"It’s merely a sudden realization that struck me right here, where the Nine Nether First Young Master, with a mere gesture, raised an incomparably magnificent giant peak!" The Nine Nether Fourteenth Young Master pointed to the ground beneath his feet and murmured, "He even forged an immeasurably powerful seal... one that even the Half-Saint powerhouses of the Foreign Race cannot cross even after ten thousand years. What kind of transcendent ability is that?"

He let out a self-deprecating laugh. "I, the Nine Nether Fourteenth Young Master, have always been hailed as the foremost expert under heaven... Ha! Only now do I realize that those six words—'foremost expert under heaven'—have always been like the loudest slap, constantly striking my own face! What right do I have to occupy the position of the foremost expert under heaven? I have been nothing more than a frog in a well, never truly grasping the vastness of the world!"

"Even against a Half-Saint, I still require a prolonged, fierce battle to take him down. But the Nine Nether First Young Master sealed them away with just a single seal—sealed for ten millennia! And even now... it can continue to seal them, sealed eternally..."

The Nine Nether Fourteenth Young Master let out a long sigh, suddenly stopping short, saying no more. Yet, the desolation and yearning in his expression were so intense they seemed almost tangible.

"You mean you are staying here to comprehend the Great Dao? Hoping to pursue the realm of the Nine Nether First Young Master?!" Jun Mo Xie was silent for a long moment before asking softly.

"Precisely so." The Nine Nether Fourteenth Young Master paced a couple of steps in the void, his tone profound. "With our cultivation, to descend into the continent would be akin to ordinary people fighting amongst themselves... How uninteresting, how utterly dull that would be!"

"Only here do the traces of the highest achievements of my Nine Nether Clan remain!" The Nine Nether Fourteenth Young Master gazed at the ground below with deep emotion, then finally raised his head, speaking quietly, "As long as I remain here, I can feel the gap between myself and my predecessor every moment! This place will become the greatest source of motivation for my advance towards the Supreme Ultimate Dao... Otherwise, going out to fight and kill would amount to nothing more."

"However," Jun Mo Xie noted, "you seem to have overlooked one thing. Dealing with that undying monster, Zhan Kuang, still requires an expert like you! Now that Gu Han has fallen, do you expect me to face that aberrant Zhan Kuang entirely alone?"

"Isn't dealing with aberrants your specialty? With your current cultivation, coupled with all your myriad strange means, dealing with Zhan Kuang should absolutely not be difficult! I don't see any problem at all!" The Nine Nether Fourteenth Young Master chuckled. "Why drag me into it?"

"Very well, since your mind is set, I won't press you any further." Jun Mo Xie lowered his head, then raised it again. "But if you ever feel like venturing out for a stroll, you must pay a visit to the Heavenly South Evil Lord's Manor. When that day comes, I can share a proper drink with you. Since we first met, we’ve never had a chance to truly drink together! I genuinely look forward to that day."

The Nine Nether Fourteenth Young Master chuckled softly but offered no words. Judging by his demeanor, it seemed he truly had no intention of coming out again.

"I won't force you," Jun Mo Xie conceded. "However, after this campaign concludes, I plan to dispatch experts deep south of the Heavenly Pillar Mountain to completely eradicate the remnants of the Foreign Race. If they encounter something they cannot handle, I still require your assistance; please do not refuse."

The Nine Nether Fourteenth Young Master replied, "That is natural. By then, even if you don't send anyone, I will slowly exterminate this vile race completely. Such a disgusting species should not exist in this world."

"That’s good! It’s settled then!" Jun Mo Xie smiled reassuringly.

"Go now. Although the leaders of the Foreign Race are all dead, this matter will likely have many lingering threads to clean up." The Nine Nether Fourteenth Young Master turned his back, standing suspended in the void, as wisps of white clouds and wind drifted past him. His gaze, too, seemed as unsettled and fleeting as the clouds.

Jun Mo Xie smiled faintly. "Just now, hearing you say that a parting today might mean never meeting again, I felt a pang of melancholy. I recall you previously mentioned you wanted a fight with me. What, not fighting anymore? I was truly looking forward to that battle!"

"If you didn't use those tricks of yours involving water, fire, lightning, and wind—even if you broke through further—you would still not be my match, and perhaps you might not even defeat those two great powers of the Foreign Race."

The Nine Nether Fourteenth Young Master spoke quietly. "But will you refrain from using those strange means of yours?! The conclusion is simple: fighting you is pointless! Since it would be a fight devoid of meaning, it's better not to fight at all."

"What a fine 'pointless,' what a fine 'better not to fight'!" Jun Mo Xie laughed heartily, cupping his hands in a gesture of respect. "In that case, Fourteenth Brother, Jun Mo Xie takes his leave now!"

The Nine Nether Fourteenth Young Master smiled faintly and waved his hand. His dark silhouette plummeted from mid-air like a meteorite, instantly vanishing among the jumbled stones, gone in the blink of an eye. Regretfully, he did not utter another word.

Jun Mo Xie sighed. He knew well that this parting might indeed be forever. Although he was happy for the Nine Nether Fourteenth Young Master's pursuit of the Dao, a faint wistfulness lingered in his heart, a kind of parting sorrow, a feeling of utter emptiness...

With a distant sword cry, the Blood of Yan Huang was drawn forth, slicing the air and painting a magnificent, unending sword light like a heavenly rainbow across the sky.

Immediately afterward, the Blood of Yan Huang circled rapidly like a rushing thunderbolt before settling beneath Jun Mo Xie's feet, lifting him into the air. Jun Mo Xie gave a final, respectful bow toward the ruined remnants of the Heavenly Pillar Mountain below, silently wishing in his heart: Take care.

With another sword chime, the Blood of Yan Huang soared upward, piercing the clouds like lightning, streaking through the air.

After he departed, a figure clad in black emerged from among the scattered stones and rose into the air, watching the brilliant sword light receding in the distance, sighing deeply.

A faint voice whispered, "Take care!" Then the figure in black flickered once and melted back into the stones, never to reappear... When Jun Mo Xie returned, the fighting had not only concluded, but the entire battlefield had already been largely cleared.

Following this battle, the million-strong army of the Foreign Race was annihilated, not a single soul surviving! For the continent, it was a glorious, monumental victory!

However, tens of thousands of participating warriors were permanently interred on this ground, some never to have their remains recovered... All those belonging to the Three Great Sacred Grounds were martyred in this great conflict!

Even among the continental reinforcements who arrived later, tens of thousands suffered casualties!

The losses sustained by the Xuan Xuan Continent in this battle were undeniably heavy!

Especially the death of so many high-level Xuan practitioners—the continent's vitality might take decades, perhaps even centuries, to recover...

The battlefield was shrouded in a mournful fog, the stench of blood acrid in the air.

A bleak autumn wind howled past; it was already autumn...

Gazing at the devastation left by the great battle, Jun Mo Xie remained speechless for a long time.

Too many heroic souls now slept eternally here. After this battle, how many orphans and widows would the continent gain? These orphans and widows were the families of heroes who died safeguarding the future of the Xuan Xuan Continent and human peace—would their future lives be smooth? Would they be spared bullying? Would they receive fair treatment?

How many leaders of court and family clans had perished in this war, and would their deaths lead to the decline or even extinction of the families they led?

At this moment, Jun Mo Xie suddenly recalled a poem that Jun Wu Hui had once recited, and couldn't help but softly chant: "War drums thunder across the flags unfurled, ten thousand steeds charge forth into the world: When will the battlefield cease its carnage dire, so sons need mourn no more their hearts’ desire!" At this moment, Jun Mo Xie suddenly understood the feeling Jun Wu Hui held when composing that poem!

This legendary military god, a myth for ages, held a sentiment that was undoubtedly tragic yet profoundly helpless.

"War drums thunder across the flags unfurled, ten thousand steeds charge forth into the world."

While this couplet seemed boundless in its might, who could truly comprehend the hidden scars and tears beneath it? Of the myriad troops sent to war, how many ever returned? How many ultimately made it back safely?

"When will the battlefield cease its carnage dire, so sons need mourn no more their hearts’ desire!"

This expressed the War God’s genuine aversion to war!

Jun Mo Xie, having achieved success in this battle, now hoped that this continent, before the Heavenly Pillar Mountain, could truly say: from this day forward, sons would mourn no more their hearts’ desire!

From this point onward, there would be no need for any war to wrest fate!

Root out the weeds entirely, once and for all!

Jun Mo Xie stood there, filled with melancholy, facing the lingering blood mist rising over the entire battlefield, silent for a long time.

Jun Wu Yi, Du Gu Zong Heng, Murong Feng Yun, Mei Xue Yan, and the other leaders had already completed reorganizing their forces. They were currently assessing the specific aftermath losses; joy over survival was mixed with profound sorrow on everyone’s face.

Jun Mo Xie sighed and waved his hand, leading the way back into the main tent.

Subsequently, Mei Xue Yan and the others filed into the tent.

"What were the results? What is our approximate total loss?" Jun Mo Xie asked with a hoarse voice. "How many brothers... perished in this battle?"

Jun Mo Xie desperately wanted to know this answer, yet he was also somewhat afraid to know. Having lived two lifetimes, Jun Mo Xie rarely knew the feeling of 'fear,' but at this moment, the audacious Jun Mo Xie was genuinely terrified—terrified to hear that heavy answer!

"The war has ended. The advance unit of the Heavenly Punishment forces saw the Eight Great Saints perish, the Eagle King fell. All five thousand Eagle Clan warriors... none survived. Of the five thousand Bear Clan warriors, over three thousand died. The Crane Clan lost over two thousand from their five thousand warriors. The Vulture Clan lost two thousand. The Roc Clan suffered devastating losses; four thousand three hundred of their five thousand warriors perished. The Tiger Clan lost one thousand five hundred..." Mei Xue Yan’s expression was steeped in deep grief as she stated woodenly, "The last to enter the fray... the Roc King, killed in action! Yun Bie Chen, the head of the Eight Great Supremes, killed in action! Azure Supreme Meng Hong Chen, Heaven-Questioning Supreme Mo Wen Tian... all confirmed dead!"

"In addition to this, of all those who participated from the Three Great Sacred Grounds, only Qiao Ying remains!"

Jun Mo Xie sighed deeply, feeling a turbulent churning in his heart.

The severity of the losses in this battle truly exceeded everyone's expectations!