Spark to Prairie Fire Checks the Demon Tide; the Mysterious Yellow Tower Reveals the Dao Ancestor's Presence

The Realm Demon God's fury crashed down on Tongtian, who stood alone to meet it, like a tsunami of billions of tons of Chaos Sea!

Countless twisting, writhing black tentacles covered in grotesque eyeballs unleashed Destruction Beams that corroded every law. Wherever they passed, space collapsed in swathes, and even the chaotic currents of the Guixu were forcibly pushed aside, forming an absolute realm of death! The Saint-level pressure was released without restraint, making the surviving Heavenly Court battle formations in the distance sway. Countless Heavenly Soldiers and Generals turned deathly pale, their Nascent Souls on the verge of shattering!

Facing this world-destroying attack, Tongtian seemed like a candle that could be snuffed out at any moment in a storm!

Yet there was no fear in his eyes. Instead, they burned with fierce fighting spirit and cold reason! The Chaos Dao Fruit revolved frantically at an unprecedented speed. The Chaos Bead above his head hummed, sending down countless streams of dark-gray qi. No longer purely defensive, they transformed into countless tiny, spinning Chaos Vortices that spread around him!

"Chaos Returns to Origin—devour and absorb all laws!" He formed a hand seal and thrust both hands forward! The countless tiny Chaos Vortices instantly converged into an enormous, bottomless dark entrance, as if it connected to the beginning of the primordial chaos, before the Chaos was formed! This was the defensive counterattack technique he had newly comprehended by combining the properties of the Chaos Bead, the power of netherworld devouring, and a trace of the Law of Destruction from another world—Chaos Return to Origin Aperture!

Rumble—!!! The Demon God's terrifying attack slammed into the Chaos Return to Origin Aperture! There was no earth-shattering explosion, only a teeth-grating, bizarre sound, as if billions of worlds were being ground down and devoured at once! The violent demonic energy, powerful enough to destroy stars and grievously wound a Saint, vanished into the aperture like a mud ox sinking into the sea. Countless spinning Chaos Vortices frantically broke it down, tore it apart, and devoured it!

Tongtian's body shook violently. His face turned as pale as paper, and golden blood spilled continuously from the corners of his mouth. The cracks that had just healed across his Saint Body split open once more! Saint-level power far exceeded all expectations. Even with the wonders of the Chaos Return to Origin Aperture, he couldn't fully neutralize it; he could only endure the backlash by relying on his formidable cultivation and physical body!

But he didn't take a single step back!

The Return to Origin Aperture was like the toughest of dams, holding back the fiercest first wave of the demonic tide! It teetered on the brink of collapse, but in the end, it held!

This sight shook the entire battlefield once again!

"He blocked it?! He actually blocked the Demon God's furious strike?!" Li Jing, the Pagoda-Bearing Heavenly King, cried out in disbelief, nearly dropping the pagoda in his hand.

"What kind of technique is that? It can actually devour demonic energy?!" Nezha, the Third Prince, paused with his Fire-Tipped Spear, astonishment filling his eyes.

The surviving Heavenly Soldiers and Generals stared in stunned silence. A faint glimmer of hope suddenly appeared in their despairing hearts!

"Sect Master Tongtian... is protecting us from the Demon God?!" one of the soldiers murmured, his feelings complicated. Most of them had been affected by the War of Investiture of the Gods and harbored hostility toward Tongtian. Now, however, they had been saved by the enemy commander.

The Realm Demon God seemed to pause in surprise. Its simple Will of Destruction couldn't understand how a "tiny" ant could withstand its power. Then came an even more violent fury!

More tentacles lashed toward Tongtian, and countless Destruction Beams focused on him and blasted away! It was determined to grind this troublesome ant—and that strange vortex—into dust!

The pressure on Tongtian surged. The Chaos Return to Origin Aperture shook violently, its light flickering on and off. It looked ready to give way at any moment!

A fierce glint flashed in his eyes. He knew he couldn't keep defending passively!

"Kui Niu! Wudang! Help me!" he cried, his voice shaking the universe!

Kui Niu and Saint Mother Wudang, who had been waiting anxiously in the distance, heard him and immediately transformed into two streaks of light and rushed into the battlefield!

Kui Niu revealed his enormous true form and roared at the sky. His surging Innate Water Spirit Power, mixed with the baleful energy of the Ancient Battlefield, formed a thick barrier to protect Tongtian's left flank! Saint Mother Wudang offered up a Chaos Sword Qi talisman that Tongtian had given her and activated it with a fierce burst. Thousands of gray sword qi shot toward the tentacles on the right like a torrential downpour. Though they couldn't grievously wound them, they successfully disrupted their attack!

Gaining a brief moment to catch his breath, Tongtian drew a deep breath. The newly formed Chaos Netherworld Magic Power within him, fused from multiple forces, burned without reserve!

"Primordial Unity Strike—World Creation!" Using himself as the catalyst, he combined part of the Demon God's power devoured by the Chaos Return to Origin Aperture with all his own magic power, then added that precious trace of Chaos Green Lotus Origin Spiritual Mechanism. He compressed it all into his fist before punching toward the enormous rift where the Demon God's main body lay!

There was nothing fancy about this punch, only the most extreme power and the concentrated essence of the Dao!

The light of his fist left his hand no larger than a fist, its color dark gray. In an instant, however, it expanded into a dazzling beam that tore through the gloomy battlefield! Within the beam, terrifying visions flowed: Chaos Opening and the birth of galaxies, the sinking of the Nine Hells and the annihilation of all things! Its power had already surpassed the Quasi-Saint level and was infinitely close to a Saint's Strike!

The Realm Demon God seemed to sense the threat and let out a shrill cry. Countless tentacles pulled back to defend, lashing violently toward the beam!

Crash—!!! A terrifying explosion erupted at the entrance to the Guixu! Light swallowed everything! An energy storm rampaged like billions of raging dragons! Some demons and Heavenly Soldiers caught too close instantly vaporized and disappeared! Even the distant Heavenly Court battle formations, the Chan School, and the Western Teachings were bowled over by the shockwave!

At the center of the explosion, Tongtian's figure flew backward like a kite with its string cut. He was drenched in blood, his aura weakened to the extreme. The Chaos Bead wailed as it retreated into his body, clearly gravely damaged. Kui Niu and Wudang were also blasted away, both seriously injured.

Yet the Realm Demon God was in no better shape! With a roar of agony and fury, its enormous shadow writhed violently. Several of its largest, thickest tentacles had been blown off and annihilated by Tongtian's desperate strike! Black demonic blood gushed from the rift like a waterfall, corroding the void! Its attempt to force its way through the domain had clearly stalled, and it even seemed to be on the verge of being driven back into the Chaos!

Tongtian had grievously wounded a Saint-level Realm Demon God with a desperate strike, despite having only a Quasi-Saint's body! Though he himself was on the brink of death, he had won the Primordial World a precious chance to catch its breath! At that moment, the entire battlefield fell silent!

All the survivors, whether from the Heavenly Court, the Chan School, the Western Teachings, or among the remaining demons, stared in disbelief at the blood-soaked figure flying backward and the apocalyptic demonic tide that had been temporarily stopped!

An indescribable mixture of shock and conflicting emotions spread through the hearts of all Primordial Beings. Yet the crisis was far from over! Though wounded, the Demon God hadn't retreated. Instead, its agony drove it into an even greater frenzy! Its remaining tentacles thrashed more violently, and even stronger demons poured out of the rift! Tongtian, meanwhile, had lost all ability to fight!

At that critical moment, clang!!! A grand, mighty bell rang out, as if it had sounded at the Beginning of World Creation, and shook the Primordial World! Immediately afterward, the phantom of an enormous pagoda, wrapped in Mysterious Yellow Qi and boasting thirty-three tiers, appeared out of thin air above the battlefield, radiating supreme power that rendered all laws ineffective and suppressed the primordial chaos!

The Heaven and Earth Mysterious Yellow Exquisite Pagoda! Grand Supreme Elder Laozi's acquired merit-treasure!

The pagoda turned slightly, sending down billions of streams of Mysterious Yellow Qi. Like the sturdiest dam, they instantly sealed the entrance to the Guixu for the time being! The raging tentacles and demons struck the Mysterious Yellow Qi and were sent reeling, purified!

Though the pagoda couldn't completely drive back the Demon God, it successfully held it outside the Primordial World for the time being! At the same time, a gentle yet irresistible force enveloped the gravely wounded Tongtian, Kui Niu, and Wudang, instantly taking them away from the center of the battlefield and moving them to safety.

Laozi had finally made his move! He hadn't directly attacked the Demon God. Instead, he had chosen to seal the entrance and save Tongtian.

Laozi's calm, distant voice rang out through the void once more. This time, it reached every Great Power's ears:

"The demonic calamity has begun; it will not be settled in a day. This creature is a vanguard from another world. A ruler must stand behind it. All the beings of the Primordial World must unite to resist this outside threat. Set aside your internal conflicts for now."

At these words, the people of the Heavenly Court, the Chan School, and the Western Teachings all wore different expressions, but no one dared to object. Laozi's words represented the will of Heaven and made clear where the true danger lay.

Immediately afterward, a dazzling avenue of starlight stretched from the Thirty-Three Heavens. Haotian Shangdi's figure finally appeared at its far end, and his dignified voice rang out: "I shall obey the Dao Ancestor's decree! All members of the Heavenly Court, from this moment on, are to guard the Guixu with all their strength and repair the barrier. Do not fail!"

Though he had arrived late, he quickly took charge of the situation and began organizing the troops, building a defensive line around the seal of the Mysterious Yellow Tower.

Guangchengzi and the other disciples of the Chan School looked displeased, but could only snort coldly and lead their followers back, effectively acknowledging Haotian's command.

The people of the Western Teachings chanted the Buddha's name, expressing their obedience, though no one knew what they were plotting in secret.

The sudden world-ending crisis seemed to have been contained for the time being. As Tongtian recovered rapidly within the Mysterious Yellow Qi, Laozi's voice once again sounded in his mind, privately this time. It consisted of just four words:

"Spark to Prairie Fire."

Tongtian slowly opened his eyes. He felt his wounds healing rapidly under the nourishment of the Mysterious Yellow Qi, then looked at the rift in the Guixu that had been temporarily sealed and the subtle attitudes of the various factions. A flicker of understanding passed through his eyes.

Laozi hadn't saved him out of simple kindness. He wanted to keep this "spark," one capable of setting the plains ablaze, so it could stir up the stagnant waters of the Primordial World and force the various factions to make a choice in the face of the demonic calamity—even to serve as the vanguard against that ruler from another world! And Tongtian needed this great calamity to grow stronger and gain a chance to strike back! It was a calculated ploy, and he was willing to play his part.

He struggled to his feet. Though still weak, he held his back straight. He looked at the busy Heavenly Court army, then at the Chan School and Western Teachings, whose members wore varied expressions. At last, he looked through the seal of the Mysterious Yellow Tower toward the endless, hostile Chaos beyond the rift.

The Calamity Wave had already risen to the heavens. And this spark of his would eventually ignite a flame that consumed the sky! He turned with Kui Niu and Wudang and took one step into the void, disappearing from sight. No one stopped him. The various factions tacitly let him leave.

The balance of power in the Primordial World had already begun to change, because of what he had done today and because of this sudden demonic calamity.