Wang Lin’s gaze sharpened, meeting the eye of a woman garbed in azure silks across the void. He immediately averted his attention. This woman was unknown to him, a complete stranger. Yet, her gaze stirred a disquiet within his soul. Now was not the time for contemplation. With practiced calm, Wang Lin retreated further.

Ahead, a hundred conical spires hurtled through the star-strewn expanse, their passage a cacophony of shrieks threatening to tear the very fabric of reality, all aimed at the behemoth Wang Yue.

Each towering cone was like a celestial dart, piercing the cosmos. Wang Yue roared in fury, its countless tentacles unfurling, reaching out to ensnare the approaching armada.

The foremost spire, moving with unmatched velocity, was ensnared. But the instant the tendrils made contact, it detonated in a violent expulsion of ebony dust, scattering across the heavens. The cultivators of the Alliance, who had ridden atop the spire, leapt free moments before the impact.

A crescendo of shrieks grew as more spires hurtled forward, many ensnared and similarly detonating, releasing their black payload.

Amidst the swirling dust, the remaining spires surged forward, their speed amplified tenfold. Like celestial arrows, they pierced the dust cloud, deftly avoiding Wang Yue’s reach, striking the beast directly with resounding thuds.

One spire pierced deep, shattering from tip to base, hairline fractures spreading across its surface until it too dissolved into a cloud of ash.

Explosions echoed relentlessly as the remaining spires slammed into Wang Yue’s flesh, each erupting in a final release of black dust.

The beast roared in pain and rage, its tentacles flailing wildly, crushing unfortunate cultivators who strayed too close.

Then, a melodious voice, yet with power that resonated across the cosmos, cut through the chaos: “Seal!” It was the woman in azure.

Instantly, the black dust surrounding Wang Yue shimmered with an unearthly luminescence, spreading outwards to form a spherical prison. Within, crimson energies swirled. At that very moment, on nearly a hundred carefully selected cultivator stars across the eastern, southern, and northern regions of the Alliance’s star domain, an awe-inspiring ritual unfolded.

Upon one such star, the entire population was mobilized. Beasts, dragged from their lairs, were bound within a colossal array that spanned ten thousand miles.

Outside the perimeter, countless cultivators hung in the air, awaiting a command. An old man with hair the color of dried blood seemed to hold authority, his presence radiating an aura of respect. The moment the voice of the azure-clad woman echoed, piercing the void to reach them, his eyes gleamed. He thrust his hand downwards.

At his gesture, the assembled cultivators, as one, unleashed a barrage of spells and enchanted weaponry upon the beasts within the array.

Cries of agony reverberated as the great circle became a sea of blood. The array pulsed, hungrily devouring the lifeblood and souls of the slain creatures. The same scene was repeated on nearly a hundred worlds. This was the Million Beast Blood Sky-Locking Spell, one of the most potent enchantments of the Alliance.

The hundred spires were forged from rare materials and imbued with minor aspects of the grand spell. Now, with the sacrifice of millions of beasts across a hundred worlds, the black dust surrounding Wang Yue pulsed with the concentrated essence of their agony. It was a stench so potent it threatened to shatter the minds of those who inhaled it.

Within this bloody miasma, the dust writhed, congealing into a solid, earthy substance. Before long, Wang Yue’s gargantuan form was entombed within a prison of solid black earth.

The behemoth was trapped, its roars of frustration echoing uselessly from within its earthen cage.

The ten thousand Alliance cultivators who had leapt from the doomed spires advanced, their weapons and spells directed towards the forces of Luo Tian.

The sight was enough to shock even seasoned Luo Tian warriors. Lie Yunzi and Shen Gong, their faces grim, ascended from the boughs of the colossal tree. With a sweep of his hand, Lie Yunzi summoned countless motes of celestial energy, transforming them into a hundred banners.

He and Shen Gong were the highest-ranking officers of the Luo Tian rearguard, save for the elderly Xiang and the Gongsun bearing man, the two had left instructions and command in their stead, entrust them with command. Lie Yunzi, in particular, carried a burden of vital importance.

He grasped several banners and tossed them aside, bellowing, “Seventy-two Earthly Fiends, lead your warriors and annihilate the Alliance!”

“As you command!” Dozens of Luo Tian cultivators, each a member of the One Hundred and Eight Immortals, though not all were present, seized their banners and charged into the fray, clashing with the Alliance invaders.

The void became a maelstrom of explosions, spells, and weapon fire, as the two sides engaged in a desperate struggle for supremacy.

Shen Gong seized another handful of banners, casting them aside as he declared, “Thirty-six Celestial Guardians, with me! We shall shatter the beast’s prison!” He stepped towards the earthen prison, followed by a cohort of warriors, including the youth with the disproportionately large head.

“Xu Mu, the four of you, guard me!” Lie Yunzi’s gaze swept across Wang Lin, the palace-dressed woman, the black-robed elder, and the white-clad youth before settling into a cross-legged position atop the ancient tree.

The tree shuddered, halting its progress. Lie Yunzi, now seated, formed a series of hand seals and touched his brow. In a flash, his nascent soul materialized, surrounded by the spectral forms of three War Banners.

His soul touched one of the banners, sending a thunderous wave of spiritual energy into the void. In response, one of the seventeen crimson Luofu Blood Orbs above them shattered, releasing a being of pure, crimson energy.

The blood-soaked warrior roared and plunged into the heart of the battle. At that moment, Xue Shenzi and his cohorts were engaged in a furious duel with the Blackfiend Demon Lord and the Cloud Dragon Demon Sovereign.

The blood-soaked warrior charged to the site, and the Blackfiend Demon Lord found himself hard-pressed, forced into a retreat.

Lie Yunzi’s nascent soul trembled, and he hastily began to recover his energies. Though his cultivation was inferior to the likes of Yan Leizi or even Xue Shenzi, his role in the conflict was crucial.

The eighteen Luofu Blood Orbs were not the property of his Zhan family, but they alone possessed the bloodline-bound ability to command them. A secret, known to few outside the Zhan family.

“The Zhan bloodline must not be allowed to touch the Luofu Blood Orbs!”

But with the alliance ready to enter battle, that fact was broken, with Yan Leizi, the Xiang family elder, and the Gongsun family man decided to let Lie Yunzi control the Luo Fu Blood Orbs!

Lie Yunzi, recovering, reached out to touch another War Banner.

The act sent a ripple of inconceivable power across the cosmos. Another of the sixteen remaining Luofu Blood Orbs imploded, condensing into a second blood-soaked warrior.

With a deafening roar, this new warrior sped towards the prison where Shen Gong and the Celestial Guardians were locked in combat with the seal around Wang Yue.

Among the Alliance forces, the azure-clad woman frowned. She pointed a slender finger, and one of the thousand-foot-tall Juma, the giant race, strode forward with a bellow. He bore a cultivator star that was one-hundredth the size of a normal star, yet it was still a significant burden for even that giant. He braced and pushed the cultivator star towards the fifteen remaining Luofu Blood Orbs in the sky.

On top of the cultivator star was an old man, with a flash of light, and moving quickly towards the 15 Luo Fu Blood Orbs, but as he approached, the pressure from the Luofu intensified. The man face grew grim as he moved ever closer.

The giant race warrior, roared loudly, directly towards Lie Yunzi, towards the large ancient tree on which he sat!

Lie Yunzi’s nascent soul hovered, weak, but with a quick snap, he bellowed, “Luo Hong, Zhou Xingtian, defend the Luo Fu!”