The small circular token wasn't sufficient? Xiahou Aotian stiffened, his entire being filled with sudden anxiety. Could it be that, at such a crucial moment, he had failed simply because of such a ridiculous reason—insufficient points? Indeed, most of the supporting characters were unreliable. Among all of them, only Yuanshish Tianzun and Fu Qingyang had truly stood out as reliable allies. The rest of the world's contributions were only half-hearted. Though his heart raced with panic, as a seasoned scholar known for his strategic acumen, Xiahou Aotian remained composed on the surface, even growling deeply: "Damn it, the lucky spirit healer—this underdog, take your lumps!" With that, the three-toned flames surged, melting the surrounding materials and instantly forging a black, ink-like blade that shot forth toward the small circular token. The blade came equipped with built-in functions—armor penetration, target locking, bleeding, and poisoning. A solid mid-tier item, no less. The three opponents have grown suspicious. He must strike first, feigning an attack on Xiao Yuan, only then can he allay their doubts—or force them to react before they can think. Xiao Yuan flicks her thin wings, dodging the flying daggers that streak like lightning, then charges and weaves left and right, forced into a continuous struggle with the daggers that automatically lock onto her. The sleeping Dragon Duke, the Blood-Soaked Liquid, and the human-animal hybrid watch silently, offering no rescue. Now this is awkward... Xiu Hou Ao Tian stands frozen, unsure whether to withdraw or to eliminate the cursed spirit-medium. The beautiful woman smiles gently, saying, "For us, three gods against one—this is a sure victory regardless of her presence. If you wish to kill her, then go ahead." The Blood-Soaked Liquid speaks coldly, "Indeed, something is amiss. This woman is aligned with the lawful orders—she is truly a disgrace to freedom." The sleeping Dragon Duke appears weary, half-asleep, half-waking, "Destroy the spirit-medium's physical form, and any potential disruption must be extinguished before it arises." The deity behind the hybrid woman-beast extends its membranous wings and charges toward the witch-guerrilla's corporeal form. Clever tactics truly prove useless against a peak Saint! Seeing this, Xiahou Aotian immediately extends his palm, summoning a flying dagger to strike the deformed "human-beast hybrid" from behind. The dagger moves as swiftly as a fleeting shadow, attacking from the rear—but suddenly alters its trajectory mid-flight, embedding itself firmly into the ground before reaching its target. Against the drunkard, any attack falls short; you can never land a hit. Radiant streaks of starlight rise beside Xiaoyuan, and Zhang Yuancheng, clad in the Thunder God's armor, appears, lifting his arm glowing with bright blue electric aura, palm directed at the Cromi demon. "Stellar official?" The blood-soaked liquid at a distance instantly activates its "directional distortion" ability, attempting to redirect Zhang Yuancheng's attack so that it misses. Yet, despite the deity's rank, this distortion fails to affect the newly-born stellar official. At the critical moment, a beam of pure black light bursts forth, striking directly at Zhang Yuancheng's chest. The beam did no harm, merely rippling like black smoke. At the next instant, the arcs of electricity around Zhang Yuanqing vanished, the electromagnetic cannon poised for launch dissolved, and the two sets of Thor's armor withdrew their bright blue glow, peeling off from his body to settle once more as two dim "thunder spheres." The spirit of the props fell into slumber—they were sealed. It was the Sleeping Dragon Duke who had acted. Crap! Zhang Yuanqing mentally cursed, gathering the two armor sets and, before the Cromi demon could strike, transforming into starlight and dissolving. "Boom!" The demon with antlers and hooves crashed down, sending shockwaves through the entire temple, and the ground where Zhang Yuanqing had stood crumpled into a deep crater. The small round creature had to flap its wings vigorously, rising into the air to escape the battlefield. Neither the Cromi demon nor the small round creature pursued Zhang Yuanqing. Under the impetus of their hybrid nature, the demon instead charged straight at the statue. Xiaohou Aotian stepped forward, heavily pressing his foot, causing the golden circular array to rapidly expand and swiftly envelop both the Crommi demon and the statue, bestowing a golden glow upon the divine form of the gus wizard. Immediately thereafter, a second Taiji Baogua array diffused from his feet, spreading across the entire temple, with yin-yang and baogua patterns rotating simultaneously to evolve into the sixty-four hexagrams. The Crommi demon, who had just been standing before the statue, was suddenly transported several meters away and now stood at the "Zhe" position. The humanoid-beast hybrid felt as though his body had plunged into a mud swamp, his shoulders bearing the weight of a mountain, firmly restrained. The sleeping dragon duke and the blood-soaked liquid also felt a sudden heaviness, as if sinking into a marsh, struggling to move forward. "The array is draining an immense amount of spiritual energy—I won't be able to sustain it much longer!" Xiaohou Aotian shouted, urgently addressing the Yuanshish Tianzun. "Quick—think of how to handle the points! When I entered the combat-oriented quest, I completely converted all the funds in my company account into materials and He never mentioned the secret diversion of public funds—neither out of fear of responsibility, nor because he thought it dishonorable, but because he believed it would tarnish his image as a paragon of virtue. Xia Hou Ao Tian dismissed the aid of Yuan Shi Tian Zun, entered the killing quest alone, and emerged as a great master of weapon crafting—this was truly the protagonist’s journey. Glowing light rose beside Jiang Ju’s trio, and Xiao Yuan descended synchronously, turning to her lover and urgently asking, “What now?” Zhang Yuan Qing frowned, quickly surveyed the scene, then opened the leaderboard. Only 14 people remained in the quest. Excluding Xiao Yuan herself, only three evil-affiliated characters remained, each commanding a divine avatar. To defeat them and seize their points was utterly impossible—otherwise, the spirit of the gū-wū master would have been unnecessary. The only viable strategy now was to eliminate the lawful-affiliated characters. Besides the unconscious Yin Ji, standing at the front was Xia Hou Ao Tian. The other lawful-affiliated characters exchanged glances, yet all deliberately avoided eye contact, each choosing silence. Amid the stillness, the lone knight, Xiazuo, suddenly declared, "Kill me!" The lawful-minded professionals turned to him, and Xiuangao Ao Tian also tilted his head. Meeting the gaze of all present, Xiazuo's stern face softened into a wry smile: "My injuries are too severe—I won't make it past three hours. If you kill me to gain points, the lawful faction still has a chance at victory. Hurry, I'm fast losing strength." Huang Taiqi remained silent for a few seconds, then said, "I still have life essence fluid—I can keep you alive." Yuan Shi's life essence fluid had long since been depleted. Alysia's fluid had been used to save Osmon, and Jiang Ju and Yin Ji's current condition clearly indicated that the fluid had been exhausted long ago—even by Xiazuo himself. Yet he had never used any of it throughout the entire ordeal. Several vials remained in his inventory. Xia Zhao shook his head and looked toward Xiahou Aotian. "He won't make it past three hours. The sleeping Dragon Sovereign has been steadily draining the spiritual energy of the Fosheng practitioners. He's now at the end of his strength—saving me will do no good. You all are seasoned Sages; when it's time to act decisively, act decisively." "It's Xiahou Aotian! You can call me the protagonist!" Xiahou Aotian objected, pausing, then softened his tone. "Fine, whatever you want..." As he spoke, the deity behind the blood-soaked liquid raised his staff and struck the ground with a firm "thud." The sixty-four hexagram diagram spun to a halt, as if a machine had jammed. The sleeping Dragon Sovereign remained drowsy and calm, his expression unchanged despite the shifting battlefield conditions. From the floating darkness behind him, plumes of mist rose and settled upon the array, rapidly causing the already sluggish formation to collapse and disintegrate into scattered light fragments. Xiaohou Aotian stepped firmly, stabilizing the array. With his left hand, he reached back and seized the three-colored flames from the divine bodhisattva's palm, then hurled them with force. "Seal them! Seal them!" His blood flowed freely from all seven orifices. The three-colored flames landed on the ground and swiftly spread, fully covering the entire array, transforming the "distorting force" and "sealing force" and re-immobilizing the three figures. "Hurry! I can't hold on much longer!" Xiaohou Aotian roared. He was like a torch, burning himself fiercely, barely managing to hold the three in place. Zhang Yuanqing turned to Xiazuo and spoke softly, "What compensation would you like?" "My father passed away during the 2008 financial crisis. My mother fell ill and passed away. My sister has built her own family and lives a peaceful, happy life. I don't want you to disturb her." Xiazuo said quietly. "If you insist on compensation, then please continue to uphold the order. I hope that my passing today will secure the six masters of the Order-Keeping faction." "I once encountered a senior knight named Zhai Cai, who had intended to take me as his student, but I failed the evaluation. He once said one sentence, which I've carried with me ever since." Xia Zuo struggled to lift himself up, his pale face solemn and dignified: "Defense is the knight's duty; sacrifice is the knight's destiny. As long as knights endure, order shall never fade!" Xiao Yuan stepped forward, her sword piercing through his chest and severing his heart. ... New Covenant Province. As the world's largest port, New Covenant Harbor is always dotted with cargo ships, fishing vessels, and cruise liners. Just as a cargo ship departed the harbor, the vessel suddenly experienced intense vibrations. Based on their experience, the crew immediately judged that the ship had run aground. But New Covenant is a deep-water port—how could it have run aground? The experienced crew members donned life jackets to prepare for the worst, then rushed to the deck to assess the situation. Standing at the edge of the deck, one of the crew suddenly saw a massive figure shimmering beneath the water. The very next moment, a massive tentacle erupted from the water, wrapping around the ship's hull; more tentacles followed, encircling the vessel. Distantly, a thunderous sound rolled in— a dark red octopus broke the surface, larger than the cargo ship itself. With a sound that grated on the teeth, the cargo ship was torn apart by the tentacles and sank beneath the waves. In the New Covenant Prefecture, various colossal sea creatures, each distinct in species, surged upward from the ocean, devouring floating cargo ships, cruise liners, and fishing vessels. A vast island emerged at the horizon, drifting steadily toward the New Covenant Prefecture. The island was enveloped in a thick, smoky purple haze, rising in layers and sweeping across the sky, eventually shading half the heavens, continuing to expand rapidly. Soon, the entire New Covenant Prefecture was shrouded in the purple mist. As the haze rolled, two calm, deep, and impassive eyes suddenly opened. … "Based on information relayed from various regional offices, terror attacks have occurred across seven provinces and more than twenty cities nationwide. This is a report compiled urgently by the Secretariat from emergency emails." A middle-aged man in a suit picked up the remote control and turned on the projector in the conference room. The nine elder figures seated at the conference table—young, clad in white, and wielding authority—simultaneously directed their attention toward the screen. The report was profoundly striking: puppeteers opened fire in bustling urban centers, harvesting ordinary people's souls to refine materials, nourish artifacts, and cultivate restless spirits. Wuzhu practitioners used living humans to cultivate insects, with swarms of insects spreading across schools and residential neighborhoods, transforming the inhabitants into monsters who then fought one another to nurture insect kings. The enchanting, disordered spirits of the demonic beings slaughtered the mundane at random, freely unleashing their inner, long-suppressed killing impulses. What once seemed daunting had now become effortless. These are chaotic massacres. The evil professions of the three major organizations act with far greater order—disrupting surveillance systems, power grids, attacking banks, affluent households, and government enterprises that control scarce resources, and systematically looting them. Military districts in the south and northwest have also been attacked, suffering heavy casualties and with their ammunition depots completely emptied. Videos showcasing the evil professions' ruthless use of their abilities—burning, killing, and plundering—have been posted online, revealing the existence of the super-powered individuals and sparking widespread social unrest and public outcry. Morality has vanished in mere half a day. Not only the evil professions, but even some orderly professionals among the civilian population are now seizing the opportunity to exploit the chaos—either extorting wealth or avenging personal grudges, unleashing their inner demons and reveling in the thrill of disorder. Regional branches and elders across provinces and cities are all rushing to respond, overwhelmed and stressed. Yet the battles among the spiritual travelers themselves have caused even greater casualties and destruction. A middle-aged man in a well-tailored suit spoke with steady authority: "We have already dispatched the headquarters' commanders to patrol the entire capital, ensuring the safety of the city's residents—especially those most vulnerable. Yet the government is furious about the unfolding crisis and demands that we swiftly restore stability and provide them with a clear account!" Before the nine elders could respond, the young, white-robed leader coldly interjected: "Three days of shattered order, seven days of nationwide chaos—this is our reply!" Fu Qingyang glanced around at the nine elders at the conference table: "At this very moment, we no longer need to consider the government's opinions or recommendations. We simply need to ensure their unconditional cooperation. Gentlemen, I have no clear information about what has transpired within the spiritual realm. The five alliance leaders have remained silent. The only thing we can confirm is that the decisive battle between order and chaos has begun." At that moment, the conference room door was violently burst open, and a senior civil official rushed in, her face pale with fear and her lips trembling: "The Sea God Church has sent a distress call—evil forces, half-gods and half-divinities, have gathered in the New Covenant County