Chapter 85: The Descent of the Gods Upon the Mortal World

The members of the Gods' Sect watched as Jiang Qin and Cangling suddenly appeared; the excitement and madness on their faces finally faded, replaced by terror.

"It's Jiang Qin! How did he get here so fast?"

"Run!"

"Where's the Vice Cult Master… Jiang Qin is here!"

They turned to flee, every posture utterly wretched — no different from the ordinary citizens ravaged by the Fierce Beasts.

"Boom—!"

Dark clouds gathered above the tower's peak, and a bolt of lightning struck down from a clear sky!

"Ah—!"

Accompanied by screams, those Gods' Sect members, together with the entire tower, vanished forever from this world — given no chance whatsoever to resist, erased by the most violent of means.

The dark clouds did not stop there, spreading out across the sky above the city.

The city was shrouded in shadow; an inexplicable pressure swept over it. The Fierce Beasts still rampaging through the city felt their hearts seize, instinctively looked up at the darkened sky, and let out warning roars!

Fierce Beasts' perception of danger is far sharper than that of humans.

They sensed the abnormality in the sky — it contained a power capable of killing them.

Jiang Qin held his hand horizontally; with his motion, countless bolts of lightning came crashing down from the heavens.

Each one struck a Fierce Beast with pinpoint precision, taking its life. The scales and armor they trusted so utterly were as nothing before lightning's absolute penetrating force.

Throughout the ages, lightning has always been the most domineering force between heaven and earth.

The residents of the city who had been clinging to life were thus spared, and they embraced one another, their hearts filled with the joy of having survived a calamity — and the grief of family members lost forever.

In a certain corner of the city.

Ji Xue, driven into a corner of an alley, stared with grave eyes at the Third-tier Fierce Beast before her. She was wounded all over and in poor shape; under normal circumstances, she would have fled long ago.

But at this moment…

She glanced at the two children trembling not far behind her, and in the end did not retreat.

"Roar—!"

The Fierce Beast let out a roar and lunged to kill.

But in an instant a bolt of lightning came crashing down from the sky; the lightning tore through its heart with ease, and in a flash its massive body gave off the scent of roasted meat.

"Thud—!"

The corpse hit the ground with a heavy sound.

Ji Xue instinctively looked toward a corner of the sky, where two figures stood; her gaze was complicated.

Although she had long foreseen that he would become a peerless figure capable of bearing an era upon his shoulders,

she had not expected that in such a short time he would already have grown to such a degree. Those myriad Fierce Beasts were as toys before him; his power was enough to safeguard the safety of a million humans, and with his strength alone he could turn the tide.

The lightning was still falling in a frenzy.

The Fierce Beasts that emerged from those ten Otherworld Rifts — the moment they stepped out of the Rift, it was as if they had entered hell and had their lives harvested. Their corpses piled into small mountains that blocked the Rifts, the air thick with the stench of death.

Gradually, no Fierce Beast dared to step out of the Rifts any longer.

The unending deaths of their companions filled them with fear; the other side of the Rift was not a 'paradise,' but their burial ground.

Once they stepped out, there was only a path to death!

In little more than ten minutes.

Under Jiang Qin and Cangling's clearing, the number of Fierce Beasts throughout all of Tianyun Shi visibly dwindled. The smell of blood permeated the entire land, countless fresh blood spilled, and gradually — not a single beast's roar could be heard any longer.

Yet not the slightest hint of joy or relief could be seen on Jiang Qin's face; instead, his expression grew ever more grave.

"They're coming."

Cangling looked toward a certain direction, and three figures with powerful auras abruptly appeared not far from her — she had sensed nothing before this.

Three Vice Cult Masters of the Gods' Sect appeared together: Blood Ghost, Li Xiaotian, and the hunched old man shrouded entirely in a black robe.

Each one was a standout among the Earth Martial Realm.

Jiang Qin gazed at those three figures and said, "Stirring up such a huge commotion, launching attacks all across the country to draw the headquarters' attention — and yet all three Vice Cult Masters are hiding in Tianyun Shi. I don't suppose you're here to kill me, am I right?"

All three wore mysterious black robes, with eerie blood-colored patterns surfacing on the fabric.

These patterns seemed capable of concealing their aura and existence; without relying on sight, it was utterly impossible to detect them.

Li Xiaotian gave a cold laugh and said, "You're not entirely stupid. Although your talent is heaven-defying, to our Sect you're only a potential threat at present. Our target this time isn't you — you're just an afterthought."

Only two people had come to Tianyun Shi to provide support.

Setting Jiang Qin aside, then their target could only be…

Cangling stepped forward, her face showing not the slightest emotion. "Their target is me. When the fighting starts later, stay far away — with your current strength, you're not yet qualified to take part in a battle at this level."

Before Jiang Qin could react.

Blood Ghost let out an eerie laugh. "Enforcer Cang is truly confident. But then again… you, who possess the power of the Laws of Cangling Jie, if you struck with full force, the three of us would indeed be no match. But can you guess why we chose Tianyun Shi as the site for our ambush?"

"Today, neither of you will leave alive!"

As the words fell, dense fog rose from the three of them, as if they were performing some mysterious ritual. Just as Cangling was about to strike to stop them, the three bodies shattered, turning into countless wisps of black mist that merged into the surging fog.

Jiang Qin frowned and raised his hand, sending out dozens of Slashes in every direction.

But it had no effect whatsoever — as if the Slashes had been swallowed.

"This is… some kind of Domain?"

And it wasn't simply a Domain — when the black mist touched his skin, Jiang Qin could clearly feel the Spirit Power and life force within his body being plundered, though he could still endure it for now.

But the survivors in the city were not so fortunate.

The black mist, as if alive, devoured everything it touched — including the countless Fierce Beast corpses throughout the city. The residents who had barely survived were swallowed by this black mist the instant they made contact, not even having time to scream.

In the span of a few moments, Tianyun Shi had already died completely.

Cangling seemed to perceive something, and said in a grave tone, "The Gods' Sect can rely on sacrifices to open Otherworld Rifts. They deliberately waited until we had finished hunting those Fierce Beasts — the sacrifice of several million living beings in one city plus over a hundred thousand Fierce Beasts. What they want is… to forcibly break open a 'point' in the barrier of the world."

The two worlds were not stable; there would always be weak points.

And Tianyun Shi was the weakest point where the two worlds connected.

Sacrificing three Earth Martial Realm Martial Artists and millions of living beings, this vast blood qi was enough to temporarily tear open this weak point, forming a special space, thereby allowing certain beings to descend.

No one knew how long it had been, but the fog shrouding the entire city finally dispersed.

The surrounding environment had already changed drastically.

The city had been completely dissolved by the fog, utterly vanishing into nothingness, not leaving even the slightest trace of its existence.

The originally clear, bright sky was now shrouded in darkness.

Appearing at the same time were four towering phantom figures of different forms; merely gazing upon them meant enduring endless torment, as if committing some grave sin of irreverence.

Jiang Qin could clearly sense that, unlike with Heitu Cheng, what appeared this time was not some divine consciousness or vessel.

It was the true form of a god!