Chapter 1652: The World in Chaos

The sky above the Sea of Myriad Ghosts was a murky gray, the seawater was black, and the surface was calm.

More than ten years ago, a breach in the seal of the Sea of Myriad Ghosts allowed countless ghostly entities to surge out, causing heavy casualties among immortal cultivators. Although the ten major sects of the South Sea quickly annihilated these specters, the Sea of Myriad Ghosts became increasingly desolate and rarely visited thereafter.

Ten thousand feet beneath the seabed, within a hidden cave, a mass of black mist hovered, from which faint, eerie wails could be heard.

After a while, the wails ceased, and the black mist dispersed, revealing Ye Haitang.

Ye Haitang's aura was significantly stronger than it had been over a decade ago; she had clearly advanced to the Mid-stage Nascent Soul realm.

Over ten years ago, Ye Haitang and Fairy Ziyue had jointly vanquished a Nascent Soul-stage ghost cultivator, acquiring numerous cultivation resources, including several bottles of pills that enhanced spiritual power. This significantly accelerated Ye Haitang's cultivation, as she would have otherwise required several more decades to reach the Mid-stage Nascent Soul realm.

Besides the power-enhancing pills, the unique environment of the Sea of Myriad Ghosts also greatly aided Ye Haitang's cultivation. Both factors were indispensable.

Fearing further attacks from cultivators of the Heavenly Azure Realm, Ye Haitang dared not cultivate on an island and could only hide and practice beneath the sea.

Masters from the Heavenly Azure Realm had launched a large-scale invasion, reportedly including twelve cultivators in the Transformation God realm. If these powerful cultivators were to personally lead an attack on the Sea of Myriad Ghosts, Ye Haitang cultivating on an island would be courting death.

Suddenly, an eerie wail emanated from Ye Haitang. She promptly retrieved a black-gleaming formation plate, which bore a white skull pattern with flickering runes on its surface.

She had set up a warning formation nearby.

With a muffled crack, the formation plate in Ye Haitang's hand shattered into pieces.

Soon after, the cave where Ye Haitang was located began to shake violently, and large amounts of debris tumbled from the rock walls.

Startled, Ye Haitang quickly moved to a simple stone chamber over a hundred feet wide, where a teleportation array was located.

She had long prepared an escape route; this teleportation array could transport her a hundred thousand li away.

Ye Haitang swiftly stepped onto the teleportation array and cast a spell.

The entire cave shook violently, and the teleportation array lit up with a dazzling spiritual light, engulfing Ye Haitang's figure.

Soon after, the spiritual light dispersed, and Ye Haitang vanished. The cave quickly collapsed, breaking into pieces.

On the sea surface, two men and two women were engaged in battle. Liu Xiuyun's expression was cold; in her hand, she held a shimmering green jade Ruyi scepter. With a gentle wave, a swirling emerald hurricane swept forth, heading straight for the opposing side.

Niu Kun gripped a gleaming red great axe. With each swing, dozens of crimson axe blades shot out after a piercing whoosh.

A young woman in a blue ruqun dress held a shimmering blue command flag, on which a lifelike blue whale was embroidered, exuding potent spiritual energy.

The girl in the blue dress had fair skin and an icy expression, with a blue jade hairpin adorning her hair.

As she waved the blue command flag, the seawater churned violently, raising a blue giant wave over a thousand feet high that shielded her.

A gaunt, hollow-eyed old man in a black robe stood atop a black cloud. Eighteen black-gleaming banners revolved ceaselessly around him, accompanied by an incessant chorus of ghostly wails and howls.

The Transformation God cultivators from the Heavenly Azure Realm sought to break the seal of the Sea of Myriad Ghosts. While the Transformation God cultivators from the Eastern Radiance Realm had long anticipated this, the Eastern Radiance Realm had too many areas to defend and could only prioritize the most crucial locations.

Four Transformation God cultivators clashed here, their battle generating continuous roars. Some small islands caught in the aftermath were utterly pulverized, disappearing without a trace.

On an island in the Golden Toad Sea Region, countless cultivators lay in pools of blood, and flames blazed skyward. In the void, a black hole several feet wide occasionally exhaled gusts of cold wind. This was a place where a large number of ghostly entities had once emerged before it was sealed.

Zhao Junlan and Song Yuzhen stood atop a steep peak, their expressions cold and faces slightly pale.

They were ordered to attack this stronghold, break the seal, and allow as many ghostly entities as possible to emerge, thereby depleting the strength of the Eastern Radiance Realm.

"Let's go!" said Song Yuzhen solemnly. "We still need to go in and open the seal inside. Hopefully, no powerful malevolent ghosts will rush out." She then soared into the black hole, with Zhao Junlan and Zhao Hengbin following closely behind.

In a remote mountain village in the Eastern Wilderness, a black hole several feet wide pulsed in the void, emanating gusts of cold wind.

Shen Haoran and over a dozen other cultivators stood on a low earthen mound, their expressions grim.

It was rumored that the Ghost Abyss connected to the Underworld Ghost Realm. A Nascent Soul-stage Ghost King had once emerged there but was quickly annihilated. There were dozens of entrances to the Ghost Abyss.

"Let's go in and take a look," Shen Haoran said. "Hopefully, there are no Nascent Soul-stage ghostly entities inside."

After speaking, Shen Haoran was the first to fly into the black hole, with the other cultivators following closely behind.

The Demon Suppressing Valley was located in the northwestern part of the Central Plains cultivation world. It was rumored to be a forbidden area where powerful demons were sealed.

Deep within the Demon Suppressing Valley, on a steep, verdant peak, numerous buildings dotted the landscape.

Inside a three-story azure pavilion, a scholarly Confucian in a green robe sat cross-legged on a meditation cushion. He exuded an aura of tranquility, his entire body enveloped in a white spiritual light.

The green-robed Confucian was named Zhou Huayuan, one of the five Nascent Soul cultivators guarding the Demon Suppressing Valley, with a cultivation level at the Late-stage Nascent Soul realm.

Suddenly, a tremendous roar echoed, the entire pavilion shook violently, and alarms blared.

Startled, Zhou Huayuan immediately flew out of his residence. High above, a mass of azure cloud over a hundred feet wide hovered, bearing over a hundred cultivators, led by Liu Jiaojiao and Zhao Hengbin.

"Kill them all, leave no one alive!"

Zhao Hengbin's face turned cold as he unleashed tens of thousands of silver beetles, which swarmed towards Zhou Huayuan.

Zhou Huayuan quickly summoned his magical artifact to defend, while other cultivators cast spells to retaliate.

For a time, continuous roars filled the air.

In the Northern Frontier, the Beixuan Mountain Range was located in the region's southeast and served as the main headquarters of Beixuan Palace.

Beixuan Palace was one of the ten major sects in the Northern Frontier, though it had fallen into decline. Chen Wu, its Palace Master, was a Mid-stage Nascent Soul cultivator.

Within the mountain gate of Beixuan Palace, battle cries echoed to the sky, amidst continuous roars.

Chen Wu stood on a steep peak, gazing at the sect consumed by flames, his face etched with sorrow.

A handsome man in a green robe floated in mid-air, his expression cold. This green-robed man was none other than Feng Xingzi.

"Palace Master Chen," Feng Xingzi said with a faint smile, "a wise bird chooses its tree to nest. Do you truly wish for Beixuan Palace's legacy to be severed?"

Chen Wu burst into laughter, his face contorted in a grim expression. "Beixuan Palace's legacy may be destroyed," he declared, "but we will never aid evil. Disciples of Beixuan Palace, heed my command: Today, it's us or them! Kill!"

"It's us or them! Kill!"

Feng Xingzi's face turned cold. "Since you are courting death," he said, "then I shall send you on your way."

His body flared with azure light, transforming into an azure tornado over a thousand feet tall. It swept towards Chen Wu, engulfing houses and vegetation, which were all shredded into powder.

A month later, news of the fall of Beixuan Palace's main headquarters spread throughout the Northern Frontier cultivation world. Everyone there felt endangered, and major forces swiftly bolstered their defenses.

Incidents soon occurred successively across the Eastern Wilderness, South Sea, Northern Frontier, and Central Plains. Forbidden areas sealing demons were breached by Heavenly Azure Realm cultivators, immortal cultivation families were attacked, and immortal cultivation sects were annihilated.

The strongholds of the Oriental Family and Beixuan Palace were attacked, suffering heavy losses.