Becoming an immortal against the will of heaven

Beneath Chen Tian was a dense mountain forest. However, unlike the surrounding tranquility, this forest echoed with the sounds of constant '轰隆' (booming) explosions, as if a fierce battle was taking place.

The shockwaves from the battle surged outwards, causing ancient trees that had grown for over a thousand years to fall one after another, raising clouds of dust.

Looking closer, one could see over a hundred cultivators dressed in various attire engaged in a fierce battle within this secluded mountain forest.

Based on their clothing, the hundred-plus individuals could be divided into three factions. One faction wore pure white robes, with an image of a soaring crane embroidered on their collars and sleeves, clearly indicating they were from the same sect, numbering around thirty.

Another faction consisted of cultivators wearing black masks and emitting waves of demonic energy. These individuals were all demonic cultivators!

Among the battling crowd, these demonic cultivators were the most numerous, reaching over fifty.

A battle between cultivators and demonic cultivators might not have been too surprising, as the conflict between the two factions had reached a fever pitch over the past few centuries, with life-and-death battles occurring constantly, so there was nothing particularly unusual about it.

What was truly astonishing were the remaining twenty individuals.

While these twenty individuals had human appearances, a closer observation revealed that some had beast horns on their heads, while others had long tails. These individuals were actually妖族 (demon race)! Or, more accurately, people from the Demon God Sect!

This made the current situation somewhat incomprehensible.

Since the Cultivation Alliance and the Frozen Demon Domain had fully engaged in war, they had no time to spare for the Demon God Sect. The Demon God Sect had taken advantage of the conflict between the two factions to reap benefits from both sides, maintaining a neutral position.

However, in the current situation, the Demon God Sect had not only joined the conflict among humans but had also clearly joined forces with the demonic cultivators.

At this moment, the fifty demonic cultivators and twenty members of the demon race formed a circular encirclement, trapping the thirty cultivators and launching wave after wave of attacks.

Not only were there few of these cultivators, but their strength was also not high. Apart from the elder leading them, who had the Cultivation Stage of Transforming River, the remaining disciples were all only at the Spirit Gathering Stage.

On the other hand, among the demonic cultivators and demon race members, six had already reached the Cultivation Stage of Transforming River.

With fewer numbers and a disadvantage in strength, it was obvious that under the siege of eighty demonic cultivators and demon race members, these cultivators were retreating steadily. Carelessly, one of them fell victim to a sneak attack and died tragically.

Before long, of the thirty-plus cultivators, fewer than twenty remained. They huddled together, back to back, their faces covered in sweat and panting from excessive panic and exhaustion. The light in their eyes gradually diminished, while the fear of death suddenly increased!

One of the three was a middle-aged man in a black robe with a gloomy expression; another was a beautiful woman with a bold figure and slender physique. She wore only simple animal skins covering her chest and hips, exposing most of her skin, revealing her graceful figure. Most strikingly, this woman had leopard ears on her head and a long, colorful tail behind her – she was actually a leopard demon.

The middle-aged man and the leopard woman had both reached the late stage of the Transforming River realm, and were clearly the leaders of the demonic cultivators and the demon race. At this time, they were watching the battle in the distance with ease, their faces full of satisfaction.

However, unlike the ease of these two, the other young man standing beside them seemed extremely restrained and uneasy.

This person was about twenty years old, wearing a white robe with a crane embroidered on the collar and sleeves. A comparison would reveal that his clothes were exactly the same as those of the cultivators being besieged! Furthermore, this person was neither a demonic cultivator nor a member of the demon race, but also a cultivator, with a cultivation level of around the early stage of Spirit Gathering.

All indications suggested that this young man had a close connection with the cultivators being besieged.

At this moment, he kept his head down, only using the corner of his eye to secretly observe the battle in the distance. Watching the cultivators struggling to hold on, he seemed to feel sorry for them. After sighing, he said, "I told you long ago that if you had surrendered earlier, you wouldn't have to suffer this much. As fellow disciples, I really don't want to see you die. How about this, as long as you lay down your weapons and surrender now, I will beg Lord Mo Li and Lord Leopard Enchantress to spare your lives, okay?"

Sure enough, this person came from the same sect as these cultivators!

"Bah, you traitor, how dare you say that?" However, upon hearing his words, the only elder in the crowd who had cultivated to the Transforming River realm seemed to be consumed by anger and angrily said, "If you hadn't betrayed us and told these demons and monsters our whereabouts, how would we have ended up in this situation? Don't even dream about it. As humans, we would rather die than associate with demons and monsters! Want us to surrender? In your dreams!"

"Hmph, a bunch of ungrateful fools!" Seeing the elder's stubborn attitude, the young man snorted coldly, then put on a flattering expression, turned around, and said to the demonic cultivator and the leopard woman, "Lord Mo Li, Lord Leopard Enchantress, this time I have borne the infamy of betraying my fellow disciples to come and surrender to you two. This is enough to prove my sincerity, right? I hope you two will give me more guidance in the future."

It turned out that this person was a traitor, willing to betray his fellow disciples in exchange for his own future.

"Haha, you did very well this time. After we return, I will definitely reward you handsomely. Don't worry, as long as you sincerely serve us, you will not lack benefits." At this time, the black-robed man named Mo Li suddenly laughed. Then he turned his head and asked the leopard woman on the other side, "Venerable Leopard Enchantress, what do you think?"

"Hehe, these humans have been besieged by us for a day and a night, and now they must have reached the end of their rope. I guess they will all be wiped out in less than an hour. We can just wait quietly now." Hearing the black-robed man's question, the leopard woman suddenly sneered, her beautiful eyes filled with cold light.

Indeed, being able to hold on until now was already the limit for these human cultivators. The elixirs and magical treasures they could use were almost completely exhausted. It was feared that they would soon be completely wiped out.

"Brother, do you think we will die here this time?" In the crowd, the only young girl raised her pretty but weakened face and asked a man beside her who had a haggard face but firm eyes.