Anger surged right after the shock faded.
That thing wasn't a beast, so it wasn't suppressed by the Golden Dragon's bloodline. But after being forced down moments ago, it felt humiliated and went berserk. With a furious roar, it dove straight toward Song Wanníng.
The Golden Dragon only shot it a cold glance before roaring and diving down as well. Her tail lashed out, scattering the monsters nearby into pieces with a single sweep.
In the blink of an eye, she closed in and brought her claw down hard.
"Roar!"
The dragon's roar shook the sky, making the surrounding monsters tremble in fear.
The monster, however, refused to back down. It let out a defiant roar and charged up, only to be swatted midair by her claw the next instant.
Boom!
A thunderous crash rang out. The monster's bones shattered instantly. It shrieked and staggered back, squealing in agony, but Song Wanníng didn't give it the chance to flee.
The Golden Dragon clan had been wiped out trying to destroy these creatures back then. Every drop of blood owed would be repaid in full.
"Roar!"
Another thunderous dragon's cry echoed. Song Wanníng swept through the battlefield, her massive form tearing through everything in her path. Not a single monster survived intact.
That creature tried to retreat but got smashed by her tail instead.
"Roar!"
A bone-chilling scream split the air as the monster was sent flying, exploding midair into nothing but a cloud of blood mist. The splatter rained down on the other monsters, drenching them in red. Terrified, they shrank back almost instantly.
Yet before anyone could breathe a sigh of relief, those same monsters seemed to fall under some strange compulsion. Their eyes turned glassy, and they charged forward again. It was obvious they didn't want to die. Something behind them was controlling their bodies, forcing them to rush to their deaths like mindless sacrifices.
Song Wanníng's eyes darkened. Her disgust toward the Mùsù star system deepened even further. For the sake of its own interests, the Heavenly Dao of Mùsù had gone insane.
Utterly insane.
She roared again and dove straight into the horde, her massive form cutting down rows of monsters in an instant. But keeping that form drained her spiritual power fast. She couldn't keep it up for long, yet this wasn't the time to back down.
She had to hold on.
Before the storm hit, Yun Yangzi and the others had already swallowed several pills to replenish the energy being drained from them. Even so, it wasn't enough. Their strength was fading fast, and they had to take more pills, anxiety written all over their faces.
They'd already known this might happen.
No one knew how much energy the formation needed. Once it took control, it wouldn't stop just because they wanted it to.
Just like now, even if they wanted to pull back, they couldn't. They'd already become one with the formation. Left with no choice, they started throwing out every energy-restoring item they had—spirit stones, magic stones, anything that could help.
Song Wanníng and the others were fighting with everything they had to control the monsters, so they couldn't afford to drag the team down.
As the formation grew brighter, the expression of Mo Yang Xiānzūn in the Immortal Realm darkened. The seal started to loosen, clearly affected by the disturbance below.
The chasm and the storm mouth were too close together. If one part of the seal shifted, the whole thing moved. Extracting the Immortal Realm safely wouldn't be easy.
His brows furrowed as his fists clenched tightly. He could only hope everything would go smoothly.
Time passed second by second. Song Wanníng eventually reverted to her human form, darting between the monsters. She wanted to use divine thunder but didn't dare. If the thunder affected the formation at such a critical stage, she'd never forgive herself.
Looking up at the spinning array above, her heart sank heavier with every beat.
Time had never felt this slow before.
The faces of the Seniors had gone pale. They'd exhausted every resource they had, and now the formation was draining the last drops of their strength.
Yet the process wasn't close to finishing.
They were barely holding on.
Song Wanníng could see their cultivation levels slipping, their faces turning ghostly white.
Everyone looked grim, but no one stopped.
"Hold steady!"
Yun Yangzi could feel his own cultivation plummeting. Panic clawed at his chest, but he still tried to calm the group.
If anyone lost focus now, they'd all die. There was no way back. Even if their cultivation fell apart, they had to grit their teeth and endure. Their eyes met, and resolve flickered in every one of them. In that moment, fear vanished.
"If we die, we die! Dying here's worth it!"
The Demon King suddenly burst out laughing, carefree as ever. If death came, then so be it. Dying for the sake of the world was better than being slaughtered like animals.
His laughter, rough and bold, somehow made the others laugh too.
"Yeah, I already died once anyway. What's one more time?"
Meng Po chuckled softly. "To stand here with all of you today—it's an honor."
"Hahaha, damn right. We've lived long enough and seen every storm there is. The worst that could happen is death, and that's nothing to be afraid of!"
Yun Yangzi laughed as well. Even if he was gone, the Gu Han Sect would rise again.
The world didn't stop for anyone.
The Patriarch of the Cao Mu Clan listened quietly, a faint smile tugging at their lips.
"Fighting beside all of you today, even death would be glorious! Hahaha!"
Once strangers, now bound by Song Wanníng's cause, they stood together by fate—life and death entwined.
Their laughter drifted to Song Wanníng and the others nearby.
Baili Shang turned, smiling through determination.
"Father, whether we live or die, I'm with you! And if there's a next life, I'll still be your son!"
His eyes shimmered red, but pride filled them.
Pride for the Demon King.
"You little brat!"
The Demon King's eyes were red too. "The Demon Palace still needs you. You'd better survive!"
He barked out the words with a laugh, though emotion tightened his chest.
Meanwhile, Song Wanníng tore through another wave of monsters, her strikes growing fiercer.
She didn't want them to die.
She didn't want anyone to die.
Xuan Yan sensed her emotions and sighed quietly. Watching everyone fight so bravely stirred something deep inside him. He finally understood.
Humans truly were different from each other. There were people who'd fight, bleed, and die for others.
Thinking back on his past actions, he felt foolish. But all he could do now was fight harder.
Fight until the end.
…
Even their courage and sacrifice couldn't change the inevitable. Their cultivation kept slipping, their bodies weakening, barely standing upright. If not for the formation holding them in place, they'd have already collapsed.