This was almost the entirety of the experts from the Barren Alliance present, all focused into a single strike.

This strike, even for the mighty Lu Yuan, was a challenge against fate.

Not to mention that Lu Yuan was already severely wounded, spitting blood incessantly.

But at this moment, no one could clearly discern Lu Yuan’s condition; countless characters, each radiating a distinct light, converged. With so many lights merged, even the keenest eyes were useless.

Then, with a roar from Lu Yuan, seven Devouring Dragons appeared simultaneously.

These were seven perfect Devouring Dragons.

The golden Gold-Devouring Dragon let out a long roar; one dragon cry was enough to sweep up all the gold-element characters. These gold characters were incredibly hard, yet the Gold-Devouring Dragon possessed the ability to smelt metal, instantly refining them all. After melting these gold characters, the Gold-Devouring Dragon funneled the resulting character essence into the Dao Character Clone.

Immediately, the azure Wood-Devouring Dragon emerged. This azure dragon coiled around all the wood-element characters, and the essence of countless wood characters flowed into the Dao Character Clone.

When the scarlet Fire-Devouring Dragon appeared, the fire-element characters tried to flee, but it afforded them no chance. With a surge of draconic might, the torrent of fire characters was entirely swallowed by the Fire-Devouring Dragon. Inside its belly, they transformed into a sea of fire, becoming character essence that surged toward the Dao Character Clone like molten lava.

The white Water-Devouring Dragon appeared, manifesting countless water lines that shot out in all directions. Any water character struck by these lines was drawn into the dragon’s maw as if countless streams were returning to the ocean. Since all water is fundamentally one, this essence required little refinement before flowing into the Dao Character Clone.

The earthen-colored Earth-Devouring Dragon emerged, the largest of the seven. It simply tilted its head, and the earth-element characters were automatically sucked toward it. After refining them all into character essence, the dragon sent this essence surging toward the Dao Character Clone.

The Wind-Devouring Dragon was the slenderest of the seven, the last one Lu Yuan had condensed. It flashed into existence, moving with lightning speed. Before the wind characters could react, they were captured, rapidly transforming into character essence that blasted toward the Dao Character Clone in powerful gusts.

The Thunder-Devouring Dragon crackled with lightning, the most domineering of them all. The lightning characters attempted to resist and clash head-on, but just how tyrannical the Thunder-Devouring Dragon was became clear as it instantly unleashed countless bolts, striking the resisting characters. Then, with a lift of its neck, it engulfed them all, soon sending the refined essence of lightning characters into the Dao Character Clone.

Each of the seven Devouring Dragons possessed its own unique majesty.

These were no ordinary dragons; they were the Devouring Dragons created by the Ancestral Dragon.

Nameless Devouring.

However, not all nearly ten thousand characters were absorbed.

Three characters from ancient civilizations still shimmered in the sky.

Indeed, the characters from the five ancient civilizations were not limited to a single elemental attribute but were composites of multiple elements. The single-attribute Devouring Dragons could not handle these secondary-level characters.

Lu Yuan cared little, letting out a long shout: “Total Devourer Transformation: Seven Dragons Unite!”

What a sight the seven Devouring Dragons became as they fused together—the Gold-Devouring Dragon, Wood-Devouring Dragon, Fire-Devouring Dragon, Water-Devouring Dragon, Earth-Devouring Dragon, Wind-Devouring Dragon, and Thunder-Devouring Dragon all merged into one. A layer of chaotic color seemed to cloak the seven dragons, and before them, an immense Maw of Devouring materialized.

Magnificent Total Devourer Transformation, the union of the Seven Dragons!

As that Maw of Devouring opened, instantly, the texts of the Buddhist Ancient Civilization that eroded fighting spirit, the texts of the Immortal Ancient Civilization that appeared supremely immortal yet possessed devastating power against the Barren race, and the texts of the Barren Ancient Civilization brimming with primeval dominance—all were sucked into the Devouring Maw. What did it matter how formidable ancient civilization characters were compared to regular ones? Facing Nameless Devouring, defeat was their only fate.

So satisfying!

Eight streams of heat rushed into the Dao Character Clone.

What was initially a ten-percent strength Dao Character Clone began to rapidly expand after Lu Yuan injected the eight streams of heat. Initially, it was just a simple Dao Character Clone, but now, Lu Yuan realized it was subtly taking on the aura of one capable of challenging the world, imbued with endless profound mysteries that defied detailed inspection.

What a Dao Character Clone!

Lu Yuan was certain that the current Dao Character Clone was no longer at ten percent, but at thirty percent.

The higher the level of the Dao Character Clone, the harder it became to advance.

He decided to test the offensive power of the Dao Character Clone. Lu Yuan summoned it to collide directly with the initial character, the 'Zheng' () character. The two characters smashed together with a thunderous boom, instantly triggering countless peals of thunder that seemed to threaten his nascent Sword World. Lu Yuan watched the collision result… only to find the two were evenly matched.

That was right; the 'Zheng' character was never considered a powerful offensive character. It specialized in exponentially increased damage against fiends, demons, and evils, and offered robust defense, but its raw offensive power was not its strong suit.

Still, it was an Initial Character.

Every Initial Character in the cosmos was extraordinary.

And the Dao Character Clone, at merely thirty percent, could fight the 'Zheng' character to a standstill. If it reached fifty or sixty percent later, what then? If it reached a hundred percent, could it not mock countless other characters? No wonder the Dao character was called the foremost character of the Heavens. He resolved to diligently advance this character whenever opportunity arose, and later seek the 'Tun' (, Devour) Character Clone, as the energy supplied by common characters was limited; the Initial Characters offered a much greater supplement.

Ah, he truly had to thank Tong Yun-chou. Without his interference, how could Lu Yuan have instantly boosted the Dao Character Clone to thirty percent?

Lu Yuan snapped back to reality, his eyes blazing with divine light. On Heart Mountain, the Barren Alliance members were nearly broken. Their combined grand ultimate move, which even the mighty Hua Fa Sheng would struggle to withstand, had been nullified by Lu Yuan. Furthermore, the nearly ten thousand characters he consumed this time made concealment impossible, so his ability to devour characters was finally exposed for all to see.

In truth, some had harbored suspicions before, but now it was confirmed.

"Heavens, Lu Yuan can devour characters!"

"So many secondary characters were swallowed whole!"

"This is truly a monstrous anomaly." "A fiend; he is an absolute fiend," the Barren Alliance members exclaimed in panic.

Lu Yuan, however, remained unconcerned. His ability to devour characters was bound to be revealed sooner or later. Hiding the consumption of nearly ten thousand characters this time would have been stranger. He hadn't dared reveal it before, but now that his strength had reached the tenth Heaven of the World Realm—his momentum was established, his grand tide was set—he feared nothing.

Lu Yuan looked toward Tong Yun-chou and the Son of Immortality in the distance. He noticed the two had kept their distance. Their expressions shifted slightly; neither had expected Lu Yuan to possess such a hidden capability. Tong Yun-chou and the Son of Immortality were both proponents of the maxim, 'A gentleman does not stand beneath a tottering wall.' Seeing Lu Yuan radiating divine might, they certainly weren't keen on staying. Both were over a hundred thousand zhang away; without hesitation, they turned and fled immediately. No matter the cost, preserving their lives came first.

They were too far away; chasing them down at this distance would be difficult. It seemed the chance to kill Tong Yun-chou and the Son of Immortality was lost this time. At this point, Lu Yuan finally understood the Son of Immortality’s nature; it was exactly the same as Tong Yun-chou’s. The Seven Sons of Fortune represented all types of characters, and someone with the Son of Immortality’s disposition was indeed unique.

What to do now?

The battle between the Barren Alliance and the Anti-Barren Alliance was still raging. This engagement did not just involve these few individuals; each side had twenty to thirty Half-Step Civilization Realm experts, with even more at the tenth Heaven of the World Realm—around two to three hundred on each side. Those at the ninth Heaven of the World Realm were also extremely numerous. Thus, even though this particular confrontation ended, the overall battle had not.

Of course, the Seven Star Array and Lu Yuan had drawn away about ten experts from the opposing side, meaning the fighting elsewhere involved only ten or twenty Half-Step Civilization Realm experts per side.

Lu Yuan flickered with his Immortal Sword, 'Nourishing the Immortal Sword,' and plunged into the fray. Facing the Barren Alliance members, he showed no mercy. With a casual sweep of his sword, he cut down a tenth-Heaven World Realm expert, immediately pressing toward the Half-Step Civilization Realm individuals.

Following the previous battle against six masters simultaneously, Lu Yuan’s personal combat strength had improved significantly, and his swordsmanship was exceptionally refined. He felt much more confident dealing with the Half-Step Civilization Realm experts. He engaged one, collaborating with the Anti-Barren Alliance's own Half-Step masters, and in just ten moves, that expert was dispatched.

Eliminated!

Another one gone!

In this battle, Lu Yuan had now killed a total of four Half-Step Civilization Realm experts.

Normally, even killing one Half-Step Civilization Realm expert was extremely difficult.

But now, four had fallen in quick succession.

This terrified the remaining Half-Step Civilization Realm experts on the Barren Alliance side. Every person who managed to reach the Half-Step Civilization Realm had spent countless years cultivating, and they knew how arduous that step was. The closer they got to this level, the more they feared death and were unwilling to easily perish. Seeing that no one could restrain Lu Yuan as he continuously executed them, panic set in.

The Barren Alliance Half-Step Civilization Realm experts finally broke. They let out a unified cry and began to flee. These leaders were the first to turn tail and run, and it was easy to imagine what happened next: the Barren Alliance instantly plunged into a state of total collapse and rout.

Victory!

Lu Yuan let out a long breath. The situation was now settled; the Anti-Barren Alliance had won. This victory had been incredibly hard-won, requiring him to first boost his strength and then win the grueling six-on-one duel.

Wait! There was still one thing he had almost forgotten; the Anti-Barren Alliance might not have truly won yet.

Lu Yuan looked up at the sky.

(First update delivered.)