The Ear Canal Deity stood timidly on Qian Chen's collar, wide-eyed as it watched its tiny brethren cut straight through the wolf pack. Its eyes were filled with disbelief. It looked down at its own little fists, let out a couple of babbling shouts, dropped into a bow stance, and threw a straight punch—one that did not stir even a whisper of wind. With a flick of his finger, Qian Chen sent it tumbling from his collar.
Sulkily, the Ear Canal Deity climbed back into the pocket of Qian Chen's Daoist robe to keep the Gold and Silver Boys and the others company.
At that moment, however, the guardian wolf demons lurking within the pack finally made their move. A giant wolf nearly twice the size of an ordinary demon wolf charged from the darkness into the baleful qi. Qian Chen paid it no heed, merely shooting Scholar Yan a glance. The scholar nodded slightly, indicating he was capable of killing it and that Qian Chen should let it come.
To their surprise, halfway across, the demon wolf suddenly leapt high into the air, its body expanding several times over mid-leap.
Its hide stretched taut as if inflated by the flesh and blood underneath, thinning until it was almost translucent. Just as the madly churning blood and flesh became visible beneath the sparse fur and stretched skin, it abruptly detonated. A spray of blood and minced meat splattered evenly across a radius of dozens of yards, and where the gory slurry landed, black demonic flames burst alight.
Upon catching the demonic fire, the demon wolves went utterly wild. Their eyes turned blood-red as they charged recklessly toward Qian Chen and the other two trapped at the hall entrance.
The black demonic fire burned away all the paper figures, paper horses, and talisman bean soldiers. Daoist Zhiqiu turned deathly pale, spitting a mouthful of blood as the magical backlash struck him.
Qian Chen's gaze immediately snapped toward a direction hidden deep in the distant darkness. "The power of such sorcery exceeds the ordinary," he murmured. "Could the pack's alpha be a demon bei?"
Scholar Yan shook his head. "Beasts revere raw power. Though a bei possesses keen intellect, its body is frail, making it difficult for one to become an alpha. Even so, this demon bei's sorcery is undeniably formidable. If one were to appear in a wolf pack, an alpha would normally fear it and tear it to pieces..."
With the paper figures and horses gone, the black serpent of baleful qi sustained by Qian Chen's Seven Baleful Banner could no longer hold back the vast majority of the wolves. Dozens surged forward in a ferocious assault, and more than half broke through the barrier, pressing in close. Just then, several guardian demon wolves mingled among them underwent a sudden metamorphosis. Their bodies writhed as they stood upright, transforming into lycanthropes nearly ten feet tall.
Moving with astonishing agility, these lycanthropes directed the other wolves to provide cover. One of them lashed out with its blood-red claws, tearing two crimson arcs of energy through the air aimed straight for Scholar Yan's heart.
Two other lycanthropes bounded up the steps of the hall, closing in from left and right to grapple him.
On top of that, among the pack, some went for the feet while others went for the groin... Seeing especially the latter, Qian Chen couldn't help straightening his posture, thinking to himself, *Did these wolf demons study abroad in Africa? That trick isn't something ordinary demon wolves do!*
Surrounded on all sides, Scholar Yan wielded only a single flying sword; how many wolves could he possibly stop? Yet rather than panicking, he sneered coldly, "The fiends are at their wits' end!" His extraordinary sword pill did not pull back to defend; instead, it accelerated further. Just as the wolves closed in, he unleashed a ripple through the sword light.
From that single ray, four more branched out above, below, to the left, and to the right. Five beams of sword light tore through the air and parted the clouds, wheeling back in a spinning slash.
"Sword Light Differentiation!" Qian Chen had never expected to witness a supreme sword art here that even he had not yet mastered. This Scholar Yan was perhaps the most accomplished swordsman he had ever seen. Mastering Sword Light Differentiation placed him among the highest masters with true transmission even among the Golden Core cultivators of the Central Lands.
The Reincarnation Lands were truly a place of hidden dragons and crouching tigers.
The branched sword lights effortlessly cleaved the guardian demon wolves apart, allowing Zhiqiu to finally catch his breath.
Sensing an evil presence writhing in the darkness, Qian Chen could not resist kicking the rump of the Reincarnator's corpse on the ground. "If you keep playing dead, I'll toss your corpse right out!"
The wound on the corpse's throat wriggled and miraculously healed as if untouched. With a grim expression, the Reincarnator stood up and cupped his hands to Qian Chen. Without a word, he scattered a few sparks of fire that ignited every wolf they touched, dispatching them cleanly and ruthlessly.
Seeing this, the sword immortal laughed. "So it's the Soul Urn technique... You have a sharp eye, little brother."
This shamanic Soul Urn technique was quite similar to the phylacteries of liches from Qian Chen's past life. Both involved refining one's own soul into a heterodox yin spirit and concealing it within a magical implement. The physical body was treated merely as a refined husk, functioning like an implement. In daily life, one piloted the body in battle; even if it were hacked into pieces, it needed only to be ritually repaired. As long as the implement housing the soul and yin spirit remained undamaged, one could seize another's body or refine a new husk even if the original flesh was reduced to ash.
Rumor had it that a mortal in the Central Lands had mastered this art and become a notorious bandit. Though captured and beheaded multiple times, he repeatedly revived, giving the local magistrate a terrible headache. On one occasion after catching him, the magistrate could only decree another decapitation. But an old woman came to court holding a jar, declaring she was the bandit's mother. She explained that her son had practiced an uncanny art, concealing his soul inside the jar; each time he was beheaded, he only had to return to his corpse to be restored to life. Because he mistreated his aging mother and acted beneath humanity, she had brought the unfilial son's soul urn to turn him in. When the magistrate smashed the urn and checked the bandit's corpse, it instantly rotted away, giving off a foul stench.
Seeing Zhou the Shaman rise, Zhiqiu did not rebuke him for playing dead, but smiled in relief. "So Brother Zhou is unharmed! That is wonderful. Fellow Daoists, your abilities are truly extraordinary. Joined together, we can surely ensure none of these demon wolves leave alive... and avenge the innocent commoners around Heavenly Baleful Peak!"
Qian Chen gave a slight shake of his head. "If only it were that simple!"
By now, the heavily battered pack had finally retreated into the darkness beyond the hall. The hundreds of glowing green eyes had not thinned in number; more wolves seemed to have arrived as reinforcements.
Yet they began to part directly before the hall, creating a pathway.
A pair of blood-red eyes flared to life in that direction.
Meeting those crimson eyes sent a deep, piercing chill through Zhiqiu, Zhou the Shaman, and even Sword Immortal Yan.
That gaze was profoundly wicked... drawing steadily closer.
A moment later, a wolf-headed, human-bodied demon whose torso was mostly transformed into that of a man stepped slowly out from the gloom. His visage was half-wolf and half-human, exuding a chilling, terrifying malice. His fingernails were long and curved like talons, and several guardian wolf demons flanked him. Reaching out, he scraped his talons against a tall guardian wolf beside him, combing through its thick fur as he sneered coldly, "You have slaughtered so many of my scions—do you truly think you can walk away?"
*Side Quest—Four Great Generals: Slay the Four Great Generals under the Blood Demon. For each one slain, receive five Moral Points. (General Lang/?)*
*Five Moral Points... That's ten times the bounty on Hong Sihai!* Qian Chen sighed inwardly.
Even by the simplest calculation, this General Lang was roughly ten times stronger than Hong Sihai. Hong Sihai had condensed Heavenly Unity Pure Gang, putting him on par with weaker Golden Core cultivators; that meant General Lang possessed a cultivation roughly equivalent to the upper rank of Golden Core, matching a mutant demon wolf that had formed a top-grade demon core among the Demon Clan.
Once the general made his entrance, his overbearing demonic qi sent a shudder through everyone present. The powerful, frigid pressure crashed over them abruptly; the shrill wails of countless people seemed to echo in their ears, and a stench of blood rose to the heavens. Judging by the bloody resentment clinging to him, tens of thousands of lives had fallen to his slaughter.
Zhiqiu's eyes nearly split with fury. Biting the tip of his tongue, he spat a mouthful of blood and began hastily drawing a divine talisman in his palm.
At the same time, he said through gritted teeth, "Monster, just how many people have you killed? Today, even if it damages my cultivation severely, I will summon my patriarch's divine talisman to strike you down! Fellow Daoists, once I have heavily wounded this fiend, follow up with the finishing blow..."
A cruel smirk touched General Lang's lips, and an indescribable dread welled up within Zhiqiu's heart. Sword Immortal Yan struck, splitting his sword pill into ten beams of sword light while concealing the most powerful one among them, slashing toward the wolf general in turns. The beams linked head to tail, transforming into a sweeping rainbow of lightning with boundless might.
Crimson light surged across the wolf demon's body, revealing countless faces—young and old, men and women—all twisted in agony and malice. Rimming with boundless venom, those spectral visages tore free from him as the red glow expanded violently, coalescing into a blood river of tens of thousands of souls. It surged upward, swallowing the brilliant rainbow of sword light whole.
The sword light continuously severed those hideous faces, but whenever one was cut down, it instantly regenerated from within the blood river.
Meanwhile, the clear, lustrous sword pill was gradually tainted by the gory radiance, its movements losing their swift fluidity. A beam of dark gold sword light flew from Qian Chen's sleeve, merging with Sword Immortal Yan's sword pill to resist the power of the blood river together.
"The Blood Demon's Great Blood River Art!" Shock washed over Zhiqiu's face, his hand trembling so badly he nearly botched the stroke of his divine talisman.
He could only shout, "Hold on, fellow Daoists! This fiend is a remnant of the Blood Demon. Give me time to summon the patriarch..."
Qian Chen frowned inwardly. This unforeseen development had thoroughly disrupted his plans. He had to consider whether to reveal a hidden trump card if the others failed to hold the line.
Yet if he revealed it, Miaokong watching from the shadows might see through him.
He could not afford to underestimate that man's vigilance. Even a single trump card might prompt him to reassess the threat Qian Chen posed. Originally, Qian Chen had been hidden while Miaokong was exposed. But this sudden ambush had forced Qian Chen into the light. Since Miaokong had not yet intervened, Qian Chen had to prepare for the worst... That man acted only after laying out complete plans; even when facing insignificant pawns he could crush with a wave of his hand, he possessed the patience to watch and bide his time.
As the blood river churned with boundless momentum, the wolf demon refused to wait passively.
Before Zhiqiu could finish his divine talisman, the demon wolf slashed a claw through the air, sending bloody streaks of energy tearing toward the trio. At the same time, he threw back his head and howled. A ripple that warped empty space spread outward from his jaws, rolling across the hall like moonlight.
Sensing the eeriness in the howl, Sword Immortal Yan, Zhou the Shaman, Zhiqiu, and Qian Chen all mobilized their magical power to shield their souls. Yet the moment their defenses met that moonlight-like wave of energy, the protective power shattered instantly. Their seas of consciousness felt as though struck by lightning, going blank for a heartbeat.
By the time Zhiqiu regained his senses, he found his soul battered, blood leaking from his nose and mouth, and his sensory orifices aching. His mud-pill palace felt on the verge of splitting open, and the divine talisman on his palm was smeared beyond recognition with blood.
Beside him, Sword Immortal Yan and Qian Chen struggled to shield him, their sword light holding back the blood river, though dimmed and encrusted with filth.
Qian Chen's hair hung loose and disheveled, leaving him looking battered, while Sword Immortal Yan was in slightly better shape, though still wounded. As for Zhou the Shaman, he had collapsed immediately under the wolf's howl, his soul grievously injured to the point where even his soul urn could not save him; it would take untold amounts of arduous cultivation to recover from such trauma.
Wiping the blood from his face, Zhiqiu gave a wry smile. "I fear there is no surviving this! I only regret dragging you all into it... Still, word of the Blood Demon remnant's return must get out. Now, my only choice is to project my yin spirit to send a message to my sect, asking the elders to come eradicate this monster... Though Kunlun alone may not be enough.
"This wolf demon's cultivation has likely matched that of my sect master. All the major sects must join forces!
"I only hope I can carry back enough evidence before I perish!
"Fellow Daoists, Zhiqiu has failed you!" he said quietly. "I will burn my physical body and magical power to tear a gap in the blood river. Perhaps I can send one of you out."
Sword Immortal Yan replied, "While the sword stands, so stands the man, and so endures the righteous path in this world. Earlier, I had to protect you all and could not fight unreservedly. Send him out, and I will unite man and sword to fight once more. I possess a secret technique; even if I cannot subdue this fiend, I can still make an orderly retreat. You, Fellow Daoist, can take the opportunity to project your yin spirit... Yet your yin spirit is not yet complete. Forcing it out with a secret art may allow you to deliver the message, but your soul will likely scatter and perish!"
"If it is for a worthy cause, what is there to fear in death?" Zhiqiu answered calmly.
"Well said!" Sword Immortal Yan praised. "That is the spirit of us sword immortals. I have a talisman here that might protect your yin spirit to an extent, ensuring at least an unhindered reincarnation."
"Such a precious talisman must have been prepared for your own tribulations. With your life and death hanging in the balance, how could Zhiqiu rob you of what guards your fate?" Zhiqiu shook his head in refusal.
"Being so fussy does not become a sword immortal," Sword Immortal Yan said, pressing the talisman to Zhiqiu's brow.
Qian Chen frowned. "A Supreme Clarity Red Script True Talisman? You're an overseas sword cultivator..."
Sword Immortal Yan looked back at Qian Chen and cupped his hands. "So you are a fellow Daoist from the Central Lands!"
Qian Chen shook his head. "I won't leave either... This hall appears to be a death trap, but it isn't necessarily one. Fleeing the wolf demon's grasp might seem like a chance at life, but often it leads only to death. Once entered into reincarnation, there is no stepping back. Since Daoist Yan says he can put up a fight, I will stake my life as well. With two of us fighting to the death, our chances of survival might be slightly better!"
Sword Immortal Yan said, "When I fight with my life on the line, I cannot even guarantee my own safety..."
"I don't need your protection!" Qian Chen said calmly.
"Since neither of you is willing to flee, then I shall stake my life alongside you!" Zhiqiu cupped his hands.
Just then, a feeble voice chimed in, "I... I want to leave!"
A voice rose from the belly of Zhou the Shaman's corpse: "Fellow Daoists, please carry this bell out... My soul is inside it!"
With that, the corpse opened its mouth and spat out a crimson bell. Taking it, Zhiqiu was caught between tears and laughter.
Qian Chen nodded. "Then let the three of us join hands and see if we can tear open the blood river to deliver this bell outside!" Gazing at his Black Gold Baleful Hook and the sword pill entangled within the blood river, he untied an object from his neck and said to the other two, "I have an item on me of unusual origin, carrying a touch of malice. Since we are fighting for our lives, please do not take offense."
With a flick of his hand, he unleashed the White Bone Relic...
Chapter 83