Chapter 694: The Great Upheaval in Great Xia

The sudden beheading of the gold-and-silver double-pupil man was deeply satisfying to everyone present, after all, this incident was triggered by that beast stirring things up outside, which in turn set off the eruption deep within the Dark Cave. In a sense, this fellow was the true culprit.

However, the crowd's elation did not last long, because although the gold-and-silver double-pupil man had been cleaved in two, his two halves rapidly melted away, as if turning into a writhing mass of flesh and mud.

"Heh, Dean Pang really holds a grudge. At the very last moment, he still had to land one vicious strike on me."

From within the writhing flesh and mud came the gold-and-silver double-pupil man's laughter, though the viciousness and weakness contained within that laughter still revealed that Dean Pang's blade-light had inflicted extremely severe wounds upon him.

"Kill him! He's gravely wounded now!"

Vice Dean Suxin's voice, brimming with killing intent, rang out, and several Marquis-tier experts immediately erupted with tremendous phase force, locking onto that mass of flesh and mud, intending to strike while he was down.

"Boom!"

However, just as the Marquis-tier experts launched their joint attack, two corrupted Purple-Glow Mentors suddenly came streaking in, and then, right under the shocked and furious gazes of Vice Dean Suxin and the others, they detonated themselves with a thunderous blast.

An extraordinarily terrifying flood of energy poured forth, its violent posture seemingly intent on destroying the entire academy.

Fortunately, the Marquis-tier experts had all been prepared and immediately struck out, forcibly withstanding the blast's shockwave, which prevented this explosion from destroying the academy.

"Vile fiend!"

Vice Dean Suxin was so angry her eyes turned red. Those two Purple-Glow Mentors were veterans of extremely long standing within the academy, and to have them detonated right before her eyes — how could one not feel grief and fury?

However, when the energy aftershocks dissipated and they once again locked onto the gold-and-silver double-pupil man, they saw that the flesh and mud had already spread out, simultaneously covering the Shen Shen Jinxiao behind him. Within the flesh and mud, a pair of gold-and-silver double-pupils gazed at Vice Dean Suxin and the others with a smile.

"Ladies and gentlemen, today's grand performance is coming to a close. Allow me to sorrowfully announce to you all that from this day forth, the Sacred Profound Star Academy shall be struck from the rolls of Great Xia."

"Oh, right, and as another pleasant bit of news, with the Dark Cave opened, the Malignant Qi will pour forth in an endless stream. From now on, this land shall be the domain of the Other-kind."

"The age of chaos begins here."

As the gold-and-silver double-pupil man's final words fell, the flesh and mud enveloping Shen Shen Jinxiao instantly burrowed into the ground and vanished into thin air.

"Damn it!" Watching helplessly as the two fled right before their eyes, the academy's many Purple-Glow Mentors were so furious their faces turned ashen.

Vice Dean Suxin gritted her teeth and said, "First, restrain those other corrupted Mentors!"

Right now there was a pile of mess here, and they truly had no spare strength to deal with that gold-and-silver double-pupil man. Moreover, it was thanks to the Dean gravely wounding him at the last moment; otherwise, an Upper Marquis causing havoc at this juncture would have made the situation even harder to clean up.

And at this moment, the black token in Li Luo's hand slowly flew out, hovering above his head, and then Dean Pang's voice emanated from within it.

"Everyone, it is I, Pang Pang Qianyuan, who am incompetent, leading to today's calamity. But things have come to this; further words are useless. Regarding the eruption of the Dark Cave, I currently lack the strength to suppress it. I can only exert some influence, placing certain limits on the speed and scope of its eruption."

"But the Malignant Qi will eventually spread. Within ten thousand li of the Sacred Profound Star Academy, this land will no longer be fit for survival."

Hearing these words, Vice Dean Suxin and the leaders of the various factions all couldn't help but change expression. If that's the case, the academy is completely unsalvageable, and a ten-thousand-li range... doesn't that mean even Great Xia City will be affected? That's the very center of all of Great Xia — how many millions of people live in this region?

"Suxin, the academy's Phase Force Tree has been destroyed. According to the rules, from now on the Sacred Profound Star Academy will be stripped of its Sacred-tier title... that's a minor matter now, after all, survival is most important. Afterwards, you will need to lead the academy's people to seek another location and rebuild the academy. As long as the academy's foundation remains, there will come a day when it can return to the Sacred tier."

"The future Great Xia may still require all of you to cooperate sincerely with one another, only then can we avoid the fate of national ruin."

Everyone present listened in silence to Dean Pang's final parting words. Even the many Marquis-tier experts wore expressions of extraordinary gravity at this moment, for they all understood that from this day forth, the once peaceful and tranquil Great Xia no longer existed.

The Other-kind shall run rampant across this land. One misstep, and Great Xia will become like the Black Wind Empire — a realm of the Other-kind. And the citizens of Great Xia, no one knows how many shall perish, perhaps even leaving no bones behind.

If the Great Xia of before today was peaceful and warm, then from now on, Great Xia shall greet a merciless winter.

The great upheaval has arrived.

Li Luo and Jiang Jiang Qinge exchanged a glance, and both saw the heaviness in each other's eyes. Although those two Other-kind Kings and the Malignant Black River had been sealed by Dean Pang, the Dark Cave had already been opened, and with the loss of that Advanced Phase Force Tree's suppression, Great Xia no longer had the ability to keep the Dark Cave in check.

Then at the very least, going forward, the ten-thousand-li region centered on the Sacred Profound Star Academy will all be affected.

"Trouble is coming," Li Luo sighed.

Their House Luolan House headquarters was located in Great Xia City. If Great Xia City was also affected by the Malignant Qi, then they too would need to think about a fallback.

This was the tide of the times; no faction could stop it. Even Marquis-tier experts could only choose to retreat.

Unless another King-tier expert appeared, there might be a chance to suppress the Dark Cave.

"Is the Academy Alliance really going to sit by and watch a Sacred Academy be destroyed? And what's this about the Advanced Phase Force Tree being destroyed leading to the Sacred Academy being downgraded?" Li Luo looked toward Mentor Xizhan and asked.

"The Academy Alliance's focus is on the Inner Shenzhou; the Outer Shenzhou is too far away, and they cannot reach it. As for the downgrade rules, it's purely because cultivating an Advanced Phase Force Tree is extremely difficult — the resources required are beyond your imagination. So the Academy Alliance must set strict regulations to prevent some Sacred Academies from failing to protect them properly." Mentor Xizhan's beautiful face was somewhat downcast, but she still explained it to Li Luo.

"Can we seek aid from the other Sacred Academies in the Eastern Region's Shenzhou?" Li Luo asked, unwilling to give up.

"Do you think the Black Wind Empire's Sacred Academy didn't seek help back then? The various nations of the Eastern Region's Shenzhou each have their own calculations; it's hard to unite them. And the other Sacred Academies also have their own suppression duties — how would they dare lightly send out their own experts? Furthermore, if the news that the Fish-Chi King and the Corpse-Wang King appeared together spreads out, the other Sacred Academies will be even less willing to come." Mentor Xizhan sighed.

Li Luo fell silent, his heart growing ever heavier.

He reached out his hand, and the black token fell into his palm; he stored it into his spatial sphere.

Then he raised his head, looking around at this ancient academy where he had cultivated for a year.

At this moment, the academy was a scene of utter devastation. The towering Phase Force Tree was still burning fiercely, with massive branches constantly falling, smashing some houses and buildings, but no one was trying to stop it anymore, because everyone knew this academy was about to be abandoned.

At the outer perimeter of the academy, countless students could be seen standing in panic and sorrow. Dean Pang's words earlier had clearly reached their ears as well.

Some wept aloud. They had all regarded the Sacred Profound Star Academy as their pride, and took pride in being able to enter the academy to cultivate. But today, all that pride had shattered.

Every face was written with grief and bewilderment. What the academy's future held, no one knew.

Li Luo saw some familiar faces in one area, and his figure immediately leapt over.

"Captain!" Bai Bai Mengmeng saw him arrive and waved at him, but the sweet smile that always hung on her usually pure and pretty face could not be forced out no matter what.

Li Luo looked at Bai Bai Mengmeng, Bai Bai Doudou, Yu Lang, Zhao Kuo, and the others, and asked, "Are you all alright?"

Everyone shook their heads, but their spirits were all extremely low. Even the usually carefree Yu Lang was silent at this moment.

"Captain, is the Sacred Profound Star Academy destroyed?" Bai Bai Mengmeng asked in a low voice.

Li Luo forced a faint smile and said, "Don't be too pessimistic. Although the Phase Force Tree was destroyed, the academy itself didn't suffer a fatal blow. Vice Dean Suxin and the others will rebuild the academy. It's just that, for a period of time, we'll lose that so-called Sacred-tier status."

"The academy is in chaos right now. Since you have nowhere to go for the moment, go stay at House Luolan House for a few days. I think in the coming period, all of Great Xia will fall into chaos."

Bai Bai Mengmeng exchanged a glance with the others, and finally nodded lightly.

Li Luo sighed inwardly. Today's upheaval exceeded everyone's expectations. Who could have imagined that the Sacred Profound Star Academy, Great Xia's most powerful foundation, would suffer such a cataclysmic change? And this matter would set the whole body in motion, so in the coming days, the changes within Great Xia would surely be even more intense and extreme.

Their House Luolan House also needed to find a way to secure a fallback in this situation.