“Outrageous! Our Demon Race boasts three Supremes, our heritage utterly crushes the Grand Dao Sect! Yet this White Robe Great Emperor dares to openly disrespect our Demon Court!”
At his words, a wave of furious roars erupted from the assembled demon magnates. Even worse, this White Robe Great Emperor actually dared to urinate on the Demon Lord’s statue! This is the ultimate humiliation! The Demon Court’s power is vast; in ancient times, we crushed the Human Race, forcing them to grovel. How dare this White Robe Great Emperor act with such audacity now?
The speaker, a Pig-headed Great Demon, was the very same Demon General who had previously projected his Divine Sense through the Demon Lord’s statue to converse with Lu Xuan. In his heart, the Demon Lord’s status was absolute, beyond reproach! Anyone who dared disrespect the Demon Lord must die!
Just then, a Grey-robed Demon King spoke, his voice low and grave. “When the Titan Demon Lord departed this realm, he foretold a great change during the Ninth Epoch’s Supreme Path. This world may never again see the Supreme Path manifest. This is our final chance.”
Another Demon King, his eyes glinting ominously, added, “Nine is the extreme! Eight Supreme Paths have opened, and across the Five Domains, forty Supremes have emerged over countless eons. This realm, too, is likely reaching its limit.”
These were ancient secrets, passed down by the Titan Demon Lord who had broken the boundary and left this world. Even Heaven and Earth have their limits. This realm’s original cultivation ceiling was merely the Great Emperor Realm! It was only due to the descent of the Ancient Supreme Artifact, the Bronze Ancient Palace, that the world’s rules underwent a profound change. In a sense, this realm was ‘upgraded,’ allowing the path of cultivation to extend further, giving rise to Half-step Supremes and Quasi-Dao Supremes.
But through countless ages, this realm has exhausted its inherent foundation. When the Titan Demon Lord of the previous Epoch broke the boundary, his Supreme Realm cultivation allowed him to glimpse deeper secrets of this world, which he then imparted to the many magnates of the Demon Court.
This time, the Supreme Fruit Position must belong to the Demon Race! For only by attaining the Supreme Fruit Position can one break the boundary and take a portion of our great demons to the Outer World. As the Titan Demon Lord described, stepping into the Outer World is to enter the true heavens!
Recalling these profound secrets, the assembled Demon Generals and Demon Kings couldn’t help but feel a surge of emotion. In the Ancient Era, the Demon Race, Alien Race, and Human Race were locked in an irreconcilable struggle. The Demon Race and Alien Race held immense power, even raising humans as livestock and using them as blood food. However, with the appearance of the Ancient Supreme Artifact, the Bronze Ancient Palace, the Southern Wilds and the other Five Domains gained the hope of breaking the boundary. Coupled with the emergence of Human Race Supremes, a fragile, superficial peace was temporarily maintained between the three great races.
The Pig-headed Great Demon declared coldly, “After this Epoch, this realm may very well come to an end. Since the White Robe Great Emperor wishes to ignite a war between the Human Race and our Demon Race, then we, the Demon Race, accept his challenge!”
Hearing this, the demon magnates voiced their agreement. While confronting the entirety of the Southern Wilds’ Human Race forces might prove troublesome, they held absolute confidence in dealing with the Grand Dao Sect. After all, the Grand Dao Sect had never produced a Supreme! The Demon Race, on the other hand, boasted three Supremes, and each time one broke the boundary, they left behind a vast, terrifying foundation. Though restricted by this realm’s limits, that immense heritage was stalled at the Quasi-Dao Supreme stage, a power the Grand Dao Sect simply couldn’t hope to match!
After a round of discussion, the demon magnates decided to suppress the matter of the White Robe Great Emperor’s insult to the Demon Lord’s statue. Such a blatant affront would severely damage the Demon Lord’s prestige! With some time remaining until the Bronze Ancient Palace opened, they resolved to first dispatch the Pig-headed Great Demon’s faction to emerge and gather intelligence on the Bronze Ancient Palace and the Heaven and Earth Change in the Southern Wilds.
Soon after, a Nine-star Great Emperor from the Giant Pig Race emerged! This time, they maintained a low profile. After all, if the White Robe Great Emperor were to learn of their presence, he might come knocking, and they were no match for him!
In the shadows, the Demon Lord began to establish contact with Dark Shadow Island and the Ancient Desolate Forbidden Zone. The White Robe Great Emperor had become a target of universal enmity!
***
Within the Ancient Desolate Forbidden Zone, in the Silent Destruction Sect’s territory, the Twisted Jungle spread like a cancerous growth. Deathly silence hung over countless ancient tombs, from which dim, ominous Dao patterns subtly pulsed, emanating Eerie Power and Ominous Power.
The Forbidden Zone’s inherent rules twisted the very moonlight into a sickly, pallid glow that fell upon an ancient hall deep within the twisted depths. The hall itself was dim and lifeless, still permeated by a ghostly chill, with white bones faintly visible in the corners—a truly bone-chilling sight.
The Silent Destruction Old Man sat cross-legged on an ancient throne, his face growing increasingly sinister as he listened to a black-robed elder’s report. He snarled with rage.
“These ancient factions are utterly useless, more trouble than they’re worth!” he spat. “They were once great powers that birthed Supremes, yet they can’t even handle one White Robe Great Emperor!”
A dozen elders stood within the hall, rigid as decaying wood. Thick, eerie red hair stirred faintly on their withered bodies, and their eyes gleamed with icy coldness. They, too, hadn’t anticipated that even with the Stabbing Heaven Palace and the Demon Hall making their move, they would fail to take down the White Robe Great Emperor and Ji Fuyao! In countless eons, they had never encountered such a formidable opponent!
The Silent Destruction Old Man slowly rose. His body was as withered as dry wood, his grey robe appearing to hang loosely over a skeletal frame. His disheveled hair cascaded around him, making him resemble an old ghost from Black Mountain, with only the flickering flames in his eye sockets betraying any sign of life.
He walked towards the elders, his voice a sinister whisper, like a vengeful spirit. “Now, the White Robe Great Emperor and Ji Fuyao have become the mortal enemies of the Demon Court and Dark Shadow Island. If we wait until the Heaven and Earth Change fully begins, we might lose our chance.”
At his words, the elders inquired, “Old Ancestor, how do we break this stalemate?”
For those like them, tainted by Eerie Power and Ominous Power, failure to seize the Supreme Path’s opportunities would mean reincarnation and re-cultivation—a form of liberation! This supreme secret art, they must obtain!
The Silent Destruction Old Man’s face was a mask of sinister malice. “Since those Alien Races and Demon Races are unreliable, we’ll have to send our own! A while ago, many ancient Overlord-level powers emerged, thinking they could curb the White Robe Great Emperor. Who knew those useless wretches would all prove ineffective!”
The elders fell silent. For members of the Silent Destruction Sect to step out of the Ancient Desolate Forbidden Zone was a grave matter. If Xuanji Holy Lord, Bai Li, discovered them, she would certainly march into the Twisted Jungle to demand an explanation. The Eerie Power and Ominous Power were terrifying; if any other living beings outside the Forbidden Zone were tainted by them, it would unleash catastrophe. The other Overlord-level powers across the various provinces also vehemently opposed this.
After a moment of heavy silence, the Silent Destruction Old Man made his decision. “Dispatch two Nine-star Great Emperor elders to the Blackflame Mountain Range. Avoid direct conflict with the White Robe Great Emperor. Our target is Ji Fuyao.”
An elder questioned, “What if Ji Fuyao isn’t in the Blackflame Mountain Range and has returned to the Grand Dao Sect?”
The Silent Destruction Old Man paused, then replied, “Then we’ll have to gamble. Using our Silent Destruction Sect’s cultivation methods, we’ll avoid actively clashing with the White Robe Great Emperor. Instead, we’ll find an opportunity to eliminate Ji Fuyao and seize her Memory Image.”
Soon, two Nine-star Great Emperors were selected, reluctantly crawling out from their ancient tombs. The Silent Destruction Old Man observed them. Tainted by Ominous Power and Eerie Power, they appeared utterly wretched: skin like withered parchment stretched taut over bone, a truly horrifying sight. He produced a Storage Ring and spoke slowly.
“Within this ring,” he said, “is a vast quantity of Life Force, enough to mask your aura in the outside world. You have half a month to secure Ji Fuyao!”
The two accepted the Storage Ring, immediately extended their Divine Sense, and greedily devoured a mouthful of Life Force. In an instant, their bodies began to transform with a series of crackling sounds, slowly shifting into the appearance of ‘normal humans.’ One became a plain-faced, grey-robed middle-aged man, while the other took on the guise of a young man, exuding the aura of a prodigy from a major power.
The Silent Destruction Old Man nodded. “Go. The future of our Silent Destruction Sect rests on your shoulders. When you return, I will personally perform the Dao Pattern Washing for you, elevating you both to Half-step Supremes!”