The Wuji Sacred Sect of Northwest Xuanhuang!
The night was still long, and the fire was blazing.
A vast, ancient, and breathtakingly mysterious world is gradually revealing its awe-inspiring true face through its twisted and melting boundaries, like a heavy curtain being slowly drawn back!
Beyond the hole, the sky appeared as a deep, azure blue, high and boundless, devoid of the sun and moon, yet countless star-like points of light hung eternally, casting a gentle glow.
The land stretches endlessly, with mountain ranges rising and falling like a sleeping ancient dragon.
The vast plains are home to exotic flowers and trees that seem to breathe in the glow of the sunset and whose swaying motions evoke subtle spiritual currents.
Rivers, lakes, and seas, their waters shimmering and reflecting a rainbow of colors.
Countless magnificent buildings, floating fairy islands, and palaces in the sky are scattered among the mountains, rivers, and seas of clouds.
This is the hidden [Azure Gate True Realm]!
A true sacred place for spiritual practice, the source of all teachings!
At this moment, this hidden world is revealed.
Every mortal being felt as if a huge boulder was pressing on their heart, making it difficult to breathe and causing a piercing pain to their Divine Soul.
Qi Yun narrowed his eyes, his chaotic divine light flowing, taking in a corner of this true world, and his many speculations instantly became clear.
However, before everyone could fully appreciate the awe and horror brought about by this "celestial realm" scene—
Beyond the hole.
The sky and earth of that vast true realm suddenly "boiled"!
It wasn't flames, it wasn't air currents, it was—a tide of people!
Countless figures emerged from the cave abode the continuous, crystal-clear mountain range, took flight from the floating palaces of the immortal islands, and appeared from the depths of the sea of clouds and the ends of the earth.
What began as sparse specks of light instantly transformed into a torrent that swept across the heavens and earth!
Dense and overwhelming, they obscured the clear blue sky and concealed the brilliant "starlight," even darkening the vast landscape below under their endless shadows!
Countless powerful auras mixed, rose, and converged, ultimately forming a terrifying pressure capable of turning the world upside down and causing stars to fall. Like an invisible tsunami, it pierced through the hole and fiercely slammed down on the imperial city and the Fire of All Living Beings below!
"Boom!!!"
A deafening roar, as if it were real, resounded from the void!
The golden-white Fire of All Living Beings were violently shaken by the collective pressure generated by countless cultivators, causing the flames to dim slightly!
What's even more unsettling is not the sheer power that comes with sheer numbers.
Instead, it's about "unification".
Absolute "uniformity"!
The countless torrents of cultivators surging from the True Realm moved with an eerie uniformity.
Ascending, forming ranks, advancing—like the most precise puppets, with not a single flaw.
Their faces, regardless of gender, age, or sect aura, were all frozen in indifference.
No, it's empty.
The spirituality, emotions, and personal will that should have been present in the depths of their eyes have all been extinguished.
Instead, there is a pure, cold, inhuman focus.
Deep within his pupils, a faint yet unmistakable pale luster was reflected.
That wasn't the look of a cultivator.
That was—[Heaven's Will]!
It is the Heaven's Will itself, using the eyes of countless cultivators, to look down, to lock onto, and to judge!
All the cultivators in the [Azure Gate True Realm], regardless of their cultivation level or whether they belonged to Evil Dao sects, had lost themselves at this moment.
There is only one will in their minds.
Those who defy the heavens, and all existence, traces, and causes associated with them.
Erase!
Completely, from the root—eradicate!
"Boom!"
The torrent of cultivators began to move, like a bursting dam, slowly pouring down towards the opening of the hole.
The scene was both incredibly grand and incredibly terrifying.
The sky was completely obscured, and the light was dim.
The cultivators and mortals in the imperial city below felt as if an endless continent composed of "cultivators" was slowly descending above them, carrying a cold and indifferent will to crush everything!
Qi Yun still stood at the core of the Fire of All Living Beings, his robes fluttering wildly under the ever-approaching, terrifying pressure that seemed to threaten to crush the world.
He tilted his head back, facing the cold and vast sea of monks "flowing" down from the hole.
His eyes flashed with a chaotic light, but instead of fear, they possessed an almost scorching sharpness.
"As expected—the entire True Realm is used as a pasture, and all cultivators are used as puppets."
He muttered to himself, yet his voice strangely pierced through the violent pressure and howling wind.
"That's good, saves me the trouble of going to find them one by one."
The moment he finished speaking, he suddenly formed an ancient and complex hand seal in front of his chest, and his aura resonated more deeply with the [Fire of All Living Beings] that was still burning but suppressed beneath his feet.
The moment the ancient hand seal took shape in Qi Yun's hands.
Throughout every corner of the Great Cang Imperial Dynasty's territory, countless tiny array plates—placed in ancestral halls, buried under trees, built into wall foundations, or hidden beside wells—trembled in unison!
The array patterns on the surface of the array plate, which were originally flowing steadily and used to guide and gather the [People's Qi of All Living Beings], underwent an extremely subtle yet essential deflection and twist at this moment!
It was as if the last gear in a sophisticated mechanism had been turned.
The entire operating logic of this massive machine was instantly reversed!
In the next instant, a bizarre and terrifying change appeared simultaneously on countless array plates!
Strands and strands of crimson light, thick as blood yet gleaming with a cold, metallic sheen, seeped from the deepest core of the array's patterns, rapidly staining the original array patterns.
In the blink of an eye, all the array plates turned into a chilling dark red, like millions of dried and solidified bloodstains, densely imprinted on the map of Great Cang!
"Buzz--!"
A deep and eerie resonance, regardless of distance, resounded simultaneously at all the array plates and spread throughout the entire dynasty's territory along some invisible pathway!
Immediately afterwards.
The array plate, which had turned dark red, suddenly burst forth with a strong, eerie light!
It plunged into the earth and spread upwards into the void, connecting with every living being within the Great Cang Territory, whose fate was intertwined with that of this land!
Whether they were high-ranking officials and soldiers in the imperial city, or peddlers and farmers in a remote border town, or hunters in the mountains and fishermen on the rivers—
All the people of Great Cang, regardless of their cultivation level, gender, or age, involuntarily trembled at this moment!
They couldn't see the crimson light connecting them, but they could clearly feel something intangible and fundamental being forcibly "drawn away" from the deepest part of their bodies, from the level of their origin, bit by bit!
"Well----"
Countless suppressed, bewildered groans echoed simultaneously throughout every corner of the dynasty.
What followed was a strange phenomenon visible to the naked eye.
A strange light began to slowly rise from the bodies of every citizen of Great Cang, whether their clothes covered their skin or their skin was exposed.
The light was dim in color, its texture like the finest ashes left after everything had been burned away, swaying gently, yet carrying a sense of deathly stillness and nothingness, as if all things had come to an end.
Wisps and strands drifted out from the heads, shoulders, necks, and hearts of millions of living beings.
At first sparse, it quickly grew denser, as if each person was silently burning, releasing this gray "ember light".
Countless tiny streams of gray light intertwined in the sky above the earth, forming a silent, flowing, vast, and despairing gray mist!
The imperial city, on a high platform outside the Hall of Diligent Governance.
Zhao Xuanji was also startled. He looked down and was horrified to see that his aged hand, the bright yellow dragon robe sleeves, and even his breath were emitting ashes-like light!
"This—this is?!"
He abruptly looked up, his cloudy yet still sharp eyes fixed on Qi Yun, who was at the eye of the storm not far away, his hand seals Qi Yun, his body surrounded by a chaotic interplay of light and crimson energy. The unease and unease that had long simmered within him erupted like a volcano, transforming into a furious and piercing shout, "What are you doing?! What are these gray lights—"
Qi Yun slightly turned his head, his gaze calmly sweeping over Zhao Xuanji's shocked and angry face, over the gray aura emanating from his body. His voice remained calm, yet carried a condescending indifference, clearly reaching Zhao Xuanji's ears. "Cause and effect."
He paused, as if stating a perfectly simple fact. "Or, in your world's terms, it is fate—the force that binds all beings and permeates life and death."
"What?!"
Zhao Xuanji's heart trembled violently, and a terrible thought flashed through his mind like lightning.
What use do you have for these causes and effects?!
Qi Yun's lips curled slightly, the curve cold and precise.
"To truly defeat that being that reigns supreme in the heavens and substitutes for the Heaven's Will, merely burning through a thin membrane is far from enough."
His gaze fell upon the vast, icy torrent of monks pouring down from the hole.
Then he looked down at the [Fire of All Living Beings] beneath his feet, which was gradually being tinged with an eerie, dark gray hue by countless gathering gray "embers".
His tone carried a hint of calculated composure. "Using the karmic force accumulated over countless lifetimes by your Great Cang Dynasty, inextricably intertwined with this land," he said, "We will mix it into the [Heaven-Assailing Great Flame] ignited by your Heaven's Will."
It can then be refined into a technique that specifically erodes the Divine Soul of this realm, defiles spiritual energy, disintegrates the laws of the universe, and causes all laws to wither and decay—"
He slowly uttered two words that carried immense weight. "[The Dharma Ending]."
Zhao Xuanji felt as if struck by lightning, his blood seemingly freezing instantly!
He understood, he understood everything!
Qi Yun helped him to overthrow the heavens, all for the sake of the billions of lives in the Great Cang Dynasty, for the immense national fortune and karmic force accumulated over countless generations!
He wants to sacrifice the entire dynasty!
He refined his incomparably vicious "Dharma Ending Strange Poison"!
This is how we fight against [Heaven's Will]!
What are the consequences of borrowing cause and effect?!
Zhao Xuanji's voice was hoarse, as if he were squeezing the words out from the depths of his throat. He clenched his fists tightly, his nails digging deep into his palms, drawing blood.
Qi Yun glanced at him and said indifferently, "Without cause and effect, a person is like a rootless duckweed, drifting aimlessly."
After death, the soul has nowhere to rest and cannot enter this world for reincarnation. It can only dissipate between heaven and earth, turning into the most primordial dust.
Seeing Zhao Xuanji's face turn deathly pale, he paused briefly and added, "However, considering that you helped me achieve my goal, I also have a kind heart and will leave you some leeway in terms of karma."
Approximately ten lifetimes later, the remaining seeds of cause and effect can sprout anew, continuing the cycle of reincarnation.
Memories, cultivation, and all that has happened in this life—all have vanished like smoke.
He spoke casually, as if he were talking about a trivial matter.
"It's alright."
"It's alright?!"
Zhao Xuanji's eyes were bloodshot, and his whole body trembled violently uncontrollably. An extreme sorrow over his own and his people's future fate almost overwhelmed his last shred of sanity.
He shakily raised his right arm, his fingers pointing at Qi Yun like withered twigs. His lips trembled, and from his hoarse throat, he squeezed out a few broken words. "Who—who—are you?!"
Upon hearing this, Qi Yun's cold smile slowly widened.
His deep blue Daoist robe fluttered wildly even without wind.
He stood with his hands behind his back, his voice not loud, yet it resounded clearly beneath the shattered sky, amidst howling winds, flying ashes, and blood-red light, carrying a declarative indifference and majesty. "Northwest of Xuanhuang, the Wuji Sacred Sect."
"Great Luo Heaven Realm, Foundation Establishment True Person."
His gaze returned to Zhao Xuanji, who stood frozen in shock and ashen-faced, and he spoke each word slowly and deliberately, as if it were an inscription. "Qi Yun."
The moment the words fell, the dark red array plate that covered the entire territory shone brightly, and a torrent of billions of gray "causal embers" surged into the lightning-infused [Fire of All Living Beings]!
The golden-white flames suddenly contracted, then erupted with a dark, deathly light that seemed capable of ending all laws, all paths, and all existence!
The Dharma Ending are coming!