Chapter 1294: Releasing Oneself

A wave of cold permeated from their scalps down to their spines, spreading throughout their bodies and raising goosebumps.

Everyone on the three-way battlefield was terrified. The words and actions of those two tall, withered creatures were truly horrifying; it was as if two more "Number Nines" had appeared.

And from what they said, there seemed to be a "Number Two" as well!

Had the tide of battle turned by now? This stirred up a storm in everyone's hearts: had the First Mountain completely turned the tables?

The scene was deathly silent. Moments ago, everyone believed the First Mountain would be completely massacred and razed to the ground. How could they have foreseen such a rapid reversal of fortune?

On the battlefield, many people, after a moment's thought, felt their hair stand on end and their scalps tingle.

Jie Ming of the Four-Calamity Sparrow Clan, the disrespectful driver from Chaos Abyss, and others were now all horrified, feeling that something terrible was about to happen. Were they about to be massacred instead?

They came from forbidden zones and knew a great deal, yet they were now seized by terror.

Wasn't it said that the First Mountain always had a single heir throughout its generations? Back then, there was only Li, and in this era, there seemed to be a Cao De, but he was merely a seed.

By extrapolation, the First Mountain should have a sparse population!

Now, what did they see? Two more old figures had appeared. Who exactly were the hunters?

At this moment, Jie Ming, the servants from Chaos Abyss, and others all looked grim, feeling as uncomfortable as if they had eaten two pounds of dead rats, and were simultaneously anxious and worried.

The situation had reversed. The First Mountain had deliberately lured enemies to its doorstep, intending to hunt them down instead.

They began to worry. Their own esteemed elders had entered; would they be trapped inside, unable to escape?

Moreover, the thought of powerful beings from the forbidden zones having their thighs torn off as food by several withered, demon-lord-level creatures instantly sent shivers down their spines.

On the battlefield, many people were speechless and deeply terrified, their hearts pounding wildly. The First Mountain was usually too low-key, only at critical moments did it open its jaws wide and reveal its fangs!

A single "Number Nine" had already psychologically traumatized Celestial Venerable Chi Xu and Old Ancestor Silver Dragon. Now, "Number Three" and "Number Six" had appeared, along with the potential "Number Two."

At this moment, the area of their psychological shadows directly approached infinity!

The appearance of creatures from a sequence was truly earth-shattering; if they all emerged, massacring various regions would be absolutely no problem.

At this moment, whether it was the Nine-Headed Bird Clan, the Dragon Clan, or any beings hostile to Chu Feng, they all trembled, their insides collapsing.

Divine King Chifeng, the Three-Headed Divine Dragon Yun Tuo, and others all turned pale, thoroughly frightened.

Having personally experienced the horrifying ordeal of being treated as food by "Number Nine," no one could understand their feelings; they would never forget it in this lifetime.

"Heh heh..."

Now, only Chu Feng could manage a laugh. He was incredibly happy, smiling like a blooming flower bud, which particularly annoyed the creatures from the forbidden zones.

"I already told you, the one I invited out was Master Nine. Why didn't you think a little more? There must be eight more like him who love eating thighs."

He laughed joyfully, fresh and radiant, showing a mouthful of white teeth.

These words made everyone's hair stand on end. There were really eight more creatures similar to "Number Nine"? A group of people felt as if they were suffocating!

People simply couldn't believe their ears. It seemed that the First Mountain was the great white shark, the dragon shark. Was it hungry? It set up a trap to lure groups of people to their deaths.

Seeing Cao De's mouthful of white teeth and his joyful laughter, the creatures from the forbidden zones were so disgusted they wished they could give him a Fan Tian Seal to knock out all his teeth.

At the same time, they didn't fully believe Chu Feng's words.

Just because he was called "Ancestor Nine," did that mean there were really eight other ancestors? Other clans had ancestors called "Ancestor Thirty-Six" or "Ancestor Forty-Three." Could everyone from the same generation really survive and grow to such a peak level?

Especially since creatures from the forbidden zones always believed that the First Mountain should have a single heir.

Although the First Mountain would widely recruit various heaven-gifted talents in certain eras, according to the major forbidden zones, those people would end up miserably, with no good outcome.

In the end, only one seed could live for a long time.

For example, Li was a success.

As for Cao De, he was just one of the widely recruited disciples; his future outcome might be too tragic to behold.

Anyone associated with this lineage would encounter strangeness and ill fortune.

This was also one of the reasons why creatures like Jie Ming from the forbidden zones treated Chu Feng with disdain.

"Cao De," Jie Ming said, "the true power of the First Mountain is not for you to decide. If our ancestors emerge, even if they don't massacre that place this time, they can still retreat unscathed."

Jie Ming spoke. It was clear that his attitude and tone were no longer as assertive as before; he was genuinely feeling guilty and worried for the elders of the Four-Calamity Sparrow Clan.

Chu Feng smiled and said, "Actions speak louder than words. I think a grand feast is currently underway inside the First Mountain; rare blood-food from the forbidden zones of the Yang Realm will probably trigger a carnival."

Upon hearing this, everyone's hair stood on end, and they felt deeply disturbed.

Creatures from forbidden zones represented terror, invincibility, and the massacre of lands. Now, they were actually to become someone else's... blood-food?

Every time they imagined that scene—several old men, like Number Nine, gathered together, their mouths covered in blood, their teeth gleaming chillingly, feasting on the forbidden zone creatures—it sent shivers down their spines.

Just then, an unusual phenomenon appeared at the First Mountain. It was as if blood-red light surged into the sky, and the firmament exploded. A vast blood-red light pierced through heaven and earth, staining the starry sky crimson, as a figure rushed out.

Then, darkness fell upon the area again. It was as if two boundless, demon-lord-level beings stretched out their withered hands, each grabbing at the thigh of the creature in the sky.

Finally, from below, an enormous, blood-red maw, so vast it was more terrifying than a black hole, seemed poised to devour the entire cosmos, swallowing all the starlight.

Together, they blocked the creature's escape.

With a thunderous roar, countless order runes instantly transformed into chains, sealing the firmament and forcing the creature back inside the First Mountain.

The blood-red light vanished. Heaven and earth were plunged into darkness for a moment, utterly devoid of light, before finally returning to normal.

Everyone held their breath, staring towards the First Mountain, filled with dread. Their spirits were shattered; what was happening there was simply too terrifying.

Was that creature a powerful being from a forbidden zone? It couldn't even break free, forced back into the battle.

This scene was soul-stirring!

Many people believed that the First Mountain had indeed become proactive. Were they about to begin a bloody feast?

On the three-way battlefield, whether it was Celestial Venerable Qi Rong, Hao Yuan and others, or those from the Hezhou and Zhanzhou camps, everyone's emotions fluctuated wildly.

As for Jie Ming of the Four-Calamity Sparrow, the driver from Chaos Abyss, and others, they all turned pale and were speechless. They were no longer so arrogant. Having witnessed the horrifying scene just now with their own eyes, they all fell silent.

Chu Feng had Celestial Venerable Yu Shang by his side, and he felt very at ease now.

"Do you know why Ancestor Nine rushed back to the First Mountain? Because all the edible blood-food had entered, and he was afraid the other ancestors would gobble it all up."

Chu Feng became increasingly relaxed, even letting himself go a bit. He strolled around with his hands clasped behind his back, nodding to some and greeting others.

Divine King Chifeng, Jie Ming, and the others were utterly disgusted because Chu Feng strolled up to them and even patted their shoulders. Was this a provocation?

But looking at him, he actually had a look of eerie sympathy on his face. Was this a superior offering condolences, or was he consoling the vanquished?

Jie Ming of the Four-Calamity Sparrow, the creatures from Chaos Abyss, and others all felt as if they had eaten several dead children, feeling even worse than before.

They truly wanted to swing a slap and smear it across his face; that eerie sympathetic and consoling expression was simply too provoking.

However, with Celestial Venerable Yu Shang holding the line right beside Cao De, none of them dared to make a move, their faces stiff.

Actions speak louder than words. Their ancestors had suffered defeat, and the First Mountain was unfathomable. Overall, the other side was indeed the victor, and they had suffered a terrible defeat.

At this moment, Chu Feng was indeed letting himself go a bit, "consoling" everyone he passed, patting the shoulders of victims and vanquished alike.

Yun Tuo, Kun Long, and Divine King Chifeng were one thing, but he even reached for the shoulders of Celestial Venerable Chi Xu and the Twelve Silver Dragon Ancestors, nearly patting them twice.

But thankfully, he hadn't completely let loose and eventually pulled back his hand.

At the same time, after "consoling" Jie Ming and the others, he then extended his hand towards the direct descendants of the clan, such as Jie Wuliang, the core bloodline of the Four-Calamity Sparrow Clan.

Especially at the end, after patting the shoulders of those from Chaos Abyss and seeing their numb expressions, he then reached out to pat the shoulder of their clan's young lady.

This naturally stirred up a hornet's nest. The stunning beauty Yi Yu from the forbidden zone had a frosty expression on her delicate face. Blue lines appeared on her peerless countenance, a sparkling red mole in the center of her forehead glowed, fragments of law circulated, and killing intent surged!

Everyone stared at Chu Feng, utterly petrified.

Not to mention others, even Jie Wuliang of the Four-Calamity Sparrow Clan and the Fat Silkworm from Silkworm Valley were speechless, their faces twitching. He dared to touch and pat the shoulder of a woman from Chaos Abyss, one of the most terrifying forbidden zones in the world. This Cao De truly was...

Yi Yu's face was cold as she said, "Do you really think we've been defeated? What are forbidden zones, how do they command the world, and why can they endure for eternity? Even if heaven and earth are destroyed, our clan will still exist. Without profound foundations, without backup plans, how could we co-exist with the world for so long!"

Chu Feng's expression changed. He had long sensed that even though creatures like Jie Ming from the forbidden zones had turned pale, core bloodlines like Jie Wuliang and Yi Yu from the world's most perilous forbidden zones remained calm. This was naturally strange, which was why he provoked them, wanting to find out the truth.

Now, he had indeed heard bad news.

"Although there have been surprises today," Yi Yu said calmly, "the outcome is far from decided!"

"Is that so?" Chu Feng began, just about to say something, when the First Mountain rumbled violently, and countless Great Dao symbols bloomed, like stars in the cosmos appearing and arranging themselves densely, causing heaven and earth to tremble violently, emitting a grand sound of Dao convergence.

The starry sky dimmed and trembled incessantly.

At this moment, the internal situation of the First Mountain was indeed very serious. The creatures from the forbidden zones were like demon venerable beings who had walked out of a previous epoch. Blood-red light, like a sea, engulfed the area, and everything visible was scarlet, only their vague outlines could be seen.

These beings were too terrifying. Each stood on one side, as if towering in the age of creation. Their bodily energy surged, their aura immense. As their true forms materialized, heaven and earth cracked, on the verge of destruction!

"Do you few really want to continue?" a creature said coldly. "Our clan will still exist even after heaven and earth perish. Are you certain you want to fight to the death?"

A creature spoke coldly and mercilessly there, without the slightest emotional fluctuation, standing on the blood-red plateau within the First Mountain, its divine might unparalleled!

As his hair fluttered, the void itself was torn apart.

Number Nine was now serious. He held a large banner, standing at the edge of the earth, confronting them from a distance. His demeanor was completely different from when he was with Chu Feng and the others.

Now, he exuded authority without anger, like a great demon venerable lord descending. Immense energy flames soared, and behind where he stood, a massive Yin-Yang diagram slowly revolved, suppressing the world!

Number Nine said coldly, "For so many years, you've cautiously sought, carefully probed, even resorting to honey traps. Wasn't it all to uncover that legend, that era, that person from us? Since you've come today, don't leave! All of you, stay!"

When he mentioned that legend, that era, and that person, the interior of the First Mountain rumbled and trembled, and even the smooth, severed sections seemed to stir with ripples and roars.