Chapter 852 Slaying a Rank 9 Yuanshen

Such a treasure, so close to the divine, if wielded by a peak expert at the ninth level of the Nascent Soul, could even intimidate a Demigod Ancestor (Cultivation Realm).

At this moment, the Soul-Refining Crucible awakened of its own accord, unleashing such astonishing power that it completely severed the Violet-Blooded Heavenly Demon's path of retreat.

The Violetblood Celestial Demon tried to veer away, but it was already too late.

The master of the Endless Sky Pavilion paid the price of severe injuries to shatter his protective treasure. Seizing the opportunity, the Demon-Subduing Monk struck, forcing him to flee while coughing up blood.

In an instant, the Refining Immortal Furnace erupted with torrential divine power, sweeping him into the sacred vessel and sealing him firmly within.

"Ah, let us perish together!"

At the critical moment of life and death, the Purple Blood Celestial Demon hardened his heart and forcibly activated a mouthful of purple blood within him, transforming it into a blood curse that he hurled toward the master of the Endless Sky Pavilion.

This incantation is known as the Violet Blood Immortal-Severing Curse, a innate Yang-divinity supernatural power cultivated by the Violet Blood Heavenly Demon. Not only is its might incomparably formidable, but it also strikes with utterly unpredictable subtlety.

The master of the Endless Sky Pavilion was struck by this sudden blow, immediately spurting a mouthful of rebellious blood. His face became saturated with a sinister purple aura of bloodlust.

"Damn it!"

The Furnace of Immortal Ascension raged, instantly unleashing a cataclysmic blaze of soul-smelting flames.

The fire of the Immortal-Refining Furnace dared to refine both immortals and demons. Though the Purple-Blooded Heavenly Demon had reached the Great Perfection of the Nascent Soul realm, even he struggled to withstand this divine flame capable of refining celestials.

In the span of a few moments, his aura had been refined to utter annihilation—body and soul extinguished, leaving no trace of life behind.

"Crack—"

Just then, a thunderous roar erupted from the void.

Eldrin looked up and saw countless cracks spreading across the void within the boundless expanse of the Eternal Sands Serene Spirit Realm.

As these cracks grew ever larger, they finally burst apart with a resounding boom, shattering into a sky full of void fragments.

As the void tore open, the remaining 30-8 Outer Realm Demons revealed expressions of wild ecstasy, frantically fleeing toward the depths of the void.

"Alas, what a pity!"

Watching the hordes of demons retreat, Eldrin could not help but heave a sigh. They had just slain the Purple-Blooded Celestial Demon in this battle—a prime opportunity to press their advantage—yet the Realm of Tranquil Sands could no longer hold.

This outcome was well within expectations. Although the Ganges Serene Spirit Realm was a Supreme Treasure of Pure Yang (Magic Treasure) of incalculable value, its power ultimately had its limits.

After all, with over a 100 Primordial Spirit Dao Lords battling simultaneously, even a landscape spanning millions of miles would be shattered to ruins. The fact that a single Pure Yang Spiritual Treasure could endure for so long was truly astonishing.

"Do not pursue them, my friends!"

Watching the Outer Demon tear through the void and depart, the master of Tianya Haige suppressed his injuries and swiftly called off the few who were about to give chase.

Now that he no longer possessed a spatial spiritual treasure, unless instantly killed by an opponent, an existence at the Nascent Soul level was nearly impossible to slay.

After successive fierce battles, the group had fought to utter exhaustion and truly had no desire to waste further energy on continued conflict.

"Victory, at long last."

Eldrin let out a sigh of relief, then swept his gaze across the battlefield.

Discovering there were still over 30 Human Soul Primordials, he felt a slight sense of relief.

Thanks to the opening created by the formation and the Sands of Tranquil Spirit Realm, in this battle, the human race lost 14 Nascent Soul Dao Lords, while 20-9 Outer Realm Demons fell. It could be considered a resounding victory.

Yet despite this, Eldrin still felt a certain gravity in his heart.

"Senior, your injury!"

Eldrin's expression turned exceedingly grave as he swiftly channeled life force energy to heal the master of the Sky-Reaching Sea Pavilion.

A moment later, a helpless expression surfaced on his face as he solemnly stated, "This Violet Blood Immortal-Severing Curse is exceedingly vicious. Even with my life force and cultivation base, it is difficult to extract it."

"The Pure Yang Fire spiritual power can indeed counteract it, but that Pure Yang Fire is overwhelmingly fierce. I fear it may destroy your physical form before it even manages to dissolve the Purple Blood Soul-Severing Curse."

At this point, Eldrin (Person Name) sighed and said, "Senior, the only way to break this curse is to abandon your physical form and reconstruct a new body."

"So troublesome indeed." The master of Tianya Haige frowned, his expression turning exceedingly grave as he spoke, "At present, I am the only Ninth-Level Eldrin cultivator in our human race who remains fit for battle."

"If this old man were to reconstruct his fleshly form, who would suppress the demonic essence, and who would keep that accursed dragon imprisoned?"

The master of the Endless Sky Pavilion shook his head, then drew a deep breath and declared, "Let us wait another 6 100 years. After 10 cycles of 60 years, Brother Li Fire shall be restored, and Fellow Daoist Heaven Forsaken should have fully recovered from his injuries as well."

"Once our human race gains a Soul Formation level combatant, it won’t be too late for this old man to rebuild his physical body."

At this point, noticing Eldrin's silence, he furrowed his brow and said, "Do you still have something to say, young friend?"

"Senior..."

Eldrin’s heart trembled, and he finally spoke in a shaky voice, “This Violet Blood Soul-Severing Curse is exceedingly vicious. Forget delaying it for 10 cycles of 60 years—in just 3 100 years, it will infiltrate 1’s primordial spirit.”

"By that time, I'm afraid even if a Ninth Heaven Immortal descended to the mortal realm, it would be impossible to turn back the tide!"

Boom—

The master of the Endless Sky Pavilion turned deathly pale. After standing rooted to the spot for what felt like an eternity, he closed his eyes and murmured, "Perhaps... this is simply my fate."

"While this old man still has some strength left, I shall hold on for another 3 100 years for you."

"You shall return to the Eastern Wastelands to cultivate. I hope that in 3 100 years, you shall be able to hold up the heavens for our human race."

"Senior!"

Eldrin stood frozen in place, wanting to say something, yet in the end only a speechless murmur remained.

After the great battle concluded, the various Dao Lords prepared to reconstruct the grand formation for the Edge of the World Pavilion.

During the previous great battle, the Endless Horizon Pavilion's mountain-protecting formation was shattered. Of the hundreds of thousands of formation flags—both large and small—used to set up the array, nearly half were destroyed.

Restoring this formation posed an immense challenge. While replacing the destroyed formation banners was relatively manageable—given that the Endless Sea Pavilion now gathered countless immortal clan cultivators, mobilizing all resources would allow them to refine a sufficient number of banners in under 3 months—

However, to repair the grand formation, a sixth-tier, upper-grade Formation Master was required—this single condition stumped everyone.

Because sixth-rank, superior-grade materials were exceedingly rare, and mastering any of the 100 Arts of Cultivation to the immortal rank demanded extraordinary talent, sixth-rank, superior-grade Array Masters were exceptionally scarce.

The Purple Realm had only just over a 100 Nascent Soul cultivators to begin with, and among them, only the most elite handful possessed sixth-rank superior-grade spirit artifacts. Many of these experts didn’t even specialize in formation mastery.

This resulted in only 4 individuals within the entire Violet Realm achieving formation mastery at the Sixth-tier, Upper-grade or higher: the Lord of the Dao Palace, the Hallmaster of Tai Xuan, the 5 Venoms Ancestor, and the Black Tortoise Ancestor.

Now, the Lord of the Dao Palace, the 5 Poisons Patriarch, and the Black Tortoise Patriarch were all within the 8 Trigrams Grand Formation. The Master of the Tai Xuan Hall had fallen in battle during the Calamity of the Demonic Abyss, leaving none among them as a sixth-tier, upper-grade Formation Master.

Given their level of skill, they were utterly incapable of setting up a sixth-rank, upper-grade Mountain Protection Array. Fortunately, they were only repairing it, so they could at least give it a try.

Thus, Eldrin (Person Name) joined forces with 6 or 7 sixth-level formation masters, including the Dao Lord of Purple Mist and the master of Glazed Glass Palace, spending 7 months in continuous deduction before finally managing to restore the mountain-protecting grand formation.

Although its power was diminished by 30 percent compared to the original, it still qualified as a top-tier sixth-grade treasure, capable of withstanding 3 Primordial Spirit, Late Stage (Cultivation Realm) heavenly demons.

Chapter 1 The biting northern wind swept across the mountain range, howling like countless vengeful spirits. Snowflakes danced wildly in the air, blanketing the jagged peaks in a layer of pristine white. At the summit of the tallest mountain, a solitary figure sat cross-legged upon a protruding cliff, motionless as if carved from stone. Lin Feng's(Eldritch Name) robes were tattered, his long hair streaked with frost. Yet his eyes shone with an unnerving intensity, like twin stars piercing through the blizzard. He had been meditating here for 30-7 days, pushing his cultivation to the absolute limit. "Just a little more," he whispered to the wind, his breath forming clouds of mist. "The ninth level of the Heavenly Cycle Art(Cultivation Method) is within reach." Deep within his dantian(Cultivation Base), spiritual energy swirled like a miniature galaxy, condensing toward a critical point. He could feel the barriers between realms thinning, like ice about to crack under immense pressure. Suddenly, the sky darkened. Ominous clouds gathered overhead, swirling into a massive vortex. Bolts of crimson lightning snaked through the gloom, accompanied by thunder that shook the very mountains. "Heavenly Tribulation(Cultivation Phenomenon)..." Lin Feng's(Eldritch Name) lips curved into a faint smile. "Right on schedule." He rose slowly, his joints popping after weeks of immobility. With a wave of his hand, the Li Fire Sword of the Returning Abyss(Magic Treasure) materialized before him, its blade glowing with ethereal blue flames. The first lightning strike descended like a divine punishment. Lin Feng(Eldritch Name) didn't dodge. Instead, he met it head-on, his sword drawing a perfect arc in the air. "Break!" The blade clashed against the heavenly fury, erupting in a shower of sparks that illuminated the entire mountaintop. The impact sent shockwaves through the surrounding peaks, triggering avalanches that roared down the slopes. Within the brilliant flash, Lin Feng's(Eldritch Name) consciousness suddenly blurred. 'Is this... the legendary Inner Demon Tribulation(Cultivation Phenomenon)?' He found himself standing in a magnificent palace, surrounded by familiar faces he hadn't seen in centuries. A beautiful woman in phoenix coronation robes approached him, her eyes filled with tears. "Feng," she whispered, her voice trembling. "You've finally returned." Lin Feng(Eldritch Name) stared at her, his sword arm wavering for the first time in thousands of years. This was an illusion—he knew it was. Yet the pain felt real, cutting deeper than any heavenly lightning ever could. Outside the vision, the tribulation intensified. 9 massive lightning dragons emerged from the vortex, their roars shaking heaven and earth. They circled above the meditating figure, preparing to deliver the final blow. At that critical moment, Lin Feng's(Eldritch Name) eyes snapped open, clear and determined once more. "My path lies beyond mortal attachments," he declared, his voice cutting through the storm like a sharp blade. The Li Fire Sword of the Returning Abyss(Magic Treasure) erupted in brilliant light as he executed the final form of the Heavenly Cycle Art(Cultivation Method). A colossal sword projection materialized, soaring upward to meet the descending lightning dragons. The collision blinded the world in white. When the light finally faded, the storm had cleared. Lin Feng(Eldritch Name) stood alone on the mountaintop, his aura transformed. He had shed his mortal coil like a snake shedding its skin, emerging reborn. He glanced at the scattered spirit stones around him—over 12,000 high-grade spirit stones(Cultivation Resource) had been reduced to ordinary rocks, their energy completely depleted. "A small price," he murmured, flexing his fingers. Spiritual energy coursed through his veins like liquid lightning, more powerful than he had ever imagined. In the distance, a streak of light approached rapidly. It was a messenger from the nearby cultivation sect, his face pale with either fear or awe—perhaps both. "Senior!" the messenger called out, bowing deeply despite hovering in mid-air. "The Southern Wilderness Alliance has sent an invitation. They wish to discuss... the upcoming Demon Invasion(Cultivation World Event)." Lin Feng(Eldritch Name) nodded slowly. His breakthrough had come at the perfect time. The cultivation world was about to enter turbulent times, and he would need all his newfound power to navigate the storms ahead. "Tell them I'll be there," he said, his voice calm yet carrying undeniable authority. As the messenger departed in another streak of light, Lin Feng(Eldritch Name) looked toward the horizon. The sun was breaking through the clouds, painting the snow-capped peaks in hues of gold and crimson. His journey was far from over. In fact, it had only just begun.