Chapter 493: Traitor!

Jiang Dao You, shouldn't you be stationed in the Deep of No Return Road right now? Why did you rush here suddenly?

The Great Thousand Divine Universe Lord felt a sudden jolt, hurriedly asked, and a stronger sense of unease surged in his mind.

Jiang Tianyan has long guarded a crucial position on the No Return Road; without a world‑shaking incident, he would never leave easily.

Tai Chu looked at Jiang Tianyan's unsightly complexion and chaotic aura, already forming the worst guess in his heart; with a grave expression he said slowly, "Jiang Dao You coming now… I'm afraid the situation on the No Return Road… has already turned bad, hasn't it?"

Jiang Tianyan halted before the four, not even having time for greetings; his gaze swept over the anomalies of Zang Dao Gu Yu, then turned to the four Lords of the Red Dust, his face showing a complex mix of grief, heaviness, and deep helplessness.

He opened his mouth, his voice hoarse as sandpaper rubbing:

All Dao friends… deep of the No Return Road… something huge has happened!

He inhaled deeply, as if to suppress a sour‑sweetness in his throat, and continued in an exceedingly heavy tone:

Our side… has suffered heavy losses! The Inauspicious Clan's plot… has succeeded!

He pointed at Zang Dao Gu Yu and the few distant nodes still emitting Inauspicious fluctuations:

The bizarre upheaval here… including the anomalies of these nodes… is not an isolated incident at all! They are merely one part of the truly terrifying plot on the No Return Road, that earth‑shaking grand scheme… among many crucial links!

Countless nodes scattered across Zhutian Wanjie, throughout time and space, bright or dark, were triggered by preset means at the same moment, resonating… all forces were gathered and guided… ultimately jointly creating that… that terrifying anomaly pointing to the Deep of No Return Road, intending to usher in or awaken something!

What?!

Countless nodes? Jointly created?!

Even though they had long been mentally prepared, upon hearing Jiang Tianyan's own confirmation and the scale far exceeding their imagination, the Lord of the Red Dust, the Divine Demon Immortal, and the Great Thousand Divine Universe Lord could not help but show shocked expressions!

This is no longer a simple tactical deception, but a strategic‑level plot that has been brewing for unknown years, its layout covering Zhutian Wanjie!

"Why is it like this?!" the Divine Demon Immortal asked urgently, eyes full of confusion and anger, "Such a large‑scale, multi‑node coordinated layout cannot be without a trace! Did our stationed Dao friends have no early detection at all? Where are those beings responsible for monitoring and warning?"

Jiang Tianyan slowly shook his head, his sorrowful anger deepening; in his eyes that perceive heavenly mechanisms, a bone‑deep, star‑freezing murderous resolve erupted, and he spoke word by word as if squeezed from his teeth:

"It's not… that we didn't notice." In fact, recent abnormal reports have been numerous, and we have already heightened vigilance and intensified patrols.

"But… at the most critical moment… at several vital, unforgivable core defense links and nodes…"

Jiang Tianyan's voice became exceedingly cold, bearing deep sorrow and humiliation:

"Our side… has a… traitor!"

"Traitor?!"

Those two words struck the hearts of the four supreme beings like Nine Heavens divine thunder mixed with millennia‑old ice, hammering them hard!

Their expressions instantly darkened like an eternal cold night, and a palpable terrifying killing intent spread uncontrollably around them, causing the surrounding temporal‑spatial river waters to freeze and shatter instantly!

A traitor! And on the No Return Road, this ultimate battlefield concerning the survival of Zhutian, a traitor appeared at a critical position!

The damage it caused is far more lethal and hateful than any frontal strong enemy! This betrayal stains the blood of comrades and shakes the very foundation of trust!

In the eyes of the four Lords of the Red Dust, a raging flame rose simultaneously, capable of incinerating the Star River!

Sometimes, what is more hateful and chilling than a powerful enemy is the betrayal that comes from behind!

Jiang Tianyan's words continued, each syllable bearing the weight of blood and fire:

"More than one… hidden deeply, perfectly disguised. At the crucial moment the plan is launched, they may suddenly sabotage the core nexus of the formation, or deliberately mislead defensive forces onto the wrong path, or directly open a portal to the Inauspicious realm… catching us off guard! The interior instantly fell into chaos!"

He paused, a look of incredulous shock and heaviness appearing on his face, adding the final straw that would crush a camel:

"And just as our side fell into brief turmoil at the breach caused by the traitor… the Inauspicious Clan, to ensure the plan's absolute certainty, actually… without hesitation sacrificed… a full nine Dark Ancestors!"

"Nine Dark Ancestors?! Sacrifice?!"

This time, even the usually composed Tai Chu's eyes flickered with a clear tremor!

Dark Ancestors! They are the top‑tier forces in the Inauspicious Clan, second only to the source level; each possesses at least Supreme Realm strength, unmatched in power, and are the cornerstone and symbol of Inauspicious rule!

A single sacrifice of nine!

What madness, what resolve, what cost‑unconcerned stroke of the pen!

This shows that what the Inauspicious Clan schemes is of importance and terror far beyond the ordinary!

"A single hair tugging the whole body…" Jiang Tianyan closed his eyes, his voice filled with Exhaustion and powerlessness, and deep self‑blame, "Caught between internal and external troubles, the enemy has long plotted; our side responded hastily… when we finally reacted, barely stabilizing the interior and trying to remedy, the overwhelming Primordial essence and desperate will of those sacrificed Dark Ancestors had already, through the breach opened by the traitor, completely merged with the power resonating from countless nodes… everything… is already too late to stop…"

He opened his eyes and looked toward the direction of the No Return Road, where a desperate wail and the cold touch of spreading darkness seemed to emanate.

The wind of Zang Dao Gu Yu, carrying the mist of a long river and Inauspicious embers, brushed over the five supreme beings, yet could not disperse the solid‑like heaviness and chill.