Wang Lin, the Soul Reaper, always favored cunning in his deadly endeavors. Though not always of the highest caliber, such trickery often proved sufficient in the fleeting moments between life and death, especially when coupled with his uncanny mastery of timing. Even as the Celestial Concubine prepared to unleash her Celestial Bloodline sorcery for the first time, Wang Lin had, without hesitation, drawn the Bow of Li Guang.

Its appearance had the effect he anticipated, terrifying the Concubine into abandoning her spell and fleeing. She dared not risk that Wang Lin might possess the will to loose another arrow!

Later, driven to the very edge by the approaching Spirit Seal, as she once more prepared to invoke her ancestral power, Wang Lin uttered words that sent a chilling tremor through her soul.

In that moment of utter unpreparedness, amidst the chaos of mortal combat, those words may have only momentarily staggered her spirit, but such a lapse, however brief, was often fatal to beings like them.

As the Concubine reeled, the Spirit Seal crashed down, and in Wang Lin’s hand, the Blood Sword rose, a blinding crimson flash that cleaved the heavens, descending with thunderous force.

All this transpired in the blink of an eye, with astonishing speed!

In an instant, the earth shook and roared. The Spirit Seal descended, the Blood Sword struck, delivering a killing blow to the doomed Celestial Concubine. Her death cry echoed through the void as her form shattered, her soul obliterated.

Wang Lin himself coughed blood, for the Concubine, in her final act, had managed to unleash the power of her Celestial Bloodline. Though partially mitigated by the Spirit Seal, its remaining force still tore through Wang Lin’s body.

He staggered back a hundred paces, spitting blood once more.

He had slain one, but he, too, was wounded. Yet, the price was worth paying.

Even as he dealt the death blow, the internecine battles of the Alliance raged all around him, a river of blood flowing under a sky rent by screams.

Wang Lin, nursing his wounds, had barely begun to steady himself when a sudden wave of danger washed over him from afar. He dodged instinctively, whirling around to see a sword-like aura whistling past, cleaving a massive rift through the starry sky.

Taking advantage of Wang Lin’s weakened state was the Dark-Robed Elder, another Sky Profound powerhouse who had participated in the attempt to eliminate Wang Lin long ago. He now held a black, gleaming sword, which he immediately thrust forward, launching himself toward Wang Lin.

“He is wounded,” the Elder thought, “Now is the perfect moment to strike!”

Wang Lin’s eyes flashed with a frigid light. He retreated swiftly, dissolving into a cloud of inky mist, which he directed into the thick of the Alliance forces locked in a bloody melee.

The mist engulfed ten thousand feet of space, consuming countless enemy warriors. From within came a chorus of agonizing screams. As the mist dissipated, only skeletal remains remained, their life force and blood drained away.

The Elder’s bloodlust only intensified as he pursued Wang Lin.

The toxic mist continued to spread, leaving a trail of lifeless bodies in its wake. In a matter of breaths, ten thousand Alliance warriors had perished.

The Elder grew closer, moving with incredible speed. In a single step, he reached the edge of Wang Lin’s cloud of mist. He raised his dark sword high, preparing to cleave it in twain.

As the sword descended, the mist rapidly contracted, reforming into Wang Lin’s physical body. The life force he had stolen had largely healed his injuries.

His crimson eyes blazing with murderous intent, Wang Lin raised his right hand, sweeping it upward.

“Karmic Array!”

The Immovable Wheel of Karma materialized instantly, standing tall before Wang Lin. He thrust it forward with devastating force, directly toward the oncoming Elder. The great wheel collided with the Elder’s blade in a cataclysmic clash.

The Elder staggered back, coughing blood as his attack shattered, while the Karma Array shattered in a burst of energy, breaking into a thousand pieces.

But the destruction of the Karmic formation did not concern Wang Lin. His eyes gleamed with an unearthly light. He laughed, his hands forming a complex incantation. He clenched his right fist and thrust it forward.

“Karmic Array complete! Your sword is the cause of this array. Now that the array is broken, it is the end of that cause! Karmic Array, Unleashed!”

With a flick of his sleeve, the shattered fragments of the Karmic Array transformed into streaks of Karmic Chaos, sweeping outward in all directions. In total, there were fifty thousand of these energies!

Each one shifted shape instantly, morphing into a perfect replica of the Elder’s original sword-strike. The world was now filled with fifty thousand phantom blades!

This was the true power of the Karmic Array.

With another sweeping motion, Wang Lin released the Karmic energies, and the fifty thousand spectral swords roared across the battlefield, directly into the Alliance forces. Agonized screams filled the air as fifty thousand warriors collapsed and died.

Their blood sprayed outward, dyeing the starry sky a crimson hue.

“The Celestial Concubine was difficult to kill, but an early Sky Profound cultivator like you will prove far easier!” Wang Lin declared, stepping forward and passing through the remnants of the shattered Karmic Array, directly toward the Dark-Robed Elder.

“My left hand brings life, my right brings death, the Dao of Life and Death!”

Reaching the Elder, Wang Lin ignored his enemy’s desperate attempt to cast some unknown spell. He pressed his left hand forward, then his right, the opposing energies of life and death colliding with a deafening roar before the Elder’s face.

The Elder coughed blood, his expression twisted in horror. He fumbled with another incantation, but Wang Lin paid no attention. He closed his eyes, and in that moment of closing, the world turned to illusion.
With eyes sealed shut, he moved with unnatural speed, piercing the elder’s arcane defenses. In a blink, he stood before him, right hand rising, pressing against the old mage’s chest. His fingers curled inward, and with a savage grip, he clenched his fist and ripped outward.

“The Path of Karma!”

A thunderous roar echoed as the elder shrieked, stumbling backward. His very essence poured forth from the wound upon his chest, captured within Wang Lin’s fist. Opening his eyes, he clenched his hand with brutal force, crushing a portion of the elder’s vital power.

As the elder staggered, Wang Lin’s left hand conjured a tear in reality, revealing his storage realm. He plucked forth all seven of the Cursed Nails of Rainbow, and with a furious sweep, unleashed them.

The nails, blazing with iridescent light, screamed through the air, striking the elder’s chest with impossible speed. Terror contorted his face, blood gushing from his lips as he retreated even faster.

Just as Wang Lin prepared to give chase, a wave of murderous intent crashed from afar. Another of the Immortal Consorts, clad in azure robes, coalesced into a swirling azure mist, closing the distance in a heartbeat. From within the cloud, a ribbon of sapphire light lashed out, seeking to bind Wang Lin.

Behind her, the warrior, Qing Shuang, pressed close, a testament to the fierce battle that had raged between them. The Immortal Consort had broken free of their encirclement, driven by a singular purpose: to reach Wang Lin.

Farther away, the violet-clad sorceress from the Summoned River, a demon in human form, slaughtered Void Nirvana cultivators, locked in a deadly dance with the last two of the shadowy figures.

Engaged in a similar struggle was the ancient crone, a Void Profound master from beyond the borders. The final Immortal Consort battled Hong Shanzi, who fought with desperate courage, though clearly outmatched, determined to hold the line.

In the distant reaches, the ranks of the inner-world cultivators thinned with each passing moment, yet the bodies of the invaders lay scattered in numbers exceeding ten thousand. The cries of rage and the screams of the dying echoed across the starscape, engulfing the entire Luo Tian Star Domain.

Wang Lin spun, madness burning in his eyes. If those Void Profound masters were not extinguished, this war would never end. As he turned, the Ancient God star within his brow bloomed, and the Celestial Furnace materialized, expanding to encompass the surrounding starfield. The Consort and the elder were trapped within its fiery embrace.

The Celestial Furnace emanated a soft, pushing Qing Shuang away. Then, with a deafening roar, it swallowed both the black-robed elder and the azure Consort before contracting with immense force.

Rumbling filled the Furnace, its metal groaning under the strain. Though it had consumed the two powerhouses, the Furnace struggled to digest them, teetering on the edge of collapse.

Wang Lin swayed and planted himself, cross-legged, upon the Furnace’s summit. He spat a mouthful of blood, letting it wash over the burning metal. Then, hands flashing in arcane gestures, he touched his brow. From that point of power, the Ancient God stars soared, each anchoring itself to the Celestial Furnace.

Even the golden ichor of his Immortal Physique flowed forth, absorbed into the Furnace, bathing it in a blinding golden radiance.

“With the blood of Immortals, with the blood of Gods, I bind you to the Celestial Furnace! Imprisoned for ages uncounted!” Wang Lin roared, unleashing his self-created spell, the Flowing Moon. A colossal stone gate manifested behind him, slamming down upon the Celestial Furnace.

With the gate’s descent, time itself warped and twisted. With Wang Lin’s mastery, he could command this spell to accelerate the flow of ages, trapping his foes for millennia.

Sweat beaded on his brow, Wang Lin sat motionless upon the burning vessel, his eyes burning with a ferocious light as he bellowed a command to the heavens.

“Elder Qing Shuang, Elder Hong Shanzi, and you, sorceress of the Summoned River! Delay the final two Void Profound masters! Grant me the time to weave the Grand Illusionary Array of Life, Death, Cause, and Effect!”

Qing Shuang and the others nodded grimly. Together, they charged into the fray, engaging the last two Void Profound masters, preventing them from disrupting Wang Lin’s ritual.

Wang Lin’s hands moved with fevered intensity, his eyes blazing with a cold fire. If this war was merely a game played by the Seven-Colored Taoist and the old ghost of war, if their conflict served some darker purpose, then he, Wang Lin, would not hesitate to obliterate the invaders. He would end this conflict and learn what these schemers were truly seeking.