A journey through the world of martial arts

Chapter 248 The Demonic Force Suffers a Setback
The Xuan Yin Demonic Flow clashed with the Jing Hong Sword Light, and the resulting aftershocks directly disrupted the energy of this realm. After a few breaths of silence, a loud boom followed, and the smoke and clouds dispersed, with shockwaves soaring into the sky.

With the boundary here broken, the battlefields in the other directions were also affected. Seeing this, the evil dragon and the others unanimously summoned their array-breaking cones. The eerie light flashed, and the array mechanisms of several formations paused.

The expression on Tianyun Zhenren's face immediately changed as he was presiding over the Xuanxin Hall. He surged with magical power and pointed a finger at the Juyun Banner in front of him. The banner flashed with spiritual light and slowly resumed the operation of the stagnant array. However, he was powerless to stop Gu Xu and Qi Ye from fighting.

"First, deal with the three sages of the Demon Palace."

Master Tianyun knew that even without the formation, Gu Xu could still hold off Qi Ye. Instead of wasting time, he would rather eliminate those demons one by one and wait for all sides to gather. In the end, Qi Ye would not escape death.

Thinking of this, Master Tianyun's mind shifted, and the Gathering Cloud Banner shone brightly, a magnificent cloud of light enveloping the place where the evil dragon was located.

When the cloud appeared, the evil dragon was already alarmed. He was now being besieged by Duan Jing, the master of Cangzhen Mountain, and Yuan Ming, the master of Qianji Pavilion. Just now, in order to respond to his comrades, he used the Formation-Breaking Cone and used a killing move in advance. Although this move temporarily forced the two back, he lost one of his means of self-preservation.

Seeing that Yuan Ming was controlling more than a dozen puppet warriors to attack, the evil dragon's eyes sharpened, and it urged the fine black sand floating in front of it to move forward again.

This substance was made from various yin soils and yang sands collected by the evil dragon from the turbid yin land. It has the wonderful effect of impure spiritual energy and breaking through killing qi. It was this sand that was used to eliminate Yuan Ming's three superior puppets in one fell swoop. If Duan Jing had not intervened, Yuan Ming would have been seriously injured even if he had not died.

However, although this sand is powerful, it is being consumed very quickly under the relentless pressure of the opponent. The attack just now used up 20% of it, and the remaining sand can only be used up to four more times. Once the sand is exhausted, the evil dragon will have to fight in person, which will be extremely disadvantageous for him.

Duan Jing and Yuan Ming also saw the clouds falling from the sky, and their attacks became even more fierce. A dozen puppets were in front of them, while Duan Jing held a white jade sword and made hand seals. Jade light shone around him, and small swords of energy were neatly arranged in front of him. With a deep shout from Duan Jing, the swords of energy disappeared and took advantage of the black sand to wear down the puppets, and rushed into the black sand.

The sword of energy pierced through the black sand, though most of it was damaged. However, some of the sword of energy still managed to penetrate the inner circle of the evil dragon. At this moment, the evil dragon was only surrounded by a protective light shield. When it saw the sword of energy suddenly attacking, it was startled. But before it could make a move, the cloud light in the sky suddenly brightened, and the evil dragon's figure froze.

Seeing this, the sword of energy pierced the dragon's protective shield without hesitation. With a soft sound, the shield was pierced cleanly by the sword of energy, like a bubble. The sword of energy continued its momentum and pierced the dragon's body. The dragon immediately cried out in pain, its aura surging, which broke free of the binding force. At the same time, it sealed several vital acupoints with its right hand and swallowed several pills, which relieved the burning sensation in its body.

"The Formless Sword of Annihilation!"

The evil dragon's face was gloomy. He reached out and flicked his hand, and the sword of energy stuck in his body immediately dissipated. However, he knew that once this invisible sword pierced an enemy, it would transform into a strange force and invade the opponent's meridians. What he had just left behind was just an afterimage.

Seeing the puppet warriors blocked by the black sand, the evil dragon reached into his sleeve and took out a piece of black jade. He placed it on his chest and activated his magic power. The jade plate slowly merged into his body.

This item is called "Refining Jade," produced by the Burning Soul Pool. It has the ability to refine true qi and dissolve magical power. Moreover, within three hours, one's own magical power can also possess this ability. This item is extremely precious, and its quantity is limited. Unless under special circumstances, he would never have the chance to use it.

As soon as the Refining Jade entered the body, the invisible sword energy residing in the dantian was instantly drawn up and refined by the Refining Jade. At the same time, the dragon's magical power suddenly changed, from being well-defended to being aggressive and fiery.

When the invisible sword was removed from the dragon's body, Duan Jing had already noticed something and frowned. Although he knew that the invisible sword could not last long, it was unbelievable that it was worn down in just a few breaths.

"Sect Master Yuan, the aura emanating from the evil dragon is somewhat unusual. We must be careful later."

Yuan Ming nodded upon hearing this. Although these dozen or so puppets were not as powerful as the three puppets protecting him, they had the advantage of being numerous and connected by their energy, which could form combo skills. So he was not afraid of being eliminated for the time being.

A moment later, Duan Jing watched as the dozen or so puppet warriors were mostly destroyed by the black sand. Although the remaining puppets were holding on, he thought they wouldn't last long. Sure enough, half a moment later, the puppets were swallowed up by the black sand and disappeared after a few flashes.

The black sand, under the control of the evil dragon, continued to rise and press down on Duan Jing and Yuan Ming. Upon seeing this, Yuan Ming immediately took out a square bronze plate, flicked it, and a miniature bronze palace floated down in front of the two of them. As Yuan Ming turned his magic power, the bronze palace suddenly expanded, growing to tens of feet tall, wrapped in radiant light and containing ingenious mechanisms.

"Twelve layers of gates!"

Duan Jing exclaimed in surprise, looking at Yuan Ming with a look of astonishment. This Twelve-Layered Tower was one of the three treasures of the Thousand Machine Pavilion. It contained countless restrictions and was unparalleled in defense. It was no less powerful than the mountain-protecting formations of ordinary sects. Moreover, this treasure had many other wonderful uses. The most familiar of these was its ability to transfer magical power and transform into the power of a silent magic treasure.

Yuan Ming manipulated the Twelve Towers, and as soon as the bronze palace door opened, a vortex of black hole appeared inside. The surging black sand was instantly sucked in by a suction force and kept rushing inside.

Upon seeing this, the evil dragon immediately realized something was wrong and used his magic to retrieve the black sand. However, the loss was still considerable, and only about 30% of the original amount returned to him, which would allow him to use it at most once more.

Yuan Ming stroked his beard and smiled as he watched the black sand being mostly broken. He hadn't taken it out before because he wanted to catch the dragon off guard. Without the black sand's protection, his puppet alone would be enough to exhaust the evil dragon to death.

"Fellow Daoist Duan, it's your turn to make a move."

Seeing the clouds in the sky flicker again, Yuan Ming called out to Duan Jing, who understood and transformed into a beam of light. Under the protection of the twelve layers of palaces, he slowly floated up to the top of the sky, looking down at the evil dragon below. Then, he turned his magic power and spun the white jade sword in his hand in the air. Countless sword lights intertwined into a net and shone towards the evil dragon. At the same time, the clouds in the sky shone on the evil dragon again.

Feeling an even heavier pressure than before, the dragon's face turned extremely ugly. Just as it was struggling to break free from the binding force, Yuan Ming, who was already prepared, flashed his eyes. The black hole in the palace gate reappeared, and a powerful suction force pulled the dragon directly toward the palace gate.

Just as the evil dragon was in dire straits, Jin Guang and Mu Yang Zhenren gained a great advantage in their battle against the water demon Bi Qing. The latter could only rely on the Nine Nether Weak Water to protect herself, and her attacks were mostly defensive. Although she was unharmed for a short time, she was unable to spare any resources to support the others.

Just as Jin Guang and Mu Yang Zhenren joined forces again to unleash a Heavenly Yang Flowing Flame into the Nine Nether Weak Water, each of the three suddenly sensed an aura disappear. After observing this, Bi Qing's face immediately darkened. The death of the evil dragon meant that the Xuanxin Orthodox Sect would inevitably free up more manpower, and the longer it went on, the more disadvantageous it would be for her.

Seeing the Heavenly Yang Flame attack again, Bi Qing raised her hand, and a torrent of water enveloped her, creating a towering wave. The blazing flame only made it halfway before being engulfed by the Nine Nether Weak Water, struggling for a few breaths before being swallowed up and disappearing without a trace. However, Jin Guang and Mu Yang Zhenren were unconcerned. They knew that the enemy had lost a key player, and as long as the stalemate continued, their side would continue to expand their advantage. Under the surging tide, no one could escape.

"Master, we must continue our efforts and not give the water demon any chance to catch its breath!"

Master Muyang waved his whisk lightly and nodded in agreement. He was an experienced fighter and had a very accurate grasp of the battle situation. Now the water demon was almost driven into a dead end. As long as they attacked in turn, they could definitely keep her here. When they had more people, even the Nine Nether Weak Water would not be able to save her life.

"Let me go first."

Upon hearing this, Jian Guang immediately stepped aside from the main seat. Mu Yang Zhenren, with a solemn expression, put away his whisk and his whole body radiated crimson light. He raised his hands upwards, and a ball of blazing sunlight slowly rose up, like the sun in the sky, exuding a fierce aura. With a deep shout, the ball of blazing sunlight flew swiftly towards the Nine Nether Weak Waters that were swirling and lingering in front of him.

Upon seeing Mu Yang Zhenren's move, Bi Qing's expression immediately changed. Although she could use the Weak Water to eliminate this technique, controlling the Weak Water would also consume a lot of her magic power. If the opponent continued to fight her head-on, the two of them could take turns attacking, but she was all alone. Sooner or later, she would run out of magic power, and then she would only face death.

However, the predicament before them could not be ignored. With a thought, Bi Qing manipulated the Nine Nether Weak Water, and the waves surged and rolled. In just a few moments, the blazing sunlight ball sank into the Weak Water and instantly dissipated into nothingness, along with the magical power contained within it.

However, at this moment, the Nine Nether Weak Water became somewhat stagnant, losing its previous fluidity, as if a rushing river was carrying a large amount of silt.

Bi Qing sighed inwardly. Although the Nine Nether Weak Water was a rare treasure, its power ultimately depended entirely on the user's magical strength. The deeper the magical strength, the more powerful it could be. If the magical strength was insufficient, it would become a burden. In her previous battles with Jin Guang and the other man, whenever she was at a disadvantage, she would use this treasure to defeat them. Although it had broken many of their techniques, it had also consumed a lot of her magical strength. Now, controlling the Nine Nether Weak Water had become a burden for her.

Nevertheless, Biqing still had no intention of removing the treasure. With the Weak Water there, she could recover some of her energy; otherwise, she would be in imminent danger.

"Sect Master Jin Guang, this Nine Nether Weak Fruit has indeed become sluggish. It seems that it is due to the water demon's insufficient magical power."

Master Muyang held a whisk and looked at the still Weak Water in front of him. With a sweep of the whisk, streaks of crimson light rushed into the Weak Water. Although they failed to create any waves, they invisibly increased Biqing's burden.

Upon hearing this, Jin Guang nodded and, without further hesitation, took out a plain white talisman from his sleeve, flicked it upwards, and with a surge of magical power, the talisman suddenly shone brightly, emitting a chilling, frosty light that shone upon the Nine Nether Weak Water.

"not good!"

The Weak Water was not afraid of being frozen, but firstly, this pure white magic talisman was personally crafted by Gu Xu and was quite powerful, and secondly, the water demon's magic power was already exhausted. With this advance and retreat, the Nine Nether Weak Water was immediately sealed by the icy light of the magic talisman.

"This talisman can only last for half an hour; we must finish this quickly!"

Jin Guang nodded to Mu Yang Zhenren, and the two immediately transformed into streaks of light, bypassing the frozen Weak Water from the left and right, surrounding the water demon in the middle. Then they attacked simultaneously, and two beams of light, one red and one gold, flashed and disappeared, exuding a chilling aura, as they attacked Bi Qing at the same time.

Upon seeing this, Bi Qing's expression changed immediately. She then decisively severed her connection with Ruoshui. At the same time, a flash of spiritual light appeared in her right hand, and the Azure Wave Ribbon rushed towards the golden light. Meanwhile, the crimson lightning on the left was blocked by an azure pearl the size of a goose egg.

The crimson lightning bolt, upon being struck by the Calm Wave Pearl, immediately revealed its true form: a crimson iron arrow with a flame at its tail. In the instant the two treasures clashed, the iron arrow had a slight advantage, only managing to knock the Calm Wave Pearl back three feet.

Seeing this, Master Muyang stroked his beard and smiled. Then he waved his whisk again, and the flaming iron arrow approached once more. After three more collisions, the Pingbo Pearl made a soft cracking sound, and a fine crack appeared on its surface. A glint flashed in Master Muyang's eyes, and he shouted. His magic power surged, and clusters of intense light merged into the flaming iron arrow. The iron arrow instantly became as pure as glass. After a low hum, the light wall formed by the Pingbo Pearl shattered instantly.

At this moment, Bi Qing was controlling the Bi Bo Ling to clash and fight with the golden light. However, under the combined attack of the golden light's Gan Jiang and Mo Xie swords, she quickly fell into a disadvantageous position. Just as she was once again struck by the sword light that hit her protective mountain shield, her face suddenly turned pale. She wiped the blood from the corner of her mouth without leaving a trace, and her attack immediately became three times more fierce.

The emerald ribbon swirled and formed rings, continuously enveloping the golden light. At the same time, the left hand formed a hand seal, and a lush green light appeared behind Bi Qing, with wisps of azure energy gathering above her head. Then, a series of sharp sounds rang out.

After breaking the Pingbo Pearl, Master Muyang was about to use the Flowing Flame Flying Light Arrow to break through Biqing's last words when he suddenly heard this sound. The magical light shield around him flickered rapidly, and his aura paused for a moment. It was this pause that gave Biqing an opportunity.

Jin Guang frowned slightly upon hearing the sound, but he was already on guard when the opponent suddenly increased the intensity of the attack. Therefore, when the sharp whistling sound approached him, it only caused a few ripples when it hit the protective light barrier.

Seeing that Jin Guang handled the situation with ease, Bi Qing immediately put away the Bi Bo Ling (碧波绫, a type of silk ribbon), and with a flash of light, she arrived outside Mu Yang Zhenren (沐阳真人, a famous immortal). A sharp glint flashed in her eyes, and the green light swirling above her head immediately shot out like fine rain.

This technique is called "Yuan Yin Chong Sha". It is a supernatural power that Bi Qing cultivated by using the evil energy in the water veins. Once this technique hits the body, it will be corroded in an instant. If it is not treated in time, it will be devoured by the evil energy of the water and eventually turn into a puddle of water.

At this moment, Master Muyang was hindered by the howling sound hidden in Yuanyin Chongsha. When he saw the green light shooting out, his expression changed immediately. However, his aura was blocked, and in his haste, he could only barely raise a protective light shield.

In the blink of an eye, the green light arrived in front of the protective shield. With a hissing sound like tearing silk, the green light pierced Mu Yang Zhenren's protective shield, leaving it riddled with holes. Just as the green light was about to pierce Mu Yang Zhenren's body, a magic talisman suddenly flew out from his sleeve.

A stream of yin fire drifted out from the talisman, quickly forming a fire net that blocked Mu Yang Zhenren's path. Upon seeing this fire, the green light seemed to have encountered its natural enemy, offering no resistance whatsoever, and was instantly refined and completely destroyed.

On the Dragon-Riding Path, Qi Ye looked at Gu Xu with a gloomy expression. With the evil dragon dead, he had lost a great general. If he could not suppress this opponent, the situation would probably become even more unfavorable.

(End of this chapter)