Seeing Yu Daohan nod, Shen Tianming's intense pressure slightly receded. He spoke indifferently, "Not many people in this world are qualified to speak with me. Xu Feng was one of them back then. Are you interested in witnessing the beginning of this world's end?"
Yu Daohan's gaze was serious. Shen Tianming's words clearly indicated he knew Yu Daohan was Xu Feng's reincarnation.
As for what the beginning of the world's end meant, did their attack on the Fengtian Conference have another purpose?
"Let him go first," Yu Daohan said, helping Zhang Xiaoqiang up from his kneeling position.
Shen Tianming nodded, "Alright."
For him, killing or not killing Zhang Xiaoqiang made no difference.
Seeing Shen Tianming agree, Yu Daohan turned to Zhang Xiaoqiang beside him. "Qiangzi, leave here, rendezvous with Su Lai and the others, and immediately descend the mountain. I need to confirm something."
Zhang Xiaoqiang, hearing that Yu Daohan wasn't leaving with them, was about to protest but was interrupted. "Don't worry, if Shen Tianming wanted to kill me, he would have done it already."
What Yu Daohan said was true. If Shen Tianming intended to act, they would surely perish.
"Okay, be careful. If anything unexpected happens, escape immediately," Zhang Xiaoqiang cautioned.
Yu Daohan nodded, and Zhang Xiaoqiang turned to leave.
After Zhang Xiaoqiang departed, Shen Tianming also turned and walked towards the mountain peak. "Follow me."
Yu Daohan stepped forward to follow.
Along the way, Yu Daohan occasionally observed the founder of the world's largest cult.
"Do you know about the eighteen layers of hell?" Shen Tianming suddenly asked.
Although Yu Daohan was puzzled why Shen Tianming asked this, he still nodded. "I do. The Underworld governs all souls, and the eighteen layers of hell are where the Underworld imprisons malevolent spirits who have committed grave sins. The heavier the sin, the lower the layer they are imprisoned in. Legend has it that the eighteenth layer holds malevolent spirits capable of wreaking havoc upon the human realm."
Shen Tianming nodded, a look of excitement appearing on his face. "Precisely!"
Yu Daohan suddenly realized something. "Are you trying to open an entrance from hell to the human world!?"
Yu Daohan found it hard to believe. Did an entrance to hell truly exist in the human world?
Shen Tianming seemed to sense Yu Daohan's thoughts and replied, "There are indeed entrances from the human world to hell, one for each layer. However, they were sealed by a powerful being in the past."
Yu Daohan looked at the path ahead leading to the mountain peak, seemingly understanding Shen Tianming's purpose for attacking the Fengtian Conference this time.
"Could it be that this mountain has an entrance to a certain layer of hell?" Yu Daohan asked, incredulous.
Shen Tianming did not conceal it and nodded. "That's right, the summit of this mountain is the entrance to the seventh layer of hell!"
Yu Daohan did not press further but fell into silence. If the entrance were truly opened, and those malevolent spirits emerged, how many ordinary people would be implicated? Could he truly stand by and do nothing?
Yu Daohan subconsciously reached for the Kanglong mace at his back.
Shen Tianming, whose eyes missed nothing, noticed Yu Daohan's movement but pretended not to.
The two of them thus arrived before a dilapidated Taoist temple on the mountain peak.
Not far away, over fifty disciples of the Divine Cult were already waiting.
Yu Daohan looked at so many disciples of the Divine Cult, feeling immense pressure. It seemed impossible to prevent the seal from being broken by them.
One of the Divine Cult disciples, seeing Shen Tianming arrive, said, "Cult Master, the formation is ready. We can begin."
Shen Tianming nodded. The over fifty Divine Cult disciples exchanged glances and nodded, surrounding the dilapidated Taoist temple three layers deep.
Only when one of the disciples shouted, "Begin!" did everyone present simultaneously form seals with their hands, and flames rapidly erupted from their bodies.
The flames grew larger and larger, almost engulfing their entire bodies.
Yet, they acted as if they felt no pain, enduring the flames that consumed their bodies without a sound.
Yu Daohan stared at the scene before him, unable to believe his eyes.
Were they truly human?
Yu Daohan then looked at Shen Tianming, who stood beside him with an expressionless face.
What kind of person could inspire such unwavering self-sacrifice?
Suddenly, wisps of black energy emanated from the burning disciples and converged within the Taoist temple.
With a bang!
A deafening sound echoed as the already dilapidated Taoist temple collapsed, and a powerful surge of Yin energy erupted, shooting straight into the sky.
"Such heavy Yin energy!" Yu Daohan exclaimed involuntarily.
The surrounding trees began to sway violently, and the ground beneath their feet started to tremble.
Yu Daohan stared intently at the formation ahead. If the seal were successfully broken, how many innocent people would suffer?
Could he bear to watch this happen before his eyes?
Yu Daohan couldn't help but grip the Kanglong mace at his back, feeling helpless.
It seemed he still couldn't bring himself to abandon those in need.
Shen Tianming sensed Yu Daohan's intention and smiled faintly. He had anticipated that Yu Daohan would try to intervene.
"What, do you want to be the savior of this world?"
Yu Daohan wore a wry smile. "I admit I'm not a good person, but to stand by and watch as millions of innocent lives are about to be lost, I cannot do that."
"In the face of absolute power, you should understand that you cannot change anything," Shen Tianming said, not worried that Yu Daohan would disrupt the formation.