Chapter Seventy-Eight: The Heavenly Court Emerges, The First Battle Between Sorcerers and Demons

Since Hongjun merged with the Dao, for thousands of years the entire Wildlands had been swept into a frenzy of searching for innate spiritual treasures. The demon emperors of the Demon Clan, Di Jun and Donghuang Taiyi, dispatched countless subordinates, scouring innumerable blessed lands and hidden realms, yet the results proved deeply disappointing. Though the Demon Clan found many acquired spiritual treasures, innate ones were few and far between, and all of them were but lower-grade.

Naturally, neither Di Jun nor Taiyi would use mere lower-grade innate treasures to sever their corpses; in their hearts, they always hoped to acquire supreme innate treasures, or even primordial artifacts.

One day, a subordinate reported that atop the summit of Buzhou Mountain, in the void, a vast secret realm had been discovered. Curious, Di Jun and Taiyi went to investigate in person.

Upon entering the void above Buzhou Mountain, Di Jun and Taiyi were instantly taken aback. There, within the endless expanse, lay a boundless space teeming with spiritual herbs and countless rare birds and beasts living freely. The spiritual energy was so dense it was nearly liquefied, so that every breath taken within brought a tangible sense of cultivation advancing. If the Demon Clan’s headquarters could be moved here, then...

The two exchanged a glance, nodding in silent agreement, before returning to their clan.

“That place is splendid, but the Wu Clan dwells at the foot of Buzhou Mountain. Our Demon Clan has never been on good terms with them, so I fear they will try to obstruct us. What should we do?” Di Jun said, troubled.

Taiyi, more belligerent by nature, replied angrily, “What’s so hard about that? If it comes to it, let’s fight the Wu Clan! I’m not afraid of them.”

Di Jun shook his head, pondering for a long while until his eyes suddenly lit up. “I have an idea!” he exclaimed. Taiyi looked at his elder brother in confusion. “What is it, brother?”

With a mysterious smile, Di Jun leaned in and whispered his plan to Taiyi.

Hearing it, Taiyi’s eyes shone. “Excellent! This will also cement our reputation as emperors.” The two exchanged a hearty laugh.

In the chaos outside the Purple Cloud Palace, Di Jun and Taiyi bowed respectfully. Di Jun called out, “Di Jun and Taiyi request an audience with our teacher!”

After a long while, the great doors of the Purple Cloud Palace creaked open, and out stepped a young boy—Haotian, the child attendant of Hongjun.

Haotian greeted the two with a bow. “Greetings, senior brothers!”

Being the Dao Ancestor’s attendant, Haotian was not to be offended. Di Jun and Taiyi returned the bow. “Junior brother, please inform the teacher that Di Jun and Taiyi wish to see him.”

Haotian replied respectfully, “Master has said that such minor matters can be decided by yourselves.”

The two were overjoyed, immediately bowing toward the palace. “We thank the teacher for his grace!” With a nod to Haotian, they departed in delight to make preparations.

In the ancestral land of the Wu Clan, within the Pangu Hall, Emperor Jiang looked gravely at Houtu and asked in a deep voice, “Is what you say true?” Houtu nodded solemnly.

“How do you know the Demon Clan plans to establish the Heavenly Court atop Buzhou Mountain? They have made no move yet,” Xuanming asked curiously.

Houtu shook her head with a wry smile. “Brothers, forgive me, but I cannot reveal how I know. Just be prepared.” Her expression grew serious. “The first great battle between the Wu and Demon Clans is upon us!”

Seeing that Houtu seemed troubled, the other ancestral witches pressed her no further. Instead, they gathered to discuss how to respond to the coming war and how best to deal a heavy blow to the Demon Clan.

Ever since Houtu began cultivating her soul, she had become proficient in both body and soul cultivation, and with the synergy of the two, she had advanced her soul to the peak of the Da Luo Golden Immortal realm. Though not quite at the early Quasi-Saint stage as her physical body, her mastery of divination had grown adept.

Recently, during her cultivation, Houtu felt a sense of unease. Upon divination, she discovered Di Jun and Taiyi’s plans and hurried to warn her brothers so they could prepare in advance.

The Demon Clan was due for a harsh lesson. Di Jun and Taiyi had assumed the Wu Clan, being without souls, could not sense the will of Heaven and thus did not use treasures to obscure their plans. Little did they expect Houtu to be an exception, nearly ruining their plot.

In the starry sky, on the vast and unchanging Sun Star, the ancient flames burned eternally. Within the Sun Temple, the power of pure yang filled the air, and the sun’s true fire was so intense that only those at the Da Luo level could approach. It was here that Di Jun and Taiyi were born.

Awakening from seclusion, Di Jun and Taiyi’s eyes shone with light, deep within which blazed fierce flames. Behind them, their true forms manifested as three-legged golden crows, soaring and crying arrogantly over the world.

At that moment, it seemed as if the very temperature of heaven and earth had risen, striking fear into all living things across the Wildlands.

“Brother, our cultivation of the Two-Corpse Severance is now secure. We can begin the plan we devised,” Donghuang Taiyi said coldly.

“Indeed. This time, we must suppress the Wu Clan. That secret realm is of utmost importance to our Demon Clan. No matter the cost, we must seize it,” Di Jun replied, his eyes gleaming with sharp, chilling intent.

With that, the two left the Sun Temple, heading toward the Demon Clan’s lands, unaware that the Wu Clan had already made preparations in secret, recalling their people and lying in wait for the demons to fall into their trap.

On this day, the Wildlands was destined for turmoil. Countless cultivators felt a suffocating weight in their hearts, as if some great event was about to occur. Many powerful beings, after some divination, seemed to realize what was coming and shut themselves away to avoid being caught in the chaos.

“BOOM!” A bell tolled through the void, shaking all the mighty ones, who exclaimed in awe, “The Chaos Bell?” Tremors rippled through the crowd. The Chaos Bell, one of the Three Treasures of Creation, had become famous since Hongjun distributed the treasures, making many covetous, but none dared act against the Demon Clan’s might.

As the Chaos Bell’s echoes shook the Wildlands, the Demon Clan’s armies formed rank after rank, exuding murderous intent as they flew toward Buzhou Mountain. Along the way, countless lesser cultivators fled in terror, fearing slaughter by the demons.

The Ten Great Demon Marshals strode through the air above the army, brimming with domineering pride. Behind them, eighteen flood dragons pulled a chariot a thousand feet long, shining with golden light. Atop it stood the two Demon Emperors, like gods descending to the mortal world. In the void, two golden crow phantoms gazed loftily over all, radiating heat enough to burn the very sky.

Before long, the Demon Clan’s army arrived at the foot of Buzhou Mountain. The Twelve Ancestral Witches were already waiting. As the Demon Emperors’ chariot drew near, Emperor Jiang called out in a voice that shook heaven and earth, “Do you demons seek war?”

“Our Demon Clan wishes to establish the Heavenly Court in the secret realm atop Buzhou Mountain. If your Wu Clan tries to stop us, we will not hesitate to fight!” Di Jun replied calmly.

The hot-tempered Zhu Rong immediately exploded in rage. “You would build the Heavenly Court atop Buzhou Mountain, desecrating our Father God? Do you think the Wu Clan has no one to defend him?”

Taiyi snorted coldly. “We too are born of Great God Pangu, from the Sun Star formed by his left eye. How could we ever desecrate Pangu? The great god has long since perished. Our establishment of the Heavenly Court was granted by the Dao Ancestor himself, for the benefit of the Wildlands. If you try to stop us, you are defying Heaven itself.”

Emperor Jiang, hearing this, laughed in fury. “The Dao Ancestor’s permission means nothing to the Wu Clan. If you seek to disrespect our Father God, we will fight you to the end!”

Seeing that the ancestral witches were only at the early Quasi-Saint stage, Taiyi was unafraid. “If that is so, then let us battle!”

After years of development, the Wu and Demon Clans had each amassed great power and were now the two strongest races in the Wildlands. For the sake of the Heavenly Court’s secret realm, they were bound to clash. From the beginning, the two sides were destined to be mortal enemies, ever since the ancestral witches hunted demons for food—this was fate decreed by Heaven.

From their birth, the ancestral witches had considered themselves the bloodline of Pangu, and, over time, saw themselves as the true masters of the land. How could they allow the Demon Clan to rise above them? With both sides harboring ambitions to rule the Wildlands, peace was never possible.

Seeing that things could not be resolved peacefully, Di Jun shouted, “The ancestral witches feed on our kind, defying the natural order and bringing disaster to all! Today is the day of vengeance—Demon Clan, attack!”

With a wave of his hand, he summoned the River Diagram and the Book of Luo to protect himself and charged at the Twelve Ancestral Witches, launching the slaughter.

At the same time, Donghuang Taiyi unleashed the Chaos Bell, flicking his finger. The bell’s peal resounded through heaven and earth, sending a tangible wave of force sweeping toward the Wu Clan.

“Kill!” With that cry, the two clans clashed in a bloody melee. Heaven and earth changed color, as boundless killing intent filled the world.