Slender willows sway in the breeze

Chapter 233 What?

Just as Liu Sijun was about to pierce the core of the building, Wan Chongshan suddenly appeared in front of her. His eyes flashed with a mad light, and he reached out with both hands to grab Liu Sijun, trying to take away the Taixu Sword Soul from her hand.

"Stop it!"

Xu Hechen shouted and quickly cast a spell. A golden light shot out from his hand and struck Wan Chongshan's arm.

Wan Chongshan cried out in pain and withdrew his hands with a roar.

Taking advantage of the opportunity, Liu Sijun thrust the Taixu Sword Soul into the core of the building without hesitation.

The fire spread instantly, and the entire building began to shake violently, emitting bursts of roar.

"No!"

Wan Chongshan roared in despair as he lunged at Liu Sijun, trying to stop her.

But at this moment, the evil power within the building began to backfire, and black cracks appeared on Wan Chongshan's body, causing his body to become illusory.

A sinister glint flashed in Wan Chongshan's eyes, clearly indicating that he had no intention of letting the matter rest.

"You think you can defeat me completely like this? How naive!"

Wan Chongshan's voice became sharp and distorted, filled with endless resentment.

He endured the excruciating pain in his body, rapidly forming hand seals while chanting incantations.

As he moved, the surrounding space began to distort, and an even more intense evil aura suddenly surged from the black building that had already been ravaged by the Southern Ming Fire.

Countless black wisps of mist spewed from the cracks in the building, converging in the air to form hideous demons that lunged at the investigation team with bared fangs and claws.

"Everyone be careful, these evil spirits have a very strong aura!"

Gao Yongxiu shouted a warning while brandishing his ritual implement to meet a vicious ghost that lunged at him.

The light from the ritual implements clashed with the dark power of the evil spirits, producing a piercing sound.

Gu Changzhou gripped the Xuan Tie sword tightly, his star-shaped sword energy crisscrossing as he tried to slay these evil spirits.

However, these evil spirits seemed to possess some kind of strange power; after being struck by the sword energy, they only dissipated briefly before quickly reforming.

Liu Sijun also felt immense pressure. She was controlling the Taixu Sword Soul to maintain the destruction of the buildings by the Nanming Li Fire while also dealing with the attacks of these evil spirits.

Under her control, the Taixu Mirror shot out beams of light, repelling the approaching evil spirits, but she could feel her spiritual power being rapidly depleted.

Xu Hechen then used his magic again, trying to find the weaknesses of these evil spirits.

His eyes gleamed with wisdom as he carefully observed the demon's movements and aura.

"These evil spirits are formed from the evil power of Tianxu Palace. We must find the source and cut off their power supply!"

Leng Xuan wasn't idle either. He quickly pulled out more talismans from his robes, chanted incantations, and threw them out. The talismans burned in the air, emitting dazzling light and forming defensive barriers that temporarily blocked the evil spirits' attack.

Just as everyone was focused on dealing with the evil spirit, Wan Chongshan seized the opportunity to pounce on Liu Sijun again.

Although his body was illusory, he was extremely fast, and in the blink of an eye he arrived in front of Liu Sijun.

Liu Sijun sensed the danger and tried to dodge, but it was too late.

At the critical moment, Gu Changzhou shouted and, disregarding his own safety, rushed forward to block Wan Chongshan's attack with his body.

Wan Chongshan's hands pierced through Gu Changzhou's body, drawing out a wisp of black mist. Gu Changzhou groaned, a trickle of blood escaping from the corner of his mouth. "Changzhou!"

"I cried out with heartache," Liu Sijun said, a hint of anger and determination flashing in her eyes.

She concentrated all her spiritual power, unleashing the full potential of the Taixu Sword Soul. The Nanming Fire, like an enraged fire dragon, raged through the building, completely destroying its core.

As the core of the building collapsed, the entire black structure began to crumble, and the evil spirits, having lost their support, vanished in an instant.

Wan Chongshan let out a desperate scream as his body was completely devoured by the powerful backlash, eventually turning into a wisp of black smoke and disappearing into the air.

"Cheung Chau, how are you?"

Liu Sijun anxiously supported Gu Changzhou, her eyes filled with worry.

Gu Changzhou forced a smile. "I'm fine, Jun'er, we succeeded."

The members of the investigation team also gathered around. Although they were exhausted, their eyes shone with the light of victory.

Gao Yongxiu said, "Let's go back and tell Master Ji He and the other sects this good news."

The group nodded, dragging their weary bodies, and prepared to return to their sect.

However, what they didn't know was that deep within the black building that had been reduced to ruins, a pair of red eyes were silently watching their departing figures, and a faint laugh echoed in the air.

The investigation team, dragging their weary bodies, slowly made their way towards the Valley Palace.

The air in the forest still seemed to be filled with the smoke and evil atmosphere of the battle. Although everyone was immersed in the joy of successfully destroying the Tianxu Palace's secret stronghold and defeating Wan Chongshan, they remained vigilant in case there were still unknown dangers.

Liu Sijun supported Gu Changzhou, her heart filled with heartache. She glanced at Gu Changzhou's injuries from time to time, her eyes revealing worry.

Gu Changzhou sensed Liu Sijun's concern and gently squeezed her hand to indicate that he was alright.

Just then, Gao Yongxiu, who was walking at the front of the group, suddenly stopped. He frowned slightly and cautiously observed his surroundings.

"Everyone be careful, I sense something's off about the atmosphere around here."

Upon hearing this, everyone stopped in their tracks and assumed a defensive stance.

Leng Xuan quickly took out a talisman and warily looked around; Xu Hechen, on the other hand, concentrated his mind, trying to sense the source of the abnormal aura.

Suddenly, a dark figure shot out from the woods and pounced on Liu Sijun and Gu Changzhou.

Gu Changzhou reacted quickly, enduring the pain, and wielded his Xuan Tie sword to block Liu Sijun. The blade collided with the dark figure, producing a crisp sound.

Upon closer inspection, everyone realized that the dark figure was actually a giant bat exuding an evil aura.

Its wingspan was over ten feet, its eyes gleamed with a ghostly green light, and black venom dripped from its sharp fangs.

"What is this?"

A disciple from another sect exclaimed in surprise.

"It should be an evil remnant from the Heavenly Ruins Palace," Xu Hechen said with a frown. "Everyone be careful not to get hurt by it."

Everyone joined forces and engaged in a fierce battle with the giant bat.

However, this bat was exceptionally agile, moving freely through the forest, constantly dodging the attacks of the group, and occasionally launching a counterattack, spitting out black venom.

Just as everyone was locked in a fierce battle with the bats, several more of the same bats flew out from all directions and surrounded the investigation team.