In that one astonis.h.i.+ng moment, Han Qinglei and the other Han Clan cultivators were completely shaken. Meng Hao’s gesture caused an enormous illusory hand to appear in the starry sky, stretch out to cover the entire area occupied by the cultivators from the Seventh Mountain and Sea, and then clench down viciously.

A boom could be heard, and the void shuddered. Looks of shock appeared on the faces of all the cultivators, and many of them began to scream.

Each and every one, regardless of the level of their cultivation bases, felt an intense, indescribable pressure weighing down all over, mixed in with a power of expulsion.

It was as if the starry sky had rejected them, and wished to expel them. It was as if they were being rejected... by the Mountain and Sea Realm!

The cultivators with cultivation bases lower than the Ancient Realm simply couldn’t take the pressure. Screams rang out as their bodies distorted under the pressure, until they didn't even look human. Then they exploded into clouds of gore!

Next were the early Ancient Realm cultivators, who began bleeding out of their ears, eyes, noses, and mouths. After holding on for a short time, expressions of terror and despair flickered on their faces, and they were crushed to pulp.

Bitter laughter rang out, as well as angry roars and even pleas for mercy. Those came from the mid Ancient Realm cultivators. Seeing everyone around them with lower cultivation bases than themselves being crushed to b.l.o.o.d.y paste, and smelling the reek of gore, caused their hearts to explode with intense feelings of hopelessness. Many of them unleashed divine abilities or magical items. But the divine abilities were destroyed as soon as they appeared, and the magical items shattered.

These cultivators lasted for only a few breaths of time before they were crushed into a jumbled mixture of bone and b.l.o.o.d.y flesh.

Next were the late Ancient Realm cultivators and those in the great circle. Before they could flee, they were also destroyed in body and spirit. As for the three enormous spiders, cracking sounds echoed out from them, and their legs began to twist. As their bodies were squashed into indiscernible shapes, green blood sprayed out.

And last... were the three Dao Realm experts. They watched wide-eyed as the 3,000 cultivators were reduced to b.l.o.o.d.y pulp, and boundless ripples emanated out into the starry sky. They were in a h.e.l.l of gore, and they started trembling and coughing up blood; they too were being crushed under the pressure.

“NO!!” One of them began to laugh bitterly as he reached the point where he couldn’t hold on any longer. He produced all of the magical items he possessed, and even spit an enormous bell out of his mouth as he tried to fight back. But all of his magical items were crushed, and his body began to distort.

The other two Dao Realm cultivators laughed bitterly as they chose to self-detonate. Flight was impossible, as the starry sky had already been locked down tight. There was simply no chance for them.

Rumbling filled the air as the two Dao Realm Patriarchs’ power of self-detonation was overwhelmed by the gigantic hand, and then crushed.

All of this takes some while to describe, but actually happened within a few blinks of an eye. The area previously occupied by 3,000 cultivators from the Seventh Mountain and Sea was transformed into a mist of blood as all of them were crushed to death!

Countless cultivators and magical items were squashed together along with the bodies of the spiders, forming a huge b.l.o.o.d.y paste, a swirl of green, white, and red fluid. The sight was spine-tinglingly shocking.

Han Qinglei’s face was ashen, and the two Han Clan Patriarchs, despite having partic.i.p.ated in many b.l.o.o.d.y battles, began to s.h.i.+ver and look over at Meng Hao with dread.

Everyone else was staring with wide eyes and open mouths. Some of the women even vomited. When they looked at Meng Hao, their eyes flickered with the fear that you might expect to see if they were staring at a fiendish, bloodthirsty beast. Meng Hao was even more terrifying than the Seventh Mountain and Sea.

“What power was that...?” Han Qinglei murmured. He looked at the horrifying b.l.o.o.d.y paste, then back at Meng Hao, and realized to his bitterness that at some point, Meng Hao had long since surpa.s.sed him. Surpa.s.sed him to the point where he could never catch up.

“The power of the Mountain and Sea Realm,” Meng Hao said quietly. Ever since entering the Ancient Realm and igniting his Paragon Soul Lamp, it had become much easier for him to sense the Mountain and Sea Realm.

Before, he had been forced to stimulate the Paragon's blood inside of him to summon the power of the sun and moon. Now, he didn’t need to do that. A mere thought on his part could unleash the power of the Mountains and Seas.

Although he couldn't use much, he was certain that as his cultivation base grew, and more importantly, as his Demon Sealer's aura grew stronger, the day would come when a single thought on his part could determine whether the entire Mountain and Sea Realm would continue to exist.

That was because he was... the Ninth Generation Demon Sealer, and also... the Lord of the Mountain and Sea Realm!

Meng Hao smiled at Han Qinglei and said, “Brother Han, welcome to the Meng Clan. You’ll be safe here. Please, follow me!”

Mixed emotions could be seen in Han Qinglei’s eyes. After a moment, he clasped hands and bowed deeply to Meng Hao, then followed him, along with the rest of the Han Clan cultivators, back to the Meng Clan ancestral mansion. After formally meeting Grandma Meng, the survivors from the Han Clan were given some land in the ancestral mansion on the central continent, a place where they could multiply and rebuild.

In the following days, Meng Hao spent most of his time cultivating in the huge statue, although he would occasionally visit Han Qinglei to reminisce about old times.

The land that had been given to the Han Clan had an frosty lake in it, which was filled with Jadefrost Fish. Jadefrost Fish happened to have a lovely flavor that Meng Hao fell in love with as soon as he tasted it, so he often spent time at that lake, fis.h.i.+ng with Han Qinglei.

It was a quiet respite from the brutal war which was being fought outside in the Eighth Mountain and Sea. Han Qinglei often grew absent-minded, and sometimes even forgot about the war outside.

“Brother Meng, mm... with the level of your cultivation base, why is it that you’re not helping the Eighth Mountain and Sea drive out the invaders from the Seventh Mountain and Sea?” It was a question Han Qinglei had pondered for some time, and had been refraining from asking for many days. But one day, as he sat next to the frosty lake with Meng Hao, fis.h.i.+ng, he finally gave voice to it.

Meng Hao didn’t answer at first. He jerked on his line that had been cast out into the lake, and immediately a large, jade-colored fish was yanked out of the water. He reeled it in, and it turned out to be well over a meter long. He pointed at it, whereupon a nearby Meng Clan cultivator approached and wrestled with the struggling fish, pinning it to the ground and then placing it into the fish basket.

“Brother Han,” he said quietly, “this war... is not going to end. Furthermore, even if the Seventh Mountain and Sea hadn’t made a move, one of the other Mountains and Seas would have....” After entering the Ancient Realm, something had changed about Meng Hao’s voice, and it somehow seemed more ancient.

He sighed and looked up into the sky, toward the border of the Mountain and Sea Realm, the 33 Heavens. “I’ll make my move, but now is not the time.

“Did you ever notice that the starry sky seems to have a lid covering it? And that that ceiling is slowly getting closer?” Meng Hao’s words caused Han Qinglei to gape in surprise. He suddenly looked up into the boundless sky, and the endless stars, and began to breathe deeply.

“You mean... the 33 Heavens?!”

After a quiet moment pa.s.sed, Meng Hao looked out at the frosty pond and calmly said, “I'm afraid that before too long, the 33 Heavens will likely descend.”

Han Qinglei’s face fell. He had been among the group that had gone to the Windswept Realm as Meng Hao had. He clearly remembered what the 33 Heavens represented, and knew that there were terrifyingly powerful experts there.

“Well... what are we going to do?” Han Qinglei asked bitterly. Before, he had taken the invasion of the Seventh Mountain and Sea to be some shocking and profound thing. But now he realized that it was merely a prelude. And yet, the Han Clan had almost been wiped away in that mere prelude, a prelude that to him already felt like the end of days. If war broke out with the 33 Heavens... then he wasn’t sure what he should do. He stared out into s.p.a.ce, completely at a loss.

Meng Hao looked over at Han Qinglei, and then, his expression completely earnest and serious, said, “Get stronger! It doesn’t matter what war we’re talking about, the invasion of the Seventh Mountain and Sea, war with other Mountains and Seas, or even the arrival of the 33 Heavens. Even... the return of the two powers who destroyed the Paragon Immortal Realm oh so long ago. What you need to do in any and all cases... is get stronger!

“War cannot be avoided. Perhaps paradise exists somewhere, but definitely not in the Mountain and Sea Realm.

“The true war will come sooner or later. And we will all be fighting in it.” Meng Hao’s eyes slowly began to s.h.i.+ne with a brilliant light. Finally, he tapped his finger down onto the ground, causing a ripple to spread out and eventually fill the entire continent.

It was something he had done frequently in the past months. Even when he was in secluded meditation, he had often sent his divine sense out, fusing his cultivation base with the lands, outlining an enormous spell formation.

Meng Hao didn’t actually know much about spell formations. However, the particulars of this underground spell formation wasn’t what was important, what was important was that the power that formed the framework of that formation was Meng Hao’s... power of the Mountain and Sea Realm.

“Almost finished,” he murmured to himself.

Han Qinglei sat there silently, with a bitter look on his face.

“I still don't understand, though,” he said finally. “You could do something in the war right now. With your cultivation base, you could stop it! If fewer people died, then the Mountain and Sea Realm would be more powerful in the future!

“Furthermore, right now there are enemies lying in wait for us on the Outside, and yet we’re at war amongst ourselves. There’s no point in fighting among ourselves!”

Meng Hao was silent for a moment, then finally said, “It’s not the right time. The right time is coming. Soon.”

He actually didn't explain the reason why he was not fighting in the war.

Only he knew that the reason he wasn't fighting was because... he wasn’t alone here in the Eighth Mountain and Sea. He had the Meng Clan to look after.

Even if he didn't care much about all the other members of the Meng Clan, he cared about his grandmother. And his grandmother and her people cared about the clan in general. If Meng Hao went out and fought in the resistance against the Seventh Mountain and Sea, he would definitely suffer retribution at their hands. And in the end... he was only one person.

In the end, he could choose to defend against the Seventh Mountain and Sea’s retaliation, or to escape , but the Meng Clan could not make that choice. As long as the Meng Clan existed, if Meng Hao stepped in... then the clan would be dragged into the conflict and be exterminated.

That was why he had not stepped in, and the Seventh Mountain and Sea surely realized that. Therefore... that was why they had chosen not to provoke him, and why he and they had been able to maintain a sort of fragile impa.s.se.