The Blood Moon was completely enveloped in a sea of golden dust, and its demonic aura—once a source of evil that had tainted this continent with its malevolent nature—was entirely sealed.
The crimson shade of the Blood Moon began to fade as the golden dust's power purified its demonic essence. This was the clearest sign that the moon was returning to its original state.
At the same time, the countless souls of the Blood Moon Palace's victims were released from the bloodstone at the moon's core. No longer trapped in the mortal realm, they flowed into the samsara—returning to where they truly belonged.
The golden dust swirled, forming a marvelous storm high above the sky. The power of purification continued to rise, and the crimson hue covering the moon nearly disappeared.
Shortly after, at the moment when the Blood Moon's demonic essence was completely erased, the golden dust lost its purpose and began to disappear, vanishing in a burst of brilliant light.
A golden radiance spread across the sky, visible from every corner of the continent. Anyone who could look up at this moment would see the massive crimson stone—the bloodstone descending from the heavens, like a meteor falling toward the earth.
When the brilliant light faded from the sky, the Original Moon was once again visible—returning after having disappeared for more than half a decade. With its return, the long nightmare that had haunted the people of the Myriad Dynasty Continent, known as the Blood Moon, was finally over.
However, the war between the continent and the Blood Fiend Palace was far from over.
Hengsheng was done enough watching. It was time for him to move—but first, he had to retrieve the treasure.
"Let's go," Hengsheng said to Yunsu. She meowed in response and jumped onto his shoulder. He petted her gently before opening a dimensional vortex and stepping into it.
"Enemy incoming!" shouted one of the cultivators guarding the ritual as he spotted an unknown figure suddenly appear out of nowhere. He was about to rush forward to subdue the intruder, but before he could act, a cultivator from the Xia Clan stepped in and stopped him, explaining that this person was on their side.
The brief commotion didn't bother Hengsheng. He gave a slight gesture to greet the Xia Clan cultivator, silently thanking him for helping him avoid unnecessary trouble.
After that, he focused on the massive crimson stone that was falling down toward the altar. Hengsheng noticed that the stone had grown larger compared to when he first saw it, many years ago. The aura emitted from the stone was rich in Spiritual Qi. Once an evil object, it had now transformed into a valuable treasure.
Without wasting time, he flicked his finger, and a gigantic Qi Hand materialized in the air before him and stretched toward the sky, catching the falling stone in its grasp.
He quickly stored it in his Item Storage. As he did so, he felt a slight resistance, as if the stone possessed a will of its own. However, it couldn't withstand his force for long before being swallowed into the storage space.
The cultivators guarding the area suddenly realized they had missed their chance to claim the treasure. But it was already too late—someone of evidently high status had taken it, as shown by the respectful reaction of the Xia Clan cultivators toward him.
Hengsheng grinned with joy after acquiring the treasure. He didn't yet know how he would use it, but simply possessing it was enough for him to feel satisfied.
Just as he was about to enjoy his moment of triumph, something occurred.
The overwhelming aura swept past him—not oppressive or threatening, but warm and sacred. It was a familiar presence: the aura of the Heavenly Dao. A moment later, he heard the Dao Rhymes resounding across the sky—a melody that felt like the heavens themselves were singing praises.
Hengsheng's eyes narrowed as he gazed toward the north, where both the aura and the Dao Rhymes originated. In the distance, golden-purple clouds were forming in the sky.
"The merit…" Hengsheng murmured in a low voice, his heart aching in pain at the thought that someone else had claimed what should have been his prize.
…
In the northern part of the continent, near the border where land meets the great sea.
CLANG!!!
The clash of weapons echoed through the sky.
Countless skirmishes broke out and ended just as quickly, repeating over and over as dynasty cultivators pursued the fleeing demonic cultivators, who avoided direct confrontation.
The situation was not in favor of the Blood Moon Palace. Their forces were being lost rapidly during the retreat—at this rate, barely half would make it back to the Blood Origin Continent. The situation was dire, but still better than engaging the enemy directly and risking total annihilation by being surrounded when the enemy's reinforcement arrived.
Amid the chaos of the retreat, a fierce clash broke out between high-ranking cultivators in one corner of the battlefield.
Xia Zhenhai relied on his superior speed to close the distance. His blue icy sword radiated intense Ice Qi as he slashed a sword, unleased a Sword Qi toward the Blood Prince's back.
The Blood Prince noticed the incoming attack but didn't halt his retreat or turn to defend. Instead, one of the Grand Elders appeared in front of the Sword Qi and cast a blood wall, blocking the strike before it could reach the prince.
BOOM!
The blood wall successfully blocked the Sword Qi. However, that had been exactly what Xia Zhenhai intended—because his real target wasn't the Blood Prince.
Not yet.
SHING!
Another Sword Qi shot out of nowhere, slicing through space at impossible speed. It pierced the Grand Elder's chest, striking clean through his heart. His eyes widened in disbelief.
"How…?!" he shouted in shock.
Without hesitation, he sealed the wound and began to retreat. Though the injury was severe, it wasn't fatal—not for someone at his cultivation realm, where life force was overwhelmingly resilient.
Before he could retreat any farther, he sensed something was wrong. Glancing down at his chest, he saw frost rapidly spreading from the wound.
In mere seconds, it was too late to react— A chilling surge surged through him. His entire body was encased in ice, frozen solid.
With a dull thud, he fell from the sky and hit the ground—shattering into countless frozen fragments.
The other Grand Elders who had just arrived to assist were shocked. Seeing their comrade killed so swiftly left their expressions grim. None of them had expected more of their own to fall here. The situation had become far more difficult—they just needed to endure a little longer to escape this continent.
The three Grand Elders turned their gaze toward Xia Zhenhai, who was rapidly approaching. Without hesitation, they began casting a spell. Escaping the continent wasn't their only object; they had a task—failing this task would mean death even if they safely returned to the palace. They were to ensure the Blood Prince's survival at all costs.
As the spell completed, a massive crimson three-headed serpent materialized before them, letting out a piercing screech as it shot toward their approaching enemy.
Xia Zhenhai's eyes narrowed. The aura emitted from this serpent was very dangerous. His intuition screamed a warning for him not to confront it. Even so, he could not back down.
His sword let out a sharp cry as misty ice surged from the blade. With a swift motion, he slashed forward, unleashing a powerful wave of Sword Qi.
The left head of the blood serpent let out a piercing screech before unleashing a torrent of flames from its mouth. The flames were incredibly powerful, completely negating Xia Zhenhai's Sword Qi.
Xia Zhenhai was shocked by the serpent's power. He quickly dodged the incoming torrent of flames—successfully evading it—but he was far from safe. As he moved, he saw the other two heads—the middle and the right—open their mouths and unleash a poisonous orb and an icy blast, respectively, aimed directly at him.
He swiftly performed a secret technique. Countless Qi Swords materialized around him and shot toward both the incoming attacks and the serpent itself.
The Qi Swords collided with the serpent's attacks in midair, neutralizing each other in a burst of light and energy.
Using the brief opening created by the clash, Xia Zhenhai slipped past the chaos. His icy wings flared as he ignored the Grand Elders and the serpent—his true target had always been the Blood Prince.
But how could the Grand Elders allow that?
Sensing his intent, they immediately commanded the serpent to intercept. Despite its massive size, the blood serpent was alarmingly fast. In less than a second, its enormous body surged forward and blocked Xia Zhenhai's path, forcing him to halt.
Xia Zhenhai's expression turned grim. If this continued, he would lose the one chance to take revenge—for himself and for his clan.
Just then, as if the heavens had taken pity on him, the sky above suddenly split open. Golden-purple clouds swirled into existence, and a resonant Dao rhythm began to echo across the continent.
Golden-purple Qi descended from the sky, enveloping him.