Chapter 670 : A Conspiracy Beneath the Stars

At this moment, the Nine Nether Abyssal Saint Venerable gazed at the map before him, remaining silent for a long moment before finally speaking. "What is the situation?"

"The old fellows of the Human Race are not weak in strength," the woman replied after a moment of contemplation. "Furthermore, the Sun and Moon Twin Islands are bolstered by a Sixth RankMountain Protection Formation and the Sun, Moon, and Stellar Grand Formation. I fear breaching them in a short time will be difficult."

The woman spoke these words after a thoughtful pause.

The Nine Nether Abyssal Saint Venerable nodded, having anticipated this. "And the task I entrusted to you? How does it proceed?"

"He has already agreed," the woman stated calmly. Then she inquired, "However, we cannot make it too obvious. We must at least sacrifice some Primordial Spirit [the spiritual core of a cultivator, representing a major cultivation stage] cultivators."

"Whom should we send?"

The Nine Nether Abyssal Saint Venerable pondered for a moment before replying. "Our Saint Clan members at the mid to late Primordial Spirit stage have long been thorns in the side of the Human Race. Those old human bastards would never allow them to break through the encirclement."

"Have the few newly ascended Primordial Spirit cultivators from the past millennium conceal themselves within the main army. Their mission is to ensure all four of the Star Palace Archipelago are completely overrun."

"Understood," the woman acknowledged. "This subordinate will make the arrangements immediately."

From that day, the situation on the battlefield shifted. Finding it difficult to breach the Sun and Moon Twin Islands and the Triple Ring Archipelago quickly, the Fiend Race began massing their forces to assault the periphery. Their aim was to break through the blockade and slaughter their way to the outer Twenty-Eight Mansions Star Archipelago. This chapter appears courtesy of audio‑novel.com.

The Human Race naturally would not allow them to have their way. For a time, the Heavenly Starry Sky Grand Formation unleashed its full might, and one Primordial Spirit Great Power after another made their move, forcing the Outer Realm Heavenly Demon army to struggle to advance even an inch.

Amidst this brutal and protracted battle, a full three months passed in the blink of an eye.

On this day, Eldrin Chen returned from his inspection of the various island chains and received a summons from Vast Righteousness True Lord. When he arrived at the Great Hall, he found everyone already gathered, each wearing an expression of grave solemnity.

Seeing this, Eldrin Chen asked, "What is it? Has something major happened?"

The gathered True Lord all looked grim. Vast Righteousness True Lord then spoke, "Not long ago, a weak point in the Formation surrounding the Celestial Market Enclosure Archipelago was torn open. Several Fiend Race Army contingents managed to break through."

"One of them is heading directly for our Vermilion Bird Star Palace."

Eldrin Chen's expression shifted slightly. The Cosmic Stellar Formation enveloped tens of millions of Li-length [one Li-length equals five hundred meters] of heaven and earth—it was an unprecedented, world-shaking Formation.

But precisely because the territory it covered was so vast, weak points were easily found. For an entity like the Fiend Race, tearing open some of these vulnerabilities was not particularly difficult.

This was an unavoidable reality. The spiritual energy [the vital energy that flows through all living things] of heaven and earth was finite. Without such a vast territory, it would be impossible to nurture so many high-grade Spirit Island.

The Human Race could only mobilize the power of the Formation to defend against the main forces of the demonic Clan Patriarch. Expecting to block all the fiendish demons within the inner perimeter was simply unrealistic.

With this thought, Eldrin Chen spoke, "The Fiend Race [a race of malevolent beings from beyond this world] intends to breach our Four Directions Star Palace [a strategic archipelago of islands] and uproot these Formation Eye [the critical nodes that power a large-scale defensive formation]. Once that is done, their main force will surge forth."

Exquisite Jiang and the others nodded in understanding, fully grasping the Fiend Race's strategy.

Should the Four Directions Star Palace islands fall, the power of the Cosmic Stellar Formation [a grand defensive array drawing power from the stars] would plummet. The Fiend Race Army could then break through the Sun and Moon Twin Islands [a key defensive stronghold] and utterly rout the main force of the Human Race.

Recognizing the critical nature of the situation, Eldrin Chen declared, "In that case, we must issue orders immediately. All Spirit Island [islands rich in spiritual energy] are to mobilize and prepare for battle at any moment."

"All Treasure Ship [large, enchanted vessels used for warfare and transport] are to enter a state of combat readiness, prepared to be deployed into the fray at a moment's notice."

Not long after, the vast army of the Outer Realm Fiend Race arrived within the vicinity of the Vermilion Bird Star Palace Archipelago. Surprisingly, their main force directly encircled the territory of Chariot Water Island.

The Chariot Water Island region was defended only by Mistress of Ivy Palace, a single cultivator at the Great Perfection of Infant Soul [the pinnacle stage of the Infant Soul cultivation realm], and three others at the Infant Soul Late Stage. Their strength was relatively weak, making it unexpected that they would become the primary target of the Outer Realm Fiend Race.

This demonic Clan Patriarch commanded a force of over one hundred Fifth Rank Treasure Ship [powerful enchanted warships of the fifth rank], a might surpassing even that of the Three Veins Ancient Domain. The defenders of Chariot Water Island stood no chance of holding out alone.

Under the relentless assault of so many Treasure Ship against their Formation [a structured arrangement of energy for defense or attack], the defensive array began to falter. In merely three days, a great number of low-level cultivators operating the formation perished from the violent backlash of its collapse.

Upon receiving the urgent report, Vast Righteousness True Lord hastily gathered the commanders. "The main force of this Outer Realm Demon God [a powerful fiendish deity from beyond this realm] is besieging Chariot Water Island," he stated gravely. "I fear Immortal Maiden Ivy and her forces cannot hold for long."

"That Chariot Water Island is one of the Twenty-Eight Mansions's Formation Eye [a critical node that powers and stabilizes a large-scale defensive formation]. It absolutely must not fall easily. Therefore, we must immediately prepare to dispatch troops to reinforce it."

Exquisite Jiang's brow furrowed slightly, and she spoke, "If we are to mobilize forces for battle, we must coordinate clearly with the other five domains of the Vermilion Bird Star Palace to act together. Otherwise, sending a lone force would likely result in grievous losses."

"I have already considered this matter," Vast Righteousness True Lord said, shaking his head. "The great war has only just begun. I fear the Outer Realm Fiend Race [demonic invaders from beyond this realm] are using a feint, attacking in the east while striking in the west."

"I have discussed this with the fellow Daoists from the Three Veins Ancient Domain. For this battle, it will suffice for myself and the Sea-Calmer Path Master to go and provide support."

Hearing this, Eldrin Chen felt reassured. Both Vast Righteousness True Lord and Sea-Calmer Path Master possessed Primordial Solar Spiritual Treasure [powerful artifacts imbued with the essence of the primordial sun] in their hands. Once they joined forces, they could even hold their own, if only briefly, against an early-stage Primordial Spirit [the spiritual core of a cultivator, representing a high level of power] expert.

Although the Outer Realm Fiend Race forces that had reached the Vermilion Bird Star Palace numbered over a hundred Fifth Rank Treasure Ship [massive enchanted warships of formidable power], it still seemed insufficient for them to breach Chariot Water Island right before these two powerhouses. For uninterrupted reading, go to site: audio-novel.com.

With this thought, Eldrin Chen said, "Go ahead, Senior. I will channel the power of Star Sun Island to converge upon Chariot Water Island, activating the Vermilion Bird Star Constellation Grand Formation [a vast celestial defensive array] to lend you our aid."

"Then my mind is at ease."

Vast Righteousness True Lord nodded and departed for Chariot Water Island.

After Vast Righteousness True Lord had left, Eldrin Chen pondered left and right, a lingering unease prompting him to seek out Exquisite Jiang. "Something feels off," he said. "What scheme do you think the Outer Realm Demon God [a powerful demonic entity from beyond this realm] is plotting?"

Upon hearing this, Exquisite Jiang could not help but frown. The Twenty-Eight Mansions and Spirit Island were all locations of Formation Eye [the core nodes of a defensive array]. At critical moments, they could activate the Four Quadrants Star Constellation Grand Formation [a powerful stellar defensive array], capable of withstanding attacks from Primordial Spirit Demons [powerful demons whose cultivation has reached the Primordial Spirit realm].

According to the conventions of previous years, the Outer Realm Heavenly Demon [powerful demons from beyond this world] would first focus on uprooting all the subsidiary Fifth Rank Spirit Island and lower-grade Spirit Island. Only after the power of the Four Quadrants Star Constellation Grand Formation had significantly diminished would they then launch a concerted assault on the Star Constellation Formation Eye [the primary formation core].

Once the Star Constellation Formation Eye was eliminated, the potency of the Four Quadrants Star Constellation Grand Formation would be greatly reduced, further weakening the entire Cosmic Stellar Formation [the overarching celestial defensive network].

For the Human Race, this strategy could buy a significant amount of time. As long as they could hold out until the Outer Realm Demon God [a supreme demonic entity from beyond] could no longer sustain the Heavenly Scar [a rift or tear in the fabric of reality], and if the Outer Realm Demon God's armies still failed to break through, they would be forced to retreat.

Contemplating this, Exquisite Jiang mused thoughtfully, "If the Outer Realm Demon God intended this as a diversionary tactic, then their objective has already failed."

"That is true."

Eldrin Chen gave a slight nod of agreement. This time, only Sea-Calmer Path Master and Senior Vast Righteousness had gone to provide support. The forces of the seven star isles of the Vermilion Bird Star Palace remained largely intact. Even if the Heavenly Demons were to attack now, they had nothing to fear.

It was at this very moment that the Old Patriarch hurried over, his expression grave and solemn. "News has just arrived," he said with a heavy tone. "Three Fourth-Rank Spirit Island in the southern region were attacked simultaneously and have all been overrun."

Eldrin Chen's expression turned serious. "How many have come?" he asked, unable to suppress the question. Read the full novel exclusively on audio - novel . com.