Chapter 688 The End of the Great War

After a half-month respite, Lu Jiuyuan led the grand army onward.

Under the guidance of the Eldrin (Person Name), the allied forces eventually trapped the demonic army within the vast expanse. After a fierce battle spanning over half a month, they ultimately annihilated the enemy completely.

After that, the group spent another full 3 months before finally reclaiming the Azure Dragon and Black Tortoise star palace archipelagoes.

As the arrays across the Star Palace Archipelago were repaired 1 by 1, the power of the Cosmic Starfall Grand Formation gradually surged back to life.

At that very moment, aboard the demonic treasure ship far beyond the Sky Scar, the 9 Serenities Saint stood with hands clasped behind his back, gazing serenely at the Star Palace Archipelago. Not a ripple of emotion crossed his features.

And behind him, a woman spoke with some gravity, "Saint Venerable 1, it appears they have failed."

"It seems I still underestimated them."

The 9 Serenities Saint spoke with detached calm, his tone utterly placid. "The 9 Serenities Demonic Dragon possesses extraordinary talent. Originally, there was still some likelihood of breaking through to the Primordial Spirit, Late Stage. However, having undergone this tribulation, I fear it will be exceedingly difficult to advance to the Primordial Spirit, Late Stage in the future."

Upon hearing this, the woman's expression darkened slightly. Although most Soul Formation mighty figures were exceptionally gifted, that did not mean there were no disparities among them.

In comparison, while the early and middle stages of the Nascent Soul were extraordinary, they still fell far short of the prowess possessed by those at the Primordial Spirit, Late Stage (Cultivation Realm).

Generally speaking, over 70 to 80 percent of Nascent Soul Dao Lords ultimately fail to break through to the Primordial Spirit, Late Stage (Cultivation Realm).

Taking Eastern Wastelands (Location) as an example, there are only 2 human experts at the Primordial Spirit, Late Stage (Cultivation Realm): Lin Tianqi and the Starlight Sovereign of the Star Palace. Even when including the Black Dragon Ancestor (Monster Tribe) and the Nether Ancestor (Demonic Path) from other races, the total merely amounts to 4.

In comparison, the 9 Nether Demon Dragon Emperor was a True Heavenly Dragon that had undergone molting, and in terms of bloodline, it was only slightly inferior to the Black Dragon Demon Ancestor by a narrow margin.

Such an existence held great promise of breaking through to the Primordial Spirit, Late Stage in the future. However, having been slain on this occasion, even if reborn through reincarnation, its True Dragon body would inevitably bear some imperfections henceforth.

Moreover, having inexplicably lost a lifetime's worth of longevity, it could be said that the 9 Netherworlds Demonic Dragon Emperor's chances of breaking through to Primordial Spirit, Late Stage (Cultivation Realm) would be drastically diminished.

Suppressing the thoughts in her heart, the woman took a deep breath before speaking again, “Should we tear open the barrier once more and send someone to the 4 Direction Star Palace?”

"No need?"

The 9 Serenities Saint Sovereign shook his head and spoke, "To breach even a single corner of the Zhou Heavenly Star Formation would require expending the precious 9 Heavens and 10 Realms Formation-Breaking Shuttle. The cost remains far too substantial."

"Now the second demonic fetus of our Master is at a critical stage of gestation. Once it is successfully refined in a 1000 years, what significance would the mere Zhou Heaven Star Formation hold?"

Time flew by in a rush, and in the blink of an eye, 1 100 years had passed since the day the Heavenly Scar opened.

After the 4 Direction Star Palace Islands were reclaimed, the demonic races found it difficult to breach the inner archipelago. Having paid a steep price and lost vast numbers of low-ranking demons, they gradually began withdrawing beyond the Heavenly Scar.

The human Dao Lords from the inner perimeter seized the momentum to pursue and attack, annihilating a portion of the extraterrestrial demon army. In the end, they could only watch helplessly as the demon forces retreated, withdrawing deep into the abyss of the demonic realm.

The heaven-propping hand of the Celestial Demon began gradually lowering the heavenly scar. Before departing, the Outer Realm Demon scattered countless streaks of starlight that cascaded across the infinite expanse of the Violet Realm.

It was the Star Fragment (Spiritual Object) left behind by the eldritch demon god. As they followed the beacon and flew out, 1 demonic cultivation forbidden ground after another took shape under these starlights, and shattered demonic springs were being reignited 1 by 1.

Eldrin gazed at the 100 million streaks of starlight sweeping across the 9 Heavens Above, unable to suppress a deep inhale, his eyes faintly chilling.

This was the means by which the Outer Fiend corrupted the will of heaven and earth. The more demonic cultivation forbidden lands existed between heaven and earth, the more severely the origin of the Violet World would be eroded.

Meanwhile, humanity was forced to expend vast amounts of resources containing these demonic cultivation forbidden zones. In turn, these forbidden zones continuously conducted blood sacrifices upon human populations, steadily draining humanity’s war potential.

At this thought, Eldrin declared, "Once we return, our foremost priority shall be the complete eradication of all demonic cultivation forbidden zones surrounding our family territory."

"Mm." Chen Changxuan nodded, a trace of helplessness in his tone. "Let's wait and see. This battle has depleted the forces of The Vast Sea and Ji Continent by half. With our current injuries, I'm afraid it will take us nearly 1 100 years to fully recover."

"Regardless, the Demonic Abyss Cataclysm has finally concluded." Lyra (Person Name) let out a soft sigh before continuing, "Though the forbidden grounds of the demonic cultivators remain troublesome, they ultimately pose no lethal threat to us."

Eldrin also breathed a sigh of relief before saying, "I expect the Eastern Desolation Immortal Alliance will begin tallying military merits within the next few days. Elder Uncle, I must trouble you to complete the merit statistics for all major immortal clans as swiftly as possible, so we may distribute the rewards promptly when the time comes."

"I have already set things in motion."

Chen Changxuan nodded and spoke thus.

With so many cultivators joining the battle, the calculation of military merits was divided into several tiers.

In this battle, the Violet Immortal Alliance would calculate military contributions based on the efforts of each major region, after which every region would likewise assess the merits of each Nascent Soul Immortal Clan.

As for the military merits below the Nascent Soul immortal clans, they must be allocated and distributed by the major Nascent Soul immortal clans themselves.

The Chen Clan had mobilized over 2,000,000 cultivators from The Vast Sea (Location) and the Chen Kingdom alone, involving tens of thousands of immortal families both great and small. The distribution of condolences and military honors for all these individuals fell to the Chen Clan—a monumental undertaking.

Because the scale of this war was so immense, the entire Purple Realm labored for a full year before finally completing the tally of its outcomes.

That day, Eldrin and the others received the imperial decree and arrived at a grand hall located at the heart of the Taiwei Wall Archipelago.

Accompanying him were fellow cultivators from the 3 Veins Ancient Domain, including Magnus the Virtuous Lord (Person Name), Maris the Sea Steader (Person Name), and others.

Within the grand hall, there sat no fewer than 4 Primordial Spirit powerhouses: Daoist Longhe, Astral Lord Yaoguang of the Star Palace, the Lin Clan's Lord Tianqi Daojun, and Dorian (Person Name).

Seeing that everyone was unharmed, Dorian gave a slight nod and said, "In this battle, the fellow cultivators of the 3 Veins Ancient Domain have demonstrated exceptional merit, serving our human race with utmost devotion. This brings immense comfort to this old man’s heart."

"Indeed, I've heard the success of this battle relied entirely on Eldrin's plan."

Elder Changhe also said with a smile, casting a faint smile toward Eldrin.

Eldrin (Person Name) cupped his hands and said, "This victory was wholly due to your utmost efforts. I merely offered some minor stratagems."

The nearby Maris the Sea Steader and the others smiled faintly upon hearing this, their hearts unknowingly warming even more toward Eldrin.

The 4 Dao Lords within the great hall all nodded in unison. Longhe Daoist cast an appreciative glance at Eldrin (Person Name).

He said nothing more, then after a moment sighed again. "What a pity that the 3 Veins Ancient Domain also suffered heavy losses this time. The young disciple of the Featherflight Pavilion had his physical body destroyed, and Elder Xuanxu fell in battle. Truly, these are significant losses for our Eastern Wastelands."

"Hmph."

Lin Tianqi let out a cold snort, his gaze turning frosty as he remarked, "Wang Tianzhou is nothing but a worthless good-for-nothing, and Lu Jiuyuan is nothing more than a man who cherishes his own feathers."

"Having those 2 guard the Star Palace Spirit Island is worse than putting 2 pigs on duty!"