“Who exactly are you, to be able to control the possessed cave spirit?” A woman’s voice emerged from the azure qilin’s mouth. Despite the anger in her words, her voice remained extraordinarily pleasant.
It was unmistakably the voice of Xianxian.
Earlier, after entering the True Spirit Cave, before she could even locate what she sought, the Gui-named man abruptly appeared. Then, the cave spirit, which should have been dormant, suddenly mutated and manifested, swallowing her whole in one gulp. Had she not been thoroughly prepared—immediately consuming a specially refined secret elixir and allowing the True Qilin to possess her, transforming into the current qilin phantom—she would have truly been devoured by the cave spirit.
“I don’t care about your origins. I only ask: where is the True Qilin’s essence in this True Spirit Cave?” the Gui-named man demanded coldly.
“Heh, my origins? Who else do you think knows of this True Spirit Cave?” A sinister, muffled chuckle emanated from the enormous grotesque face, sending chills down one’s spine.
Meanwhile, the portion of its body that had previously exploded now flashed with black light and instantly regenerated, as if the damage had been trivial.
Hearing this, the Gui-named man’s expression drastically changed. The azure qilin, too, revealed shock.
“What? You’re also… Indeed! Aside from us, no other beings should know of this True Spirit Cave.” The qilin phantom glanced at the Gui-named man, took a deep breath, and spoke.
“Hmph, I’m nothing like you, a parasitic failure. To fail in possessing a weak Crystal Clan member—what a joke. I succeeded perfectly in possessing this Silver Flood Dragon,” the Gui-named man retorted disdainfully, rolling his eyes.
A flicker of anger passed through the qilin phantom’s gaze, but it replied calmly, “Your success was mere luck. Back then, we were all one of the original’s hundred thousand divine fragments—how could there be any difference? I find this symbiotic relationship no worse than parasitism. Once this Crystal Clan woman reaches the ascension realm, I, too, can restore my True Qilin form and immense power.”
“Ascension? A pipe dream! A mere Crystal Clan member dares to aspire to such heights?” The Gui-named man sneered, his lips twitching.
“Why not? With the True Qilin’s essence from this cave, even a block of wood would have a sliver of hope to ascend to the Immortal Realm,” the azure qilin replied serenely.
“Wasting such a primordial force, capable of birthing a True Spirit, on a Crystal Clan member is an outrage. If I, with my Silver Flood Dragon body, consumed it, I could shed my flood dragon form and evolve into a True Dragon in just ten thousand years,” the Gui-named man scoffed, though he didn’t deny the qilin’s claim.
“Are you suggesting I hand over the True Qilin’s essence willingly? Though we were once one, after all these years, we’ve become independent entities, strangers now. Even if I were to concede, the one below certainly wouldn’t. Earlier in the cave, it sought to devour us both,” the azure qilin retorted, casting a cold glance at the monstrous figure below.
“I don’t care how you’ve possessed the cave spirit or what your plans are. Hand over the True Spirit’s essence now, and I’ll leave immediately. Otherwise, don’t blame me for what comes next,” the Gui-named man said icily, though he recognized the provocation in the qilin’s words.
“If you want the True Qilin’s essence, fine. Just step into my belly and merge with me—then it’s yours,” the giant face cackled grotesquely.
“What? You’ve already consumed it? Impossible! Only a physical entity can absorb True Spirit essence. A cave spirit’s form couldn’t possibly do so!” the Gui-named man snapped in disbelief.
“Who told you I’m a cave spirit? Do you two truly believe you’re the first to discover this place?” The giant face paused before replying darkly.
“What do you mean?” The azure qilin’s body flickered with cyan light, its tone wary.
“It means I’ve already devoured three or four like you. Once I consume you two and all this True Spirit blood, I’ll soon manifest a True Spirit body. As for the True Qilin’s essence—it’s already inside me. Now, if you want to know more, let me devour you. Then you’ll understand everything.”
The colossal monster seemed done talking. With a flash of black light and a thunderous roar, two black lightning arcs shot forth like massive spears, aiming to pierce the qilin phantom and the Gui-named man.
Hearing the monster’s words, the Gui-named man’s face darkened further. Seeing the attack, his fury erupted. Without a word, his figure blurred, splitting into three identical copies.
One raised a hand, summoning a silver flying sword that transformed into a ten-zhang-long blade of light, slicing through the incoming black lightning in an instant.
Meanwhile, the azure qilin phantom’s head swelled to several times its size, its maw gaping as it swallowed the black lightning whole.
Witnessing this, one of the Gui-named man’s avatars narrowed his eyes. “The Great Devouring Art! It seems your powers are formidable enough to warrant an alliance. Let’s join forces to destroy this thing and split the True Qilin’s essence. No matter how much it’s consumed, it can’t fully refine such a primordial force.”
“Agreed,” the azure qilin replied after a brief pause.
Though wary of the Gui-named man, the monstrous entity below was an even greater threat that had to be eliminated.
Cyan light flared around the qilin as its form expanded to over a hundred zhang, its aura soaring skyward.
The Gui-named man’s three avatars acted in unison—one summoning a massive silver sword beam, another conjuring crimson flames around his body, and the third transforming into his true form: a silver flood dragon.
Both prepared for battle, neither daring to underestimate their foe.
The grotesque face below laughed again. “You dare resist? Good. Saves me the trouble of chasing you. But before dealing with you, I’ll attend to two uninvited guests first.”
Without warning, a dozen thick black lightning bolts struck a seemingly empty patch of space, their crushing spiritual pressure descending like a hurricane.
A slender silver figure flickered into view, darting away as a silver streak—but a deafening thunderclap stunned the air, slowing her escape. The black lightning coalesced into a hundred-zhang-long black sword, obliterating the silver streak in an instant.
The figure—none other than the high-ranking shapeshifting demon beast “Jiuye,” who had stealthily followed Han Li—was annihilated before she could even scream.
Seeing the black sword’s terrifying power, the Gui-named man’s avatars and the qilin tensed.
But instead of returning or attacking them, the black sword suddenly veered, slashing toward the ground.
From below, a clear chime rang out as seventy-two tiny cyan swords shot upward, merging into a single emerald blade crackling with golden lightning. The two colossal swords clashed midair, their energies locked in a stalemate.
The white-faced monster frowned, then snorted. Black lightning surged around it, poised to strike again—
But with a “whoosh,” a cyan streak shot from the ground where the swords had emerged. Simultaneously, a shadowy black blade materialized above the cyan streak, slashing down—
Only to deflect off a crystalline barrier that suddenly appeared.
Within the barrier stood Han Li, hands behind his back, his gaze sweeping coldly over the monstrous face, the Gui-named man’s avatars, and the qilin phantom.
Without a word, he raised a hand. From another patch of earth, a fist-sized golden flower streaked toward him.
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