The First Immortal of Destiny

As the decree from the Law Master spread throughout the Red Flame Sect, the Green Cloud Cave concealed itself in the void, temporarily closing the Yin-Yang Five Elements Array.

One by one, Red Flame Sect cultivators, from the Deputy Sect Master down to newly admitted disciples in the Body Tempering Realm, stepped out of the cave and sensed the light of the Taihua Mirror!

Soon, the mountain gate of the Red Flame Sect was engulfed by the brilliant mirror light;

As silhouettes reappeared, a small bronze mirror materialized on them all, granting them qualification to earn merits by crusading in the Corpse Mountain Range.

Besides Yuan Heming, who was too old to move and chose to guard the mountain gate, the other two Deputy Sect Masters, Situ Huo and Ming Cang, joined the expedition team, preparing to follow Shen Mo and be among the first to establish a foothold at Five Dragon Mountain.

The masters of the Nine Peaks and One Lake, including Chen Mengze, Jin Chinian, Yuan Jing, Jiang Lingfeng, Xu Liang, Feng Wushuang, Thunder Corpse Master, Li Chouniu, Prince Yongzuo, Ming Yu, and others—totaling ten;

Purple-robed elders, such as Zhou Zhiwei, Yuan Qingshi, Cao Ren, Flower Fairy Ami, and more—numbering over ten;

Hall masters, core disciples, each peak and hall’s deputy, red-robed elders, elite disciples like Lu Ming, Guo Xun, Yu Yan, Qian Xiaofeng, Gold Man Tai 26, Giant Corpse Master, Iron Corpse Master, Yuxin Sword Master, Dustless Sword Master, Chou Jiuyian, Chu Zhen, Jiang Yingying, Meng Sanchi, Li Chen, numbering over a hundred.

All of them ended their outdoor trials, closed-door cultivation, and appeared outside the Green Cloud Cave’s guest palace plaza, preparing to head to the Corpse Mountain Range along with Shen Mo. These individuals constitute eighty percent of the Red Flame Sect’s top combat power, excluding Shen Mo!

In addition, over a hundred thousand inner and outer disciples who participated in the construction of the Mountain Protection Array were also ready for departure.

The remaining sect disciples temporarily remained within the mountain gate, awaiting the establishment of a sturdy foothold at Five Dragon Mountain, where a replica of the Taihua Mirror would be erected, allowing them to directly travel there via the Mirror Realm.

At present, nearly a million sect members of the Red Flame Sect each possess a small bronze mirror;

Even sect members like Zhao Lingyin, who have a skill and are not accustomed to killing or dueling magic, and low-class disciples who have just entered the sect with only a sliver of cultivation can still sense the Taihua Mirror’s light and took a trip to the Mirror Realm, as it doesn’t consume Spirit Stones or Mana.

Even if one’s strength is lacking, they can still play a role in this campaign, whether in digging caves and ravines, leveling out foothold land, transporting materials needed for formation constructions, or collecting demon corpses. After assessment by the Taihua Mirror’s Artifact Spirit, they can earn merits and exchange them for various spiritual item resources!

Moreover, when enough people gather, they can also slaughter demons using the God Slaying Array.

However, most inner and outer disciples have to wait until Shen Mo and his team complete the foothold at Five Dragon Mountain before they can be teleported there!

...

Shen Mo stood mid-air, looking down at the various sect cultivators below, his heart filled with emotion.

Unknowingly, these outsiders from the Lower Realm have established themselves in the Universal Realm and have accumulated a vast foundation!

"Set off!"

Shen Mo surged his Mana and loudly announced.

In the next instant, countless mirror lights flashed, capturing figures on the plaza into the Mirror Realm.

For each cultivator entering the Mirror Realm, the mystical place exists independently and is not connected to others, serving as the strongest protection provided by Jade Spring Fairy;

Even during the campaign in the Corpse Mountain Range against demons, no matter how dire the situation, as long as they can reach the replica of the Mirror Realm and hide within, they are protected by the celestial artifact, Taihua Mirror, even Hollow Venerable cannot pursue and annihilate them!

Moments later, over a hundred thousand Red Flame Sect cultivators emerged sequentially from the mirror surface of a replica celestial mirror.

Five Dragon Mountain has not yet established a foothold, the closest being Lanke Mountain, an Immortal Mountain where righteous path forces occupy one-third of the territory, with the rest still controlled by Hollow Venerable’s forces and other demon forces!

The location where the Red Flame Sect cultivators appeared was atop Lanke Mountain, housing a foothold built by human immortal sects.

As they emerged from the mirror surface, the Red Flame cultivators quickly formed ranks according to prior plans, standing before Shen Mo!

"Clang!"

Shen Mo wielded the Taiyi Sword, releasing a streak of Fairyland Sword Qi, encompassing tens of thousands of sect disciples into the Sword Zone.

Then, he unleashed the Demon Slaying Sword amidst flashing sword light, disappearing from the place once again.

Relying on the continuous use of the Sword Escape skill, shortly after, Shen Mo appeared over the South Slope of Five Dragon Mountain... remnants of past battles could still be seen, the terrain remained shattered, white bones stood forlorn, blood Qi lingered, even vegetation was sparser than elsewhere, a desolate and bleak sight!

With the forces of Hou Corpse Cave demons eradicated, the number of demons and monsters on the mountainside and foot of the South Slope was sparse, not yet recovered, saving Shen Mo much effort.

Subsequently, he opened the Sword Zone, releasing all sect disciples of the Red Flame Sect.

...

The undertaking of constructing a foothold at Five Dragon Mountain was not very smooth.

Although there are few demons at the South Slope, most human forces on the East, West, and North sides have been overtaken by demons, and the Divine Bridge Realm cultivators, who initially rejected Daoxuan Immortal Master’s request, were killed or subdued, with unfavorable outcomes!

Hollow Venerable’s demon followers seemed to have received some instruction, continuously rallying at the East Slope, then through the God Slaying Array, heading to the South Slope to disrupt the Red Flame Sect’s foothold construction.

Moreover, within these demons, there were numerous Class V powerhouses.

Shen Mo recognized the "familiar face" tiger demon Shan Hao, but it was evident he had lost leadership, reduced from a lord to someone’s subordinate!

There was even a Class VI Thousands Insects Evil Corpse comparable to the Formless Realm, from the same clan as Hollow Venerable, likely appointed in urgency, summoned by Hollow Venerable from elsewhere.

Thousands of years ago, Fulong Immortal Master subdued the five True Dragons of Five Dragon Mountain; thereafter, no great demon at the Formless Realm has emerged here;

Furthermore, Shen Mo held enmity with Hollow Venerable, so upon arriving at the Corpse Mountain Range, his whereabouts were known by other demons and couldn’t be concealed from Hollow Venerable; the Demon True Immortal dared not intervene personally due to Jade Spring Fairy’s deterrence, thus dispatching subordinates to slay Shen Mo was reasonable!

Fortunately, Shen Mo was well-prepared, leveraging the Creation Array formed by a million Demon Soul Generals to battle the Formless Realm Thousands Insects Evil Corpse several times, each ending in stalemates—neither side prevailing over the other.

As for other demons, it was clear they hadn’t yet mastered the God Slaying Array, whether attacking with formations or directly intervening, the Class V demons were all blocked by the Creation Array constructed by Red Flame Sect’s hundred thousand disciples...

After several battles, witnessing the futility, the Class VI Thousands Insects Evil Corpse retreated with its demon supporters to the East Slope demonic cave!

Taking this opportunity, Red Flame Sect cultivators hastened to build formations, quickly establishing a Yin-Yang Five Elements Array at the former site of Green Cloud Cave, and erected the Taihua Mirror replica, previously requested from the Mirror Realm, at the center of the array.