A Black Pot Falls from the Sky, and the Twelve Holy Lands Collectively Lose It (Part 2)

Wang Hao nodded.

“Correct.”

“If we acknowledge that they are heroes who contributed to the battle against the Eerie, they will also become thorns in Ji Wushang’s side.”

“If we refuse to acknowledge them, people will think they’re hiding their achievements, shirking the fight, or trying to claim all the credit for themselves. Either way, we’ll offend someone.”

Yin Jiuyou was dumbfounded.

“Your Majesty, you’ve made that scapegoat fit perfectly.”

Wang Hao corrected him:

“It isn’t a scapegoat.”

“It’s history choosing them.”

The corners of the Demon Lord’s mouth twitched.

“If history had a spirit, it would probably move house overnight.”

Meanwhile.

On the main battlefield.

After Ji Wushang was wounded, the Central Continent coalition did indeed seize the opportunity to launch a frenzied counterattack.

But the vitality of a Level Ten Eerie was simply too terrifying.

Even with its damaged Eerie Eye blasted apart and the core of its Eerie Domain thrown into chaos, it was still not something ordinary powerhouses could kill.

With one hand, it tore through the sea of Buddhist light. With the other, it seized the body of an ancient Transcendent and forcibly stuffed him into the small coffin embedded in its abdomen.

The ancient Transcendent screamed and self-detonated.

Boom!

The terrifying force blasted a crack into the small coffin in Ji Wushang’s abdomen.

But in the next moment, black tendrils writhed across it, and the coffin slowly closed again.

Ji Wushang raised its head. Black blood dripped from its damaged Eerie Eye as it swept its gaze across the battlefield.

It was searching.

Searching for the attacker.

Searching for the black-robed man wearing a bronze ghost mask.

But Wang Hao had already fled.

Ji Wushang couldn’t find him.

Unable to find Wang Hao, it needed an outlet for its fury.

And on the battlefield, the banners of the Twelve Sacred Lands were exceptionally conspicuous.

The Thunder Zenith Sacred Land’s banner of storm clouds.

The Lunar Shade Sacred Land’s banner of the silver moon.

The Blood Lotus Sacred Land’s banner of the red lotus.

The Mountains and Rivers Sacred Land’s blue-and-yellow banner.

The Boundless Sacred Land’s banner of the radiant wheel.

The Sword Mound Sacred Land’s banner of the sword mountain.

The Divine Wood Sacred Land’s banner of green vines.

The Yin-Yang Sacred Land’s black-and-white banner.

The Golden Vault Sacred Land’s banner of golden weapons.

The Azure Sea Sacred Land’s banner of blue tides.

The Sacred Spirit Sacred Land’s banner of white flames.

The Astral Sacred Land’s banner of the river of stars.

In Ji Wushang’s Eerie Eye, those battle banners gradually overlapped with the sixteen manifestations that had attacked it moments ago.

Resentment surged like a black sea.

“The Sacred Lands…”

“You… must die…”

Its voice was not loud.

Yet every powerhouse of the Twelve Sacred Lands felt a chill run down their spine.

Lord of Thunder Zenith’s expression changed dramatically.

“This is bad!”

“It’s targeted us!”

A female Valkyrie from the Lunar Shade Sacred Land gritted her teeth.

“Who was that person just now?”

“Why could he use the manifestations of our Sacred Lands?”

An elder from the Sword Mound Sacred Land shouted angrily:

“It wasn’t one of ours!”

“Our Sword Mound Sacred Land absolutely does not have a senior expert who skulks around with his face hidden!”

A disciple of the Astral Sacred Land hesitated.

He remembered the experience of being ordered by Wang Hao to “dispose of the contamination” on their warship.

That Emperor of Great Xia seemed to know a few techniques from the Astral Sacred Land as well…

No.

Surely not?

Even the most shameless person in the world couldn’t be shameless enough to go that far, could they?

That was a Level Ten Eerie!

Who would dare impersonate the Twelve Sacred Lands and ambush it at a time like this?

Only someone with something wrong in the head.

Or someone whose heart was darker than an Eerie Domain.

The disciples of the Astral Sacred Land fell silent.

For some reason, the same figure surfaced in all their minds.

Emperor of Great Xia, Wang Hao.

But no one dared say it aloud.

Because they had no proof.

More importantly, even they felt the idea was absurd when put into words.

A second-level Martial God going to ambush a Level Ten Eerie?

And actually succeeding in seriously wounding it?

That didn’t sound like reality.

It sounded like something a drunken storyteller in a tavern had made up.

Before the Twelve Sacred Lands could turn on one another, Ji Wushang had already charged over.

Dragging its gravely wounded Eerie body behind it, it went straight for the Thunder Zenith Sacred Land’s formation.

The Thunder Zenith Sacred Land specialized in thunder techniques, which were the most effective against Eeries.

Furthermore, Wang Hao’s purple thunder dragon had just been wrapped in the manifestation of the Thunder Zenith Sacred Land.

Naturally, Ji Wushang targeted them first.

“Stop it!”

Lord of Thunder Zenith roared.

Tens of thousands of disciples from the Thunder Zenith Sacred Land activated their thunder techniques simultaneously.

A pool of heavenly thunder appeared in the sky.

Endless lightning poured down like a waterfall.

If it had been a Level Nine Eerie, it would have been blasted to ash on the spot.

But Ji Wushang merely raised a hand.

A mouth split open in its palm.

That mouth actually swallowed the lightning directly!

Boom! Boom! Boom!

The sky-filling thunder was devoured and transformed into black electrical plasma that streamed down Ji Wushang’s body.

Although the lightning scorched it black over large areas, its speed did not slow.

In the blink of an eye, it had charged into the Thunder Zenith Sacred Land’s battle formation.

The slaughter began.

Ji Wushang brought down one palm, turning several thousand disciples of the Thunder Zenith Sacred Land into clouds of blood mist.

The small coffin in its abdomen opened and swallowed an entire auxiliary thunder formation.

Lord of Thunder Zenith’s eyes turned blood-red.

“Abomination!”

Clutching the Thunder Ancestor Hammer, he unleashed the full aura of a peak Martial God and desperately smashed it toward Ji Wushang’s damaged Eerie Eye.

The strike was tremendously powerful.

Under ordinary circumstances, it would have been enough to kill a Level Nine Eerie.

But Ji Wushang merely tilted its head to avoid the vital point, allowing the Thunder Ancestor Hammer to crash into its shoulder.

Crack!

Its shoulder bone shattered.

At the same time, its other hand seized half of Lord of Thunder Zenith’s body.

“Just now… the thunder…”

“You…”

“Die…”

Lord of Thunder Zenith was both furious and alarmed.

“It wasn’t us!”

“We weren’t the ones who did that just now!”

There was not the slightest hesitation in Ji Wushang’s damaged Eerie Eye.

It simply would not listen.

Or perhaps it was incapable of listening.

The logic of an Eerie had never been the logic of humanity.

It had already decided.

Therefore, it was fact.

Rip!

Half of Lord of Thunder Zenith’s body was torn apart.

Had the Thunder Zenith Ancestor not intervened and forcibly rescued him, the Thunder Zenith Sacred Land would have had to replace its lord on the spot.

The people of the Thunder Zenith Sacred Land were shocked and enraged.

“Who framed us?!”

Far away, aboard the Great Xia spirit vessel that was retreating from the battlefield, Wang Hao suddenly sneezed.

Yin Jiuyou immediately asked with concern:

“Your Majesty, have your injuries flared up?”

Wang Hao rubbed his nose.

“No.”

“Someone is thinking about me.”

The Demon Lord remained expressionless.

“They’re cursing you.”

Wang Hao replied calmly:

“Thinking of me and cursing me are essentially both forms of emotional attachment.”

The Demon Lord fell silent.

Once someone became shameless enough, they truly were impossible to defeat.

On the main battlefield, after tearing through the Thunder Zenith formation, Ji Wushang turned toward the Lunar Shade Sacred Land.

That was because, during the earlier ambush, the Lunar Shadow Severance technique had sliced into the crack in its Eerie Eye, causing pain that reached its very origin.

The female cultivators of the Lunar Shade Sacred Land turned deathly pale.

Lord of Lunar Shade shouted:

“Form the Lunar Wheel Formation!”

A silver moon rose into the sky.

Moonlight flowed like water, attempting to suppress Ji Wushang’s Eerie Domain.

But the damaged Eerie Eye on Ji Wushang’s forehead suddenly opened wide.

A beam of black light shot out.

Black blood vessels immediately spread across the surface of the silver moon.

The next moment, the silver moon fell backward and smashed into the formation of the Lunar Shade Sacred Land itself.

Screams shook the heavens.

Lord of Lunar Shade trembled with rage.

“It wasn’t us, Lunar Shade!”

“If our Sacred Land possessed such a trump card, we would have used it long ago!”

The Blood Lotus Ancestor beside her wore a grim expression.

“Why bother explaining it to that thing?”

“It isn’t an elder of the Sacred Lands. It doesn’t care about reason.”

As soon as he finished speaking, Ji Wushang turned its head toward the Blood Lotus Sacred Land.

The Blood Lotus Ancestor’s expression stiffened.

“Was it a mistake to open my mouth just now?”

The next moment, a sea of blood surged.

Ji Wushang charged toward the Blood Lotus Sacred Land.

The people of the Blood Lotus Sacred Land broke down on the spot.

“Who was it?!”

“Who exactly is impersonating our Blood Lotus Sacred Land?!”

“I curse that bastard to have children without an asshole!”

Far away aboard the spirit vessel, Wang Hao sneezed again.

The New Emperor Sword weakly remarked:

“Master, that curse was particularly vicious.”

Wang Hao glanced at it.

“Focus on refining.”

Yin Jiuyou could not help asking:

“Your Majesty, aren’t you afraid of being exposed eventually?”

Wang Hao pondered for a moment.

“I am.”

Yin Jiuyou froze.

He had not expected His Majesty to be so honest.

Wang Hao continued:

“That’s why, from now on, we must keep the number of people who know the truth to an absolute minimum.”

Yin Jiuyou’s face went pale.

“Your Majesty, I am utterly loyal!”

Wang Hao nodded.

“That is why I didn’t silence you.”

Yin Jiuyou nearly dropped to his knees.

“Thank you, Your Majesty, for sparing my life.”

The Demon Lord said coldly, “Ji Wushang has had his hatred redirected by you. For the time being, the holy lands are under vastly increased pressure.”

“But once it recovers from its injuries, it will still remember you.”

Wang Hao nodded.

“That is why, before it recovers, we must make the twelve holy lands put their remaining usefulness to work.”

Han Shanyue hesitated.

“Your Majesty, if the twelve holy lands suffer too great a loss, the Central Continent’s defensive line will collapse as well.”

Wang Hao looked toward the blackened sky in the distance.

“I know.”

“So we cannot let them all die just yet.”

“They must hold the line.”

“And they must suffer.”

“Only when the pain cuts to their very bones will they stop thinking about preserving their foundations and waiting to reap the benefits.”

His voice was calm.

Yet Han Shanyue and the others felt a chill in their hearts.

This was what made Wang Hao terrifying.

He was not simply taking revenge on the holy lands.

He was forcing them to commit everything they had.

Previously, although the Central Continent coalition had joined the war, every major power had still held something back.

The twelve holy lands in particular possessed deep reserves. None of them wished to be the first to exhaust the wealth they had accumulated for survival.

But things were different now.

Ji Wushang had set its sights on the holy lands.

It did not care whether they hid.

It did not care whether they acknowledged it.

It would simply kill them.

Under such circumstances, if the twelve holy lands continued to hold back, they would be torn apart one by one.

With a single black pot of blame, Wang Hao had forcibly transformed the twelve holy lands from observers and participants into Ji Wushang’s mortal enemies.

It was a vicious move.

But it worked.

On the main battlefield, the twelve holy lands were indeed forced to unleash their true foundations.

Thunder Zenith Holy Land summoned the remains of the Thunder Ancestor.

Lunar Shade Holy Land raised the Ancient Lunar Mirror.

Blood Lotus Holy Land awakened the Blood Sea Ancestor.

Mountain and River Holy Land uprooted an ancestral ley line and forged it into a dragon spear.

Immeasurable Holy Land lit the Ten-Thousand-Year Lamp of Light.

Sword Ruins Holy Land opened its sword tomb, and one hundred thousand broken swords shot into the heavens.

Divine Wood Holy Land activated the Ancient Tree That Reached the Heavens, its roots plunging into the Wraith Domain and forcibly drawing out the black mist.

Yin-Yang Holy Land unfurled the Primordial Duality Diagram.

Golden Pavilion Holy Land brought forth the Geng Metal Divine Palace.

Azure Sea Holy Land summoned Weakwater from beyond the heavens.

Holy Spirit Holy Land burned sacred blood and called forth the hazy phantom of a Holy Spirit.

Starry Heavens Holy Land activated the Stellar River Grand Array, drawing down the radiance of the nine heavens.

Once the twelve holy lands truly began fighting for their lives, the situation was finally stabilized, at least for the moment.

Ji Wushang was powerful, but it had only just suffered grave injuries and was now being suppressed by the combined foundations of the twelve holy lands. For a time, it could no longer continue its slaughter.

It let out an enraged roar. Its Wraith Domain expanded and contracted without cease, like a black heart that had been pierced.

The Central Continent coalition seized the chance to regroup.

The war entered its most brutal stalemate.

Wang Hao watched from afar, his expression still grim.

“Still not enough.”

The Demon Lord asked, “What else do you intend to do?”

Wang Hao said, “It is about to retreat.”

Everyone was startled.

“Retreat?”

Yin Jiuyou looked toward the distant battlefield.

“Isn’t it still fighting?”

Wang Hao shook his head.

“It is no longer fighting to win.”

“It is trying to force back its pursuers.”

“The damaged Wraith Eye is too severely injured, and its devouring rhythm has been disrupted.”

“If it keeps fighting, it may not die, but its injuries will worsen.”

“Ji Wushang has instincts, but it also has intelligence.”

“It will leave first.”

The Demon Lord narrowed his eyes.

“How do you know?”

Wang Hao did not explain.

Because the check-in intelligence system had already given him a prompt.

[Intelligence Update: While severely injured, Ji Wushang will prioritize withdrawing from the battlefield and seek out a yin-death land to restore the Wraith Eye.]

[Its current hatred priority has changed.]

[Primary hatred target: the sixteen holy lands.]

[Secondary hatred target: host Wang Hao.]

[Third hatred target: the Central Continent coalition.]

When he saw the second line, Wang Hao let out a breath of relief.

Excellent.

He had dropped from first to second.

It was still dangerous.

But at least the twelve holy lands would help take the hits for him.

He looked into the distance and said softly, “Twelve holy lands…”

“I have won you the chance to be first.”

“You had better cherish it.”

Yin Jiuyou’s scalp went numb.

“Your Majesty, I suddenly feel that offending you is even more terrifying than offending the wraiths.”

Wang Hao looked at him.

“Then you should remain loyal.”

Yin Jiuyou immediately fell to his knees.

“Your Majesty, my loyalty to you can be witnessed by heaven and earth—and proven by the wraiths!”

Wang Hao frowned.

“Do not let wraiths testify for you in the future.”

“It is inauspicious.”

Yin Jiuyou hurriedly nodded.

“I will remember, Your Majesty.”

On the distant battlefield, Ji Wushang finally made its move.

It no longer attacked with wild abandon.

Instead, it opened the small coffin in its abdomen and abruptly devoured tens of thousands of low-ranking wraiths nearby.

Those wraiths did not dare resist. They directly transformed into origin essence and poured into its body.

Borrowing that power, the tenth-level Wraith Domain behind Ji Wushang suddenly contracted.

That black kingdom became a dark current stretching across heaven and earth.

It forcefully smashed through the blockade formed by the foundations of the twelve holy lands and fled northward.

Ancient Qin Patriarch roared, “Do not let it escape!”

The aged monk of the Ten Thousand Buddha Temple also rose to his feet, coughing blood.

“Pursue it!”

The experts of the twelve holy lands had bloodshot eyes as well.

Ji Wushang had singled them out for special attention, and they had suffered terrible casualties.

Now that it wanted to leave, how could they possibly let it go?

But Ji Wushang retreated with astonishing speed.

As it fled, it devoured the life force of the mountains and rivers along its path through its Wraith Domain, forcibly restoring its injuries.

Although the damaged Wraith Eye was still bleeding, threads of black law once again began to writhe.

Wang Hao watched the direction of its flight, his gaze darkening.

“North.”

The Demon Lord asked, “What is in the north?”

Wang Hao replied slowly, “Yin-death lands.”

“And the ancestral mausoleums of several holy lands.”

Yin Jiuyou’s face turned green.

“Surely it is not going to dig up the holy lands’ ancestral graves to heal itself?”

Wang Hao thought about it seriously.

“That would be quite in character for it right now.”

Han Shanyue said gravely, “Your Majesty, should we pursue it?”

Wang Hao glanced at his injuries, then at the New Emperor Sword, which was still being struck by lightning.

“Pursue.”

Everyone was startled.

Wang Hao added, “From a distance.”

“It eats the meat.”

“The coalition drinks the soup.”

“We pick up the bowls.”

Yin Jiuyou breathed a sigh of relief.

That was more like it.

That was the emperor they knew.