Volume 3: Global Vanguard & The Advanced Pinnacle
Chapter 262
White-Robed Cardinal "Ming Sha" & The City-Wide Blood Sacrifice Plan
Deep within the subterranean heart of the Underworld Palace, the space felt like a gigantic, forgotten tomb buried beneath nine layers of hell.
A heavy, pungent reek of fresh blood assaulted the sinuses, sharp enough to churn a man’s gastric juices into violent turmoil. As they pushed further past the shattered bronze gates, the faint, shimmering phosphor glow of the Yellow Springs Nether Water was left behind, yielding entirely to a bizarre, sticky, and grimly resentment-laden dark crimson hue that swallowed the entire sacrificial hall whole.
This was an underground stone plaza spanning several thousand square meters. The sheer cliff walls surrounding it were pitch-black and jagged, riddled with fissures oozing a greasy black-red fluid. High above on the vaulted ceiling hundreds of feet up, countless skeletal remains of primeval giant beasts were tightly bound by iron chains as thick as a grown man’s torso, suspended in midair. Their curved, chalk-white ribs pointed straight down, forming a terrifying natural cage.
However, what abruptly halted the footsteps of the trio—Lin Feng, Ye Qingwan, and Elder Lu Zhen—was the towering, malevolent structure reigning supreme at the very center of the hall.
It was a colossal altar built entirely of dragon bones.
Standing some fifty meters tall, the entire altar was stacked with tens of thousands of skulls, spines, and razor-sharp talons from a myriad of primeval dragon species. Each gargantuan dragon bone looked as though it had been roasted by demonic fire for centuries, pitch-black like cold iron, yet their surfaces were carved with dense runes burning red like boiling fresh blood. Around the base of the altar, nine bluestone drainage channels radiated out in a fan shape, connecting directly to a pitch-black pool of blood bubbling with toxic vapor.
With every passing second, streams of deep crimson blood trickled backward along the bone grooves, defying all natural laws, emitting a disgusting sizzling sound akin to ten thousand souls shrieking under a cauldron of boiling oil.
“You beasts...” Elder Lu Zhen’s aged hand clamped tightly around his Earth-element magic staff, the thick veins on the back of his hand bulging violently. The aura of the Forbidden Curse Association elder, ordinarily serene, now fluctuated wildly, his silvery eyebrows bristling with ultimate rage: “This is the Nine-Nether Blood-Slaughter Formation! They actually dared to excavate the remains of primeval dragons from the depths of the Slaughter Abyss to erect this wicked sorcery altar!”
Beside him, Ye Qingwan lowered her center of gravity slightly, the ice-crystal longsword in her hand ringing softly. A bone-chilling frost emanating from her Ice Phoenix physique radiated beneath her feet, freezing the filthy bloody sludge three paces away. The young girl’s delicate brows furrowed tightly, her crystal-clear eyes revealing intense vigilance:
“Lin Feng, look around. The number of cultists here is abnormally high.”
Lin Feng did not reply, but his gold-trimmed black military cloak fluttered slightly in the foul wind. His eyes, deep as an ancient well, swept across the four sides of the forecourt.
At the base of the dragon bone altar, over thirty figures draped in deep blue robes knelt in two neat rows. These were entirely the Deep Sea Church’s Blue-Cloth Envoys—individuals possessing at least Peak Intermediate-level strength, with some even touching the threshold of the Advanced realm. Further out, perched on protruding stone ledges along the cliff walls, nearly a hundred Black-Cloth Cultists with covered faces clutched poison-coated scimitars, their lips endlessly murmuring heretical chants like a swarm of ants chewing through souls.
They showed no surprise at the arrival of Lin Feng’s group. Not a single one even raised their head. They continued prostrating themselves deep into the blood-drenched stone, their foreheads smashing heavily against the hard floor, devoutly facing the summit of the dragon bone altar as if welcoming the descent of a supreme deity.
“Clack... Clack... Clack...”
A series of dry, unhurried sounds echoed from the white bone steps at the highest peak.
The footsteps were not heavy, but every single impact fell like an invisible sledgehammer crashing against the chests of those present. The pool of blood at the base of the altar surged with every step, sending out rings of crimson waves that lashed fiercely against the stone banks.
Amidst the thick, blood-red mist, a figure slowly stepped out to the edge of the altar, lowering his gaze to look down at the three intruders who had shattered the silence of the forbidden ground.
Unlike the filthy cultists clad in pitch-black or deep-blue robes, this person wore a pristine white grand robe without a speck of dust. That white was eerily pure, contrasting sharply with the gory, stinking surroundings, creating a ghostly, suffocating aura of oppression. Along the hems and wide sleeves, threads of pure gold were meticulously embroidered into the shapes of a myriad screaming skulls—the supreme symbol of authority for the Underworld Church in Divine Continent.
The figure possessed a lean, tall stature. The white hood was pulled low, revealing the lower half of a pale, bloodless face resembling the skin of a corpse soaked in water for too long. Yet, residing beneath the shadows of the brim were eyes burning scarlet like twin demonic lanterns blazing in a crypt.
In his right hand, he gripped a magic staff over two meters long. The shaft was fashioned from the spine of a primeval dragon whelp, chalk-white and winding like a venomous snake. The top of the staff was embedded with an Abyss Black Crystal the size of a fist, and dancing around the pitch-black crystal were wisps of miniature dark lightning that periodically tore through space, emitting dangerous snapping noises.
The instant that white-robed figure halted, a bone-chilling pressure poured down from the summit of the altar like an avalanche!
“Crack... Crack... Crack...”
The bluestone ground beneath Lin Feng and Lu Zhen instantly fractured into deep fissures. The surrounding air compressed to the point of distortion, forming visible rippling waves. Gravity seemed to skyrocket fivefold, and an overwhelming dark chill laden with monstrous resentment slammed directly into the trio’s sea of consciousness, attempting to strangle the magic Star Seas within their bodies!
“Half-Step Super... Peak Advanced realm perfection?!” Lu Zhen staggered back half a step, his pupils contracting violently. He hastily drove his staff deep into the ground, activating a thick golden-brown Earth-element halo to shroud the three of them and block the terrifying pressure.
Even with the protective barrier of a Super-level archmage shielding them, the pressure from the white-robed figure tightened Lu Zhen’s chest. This terrifying might had far surpassed the boundaries of an ordinary Advanced-level mage, leaving only a razor-thin thread separating it from the Super-level door!
“Heh, heh, heh...”
A shrill, raspy laugh like the grinding of two rusted metal pieces rang out from the summit of the altar. The white-robed figure slowly raised the dragon bone staff, the tip pointing straight down at the people below:
“Lu Zhen... Twenty years, and you are still as old, senile, and useless as the day you were trampled under my feet at the Imperial Palace of Shanghai City.”
The moment those sounds entered his ears, Elder Lu Zhen’s entire body stiffened. The old man’s eyes widened, staring fixedly at the white-robed figure above, his voice trembling with a mixture of extreme horror and heart-rending hatred:
“This voice... You... You are Leng Wuhai?!”
“Leng Wuhai?” The white-robed figure threw his head back and laughed. His laughter was manic, feral, rattling the hanging dragon bones on the ceiling of the hall: “That lowly name of a loyal dog under the Forbidden Curse Association, I discarded it with my own hands twenty years ago! The person standing before you now holds the ultimate power over life and death in the Divine Continent’s shadows—the First White-Robed Cardinal of the Underworld Church: Ming Sha!”
“Ming Sha... It’s you! The true mastermind behind the entire Ancient Capital tragedy is you!” Lu Zhen gnashed his teeth so hard they clicked, a streak of red blood leaking from the corner of his mouth in sheer fury.
The bloody memories of twenty years ago swept through Lu Zhen’s mind like a flash flood.
Back then, Leng Wuhai had been the youngest genius envoy of the Divine Continent’s Forbidden Curse Association, hailed as the bright star destined to inherit the position of Speaker. Yet, that genius harbored a frantic ambition, secretly colluding with cult forces, poisoning and slaughtering all thirty-four fellow disciples in the branch protecting the forbidden arts, stealing the primeval blood sacrifice grimoire before vanishing into the shadows.
For twenty years, the Forbidden Curse Association had issued a nationwide Blood-Red Wanted Order, turning over every inch of land from the northern frontiers to the southern coasts, but the traitor’s shadow remained entirely unseen. Who could have imagined that the fugitive of yesteryear would now don the white robe of a Cardinal, becoming the supreme demon ruling over one of the most wicked cult branches in existence!
“Ming Sha...” Lin Feng muttered the name softly, his gaze as sharp as a razor blade locking onto the figure on the altar.
He could clearly sense that the dark mana emanating from this person’s body was purer and deeper than any cultist he had ever encountered. This was not borrowed darkness swallowed from filthy souls, but a wicked power honed through thousands of slaughters, condensed into substance. A true Half-Step Super-level enemy, ten times more dangerous than any Commander-level demon beast on the battlefield!
Ming Sha lowered his staff, his white robes fluttering gently in the wind. He paced down the steps of dragon bones, his malevolent scarlet gaze sweeping past Ye Qingwan before resting on Lin Feng, the corners of his mouth curling into a supreme sneer:
“Has the Divine Continent fallen this low now? To stop the gods’ grand plan, the Forbidden Curse Association can only send an old man with one foot in the grave and two wet-nosed kids to throw their lives away?”
He pointed the head of the dragon bone staff at Lin Feng, his tone dripping with arrogant mockery:
“Kid, I heard the branch leaders under my command report that outside the North City Gate, a young military officer used thunder and fire to wipe out my swarm of zombies, even beheading three Corpse God Giants. That’s you? A fine piece of praise for an ant with a bit of skill. But do you know that by leaping down to the depths of this Slaughter Abyss... you’re simply walking into the trap a few moments early?”
“Walking into a trap?” Lin Feng crossed his arms over his chest, his expression completely unfazed by the opponent’s terrifying pressure. His voice was bone-chilling, every syllable ringing clearly throughout the hall: “Relying merely on a rotting altar pieced together from beast bones, alongside a bunch of sewer rats hiding in a tomb just like you, and you dare arrogantly call yourselves deities?”
The air in the hall instantly froze solid!
Over thirty Blue-Cloth Envoys kneeling on the ground snapped their heads up in unison. Their ashen faces revealed savage ferocity, their killing intent surging fiercely as if wishing to tear apart the one who dared utter blasphemy. In this Divine Continent, never once had anyone below the Super-level dared to openly insult a White-Robed Cardinal like this!
Yet, Ming Sha did not fly into an immediate rage. He paused midway up the altar, looking at Lin Feng with the pitying gaze of someone standing at the peak looking down at prey struggling in a spider’s web.
“Rotting? Pieced together?” Ming Sha chuckled, his voice laced with fanatical madness: “Ignorant little beast, you fundamentally fail to understand the greatness of this project. Do you know why I’ve remained in hiding for twenty years, enduring the pursuit of the entire Divine Continent?”
He spread his arms wide, his white robe embroidered with golden skulls flapping wildly:
“It is for this very day! For the grand enterprise of blood-sacrificing the entire Ancient Capital!”
Ming Sha whirled around, aiming his bone staff toward the cracked stone vault above. At the apex of the cave ceiling, a gigantic dimensional fissure was slowly widening, piercing straight through thousands of meters of rock to reflect the gloomy night sky overhead.
Up there, a perfectly round moon stained the color of fresh blood was slowly rising to the zenith!
The Blood Moon!
“See that moon?” Ming Sha’s voice dropped to a low rumble, sounding like the whispers of a demon from the abyss: “That is not a natural astronomical phenomenon. That is the beacon guiding the undead legion! Beneath the earth of this Ancient Capital, the millennium seal of the Underworld King has long since rotted away. Once the Blood Moon reaches its peak, the matrix beneath my feet will connect all nine blood veins of the Slaughter Abyss straight into the dragon veins of the Ancient Capital!”
He snapped back around, his scarlet eyes burning with brutal flames:
“When that happens, the primeval taboo slumbering deep within the lowest magma layer—the Dark Bone Emperor—will officially awaken! The Slaughter Abyss won’t just stop outside the city gates; this ten-thousand-fathom abyss will shift space, swallowing the entire Ancient Capital into the earth!”
“Twenty million people in that city... heh, heh, heh... twenty million fresh flesh-and-blood souls! Every single one will be ground into bloody mud to nourish the Bone Emperor! Their blood will dye these nine channels red, and their souls will be trapped within white bones, transforming into the grandest undead legion in human history!”
Ming Sha gripped the dragon bone staff tightly, his voice hissing through clenched teeth, brimming with diseased arrogance:
“An undead legion of twenty million departed souls! That shall be the most exquisite gift, the grandest coronation offering that I—Ming Sha—shall present to the great Pope upon his personal descent to the Divine Continent! When the Ancient Capital falls, this entire empire shall tremble beneath the Underworld Church’s boots! Rotten humanity shall be swept clean, yielding to the eternal era of darkness!”
Ming Sha’s frenzied declaration echoed through the subterranean cave, carrying a chilling dark intent that made even Ye Qingwan shudder.
Twenty million people!
The cult’s plan was neither pillage nor territorial occupation. They intended to completely erase a millennium-old ancient city, turning the home of twenty million compatriots into a dead wasteland, transforming the living into monsters! Such cruelty, bestiality, and madness far surpassed the limits of human morality.
“You’re mad... You’ve truly gone mad, Leng Wuhai!” Lu Zhen trembled as he shouted, veins bulging on his forehead: “Twenty million innocent lives! You used to be a human too, raised upon this very soil of the Divine Continent! To commit such monstrous crimes—heaven and earth will not forgive you, and the gods will strike you down!”
“Gods?” Ming Sha sneered, his eyes filled with supreme contempt: “The weak beg the gods for protection. The strong hold their destiny in their own hands! Lu Zhen, you’re old, so your mind has turned senile along with it. Twenty years ago you called me a traitor, but twenty years from now, history will be written by victors like me!”
With that, Ming Sha glanced up at the stone vault.
At the dimensional fissure, the deep crimson light of the Blood Moon shone straight down upon the summit of the altar. Droplets of blood mist condensed from the void, dripping rhythmically into the pitch-black pool of blood. The nine bluestone channels glowed eight parts bright, and the bloody runes upon the dragon bones began weaving together into a complete diagram.
“See that?” The corners of Ming Sha’s mouth curled into a triumphant, malevolent smile: “Only one final quarter-hour remains. Exactly one quarter-hour, and the celestial blood sacrifice will complete its final cycle. By then, even if every single forbidden curse mage of the Forbidden Curse Association swarms here, they will not be able to halt the awakening steps of the Dark Bone Emperor!”
“A quarter-hour...” Lu Zhen’s heart plummeted to the depths of an abyss.
A quarter-hour! Equivalent to a mere fifteen minutes!
Within these short fifteen minutes, not only did they have to destroy a White-Robed Cardinal with Half-Step Super-level strength, wipe out over thirty Blue-Cloth Envoys and hundreds of elite cultists, but they also had to figure out a way to shatter the matrix structure of the dragon bone altar!
This was an impossible mission! A desperate situation where not a shred of faint hope could be seen!
“Despairing, you ants?” Ming Sha chuckled darkly, his blazing red eyes baring monstrous murderous intent: “Don’t worry, you won’t be lonely. To complete this ritual in its most perfect form, the altar still lacks the blood of high-level mages. A Super-level elder of the Forbidden Curse Association, along with two young budding geniuses... The blood of the three of you shall be the sweetest droplet to awaken the Bone Emperor!”
With that, Ming Sha slowly raised the dragon bone staff high into the air.
“Swish! Swish!”
Arcs of black lightning erupted from the Abyss Black Crystal, wrapping around the shaft of the staff like crazed, venomous snakes. The Half-Step Super-level aura erupted fully, a dark tempest whipping up sand and gravel that scraped painfully against the skin, forcing Lu Zhen’s earth-element barrier to emit crisp, cracking sounds!
“Envoys, hear my command!” Ming Sha’s voice rang out as cold as a death sentence from hell: “Capture the old man Lu Zhen alive, skin and debone those two brats! Throw their corpses onto the altar summit as sacrificial offerings!”
“KILL!”
Over thirty Blue-Cloth Envoys roared in unison, dark mana and venom erupting violently from their bodies. Star Palaces and Star Orbits flickered brightly in the darkness, dozens of destructive magics preparing to descend and crush the three lonely figures in the center of the plaza!
The situation had reached a hair-trigger crisis! Twenty million lives in the Ancient Capital were counting down second by second toward total annihilation!
Yet, amidst that suffocating storm of killing intent, a low chuckle suddenly rang out.
The laughter was not loud, but it pierced through the dark gale, echoing distinctly in the ears of everyone present.
Ming Sha frowned slightly, his bloodshot eyes staring fixedly at the young man standing at the front.
Lin Feng slowly lowered his hands, the corners of his mouth curling into a cold arc resembling a reaper’s scythe. His gaze held not a single trace of panic or fear; instead, deep within those eyes, a raging inferno of fighting spirit was surging, as hot and blazing as the midday sun!
Within his chest, the Primordial Dragon Talisman trembled gently. Warm primeval energy radiated through his limbs and bones, resonating with the four brilliant Star Seas spinning frantically within his sea of consciousness: the violet Thunder Sea, the blazing crimson Fire Sea, and the two Star Seas that had just molted and ascended to the Advanced realm—Shadow and Summoning!
He had seen through the entire matrix structure of the focal point.
He had memorized every single flow position of the nine blood channels.
And most importantly... fifteen minutes might be a death sentence to others, but to Lin Feng, that amount of time was more than enough to dye this tomb red with cultist blood!
“Ming Sha...” Lin Feng took a single step forward.
A single step planted firmly onto the bluestone floor, yet it shook the entire underground plaza violently!
“You’ve been rambling on endlessly like this for so long... simply because you’re terrified, aren’t you?”
Lin Feng raised his head, looking down imperiously at the Cardinal standing high above, monstrous killing intent erupting from his body to clash head-on against the Half-Step Super-level pressure:
“You’re terrified that your twenty-year filthy plan will be crushed by me in an instant! A quarter-hour? You think you’ll even survive another quarter-hour?!”
“BOOM!”
A bolt of purple-black lightning tore through the darkness of the deep subterranean tomb, accompanied by the heaven-shaking roar of an ancient sovereign beginning to awaken from the void!