With the resolution set, the operation unfolded rapidly. A counterattack on the Demon Plane was no child's play; it required meticulous planning and the deployment of all elite forces.
Following an emergency consultation, the final strategy was decided: this expedition aimed to strike with thunderous momentum, utilizing the mobility and assault capabilities of high-tier combatants to focus on the top-level forces of the Demon Plane, rather than attempting a full-scale occupation. Therefore, the participants were chosen for quality rather than quantity.
The final roster consisted entirely of elites with cultivation levels of Soul Sage or higher, totaling around three hundred people. This included:
Top-tier combatants: Yu Yuanchen, Qian Chongxiao (wielding the Angel Sacred Sword), Qian Daoliu, Tang Chen, Yu Boxuan (peak Level 97), Tang Gan (Level 97), and Golden Crocodile Douluo (peak Level 97).
Core experts: Azure Peak Douluo of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, Feng Zaiyun of the Wind Sword Sect, Dai Jingxuan of the White Tiger Sect, Shi Feng of the Black Tortoise Sect, the Sect Master of the Fire Leopard Sect, and other Titled Douluo from various sects, as well as Soul Douluo and elite Soul Sages from the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan, Clear Sky Sect, and Martial Soul Hall.
Support forces: Ning Zhiyuan of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, along with Ye Kuan and Ye Zhilan, leading several support system soul masters above the Soul Sage level.
This lineup encompassed nearly half of the high-tier power within the human soul master world of the Douluo Continent! If they were lost in the Demon Plane, the consequences would be unimaginable. Yet, it was precisely for this reason that the determination and courage behind this operation were so evident!
Yu Yuanchen looked at the assembled group and said in a deep voice, "Everyone, behind this gate lies the unknown Demon Plane—an environment that is harsh and fraught with danger. Remember, we are an expeditionary force. Our goal is to weaken the enemy's top-tier strength and seize strategic initiative, not to fight for every inch of ground. Follow my orders in all actions; do not strike without authorization or act recklessly for the sake of glory!"
"We will obey the Young Sect Master's (Young Friend Yuanchen's) orders!" the group replied in unison, their high morale tinged with gravity.
"Good! I will clear the way first to investigate the situation. Wait for my signal before entering one by one!" After saying this, Yu Yuanchen turned to face the Hell Gate, which was tightly blocked by a purple-gold lightning pillar.
With a thought, the light of the lightning pillar on the side facing the Douluo Continent fluctuated slightly, opening a gap just wide enough for one person to pass through. Immediately, the thick, pungent smell of sulfur and the aura of chaotic evil from behind the gate rushed toward him.
Yu Yuanchen's eyes narrowed, lightning swirling around his body. He stepped forward, his figure instantly vanishing into the distorted blood-colored light.
A brief sensation of spatial transition followed, accompanied by intense dizziness and discomfort. Had it not been for Yu Yuanchen's profound mastery of space and his formidable physical body, even an ordinary Titled Douluo would have felt overwhelmed.
His feet touched the ground, and the sensation of solid earth returned. Yu Yuanchen quickly steadied himself, his vast spiritual power spreading out like a tide as he vigilantly observed his surroundings.
The scene that met his eyes was enough to shatter the mind of anyone with a weak will!
The sky was an eternal dark red, devoid of the sun, moon, and stars, filled only with thick, rolling clouds that looked like congealed blood, emitting a depressing light.
The ground was charred and cracked, with rivers of dark red magma flowing everywhere, radiating scorching heat and a pungent smell of sulfur that burned the lungs with every breath. In the distance, the outlines of twisted mountains and burning forests were vaguely visible.
The tone of this entire world was one of chaos, deathly silence, and destruction.
This was the Demon Plane! The territory ruled by Salvos—the Scorching Purgatory!
Clearly, because the Demon King Salvos was fire-aspected, its territory was also filled with violent fire elements. However, this harsh environment was a massive test for the soul masters entering it; their soul power consumption would accelerate, and those with weak wills might even be eroded by the evil aura.
Not far ahead of Yu Yuanchen, a massive, dense crowd of demons had gathered! They were varied in form but generally restless, hissing toward the direction of the Hell Gate. Clearly, these were the demon troops that had been blocked behind the gate and failed to enter the Douluo Continent, among which were many powerful high-tier demons. When they suddenly saw a human emerge from the gate, they were stunned for a moment before letting out frantic roars and surging forward like a tide!
"Hiss--!"
"A human! Kill him!"
Thousands of demons, like starving wolves seeing fresh meat, spat hellfire and brandished sharp claws and bone blades, pouncing on Yu Yuanchen from all directions!
Yu Yuanchen's expression remained unchanged, a cold glint flashing in his eyes. Perfect, I'll use you all to test how much the environment of the Demon Plane suppresses my domain!
"Heavenly Tribulation Sacred Dragon Domain, activate!"
Hum!
Centered on Yu Yuanchen, a purple-gold thunder domain with a diameter of over five hundred meters suddenly expanded! Within the domain, lightning stood like a forest, electric snakes danced wildly, and a destructive aura permeated the air! Compared to the Douluo Continent, Yu Yuanchen could clearly feel an invisible repulsion and suppression while deploying his domain in the Demon Plane; the range had shrunk by nearly thirty percent, and its power was slightly diminished, but it remained overwhelmingly formidable!
Rumble--!
Without needing Yu Yuanchen to control it specifically, the violent lightning naturally generated within the domain acted as if it had a life of its own, automatically locking onto the invading demons! Thick purple-gold lightning bolts struck down like whips of divine punishment!
Sizzle, sizzle, sizzle--!
The screams of the demons rang out in unison! Low-tier lesser demons and inferior demons were vaporized instantly by the lightning! Mid-tier demons like blade demons and hell demons were charred black, their demonic energy dissipating as they collapsed and convulsed! Even the few high-tier demons at the Soul Douluo level who charged into the domain found it impossible to move under the continuous bombardment of lightning, and were soon reduced to charcoal by concentrated strikes!
After a few rounds of flashing lightning, the area within the domain was cleared! Only charred remains and wisps of blue smoke were left on the ground.
Yu Yuanchen nodded slightly, having made a preliminary assessment of the domain's power. He retracted the domain and turned to send a signal of soul power toward the Hell Gate.
The group, having waited outside the gate, received the signal and immediately followed the predetermined order, quickly passing through the portal.
When the last person stepped into the Demon Plane, Yu Yuanchen cast the "Holy Dragon Town Prison Tribulation" once more, but this time from the side of the Demon Plane, sealing the portal shut again! The purple-gold lightning sealed the entrance once more, cutting off any possibility of the demons attacking from the rear and ensuring their retreat path remained temporarily secure.
"So this is the Demon Plane?" Tang Chen curiously examined the dark red horizon and the flowing magma, sniffing hard and coughing twice from the sulfur smell. "Pah! It smells like hell!"
Qian Daoliu's body radiated a faint holy light, isolating the evil aura that attempted to erode him, his brows furrowed. "A land of evil; it should be burned away by holy fire."
Qian Chongxiao held the Angel Sacred Sword, his expression grave as he sensed his surroundings. "The environment of this Demon Plane has a clear restriction on the sacred attribute; my strength has been weakened by about half a percent. Young Friend Yuanchen, how shall we proceed?"
Yu Yuanchen had already obtained general information about Salvos's territory through soul searching. He pointed in a direction. "According to intelligence, Salvos's lair, a demon castle called the 'Heart of Molten Fire', is about a thousand miles away in this direction. Our first step is to go there."
"Go to the Demon King's lair?" Ning Zhiyuan asked, somewhat surprised. "Isn't that too risky?"
Yu Yuanchen explained, "Salvos took almost all the elites of its territory with it for this invasion. The forces left to guard the castle must be empty. We are going there for two reasons: first, to root out the weeds and eliminate its remaining forces; second... to seize something of vital importance."
"What is it?" the group asked curiously.
"An artifact capable of opening a planar passage—its true form is called the 'Hell Gate'," Yu Yuanchen said, shocking everyone. "The gate we faced earlier was merely a projection of its power. This artifact was birthed from the origin of the Demon Plane. Although its quality is not as high as the Angel Sacred Sword, it possesses the eerie ability to communicate, locate, and even forcibly open connections to other planar passages. The five Demon Kings take turns holding it, and it just happens to be in Salvos's hands now. If we can seize it, we can not only cut off the possibility of the Demon Plane easily invading the Douluo Continent, but perhaps even use it for our own purposes in the future!"
Upon hearing this, everyone was overjoyed! If they could control this gate, the significance would be immense!
There was no time to lose. The elite team of over three hundred, led by Yu Yuanchen, suppressed their auras and turned into streaks of blurred light, speeding toward the "Heart of Molten Fire" castle.
A distance of a thousand miles was not far for this group of experts, all of whom were at least Soul Sages. Any small groups of demons encountered along the way were silently disposed of without causing any major commotion.
About an hour later, a towering, hideous black castle appeared on the horizon. The castle was built against a massive river of magma and was constructed entirely of a certain dark red demon rock. At the top of the castle, there were faint fluctuations of powerful demonic energy, but compared to the expected defenses of a Demon King's residence, it did indeed seem quite sparse.
Yu Yuanchen scanned the area with his spiritual power and confirmed, "Inside the castle, there are only two strong auras, roughly equivalent to Level 95 Super Douluo; they must be the Great Demon commanders left behind. The rest are just cannon fodder. It seems that fellow Salvos has emptied its home base."
"Attack!" Yu Yuanchen gave the order!
Over three hundred human elites, like unsheathed sharp swords, charged straight toward the Demon Castle! Yu Boxuan and Tang Gan moved like two bolts of lightning, instantly pouncing on the two Great Demon gatekeepers! The terrifying pressure of the Thunder Sacred Dragon and the Clear Sky Hammer erupted suddenly!
"Enemy Attack!" The two Great Demons were shocked and furious. Just as they tried to resist, they were firmly suppressed by Yu Boxuan's dragon claws and Tang Gan's heavy hammer! The gap in strength was obvious; they couldn't even organize a decent defense before being quickly crippled and captured!
At the same time, Titled Douluo like Azure Peak Douluo, Feng Zaiyun, and Dai Jingxuan charged into the Demon Guards like tigers into a flock of sheep! Sword light, wind blades, and tiger claws flew; those elite demons fell like wheat under the absolute disparity in strength! The Soul Sages in the rear were responsible for cleaning up the stragglers and delivering the finishing blows.
The battle started fast and ended even faster! In just a few dozen breaths, the guards outside the castle gate were wiped out, and the two Great Demon captives were knocked unconscious and sealed.
"Enter the castle!"
Yu Yuanchen struck with his palm, and the heavy Obsidian Gate shattered with a boom! The group surged into the castle interior like a tide.
The interior of the castle was vast, with intricate, complex passages filled with the smell of sulfur and blood. Occasionally, they encountered sporadic Demon Servants or low-level guards, all of whom were quickly dealt with.
Yu Yuanchen's powerful Spiritual Power spread out, scanning the entire castle like a radar. He soon locked onto the areas where the Demonic Energy was densest and the decorations were most "luxurious"—the treasury, the bedchambers, and... an altar located in the deepest part of the castle, guarded by powerful Restrictions!
"Split up! Sect Master Yu, Sect Master Tang, take your men to clear out the remaining demons and search the treasury and bedchambers. Elder Qian, Brother Daoliu, Brother Tang, follow me to the altar!" Yu Yuanchen quickly assigned the tasks.
The group acknowledged the orders and immediately split up.
Yu Yuanchen led Qian Chongxiao, Qian Daoliu, and Tang Chen straight toward the altar in the deepest part of the castle. Along the way, the Restrictions were easily broken like paper under Yu Yuanchen's Thunder Power.
Finally, they arrived before a massive Black Stone Giant Gate carved with countless twisted, painful faces. The evil and spatial fluctuations emanating from the gate were intense to the extreme!
"This is it." Yu Yuanchen could feel that there was an extremely special item behind the gate.
He pointed his fingers like a sword, and a condensed bolt of lightning shot out, striking the giant gate!
Boom!
The giant gate trembled violently, the demon faces on its surface let out silent wails, and the light of the Restrictions flickered rapidly before finally shattering completely! The gate slowly opened inward.
The scene behind the gate appeared before the four of them.
This was a huge circular altar hall. In the center of the altar, there was no idol being worshipped; instead, there floated a miniature version of the Hell Gate—a pitch-black frame, identical in form to the one outside, emitting faint spatial fluctuations!
This frame was only a little over a person's height, constructed from a strange material that was neither gold nor jade, with dark red halos flowing across its surface. Inside the frame, it was not solid, but a deep, dark vortex that constantly rotated, as if connecting to an unknown distance. A vast, ancient fluctuation containing the origin of the plane radiated from this small frame.
"This is... the main body of the... Hell Gate?!" Qian Chongxiao's pupils shrank, and he gasped in shock. The Angel Sacred Sword in his hand emitted a violent hum; it was a natural reaction to encountering a divine artifact of the same level!
A brilliant Gleam erupted in Yu Yuanchen's eyes: "Correct! This is the auxiliary divine artifact born from the origin of the Demon Plane—the Hell Gate! That portal outside is merely its projection! Whoever can control this object possesses the qualification to open a Planar Passage to other planes under certain conditions!"
He understood in his heart; no wonder the Demon Plane could repeatedly invade the Douluo Continent—it relied on this divine artifact! Although its quality might not be equal to offensive divine artifacts like the Angel Sacred Sword, its strategic value was immeasurable!
"This object must never be left to the demons!" Yu Yuanchen stepped forward and reached out to grab the floating pitch-black frame!
However, the moment his palm was about to touch the frame, a sudden change occurred!
Countless dark red Runes suddenly lit up around the altar! The entire hall trembled violently! Four terrifying wills, no less powerful than the Demon King Salvos, seemed to be awakened from their slumber and descended with a boom! Four roars filled with endless tyranny and greed exploded in the minds of the four men:
"Humans! How dare you covet our clan's supreme treasure! You are courting death!"
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Translated by: randomtranslator.com
Proofread by: GodKun-Chan