"Kill!"
"Kill!"
Shouts of slaughter echoed across the mountains and plains, accompanied by deafening beastly roars.
Together with the explosions that seemed never to cease, they composed an intricate yet unified grand symphony across the battlefield.
High in the sky stood ten figures, gazing from afar at the towering, majestic fortress city.
The glow of defensive formations rose and fell endlessly, while cultivators gathered like swarming clouds.
Looking higher still, stars twinkled within the nine firmaments, radiating an enchanting yet perilous brilliance.
"With the Black Tortoise Four Directions Formation before it and the Zhou Tian Stars Formation above it, this Lingtian Pass truly is a tortoise shell, leaving one with no way to strike!"
Sighs of lament arose among the crowd, drawing nods of agreement.
"Never mind. There is no need for us to exert our full strength. Follow the Commander's orders and focus on attrition."
"Make your moves!"
"Beware the Nascent Soul True Persons in the city. If outmatched, do not drag out the fight!"
"I shall head to the southern wall."
"This seat will go to the west!"
...
Figures surged forth, radiating vast demon qi. Demonic gales swept across the expanse, dragging massive demon clouds as they converged on Lingtian Pass from every direction.
Had such a terrifying spectacle occurred in the early stages of the war, it would have struck profound terror into the hearts of men.
Yet after day upon day and year upon year of conflict, it was no longer considered an extraordinary display.
It was nothing more than fourth-tier Demon Emperors coming once again to harass Lingtian Pass and deplete the city's supplies.
Low-tier cultivators had no need to worry; experts of the True Person level would naturally step forward to hold the line.
And sure enough!
The moment the Demon Emperors moved, Lingtian Pass seemed to receive some cue, and silhouettes shot into the air, transforming into streaks of light that darted toward their respective opponents.
Before the Demon Emperors could even draw near Lingtian Pass, they were intercepted.
A strapping man in black robes, his face covered in mottled spots and his eyes brimming with ferocity, charged with swift, urgent momentum.
Suddenly!
A massive azure palm print struck out from within Lingtian Pass.
Its movement was neither rushed nor slow, yet its power was immense and grand, clearly not something easily provoked.
The spotted-faced man sneered coldly. Before the palm print could expand fully, he unleashed a sudden punch.
*Boom!*
The palm print collapsed instantly, sparks scattering in all directions like blooming fireworks.
A figure had already appeared before him at some unknown moment.
"I, Luo Chen the Alchemy Grandmaster, have yet to ask Fellow Daoist's esteemed name?"
Hearing the name Luo Chen, the spotted-faced man's pupils constricted slightly.
His rapid advance came to an abrupt halt.
He eyed Luo Chen warily. "I am Demon Emperor Taobao, Lord of the Lanpo Prairie."
The Million Mountains was merely an overarching name; it was not composed entirely of peaks.
Within it lay mountains and waters, rushing rivers, and countless lakes and seas.
Naturally, where there were high peaks, there were ravines, and where there were rolling hills, there were vast prairies.
Luo Chen nodded. "The Lord of Lanpo should have remained comfortably upon his prairie. Why come here to stain yourself with worldly dust?"
Taobao sneered. "Lest you remain ignorant, five thousand years ago, my clan's territory lay right beneath our feet."
Luo Chen raised an eyebrow.
He glanced down. Setting aside the artificial fortress city of Lingtian Pass rising from the ground, the surrounding tens of thousands of li truly were quite flat and well-suited for low-growing vegetation.
It was only because of constant, year-round warfare that scarcely any greenery remained to be seen.
"So, you insist on entering Lingtian Pass?"
"Words are useless. Let our strength do the talking!"
With those words, Taobao leaped into the air. His speed surged wildly, and as he sprinted forward, several afterimages flickered into existence, making it impossible to discern the true body from the false.
Luo Chen sighed, yet his eyes showed no hint of fear; instead, they brimmed with eager anticipation.
No longer amber, his pale-gold eyes swept across the multiplying afterimages.
Suddenly, the corner of his lips curled into a smile, and he exhaled a streak of light.
At the same time, his fingers tapped out hand seals in rapid succession as his magic power surged.
Just as all the afterimages closed within ten yards of him, a phoenix phantasm shrieked and soared from behind his back.
Wheeling around his body in a single loop, it shattered every afterimage in an instant.
Then, without looking back, the phoenix plunged straight into the depths of the void.
*Bang!*
An explosion rang out, and a flash of yellow light burst forth.
Taobao felt a wave of shock. *He truly can see through me. The rumors weren't false!*
Amid his shock, his brows furrowed, and he whipped around to jab a finger.
*Clang!*
A sword pellet was forcibly brought to a halt.
Then, like a lotus blooming, it unleashed brilliant sword light.
"A sword cultivator?" The spotted-faced man was startled for a moment upon seeing the sword pellet, but the unfolding sword light was far too sluggish. He could not help but scoff, "A false alarm. Such clumsy methods pose no threat to me at all!"
"Break!"
Curling his fingers into a fist, he brought it crashing down.
The sword pellet lacked any power to resist and was forcibly hammered down into the dust.
Looking toward the man who was currently gathering power to cast a new spell, Taobao took a deep breath.
Having fought up to this day, any prominent figures between the human and demon races had some awareness of one another.
Because Luo Chen had three recorded battles and had achieved two direct kills, information regarding him had long been memorized by many Demon Emperors.
*This man is skilled in fire arts and can pierce illusion and reality. Both the Wuguang Demon Emperor, who excelled at concealment, and the Shuangying Demon Emperor, who excelled at void-tearing flight, died by his hand.*
*To fight this man, I must engage him in close-quarters combat and exploit the superior physical might of the demon race!*
With that thought, Taobao surged his demon origin, and yellow wind gathered beneath his feet.
His speed doubled in an instant.
Transforming into an arrow released from a bowstring, he darted toward Luo Chen.
Moreover, his hands slashed together repeatedly, sending out wave after wave of claw strikes.
Facing this onslaught, Luo Chen remained calm and composed.
*Trying to close the distance?*
*Do they not know that I am just as skilled in body refinement?*
*Forget it. I won't engage in bare-knuckle brawling today; let's test my new method instead!*
Luo Chen treaded with Moon Steps, his figure shifting like a phantom as he dodged one attack after another.
Even when an attack proved unavoidable, he withstood it easily with the Xuanchen Armor.
At the same time, he repeatedly spat out sword pellets.
*Hiss! Hiss! Hiss! Hiss!*
Unfortunately, these sword pellets were not guided as deftly as those of orthodox sword cultivators; they lacked those ever-shifting transformations and razor-sharp speed, often getting knocked aside before even approaching Taobao's true body.
Luo Chen was not discouraged. When a strike became entirely unavoidable, he merely watched with a cold gaze.
*Boom!*
A punch smashed down, brushing past him.
Taobao froze. How could a strike locked onto by divine sense miss?
An instant later, he realized with a start that a soul-befuddling illusion art had caused his attack to veer off course.
When masters clashed, a hair's breadth of error resulted in a miss of a thousand miles.
Fearing that Luo Chen would seize the opening to counterattack, he violently swung his right hand, unleashing an enormous saber beam across the space.
Luo Chen drifted away lightly, showing no intention of pursuing the advantage.
The exchange felt almost like child's play.
Holding the long saber in his hand, Taobao found himself caught in a dilemma.
*This man not only commands magic that pierces illusions, but his movement techniques are elusive and unpredictable. He even wears a treasure armor, meaning ordinary attacks cannot harm him in the slightest.*
*Even a full-power strike can easily miss due to that bizarre illusion art.*
*Killing him in a short time is impossible for me alone.*
Having realized this, Taobao made up his mind and turned to leave without hesitation.
From behind him came a teasing voice:
"Fellow Daoist comes and goes as you please. Aren't you taking this grandmaster a little too lightly?"
"What can you do—"
Before he could finish his words, Taobao sensed that something was amiss.
A sharp, piercing intent began spreading across the heavens and earth out of nowhere. Like a blooming lotus or an ancient tree sprouting new buds, wisps of sword qi began permeating the air.
Platinum, teal, azure, dim yellow, crimson...
Five-colored radiance dazzled the eyes.
"It's those sword pellets!"
Taobao understood in an instant. Those sword pellets that had seemed completely unthreatening were actually concealed traps.
Without the slightest hesitation, Taobao slashed his long saber horizontally, carving out a massive saber beam hundreds of yards wide to clear a vacuum through the sword-qi-filled space, then shot into the void like an arrow from a bowstring.
Watching this, Luo Chen showed no fear of his escape, his ten fingers dancing in quick succession.
Sword incantations were cast one after another, and the five meticulously refined sword pellets began revealing a completely different splendor.
The sword formation arose!
Sword light refined into silk, weaving across the sky and earth.
The vacuum he had carved out was sealed shut by sword silk in the blink of an eye.
As the threads crisscrossed, fine sword lacerations immediately broke out across Taobao's spotted face.
Furthermore, the magic power that Luo Chen had primed beforehand transformed into the five elemental attributes, continually weaving and harmonizing together, generating an immense suppressing force within the sword formation.
The Great Five Elements Sword Formation was not renowned for sheer sharpness; its sharpness was merely the baseline power inherent in True Artifact sword pellets.
The true terror of this sword formation lay in the horrific suppressing might born from the mutual generation and overcoming of the five elements.
To the naked eye, Taobao's speed slowed drastically within the formation.
Though he swung his long saber fiercely, carving out path after path of survival, his slowed speed prevented him from escaping along them.
Instead, wound after wound began opening across his sturdy physical body.
Blood dense with vitality began showering the sky.
In the blink of an eye, the demon was drenched in blood, looking thoroughly battered.
Controlling the sword formation, Luo Chen observed his enemy's movements with discerning eyes while absorbing insights from the experience.
*Refining sword pellets with the methods from the Thousand Firmaments Myriad Transformations Sword Scripture takes slightly longer to show results, but the tightness of the bond is in no way inferior to orthodox sword sects like Jade Cauldron Sword Sect or Wan Jian Pavilion.*
*Among the five sword pellets, the platinum and azure wood pellets are the primary offensive cores, while the other three... have flaws, and their suppressing power is insufficient.*
*Controlling five sword pellets at once places too heavy a burden on the soul. My soul's foundation is currently comparable to the fifth layer of the Nascent Soul stage, perhaps nearing the sixth, yet I still feel strained right now. I must improve it further.*
*No wonder Pavilion Master Li wanted the Jade Emperor Clear Pupil Liquid so badly. A pair of superior eyes truly relieves an immense amount of pressure on divine sense.*
Within the sword formation, Taobao lunged left and right, yet found no way out.
He came to an abrupt halt, and blood sprayed in all directions. Every single droplet of blood transformed into a figure identical to himself.
They all charged toward different directions.
Failing to break through by force, was he trying to divide himself into avatars to find an opening?
A pity!
Under the strangling weave of myriad sword threads, avatar after avatar shattered continuously, offering no resistance whatsoever.
Among them, one avatar was singled out for focused attention and madly shredded.
Clearly, beneath Luo Chen's eyes that could pierce illusion and truth, such petty tricks could fool no one.
Suddenly!
The remaining avatars darted toward the focused body, merging into one with a series of whooshes to reveal Taobao's hundred-yard true form.
It was a spotted leopard, its four paws treading upon black clouds, holding the Desolate Gold Saber in its jaws—magnificent and fierce.
Yet this magnificent leopard was now covered in deep wounds, looking utterly wretched.
With a low roar, instead of retreating, it charged toward Lingtian Pass, the Desolate Gold Saber in its mouth carving out a terrifying wave of saber light.
Seeing this, Luo Chen could not help but sigh.
*No wonder Han Zhan emphasized that five True Artifact sword pellets of identical grade were mandatory.*
*This flaw truly cannot be hidden from experts at the Nascent Soul level!*
*Still, this is enough!*
Luo Chen curved his fingers, gathering power for another spell. Furthermore, blood light shimmered in his hand, and a small sword flew out quietly.
*Boom!*
A tremendous crash resounded as the giant spotted leopard burst free with countless strands of sword qi, returning to the open sky.
Seeing the blue sky once more, it was overjoyed.
"Luo Chen, you Alchemy Grandmaster, this sword formation cannot trap this Emperor!"
The gold saber flew back and was caught in its jaws.
Clenching the Desolate Gold Saber, Taobao laughed madly. Rather than lingering to fight, he shot straight into the high heavens.
If he could not enter Lingtian Pass, he would carve a path out through the nine skies!
Throughout this, he kept a constant eye on Luo Chen's movements.
From the corner of his eye, he saw the white-robed Daoist recall the five sword pellets and stare at him coldly.
*Has he given up?*
*All the better!*
Taobao breathed an inward sigh of relief. Though he had laughed arrogantly moments before, his wariness of Luo Chen had not lessened in the slightest.
Had he not paid a heavy price to expose the sword formation's flaw, he might truly have been trapped within and sliced alive.
He had already made up his mind: once he returned, he would sell information about Luo Chen the Alchemy Grandmaster at a high price.
If anyone encountered this man without reaching the mid-fourth tier or the Great Demon Emperor realm, they must never prolong the fight.
Just as his guard lowered ever so slightly because Luo Chen had not given chase, a sudden upheaval occurred in the sky.
Fire clouds converged, radiating thousands of multicolored rays.
A massive dragon head poked out from within, locking its gaze onto Taobao with a single glance.
*Roar!*
A flame dragon descended upon the world!
Caught completely off guard, Taobao watched as the flame dragon plunged straight down, crashing head-on into his true form when evasion was impossible.
The saber light flared again, but beneath that flame dragon, it appeared so frail and insignificant.
*Boom!*
As the flames gradually subsided, more than half of Taobao's body was gone, his eyes filled with sheer terror.
This time, he did not even dare look back at Luo Chen, thinking only of fleeing for his life.
However...
*Squelch!*
A blood sword shot forth, snapping the Desolate Gold Saber in two and piercing into the leopard's skull. Like a streak of blood, it plunged deeper and deeper until it struck the Nascent Soul.
"Aaaahhhh..."
A bloodcurdling scream rang across a hundred li, sending a shudder straight to the souls of countless demon beasts and cultivators both inside and outside Lingtian Pass.
Everyone knew that yet another Demon Emperor had fallen.
...
*Thud!*
A heavy mass crashed to the ground, kicking up clouds of dust.
Beneath countless reverent gazes, Luo Chen waved his hand, signaling the cultivators of the Luotian Treasure Pavilion to come and clean up the severed half of the Demon Emperor's corpse.
He himself drifted back toward Mount Danluo amid the surrounding clamor of discussion.
"Which one is this already?"
"The third Demon Emperor! Three Demon Emperor-level existences have now fallen by the Alchemy Grandmaster's hand—he is truly number one in Lingtian!"
"Such a record is far more than just number one in Lingtian; you couldn't find a second person like him in the entire Eastern Desolation!"
"Why even call him an Alchemy Grandmaster? With such slaughter, calling him a Demon-Slaying True Person wouldn't be an exaggeration at all!"
"Demon-Slaying True Person—how fitting!"
As Luo Chen took the field time and time again, the title Demon-Slaying True Person began spreading from mouth to mouth among countless cultivators.
Even in the demon race's main encampment, his reputation grew louder and louder; ordinary Demon Emperors did not wish to cross paths with him at all.
Rumors even circulated that anyone who encountered the Demon-Slaying Daoist was permitted to flee without penalty.
Luo Chen saw all of these developments, but did not take them to heart.
He knew that the louder his fame became, the stronger his future enemies would be, and the more methods they would prepare.
Fighting too frequently would only expose his hidden trump cards.
Therefore, he specifically submitted a request to Castellan Lingtian, asking not to be dispatched into battle too often.
In light of his glorious achievements, Castellan Lingtian granted the request.
Thus, over the next two years, though Luo Chen still fought occasionally, he was far more restrained compared to other Nascent Soul True Persons.
Furthermore, he tempered his killing intent slightly, no longer pursuing absolute annihilation.
On one occasion, when an enemy's Nascent Soul abandoned its physical body and fled while other Demon Emperors watched vigilantly, he chose to abandon the pursuit.
On this day,
within Mount Danluo, Luo Chen sat cross-legged before the Hunyuan Cauldron, his eyes filled with anticipation.
"Calculating the time, the Heart-Interrogation Mirror should be ready to emerge into the world!"
Chapter 831