Great Victory in the Human Realm

A dragon's roar tore the sky asunder, phoenix flames scorched the earth!

What made the Dragonfolk even more desperate was that these two had also broken through the restrictions of the Aerial Null Array, able to take to the skies and strike the Dragonfolk army from above.

Heavenly Venerate Xia couldn't help but suspect that the one who set up the formation had secretly given them an advantage.

It certainly seemed that way, but in truth, that wasn't the case.

The effects of the Narrow Sky were so overbearing that there was little room for fine-tuning.

Within the formation's domain, all were equal.

Li Wentian, the Dragon God, and the Phoenix God were simply beyond the stat limits; they had forcibly broken through the system's restrictions.

The battle turned white-hot.

The human coalition had more mid- and low-tier combatants, while the Dragonfolk side boasted more top-tier martial god-level fighters.

But with the addition of Li Wentian, the Dragon God, and the Phoenix God, the Dragonfolk couldn't gain much advantage.

And then you kept firing off effects without restraint—those bizarre and unpredictable powers left a number of Heavenly Venerates and Earthly Venerates feeling deeply uneasy.

As the Super Soul Battle Techniques of several Earthly Venerates neared their time limit, Heavenly Venerate Xia decisively gave the order.

“Retreat!!”

The Dragonfolk had a real knack for running away.

You'd seen that earlier from your encounters with their Earthly Venerates.

When they put their minds to escaping, more than half still managed to flee successfully.

That day, an army of 200,000 Dragonfolk was whittled down to around 100,000.

Add in the outright betrayal of their spiritual weapons.

For the human world, this was nothing short of a great victory.

The situation looked promising; it was only right to press the advantage.

But your side's Dragon God, Phoenix God, and Li Wentian were all temporary powerhouses—if you pursued too far, one might turn into an indescribable lump of flesh, and the other two would fall below the rank of Martial God.

Given the old, scheming ways of the Dragonfolk, a headlong chase wasn't a good idea.

Regardless, they still had two Heavenly Venerates who hadn't entered the fray.

This battle was far from decided.

“Don't chase a cornered foe! Regroup and fight another day!”

Your orders were passed down.

The human coalition ceased the pursuit.

Everyone watched the Dragonfolk flap their wings and flee east in disarray, their spirits soaring high.

“We won! At least this battle, we won!”

“Now we have the monstrous beasts as allies, and countless spiritual weapons fighting on our side. With these shifts, this world war is ours for the taking!”

“Perfect! Finally, there's hope!”

After repelling the Dragonfolk army, Li Wentian still had some time left. In the vast sea of people, his eyes locked onto you in an instant.

With a single step, Li Wentian appeared before you.

His majestic gaze swept over you, and when he spoke, it carried the air of a sovereign.

“What is your name?”

You clasped your fists in reply.

“This junior is Chen Yi.”

“Remember this: I will not be able to strike again for five years. If you are to use my power to form the Seven Radiance Immortal Array and break the deadlock, you must wait at least another five years!”

“Your junior takes note. It seems the Dragonfolk have suffered heavy losses this time, and lost all their equipment. Unless they can transfer resources from other worlds, it will be hard for them to launch another attack against us.”

“There is one more matter...”

With that, Li Wentian looked up at a bundle of chains not far away.

Within the Soulbound Chains, the soul of Hua Wuyan was still trapped.

Without a word, Li Wentian flew over and shattered the chains with a single palm strike.

“Guardian, if you wish to keep your soul in the mortal world, I can help you.”

Hua Wuyan smiled faintly and shook her head.

“Man, growing old without dying—that's becoming a monster. I don't want to turn into a freak like my master. If I'm to live, I'll do it on my own terms, with dignity.”

Li Wentian threw his head back and laughed heartily.

“The Great Demon accomplished nothing! But in choosing a successor for the Guardian, he picked a good one!”

Li Wentian had every right to mock the Great Demon.

Because Li Wentian had also accepted death openly.

Even as a Guardian, an emperor, and a Martial God, he still chose to die of old age.

Like Hua Wuyan, Li Wentian respected his own fate.

Rather than relying on crooked paths to forcibly prolong his life.

Though he seemed alive now, this was merely a remnant of his power, not the same entity as the true Li Wentian.

Hua Wuyan's soul began to fade.

Those who could see her directly or indirectly had gathered here.

Shen Qingshan sighed.

“Fellow Daoist Hua, may your journey be peaceful.”

The leaders of the three sacred lands and the experts of the Five Domains all bowed their heads in silent mourning.

Compared to everyone's sorrow, Li Wentian's voice rang with pure rationality.

“Has the position of Guardian been passed down?”

Hua Wuyan nodded.

“Before I went to the starry domain to negotiate with the Dragonfolk, I had already passed it on to my disciple, Li Lingyue.”

Li Wentian's usually stern face broke into a slight smile.

“So it's returned to the bloodline of my Li clan. You can go in peace—the human world will be safe.”

Hua Wuyan looked at you.

“If the human world is to be safe, Elder Li, you must protect this young one. He carries the Dao Fruit within him, but now is not the time for it to ripen.”

Li Wentian only nodded, saying nothing more.

As Hua Wuyan's soul fully dispersed, a host of human-world experts knelt on one knee, paying their respects in farewell.

Li Wentian's time was also running out. His form began to waver.

You quickly stepped forward, voicing some doubts.

“Senior Li! Senior Hua mentioned I carry some Dao Fruit within me—what exactly is that?”

“That was deduced through her path of witchcraft. I do not understand it. But your fate is indeed extraordinary. Train well and experience the world—always trying to foresee the future is never good; it only backfires.”

“Yes, yes, Senior's lesson is well taken... By the way, Senior, you seem to know about the Seven Radiance Immortal Array?”

“That was created by a Formation Grandmaster of the Real World. I wonder where you came across it?”

You'd already prepared an excuse.

“A woman who came to the Void World looking for a monkey gave it to me.”

“Is that so? Well then, use it well. A mere Dragonfolk need not be feared.”

Li Wentian was by far the most disdainful toward the Dragonfolk you had ever encountered.

He looked down on them from the very core of his being.

Or rather, this lord looked down on everyone, acting as if he were the only existence in heaven and earth.

After a few more words, Li Wentian vanished, leaving only a clump of misshapen, rotten flesh.

Li Chengqian quickly had his men carefully pack up that mass of flesh, with over a dozen Martial Saints and Martial Kings guarding it closely.

That lump of blood and flesh was formidable when activated as Li Wentian, but now, if attacked, the power Li Wentian had painstakingly preserved would be lost forever.

Not long after, in the Southern Border, Hua Wuyan's homeland, the human coalition held a formal funeral for her.

In public, Li Lingyue maintained the dignity of an emperor, merely observing the silence.

But in private, in your arms, she wept like a fountain.