Chapter 928: The Decline of the Eastern Domain

Time flew by.

Another two centuries passed in haste.

In the abyss, countless figures continued their silent cultivation; occasionally, someone would rise swiftly from the Emperor’s Dao Hall and head toward the Tower of All Heavens.

At the tower’s peak, two figures shrouded in mist stood motionless, their eyes—imbued with imperial authority—gazing down at the abyss below; two hundred years passed in their sight as swiftly as a blink.

Yet compared to the tranquil abyss, the Eastern Domain had undergone a radical transformation over these two centuries.

The battlefield of the Eastern Domain had become visible to all factions—including the Northern, Southern, and Western Domains, numerous great clans, and top-tier powers—all watching this war. Many major forces had sent reinforcements, but since these were not their own territories, their aid was limited; not every faction could afford to send their ancestral patriarchs, as the Su family of the Northern Domain had.

On the Eastern Domain battlefield, those who ultimately decided victory or defeat were at least quasi-Emperor-level cultivators.

“It seems this calamity cannot be avoided…”

The Immortal Emperor’s eyes were filled with weariness and sorrow; his avatar observed the Eastern Domain from beyond, witnessing every change there.

Now, even the Eastern Domain’s final defensive line had been shattered by the demonic tide.

Long Zu, the Tai Chu Clan, and the Immortal Emperors Dao Yuan and Su Jiuzhe who had come to reinforce were all locked in battle against the Ancient Demon Sovereign in another realm, their whereabouts unknown, the outcome uncertain—they were clearly entangled and unable to break free.

On the battlefield, the quasi-Emperors’ fierce struggles could not withstand the Ancient Demons; the defensive line had fallen, and now the flames of war had spread across the entire Eastern Domain.

Though many great clans had sent reinforcements, two Demon Sovereigns still remained idle behind the demonic tide—clearly, even if they arrived, they could not reverse the tide of defeat.

After all, beyond the five clans, other Ancient Demon clans were also watching this war.

When the Eastern Domain’s defenses fell, it meant the flames would engulf the entire Eastern Domain—and sweep across the entire True Realm.

“These were all anticipated. Yet compared to ten thousand years ago, we are far better prepared this time!”

The Star Empress spoke slowly: “Moreover, though the various clans still harbor grudges after ten thousand years, they are no longer fighting as isolated factions as they did then. The losses of that war were too great, too devastating—each clan now realizes that, compared to past hatreds, the true horror is the entire True Realm becoming food for the Ancient Demons.”

Ten thousand years ago, when the Ancient Demon calamity descended, the vast majority of great clans fought alone.

Before the Ancient Demons arrived, the True Realm had been at its peak of prosperity; clans had clashed frequently, their hatreds intertwined. When the Ancient Demons invaded, some clans even cheered—until the flames reached their own lands, and only then did they realize the terror of the Ancient Demons.

Especially after all the other domains were conquered, many clans finally understood the Ancient Demons’ intent—but their hasty, disorganized counterattacks were like eggs striking stones against the unified Ancient Demons. In the end, only a few Emperors sacrificed themselves to carve out paths for others, granting the remaining clans the chance to unite and breathe, allowing them to repel the Ancient Demons.

Now, ten thousand years later, though many great clans still harbor feuds and ancestral hatreds, they have long formed treaties and a shared awareness: they will stand united against the Ancient Demons.

“The fall of the Eastern Domain is already inevitable.”

The Immortal Emperor sighed.

Even with further reinforcements, the Eastern Domain would become a battlefield, consumed by fire.

“Long Zu must have foreseen this. His decision to fight to the death was to buy time for the other clans—and for these young ones—to delay this war with the entire Eastern Domain.”

The Star Empress said.

As fellow Sovereigns, they could perceive the intentions behind each other’s actions.

They saw deeper, farther. Though they did not pry into false fate, they could deduce many truths, turning them into inevitable facts.

“Will your Star Tower finally emerge this time?”

The Immortal Emperor asked.

The Star Empress nodded slightly. “We have already collaborated with the Tian Shu Pavilion to construct great arrays across all domains. Once these young ones elect the True King, the myriad clans’ armies will rely on these arrays to be transported across domains—otherwise, crossing vast domains would require Emperor-level escorts, wasting their time.”

“You’ve already begun laying out the True Realm’s defenses? This time, those fellows from the Primordial True Realm should also arrive.”

The Immortal Emperor murmured.

“Those fellows are anxiously inquiring about their lineage’s successors.”

The Star Empress closed her eyes slightly; the star mark on her forehead glowed with a crystalline radiance, exuding an air of mystery.

“It’s natural—it concerns dominance in the next era.”

The Immortal Emperor said.

“The Imperial Clans’ glory will endure; the fate of other great clans is uncertain. That young one… still testing after two hundred years? Of course—he’s at the final step. Whether he can forge it depends on this one move. I hope he has the potential to ascend to Emperor.”

The Star Empress’s gaze swept downward, finally settling on the Tower of All Heavens below.

On the 60th floor of the Tower of All Heavens.

Li Hao’s figure repeatedly entered and exited the Tower of All Heavens.

From the initial three incense sticks, to five, to three hours, nine hours… his time inside the Tower grew longer and longer.

Now, he entered and exited roughly every seven days.

“Too short. This path is wrong. Must I dismantle everything and start over again?”

Inside the Tower, Li Hao clutched his head, feeling mentally exhausted.

The seventh world-heart was too difficult to align.

The six world-hearts he had previously maintained had completely collapsed upon the seventh’s emergence. He had tried over ten methods; at least ten failed outright. Of the five remaining, each reached a certain stage before proving wrong—forcing him to dismantle and restart.

The path he had now studied had taken thirty years to construct in his mind—but the result was disappointing.

The speed of world-heart fusion had slowed—but only slowed, not paused, let alone become permanently aligned.

“Kite, layered, stable seven-pointed star… none work.”

Li Hao deeply understood what “exhausting every thought” meant—he had exhausted all possible ideas and found no correct answer. He had entertained the thought of giving up hundreds of times. Even failure would still grant him a Sovereign Realm—he wouldn’t lose much.

But… he could not accept it.

He knew that if he surrendered now, when the calamity came, would his Sovereign Realm truly protect Old Feng and the others?

To give up was not only to abandon the pursuit of the Emperor Dao—it was to abandon Old Feng and the rest.

“Two hundred years have passed. I must complete this before the war begins…”

Li Hao frowned tightly. After all, comprehending the Emperor Dao meant a single enlightenment could take a thousand years. Now he feared that when the calamity arrived, he would still be trapped on this path, unable to forge his realm—and be locked inside the Tower of All Heavens.

“Coexistence… coexistence…”

Li Hao sank once more into thought.

…

Eastern Domain.

Flames swept everywhere; the main demonic tide crossed the third defensive line and surged toward the ancestral seats of the Eastern Domain’s clans.

Some weaker races had already been wiped out by the Ancient Demons, their lives slaughtered; had their people not scattered, they would have been exterminated entirely.

“Ahead lies the Ancestral Dragon Court…”

The demonic tide surged forward, reaching the heart of the Eastern Domain—the region’s center and most magnificent, opulent place. A towering Dragon Court stood, golden and radiant, its noble aura dyeing the surrounding heavens a brilliant gold.

Massive ancestral dragon sculptures stood outside the Ancestral Dragon Court—each was clearly an array node, interconnected into a supreme Emperor-level array.

“So this is the Eastern Domain’s final defense.”

Behind the demonic tide, the Yen Demon Sovereign gazed at the Ancestral Dragon Court. He quickly recognized the mountain-like dragon sculptures as far from ordinary—they brimmed with potent fortune and spiritual soul power, like nails driven deep into the earth, gathering the celestial veins across ten thousand miles and weaving the myriad laws of heaven and earth into a terrifying array.

Merely this array rivaled a single Emperor—impossible to break without Emperor-level power.

Even he would need considerable time to shatter it.

But they had finally reached the heart of the Eastern Domain.

Capturing the Ancestral Dragon Court meant total control of the Eastern Domain. If this battle succeeded, the other watching clans would honor their agreements and unite—the same tide would once again sweep the entire True Realm. This time, they were better prepared; what they had shown so far was far from their true strength.

“I’ll break the array.”

The Poison Corrosion Clan’s Demon Sovereign said calmly.

A terrifying imperial aura radiated from him as he advanced toward the Ancestral Dragon Court.

Facing the mountain-like sculptures outside the Court and the countless Imperial Kings within, tense and watchful, this Sovereign’s expression remained utterly calm—as if walking alone into ten thousand armies—yet his aura made it seem as if he alone surrounded them all.

…

Western Domain, Sacred Clan.

In the Western Domain, countless Immortal Dynasties stood side by side. Unlike the Southern Domain, ruled by the Heavenly Palace Supreme, the Eastern Domain, centered on the Ancestral Dragon Court, or the Northern Domain, governed by great clans from the Emperor Star, the Western Domain was a chaotic patchwork of competing dynasties, dragons and snakes coexisting. Constant warfare among them forged the Western Domain’s fierce tribal character.