"..."
Seeing that Xiao Yan still had no intention of uprooting the Maha Ancient Clan entirely, Qin Tian and the others could only sigh. The Maha Ancient Clan had once been the faction with the greatest number of Heavenly Sovereign experts in the Great Thousand World. Now, however, all of those Heavenly Sovereigns had been slain by Xiao Yan in one day. This sudden purge drastically weakened the strength of the Great Thousand World. In the future, should they face another onslaught from the Extraterritorial Evil Race...
"By the way, since all of you are here today, there's something I wanted to discuss."
Just as the Undying Lord and the rest were preparing to return, their hearts still heavy from the fall of the Maha Ancient Clan, Xiao Yan's voice rang out and stopped them. "This matter concerns the future of the Great Thousand World. I wonder... would you be interested in hearing me out?"
Had it been any other matter, they might have brushed him off. But once Xiao Yan mentioned the "future of the Great Thousand World," none of them could simply walk away. They paused and turned around, waiting to see what Xiao Yan was about to reveal.
"I believe all of you are aware that the greatest threat currently facing the Great Thousand World is the Extraterritorial Evil Race. But within the Evil Race, the most terrifying entity isn't the current thirty-two clan leaders... but someone else, am I right?" Xiao Yan asked plainly.
"We're aware," the Undying Lord responded with a nod. The others, like Qin Tian and the Green-Robed Sword Saint, also nodded solemnly. Their positions were high enough to be privy to such deep-seated secrets. As for the Undying Lord, he was personally connected to the Immortal Emperor of the past and even knew more than most.
Back then, the Extraterritorial Evil Race had been ruled by a dreadful existence known as the Heavenly Evil God. His power had surpassed that of any ordinary Saint-grade Heavenly Sovereign. Even if several peak Saint-grade experts had joined forces, they wouldn't have been able to withstand a single exchange with him. In the end, it had been the Immortal Emperor who had stepped forth, sacrificing his life to seal the Heavenly Evil God, bringing an end to the apocalyptic war.
"As far as I know," Xiao Yan continued, "that Heavenly Evil God possesses an incredibly stubborn vitality. Though sealed, he was never completely eradicated. That means there remains a possibility he might one day break free... and if that happens, the Great Thousand World will be plunged into catastrophe."
"You're correct. However, in order to permanently eliminate him, the Immortal Emperor specifically left behind a formation known as the Great Thousand Demon-Suppressing Array. This array operates once every millennium. It must complete forty-nine successful cycles to fully obliterate the Heavenly Evil God. Presently, it has already run forty-eight times. Only one more cycle is needed... and he'll be gone for good!"
The Undying Lord's voice carried surprise as he glanced at Xiao Yan. He hadn't expected this younger man to know such confidential matters. After all, while Xiao Yan was indeed now a Saint-grade Heavenly Sovereign, he had only recently stepped into that level. Logically, he shouldn't have had access to this level of strategic information.
Unbeknownst to them, Xiao Yan hadn't learned these secrets from the Great Thousand World's circles. Rather, he had extracted them directly from the memories of several high-level demonic emperors of the Extraterritorial Evil Race, such as the Heaven Demon Emperors.
"Even so," Xiao Yan said calmly, "the next cycle of the Demon-Suppressing Array won't activate for several hundred years. That's not exactly a long time, but it's not short either. Who can say what might happen in that span? If the Extraterritorial Evil Race makes a move to interfere, do you really believe we'll be able to complete the last cycle without incident?"
"The power of the Evil Race isn't far off from our own," said the Green-Robed Sword Saint after a pause. "Otherwise, we wouldn't still be locked in this stalemate. But now that the Maha Ancient Clan has been wiped out, the overall strength of the Great Thousand World has undeniably suffered. If the Evil Race catches wind of this and launches a full-scale invasion... we won't be in any position to repel them."
Xiao Yan chuckled. "I understand what you're thinking. But what if I told you... I have a way to end this war once and for all? To cleanse the threat of the Extraterritorial Evil Race completely? Even eliminate the risk of the Heavenly Evil God ever breaking free?"
"You speak too lightly of things, Brother Xiao," the Undying Lord shook his head. "If it were that simple, would we still be locked in this deadlock after so many years? The power of the Evil Race is not beneath ours. If we were to launch an assault, even as the attackers, we'd suffer massive casualties. That's not a gamble we can afford."
Disappointment was visible on the faces of Qin Tian and the others. They had hoped Xiao Yan might have some clever strategy, but his so-called "solution" sounded more like foolish bravado. In their eyes, Xiao Yan had become overconfident after annihilating the Maha Ancient Clan single-handedly. But that clan, despite its strength, was only a fraction of what the Evil Race had at its disposal.
"You all might not know this," Xiao Yan said, his tone suddenly shifting. "But not long ago, I returned from deep within the territory of the Extraterritorial Evil Race."
"What?"
The crowd visibly stirred.
"On my way back," Xiao Yan added casually, "I killed one of the thirty-two clan leaders. If I recall correctly, his title was... Slash Heaven Demon Emperor."
"What?! The Slash Heaven Demon Emperor?! That's impossible!"
The Green-Robed Sword Saint and the others were dumbstruck. Even Qin Tian, who had once escaped the Evil Race's domain, was left speechless. The Slash Heaven Demon Emperor wasn't the strongest among the thirty-two, but he was certainly among the upper tier. Even the Undying Lord would struggle in a head-on battle with him.
And yet Xiao Yan claimed to have killed him—and not just in a duel, but while deep within enemy territory?
They had personally witnessed Xiao Yan defeat the three Saint-grade powerhouses of the Maha Ancient Clan. But even so, this claim seemed too outrageous to believe. After all, Xiao Yan was still only in the early stages of the Saint-grade...
What they didn't know was that Xiao Yan had slain the Slash Heaven Demon Emperor while he was still only a Spiritual-grade Heavenly Sovereign. If they had known that, their jaws might've dropped straight to the floor.
"There's nothing unbelievable about it," Xiao Yan said nonchalantly. "You won't be seeing the Slash Heaven Demon Emperor again. Not just him—several other clan leaders were heavily injured by me, including the strongest of them, the Saint Heaven Demon Emperor. They won't be recovering anytime soon. Which means... right now is the perfect opportunity to strike them while they're weak."
The expressions on everyone's faces shifted dramatically.
Xiao Yan's words weren't empty bluster.
If the Slash Heaven Demon Emperor was dead...
If the Saint Heaven Demon Emperor had been seriously wounded...
And if the remaining forces of the Extraterritorial Evil Race were still licking their wounds...
Then this truly was the most opportune moment in countless years.
A brief silence fell over the assembly.
Then—"What exactly is your plan?" the Undying Lord asked, his eyes finally showing a glint of hope.
Xiao Yan's lips curved into a faint smile.
"A full-scale counterattack."
(End of Chapter)
---
A Huge Shoutout and Welcome to Grant Parris III for Joining us on Patreon and Becoming a Member of Diamond.
---
This Fanfiction Has Been Completed on Patreon, There is 2 Chapters Ahead of Release for Free Members on my Patreon.
Support me if you like this Fanfiction.
Patreon,com/Fallen_Archangel_
(Remove comma for dot.)
Leave a 5 star Review and a Power Stone.