The Battle Begins
Across the vast stretches of the cosmos, Xiao Yan's battalion advanced.
The Celestial winds roared around them, sweeping through endless darkness filled with distant stars. Floating fragments of light drifted past like shattered constellations, and the immense silence of the universe stretched in every direction.
Saints marched at the front.
Behind them came disciples and cultivators, their spiritual energy blazing like torches in the void. Di'or moved among them with quiet focus, while Nem walked calmly at the center of the formation, his sharp eyes scanning every corner of the battlefield.
Their robes rippled in the interstellar winds.
No one spoke.
Every heartbeat echoed with anticipation.
Today would be the final battle.
Today would decide the fate of the universe.
Xiao Yan stood at the front of the battalion, the God-Destroying Sword resting firmly in his grasp. The blade shimmered faintly, reflecting the starlight of distant galaxies.
He raised the sword slightly.
"Today," he declared, his voice carrying across the army, "is the last day of the fight."
The Saints and disciples lifted their heads.
"We will kill the Ansha," Xiao Yan continued, his eyes burning with determination, "and restore justice to this world."
A ripple of fierce energy surged through the battalion.
Yet beneath his resolve, another thought lingered.
Mi-An.
Her unconscious form rested deep within his mind, a silent presence that never left him. The memory of her absence gnawed at his heart like a slow, constant ache.
Xiao Yan clenched his fists.
"I won't fail her," he whispered quietly.
Beside him, Nem observed everything carefully.
His gaze was sharp.
Calculating.
Each step of the advancing battalion sent faint ripples through the void, as though the universe itself felt the movement of so many powerful beings.
Nem's lips curled slightly.
Then he raised his hand.
"Charge!" he shouted.
Like a crashing wave, the battalion surged forward toward the Celestial Realm.
Power exploded outward as hundreds of cultivators accelerated through the cosmic winds. Spiritual energy streaked through space like blazing comets.
But suddenly—
A figure descended from above.
Hao Nan.
She fell from the upper sky like a meteor of golden light. When she landed, a violent gust of cosmic wind erupted outward, sending several cultivators tumbling through the void.
Her expression was calm.
Focused.
She raised two fingers from each hand and crossed them slowly.
A spiral of yellow light formed between them.
The energy twisted into a glowing circle, floating in the air before her. Strange symbols rotated along its surface as the circle expanded outward.
Larger.
Wider.
Until it became an enormous floating formation.
Impossible to touch.
The formation hummed with terrifying power, its golden surface rippling like liquid sunlight.
Anyone who approached too closely felt it immediately.
Their spiritual essence began to drain away.
Energy was pulled from their bodies as though the formation itself were feeding.
Xiao Yan's eyes narrowed.
Without hesitation—
His body erupted into dragon form.
Golden scales burst across his body as massive wings tore through the void behind him. His transformation sent waves of power across the battlefield.
With a deafening roar that shook the stars themselves, the dragon lunged forward.
He smashed directly into the glowing formation.
The impact was explosive.
The magical construct shattered like glass beneath the force of his attack.
Energy scattered in every direction as the formation collapsed completely.
Hao Nan was thrown backward violently.
She crashed through the air, blood spilling from her mouth as she struggled to stabilize herself.
Xiao Yan's dragon form dissolved as he landed, returning instantly to human shape.
Without wasting a second, he drew a sword of shimmering energy and lunged toward her.
But before his blade could strike—
A powerful bluish force slammed into him.
The attack came without warning.
Xiao Yan was hurled backward violently, his body skidding across the celestial ground.
The surface beneath him cracked apart, fragments of cosmic stone breaking away into the void.
Then—
The sky split open.
A massive wave of power descended from above.
Every cultivator froze.
Every Saint stopped moving.
The air itself bent under the weight of the approaching presence.
From the torn sky, a single figure descended slowly.
The Ansha.
His blue robes flowed gently around him as he stepped into the battlefield, his aura spreading across the Celestial Realm like an invisible storm.
Every inch of the realm trembled beneath his authority.
Stars dimmed.
Cosmic winds faltered.
Even the ground seemed to bow.
The Ansha looked down upon the gathered battalion calmly.
The final battle—
Was about to begin.