He Yiming was not surprised by the endless stream of death creatures emerging. That colossal divine dragon had sent him here for the trial of advancement; therefore, there must be a considerable number of death creatures in the vicinity. Otherwise, the giant dragon would not have wasted its precious spatial power to deliver him to this location. However, what struck him as odd was that the strength of these death creatures was not particularly formidable; in fact, for those at the peak of the Human Dao like them, they were almost too weak. If it were just a single death creature, before it unleashed that terrifyingly cold aura, its power would, at most, be comparable to a Houtian cultivator at the Ninth Layer of Inner Strength. Of course, when coupled with that life-threatening chilling aura, even a Houtian master at the peak of the Tenth Layer of Inner Strength might not necessarily be able to defeat such a thing. Yet, this cold aura was only effective against Houtian cultivators. Against Xiantian powerhouses, it could be completely resisted through sheer superior strength. And upon encountering a Venerable, especially a Five Qi Great Venerable who possessed a focused will (Yinian), this chilling aura became entirely useless. Given this, no matter how numerous these creatures were, they could not pose a significant threat to him.

He Yiming’s figure shifted subtly, light flickering around him as he ascended into mid-air. Before him, the Cloud Mist Clone and the Divine Dao Blood Condensation Man struck simultaneously. Their movements were lightning-fast, tearing apart death creatures with every gesture. Green, viscous blood flowed within these horrifying monsters, possessing extremely potent life force. Even when bisected at the waist by the Divine Dao Blood Condensation Man, the upper torso desperately crawled forward, seemingly trying to embrace its assailant. However, the immense gap in power rendered all effort futile. The Divine Dao Blood Condensation Man merely flicked his little finger, utterly shattering the head of the dying, mutilated monster.

After watching for a while, a chill settled in He Yiming’s heart. He realized he had slightly underestimated these monsters; they possessed few vital points. Unless their heads were smashed in one strike, they retained formidable survival capability even when torn in half. Currently, the Cloud Mist Clone could not match the Divine Dao Blood Condensation Man in sheer power, but their enemy-slaying speeds were diametrically opposed. The Condensation Scripture possessed by the Divine Dao Blood Condensation Man was a remarkably sinister power. Against normal human experts, few would willingly face an opponent who had mastered the Blood Condensation Art. But the power of his Condensation Scripture was not particularly effective against these monsters. Instead, crushing their heads with sheer brute force proved far more direct and effective. The Cloud Mist Clone, conversely, continuously channeled wisps of red light into the creatures’ bodies. The quantity of this light was small—just a tiny speck. Yet, this wisp, which would barely feel like a slight burn to an ordinary human, triggered earth-shattering changes within the monsters. The bodies of the creatures exploded completely. Their internal green blood seemed like refined gasoline, and that wisp of crimson radiance acted as a single spark. Upon contact, instant detonation occurred, causing the monsters to violently rupture. This method of dispatching the beasts was something He Yiming stumbled upon by chance. Discovering their weakness so quickly brought him considerable satisfaction.

The number of death creatures appeared to multiply incessantly. The rolling black mass approaching in the distance formed a dark cloud upon the earth. The Divine Dao Blood Condensation Man completely abandoned the Blood Condensation Art, resorting instead to striking these monsters down one by one with lightning speed and immense power. Although the Cloud Mist Clone lacked his raw strength, the speed at which he killed enemies was no slower, thanks to those subtle threads of crimson radiance. Yet, for some inexplicable reason, a sense of foreboding arose within He Yiming. His ears twitched slightly as he focused intently to listen. After a pause, his brows finally rose slowly. In the distance, a continuous "buzzing" sound was approaching. He Yiming gazed towards that area and indeed saw a densely packed mass flying over from the sky. These things were visually indistinguishable from the ground-crawling monsters, save for a pair of black, bat-like wings attached to their backs. These bat wings were remarkably powerful, capable of supporting extremely long-distance travel. The chilling aura emanating from them was vast, and their individual strength was clearly superior to the monsters trudging on the ground below. Nevertheless, He Yiming remained undaunted. He flipped his wrist, and the Five Elements Ring appeared in his hand, while simultaneously donning the vest fashioned from the Black Tortoise Shell. Although the strength of these monsters did not appear overwhelming, and they lacked the golden, Divine Dao-level creatures mentioned by the dragon, he remained cautious, unwilling to neglect any detail. Even when hunting a rabbit, a lion exerted its full effort; he had no intention of capsizing in a ditch.

The death creatures in the distance seemed endless, and the first wave of winged beasts numbered over a hundred. He Yiming waved his hand without hesitation, and multicolored light flashed through the air—the power of the Five Elements. Although he did not employ the Divine Power of the Five Elements or any amplification techniques, the second-layer True Qi he released was already immensely potent. The five types of power dispersed, each beam of light enveloping more than twenty monsters. Under He Yiming’s meticulous control, these beasts were divided into roughly five equal portions, with no significant variation in number. Piercing, shrill "squeaking" sounds echoed from the sky, but He Yiming ignored them, carefully observing the destructive power of the Five Elements energy against these beasts. Within moments, the result became clear. In comparison, the power of Metal, Wood, and Earth had a relatively low killing effect on the monsters. Although they sustained some damage under the impact of these three forces, most managed to break through the light barrier and press onward. Under the impact of Fire’s high-temperature energy, the monsters seemed unaffected, passing through the fire domain with ease. Conversely, in the Water domain, the monsters’ speed slowed down one by one, and they were buffeted up and down by the impact, losing complete control of their flight.

With a soft hum, the Five Elements Ring was cast out again. This time, He Yiming engaged fifty percent of his True Qi. The suddenly doubled power surged upward, instantly enveloping the monsters once more. Under the impact of this fifty-percent force, the monsters could resist no longer. Regardless of which elemental power struck them, they were successfully pulverized and instantly plummeted from the sky. A rain of green blood poured down onto the ground, scattering broken corpses and gore across the land. The monsters on the ground showed no instinct for retreat; they continued their relentless, death-defying assault on the besieged Divine Dao Blood Condensation Man and Cloud Mist Clone. However, those monsters catching up from behind began snatching the shattered remains of their fallen comrades as they advanced. They opened their terrifying mandibles, plunging deep into the shredded flesh and bone, not even sparing the green blood pooling on the ground. Moments later, wherever they passed, the land was reduced to barren, useless sand.

No matter how many monsters the Divine Dao Blood Condensation Man and the Cloud Mist Clone annihilated, it seemed it could never satisfy the creatures' hunger. Once a monster died, its corpse would be devoured by its companions—a process executed with alarming speed. Consequently, no pile of monster corpses accumulated before the two of them.

He Yiming’s face turned slightly ashen. The ferocity of these death creatures was imaginable, but what astonished him most was that the strength of the flying death creatures far surpassed that of their ground-crawling counterparts. These flying beings possessed strength comparable to Houtian cultivators at the peak of the Tenth Layer of Inner Strength among humans. Coupled with their chilling auras and the advantage of flight, they could even contend with ordinary Xiantian masters. A hundred of such monsters appeared all at once, and in the distance, even more flying creatures were continuously bearing down upon them. His heart grew heavy. While this level of military might might not entirely overwhelm him, the sheer quantity was terrifying. His True Qi surged wildly, emitting sharp cracks like firecrackers. These terrifying monsters—one slain was one less. Regardless of their numbers, they must all be annihilated. The surrounding Heavenly and Earthly Power continuously converged around He Yiming. This sensation was exhilarating, far more satisfying than the restrained feeling he experienced in the Northwest Desert. He calmly extended both hands, positioning the thumbs and index fingers of each hand opposite each other, forming a small rectangle. At that instant, the Divine Dao Blood Condensation Man and the Cloud Mist Clone suddenly shot upwards and fled towards the distance with all their might. Following this, an incomprehensible, tremendous might of Heaven and Earth erupted. The immense power, generated after intense compression, exploded amidst the monster horde. Even with their tough hides, the monsters could not withstand this level of Heavenly and Earthly Might. A massive crater, spanning over ten zhang in radius, scarred the sandy ground, and intense heat waves radiated outwards mercilessly, blasting a larger circumference of monsters into dust and debris. Under these circumstances, He Yiming’s method of unleashing this Heavenly and Earthly Might was far superior to that of the Divine Dao Blood Condensation Man. Under this single strike, countless death creatures were utterly annihilated, reduced to ash, leaving a large expanse of yellow space cleared in the central zone. However, the sliver of proud satisfaction on He Yiming’s face froze instantly. Before his eyes unfolded an even more appalling scene, causing the skin on his scalp to prickle…