...

"Immortal Sovereign, save me~"

Wang Yingxuan grumbled internally, but her mouth didn't stop as she once again activated her "summon"—the Immortal Sovereign.

The prepared projection of the Immortal Sovereign immediately rose into the air, instantly positioning itself between Wang Yingxuan and the Yincha Demon God.

His wide white sleeves fluttered in the wind as he formed a sword seal with his hand, his expression suddenly turning extremely serious.

In the next moment.

Thousands of sword lights converged, intertwining in the sky, and in an instant, they formed a massive sword shield.

The sword shield had no physical form, entirely composed of light and shadow, appearing pure and transparent. Every strand of light within it was an extremely compressed sword intent, and the combined might of the thousands of sword lights was terrifyingly powerful.

Majestic and righteous, vast and awe-inspiring, even the sky trembled before it.

This entire process took only a fleeting moment.

In the next instant, the claw of the Yincha Demon God struck the sword shield.

"Boom!!"

A deafening explosion erupted.

Thousands of sword lights burst forth, and the pure white sword intent shot out, piercing the black demonic claw full of holes, causing it to disintegrate back into gray-black demonic energy and vanish without a trace.

The terrifying claw of the Yincha Demon God was actually blocked by the sword shield.

However, at the same time, the sword shield formed by the sword intent also collapsed.

The thousands of sword lights dissipated into light and shadow.

The light of the Immortal Sovereign's projection also dimmed instantly, showing signs of collapse.

Clearly, this move had consumed a significant amount of the projection's energy.

"Wang Yingxuan!" The Immortal Sovereign's projection spoke weakly, his white beard flying, "Are you trying to kill me?"

"My lord," Wang Yingxuan hid in a corner, her small face full of innocence, "I didn't mean to. Who could have thought the Yincha Demon God would bully the weak? Besides, your immortal spirit energy is almost depleted~ Hurry and let your true self descend."

The Immortal Sovereign nearly choked with anger.

These days, the disciples of the Immortal Palace are getting harder to manage. Is it because his true self looks too kind and gentle, making these disciples dare to act so boldly?

"Oh, your old projection is here too?" The Yincha Demon God, having failed with one strike, naturally noticed the large projection of the Immortal Sovereign.

It didn't seem to care much, a cold smile on its face, as it attacked again with its claw: "Let's see how many times your mere projection can block me!"

In an instant.

Layer upon layer of claw shadows enveloped the Immortal Sovereign's projection.

Compared to the previous casual strike, this claw was several levels more powerful.

The overlapping claw shadows seemed to come from the abyss, exuding a suffocatingly terrifying aura, causing the surrounding space to crack under the pressure.

The horrifying demonic might spread across the sky, causing all the Purple Mansion Realm cultivators present to turn pale, sweat beading on their foreheads.

Clearly, this demonic might was exerting substantial pressure on them.

The poor Immortal Sovereign's projection, already extremely weakened, could only gather its remaining energy to block the strike.

"Boom!"

With the violent energy spreading, the Immortal Sovereign's projection finally couldn't hold on any longer and completely collapsed.

The dissipating energy turned into countless light shadows, and a wisp of soul silently mixed in, swiftly fleeing backward.

This was truly a case of "the silkworm spins silk until death, the candle burns until tears dry."

And just as the Immortal Sovereign's projection collapsed, a spatial ripple suddenly spread across the sky.

In the next moment.

A majestic sword light pierced through space and arrived.

It was a pure white sword light, vast and majestic, as if it contained all the righteous energy of heaven and earth.

As soon as the sword light appeared, it instantly suppressed the surrounding demonic energy. The pressure on the human side's Purple Mansion Realm cultivators also eased.

"Damn it!"

The Yincha Demon God's expression changed, turning extremely unpleasant.

Such a powerful sword intent was not something a Void Realm cultivator could wield, not even a True Immortal Realm projection.

Unexpectedly, Lingxuan, that old bastard, arrived so quickly!

However, it was too late to change targets now.

As the Yincha Demon God's expression changed, the sword light swiftly crossed the space, striking the black demonic claw.

"Boom!!"

In almost an instant, the sky was filled with collapsing claw shadows under the sword light.

The pure white sword light seemed to have done something trivial, effortlessly piercing through the claw shadows, directly attacking the Yincha Demon God.

In the next moment, the pure white sword light penetrated the Yincha Demon God's body, causing its figure to collapse instantly, dispersing into countless demonic energies.

The Yincha Demon God's figure was merely an illusion!

The real Yincha Demon God had already slipped into the demonic energy at some unknown time.

And just as the illusion dissipated, the Yincha Demon God's figure emerged from the void, appearing far away on the horizon.

The huge blood moon illuminated its enchanting figure, even its massive membrane wings behind it seemed tinged with blood, its demonic might overwhelming, its aura sinister.

"Lingxuan, you..."

The Yincha Demon God spoke with a sinister tone, but before it could finish, a pure white sword light suddenly traversed space, appearing before it, striking straight at its chest!

The majestic sword intent seemed to have anticipated the Yincha Demon God's move, locking onto its position the moment the sword intent missed.

The Yincha Demon God's expression changed drastically.

But this time, it had no chance to dodge!

The majestic sword light exploded directly on its chest, causing the Yincha Demon God to grunt, its entire demonic form being blasted away, flying several hundred meters before finally stopping.

The Yincha Demon God's expression turned extremely ugly.

Meanwhile, the pure white sword light traversed space once again, returning to Wang Yingxuan and the others.

In the next moment, the sword light dissipated, and a figure with an immortal aura suddenly appeared before everyone.

This figure was none other than the true form of the Immortal Palace's master, Lingxuan Immortal Sovereign.

He still appeared as a middle-aged man, only his eyes showing a sense of age.

At this moment, he wore white robes, a jade crown on his head, three strands of long beard swaying slightly, his demeanor dignified and transcendent, truly like a celestial being.

The wisp of soul that had escaped from the projection also quietly returned to his brow as he appeared.

The world seemed to quiet down at this moment.

Seeing his majestic figure, the human cultivators couldn't help but show admiration in their eyes, all raising their hands in respectful salute.

"Greetings, Immortal Sovereign."

Even Wang Lici, Wang Yingxuan, and the others showed the same respect as everyone else at this moment.

After all, this was the true form of Lingxuan Immortal Sovereign, one of the four pillars of the human race.

In recent millennia, it was he and the Immortal Emperor, two True Immortal Realm powerhouses, who had supported the human race on this side of the Immortal Dynasty. It was their presence that allowed the humans on the other side of the Boundary Rift to live in peace and stability.

"Rise."

Lingxuan Immortal Sovereign waved his hand, then stood with his hands behind his back, looking towards the horizon at the Yincha Demon God: "Yincha, you have some nerve to attack our young prodigies. Have you forgotten the lesson from last time?"

As he spoke, an overwhelming aura rose from him, like the sword intent he had just transformed into, majestic and fearless, inspiring awe from the bottom of one's heart.

The Yincha Demon God's sinister vertical pupils narrowed slightly, showing fear and resentment: "Old man, I didn't expect you to react so quickly this time. Your true form was already hiding nearby, wasn't it?"

"At least you're not completely stupid, you guessed right." The Immortal Sovereign sneered, "Ever since you, Yincha, started intensifying your attacks on our Immortal No. 3 defense zone, I've been on guard. When I heard from Suiyun that you had captured a large number of prisoners as bait, I knew you had some sinister plan, and I wouldn't be careless."

"So what if you detected it?" The Yincha Demon God was extremely confident, "Last time, it was just my carelessness that allowed you to ambush me. Do you think the same trick will work on me twice?"

"If you're not convinced, we can spar again." The Immortal Sovereign sneered, "Let's see how I teach you a lesson again."

"Immortal Sovereign, mighty and domineering." Wang Yingxuan, seeing the true form of her powerful ally, rolled out from the corner, flattering continuously, "You truly are the guardian of our human race, your demeanor is unparalleled, invincible in the universe. How dare a mere Yincha Demon God jump around in front of you?"

"Scram!" The Immortal Sovereign glanced at her, scolding angrily, "Wang Yingxuan, get as far away from me as possible, I don't want to see you."

Thinking of how this troublesome girl used his soul projection as cannon fodder, Lingxuan Immortal Sovereign was infuriated.

He had lived for thousands of years, and even when he was a young Immortal Sovereign, he was always respected and revered. This was the first time someone dared to treat him like this!

"Yes, yes, if the Immortal Sovereign wants me to leave, I'll leave." Wang Yingxuan blinked her big eyes, grinning, completely unafraid, "But before I go, can you give me a few more Immortal Sovereign Orders?"

The Immortal Sovereign suddenly felt the urge to strangle her, cursing, "Get lost, you dog! A few Immortal Sovereign Orders? I won't give you even one! Do you think these things are easy to refine?"

"Each Immortal Sovereign Order requires splitting a wisp of soul from my soul body during refinement, and infusing a large amount of immortal spirit energy into it to be effective. It's not for you to use as cannon fodder."

"Huh?" Wang Yingxuan looked bewildered, "Immortal Sovereign, you already knew what happened before? But wasn't your soul present?"

"What do you mean I knew? Of course I knew." The Immortal Sovereign was so angry his teeth itched, "Even a projection requires my consciousness to control it personally, it's not an independent soul clone! And at the same time, I can only control one projection or my true form."

"Uh..." Wang Yingxuan was extremely embarrassed, "My bad, my bad, it's my fault for not being familiar with the settings, leading to a wrong judgment. I heard that the Blood Child Demon Lord of the Demon Dynasty refined soul clones with different consciousnesses, I thought your projection was similar to that kind of puppet clone~"

"Consciousness projection and the Blood Child's soul clone technique are completely different things." The Immortal Sovereign looked skeptical, "Did you really not know?"

"I didn't know!" Wang Yingxuan nodded firmly, "If you want to blame someone, blame yourself, Immortal Sovereign. Your projection's aura was too weak, unlike your true form now, so majestic and extraordinary, clearly a top-notch powerhouse."

"They look exactly the same, don't they?" The Immortal Sovereign glared at her, "What's the difference?"

"The main difference is in the aura..." Wang Yingxuan looked him up and down, explaining sincerely, "When you stand here in the air, I feel an overwhelming sense of admiration and reverence from the bottom of my heart."

"That's because my true form is powerful, giving you a strong sense of pressure. It's understandable that you don't get it, you're still too young." The Immortal Sovereign seemed to believe her nonsense, explaining, "The technique to give a soul wisp self-awareness is a branch of the [Soul Refining Technique], a very dangerous heretical method. The soul wisp is easily suppressed by the heavenly way and falls into the demonic path, even backfiring on the true form. We proper Basalt cultivators should avoid such dubious methods."

Then, the Immortal Sovereign explained the principle of consciousness projection again, not the setting.

Wang Yingxuan "suddenly understood": "It's like when I play the 'Shenwu Simulation War Game', I can open a small account while playing the main account, but at the same time, my consciousness can only control one account. When your true form descended, it kicked the small account offline. If I insist on multi-opening on one machine, it's cheating, easily attracting heavenly punishment, and prone to various accidents leading to account bans."

"That's roughly the principle." The Immortal Sovereign had played that game and understood her meaning.

Her explanation, though unconventional, was clearer and more understandable than his.

"Then why can't the energy be reused when summoning with the Immortal Sovereign Order?" Wang Yingxuan questioned again, "When your consciousness projection is summoned, if it only kills a couple of small monsters, the consumption is clearly not much, why can't the energy be reabsorbed into the Immortal Sovereign Order for next time..."

"It's not that simple." The Immortal Sovereign replied irritably, "When I infuse immortal spirit energy into the Immortal Sovereign Order, most of it is consumed additionally, the loss to actual conversion ratio of immortal spirit energy is at most five to one."

"I see, so the refining technology isn't good enough, right? When I reach the True Immortal Realm, I'll definitely research how to make it more energy-efficient." Wang Yingxuan nodded repeatedly, "The Immortal Sovereign Order, if its energy can't be recycled, is too wasteful."

"You think you can?" The Immortal Sovereign wanted to spit in her face, "In your eyes, are the predecessor True Immortals all fools? Also, we only have two Immortal Scriptures in our Immortal Dynasty, it's not your turn, you better focus on managing your [War Manual]."

"Dreams should be pursued, what if they come true?" Wang Yingxuan was quite optimistic.

"Then keep dreaming." The Immortal Sovereign retorted.

This troublesome girl was truly a handful.

The two of them continued their back-and-forth, chatting endlessly, infuriating the Yincha Demon God: "Old man, Wang Yingxuan, aren't you two too arrogant?"

She was indeed at the level of a Demon God, having battled the human race for many years, she was quite fluent in the human language.

"Yincha Demon God." Wang Yingxuan, with a "who's afraid when I have a backer" attitude, said, "Why should we take you seriously? We have the upper hand now, don't we? The Gluttonous Demon King Fortress, Blackwing Demon King Fortress, and Giant Strength Demon King Fortress are all occupied by our forces, and the two demon king armies are like fish caught in a net, unable to escape."

"In this battle, your Yincha lineage suffered heavy losses. Stop shouting here, go back and think about how to defend against our counterattack."

These words hit her sore spot.

In an instant, the Yincha Demon God was furious: "You little brat, aren't you afraid of me targeting you?"

"Targeting? Uh... haven't you already targeted me?" Wang Yingxuan stared at her with wide eyes, "Didn't you say I'm already your number one nemesis? Or were you lying to me?"

"Wang Yingxuan, I've completely remembered you." The Yincha Demon God gritted her teeth, veins bulging on her forehead, almost steaming with anger.

"Yeah, right, like you'd forget me." Wang Yingxuan said nonchalantly, "The outer region battlefield is so vast, I, Wang Yingxuan, can just go to another war zone. I don't believe you can order other demon gods to ambush me. Besides, your overall strength and prestige have plummeted, better think about how to restore your reputation, don't let other demon gods target you! I've heard your demon race isn't very united or friendly. At your age, be careful not to capsize."

"You sharp-tongued brat!"

The Yincha Demon God couldn't hold back any longer, slamming a palm down from the sky.

The terrifying demonic might instantly enveloped Wang Yingxuan.

"Yincha! Do you think I'm dead?"

The Immortal Sovereign was also enraged, instantly flying up to easily block the strike.

With the violent energy spreading, the Immortal Sovereign waved his sleeve, instantly dispersing the energy, then formed a sword seal with his right hand, a majestic sword intent shooting out, directly targeting the Yincha Demon God's face, forcing her to retreat to avoid the sword.

He snorted coldly: "You like fighting, don't you? Let's go, let's spar above the gale!"

"Fight if you want, do you think I'm afraid of you, old man?!"

"Boom boom boom!!!"

The two True Immortal-level powerhouses started fighting, and the battle escalated higher and farther.

Terrifying energy waves continuously erupted, layer upon layer into the high sky, until the ninth heaven, where the winds and clouds surged, becoming indistinguishable.

Only the thunderous booms echoed intermittently.

"Truly worthy of True Immortal-level powerhouses." Wang Yingxuan gazed at the sky, full of envy, but quickly snapped back, turning around to shout, "What are you all standing around for, keep burning, keep looting!"

"Roar~"

The elite troops immediately became excited.

They were also extremely impressed with Wang Yingxuan, daring to confront even the Immortal Sovereign and curse at the Demon God, working under her was just one word, exhilarating!

"Everyone's cultivation isn't easy, gather all the spoils and share them together. No one is allowed to hoard, or face military punishment."

"Roar roar roar~~~"

In the heated atmosphere, these human elites busily gathered more and more spoils, gradually piling them into a small mountain.

With the Yincha Demon God intercepted by the Immortal Sovereign, the subsequent war was no longer in doubt.

With the Blackwing Demon King and Giant Strength Demon King's supply lines cut, the demon army became like two big fish trapped in a net, unable to escape or break through, constantly harassed and attacked by the Suiyun forces.

Meanwhile, the main force of the Immortal No. 3 defense zone, led by the overall commander [Xinghui True Monarch], completed its mobilization, providing strong support to Princess Suiyun.

This Xinghui True Monarch was no ordinary figure. His personal strength was extraordinary, having reached the late Void Realm, making him a top-tier powerhouse.

Additionally, his battle record was illustrious. With him in command, he could deter all forces, even Princess Suiyun held great admiration and trust in him.

The central line of the Immortal No. 3 defense zone was mainly guarded by the main force under Xinghui True Monarch's command, and he often dealt with the likes of the Blackwing Demon King.

In past battles, the demon race held the advantage in military strength, forcing our forces into a defensive position.

Now, with an opportunity to counterattack, how could Xinghui True Monarch let it slip by?

As the two demon armies were continuously harassed and constrained, their supplies dwindled, and the morale of the demon soldiers and generals waned.

At this point, the Blackwing Demon King pulled a cunning move.

It incited the Giant Strength Demon King's forces to break through together, but in the heat of battle, the Blackwing Demon King, along with a small group of loyal followers, secretly abandoned the army and fled.

On the battlefield, it's difficult to prevent a large force from retreating, but it's even harder to stop a Void Realm-level demon king and a few lords from escaping.

After all, at the demon king level, they can tear through space, and if they truly want to escape, it's hard for those of the same realm to stop them.

With the Blackwing Demon King fleeing, the morale of the abandoned demon army naturally collapsed, with countless defections, escapes, and surrenders. The unfortunate Giant Strength Demon King, due to its fiery temper and refusal to surrender, was ultimately killed by Xinghui True Monarch, the overall commander of the Immortal No. 3 defense zone.

Subsequently, the army advanced, quickly taking control of the Gluttonous Demon King Fortress, Blackwing Demon King Fortress, and Giant Strength Demon King Fortress.

Thus, this battle was a great victory!

...

As news of the great victory spread throughout the defense zone, the entire Immortal No. 3 defense zone was in an uproar.

For a time, everyone in the defense zone was full of energy and spirit, their faces unable to hide their joy, with many soldiers so morale-boosted they were shouting about taking down the Yincha Demon God Temple, as if the human army was truly invincible.

Of course, these people did not include Zhao Tingjian of the eastern defense zone—Old Marshal Zhao.

Old Marshal Zhao was no longer young, with a head full of white hair and beard, yet his spirit was vigorous, always the important pillar of the eastern line of the Immortal No. 3 defense zone, and he had a reputation for "never taking a loss."

But this time, he suffered a silent loss.

He was "tricked" by Suiyun into attacking the "undefended" Redstone Demon King and other fortresses, only to almost be caught by the returning demon army.

Fortunately, he was quick to see the situation and withdrew his forces in time, avoiding being caught between two forces. However, even so, on the way back, his army fled in disarray, losing helmets and armor, making Zhao Tingjian lose face.

At this moment.

In a corner outside the deputy command post of the Immortal No. 3 base.

As the overall commander of the eastern defense zone, Zhao Tingjian stood at the door with a face full of blood and dirt, his entire body in a sorry state, both smelly and sour.

Even in this state, he deliberately sprinkled dust on his white hair, asking his personal guard, Jiang Qingwen, "Jiang Qingwen, does this image look pitiful enough, miserable enough?"

This personal guard named "Jiang Qingwen" was a young and handsome guy, though dressed in military attire, he still had a scholarly air, looking refined and elegant, completely different from Zhao Tingjian's demeanor.

"Marshal!" Jiang Qingwen blushed, his expression so awkward he wanted to find a hole to crawl into, "We were just a bit embarrassed this time, but we didn't really suffer any losses. In fact, we made quite a haul from the Redstone Demon King Fortress."

"Bah, what do you know?" Zhao Tingjian glared, "The reason we didn't suffer much loss was because I, Old Zhao, was bold and cautious, noticing early. If we had left a step later, the consequences would have been unimaginable."

"That girl Suiyun, relying on being the Princess and favored by the Immortal Emperor, usually flaunts her power and gives me a hard time, but daring to deceive me on such a major issue, today, I, Old Zhao, must demand an explanation from her. If I'm not compensated to my satisfaction, I'll take this to the Immortal Emperor."

"Well, demanding an explanation is fine, I support that." Jiang Qingwen, ultimately thin-skinned, felt embarrassed, "But do you have to use this image? Are you planning to throw a tantrum and act shamelessly again?"

"What do you mean 'throw a tantrum and act shamelessly'?" Zhao Tingjian gave him a knock on the head, "This marshal calls it 'the squeaky wheel gets the grease'! Who is Suiyun? She's a stingy iron rooster. If I don't put pressure on her, she'll think I'm easy to bully. Besides, if I make a fuss and get more resources, it's for you little brats, giving you more means to stay alive."

"You dog, don't be swayed by Suiyun's good looks and side with her. Others may fear her as the Princess, but Old Zhao doesn't care~"

Zhao Tingjian scolded his personal guard while heading into the deputy command post, planning to make Suiyun pay dearly, compensating him for various losses and soothing his wounded heart. He even had his scolding words prepared.

However.

He had just stepped one foot into the door when he heard a girl's voice shouting from inside the deputy command post.

"Suiyun sister, you're burning bridges after crossing! I, Wang Yingxuan, fought for the human race, kicking demon kings and cursing demon gods, was it easy for me? I bled and fought for the human race, and now you tell me to leave, and I just leave?"

The speaker was Wang Yingxuan.

Clearly, there was a disagreement between her and Princess Suiyun about whether she should stay on the outer region battlefield, and they had started arguing right in the deputy command post.

"Yingxuan, listen to me, you're still too young, not high enough in rank, not suitable for the outer region battlefield. Besides, you've been targeted by the Yincha Demon God this time..."

"I, Wang Yingxuan, fear nothing! Just give me a marshal position today, and I'll return you a Demon God Temple tomorrow."

"Yingxuan, you should go back to the Immortal Palace and cultivate, stop causing trouble."

"Suiyun, you're jealous of talent! You're suppressing meritorious people! You're afraid I'll outshine you, and today you're giving me a hard time... ah~~"

Before Wang Yingxuan could finish, she was thrown out of the deputy command post.

Princess Suiyun's gritted voice came from inside: "Your battle merits won't be shorted. If I tell you to leave, you leave. Not following orders, it's good I haven't punished you, and you still have the nerve? I'll find Wang Shouzhe to deal with you."

Wang Yingxuan rolled several times on the ground before finally stabilizing, standing up nonchalantly, patting her butt, and grumbling: "Fine, I'll leave, if this place won't keep me, there are others that will. Suiyun, don't underestimate a poor girl, thirty years east of the river, thirty years west~~ just you wait~ one day, I'll make you speechless."

This scene left Zhao Tingjian stunned.

This little girl dared to rant more than him, boasting even bigger, what did she mean by giving her a marshal position today and returning a Demon God Temple tomorrow?

This thick skin, this temper, tsk tsk~~ this girl, she really caught his eye!"Come, come, little girl, tell me how Suiyun has been oppressing you?" Zhao Tingjian approached Wang Yingxuan with a kindly expression, trying to win her over. "Don't worry, I'll stand up for you. Even if I can't, as long as you have the ability, you can develop in my Eastern Route Marshal's Mansion."

"Really?" Wang Yingxuan's eyes lit up immediately, and she eagerly moved closer. "Grandpa, can you make me a deputy marshal? Give me tens of thousands of troops, and I promise to return you a Demon King Fortress!"

"Hahaha~ The way you boast reminds me of my younger days," Zhao Tingjian said, delighted, patting his chest. "As long as you have enough battle merit points, I can even give you my marshal position."

"Battle merit points? Is three hundred and fifteen thousand six hundred and twenty-one points enough to exchange for your marshal position?" Wang Yingxuan looked at him with bright eyes, full of anticipation.

"Poof!"

Zhao Tingjian spat out a mouthful of old blood, staring wide-eyed. "You, you, you, how many battle merit points did you say?"

"Three hundred and fifteen thousand six hundred and twenty-one points," Wang Yingxuan repeated seriously, then took out her battle merit plaque to show him. "If you don't believe me, you can see for yourself."

Zhao Tingjian nearly fainted, feeling as if he no longer recognized the words "battle merit points."

What on earth has this girl done? How could she have so many battle merit points?

Did she really take down a Demon God Temple or something?

...