This was clearly not the first time he had done such a thing. The life essence generated by sacrificing hundreds of millions of living beings was overwhelmingly vast.
Yet before this shadowy black figure, it was swiftly drained away in a short time. And as his aura continued to swell, the entire sky gradually darkened.
Not far off, upon witnessing this, the Celestial clansman immediately ordered the ordinary beings to speed up the sacrifice. Thus, time trickled away piece by piece. Once this planet was devoid of life, all the life essence was thoroughly absorbed by the black silhouette.
The haze swirling around him grew far denser than before, and a terrifying aura radiated from his form.
"Not bad. My strength has recovered by another layer." The black silhouette rose, satisfaction evident in his tone.
As for the ordinary beings who had supplied him with power, he paid them no heed whatsoever. Turning toward the Celestial clansman, he said softly, "You did well. Let us go to the next place." Though he had regained some strength, it was clearly not enough for him.
After all, he would later need to head to the Celestial Star to face the true experts of this world. There were numerous Heavenly Position Immortals and Supreme Immortals there, possessing terrifying might.
He had to continue recovering and growing stronger.
"Understood!" the Celestial clansman replied immediately. In the next moment, both figures vanished. And this once-thriving planet fell utterly silent.
All that remained was the crumbling black altar and the churning lava. Indeed, an entire planet was destroyed just like that. Had it been Earth left undefended, the same fate would have unfolded.
Yet whether in the eyes of that Extraterrestrial Demon or the Celestial clan, none of this seemed to matter in the slightest.
Meanwhile, not long after their departure, a void passage opened. Lu Yuan and his companions stepped out and quickly surveyed the area.
Looking at the scene before them, Jiang Ningxian and the others paled slightly.
"We're late again!" At the sight, the anger in Jiang Haokong's eyes blazed even hotter. Ever since they resolved to track down the Extraterrestrial Demon, they had traversed several inhabited planets in a short span.
Aside from those with very few inhabitants, virtually all living beings on the rest had been sacrificed.
Every time, they felt they were about to catch up, only to arrive one step behind. This meant that countless souls had perished in the meantime. How could Jiang Haokong not be furious?
Lu Yuan, however, remained calm. He analyzed their current situation, then said, "Judging from the planets we've visited, the Extraterrestrial Demon doesn't bother with every world bearing life. If the numbers are too few, he looks down on them. So moving forward, we must change our strategy."
"You mean we should head directly to the planets with massive populations?" Jiang Ningxian immediately grasped his intent and responded.
"Exactly. There's no time to lose; let's not waste another moment." Lu Yuan nodded, once again tearing open a spatial rift.
At the same time, he brought out the Fuxi Bagua Diagram to survey the surrounding star regions and quickly locked onto a target. Having done all this, a cold, sharp glint surfaced in his eyes. "This time, let's see if you can still escape!" With that, he stepped straight into the spatial corridor.
Several planets... just how many lives had been lost? Even Lu Yuan was now enraged, filled with killing intent. Jiang Ningxian and the others followed close behind, their fury fully kindled as well.
Meanwhile, on another planet, the scene was identical—the same volcanoes, the same black altar.
The Extraterrestrial Demon had already arrived, seated cross-legged upon it. At the same time, three Celestial Clan experts were present here.
Every single one was in the realm of Grotto-Heaven Immortal, possessing tremendous strength. Standing high in the void, they looked down, unleashing an intimidating pressure.
The inhabitants of this planet were identical to the humans of Earth, all belonging to the human race. In fact, humans existed in vast numbers across the universe.
Now, under the oppressive might of the three Celestial experts, they were helpless, forcibly rounded up into the volcanoes.
Thunder rumbled relentlessly across the sky, while down below, countless people trembled in terror. Watching those who were forced into the abyss or had already perished, the elderly, children, and women were gripped by dread.
Cries and wails rose and fell in waves. They did not want to die, but seeing their hesitation, the Celestial clansmen in the sky intervened directly, hurling groups of people straight down.
In this manner, the life essence in the volcanoes grew ever more abundant. Yet the Extraterrestrial Demon seemed in no hurry, for he knew it was still not enough; more was needed.
As time passed, more and more people died, their lives extinguished, turning this planet into a living purgatory in an instant.
Yet the Celestial clansmen cared nothing for it. To them, restoring the strength of the Extraterrestrial Demon before them was of paramount importance; how many died in the process was irrelevant.
"The life essence of mortals is simply too meager. If it were an equal number of cultivators, it would be an entirely different story."
"It is a pity our forces have not fully descended yet. Even when they do, traversing the world barrier will severely diminish their strength."
"Still, it matters not. With the life essence before me, for my purposes..."
Seated cross-legged upon the black altar, the Extraterrestrial Demon spoke, his form still shrouded in mist and his features obscured. His tone carried a hint of dissatisfaction with their current pace.
Even so, he was not truly bothered, for a very simple reason: as long as he sacrificed all the inhabitants of this planet and devoured the resulting life essence, his strength would grow that much greater. At that point, he could head straight for the Celestial Star. Once the trouble there was resolved, things would become much easier.
Right at that moment, however, the Extraterrestrial Demon's expression suddenly shifted. He sensed a disturbance rippling through the void.
Nearby, the other Celestial clansmen noticed it too, each showing shock.
The void shuddered violently as a corridor materialized directly before everyone's eyes. Then, several silhouettes walked out. The one leading them was none other than Lu Yuan.
Seeing the countless beings being cast into the volcanoes—beings identical to humans—he did not hesitate for a second. "Strike! Save those people first. I'll take down those Celestial experts."
Had he not come across this, nothing could be done, but now that he saw it, Lu Yuan would never stand idly by.
In a flash, he attacked, his immense aura surging forth. Beside him, Jiang Ningxian and Jiang Haokong also stepped forward.
In the blink of an eye, Lu Yuan appeared directly before the three Celestial clansmen. This time, he held nothing back.
He threw a punch.
*Rumble—*
The void shook, and the earth trembled. Before the three Grotto-Heaven Immortal Celestial clansmen could even react, they were instantly blasted into clouds of blood mist.
Chapter 473