Chapter 27: Chapter-25
Everything happened in fast after that as Long Chen and his friends cleared thousands of disciples from the Corrupt Path with no casualty, rescuing many commoners/mortals and also visiting The Phoenix Cry Empire and the others nations in alliance to Phoenix Cry Empire where the entire Bloodnet Sect that headed for destroying the Phoenix Cry Empire had been massacred by the army led by Long Chen's father, Grand Marshall Long Tianxiao, as well as Long Chen's master, Pill Emperor Yun Qi.
After meeting his father, mother, master, master's wife and father-in-law for a while, Long Chen headed to the final position where the last war was going to take place. On their way, Long Chen met Elder Hua Yu from Skywood Palace as well as various disciples and especially Chu Yao and Xiao Hua were the ones whom Long Chen, his Lovers as well as sworn brothers and sisters from Dragon Blood Legion wanted to meet and the most excited one was Chu Feng who had missed his sister a lot.
After some greetings and lovey short talk everyone headed to the final destination and with Long Chen as well as the entire Dragon Blood Legion clearing up all the disciples of Corrupt Path on their way, everyone from Skywood Palace was shocked to see the strength and control of the disciples of Long Chen and his group, Dragon Blood Legion. They were the first to reach so, they all took some rest for the preparations of upcoming battle with almost being scattered hiding in different positions after Yan Qi and Chen Feng finished surveying the surrounding.
After a bit elders of 108th-Xuantian Monastery arrived following whom slowly arrived the disciples and elders of others sects in Righteous Faction. All the disciples and elders from other sects were shocked to see the Xuantian Monastery's disciples calm and resting lazily while they were all tired and bathed in blood. But what shocked them was the fact that there was presence of a total of about 17,000 disciples that was too huge and accounting themselves the counting reached 25,000 giving them a reassuring feeling of having a large army.
The larger sects knew the number of disciples they had sent out, including the Xuantian Monastery, which had moved out with 30,000 people, including those from the Healing Hall and other support groups.
When they counted, they found the number of disciples from Xuantian Monastery had dropped by a lot but suddenly their instincts cried out as there was an additional presence of nearly 10,000 strong auras with energy feeling somewhat, i.e. not completely yet for some fraction, similar to the Xuantian Monastery disciples, thanks to the Starry River of the Sky Art which obviously was not known to them as only he Dragon Blood Legion and elders of Xuantian Monastery had access to it for time being. It gave the illusion that these were all remaining disciples of the monastery.
"Could it be they didn't encounter any Corrupt disciples? Impossible!" someone muttered.
Elder Tu Fang clenched his fists as he looked at the lazing Long Chen yet with sharp aura and fierce eyes. Elder Tu muttered within, "Long Chen, you are the hope of the Xuantian Monastery. The sect leader has placed his future in your hands."
When the other sects arrived, their numbers were far fewer. Some had lost half their people, and one pitiful group had only seven left. Their morale was low compared to the monastery's disciples, who seemed like unsheathed swords, full of energy and spirit.
Long Chen sighed as he knew of these Righteous Path disciples might had talent, but fear gripped them, and they lacked the courage to face death. There was no time to fix that now, so the burden of the battle would fall on the Xuantian Monastery's disciples. But Long Chen had absolute confidence in his brothers.
Suddenly, a booming sound came from ahead, as a swarm of Corrupt disciples appeared, even making Long Chen's pupils shrink as the number was not what he had originally expected.
"How is this possible?" Tu Fang's expression darkened, and the Elders were shocked. The Corrupt disciples numbered over eighty thousand—two to three times more than the Righteous path.
Gui Yan, a Corrupt expert, laughed. "Now you understand, Tu Fang!" The sudden surge of Corrupt disciples wasn't by chance. The Corrupt path planned to use the Righteous disciples as their whetstones, sharpening their own by thinning the ranks of the Righteous.
"Elder Tu Fang, what do we do? Our disciples will be slaughtered!" the Elders cried. Tu Fang clenched his fists. "There's nothing we can do. If we step in, the Corrupt experts will block us. We can only watch."
Despite the overwhelming odds, Long Chen's calm demeanor gave Tu Fang hope. The Corrupt disciples halted five miles away, glaring like predators.
Suddenly, some Righteous disciples panicked and fled, led by the Bloodnet Sect. Hundreds followed them, their courage broken. Tu Fang was furious, raising his hand to strike them down, but Long Chen's calm voice interrupted. "Elder, Let them go."
Tu Fang hesitated and lowered his hand. He knew killing his own people wouldn't solve anything. But the fleeing disciples would shatter the remaining morale.
"If you're afraid, leave now," Long Chen's voice rang out, calm and unshaken. "This is a battle of the brave. The weak have no place here."
His words caused the most panicked disciples to stop and look back. "Cultivation is a path of no retreat. If you fear death, how will you ever advance? Run, and your realm will freeze. But if you stay and survive, you will become true experts."
His words inspired over half the fleeing disciples to return. "I'm no coward!" one shouted. "I'll die fighting!" Others echoed the sentiment, rallying behind Long Chen. Of the original five thousand Righteous disciples, around four thousand remained.
Long Chen smiled. He held no grudge against those who fled. They were products of sheltered upbringings, unprepared for true battle. Meanwhile, the Xuantian Monastery disciples stood firm, their resolve unshaken. Long Chen had taught them what it meant to protect and fight for something greater than themselves.
"If you survive today, you'll be true experts," Long Chen said. "Follow the Dragon Blood Legion of Xuantian disciples, and kill your way forward. Just keep slashing until there's no one left around you—because by then, you'll already be dead."
His words lightened the mood, and laughter spread among the Righteous disciples, easing the tension. Even Gu Yang and the others couldn't help but laugh.
Gui Yan, watching from a distance, sneered. "We'll see how long you laugh when we start tearing you apart." The battlefield stretched between two mountains where the Righteous and Corrupt experts watched from either side.
Long Chen smirked. "How did someone as twisted as you even get born? Maybe your parents threw away the wrong thing and raised the placenta instead of the baby."
His insult caused the Xuantian disciples to burst into laughter, while the Corrupt disciples were left stunned. Gui Yan, a feared figure in the Corrupt path, had never been so humiliated. His face twisted with rage. "I'll flay your skin and refine your soul! Attack! But leave that brat alive!"
At Gui Yan's command, the Corrupt disciples charged. Long Chen calmly ordered, "Mechanical Archers, take your marks!" The monastery's disciples nocked their arrows and prepared to fire.
"Forty-five degrees! Close your eyes and shoot!" Long Chen instructed. The arrows rained down, not directly at the charging enemies but into the air.
Confusion spread among the Righteous disciples. "Mechanical Archers? They're not even aiming!" Even Tu Fang was baffled.
But then explosions erupted as the arrows hit the ground, releasing thick smoke. Screams filled the air as the Corrupt disciples were poisoned by the gas. Many tried to take antitoxin pills, but the effects were limited. Arrows rained down again, this time directly hitting the Corrupt forces.
Gui Yan roared in fury. "Spread out! Get out of the smoke!" But it was too late for many, who collapsed before escaping. Hundreds of Corrupt disciples died before even reaching the Righteous forces.
Long Chen's poison attack had been devastating having been made from a Grade Four Desert Poison Scorpion, killing about ten thousand disciples. If the Corrupt disciples had been more clustered, Long Chen could have wiped out one fourth of their number with a single move. Gui Yan, furious, screamed for his remaining troops to continue the charge.
"Despicable Righteous path, none of you will have good deaths!" Gui Yan was furious. Unable to hold back, he waved his hand, and several figures behind him revealed their youthful faces.
"Kill every single one of these Righteous path bastards!" Gui Yan roared.
The figures nodded and moved at an incredible speed. Leading them was a demonic man, crossing a hundred miles in an instant like a phantom. As he neared Long Chen, a golden lotus appeared in his hand, radiating immense destructive power.
The lotus shot towards Long Chen, warping space with its strength. It was clearly a powerful group attack that ordinary disciples couldn't withstand. Long Chen smiled, asking, "Are you just going to watch?"
Suddenly, a huge arrow appeared from the sky. "Piercing Cloud Arrow!" The arrow collided with the golden lotus, causing a massive explosion that sent Long Chen and the others flying. Fortunately, Long Chen had warned the Xuantian Monastery's disciples, allowing them to scatter. They avoided heavy injuries, though the shockwave still threw them into the air.
When the dust settled, a crater hundreds of meters wide marred the battlefield. A cloaked figure with a multi-colored bow stepped forward—Mo Nian. As expected, Mo Nian had arrived.
Yin Luo, the demonic man, narrowed his eyes but stayed silent. Mo Nian removed his hood, saying, "You must be Yin Luo, the Corrupt path's once-in-a-thousand-year genius."
Other figures gathered behind Yin Luo, confirming his leadership. Despite their earlier charge, only ten thousand of the original twenty thousand Corrupt disciples remained, yet they showed no fear. The Righteous disciples also regrouped, sensing the impending battle.
"Correct, I am Yin Luo. Who are you?" asked Yin Luo.
"I'm Mo Nian, not from Su Prefecture. I heard you're something special and wanted to meet you. My family's old man always says I'm slacking and that you'll surpass me. It pisses me off. Maybe if I cut you down, he'll finally shut up." Mo Nian raised his bow.
Mo Nian's sudden appearance shocked Tu Fang and the elders. "Could he be from Mo Gate?" Tu Fang wondered aloud. Hua Yu nodded, "Only someone from Mo Gate could have such divine archery skills."
Yin Luo laughed. "Arrogant! I've never met someone so full of themselves."
As a rare genius of the Corrupt path, Yin Luo had never met a match. Even amongst Favored, few could withstand more than ten exchanges with him, which was why he led the Corrupt Favored. Hearing Mo Nian's bold challenge amused him.
Mo Nian smirked, "Of course, it's interesting. I wouldn't have bothered running from the old man otherwise."
Turning to Long Chen, he said, "Hope you don't mind that I'm taking your opponent."
Long Chen spread his hands. "Take them all if you want. It'd be great if you included those old farts too."
Mo Nian laughed. "Excellent! Since you've handed them over, I won't be courteous!" His aura surged, shaking the land as powerful waves of qi erupted around him.
"Yin Luo, hand over your life!" Mo Nian's bow trembled as an arrow appeared, radiating a terrifying aura before shooting like lightning.
Yin Luo snorted, turning to his followers and roared, "Go kill the small fry. I'll deal with this arrogant brat. Kill every single one of these Righteous bastards!"
Just then Gui Yan also said loudly, "As for the women, capture them alive! We will break them in, and they'll serve as our playthings, our personal furnaces. We'll make sure they beg for death while warming our bed." hearing which Long Chen, his Dragon Blood Legion and all other disciples as well as Elders of Righteous Faction grew angrier and hatred seemed evident, rage seething from soul.
The figures behind Yin Luo grinned wickedly, nodding before moving at an incredible speed as one said, "How about they serve you senior brother Yin?" as they pointed at Meng Qi, Lu Fang'er, Tang Wan'er, and Chu Yao looking at whom Yin Luo smirked with a lustful laugh and other of Evil Faction smiling vilely.
Just as Yin Luo was about to say something, all of Dragon Blood Legion revealed their killing intent which somehow merged with eachother and made a suppressive force even on Higher Realm experts of both sides making them feel chill down their spines. Be it elders or disciples except the Dragon Blood Legion were utterly speechless as the aura surpassed that of Favored ones.
Long Chen slowly moved forward, his face calm as there was no any emotional fluctuations from him. As he moved slowly forward in between the distance of the front of Righteous and Corrupt Path, he stopped at middle pointing his hand towards Yin Luo. As nothing happened for a few more breath of time as silence had entered the entire place with even the Dragon Blood Legion shutting off their Murderous Intent. As nothing had happened except for Long Chen pointing towards them, all of the Corrupt Path disciples started to mock Long Chen. But suddenly Gui Yan, Elder Tu Fang and all other elders of both factions had chill run down their spine. A thin yet concentrated layer of Dense Black Aura started to be emitted from Long Chen. Slowly, everyone started feeling the chilly feeling run down their spine with the Aura getting stronger and stronger till it suddenly erupted overshadowing the entire surrounding's texture into dense, suffocating black surrounding. With Long Chen as source, Murderous intent finally gets revealed overshadowing the combined murderous intent of all other Combat Members of Dragon Blood Legion.
Long Chen yelled, "Heaven Shattering Step" and so he kicked the ground creating a huge crater, leaping high into the sky. As Long Chen circulated his Astral Energy through the Fengfu and Alioth Stars, the Nine Star Will within Long Chen's Soul and within the Starry Sky Chart's Jiuli Rune ignited and through synergy, the Nine Star Will of Arrogance and Dominance merged with the Will of Split the Heavens as Long Chen supplied his Astral Energy to his Meridians and the Runes of Split the Heavens.
Astral Energy Surged as a Giant image of Long Chen descends, revealing full, true power of the [True Intent Stage] emitting the synergy of Saber Intent and other Wills. Finally, a Saber image forms and in an instant locking on all of Corrupt Path disciples, the Saber image descends with lightning fast speed forming the brilliance like that of descendance of a star.
Long Chen roars, "Split the Heavens."
Just the emerging Will from his body was terrifying but what was more shocking to come was the force of destruction and annihilation following it.
Everyone looks with shocked expression as more than 10,000 Corrupt Path disciples die in vain without being able to run for their lives.
Not only limited to the disciples, an entire mountain in a straight line in front of Long Chen was leveled in between with a deep pit going atleast 50 meters below the surface.
They all, be it foe or friend except the Dragon Blood Legion who only show amazed and awed expression, look at him with chills running down their spine.
The force he released what something only a 'True Genius' Expert of Xuantian Realm could execute.
They look at the entire surrounding, utterly destroyed not even a single living object or human, and scene only fuels up for one similar thought to occur in their mind:
Murderous Intent fills the World, Hatred towards the evil and The Grand Daos of Heaven.
One Man, One Saber, Tears the Ten World, Shatters The Nine Heaven.
The war had not finished but the fearsome feeling among all the foes and friends as a result of Long Chen's Prowess left them utterly speechless though it wasn't even half of what he could do as he had yet to reveal his 'Two Layer Divine Ring' and 'One Star Divine Armor'. Excitement and hope in the fellow youngsters of aiming for a brilliant scene to unfold caused by Long Chen's previous words and encouragement supported by the now shown Martial Force/ Prowess.
To Be Continued...