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The remaining World Imprinters of the Sixth Mainland were all enraged, but since they were still worried about the cosmic phenomenon, none of them dared to use their full strength.
The Judicial Commissioner known as the Shadow of Death had a power level of more than 800,000, and although his power level did not reach 1,000,000, with the blood-red bell, he was invincible and unafraid of death. The cosmic phenomenon had just erased two Empyrean Imprinters and four other powerhouses whose power levels exceeded 1,000,000, but this Judicial Commissioner still dared to attack.
There was a clear look of admiration on Lu Yin’s face, though he quickly thought of something—was this Judicial Commissioner aware of some special information that allowed him to act without any restraint? For example, had he heard from the people of Gods’ Origin that the cosmic phenomenon had already vanished? But that did not seem quite right, as the phenomena had already covered this area again, and nobody could be certain if it would start erasing people again. This Judicial Commissioner was actually unafraid of death!
This time, the Sixth Mainland had prepared adequately for its assault. Two Empyrean Imprinters, two Cosmic Imprinters, three World Imprinters, and five Imprinters had been sent out. This power should have been enough to sweep through the Innerverse and break into the Neoverse. Even the Hall of Honor’s full strength might not be comparable to that of this army. However, the cosmic phenomenon’s sudden surge had instantly made the Sixth Mainland pay a heavy price.
To add insult to injury, the arrival of the vague shadow that was the Judicial Commissioner caused their situation to worsen even further. The final two World Imprinters immediately attacked the Shadow of Death, and their attacks shook the entire region. However, they had restricted the range of their attacks. The Fifth Mainland had more than just one expert whose power level exceeded 800,000 like this Shadow of Death. They were already quite close to the Neoverse, and nobody knew if more powerful experts would arrive.
The presence of the cosmic phenomenon meant that the Sixth Mainland had not dared to send any additional experts to reinforce their invasion forces. The other Empyrean Imprinters absolutely did not dare to appear, and neither did the Cosmic Imprinters. In other words, the Sixth Mainland had already lost this battle.
Well, that was assuming that the cosmic phenomenon would not vanish entirely. Otherwise, the recent events would become an eternal nightmare for the Sixth Mainland whenever.
At this time, the Cosmic Sea was like a boat that could capsize at any moment. The sky shattered while Lu Yin and the others were all heavily pressured by the fight between the members of the older generation. All of the youths had to retreat to the region that was still under the cosmic phenomenon’s suppression. Otherwise, any random aftershock would instantly eliminate them.
Lu Yin still had his universal armor, but at this time, there were almost ten powerhouses whose power levels exceeded 500,000 who were participating on this battlefield, and to such monsters, his universal armor would not be much different from paper.
Lu Yin was not the only one who did so; Starsibyl, Xing Kai, Liu Tianmu, and the other experts from the Fifth Mainland, as well as Bu Kong, Zhi Yi, and Little Arrow Saint from the Sixth Mainland, fled into the region suppressed by the cosmic phenomenon.
The Cosmic Sea was thus divided into two battlefields: one outside the phenomena, which was the site for the extreme battles whose participants included the likes of the Shadow of Death, and the other was within the suppressed region, and that was the battlefield for those whose power levels were under 200,000.
Lu Yin had hoped to use this opportunity to steal back the Champions' Stage with his Yu Secret Art, but the stage was simply too large. His Yu Secret Art was only able to make it twitch, which simply caused Bu Kong and the others to launch some attacks at Lu YIn.
Liu Tianmu’s sword qi streaked by and slashed at Bu Kong.
Bu Kong’s eyes went wide. “How perfect, you’ve come.”
He then raised a hand and actually dissolved the sword qi. At the same time, he took out multiple sourceboxes and started arranging a sourcebox array that would trap anyone who approached the Champions' Stage.
The youths had assumed that a vicious battle would unfold between the older generation of the two mainlands, but instead, the final two World Imprinters from the Sixth Mainland had turned to flee. The two of them were no match for the Fifth Mainland powerhouses who could receive reinforcements from the Neoverse at any moment. The World Imprinters did not want to die.
Staying behind would mean certain death, so if they wanted to survive, they had to travel back through the region covered by the cosmic phenomenon. That was their only hope of survival.
The Sixth Mainland’s forces began to withdraw in one massive wave, and the various experts from the Fifth Mainland’s older generation did not give chase. The older powerhouses from the Sixth Mainland had to risk quite a lot to travel through the regions suppressed by the cosmic phenomenon, and the people from the Fifth Mainland did not want to risk their necks either. After all, the phenomena did not differentiate between friend and foe—it only cared about power level, and nobody wanted to die meaninglessly.
Lu Yin and the others hurriedly retreated, as the World Imprinters were not a force that they could contend against even with the suppression.
The Sixth Mainland withdrew, but they also brought away the Champions' Stage with them.
Without the older generation’s reinforcement, even those who were terribly ambitious like Liu Tianmu did not dare to give chase.
Lu Yin stood high in the sky and stared to the north. Before long, the Sixth Mainland cultivators had disappeared from sight. To the south, the older people from the Innerverse and Neoverse were also staring to the north, but not even the Shadow of Death pursued the fleeing enemy. Not one of them was willing to enter the region suppressed by the cosmic phenomenon.
Xia Tian was somewhat close to Lu Yin, and the man sighed as he watched the Sixth Mainland withdraw. “The Champions' Stage was the symbol that motivated the younger generation. Now that it’s been taken away, even though we were able to force them back, it means that we still lost this fight.”
Lu Yin was rather moved; the stage represented honor, and it held a special meaning. It was very similar to a military flag of the ancient battlefields. Once the flag was taken away by the enemy, how could anybody consider the result a victory? Also, how would they account for such a loss to others?
From a standpoint of pure logic, losing the stage might not seem like much of a loss, but this loss had struck a heavy blow to the Fifth Mainland’s confidence. If another battle between the two mainlands broke out later, the Sixth Mainland could bring out the Champions’ Stage, and that would deal an incomparable blow to the Fifth Mainland’s confidence.
Beheading enemy generals and seizing their war flags was the most effective method of destroying the enemy’s morale. And now, the Fifth Mainland’s flag had been stolen by the Sixth Mainland.
The Fifth Mainland had tried to use the Champions' Stage to bolster the younger generation’s morale and confidence, but now that it had been stolen, that just made the negative effect even stronger.
Lu Yin had unified half of the Outerverse, and he had a deep understanding that such a power blow to a group’s morale could be fatal. He wanted to seize the stage back, but it was impossible for him to do so, even if he teamed up with Xia Tian, Liu Tianmu, and the others.
“The Champions' Stage was still taken away. We did our best.” Gu Xiao'er came over, also crestfallen.
“The Champions' Stage should not be taken away,” Lu Yin stated firmly. He looked to the north as he clenched his fists.
Some distance away, Xing Kai also clenched his fists. “Who has the courage to follow me and take back the Champions' Stage?”
“Me!” Serati Phoenix declared.
Shu Jing confidently said, “We have to conduct ourselves properly, and we must stand and fight even if it’s to the death. I want to die on the Champions' Stage.”
His tone was cold, but that was because the elder from the Hall of Honor who had been erased by the cosmic phenomenon had been his master.
Qiu Shi did not speak, but she also took one step forward. “I can break Bu Kong’s sourcebox array.”
Liu Tianmu’s eyes were cold. “Leave Zhi Yi to me.”
“The cosmic phenomenon has stabilized, so rest assured about acting!” Tai Yishen shouted. He was always arrogant, and he looked around as if he had been the one to create the cosmic phenomenon.
More and more youths stepped forward, each of them wanting to snatch back the Champions' Stage.
Their voices joined together into a loud chant, and their determination even spread to the region outside the cosmic phenomenon’s suppression. Out there, the older experts simply shook their heads and sighed. “Youths do not know their limits. Merely three of the Sixth Mainland’s nine realms appeared, but the Innerverse was already overrun. There are still so many experts on their side, so how can these children take back the Champions' Stage?”
“Keke, it’s good for young people to be ambitious. Let them go—they will naturally return after suffering through some hardships. This invasion should come to an end soon, as the Sixth Mainland’s Progenitors do not dare to come out. Under this cosmic phenomenon, nobody will dare to act recklessly, so let those youths go kick up a fuss.”
“The Champions' Stage is not a power vessel, so there’s no need for them to risk their lives bringing it back.”
Of course, there were also some experts from the older generation who approved of the youths’ hot-bloodedness. “Since this part of the invasion started with us granting titles from the Champions' Stage, then it should also end with the Champions' Stage. If even the Champions' Stage is taken away by the enemy, then won’t that be a terrible joke?”
“Youths should be hot-blooded. Dying on your feet is better than living on one’s knees.”
…
While the older generation experts discussed the situation, quite a few of the elite youths wanted to charge towards the north. They could not accept this humiliation. Bu Kong had used the Champions' Stage to challenge every expert within the Fifth Mainland’s younger generation, and no one was willing to be labeled a coward. If the Champions' Stage was really taken away, then they would forever become the joke of their generation.
Liu Tianmu’s eyes were steady. Their generation had given birth to the elites known as the Ten Arbiters who were supposed to be invincible throughout the universe and whose names would be recorded down in history. If the Champions' Stage was stolen, that would be a blemish upon the record of their deeds. Not only would they lose their fame, but they would also become complete jokes.
Whether it was for honor or for something else, the Champions' Stage had to be taken back.
At that moment, a voice spoke out from right beside everyone’s ears. “Even if my Fifth Mainland loses this war, we cannot lose our righteousness. As an order from the Hall of Honor, everyone, chase down the Champions' Stage! The person from the younger generation who seizes it back will receive an exclusive qualification to receive an inheritance from the Astral Tower.”
Lu Yin had intended to fly north along with everyone else, but they all suddenly turned back and blankly stared at the south when they heard this. There, they saw a fuzzy figure in the sky staring at them, and the voice had come from that person.
“Chief- Chief Justice?” Shu Jing was astonished.
Lu Yin and the others were instantly overwhelmed; was this person actually the Interstellar Supreme Court’s Chief Justice? That man was an existence who surpassed even Yuan Shi, and he was the origin of the blood-red bells that had turned the tides of two different battles. Yuan Shi was an expert with a power level of 1,000,000 while the Chief Justice might even be at the same level as an Empyrean Imprinter.
In fact, it should not be a surprise that the Chief Justice had appeared. The Fifth Mainland did not have as many powerhouses as the Sixth Mainland, but it was impossible for there to be none at all. This battle had been a crucial one where they had to defend against the Sixth Mainland’s Empyrean Imprinters, so it was natural for someone of that level to appear on the Fifth Mainland’s side.
With a roar, Xing Kai charged to the north, eager for blood.
Serati Phoenix, Shu Jing, and others followed soon after.
They had heard the Chief Justice’s promise that they would receive an exclusive qualification to receive an inheritance from the Astral Tower if they succeeded. This meant that whoever seized the Champions’ Stage would essentially become one of the Cosmic Five.
This was a promise for a Progenitor’s inheritance, an inheritance from the Sierrasea. If the conditions allowed it, there was even a possibility of becoming a Progenitor in the future.
The mighty force of a Progenitor was absolutely limitless, and becoming one meant that their name would be forever recorded down in history, as they would stand at the very peak of the human race. No, at the peak of the entire universe.
The final goal of cultivation was the Progenitor realm, and everyone dreamed of becoming a Progenitor. At this moment, an opportunity of doing so had been set right before them.
The Chief Justice’s promise was countless times more valuable than the promise that Zhi Yi had made to the Sixth Mainland cultivators, and his words temporarily roused everyone’s confidence. Even the previously hesitant cultivators had started racing to the north.
Naturally, Lu Yin was no exception to this trend. Regardless of all else, he was very excited as he also wanted such things like the Astral Tower and a Progenitor’s inheritance.
As for the members of the older generation, they were hesitant to step forward and move north into the region under the suppression of the cosmic phenomenon, but nobody dared to disobey the Chief Justice’s orders.
“Bro, let’s team up! I still have some of that white smoke, so I can protect you,” Gu Xiao'er quietly suggested as he moved over beside Lu Yin.
Lu Yin did not respond.
Xia Tian appeared on his other side, and it seemed as though he was able to find Lu Yin quite easily, but that might be related to Xia Luo. “The three of us moving together will be safer.”
Gu Xiao'er’s eyes lit up. “That’s reasonable.”
The Sixth Mainland’s combatants in the Cosmic Sea had numbered in the hundreds of millions, but for the Sixth Mainland, this was not a large number. However, the cultivators who could truly contribute to the battle had to be Explorers at the very least. There were not too many cultivators at this level, and the rest were just there to tidy up the battlefield and manage some random task, such as going on patrol or acting as scouts.
Many cultivators from the Sixth Mainland were traveling, but they naturally did not travel aboard spacecraft. Instead, they flew atop a power vessel that had been made by the Sixth Mainland’s Daosource Sect: a small continent. As the name suggested, it was actually a flying mainland.