Cultivating for a hundred lifetimes to ascension

The Bone Abyss, also known as Corpse Heap Mountain, is located to the south of Cang Province, spanning over a vast distance of more than a hundred thousand miles and is recognized by the world as a land of absolute death and prohibition.

This place is perennially shrouded in dense clouds, the air heavy with the stench of death. Countless piercing lightning bolts surge and flicker in the depths of the thick clouds, and massive thunderclaps occasionally strike down, each punishing the creatures that heaven and earth cannot tolerate.

Endless expanses of white skeletal remains cover the ground, stretching all the way to the horizon. From afar, one can only see the peaks of Corpse Mountains and Bone Abysses standing erect, and in the dark crevices of valleys, clusters of pale green ghost fire illuminate the gloom.

Whenever the chilling, bone-piercing ghost winds arise from the deepest parts of the Bone Abyss, they often sweep up massive amounts of pale green ghost fire, howling over the vast Emperor of Skeletons and for a moment kick up a sky full of flying bone ash.

However, the Bone Abyss did not always exist, nor was it shaped by any peculiar geographical features.

Twenty thousand years ago, this area was a fertile land, but the appearance of a grand space-time rift changed everything.

After the first celestial war ended, the leader of the Tian Dao Church issued a horrifying decree, with a simple core message: henceforth, the remains of all deceased beings from Cang Province must be transported to Corpse Heap Mountain.

This unprecedented "Corpse Moving Order," since its promulgation, was upheld by three consecutive Tian Dao Church leaders without a single change, stringently enforced over the course of eight thousand years.

After ten thousand years, the Bone Abyss, Cang Province's most dread-inspiring forbidden land, was thus brought into existence.

In a sense, the Bone Abyss was a death zone created by the Tian Dao Church, capable of defending against invasions from the Tianzhu Realm and also conveniently mobilizing countless Corpse Ghosts as cannon fodder to attack the Tianzhu Realm, proving to be an asset for both offense and defense.

In contrast to the Tian Dao Church's grandiose scheme, the scatterbrained Central Continent paled significantly in comparison, which explains why the Tianzhu Realm was always the invaded party during the celestial wars.

One day, within the deepest reaches of Corpse Heap Mountain, a void of a hundred miles broke open in the thick layer of evil clouds, and right in the center hung a dim "Crescent Moon."

This "Crescent Moon" was indeed the Time-Space Rift.

Below the Crescent Moon, a thousand-yard-wide colossal bone ladder stood erect amidst the white mountains of bones, surrounded by numerous filthy rivulets of blood.

At that moment, endless zombies and skeletal creatures trudged tirelessly across the vast white bone land, gradually gathering around the bone ladder, forming an immense cannon fodder army that seemed endless at a glance.

Above the sky surrounding the bone ladder, an assortment of Flying Sky Temples and Floating Fortresses floated.

The temples were luxurious and magnificent, solemn and grand.

The Floating Fortresses were armed to the teeth, with the largest resembling a mountain hanging in the sky, wrapped in a defensive light shield ten zhang thick.

However, all the Flying Sky Temples and Floating Fortresses paled in comparison to a majestic and sacred golden hall that seized all the limelight.

The golden hall was positioned upon a sea of colorful auspicious clouds, enveloped by thousands of auspicious lights and divine radiance, looking like a Heavenly Palace. Hymns chanted within the hall carried a vast and solemn voice, possessing an unimaginable power.

The grand army of the Tian Dao Church had already gathered here, ready for combat. At this moment, if the Tianzhu Realm were to witness this terrifying scene, it would be greatly shocked, for no one expected the Tian Dao Church to suddenly wage an invasion war as the Star Gate was about to open.

About a half-hour later, six red streams of light suddenly came from afar and flew to the front of one of the Floating Fortresses. They stopped abruptly outside of the Light Shield, revealing six apostles of the Tian Dao Church dressed in Red Lotus Robes, each emitting an aura that warned others not to come close.

The foreheads of these six individuals were all marked with a Red Lotus Pattern. The leader was a tall, ghastly-faced, and extremely ugly old man with an eighteen-petaled Red Lotus on his brow, indicating his origins from the Ghost Chi Clan and his status as a Golden Core Main Priest.

The five individuals behind the Ghost Chi Elder had Red Lotus Patterns on their foreheads ranging from nine to twelve petals, clearly indicating their cultivations were at least above the Foundation Establishment Realm.

The ghastly-faced elder took out a golden six-pointed token and, facing the control cabin at the top of the fortress, shook it forcefully. The token immediately emitted a dazzling golden light.

The next moment, the Defensive Light Shield suddenly cracked open a passage, and the six flew in, descending upon Class A.

Just at that moment, a Daoist figure floated down from the control cabin at the top of the fortress, landing precisely in front of the tall elder.

"Haha, had I known that Inspector Xiao was going to honor us with his presence, I should have met you from afar. I hope the inspector will forgive the oversight, forgive me!" Xu Gong said with a smile on his face, greeting with a bow while laughing.

"I am here under orders to inspect various factions, to strictly search for hidden spies and secret agents within the army. I hope Master Xu will accommodate us by ordering everyone in the fortress to gather on Class A for inspection," the Ghost Chi Elder said very seriously, getting straight to the point with a rather proud tone.

Xu Gong was slightly taken aback, but he quickly agreed, "Certainly, certainly, I will summon everyone at once."

Moments later, Class A was packed with a dense crowd of people.

The Ghost Chi Elder signaled to his subordinates, and immediately three of the five stepped forward, soaring into the air, flying to different cabin doors, quickly entering inside to thoroughly search whether anyone was hiding in the fortress.

The Ghost Chi Elder then took out a Taoist Jade Scroll from his bosom, flipped to a certain page, and began to call names out loud.

"Xu Fuji, step forward!"

"Zhou Jiuniang, step forward!"

"..."

As each name was called, one after another, Heavenly Daoists stepped out from the crowd. Following that, the two inspectors conducted spells in their faces to verify their true identities.