Chapter 52 Perfect Coordination, Great Monster

Having lost its demon core, its own power had been diminished by more than half. Compounded by the exhaustion from the bitter battle, it now struggled to even activate the Golden Roc Blade—a third-tier magical treasure—let alone contend with Elara (Person Name).

By the time Eldrin consumed the 1 Restoration Pill and recovered 50 percent of his true essence, the moment he summoned the Purple Light Mirror once more, it became his death warrant.

It must be said that Eldrin possessed remarkable combat talent, always seizing fleeting opportunities in critical moments.

The Purple Palace Demon Roc (Demon Beast) had just expended immense energy to break free from the Weakwater Ribbon and flee for its life. He summoned the Violet Light Mirror, casting its radiance to momentarily obstruct the creature. That single moment of delay marked the difference between life and death.

Once more, Elara channeled the Jade Ice Mind-Calming Incantation to freeze it solid. This time, however, she felt her spiritual power waning, and the creature could no longer break free.

"Hymn—"

A sword cry rang out. The Purple Palace Demon Roc (Demon Beast) flashed a trace of terror in its eyes, but it was already too late to react. Its head was severed in 1 clean strike.

After slaying 2 Purple Mansion beasts in succession, Elara (Person Name) had no time to rest. She hastily swallowed a third-tier recovery elixir to replenish her spiritual power, then immediately activated her magic treasure and soared toward the aerial battlefield.

In that very instant, Lyra seized the opportunity to break the stalemate. The Heaven-Void Immortal-Slaying Sword transformed into a blade radiance spanning hundreds of feet, and with a resonating clang, severed a Purple Palace, Mid Stage demonic wolf amidst the void.

Seeing that the situation was hopeless and continuing the fight would endanger their own lives, the Purple-Spotted Wolf King (Demon Beast) let out a grief-stricken howl before fleeing toward the distant horizon. Seizing the opportunity, 2 Thunder Roc (Demon Beast) of the Purple Mansion Realm also swiftly escaped into the skies.

"Hmph—"

Seeing the great demon flee, Lyra's eyes instantly narrowed. Merging with her sword, she transformed into a brilliant streak of sword light and gave chase.

Elara was about to give chase when the old clan leader finally succumbed. A flock of Thunder Roc birds tore through the Li Fire Blazing God Formation, breaking free from its confines.

This time, Chen Changxuan had performed a monumental feat. Alone, he held off 30-some Thunder Roc raptors, not only enduring their assault for over 2 double-hours but even slaying 4 or 5 of them. His valor proved pivotal to this decisive victory.

By this point, the emergence of these Foundation Establishment beasts could no longer alter the tide of battle. Elara (Person Name) personally took action, slaying second-order demonic creatures and swiftly driving them into a full-scale rout.

The demon beasts crumbled into defeat, their ranks scattering in a desperate rout. Seizing the advantage, the cultivators gave chase, cutting down the fleeing creatures as they pressed forward.

Eldrin did not give chase. He hurriedly made his way to the center of the dissipating Li Fire Sword of the Returning Abyss formation and found the old clan leader.

Chen Changxuan was drenched in blood, his face pallid and drained. It was evident his zhenyuan had nearly been exhausted, and this wretched state gave him a profound fright.

"Elder Uncle, are you alright?"

Eldrin swiftly steadied the Elder Uncle, hastily feeding him several healing pellets before administering a single 1 Restoration Pill.

"I'm not dead yet." The old clan leader finally caught his breath, a weak smile gracing his lips. "This Ancient Bronze Pagoda (Magic Treasure) and Li Fire Soul-Burning Array (Formation) truly work wonders."

"Those wretched beasts thought they could surround this old man, yet they failed to breach my defensive artifact. Had my True Essence not been depleted, I would have slain a few more of them."

Hearing this, Eldrin finally breathed a sigh of relief.

Though the old clan leader was gravely wounded and had nearly exhausted all his magical power, he ultimately sustained no fatal injuries.

However, due to overexerting his spiritual power, the old clan chief's meridians suffered minor damage once more. It would likely take several more years of recuperation before he could return to his peak condition.

The demon beasts were utterly routed. The cultivators pursued and slaughtered them for a full half day, until the corpses of demon beasts littered the wilderness like scattered tiles, and only then did the battle conclude.

Over an hour later, a sword radiance tore through the sky as Lyra (Person Name) descended to the ground, dropping the carcass of a Thunderstorm Roc.

Elara stepped forward and hastily inquired, "Master, how did it go?"

Lyra shook her head, "It got away."

Elara smiled faintly, gazing at the remains of the Thunder Roc as she remarked, "Though we failed to eliminate the Purple-Spotted Wolf King—that persistent scourge—slaying 4 Purple Mansion demon beasts in 1 campaign can still be considered an overwhelming victory."

As soon as she finished speaking, she added with a tinge of regret, "However, this battle claimed the lives of 7 Foundation Establishment cultivators, and the casualties among Qi Refinement practitioners exceeded 8 100."

"Fortunately, this time we obtained 4 Zifu Monster Cores, sufficient to fire up the cauldron and refine 4 batches of Foundation Establishment Pill (Spiritual Object)."

A Zifu Realm demon beast possesses profound cultivation, having already transformed true essence into magical power. A trace of creation power contained within the core of such a great demon can be used as a substitute for the main ingredient in refining the Foundation Establishment Pill (Spiritual Object).

With Lyra's own alchemy skills, these 4 batches of Foundation Establishment Pill (Spiritual Object) would yield at least 15 or more pills—enough to compensate for the fallen Foundation Establishment cultivators with some to spare.

"Mm." Lyra gave a slight nod, her eyes turning distinctly cold. "We were ambushed by demonic beasts this time, nearly meeting with disaster."

"I fear there may be a leak within our ranks."

Upon hearing this, a glint of murderous intent flashed in Elara's eyes. "After we return, I will make the arrangements. Every Foundation Establishment cultivator from Celestial Ruins Mountain must undergo the Inquiry of Heart Platform."

The Heart-Questioning Platform was a third-grade superior special magical tool forged by Lyra (Person Name), capable of discerning the veracity of a cultivator's words. Any ill-intentioned individual whose cultivation had not reached the Violet Mansion Realm would inevitably reveal their flaws after undergoing its interrogation.

Lyra gave a slight nod, withdrawing the trace of killing intent as her gaze swept over Eldrin and Chen Changxuan. She spoke with detached calm.

"They are not too bad."

Without further words, everyone began organizing the cleanup of the battlefield.

In this battle, Celestial Ruins Mountain (Location) had slain over 10,000 demonic beasts, with more than 70 at the Foundation Establishment stage alone. The harvested materials—pelts, bones, flesh, and blood—from these beasts were beyond counting, making the cleanup and collection an arduous and time-consuming task.

While the others were clearing the battlefield, Lyra and her companion soared to the summit of the Direwolf Mountain, where they discovered the spirit pool of this ley line.

A first-grade spirit vein nurtures spirit eyes, a second-grade spirit vein can give rise to spirit springs, but only within a third-grade spirit vein can the invaluable spirit pools emerge, sustaining the cultivation of Purple Mansion cultivators.

For many years, Demon Wolf Mountain had been occupied by the Wolfkin tribe. The reason it could nurture 3 Eldrin realm demon wolves was precisely due to this upper-third-grade spirit vein that sustained their cultivation.

Lyra gazed at the spirit pool before her, discovering it measured a full 3 zhang in diameter. The crystalline spiritual liquid radiated pure spiritual energy.

"Although the spiritual energy of this spirit pool cannot compare to that of Celestial Ruins Mountain, it would likely rank among the top 10 within all third-grade spiritual veins across Chu Kingdom."

She spoke, a glimmer of delight flashing in her eyes.

Such a spiritual vein, if located in the heart of Chu Kingdom, would undoubtedly serve as the perfect ancestral land for a top-tier Purple Mansion immortal clan—so coveted that even a Purple Mansion Patriarch would covet it beyond measure.

Elara (Person Name) felt the dense spiritual energy within the spirit pool and couldn't help but remark, "This spiritual vein is utterly priceless. Should we set up a formation array and have me stand guard here?"

"We cannot hold both." Lyra shook her head with absolute certainty. "The Celestial Python Demon King lurks merely 300,000 li away. If we divide our forces between 2 locations, we'd only increase the risk of being defeated piecemeal."

Upon hearing this, Elara (Person Name) let out a helpless sigh. "We fought so hard to capture this place, yet we still have to leave it for the demon race."

"Silly girl." Lyra (Person Name) smiled faintly. "As long as we're still alive, we who conquered this place once shall surely reclaim it again."