"I, the Human Race's heroic spirits, possess eternal righteousness and deserve to be honored. From this day forward, let this be an everlasting tradition of Xuanhuang Town. The fifteenth of July shall be the Long Wall Spirit Festival, a day to honor those who died for our people. Naturally, no sacrifice is complete without offerings. The corpses of the alien races on the battlefield will serve as our offerings."
Yi Tianxing took a deep breath, gazing at the spirits of fallen warriors that emerged atop the Iron-Blood Great Wall, a surge of emotion swelling in his heart. These warriors and civilians had fallen for the survival of the Human Race. They deserved the utmost respect.
Without them, there would be no Xuanhuang Town today.
Swish!!
As his voice fell, a wave of dense, iron-blooded divine light surged from the Great Wall, flooding the entire battlefield like a tide.
Across the battlefield, the corpses of ogres, gnoll-like creatures, and the scorpion race were instantly engulfed in this light, turning into streams of blood-red energy that flew toward the Iron-Blood Great Wall.
One after another, the corpses were transformed into dark-colored bricks that fused into the wall. These bricks, unlike the bright red ones forged from human sacrifices, retained lingering wills of resentment, hatred toward the Human Race, and unfulfilled killing intent. They were bricks of darkness.
Each powerful alien corpse could be refined into multiple such bricks. As they merged with the wall, the Iron-Blood Great Wall expanded visibly.
Three thousand meters... four thousand... five thousand... six thousand!!
By the time all the alien corpses had been consumed, the wall had turned dark crimson and extended over six kilometers, now exhibiting the true scale and momentum of a mighty Great Wall.
"Kill! Kill! Kill!!"
"Exterminate the humans! They are our blood food!"
"I refuse! How could I die at the hands of humans? I refuse to accept this!"
As the dark bricks merged with the Great Wall, strands of black resentment gas began to billow out from them. These were not souls, but pure resentment, hatred, and killing intent—the residual will of the dead.
The howls of these resentments echoed, as if they wanted to shatter the entire wall.
"Kill!!"
At this moment, the heroic spirits on the wall grew cold and solemn, raising their weapons to strike down the resentment. One after another, the black auras were smashed and absorbed by the spirits.
With each absorbed wisp of resentment, the spirits became more solid and powerful, and the dark bricks slowly became infused with blood-red hues, inching closer to complete purification.
Each time a trace of black gas emerged from a brick, it was swiftly crushed and devoured by the spirits—this resentment was, for them, a potent nourishment.
The dark bricks were transforming visibly, slowly shifting toward blood-red. Once fully transformed, they would become indistinguishable from those forged from the sacrifice of human warriors and civilians. But this process took time.
Only when the Great Wall was infused with a large number of indestructible human wills and heroic spirits could it fully refine the alien corpses and make them part of the wall's unyielding foundation.
"If the Eternal Continent truly has reincarnation, then by absorbing these resentments, the heroic spirits will strengthen their souls. This could aid them greatly in their next life," Yi Tianxing thought to himself, watching the spirits subdue and devour the resentments.
The Iron-Blood Great Wall could not store souls indefinitely. If they lingered too long, disasters would follow. However, a stay of one to two years was feasible—especially with spiritual anchors to tether their souls.
The maximum limit was seven years. After that, if the heroic souls did not reincarnate, they risked becoming ghost cultivators or attracting disaster. Legends spoke of the Underworld, ghost soldiers, and messengers tasked with seizing spirits that lingered in the world of the living.
Whether the Eternal Continent had such realms or not, even Yi Tianxing didn't know. That knowledge lay beyond his current reach.
Still, what he hoped most was that these heroic spirits could dwell within the Great Wall for seven years, before moving on to be reborn as humans and begin anew. Through yearly sacrifices and offerings, they would grow stronger in spirit.
The Iron-Blood Great Wall would, in turn, refine alien corpses faster, creating a mutually beneficial cycle.
Even after their reincarnation, the indestructible will they left behind would remain in the wall.
"If possible, I would prefer to build this entire Great Wall from the corpses of alien races. There will be no shortage of war in the future."
"What a magnificent wall," Huang Chengyan said with deep emotion. He bowed toward the Great Wall in reverent salute.
"Human spirits should be honored," murmured other visiting cultivators, who also bowed, their expressions solemn and respectful.
"Where the Great Wall stands—there lies the territory of Xuanhuang Town."Yi Tianxing's voice was steady and firm.
Wherever the Iron-Blood Great Wall stretched, that was Human territory, a land for human prosperity and survival. Unless the wall was destroyed, this fact would remain unchanged.
"Huang Lao, I leave the cleanup of the town's ruins to you. Also, tally the casualties—soldiers and civilians alike. Burn the list as a tribute and carve their names into the Great Wall. Their names will be immortal, enshrined for future generations."
Yi Tianxing glanced over the shattered remnants of Xuanhuang Town. The cleanup didn't require his direct involvement—Huang Chengyan and others could handle it.
"Understood," Huang Chengyan nodded.
"The battlefield cleanup will be managed by the Myriad Treasures Hall. Xue Jin, make sure everything is recorded. I want a full report."
"Don't worry, my lord. Not a needle or thread will be missed," said Xue Jin confidently, patting his chest.
"I trust you," Yi Tianxing nodded.
"There are also many friends who came to aid us. Many fought and died, while others still stand. If you're not in a rush to leave, stay here in Xuanhuang Town. You will be well cared for. We owe you that much."
Yi Tianxing looked at the guest cultivators. They had fought the alien races as comrades, and would not be treated poorly.
"Lai He, the hospitality falls to the Food Hall."
"Rest assured, my lord! We'll show our best culinary arts," said Lai He with pride. In matters of cuisine, the Food Hall was second to none.
"Many thanks, Brother Yi," several guest cultivators said, bowing in gratitude.
Just then, a somber voice came.
"Brother Yi, Fellow Daoist Fu was ambushed by a demon scorpion and has been poisoned. He's unconscious. Is there a way to save him?" asked Bu Jingyun, clad in black, supporting an unconscious Fu Hongxue.
Yi Tianxing's eyes narrowed. Fu Hongxue's face was veiled in a black haze, his true qi circulating as it tried to resist the poison.
Yi had seen him ambushed earlier—clearly the poison was more virulent than expected.
Placing his hand on Fu's pulse, Yi Tianxing sent a stream of True Dragon Qi into his body. It was met by a surge of darkness—poison energy that rapidly tried to corrode it. The True Dragon Qi, proud and aggressive, roared as it clashed with the invading force.
The demonic poison took the form of a black scorpion, which tangled with the true dragon in a fierce battle. The scorpion's tail pierced the dragon's body repeatedly, weakening it. But the dragon lashed back, tearing the scorpion apart.
Only for the demon scorpion to regenerate instantly, growing even more vicious.
In moments, Yi Tianxing's true qi was forcibly expelled from Fu's body.
"What a terrifying poison—so potent that even my true qi was repelled. Impressive," he muttered with a frown.
Looking at Fu's fading life force, he shook his head and produced a jade bottle, glowing faintly with spiritual light.
"Fortunately, I've obtained many rare treasures recently—this includes a Three-Treasure Heart-Guarding Pill. Without it, I wouldn't be able to do anything about this poison."
He opened the bottle, revealing a golden pill. Its glow was muted, and it gave off no discernible scent—almost indistinguishable from a common pill.