This was a tiny clan. Each clansman was no bigger than a knuckle, their bodies forged entirely from golden metal crystal stone, shimmering with a cold, hard luster.
They lacked the colossal size of the Giant Whale Clan, nor did they possess the fire-controlling prowess of the Spirit Clam Clan. Yet they wielded unyielding resolve and fearless courage. Their numbers exceeded one million, surging into the East China Sea from the sky like a golden tide, charging straight for Qiongqi.
To reinforce the East China Sea, the Crystal Ant Clan had crossed the Western Wasteland's wastelands and ferocious territories. Countless crystal ants had been devoured by savage beasts along the way, yet the survivors pressed onward without hesitation. They knew their forms were small, but unity of millions can move mountains—the combined might of a million crystal ants was enough to shake a giant beast.
The voice of Jing Rui, the clan leader of the Crystal Ant Clan, was as faint as a mosquito's buzz, yet it carried a resolute power that pierced the soul: "Though our clan is tiny, we can gnaw through ferocious beasts! We are willing to trade the lives of millions of ants for a glimmer of hope for the East China Sea! All clans of the Primordial World share weal and woe. Today, my Crystal Ant Clan shall defend the Primordial World with our tiny bodies!"
"Defend the Primordial World!" A million crystal ants roared in unison. Their voices were small, but together they swelled into an overwhelming force, echoing across the sea of blood.
Like sharks scenting blood, they swarmed into the gaps between Qiongqi's scales the moment they hit the battlefield. They scraped at Qiongqi's flesh with their hard crystal armor and gnawed with their sharp mouthparts, seeking to tear apart its internal organs.
Golden metal crystal stone was inherently lethal to feral aura. Wherever the crystal ants bit down, Qiongqi's black demon aura dissipated instantly, leaving behind tiny bleeding holes.
Qiongqi screamed in agony, a pain so searing it had never known. It had never imagined that such a minuscule clan could inflict such torment. It thrashed wildly, flailing its tail in a frantic bid to shake the crystal ants out of its scales.
Its claw wind swept across the battlefield, crushing countless crystal ants into golden powder. Their shattered remains mingled with Qiongqi's black-red blood, glimmering like falling stars in the seawater—a beautiful, tragic sight.
A crystal ant warrior had just wriggled into a scale gap, not even a chance to bite before Qiongqi's muscles convulsed, squeezing it into dust. Its companions followed instantly, fearless, charging into the gap one after another, trading their lives for a single scratch.
Some crystal ants, even with half their bodies crushed, still gnawed at Qiongqi's flesh with their remaining mouthparts until their last breath faded.
Jing Rui hovered at the edge of the battlefield, watching its clansmen fall in droves. Grief flashed in its eyes, but it grew only more resolute. It knew that ordinary gnawing could never deal a fatal blow to Qiongqi—only by detonating their crystal cores could they deliver a crippling strike.
The crystal core was the source of a crystal ant's life. To detonate it meant mutual destruction. Yet at this moment, Jing Rui did not hesitate.
It shouted hoarsely, issuing its command: "All crystal ants, heed my order! Gather at Qiongqi's wound and detonate your crystal cores! For the Primordial World! For all clans! We shall spare no sacrifice!"
"No sacrifice is too great!" The remaining hundreds of thousands of crystal ants replied in unison, their voices free of any hesitation. They swarmed toward the gaping wound Qiongqi had sustained earlier, ignoring the feral aura and claw wind swirling around them.
Layer upon layer, they piled atop the wound, merging the power of their crystal cores into one. Golden spiritual light blazed brighter and brighter, colliding violently with Qiongqi's black demon aura, unleashing ear-splitting booms.
"Boom——"
A deafening explosion shook the heavens and earth. Hundreds of thousands of crystal ants detonated their cores simultaneously. Golden metal spiritual light clashed with black demon aura in a cataclysmic blast, sending a massive shockwave rippling through the seawater.
Countless corpses and broken scales were thrown into the air, drifting like fallen leaves. A ten-zhang-wide gaping hole was torn open in Qiongqi's flank. Black-red feral blood gushed out like a fountain, splattering onto the Spirit Clam Clan's remains and corroding them into white bones in an instant.
Qiongqi let out a shrill, agonized roar, its body trembling violently—clearly gravely wounded. For the first time, fear flickered in its blood-red eyes.
Jing Rui's body was caught in the shockwave, dissolving into a pile of golden powder that merged into the seawater. Not a single one of the million crystal ants survived.
They traded their lives for a brief reprieve for the East China Sea's defense line, writing a tale of heroism for the Primordial World's clans with their tiny bodies. Their sacrifice was not in vain—at the very least, they had made Qiongqi feel pain, and granted the East China Sea a glimmer of hope.
Yet Qiongqi was an ancient ferocious beast, its vitality impossibly tenacious. The searing agony only fueled its rage further. Its blood-red eyes blazed with a desire for utter destruction. Ignoring the throbbing pain of its wound, it charged once more at the Azure Dragon Sea-Suppressing Formation's eye—this time, its attack was even more feral, as if it meant to drag the entire East China Sea into the abyss of destruction.
"Crack——"
The formation's spiritual light shattered completely. The base of the formation's eye began to collapse. Jing Cang's body was sent flying by the impact, golden blood erupting from his mouth in a geyser. His internal organs were gravely damaged, his aura fading to a wisp, like a candle flame in the wind.
He crashed heavily into the seawater, sending up a massive spray of waves. He tried to struggle to his feet, only to find he could not even lift a single fin.
Behind him, fewer than fifty Giant Whale warriors remained. Every one of them bore fatal wounds—some missing fins, some with shattered dorsal armor, others clinging to the last threads of life. Yet they still struggled to rise, crawling toward Jing Cang, determined to protect their clan leader.
"Clan Leader..." A Giant Whale warrior spoke with great effort, his voice faint but resolute. "We... we can still fight..."
Jing Cang looked at his remaining clansmen, then at the floating corpses of warriors from all clans. Grief and despair filled his eyes. He knew the East China Sea's defense line was on the brink of collapse. But he could not give up. He was the leader of the Giant Whale Clan, a guardian of the East China Sea's myriad clans. Even with his last breath, he would fight on.
The East China Sea's defense line stood on the verge of annihilation. The surrounding aquatic clans watched Qiongqi's approach and the collapsing formation eye, their eyes filled with terror. Yet not a single one chose to flee. They gathered together, launching attacks on Qiongqi with their meager strength.
Even the tiny shrimp and fragile seaweed did their utmost, standing guard over their homeland.
Jing Cang stared at the advancing Qiongqi, then at the clans behind him, soon to be slaughtered by the beast. A final, resolute light flickered in his eyes. He slowly channeled the last vestiges of his origin power, golden spiritual light swirling around his body.
He knew his life was at an end. Only by detonating his own origin power, sacrificing himself to take Qiongqi down with him, could he buy the East China Sea's clans their final chance at survival.
"All clans of the Primordial World... may you thrive... endlessly..." Jing Cang murmured, his eyes filled with relief. His origin power blazed brighter and brighter, golden light illuminating the entire sea of blood—a stark contrast to Qiongqi's black demon aura.
At that moment, a earth-shaking dragon roar erupted from the eastern sky. The voice was majestic and overwhelming, carrying the power to suppress all things. It dispelled the suffocating despair hanging over the East China Sea in an instant.
Cyan-gold spiritual light rose like the morning sun, banishing the black demon aura and illuminating the entire sea surface.
Ao Xuan had arrived!
The cyan-gold spiritual light around him surged, his body stretching over ten thousand zhang long. His dragon scales shimmered with cyan-gold luster, like the most brilliant gemstones. The Azure Dragon Reverse Scale Sword unsheathed itself automatically, hovering before him.
The sword glowed with Pangu Merit Golden Light—the purest, most authoritative power in the Primordial World, wielding the might to subdue all creatures. Wherever the sword's light passed, feral aura vanished without a trace.
Ao Xuan's gaze swept across the battlefield, taking in the floating corpses of clansmen, the collapsing formation eye, and the dying Jing Cang. Grief and rage burned in his eyes. As the leader of the East China Sea's Dragon Clan, he bore the responsibility of defending the sea. Witnessing this scene of utter carnage, his anger erupted like a volcano.
"Monster! Daring to invade my East China Sea and slaughter the Primordial World's clans—you are courting death!"
Ao Xuan's voice carried the awe-inspiring power of a dragon, shaking the seawater into turbulent waves. Qiongqi's body trembled involuntarily. It turned its blood-red eyes toward Ao Xuan, sensing a mortal threat. Fear filled its gaze, yet it still refused to retreat.
Before his words faded, Ao Xuan waved his hand. The Azure Dragon Reverse Scale Sword, carrying the power to destroy heaven and earth, slashed straight for Qiongqi's head. The sword's light streaked across the sky like a cyan-gold bolt of lightning, spanning a thousand zhang in the blink of an eye.
Wherever the light passed, the seawater was split clean in two, and black demon aura dissipated into nothingness. Qiongqi had no time to react before the sword light struck.
A sickening squelch rang out. One of its claws was severed clean off. Black-red blood gushed out, dyeing a vast expanse of the sea crimson. The maimed Qiongqi let out a shrill scream of terror, all traces of its earlier ferocity gone. It turned to flee, only to find itself locked in place by Ao Xuan's dragon might, unable to move a single inch.
Ao Xuan seized the opportunity, channeling the remaining power of the Azure Dragon Sea-Suppressing Formation. The cyan-gold spiritual light blazed once more, trapping Qiongqi firmly. "Clan Leader Jing Cang, hold on!" Ao Xuan called out, his voice filled with concern. He then directed the Azure Dragon Reverse Scale Sword to continue its assault on Qiongqi.
Sword light rained down relentlessly, carving deep, bone-exposing wounds into Qiongqi's body. Black-red blood flowed endlessly, and its feral aura grew weaker by the second.
Seeing this, a glimmer of hope sparked in Jing Cang's eyes. He endured the searing pain, summoning his last ounce of strength to shout to the remaining Giant Whale warriors: "Children, fight with me... side by side!"
"Side by side!" The remaining Giant Whale warriors roared in unison. They summoned their last traces of spiritual power, struggling to their feet, and launched a counterattack on Qiongqi. Blue water arrows rained down on the beast's body, dispelling its feral aura bit by bit.
Above the sea, cyan-gold sword light, blue water arrows, Qiongqi's roars, and the warriors' battle cries intertwined, weaving a solemn yet stirring war hymn.