Chapter 1133: Wasteland Heaven Should Stand

The Great Wilderness.

Night fell, and the desert wind was desolate. Inside the camp, at the mountain pass where days were scorching hot and nights were bitterly cold, Yang Jishan, from the Yang family of the Daoist Soldiers' Bureau, was discussing military matters by candlelight with his clan brother, Yang Jiyong, in their tent.

For nearly a century, the Southern Wilderness had been unstable. A few clans constantly rebelled, leading to endless warfare. Within the vast prefectures of the Great Wilderness, various Dragon Lords and Marquises held sway, each vying for power, engaging in continuous overt and covert struggles. The Daoist Court had always been able to suppress these conflicts and maintain stability. The Great Wilderness was also where the Daoist Court had deployed the most troops over the past ten thousand years. Their Yang family, in particular, sent almost every generation of disciples to train in the Great Wilderness, engaging in bloody battles with the rebellious barbarians.

That night, Yang Jishan and Yang Jiyong were discussing military intelligence and the day's barbarian movements. As they talked, Yang Jishan suddenly frowned, as if troubled by something. Yang Jiyong asked, "Brother, what's wrong?"

Yang Jishan pondered for a moment, then asked, "Did you notice anything unusual in the sky during the day?"

"Unusual?"

Yang Jishan nodded, "It looked like a flash of fire streaked across, and the horizon turned red—"

Yang Jiyong shook his head, "I didn't see anything out of the ordinary—"

Yang Jishan nodded gently, "Perhaps I'm just overthinking it." He silently thought that perhaps the recent hot weather, frequent barbarian activities, and mental exhaustion had caused him to hallucinate.

Yang Jiyong also said, "Brother, this border pass is a harsh place, hot and cold, and it'll take another ten or twenty years to achieve any significant merit. You should rest more and not wear yourself out."

Yang Jishan nodded, "You too. Work hard, and achieve the Core Formation stage soon."

Yang Jiyong smiled.

The two brothers discussed until midnight. Feeling tired, they each took a sip of strong liquor to warm themselves, then set aside their military texts and maps, wrapped themselves in blankets, and slept in their clothes. Yang Jiyong slept soundly and snored. Yang Jishan, however, felt uneasy and restless. The continuous snoring beside him made it even harder for him to sleep. Half-asleep, a sudden chill enveloped him. Years of life-and-death experience in military campaigns instantly jolted him awake, dispelling all drowsiness.

The night wind was still very cold. Yang Jishan donned his armor and slowly walked out of the tent. He looked up to see the profound darkness swallowing the moonlight. The mountains of the Great Wilderness stretched in undulating ranges like dark beasts, and the world felt vast and desolate. The night was exceptionally quiet. Yang Jishan breathed a sigh of relief. But moments later, his brows suddenly furrowed.

"It's too quiet—" Normally, at this time, the Three Thousand Great Wilderness Mountains would be filled with the chirping of insects, the cries of birds, and the roars of demons, and the night wouldn't be so deep. Unusual phenomena often indicate evil. Yet, the surroundings were empty and pitch black; there was clearly nothing there.

Yang Jishan quickly turned back into the tent, kicked Yang Jiyong's thigh, and said, "Something's wrong. Come with me."

Yang Jiyong, in a deep sleep, was roused by the kick. He stared with wide eyes, then seeing it was Yang Jishan, he suppressed his anger, patted his face, collected himself, and with renewed alertness, followed Yang Jishan out of the tent, asking in confusion, "Brother, what's happening?"

Yang Jishan said in a deep voice, "Something's off, but it's hard to explain—"

Yang Jiyong's expression also became serious. The two walked to the watchtower of the mountain pass. Looking out, they saw a dense darkness beyond the pass. Nothing was visible in the black of night. But neither of them was careless nor relaxed their guard.

Just then, a strong night wind blew, stirring up grass, trees, and sand, and revealing a shadowy trace in the darkness. This sight happened to fall into the eyes of both Yang Jishan and Yang Jiyong.

"A demon beast?" Yang Jiyong said, "It blends with the night. It looks like... a Ghost Night Wolf?"

Yang Jishan's gaze deepened, "Not a Ghost Night Wolf, it's—"

Yang Jiyong's pupils constricted, "Ghost Night Wolf soldiers!"

Ghost Night Wolves were savage demon beasts that hunted at night, their fur and aura blending into the darkness, allowing them to lurk and stalk prey like phantoms. Barbarian cultivators in the Great Wilderness hunted Ghost Night Wolves, stripped their hides to make armor, and used them for night raids. These were the "Ghost Night Wolf soldiers," appearing like specters. They were once one of the most treacherous and cunning "Barbarian Soldier" types of the Great Wilderness Royal Family. But with the fall of the Great Wilderness Imperial Court and the suppression of its forces, these "Wolf Soldiers" were banned by the Daoist Soldier Edict, forbidding any force in the Great Wilderness from raising them again. Yet now, at the pass guarding the Great Wilderness, Wolf Soldiers were launching a night assault—

Yang Jishan's face was grim. He instructed Yang Jiyong to rouse the Daoist soldiers and array them for defense. At the same time, he took out a bow made of beast sinew and horn, drawing it taut like a full moon. His gaze, sharp as a hawk's, searched for the ghostly figures invisible in the dark. As a gust of wind passed, a shadow wavered. Yang Jishan's eyes glinted. He shot an arrow that whistled with immense force, directly pinning a barbarian soldier to the ground in the night. Blood flowed in the darkness, and the scent of blood diffused, causing an unseen disturbance.

Yang Jishan had killed a Wolf Soldier with one arrow, but there was no hint of joy on his face. He knew this enemy attack was far from simple.

"Activate the illuminating fire array," Yang Jishan commanded after a moment of thought.

It was forbidden to light open fires in the Great Wilderness at night. The Great Wilderness was located in the southernmost region of the Nine Provinces, where the night was even deeper and as thick as ink. It was also a haven for demon beasts. Demon beasts loved the night and feared fire, yet they were easily attracted to its light. This was especially true for the various passes guarding the Great Wilderness. Once open fires were lit at night, the surrounding demon beasts would go mad, charging the passes.

But tonight was different; urgent circumstances called for exceptional measures. Above the pass, light circulated. A massive illuminating fire array condensed a beam of light that shot skyward. A brilliant streak of fire ascended from low to high into the sky. The surrounding darkness was gradually illuminated. As the fire light blazed, the scene below the pass slowly came into the eyes of Yang Jishan and Yang Jiyong. In an instant, their pupils dilated, their bodies were chilled to the bone, and their hearts sank like massive stones into an abyss.

Outside the pass, shrouded by night, was an uncountable horde of barbarian soldiers, densely packed, clad in beast armor, towering, savage, and ferocious-faced. As far as the illuminating fire array reached, they were countless. A barbarian army!

What shocked Yang Jishan and Yang Jiyong even more was that among this army, besides common barbarian soldiers and a small number of Ghost Night Wolf soldiers, there were numerous types of Great Wilderness troops that the Daoist Soldiers' Bureau had classified as "forbidden." Among them were even "Demon Cavalry," a species almost extinct in the Great Wilderness. Bloodthirsty barbarian body cultivators, with bodies like iron, rode powerful, almost untamable demon beasts to form "Demon Cavalry." They charged into battle, formidable and unstoppable. The Demon Cavalry of the Great Wilderness Royal Court was once one of the most terrifying barbarian elite forces. So much so that the Daoist Court had to dispatch the Dragon Imperial Guards, engaging in a century of slaughter, to almost completely eradicate the Great Wilderness's Demon Cavalry. Now, thousands of years later, the Great Wilderness's Demon Cavalry had been bred again.

Moreover, it wasn't just ordinary Demon Cavalry— The illuminating fire array briefly flashed. Most of the Demon Cavalry Yang Jishan saw were wolf riders, but some of the dragon-armored barbarian cultivators rode ferocious tigers as large as small mountains. Tigers were inferior to dragons. However, tigers were demon beasts, while dragons were divine beasts; for tigers to be compared with dragons clearly demonstrated their might and power. And this was only true for ordinary tiger demon beasts. In the legends of the Great Wilderness, there was talk of "Four Divine Beasts." The "White Tiger" was also one of these divine beasts. Therefore, some tiger demons in the Great Wilderness carried more or less the bloodline of the White Tiger, making them variants of divine beasts. Such demon beasts could also be called exotic beasts.

"Tiger Cavalry Demon Soldiers" were almost the strongest Demon Cavalry of the Great Wilderness Royal Court. And those capable of suppressing tiger demons and worthy of riding on their backs were, without exception, Dragon Lords, Marquises, or royal nobles who possessed the Great Wilderness Dragon Vein and were directly descended from the Great Wilderness Royal Court. Only the "dragon" bloodline could possibly suppress the "tiger." Therefore, the Great Wilderness Tiger Cavalry was also known as the "Great Wilderness Royal Army."

Looking at these terrifying tiger demons, each with a "King" character on its head and a body like a small mountain, and the royal "giants" three to four times the height of a man on their backs, Yang Jishan's face turned pale as he realized what had happened.

"The Great Wilderness... has rebelled—" This was not a localized disturbance but a complete rebellion. Tonight was not a "sneak attack" but a full-scale "assault." Yang Jishan's heart trembled.

The rebellion in the Great Wilderness was not unforeseen, but such considerations were always merely "what if" scenarios. No one expected it to actually happen. And it was happening right now, at this very moment.

Yang Jishan took a deep breath and, in as steady a voice as possible, said, "Light the signal fires to inform the surrounding passes— Send a message back to the Daoist Soldiers' Bureau, report the Great Wilderness rebellion, and request the deployment of Central Daoist Soldiers to suppress the traitors and quell the Great Wilderness. Also, send a message to the Yang family, so that our clan elders can make early preparations—"

Yang Jishan acted decisively. After giving these instructions, he drew his long spear, turned to Yang Jiyong, his expression a mix of complexity and resignation: "Our time to achieve great deeds has come."

Yang Jiyong looked at the dark, overwhelming, and despair-inducing barbarian army before them, and chuckled, "Brother, watch me slaughter these rebels, achieve fame and fortune, and enter the inner cabinet of the Daoist Soldiers' Bureau."

Yang Jishan gave a bitter smile. After a moment of silence, he sighed softly, "Don't die out there—"

Yang Jiyong's smile faded, his expression gradually turning serious as he said, "You too, Brother—you must live—"

After that, in the darkness of the night, a fierce tiger's roar shook the mountains. The barbarian army surged towards the pass like a flood. Leading the charge were the ghostly Ghost Night Wolf soldiers. These Wolf Soldiers were a sharp weapon for sneak attacks and breaching cities.

Above the pass, the guardian formation lit up, and vast spiritual energy flowed, grinding down the charging barbarian soldiers like a millstone of flesh and blood. The barbarian soldiers fought fearlessly. When one fell, another immediately took its place, ceaselessly rushing onto the ramparts, only to be pierced through the chest by the spears of the defending Daoist soldiers. Bodies fell to the ground. The barbarians behind them stepped on the corpses, continuing their assault on the city wall. At this moment, the Wolf Soldiers, blending seamlessly with the night, had already circumvented the city wall and began clashing with the Daoist Court's soldiers.

The brutal battle for the pass had begun. The Great Wilderness rebellion had officially commenced—

South of Lizhou, in a third-grade immortal city. Situ Xiu, with one sword thrust, pierced the chest of a sectarian cultivator who was shouting, "The Heavens are dead!" With a backhand, she pulled out her longsword and lopped off the arm of another rebellious cultivator. Her colleagues nearby were also suppressing the rebellious cultivators. However, the number of rebels was increasing. Some poor rogue cultivators were also mixed in. And some evil demonic cultivators were secretly fanning the flames. The situation was utterly chaotic, and the Daoist Court officials were "targets of public criticism."

Situ Xiu, as a Presider of the Daoist Court, felt helpless despite her willingness. This immortal city, Shaoshan City, suffered from corruption within the Daoist Court, and greedy local families colluded with each other, leaving rogue cultivators struggling to survive. As Presider, she wanted to help but lacked the power. If not for her birth into the Situ family and their protection, it would have been difficult for her to remain untainted in such a quagmire. Yet, she never expected this fragile balance to be shattered instantly.

During the day, a dragon's roar suddenly echoed from nowhere. It seemed to be a signal fire, which had reached them. Not long after, large-scale conflicts erupted. A small, previously unknown sect suddenly revolted, launching a surprise attack on the Daoist Court's office. After a battle, the Daoist Court's office was overrun, and many Presiders and Administrators were slaughtered. The Daoist Court's office was also burned to the ground. Destitute rogue cultivators, seeing this, also rushed into the various local noble families, killing and plundering. The entire Shaoshan City instantly turned into a sea of fire.

Situ Xiu wanted to suppress the rebellion but was utterly powerless. She could only gather with the disciples and elders of the Situ family, barely managing to protect themselves. But this was clearly not a long-term solution.

"Miss Xiu, let's return to the clan first. Shaoshan City has completely spiraled out of control—" A Situ family elder said grimly, "Staying here any longer will likely invite disaster."

Situ Xiu frowned, "What exactly happened?"

The Situ elder's expression was grave: "Judging by the situation, it seems 'traitors' have risen in rebellion, intending to defy the Daoist Court—"

Situ Xiu was shocked, "Who would be so audacious—"

The Situ elder shook his head, "Such a conspiracy is astonishing and horrifying. The mastermind behind it must be an extremely terrifying figure. It's best not to get involved with such individuals, or there might be a calamity leading to 'the destruction of our clan and family.'"

Situ Xiu nodded, agreeing deeply. Afterward, the Situ family party left Shaoshan City, traveling light without even carriages to avoid drawing attention. But only after leaving Shaoshan City did they realize that it wasn't just Shaoshan City that was in chaos, but the entire prefecture, and even most of Lizhou, had descended into disorder. Along the way, there were refugees and bandit cultivators everywhere. Battles were constant, and corpses littered the ground. Most immortal cities had experienced conflicts of varying scales. In some immortal cities, the Daoist Court's offices were overthrown, their Masters and Presiders killed, and rebellious cultivators gathered rogue cultivators, shouting, "The Heavens are dead! The Barren Heavens shall rise!" Many immortal cities directly sealed their gates, prohibiting all cultivators from entering or exiting. Amidst the instability, as far as the eye could see, it was already a prelude to a "turbulent era."

Meanwhile, the barbarian army from the Great Wilderness continued its advance like a flood, pushing northward from the south. The flames of war gradually spread from the Great Wilderness to Lizhou. The situation was deteriorating bit by bit. The appearance of the "Fire Star" (Mars) signaled a great disaster of war. Such omens were observed by the Daoist Court and many high-ranking cultivators across the Nine Provinces. The problem was that, being in high positions, they could only see the "premonitions" but not the specific circumstances. The Great Wilderness was remote, and Lizhou was impoverished, especially with many small, low-grade second and third-rank prefectures, making them relatively isolated. Many advanced communication methods were simply unusable. News from within these areas also traveled very slowly. Therefore, for a time, they were beyond reach, only able to plan and arrange as best they could, but anxiety was inevitable.

Qianxue Prefecture, Tai Xu Sect. Inside the Elders' Residence, Elder Xun looked at the maps of the Great Wilderness and Lizhou, his brows deeply furrowed. He had already given general instructions, but one matter still troubled him.

"The Fire Star fell in the south, disaster appeared in the Great Wilderness, and the Great Wilderness and Lizhou are connected. Mo Hua's hometown is in Lizhou, he wouldn't be affected, would he?" Elder Xun was still worried about Mo Hua. After a moment's thought, he couldn't shake his concern and decided to divine Mo Hua's safety. Elder Xun activated the Tai Xu Heavenly Mechanism Compass, connecting it to the Tai Xu Yin-Yang Lock. With a turn of the compass, the heavenly mechanism trembled, revealing eyes full of red light, fiery streams soaring, and a blazing sun. And between heaven and earth, a signal fire rose like a dragon—

Elder Xun immediately pressed down on the compass, daring not to divine further. He felt completely numb. It took him a long, long time to recover.

"It shouldn't—it couldn't be... could it?" "This child has been away from the sect for less than a year, and now—" Elder Xun's eyebrows twitched. He had previously felt heartache and regret for not keeping Mo Hua in the Tai Xu Sect. Now, he suddenly felt a touch of relief, glad that he had sent the child away. Otherwise, the Tai Xu Sect—

Elder Xun sighed deeply, murmuring bitterly, "I just hope this child, when he accomplishes some 'great deed' in the future, doesn't go around proclaiming the name of my Tai Xu Sect—"

Meanwhile, in Lizhou, inside a luxurious guest room of the Canglang Sect, Mo Hua was staring blankly at the "Dragon Banner" before him. He had already blown up the secret chamber. The Myriad Demon Dragon Markings had been erased. The altar had been completely destroyed. The moment the Dragon Banner lit up, Mo Hua knew he had done something "big" again. So, almost instantly, he conceived the idea of "destroying all traces," blowing the entire secret chamber into ash, and then scattering the ash, completely severing this karmic tie on a material level. The only problem was this "Dragon Banner" inscribed with "The Heavens are dead; the Barren Heavens shall rise."

Mo Hua was at a loss as to what to do. If he destroyed it, he might desecrate a "treasure" of the Great Wilderness, stir up its karma, and incur its enmity. If he kept it, it would be tantamount to carrying a "rebel banner" with him. And this Dragon Banner might even be the very first "rebel banner" to sound the "rebellion" horn for the Great Wilderness, making it profoundly "significant." He himself would become the Daoist Court's "Number One Traitor."

Mo Hua was filled with regret now. Deep regret. This karma thing was too treacherous. He never expected that by merely observing a karmic tie based on some clues, he would end up lighting the Great Wilderness's rebellion banner? Was the Great Wilderness's rebellion banner really that easy to light? Mo Hua felt speechless. The Great Wilderness people were all "incompetent"; how could they be so careless? For something as major as "rebellion," couldn't they have hidden it a little better? If only they had hidden it a bit more deeply, this unfortunate karmic consequence wouldn't have fallen on him. He wouldn't have, for no reason, become the Daoist Court's "number one rebel."

The more Mo Hua thought about it, the angrier he got, but anger wouldn't solve the problem. He could only sigh resignedly and put the Barren Heaven Dragon Banner into his storage ring.

"Since it's already lit, I might as well keep this banner—" Anyway, the storage ring his master gave him was a treasure itself, with the ability to "isolate karma," so it shouldn't reveal the secret. "As long as I don't tell anyone, no one should know I'm a 'rebel'—"

Mo Hua nodded, then couldn't help but mutter to himself: "Speaking of which, did Master foresee that I would cause a lot of trouble back then, which is why he gave me this storage ring?" Master was truly Master. Mo Hua sighed, feeling emotional.

Now, he couldn't stay at the Canglang Sect any longer; he had to leave as soon as possible. However, with the Great Wilderness rebellion and the spreading war, the road ahead would likely be much more difficult...