The dragon’s roar ceased as the flood dragon’s shadow soared into the sky, circled once, and then descended, vanishing into Han Li’s back. A bloody glow emanated from his spine, and a vivid, lifelike pattern of a blood-red flood dragon, several inches in size, gradually materialized from blurry to clear.
At this moment, Han Li’s entire body shimmered with a bloody radiance. From his cheeks to his arms, thumb-sized crimson scales emerged, glistening with an eerie brilliance. A sharp pain shot through his head as a small, blood-red horn sprouted from his forehead. His fingers elongated into razor-sharp claws, their nails hardened to an extraordinary degree.
At a glance, Han Li’s transformed appearance bore a faint resemblance to the demonic soul trapped within the formation. However, Han Li retained his human face, adorned with dripping crimson scales, while the demonic soul had two grotesque heads and purple scales. Han Li had activated the Spirit Subduing Talisman, merging his true essence with the flood dragon’s soul, instantly elevating his cultivation to the peak of early Nascent Soul stage, just a hair’s breadth away from mid-stage.
Now, his body radiated a mix of azure and crimson spiritual light. Gripping the Blood Demon Sword with both hands, he channeled all his spiritual power into it. The sword trembled violently before its bloody aura surged several zhang high, exuding a pungent, metallic stench. The red horn on Han Li’s forehead, fully empowered by the flood dragon’s soul, blazed with an intense, blinding light.
Han Li had made up his mind. Since the demonic soul was trapped within the sword formation, he couldn’t allow the other ancient demon to rescue it. If the two demons merged, the consequences would be dire.
But the other demon’s speed was such that it would reach them before the sword formation could fully close. The only solution was to strike first and eliminate the trapped demonic soul. With only one demon left, the arriving cultivators would stand a chance.
Though wielding the Blood Demon Sword came with severe repercussions and would drain his true essence, Han Li had already decided to flee immediately after killing the demon, avoiding further entanglement with the other demon to prevent any unexpected mishaps due to his weakened state.
Having single-handedly dealt with one demon, he doubted the other cultivators would hold any grievances against him.
Yet, the Blood Demon Sword seemed like a bottomless pit, devouring most of Han Li’s spiritual power in an instant. The bloody sword aura flickered unpredictably, stretching six to seven zhang long, its gathered spiritual energy so immense that even Han Li was taken aback.
The demonic soul within the formation stared fixedly at the sword aura, its face gradually betraying a hint of fear.
“Are you courting death? A human cultivator recklessly wielding our sacred artifact—do you wish to be corrupted?” the demonic soul finally roared through both heads.
Han Li sneered, continuing to pour spiritual power into the sword without hesitation.
Enraged, the demonic soul realized Han Li was intent on killing it. Its face darkened, and with a flash of bloody light, it severed one of its own arms with a swift motion. The wound was smooth as a mirror, not a single drop of blood spilling—a bizarre sight.
The severed arm was immediately caught by its other hand. The demonic soul spat several mouthfuls of essence blood onto it while chanting an ancient incantation. The arm twisted and contorted, transforming into a sword resembling the Blood Demon Sword.
This sword was skeletal, wreathed in black demonic energy. With a mere swing, tendrils of demonic energy shot skyward. The demonic soul held the sword horizontally, channeling its demonic energy into it. A black sword aura erupted, rapidly expanding.
Han Li was surprised and inwardly wary of the demon’s ruthlessness. Though unsure of the bone sword’s power, he knew it was no trivial matter and dared not underestimate it.
Without hesitation, Han Li ceased channeling spiritual power and, gripping the Blood Demon Sword with both hands, swung it fiercely toward the demonic soul.
He wouldn’t give the demon a chance to unleash the bone sword’s full power. A ten-zhang-long bloody sword aura silently slashed downward, pressing ominously into the formation.
Before the sword aura even landed, the demonic soul was engulfed by an overwhelming aura of bloodlust. The space within the formation trembled, distorting as an eerie hum filled the air.
The demonic soul was horrified. This phenomenon indicated the sword’s power had reached its peak. As far as it knew, human cultivators shouldn’t be able to wield their sacred artifact beyond half its potential. Could this be related to Han Li’s earlier transformation?
Though this demon had survived the ancient war, it was unaware of the “Spirit Subduing Talisman” developed by later human cultivators, leaving it utterly baffled.
With its life at stake, the demon had no time to ponder. It could only hastily raise the bone sword, which had absorbed minimal energy, and let out a dual-headed roar. A black sword aura, half the size of the bloody one, shot upward with a piercing shriek, meeting the bloody aura mid-air.
Moments later, the two auras collided.
A thunderous explosion erupted as the two sword auras intertwined. Shockwaves of hurricane-like force burst from the impact, sending Silver Hair reeling back over a dozen steps before he steadied himself.
Han Li, with his near mid-stage Nascent Soul cultivation, only swayed slightly, taking half a step back. The demonic soul, unfazed by the shockwaves, remained rooted, its faces tense as it watched the sky.
To both Han Li and the demon’s astonishment, as the shockwaves dissipated, a pitch-black, fist-sized sphere materialized amidst the clashing auras. It rapidly expanded, twisting and elongating.
In an instant, a black, four-to-five-zhang-long, several-chi-wide object hovered above the formation.
Before Han Li could react, a vast expanse of five-colored light erupted from the object, cascading downward.
The distance was too close, the light too fast. Both the demonic soul and Han Li, standing at the formation’s edge, were caught off guard. Engulfed by the light, they were yanked upward by an immense force. Silver Hair, having retreated earlier, narrowly escaped.
“Not good! A spatial rift!” Han Li realized, his heart pounding as he struggled to break free.
But as he summoned his spiritual power, his face drained of color—his energy had vanished without a trace. He was powerless.
Cold sweat drenched Han Li as he teetered on the brink of being swallowed by the rift. In desperation, he mentally summoned his Emerald Swarm Swords below. The demonic soul, similarly ensnared, wore an expression of sheer terror.
With a flash, both Han Li and the demonic soul were sucked into the black rift. Only then did a chorus of clear chimes rise from below as hundreds of golden sword lights materialized, shooting toward the rift like crimson streaks.
Simultaneously, an enraged shriek echoed from afar. A burst of black demonic flame flickered before teleporting near the rift. The flame vanished, revealing a towering, demonic figure—the other ancient demon possessing a demonic body.
Witnessing the demonic soul’s abduction, the demon was furious yet dared not approach the rift’s light. Spotting Han Li’s last few Emerald Swarm Swords flying into the rift, it instinctively reached out, manifesting a massive demonic claw to snatch them.
Most swords deftly evaded, vanishing into the rift. Only two golden lights were caught, immobilized in the claw’s grasp.
At that moment, a purple fireball streaked from nowhere, darting into the rift after the swords.
The towering demon paused, but before it could act further, the rift shuddered and rapidly shrank, vanishing without a trace.
Only the demon and the dumbfounded Silver Hair remained.
The demon stared at the vanished rift, its expression a mix of shock and suspicion before turning a vicious glare toward Silver Hair.
Silver Hair, alarmed, summoned a yellow flying sword to shield himself, retreating cautiously while inwardly lamenting his misfortune. Yet, as his gaze swept the surroundings, a flicker of hope lit his face.
“Eh! Isn’t this Fellow Daoist Cheng? What happened here? What is this demon?” A calm voice rang out as a group of green-robed cultivators emerged a hundred zhang away.
Their leader, an elderly man in green robes, gaped at the towering, two-headed, six-armed demon. This was none other than Dongmen Tu, the Grand Elder of the Spirit Beast Sect, accompanied by the three surviving members of the Five Elements Spirit Infants.
“Indeed, I share the same question!” A gloomy voice came from another direction as over a dozen streaks of spiritual light shot through the air. All were clad in black robes—clearly disciples of the Ghost Spirit Sect. Leading them was none other than Elder Zhong.
Both teams of cultivators witnessed the final moment of the spatial rift disappearing, each showing astonishment on their faces.
“This is a long story, but let’s deal with this demon first. Everyone must be extremely careful—this fiend is exceptionally fierce, and the slightest misstep could cost you your life.” Silver Hair forced a bitter smile, mustering his resolve to warn them.
Dongmen Tu and Elder Zhong exchanged puzzled glances before cautiously advancing with their disciples, encircling the towering demon from a distance.
The demonic soul’s two massive heads slowly turned, surveying the surrounding human cultivators.
One face twitched, revealing murderous intent. The other wore a mocking smirk, eyes gleaming with disdain.
Without a word, it raised its four arms, summoning four pitch-black, massive blades. A slight tremor sent ear-piercing shrieks echoing from each blade.
Silver Hair paled at the sight, recognizing the deadly prelude all too well.
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