Chapter 734: Shifting Tides
In the blink of an eye, a thousand years had passed.
Su Yuan had finally accumulated enough Power of Fame to break through to the 99th rank.
Then he said to Qixin, "Fighting like this is pointless. Now that golden Dao mark has fully restored itself. With just their strength alone, they can't break through the mark's protection anytime soon. We can withdraw first!"
Qixin nodded upon hearing this. "Indeed, there's no point wasting time here."
So at a certain moment, the two simultaneously retreated, pulling back from the entrance to the ruins.
Seeing this, Wu Tianxiang and Zang Tianguan also stopped their attacks.
The two turned to look and saw that the golden Dao mark at the gates of Void Emperor Hall had already restored itself to completion.
There was no need for further discussion; there was absolutely no way the two of them could break through this mark.
Zang Tianguan let out a sigh. "What a variable!"
Wu Tianxiang frowned. "What do we do now? With just the two of us, we can't break through this mark. Maybe if we slaughtered enough living beings, we could shatter it, but with those two around, there's no way they'd just stand by and watch us do it."
"The only option now is for all four of us to join forces!" Zang Tianguan said in a deep voice. "If all four work together, breaking through this mark will be easy. Three can match the mark's recovery speed; with one more, we can shatter it quickly."
Wu Tianxiang said with reluctance, "We've been grinding away at this for so long, and now he just barges in to reap the benefits for free. It's infuriating!"
The three of them had spent so much time wearing down the mark in the ruins, just one step away from the finish line. If they cooperated now, Su Yuan would be getting a free ride.
Zang Tianguan said calmly, "Nothing comes for free. Although Qixin is temporarily our enemy, if the benefits are great enough, he'll be willing to re-cooperate with us and kick that Seven Stars out of the game first!"
Wu Tianxiang nodded. "I can accept giving Qixin his share, but I can't stomach letting that guy take advantage. In that case, I'll find a chance to talk with Qixin and discuss the matter of four people breaking the mark."
"Yeah."
On the other side.
After Su Yuan and Qixin left.
Su Yuan asked, "Where do you plan to go? The Chaos Immortal Alliance's cultivators have gone missing, and it's already been taken over by the Chaos Alliance. Why don't you join the Chaos Alliance instead? How about becoming a Deputy Alliance Leader?"
Qixin replied casually, "Fine."
He no longer cared about factions. Now that he had personally dealt with the subordinates he'd cultivated, he had little attachment to power.
Su Yuan nodded and handed Qixin a Merit Points token.
Qixin casually refined it.
Then Su Yuan elevated his permissions to the level of Deputy Alliance Leader.
Su Yuan didn't fully trust Qixin; he just wanted to keep him occupied. Once his own strength surpassed Qixin and the others, he could do whatever he pleased with them.
At the same time.
The members of the Chaos Alliance quickly discovered that a new Deputy Alliance Leader had appeared among the high-ranking leadership!
The conditions for becoming Deputy Alliance Leader had been made public, requiring at least a 99th-rank cultivator to fill the position. All members were curious about who this Deputy Alliance Leader was.
But unfortunately, most didn't have the authority to check.
As a Domain Lord, Xiao Feng did have the authority to view the information. When he checked the Deputy Alliance Leader's details, he was immediately stunned.
[Name/Dao Title]: Qixin
[Status]: Deputy Alliance Leader
[Rank]: 100th rank
[Bio]: Former leader of the Chaos Immortal Alliance, exceptional strength
Xiao Feng drew in a sharp breath.
Beside him, several former Alliance Association higher-ups asked curiously, "Lord Xiao, who is that Deputy Alliance Leader? Even though I'm an Elder of the Alliance, I don't have permission to view it."
Xiao Feng remained silent.
Then the others turned to Jiang Shanggong.
In recent years, Jiang Shanggong had also taken control of a domain region and become a Domain Lord.
He, too, had the authority to view the Deputy Alliance Leader's identity.
"Elder Jiang, please tell us. Who is it? There's no confidentiality rule, right?" The crowd's curiosity grew even stronger.
Jiang Shanggong took a deep breath and said, "You all know his Dao title. Our current headquarters used to be his!"
Hearing this, everyone was dumbfounded.
In an instant, they all understood the Deputy Alliance Leader's identity—Qixin!
"He... he's still around? But if he's back, how did he end up as Deputy Alliance Leader? Does that mean..."
Everyone's minds raced with terrifying implications!
"Our Alliance Leader truly has extraordinary strength!" Li Shangxiang marveled.
But Xiao Feng frowned. "Since this great power has reappeared, doesn't that mean the other two great powers will also show up soon?"
At that moment, Xiao Feng couldn't sit still any longer and immediately contacted Su Yuan.
Xiao Feng's consciousness descended into an isolated space and met Su Yuan.
"Your subordinate pays respects to the Alliance Leader!" Xiao Feng bowed respectfully.
Su Yuan said calmly, "Lord Xiao, what brings you here?"
Xiao Feng spoke directly. "I just saw that a Deputy Alliance Leader has been added to the member roster—it's the great power Qixin. Does his appearance mean the other two great powers will also appear soon? Should we relocate the Alliance personnel from the former Ultimate Dueling Arena region?"
Su Yuan replied, "No need. Occupying only about a third of the area isn't excessive."
"May I ask the Alliance Leader, what changes can we expect next?"
Su Yuan gazed into the distance. "Perhaps the two apex forces will check each other's balance."
Xiao Feng's heart trembled.
He had already guessed the opposing relationship between the 100th-rank powerhouses. Clearly, Qixin had joined the Alliance's side, which meant the other two had probably teamed up.
Two against two. The situation was still relatively safe.
Su Yuan looked into the distance, his spiritual sense sensing the movements of Zang Tianguan and Wu Tianxiang.
Wu Tianxiang descended forcefully upon the territory of the former Nothingness Prison, subjugating both Hollow Heart Temple and Sifang City.
Meanwhile, Zang Tianguan arrived at the Blood-Slay Pavilion and took it over.
Then the two reorganized these three top-tier forces, forming an entirely new faction—the Heaven-Destroying Alliance.
The Heaven-Destroying Alliance quickly absorbed all factions not aligned with the Chaos Alliance, rapidly expanding and consolidating into a force that could rival the Chaos Alliance.
The entire process took only a hundred years.
In just a century, the situation on the First Frontline changed rapidly. Countless factions were forced to choose: either join the Chaos Alliance or join the Heaven-Destroying Alliance. Otherwise, they couldn't survive on the Frontline.
No room was left for any other forces to exist.
And after clearing out and subjugating all third-party factions.
The Chaos Alliance and the Heaven-Destroying Alliance immediately erupted into war!
But both sides tacitly maintained a stalemate where soldiers fought soldiers and generals fought generals. Elders and above stayed out of the fray, only cultivators below the 90th rank engaged in bloody combat.
Though they appeared to be enemies, it was all just to collect the souls of living beings.
Su Yuan had already seen through everything. But this was also something he tacitly permitted. Once his power increased again, these three wouldn't be able to make any waves.