Chapter 1436 : The Price of a Demon Sword

However, whether it was the Heavenly Demon Blood-Refining Divine Blade or the Sea of Blood Infant Soul Sword, to refine either to the Eighth Rank High-Grade would require the creation of boundless, immeasurable blood sin [the karmic debt accrued from mass slaughter and sacrifice].

It was likely that even if the Human Race from hundreds of Great Thousand World were completely sacrificed in a blood ritual, it might still be insufficient to forge a single demonic sword of such earth-shattering, heaven-shaking power.

Thinking of this, Eldrin Chen felt a heavy weight settle in his heart.

Judging from these two swords, the entire Human Race within the Nether Abyss Purgatory Sea likely lived in a boundless, unending purgatory.

"Purgatory Sea, Purgatory Sea…"

"That Nether Abyss Purgatory Sea truly lives up to its name as the purgatory of the Immortal Domain."

A chill ran through Eldrin Chen's heart, and a glint of killing intent flickered in his eyes.

Though murderous intent had arisen, Eldrin Chen did not act hastily. He continued to channel the Formation [a structured arrangement of energy nodes and flows used for defense, attack, or other effects] to defend, and time flowed by almost imperceptibly.

This Formation had been hastily arranged by Eldrin Chen with insufficient preparation. He had not fully integrated it with the Blessed Land [a region of concentrated spiritual energy and natural fortune], so its power was not particularly formidable.

The demonic fiend, wielding three superior-grade World-OpeningDemonic Treasure [powerful enchanted artifacts used by demonic cultivators], attacked relentlessly. After dozens of days of continuous assault, he finally managed to breach this crude defensive array.

Yet, in that very instant, before the demon could even begin to rejoice, the six cultivators struck as one.

In a flash, Verdant Consort's Five Dragon Wheel, Exquisite Jiang's Primal Shadow Heaven-Slaying Sword, Violet Consort Yan's Primal Radiance Heaven-Entombing Blade, and even Violet Consort Yan's Seven Extremities Spirit-Slaying Sword cleaved through the air with devastating force, aimed directly at the old demon's skull.

"Disaster!"

The old demon's heart lurched. He immediately commanded his three demonic weapons to parry while, with a flick of his sleeve, he summoned a Black Fiend Demonic Cauldron—a top-grade defensive World-OpeningDemonic Treasure [an enchanted artifact forged by a World-Opening realm demonic cultivator].

But in that same moment, Eldrin Chen unleashed the Primordial One Energy Grasping Hand [a supreme divine ability that manifests a giant hand of primordial energy], firmly seizing the old demon and his top-grade World-OpeningDemonic Treasure within its grasp.

Though the ancient Demonic Treasure cauldron possessed formidable power, it was inherently countered by the Primordial One Energy Grasping Hand. As boundless Chaos Primordial Solar Heavenly Flame [a supreme flame born from the chaos of creation] surged down upon it, the demonic radiance of the treasure rapidly dimmed.

"Damnation!"

Caught off guard, the old demon suffered a grievous blow. He tried to recall his three demonic weapons for defense, but found he could no longer free himself.

The Heavenly Demon Immortal-Slaying Sword had been seized by Exquisite Jiang using the Five Elements Divine Light [a divine ability that manipulates the essence of the five elements]. The Sea of Blood Infant Soul Sword was being suppressed by Nyssa Qu with her Mysterious Grade Divine AbilityNine-Colored Immortal Radiance [a radiant divine ability of the highest mystery grade].

The remaining Heavenly Demon Blood-Refining Divine Blade now stood alone, a single pillar unable to support the crumbling roof.

"How is this possible?"

Watching his three guardian demonic weapons fall into absolute disadvantage, the old demon revealed a look of utter astonishment, his heart filled with profound shock.

He had initially estimated, based on these six individuals' ability to slay the Primordial Tiger, that they were all prodigies who had opened at least Sixfold Heaven or above. Yet, he never imagined they would be this formidable.

The weakest among the six was comparable to a Sixth Level Earth Immortal. If that were all, it might have been manageable, as the power of a Middle Stage Earth Immortal could hardly pose a significant threat to him, who had reached Earth Immortal Great Perfection.

The most critical factor was that each of the six wielded a High-Grade World-Opening Treasure. This changed everything.

A single Sixth Level Earth Immortal was nothing to fear. However, a Sixth Level Earth Immortal armed with a High-Grade World-Opening Treasure could already threaten a cultivator at Earth Immortal Great Perfection.

While the threat from one alone was limited, facing a coordinated assault from a full six combatants, all at or above the Sixth Level Earth Immortal tier and each bearing a High-Grade World-Opening Treasure, was a challenge far beyond what any ordinary expert could handle.

Not just him—even a cultivator at Earth Immortal Great Perfection who had opened Seventh Heaven would likely struggle to parry such an onslaught and would surely suffer a grievous setback if caught unprepared.

"Damnation!"

Seething with fury, the old demon poured all his power into driving his Demonic Treasure to resist, striving to break free from the grip of the Primordial One Energy Grasping Hand and unleash the hidden trump cards he held in reserve.

Yet he discovered that his own Demonic Path Fiendish Energy [the corrupt spiritual energy cultivated by demonic practitioners], upon encountering the flames upon the Primordial One Giant Hand [a divine ability manifesting a colossal hand of primordial energy], instantly melted away like snow and ice.

"Disaster! It's the Primordial Solar Heavenly Flame [the supreme, purifying celestial fire of the primordial sun]!"

The old demon's heart jolted with alarm, only now perceiving the overwhelming Primordial Solar Flame [the purifying fire of the primordial sun] radiating from the Primordial One Energy Grasping Hand [a divine ability that seizes with a hand of condensed primordial energy].

The Primordial Solar Heavenly Flame was far too potent a counter to Demonic Cultivator [practitioners who cultivate using demonic or corrupt energies]. Now that Eldrin Chen had unleashed it, the threat it posed to him felt greater than that from some experts at the Earth Immortal Great Perfection [the pinnacle stage of the Earth Immortal realm].

With this realization, he immediately abandoned any thought of counterattack.

Gritting his teeth, he fiercely summoned a dazzling Demonic Path Ancient Talisman [an ancient enchanted scroll imbued with demonic power]. It erupted with boundless force, violently pushing open the Primordial One Giant Hand.

Immediately after, the old demon transformed into a streak of demonic light, piercing through the void as he fled deep into the empty expanse.

"Think you can flee?"

"You must leave something behind."

Seeing the speed of the old demon's Escape Radiance [a high-speed escape technique], Eldrin Chen knew pursuit was futile. With a flick of his sleeve, he used the Five-Colored Divine Light [a divine ability manifesting light of five colors with sealing and absorbing properties] to seize the Heavenly Demon Blood-Refining Divine Blade [a divine blade forged through demonic blood refinement].

That old demon arrived with a menacing aura, only to depart in a crestfallen retreat, leaving behind two of his prized Heavenly Demon Immortal-Slaying Sword [enchanted demonic swords of immense power].

"A pity we let him escape."

Watching the old fiend manage to flee with his life, Nyssa Qu could not help but voice her regret.

Eldrin Chen remained composed, his expression unchanged as he stated, "A being at the Earth Immortal Great Perfection [the pinnacle stage of the Earth Immortal realm] who is utterly focused on survival is nearly impossible to corner and slay without possessing at least three times their combat power."

"Unless we all advance to the Middle Stage Earth Immortal [the intermediate stage of the Earth Immortal realm], how could we possibly hope to end such a foe?"

"Indeed."

Exquisite Jiang nodded in agreement, gazing at the Heavenly Demon Immortal-Slaying Sword in her hand. "The reason we managed to seize two of his demonic swords this time was primarily due to the toll breaking the formation took on him, coupled with the element of surprise in our attack."

"Had his spiritual energy [the vital power cultivated by immortals] been at its peak and had he engaged us with due caution, he likely would not have suffered such a significant loss."

Verdant Consort also nodded, a faint smile gracing her lips. "Having lost two of his primary demonic weapons, his offensive capabilities are likely diminished by nearly half. His threat to us in the future should be considerably lessened."

Eldrin Chen, however, was not so optimistic. After a moment of contemplation, he said, "During our earlier clash, I sensed he was not fighting with his full strength. It seemed he still held some trump cards in reserve, unwilling to reveal them."

"He fled solely because he feared my Primordial Solar Heavenly Flame [a divine flame embodying the purest essence of the primordial sun, anathema to all things demonic]."

Hearing this, the women nodded in understanding.

They grasped the logic in Eldrin Chen's words. The Demonic Path [a cultivation methodology that harnesses malevolent energies and often involves sacrifice] employed crude and direct methods for forging treasures, requiring fewer precious materials. Consequently, Demonic Cultivator [practitioners of the Demonic Path] typically possessed more artifacts than their Immortal [practitioners of orthodox, righteous cultivation paths] counterparts of the same cultivation level.

Thus, a Demonic Cultivator's arsenal of Demonic Treasure [artifacts forged through demonic arts, often powered by malevolent energies] usually doubled that of an Immortal's collection of Immortal Treasure [artifacts forged through orthodox immortal arts], granting them greater combat prowess at equivalent realms.

Generally, a Demonic Cultivator at the Earth Immortal Great Perfection [the pinnacle stage of the Earth Immortal realm] would wield at least five or six Eighth Rank High-Grade [a classification denoting the peak quality within the Eighth Rank] Demonic Treasure.

Of course, most treasures of the Demonic Cultivator were forged from Fiendish Energy [a corrupt and malevolent form of spiritual energy] and tainted blood. While potent, their material foundation was far more fragile compared to Immortal Path [the orthodox path of immortal cultivation] magical treasure [an enchanted artifact used by cultivators], making them vulnerable to destruction by righteous artifacts.

Furthermore, Immortal who cultivated the Primordial Solar [the Dao of the primordial, purifying sun] were natural bane to Demonic Cultivator. Eldrin Chen's Primordial Solar Heavenly Flame, in particular, could effortlessly incinerate Demonic Treasure.

That Demonic Cultivator was at the Earth Immortal Great Perfection stage, and his arsenal of Demonic Treasure and Divine Ability [supernatural powers and techniques mastered by high-level cultivators] was formidable. Even two ordinary Earth Immortal Great Perfection cultivators joining forces might not guarantee victory over him.

Eldrin Chen's current strength was roughly equivalent to an Eighth Level Earth Immortal [the eighth minor stage within the Earth Immortal realm]. By all logic, he should have been no match for this Demonic Cultivator, yet reality told a different tale.

For this Demonic Cultivator's entire repertoire of Divine Ability and Demonic Treasure was utterly suppressed by the Primordial Solar Heavenly Flame. In a true one-on-one duel, the demon might not even secure a stable victory against Eldrin Chen.

With this thought in mind, Exquisite Jiang spoke, "This demon is not to be underestimated. To prevent him from returning, we must swiftly refine the Blessed Land [a land imbued with potent spiritual energy, often serving as a cultivation base]."