At the same time, on Fengjiu Mountain Range, Fengji Sect.
"Gao Yi, a disciple of Taiyi Immortal Sect, is ordered to deliver this invitation. In three months, our sect will hold its 500th-anniversary celebration. Sect Master Fengji, you are welcome to attend as a spectator with this invitation."
At the same time, in the Eastern Sea Region, the Ice Family overseas.
"Yang Fan, a disciple of Taiyi Immortal Sect," is ordered to come. In three months, our Taiyi Immortal Sect will hold its 500th-anniversary celebration. Patriarch of the Ice Family overseas, you are welcome to attend as a spectator with this invitation."
Elsewhere, also almost at the same time, Shen Dao Sect, face to face with the Sect Master of Shen Dao Sect.
"Tan Zhitai, a disciple of Taiyi Immortal Sect, is ordered to deliver this invitation. In three months, our sect will hold its 500th-anniversary celebration. Sect Master Shen Dao, you are welcome to attend as a spectator with this invitation."
...
Disciples of Taiyi Immortal Sect flew out like locusts, heading towards the Nine Provinces and surrounding regions. Almost all cultivators above the Nascent Soul stage received an invitation from Taiyi Immortal Sect to witness the celebration.
The Nine Provinces and surrounding regions are vast and boundless. However, if a Nascent Soul cultivator exerts all their strength and uses spatial divine abilities to travel, they should be able to traverse it in a few days.
Especially the old monsters above the Nascent Soul stage, who generally possess high-level teleportation talismans or other spatial traversal treasures, their speed is even faster.
Within one to two months, over a hundred top cultivators had received an invitation from Taiyi Immortal Sect to witness the celebration.
Regardless of whether they were immortal, demonic, or ghost, all cultivators who had reached the Nascent Soul stage or above received one.
These over a hundred Nascent Soul experts were distributed throughout the Nine Provinces and surrounding regions. Each of them was a hegemonic power whose stomp could shake a thousand miles.
As for the other ruling powers whose background and influence were comparable to Taiyi Immortal Sect, due to special reasons of respect and equality, each one had an elder from Taiyi Immortal Sect personally deliver the invitation.
As the 500th-anniversary celebration drew nearer, the Qingzhou region was in turmoil.
Besides over a hundred Nascent Soul experts of various sizes, tens of thousands of rogue cultivators rushed towards Taiyi Immortal Sect.
The lowest cultivation base among them was the Foundation Establishment stage, with none below it.
The reason was simple: only major forces with invitations could bring disciples with cultivation below the Foundation Establishment stage to watch the celebration...
Unimportant individuals were required to be at the Foundation Establishment stage or above, and there were also quota restrictions. If the number exceeded the capacity of Taiyi Immortal Sect's mountain gate, unless you were a Golden Core or Nascent Soul expert, you would not be allowed in.
Under this rule, cultivators in the Foundation Establishment stage had to set off several months in advance.
If they could not witness the 500th-anniversary celebration and grand competition of Taiyi Immortal Sect, they would surely regret it for decades, or even centuries.
Moreover, a grand celebration that was rarely seen in five hundred years might not be encountered even by high-level cultivators in the Golden Core stage if they were unlucky.
Now, these Foundation Establishment cultivators had the opportunity to participate, so how could they not?
While the outside world was completely abuzz, within Taiyi Immortal Sect, the elders of the inner sect were also having their disciples make preparations to avoid embarrassment during the grand competition.
The Taiyi Immortal Sect's grand elders attached great importance to this 500th-anniversary celebration, even alarming the sect's only Violet Mansion ancestor.
Moreover, the rewards this time were exceptionally generous. It could be said that the ranking in the grand competition directly affected an individual's future and status within the sect.
The Nine Provinces Continent was infinitely vast, with countless living beings and myriad races.
Demonic beasts, mortals, cultivators... But the true overlords were undoubtedly the human cultivators of the immortal and demonic paths.
They slaughtered demonic beasts, suppressed and exterminated other races, enslaved and controlled mortal nations, and plundered the spiritual energy of heaven and earth, all for their own immortal cultivation path.
And within the immortal and demonic paths, the most powerful forces were the twenty sects, each with tens of thousands of disciples.
They had dominated the Nine Provinces Continent for many years, and most of them were lineages passed down from the ancient, primordial, and archaic eras, with a depth of heritage that ordinary cultivators could not imagine.
This was not mere pretense; in this cruel and unforgiving immortal cultivation world, everything was fought for: fighting against heaven, fighting against earth, fighting against humans, fighting against demons, fighting against devils, everything was fought for.
...
Taiyi Immortal Sect's territory.
Feilai Immortal Peak.
A towering, thousand-zhang mountain peak, piercing straight into the clouds, disappearing into the thick cloud layers. At the summit stood a majestic and magnificent pure white palace. Outside the palace, two Foundation Establishment cultivators stood on either side.
Inside the palace, the Peak Master of Feilai Immortal Peak, a middle-aged man in the late Golden Core stage, stood with his back to the palace gate, high and mighty.
"This sect's grand competition is no trivial matter. Mo Wen, as one of the nine Holy Sons among my sect's inner disciples, you must not disappoint me." In the center of the grand hall, a young man bowed respectfully and said, "Master, your disciple will definitely not disappoint you. I will strive to be first and bring glory to our Feilai Immortal Peak."
"That would be for the best. By the way, Mo'er, before you go, take the chain of seals made from the silk spit out by the ten-thousand-year-old Spirit Devouring Silkworm from the peak. It will be used for self-defense to protect you."
The Peak Master of Feilai Immortal Peak, named Tang Hu, was an extremely ambitious man.
...
Extreme Sun Golden Flame Peak!
The entire mountain peak was forcibly transformed into a perpetually burning volcano by great divine powers. A crimson palace stood atop it. Only two people stood at the entrance of the vast hall.
"Yan Yan, as my nephew and my direct disciple, one of the nine Holy Sons, you must live up to my reputation and win first place in the grand competition." Feng Junyi, wearing a fiery red robe, sat imposingly and steadily on an exquisite chair made of sun crystals.
Yan Yan knelt on one knee and said solemnly, "Disciple understands. I will not disappoint Master."
"Very good. If you truly win first place in the grand competition, then you will undoubtedly be the champion among the younger generation of the sect." Feng Junyi laughed heartily. The entire palace seemed to tremble, and outside, fire waves rolled and surged.
...
Immortal Bow Peak!
Amidst a forest of ancient, thousand-year-old ironwood trees.
"Xi Men Jing Xue, as one of the nine Holy Sons for many years, you have cultivated the Heart Scar Shattering Void Art to the seventh level and have almost refined the remnant treasure of the ancient era, the Nine-Star Consecutive Bead Bow. There are few who can match you in the sect."
"I ask you, do you have the confidence to win first place in this grand competition?" A purple-robed middle-aged man with nine fingers on his hand stood with his hands behind his back, his robes fluttering as if ready to take flight.
The stern-faced young man pondered for a moment before saying, "Master praises me too highly. Jing Xue will strive for first place."
This purple-robed middle-aged man was named Luo Wenjiu. His cultivation had also reached the late Golden Core stage.
...
In the southwest of Qingzhou, there is a vast mountain range called the Death Spirit Yin Demon Mountain Range, spanning tens of millions of miles.
In the Death Spirit Yin Demon Mountain Range, there is a natural spring that connects to the Underworld, the realm of the dead. This spring, connected to the Underworld, continuously exhales the Yellow Springs Qi, which is extremely beneficial to demonic cultivators.
Passing through the millions of miles of the edge of the Death Spirit Yin Mountain Range, at the source deep within, there is a colossal altar. The altar appears to be hollowed out at the bottom, and a pool of strange spring water wells up from its depths.
The spring water is called strange because it is not the usual transparent colorless water, but rather a luminous, glazed color that emits an incredibly alluring glow. Each drop of spring water has countless facets and is filled with the life force that creates all things.
Under the transformation of the Ten Desolations Forbidden Heavenly Demon Formation set up by the Heavenly Demon Sect, countless pure Yellow Springs water turns into thick, blood-red qi that comes from the mysterious depths of the void. It seems that there is a force at play, and these blood-red qi condense, entwine, and fuse, slowly forming clusters of blood-red clouds.
Countless blood-red clouds surge up from below. Each surge covers an area of a thousand miles. Every time a blood-red cloud surges up, the scattered blood qi greatly benefits the demonic creatures and spirits in the vicinity.
Just staying in place for a moment and observing will reveal that each blood tide can increase the age of a demonic herb by decades, grant sentience to a demonic beast, and cause the cultivation of the disciples of the Heavenly Demon Sect to skyrocket.
What is even more unbelievable is that above this spring connected to the Underworld, there stands a palace built from pure white bones.
These pure white bones are all-encompassing, not only human bones but also some bones that are strangely shaped and enormous, clearly transformed from ferocious demonic beasts.
Thousands of bones are piled together, yet they have been miraculously shaped into a palace by great divine powers, becoming a treasure trove for demonic cultivators.
...
The Heavenly Demon Sect has occupied the Death Spirit Yin Demon Mountain Range for tens of thousands of years, turning it into a paradise for demonic cultivators.
Heavenly Demon Palace!
The Sect Master of the Heavenly Demon Sect, a majestic middle-aged man, stands side by side with a young man, gazing down at the resplendent demonic land below the Heavenly Demon Palace.
"My son, like me, you are a descendant of the Asura King Ancestor of the Underworld, inheriting his Asura King bloodline. Unfortunately, my potential is exhausted. I can only remain at the peak of the late Nascent Soul stage and cannot advance further to become a supreme expert of the Violet Mansion realm. But you are different. Your talent and bloodline are even richer than mine. You are the foremost prodigy among the younger generation of the Heavenly Demon Sect, the leader of the Seven Nights Demon Lords."
"Now is the time to test you. Those hypocrites of Taiyi Immortal Sect are holding some so-called 500th-anniversary celebration and some damned grand competition. You must defeat the winner of the grand competition."
"Ruthlessly suppress the morale of Taiyi Immortal Sect for our Heavenly Demon Sect and let everyone in the immortal cultivation world understand who is the number one sect in the Qingzhou region."