As Li Yu and Jian Xuan approached the Black River, the scale of the allied effort became clear. This was no simple imaginary line of defense. It was a massive fortified line of defense with a new wall stretching for miles.

It was built with the combined speed and power of thousands of cultivators. Towers bristled with large artifacts mounted on the walls which were powered by spirit stones. The air buzzed with the power of massive overlapping defensive arrays and cultivators flying around setting them up and maintaining them.

What was strange was the sight of demons working alongside humans. Hulking four-armed demon warriors hauled massive blocks of stones. Their chaotic Qi was surprisingly disciplined as they reinforced walls under the direction of human formation masters. It was a scene of tense pragmatic cooperation that would have been unthinkable just weeks ago.

The moment they landed a commander from the Forest of the Radiant Dawn approached and his expression grim. "Commanders. Grand Elder Theron summons you to the central command tent. Immediately."

Li Yu nodded. He looked back at the empty air beside him. "Khaos, I believe your presence is required and will surely be requested."

A ripple in space and Khaos materialized as silent and cold as the void itself. He knew what was going on and knew he would be asked for in such a meeting. The nearby guards instinctively recoiled from his sudden appearance, their hands flying to their weapons before they recognized the robes. The trio made their way to the largest pavilion at the heart of the massive camp.

When they entered the atmosphere inside was already heavy and oppressive. A massive projected map of the eastern side of the continent dominated the central table.

The attendees were a surprising mix that Li Yu wouldn’t have expected. They were a congregation of the continent's most powerful figures. From the allied side sat Grand Elder Theron, High Mystic Caelia and Great Chieftain Korgath.

From the Demon Realm, Lord Zaltar was present and beside him sat three other Demon Lords Li Yu hadn't met yet. A demoness wreathed in chilling frost, Lady Vyltra, 5th-Level Soul Formation. A brute whose skin looked like cooling magma, Forgemaster Krell, 4th-Level Soul Formation. A slender shadow-wreathed demon with unnervingly large eyes, Vizier Morn, 3rd-Level Soul Formation.

Then came the group that was a surprise, from the Cultists, High Priest Vrak and the Red-Eyed Mistress were present. Their faces were pale and their auras seething. One seat, however, was conspicuously empty. The Armored General was missing from their team.

Theron nodded as Li Yu's group entered, his eyes lingering on Khaos. "Thank you for coming. This group just got here as well and they have dire news." He gestured to the Cultists. "High Priest Vrak, please go on with your report."

Vrak's oily voice was strained, stripped of its usual arrogance. "The Armored General... is dead."

A cold silence fell over the tent but the news was an explosive one in everyone’s mind. The Armored General was a 6th-Level Soul Formation expert, a powerhouse on this continent.

The Red-Eyed Mistress spoke, her voice shaking with a suppressed venomous rage. "Half of our main force was stationed on the eastern side. They were there when the rifts opened. We were... overrun. The General stayed behind to hold back and direct the rearguard so we can retreat westward, to buy time for the rest of us to escape." She clenched her fists. "He was holding them just fine at first. He was winning against their numbers. And then... it appeared."

"It?" Caelia asked.

"A unique Xylarri, something I nor anyone else in our organization had ever seen before," Vrak elaborated. "Not pale. It was... a deep, royal purple. Almost... beautiful. Its eyes glowed. It didn't attack physically. It just... screeched."

The Red-Eyed Mistress shivered. "It wasn't a sound. It was... in our heads. A spike of pure alien malice. Every cultivator in the area... our souls... we just froze. Several seconds of paralysis for some. It was an attacked aim at the soul. The General... he was at the Soul Formation level but even he was stunned and his Martial Spirit faltered. The swarm... the swarm was on him before he could recover. He was desperately trying to fight them off but eventually the purple one attacked him again with some kind of technique.Then… they... consumed him. They didn’t chase after anyone else, as though he was targeted, allowing the rest of us to escape."

The news landed like an explosion in the room. A unique Xylarri with a long-range, area-of-effect soul attack capable of stunning even a 6th-Level Soul Formation expert. This changed everything, no one in this room was safe from such a thing.

Theron's face was grim. "Commander Little Crab, Commander Jian Xuan. Your report. You were the last to return from the east."

Jian Xuan, his usual fanaticism completely absent, stepped forward to answer the group. "The density of the Xylarri is overwhelming... their strength is increasing as you move east. There are many more Core Formation elites. We didn’t see any at the Soul Formation realm but I am sure there are some, if not a lot."

Li Yu added his own observation. "But they are not moving west in a single unified tide. They are spreading north and south. Consuming and consolidating. It seems organized, like they are sending out their weaker troops to explore and raid. The fact that we saw more and more strong ones as we went East means they are keeping the stronger forces by the rifts, at least for now."

"That," Lord Zaltar let out a low growl. "That is what is wrong." All eyes turned to the Demon Lord. "In Xul'Thar," Zaltar explained, "we have faced minor incursions from them before. Nothing at the scale we are seeing today of course. However, the Xylarri has always been a mindless plague. A tide of hunger. They swarm, they devour and they move in the most direct path. They do not consolidate. They do not maneuver."

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"The purple one," Vrak whispered. "The soul-attack... and now organized movement... it means leadership. Strategy. This... this has never happened before. A mindless plague is one thing. An army of Xylarri... led by at least one intelligent commander… who knows what else is there."

The implication was terrifying. A "mindless tide" could be worked on, diverted and eventually bled dry. An army with their numbers and force was another thing completely.

Just as the oppressive weight of this revelation settled the tent flap opened. Five figures entered, their auras powerful and clear. They wore simple and functional robes with armor underneath them.

Their leader was an old man, his hair white, his face calm but his eyes held a power that made even the Soul Formation leaders sit up straighter. He radiated an aura at the 8th-Level of Soul Formation. His four companions, two men and two women, all ranged from 4th to 6th-Level.

"Grand Elder Theron," the man said, his voice calm and powerful. "We arrived as soon as we received your message across the continents. The Gate Keepers are here to help. Our disciples are settling in with the rest of the forces."

Theron stood up and bowed his head slightly. "Gate Keeper Rylan. Your presence is a blessing. This is... a dire threat."

"So we have seen," Rylan said. He introduced his companions as fellow Gate Keepers. He explained he was originally stationed on the Northern Continent but had come immediately with the news.

Rylan's gaze swept the room, assessing the Demon Lords, the Cultists and finally Khaos. His eyes, which had remained calm, widened almost imperceptibly as he felt Khaos's silent abyssal aura. He stared at the white-robed figure for a long moment, sensing a power that even he could not fully fathom. He gave a slow respectful nod. Khaos, impassive as ever did not respond.

"We have faced... similar entities on the Northern Continent," Rylan said, his voice bringing the room back to order. "The Cultists and Demons are correct. Leadership is a new and terrifying variable. However, we cannot cower behind this wall. They will consume the continent's resources, grow stronger and eventually their tide will overwhelm us. We must strike out. We must disrupt their consolidation and if possible assassinate their leaders."

Theron nodded. "Our thoughts exactly. We must establish forward strongholds. 'Step ladders,' from which to launch counter-attacks towards the rifts."

"We will form several strike groups," Rylan said, taking charge as a person with massive experience. "Each will be led by at least two or three Soul Formation experts so they can reinforce one another. We will push east and secure key defensive locations."

Theron looked at Khaos. "Prophet Khaos, we need you here at the Black River to defend this primary line against any major counter-assault. Especially more so now from this new 'purple' Xylarri, there could be others. You will be a linchpin of our defense, alongside Gate Keeper Rylan and myself."

All eyes turned to the silent figure. Khaos was not bound by their alliance, he originally came here during the cultist attacks. He could demand anything for his help. He could leave. Khaos's voice sounded out and cut through the silence. "Payment... can be discussed after the Xylarri are purged."

Even Khaos it seemed understood that this was an extinction-level threat that superseded all contracts. A collective sigh of relief went through the human leaders. His powers would be a big help in the war to come.

"The rest of us will form the strike groups," Rylan declared.

"The Crab God's Holy Vanguard must take the path of greatest glory!" Jian Xuan suddenly boomed, stepping forward with his battle-lust returning. "I will lead a group!"

Lord Zaltar stood as well with his four arms crossed. "My demons will not sit idle. The most dangerous path... will likely hold the greatest risk but also the greatest opportunity. My forces will join a strike group."

Jian Xuan grinned at the Demon Lord. "Excellent! A man of action! I volunteer to lead the vanguard into the deepest areas!" He pointed at Zaltar. "He can come!" Then to Grand Elder Corvus. "And you, Elder! You know the lands! You can help us navigate and command the troops! I will be too busy fighting to command the battlefield." He pointed to Li Yu. "And my Brother Little Crab will, of course, be with me!"

Grand Elder Corvus looked as if he'd just been volunteered for a suicide mission by a madman. He wanted to quickly speak up but already saw Theron’s head nodding.

Theron looked at the map. "So be it. Strike Group Alpha: Commander Jian Xuan, Lord Zaltar, and Grand Elder Corvus. You will strike north-east. Your target is the Sorrow's Peak Monastery. It's a high-ground and naturally defensible location but it's the farthest target in this initial strike outwards. It is deep in Xylarri territory."

"A perfect fortress for the Crab God!" Jian Xuan declared.

A human elder from the Ashen Blade Sect suddenly protested, his voice sharp with suspicion. "Why do the demons agree so readily? What is their price in this?"

A new merit system for this joint operation had already been established, promising rewards for contributions. Zaltar's approval and eagerness for action was clearly linked to more than just standard merit.

All eyes turned to Zaltar. The Demon Lord's expression was unreadable. "The merit system... is... trivial. Our price, human, for fighting your plague, is land."

A massive backlash erupted. Shouts of "Treason!" "Allowing demons to settle?!" "They are our enemies!"

Korgath slammed his massive fist on the stone table, cracking it. "SILENCE!" he roared. "It is a high price, but the alternative is annihilation! The Xylarri will kill us all! The demons must fight with us as allies, not as prisoners. And they will not bleed for free!"

Theron's face hardened as he confirmed it. "The Demon Realm leadership has been promised... contingent... on their contribution, a designated territory on the southern continent. A new home since they do not know if they can ever get back to theirs. The contribution value required is... astronomical. They will earn their place with rivers of Xylarri blood or they will die trying. The matter is settled."

The tent fell into a grim furious silence. The brutal reality had set in. This was no longer a simple war of defense. It was a desperate, multi-front, multi-factional war for their very survival. It was built on fragile, costly and dangerous alliances.

Li Yu, now assigned to the most dangerous strike group, watched it all, his mind processing. He had discussed with Jian Xuan earlier to take on the more dangerous tasks as they had a slight advantage. This could help the war effort, prevent casualties on their side and also help make him stronger.

He wanted to hide away, his very nature screaming at him. However, what screamed at him even more was a sense of responsibility. He had an advantage that could help and he could be helping to save countless lives. He had to step up at this time to do his part, this burden of the strong.

“I’ll have to put in for a long vacation after all this is over.” he thought amusingly to himself as he hardened his resolve for the battles to come.