Lord Dong Di’s countenance remained serene, a booming laugh escaping his lips, yet inwardly he held the pronouncements in contempt. His gaze swept over the ninety thousand strong army of Ancient Starry Sky cultivators before him, feeling the volatile aura and maddened bloodlust emanating from them. A flicker of cruelty danced within his eyes.

“Mere womanish sentiment! These warriors are brimming with a thirst for battle. To deny them bloodshed is folly! As for Wang Lin, that insignificant cultivator barely touching the hem of Celestial Tribulation… his accomplishments are but strokes of luck. To slay him would be child’s play; no grand spectacle is needed!”

‘First, we spill blood and claim spoils. Then, we establish the teleportation array. Finally, as an afterthought, we crush the Wang Lin whelp!’ As these thoughts churned within Dong Di’s mind, a sudden shift in his composure drew his attention to the distance. Simultaneously, the revered Nang Zhao, the Fire Sparrow Clan Ancestor, and the esteemed Yun Luo Great Shaman turned their gazes towards the far reaches of the starry expanse.

A colossal pressure, accompanied by thunderous roars that shook the very heavens, descended, stifling the berserk howls of the ninety thousand cultivators arrayed before the barrier. It drowned out every other sound, drawing the eyes of the vast army to a single point.

There, amidst the stars, a colossal black pavilion materialized. So immense was its size that it rivaled a cultivation star, its edges wreathed in impenetrable mist, rendering it a nebulous silhouette.

Dimly visible around the pavilion were thousands of robed figures clad in black. Each wore an identical mark upon their brow: a black sword. Coldness incarnate radiated from these figures as they floated alongside the black pavilion, unwavering in their advance.

A chilling aura of death swept through the heavens.

“The Sword Servants!” cried one. “Guardians of the Sky Punishment Hall of the Elder Council!” another exclaimed. “Rumor has it that each Sword Servant possesses terrifying power, mastering the Soul-Cleaving Sword of devastating force!” a third whispered in awe.

“The Sword Servants are here! This grand hall must be the Sky Punishment Hall of the Elder Council! To think, for this first battle, the Elder Council has unleashed one of its four Halls!”

The immense black pavilion lumbered closer, the pressure emanating from it intensifying, forcing the ninety thousand cultivators to bow as one.

“We salute the Sky Punishment Hall!” The voices of the multitude surged like a tidal wave.

Before the sealing barrier, the titanic pavilion ground to a halt, its thousands of black-clad sentinels gazing ahead with chilling detachment.

“By decree of the Elder Council, I have come to oversee the war…” A gravelly voice echoed from within the black pavilion, its mere tone carrying a weight of command that silenced the ninety thousand.

“Now, I shall open this sealing barrier. Let the war…begin.” Within the ancient voice, a hint of weariness lingered. A pulse of crystalline light erupted from the black pavilion, hurtling towards the stars.

It was a sword – a sword of crystalline radiance.

Seven feet in length and three inches wide, it shimmered with an otherworldly brilliance. Bathed in the power of endless incense offerings, the space around the crystal sword twisted and warped, forming illusory scenes.

Within these phantasms, countless realms of incense offerings could be glimpsed, filled with devotees kneeling in fervent prayer, sacrificing their very essence of faith.

As the crystal sword appeared, within the Ancient Starry Sky domain, in a world hidden from the stars, within a rift torn in the fabric of space…

A realm awash in celestial energy, where clouds glowed with kaleidoscopic hues, and upon the earth stood an immortal mountain. Wreathed in mists, its peak was graced by the figure of a woman.

She appeared middle-aged, her beauty not dazzling but radiating an air of dignified grace. Clad in imperial robes, a crimson vermilion mark adorned her brow.

Gazing at the sky, a flicker of frost crossed her eyes. Raising a jade hand, she gestured, conjuring a jade scepter. Blossoms adorned the scepter, initially lifeless, but with a touch from the woman, they seemed to awaken, bursting into bloom.

As they blossomed, nine petals detached, swirling into a vortex that soared into the sky, disappearing into the void.

“Since you cannot decide,” the woman murmured, “I shall lend a hand.” With her left hand, she plucked a golden hairpin from her hair and cast it forth.

In the lands of the Blue Silk Clan, upon Blue Mountain, the ethereal melodies of a zither echoed. Though beautiful, the music carried an unsettling edge, at times savage like the clashing of armies, at others as gentle as the whispers of celestial maidens. These contrasting strains coalesced into a torrent of conflicting emotions. Blue Dream Dao Master sat with eyes closed, his fingers dancing across the strings of the ancient instrument, seemingly caught in agonizing indecision.

Li Qianmei sat quietly opposite her father, her gaze fixed upon him, uttering not a single word.

At that moment, ripples disturbed the sky above Blue Mountain. From within these distortions, a golden flash emerged – a hairpin, once nestled amidst the silken hair of a woman.

The hairpin hurtled through the void, piercing the earth and the roof of the mountain summit, landing with a resounding crash directly between Li Qianmei and Blue Dream Dao Master.

The music abruptly ceased. A string on the zither snapped with a resounding *thwack*. The severed string danced wildly, rising high as Blue Dream Dao Master opened his eyes, his gaze drawn to the hairpin before him, his face etched with pain.

After an age, he sighed. With a sweep of his sleeve, he severed the broken string entirely, bathing it in an azure light. Then, biting his tongue, he spat a mouthful of blood, the crimson fluid fusing with the string as it shot towards the heavens.

Beyond the sealing barrier, before the black pavilion, to the right of the crystal sword, the heavens thundered as the nine petals swirled into a titanic storm.

Simultaneously, across the starry expanse, a surge of azure light heralded the arrival of the severed zither string, now imbued with Blue Dream Dao Master’s life essence and vast cultivation, connected to his very soul, and brimming with incense offering energy.

Far to the west of the Ancient Starry Sky, the void emanated a pale, spectral light. Any cultivator who dared venture here would be assaulted by a chilling cold that seeped into the very marrow, threatening to freeze their cultivation solid.

In the distance, nine cultivation stars orbited, appearing as massive blocks of ice adrift in the cosmos – or perhaps a single, gargantuan block.

A colossal ice tomb encased the nine cultivation stars. Within this frozen expanse, a child of perhaps seven or eight sat cross-legged, entombed in ice. Suddenly, the seemingly lifeless eyes of the child snapped open, revealing a peculiar sight: within each eye resided not one, but three pupils!

A cultivator of triple pupils!

The moment those eyes opened, the vast ice that bound the nine cultivation stars shuddered violently. Within its depths, a gigantic eye materialized, echoing the child’s – a triple-pupiled gaze of chilling intensity. With a flicker, the three pupils shot forth, transformed into three streams of ghostly light hurtling across the sky.

Within the Ancient Starry Sky, yet another realm lay hidden, a space rift teeming with immortal energy, where a fragment of land drifted, exuding the ancient aura of ages past, severed from realms unknown.

Upon this floating continent sat a woman, clad entirely in red, even her hair a fiery crimson. Her very presence pulsed with vibrant color.

Though seated, her crimson attire clung to her form, accentuating her slender waist, a stark contrast to the curves of her hips and bosom. Her alluring figure could tempt the very gods.

Her face was breathtakingly beautiful, her skin porcelain, and as her eyelashes fluttered, a hint of innate melancholy shone in her eyes. She raised a hand to her lips and gently bit a fingertip, a gesture that could drive men mad with longing.

With a soft sigh, she traced the void before her with her bloodied finger. Three droplets of crimson emerged, transforming into three massive, grotesque wraiths. These spectral entities roared to the heavens upon their arrival, their bodies dissolving into swirling mists, their cries echoing through the cosmos.

After a moment, the three wraiths bowed towards the red-clad woman and strode away, vanishing into the void.

Beyond the sealing barrier, beside the crystal sword, the zither string, and the nine petals, the ghostly lights flickered as a single eye, possessed of triple pupils, materialized – a ghastly sight to behold!

As the triple-pupiled eye manifested, a thunderous roar echoed as the three spectral wraiths tore through the fabric of space, arriving alongside the others!

As these artifacts, each imbued with the essence of powerful outland entities, converged, within the Ancient Starry Sky, in the palace of the Lord of the Palm, the black-robed figure, forced back and grievously wounded once more, sat beside a flickering candle. He abruptly raised his head, his gnarled hand reaching forth.

“From the well… draw the moon!” the black-robed figure croaked, his voice raspy and weak, echoing within the chamber.

The sealing barrier shuddered violently. Before the eyes of the ninety thousand, the barrier itself trembled, becoming indistinct, as if its very soul was being forcibly ripped from its ethereal form by a tremendous force emanating from the stars.

As the barrier convulsed, lights flickered within, conjuring all manner of protective spirits and unleashing the terrifying power of countless bloody artifacts!

It was this very commotion that reverberated within the realm, drawing the attention of Wang Lin as he traversed the stars, his eyes narrowing as he beheld the sight!

Chance indeed existed in the cosmos. For if not for the barrier, the ninety thousand warriors would have seen him: Wang Lin, his hair as white as snow, standing on the other side, separated from them only by the shimmering veil of the seal!