Outside of Mount Hundun, no less than a thousand cultivators gathered, taking up their respective positions in the huge array that Zhang Xukai prepared weeks ago. When the explosive sound from within the mountain was heard, the younger cultivators inadvertently flinched from fear.

"Is that...?" one of them murmured, his voice betraying his nervousness.

"It has to be the Nightfall Emperor," an elder cultivator answered with an ashen face.

Upon hearing the two words, the others tightened their grip around their weapons, and their spiritual beasts bristled in accordance with their owners' growing unease.

Seeing the wave of anxiety spreading throughout the crowd, Zhang Xukai, the Seven Sky Pillars Sect Leader, decided to speak up.

"He is no longer the Nightfall Emperor," he declared. "His spiritual beast has been vanquished the moment my shizun defeated him the last time. And he has just broken through my shizun's seal. We must seize this opportunity to kill him once and for all. Only then can the cultivation world truly be at peace again."

Zhang Xukai's encouraging words were like balm to their restless hearts. One by one, the cultivators, young and old, expressed their agreement with Zhang Xukai.

"That's right! Grandmaster Shen has already clipped off Mo Zhiyuan's wings. All we have to do now is finish him!"

"Sect Leader Zhang is right! Without his spiritual beast, he is nothing!"

A smirk crossed Zhang Xukai's lips. He redirected his gaze at the entrance of Mount Hundun, his own black and gold scimitar tightly held in his right hand.

Shen Ruizhe was a merciful teacher with a compassionate heart, enough to devour an entire ocean. Luckily, Zhang Xukai was neither as forgiving nor as forgetful.

He would never forget the heartrending screams of the deceased Seven Sky Pillar Sect elders and disciples alike, as they were butchered one by one and tossed aside like trash under Mo Zhiyuan's order.

He would never forget the stunned expressions on the dead, as if they hadn't grasped the swift finality of their lives.

Today, here and now, he was going to send Mo Zhiyuan to the Underworld, and make him kowtow before the dead in forgiveness.

Otherwise, he was no better than a dog!

The entire ensemble of cultivators held their breaths when they heard the distinctive sound of footsteps, languid and torturous, emanating from within Mount Hundun.

Mo Zhiyuan stepped into the light and glanced at the many cultivators who stared at him with a mixture of fright and hatred. He did not know most of them, of course, save for a certain Zhang Xukai, who stood at the center with his gigantic lion looming behind him.

The devil incarnate's eyes curved into crescents as he smiled.

"Why, I didn't expect to have my brothers and sisters from the ten great sects to throw me a welcome party out here in the cold. You must have missed me so much."

The younger ones flinched, their hands shaking from fear.

The elder ones gritted their teeth and began launching a torrent of insults.

"You demon!" one of them spat in unconcealed hatred. "You flattened Wuhuan Palace and killed all senior cultivators in the sect more than a hundred years ago! Today, I am going to avenge my fallen comrades!"

"That's right!" Bai Lianjue spoke up as well. "You killed my entire family back then and destroyed the Baiyueshan Sect entirely! I am here to ask you to settle your debts and pay blood with blood!"

One by one, the leaders from the other sects raised their voices, one speech more audacious than the last. Mo Zhiyuan's silence emboldened them even more. The younger ones were no longer as nervous. They didn't even remember why they were nervous in the first place.

Once the ten great sects united to annihilate the former Nightfall Emperor, the latter's defeat was a certainty, wasn't it?

And Zhang Xukai was right.

They all stood here with their spiritual beasts behind them and their spiritual weapons in their hands. But Mo Zhiyuan had neither a spiritual beast nor a weapon. No matter how strong he was, it was all in the past. One single person could never win against a thousand cultivators!

When the last sect finished their rant, Mo Zhiyuan took a deep breath and pursed his lips. He stared at the gathering cultivators and asked, almost nonchalantly, "Are you done?"

"Yes, we are," Zhang Xukai snapped. Even he had grown impatient after hearing his comrades' passionate speeches.

"Everyone, let us begin!"

Upon Zhang Xukai's command, the cultivators stepped into the giant magical array and activated it with their spiritual power. A cylindrical wall of gleaming gold rose from the ground, its inner surface marked by a slowly revolving string of intricate spells.

This array was formidable enough to trap ten thousand demons within. Given the number of cultivators that contributed their share of spiritual power to the array, it would be enough to generate an explosive attack to purify the trapped evil on the spot.

Mo Zhiyuan gave the golden characters a sidelong glance before he shook his head in regret.

"A hundred years, and this is the best you can come up with?" he murmured in disappointment.

As he thought, only Shen Ruizhe proved worthy as his opponent.

Neither cultivator outside the golden wall heard his low murmur. Zhang Xukai hollered, "Everyone, please focus! Direct all your spiritual power into the array. Let us vanquish the evil once and for all!"

The gathering cultivators had just roared in agreement when suddenly, Mo Zhiyuan flicked his left hand and sent the cultivators on the left side flying.