Chapter 274: The Formation of Evil Qi

"You build cities incredibly fast," Meng Chuan praised.

Liu Qiyue smiled, "My Dark Star Domain, combined with the realm of fire, allows me to melt earth and rocks and reshape them. Any Marquis Godfiend can build cities even faster than me using their 'Seamless Domain'."

Meng Chuan nodded. The Seamless Domain was mysterious and enigmatic, possessing various incredible abilities. Despite his formidable physique, which was practically immortal, his divine powers, and his unparalleled speed, Meng Chuan estimated he could only rival an ordinary Marquis Godfiend. The more he understood, the more he realized how terrifying Marquis Godfiends were. Half of a Marquis Godfiend's power lay within their Seamless Domain.

Cold, heat, fierce winds, lightning...all could be conjured with a single thought within the Seamless Domain, almost like "speaking things into existence." Sins, grudges, lifespan...the Seamless Domain could detect them all. Even the power of the soul, once unleashed, could not escape the Seamless Domain's detection. As for its abilities in killing enemies, defense, and suppression, they far surpassed those of the Dark Star Domain.

"Our Great Zhou Dynasty only needs to build a few dozen cities, so building isn't the difficult part," Meng Chuan said. "The challenge is how to withstand the attacks of the demon monarchs."

"A million demon monarchs," Liu Qiyue said, a worried frown on her face. The thought of a million demon monarchs rampaging through the human world felt like a nightmare to everyone.

"Mount Yuanchu and Black Sand Grotto-Heaven, despite the situation, are still determined to build cities and protect mortals as much as possible," Meng Chuan explained. "This suggests they have a certain confidence. The secret will be revealed once the war begins."

"It must be kept secret," Liu Qiyue agreed. "In the past, some Godfiends colluded with the Skywolf Gate. If the news of a million demon monarchs invading the human world spreads, I fear more Godfiends might betray us."

While most Godfiends sided with humanity, people were diverse, and so were Godfiends. At such a critical juncture, a few betrayals were entirely predictable. Therefore, the true methods for countering the demon race naturally had to be kept secret. The fewer people who knew, the lower the chance of a leak. Even Meng Chuan was unaware, which indicated the high level of secrecy.

During the Lunar New Year, most people from the prefectures and counties had migrated to and settled in large cities, but there was little joy to be found. A piece of news had spread throughout the human world, growing wider with time, becoming a widespread topic of discussion among mortals.

That night, inside a residential courtyard in the outer city of Jiangzhou City.

"Our Great Zhou Dynasty and the Black Sand Dynasty have abandoned all prefectures and counties because they knew they couldn't defend them," a scrawny young man whispered among dozens gathered in the courtyard. "Before, when one or two demon monarchs slaughtered a county town, we mortals were slaughtered miserably. This time, a million demon monarchs are coming. I heard there are only just over ten thousand Godfiends in the entire world. How can they stop them? Can one Godfiend fight a hundred demon monarchs?"

"Are we truly unable to resist them?"

"But we are all in the capital city now."

The people around murmured, their hushed voices filled with concern about the demon monarchs and the looming threat of death—the matters that concerned them most.

"It's difficult," the scrawny youth shook his head. "Fear has set in before the battle even began. The Godfiends are scared and have retreated to the major cities. If a real fight breaks out, it's very likely we'll be defeated. Once defeated, we mortals will be like pigs and sheep, left for slaughter."

"We could hide in tunnels."

"The capital city has a huge population. If we hide in tunnels, powerful Godfiends will come to help."

"Foolish," the scrawny youth sneered. "In the past, we humans had powerful Godfiends to rescue us. This time is a true decisive battle. If there's a complete rout, where would the rescue come from? Without Godfiend rescue, the demon race will kill us all."

The people around him felt their hearts pound with panic.

"I did hear of a method that might help you survive if the demon race massacres us," the scrawny youth said, lowering his voice conspiratorially.

"What method?" Everyone around him looked at him intently.

"When facing a demon monarch, shout, 'I am a spy for the Skywolf Gate!'" the scrawny youth advised. "Perhaps you'll live. The Skywolf Gate is allied with the demon race, and the demons don't kill their own people."

"And the demon monarchs will just believe us?"

The scrawny youth scoffed, "With a million demon monarchs, how could they possibly verify every single person? Besides, I'm just offering a way to save your lives."

Boom!

The courtyard gate was suddenly kicked open. A young man, accompanied by several guards, rushed in, causing a stir among the people inside.

"Er Gouzi, what are you doing?" the scrawny youth yelled, his face changing dramatically.

The young man, "Er Gou," immediately pointed and declared, "It's him! He's inciting people to join the Skywolf Gate and spreading news about a million demon monarchs invading the human world!"

"Take him away!" Several guards immediately charged forward.

The people who had been listening avidly moments ago now dared not utter a sound or offer any resistance.

"I was just talking! I have nothing to do with the Skywolf Gate!" the scrawny youth cried out loudly. But the guards showed no mercy and took him away.

The young man, "Er Gou," then turned to his familiar townsfolk and announced loudly, "Uncles and aunts, I've served in the military for seven years and have seen many demon monarchs slain. In the past, when demon monarchs attacked our hometown county, didn't they ultimately flee in disarray? If the Godfiends couldn't stop them, why would they go through all the trouble of having us migrate here? Since grand cities are being built all over the world, it means they are definitely capable of stopping them."

"Furthermore, our human history spans tens of thousands of years. We've encountered many catastrophes before and managed to withstand them. These demon races shouldn't even dream of wiping us out!" the young man asserted.

"Yes, since they're migrating us everywhere, the Godfiends must have confidence."

"Exactly, Godfiends are much stronger. They can easily slay those demon monarchs. And building cities is so fast! Marquis Ningyue built a wall like a small mountain in half the time it takes to brew a cup of tea. I heard her husband, Marquis Dongning, is even more powerful and is also stationed in Jiangzhou City!"

Jiangzhou City's population now neared twenty million, a diverse mix of people, and arrests were made daily.

Under the cover of night.

Liu Qiyue returned to the Lakeside Pavilion of the Meng residence, where Meng Chuan was calmly painting in his study.

"You're back?" Meng Chuan looked up, smiling at his wife.

"Indeed, just as expected, the demon race has spread news far and wide, and it has now escalated to the point where too many people in the city are discussing it," Liu Qiyue said, shaking her head. "Although those actively spreading it have been arrested and thrown into prison, investigations by Godfiends showed that very few were actually sent by the Skywolf Gate. Most were merely repeating hearsay."

"Didn't Mount Yuanchu already set a plan for this?" Meng Chuan chuckled calmly. "Keep these people busy. If they're too tired from work, they won't have the leisure to gossip."

"What do you mean?" Liu Qiyue asked, looking at Meng Chuan.

"People are still migrating," Meng Chuan said. "With so many people, there's a need for new buildings—for example, new Dao academies and various government structures. These are massive construction projects. Godfiends can build quickly, but we can also let mortals do the work! First, it will keep them from having time to gossip. If someone still persists in spreading rumors under these circumstances, it's highly likely they are from the Skywolf Gate. Second, it allows these people to earn more money. The newly migrated people are quite anxious, likely due to the high food prices in the capital city."

Liu Qiyue nodded slightly. Those who could previously settle in prefectural or county cities generally had decent living conditions. However, the capital city's population was too dense, consuming an astounding amount of food daily, which led to higher food costs. With significant daily expenses, people naturally felt uneasy and anxious.

"Oh, by the way, Achuan, have you mastered your baleful aura?" Liu Qiyue asked.

"It should be tonight," Meng Chuan replied, still calmly painting.

Late at night, in a quiet chamber.

Meng Chuan sat cross-legged, a large bronze gourd placed before him. A terrifying aura permeated the air, as if the surrounding space itself were frozen, devoid of any fluctuation. Absolute coldness! It seemed to bring everything to a standstill. Even Meng Chuan's blood felt as if it would stop flowing, and the movement of particles seemed to freeze. Yet, Meng Chuan's powerful "undying realm" physique could completely withstand it.

Boom!

After nearly a year of cultivation, the baleful aura finally transformed from a quantitative accumulation into a qualitative change. Before, he had felt his body being corroded and frozen, relying on his life force to endure. But after the transformation, this terrifying "coldness" was no longer an enemy; it had become a part of him. Meng Chuan felt a pervasive coolness from the depths of his being, a refreshing sensation throughout his entire body. The refreshing feeling was very comfortable, and the fully transformed baleful aura circulated freely within him.

"It's done," Meng Chuan said, a look of delight on his face. "No one has ever mastered this level of baleful aura before. I can confirm its power surpasses those who cultivate 'Turbid Yin Baleful Aura' or 'Earth Extreme Cold Baleful Aura.' Among Marquis Godfiends, this is considered a top-tier baleful aura domain."

Not everyone could cultivate baleful aura; it depended on their Godfiend physique. For those with the Thunder World-Extinguishing Godfiend Body, baleful aura was a fundamental power of their physique from the very beginning of their Godfiend cultivation, which allowed them to refine it. Historically, Marquis Godfiends with the Thunder World-Extinguishing Godfiend Body had terrifying baleful aura domains. Meng Chuan's baleful aura domain was the absolute pinnacle among them!