Chapter 200: Just Half a Step Away

The remark left the three ancestors dumbfounded, and upon further thought they suddenly saw the truth. As for the number of Great Luo Golden Immortals, the Human Race has fewer than a thousand even at full count, which is indeed a stark contrast to the two‑thousand‑plus scale of the Wu and Demon races.

Not to mention the mid‑tier Golden Immortals and Taiyi‑realm masters, whose gap is obvious to the naked eye, since the Human Race's development time is far too short.

Yet the peak combat power at the Quasi Saint level has quietly formed a three‑way stalemate, which is exactly the decisive advantage Zhou Yi has been setting up for years.

A few elders of the Sui Huang clan had crystal‑clear minds; Zhou Yi's successful tribulation crossing this time is truly a Great Emperor Domain.

They know exactly what this means: from today onward, our Human Race finally has a Quasi Saint‑peak leader, a matter that can reshape the Vast Wilderness World's order.

At present, within the Human Race camp, besides the newly‑minted Great Emperor Zhou Yi, the four elders—Sui Huang, You Chao, Cang Wen, and Zi Yi Clan—have also crossed the Quasi Saint threshold.

To be fair, the breakthroughs of Cang Wen and Zi Yi Clan owe much to Zhou Yi; during the thousand years when the Human Race kept a low profile, Zhou Yi used accumulated Mandate‑of‑Heaven points to purchase top‑tier immortal pills from the system store.

With that treasure, Cang Wen and Zi Yi Clan's ascent to Quasi Saint was as easy as poking a hole in paper.

By that count, the Human Race now has five Quasi Saint‑level beings, and in terms of top combat power, they can truly contend with the Wu and Demon races.

"The Human Ancestor's meaning—could it be that we're being asked to send top experts to intervene in the Wu‑Demon war?" You Chao asked tentatively.

"Exactly, this battle must be fought, and we must fight with the Human Race's vigor," Zhou Yi decreed. "Send the orders: within the four divisions—Wind Forest and Fire Mountain—keep the Mountain‑backed troops defending the home, gather the other three armies, and the Imperial Guard that has been hidden for years should also make its appearance."

Upon hearing the words "Imperial Guard," the elders' eyes lit up.

This personal guard unit forged by Zhou Yi himself is the Human Race's trump card; its selection standards are absurdly strict—either a once‑in‑a‑century cultivation prodigy or a ruthless fighter capable of cross‑realm combat.

Within the three‑thousand‑strong force, a full two hundred are Great Luo Golden Immortals capable of moving mountains and filling seas, while the rest are all Golden Immortal peaks of half‑step Great Luo.

Compared with regular armies, the Imperial Guard is a lower‑dimensional strike. Back then, Zhou Yi poured heavenly materials and earthly treasures into three mountains just to train this unit. Now, when this ace force thrusts onto the battlefield, both Wu and Demon races' livers tremble.

After the orders spread, the various Human Race divisions mobilized immediately.

The Wind Wave Army, Long Forest Army, and Crimson Flame Army completed their formations first, and even the cultivation maniacs of the Imperial Guard rarely emerged from their cave residences.

Now everything is ready, awaiting Zhou Yi's word; this elite force will open the eyes of all races in the Vast Wilderness World.

When the Human Race's elite had fully assembled, Zhou Yi stood at the center of the high platform, with the four Quasi Saints—Sui Huang, You Chao, Cang Wen, and Zi Yi Clan—towering beside him like four peaks.

He gazed at the sea of dark faces below, his eyes sweeping over every youthful countenance brimming with battle intent.

"At this moment, you all must have questions in your hearts," Zhou Yi's voice cut the silence like a sharp sword. "The Wu and Demon races are battling so fiercely that day and night are darkened; why should the Human Race wade into this murky water?"

From below came the faint clatter of metal, as thousands of elites unconsciously tightened their weapons.

Zhou Yi lifted his hand to run over the pattern on his bronze sword's hilt, the sword's tassel rising in the wind with a blood‑red arc.

"The Vast Wilderness World has always listened only to fists," he suddenly raised his voice, shaking distant clouds into turmoil. "Look at the Wu and Demon races—none of them rose to dominance without stepping on corpse mountains and seas of blood. If we do not fight today, tomorrow we will not even have the right to contest."

A roar like mountain and sea erupted, and the young warriors struck their chests with weapons; the muffled thunder of bronze meeting leather armor shook the ground beneath their feet.

"When the Demon Race slaughtered our kin a hundred years ago, did they ever show even a hint of mercy?" Zhou Yi suddenly drew his sword toward the heavens, its blade piercing the clouds. "Today we will make all ten thousand races of the Vast Wilderness World see clearly that a third battle banner still flies in this world."

"Kill! Kill! Kill!" The frenzy lifted the battle banner on the platform; on the rustling dark‑colored flag, the blood‑red rune pulsed like a living thing.

Zhou Yi's sword blade whirled toward the battlefield, his body erupting with force, a wave of air lifting clouds within a ten‑li radius. "After this battle, the name 'Human Race' shall shine alongside the sun and moon."

The four Quasi Saints simultaneously unleashed a pressure that shook heaven and earth, while tens of thousands of elites surged toward the battlefield like a black torrent. The front‑line warriors suddenly sang in unison, their war drums—crafted from Demon Race skulls—responding, each beat striking the very lifeline of heaven and earth.

Zhou Yi walked on air, looking at the serpentine line of torches winding beneath his feet.

He knew this venture would cost at least thirty percent of the youths, and even the four Quasi Saints might fall.

But when he saw the flickering fire in a young commander's eyes—the very child he had once rescued from a pool of blood during the Demon Race's village massacre a century ago—he realized that this blood‑fire forging was the true foundation of the Human Race.

Zhou Yi's most crucial calculation was to use this Heaven‑and‑Earth Great Calamity to completely sever the Demon Race's lifeline.

Based on the heavenly insight he possessed, although the Wu‑Demon war would end with both sides wounded, a large number of Demon Race strongmen would still lurk in the mountains and fields.

Later they would claim countless Human Race lives; this time he resolved to uproot the Demon Race's top combat power entirely, eradicating any future threat.

A deeper scheme lay hidden in Zhou Yi's heart, undisclosed even to his closest kin; the Heavenly Dao's arrangement of a Human Race resurgence was merely a puppet play.

The so‑called Mandate of Heaven set by Dao Ancestor Hong Yuan will only cause the Human Race to wane; true prosperity must be earned by the Human Race itself, and this Great Calamity is the pivotal move that can break the deadlock.

At this moment, the summit of Mount Buzhou had become a hellish battlefield, where eleven Ancestor Witches clashed with Demon Emperor Qun and Taiyi, darkening the heavens and earth. The heaven‑supporting pillar formed from Pangu's spine now served as both battlefield and meat grinder; the Wu Clan aimed to scale the ridge to assault the Heavenly Court, while the Demon Race sought to flatten the Wu Clan's old stronghold along the mountain. After only a few weeks of slaughter, the foothills were already strewn with corpses.

Zhou Yi alone threaded through the rain of blood and stench, while the Human Race's elite troops remained under Sui Huang's command, holding position.

His objective was clear—to strike straight at the core of the showdown between the Ancestor Witch and the Demon Race supreme.

When he broke through the layers of demon clouds to reach the main battlefield, he unexpectedly found that besides the two Demon Emperors, a Quasi Saint with a dragon's head and snake's body was also entangled with the Ancestor Witch.

That figure was all too familiar to Zhou Yi—it was Mi Xi, the brother of the Saintly Nüwa, who should have transcended the world.

The iron law that Saints do not touch the Great Calamity seemed especially ironic now; Mi Xi's participation added another variable to the battlefield's balance.

Zhou Yi tightened his grip on his weapon; the turning point of the Human Race's fate lay before him.

Mi Xi and the Saintly Nüwa were originally sibling of the same origin; though Mi Xi also hailed from the Demon Race, he could not escape the destiny of this Wu‑Demon war.

Although his strength lagged slightly behind Taiyi and Demon Emperor Qun, the Quasi Saint peak was still only half a step away.

Zhou Yi did not choose to clash with him; after all, he was the brother of the Saintly Nüwa, and as the Human Race's leader, it would be improper to strike, both emotionally and morally.