Chapter 314: Meeting Under the Moon

Chapter 314: Moonlit Encounter

Among all the mystical treasures in this world, even the taboo artifacts, regardless of their power, could never compare to the might of the deity's remnant face when it opens its eyes and releases the force of its gaze.

For even the most powerful cultivators, their divine techniques capable of reshaping the heavens and earth, still paled in comparison...

The remnants of the Azure Sky's deity.

For this was a crushing force of existence itself, a deathly omen hovering above the heads of all races on the vast continent of Wanggu.

Where hierarchy determined everything.

Now, as the wooden box was opened, as the formless light was unleashed, the Azure Sky underwent a great upheaval, clouds and mists churned violently, as if transforming into a roaring sea of rage.

The earth fell into an unprecedented haze, everything appearing blurred and indistinct.

Faintly, there seemed to be whispers that shook the soul, echoing through the heavens and earth, causing the body to stagger, eight directions spinning, convulsing in pain and madness.

It was unclear whether these whispers had blurred the world, or whether the world had become distorted by the light.

In this haze and distortion, all things seemed to tremble.

Arrays of dense, otherworldly presences materialized from nowhere—

From the ground, from rivers, from sand and pebbles.

From each brick and tile, from every food, from every object, from all that existed, they rose in threads of mist, suffusing the heavens and earth.

The sky's clouds, merged with this mist, rapidly shifted in hue, turning in an instant to oppressive black clouds.

Scarlet lightning split the heavens with thunderous roars, and drops of blood-red rain fell from the sky above.

As though the deity had opened its eyes in this moment, gazing down upon the Eight Sect Alliance!

An indescribable horror, a terror beyond imagination and resistance, descended upon them.

The cities of the Eight Sect Alliance fell silent like the small town of Nanqin Lake in the blood rain.

The force of the deity's gaze, like a sudden chill, altered the life trajectories of all beings, rendering them uncontrollable.

The entire Eight Sect Alliance was rapidly transforming into a forbidden zone!

The entire Ming Huang Prefecture was struck by shock, and all factions, every sect, anyone who sensed the fluctuation of this place, their minds were swept away by a tidal wave of turmoil.

Within the alliance's borders, whether commoners or immortals, none could escape or evade; everything had become hopeless!

The houses in the allied cities crumbled into dust in the blink of an eye.

All life was invaded, and the alien spots on their bodies grew wildly.

Even those with sufficient cultivation to hide the spots faintly could not control the massive spread.

Common people were no different.

Cultivators could not escape their fates.

Heaven and earth were no exceptions.

Everything, everything, was governed by fate in that instant.

The main city turned pitch-black before their eyes, and the howls erupted in that fleeting moment, rising from all eight directions.

Screams of the highest intensity, the most desolate and heart-wrenching, sent a primal chill through all who heard them, dimming their light and souls.

They dissipated.

Some, whose alien essence was already thick, saw their bodies instantly collapse into blood and flesh, while others perished outright, becoming blackened corpses.

And alienization also emerged.

It could be seen that many cultivators had transformed into grotesque beasts, leaping from the ground with piercing cries, their skin splitting, bodies mangled, while strange entities were born from the void.

In an instant, the opening of the box threw the Eight Sect Alliance into complete chaos, as if turning the world into a realm of torment.

Above the sky, whether the blood-forge sons and grandson, or the Eight Sect Alliance's elders, all showed extreme changes in expression, revealing disbelief and shock.

This scene far exceeded their imagination, utterly unanticipated.

In this gaze's release, even the elders, who were formidable by day, now each summoned endless alien essence, their bodies riddled with bleeding wounds.

They tried to act, but under the deity's gaze, their bodies were completely restrained, their alien essence exploding wildly, forcing them to exert all their strength to contain it, unable to spare the slightest attention.

Only the Alliance's sovereign could barely struggle, his true form exposed to the heavens and earth, his body veiled in black mist, panting heavily, staring fiercely at the ground below.

In his eyes lingered a terror he had not felt in many years, a low growl.

"Deity's gaze—you... who exactly are you!!"

As the Eight Sect was struck with shock, the heavens and earth changed color, and blood rain poured down.

A drop of red rainwater fell upon the young man's deity mask, dripping endlessly, flowing along the mask, and landing on the ground.

His eyes held traces of recollection and sighs, letting the blood rain fall as he strode forward.

Upon closer inspection, even amid the torrent of blood rain and the terrifying alien essence, his tangyuan (sticky rice balls) remained untouched, unpolluted.

He had protected them well.

As he walked, the night owl behind him now burned with zeal, its eyes brimming with extreme reverence, looking at the young man's figure as if gazing upon a deity, respectfully holding the box and the head in tow.

The two walked through the streets, through the chaos of the world, until they reached the sky.

The young man, having finished gazing at the heavens, turned his eyes to the elders of the Eight Sect Alliance.

Scanning them one by one, he finally looked upon the struggling Blood-Forged Son and Grandfather.

"Your people's killing is justified.

I come to take the head of the murderer, and besides, watching the show is also justified."

These were the first words he spoke upon arriving.

At this, he and the night owl walked into the distance.

With a wave of his hand, the Saint-Yunzi father and son's bodies trembled, their eyes revealing fear and reverence as they silently followed behind him.

The people of the Eight Sect could only watch helplessly, unable to stop or block him in the slightest, as the young man moved with calm and tranquility, just as he had strolled through the streets earlier.

It seemed no one could stop him; where he wished to go, no one could stop him.

Until they reached the edge of the sky, the young man's voice, laced with a light laugh, echoed into the Eight Sect Alliance, reaching the sovereign who stared at him intently.

"You call him a deity; I call him a divine immortal."

The young man departed, taking with him Saint-Yunzi and the deity's gaze.

Without the gaze's descent, the alien essence of the Eight Sect Alliance lost its root, and the process of becoming a forbidden zone was severed.

For the Eight Sect Alliance, this was the best possible outcome; should the alliance become a forbidden zone, all would be lost beyond redemption.

Since it was not completely transformed, it could be reversed.

Now, as the scarlet clouds in the sky dispersed, after the elders' brief silence, they all retreated with complex expressions.

It was not the time to discuss this; they clearly understood that the most critical task now was to recover their losses.

Without the slightest hesitation, they swiftly returned to their respective sects, beginning the cleanup of the alien essence and rescue operations.

This time, the Eight Sect Alliance suffered immense losses, the greatest of which was the Seven-Eyed Pupil.

At the same time, the name "Chu Zhi" (the one who protected the tangyuan) rose dramatically in the Ming Huang Prefecture, being firmly remembered by all major powers, with intense wariness.

All of this was due to that box!

It could be imagined that the events in Ming Huang Prefecture would soon spread beyond the prefecture, affecting the counties, and even radiating to the broader domain—truly... the light within the box was too horrifying to behold.

All people, all clans, all forces, will once again recognize the Candle!

We shall re-examine the old rumors surrounding the Candle, such as the claim that it could grant members the power of the divine spirits…

The very name "Candle" has been deeply analyzed by all sides.

Unlit candles are called "Fu," placed on the ground are "Dian," while the fire used for holding is "Zhú."

The character "Zhú" carries the essence of fire, yet also embodies the notion of control; paired with "Xiǎo" (light), it evokes the radiant glow, and thus… it is called "Zhú Xiǎo!"

In the figure representing the Candle, the young man departed with the Night Crow and the Saint Yan Zi father and son, while the Eight Clans Alliance frantically sought to recover their losses. Amid the desolate wasteland beyond the reach of the Eight Clans, Xu Qing sped forward.

He knew nothing of the recent upheavals within the Alliance; his last memory of the Alliance lingered only on the collapse of the Wuji Crown, the shattered three lives of the Life-Doll, and his own sudden departure.

Transported to the outer ruins in a moment of chaos, Xu Qing's face went pale, his heart shaken by violent waves. He recalled the instant—clearly aware that he had nearly touched death.

He could not see the enemy, yet he knew a terrifying cultivator had attacked him.

In this state of dread, he worried over the whereabouts of the Seven-Blood Orb, but understood that encountering an irresistible force rendered his cultivation meaningless.

Thus, he did not rush back recklessly, but instead concealed his cultivation's fluctuations, altered his form, and stealthily sped toward the Alliance.

As he traveled, he pondered the cause of this turmoil, while the Transmission Jade Scroll had inexplicably lost its efficacy.

This unsettled Xu Qing until, after several days, when he was seven days' journey from the Alliance, under the cover of night, Xu Qing was about to accelerate his leap when—suddenly, his body froze.

Under the moonlight, he beheld a procession ahead.

The leader was a black-robed figure wearing a mask of the Candle's residual face, his steps graceful, exuding an aura of elegance, holding in his hand a red candy untouched by dust.

That crimson candy stood out starkly in the darkness.

Behind him walked three others, two of whom were the Saint Yan Zi father and son.

Yet Xu Qing's eyes involuntarily fell upon the final figure in the black robe.

His gaze lingered on the right hand holding a head, its hair swaying toward the protagonist's forehead.

The head nodded slightly, and in Xu Qing's trembling body, it slowly turned toward him.

Xu Qing halted, rooted to the spot.

All surrounding sounds seemed to vanish in that instant; every existence grew indistinct, the world narrowing to only that familiar face.

Xu Qing suddenly felt icy cold.

As on a winter in the slums when he witnessed his companions freeze to death, a frost crept into his soul, a chill that pierced his marrow.

Gradually, his body shook uncontrollably.

In this frigid trembling, he recalled Lei Du's words: "No matter how long the night, dawn will come."

Yet today, the night and the icy despair seemed oddly, painfully endless…