In the distance, a group of people came from the void and appeared in front of the divine general, while traces of appalling pressure of the Great Path bloomed and surrounded the others.

Suddenly, this dark space became extremely oppressive. Even the giant stone pillars on the ground lit up with brilliant red light at this moment. The blood-colored light permeated the space, shining in this destructive dark world, a frightful sight to behold.

“How have you been?” Clearly, the Lord of the Underworld recognized the divine general who appeared. Divine Prefecture and the Dark Court had warred once upon a time, and as both of them were top figures in their respective camps, naturally, they knew one another.

The Divine general glanced at the other and asked, “So, the Dark Court would completely violate the promise made in the past?”

“As we have already said when we were at the Empty Imperial Palace, times are different now. The Gate of Hell has been opened, which means that everything is bound to start over again. The Dark Court has only occupied two supreme realms, but you, even with the exception of the Mountain Realm, you still have control over six other realms, don’t you?” the Lord of the Underworld said.

Mountain Realm was mostly a principality of Buddhism. Because of the close relationship between Donghuang the Great and the Buddhist sect, they had also participated in the previous war. Therefore, the Mountain Realm in the Void Realm was ruled by Divine Prefecture in name only. It had always been the Buddhist sect that preached in the Mountain Realm; the Divine Prefecture would never interfere with that.

“Start over again?” The divine general gazed at the opponent, focusing on the stone pillars. “The Dark Court never had the intention of controlling the Original Realm except to continue to plunder its resources. Now, the Original Realm only has the Nine Realms; do you plan to destroy that too?”

The people in the Original Realm didn’t really know many things in the past, but as the divine general of the Divine Prefecture, he would be privy to some of the secrets of the Original Realm.

In time immemorial, the Original Realm was once the main realm. It had experienced the collapse of the Heavenly Path, the expansion, and the explosion of the world, and after countless decades, it became the Original Realm that everyone knew today. But the reality was, every realm within the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path had some hidden secrets.

For example, the Empty Realm that Ye Futian fought for many years ago between Emperor Xia’s Realm and Dali was, in fact, a place of resource for cultivation.

Naturally, this was also true of the Shadow Realm, which contained the extremely terrifying divine power of the Shadow Realm. Donghuang the Great unified the Divine Prefecture and took control over the Original Realm, but he did not rob these realms of their cultivation resources. Instead, he wanted to maintain the existing structure of the Original Realm as much as possible and had forbidden any forces to think otherwise. Unless the resources were found in previously undiscovered areas in the Three Thousand Realm of the Great Path, everything else was off-limit.

Like the Solar Realm and the Shadow Realm, many places could only be places for people to cultivate.

But now, the Dark Court was making its comeback and wanted to disrupt everything again. They had their eyes first set on the Shadow Realm, preparing to plunder the main realm of the 3,000 Realm of the Great Path.

If the Dark Court were to be successful, then the entire Shadow Realm would be finished.

All beings in the Shadow Realm would suffer greatly, and in the future, it would no longer be one of the Nine Supreme Imperial Realms. It would be reduced to the likes of some ancient ruined realms, as in the history of the Original Realm.

Before the unification of the Divine Prefecture, this kind of fighting was commonplace. At that time, not only the Nine Supreme Regions but many other realms were plundered. Therefore, those who had personally experienced that era had a great appreciation for both Donghuang the Great and Emperor Ye Qing. They both had always held on to their own ideals and pursued their own goals.

“If the Dark Court intends to do so, then we have no choice but to go to war again.” The divine general spoke coldly, with a terrifying look in his eyes as he surveyed the cultivators around him.

Once the war started, it would implicate the long-standing dispute between Divine Prefecture and the Dark Court, and it would be another bloody showdown.

Not only that but if they go to war, would other forces from the Upper Worlds also participate?

“We don’t ask much. This time, we only want the Hidden Land Realm and the Shadow Realm.” The Lord of the Underworld said to the divine general, “You can tell Princess Donghuang, if our demand was refused, then, whether we go to war or not is completely up to you.”

The attribute power of the Shadow Realm was closer to that of the Dark Court, which was infinitely beneficial to their cultivation. Therefore, in the Nine Realms, after they had taken down the Hidden Land Realm, their second goal was the Shadow Realm.

The divine general glanced at the opponent coldly, then turned to leave. After all, he was by himself, so that he couldn’t contend against the top existences on the opponent’s side.

“Continue,” commanded the Lord of the Underworld. Suddenly, all the cultivators dispersed to continue arranging the stone pillars, as if they were forging a supreme great matrix.

Over the years, although they were not in the Original Realm, the Dark Court had been keeping a lookout for something.

Cultivation at this level had the ability to crush sky and earth with a simple wave of the hand, even an entire world could be shattered. For instance, in many realms of the 3,000 Realm of the Great Path, someone like the Lord of the Underworld could smash anything he wished.

However, it was a different story in the Great Nine Supreme Imperial Realms.

He had tried but was unable to reach the depths of this realm. He could only draw the power from it with the help of a matrix.

Otherwise, if it could be accessed directly, the cultivators from the Shadow Realm would have already tapped into it years ago.

Of course, even if they couldn’t access it, as long as they were in the Shadow Realm, their natural ability to comprehend the shadow power was stronger, just like those in the Solar Realm would be more sensitive comprehend the power of flames.

Above the Shadow Realm, there were more stone pillars, radiating into the endless distance, and they were still increasing. It was as if it intended to cover the entire realm. However, this was not realistic. The Shadow Realm spread across a vast area, so it was impossible to be completed covered.

But as the great army from the Dark Court working at it tirelessly, an area the size of a city was already covered, and the work hadn’t finished. The area covered by the stone pillars exuded a horrific aura.

Many cultivators in the Shadow Realm had begun to leave. They dared not stay, fearing facing great disasters in the future.

Now, everyone in the entire Shadow Realm was sorely afraid.

At the Central Emperor Realm, in the Empty Imperial Palace, Princess Donghuang once again summoned the cultivators of the Nine Realms, preparing to gather all the power of the Nine Realms in anticipation of dealing with the Dark Court.

After the divine general brought back the message, she did not even consider the possibility to compromise and give up the Shadow Realm. Although a war may result in more deaths, the struggle between the two could only end in one way. The Dark Court would not stop at the victory of taking over the Shadow Realm. When their strength increased, they might continue to encroach on other realms, just as they had made their comeback despite their previous defeat and subsequent retreat from the Original Realm many years back.

Such a situation could only be resolved by war. If they could eliminate the opponent, they would wipe them out without reservation.

Oftentimes, war was a necessary means in the pursuit of peace. If there were no victory for the Divine Prefecture, the peace that had been enjoyed for more than three hundred years would not have been possible. The Three Thousand Realm of the Great Path would still be in chaos without order.

Therefore, Princess Donghuang immediately summoned all the cultivators and prepared to send troops to the Shadow Realm. It was a matter that could not be delayed. With each moment, the great army of darkness that occupied the Shadow Realm would only become stronger and more dangerous.

In the Heavenly Mandate Academy, Ye Futian and the others gathered when they received news from the Empty Imperial Palace. They had been called to depart immediately to Empty Imperial Palace, in preparation for going to the Shadow Realm.

Currently, they were discussing which of their cultivators should be dispatched.

“Princess Donghuang had summoned us to convene, and that the top figures must attend; what has happened in the Shadow Realm?” asked Ye Futian.

“The Dark Court is preparing to refine the Shadow Realm,” replied the Palace Lord of the Divine Palace.

“Refining the Shadow Realm?” Ye Futian was taken by surprise.

“Do you remember the stone tablet at the ancestral land in the Divine Palace?” asked the Palace Lord.

“Mmm.” Ye Futian nodded. The tablet was now at the Heavenly Mandate Academy.

“That was the divine item leftover from the time when Heavenly Path collapsed. In fact, the Three Thousand Realm of the Great Path itself is a leftover from the ancient times when the Heavenly Path collapsed. Some realms had its cultivation resources plundered and consumed, but others didn’t. The Shadow Realm was probably one of them,” explained the Palace Lord.

Ye Futian was astounded. He didn’t expect that there were such secrets. Could this be the essence of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path?

“Judging from that, the entire Shadow Realm is a great treasure trove of divine items?” Ye Futian asked.

“One can say that the closure of the passage to the Original Realm by Donghuang the Great was to protect the Original Realm. Its land can no longer withstand plundering, and its resources for cultivation are few. Many years ago, it had been plundered and cleaned out for generations.” The Palace Lord continued.

Ye Futian had heard about this before. The Original Realm was once the origin of the world. The reason for its weakened state was precisely because of countless years of plunder.

All of its top figures had all gone to the Outer Realms to seek their fortunes.

“Once the Dark Court draws on the power of the Shadow Realm, it will make them stronger. That is why Princess Donghuang ordered the leaders from all the principalities to meet there.” The Palace Master continued, “But, I am a little worried.”

“Worried about what?” Ye Futian asked.

“All the principalities from the Nine Realms are now plotting against one another. How much effort will they really exert? Don’t forget, many of them are mortal enemies of one another, just like the Golden Divine Nation and us. If this battle were to erupt, once a top figure falls, the elimination of the Dark Court might mean that eventually, these forces from the Nine Realms would wipe each other out.”

The Palace Lord continued, “Therefore, I am worried that many of these principalities will reserve their strength and not give their all in the battle. Furthermore, the battlefield can change rapidly. With everyone looking out for themselves, who knows what will happen during the battle? Even if we participate in it, we can’t be too careful, and we have to rely on ourselves.”

“This time, Futian shouldn’t go,” Lord Taixuan said, not wanting Ye Futian to participate. The Dark Court aside, he was worried about possibly being ambush by those from the Nine Realms.

“Let’s go to the Empty Imperial Palace first as ordered, see what the Princess has in mind. Donghuang Princess should have some specific strategies,” said Ye Futian; it was unlikely that anyone could stay outside of this great battle, after all.