In the battle of Tianming City, the strength of the two sides had been unequal. So for the Nonahall Ghost Sect, it was a war they were destined to win. Thus, the elders present were almost grinning from ear to ear. Even if they noticed the necrofiend flare dragon’s hostility, they continued discussing their ideas in a harmonious and joyful manner. 

“Silence, everyone.” 

The gigantic dragon landed in front of the hall, its green phantom fire burning. The surrounding atmosphere suddenly became gloomy and cold. 

“Were there any losses?” Zi Xiao asked calmly.

“That’s impossible. We have the Archaionfiend and the four ghost kings serving as commanders. Even without the corpse puppets, we still have six million warriors.” 

“Logically speaking, even with Jian Wuyi supporting them, we can easily take down the city without any losses.” 

Up until that point, most elders weren’t concerned.

The necrofiend flare dragon looked up to the sky and let out a heartrending roar. That desolate sound made their scalp tingle. The entire hall fell completely silent. 

“All the warriors and ghoul kings are dead. That’s it, you may continue!” 

Looking at their self-righteous attitude made the dragon even more irate. After it finished speaking, it turned and flew away before anyone could catch up to it, leaving behind a confused crowd. 

“Has the flare dragon gone mad?” 

“What’s wrong with it, spouting nonsense and losing its temper at a time like this!” 

“God knows.” 

However, the strange situation made it hard for Zi Xiao to sit still. Just as he rose to his feet, the other ghoul kings’ lifebound beasts, as well as a few third-origin tribulation elders who had escaped from death, returned from the north. As soon as they returned, they collapsed to the ground, their faces pale. 

“What on earth is going on? Is anyone still sane? Explain what happened!" Zi Xiao shouted. 

“I’ll speak.” 

An old man walked out from the crowd. Voice hoarse, he described everything that transpired in Tianming City with grief and shame. 

"This is all very much like Ghoul King Xue Yi and Qing Ming’s deaths—they’re all facts! Even if it’s hard to believe, you have to accept it. What a humiliating defeat! The fact is that, as predators, we’ve been played with by our cunning prey.” 

With that, All Saint Hall descended into dead silence. Every peak powerhouse was crimson-eyed, their fists clenched. There was no doubt how gloomy, heartbroken, and tormented everyone was. This was perhaps the most humiliated they had ever been or would ever be. Many elders began venting their anger. They want to curse at someone, but who could they blame? 

“First the Kilostar Domain, and now Tianming City! Enough is enough!” 

“This can’t happen again!” 

“The Archaion Sect must pay a hundred times the price!” 

“With just Yi Xingyin!” 

As the news spread, the Specter Mountains were shrouded in a bleak stillness. 

“Do you realize that we’ve been losing miserably ever since the Number One Summit. We’ve now lost three times in a row. We’re a total mess.” 

“All of this has something to do with one man, Li Tianming!" 

“What on earth are Ghoul Kings Di Zang and Po Suo doing?” 

“We’ve already been so miserably defeated. Why haven’t they done anything?”

“Are we going to continue being a laughingstock?” 

Many remained doubtful. At the end of this day, the entire Specter Mountain range was enraged. They had been preparing for a long time and were merely waiting for an order to rush to Archaion in their most frightening form. 

“Ghoul King Zi Xiao, please tell us what to do," they begged. 

However, Zi Xiao remained silent for a long time. Out of nine ghoul kings, only three remained? He could never have imagined such a reality. No one was more heartbroken than him. 

At this moment of agony, he stood up and was about to speak when a huge movement on the north side of the All Saints Hall suddenly interrupted him. If the Specter Mountain was a giant, this movement happened in the position of the giant's eyes. 

“Jiang Wuxin!” 

Zi Xiao’s eyes lit up and he told the others to stay there while he rushed in the direction of the Blood Cauldron. A bloody ray of light shot from somewhere in the abyss into the clouds, dyeing the clouds crimson. 

“It’s a success!” 

Zi Xiao looked happy as he arrived before the bloody light, standing on the nose of the “giant”, staring at the bloody mist in the position of the “eyes.” From within the mist, out walked a young man covered in black patterns. When he opened his eyes, two pupils were visible in each eye, lending a strange air to his ordinary appearance. 

However, his gaze was rather vacant. It wasn’t a look one would expect from a person capable of rational thought. And beneath the blankness was a deep hostility. His body twisted as he walked unnaturally, then finally landed with his hands on the ground like a beast, crawling toward Zi Xiao. Then, he blinked, raised his head, and looked at Zi Xiao in a daze. 

“Who are you?” 

Crouching down, Zi Xiao wiped the blood from the young man’s face and smiled.

“Jiang.... Jiang Wuxin...” he said, rocking his head.

“Why were you born?” asked Zi Xiao.

“T-to destroy?” Jiang Wuxin replied.

“You’re right. Not bad, you passed the test.” Patting him on the shoulder, Zi Xiao stood up and added, "Come with me, Jiang Wuxin." 

“Yes, Master.” 

With vacant eyes, Jiang Wuxin followed Zi Xiao.

“I'm your third master. You have two others. Listen to them. They made you. They’re like your parents, understand?" asked Zi Xiao. 

“U-understood.” 

Zi Xiao took him across the sky until he reached the giant's abdomen.

"Open the Myriad Beast Hell,” Zi Xiao ordered the tribulation elders who were stationed there.

“Yes!” 

It took several tribulation elders to open the formation.

A dark abyss with a huge entrance appeared in front of them. As soon as the formation was opened, a deafening beastial roar sounded from below. Upon hearing this roar, Jiang Wuxin sniffed the smells. Bloody mist filled his eyes and his entire being became restless. 

“What’s wrong?” asked Zi Xiao.

“I’m hungry....”

“Hunger is the most beautiful sign.” 

Zi Xiao's smile grew wider. It almost seemed as if he had forgotten the news of the four ghoul kings’ deaths. With that, he pulled Jiang Wuxin and jumped into the abyss. After they descended, the tribulation elders quickly closed the formation once more. 

“What’s the use of cultivating this Jiang Wuxin?” 

"I heard that he can be turned into a killing machine. It seems like it’s succeeded, but Jiang Wuxin appears to be at the fifth- or sixth-level samsara at most.” 

“Yes, there isn’t anything special about him.” 

“We’ll wait and see. Perhaps Jiang Wuxin is the key to reversing our situation. We’ve suffered humiliation for underestimating them!” 

“I wonder what the other two ghoul kings are doing.” 

“What could be more important than breaking the Ninefold Formation?” 

“That’s enough. How can we understand what they’re thinking? It’s better not to speak too much.”