Fifty years of time have passed in the blink of an eye.

On the shores of the East Sea, the "Immortal Mansion of Guixu" suddenly appeared, this grotto heaven left by ancient immortals floated above the azure waves.

At this moment, the clouds within a hundred thousand miles are dyed in gold and red—an anomaly manifested from the clash of fates between the two factions.

Inside the Immortal Mansion, cultivators from both factions are facing off.

On the eastern side of the plaza, the faction led by Zhang Lingwen of the Five Great Sects stood firm, with the golden cloud flag of Butian Dao, the immortal sword flag of Yuchen Sect, the cloud-patterned flag of Baiyun Temple, and other banners billowing in the wind.

Zhang Lingwen wore a silver-white daoist robe, with the "Heavenly Inquiry Profound Armor" on his chest emanating a faint golden glow.

This is the top-tier immortal artifact bestowed by the Heavenly Immortal Patriarch of Butian Dao, suppressing the sect’s fate. It was thanks to this that Zhang Lingwen managed to escape from the gates of hell last year.

Beside him stood Venerable Yixuan, Venerable Jianchen of Yuchen Sect, and three other top-tier Venerables of the Yin God realm, each surrounded by the aura of immortal artifacts suppressing their sect’s fate, unable to hide the gravity in their expressions.

...

On the western side of the plaza, a tide of unorthodox cultivators spread out like a tide.

The dark green banner of Zhushan Sect stood tall, and beneath it, the figure clad in the Purple Gold Daoist Robe was none other than Tiandu Zi, the one hailed as "the strongest of this era."

He stood with hands behind his back, surrounded by eight pillars of purple-gold aura. The sound of dragons and phoenixes faintly echoed within these pillars, a technique he created by merging the "Bamboo Hidden Great Method" with his own insights, known as the "Purple Mansion Eight Sufferings Reincarnation Method."

The Blood Venerable, Elder Sha, Gu Venerable, and other unorthodox giants stood on either side, their auras connected with Tiandu Zi’s, forming a black river of fate that stretched across the plaza.

This faction almost encompassed ninety percent of the unorthodox and loose cultivator Venerables of the current era, more imposing than the five great sects on the other side.

Tiandu Zi’s voice, resonating with the vibrations of the purple-gold aura, echoed in the Immortal Mansion:

"Zhang Lingwen, how have you been?"

"At last year’s battle at Gathering Cloud Peak, if it weren’t for you wearing the Heavenly Inquiry Profound Armor, you would have already become nourishment for my Eight Sufferings Spirits."

With a light wave of his hand, a purple-gold aura surged into the sky, transforming into an illusion of the battle at Gathering Cloud Peak last year.

In the image, he crushed the head of the chief of the suffering monks with one hand... among the seven-member group of fortune gatherers, five who had just cultivated into Yin God fell at his hand.

Zhang Lingwen managed to escape in disgrace with Ling Suxin, relying on the defense of the Heavenly Inquiry Profound Armor.

Hearing this, Zhang Lingwen’s face sank, the immortal cauldron in his palm heating slightly:

"Tiandu Zi, you have betrayed the righteous path, slaughtered fellow cultivators, today the Five Great Sects will enforce justice on behalf of the heavens and reckon for your crimes!"

"Enforcing justice on behalf of the heavens?"

Tiandu Zi laughed, his laughter shaking the stone walls of the Immortal Mansion:

"The ’heavens’ you speak of are but the heavens controlled by the five sects."

"Back then, my Zhushan faction was filled with prodigies, yet was stifled in the cradle because we obstructed your path."

"Now that I’ve broken free from the cage, I will overturn this web, giving all unorthodox cultivators a chance to ascend to immortality!"

With these words, the unorthodox cultivators behind him shouted in unison:

"Venerable Tiandu, unrivaled in the world!"

The sound waves roared like thunder, completely overwhelming the momentum of the five great sects.

Venerable Yixuan of Butian Dao exchanged glances with the surrounding daoists, their Yin Gods dispersing for secret communication:

"Be careful, Tiandu Zi has broken out of the Eight Suffering Cage set by the patriarch, creating a new technique with profound mysteries, his combat strength no less than average True Immortals."

He glanced at the purple-gold aura pillars around Tiandu Zi, his eyes full of dread:

"Last year, we the Venerables of the five sects held immortal artifacts, thinking we could ensure victory, yet he used the ’Resentment Encounter’ aura to incite the evil aura of the immortal artifacts, allowing him to escape easily."

"Afterward, he even devised schemes to separate and defeat us one by one, snatching even the Yuchen Immortal Sword. Had it not been for the restriction left by the patriarch on the sword, the consequences would have been unimaginable."

Upon hearing this, Venerable Jianchen of Yuchen Sect turned pale with anger:

"This vile creature harbors wild ambitions! With the fate he has gathered now, he could ascend to immortality, yet chooses to gather these unorthodox scoundrels, clearly intending to harvest more fate, hoping to surpass our patriarch upon entering the Immortal Realm!"

"Hmph, doesn’t he know the immensity of heaven and earth? Our patriarch has eternal life and boundless realms, far beyond his imagination!"

Venerable Yixuan scanned the unorthodox faction:

"And as for Elder Sha and the others, none of them are mere nobodies."

"Blood Venerable’s spiriting forbidden technique can devour fate, Elder Sha’s flowing sand array can trap immortal artifacts, Gu Venerable’s eroding heart Gu can taint Golden Cores."

"All of them have followed Tiandu Zi in breaking free from their predecessors’ frameworks, with strength rivaling that of orthodox cultivators like us."

...

Tiandu Zi, full of vibrant spirit, had amassed such a grand force, unparalleled before now. 𝐟𝗿𝐞𝚎𝚠𝐞𝚋𝕟𝐨𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝕔𝕠𝚖

So many unorthodox Venerables willing to follow him, saw within him the opportunity to slay the child of fate and ascend to immortality!

"No need for more words! Take action!"

Tiandu Zi, weary of further talking, made a gesture with his right hand, and the purple-gold aura pillars instantly condensed into a one-zhang-long "Eight Sufferings Reincarnation Banner."

It was engraved with twisted runes, each rune howling with the misery of "birth, aging, sickness, and death."

He flickered and appeared before the Five Great Sects’ faction as if by teleportation, the banner waving, cascading as purple-gold light fell like a waterfall.

"Form the array!"

At Venerable Yixuan’s command, Butian Dao’s "Five-Colored Heaven-Replenishing Array" and Yuchen Sect’s "Grand Jade Sword Array" simultaneously unfolded, five top-tier immortal artifacts forming a golden defensive net in the air.

"Clang—"

Sword Qi clashed with the defensive net, causing the plaza of the Immortal Mansion to shake violently, countless stones falling like raindrops.

The Venerables of the Five Great Sects all retreated with pale expressions.

Last time, Tiandu Zi had to devise strategies to defeat them one by one, but now he could directly overpower the combined defenses of five immortal artifacts!

"Everyone, follow me to break the array!"

Tiandu Zi shouted, his aura rising by three more degrees, and sudden purple-gold flames ignited on the Eight Sufferings Reincarnation Banner, the fire of burning heart, formed from the "unattainable" aura, capable of directly burning the spirituality of immortal artifacts.

Blood Venerable responded by casting the spiriting forbidden technique, a black aura pillar shot from his palm, entwining with Yuchen Sect’s defensive immortal artifact.

Elder Sha waved his hand, releasing flowing sand into thousands of sand blades, specifically targeting the gaps in the defensive net, while Gu Venerable released thousands of golden silkworm Gu, swooping toward the disciples of the Five Great Sects like a dark cloud.

Soon, a Venerable of Baiyun Temple’s Yin God realm was entangled by Gu Venerable’s golden silkworm Gu, his Dao heart corroded, and with a scream, his divine soul was extinguished.

Next, Elder Sha of Hesha Dao trapped a Venerable of Zixia Immortal Sect, and with Blood Venerable’s cooperation, they forcefully crushed the other party’s Golden Core.

"Tiandu Zi! How dare you!"

Seeing this, Zhang Lingwen activated all the power of the Heavenly Inquiry Profound Armor, transforming into a golden rainbow charging toward Tiandu Zi.

Tiandu Zi sidestepped to avoid it, sneering:

"Zhang Lingwen, your fate should have a new owner!"

With that, a mad gleam flickered in his eyes, the purple-gold aura pillars growing fiercely to trap Zhang Lingwen tightly.

Outside the Immortal Mansion, the once-clear sky suddenly filled with ominous clouds.

The top-tier combat power of the Five Great Sects was entangled by Tiandu Zi and the six, while others faced the overwhelming advantage in numbers of the unorthodox side, completely outmatched!

The cheers of the unorthodox cultivators grew louder, while the faction of the Five Great Sects retreated step by step.

More and more Yin God Venerables perished, their fate being devoured by the Eight Sufferings aura pillars around Tiandu Zi, causing the purple-gold flames to burn ever more fiercely.

Tiandu Zi howled to the sky, looking at the pale-faced Zhang Lingwen, his eyes full of confident arrogance.

Soon, he would be able to slay the child of fate, devour all fate, and after ascension, even among immortals he would be a force to be reckoned with, fearing not the patriarchs of the five sects.

"Hahaha! The fate of this world shall be mine!"