The First Calamity of Dragon and Phoenix; An Ancient Sea of Blood in the Depths of the Universe

Xuanmen had been founded, and the Immortal Dao had begun to flourish.

In the half month after the first sermon at Zixiao Palace ended, the myriad worlds took on an unprecedented air of vigor and solemnity.

In the cultivation world of old, the strong slaughtered at will while the weak clung to life like ants. Cultivators fought bloody battles over meager spiritual herbs and techniques, their horizons limited to the little worlds beneath their feet.

But after Dao Ancestor Hongjun revealed the three thousand Daos and explained the five immortal realms—Human Immortal, Earth Immortal, Heavenly Immortal, Golden Immortal, and Daluo—the culture of cultivation across the entire universe underwent a sweeping change.

In the Ziwei Star Domain, the Supreme Mystery Immortal Sect abolished its old rules and made Xuanmen Virtue its foremost precept;

In the Primordial Demon Realm, Tu Shanye, the Nine-Tailed Celestial Fox Ancestor, ordered all demons to curb their savagery and forbade them from slaughtering mortal beings at will. Violators would lose the right to be taught the True Meaning of Listening to the Dao;

Even in the Heavenly Demon Great Realm, long notorious for its cruelty and bloodshed, the first Demon Emperor, the Netherworld Blood Emperor, turned to the Asura Dao and began to uphold an order of "killing to protect the Dao, with karma turning in its cycle."

As for the Canglan Realm, the myriad worlds revered it as the "holy land of Xuanmen."

On the Primeval Main Peak, Ji Changkong, who had reached the Half-Step Human Immortal realm, sat among the clouds each day and expounded the scriptures. His voice carried throughout the Canglan Nine Provinces, drawing beasts to prostrate themselves as celestial flowers rained down.

Meanwhile, the first Holy Son, Lin Qiye, cultivated in seclusion deep within Falling Geese Peak. He worked to fuse the second level of the Eight-Nine Profound Art with the true meaning he had gained from the Zixiao sermon. His battle aura grew deeper and more formidable by the day, like an ancient war god gathering strength before battle.

Yet beneath the splendor of this age, with the world rejoicing and the myriad realms making pilgrimages...

At the edge of the Primeval Holy Land, inside the quiet, peaceful Library Pavilion...

Su Chen sat behind a wooden desk, his long, well-proportioned fingers tapping lightly at the air. In his deep eyes lay the absolute calm of one who watched the rise and fall of the heavens from above.

Before him, a phantom system interface clearly displayed a "map of karma and fortune" spanning all the star domains.

"Six million three hundred thousand Karma Points... Transmission value off the charts across the board..."

Su Chen murmured softly, his warm voice carrying an inscrutable quality that seemed to stand above the Great Dao.

"Faith in the Heavenly Court, the Netherworld, and Zixiao Palace has reached its peak across the myriad worlds. But this golden age is too quiet."

Su Chen opened the window and looked at the purple-gold auspicious clouds flowing across the sky. He shook his head slightly.

"Comfort will make cultivators lose their reverence for power; peace will bring the production of Karma Points to a standstill."

"If everyone thinks following Xuanmen will grant them an easy path to immortality, who will still fight against fate? Who will feel the kind of overwhelming emotion that shakes the soul to its core?"

A truly enduring, vast, and richly layered mythic world could not consist solely of supreme sages and glorious Immortal Palaces.

It also needed the trial of blood and fire, the destruction that came with the turning of eras, and a Calamity Cycle from which no living being could escape!

"The Heavenly Court Collapse is the outcome, the Netherworld's collection of souls is the order, and the sermon at Zixiao is the source."

A glimmer of boundless chaos flashed deep in Su Chen's eyes:

"Then... it's time to reveal a glimpse of the first supreme catastrophe of that vast Primordial World era."

"System, unlock the fifth-tier exchange authority. Select the entry—[First Tribulation of the Primordial World: The Dragon-Phoenix Tribulation]!"

Humm—!

Deep within his sea of consciousness, the system's glow erupted like a raging storm!

Fifth-tier authority was a supreme domain that could only be unlocked once transmission value reached one hundred percent and assimilation with the Heavenly Dao was complete. At this level, Su Chen was no longer limited to creating illusory phenomena. He could create "real historical relics" of the ancient era directly within the physical universe!

[Evolution entry: Battle Shadows of the Three Ancient Clans · Auspicious Dragon and Phoenix, Heaven and Earth Stained with Blood (Real Relic Grade)] [Description]: Manifest an ancient battlefield deep within the Ancient Star Abyss, a dead ruin at the farthest edge of the star domains, left by the struggle among three ancient overlords—Ancestral Dragon, Yuanfeng, and Ancestral Qilin. Includes a nebula of true dragon remains, eternal divine fire of phoenix blood, and a deadly wasteland of ancient baleful energy. [Karma Points required]: 2,000,000.

[Evolution mechanism: Injection of the Heaven and Earth Tribulation concept (Rule Reconstruction Grade)] [Description]: Force the supreme concept of the Heaven and Earth Tribulation—karma accumulating, baleful energy reaching its limit, and all beneath the sages being caught in the tribulation—into the foundations of the Heavenly Dao governing the myriad worlds. Make every cultivator understand that cultivation not only defies heaven, but also requires them to survive periodic great tribulations of heaven and earth! [Karma Points required]: 2,500,000.

Those two colossal entries would consume a full four million five hundred thousand Karma Points!

Su Chen did not hesitate for an instant. His long finger came down hard:

"Deduct four million five hundred thousand Karma Points. Begin manifestation!"

"Deployment location—the far northern dead star domain at the border of the Canglan Realm and Ziwei Star Domain: [Ancient Star Abyss]!"

"Evolve—the ancient dragon-phoenix war!"

BOOM—!!

At Su Chen's command, an immense force of karma pierced the barrier of the physical universe in an instant!

Deep along the border between the Canglan Realm and the Ziwei Star Domain, the Ancient Star Abyss—once a pitch-black expanse devoid of life, filled with endless meteorites and dead stars—underwent a terrifying transformation beyond imagination!

Ancient Star Abyss.

This was the most desolate forbidden region in the star domains. Divine Astral Death Wind drifted through it year-round, destroying flesh on contact. Even mighty cultivators of the Mahayana Stage and Dao-Slaying realm rarely set foot here.

But at that very moment...

ROAR—!!

SCREECH—!!

A supreme roar and a phoenix cry, both carrying the power to destroy heaven and earth, pierced the ages and exploded without warning throughout the dead star abyss!

These were no illusory sounds. They were terrifying shock waves that struck the physical universe!

CRACK! CRACK!

Within a radius of hundreds of millions of li, hundreds of thousands of lifeless meteorites and barren planets crumbled silently into clouds of stardust the instant those two cries sounded!

Then...

Two utterly different yet equally immense radiances burst from the depths of the dark star abyss!

On the left surged towering azure divine waters and boundless purple-gold dragon aura! From a rift in the void, the enormous remains of a dragon longer than several solar systems, its entire body forged of ancient divine metal, slowly emerged!

Though the dragon had long since died and only its withered bones remained, the pressure it radiated crushed the surrounding void into vast patches of black collapse! One dragon claw still gripped half the core of a long-extinguished star!

On the right burned an endless sea of crimson divine fire that had blazed for untold tens of thousands of years!

At the heart of that sunlike divine fire, hot enough to melt all arts, the lingering image of a pair of vast wings burned furiously. Spread wide, they could have shrouded a small star domain! Each falling feather became a Phoenix-Blood Nebula stretching hundreds of millions of li across the void!

Dragon might subdued the stars!

Phoenix fire burned the heavens!

And at the very heart of the boundary between the dragon's remains and the phoenix-blood divine fire, an ancient, raging sea of blood surged and roared, filled with endless resentment and baleful energy!

Heaven and earth lost their color, and the Great Dao cried out in grief!

The baleful energy of the Heaven and Earth Tribulation, beyond anything cultivators of this age could comprehend, surged from the ancient battlefield restored to the world like a dark-red tsunami, sweeping toward dozens of surrounding great worlds!

Canglan Realm, Primeval Main Peak.

Ji Changkong, who had been expounding the scriptures to hundreds of thousands of disciples, abruptly fell silent mid-sentence.

The Primeval Holy Lord, newly advanced to the Half-Step Human Immortal realm, sprang up from his seat among the clouds. His face turned deathly pale in an instant!

And he was not alone.

On the cliffs of Falling Geese Peak, Lin Qiye, who had just broken through to the second level of the Eight-Nine Profound Art, also changed expression. The Broken Sword on his back rang out fiercely, its clamor fraught with unease!

Deep within his forehead, the Heavenly Eye Talisman Seal throbbed uncontrollably, sending out waves of searing warning that felt like needles piercing his skin!

"What terrifying killing intent..."

Lin Qiye stepped off Falling Geese Peak and stood atop the Primeval Main Peak, staring into the depths of the starry sky:

"This isn't ordinary killing intent. This is... baleful energy that makes even heaven and earth tremble! Deep in that far northern star abyss, something buried since ancient times... has awakened!"

Almost at the same time...

Ziwei Star Domain, Supreme Mystery Immortal Sect!

Supreme Mystery True Lord was leading the entire sect in reciting the True Scripture of Xuanmen, passed down by the Dao Ancestor, when a sudden surge of dread nearly made him cough up blood. He flew into the heavens in terror and stared toward the far northern Ancient Star Abyss, his Dao heart trembling violently.

In the Primordial Demon Realm, Ancestor Tu Shanye transformed into a ten-thousand-zhang celestial fox, the fur on all nine of his tails standing on end;

In the Heavenly Demon Great Realm, the Netherworld Blood Emperor burst from the sea of blood, his eyes bloodshot and filled with disbelief and fear;

Even the wandering cultivator Canghai Old Daoist, who held a Zixiao Dao-Hearing Edict, and the talentless young Ye Chen felt that suffocating "baleful energy of a Heaven and Earth Great Calamity" from wherever they stood!

"Something's happened!"

Supreme Mystery True Lord's frightened voice rang in the ears of the Dao Listeners through their Divine Sense Jade Slips:

"Deep within the Ancient Star Abyss... a raging baleful energy beyond the Heavenly Immortal level has erupted! The Laws of the entire star domain are collapsing!"

"Nine-Tailed Fox Ancestor! Netherworld Blood Emperor! Holy Son Qiye! Holy Lord Ji!"

"This disturbance may threaten the safety of the heavens! We received the Dao Ancestor's teachings. We must investigate at once!"

"Let's go!"

Lin Qiye did not hesitate. With the Broken Sword on his back, he took one step beyond the barrier of the Canglan Realm!

Ji Changkong, Supreme Mystery True Lord, Tu Shanye, the Netherworld Blood Emperor, Canghai Old Daoist...

The six mightiest listeners of the heavens who had just returned from Zixiao Palace, along with young Ye Chen, whom Canghai Old Daoist brought along, tore through the void. They became seven streaks of light crossing the stars and raced toward the Ancient Star Abyss, where baleful energy was erupting into the heavens, their hearts heavy and their guard raised!

A brutal ancient epic of the "First Tribulation of the Primordial World" was about to unfold before the eyes of the mightiest beings in the heavens!