Southern Frontier, Myriad Demons Grotto-Heaven.
The enormous crack in the sky resembled a torn vertical pupil. Dark crimson light poured from the depths of that pupil, dyeing the entire sky over the Southern Frontier the color of congealed blood.
Space along the crack's edges twisted violently, as though invisible giant hands were tearing at the skin of heaven and earth themselves.
Chen Xuan appeared before the crack.
He stood with his hands behind his back, his robes snapping in the gale. The dark crimson light cast his face between brightness and shadow, yet his eyes remained still as water, without the slightest ripple.
Without hesitation, he took a step forward and vanished into the crack.
The instant he entered the Myriad Demons Grotto-Heaven, an intensely dense demonic aura rushed at him. It was mixed with rot, blood, and an ancient primordial force. An ordinary Grandmaster would likely have had his mind corroded by the demonic aura in a single breath.
Yet to Chen Xuan, this demonic aura could not even touch the hem of his robes. Though the Eleven-Layer Dao Domain had not fully unfolded, it had already formed an invisible barrier around his body, shutting out all filth.
Within the Myriad Demons Grotto-Heaven, dark crimson skylight shrouded the entire world.
The earth was scorched black, as though it had been repeatedly seared by blazing fire for thousands of years. There were neither stars nor sun nor moon in the sky, only that unchanging layer of red light, like a cauldron of boiling blood hanging overhead.
At this moment, dozens of Demon Race clans had gathered densely across the plain at the center of the Grotto-Heaven.
Snake Clan, Scorpion Clan, Centipede Clan, Spider Clan... Some had taken human form, while others retained their original bodies. They carpeted dozens of miles