Mo He and Liu Hong simultaneously spun around, fleeing in opposite directions.

How could I let such a delicacy slip away after it landed right at my lips?

Nie Kong sneered inwardly, taking a single step that covered hundreds of meters. The dark red tree shadow tore through the void, stabbing directly at Mo He’s rapidly escaping figure ahead.

Seemingly sensing the movement behind him, Mo He’s Black Sword manifestation flashed violently, and her figure instantly merged into the sword body. Her speed suddenly increased by nearly twofold, causing Nie Kong’s “Blood Prison Sword King Tree” to miss its mark.

“Oh?”

Nie Kong was slightly surprised by Mo He’s sudden burst of speed. After chasing for several thousand meters, a strange smile suddenly spread across his face. The “Blood Prison Sword King Tree,” which was aimed straight ahead, abruptly curved sharply to the right. Innumerable sword shadows shot out, skewering the empty space hundreds of meters away.

“Hmph!”

Amidst the whistling of the sword shadows, a faint, suppressed groan suddenly emerged.

A figure materialized out of thin air to the right without any warning. It was Mo He, who had just merged with her own manifestation. Her chest and abdomen were pierced by three tree branches, and she struggled as she fell toward the ground. At that moment, the Black Sword manifestation flying directly in front of Nie Kong grew increasingly faint before vanishing into smoke.

Nie Kong shifted his body sideways, and a gigantic palm snatched the falling Mo He.

“You actually discerned my true trajectory…” Her body severely wounded, Mo He’s soul was also weakened. She spoke breathlessly, her face etched with astonishment, clearly still unable to comprehend how Nie Kong had judged that she wasn't inside the Black Sword manifestation ahead.

“I cultivate Chaos Divine Power. Chaos is the origin of heaven and earth. As long as you are within my sensory range, no movement can escape my perception—not even if your cultivation exceeds mine twofold!” Nie Kong said with a slight smile, and blazing flames instantly incinerated her into a cluster of pure divine power.

“Next, Liu Hong!”

Absorbing the divine power into his body, Nie Kong immediately chased in the opposite direction.

Liu Hong was fleeing southeast, and in just these few seconds, he had already retreated several miles high into the sky.

“Whoosh!”

Nie Kong’s body shrank to its original size, resembling a wisp of smoke, and he shot off toward the southeast.

Liu Hong had completely abandoned any attempt to conceal his aura; all his strength was dedicated to acceleration. He had sensed that Mo He had met a dreadful end, and the demon named Nie Kong, after killing Mo He, was relentlessly pursuing him at an extreme speed, which filled Liu Hong with profound panic.

He had a premonition that his fate today was likely sealed.

“You can’t escape!” As expected, Nie Kong’s voice quickly boomed from behind. Turning back hastily, Liu Hong could even clearly see the cold sneer on Nie Kong’s face. Liu Hong knew perfectly well that at Nie Kong’s pace, he would be caught within another four or five li at most.

“You want to refine me? Dream on!”

A vicious glint suddenly flashed in Liu Hong’s eyes. He stopped fleeing entirely and instead spun around to face Nie Kong. Waves of Fire Lion manifestations surged out of his body, instantly turning the void spanning several hundred meters into a sea of fire. A dense wave of heat swept outward, turning the mountain forest below into ash instantly.

Liu Hong stood motionless among the roaring lions, his face gloomy. In less than two seconds, the rapidly approaching figure appeared at the edge of the sea of fire.

Self-immolation?

Nie Kong scoffed. Seeing the scene before him, he had a distinct feeling: Liu Hong, standing amidst the fire lions, resembled a volcano being suppressed to its absolute limit, where the slightest stimulus would cause the intensely hot magma within to erupt instantly.

Seeing that Nie Kong hadn't immediately attacked, Liu Hong shouted grimly, “Nie Kong, do you even know what you are doing?”

“Of course I do.”

Nie Kong drawled teasingly, “I am merely consuming the fat meat delivered right to my mouth. I’ve already eaten two; you will soon be the third.”

Hearing Nie Kong speak so wantonly, Liu Hong’s face turned ashen: “The Dantian Divine Venerable and the Ziwei Divine Venerable command countless Spirit Gods. The four of us are insignificant among them! If our avatars are killed by you, stronger ones will descend upon the Divine Void Realm. Offending the Pill Immortal Sect and the Primordial Heaven Mansion—how long do you think you can last?”

“So what?”

Nie Kong roared with laughter. “Let one come, and I will refine him; let two come, and I will refine both!”

He knew Liu Hong still held a sliver of hope in his heart, but having already offended the Pill Immortal Sect and the Primordial Heaven Mansion to this extent, he wouldn't change his mind just because of a few threats. Moreover, he had already offended numerous Divine Venerables, including the Dark Night Divine Venerable and the Sea Dragon Divine Venerable; adding Dantian and Ziwei Divine Venerables was nothing.

Thinking of this, Nie Kong’s expression became incredibly strange. Four of the Five Great Divine Venerables of the Grand Void Spirit Realm were now either enemies or actively becoming his adversaries.

Do I really have a face that naturally attracts hatred?

Nie Kong raised a hand, pinched his own cheek, and muttered to himself with self-mockery.

“Truly a frog in a well!”

Liu Hong could no longer suppress the rage boiling in his chest and roared, “A mere Third-Grade Spirit God dares to be so arrogant! In a short time, this year will pass, and when next year arrives, the boundary gate of the Divine Void Realm will open. Even if you escape this year’s pursuit, you are guaranteed to die next year!”

“Next year is too far away. Let’s refine you first!”

Nie Kong coldly laughed, and his figure suddenly melted into the sea of fire interwoven by the lions. The Chaos Divine Power surging within his body continuously transformed into “Chaos Heavenly Fire.” Compared to that, the meager heat emanating from the surrounding Fire Lion manifestations was utterly insignificant.

Inside the sea of fire, Nie Kong zipped through unharmed.

“Explode!”

Liu Hong closed his eyes with extreme unwillingness and forcefully spat out this single syllable. The instant the sound resonated, heaven and earth shuddered, and the dozens of massive fire lions surrounding him simultaneously burst apart. However, the raging heat did not attack Nie Kong but furiously coiled back, surging toward his own body.

Simultaneously, an equally violent heat rose from within Liu Hong’s frame.

Sensing the changes around him, Nie Kong frowned slightly.

Knowing escape was hopeless, Liu Hong intended to burn his soul and manifestations, using the resulting explosions to attack himself. If he succeeded in this objective, the divine power forming his body would be incinerated completely, leaving nothing behind, and Nie Kong’s plan to refine his divine power would come to naught.

“Ruthless enough, not wanting to leave me a trace of divine power! Unfortunately, you still miscalculated!”

Tearing open the void, Nie Kong instantly appeared before Liu Hong. With a thought, Qing You, that little fellow, left the Absolute Spirit Jade Vase and materialized. The next moment, that residual mass of “Great Void Divine Water” was blasted into Liu Hong’s body, instantly freezing his burning soul power.

Nie Kong’s pale, hazy Chaos Divine Power was then instantly unleashed, enveloping Liu Hong’s body and completely severing his connection to the surrounding manifestation energies. Lacking the guidance of a body, the surrounding forces behaved like runaway wild horses, charging wildly and erratically in all directions.

By the time Nie Kong pulled away from the chaotic space and retrieved the “Great Void Divine Water,” the last vestiges of Liu Hong’s soul power and consciousness had completely dissipated, though his body remained suffused with an extreme sense of bitter resentment and unwillingness to accept his fate. At this moment, his Spirit God avatar truly died with his eyes wide open.

“Unwillingness matters little; you must still be refined by me!”

Nie Kong activated the “Chaos Heavenly Fire,” instantly melting Liu Hong into a mass of divine power. Compared to the divine power of Ban Yao and Mo He, it was significantly weaker; the self-detonation had caused him to lose nearly thirty percent of his divine power. Still, retaining seventy percent was far better than total dissipation.

Incorporating the divine power into his body, Nie Kong turned toward the previous battleground. Just as he used the “Great Void Divine Water” to freeze Liu Hong, Tai Yan and Yu Longyue were arriving from the direction of the Immortal Qin Sea.

…… ……RO