"Master?"
When Xiao Bai cried out for help, her three pursuers froze for an instant—and then murderous intent surged within them!
This woman was not alone!
Exchanging glances, they split apart in tacit understanding, forming a triangular encirclement around Xiao Bai.
Xiao Bai was certainly not one to sit and wait for death. Retreating at top speed, her form blurred and scattered into tens of thousands of ghostly silhouettes.
"So she is a ghost cultivator."
Demon Monk Kongchan registered a fleeting flicker of surprise. A divination cylinder appeared in his hand, and with a casual wave of his wrist—
*Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!*
Countless spiritual divination slips shot out from the bamboo cylinder, turning into streaks of fine luminescence that pelted the phantom figures.
*Pop! Pop! Pop!*
A rapid succession of bursting sounds rang out. Every last one of the phantom images was shattered, instantly exposing Xiao Bai’s true body concealed among them.
Caught in panic, Xiao Bai let out a sharp cry and thrust a palm sideways.
Amidst shimmering radiance, a massive blue palm met her strike head-on.
*Boom!*
The two blows collided. Being the weaker of the two, Xiao Bai was forced to a halt.
Shark Emperor Liu Jun withdrew his hand and clicked his tongue in admiration. "To take a palm from me head-on with a mere ghostly physique, this female ghost possesses extraordinary cultivation. However, this is as far as you go."
In his line of sight, a green streak of escape light suddenly manifested behind Xiao Bai, instantly bursting into tens of thousands of razor-sharp wooden darts.
Taisui snorted coldly and pointed a finger.
The tens of thousands of grass-and-wood arrows converged, raining down upon Xiao Bai in a deadly barrage.
Confronted with this, Xiao Bai’s face went pale. Given her strength, she could barely hold her ground for a short while even against a late Nascent Soul cultivator.
Yet among the three besieging her right now was a Great Demon Emperor whose soul foundation utterly suppressed hers.
Of the other two, one was exceedingly experienced in battle and stood barring her retreat, while the other was insidious and deceitful—even with three attacking at once, he still chose to launch a sneak attack.
Seeing the onslaught descending upon her, Xiao Bai put up all her defenses while activating the protective armor Luo Chen had temporarily bestowed upon her.
A shroud of profound yellow qi instantly spread outward.
*Clang! Clang! Clang!*
A dense din of collisions rang out as the swarms of wooden arrows relentlessly pelted the profound yellow barrier. Within moments, they shattered it and struck the black armor beneath.
At this point, the wooden arrows that had previously been unstoppable struck in vain, falling away continuously.
The instant he caught sight of the black armor, Taisui instinctively froze.
"The Xuanchen Armor?!"
It was precisely in that instant of distraction that Xiao Bai seized her chance. Her figure flickered, slipping straight past his interception.
In a flash, Xiao Bai broke through their encirclement and turned into a streak of light, darting back the way she had come.
Behind her, Demon Monk Kongchan’s furious voice called out.
"Taisui, what are you doing?!"
"Do not let that female ghost escape!" Sensing something amiss, Shark Emperor Liu Jun gave chase immediately. As he sped after her, he raised his hand and brought out an oil lamp.
Pinching his fingers together, a tiny flame spun out, traversing several hundred yards with unbelievable speed, poised to land upon Xiao Bai.
Xiao Bai was forced to turn around and spit out jets of ghostly qi.
Unfortunately, against that blue flame, the pure ghost qi proved utterly useless and was reduced to ash again and again.
Just as Xiao Bai was driven into a corner, an astounding scene unfolded.
The blue flames that fell toward her scattered like flowing water, ultimately shrinking back into the tiny flame they had begun as.
"What?!" Liu Jun stood stunned, his face full of disbelief.
That azure flame had been nurtured using the fat of the Merfolk by the Shark Emperor Lamp, an inherited True Artifact of his tribe. Though it was primarily meant for dealing with the physical bodies of desolate beasts, it was exceptionally effective against spirit forms as well.
Yet now, the Shark Emperor True Flame floated upon that female ghost as docilely as could be.
That was impossible!
"No, it's not you!"
Just as Liu Jun came to his senses, a figure stepped out from behind Xiao Bai. The half-familiar face caused Liu Jun's eyes to widen instantly.
"It’s you!"
"Xiao Bai, you’ve worked hard. Leave the rest to me." Luo Chen gently patted Xiao Bai’s shoulder and took his place in front of her.
"Master, be careful. These three are not easy to deal with," Xiao Bai said worriedly. Along the way, she took off the Xuanchen Armor and handed it back to Luo Chen.
As the Xuanchen Armor sank back into his body, Luo Chen smiled faintly, his gaze falling upon the three.
Or rather, strictly speaking, two demonic beasts and a spiritual elemental being occupying a human cultivator's physical vessel.
Ignoring the strongest among the three, Demon Monk Kongchan, he greeted the other two instead.
"Long time no see, Shark Emperor Liu Jun. And... Fellow Daoist Taisui!"
The moment he faced Taisui directly, Luo Chen finally understood why that aura had given him such a familiar and intimate feeling.
How could it not feel familiar and intimate?
Back then, he had swallowed and refined Taisui's true body whole.
It was by relying on Taisui's true body—a Tier 5 medicinal ingredient—that he had been able to concoct the Tier 5 Law Deduction Pill and pass the second trial of the Nine Tribulations and Three Nirvanas: the Flesh Nirvana.
In fact, in Luo Chen’s view, the reason he had defied common sense by comprehending the Wither-Bloom true intent of the Wood Law despite possessing a Fire Spirit Physique was largely tied to having consumed Taisui's true body back then.
A Tier 5 spiritual Taisui inherently embodied the Law of Wood!
Liu Jun stared warily at Luo Chen, holding the oil lamp in his palm as the azure flames atop it surged.
"So the person who slipped into the Yama Heavens earlier was you, Demonic Lord Qingyang!"
Behind him, Taisui watched Luo Chen with deep dread, his feet already quietly inching backward.
The moment the Xuanchen Armor appeared, he had already guessed who Xiao Bai’s master was.
Now that they stood face-to-face, he could not sense the slightest shred of aura from the man.
Yet it was precisely because he could sense nothing that his terror mounted!
He had fought alongside Luo Chen in the past and knew all too well how formidable this monster was.
Later, he had watched him conquer the Alchemy Realm and inherit the Heaven Refining Demon Lord's alchemical legacy. After all these years, he had undoubtedly grown vastly stronger.
He even suspected that the world-renowned Alchemy Grandmaster of the Eastern Desolation was none other than him!
Luo Hai, Luo Chen—they differed by only a single character, and both possessed peerless alchemy skills. With the Heaven Refining Demon Lord's legacy, it was entirely plausible that Luo Hai had reached his current heights.
If that was truly the case, then he had to consider the battle records under Alchemy Grandmaster Luo Chen's other moniker.
Alchemy Grandmaster Luo Chen was also known as Formless Demon Luo, hailed alongside Demon Emperor Qingshuang as the strongest beneath the Soul Formation stage!
Every small movement of his retreat fell into Luo Chen's eyes.
Luo Chen let out a breezy chuckle and took a step forward, strolling toward the three with leisure.
"Fellow Daoist Taisui, I haven't even congratulated you on seizing a new body and advancing to the Nascent Soul stage. Why look to leave without saying goodbye the moment we meet?"
At these words, both Demon Emperors glanced toward Taisui.
Demon Monk Kongchan frowned. "Taisui, what is there to fear? He is but one man. Even with that female ghost, it is merely two against three."
"Is that so?" Luo Chen chuckled softly and gave his arm a flick.
Immediately, a streak of black light swirled up his left arm. A ferocious, antlered dragon head emerged, glaring hungrily at the three.
The moment he saw the black dragon, Taisui shrieked, "It really is you!"
Without a thought for his two companions, he turned and fled backward without hesitation.
"Fleeing?" The corners of Luo Chen's lips curved upward as he thrust his right palm forward across the empty air.
The Qingyang Great Handprint manifested in the mortal realm once more!
A colossal palm print surged forward, drawing upon the chaotic spiritual energy between heaven and earth as it swept after Taisui with boundless momentum.
The instant the giant palm appeared, Demon Monk Kongchan’s expression altered completely.
*So strong!*
A casual strike from him possessed such terrifying might!
Shark Emperor Liu Jun’s complexion drained of all color as well. Recklessly channeling his magic power, he caused the azure flame atop the oil lamp to burn furiously.
Yet before he could unleash the Shark Emperor True Flame, Luo Chen merely cast a glance his way, and all of Liu Jun's movements ground to a halt.
Liu Jun stood dazed in midair, his eyes vacant.
Deprived of its master's control, the nearby azure flame went out of control in an instant. Morphing into a slender, massive blue fish, it turned back with a lunge and swallowed Liu Jun whole.
This consumption devoured everything—magic power, physical body, Nascent Soul, and divine soul alike.
From beginning to end, Liu Jun did not utter a single sound.
He simply allowed the True Flame his Merfolk clan had worshipped for countless ages to consume him utterly.
Across this grim glacial wasteland, the only sound was the crackle of the azure flame burning fiercely.
The air filled with the rich, savory scent of burning fat.
Watching this, Demon Monk Kongchan’s body began to tremble uncontrollably.
He was an expert in soul attacks himself. He knew better than anyone what terrifying level of soul attainment was required to render a Nascent Soul-tier Demon Emperor entirely powerless, to the point of being burned alive without even feeling pain.
That was definitely not something a Nascent Soul True Person could achieve. Only a Soul Formation grandmaster could do such a thing!
Was this man before him a Soul Formation grandmaster?
Watching the black-robed Daoist draw closer step by step, Demon Monk Kongchan subconsciously raised his monk's staff. Yet when met with those eyes radiating a bizarre luminescence, his hands trembled and lowered it again.
Until the two stood face-to-face.
Luo Chen patted Demon Monk Kongchan lightly on the shoulder and praised, "You know what's good for you."
With that, he brushed past him and headed toward the center of the Yama Heavens.
From the distance came the thunderous roar of an explosion, while the words of praise still lingered by his ear. Demon Monk Kongchan’s face flushed crimson with humiliation and indignation, yet in the end, he did not dare launch an attack.
Nor did he dare flee.
Because when Luo Chen brushed past him, that light tap on his shoulder had branded a divine soul restriction into him.
That single soul restriction was enough to show Kongchan the vast chasm between his own soul foundation and the man's.
Xiao Bai stayed where she was, keeping watch over Demon Monk Kongchan and the azure oil lamp that continued to burn.
Black King detached himself from Luo Chen's shoulder and flew off in pursuit of the direction Taisui had fled.
Meanwhile, Luo Chen arrived beside that chilling lake of blood.
Within the blood lake, a bizarre battle was unfolding.
A giant formed of countless corpses strode toward the lake's center as massive waves of blood surged forward, breaking apart the heaps of skeletons that made up the titan.
Yet as many as were destroyed, just as many reassembled.
Undaunted and relentless, it continued to press forward!
Luo Chen observed this in silence, his gaze deep and pensive, his thoughts unreadable.
After a long while, Black King flew back, dangling a battered body from his jaws.
"Master, this fat fellow has stubborn vitality. He took a direct hit from your Qingyang Great Handprint and is actually still alive."
How could he not be stubborn?
Taisui had once attained the Tier 5 realm!
Even if his soul had been suppressed by the Heaven Refining Demon Lord for a millennium, and even if his physical body had been consumed by Luo Chen, his vitality remained among the most resilient under heaven.
Luo Chen looked down at the figure whose vitality was hissing away like a punctured bellows, and said impassively, "Taisui, I hear you have been searching for me all these years?"
A single Qingyang Great Handprint had shattered Taisui's physical body. Moreover, the power of the Fire Law contained within it prevented his Nascent Soul from even self-destructing. Lying at Luo Chen's feet, Taisui's eyes were full of hatred and indignation.
"My only regret is that I didn't find you sooner, before you grew into this!" Taisui rasped with venom.
Luo Chen shook his head. "Why bother? Had you not harbored designs on me back then, we might still be friends who braved the Sunken Sea together."
Taisui shrieked shrilly, "Do you dare say that if I hadn't targeted you, you wouldn't have made a move on me?!"
Luo Chen fell silent.
Taisui's true body was a top-tier medicinal ingredient rarely seen in this world; anyone would have been tempted.
Without Taisui's true body, Luo Chen likely would have struggled to survive the Flesh Nirvana.
Yet a gentleman judges actions, not thoughts, and it was undeniably Taisui who had made the first move.
"Enough," Luo Chen sighed softly, his right palm twitching slightly. "Once you are dead, all past grievances will be wiped clean."
Though his tone was soft, it dripped with lethal intent.
At that moment, all of Taisui's hatred and indignation evaporated, replaced entirely by terror.
"No!"
*Boom!*
Golden flames erupted from Luo Chen's palm, forming a pillar of fire that pierced through Taisui's body.
Wretched, bloodcurdling screams echoed from within.
Beside him, Black King instinctively shrank back several yards. Even knowing how extraordinary his master's fire-controlling arts were, facing those golden flames still stirred a primal dread deep within his soul.
This fire could incinerate souls and scorch spirits!
A moment later, only a pile of dark ash remained on the ground. As a gust of wind swept past, all the ash dispersed, leaving behind only a human-shaped scorch mark.
Black King swallowed hard. "Master, that was a bit of a waste."
It truly was somewhat wasteful. Whether it was the Nascent Soul formed by this seized body or Taisui's soul—which, despite not having condensed a primordial spirit, possessed the essence of a Tier 5 spiritual elemental—both were exceptional resources.
Yet Luo Chen had no mind to deal with such things at present.
He slowly raised his hand. The brilliant Nirvana Holy Fire transformed into a golden phoenix that perched docilely upon his palm, gently pecking at his sturdy hand.
The Nirvana Holy Fire, the most yang and unyielding flame beneath heaven, was an existence that rivaled even the legendary Solar True Fire.
Especially after Luo Chen completed his Soul Nirvana, it exerted a horrific burning effect on the souls of living beings.
This had been displayed to the fullest when destroying Taisui just now.
*Though I haven't yet reached the Soul Formation stage, judging by my brief clash with Li Canghai and the multitude of techniques at my disposal, I truly possess the strength to contend with a Soul Formation grandmaster!*
With this thought, Luo Chen turned his gaze back to the blood lake.
He raised his hand and cast it outward.
"Go!"
*Chirp! Chirp!*
The phoenix fire spirit let out a sonorous, metallic cry. After circling Luo Chen twice, it soared into the sky.
As the phoenix fire spirit took flight, its form swelled rapidly, transforming into a colossal firebird thousands of feet across. Nimbly darting past surging waves of blood, it pounced toward the corpse giant.
This fire spirit seemed to be the natural bane of the corpse giant; the moment it struck, large swaths of eerie green soul flames began to disperse.
Countless skeletal remains clattered down into the blood lake in droves.
Having done all this, Luo Chen did not recall the phoenix fire spirit, his eyes falling instead upon the figure drifting up and down within the lake of blood.
That person bore a face that looked very aged yet remarkably young, shifting continuously under the battering of the bloody waves.
As Luo Chen's gaze fell upon him, as though sensing something, a pair of eyes slowly opened upon that face.
Deeply weary beneath weathered years, yet harboring an unreconciled madness within its calm.
"If not driven mad, how could one survive?"
Luo Chen murmured softly. Extending his hand, he summoned the phoenix fire spirit back with a whistle.
He nodded slightly toward the Mad Hermit, then turned and walked away.
The Mad Hermit did not know what had transpired, but he knew he had escaped a calamity.
Watching Luo Chen's receding figure vanish into the distance, the Mad Hermit offered a grateful look, then closed his eyes.
Even more turbulent waves of blood surged around him, gradually forming a massive bloody cocoon that enveloped the Mad Hermit completely.
A short while later.
Luo Chen returned to the place where they had fought earlier.
"Master!" Xiao Bai called out happily.
"Mm."
Luo Chen turned his gaze to Demon Monk Kongchan, saying nothing, simply staring at him.
Under his steady gaze, cold sweat drenched Kongchan. Finally, he bowed and fell to his knees. "This humble demon, Kongchan, is willing to take you as my master!"
"Good!"
Luo Chen smiled, his eyes at last settling upon the azure flame still flickering quietly.
The Shark Emperor True Flame, was it?
Chapter 1056