Chapter 50: Sect Warfare

The ground suddenly trembled, and the chaotic energy vanished. With it, the nine sect elders who had been trapped by that energy were all exposed.
Moreover, as Qu Yi condensed the chaotic crystals, these ninety-nine elders had been drawn together. Now that they were all revealed, they found themselves surrounded by elders from other sects.
Instantly, attacks erupted.
“Ah!”
A few cries of pain followed as Liang Kui of Taiyuan Sect killed an elder from Cangyang Valley with his slender sword; Rong Zhu of Lanyang Palace slew a Wind-Flame Beast from Bai Shou Peak; Cui Zhan of Qingyun Sect killed a Sea-Turning Whale from Jiugong Island; and Tan Yu of Yingtian Sect killed an Ice Bat Dragon from Xianyue Cliff.
Almost at the same time, Yan Zhuo of Biyan Peak, Li Zhong of Cangyang Valley, Xiao Feng Shou of Bai Shou Peak, Jin Yan Dian Diao of Xianyue Cliff, and Zhen Hai Jiao of Jiugong Island, who had just emerged from the bubbles, also attacked those around them, killing one after another.
Chaos ensued—blood flew, spells rained down. In just a few breaths, over sixty elders lost their lives. The sudden onslaught, coupled with the chaotic spatial disturbances and flying vital energies, left no one able to teleport away. They could only defend themselves with their own strength. Trapped together, the ninety-nine elders had no chance to defend themselves and lost their lives.
The scene then calmed down.
The members of each sect gathered in their own groups.
Taiyuan Sect was left with only five elders—Liang Kui, Liang An, Liang Xiang—and all the others were dead.
Qingyun Sect had only its chief leader Cui Zhan and three other elders left.
Lanyang Palace had only Rong Zhu and three more elders.
Yingtian Sect had only its chief leader Tan Yu and two elders.
Biyan Peak had only its chief leader Yan Zhuo and two other elders.
Cangyang Valley was left with only its chief leader Li Zhong.
Bai Shou Peak had only its chief leader Xiao Feng Shou, one Wind-Flame Beast, two Earth-Scale Leopards, and two Cloud-Stepping Tigers.
Xianyue Cliff had only its chief leader Jin Yan Dian Diao, two Sky-Piercing Apes, one Ice Bat Dragon, and one Golden Rhinoceros Eagle.
Jiugong Island had only its chief leader Zhen Hai Jiao, one Dark Sky Snake, one Sea-Turning Whale, and one Sky-Wrapping Beast.
The sudden upheaval caused immense damage. None of the changes were under the control of the elders of the nine major sects. But now that such tragedy had occurred, with casualties from all sects and the remaining elders covered in blood, they had offended the people of other sects.
“Liang Kui, you killed my brother! I will never forgive you!”

“Qingyun Sect, you killed three elders from Jiugong Island. Don’t even think about leaving the Tianhuo Star Region.”
“Rongzhu, you’re quite skilled—your fire spells are amazing, right? I, Yanzhuo, will burn you to death!”
“Tanyu, how dare you launch a surprise attack on our Bai Shou Peak? We must fight to the death!”
“Hmph, Wind Beasts! You three demon cultivators joined forces to attack our Yingtian Sect—this is my punishment for you!”
…
Due to the recent battles, everyone present was filled with rage. These usually composed elders finally started cursing.
Just as the remaining thirty-some elders were about to attack again, the ground trembled once more. Suddenly, a blinding white light shot into the sky, accompanied by waves of energy as the formations collapsed.
The energy released from the broken formations forced the thirty-some elders out of the cracks in the ground. As soon as they landed, they saw that the once-flaming cracks in the earth were now filled with white light, which stretched into the starry sky.
Before the elders of the nine sects could react, the white light disappeared. Then, a three-meter-long sword emitting white light appeared, floating right above the cracks in the ground.
The Liuhe Sword had emerged from the formation!
At that moment, the elders who were about to attack stopped their plans and rushed upward into the air, trying to grab the Liuhe Sword using their spiritual energy.
“The Liuhe Sword is mine!”
“The Liuhe Sword belongs only to us.”
“You still want to steal it?”
As the elders fought to seize the sword, they shouted loudly, each filled with contempt for the others.
However, when their spiritual energies struck the Liuhe Sword at once, they clashed with each other, creating a powerful shockwave that pushed all their energies away. None of them managed to take hold of the sword.
Everyone knew that whoever got the Liuhe Sword first could use its sharpness to slaughter anyone—no one could resist it.
But now they also understood that it was impossible for one person to take the sword by themselves.
Therefore, they had to unite.

The three demon cultivator sects—Peak of a Hundred Beasts, Cliff of the Crescent Moon, and Island of the Nine Palaces—had their fifteen remaining elders stand together immediately. Then, elder-level demon beasts such as the Wind-Flame Beast, Sky-Shattering Ape, and Mysterious Heaven Snake stared at the elders of the other five sects, while the three chief commanders—Howling Wind Beast, Golden-Eyed Thunder Eagle, and Sea-Stabilizing Dragon—had already flown over the Six-Directions Sword.

“You demon cultivator sects also want to seize the Six-Directions Sword? How absurd!”

At that moment, the Yingtian Sect and Biyan Peak, which had been hunted by the three demon cultivator sects together, simultaneously revealed their ultimate offensive weapons.

Tanyu from the Yingtian Sect took out four yellow swords that floated in front of him, forming their own realm. The Earthly Vital Energy within them transformed into various forms, exuding an immense power. These were the specially crafted Four Swords to Break Boundaries—when all four were used together, they could shatter any obstacle, leaving even the strongest cultivators in the later stages of tribulation unable to escape unscathed.

Yan Zhuo from Biyan Peak took out three identical red cauldrons, each one meter tall, from which blazing True Fire of Annihilation constantly rose. He arranged the three cauldrons in a triangle, causing the True Fire of Annihilation within them to surge upward and merge at their tips, quickly forming a fireball. These were the Fire-Cauldrons crafted by Biyan Peak—by combining the True Fire of Annihilation from the three cauldrons, they created a fireball that would burn everything in its path, even the strongest cultivators in the later stages of tribulation dared not resist it.

As soon as they spoke, Tanyu and Yan Zhuo threw out the four swords and sent the three cauldrons flying toward the Six-Directions Sword, aiming to attack the chief commanders of the three demon cultivator sects.

In an instant, the Four Swords to Break Boundaries were swung simultaneously, creating four spatial rifts. One rift isolated the space where the Six-Directions Sword was located from the outside world, while the other three rifts targeted the three demon cultivator leaders.

Meanwhile, the True Fire of Annihilation from the Fire-Cauldrons formed three fire dragons that enveloped the three demon cultivator leaders.

“Break through!”

The three demon cultivator leaders managed to avoid the three spatial rifts but were unable to leave their surroundings due to their constraints. Thus, they were trapped by the three streams of True Fire of Annihilation and had no choice but to scatter their own strength to counter it.

“Wooden Bullet!”

The Howling Wind Beast suddenly took out a wooden ruler that was as clear as jade. Infused with Earthly Vital Energy, the ruler vibrated violently, pushing away the True Fire of Annihilation clinging to it.

“Mud Ball!”

The Golden-Eyed Thunder Eagle also roared fiercely and produced a yellow sphere in its hand. Empowered by Earthly Vital Energy, the sphere spun rapidly, generating powerful mud balls. One after another, tens of thousands of mud balls were created, all of which separated the True Fire of Annihilation from their bodies.

“Sky-Grabbing Water!”

The Sea-Stabilizing Dragon roared fiercely, shook its head, and suddenly spat out a crystal-like sphere. Infused with the essence of water, it immediately unleashed an endless stream of water. Cold and dense, these waters fell upon the Devastating True Fire, causing a white mist to rise—after which, that fire, capable of burning everything, went out.

The leaders of the three demon cultivators’ sects also brought out their ultimate cards, finally saving their own lives.

At that moment, the four sects of Taiyuan Gate, Qingyun Sect, Lanyang Palace, and Cangyang Valley also revealed their trump cards and simultaneously attacked the three demon cultivator sects.

The elders of these four cultivation sects and the three demon cultivation sects were well aware that since the three demon sects had united, they alone could not defeat them. Therefore, both the cultivation and demon cultivation sects wanted to eliminate these three demon sects first, so that the cultivation and demon cultivation sects could then fight over the Six-Heaven Sword.

Liang Kui from Taiyuan Gate took out a golden umbrella—the top-grade spiritual artifact, the Sky-Supporting Umbrella. By using the essence of metal to activate it, the umbrella opened, and from its twenty points, powerful golden swords were shot forth.

These golden swords had little effect on the three leaders—Xiaofeng Beast, Golden-Eyed Thunder Eagle, and Sea-Stabilizing Dragon—but they were extremely destructive to the other elder-level demon cultivators surrounding them. With one strike, two more followed, breaking through defenses and killing them instantly. Beasts like Wind-Flame Beast, Sky-Shattering Ape, and Mysterious Sky Snake could none resist the golden swords and fell to the ground one after another.

Cui Zhan from Qingyun Sect took out a tree branch covered with green leaves and more than a dozen bright green fruits—it was actually a mature green Bodhi tree.

Cui Zhan shook the branch, and gentle green winds filled the space, reaching all the elders of the three demon sects. Though seemingly mild, these winds carried a mesmerizing scent that disrupted minds.

The elder-level demon cultivators had to fend off both the golden swords from the Sky-Supporting Umbrella and this mind-disrupting scent. Lacking the strength to resist, they fell from the sky like dead birds.

Rong Zhu from Lanyang Palace took out three starry fire thunder bolts and fired them at the leaders of the demon sects who were trying to snatch the Six-Heaven Sword. The power of these thunder bolts was comparable to that of a mid-stage tribulation expert, exploding violently around the three of them.

Li Zhong from Cangyang Valley took out a yellow gourd. As soon as its mouth was opened, a torrent of yellow sand that covered the sky burst out, immediately splitting into three streams that flew toward the three leaders of the demon cultivators. When it enveloped them, the sand clung to their bodies like ants and began to “bite” at them.

In addition to these four leaders attacking, the elders from all the cultivation and demon cultivation sects also launched attacks on the elders of the three demon cultivator sects. Under the combined attacks of the elders from the four sects, the elder-level demon beasts of the three demon cultivator sects were completely unprepared to defend themselves. After a brief, symbolic resistance, they all fell from the sky, dead beyond redemption.

As for the leaders of the three demon cultivator sects—Xiaofeng Beast, Golden-Eyed Thunder Eagle, and Zhenhai Jiao—they managed to hold out a little longer thanks to their defensive magic artifacts. However, no matter how powerful such artifacts were, they still required vital energy to function. Under the simultaneous attacks of the elders from the six sects, their vital energy was quickly depleted.

With their vital energy exhausted, the leaders of the three demon cultivator sects could no longer activate their defensive magic artifacts and were thus torn to pieces, dying completely.

By this point, all the elders sent by the three demon cultivator sects to compete for the Six-Directions Sword were dead.

The four remaining cultivation sects—Taiyuan Sect, Qingyun Sect, Lanyang Palace, and Yingtian Sect—and the two demon cultivation sects—Biyan Peak and Cangyang Valley—now had no major threats left. The six sects took positions separately, staying alert for attacks from the others.

……

The Inch-World Sphere, along with the energy released when the formation broke apart due to the unity of the elders from the nine sects, was pushed upward into the sky. Qu Yi, inside the Inch-World Sphere, kept watching the situation outside.

“Shuoshang, Shuorui, and Shuoxu, you three are ready. Once those six sects start fighting, you can go out. Jin Qilin, Wuyuan, and Huanwu Die, when you go out later, just attack anyone who catches your eye. No specific tasks for you,” Qu Yi suddenly said to the few people standing beside him.

Since Shuoshang had the trump card taught to him by Jin Yang, Qu Yi had handed the two Eight-Directions Swords to Shuorui and Shuoxu.

“Haha, I love this kind of ambush. When they’re fighting fiercely, we’ll suddenly appear and use the power of the Eight-Directions Swords to kill them—it’s as easy as wiggling our fingers,” said Shuoshang, who was usually calm, now excited.

The others also laughed triumphantly.

Just then, the cultivation and demon cultivation sects outside suddenly moved. The four cultivation sects attacked the two demon cultivation sects at the same time.