The newcomer was none other than White Jade Tower.
The old man who had once burned out his heart lamp in Luling to stall the Demon Saint.
Though he was later treated with the cold jade udumbara brought back by Jiang Yuechu and showed signs of relighting his heart lamp.
But his recovery was not that fast after all.
At this moment.
This Commander-in-Chief of the Great Tang's Demon Suppression Division.
Was actually carrying his barely recovered, broken body.
And standing here once again!
"Master!!!"
Lü Qinghou and Gu Wanlan looked panicked; others might not know, but as Personal Disciples, how could they not know the old man's current state?
He had only barely managed to hang on to a breath of life thanks to the cold jade udumbara.
Walking on air like this... he must have exhausted all his strength; how could he still face an enemy?!
"This old geezer... he's about to die, yet he still insists on playing the hero! Think you're the only one who can, do you?!"
Zhao Zhongliu cursed under his breath but drew the iron mace from his waist.
In the next moment.
Three figures soared into the sky.
No one from the Demon Suppression Division looked back.
As Lü Qinghou propelled himself higher, he roared at those below: "What are you still standing there for? If this Imperial City falls and the Li clan is wiped out, do you really think these beasts will spare you?!"
"When the nest is overturned, no egg remains unbroken!"
"Do I really have to teach you this logic myself?!"
Prompted by Lü Qinghou, the Old Ancestors of the various families all came to their senses.
Boom—
An aura rose from the ground.
With someone leading the way, others followed.
In just a few breaths.
Streaks of light rose from all over Chang'an City.
A total of over a dozen Mountain Gazing Realm Martial Venerables cast aside their usual self-preservation and Family interests.
At this moment.
They all followed the three from the Demon Suppression Division, charging forward without hesitation.
Though their might could not compare to the five Immortal Masters, they managed to carve out a piece of the sky amidst the overwhelming gloom.
Lü Qinghou looked at the crowd gathering behind him and shouted, "Kill!!"
With that, he took the lead and did not look back.
Venerable Green Snake lowered his gaze, looking at the dozen figures rushing toward them, and sneered: "They haven't even entered the heart lamp stage, yet they dare to attack us?!"
"How laughably overconfident!"
Beside him, Venerable Black Spider chuckled sinisterly: "Since they're in such a hurry to die, let's fulfill their wish."
As the words fell.
The two Immortal Masters raised their hands simultaneously.
Boom—
Green and black mist transformed into a snake and a spider, roaring as they surged out.
In just an instant.
Seven or eight Old Ancestors from the families perished instantly.
A storm of blood rained down from the sky.
Lü Qinghou couldn't dodge in time; half his body was shattered instantly, and his entire frame plummeted downward.
Gu Wanlan's face was also pale; if not for Zhao Zhongliu's sharp eyes and desperate pull, she likely would have followed in the footsteps of those Old Ancestors.
The survivors hung in mid-air, looking battered.
Looking at the empty spaces beside them and the still-falling blood rain.
A chill rose in their hearts... was this the difference between immortal and mortal?
This scene left the countless Martial Artists below terrified, their legs trembling.
In the crowd, a young man in fine clothes watched this scene with bloodshot eyes.
He had grown up hearing the legendary names of these Mountain Gazing Martial Venerables, and now he saw them simply vanish.
Not even a complete corpse remained... He instinctively roared at the elders of his Family beside him: "Second Uncle! Third Grandpa! Let's go help!"
However.
The elders lowered their heads in helplessness, like children: "What could we possibly help with..."
Even the famous Mountain Gazing Martial Venerables in the sky were like moths to a flame, flickering briefly before turning to ash.
Second and third-rate Family Old Ancestors like them, only in the Seed Lotus or Ink Dot Realm... what could they do besides stretch out their necks and wait for death?
What other way was there?
An older man said despondently: "Wrong... we were all wrong."
"We always thought we had to leave ourselves a way out... even if the Li Family fell and the Dynasty changed, there would still be the Zhao Family, the Zhu Family..."
To govern the world and guard the land, they would ultimately have to rely on these aristocratic families.
Emperors come and go, but the families remain.
This was their confidence and the basis for their self-preservation in these chaotic times.
But now they realized.
Against such unreasonable outsiders... what value did a Family have?!
At this moment.
Countless people felt a truly absurd thought rising in their hearts.
If from the very beginning.
The heart lamp experts of the families within the Great Tang had not sought the Great Dao of Longevity.
But had instead guarded this Mortal World.
Perhaps.
Facing this moment.
The scene atop the walls of Chang'an would not be so desolate.
Unfortunately.
There are no 'ifs' in this world.
Only results.
Venerable Yellow Centipede frowned as he saw the interest of those beside him.
These individuals had clearly lived in isolation for a long time, enduring years of solitary cultivation.
Now that they had finally entered the bustling Mortal World and faced the despair of a nation's people, they had developed a cat-and-mouse mentality.
"Enough, stop holding back."
"Delays lead to complications. Level Chang'an first, then find the main culprit."
Hearing this.
Though Venerable Green Snake and Venerable Black Spider were not yet satisfied, they did not dare to object.
After all, their descent from the mountain was for the sake of the orthodoxy's great affairs; if they ruined things by playing around, no one could bear the responsibility.
Venerable Green Snake licked his lips and said apologetically to the wary Mountain Gazing Martial Venerables in the distance: "My apologies... letting you live a few breaths longer was my mistake..."
But before he could finish.
In the northern sky.
A speck of golden-blue light suddenly appeared.
A chill rose in Venerable Green Snake's heart, and he instinctively looked sideways in terror.
Boom—!!!
A dull explosion thundered high in the sky.
A fist slammed squarely into his eye socket.
The massive impact instantly pierced through his skull; his body could no longer maintain its position and plummeted straight down.
"Hmm?!"
This happened far too quickly.
So fast that the other four Immortal Masters only reacted after Green Snake hit the ground.
The four Immortal Masters all turned their heads, their expressions changing drastically.
This aura... "Primordial Spirit?!"
Red Toad True Man asked in confusion: "Where did this Martial Immortal come from?!"
Five Immortals Mountain had been entrenched within the Great Tang for countless ages.
Though they claimed to be an immortal sect that did not involve itself in the Mortal World, their eyes had never once strayed from the map of the Great Tang.
The news of a Tower-Ascending Martial Immortals appearing in the Great Tang could never have escaped their notice!
Moreover, the fact that they couldn't even react in that single instant proved how terrifying the newcomer's methods were!
Though they were called Immortal Masters, in the end, they were only in the Tower Ascending Realm.
Now that a rival of the same realm had suddenly appeared, with unknown origins and domineering methods, this variable... was too great.
With this thought.
The four of them ignored the ants below.
They all turned to face the newcomer, as if facing a formidable foe.
High in the sky.
Wild winds howled, scattering the haze across the sky.
A figure stood suspended in the air.
His entire body was woven with golden and blue light, and a brilliant sun hung behind his head, illuminating all directions.
White mist swirled around him, with thousands of auspicious currents and ten thousand rays of glowing light.
Shining upon heaven and earth, he exerted pressure over all living beings.
Like a Divine Lord descending to the Mortal World, overlooking the Mortal Tai Sui.