The Chang Mei Monk held a Treasure Wheel in one hand and formed a Flower-Picking Seal with the other.
The left side of his face was compassionate and smiling, full of Buddha Light and Zen tranquility.
The right side, however, seethed with murderous intent, presenting the furious visage of a Vajra.
The two were in stark contrast, yet it didn’t stop his left hand from brushing aside layers of Sword Light. Countless rays of Buddha Light gathered on the Treasure Wheel as it smashed down heavily.
It was like the Creation of Heaven and Earth, reshaping the elements of earth, water, wind, and fire.
"As expected of Master Benyin, the most outstanding disciple of Ju Bo Arhat. A century ago, he made a grand vow to vanquish demons and protect the Dao, and today, it is beginning to take shape... A Buddhist Sect’s Vajra can indeed attain the Arhat Path."
Watching this scene, Yann Yuanzai clapped his hands in admiration, not stingy with his praise.
Wan Qi felt the space before him shattering inch by inch. His Sword Light was like loose sand, scattering with a single touch and reverting to the Heaven and Earth Primordial Qi.
He had thought of activating his Lifebound Flying Sword for one last struggle, but then he remembered that the Secret Technique would damage the Flying Sword’s Spiritual nature. It would require at least thirty years of nourishment with Pill Qi in his Dantian to recover.
He abandoned the idea, simply holding his Flying Sword horizontally and pushing out the lotus seed in his hand.
The Treasure Wheel crashed down. The Sword Light shattered fragilely, and by the time the wheel struck Wan Qi’s body, the lotus seed had shown no reaction at all.
"No!"
Wan Qi let out a desperate cry. He wanted to deploy his two life-saving Secret Treasures, but it was too late.
From his shoulders to his torso, spreading to his head and limbs, his body was like a piece of shattered porcelain, breaking into countless fragments and disintegrating.
A Core Formation Perfection True Man had died on the tournament stage, just like that.
Blood splattered onto a corner of the stage, only to be quickly absorbed and disappear.
’Something’s wrong!’
The Xing Yao Sword left its sheath, transforming into a cluster of starlight that spun around Yann Yuanzai like a river of stars.
As a battle-hardened Sword Cultivator, he immediately sensed that the atmosphere was strange.
They had already decided to end things with a Combat on the stage, giving both sides a way to back down gracefully. Why had it turned into a true life-and-death struggle?
A Perfect Core Formation Cultivator was one of the most important combat assets in any Sect.
He encircled Bai Zichen and Qi Yue within the starlight of his Sword Light and looked up toward the high platform.
’The only people who could pull tricks in front of two Nascent Soul Cultivators would either be a Late-Stage Nascent Soul Great True Monarch, or the problem lies with one of the two themselves.’
BOOM!
One of the stages finally failed to withstand the True Essence fluctuations from the two combatants and was blown to pieces. A Bodhi Bead flew back to Ju Bo Arhat.
Master Ge Cang was clad in the Five-Colored Glaze Armor, with layers of fiery light flowing around him, making him look like a descended Celestial God.
His eyes were pitch black. Within his left eye was a Thunderbolt Ocean, and in his right, a Heaven-Reaching Jianmu Tree. He held a Wooden Pagoda in his hand.
The thunderlight dissipated, revealing Luu Rugao in the center of the stage. His Three-Headed Dragon Beast had been blasted apart by the Divine Thunder, and he was spitting blood, his aura weakened.
"Daoist Brother Ge, it seems the situation is..."
Before Yann Yuanzai could finish, he felt the entire Burial Immortal Valley tremble. The earth cracked open, and boundless Demonic Qi surged forth.
The thousand coffins at the valley’s entrance all exploded, and wisps of Ghost Qi shot into the fissures in the ground.
CRACK!
Two colossal, sky-propping hands emerged from the fissures, burning with indigo Demon Flames. Countless Demon Patterns covered the fingers and the backs of the hands. A single glance was enough to make one sink into demonic delusion.
The few Holy Lotus Sect Foundation Establishment Cultivators were assailed by the Demonic Qi. Their eyes turned crimson, and their bodies swelled, ripping their Daoist Robes as they transformed directly into Demons.
"It can influence the environment and transform nearby cultivators into Demons... It’s an Ancient Demon!"
Yann Yuanzai shed his carefree demeanor, his voice filled with utter shock.
Ancient Demons referred to members of the Demon Race from the Upper Realm, a completely different concept from the Demon Path Cultivators of the Cultivation Realm.
In the Upper Realm, Ancient Demons were all Void Refining Level existences. In this world, which could at most accommodate Divinity Transformation beings, they were still restricted by the Laws of Heaven and Earth, yet they possessed the ultimate power of the Human World: Divinity Transformation Perfection.
’The story that a Banished Immortal fell here in Ancient Times is likely not just a rumor... Perhaps a Banished Immortal truly fought and perished here against an Ancient Demon. Or maybe the protagonist of the legend was this very Ancient Demon, sealed here by an Ancient Great Power.’
At this moment, Master Ge Cang’s aura was ethereal and unreachably lofty.
He looked above the Burial Immortal Valley. At some unknown point, black chains had appeared, sealing off the area.
"Beaten to near death and then sealed for tens of thousands of years, a newly emerged Ancient Demon can have at most Nascent Soul Level strength... As long as releasing the Ancient Demon wasn’t a joint effort by those two, we still have a chance to escape."
"These black chains are equivalent to a Tier Four Array. What chance do we have?"
Despite being in a desperate situation, Yann Yuanzai did not panic. His expression was calm and serious as specks of starlight flew from his Xing Yao Sword and scattered into the valley.
"The emergence of an Ancient Demon requires an immeasurable amount of Demonic Qi. These black chains might have their energy drained and won’t be able to hold for long."
As Master Ge Cang made his calm judgment, two more loud bangs echoed out as the remaining two stages were also destroyed.
Countless Blood Shadows flew up and converged into a human form, revealing a somewhat disheveled Blood God True Man.
Meanwhile, Fang Tiancheng had transformed into a half-dragon form. The True Essence and Demon Power on his body were intertwined, unexpectedly creating a state of balance.
The four Core Formation True Men exchanged a glance. All were experienced cultivators, and they instantly formed a temporary alliance.
...
"It was you?"
The moment the fissures appeared in Burial Immortal Valley and the Ancient Demon emerged, True Monarch Jiulian turned to Ju Bo Arhat and blurted out.
"So, Patron, you also knew the secrets of this place... Amitabha Buddha. Burial Immortal Valley is no place of good. This humble monk shall take his leave!"
Ju Bo Arhat tossed his Golden Alms Bowl into the air. It enveloped his three disciples and the Spirit Farmer surnamed Gu, then shot straight into the sky.
A giant black palm slapped toward it, but the Golden Alms Bowl pierced right through, leaving a round hole in the palm.
’It wasn’t him?’
True Monarch Jiulian muttered to himself. At the same time, he swept Peng Zefeng and the remaining Holy Lotus Sect cultivators into his Daoist Robe. Nine green lotuses protected his body, shredding the approaching demon palm to pieces.
"Now is the time! Use your skills and break out of the valley!"
The Ancient Demon had crawled further out of the fissure, its arms now visible, and the black chains overhead weakened another fraction.
A hundred-zhang-tall giant appeared behind Master Ge Cang. It wielded a thunder hammer and slammed it down. Thunder rumbled within a ten-li radius as countless bolts of lightning gathered in the clouds.
A bolt of Divine Thunder as thick as a corridor pillar struck the black chains, directly shattering two links.
Yann Yuanzai gripped the Xing Yao Sword. A Sword Talisman slowly drifted down, erupting with terrifying True Essence fluctuations.
A current of power, not immense but completely different in nature, surged into his arm, guiding the Xing Yao Sword in a heavy swing.
It was clearly a sword strike with the force of a mighty thunderbolt—the most powerful Bai Zichen had ever witnessed in his life—yet all that appeared was a thread-like Sword Light and the faint flickering of starlight.
It landed on the black chains, and in an instant, it severed a complete chain along a fractured point, revealing the clear sky outside.
The starlight Sword Light retracted, and Yann Yuanzai swept up the three of them, charging out of the Burial Immortal Valley.
Looking back, he saw the black chains had already regrown halfway. As Fang Tiancheng burst out, one of his arms and a leg were snared by the chains.
A ruthless look flashed in Fang Tiancheng’s eyes. Three Dragon Claws grew from his right hand, and he swiped fiercely.
He left an arm and a leg behind in the Burial Immortal Valley. With a whistling sound, the Gold-Devouring Earth Dragon appeared from a distance.
He collapsed onto the Gold-Devouring Earth Dragon’s back, casting a grateful look toward Master Ge Cang and Yann Yuanzai.
Then, his Lifebound Spiritual Beast galloped away, not once looking back.
"This matter is strange. Let’s leave first..."
The Sword Talisman’s power was not yet depleted. With the Xing Yao Sword in his hand, Yann Yuanzai could unleash the full might of a Tier Four Flying Sword. At this moment, there was little difference between him and a Nascent Soul True Monarch.
But thinking of the two Nascent Soul Cultivators’ hasty departure and the Ancient Demon emerging in the valley, Yann Yuanzai knew this was not something he could easily get involved in.
"Why don’t we return to the Tianhe Sword Sect first? With Junior Martial Uncle Tang there, even if the Masters behind this are the two Nascent Soul True Monarchs, this matter can be investigated clearly!"
"Alright. I’ll have to rely on Brother Yann’s care along the way."
The giant behind Master Ge Cang dissipated, and his aura dropped sharply. He could only barely maintain the appearance of being in the Early-Stage Core Formation.
Considering it wouldn’t be safe to return to the Qingfeng Sect in this state, and more importantly, being unsure of True Monarch Jiulian’s stance in this affair, he didn’t dare to act recklessly.
With the Mid-Stage Nascent Soul cultivator Tang Fei presiding, the Tianhe Sword Sect should be the safest place right now.
The four of them boarded a Flying Ship and flew rapidly toward the Tianhe Sword Sect.
A few moments later, a faint, almost transparent Blood Shadow flew out of the Burial Immortal Valley. Blood God True Man was so weak he looked as if he could be scattered by the mountain wind.
Just as he turned to look back at the Burial Immortal Valley, a demonic palm the size of a hill descended from the sky and clenched around him.
"Hm?"
A small, blood-red sword pierced through the demonic palm, wrapped around the unconscious Blood God True Man, and in the blink of an eye, was already several li away.
Flashes of blood-red light appeared and disappeared as the small sword flew straight south, its speed comparable to a Nascent Soul True Monarch.
The voice was gender-neutral. There were no further sounds, and the demonic palm dissipated as if it had never been there.
All that remained were the roars of the Ancient Demon in the Burial Immortal Valley, growing louder and louder until half of its Demon Body had crawled out from underground. Then, a silver chain appeared in the sky above the valley.
The Ancient Demon continuously battered the seal, but the remaining half of its body could not move forward another step.
...
Bai Zichen had never expected that his first time leaving Liang Country would be under such circumstances.
Originally, he had just followed Master Ge Cang to observe Combat between High-Tier Cultivators up close and broaden his horizons.
But the subsequent development of the situation left him dazzled, completely unable to process what was happening.
The terrifying Ancient Demon that crawled out of the ground could crush a hundred of him with a single finger, making him realize just how weak he still was.
Of course, this was because he had ended up in a situation he never should have been in.
The participants in the Burial Immortal Valley were all True Men at the Perfect Core Formation Realm. Someone like Yann Yuanzai could even wield Tier Four abilities for a short time.
And there were two Nascent Soul Cultivators present.
Even if one traveled through all four countries of the Northern Domain, it would be difficult to encounter such a scene again.
"Junior Brother Bai, I suddenly feel like our war with the Ghost Spirit Sect is just child’s play..."
Qi Yue had been deeply shaken. It wasn’t until two days after arriving at the Tianhe Sword Sect that he finally spoke for the first time.
"Do you think this was all a setup by the two Nascent Soul True Monarchs to kill Master and the others who have a chance of reaching Nascent Soul? If they all died, I’m afraid no new Nascent Soul True Monarch would appear in Liang Country for hundreds of years."
"I don’t think so. Would Ju Bo Arhat sacrifice his own disciple just to help True Monarch Jiulian?"
Bai Zichen shook his head. He had thought about it a lot over the past few days.
Limited by his Cultivation, he might not be able to consider some of the more profound aspects, but Qi Yue’s guess was definitely untenable.
"If it were as you say, they would only have needed to hinder us slightly when the Ancient Demon emerged, and it would have been very difficult for us to escape the Burial Immortal Valley."
"But the two Nascent Soul Cultivators definitely knew something and tacitly allowed the Ancient Demon’s emergence to happen... The mysteries involved aren’t something we Foundation Establishment Cultivators can figure out. It’s better to wait for Junior Martial Uncle Ge Cang to return and ask him than to guess blindly."