The First Nation’s altar was the strangest scene of all. None of the figures beneath the altar were bowing their heads. No, they had been ordered to raise their heads up. They stood there, trembling with fear as they looked at a white-robed man floating above the surface of the altar.
His expression was calm, as if he were contemplating enlightenment. He was staring at his right hand, within which could be seen, shockingly… a bolt of lightning. The lightning looked extraordinary, and if Meng Hao were here, he would instantly recognize… the Heavenly lightning of a type of Lightning Cauldron!
The white-robed man appeared to be contemplating it, as if he were determining a way to control it.
With his cultivation base and his level of power, this man could be only one person: the Echelon cultivator from the First Mountain, widely acknowledged to be one of its three most powerful members!
Behind him were eight other cultivators who had arrived from the First Mountain and Sea. All of them were his personal followers; not a single one was a disciple of any other organization in the First Mountain and Sea.
These were people he had forced to capitulate during the many battles he had fought. Afterwards, they had become his followers, and even fought for him. Most surprising of all was that of these eight people who had chosen to become his followers, one of them was another member of the Echelon!
To join the Echelon, and yet choose to follow that white-robed young man, showed how incredibly powerful he was.
“So it turns out that gaining enlightenment of the Essence of lightning is much easier here than in the Mountain and Sea Realm.” After a long moment, the white-robed young man clenched his hand into a fist. Crackling sounds could be heard, and the lightning vanished, disappearing into his body. His eyes suddenly began to glow brightly.
“The Windswept Realm has been opened many times, but this is my first time here. What do you all say? Do you think I’ll be able to collect some people and items that might satisfy me? Will I be able to truly take away the World Essence?
“Although, what I’m actually looking forward to most… is searching for another member of the Echelon, most preferably a male!” The white-robed young man chuckled. He turned to a woman who was standing behind him, and ran his finger down her jaw. The woman lowered her head and smiled. As for his other followers, two were women and five were men. All of them smiled in response to the young man’s words.
The sky in the Windswept Realm gradually cleared. After the space of ten breaths of time, a cold voice suddenly rang out from the Heavens into the First Nation and all the other nations in the Windswept Realm. Apparently, the inhabitants of the Windswept Realm itself could not hear this voice, only the newcomers.
“Let the trial by fire… begin!
“The central temple is where the final decision will be made. Immortal cultivators may not enter there now. Use the Nine Nations as the game board, and the soldiers and cultivators of the Windswept Realm as the game pieces. Let the Grand War of Nine Nations begin!
“Each nation has a Seal of the Windswept Realm. Whoever acquires the most National Seals will be able to enter the central temple!
“And now… the barriers between the Nine Nations shall be removed!” The voice that spoke was ancient, and yet seemed somewhat numb, almost emotionless, as if it were a puppet. Even as the voice boomed out, the windstorm barriers separating the Nine Nations of the Windswept Realm all vanished!
Now there was nothing sealing or protecting any of the nations; they were all connected….
Furthermore, the ground began to quake as all of the natural laws and Essences of the Windswept Realm was unleashed. Spiritual energy surged, and the natural laws went into flux. Essence was revealed in a way that made gaining enlightenment seemingly simple.
Heaven and Earth lost color, and a mighty wind sprang up which screamed out in all directions.
On the First Nation’s altar, the white-robed young man laughed heartily. As the windstorm barriers fell, he could instantly sense the other Echelon auras in the Windswept Realm.
To his senses, those auras were like bright lamps in the darkness of night, clearly visible.
As he laughed, the white-robed young man’s energy surged, merging into Heaven and Earth. His cultivation base erupted, sending an incredibly powerful aura sweeping out.
He was making a declaration of war… against all of the other eight nations in the Windswept Realm!
At the same time, amidst the iciness of the Second Nation, the blue-robed man’s eyes snapped open. He looked at the corpses around him for a moment, and their eyes opened to reveal a gray glow. Cracking and popping sounds could be heard as layers of ice shattered. Energy also surged out of the blue-robed young man, another declaration of war!
In the Third Nation, the middle-aged man in the Imperial robes lau