The attention of every Heavenly Ranker in the Conference Hall shifted towards the origin of the frigid voice.
"Senior Wan Liu has spoken!"
"Not the Spiritual Body phase?"
"There may still be hope!" Excited whispers rippled through the gathering of Heavenly Rankers.
Moments before, they had listened intently to Sang Gu's narration, witnessed the unfolding of horrifying scenes, and heard the ninth-stage Communion phase Qiong Sea King personally confirm that the black-scaled creature had reached the Spiritual Body phase, causing despair to grip their hearts.
A Spiritual Body devilish beast leading a swarm of Communion devilish beasts along with countless ordinary devilish beasts was wreaking havoc on the world at that very moment. But most important of all was that abyss-like devil's lair. Could they stop this crisis?
"Not the Spiritual Body phase?" Qiong Sea King stared at Wu Yuan, his face etched with confusion. What else could a physical body that had reached such a level be if not the Spiritual Body phase?
"Please elucidate, Senior Wan Liu," Qiong Sea King requested solemnly. At the same time, he sent a puzzled spirit transmission to Wu Yuan.
The reply he received from Wu Yuan via spirit transmission was to “be patient.”
"Fellow Daoists, please be silent," Emperor Dong Pan's voice resonated like a bell throughout the Conference Hall.
In an instant, the murmurs ceased, and all eyes turned to Wu Yuan.
"Senior Wan Liu," Emperor Dong Pan approached Wu Yuan and spoke respectfully. "May we seek your guidance?"
"Very well, I have no desire to witness a great calamity befall the Middle Land. I will share everything I know." Wu Yuan rose slowly. "Fellow Daoists, lend me your ears. Dong Pan, grant me authority over the voidrealm.”
"At once," Emperor Dong Pan hurriedly replied.
The Heavenly Rankers took their seats, their anticipation palpable. Wu Yuan walked to the center of the hall, feeling the hopeful and intense gazes on him. Internally, he couldn't help but sigh. Even he had never thought that such a dreadful disaster would strike the Middle Land.
Wu Yuan began, "Firstly, I must inform all of you that according to the information provided, if this disaster goes unchecked, it will breach the boundaries of the Huang Continent in approximately ten years."
"In no more than 50 years, the entire Middle Land will be decimated by an onslaught of devilish beasts pouring forth from the devil’s lair. Not a single living being will survive, not even the plants. Even those residing in the surrounding oceans of the Middle Land will undoubtedly perish!"
"Everything will be annihilated! Erased off the face of the world!" Wu Yuan declared, each word hammering into their hearts.
A hushed silence descended on the hall. Complete annihilation? Most of the Heavenly Rankers felt a sinking feeling in their hearts.
Before Wu Yuan had spoken, some of the Heavenly Rankers whose territory was a great distance from the Huang Continent, such as Qiong Sea King and the Arctic King, had harbored their own thoughts. To them, this event might be considered a disaster, but it was occurring thousands of li away from them. The impact might not reach them.
The vast South Ocean consisted of numerous territories and was more than 100,000 li from the Huang Continent, the southernmost part already nearing the Xin Continent. The boundless ocean itself acted as a formidable barrier.
In their perception, such vast distances would pose a challenge even for those at the Spiritual Body phase. As long as they remained in hiding, they might never be found. However, Wu Yuan's words revealed a grave truth: the entirety of the Middle Land landmass, and even the ocean surrounding it, would be exterminated within 50 years at most.
"This calamity not only threatens Middle Land, but if allowed to spread unchecked, it will ultimately engulf the entire Summerpeak World, potentially leading to its utter destruction," Wu Yuan said. "I believe the Summerpeak World may be a foreign concept to some of you."
Many Heavenly Rankers displayed bewildered expressions, though a few didn’t seem surprised. It was evident that the cultivation world of the Middle Land, with its numerous factions and abundance of immortal relics, had gained some understanding of the Summerpeak World over its millennia-long revival.
"I believe most Daoists here understand that for a qi refiner, the path progresses from Qi Sea, Golden Core, then to Amethyst Cradle. For a body refiner, the path encompasses the Communion, Spiritual Body, and Shambhala phases. Regardless of one’s chosen cultivation path, progress must be made one step at a time," Wu Yuan surveyed the gathering of Heavenly Rankers, his voice resonating with solemnity.
"However, in the vast expanse of heaven and earth, where countless worlds exist in the long river of time and space, the Summerpeak World is only one world among countless others."
A wave of shock rippled through the assembly. Many Heavenly Rankers displayed surprised expressions, including Daoist Wan Xing and Emperor Dong Pan. While they possessed knowledge of the Summerpeak World and knew that the Middle Land was merely a tiny fraction of it, the revelation of countless worlds was new to them. After all, to those in the Qi Sea phase or the Communion phase, the Summerpeak World already appeared immeasurably large.
"In these worlds, one may meet not only other cultivators but also various unique lifeforms," Wu Yuan continued. "Some of these lifeforms defy conventional categorization based on cultivation levels. The 'devil's lair' moniker chosen by the daoists from the Huang Continent is rather fitting."
"The source of this devil's lair is indeed a devil. More accurately, a worm devil which has awakened and is rapidly growing," Wu Yuan revealed slowly.
A worm devil? Devil? Many Heavenly Rankers were taken aback, their eyes widening in disbelief.
"Devils are a unique lifeform, and several species exist," Wu Yuan explained. "One such species is the blood devil, born from the legendary Blood Sea. The blood devil path cultivated by humans originates from the blood devils, and is a widespread cultivation method in many worlds."
“Another species is called the hell devil, born from the ancient abyss of legends, Hell itself." He paused. Sweeping his hand through the air, numerous light specks converged to form a light screen. Words began to materialize on the screen, forming a detailed description of hell devils.
"Among the sub-species of hell devils, there are those known as delusion devils, masters of soul attacks who are capable of enchanting the hearts of men. Then there are spirit devils, skilled in qi refinement, and war devils, proficient in body refinement," Wu Yuan explained.
"The worm devil, in essence, is a type of delusion devil, possessing a powerful soul and exhibiting characteristics of a war devil. It is strong, evil, and bloodthirsty. What has appeared in the Huang Continent is likely a young worm devil," Wu Yuan revealed, his tone heavy. "It appears to have surpassed the perilous incubation period and entered its juvenile phase. From now on, its strength will grow rapidly."
"An Amethyst Cradle cultivator could easily suppress it," Wu Yuan said coldly. "But for the feeble Middle Land, which has yet to produce a single Golden Core phase cultivator, this is a true cataclysm that could doom the world!"
Hell devil? Worm devil? The hearts of the listeners trembled. A juvenile worm devil?
For some Heavenly Rankers who were wandering cultivators and had not received significant inheritances, Wu Yuan's information opened their minds to a whole new world.
"Worm devil? Just one worm devil? But what about all those devilish beasts? Could they be the hell devils mentioned by Senior Wan Liu?"
"Is that four-winged, black-scaled creature the worm devil?" The hall began to buzz with speculation and discussion.
"Silence," Daoist Wan Xing's voice cut through the room like a blade, commanding attention and restoring order. The Conference Hall fell into a hushed stillness, anticipation hanging in the air. In the absence of Imperator Jin Quan, Daoist Wan Xing held a position of great influence.
With utmost respect, he addressed Wu Yuan, “Senior Wan Liu is truly knowledgeable about devils. Could you kindly elaborate on how this devil will harm our Middle Land, and how should we go about killing it? Is there a possibility of victory?”