Three Days Later - The Swamp of Despair
The Righteous Alliance was bogged down. Literally.
The swamp was a nightmare. The mud sucked at their boots, draining their Qi. Poisonous fog limited visibility to ten meters. And constantly, from the mist, arrows and spells flew.
"Sniper! 3 o'clock!"
Thwip.
A Divine Sword healer fell, an arrow through her throat.
"Chase him!" A squad of elites flew into the mist.
They didn't come back. Only their screams returned.
Xue Yao moved through the treetops like a phantom. She didn't use her massive sword for this; she used claws and speed. She was picking them off one by one, spreading terror.
In the main command tent, Jian Wushuang was furious.
"We are bleeding to death!" he slammed his fist on the map. "We haven't even seen the enemy's main force yet!"
"We need to flush them out," a Golden Bell Elder suggested. "Burn the swamp."
"It's too wet," Jian Wushuang growled. "We need to draw Mo Tian out. We need to force a decisive battle."
He looked at the Heavenly Dao Sect Enforcer—a new one, sent to replace Elder Xuan (who was recalled for incompetence). This was Enforcer Li, a man of few words.
"Enforcer Li," Jian Wushuang said. "Does the Heavenly Dao Sect have a way to pierce the fog?"
"Yes," Li said calmly. "But it requires a sacrifice."
"What kind?"
"A Pure Spirit Soul. We can use a forbidden formation to clear the demonic Qi for ten miles. But we need a volunteer to act as the vessel. They will... burn out."
Jian Wushuang looked at his disciples. He looked at the stalling crusade.
"Find a volunteer," he ordered coldly. "Or pick one."
An Hour Later
A young disciple from a minor sect was dragged to the center of the camp. He was terrified.
"I don't want to die! Please!"
"It is for the greater good," Enforcer Li said. He placed a glowing talisman on the boy's chest.
"Heavenly Purification Array: Ignite."
The boy screamed as his soul was set on fire. A pillar of blinding white light shot into the sky.
The shockwave of holy light blasted outward.
The fog in the swamp evaporated. The mud dried up. The shadows vanished.
Exposed in the trees, hundreds of Shadow Court assassins and Blood Devils blinked in the sudden light.
"There they are!" Jian Wushuang roared. "ATTACK!"
The Alliance unleashed their pent-up rage. Thousands of flying swords rained down on the exposed assassins.
"Retreat!" Xue Yao shouted, deflecting a sword with her gauntlet. "Fall back to the Second Line!"
It was a rout. Without the cover of the swamp, the Shadow Court was outgunned. Hundreds were slaughtered as they fled.
Xue Yao took a sword slash to the back but kept running, carrying a wounded subordinate.
"Master!" she screamed into her talisman. "The swamp is cleared! They are advancing fast!"
Eternal Night Sect
Mo Tian opened his eyes.
"They sacrificed their own to clear the fog?" Mo Tian raised an eyebrow. "Ruthless. I like it."
He stood up.
"If they want a decisive battle," Mo Tian summoned his armor—a suit of black dragon-scale mail. "I will give them one."
He walked out to the plaza.
The Nascent Soul Puppet (Old Sect Master) stood there, radiating death. Yan Luo stood there, holding the Horizon Sword. Ghost One stood there, ready to command the reserves.
"The enemy is at the gates," Mo Tian announced. "They think they have won because they cleared a swamp."
He pointed to the sky.
"But they forgot one thing."
He activated the [System: Weather Control Protocol]. (Purchased for 50,000 Merit).
"Eternal Night is not just a name."
Above the sect, the clouds swirled. They turned black, blotting out the sun completely. Day turned to absolute night.
"Deploy the Nightmare Beasts."
From the beast pens, cages opened.
Creatures that Mo Tian had bred using the Blood Devil Arts—mutated wolves, flying horrors, and undead constructs—poured out.
"Let's meet them in the field," Mo Tian commanded.
He flew into the air, the Nascent Soul Puppet floating beside him like a silent bodyguard.
The Final Battle of the Arc was about to begin.