pure‑blood true dragons to pull a carriage… insane, this is sheer madness! The True Dragon clan is so proud, how could anyone make them submit?"

The crowd murmured, their voices filled with awe and fear.

Their proud lineage.

That so‑called top‑tier Dao tradition, before the carriage just now, was nothing but a joke.

Seated at the main seat, Saint Li Haoran of the Tianxuan Sacred Land wore a face so grim it seemed about to drip water.

He gripped his wine cup tightly, his knuckles whitening from the strain.

Recognized throughout Zui Province as the foremost of the younger generation.

He had never before felt such overwhelming humiliation and helplessness.

The other party didn't even show their face, merely passing by.

And crushed all his pride into dust.

"Hmph, so what if the display is grand?"

Finally, a hot‑tempered Saint from the War King Hall let out a cold snort, forcing himself to speak:

"The Ancient Immortal Ruins are off‑limits to the weak; once inside, you rely on your own strength, not on flashy, impractical mounts! By then, whether the dragon carriage carries dragons or insects will be obvious!"

Though his words were somewhat harsh yet timid, they helped the other Heavenly Pride members present regain a bit of confidence.

Indeed!

What good is a grand display?

Perhaps it's just a decayed ancient family that poured everything into a terrifying façade.

True Heavenly Pride relies on one's own invincibility!

"Brother Wang, you make a valid point."

Li Haoran inhaled deeply, slowly set down his cup, and his pride in his eyes reconsolidated,

"We cultivators must be bold and diligent, unafraid of strong foes. Though this one's background is mysterious, that doesn't guarantee invincibility; the Ancient Immortal Ruins are our true stage!"

"Right! Brother Li, you're right!"

"Whatever their background, once inside the Ancient Immortal Ruins, everyone relies on their own ability!"

The atmosphere inside the tavern flared up again.

It seemed the earlier shock was merely an illusion.

They remain the top Heavenly Pride of Zui Province, the future Supreme Patriarch!

Yet, at the moment they rekindled their fighting spirit,

"Hmph!"

A cold snort sliced through the endless void, descending upon Wangxian City.

It was a cold snort imbued with the supreme will of an Eighteenth Realm Supreme.

In an instant, it struck precisely at the souls of those speaking on the tavern's upper floor!

"Puff—!"

Inside the tavern, Li Haoran and his companions, who had just been brimming with heroism, had no chance to react and were struck as if by lightning!

They felt as if a star had slammed into their heads, their souls searing, vision blackening, and a mouthful of fresh blood spurted uncontrollably!

Everyone, Li Haoran included, was left in a pitiful mess, pressed to the ground, emitting a series of muffled thuds.

"Ah!"

"My Dao heart… my Dao heart is shattered!"

"No! How could that be! He—they weren't supposed to have gone far…"

"W‑why! We were just speaking casually!"

They all didn't understand.

The divine thought of an Eighteenth Realm Supreme is so vast.

Even from millions of miles away, he could still sense their malice toward the Gu Family.

Screams and wails rose and fell.

These usually lofty Heavenly Pride youths.

Now each one's aura waned, their seven orifices bleeding, eyes filled with endless terror and bewilderment.

The protective talismans bestowed by their elders on Li Haoran and the others ceased to work at this moment!

What terrifying power is this?

What an overbearing method!

Yet at this moment none of them dared to speak.

Fearing the dreadful pressure would return and annihilate them all.

But even if they didn't kill them.

Among these, the few who mocked the harshest have had their Dao foundations completely destroyed.

Even if they attempt to rebuild, their path is doomed.

And the remaining fortunate yet mortally wounded Heavenly Pride know this even clearer.

Had that strong one not held back, they would all have perished!

……

……

There are many entrances to the Ancient Immortal Ruins.

Guilty Province is just one of them.

Here, space is chaotic, laws are broken, a colossal rift, as if leading to another world, stretches across heaven and earth.

Within the rift, lightning flashes and thunder roars, chaotic qi surges, emitting a terrifying aura that makes one's heart palpitate.

At this moment, countless cultivators have already gathered on the outskirts of this forbidden zone.

In the sky, ancient warships exude powerful auras.

Exotic beasts with fierce auras serve as mounts, hovering everywhere in clear distinction.

On each warship and each exotic beast stands a figure with an aura deep as the sea, so terrifying it distorts the void.

They are the sect masters, the leaders of the various immortal traditions of Guilty Province.

These figures, who usually stay hidden like dragons and can shake Guilty Province with a stomp of their foot, have now all gathered here.

Their gazes are fixed on that enormous spatial rift, their eyes filled with anticipation and solemnity.

Beside each of them follows a holy maiden, either majestic in bearing, pure and lovely, or alluring.

These are all the goddesses and holy sons of the top traditions.

All eagerly await, ready to enter the Ancient Immortal Ruins for a great battle, competing for the supreme opportunity to become sect master.

"Calculating the time, the seal of the Ancient Immortal Ruins should now be at its weakest."

On a bronze war chariot pulled by three hellhounds, a sect master cloaked in black robes spoke in a hoarse voice.

"Indeed, every opening brings a bloodbath; I wonder how many heaven‑chosen talents will fall this time."

On the other side, a burly man riding a golden lion spoke in a deep, resonant voice.

"Hmph, the path of cultivation is nothing but sifting sand in big waves. To prove the Dao, how could one avoid the tempering of blood and fire? My Bu Tian Sect's disciples have long been ready."

Just as these sect masters conversed and waited for the entrance to open,

In the distance, a dragon's roar suddenly echoed, making their hearts race.

"Roar——!"

Nine dragon roars rang across heaven and earth!

All the sect masters' faces changed in unison as they abruptly turned their heads.

Only to see an ancient carriage they had never seen before, exuding chaotic qi, being pulled by nine pure‑blood true dragons of awe‑inspiring divine might, tearing through the void and charging straight toward this place!

That overbearing, irresistible aura made every sect master present feel a sudden suffocation.

"Who…… is this?!"

"Nine true dragons pulling a carriage?! Am I seeing things?!"

"The aura of this carriage…… is terrifying! My very soul trembles!"

All the sect masters rose from their warships and mounts, their faces etched with shock and horror.

They could clearly sense that each of the nine dragons pulling the carriage possessed an aura not weaker than theirs—and perhaps even stronger.

This utterly overturned their understanding!

What shocked them even more was that the carriage's target was none other than the entrance to the Ancient Immortal Ruins beneath their feet!

Moreover, judging by its momentum, it showed no intention of slowing down!

"Insolent! The Ancient Immortal Ruins are our shared domain—how can we allow others to barge in like this?!"

"Stop him!"

"Regardless of who he is, daring to act so arrogantly before us deserves a lesson!"

After a brief shock, dozens of sect masters simultaneously erupted with towering rage.

They are the masters of this land!

When have they ever endured such disregard?

In an instant, dozens of terrifying divine lights shot up from all directions.

Before the entrance of the Ancient Immortal Ruins, they wove together into an enormous net of law, emanating a terrifying aura capable of obliterating everything.

"Who goes there! Halt immediately and report your name!"

A sect master from the Fire God Hall, whose temper is the most explosive,

his whole body ablaze with raging flames, pointed at the approaching carriage and shouted sternly.

He intended to make this ignorant fool learn what rules are!