The Decline of the Fierce Beasts!

Taishang Laozi was utterly heartbroken.

Back when the Three Pure Ones had just taken form and were traveling through the Primordial World, they had encountered that newborn Mirage Dragon.

He was a weak, half-transparent member of the Dragon Tribe, often bullied by the other dragons.

He had neither a fearsome draconic body nor formidable strength, only a feeble spirit.

Yet even so, this supposedly defective dragon still yearned for the true Great Dao.

He struggled desperately to survive, traveling through the Primordial World with great difficulty.

One day, he encountered the most powerful enemy of his life, a wandering soul. He lost himself in its dream and was about to sink into an endless slumber.

Passing by, Taishang Laozi felt a moment of compassion. He separated the wandering soul from the Mirage Dragon and saved him, then taught him about the Great Dao.

Perhaps because of his experience of losing himself within the wandering soul, the Mirage Dragon actually comprehended the Illusion Dao.

Taishang Laozi immediately recognized it as a true Great Dao.

He encouraged the little fellow to persevere along that path.

But countless years had passed, and the two had never met again.

Now they had reunited under such circumstances.

Laozi was disappointed.

A single act of compassion all those years ago had saved someone who was now a formidable enemy, one who had harmed so many powerful beings of the Primordial World. This, too, was karma, and he had to settle that karmic debt himself.

That was also why he had intervened personally.

"Illusion remains illusion in the end. Unless you move from illusion into reality, you will never reach the end of this Great Dao."

"Let dust return to dust, and earth to earth!"

Taishang Laozi waved his hand gently.

The Mirage Dragon's avatars fell one after another and vanished.

Hidden in the shadows, the Mirage Dragon stared, dumbstruck.

"Is this the power of a Quasi-Saint? It's truly terrifying."

For the first time, he felt despair. A powerhouse like this was impossible to match.

Run.

That was the Mirage Dragon's only thought now.

He had believed that, with the peculiar nature of the Illusion Dao, even if he could not defeat a Quasi-Saint, a Quasi-Saint could not kill him either.

Now it seemed that belief had been completely wrong.

Taishang's strength exceeded anything he had imagined.

Watching the Mirage Dragon flee in disarray, Taishang Laozi sighed softly.

In the end, he did not strike with the flat crutch in his hand.

He only hoped that this time, the Mirage Dragon would recognize reality and shatter his delusions.

Wang Shi watched this scene in puzzlement.

He could clearly sense that Laozi was holding back.

He looked into the distance with some confusion, watching that fleeing figure.

"All right, stop watching him. He's only a little fellow who strayed down the wrong path."

"Let's begin. Clear out these foolish Fierce Beasts."

It had to be said that, faced with a tide of Fierce Beasts as vast as an ocean, even Saints whose powers reached through heaven and earth had no desire to clear them out.

The Three Pure Ones had to conserve their strength to face Beast Emperor Shen Ni, who might appear at any moment.

But that fellow was hiding deep in the shadows now and had not shown himself at all.

As time passed, one powerhouse after another arrived at the front lines.

With the allied armies of the witches and demons, the native forces of the Primordial World grew immensely stronger, and the Fierce Beast offensive was swiftly checked.

Wang Shi also joined the battlefield in excitement.

With so many powerhouses supporting him, he began gorging himself.

The Three Pure Ones watched him in bewilderment.

"Have you noticed that Stone Spirit has been especially eager to eat these Fierce Beasts lately? Could he have fallen into the Devil Dao?"

"What do you mean, fallen into the Devil Dao? He's simply a glutton. Haven't you noticed that the Blood Fiendish Qi he spits out seems to have become exceptionally pure? There must be something in them that benefits him."

"Cunning little fellow. He never gets up early unless there's something to gain. If he's this enthusiastic, the benefits must be considerable."

It had to be said that they truly lived up to their name as the Three Pure Ones.

They knew their disciple exceedingly well.

The war continued.

But the Fierce Beasts seemed to have exhausted their potential.

They no longer possessed their former wildly ferocious fighting strength.

And as the powerhouses of the Primordial World gradually became familiar with their tactics, things changed.

The Fierce Beasts could no longer obtain more food.

Without food, they had no nourishment, and without nourishment, they had no potential to evolve.

They also lost their ability to churn out endless troops.

One day, the Fierce Beasts suffered their first rout.

The living beings of the Primordial World launched their first counterattack.

At that moment, everyone understood that victory was already within sight.

In the land of the Nine Netherworlds, within the Blood Sea.

Centuries upon centuries of warfare had accumulated vast amounts of Baleful Qi.

That Baleful Qi gathered around the Blood Sea.

The tranquil Blood Sea had always been a place rarely visited by living beings.

Today, however, it welcomed a group of uninvited guests.

"Master, is this the land of blood fiends? The place where all the filth of the Primordial World gathers, and where Ancestor Minghe cultivates?"

The Three Pure Ones nodded slightly.

"It's changed so much. It seems quite likely that Beast Emperor Shen Ni is hiding here."

"He cultivates the Way of Slaughter, and this Baleful Qi is his nourishment. If our judgment is correct, he must be hiding here."

The Fierce Beast calamity had run its course.

Since Beast Emperor Shen Ni refused to show himself, they could only come looking for him personally.

Within the Blood Sea, a figure who had lain dormant for countless years opened his eyes.

He looked upward, his expression dark.

"Damn it. They found me so quickly. If only I had a little more time, just a little more time, I could bring my cultivation to fruition."

He hated those people who had broken their word. They had once promised to help him break through to become a Saint.

But after using him, those fellows had vanished without a trace.

It had become the same situation as before: he alone stood against the entire Primordial World.

It was not fair.

How could they fail to honor their promises?

How could they go back on their word?

If he had another chance, he would never have been so rash as to unleash the Fierce Beast calamity.

He would have lain low, waiting for the day his cultivation reached its culmination, waiting until he became a Saint.

Unfortunately, there were no ifs, and no medicine in this world could cure regret.

He had been nothing more than a pawn all along.

"Your Majesty, Beast Emperor, must we act ourselves? Why not surrender? Perhaps we might spare your life."

Beast Emperor Shen Ni appeared above the Blood Sea.

"Oh? So you can destroy my Great Dao and leave me living like a walking corpse?"

The Three Pure Ones remained expressionless.

"Bring out your Immortal-Slaying Sword Formation. Bring out your God-Slaying Spear."

"You can see for yourself what comes of making a desperate last stand."

Beast Emperor Shen Ni's breath caught.

He looked at everyone without expression.

Inwardly, however, he gave a bitter smile.

The greater his former glory had been, the more desolate he was now.

What damned God-Slaying Spear did he have left? What damned Four Immortal-Slaying Swords?

Now he was nothing but a clown, a discarded pawn.

"There's nothing more to say. Come on. I won't surrender, and you won't let me go easily. Since that's the case, let's fight to the death and stake everything on a future."

His face was filled with despair, yet he would bow to no one.