Chapter 503: Red Spirit Emperor

These scenes made Xu Qing's breathing quicken; the number of casualties on both sides in such a short time was truly appalling. Many human cultivators, in particular, died mysteriously. Enemies were still far away, yet the next moment, an invisible blade seemed to sweep through their area, killing everyone. After death, they were even mutated into irrational beasts.

Roars, screams, self-detonations, and furious shouts, accompanied by the enormous roar of activated magical artifacts, filled Xu Qing's ears. Overall, Fenghai Commandery's human forces lacked sufficient counter-attacking power and could only remain on the defensive.

"Fenghai Commandery originally had thirteen states," Xu Qing thought. "But it lost three states in the initial stage, and Quzhao and Yinghuang states couldn't participate in the war, so only the strength of eight states remained. During the war preparations, I recall it was divided into eight major legions!"

Xu Qing suppressed the surge of emotion rising in his heart due to the battlefield's brutality and quickly analyzed the situation.

"There's no unified, mandatory planning," he mused. "After all, this isn't a mortal war, and each state has its own characteristics, which can't be forcibly disrupted."

"Therefore, these eight major legions each have their own complete systems, encompassing logistics, magical artifacts, coordination, and more."

"For instance, the power of the magical stabs is maintained by the Third Legion."

"The only ones participating from the entire Commandery are the Commandery Capital's forbidden forces; the hundreds of Return to Void cultivators there were drawn from various legions, making up only a portion of Fenghai Commandery's Return to Void cultivators."

"Among them, directly under the Sword-Holding Palace, are the war puppets, the Dao Bell of the Firmament, and the Sword-Holders' Emperor Sword!"

Xu Qing took a deep breath and gazed in both directions. He noticed that the forces from Quzhao and Yinghuang states were not here, and the number of legions present seemed incomplete.

This reminded Xu Qing of the sand table he had seen in the Palace Master's main tent.

"The defense line is very long, and the front is divided into multiple war zones," he realized. "So Quzhao State, Yinghuang State, and the forces of two other states were deployed along other western defense lines. This is the core war zone where the command post is located!"

"Did the Palace Master establish the command post here to use himself as bait?" he wondered. "To tie down the main force of the Saint Lan clan..."

"Perhaps there are other arrangements," Xu Qing mused. He lacked relevant information and didn't have a full understanding of the overall strategic planning.

This did not prevent him from familiarizing himself with the battlefield. After mentally dividing the battlefield into war zones, Xu Qing further divided the vast area he was in into hundreds of sections. This method allowed him to understand the battlefield more quickly.

"Fenghai Commandery is in the west sector, and the Saint Lan clan is in the east sector."

"Currently, sectors West One, West Three, West Four, and West Eight are near the edge of the golden net, on standby, ready to replace the armies fighting in sectors East Five, East Seven, and East Eleven at any moment."

"West Two and West Five are activating war puppets, and three other sectors are providing support."

"Meanwhile, in the eastern region where the Saint Lan clan is located, dozens of sectors like Three, Six, Fourteen, and Seventeen are also shifting positions and changing formations. This highlights East Two sector..."

"No, the Saint Lan clan's formation is shaped like an arrow, and East Two is the arrowhead."

Xu Qing surveyed the entire field, and after a rapid mental assessment, abruptly looked towards sector East Two on the battlefield outside the golden net. After the Saint Lan clan's formation shift, tens of thousands of severed hands, animated from the earth, appeared there. Each of them grasped huge iron chains and suddenly surged forward. As the chains were simultaneously pulled, a huge roar came from the firmament, and the vortex was torn open even wider.

More black snow poured down from there like an avalanche, heading straight for the battlefield. As Xu Qing's expression changed, in the sky above Fenghai Commandery's defense line, the colossal Emperor Sword floating there suddenly gleamed, as if it had been waiting for this very moment. A vast amount of sword light surged out from within, transforming into a sea of swords, heading directly for the firmament's vortex. It instantly approached and exploded with a bang, causing the vortex to spin and painful roars to emanate from within. And the large amount of black snow pouring out was also swept back by this sea of swords.

At the same time, at the highest point in the sky above Fenghai Commandery's army, the colossal Dao Bell, floating there surrounded by numerous bronze coffins, now emitted a vast and majestic chime. Exuding antiquity and the passage of time, it carried an aura of crushing all, spreading in all directions. The bell chimes echoed seven times, and each time they descended, the battlefield twisted; countless Saint Lan clan cultivators' bodies disintegrated and tore into pieces, simultaneously revealing figures that were originally illusory on the battlefield. Those illusory figures were not in the likeness of the Saint Lan clan; they looked like mantises, each dozens of zhang tall, emitting a special alien substance that permeated their surroundings while also attacking the human army. Xu Qing knew they were the Reapers formed by the Blacksky Clan's rhomboid magical artifacts. Their special state made them undetectable and thus extremely troublesome, usually requiring the forbidden power of the golden net to mark them. But at this moment, under the Dao Bell, with everything suppressed, their figures were also revealed.

The next moment, the human war puppets, who had been on standby for a long time, instantly surged forth. Tens of thousands of puppets transformed into tens of thousands of giants, charging into the battlefield, heading straight for the Reapers.

War is a game of strategy. Pure defense can at any moment turn into a counterattack, and the methods are not limited to a single one. The overall situation seems complex, but in reality, it's also very simple; it's just that every step of this war's grinding process comes at too high a cost. Regardless of right or wrong, it demands flesh and blood. Because what's ground out from this millstone, besides the roar, is only death; as for victory or defeat, those are merely byproducts.

Xu Qing remained silent, gazing at the battlefield. The sky above the battlefield showed no significant change in hue; all that could be seen was dimness. This was true even during the day, and even more so at night. Sounds, gore, and alien substances were the main themes here, and no one knew how long this cruel, man-eating symphony would continue. After this endless slaughter repeated itself again and again, one could imagine the immense suppression it would bring to people. And what kind of despair would arise under such suppression.

Xu Qing silently withdrew his gaze; he had seen enough of the macroscopic battlefield. At this moment, the fighting continued, with both sides constantly employing various tactics on this millstone of flesh and blood. Death was already the norm. Survival was the miracle. But at least so far, Xu Qing hadn't seen many retreating deserters.

"There's no retreat," Xu Qing murmured. Standing on the abandoned puppet mountain, he looked back at Fenghai Commandery. Even he, who had experienced countless hardships alone since childhood, now had attachments after coming this far, let alone others. And attachments were what a complete person should possess.

After a long while, Xu Qing withdrew his gaze from Fenghai Commandery and shook his head, gazing at the rhomboid magical artifacts in the sky that continuously emitted distorting power.

"These magical artifacts faintly carry a trace of Red Moon power," he observed. This was Xu Qing's perception after observing from a distance, and the black snow permeating the battlefield also gave him a similar feeling. However, due to the distance, the sensation wasn't very clear. So Xu Qing pondered, then his body flickered as he left the abandoned puppet mountain to head to the battlefield.

As he passed by where the numb-faced old man sat, the old man looked at Xu Qing and called out.

"Come back alive!"

His voice was hoarse and indistinct. Xu Qing paused, vaguely hearing the old man's cry and looking at him. He didn't know the old man, and they hadn't exchanged any words since he arrived. This was their first interaction. The old man didn't speak again, gazing at the battlefield, his expression revealing sorrow.

Xu Qing remained silent, nodded, and transformed into a long rainbow, surging towards the golden net ahead. He wanted to enter the battlefield to sense the black snow and the power from the rhomboid magical artifacts in the sky. If these two types of existence were indeed driven by Red Moon power, Xu Qing felt he might be able to offer greater assistance to the war.

So he unleashed his full speed, instantly piercing through the golden net, and stepping onto the ground formed by accumulated flesh and blood. A more intense stench of blood and waves of damp wind from sprayed blood, compared to inside the net, assaulted him unobstructed, landing on Xu Qing's face. It was both damp and foul. Even the most bloodthirsty individual in normal times, upon first smelling this odor, would feel nauseous and uncomfortable. Because the number of deaths was too high, the area contained an extreme sense of despair. Under the influence of this emotion, people's eyes would instinctively turn crimson. Whether from fear or stimulation, the redness of the eyes remained unchanged, and this was even more pronounced when these two emotional fluctuations intertwined.

After entering the battlefield, it was different from what was seen from afar. The visual impact, the burst of sounds, the assault on the sense of smell — all of this was more visceral. Faces of pain, cruel grimaces, pursuit and retreat, madness and bewilderment — everything seemed as if a celestial artist had sketched them out and presented them in incredibly vivid detail before Xu Qing's eyes. And unknowingly, he too had been drawn into the painting, becoming an insignificant dot in this war scene.

And next to this dot, a Saint Lan clan figure, with a grim and cruel expression, howled as it approached, reaching out to grab Xu Qing's head. The black snow formed a ghost-claw-like magical artifact, unleashing considerable power, but the moment the Saint Lan clan cultivator's cruel smile appeared, Xu Qing, who was before him, vanished. The next moment, a black dagger sliced through his neck. As blood splattered and his head flew, this Saint Lan clan cultivator saw a figure standing beside a headless corpse. Xu Qing licked away the blood splattered on the corner of his mouth; the salty, acrid taste caused the hidden killing intent within his body to seep out from his war-tinged red eyes.

Xu Qing wasted no time; his body instantly shot out, and the power of poison spread, enveloping his body surface. Wherever he passed, any Saint Lan clan member he approached would have their bodies tremble, emitting screams he couldn't hear from beneath their armor as their bodies rotted. Xu Qing wasn't worried about accidental injuries because the number of Saint Lan clan members on the battlefield was clearly greater, and his poison, circling his body surface, could be largely controlled at will, making the possibility of poisoning allies low.

So as he moved forward, he began to observe the ubiquitous black snowflakes on the battlefield up close, letting them fall on him, carefully sensing the Red Moon power they contained. But as he investigated, the snowflakes landing on him emitted unstable fluctuations, then suddenly collapsed internally, disintegrating on their own.

"It is, and it isn't..." Xu Qing remained vigilant, while a ponderous thought arose in his mind. There was indeed a trace of Red Moon power within these snowflakes, but the amount was negligible. More so, a kind of chaotic power influenced their might. While Xu Qing could influence them, it wasn't by much, and even a slight mistake would cause them to collapse. To truly control them, more observation and experimentation would be needed. As for the poison contained within them, it was nothing compared to Xu Qing's own poison. However, when these black snowflakes transformed into magical arts, their power was very strong, and it was even more astonishing when a large number of snowflakes combined.

"What's contained within is more of a malicious and extremely unstable chaotic power, drawing these snowflakes to merge with each other..."

As Xu Qing pondered, he tried to collect some, then left the spot and headed to other areas. He wanted to sense the rhomboid magical artifacts in the sky to see if they were similar to the black snow. But the opponents were high in the sky, too large a target, and their inherent danger was extremely high. So Xu Qing focused his attention on the Reapers they formed. With a flicker, he charged towards a distant Reaper battling a Fenghai Commandery war puppet.

As for the alien substances on the battlefield, Xu Qing also observed them. "This is active alien substance, not emanating from forbidden lands, but manufactured by someone!" Xu Qing's eyes narrowed; his shadow spread out, frantically absorbing alien substances from all directions. For the shadow, active alien substance was clearly more suitable for growth. At the same time, the Vajra Sect Patriarch also flew out, circling around Xu Qing to protect him.

As he moved forward, the slaughter continuously unfolded. There were too many Saint Lan clan members on the battlefield, and as Xu Qing rapidly weaved through them, blood gradually stained his Daoist robe, with more flowing down his face and hands onto the ground. Time slowly passed, and wherever Xu Qing passed, bodies fell. He was very cautious; even with bloodshot eyes, his mind remained calm, never staying in one place for too long. Whenever he noticed a Spirit Repository cultivator appear, he would avoid them immediately.

Thus, not long after, Xu Qing finally approached the site where a war puppet was battling a Reaper. Being on the battlefield for a long time, Xu Qing also felt the difficulty faced by human cultivators. Because here, the deafening roar was far stronger than inside the golden net, and in its continuous echo, it slowly drowned out all other cries of agony. After a long while, both warring sides instinctively became deaf. Unable to hear the screams of others, nor their own wails.

After a person lost their hearing, two contradictory perceptions would overlap in their senses. On one hand, the battlefield seen by their eyes was infinitely vast and utterly brutal. On the other hand, in their own perception, it seemed infinitely small, because they couldn't hear anyone's voice. This state would make people more focused on killing, but similarly, it would also push their minds to the brink of collapse. Xu Qing saw many such people along the way, especially among the corpses. Some, at the moment of death, instinctively covered their ears, unwilling to hear the endless roar. This was true for humans, and also for the Saint Lan clan.

At this moment, beneath Xu Qing's feet, lay such a mangled corpse. After glancing at it, he silently withdrew his gaze and fixed his eyes on the battling Reaper and war puppet. Their battle was nearing its end, with the war puppet gaining the upper hand. Both sides were dozens of zhang tall; Fenghai Commandery's puppet was humanoid, while the Reaper resembled a mantis. They fought each other with extreme ferocity. Each strike either sent flesh and blood flying or caused the puppet to collapse into numerous fragments. The affected area was not small, and the combat power displayed had already surpassed the Nascent Soul stage, reaching the Spirit Repository level. Looking across the battlefield, among the tens of thousands of war puppets and Reapers, casualties were evenly split.

Soon, this battle, which had been ongoing for a long time, ended. Fenghai Commandery's war puppet finally blasted the Reaper apart, and after it disintegrated, the puppet itself did not pause, swiftly departing. Xu Qing immediately stepped forward, approaching a piece of the Reaper's flesh. Sensing the lingering aura within, he soon realized that it indeed contained Red Moon power, and it was noticeably denser than in the black snow. Xu Qing's eyes narrowed, just as he was about to sense it more carefully. But at this moment, a sudden drastic change erupted on the battlefield!

The Palace Master's voice, imbued with unprecedented solemnity, echoed across the battlefield.

"All legions of Fenghai Commandery, retreat immediately!!"

Almost the instant the Palace Master's words were uttered, the firmament changed color; an earth-shattering roar, surpassing the sound of all magical war artifacts in operation, surged from within the firmament's vortex. This sound was too immense, suppressing everything, making it seem as if the cultivators on both sides of the battlefield had regained their hearing.

Thump-thump!Thump-thump!Thump-thump!

A colossal sound, like a heartbeat, emanated from within the firmament's enormous vortex, reverberating through heaven and earth. At the same time, a colossal eye directly emerged from within that vortex. This eye was grayish-white, devoid of life, permeated by death. The moment it appeared, a dense aura of death spread outwards from within, enveloping the battlefield.

The next moment, this colossal eye surged outwards, immediately causing the already massive firmament vortex to be directly pushed open, and a crimson head flew out from within! It was not a human head, but the head of a red bird! Only the head, no body. The bird head's neck had a clean cut, as if it had been severed directly from its body by a sharp blade while still alive. And this bird head was too large; Qing Qin's body, by comparison, was vastly smaller, like a child next to an adult. It appeared above the battlefield, occupying more than half the sky. Within its dead eyes, there was a colossal imperial throne!

Seated upon it was a person. This person wore a flowing robe and an imperial crown, their face obscured by a beaded veil, making their appearance unclear. Yet, a sky-shattering aura of power, like a storm, swept out from them in all directions. And that terrifying bird head, upon closer look, was merely his imperial carriage.

The Saint Lan clan cultivators on the battlefield, one by one, watched this scene with excitement and bowed towards the firmament.

"Emperor!""Emperor!!"

Looking across the battlefield, countless Saint Lan clan members were all kneeling, their expressions filled with fanaticism.

At the same time, on the fourth defense line, the Palace Master's colossal illusory body, tens of thousands of zhang tall, emerged out of thin air, with feet on the earth and head touching the firmament. His entire being radiated terrifying killing intent, causing the surrounding sky to change color. The Sword-Holding Dao Bell floated on his left, emitting ancient chimes, while the colossal Emperor Sword materialized on his right, exuding world-shattering killing intent. Furthermore, behind him, the void twisted and rotated, forming a giant eye that gazed at the arriving Emperor.

"Old Ghost Hong Ling," the Palace Master spoke.

The arrival was none other than the Emperor of the Hong Ling Dynasty, one of the Saint Lan clan's Four Great Dynasties!

The distinctly divided battlefield saw a standoff emerge with the arrival of Emperor Hong Ling and the Palace Master of the Sword-Holding Palace. From a distance, the cutting sensation of the golden net was even clearer. Outside the golden net, stellar might surged, and divine souls enveloped the world. Inside the golden net, killing intent rose, and domineering aura shook the sky.

The pressure emanating from these two colossal figures filled the entire battlefield, affecting an entire state, causing countless lives within Linlan State to tremble at that instant, with a sense of dread emanating from the depths of their souls. Emperor Hong Ling and the Palace Master of the Sword-Holding Palace were truly too powerful; the mere clash of their gazes and the confrontation of their auras were enough to shake heaven and earth. In fact, upon closer inspection, one could even see countless shadowy small worlds appearing in the void between them at this moment. Like a phenomenon of heaven and earth. These small worlds, originating from each of them, were colliding in the firmament. Countless illusory figures flew out from within, engaging in fierce combat, and in this thrilling moment, small worlds were constantly collapsing. But more small worlds continued to form, and clearly, numerous small worlds from both sides were rapidly approaching a state of unification under these mutual bombardments.

The auras of both of them rapidly surged during this process. Although ultimately completing unification and forming an illusory great world was within the scope of their cultivation. Achieving this step, forming an illusory great world, represented the fourth stage of Return to Void. If, after unification, they could lift the illusory great world high, making it tangible and bearing it on their bodies, and then fuse their own divine souls with it, completely igniting it to become a true realm, that would be a true Realm Incarnation! Clearly, neither Emperor Hong Ling nor the Palace Master had reached this level yet; after all, there was a chasm-like gap between the fourth stage of Return to Void and Realm Incarnation, with only one in ten thousand succeeding! Even so, at the fourth stage of Return to Void, they were still considered overlords.

At this moment, under the collision of their respective worlds, the firmament shattered, black clouds disintegrated, and lightning transformed into scattered starlight. On the ground, only mighty figures from both sides who had reached the Spirit Repository cultivation level dared to look up at this moment. Below the Spirit Repository level, no one dared to cast their gaze upon the firmament. Occasionally, some bold individuals, or cultivators from either side who failed to withdraw their gaze in time, would instantly have their eyes bulge and explode upon seeing it, their bodies trembling and becoming bloody pulp, their forms and spirits annihilated.

Xu Qing only glanced once, and his mind was engulfed by huge waves, ceaselessly churning. His soul felt as if it was about to be torn apart, with bursts of sharp pain. However, his physical eyes fared slightly better. Xu Qing took a deep breath. He understood the reason for all this: his physical body was more resilient than his soul. So he took out the cyan crystal given by the captain, absorbing its power while rapidly retreating with the surrounding human legions towards the golden net.

The roaring sound echoing through heaven and earth at this moment surpassed all war artifacts on the battlefield, becoming deafening. The Saint Lan clan's army was clearly full of fighting spirit. Following the orders of their accompanying commander, a tidal wave of Saint Lan clan forces soon launched a charge towards Fenghai Commandery's human legions.

Heaven and earth changed color, and winds surged. As the human forces continuously retreated, Emperor Hong Ling's cold voice echoed from the firmament.

"Kong Liangxiu, if not for Fenghai Commandery's karmic fortune blessing, helping you gather the great world, you would not be my opponent."

"You, one of the four dignified Emperors of the Saint Lan clan, yet you lack the karmic fortune blessing of the Saint Lan Domain. Do you not know why?" the Palace Master retorted calmly.