Chapter 489: By The Orders Of The Eldritch Sovereign (1)

At the heart of the Origin Blood World within the Bloodforge Devil Hall, the colossal spatial vortex remained open.

However, the large group of Earth Immortals who had gathered here had dispersed, even High Immortal Wu Tian and his group had left.

Only several Void Refiner or Elysian Field Protectorates who were under orders continued to wait here.

Suddenly, a figure clad in white robes exited the spatial vortex, arriving in the Origin Blood World.

Rumble!

The huge spatial vortex began to close.

"Wu Yuan is back." An astute Void Refiner Protectorate noticed the abnormality in the spatial vortex, and quickly spotted Wu Yuan.

"Wu Yuan! The Golden Core Bloodforge King."

"Bloodforge King." The other Void Refiner or Elysian Field Protectorates cheered.

Without making a breakthrough, protectorates of the devil hall would not live past thirty thousand years old.

Therefore, witnessing the birth of a new Golden Core Bloodforge King from the Redmoon Division was usually only a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, if it even occurred at all.

In this Bloodforge Battle, Wu Yuan vanquished all competition, achieving first place in Blood Devil Token ranking, and by some miracle, was anointed king.

His name rang throughout the Silvermist Division of the devil hall.

These devil hall protectorates were naturally beyond excited. He was the pride of the entire Redmoon Devil Hall, and they could now grandly boast about him in front of the protectorates from other second-tier divisions.

Whoosh! Whoosh!

One after another, figures with powerful auras appeared, all of them Earth Immortals or High Immortals from the devil hall. They had rushed over as soon as they received the news.

"Wu Yuan is back."

"Excellent job."

"Congratulations, Golden Core Bloodforge King."

"It’s time to celebrate, let's have a victory banquet!" Numerous immortals from the Bloodforge Devil Hall swarmed him. Their faces were alight with smiles, behaving as if they were old friends of Wu Yuan’s. None showed any air of superiority.

Deep down, they all knew that Wu Yuan was destined to soar to the heavens with his current talent.

Once he matured, he could easily become a great figure among High Immortals, and might even overcome the Tribulations to become an Archimmortal.

Facing this bunch of enthusiastic High Immortals, Wu Yuan merely went through the motions half-heartedly.

Firstly, his stay in the Bloodforge Devil Hall was extremely brief, just three years, and he was not familiar with these High Immortals.

Secondly, Wu Yuan’s mind was still occupied with his experiences in the Bloodforge Spacetime.

"Wu Yuan, you've brought honor to our Redmoon Devil Hall," said High Immortal Wu Tian, appearing at the scene.

As Wu Yuan's immediate superior, he beamed with joy, stepping forward. "A directly anointed Golden Core Bloodforge King. In the billion-year history of our Redmoon Devil Hall, such an occurrence is rare indeed!"

"You've achieved so much in just a few decades of cultivation."

"In terms of reputation, you've already eclipsed Zhuo Haiyue and Li Xia from the Silvermist Immortal Nation. You’re well on your way to becoming the top prodigy within the spacetime boundary of the Silvermist Immortal Nation."

"Your name has spread across thousands of second-tier divisions under the Silvermist Division," sighed High Immortal Wu Tian. "As for our Redmoon Devil Hall? For the next billions of years, countless juniors will mention your name."

Wu Yuan gave a wry smile.

Billions of years? It was just a title, and couldn’t directly improve his strength. But on second thought, he found it amusing. Humans pursued fame and fortune, and even immortals were not exempt.

"Let's go. The Devil Hall has prepared a grand victory feast for you," said High Immortal Wu Tian with a grin. "After the feast, you will receive various rewards."

"Mm," Wu Yuan nodded slightly.

"Let's go!"

"Let's go."

Whooosh! Whooosh!

High Immortal Wu Tian and Wu Yuan led the way, flanked by a multitude of High Immortals, thousands of Earth Immortals, and swarms of protectorates.

The massive group flew towards the colossal hall at the edge of the world – the venue of the victory banquet.

The main purpose of the Origin Blood World was to train the devil hall’s Golden Core disciples.

However, after each Bloodforge Battle, over ninety percent of the hundreds of millions of Golden Core cultivators from millions of worldlets would perish.

There was still plenty of time before the next Bloodforge Battle, providing a rare moment of respite for the numerous protectorates and Earth Immortals of the devil hall.

"High Immortal, these Qi Sea cultivators..." Wu Yuan pointed at an area below, where countless grottos housed an immeasurable number of Qi Sea cultivators.

At a glance, they seemed to number in the billions.

"These individuals are gathered from various worldlets. However, they are too weak to participate in the Bloodforge Battle," High Immortal Wu Tian casually said. "So, we select a large number of elite disciples and those with high potential from them for rigorous training."

"In every Bloodforge Battle, the millions of Golden Core cultivators directly raised by the devil hall are selected from these Qi Sea cultivators."

"In a hundred years' time, we will filter those who have exhibited sufficient potential." High Immortal Wu Tian stated.

Wu Yuan finally understood why the Bloodforge Devil Hall not only required some Golden Core cultivators from the Summerpeak World, but also requested a large number of Qi Sea cultivators.

"What about those who are unable to exhibit sufficient potential?" Wu Yuan casually asked.

"Naturally, they should die, what’s the point of keeping such trash?" High Immortal Wu Tian shook his head. "If they are still unable to step into the Golden Core phase before the Bloodforge Battle, they'll be sent into the Bloodforge Plane first."

"No one can survive." High Immortal Wu Tian said it so naturally.

Wu Yuan was stunned for some time. He thought back to the words of the white-robed woman in the Bloodforge Spacetime, and the incredible abilities of the Bloodforge Jade Platform.

So, the Bloodforge Spacetime not only harvests the animus of the Golden Core cultivators, but also ten times the number of Qi Sea cultivators.

Wu Yuan quietly sighed.

His understanding of the Bloodforge Devil Hall’s cruelty deepened.

What's the ultimate goal of harvesting such gargantuan quantities of animus over so many years?

The thought crossed Wu Yuan's mind.

The group soon entered the devil hall.

...

The victory banquet lasted a day and night, during which Wu Yuan was the absolute star of the show.

Halfway through the feast, several Archimmortals of the devil hall joined in the festivities as well. Although they were just ordinary Archimmortals, their statuses far surpassed High Immortals, bringing the feast to its zenith.

Strangely, Astral Lord Yin He did not show up, which puzzled Wu Yuan slightly.

After the feast, High Immortal Wu Tian escorted Wu Yuan back to District One, which was nearly deserted.

"Bai Li is gone, Shui Heng survived." High Immortal Wu Tian informed him softly.

Bai Li? Wu Yuan paused, involuntarily recalling the willful and ambitious girl who seemed to harbor grand aspirations.

Having cleared level eleven of the Dark Star, it was no exaggeration to call her a genius. If she hadn’t died on the battlefield, she could have become a High Immortal in tens of thousands of years without much difficulty. But she had died silently on the Bloodforge Battlefield, just like that.

Once dead, even the greatest ambitions, talents, and achievements all turn to dust.

Wu Yuan's tumultuous spirit gradually calmed down.

All that is simply reduced to a topic of conversation, and eventually disappears with the wind.

A sense of cold rationality grew in Wu Yuan's spirit, and he felt as if his spirit was baptized once again.

First and foremost, survive! As long as you're alive, there's hope.

A Dao Heart must be constantly refined to grow stronger.

This Bloodforge Battle had not only dramatically increased Wu Yuan's power, but also served as a rite of passage for his spirit.

"Wu Yuan, you must prepare. The devil hall headquarters will likely summon you," High Immortal Wu Tian said with a grin. "Moreover, when you claimed the title of Bloodforge King, the Astral Lord already decreed you the World Master of Summerpeak World."

"The other rewards will be bestowed upon your arrival at the devil hall headquarters," High Immortal Wu Tian stated.

"Understood." Wu Yuan nodded, soaring into his mansion.

High Immortal Wu Tian watched as Wu Yuan entered the meditation chamber, muttering to himself.

How odd. The Astral Lord promised he would attend the banquet and even bring a lavish gift for Wu Yuan.

Why hasn't he arrived? And he hasn't mentioned preparing an extra gift?

High Immortal Wu Tian shook his head slightly.

I can't figure it out.

Astral Lord Yin He naturally wouldn’t divulge orders from the Devil Sovereign to a mere High Immortal. Thus, High Immortal Wu Tian remained oblivious.

...

In the meditation chamber of his mansion, Wu Yuan sat down in lotus position, his mind still grappling with Bai Li’s death, as well as the silence that pervaded District One.

Of over eighty second-tier Bloodforge Seeds, only a little over twenty made it back alive. Of the more than one hundred million Golden Core cultivators who participated in the trial, less than a million survived.

These were the final figures of the Bloodforge Battle, which he learned of at the banquet.

How cruel! Even the so-called geniuses had a staggering casualty rate nearing eighty percent. All from a single Golden Core Bloodforge Battle.

This is the path to immortality under the rule of the Bloodforge Devil Hall’s master.

Wu Yuan sighed inwardly.

The struggle for immortality was unthinkably brutal.

Scores of disciples from the Dragon Star Immortal Sect also perished while carrying out various assignments, the cruelty of it all no less severe.

However, the methods used by the Bloodforge Devil Hall were far more inhumane.

Though it's presented as tempering, their true goal is to harvest animus.

Wu Yuan shook his head slightly, suppressing his swirling thoughts.

He began to ponder his own situation.

The Bloodforge Battle has ended. My body refiner self is about to head to the devil hall headquarters. I wonder what awaits me there.

But after consolidating my foundation for a while, I should be able to step into the Shambhala phase.

Once he stepped into the Shambhala phase, his strength would surge drastically.