Chapter 655: Acting Heir Emerges

Time flew by, and half a month passed.

As God Child lairs erupted across various regions, the situation in the Rite Moon Grand Territory worsened. The Fourth Hall Master's forces suffered a major defeat, and this news spread rapidly. For a time, the morale of other resistance forces, led by the Vice Hall Masters of the Anti-Moon Palace, was low. Everything seemed devoid of hope; the burning spark appeared to be nothing more than the final glimmer of their own lives.

Only the Great Desert stood out increasingly in this situation. Due to the presence of the Heir, not only did legends from Mount Kusheng consider the Clay City a holy land, but all resistance forces from outside also regarded the Great Desert as such. Consequently, almost every day, people would journey towards the Great Desert from all directions. They wished to enter, to join, and to find true resistance.

However, the Red Moon Divine Temple's blockade also intensified. Yet, during this period, some unexpected events occurred: mysterious powerful individuals descended, causing the blockade to collapse. Meanwhile, Ancestor Hei Gui was appointed by the Heir to lead a large number of Great Desert cultivators to the edge of the desert to receive newcomers. Although the winds of the Great Desert usually prevented outsiders from entering, these winds were, after all, a result of the Captain's prior negotiation. Given the Heir's cultivation and status, he was qualified to be an ally with the exalted deity Moonflame. Therefore, after he transmitted his divine sense into the winds, the winds here granted him authority. They ceased to completely block all entrants, instead only targeting Red Moon cultivators. As a result, with the influx of resistance cultivators from the Rite Moon Grand Territory, the Great Desert's influence expanded almost daily.

All cultivators who joined the Great Desert forces were excited upon arrival. However, knowing they lacked the qualification to meet the Heir, they did not disturb the medicine shop. Instead, they merely paid homage towards Mount Kusheng. Inside the medicine shop, there weren't many changes; Ning Yan, Wu Jianwu, and others continued as usual, as did Ling'er, Li Youfei, and You Jing. Only Xu Qing spent most of his time within the small world fragment. For the past month, he had been almost entirely in the small world fragment. He clearly understood that time was running out. Both the current external situation and the gradual approach of the Red Moon Star indicated one thing: The Trial of Life was imminent. Therefore, Xu Qing had wasted no time over the past half-month, immersing himself in refining and hatching the God Children.

The "oil" that the Captain needed was actually the blood of these God Children, imbued with chaos and madness. Now, within this small world, the glaciers had long melted, and the land was covered in black earth, littered with countless broken eggshells and an endless expanse of God Children. However, in the sky, a purple moon had risen, emitting the power of the Red Moon's authority. It enveloped this world, providing conditions for God Child hatching while also imposing control. On the ground, all the God Children were lying there, covered in numerous wounds from which their blood flowed, gathering into a massive fingerprint-like depression in the ground, forming an "oil" lake. This process was relatively smooth. Although there were too many of them, and occasionally a God Child would lose control, Xu Qing would immediately suppress them. As for their wounds, they had been self-inflicted under the influence of the authority. The continuous flow of blood steadily weakened these God Children until they withered and died. Whenever this happened, Xu Qing would throw the corpses of the deceased God Children to the others for consumption, thereby obtaining even more blood.

During this time, Xu Qing also visited the Anti-Moon Palace several times, introducing the God Children's blood into the gate of the highest temple. This blood was indeed effective; as it was absorbed, the Mother's totem visibly trembled, and the fires of hope from various temples within the Anti-Moon Palace burned with greater intensity. The Mother's totem's absorption gradually transformed into a devouring of fire, and the totem itself also began to burn. Under this combustion, the totem showed signs of blurring, and the Captain's frenzy intensified, gnawing rapidly.

"Little Ah Qing, there's not enough oil yet! Get more, make this fire even bigger!"

"Hope is within reach! As long as we burn away the Mother's seal, this great gate can be pushed open. When that happens, we will be the masters of the Anti-Moon Palace!" The Captain was elated, gnawing while transmitting his divine sense.

"The Mother will arrive in at most nine or ten months, judging by the speed of the Red Moon Star," Xu Qing said softly.

"That's why I'm in a hurry!" The Captain bit down hard. "Little Ah Qing, almost all my preparations are complete. Now, only two steps remain. The first step is this Anti-Moon Palace. Once we succeed, I can use the Anti-Moon Palace to instantly sense all the scattered flesh and blood of my past life. I can already sense a portion of it now. At that time, coupled with our previous arrangements, we will possess the power to destroy the Red Moon Divine Temple. Once the Divine Temple is destroyed, we can enter the Plains of Repentance, where the Sovereign's physical body resides. This body is our final, crucial step in dealing with the Mother!"

Xu Qing nodded. "I'll extract more of this 'oil' outside. It might take some time, but it should be enough."

The Captain was thrilled to hear this. "Haha, I'm so excited! Little Ah Qing, our journey to the Rite Moon Grand Territory is nearing its end. I've planned to devour a deity for so many years, and now it's finally going to happen! Just imagine, that's the Mother! If we devour her, this news will surely spread throughout Fengjun, across the Human Race Grand Territory, and throughout the continent of Wanggu! By then, what are the Dark Sky Race? Trash! The Human Emperor might even be courteous when he sees us. The old man will probably drop his jaw when he sees us two! This is the true great deed, the one that will make us famous throughout Wanggu! It's a feat unprecedented since the advent of deities! And once we're done, the title of Fengjun Prefect will no longer be worthy of you. We'll have higher goals!"

It must be said that the Captain had some talent in inspiring others.

As Xu Qing listened to the Captain's words, scenes from Feng Hai County flashed in his mind: Seventh Master, Zixuan, the Seven Blood Eyes, and everything in Feng Hai County. This gave him a sense of unreality. Although he hadn't been in the Rite Moon Grand Territory for very long, just a few years, it felt as though countless ages had passed. Xu Qing understood that this feeling stemmed from the many significant experiences he had undergone in the Rite Moon Grand Territory, as well as from the leap in his cultivation. "Master, I miss my master," Xu Qing said softly.

"Soon!" The Captain snapped back triumphantly. "We'll be back very soon!"

Xu Qing nodded and left the Anti-Moon Palace. Over the past half-month, his other identity within the Anti-Moon Palace gained even greater renown with the outbreak of war. All of this was due to the Curse-Reducing Pill. Although he lacked the necessary materials to create a pill that reduced curses by 50% in reality, his clear thinking process and the Eye of Poison Ban allowed him to reduce curses by 30%. Permanently reducing curses by 30% caused a sensation within the Anti-Moon Palace, even during wartime. Such a pill was truly a lifesaver for countless cultivators. War inevitably brought casualties. Injuries would cause curses to erupt within their bodies, and engaging Red Moon cultivators in battle could also trigger curses. Furthermore, the approaching Red Moon Star would make curses more active. At such a time, a pill that reduced curses by 30% was a sacred artifact, almost bringing those afflicted by curse outbreaks back from the dead! His followers, in particular, were incredibly excited. Moreover, Xu Qing's pills no longer required cultivators of the Anti-Moon Palace to meet specific conditions; they were essentially provided for free. As a result, the name Dan Nine reached the peak of renown within the Anti-Moon Palace. His fame had long spread beyond the Anti-Moon Palace, becoming renowned among the resistance forces of the Rite Moon Grand Territory. Even some cultivators who were not part of the Anti-Moon Palace were very familiar with the name "Master Dan Nine." Consequently, speculations about Master Dan Nine's identity grew. Some said he was from an outer domain, others that he was a reclusive powerful expert, and some even suggested he might be a senior from the Heir's generation. Various theories emerged endlessly. Even several Vice Hall Masters of the Anti-Moon Palace had left messages for Xu Qing within the Anti-Moon Palace, expressing extreme politeness and inviting him to join their faction, offering all sorts of benefits. They even promised that if Dan Nine agreed, powerful experts would immediately go to any location (as long as it wasn't the Red Moon Divine Temple) to escort him. Among them, the Fourth Hall Master, who had witnessed Xu Qing and Grandmaster Saint Luo releasing pills, was the most persistent, leaving messages at Xu Qing's temple every few days with utmost sincerity. But Xu Qing did not respond. Until the name of Mount Kusheng as a holy land spread, another speculation about Dan Nine emerged. Some analyzed that he must be in Mount Kusheng, as only such a peaceful haven, free from war, would allow someone to safely refine pills. However, speculation was just speculation; no one knew the specifics. It was precisely this mystery that made Dan Nine's name a sensation. Simultaneously, his followers spontaneously organized themselves, led by his large neighbor, and while promoting the master's reputation, they also gathered all information about him, hoping to find his location and unite around him to protect him.

One day, just as Xu Qing emerged from the small world, he received a telepathic message from the Heir. "Xu Qing, a Vice Hall Master from the Anti-Moon Palace, is nearing the Great Desert's outer boundary with his faction's cultivators, pursued by Red Moon cultivators. Take the jade slips containing one strike each from me and Third Sister, go meet them, and while you're at it, take some of those little chicks from the backyard for a walk. They're eating every day and getting too fat." As he spoke, three jade slips appeared out of thin air before Xu Qing. They emitted fluctuations of divine essence, and one of them was for controlling the little chicks. Xu Qing nodded upon hearing this, put away the jade slips, and went to the medicine shop's backyard, calmly looking at the little chicks. There were many powerful beings among them; the weakest were Nascent Soul cultivators, several were Spirit Accumulation, and there were even four Return to Void cultivators. Some were from the Yin-Yang Flowery Sect that had come here previously, while others were caught by Fifth Grandmother from an unknown location. Xu Qing was also unaware of their origins.

"Which of you wishes to atone for your past deeds and prove your worth?" Xu Qing asked indifferently.