A moment's hesitation was enough to plant seeds of disloyalty among the monstrous entities, sinking Ji Changkong’s heart to the very bottom of the abyss. In the Illusory Realm of the Grand Void, the Ghost Demon King’s power grew steadily stronger; the link between the Ghost Demon King and the Five Elements Continent slightly re-established itself as his dominance began to assert itself.
Clearly, the Ghost Demon King had sensed the Words of the Origin Poison outside. “You’ve finally seen reason.
If you and I join forces, we can split this world between us two superior species!” the Ghost Demon King roared within the Illusory Realm of the Grand Void, his voice piercing through the layers of sealing from the Grand Void Secret Record and reaching the outside world. “Indeed, I have finally seen reason,” the Origin Poison murmured softly, its dense tentacles rapidly extending, moving toward the five-colored halo released by Ji Changkong.
The thing he most feared had finally happened! Ji Changkong’s face was colder than sheer ice.
While struggling to suppress the Ghost Demon King’s power, he watched with a degree of sorrow as the Origin Poison slowly approached him. How could this be?
Why this outcome? For some inexplicable reason, at this moment, he felt no fear, nor any panic for the continent; it was as if the destruction that the combined might of the Ghost Demon King and the Origin Poison might bring upon the world was no longer something he concerned himself with.
He only felt a profound sorrow, grieving the loss of a close friend, rather than displaying compassion for the continent. It was only at this juncture that Ji Changkong realized, without knowing when it happened, that he had come to regard this little entity hiding within his body as an extremely significant being.
Despite its terrifying origins, deep down, he had already treated it as a friend. The sudden betrayal of a friend struck him with deep self-reproach, coupled with an overwhelming, thick wave of sorrow.
“Though the world is vast, in the future, there shall be no place for you inferior races to stand!” within the Illusory Realm of the Grand Void, the Ghost Demon King unleashed an earth-shattering roar. Waves of terrifying soul energy crashed like surging tides, relentlessly hammering the Grand Void Illusory Realm, which was only half-complete.
Crack, crack, crack! The spatial restraints, invisible to the naked eye, emitted audible sounds of twisting fragmentation.
Threads of five-colored light erupted from the Grand Void Illusory Realm, scattering in all directions. Due to his distraction, the force exerted upon the Grand Void Illusory Realm weakened.
The realm, already incomplete, finally shattered entirely. The Ghost Demon King was free!
An endless, boundless aura of brutal slaughter spread outward from the Ghost Demon King at its center. The Ghost Demon King hovered majestically in the void, its domineering aura, looking down on all creation, utterly revealed.
Hiss, hiss, hiss! Hiss, hiss, hiss, hiss!
Fine wisps of smoke curled up from the Ghost Demon King, which radiated an astonishing presence. The about-to-kill frenzy in the Ghost Demon King’s ruthless eyes suddenly flickered with a hint of confusion.
He stared blankly at the Origin Poison leaning close to him, murmuring vaguely, “You… why?” “Bah! I was just messing with you, you fool!” The Origin Poison snarled with disdain.
Its myriad tentacles shot out like lightning, resembling steel needles trailing fine threads, stabbing fiercely into the Divine Body of the Ghost Demon King. Hiss, hiss, hiss!
Hiss, hiss, hiss! Faint wisps of light smoke rose dreamily and ethereally, rapidly corroding the Ghost Demon King’s power.
“Kong Kong, why are you standing there stunned? Help out!” the Origin Poison urged anxiously.
“If you don’t help, I can’t hold him!” The sorrow that had been lodged in his chest had not yet completely dissipated when the situation abruptly changed. Like the Ghost Demon King, even Ji Changkong was momentarily dazed, failing for a time to grasp the true motive of the Origin Poison.
“Are you dense? I was just tricking that idiot!
Otherwise, how could I have ambushed him?” the Origin Poison shrieked. The crushing sorrow vanished in an instant, as if wiped clean.
Ji Changkong felt reborn, his blood boiling, and he roared back, “Little brat, it was not in vain that I doted on you!” His spirit commanded, and the Blood Dragon instantly transformed into the Dragon Glory Longblade, flying instantly into his palm. Raising the blade, scarlet light flared fiercely.
The imposing and overwhelming Blood Dragon Great Nine Forms descended with devastating force, cleaving into the massive body of the Ghost Demon King, which was tightly ensnared by the Origin Poison. Splurch!
The Dragon Glory Longblade proved worthy of being the exclusive Divine Weapon of the Ji family’s Xuanyuan lineage. Its blood-red light slashed across the firmament like lightning, actually splitting the Ghost Demon King into two halves!
“Despicable… despicable!” The bisected Ghost Demon King flailed its two halves, shouting hatefully. Though the might of the Dragon Glory Longblade had severed its body, the Ghost Demon King was not dead, but it had sustained a grievous injury.
Whoosh! Whoosh!
Whoosh, whoosh! The two separated bodies writhed like gathering storm clouds, slowly drifting back toward each other.
“Kong Kong, one for each of us!” the Origin Poison commanded. “Agreed, one for each!” Ji Changkong laughed heartily, holding the Dragon Glory Longblade, pursuing the half of the Ghost Demon King attempting to flee.
“You cannot kill me! No one can kill me.” The Ghost Demon King’s venomous voice echoed across the sky above East Heaven Peak.
As the Ghost Demon King fled under pursuit from Ji Changkong and the Origin Poison, its two forms began to fade, gradually dissolving into smoke barely visible to the eye, on the verge of vanishing at any moment. “Not good!
We can’t let him escape,” Ji Changkong shouted loudly, rushing toward Yi Kui, Yi Huoshan, and the others below. “Attack the void!
Force him to show himself!” The Ghost Demon King’s soul aura still permeated the sky above East Heaven Peak. Although his form was fading, he had not left the peak.
At this moment, the Ghost Demon King was nearly invisible, yet he could already strike at everyone—he was even more dangerous now! Yi Kui, Yi Huoshan, and the others had their faces dramatically change, not needing a moment’s thought.
All the Heavenly Soldiers still on East Heaven Peak unleashed their power toward any open area in the sky. Grinding-stone-sized Heavenly Fires ascended one after another, moving slowly across the open spaces.
Hiss, hiss, hiss! Bang, bang, bang!
Boom, boom, boom! The seemingly empty void erupted with deafening roars as various attacks flew upward.
The hidden Ghost Demon King, despite its form being lost due to its immense size, was still struck by these attacks specifically targeting the soul. Within the thick, rolling black clouds, the ordinary ghost demons—perhaps influenced by the Ghost Demon King’s power—also began to fade one by one, vanishing into the void.
Even the dense black clouds seemed to be blown away by the wind, leaving no trace. However, Ji Changkong, whose divine soul perception was extremely sharp, clearly sensed that those ghost demons had not dispersed; they were still gathered, hovering in the void.
“We must not let down our guard! Absolutely not!
They are still here, they are still here!” Ji Changkong closed his eyes, using his divine soul to sense the location of the ghost demons, continually indicating their positions to the crowd. The Heavenly Soldiers below East Heaven Peak attacked wherever Ji Changkong pointed, without hesitation, blasting their gathered strength toward those spots.
Tap, tap, tap! Bang, bang, bang!
Sounds like iron spikes hitting hard objects echoed in the void. In flashes of light, wisps of smoke were often seen vaporizing.
Whenever the onlookers saw this smoke dissipate, they knew another ghost demon’s soul had been scattered by their attack, spurring them on with greater effort. Bad!
Ji Changkong’s heart sank. He suddenly opened his eyes and declared, “I can no longer track the Ghost Demon King’s precise location with my divine soul, but I know he’s still here!
His aura remains in the air!” The myriad tentacles extending from the Origin Poison suddenly and miraculously retracted. In just a single breath, the countless thousands of tentacles vanished into the Origin Poison’s body with a whoosh, like earthworms burrowing back into their holes—a truly marvelous sight.
The Origin Poison, having returned to its small human form, shook its head like a rattle drum, shouting, “That little ghost demon is still here! I know he is, but he’s moving too fast!
Even I can’t easily lock onto his position!” “I need to concentrate my spirit!” The Origin Poison shouted a few words, and its body, already only palm-sized, began to shrink further, eventually becoming as small as a thumb! Faint threads of psychic energy, so subtle that even Ji Changkong would miss them without careful attention, began to emanate from the Origin Poison, spreading in all directions.
Unlike the dense cluster of threads released earlier from the Ghost Demon King, these new threads were invisible and intangible, composed purely of spiritual power. They possessed very faint energy and would immediately vanish upon leaving the Origin Poison’s body.
If those threads traveled just one zhang away from the Origin Poison’s body, Ji Changkong could no longer detect the whereabouts of those threads condensed from spiritual power. Such minute fluctuations of spiritual energy seemed impossible for a human to achieve.
At least, even Ji Changkong, who had mastered the profound mysteries of the divine soul through the Nebula Soul Refining Art, could not condense his spiritual power to such an exquisite degree. Indeed, only another outsider like him can perceive the Ghost Demon King using alien divine abilities, Ji Changkong thought to himself.
“Over there!” The thumb-sized Origin Poison suddenly pointed toward East Heaven Peak below. Ji Changkong followed the gesture of the Origin Poison, and his face immediately changed.
Just as shocked as Ji Changkong were the Heavenly Soldiers gathered on East Heaven Peak! The direction the Origin Poison pointed to was precisely the area where they were gathered!
“Ah! Aoo aoo!” Sounds that were not human screams erupted from the five individuals gathered together.
Under the gaze of everyone, those five East Heaven Peak Heavenly Soldiers, who had coordinated with exceptional skill and killed the most ghost demons, suddenly found their bodies possessed and began to expand rapidly. Their faces were twisted in extreme pain, their eyes filled with despair and terror.
As their bodies swelled, they struggled continuously, seemingly trying every possible method to halt the expansion. Alas, no matter how hard they tried, they could not stop the rapid bloating.
In the blink of an eye, the bodies of the five had inflated to a size larger than fifteen people combined. Bang!
Blood mixed with chunks of flesh and shattered bone splattered everywhere. The five bodies swelled to their limit and, without surprise, exploded.
The force of the ensuing carnage sent two unsuspecting East Heaven Peak Heavenly Soldiers tumbling away, riddled with bloody holes; their flesh was thoroughly destroyed. Seven hazy shadows flashed momentarily, and suddenly, the void was bisected by a gigantic, hideous, gaping maw that instantly swallowed the seven faint shadows whole.
The great mouth lined with fangs flashed in the void and then swiftly vanished without a trace. Although it was only a brief appearance, everyone knew that this was the sinister maw of the Ghost Demon King.
Only the Ghost Demon King could consume the souls of seven people in an instant! “Be careful!
Scatter! Scatter!” Ji Changkong yelled, rapidly flying toward East Heaven Peak below.
The Origin Poison remained stationary, releasing faint, marvelous fluctuations visible only to the keenest eye, using them to track the Ghost Demon King’s movements. “Kong Kong, over there!” The Origin Poison in the void suddenly pointed in one direction.
“Not good! Xiao Rou is in the backyard!” Yi Kui’s face changed drastically.
He unleashed all his spiritual power to control the Nine Heavens Heavenly Fire capable of harming the Ghost Demon King. Yi Kui could see that the direction the Origin Poison pointed toward was the lavishly decorated, yet filthy, large house where Yi Rou was currently located.
Ji Changkong also saw it and startled, rushing toward it with the utmost speed. Inside the messy and disordered room, Yi Rou was sweeping with a helpless expression, complaining, “Grandpa Dun, why are you never obedient?
I just cleaned this room for you yesterday, and how did you make it like this again? Ugh, it’s such a headache…” The small, thin old man, his face blank, stared intently at the hole in the roof, his mouth smacking noisily, saliva dribbling down his chin.
Yi Rou glanced at the old man, then shook her head slightly, thinking to herself: I’m being ridiculous. He’s already so pitiable; why should I complain to him?
With that thought, the slight resentment in Yi Rou’s heart vanished completely. Just then, a slightly soft and sinister aura flashed through Yi Rou’s heart.
Her eyes grew vacant, and she looked strangely toward the open doorway. What is it?
Grandpa and the others are fighting fiercely outside, but they won't let me watch. I wonder how they are doing?
They insist I stay here to watch Grandpa Dun; what is so interesting about Grandpa Dun? He’s always been so quiet!
Suddenly, an aura of world-destroying brutality swept over from the front. This world-ending aura was not directed at her, Yi Rou; it simply needed to pass through this location.
However, even this passing, destructive, evil spiritual wave was more than Yi Rou, with her shallow cultivation, could bear. Yi Rou’s divine soul trembled, and she suddenly screamed hysterically.
Clutching her head, she groaned in agony on the ground. The Heavenly Fire that Yi Kui was fully commanding gathered from all directions, flying toward this spot, but the fire seemed to be moving too slowly.
“Not good!” Ji Changkong roared, and clutching the Dragon Glory Longblade, he killed toward this area at his fastest speed, hoping to reach Yi Rou in time to help her through this trial. Ji Changkong held some goodwill toward this shy, kind, and simple girl, especially after hearing how she had cared for a fool day after day for years; he found that truly rare.
The thin old man, staring blankly at the sky, seemed to hear Yi Rou’s agonizing moan. His dull eyes glanced at Yi Rou with a trace of dawning confusion, and a glimmer of gentle, loving light seemed to flicker deep within his pupils.
Suddenly, his vacant, lifeless eyes shot forth an aura as sharp as if it could pierce the firmament. Hiss!
The pitch-black object the thin old man had been carrying on his back suddenly shattered, and an immense, colossal longsword burst forth, stabbing directly upward. Boom!
With the sword’s emergence, a wave of power, like a collapsing mountain and a tidal surge, erupted instantly. The grand, lavish house could not withstand the invasion of this power and collapsed with a roar.
An incredibly soft power enveloped the agonizingly groaning Yi Rou with marvelous precision, like a loving mother gently stroking her mind and body, infusing threads of calming and centering energy into her frail form. The deep, soul-wrenching alarm and unbearable pain vanished in an instant.
Under the effect of these wondrous threads of power, Yi Rou’s entire being relaxed. The tiles and massive stones from the collapsing house, as if endowed with eyes, strangely altered their trajectories just as they were about to fall onto Yi Rou, smashing down heavily beside her instead.
The enormous longsword, carrying unparalleled sword energy capable of splitting mountains and shattering seas, cleaved forcefully into the void overhead. Rumble!
Rumble, rumble, rumble!! The sky tore open, the earth collapsed, and streaks of sword energy shot out in all directions, weaving through the void as if they possessed a life of their own!
Sword qi crisscrossed wildly. Everyone looked up at the heavens and saw, with horror, that the firmament had been ripped open with long, visible slits.
Some of these openings were abyssal, bottomless darkness, some were shooting out brilliant, strange lights, and others were filled with dense stars—revealing the endless star domains. “Spatial fissures!
Those are spatial fissures! Only peerless sword light can tear open spatial fissures!” a Heavenly Soldier of East Heaven Peak shrieked madly, trembling all over.
Ji Changkong, rushing toward the scene, also shuddered, halting abruptly. He gazed intently at the magnificent and strange spectacle unfolding in the void.
One sword stroke splits space—what an imposing might! At this moment, Ji Changkong finally sensed the true realm of the thin old man!
The Nine Palaces Heaven Realm—an undeniable Nine Palaces Heavenly Soldier! Someone who cultivated the Way of the Sword, trading sanity for enlightenment—such a person, such divine power, was truly a marvel of the world!
The aura of the Ghost Demon King enveloping East Heaven Peak suddenly vanished without a trace. No matter how Ji Changkong searched with his senses, he could not detect even the faintest trace of the Ghost Demon King’s presence.
Frozen in mid-air, Ji Changkong stared at the broadsword floating proudly in the sky, speechless for a moment. All the Heavenly Soldiers on East Heaven Peak were also clearly stunned.
At some unknown time, the Origin Poison had quietly moved to Ji Changkong’s side, nudging him with its thumb-sized arm. “Kong Kong, what are you being dense for?
The little ghost demon ran away!” “Ran away?” Ji Changkong cried out in alarm. “He could escape like that?” “Why not?
That old man is an idiot; he didn’t follow up with continuous strikes. Otherwise, the little ghost demon truly might not have escaped,” the Origin Poison cursed quietly.