Towering figures stood like pillars in the Bewildering Dustlands. The Outer Gods emerging from the spatial rifts were visibly surprised when they saw the True Gods of the human race gathered near the World Tree. A solemn light shone within the Outer Gods' eyes. Many among these Outer Gods had participated in hunts against the True Gods before and were well acquainted with Lin Baixiang and the others. However, despite being in this desperate situation, the True Gods appeared surprisingly composed, no longer giving off the impression of prey. "Where does their confidence come from?" A high-ranking God of the Spirit Race played idly with a black crystal orb. Complex runes shimmered across its surface, exuding the faint aura of frozen time. This high-ranking God had spent his life comprehending the profound essence of time and was the one Fu Ya believed capable of standing toe-to-toe with the Duke of Thunder. If not for Fu Ya ascending as a Sovereign before him, with his natural talent and the full support of the Spirit Race behind him, he, too, could have become a Sovereign as well. Part of the reason he did not become a Sovereign, aside from Fu Ya's superior aptitude, was that he was one of Fu Ya's many admirers. ᴛʜɪs ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀ ɪs ᴜᴘᴅᴀᴛᴇ ʙʏ 𝓷𝓸𝓿𝓮𝓵✦𝕗𝕚𝕣𝕖✦𝙣𝙚𝙩 He willingly placed himself beneath her banner out of love for her, hoping that one day she would return his affections and become his cherished companion. "Lord Ling Xuan, I did not expect you to descend upon this battlefield as well." Several Outer Gods hastily bowed in deference when they saw him step through the spatial rift. Ling Xuan casually waved his hand with an air of detached indifference, signaling the others to dispense with the formalities. "I've come under orders to resolve the threat of the human race once and for all. I expect you all to take this seriously." "Of course! We never intended to let any of these remnants survive!" "We had some concerns at first, but with you here, my Lord, how could we possibly let those wretches escape again?" Outer Gods under the banners of different Sovereigns all offered Ling Xuan flattering smiles. "Don't waste too many of our own to kill them," Ling Xuan warned sternly. "Our true battlefield lies elsewhere, in that terrifying region known as the bizarre mist." The expressions of the Outer Gods turned grim and guarded at the mention of the bizarre mist. These Outer Gods from the starry skies viewed that legendary bizarre mist as the most dreadful place in existence. Countless Gods had perished within its depths, including Sovereigns and God Kings. "Heh! Do these True Gods really think they can drag us down with them when they're so few in number?" A high-ranking God of the Bright Moon Race stepped forward atop a crescent-shaped divine platform. Clad in a radiant silver robe and wielding a white jade staff, he sneered, "They've done nothing but scurry about in the remote corners of the starry skies for years, desperate to survive. "Whatever edge they once had is long gone. The human race has run its course. Their extinction is certain in this grand event. Even the Abyss will be reduced to ruin. "There's no way those standing before us can stop the upcoming crisis. The human race will become just another race lost to the river of time." His eyes fell on Xu Ling, his cold grin deepening. "You slipped away last time. I'd like to see you try again now." This high-ranking God of the Bright Moon Race was named Leng Jin and was the most powerful Moon God in the starry skies. Even Moon God Ying Yue viewed him with reverence. As a loyal servant of Fu Ya, he had taken part in many hunts for the True Gods of the human race. Three True Gods had already perished at his hands. Xu Ling had almost been his fourth, but the True God had narrowly escaped before he could strike the finishing blow. That failure had festered in Leng Jin's heart for years. So, when news came that the True Gods of the human race had resurfaced in the Bewildering Dustlands, he was the first to answer the call to battle. "Leng Jin, if I hadn't been injured back then, your divine platform would've been shattered beneath my sword." Xu Ling leapt forward, sword in hand and a calm smile on his face. "I don't plan on fleeing this time. Let's see if you truly have the guts to fight me head-on." "You'll die. All of you will. This is your fate, and there's nothing you can do to change it." Leng Jin stood atop his divine platform, unmoved. Rather than rushing into battle, his gaze narrowed on the World Tree. "How strange. The aura from that World Tree clearly shows it's not yet Rank Thirteen, but its life energy carries an inexplicable quality. It actually gives me the illusion of a living, breathing organism..." A frigid moon, refined and fused with Leng Jin, drifted out from his nape. Its pure, silvery glow shone upon the World Tree, attempting to unravel its mysteries. Pang Ling had yet to reveal herself, but she could clearly sense the probing of the moonlight from within the tree. A sharp cry came from the roots of the World Tree. It came from Fang Jiu, an elder of the Goldstone Sect of the Abyss. Dong Yan had hunted Fang Jiu for centuries, and all of the True Gods' wounds had been the result of that relentless pursuit. The Goldstone Sect of the Abyss had long since been destroyed. Severely wounded and stuck in the Ascendant God Realm, Fang Jiu believed he would spend the rest of his life clinging to survival. He had never imagined that he would rise again through the World Tree. The boundless vitality from the World Tree had not only healed his injuries but had also provided him with insight into the Dao Source of Metal and the essence of metal, allowing him to break through from the Ascendant God Realm into the Transcendent God Realm in one fell swoop. He was one of the few fortunate to see a leap in their cultivation realm. Thus, faced with his old nemesis, Dong Yan, a mid-ranking God of the Ice Rock Race, Fang Jiu could no longer contain himself. Gripping a golden compass in his hand, he shouted, "Dong Yan! You've chased me across numerous starry regions. Well, here I am! Try it again if you dare!" "Come with me," Dong Yan replied flatly. The mid-ranking God of the Ice Rock Race guided his divine platform away from the main group, soaring toward a part of the Bewildering Dustlands where the dust clouds thinned. Landing on a fragment of a broken meteor, he said, "Back when I hunted you, I relied on nothing but my own strength. It was so then, and it is so now. You—" Fang Jiu turned into a blinding golden streak before Dong Yan could finish. The dim starry sky lit up, drawing every Outer God's gaze toward that brilliant radiance. In their eyes, Fang Jiu had become one with the Dao of Metal, the embodiment of an indestructible divine artifact with the sharpest edge in existence! Thirty-nine distinct arrays crackled across the golden compass beneath Fang Jiu's feet, radiating an aura sharp enough to pierce through the stars themselves. Fang Jiu then revealed his Dharma Idol. The searing golden radiance underwent a strange transformation just as it neared Dong Yan, becoming like a mountain flowing with the Dao of Metal. The compass beneath his feet morphed into a divine platform, propelling him down toward the meteor fragment below. The overwhelming descent felt like a mountain of metal crashing down, weighing down the surrounding space until it turned oppressively heavy. "He's not in the Ascendant God Realm anymore. He broke through to the Transcendent God Realm!" "Dong Yan, fall back!" Several Outer Gods loyal to Luo Hongyan, who, like Dong Yan, had once hunted Fang Jiu, cried out in shock. "The Transcendent God Realm?! How is that possible?!" Dong Yan's expression twisted into one of panic. His divine platform embedded itself into the meteor fragment, forming a series of ancient citadels wreathed in divine radiance. The spire-shaped citadels corresponded to the temples that resonated with him, linking to his scattered statues across the starry skies. A frigid current seeped out from the divine platform and its citadels, saturating the surrounding area with a chilling sea of pale mist. Dong Yan had fully unfurled his divine domain, but it was useless. Fang Jiu's Dharma Idol descended like a meteor. A torrential downpour of golden light exploded outward, transforming into massive golden iron stones that brimmed with the cataclysmic power to annihilate all things. In the blink of an eye, Dong Yan's divine domain and even the meteor fragment beneath him were reduced to a storm of rubble and stone dust. Mid-ranking God Dong Yan did not even have a chance to fight back before his body and Divine Persona exploded from the pressure. Fang Jiu had slain Dong Yan! "Haha!" Fang Jiu threw his head back in thunderous laughter. "My vengeance is complete. Now I can die without regret!" Thinking back on the humiliation he had endured, Fang Jiu wished he could crush the bones of every Outer God present, to show them just how fearless and unyielding the True Gods of the Abyss could be. Following Fang Jiu's lead, Sword God Xu Ling stepped forward with a challenge of his own. "Leng Jin, do you dare face me?" Xu Ling soared toward another field of meteor fragments with a confident smirk. "You're a high-ranking God. I'm in the Transcendent God Realm. We're on equal footing now. The only difference is that this time, my wounds are healed. Leng Jin, shall we?" Blinding sword lights wove together, forming a vast sea of sword light that enveloped the meteor field where Xu Ling stood. His body grew translucent, shifting from physical to incorporeal. At the same time, every glimmering sword light in his domain became further refined. Xu Ling faded into illusion, while the sea of sword light took on solid form. The sea of sword light was his Dharma Idol, the embodiment of his Dao of Sword. "Something's wrong! Leng Jin, don't act recklessly!" Zi Wu cried, unease growing with every passing second. "Many of them show no signs of their previous injuries. That can only mean one thing: They encountered a miraculous opportunity! "It's that World Tree! High-ranking World Trees have the power to heal even the gravely wounded. It has to be that! "Leng Jin! We outnumber them. We don't need to fight these rats one-on-one, nor waste unnecessary time and effort!" The way Fang Jiu had effortlessly slain Dong Yan had shaken the Outer Gods. Their expressions all grew dark and wary. They had thought this mission would be a trivial task to wipe out the last remnants of the human race in the starry skies. They would then head to the Hall of Gods and take part in the war over the bizarre mist, where the Sovereigns themselves would take to the battlefield. None of them expected that these remnants, known only for fleeing and hiding, would dare to fight them head-on. Even more unthinkable was that the first victory had gone to the human race. What's going on? Have the heavens turned upside down?