The Three Kingdoms Demon Lords have mobilized their entire forces.

The battlefront stretches a hundred miles in a single day.

On the eastern side, the Demon Clan's formation is on the verge of collapse, barely holding on with the help of arrays and terrain.

The Donghua Taoist Alliance, forced into a corner, had no choice but to redeploy their forces for defense, reverting the battle to the original three-front combat.

Fortunately, the Jiuxiao Demon Country's position occupies advantageous terrain, allowing the use of both terrain and arrays to keep enemies at bay with minimal forces.

Xuanzong Shangqing Dao Alliance.

Qingchen summoned all the Heavenly Masters, a total of fifteen Primordial Spirits, to discuss the matter.

"Heavenly Master, we can't hold out any longer. Even with support from the Donghua Chiyou Integration, it's impossible to withstand double-digit numbers of Harmonization combatants. We must think of another solution."

Initially, the casualties were acceptable, but now they've reached an unbearable level.

If this goes on, their foundation will be drained completely.

To put it plainly, defeat is inevitable; everyone can see the bleak future ahead.

Heavenly Master Qingchen furrowed his sword-like brows into the shape of the character "川" (chuan), pacing anxiously on the spot.

The matters of the battlefield made him uneasy.

Especially when it came to life-and-death decisions of this magnitude.

Every single step influenced the fate of billions.

To be fair, he disliked dealing with such strategic affairs, longing instead for a life of freedom and unrestrained wandering. Alas, the heavens do not always align with human desires; the burden of thousands of years had dulled the edge of the swordman's spirit within him.

"Heavenly Master, why not retreat to the south? It would be safer there."

"Retreat to the south? The south currently has only one Taoist Alliance—do we merge with them? And who would take charge then?"

"Do you think retreating to the south means there won't be any battles?"

At these words, most objected immediately.

Qingchen was baffled—when had this group grown so resolute?

He had been considering persuading them to hold on a little longer; the battle had only just begun, and the outcome remained undecided—anything was still possible.

Suddenly, Jianxin spoke up: "Just now, an envoy from the Demon Country came by."

"Chase them off... Keep fighting. We still have a chance. Hold on a bit longer,"

Qingchen Heavenly Master said without hesitation.

The Human Clan's current condition was already far better than before.

The Demon Clan's power was immense, with even top-tier Harmonization-level Demon Emperors like Taishi and Moyu Qilin in their ranks, but the strength of the Human Clan had grown tenfold compared to the past.

"Absolutely not!"

"Heavenly Master, leave some room for negotiation. Don't be too extreme!"

"Before Heavenly Master Jian Wuliang died, he entrusted the Nine Heavens Sword Tower to you. The future of our Nine Heavens Jade Tower comrades lies in your hands, Heavenly Master—please reconsider!"

Someone played the Taoist lineage card.

As expected, this struck Qingchen's greatest weakness.

The south was powerful, and an alliance indeed had the potential to resist the Demon Clan for a while, but it could also potentially lead to their assimilation.

The Sword Cultivation lineage must remain independent and could not merge with other Taoist Alliances.

They feared the Demon Clan would destroy their magic veins, but they also feared being assimilated by their own kind.

What's more, working with their own allies would ultimately still lead to the same bloody stalemate against the Demon Clan's armies.

Now that a new option had appeared, who wouldn't wish to consider it?

After weighing the pros and cons for a long time, Qingchen Heavenly Master finally asked, "What terms did the Demon Clan offer?"

"The Demon Emperor proposed that we join the Demon Country as a subordinate entity, granting us the treatment of an Upper Country. We would not need to provide tributes—merely send a portion of our forces to assist them in advancing south."

In the past, the Demon Clan had been exceedingly arrogant. Even if they allowed others to defect, they would impose numerous harsh conditions, reducing the defectors to the status of slaves.

But in recent decades, the rise of the Human Clan made them realize its value, and the terms for switching sides had improved accordingly.

This was a development they owed to Song Lin.

Hearing this, Qingchen felt somewhat tempted.

After many years of battle, he was also exhausted.

The Human and Demon Clans were both creatures of heaven and earth, their relative strength bound to fluctuate. In the past, when the Human Clan was strong, Demons became their slaves; now that the Demons were strong, it seemed inevitable for the Human Clan to serve as slaves.

The ancient enmity between the two had persisted since time immemorial, and it explained why their conflict was so unrelenting and unforgiving.

Even in its decline, the Human Clan still held onto its vigilance against the Demons.

Qingchen Heavenly Master wanted to agree immediately, but then he reconsidered: with the south still resisting, their negotiations' price might rise higher with time.

Perhaps waiting a bit more wouldn't hurt.

At that moment, a disciple reported from outside.

"Heavenly Master, the Donghua Heavenly Master has come to visit personally."

At these words, everyone exchanged confused looks—coming at a time like this?

There was, of course, no reason for Qingchen Heavenly Master to refuse him entry.

Song Lin entered, accompanied by Chiyou.

Seeing the neatly seated high-ranking members, he said, "Ah, everyone's here—great, saves me the trouble of notifying each one individually."

"To what do we owe the pleasure of your visit?"

Qingchen Heavenly Master asked courteously.

"I'd like to talk about a plan. Recent developments don't need much elaboration—facing the Demons' assault, we've had our share of challenges. However, this is also an opportunity to crush the main Demon forces and reclaim our lost land."

"What will you use to reclaim it? Right now, the main general of Yujue Demon Country consists of the Seven Fighting Ghosts. All seven have Harmonization-level cultivation, and when combined, they are invincible—Chiyou alone is no match for them."

"And in the north, the generals include Earth Dragon, Black Tiger, and Copper Dragon, all at Harmonization-level, with the Ghost Qilin of the Qilin clan holding the line."

"The Three Great Demon Lords of the Demon Islands have joined forces. What strong fighters do we have to match them?"

Facing their accusations, Song Lin remained unhurried, replying, "Yujue has many spirit monsters, but Righteous Skill counters them. Ghost Qilin? Aside from the Moyu leader, the rest are but beasts."

A Qilin gives rise to lesser beasts.

Many people would see any horned beast and call it a Qilin—even armored ones were called Qilin.

But true Qilin were famously rare, often limited to one in a clan.

In the last fight against the Netherworld Qilin, Song Lin immediately discerned that the creature was a mere false Qilin.

"Dealing with them is straightforward. We humans are adept at leveraging heavenly timing and earth's advantage, as well as alchemy and artifact refining. Based on this, we can construct a massive array."

Song Lin made a broad gesture, and before them appeared a golden map of Wu Country's entire territory.

He drew a boundary on the map.

This boundary covered parts of the south, parts of the north, and lay in the central area of the Human Clan's territory—approximately 2 million square kilometers.

"Fight while retreating, until we reach this area. At that point, I will lead everyone in constructing an array to resist the Demons."

Song Lin continued matter-of-factly.

"What kind of array could resist so many Demons?"

Someone questioned.

"That's a secret," Song Lin replied, giving Qingchen Heavenly Master a meaningful look. "You are the Taoist Alliance Celestial Master, the leader of Xuanzong. The decision is yours; the future of our magic veins and the lives of Northwest mortal beings are in your hands."

With that, Song Lin bid his farewell, leaving Qingchen Heavenly Master alone with an expression shifting like stormy skies.

On the way back, Chiyou asked, "Do we really have an array?"

"Indeed, and you, along with five other weapons, will serve as its foundation."

At a moment of crisis, Song Lin couldn't simply retreat and cultivate in seclusion. Beyond strategizing the broader picture, he still found time to step onto the battlefield—after all, he himself was a Harmonization combatant.

"What array is it?"

Back at the main base, the high-ranking members asked in unison.

"I'll give you an answer in three days. For now, prepare: abandon what must be abandoned, take what must be taken. On other battlefronts, fight and retreat simultaneously. The rest, follow me to press forward to the central battleline."

As the meeting adjourned, Song Lin was left alone, recalling the others' doubts. Most people didn't believe such a miraculous array existed.

And indeed, he didn't have it—yet.

Where would this array come from? Naturally, from the world of mythology and strange tales.

With a calm mind, Song Lin entered the story world.

Not far away was the Chenqiao Inn, where a group of Han soldiers was currently enthroning someone with the yellow robe.

"This cannot be. You are chasing after riches and ambition, enthroning me as emperor—but only if Heaven grants me the mandate can I accept. Otherwise, I cannot serve as your ruler."

The leading General feigned refusal after refusal, though his eyes betrayed an overflowing smugness.

"We shall obey your every command!"

Only then did the General accept the bows of his subordinates.

"Pfft..."

At that moment, the sound of laughter broke the solemn scene—Song Lin had accidentally laughed out loud.

The others, ready to execute this witness to their oath, were startled to see him turn into a wisp of blue smoke and vanish.

Bewildered, they murmured amongst themselves, fearful of what this ghostly apparition might portend.

Elsewhere, Song Lin arrived at Kunlun.

"Queen Mother of the West, tell me the full details of Kunlun's terrain and earth veins."

Indeed, this array would be Kunlun itself.

Constructing Kunlun, gathering all the world's earth dragon veins.

The Real World naturally lacked such a thing, but now Song Lin sought to unite the strength of the entire Human Clan, forging, in fire and blood, the true Taoist Ancestral Court of humanity—the foundation of a Small Thousand Heavenly Court.

.....

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