It took more than a thousand South Heaven Gate garrison troops, plus the combined efforts of Kings Northmore, Virūḍhaka, and Broad-Eyes, to finally extract Belle Whitebone from the mob of Daoists. The chaos sparked by this operation nearly spiraled out of control.
If not for the Dragon Kings’ guards being fully armed, even they might have been swept up in the turmoil.
The Celestial Army was defeated, the mighty ones suffered setbacks, and South Heaven Gate was sealed tight by a single demon monkey. The order of Heaven and Earth itself had already unraveled.
After ten thousand years of demon-hunting wars, the hatred between demons and humans had always run deep—but perhaps only now had that hatred reached an unprecedented peak.
Because the roles had been reversed. After so many years of dominance, this species had finally been knocked from its pedestal.
Only at this moment did humanity truly grasp the threat posed by demons. Their former scorn and contempt had transformed utterly into hatred and terror.
Just beyond the wall at South Heaven Gate, the monkey’s bombardment continued. His abyssal eyes had now sprouted black, root-like lines, crawling across the corners like plant tendrils.
In that instant, his face was twisted with nothing but ferocity; his mind had long since emptied, leaving only the obsession to break through South Heaven Gate and reach the Thirty-Three Heavens. Yet, even as his blows flattened the clouds above, the solid South Heaven Gate Grand Formation showed not a single crack.
Every action was futile.
……
The attendant blinked dazedly, taking a long moment to recover before bowing low. "As you command, Master," he said.
With that, he spun around and hurried out, nearly tripping over the threshold as he left.
"Is it really appropriate to let the Jade Emperor know...?"
"What would be inappropriate? Sooner or later, everyone will know. There's nothing left to hide..."
"How much cultivation do you have left now?"
Lord Lao gazed blankly at the few remaining fragments of the Heavenly Dao Stone floating overhead and sighed. "At best, I am now like a Celestial Adept on the Sage's Path. Once the mighty Lord Lao, now reduced to this—if word gets out, they'll laugh at me. What pains me most is that I can no longer fulfill a promise I made to a little girl."
"What promise?"
"To protect that monkey... and to hang a strand of windchimes outside his window."
Zhenyuan slowly shook his head and smiled helplessly.
...
Outside South Heaven Gate, Monkey had fallen completely into a trance of erupting baleful qi and obsessive intent, pounding the barrier again and again with futile force. Between Heaven and Earth, only that monotonous echo and the relentless crackle of lightning remained.
Beneath him, all of the mortal realm was stirring with the wind.
...
In a narrow mountain gorge, a bird landed in its nest on the cliffside, feeding its hungry chicks.
Suddenly, a gust of wind streaked by, tinged with golden light, startling the entire nest of birds.
Then came a second, a third, a fourth gust in quick succession.
Within the narrow gorge, tens of thousands of Buddhist disciples advanced in absolute silence. Their pace was perfectly controlled, making not a single sound. Seen from afar, they formed a golden river flowing toward Blossom Mountain.
...
Inside Ten Thousand Demons Hall, the Nine-Headed Wyrm said to Shortbeak, "The Great Sage's command is for us to hold Blossom Mountain to the death."
"Hold Blossom Mountain to the death?" Shortbeak frowned and glanced at King Macaque beside him. "Have you seen the Great Sage yet?"
"I have," King Macaque nodded.
"The Great Sage wants us to defend Blossom Mountain to the death... But what exactly are we defending? Heaven's armies are trapped inside South Heaven Gate. Who are we supposed to guard against?"
"Against everyone."
"What do you mean? Is someone planning to attack Blossom Mountain?"
The Nine-Headed Wyrm replied slowly, "Announce martial law immediately: no one leaves Blossom Mountain without military orders."
All the demon generals present were stunned.
"What do you mean by this?"
"I mean we must preserve our strength. If we scatter now, we'll lose all our bargaining chips. This is part of defending to the death. No matter what, we must hold out to the end! That... is also the Great Sage's command!"
At those words, all the demon generals bowed and declared, "We will obey the Great Sage's command!"
Before Shortbeak could issue orders, several generals had already rushed out the hall to begin the lockdown.
...
At Crescent Star Cave, Skylar Loft led his disciples swiftly along the mountain path, skirting the protective formation, heading toward the hovering demon fleet.
A disciple burst into the Hall of Silent Meditation, reporting, "Master Sage Subhuti, Uncle Sky Loft has already left with all the Cloudrise Pavilion disciples!"
"Eighth Brother has left?"
Several senior brothers immediately rose to their feet.
"Sit down," Subhuti said sternly, slamming his teacup. He pointed at the disciple and ordered, "Send word to him immediately—if he leaves now, he is no longer a disciple of Crescent Star Cave!"
Everyone present looked at Subhuti in shock and fear.
"Master, do you really mean to expel Eighth Brother from the sect?" Elder Stillwater asked quietly.
The chapter is not yet finished~.~ Please click the next page to continue reading the exciting content ahead!
"As I have said before, you do not need to take part in this struggle... Besides, even if you do, the outcome will be the same—nothing will change."