The Soul-Extinguishing Awl

Outside the Cold Bell Grand Array. Qin Sang and Jinglin made their appearance. Moving one behind the other, Jinglin was fronted by a brilliant azure radiance that emanated from an azure jade bracelet—the magic treasure known as the Wind Summoning Bracelet. Surrounding Qin Sang were twelve demonic banners circling through the air. There was only one chance to strike Old Demon Pei while he was shielded by the Nether Crystal Pagodas. To ensure nothing went awry, Qin Sang directly brought out his Twelve Demon Banners. Now that he had stepped into the Nascent Soul realm, there was no longer any need to conceal his strength at all times. Revealing a portion of it when appropriate would only serve to deter those harboring ill intent. Moreover, his trump cards extended far beyond the twelve demonic banners. Their plan was quite simple: while Old Demon Pei's attention was drawn to the other battlefield, Jinglin would strike to shatter the light barrier cast by the Nether Crystal Pagodas, and Qin Sang would then unleash his demonic fire to execute Pei on the spot. When Old Demon Pei committed himself to cornering Si Di, the defensive protection of the Nether Crystal Pagodas would be at its weakest. Jinglin took the lead. The instant he appeared, he thrust his palms forward with all his might. The Wind Summoning Bracelet let out a roaring howl, transforming into a gust of azure wind that charged toward the Nether Crystal Pagodas at breakneck speed. This azure wind was no ordinary breeze. Formed by Jinglin pouring his full power into driving the magic treasure, it was a conjured spirit wind. Its outward display seemed less tempestuous than a raging gale, but its lethal power was not to be underestimated. Whoosh! In the blink of an eye, the Wind Summoning Bracelet flew before the light barrier. The Nether Crystal Pagodas trembled violently, and the barrier flared with black light. Before Old Demon Pei could even mount a response, the Nether Crystal Pagodas automatically retaliated. Thick black light surged toward the point of impact, rising to withstand the onslaught of the spirit wind. Jinglin had planned this strike for a long time and struck with all his might. If he could be blocked so easily, his reputation as a Nascent Soul expert would have been entirely in vain! At this moment, the Wind Summoning Bracelet shone with dazzling azure light, resembling a colossal wind tunnel as limitless spirit wind power poured out from the treasure, swelling into a terrifying hurricane in an instant. With a slight shudder, the bracelet gathered all the spirit wind's force and slammed brutally against the barrier. Boom! The thunderous crash heard by Chanling and Old Demon Tan was precisely this sound! The three Nether Pagodas shuddered violently. Under the savage impact, shockwaves swept outward in all directions, immediately knocking the surrounding low-level cultivators off their feet. The light barrier shattered. The Nether Pagodas proved tougher than expected. Though the Wind Summoning Bracelet failed to obliterate the barrier entirely, leaving it attempting to mend itself, the subsequent wave of demonic fire gave it no respite. The barrier could hold no longer and completely disintegrated! A shocking breach was torn wide open, and the howling gale and demonic fire poured straight through. Qin Sang swiftly shifted his hand seals. The twelve demonic banners flapped wildly, and demonic fire surged as if the flags themselves had caught ablaze. The Nine Nether Demonic Fire morphed into a black flame dragon, roaring with reckless abandon. Before the horrified gazes of countless onlookers, it tore forward with unstoppable momentum, lunging directly toward Old Demon Pei's hiding place! The sudden turn of events unfolded far too quickly. Old Demon Pei snapped back to his senses as if waking from a nightmare—he had been ambushed! From the moment Qin Sang and Jinglin materialized to the shattering of the barrier and the flame dragon plunging toward Old Demon Pei, only a fleeting breath had passed. By the time he reacted, it was already too late; imminent disaster was right upon him! No, it was sheer despair! Sensing the aura of the Nine Nether Demonic Fire, Old Demon Pei's face twisted in terror. The might of this demonic fire was far too horrifying. Not a single measure at his disposal could hold its ground before such flames. Old Demon Pei had no doubt about his grim fate. This was virtually a checkmate! Roar! The demonic fire crashed down. Old Demon Pei's protective astral energy was instantly obliterated. The demonic fire blotted out the sky, giving him no time even to project his Nascent Soul in flight. At the hair's-breadth moment of peril, Old Demon Pei did not resign himself to doom. Unwillingness and venomous rancor flared in his eyes, and he suddenly threw back his head and let out a shrill scream! The shriek was ear-splitting and harsh. Engulfed in demonic fire with his hair disheveled like a madman, this cry sounded like the desperate death rattle of a doomed soul. Yet both Qin Sang and Jinglin were seized by a dreadful foreboding! Without Old Demon Pei visibly casting any secret technique, an eerie shadow abruptly emerged behind his head. The shadow split into three and shot forward, instantly sinking into the crystal orbs atop the Nether Crystal Pagodas. In the next instant, Old Demon Pei aged hundreds of years in a heartbeat, his hair turning snow-white and his face covered in deep wrinkles. A dignified Nascent Soul Patriarch had been reduced to a withered, deathly old man! The vitality throughout his entire body had been drained by that shadow and sacrificed to the Nether Crystal Pagodas. Simultaneously, the three Nether Crystal Pagodas flared with overwhelming black light. Limitless black rays surged up into the crystal orbs at their summits, instantly turning them pitch-black like ink, resembling three demonic eyes. The bizarre sight made one's hair stand on end. A faint, uncanny wave of energy rippled out from the Nether Crystal Pagodas. Black light erupted, coalescing into two black pointed awls that appeared before Qin Sang and Jinglin as though teleporting through the void. Sensing the strange pulsation from the Nether Crystal Pagodas, Qin Sang's expression changed drastically. Though this was the first time he had ever laid eyes on such ripples and pointed awls, he felt an eerie, faint sense of familiarity! "Watch out for the Soul-Extinguishing Awl!" Jinglin urgently shouted in warning. Without hesitation, Jinglin crushed a spirit talisman, its energy conjuring a small circular shield in front of him. The Soul-Extinguishing Awl was one of the offensive techniques of the Nether Crystal Pagodas. Designed specifically to target the primordial soul and extremely difficult to guard against, it had inflicted severe suffering upon the Nascent Soul experts of the Two Domains Alliance. Later, the Two Domains Alliance crafted a type of spirit talisman called the Profound Shield Talisman, which finally turned the tide. In launching an ambush against Old Demon Pei, they had naturally anticipated every contingency and held Profound Shield Talismans ready in their grasp. Qin Sang likewise crushed a Profound Shield Talisman by instinct. Yet his gaze grew exceedingly grave, and turbulent waves churned in his heart. He had remembered the origin of that sense of familiarity! In the Hall of Seven Kills, at the foot of Yitian Peak, within the demon-sealing space. The elder from the Four Sages Palace had used the Heavenly Phoenix Plume to break free, and the experts had laid siege to the Demon Sovereign. Victory had seemed within their grasp, but the Demon Sovereign suddenly merged with his split soul and unleashed an unknown divine ability that reversed the battle in an instant! Lingzhuzi, the Demon Lord, the Grand Shaman, Old Devil Fang, and the others—all pinnacle figures of the Canglang Ocean—had suffered grievous wounds, with not a single person spared. Qin Sang did not yet know that this divine ability was called Soul Splitting God Severing. The reason everyone had collapsed so swiftly was that Soul Splitting God Severing inflicted direct injury upon the primordial soul with unparalleled malice, and the one wielding it was an ancient Demon Sovereign. That scene of sheer despair remained fresh in Qin Sang's memory to this day. In both appearance and aura, the Nether Crystal Pagodas and the Soul-Extinguishing Awl were completely different from Soul Splitting God Severing, and their might fell vastly short by comparison. Even though Qin Sang had read records concerning the Nether Crystal Pagodas, it had been impossible to connect the two before now. Yet arriving on this battlefield and personally sensing the fluctuations of the Nether Crystal Pagodas, he still found no concrete proof of a shared origin, but his intuition screamed that the Soul-Extinguishing Awl was inextricably tied to the Demon Sovereign's divine ability! This realization was thoroughly chilling. He did not know whether Soul Splitting God Severing was a technique exclusive to the Demon Sovereign. Could there truly be an ancient demon sovereign lurking behind Sin Abyss? Yet if it were genuinely a Demon Sovereign, conquering not just the Celestial Alliance but the entire Beichen Realm would be as easy as flipping a hand. Countless thoughts flashed through Qin Sang's mind in an instant. However, the present situation gave him no luxury to ponder further. Crack! The Soul-Extinguishing Awl struck before Jinglin. The small shield conjured by the Profound Shield Talisman was pierced clean through by the awl! Although Jinglin had suspected that Old Demon Pei's desperate final strike might not be simple, he had never imagined the Profound Shield Talisman would be broken so easily. Immediately after, under Jinglin's horrified gaze, the Soul-Extinguishing Awl shot straight toward him!