Clang! Clang! Clang!
The harsh, grating sound of chains echoed incessantly. Anyone on the exploration grounds who saw the magnificent dark palace descending from the heavens immediately fled in terror.
Thud!
A young Great Power, not fast enough to escape, had his chest pierced by a chain of Order.
Following that God Devouring Chain, one could see with the naked eye the young Great Power's soul force rapidly dimming before the soulless body plummeted to the earth below.
Similar scenes played out repeatedly across this Domain.
Cultivators exploring and searching in other Domains swiftly retreated in all directions.
At eight locations, each a hundred thousand li away from Moon God Mountain, Sky God Cities hovered in the air, guarding the eight directions.
The Divine City to the east was the first to detect the intrusion. The powerful figures stationed there saw the dark palace approaching from afar, their hearts immediately clenching.
A formidable enemy was invading!
A Divine King Elder stationed there shot into the sky, glaring at the dark palace and shouting sternly, "This is the territory of Moon Hall! Outsiders are forbidden from trespassing, or the consequences will be—"
Before he could finish his sentence, a chain pierced through his brow like lightning.
Whoosh!
The mysterious black chain retracted, pulling the Divine King's divine soul, now wrapped around it, back with it.
The Divine King Elder's Divine King body fell from the sky, forever bereft of its soul.
"Elder Xia!"
The other Moon Hall powerhouses in the Sky God City cried out in shock, deeply horrified by this sudden turn of events. They also hadn't expected a dignified Divine King Elder to have his soul stripped away in a single encounter.
Recalling this bizarre method of soul-stripping, what other force besides the fearsome Soul-Restraining Hall could possibly achieve it?
"Enemy attack! Enemy attack!"
The Sky God City guarding the east immediately sent out a message. Many Moon Hall powerhouses activated the teleportation arrays within the city, preparing to leave and return to the main base at Moon God Mountain.
The enemy had a terrifying top-tier powerhouse personally making a move. Even their strongest Divine King Elder had his soul stripped in an instant. The others stood no chance of resistance and could only retreat to Moon Hall.
Boom!
However, just before their final departure, they witnessed the most terrifying scene of their lives.
A dark hand, vast enough to blot out the sky and cover the sun, reached out from the dark palace, encompassing who knew how many tens of thousands of li, and slammed heavily onto the Sky God City. The most terrifying power erupted abruptly.
The Sky God City exploded!
All the Moon Hall powerhouses within the city were utterly annihilated!
At Moon God Mountain, the Goddess, who had been quietly cultivating within Moon Hall, suddenly opened her eyes. She rose to her feet, looking towards the outside world, her voice cold. "Have they finally arrived?"
"Someone! Pass down the order! Moon Hall is now on its highest level of alert. Prepare for battle!"
Following the Goddess's command, Moon God Mountain immediately raised a vast Moonlight Canopy. All the Quasi-Monarchs and Divine King powerhouses emerged, having instantly received the Goddess's mental transmission and understood the situation.
The Soul-Restraining Hall was attacking!
The Sky God City guarding the east had been destroyed, only managing to send back one piece of information. The Goddess didn't know how many powerhouses the Soul-Restraining Hall had brought this time.
But the Goddess knew that after the battle three years ago, the Soul-Restraining Hall understood Ye Chen's fearsomeness. It was likely that even a Heaven-Defying Quasi-Monarch would come personally.
She just didn't know if an Ancient Monarch would descend this time.
If an Ancient Monarch descended, the trouble would multiply many times over.
Just as Moon Hall was fully mobilizing for defense, a rumbling roar echoed from the horizon.
Visible to all, the clear, boundless sky was instantly shrouded by endless dark clouds, pitch-black as ink, with lightning flashing within.
A dark aura spread out. A massive dark palace, large enough to rival Moon God Mountain, slowly approached, bringing with it immense pressure.
Seeing that palace, massive as a star, the various powerhouses of Moon Hall rushed out, their expressions grave.
Yet there was not a trace of fear. Over the past three years of development, Moon Hall's overall strength had increased by more than just a single fold.
Moreover, they had over ten Quasi-Monarchs stationed there, utterly fearless of anything.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
Ten figures stood imposingly in the air. They were precisely the Goddess, Yu Qing, and the other ten Quasi-Monarchs of Moon Hall.
He Fang, Qian Xun, the Corpse Devouring Insect Emperor, Will, the Human Race Imperial Sons and Daughters, and others were also present, standing ready.
"Soul-Restraining Hall!"
The leading Goddess coldly watched the arrival of the Soul-Restraining Hall's powerhouses. At this moment, she was like an empress, filled with supreme majesty, her peerless grace overwhelming. She said coldly, "May I ask the purpose of the Soul-Restraining Hall's visit to my Moon Hall?"
"The Goddess truly asks a question to which she already knows the answer—"
A deep, resonant voice rang out. The Second Hall Master of Earth Hall stepped forward, tall and burly, with a thick, solidified God Devouring Chain coiling around him, holding a barbed greatsword. He sneered, "The purpose of my Soul-Restraining Hall's visit today is, of course, to destroy your Moon Hall!"
"Destroy my Moon Hall?" The Goddess let out a cold laugh. "I'm afraid your Soul-Restraining Hall lacks the capability. You might just repeat your past failure. And this time, Second Hall Master of Earth Hall, you might end up staying here permanently, just like that Third Hall Master of Earth Hall."
Bringing up the old matter, their only disgrace, the Second Hall Master of Earth Hall's face darkened slightly. He snorted coldly, "Let's see how your Moon Hall makes this venerable one repeat that failure this time. Men!"
The dark hall trembled, unleashing numerous streams of black light. These black lights landed behind the Second Hall Master of Earth Hall—all powerhouses of the Soul-Restraining Hall.
Eleven of them, at the forefront, were all at the Quasi-Monarch level.
Behind them were over a hundred Divine Kings.
As for Great Powers, Heavenly Kings, and other levels, they were too numerous to count.
Seeing such a number of powerhouses, everyone in Moon Hall was shocked. Even the several Quasi-Monarchs couldn't help but suck in sharp breaths of cold air.
To deal with Moon Hall, the Soul-Restraining Hall had actually mobilized such a terrifying force.
Especially the Goddess, Qian Xun, and the others, who had clashed with the Soul-Restraining Hall countless times on the Ultimate Ancient Path. They knew the fearsomeness of the Soul-Restraining Hall, but they also deeply understood that even a cosmic overlord-level force like the Soul-Restraining Hall, capable of rivaling the Ultimate Ancient Domain, couldn't possibly possess too many Quasi-Monarchs and Divine Kings. The force before them likely represented nearly half of the Soul-Restraining Hall's entire top-tier strength.
It could be said that to deal with Moon Hall, the Soul-Restraining Hall had mobilized nearly half of its top-tier strength.
Moreover, they were all intelligent individuals. They immediately understood that the Soul-Restraining Hall wasn't just targeting Moon Hall; it was also making an example to warn others, proving to the world that the Soul-Restraining Hall was not to be provoked. Otherwise, even a force as powerful as Moon Hall, hailed as the number one overlord force on the ancient path, could only be destroyed.
"What a formidable Soul-Restraining Hall," the Goddess said, her peerlessly beautiful face not looking too pleasant.
"Attack!"
The Second Hall Master of Earth Hall gave the order. The dark hall surged with boundless, terrifying power, directly and brutally crashing forward, slamming heavily onto the Moonlight Canopy.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The Moonlight Canopy rippled with layers of seven-colored waves, trembling incessantly.
But it ultimately held.
The Goddess and the others, however, didn't look too pleased. The very first collision was already so intense. It was likely that even the Moonlight Canopy, combined with the Primordial Grand Array, wouldn't be able to hold for long.
Sure enough, under the forceful collisions of the dark hall, which was like a treasure, the Moonlight Canopy lasted for about half an hour before ultimately failing to hold. With a thunderous roar, it completely shattered, transforming into a sky full of light points.
"Attack! Slaughter Moon Hall!"
Following the Second Hall Master of Earth Hall's fierce shout, the many powerhouses of the Soul-Restraining Hall all took action. Annihilating divine abilities and spells blotted out the sky and covered the earth. Countless God Devouring Chains shot out, charging towards the Moon Hall powerhouses.