Devils were an extremely troublesome enemy to fight. If you were not careful, you could be contaminated with an inner devil and go on a rampage or be possessed and have your soul swallowed.
Daoyi was a soul cultivator, so she was highly resistant to the devil's corrosion. Although Jiang Ziya wasn't a soul cultivator, his willpower was firm, and he had grasped a portion of the Qiankun Law, so the devil-fied Hun Jusang could not contaminate him, but Xi Ri was different. Not to mention he was in an agitated state during the battle, and he was only the Core Formation Realm.
Due to the numerous factors, Xi Ri was contaminated with an inner devil by Hun Jusang. It was only thanks to Daoyi and Jiang Ziya exhibiting force beyond their realm that they were able to stall long enough for the rest of the imperial family to evacuate and allow them to flee on Tianyi's immortal boat.
With the speed of an immortal monarch, Hun Jusang was unable to chase, but he also had trouble. The majority of his willpower was used to suppress the devil sealed within him instead of battling, so when the battle ended, he lowered his guard and allowed the devil to possess him. It was also this situation that forced Immortal Starsoul to give up finding Tianyi or chasing the escaping Daoyi.
It took some time, but with Immortal Starsoul being a soul cultivator and Hun Jusang fighting from within, the devil monarch within Hun Jusang was successfully sealed again. Still, Hun Jusang fell into a comatose state afterward.
Not only did one of their future immortal monarchs fall into a coma without any method to awaken him, but numerous earth immortals had been killed by Tianyi during his rampage. Combined with the fact that their plan had failed, the Nihility Sect paid a great price without any results.
Immortal Starsoul and the rest of the Nihility Sect members immediately retreated back to the Nihility Sect. At the same time, Jiang Chunye returned to the Jade Cauldron Sect, fearing the Buzhou Immortal Sect's retaliation.
Logically speaking, the Xi Dynasty had no official relationship with the Buzhou Immortal Sect, so the Nihility Sect taking action against a weak force wasn't worth mentioning, but the Xi Dynasty had a relationship with Grand Elder Xi of the Buzhou Immortal Sect. This was public knowledge, and no one would believe it if the Nihility Sect went out of their way to interfere with such an unranked force without ulterior motives towards the Buzhou Immortal Sect.
Once he returned, Immortal Starsoul reported to the sect's sole grand elder, a half-immortal emperor. Although the sect master controlled the day-to-day operations, it was this grand elder who truly decided the sect's strategic goals.
"Grand Elder Darklight, I've failed. Please punish me." Immortal Starsoul head was dipped incredibly low as he kneeled.
Grand Elder Darklight, or Monarch Darklight to the rest of the world, was a soul cultivator. Among the first-rate forces, the Nihility Sect had the highest percentage of soul cultivators, giving them an extra layer of reputation.
Contrary to Immortal Starsoul's expectation, there wasn't any hint of anger in Monarch Darklight's tone, as if he hadn't failed one of the sect's major objectives. "Since you've failed, go to Punishment Hall and receive your punishment."
Immortal Starsoul hesitated for a moment before gritting his teeth and asking his question. "...will my action affect the sect's plans?"
"No significant changes will be made to the plan," Monarch Darklight said. "The plan to control the Sword Empress's brother was only placing flowers atop gold, extraneous. Since it failed, it failed. We've already made sufficient operations and can fully announce our existence to the world."
Immortal Starsoul released a sigh of relief, knowing that his mistake didn't cost the sect much. What he didn't see as he left for Punishment Hall was Monarch Darklight's strange gaze.
A month later, the Buzhou Immortal Sect had dispatched envoys to demand what the Nihility Sect's actions at the Xi Dynasty meant, but the Nihility Sect directly attacked the envoys, not giving any face at all. Soon, it announced its goal to replace the Buzhou Immortal Sect as the Heaven Continent's hegemon.
When the Nihility Sect declared their intent, the Leakless Sect and the Jade Cauldron Sect also announced their intent to revolt, shocking not only the Heaven Continent but also the Earth and Mortal Continent.
The people weren't idiots. How could two first-rate and one second-rate sect announce rebellion in close succession without any preparation? Their guesses were confirmed when the Nihility Sect, Leakless Sect, and Jade Cauldron announced their Tripartite Alliance to combat the Buzhou Immortal Sect.
After the announcement, the whole Heaven Continent entered a strange silence. Even the Anti-Heaven Alliance, the formerly only force that defied the Buzhou Immortal Sect, entered a strange silence. Everyone knew this was but the calm before the storm.
Humorously, it seemed that the Heaven Continent was about to enter a state of turmoil akin to the Earth Continent. Only the Mortal Continent was peaceful since only one force existed there, but that didn't prevent people from maliciously speculating that it would also enter a state of turmoil. Some guessed it would be due to civil war, and others thought it might be the revenge of the Cultivator Alliance against the Saintly Scholar School.
During this temporary peace, all forces were gathering their combat personnel, withdrawing them from their missions or journies. Still, the turmoil and wars between the unranked forces did not stop, making people question whether the Tripartite Alliance or the Anti-Heaven Alliance was behind the chaos.
However, none of this mattered. The people warring were only sects who had no immortals. Once the melee a trois between the Buzhou Immortal Sect, Anti-Heaven Alliance, and Tripartite Alliance ended, it would be simple to clean up the chaos by sending their immortals.
It was not only the forces that were disturbed by this news but the loose cultivators. At this time, the Cultivator Alliance became a favorable option to seek refuge in. After they were expelled from the Mortal Continent, the Cultivator Alliance's main headquarters were on the numerous islands in the Endless Seas. Still, they had many branches in the Heaven and Mortal Continents.
At this time, all three major factions were eyeing the Cultivator Alliance. This neutral party could just be the crucial factor if their main force also joined the battle. Before, it was only the Earth Continent's two factions that wanted to rope in the Cultivator Alliance. Now, the Heaven Continent's factions also joined in.
During this age of chaos, several special existences who had contact with Tianyi were scheming for profit.
At a teahouse, a woman wearing a blue dress was calmly sipping tea. She had a silk veil hat that covered her features, but just from her aura, onlookers could tell she was a beauty, but none of the patrons had the spare thought to appreciate it. In fact, the teahouse was abnormally quiet with a sullen atmosphere that seemed to penetrate bones.
'It seems that war is once again coming to the Heaven Continent, but why did the Tripartite Alliance reveal itself now?' Hu Landie could recall that the Tripartite Alliance only revealed itself after the war between the Buzhou Immortal Sect and Anti-Heaven Alliance became especially heated. When they announced, they dealt a heavy blow to the Bright Ascension Sect and Drifting Feather Sect, earning the ire of both factions.
Still, even with two factions besieging them, the Buzhou Immortal Sect was like an undying giant, meeting both enemies tit for tat. This forced the Tripartite Alliance and Anti-Heaven Alliance to put down their grudges and focus all their attention on the hegemonic sect of the Heaven Continent.
Even with this, the two factions were at a disadvantage. If the two factions appeared on the Earth Continent, the Eight Pillars Sect would have been at a disadvantage, showing that the Heaven Continent was indeed the strongest of the three Great Continents.
What Hu Landie was focusing on wasn't the war but whether she could fish in muddy waters. If she wanted to fish in muddy waters, it would carry a lot of risk for a loose cultivator like her. However, she could join one of the three factions. It had to be known that the three factions were eagerly recruiting loose cultivators to bolster their numbers.
They were aiming for the loose immortals, but they still accepted mortal cultivators. No matter how weak they were, there was truth in the saying of strength in numbers. Even if they discovered that she had betrayed the Chrysalis Sect of the Earth Continent, so what? They were in need, and beggars couldn't be choosers.
Still, that would require a degree of strength. Hu Landie decided to join a faction for greater safety after she entered the Unity Realm. Currently, she was leaning towards the Buzhou Immortal Sect.
The Anti-Heaven Alliance had existed for over five hundred thousand years ever since the advent of the Cloud Goddess, but she wasn't inclined to join them. If they could make waves, they wouldn't have been suppressed by the Buzhou Immortal Sect ever since their creation. The same could be said for the Tripartite Alliance. Although their momentum seemed great, they were likely even weaker than the Anti-Heaven Alliance.
That didn't mean Hu Landie didn't think that the Buzhou Immortal Sect had a hundred percent chance of winning. Before she traveled back in time, the Buzhou Immortal Sect was as steady as Mount Tai under the suppression of both forces, but it couldn't decisively defeat any of the two.
For any hegemonic sect, their main goal would be to quell any rebellion against their supreme might unless they couldn't. That or the Buzhou Immortal Sect was deliberately dragging the conflict, but Hu Landie couldn't think of any reason why the Buzhou Immortal Sect would do such a thing.
"Well, I can decide after I enter the Unity Realm. The conflict lasted for over a hundred years last time. Even if it erupted earlier, it shouldn't end so soon." Hu Landie said. After paying for her tea, she immediately left. There were a few unkind stalkers following her, but she easily got rid of them.
"Brother Peng, what should we do?" Bai Weiwei asked.
She stood there stunned. Although she was a cultivator, she rarely experienced wars. In her innocent little world, this was the first war that she felt a part of.
Peng Yun crossed his arms and sunk into thought. "Right now, this is just the calm before the storm. Soon, I expect the whole heaven continent to be embroiled in war. We're just two loose cultivators. If we don't seek refuge, we might die."
Hearing this, Bai Weiwei expressed her fear, causing Peng Yun to comfort her. "...then what should we do? I don't want to die."
"There, there. I say we might die. In this situation, I heard that the three factions are recruiting loose cultivators. If we join them, we'll be directly fighting. The safer option would be to hide at a remote location or directly leave the Heaven Continent." Peng Yun analyzed for Bai Weiwei.
"Then, then..." Bai Weiwei started to speak, her face showing some happiness yet sadness. She grew up in Heaven Continent and was extremely reluctant to leave, so she wanted to hide at a remote location, but then she recalled Peng Yun. Although he didn't explicitly tell her, she knew that Peng Yun's goal was to become a supreme immortal. "How about we join a faction?"
Peng Yun couldn't hide his shocked expression. "Why, Weiwei?"
Bai Weiwei showed a shy smile. "Although I'm afraid of dying, I'm still a cultivator. I heard that the factions will give a lot of wealth to those who join."
Hearing this, Peng Yun already figured out why Bai Weiwei decided not to run away. She knew he needed an exorbitant amount of wealth, so he was risking her life for him. Moved beyond belief, Peng Yun hugged Bai Weiwei and vowed, "Don't worry, I won't let you die. I'll become an immortal and give you happiness."
Bai Weiwei lowered her head to hide her flush. "Idiot, who said I wanted to marry you."
"I didn't say anything about marriage. You said it," Peng Yun teased as he hugged her even tighter. Bai Weiwei struggled out and gave a cute, "hmpf."
"Which force will you join?" Bai Weiwei asked. Even one as naive as her knew that which faction they joined would have far-reaching effects. "I'll tell you right now that I won't agree if you join those tyrants from the Buzhou Immortal Sect."
"Don't worry, I don't trust the Buzhou Immortal Sect either," Peng Yun said. During the war between the Skybrush Sect and Fu Dynasty, the Wealth System had informed him that the true culprit of the Fu Emperor's death was Jiang Daoyi!
Due to this, he revised his thoughts of befriending the Buzhou Immortal Sect. Originally, he thought that Bai Weiwei's grievance was just due to a few bad bugs. What organization didn't have a bad member or two, but after personally experiencing it, Peng Yun's thoughts changed.
If the top echelon were rotten, then so would the rest. If the Buzhou Immortal Sect allowed a mere disciple to kill the head of forces like the Fu Emperor, it could be seen that the Buzhou Immortal Sect has already become corrupted. Even if he joined them and they won, it remained unknown if they would keep their promise or silence the loose cultivators that joined them.
After much deliberation, Peng Yun and Bai Weiwei decided to join the Anti-Heaven Alliance as mercenaries. Of course, this joining really meant Peng Yun fighting in the war while Bai Weiwei was left at a safe location.
"Master, what should we do?" Yan Nie asked with furrowed brows.
Off by his side, Immortal Pillrabbit's wispy soul appeared next to him with his hands behind his back. "I never expected the Heaven Continent of all places to become embroiled in war."
After sighing, Immortal Pillrabit focused back on the topic. "Although it is true you can get many benefits in the war, and your combat prowess is unmatched in the same realm, but you're an alchemist. You don't need to join these muddied waters. Listen to Master and go to the headquarters of the Cultivation Alliance."
Yan Nie nodded, agreeing with his master. Alchemists weren't known for their fighting ability, but their services were highly sought after. He could gather a group of cultivators to fight for him if he wanted to. Still, he was just an early Nascent Soul Realm cultivator, an ant in this upcoming conflict.
Immortal Pillrabbit sensed someone coming, so he immediately returned to the ring. Turning around, Yan Nie saw Pan Lanyue walking over. Although her speed wasn't as great as his, she still reached the late Core Formation Realm, a veritable expert in the Fleeting Mist Sect.
"You're leaving." Her words weren't a question but a confirmation.
Yan Nie wordlessly nodded.
The two settled into silence before Pan Lanyue spoke again. "Then take care."
When Yan Nie didn't answer for a long time, Pan Lanyue turned around to leave, he suddenly spoke. "Come with me!"
Pan Lanyue's footsteps paused. She answered without turning back, "I can't. My father, my family, my master, and sect are all here. They can't leave too."
After a moment, Yan Nie spoke again. "Then take care."
He sighed as he saw Lan Lanyue's receding back. When they first met, she had humiliated him, causing him to hate her to his core. But after their duel, they came to respect one another and even journeyed together, causing their relationship to become unclear.
Yan Nie was sure he had feelings for her, but he also knew he had feelings for his cousin, who he treated like a brother. He had always denied these feelings since he knew he wasn't homosexual. That all changed when he discovered that this cousin who he treated like a true brother was actually a girl!
The nascent soul grandmaster sighed and stared at the sky.