Chapter 888 : The Demon Lord's Last Stand

Though the Six Illusions Heaven-Demon Evasion of the Desire Demon was extraordinary, facing the simultaneous pincer attack from three opponents, it still suffered a grievous blow.

One of its manifestations was drawn into Lyra Jiang's sleeve and suppressed, a second was reduced to ashes by the Ethereal Abyss Vase, and the third was instantly ensnared by the Frost Soul Immortal Ribbon.

"Damnation!"

Witnessing half of its six incarnations subdued in a single clash, the Lord of the Desire Demons felt a surge of panic.

Not daring to linger for a moment, it immediately urged its three remaining forms to flee into the distance.

"Wretched fiend, you shall not escape!"

At that very moment, Eldrin Chen uttered a cold shout, ascending into the heavens in a single stride.

In the blink of an eye, he unleashed the Primordial Grasping Hand, crushing one incarnation on the spot, then channeled the Grand Five Elements Pure Yang Divine Thunder, causing another to vanish in a flash of thunderous light.

"My fate is sealed!"

In that lightning-fast instant, five of myself's six incarnations were extinguished. The Lord of the Desire Demons's heart plummeted, a thread of despair weaving through its consciousness. Find this and other novels at audio-novel[dot]com.

Before she could react further, a dazzlingly brilliant sword radiance cleaved through the heavens. It was the Heaven-Severing Twin Swords Union [the ultimate union strike of the Heaven-Severing Twin Swords], and it pierced straight through her body.

The Heavenly Separated Twin Swords [a pair of legendary swords of supreme lethality] were peerless treasures of slaughter. The might of their combined strike could truly be called world-shaking; even a supreme expert at the Ninth Layer Nascent Soul [the pinnacle of the Nascent Soul realm] would not dare to receive such a blow with their physical body.

Although the Desire Demon Nascent Soul [the Nascent Soul of a demon from the Desire Demon race] possessed cultivation at the seventh layer of the Primordial Spirit [the spiritual core of a cultivator, representing a high stage of power], it could still not withstand the sharpness of this sword. Its Primordial Spirit was instantly extinguished, and it perished on the spot.

"Desire Demon!"

The moment he sensed the battle turning against them, a flash of anxiety shot through the heart of the Three-Eyes Heaven-Demon.

He had wished to intervene and offer aid, but caught between the assaults of the Immortal-Refining Furnace [a legendary furnace capable of refining even immortals] and the Frost Glaze Demon Progenitor [an ancient progenitor of the frost-attributed demons], he found himself utterly unable to free a hand.

Now, witnessing the fall of the Desire Demon Race Patriarch, the Three-Eyes Heaven-Demon understood this battle could no longer be fought. Seizing the moment before Eldrin Chen could strike, he decisively paid the price of a grievous wound to break through the encirclement, then tore through the void and fled.

"Victory!"

When they saw the Three-Eyed Divine Clan Heaven-Demon depart, the group felt a wave of relief. The outcome of this battle was now decided. Even if the Black Dragon Demon Progenitor [an ancient progenitor of the black dragon demon lineage] arrived now to offer support, it would be too late to alter the course of the conflict.

Eldrin Chen did not pursue the Three-Eyed Divine Clan Heaven-Demon. A Heaven-Demon [a powerful demonic being] of the Primordial Spirit, Late Stage [the late stage of the Primordial Spirit realm], once it had fled through the void, was nearly impossible to intercept again.

Fortunately, with the demise of one and the flight of another of the two Primordial Spirit, Late Stage Heaven-Demon [powerful demons from beyond this world], the remaining Heaven-Demon lost all will to fight. They began to scatter and flee in a desperate, chaotic frenzy towards the distant horizons.

Eldrin Chen led the others in a relentless pursuit, cutting down several more Nascent Soul Celestial Demon [demonic cultivators of the Nascent Soul realm] before the great battle finally drew to a close.

After that, the conflict held no further suspense. By the time the allied forces had fully cleansed the Vast and Boundless Marsh of the Demon Race, another half a year had passed.

Having decimated more than half of the Outer Realm Demon Race [demonic invaders from beyond this realm] in a single campaign, everyone was filled with immense joy and satisfaction.

Contemplating the immense gains from this victory, the gathered Dao Lord [powerful cultivators who have comprehended a profound Dao] all wore expressions of profound delight.

On this day, the Dao Lord assembled aboard the Treasure Ship. Eldrin Chen surveyed his fellow Human Race Dao Lord and spoke with a faint smile, "After this battle, the Extraterrestrial Heavenly Demon [Heavenly Demons from beyond the stars] no longer possess the strength to venture forth from the Star Archipelago."

"The grand balance of the Purple Realm has, at last, returned to the grasp of our Human Race."

Upon hearing this, everyone smiled faintly. The Outer Realm Demon Race had suffered catastrophic losses in this war.

Now, among the Extraterrestrial Heavenly Demon, the number of combat-ready Nascent Soul Celestial Demon had dwindled to fewer than twenty. Their vast Demon Race Army [legions of demonic soldiers], numbering in the hundreds of millions, had been annihilated within the Heavenly Demon Sea Region.

The remnants of the Outer Realm Demon Race, now trapped within the Star Archipelago, could only rely on the defensive Formation [magical array] they had brought with them. While this afforded them some protection, it rendered them utterly incapable of mounting any offensive against the Human Race.

At this thought, Dorian Ji furrowed his brow once more and said, "Within the Star Archipelago, the Extraterrestrial Heavenly Demon [a powerful race of demons from beyond this realm] have now deployed a Near-Immortal Grade Formation [a complex array or magical construct]. With our current strength, breaching it is simply impossible."

"Given the present circumstances, we still find it exceedingly difficult to utterly annihilate them."

Upon hearing this, Eldrin Chen could not help but frown slightly, a crease forming between his brows.

That Extraterrestrial Heavenly Demon is now within the Star Archipelago, having used the Quasi-Immortal Artifact [a treasure of immense power, nearing the level of an immortal's weapon] known as the 'Demon-Slaying Crucible' to establish a Near-Immortal Grand Formation [a grand defensive or offensive array of near-immortal power].

Such a world-shaking formation of slaughter would require the combined efforts of at least several Demigod Ancestor [powerful cultivators who have ascended halfway to immortality] to have any hope of breaking through.

With the forces currently available in the Purple Realm, even if the three races—Human, Demonic Monsters [a general term for monstrous demonic beings], and others—were to commit their full strength, I fear retaking the Star Archipelago would still be beyond reach. This content originates from audio–novel.com. Please respect copyright.

Thinking this, Eldrin Chen spoke with a furrowed brow, "This Near-Immortal Grand Formation is no ordinary barrier. I wonder if any among you possess a means to dismantle it?"

"This formation is exceedingly difficult to breach."

Haoyuan the Dao Lord spoke, his expression turning grave as he continued, "Within the Purple Realm, the methods capable of breaking a Near-Immortal Grand Formation can be counted on one hand."

"To my knowledge, perhaps only the 'Big Dipper Seven Stars Demon-Suppressing Grand Formation' [a legendary formation harnessing the power of the seven stars of the Big Dipper to suppress demons] and the 'Eight Trigrams Treasure Formation' [a profound formation based on the eight trigrams of the I Ching, used for defense and treasure protection] would have the power to dismantle it."

Upon hearing this, Eldrin Chen turned his gaze towards Mizar, the Star Lord of the Star Palace.

That Mizar, the Star Lord shook his head, a bitter smile gracing his lips as he explained, "The Big Dipper Seven Stars Demon-Suppressing Grand Formation [a supreme formation harnessing the power of the seven stars of the Big Dipper] indeed has the potential to break this array, but it requires seven Primordial Spirit [the spiritual core of a cultivator] Star Lords who have inherited the orthodox lineage of the Star Monarchs to deploy it."

"At present, our Star Palace Master, 'Dubhe, the Star Lord', is in the process of reforging his physical body. Both Celestial Authority and Celestial Jade have had their bodies destroyed and will require several centuries to fully recover."

Speaking to this point, Mizar, the Star Lord shook his head once more. "Even if the three from the Ji Clan recover, we are still missing three Primordial Spirit Star Lords to take their rightful positions: Jade Balance, Opening Sun, and Celestial Balance."

Hearing this, the assembled group could not help but reveal expressions tinged with regret.

The conditions for deploying the Star Palace's Northern Dipper Seven Stars Grand Formation were far too stringent. While the Eight Trigrams Treasure Formation [a formation based on the eight trigrams of the I Ching] from the Dao Palace Sacred Land was more practical, it was already being used to contend with the Eastern Sovereign's Physical Body [the corporeal form of the Eastern Sovereign]. Thus, neither of these two paths was viable.

Seeing this, that Haoyuan the Dao Lord spoke again. "Apart from these two methods, the Seven Treasures Gourd Mystical Formation [a mystical formation centered around a seven-treasures gourd] might also be capable of breaking this array."

"The Seven Treasures Gourd Mystical Formation?"

At these words, Eldrin Chen's pupils contracted slightly. The seated Dao Lord [a title for a supreme master of the Dao] all nodded in acknowledgment.

That Haoyuan the Dao Lord produced an azure-colored precious gourd and declared, "Several Millennium [a period of one thousand years] ago, the Heaven and Earth Spiritual Root [a spiritual root connecting heaven and earth], the Seven Treasures Gourd Vine, bore fruit and ripened, yielding eight Seven Treasures Gourd."

"Thereafter, by a twist of fate, these seven precious gourds either fell into the hands of Primordial Spirit [the spiritual core of a cultivator] cultivators or vanished into the void."

"This Verdant Jade Treasure Gourd [an enchanted artifact in the form of a jade gourd] of mine is the 'Yi Wood Gourd' [the Gourd of Nurturing Wood], one of the Seven Treasures Gourd [a legendary spiritual vine bearing seven mystical gourds]."

Upon hearing this, the eyes of those present flickered with subtle movement.

The Seven Treasures Gourd [a legendary spiritual vine bearing seven mystical gourds] was profoundly marvelous, a wondrous object born from the heaven and earth's Creation [the primordial act of creation], its value not inferior to the Eight Trigrams Treasure Tree [a legendary spiritual tree embodying the eight trigrams].

If seven Nascent Soul Dao Lord [a cultivator who has reached the Nascent Soul realm and comprehended a Great Dao] each held one of the Seven Treasures Gourd [a legendary spiritual vine bearing seven mystical gourds], they could deploy the Seven Treasures Gourd [a legendary spiritual vine bearing seven mystical gourds] Grand Formation, a power that could truly be called peerless under the heavens.

Seeing this, Violet Firmament Dao Lord smiled faintly and produced a violet precious gourd, saying, "This Violet Urgent Thunder Gourd [a magical gourd containing the power of swift violet thunder] was plucked by this old man long ago from that treasure gourd vine."

"I have refined it for several thousand years now, yet, lamentably, my cultivation is insufficient and it has still not reached the Primordial Spirit, Late Stage [the late stage of the Primordial Spirit realm]."

Following their lead, Mingyuan the Daoist from the Dao Palace Sacred Land [a sacred land and sect focused on the Dao] produced a blue gourd, and then a great power from Central Continent [the central and most prosperous continent] brought forth an earthen-yellow one. This content originates from audio . novel . com. Please respect copyright.