A World Worth Protecting

Wang Baole’s primary avatar narrowed his eyes as he blended in effortlessly with the Never-Ending Clan cultivators around him. While the latter were spreading out and chasing after another one of his avatars, he was retreating discreetly, waiting for the right moment to take on another disguise and make his escape.

He knew that even though the late-stage Spirit Immortal realm elder was currently wounded and poisoned, the injuries that he had sustained were still minor. He hadn’t been weakened to an extent where Wang Baole could confidently beat him in a fight.

Even if Wang Baole were to make use of the curse that the Flame Patriarch had given him, he still foresaw a tough battle ahead of him. Wang Baole assessed his odds, then eyed the look of fury on his enemy’s face. The elder looked ready to eat him alive. He eventually decided to not take the risk, even though he hadn’t yet killed as much as the Demonic Eye Art required of him. Besides, he still had to think of the entire army camp’s worth of resources that he had on him. He decided to leave with what he had already gotten. That was the safest way out.

“I’ll spare your life this time!” Wang Baole said. He didn’t think that he was running away from a fight. Not really. He was about to make his escape when the late-stage Spirit Immortal realm elder’s Divine Sense came sweeping across the area from a distance. It enveloped the entire area and formed an overwhelming force that momentarily froze Wang Baole in place.

In the distance, the late-stage Spirit Immortal realm cultivator had just sent his palm smashing into the ground, crushing Wang Baole’s fifth avatar. The elder then snapped his head back as he hovered in mid-air. His eyes glimmered with murder as he surveyed the army of Never-Ending Clan cultivators before him.

His army of Never-Ending Clan warriors shuddered as they caught the madness glowing in his eyes. They could tell that their commander was treading a thin line now, straddling the line between sanity and complete madness. Their breathing stuttered at the murderous glint in his eyes, and they could feel death breathing down their necks.

Their instincts were right. The Spirit Immortal realm elder could no longer differentiate between friend and foe. He couldn’t tell which was a true Never-Ending Clan cultivator and which was the cursed pig-head disguised as one. He didn’t know how many avatars the pig-head had planted in his army.

But his instincts were telling him that his enemy… was right there, hidden amongst his people!

And the best way to find him was to kill everyone. That was the surest way to find his enemy. But doing that… was just pure madness. He might be blind with fury and teetering on the edge of insanity, but this was something that he wasn’t yet prepared to do.

There was something else. His enemy seemed to have the ability to transform himself into a dead body as well. That meant… that he might still fail to find the d*mned pig-head even after killing everyone.

Unless… he destroyed everything. If he were to destroy the entire camp and everything within miles of the camp, he would surely be able to get his hands on the pig-head!

The thought festered inside the elder’s mind. The glint of violence in his eyes hardened as the murderous aura around him intensified. The Never-Ending Clan cultivators around him began to tremble. They could tell that something horrible was going to happen. Rage and helplessness washed over them. Wang Baole stood amongst them, his heart racing rapidly.

This is impossible. Has this old man lost his mind? He’s not going to destroy his entire army just to kill me, is he… I haven’t done anything so bad as to warrant that, have I… Wang Baole was no longer so confident of himself. The fear in his eyes was genuine now. The gears in his head spun furiously as he considered his options and how he was going to get out of this alive.

Amidst Wang Baole’s panicking, as the other Never-Ending Clan cultivators trembled in fear, the Spirit Immortal realm elder suddenly let loose a mindless, crazed howl and stretched his right hand into the sky.

Oh no! Horror flashed across Wang Baole’s face while shock filled the looks of the Never-Ending Clan cultivators around him. They retreated instinctively, and many of them started wailing.

“Commander, please, calm down!”

“Commander, we just have to wait another two hours. The Descenders will leave then. Please… don’t act rashly!”

Their words fell on deaf ears. The elder’s eyes were red with madness, and his face was contorted with fury. The look on his face said that he had gone over the edge and that he was going all out to kill the enemy. His upraised hand swooped through the air, and a handprint smashed into the ground.

The attack didn’t land on the army of Never-Ending Clan cultivators. Instead, it had landed right smack in the middle of their camp. The blow sent cracks splintering across the ground, and winds whipped in the air and swept across the land, sending Never-Ending Clan cultivators stumbling back. The earth groaned and creaked as the ground caved in. Then, from the crack of the earth emerged… all of a sudden, a coffin!

The coffin appeared to be black at first glance. However, a closer look would reveal that it wasn’t black at all but the color of dried blood, a dark purple that stained the entire coffin. Cracks started appearing on the coffin, and they swiftly increased in number until the coffin finally broke apart moments later!

A terrifying roar thundered in the air as a skinless corpse climbed out of the coffin!

“The Heavenly Dao Blessings!”

“That’s… our camp’s Heavenly Dao Blessings!” Gasps of shock rose into the air as soon as the Never-Ending Clan army caught sight of the corpse. The late-stage Spirit Immortal realm elder might have lost his mind, but he hadn’t reached the stage where he was willing to slaughter his entire army. He knew that he would be as good as dead if he did that.

In the eyes of the Never-Ending Clan, such an act would amount to an unforgivable crime. This was a price he wasn’t willing to pay to kill one man. But his hate for the pig-headed Wang Baole had reached a feverish peak as well. That had been why he had chosen to destroy the camp’s Heavenly Dao Blessings!

Every planetary level military camp in the Never-Ending Clan was given its own coffin. During times of crisis, destroying this coffin would unleash a spell that would affect every clan member within a certain radius. The spell acted like a form of blessing as well as a means of teleportation, sending these clan members to the nearest location under the Never-Ending Clan’s control.

Few knew its origins. They only knew its name, and it was called… Heavenly Dao Blessings!

It was something that should only be unleashed as a last resort!

The late-stage Spirit Immortal realm elder thought that this was exactly the kind of situation that warranted the use of the Heavenly Dao Blessings as a last resort. He was going to use it to kill the cursed pig-head who had stolen the army’s supplies and caused such great damage to the camp.

He was going to use the Heavenly Dao Blessings’ unique feature to search the area… and find those whom the coffin didn’t recognize as clan members. The person who failed the coffin’s test would be the pig-head in disguise. If no one fit the bill, then he was just going to destroy the entire place after the coffin had teleported every clan member away safely.

Everything was being put swiftly into motion as the elder ran through his plan in his head. Immediately after the elder had summoned the coffin and the skinless corpse had emerged howling, the latter split apart without any warning. Beams of red light erupted from the corpse’s body and streamed towards the Never-Ending Clan cultivators around the corpse.

The beams of red light moved so quickly that none of the Never-Ending Clan cultivators could dodge in time. Within seconds, the light had fallen on the forehead of every Never-Ending Clan cultivator. It transformed into a mark on their foreheads, released a teleportation spell, and sent them away.

The same thing nearly happened to the late-stage Spirit Immortal realm elder. However, he managed to interrupt the teleportation forcibly with his powerful cultivation. He allowed his Divine Sense to flood the lands and lock down the area as he searched for whoever was left behind.

Shock overtook Wang Baole. He hadn’t expected something like that from his enemy. With no time left to think, he activated his essence technique and tried to conjure a red mark on his forehead. But this time… the essence technique, which had always done what he had instructed it to, failed to conjure anything up… It wasn’t a match for the corpse’s powerful spell. This was the first time it had failed Wang Baole!

Wang Baole reeled back in shock. There was no time for him to come up with a strategy, so he immediately started chanting the Dao Scripture under his breath!

The late-stage Spirit Immortal realm elder’s gaze landed on Wang Baole!

Their eyes met. If looks could kill, Wang Baole would have died from the murderous look the Never-Ending Clan elder was giving him. The elder radiated pure madness and violence.

“You’re the one!” His voice echoed in the air as he charged. The force of his charge left storms in his wake, which swept across the lands and destroyed everything in their path. Only complete destruction could appease the endless hatred he had towards the cursed pig-headed man.

Wang Baole grimaced. Regardless, he didn’t hesitate at all when faced with the enemy’s sudden charge. He retreated instantly. The time he had gained during his retreat allowed the Dao Scripture’s power… to descend upon the planet!

Wang Baole turned his head suddenly, and pride and defiance glimmered in his eyes as he shouted into the skies.

“Save me, Father-in-law!”

Boom, boom, boom!

The skies were transformed. Winds howled as clouds rolled back. In that instant, the entire planet shuddered. The Never-Ending Clan elder reeled back in shock. The Flame Patriarch, who was observing the battle from a distant part of the cosmos, almost choked on a flame fruit. His eyes widened. They had never been so big. He got to his feet instantly, gasping in shock as incredulity shone in his eyes.

“This aura…”