Back in the day, Mo had been close friends with Cang and the other ten — bonds forged from the heart, without a shred of pretence.
Among those ten, the one Mo cherished most was Mu, that woman who was forever gentle as water. Compared to the others, Mu had also been warmer toward Mo in return.
After the Primordial Heaven Grand Restriction had taken effect, Mu had indeed once proposed that they attempt to seal the Grand Restriction directly into Mo's body, so as to suppress Mo's power from within. If such a thing could be accomplished, there would be no need to restrict Mo's freedom at all — so long as the restriction remained intact and Mo's power could not leak free, Mo would not have to endure the suffering of imprisonment. They could keep Mo by their side and monitor its condition at any time.
Unfortunately, no one could guarantee whether this method would actually work. If it succeeded, naturally everyone would be overjoyed. But if it failed and Mo became wary, would it ever allow itself to be sealed so easily again?
In the end, Cang and the rest of the ten did not dare take the risk.
Mu died very early — during the first eruption after Mo had been sealed away. To calm Mo in its frenzied rage, she had defied the others' protests and ventured alone deep into the primordial Heaven Grand Restriction.
No one knew what she encountered inside. By the time she emerged, she was gravely wounded. With her dying breath, she fused her remaining power into the Grand Restriction, reinforcing its sealing force.
That day, Cang and the remaining nine were consumed by grief, while Mo's howls shook the very heavens.
Among the ten, the most brilliant by far was this seemingly fragile woman. One could say that none of the other nine matched her in talent. The Primordial Heaven Grand Restriction had been her design — forged by Duan's hand and completed with the collective assistance of all.
In terms of raw power, Mu was also the strongest among the ten. Cang had even suspected that she might have already glimpsed the path beyond the Ninth Grade.
What a pity she had died so young. Had she lived, with her talent, Mu might truly have found a way to transcend the Ninth Grade.
Hearing Mo bring up Mu now, Cang's expression hardened. He spoke in a deep voice: "Mo — you know very well how Mu died."
Mo cried out in fury: "You think I killed her? It wasn't me! I never killed Mu — how could I kill her…"
Cang let out a cold snort: "She ventured into the Grand Restriction, and after she returned she was dead. If not for you, how could that have happened?"
"It truly wasn't me!" Mo protested.
"There is no point in saying more. Whether it was you or not no longer matters."
Now the human race's army of two million had arrived. Even if they could not destroy Mo outright this time, they had to weaken its power — otherwise he could not hold on much longer.
Mo looked aggrieved like a child: "It wasn't me… it truly wasn't me…"
When Mu had ventured deep into the Grand Restriction, Mo had been enraged at the betrayal and had indeed ordered its servants to attack Mu. But Mu had been far too powerful — its servants were no match, and at most they had given her a few minor wounds. How could they possibly have killed her?
Yet the fact remained that Mu had died after returning from inside Mo. That was why, all these years, Mo had been unable to clear its name.
In truth, Cang and the other nine had initially believed that Mo had gravely wounded Mu. When she fell, the nine had been consumed by fury.
But later, upon reflection, numerous doubts had surfaced.
Mu's strength had been extraordinary. The servants Mo created were formidable, certainly, but they could not necessarily have wounded her so severely. Moreover, the Primordial Heaven Grand Restriction had been Mu's own design — if she had found herself outmatched inside and wished to retreat, Mo probably could not have stopped her. There would have been no need for her to fight to the death.
Looking back now, the injuries Mu had sustained did not appear to have been inflicted by any enemy combatant. They were caused by something else entirely.
Her life force had been draining away with terrifying speed. She had been on the verge of death.
Before she passed, she had handed the remaining nine a piece of unworked jade, said nothing, and simply departed.
That piece of jade now rested in Cang's possession. He had studied it for years and could only sense that it held some subtle connection to the entire Primordial Heaven Grand Restriction, but he had never been able to determine what it actually did.
Furthermore, since it concerned the Primordial Heaven Grand Restriction, he did not dare experiment with it carelessly, for fear of destabilizing the seal.
What had truly happened back then had become an unsolved mystery. Perhaps Mo knew something. Perhaps even it did not.
"Senior, the human army is fully prepared."
A Ninth Grade ancestor from Dazhantian flew to Cang's side, breaking him from his reminiscence.
Cang raised his gaze. In the void before him, over a hundred towering fortresses stretched across the expanse, each one bristling with human warriors whose morale soared high and whose killing intent surged like boiling seas. Gathering his thoughts, he gave a slight nod. "Then let us begin."
The Dazhantian ancestor turned and signaled to the distance.
"Battle stations!"
A thunderous roar shook the void without end. Upon each fortress, the aura of heaven and earth's might began to radiate outward — formations activating, artifacts blazing to life with radiant light.
Ready to strike!
Upon seeing this, Cang let out a resonant command: "Open!"
The moment the word left his lips, his figure grew towering and immense, as though it might blot out sky and earth. A fearsome aura billowed forth from that ancient frame.
Every Ninth Grade Open Heaven who sensed it felt their eyes light up.
Previously, when the Ninth Grades had asked Cang about his level of cultivation, he had said that he was still merely a Ninth Grade — only that he had walked further along the Ninth Grade path than the human ancestors.
The ancestors had not pressed further.
But now, sensing it for themselves, they could clearly perceive the overwhelming power radiating from this old man who had stood guard over the Primordial Heaven Grand Restriction for a million lonely years.