Chapter 77: Sudden Change
Chapter 77: Sudden Change
Ao Lie regained Lingyuan Reef and was overjoyed. After arranging troops to station there, he immediately felt a strong urge to descend into the abyss for a detailed inspection. He pulled Mu Yuan along with him, saying excitedly, “This abyss produces Sunken Silver, perfect material for crafting magical artifacts. Since you’ve helped greatly, come and see it with me!”
Mu Yuan felt embarrassed to say, “Brother Ao, I already took most of your Sunken Silver, no need for you to bother!” So he simply followed Ao Lie into the abyss.
Ao Lie had been to Lingyuan Reef before, and Mu Yuan wasn’t unfamiliar either. When they reached the place where Sunken Silver was produced, they saw only a faint flicker of silvery light, with a sparse, thin layer remaining. Ao Lie immediately cursed Ao Jing and Ao Cheng, calling them wicked and greedy for scraping everything so thoroughly. Mu Yuan found it amusing but stayed silent.
“You’ve worked hard getting here,” Ao Lie said to him. “Since we’re here, why not collect some Sunken Silver? Even if you don’t craft artifacts, you can condense thunderbolt pearls like Ao Jing did. They are extremely powerful, making this trip worthwhile!”
Hearing this, Mu Yuan suddenly felt a pang of guilt. In this battle, it was Ao Lie’s Thousand Armies Annihilation Formation Diagram that showed its power at the critical moment. Mu Yuan himself had simply passed through the reef, reaping many benefits without truly contributing much. He had taken all the rewards. Ao Lie was acting quite nobly, while he… he had gone a bit too far!
Just as he hesitated, a violent rumbling erupted from the depths below. Seawater churned, lifting sand and mud. A sharp, sword-and-mountain-like force cleaved through the water, shooting upwards. Lingyuan Reef trembled violently; rocks tumbled down on both sides, cliffs exploded. The sky seemed to shake and the earth to move. Both Ao Lie and Mu Yuan were shocked. Looking down, they saw a huge, square stone swirling upwards. Beneath it was a hazy, insubstantial figure, enveloped in a ring of bloody-red light, constantly bombarding the stone. Blasts of force exploded, streaks of energy flew wildly. The nearby seawater boiled like a pot, bubbled and surged furiously, the spectacle truly immense!
“The Demon Suppressing Stone!” Mu Yuan’s heart jolted. His eyes shone instantly. He saw the old skeleton under the stone was long gone. Instead, a layer of misty, grey-white, bone-ash-like substance extended continuously, assaulting the stone. He thought with alarm, “Could it be that old fellow Bimo couldn’t endure anymore? Did he forcibly transform his Primordial Spirit and try to break free?”
At this thought, a chill ran down Mu Yuan’s spine. Although Bimo claimed his divine abilities wouldn’t be strong after transforming his Nether Demon Immortal Body into a Primordial Spirit using the Blood-Reverse Spirit-Shift technique, he was still at the Nascent Soul Level! Mu Yuan had snatched his Heavenly Demon Bone-Dissolving Whip earlier. If Bimo escaped now, Mu Yuan was doomed.
“Brother Ao!” he called out. “I don’t know what kind of fiend is emerging, but the power is too immense! Not something we can withstand. Let’s retreat first, avoid confronting it directly!”
Ao Lie’s eyes flickered uncertainly. The churning waves of energy below were vast and terrifying, daunting his heart. Yet, he had just regained Lingyuan Reef; how could he abandon it? He said solemnly, “I see that fiend seems suppressed by the stone above it. How about we help the demon-suppressing object and reseal it?”
Mu Yuan inwardly sighed, feeling bitter. His Mirage Dragon Thousand Illusions Array had long been shattered by Bimo’s immense commotion. Besides, the Demon Suppressing Stone was far less effective against a Primordial Spirit than against an Undying Body. Trapped for a millennium, Bimo might be exhausted, his newly formed Primordial Spirit somewhat weak. But escaping was only a matter of time. Once free, he could absorb endless spiritual energy and obliterate them both effortlessly! Mu Yuan had witnessed Five Yin Patriarch and Old Daoist Danhuo battle; such power was absolutely beyond his capability to resist. Right now, he just wanted to flee far away. Yet, Ao Lie had a point; he couldn’t escape far alone. Their best chance was to act together with Ao Lie. If they failed, perhaps they could seek refuge with the Dragon Clan overseas. Waiting meant certain death!
His decision made, Mu Yuan held nothing back. The Six Harmonies Sword Pills unleashed endless Sword Qi. The Green Wood Thunderblade transformed into a coiling Azure Dragon, roaring and crashing fiercely onto the bloody-red light beneath the Demon Suppressing Stone!
He even launched both his flying sword and pills simultaneously, yet felt it insufficient. He unleashed the six Talismanic Scripts, sending them weaving amidst the bloody light, attempting to seize Bimo’s vital essence and Zhenqi. But they were rebounded violently. Though the Brilliant Salvation Curse was marvelous, it wasn’t omnipotent. Bimo’s Nether Demon Immortal Body had been perfected. Even weakened by the transformation into a Primordial Spirit, it wasn’t something Mu Yuan’s current talismans could absorb!
Seeing the talismans ineffective, Mu Yuan threw up his hands, unleashing endless waves of Sword Qi. He had been silently channeling the Longevity Sword, activating its power remotely. The Longevity Sword’s sharpness was legendary; its Sword Qi far surpassed that of the Six Harmonies Sword Pills and the Green Wood Thunderblade. Instantly, the field was filled with a dazzling spectacle of multi-colored Sword Qi charging back and forth within the bloody-red light, scattering the bloody glow repeatedly. Though designed primarily to suppress an Undying demon body, the Demon Suppressing Stone was still a supreme treasure. Even transformed, Bimo couldn’t break free easily. Forced to focus all his energy on impacting the stone, he couldn’t fully defend against Mu Yuan’s Sword Qi. His Primordial Spirit glow got shredded countless times, eliciting agonizing roars that vibrated through the seawater, making it churn turbulently!
Even Ao Lie couldn’t help being impressed. The strength Mu Yuan displayed now was noticeably greater than before, making him wary. Nonetheless, Ao Lie summoned his Thousand Armies Annihilation Formation Diagram. The accompanying sailors were summoned down. Their Magical Power surged, harnessed by Ao Lie, coalescing into a blade beam of glittering energy. As his Zhenqi condensed, countless runes and curse characters slowly materialized over the blade’s surface. It shot out, whipping fiercely around Bimo’s Primordial Spirit bloody glow. Its sharpness even exceeded Mu Yuan’s Sword Qi!
Ao Lie’s method, though singular, inflicted greater damage on Bimo’s Primordial Spirit than Mu Yuan’s attack. The bloody glow of Bimo’s Primordial Spirit dissipated like melting snow poured with boiling water. Though it could instantly reform, the speed was much slower than when attacked by Mu Yuan, surprising Mu Yuan greatly.
Mu Yuan drew nearer. Though the situation was critical, he still managed a smile, asking, “Brother Ao, what technique is this? It seems quite different from other Qi blades?”
Ao Lie replied, “This is a secret technique of my Dragon Palace, called the Soul-Severing Soul-Sundering Blade. It’s actually a weapon-refining treasure. I’m just manifesting it through Qi blade technique now. It specifically harms the Primordial Spirit, hence its power seems greater. If it were the real Soul-Severing Soul-Sundering Blade, powered by the formation diagram boosting my Magical Power, this fiend would suffer even more!”
After Ao Lie’s explanation, Mu Yuan admired the technique greatly but felt awkward to ask for it outright. Methods specifically targeting the Primordial Spirit, he realized, were like the Demon Suppressing Stone – specialized tools with amplified efficacy. With the Formation Diagram gathering and amplifying the combined power of his soldiers, Ao Lie could raise his Magical Power nearly tenfold, almost matching a mid-level Qi Refinement cultivator (around the seventh or eighth layer). Though still inferior to a Nascent Soul Level master in raw Magical Power, its ability to damage such a being showed its profound and potent nature!
Bimo was already struggling to impact the Demon Suppressing Stone. Now, under the dual assault of such ferocious techniques, he quickly became overwhelmed. A thunderous roar of shock and rage erupted from within the bloody-red light. A dark green Daoist robe suddenly billowed out, expanding to several meters in size, enfolding the bloody glow. Countless silver-white streams of light flowed and circled around it, fluid like mercury. At microscopic levels, they condensed into talismans; across the broader area, they densely formed a formation, like countless large and small swirling vortexes. Mu Yuan’s Sword Qi was either devoured or repelled. The Six Harmonies Sword Pills trembled violently. The Green Wood Thunderblade recoiled as if hitting a sponge. Only the controlled Longevity Sword Qi remained sharp, exploding within the vortexes with thunderous booms that expanded the whirlpools but still couldn’t penetrate deep!
“Damn! Knew this old skeleton had more treasures hidden!” Mu Yuan thought with shock. Ao Lie’s Soul-Severing Soul-Sundering Blade shone fiercely, rolling over the surface of the Daoist robe like dew on a lotus leaf – hard to gain purchase, difficult to exert full force. Only occasionally, combining with Mu Yuan’s Sword Qi, could they tear an opening. Even when they rushed inside, loud shattering sounds followed, as if something had torn the energy apart.
Now protected by the robe, the Bimo fiend settled himself. Within the bloody-red light, a faintly discernible human face formed – grotesque and terrifying, yet pale like a newborn’s flesh. The figure was entirely naked except for sparse hair atop its head. Its eyes were sunken pits of utter darkness, like a ghost, but its expression showed unmistakable joy! Meanwhile, the Demon Suppressing Stone above his head was slowly shifting upwards! This sent shockwaves of terror through Mu Yuan and Ao Lie.
“Brother Ao,” Mu Yuan shouted urgently, as if he could see Bimo’s fierce Primordial Spirit face through the bloody-silver glow, his heart skipping a beat. “This fiend is breaking free! We must leave, now! That’s our best strategy!”
Ao Lie’s face darkened with stormy uncertainty. He had only just reclaimed Lingyuan Reef, who knew this unexpected horror was lurking here? And once freed, would this old monster seize this place? A Nascent Soul Level fiend was absolutely not something he could stand against! He debated fiercely within: should he return to the Dragon Palace and report this to Ao Feng? Though reluctant to part with the reef, he saw the light on the square stone dimming, its runes and curse inscriptions almost invisible. Biting down his frustration, he barked the command: “Withdraw immediately!”
Mu Yuan breathed a long sigh of relief. He quickly recalled his flying sword and sword pills. Channeling Qi into light, he sped away. Ao Lie gathered the Formation Diagram around him, the sailors drawn back into it. A swirling cloak of radiant glory enveloped him as he fled through the water.