"Understood!"

"Junior Brother, I'm at the sixth rank peak now. To break through quickly, I may need top-grade Blood-Refining Pills," Liu Hongfeng contemplated.

"I'll give you the pills tomorrow; just focus on your training!" Li Sheng exhaled as the three of them headed towards the Spirit Gathering Room.

He originally planned to refine pills for several outer sect disciples first, but due to the sudden events, he had to postpone it for two days.

"If everything goes smoothly, the sect should be able to advance again in ten days at most. By then, upgrading the formation to the fourth tier will be enough to resist calamity-level monsters!"

Inside the Spirit Gathering Room, Li Sheng collected his thoughts and took out a fifth-rank martial arts manual, the Phoenix-Wing Blood Cultivation Technique, to study.

After a brief examination, Li Sheng understood the manual.

This martial art was divided into two forms: the Phoenix Form and the Wood Form, corresponding to the realms of Nirvana Rebirth and Vitality.

The five realms of martial arts, also known as the Five Foundational Realms, mean that the firmer the foundation, the more exaggerated the improvement after reaching the fourth rank.

After consuming a top-grade Solid Blood Pill, Li Sheng began his cultivation.

...

At this moment, the sky grew dim, as if shrouded by a veil that blocked out the sunlight.

Inside Qingshan City, many people had yet to evacuate. As the sky darkened, a stifling atmosphere began to spread.

It wasn't until a piercing scream rang out that the situation escalated suddenly.

In an alley, a giant eyeball the size of a human head floated in the air, and long, slender tendrils shot out, penetrating the heads of three people below, greedily sucking their life force.

A few breaths later, as the tendrils retracted, the three fell backward, crumbling into dust upon hitting the ground.

The grotesque eyeball wobbled and vanished from sight.

At this moment, chaos erupted throughout Qingshan City.

Strange monsters of all shapes and sizes surged forth.

There were giant hands with dozens of fingers, enormous feet with mouths, and hairballs the size of houses, making eerie sounds that echoed through the air.

"Xiao Li, take your sister and run! Go outside the city, to Qingling Sect!"

"Run together! Hurry!"

"Run, quickly!"

Just as the words were spoken, a giant hand reached out from behind a house, grabbing the couple and pulling them in.

"Dad!! Mom!!"

"Wah!"

The cries of the two children caught the attention of a hideous demon bat flying above.

It opened its massive mouth and roared, foul-smelling slime dripping down as it lunged toward the couple.

Seeing the ugly demon bat, the two seemed frozen in fear, unable to move.

Just as they were about to be devoured, a sharp whooshing sound suddenly rang out.

A giant blade, wide as a door and about ten feet high, struck down, cleaving the monstrous bat in half.

"What are you standing there for? Run!"

A commanding voice came from behind the children as a burly man picked up a weapon from the ground and dashed toward the city exit.

The two kids jolted awake and hurriedly followed.

As they fled, the group was fortunate enough to avoid several crises, and only after leaving the city did they finally breathe a sigh of relief.

Outside Qingshan City, the number of lucky survivors exceeded a hundred, including two sixth-rank warriors, three seventh-rank warriors, and the rest were ordinary people.

At this time, another sixth-rank warrior's face looked grim. "This demon disaster is definitely not ordinary. My junior brother was killed by a strange entity in mere breaths!"

"Brother Qian, my condolences... I thought I was the only sixth-rank left in the city," another warrior lamented.

"My junior brother is an alchemist. He was refining sixth-rank pills at a critical moment; if I hadn't been clever, I might have fallen victim to that ghostly thing!"

"Why didn't Brother Shi escape?"

You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.

"I only entered the city this morning, and by the time I received the news, it was already too late!" the stout man sighed.

"Two seniors, what should we do now..." the other warriors asked anxiously.

"At this point, fleeing may be too late. No one knows how extensive this demon disaster will be. I think we should head to Qingling Sect for refuge."

"Qingling Sect, Li Sheng?"

"This..."

The group exchanged glances just as a giant roar echoed from within the city.

They turned to see a massive creature slowly emerging from the black fog, standing at least thirty feet tall.

"Guess we have no choice; let's hurry!"

Startled, the group quickly ran in the direction of Qingling Sect.

Once they left, a series of crisp clicking sounds echoed at the empty city gate.

A strange sound circled around before moving toward the direction the crowd had fled.

The gray sky grew even darker.

...

Inside Qingling Sect, just as Li Sheng was deep in meditation, he was abruptly awakened by the sound of frantic calls.

"Chirp, chirp!"

"Is someone coming?"

Li Sheng frowned, extending his consciousness upward. He saw hundreds of figures gathered outside the formation.

Several warriors shouted toward the formation, "Sect Master Li, a demon disaster has erupted in Qingshan City, and it has now fallen—it's become a dead city! We implore Sect Master Li to take us in..."

"Please, Sect Master Li, show mercy and take us in..."

The ordinary people behind them knelt on the ground, bowing repeatedly and chanting their earlier pleas.

"Qingshan City has fallen... they came so quickly!" Li Sheng's figure flickered as he moved toward the mountain gate.

"Brother Shi, do you think Sect Master Li will take us in..."

"Let's treat it as a dead horse being used as a live one; as sixth-rank warriors, we still have some value. However, these ordinary people might not be so lucky," the stout man whispered.

"Clack... clack clack..."

A sudden, clear sound rang out.

Brother Qian frowned, "When praying, sincerity is key. At a time like this, how can anyone focus on anything else? Truly hopeless!"

The kneeling ordinary people raised their heads in confusion, utterly unaware of what was happening.

Seeing their genuine expressions, Brother Qian thought to himself,

"Am I hearing things?"

"Brother Shi, did you hear anything unusual?"

"Unusual sounds? No... Brother Qian, don't be nervous. Even if we are refused, with our strength, we can slip away into the mountains; those monsters won't be able to find us," Brother Shi reassured him.

At that moment, the fog parted, revealing a path, and a voice echoed from within the formation.

"Everyone, please come in."

"Thank you, Sect Master Li, for taking us in!"

"Sect Master Li is so benevolent..."

As they stood up, the crowd began to flow into the formation, thanking him repeatedly.

Following the path, they arrived at the left side of the mountain gate.

A wooden sign caught their attention.

"Qingling Village?"

As the fog cleared, Li Sheng's figure emerged.

"Sect Master Li!"

"Sect Master Li!"

Several warriors paused, respectfully bowing with precise movements.

The commotion attracted the attention of villagers, who gathered around.

Li Sheng looked at the warriors and asked calmly, "What's the situation in the city?"

The stout man stepped forward and respectfully replied, "Reporting to Sect Master Li, based on our experiences, the level of the demon disaster in Qingshan City should be at the dangerous level."

"When we escaped the city, we saw a monster towering over thirty feet; it should be the leader of this demon disaster!"

"Dangerous level monsters... thank goodness, thank goodness!" Li Sheng sighed in relief.

Turning to the back, he called out, "Old Chen, arrange for these people."

"Understood!" Old Chen responded respectfully, watching Li Sheng's departing figure with deep reverence.

Once he disappeared, Old Chen straightened up and addressed the crowd, "Everyone, follow me."