Chapter 585

Chapter 585: The Collapse of Heaven and Earth

The distribution of treasures on Baoyan Peak was certainly a joyous occasion, but every word Elder Hongmeng spoke hit like a hammer, shattering all feelings of delight.

"The Buddhist teachings say there are Three Thousand Great Thousand Worlds, three thousand Middle Thousand Worlds, and three thousand Little Thousand Worlds. Yet, over the years, these worlds have merged, battled, and collapsed, leaving barely one-tenth behind," Elder Hongmeng sighed. "What is more terrifying is that every Yuan Meeting occurs after one hundred twenty-nine thousand six hundred years. Without the merging of equal worlds to strengthen their foundations, the Great Thousand Worlds will shatter into Middle Thousand Worlds, the Middle Thousand Worlds into Little Thousand Worlds, and the Little Thousand Worlds will transform into heaven-sent treasures. Thus, when the Great Thousand Worlds fall, it becomes a grand event that attracts all sorts of bloodthirsty creatures. This world is known as the Dharma Demon in the Twenty-Three Great Thousand Worlds. The last calamity saw visitors from other great worlds, but thereafter there was no further communication."

"Dharma Demon in the Twenty-Three Great Thousand Worlds?" Many disciples were bewildered, their perspectives still confined to Wutu, never considering such profound matters.

Elder Hongmeng continued, "The path to the Star Roads has been blocked by these demonic creatures. I wonder if, besides the Demonic Essence World, other worlds have demonic beings pressing in. In any case, the situation is dreadful!"

Lian Luosha suddenly asked, "Isn’t there anyone from our world who has pierced through the passage to seek aid from the outside?"

"Aid?" Elder Hongmeng shook his head with a wry smile. "Of course, some have tried, even successfully using the power of various sects to break the passage. However, that person left secretly with his disciples and was never seen again. If I were in his position and had the ability to escape, I would have done the same. As long as I could preserve the lineage, it would be worth it to go against the oath!"

"This…" The disciples felt a pang of empathy.

"Alas!" Elder Hongmeng sighed, saying, "Since then, the various sects have been unwilling to expend any more effort to assist high-level cultivators in breaking through the barriers. To be honest, seeking external help would be futile. The invasion of the Demonic Essence World is not easy to extinguish. Better to save ourselves. Today’s treasure distribution is our response strategy in the Jin Tian Sect. Besides, the high-level beings of this era have made compromises with future cultivators."

"Compromises? Compromise on what?"

The answer soon came as the elder elaborated: "Since the day the calamity landed, the Heavenly Secrets fell into chaos. Cultivators from the Extreme Huan Continent lead in this chaos. In the future, a group of cultivators will possess the ability to travel against the flow of time to seize opportunities. As a result, the caves and chances left by predecessors will sharply decline, while those cultivators will sweep the world in preparation for war. In the early stages of the calamity, we are considered fortunate; those cultivators at the end of the calamity have entered a phase of fierce conflict and will stop at nothing!"

"Extreme Huan cultivators? Future cultivators?" Five or six disciples began to argue: "This is unreasonable! They take away so many opportunities; what are we to do? Since we are in the early stages of the calamity, we need the legacies of our predecessors to defend against it."

Elder Hongmeng remained patient. He waited for a stick of incense’s time, allowing the discussions to gradually die down before speaking: "We have no control over this. The Jin Tian Sect does not hold the power to decide. In fact, other continents are the true pillars against the calamity, especially the Nine-Mystic Continent, which has begun preparing well in advance, even risking an early slaughter calamity to fish out terrifying beings from the depths of time, splitting them apart to provide trials for the disciples of various sects."

The disciples were left dumbfounded. Fishing out terrifying beings from the depths of time? What kind of means was that?

"Therefore, when you return, start preparing. In six months, the dark energy in the world will surge. The heaven-sent treasures distributed today include at least ten acres of spiritual fields; the main goal is clear: to avoid disaster!"

Many disciples looked around in confusion, even forgetting when they left Baoyan Peak amid the crowd.

They came with excitement, only to return in a solemn manner, sitting in front of the Jin Tian Sect’s temple, pondering how to deal with the future. Although they knew there was a calamity, they never expected it to reach such proportions. Would their lives be spent in a calamity?

Lian Luosha stood beside Li Xiao Jiu, gazing at the relatively clear sky. "Junior Brother, amidst such calamities, all love and hatred become fleeting memories. I cherish this land; I truly cannot bear to see her in ruins."

"To brave the storms and achieve guaranteed kills across thousands of miles!" Li Xiao Jiu’s eyes were vacant as he murmured, "To brave the storms and achieve guaranteed kills across thousands of miles…"

He could only say those eight words now, his spiritual sense slowly dissipating.

Lian Luosha sighed softly; this body was, after all, not Li Hui, and even the last sliver of spiritual sense had vanished. Qian Qiu Yue approached her, and together they planned how to assist the Heavenly Talisman Sect in their future preparations. An inexplicable feeling arose within her; perhaps it would be many years before they met again.

Regardless of how the outside world inferred, it could only be concluded that Li Hui’s fate was gradually fading away. The fortunes of the Heavenly Talisman Sect were greatly affected; had he not previously asked the Surveillance Pavilion to search for talent and if Yao’er and Zhong Yuan had not united, the sect might face collapse before the calamity even arrived.

Three months after the treasure distribution on Baoyan Peak, sect leader Li Hui’s luck completely waned, shocking Du Miaochan and the other disciples.

"Could it be that my sworn brother has fallen?" Wu Zhao gazed into the distance, reflecting on how this magnificent landscape was taken by Li Hui’s help, yet now, with the Demonic Essence calamity looming, she truly didn’t know what to do without this powerful backing.

On Wan Nest Island, Cold Wind Ridge,

Amidst a fierce wind, a spiritual monkey sat in a narrow crevice of the stone wall, its back piled high with fruits. Hungry, it would eat one, then continue sitting still.

Unbeknownst to him, fog had appeared on the island, sweeping through with a force that cut off heaven and earth.

Cold Wind Ridge remained unchanged; whenever the fog was about to arrive, the monkey would leave for half a day, returning a few hours later, repeating this cycle until a critical day finally came.

The sky darkened, and the air grew cold!

The once scorching sun now turned frigid, its rays no longer warming but carrying an indescribable chill. Everything began to wither, the vibrant hues of mountains and waters transforming to shades of gray and black, as if shrouded in layers of gloom.

Numerous black fissures appeared in the skies of many nations, the scars of heaven. When the fierce winds blew, they howled as if the heavens were weeping!

This was a calamity, a cataclysm that would destroy everything!

This kind of calamity struck; even cultivators were powerless to resist, let alone ordinary folks. The common people were like ants! No, perhaps they were even less than ants.

The world was like a melting furnace; in the coming years, countless lives would be extinguished day by day. The suffering of the living was barely enough to describe the hardships of all beings!

Heaven and earth were collapsing, the dark moon hung high, and bright lights appeared in the sky. Countless falling stars plunged into the sea. Mere hours later, demonic creatures stained vast ocean areas, turning the boundless sea into a demonic sea.

At the same time, the spiritual monkey residing in Cold Wind Ridge on Wan Nest Island left its dwelling.

Half a day later, when the peak of falling stars was reached, towering waves rose from the sea, and the seabed began to tremble, suddenly bringing a multitude of demon cultivators to Wan Nest Island, who roared in celebration of breaking free from their confines.

The monkey had already vanished without a trace…

Moments later, all the demon cultivators trembled, their bodies crushed by an invisible hand, feeling a surge of power rising from the depths before meeting their demise.

"Closer! Those who have passed for many years, they refuse to be buried in the depths of time." The monkey walked with its hands behind its back in the cold wind, a shadow of a snake wavering behind it, vanishing in an instant, leaving only a lonely monkey…