Ringing out alongside the incarnation's voice came the roar of the ferocious beast, the Tengshe.
Its might and clamor overpowered even the thousand-zhang giant crocodile!
The giant crocodile below, the Tengshe above—both were peerlessly ferocious.
The ice lake seemed to have transformed into a battlefield of ancient vicious beasts.
Without a word, the incarnation directly unleashed the spirit treasure, the Fourfold Tengshe Seal. He showed no intention of approaching the scar-faced man at all, giving the jade beetle zero opportunity for a sneak attack.
With a flick of thought, the Tengshe descended from the sky, treading upon cold flames. It did not charge straight at the scar-faced man, but rather severed the path between him and Cave Master Qiling!
***
Above the ice lake, banner shadows stood like a forest.
The moment Cave Master Qiling was dragged into the banner formation, he vanished from the scar-faced man's field of vision.
Ethereal blue sky-light and freezing winds swirled around the banner formation; the might of this remnant formation was likewise not to be underestimated.
The only flaw was that as the momentum of the banner formation grew stronger, the swaying of the remnant banner shadows became increasingly pronounced. Before long, the first remnant banner shadow violently burst apart.
The shattering of a banner shadow meant that the corresponding remnant banner at the array eye could no longer sustain itself and was destroyed.
A second, a third...
One remnant banner after another was destroyed.
Before the banner formation's power could even reach its peak, it began its downward slide.
One remnant banner phantom after another vanished from the formation.
The destruction of each remnant banner opened a flaw in the formation, which could easily become a fatal loophole. It was precisely because of this that even though Qin Sang controlled the Ice Palace's grand formation and had succeeded in his ambush, not much time remained for him.
Conversely, for Cave Master Qiling, this was his hope of survival!
Cave Master Qiling's cry for help was cut short, its latter half swallowed by the banner formation.
The tide of battle shifted in the blink of an eye; Cave Master Qiling felt only a sudden, violent upheaval before his eyes. By the time he collected his wits, the scenery outside was gone, leaving only boundless, overlapping layers of ethereal blue sky-light and freezing wind.
Looming banner shadows tightly hemmed him in, spinning ceaselessly without leaving the slightest gap.
Surrounding him, the banner shadows spun faster and faster.
Every banner shadow was rapidly closing in on Cave Master Qiling, killing intent bearing down upon him. In such perilous straits, Cave Master Qiling could only save himself; he could not pin all his hopes on the scar-faced man.
To make matters worse, Cave Master Qiling was locked onto by the blood crocodile bone hand at this very moment.
Right then, the red flower magic treasure recalled to Cave Master Qiling's side flared once more with vivid crimson light, resembling a flower watered with fresh blood.
The red flower hung upside down, its corolla aimed at Cave Master Qiling himself, and a crimson beam of light plunged straight down, engulfing him.
Though this treasure had shielded its master several times and most of its evil spirits had been wiped out by the sword formation, it still possessed considerable power.
Bathed in the crimson glow, Cave Master Qiling's expression eased slightly. The cold fiend of the banner formation was held at bay by the red light, unable to draw near, while the pulling force was also weakened.
He was finally able to steady himself. Yet he did not rashly charge the formation. Instead, crossing his hands before his chest, his fingers interlacing spiritual threads, he drew several complex runes in midair.
The runes were composed of tadpole-like strokes of indiscernible meaning.
As Cave Master Qiling jabbed heavily into the void, all the runes collided, splintered, and recombined. Their severed sections reconnected into shapes completely different from before, ultimately forming a twisted talismanic diagram.
The edges of the talismanic diagram were jagged and uneven, but inside lay a humanoid figure, trapped within the diagram and writhing continuously.
Following the same method, Cave Master Qiling produced four such talismanic diagrams, arrayed in the four cardinal directions around him, largely similar in form with only minor nuances of difference.
The qi of the four talismanic diagrams was linked together.
Once the diagrams were finished, Cave Master Qiling spread his right hand wide. True essence surged in his palm, transforming into four streaks of light that shot through the air into the four diagrams.
*Boom!*
*Boom!*
...
No sooner had the talismanic diagrams formed than they detonated one after another, and ghostly figures leaped out from the fragments.
Upon their appearance, evil qi billowed forth. They were actually extremely sinister yin demons; the evil spirits Cave Master Qiling had released earlier could not hold a candle to these creatures.
However, through many years of cultivation and expending massive effort, Cave Master Qiling had only nurtured four yin demons, far fewer in number than the evil spirits.
With yin demons, more was not necessarily better.
These extremely sinister things were innately bloodthirsty and devoid of intellect. Even Cave Master Qiling, who had personally refined them, usually had to seal the yin demons away with secret arts.
He unsealed them only when absolutely necessary, and once released, they had to be recalled after a short while. Otherwise, whether the yin demons would kill the enemy or devour their master was hard to say.
Free from the diagrams, the yin demons let out shrill screeches, their bodies twisting unpredictably as they coiled around Cave Master Qiling. In their eyes as they looked at their master, there was no docility—only the predatory glare of hunters eyeing prey—and their expressions were bizarre, alternating between creepy smirks and vicious snarls.
A flush of crimson surged across Cave Master Qiling's face.
His hidden injuries had yet to heal, but how could he care about that now? He immediately suppressed his boiling vital energy and blood, silently channeling his demon-restraining technique. Pointing at the banner formation, he barked, "Go!"
The yin demons shuddered slightly, seemingly reluctant.
Yet their movements were not sluggish in the least. Obediently following Cave Master Qiling's command, they turned and pounced at the banner shadows, attempting to destroy the banner formation.
The banner formation had already been activated and converted into a killing formation; it would let no one escape.
The moment the yin demons broke past the red light's range, the few intact banner shadows blazed with brilliant radiance, connecting with the sky. Immediately, several streams of ethereal blue sky-light condensed into sharp swords, shooting toward the yin demons.
Witnessing this, Cave Master Qiling's expression showed not the slightest ripple. He lightly hooked his finger.
*Swish!*
The four yin demons had their bodies pierced almost simultaneously by the ethereal blue sky-light, some even drawing multiple attacks, causing the ferocious yin demons to instantly freeze where they stood.
Then, the yin demons vanished into thin air.
They were all afterimages!
Farther away, shadows flowed and merged back together, and the yin demons reappeared. They were incorporeal spiritual entities; their pitch-black bodies showed no sign of injury whatsoever.
Immediately afterward, with a pounce, the yin demons seized the opening to slip past several banner shadows and appeared above the formation, right where the ethereal blue sky-light was densest.
This was precisely one of the loopholes of the banner formation!
Cave Master Qiling watched the yin demons intently. Seeing them successfully infiltrate, his eyes lit up, and he immediately ordered them to attack with all their might.
*Swish! Swish! Swish!*
The yin demons surged forward one after another. Though seemingly chaotic, their movements followed an underlying method, leaving trails of afterimages behind.
Though it appeared as if all their attacks struck empty air, the violent shaking of the banner shadows was several times more intense than before. Where they struck, the sky-light was torn apart, faintly showing signs of an opening forming.
Under the yin demons' relentless assault, the loophole in the banner formation was expanding, but Cave Master Qiling still found the pace too slow. He formed an incantation seal with both hands.
"Converge forms!"
The yin demons froze, resisting as they turned their heads to look at one another. Shrill, unwilling shrieks escaped their mouths, yet powerless to defy, they lunged at their companions and began to merge and take form.
By nature, they were greedy and bloodthirsty; had their master permitted them to devour their own kind, they would not have hesitated in the least. Yet this fusion was not of their own choosing.
As the yin demons converged their forms, the vital energy and blood inside Cave Master Qiling began boiling once more.
The four yin demons turned into a cluster of black, sinister shadows that squirmed and contracted tightly into a ball. Then parts of it elongated and morphed, ultimately transforming into a canine-like yin demonic beast!
The yin demonic beast possessed thick, sturdy limbs and stood nearly a hundred zhang tall. Though not as massive as the thousand-zhang giant crocodile, out in the world it was still an evil entity that would strike terror into anyone.
Rearing its head toward the sky, its four hooves stomped heavily upon the void. Whining eerily, it opened its maw, and a mass of black sinister light brewed within, violently blasting out toward the nascent opening!
*Boom!*
The sinister light poured headlong into the opening.
Amidst the ethereal blue sky-light, a round black hole abruptly appeared.
Evil qi billowed within the black hole, expanding and seeping outward, while the yin demonic beast did not pause for a second, continuously spewing demonic light.
The power of the banner formation instantly fell into disarray.
Cave Master Qiling spread open his left palm and unleashed that wooden thorn. At the same time, manipulating the red flower magic treasure, he condensed a beam of light and rammed it fiercely into the center of the suction.
Restrictions flared in the void, but none could withstand the wooden thorn, shattering one after another.
A way out through the banner formation was nearly forced open.
Just as joy surfaced in Cave Master Qiling's eyes, an inexplicable unease arose. Then, through the banner shadows, he saw a cluster of black demonic fire.
The demonic fire raged.
Behind the demonic fire, the faint silhouette of a figure reflected in Cave Master Qiling's eyes, stinging them deeply.
At this moment, Cave Master Qiling was suddenly gripped by the feeling of impending doom; a chill rushed from the soles of his feet up his spine to the crown of his head, making his hair stand on end!
The demonic fire flame dragon came roaring forward, radiating an utterly terrifying fluctuation.
At this juncture, Qin Sang's true body had bypassed the toxic light and arrived, flicking his sleeve to unleash the Nine Nether Demonic Fire into the banner formation.
*Whoosh!*
The demonic fire rushed right at him.
Before the flame dragon even arrived, the demonic fire's aura caused the blood in Cave Master Qiling's body to nearly freeze. Squeezing a cry of alarm from his throat, he opened his mouth and spat out a cluster of white light.
Within the white light emerged a string of white jade prayer beads.
Once the prayer beads appeared, the string came undone, scattering beads everywhere in an instant—it was actually a set of formation implements!
The shadows of the beads swayed as white light flared, forming the image of a jade wall.
This was a set of defensive formation implements of considerable might. When he had released the yin demons, Cave Master Qiling had secretly begun channeling this set of implements, keeping it withheld until needed.
Even mortals possessed the adage of striking an enemy when half-crossed. Cave Master Qiling knew full well that unless the scar-faced man could pin down the enemy, the moment he breached the formation would undoubtedly be met with interference, so he had prepared against this contingency.
Just as the jade wall was about to take form, Cave Master Qiling suddenly heard the sounds of "Heng" and "Ha." Without warning, the bizarre sounds pierced his eardrums and reverberated within his purple palace. He instantly felt as though his essence soul had been impaled by an awl, the pain so excruciating that he groaned aloud.
Qin Sang had dedicated himself to cultivating the Fire Seed Golden Lotus for years, giving him immensely powerful divine consciousness to begin with. Having acquired the divine consciousness treasure, the Thousand-Knot Divine Net, his Soul Absorbing True Words possessed power far beyond what it once was.
*Crash!*
Under the agonizing pain in his essence soul, how could Cave Master Qiling maintain his focus on driving the formation? The half-formed jade wall shook violently, and the beads scattered across the air.
With a boom, the remaining light of the jade wall and the white jade beads were swept clean by the demonic fire flame dragon like dry weeds, failing to pose the slightest obstacle.
With doom upon him, Cave Master Qiling had no time to employ other divine abilities. Furthermore, having not yet escaped the banner formation, projecting his Nascent Soul would also be certain death.
His face was fraught with terror, his blood-red eyes darting wildly.
His corporeal bloody gaze fell upon the yin demonic beast above. At the same time, fresh blood gushed ceaselessly from his eye sockets, forming streaks of blood that, like living creatures, crawled all over his face and spread across his entire body.
In an instant, Cave Master Qiling's body was covered in a bloody web.
The fresh blood began to burn, and blazing blood flames engulfed him.
The yin demonic beast's roars suddenly turned shrill. Its body curled into a ball, transforming into a streak of sinister light that poured into the crown of Cave Master Qiling's head.
*Howl!*
Cave Master Qiling threw his neck back, veins bulging as he let out a chilling, blood-curdling bellow.
Next, the sinister light flowed throughout his body along with the blood flames. The flesh and blood across Cave Master Qiling's entire body began to proliferate madly, skin bulging high and flesh swelling.
Between the sinister light and the blood flames, Cave Master Qiling vanished, replaced by an inhuman, horrifying monstrosity. Only his head retained its original shape, as though growing out of a mass of rotting meat.
This was the Spirit-Burning Ghost Incantation—fusing the yin demon into oneself to instantaneously gain terrifying power.
However, the hidden perils of this incantation were immense; it could only be used in life-or-death crises. Ever since Cave Master Qiling had learned the Spirit-Burning Ghost Incantation, this was the very first time he had employed it to save his life.
Having transformed into a monster, Cave Master Qiling leaped into the air, attempting to smash through the banner formation.
Through the layers of banner shadows, the Heavenly Eye saw the gruesome scene of Cave Master Qiling's transformation. Qin Sang's pupils could not help but constrict, yet his movements did not pause in the least; the demonic fire sped up by another few notches instead!
*Boom!*
The demonic fire flame dragon swallowed the blood flames and slammed fiercely into the monster.
The time left for Cave Master Qiling had been too brief; the transformation had not truly finished.
Flesh and blood erupted like fireworks, gore and blood flying everywhere. Cave Master Qiling's head was among them, more than half incinerated the moment the demonic fire swept over it.
Connected to only a fragment of neck bone beneath it, Cave Master Qiling's head spun through the air, dripping with blood, before being engulfed by the demonic fire.
At the moment of his death, Cave Master Qiling's eyes were ashen gray, offering no resistance as he was burned to ashes.
Qin Sang's eyes narrowed slightly. With a shift in his hand seal, the demonic fire suddenly dispersed in all directions, turning into an ocean of flames. Simultaneously, he laid down an inescapable net with the Jinchen Sword, destroying every single fragment of flesh and blood.
"Dead?"
Qin Sang was slightly stunned.
Cave Master Qiling's Nascent Soul was nowhere to be seen; it had indeed been destroyed along with his physical body.
One of Qin Sang's goals in dragging his opponent into the formation was to deny him any chance of his Nascent Soul escaping, preventing a resurgence from the ashes!
Presumably, the man had known full well that projecting his Nascent Soul was merely the difference between dying sooner or later. If his Nascent Soul were captured, he would never attain reincarnation, so he had simply merged with the yin demon to make a desperate last stand.
Looking across the empty banner formation, for some reason, Qin Sang still felt that something was amiss. Cave Master Qiling had been a bit too decisive.
Suddenly, his expression shifted slightly. Recalling the demonic fire and sword formation, he flew outward.
At this very moment.
The ice lake was completely frozen over.
Having lost its target, the thousand-zhang giant crocodile was itching for action.
Outside was an even greater mess, countless palaces having collapsed.
The remnant formation was teetering on the brink of destruction.
The ethereal blue sky-light hung low, poised to collapse at any moment, and the spirit formation's power in other parts of Bingyi Palace had drastically waned. Pursued by Qin Sang's incarnation, the scar-faced man was fleeing outward, a wisp of bloody qi coiled around his right wrist—a living evil spirit!
Suddenly, the agony on the evil spirit's face vanished, and its features contorted, remarkably morphing into Cave Master Qiling's appearance.
Cave Master Qiling had not forgotten to leave a backup plan even when facing crisis. When the red flower spawned evil spirits that formed a river of blood to face the Seven Po Killing Array, he had taken advantage of the chaos to send dozens of evil spirits fleeing.
The vast majority of the evil spirits had been destroyed by the shockwaves, and only this one had survived.
Never in his wildest dreams did he imagine he would truly perish here. A habitual precaution had become his sole chance at life. Sensing that an evil spirit still survived, he had been ecstatic; while seemingly fighting for his life, he had secretly cast a secret art to achieve rebirth through the spirit.
The evil spirit's face was steeped in malice. Realizing its current predicament, its expression suddenly stiffened, and then it heard the sinister voice of the scar-faced man.
"Trapped in a fatal deadlock, yet Cave Master still had the means to be reborn through a spirit—I am truly impressed! However, that person possesses extraordinary divine abilities and can even manipulate the Ice Palace's grand formation. If I hadn't stepped in to preserve this evil spirit, did you think you could have escaped?"
Chapter 1635