High-level martial arts: Long spear with black flames to suppress demons.

Three fourth-realm evil cultivators were instantly killed in close combat before they could even force Shen Chang'an to use one of his hands! The killing technique that the nameless black shadow had honed in the dream was a complete dimensional reduction attack in this real world!

Shen Chang'an slowly turned around and looked at Number Seven, who was rolling on the ground and almost burned to a crisp.

He didn't intend to let things drag on any longer.

Shen Chang'an gripped the middle of Jieyun's spear with one hand and twirled it in a magnificent black flourish. Then, he leaned back slightly, his arm muscles stretching to their limit, like a fully drawn bow.

"go."

With a soft exhale, Shen Chang'an suddenly hurled the heavy spear in his hand like a javelin!

"boom--!!!"

The calamity cloud transformed into a black lightning bolt that tore through the night sky, carrying terrifying kinetic energy. It pierced through Number Seven's chest, pinning him firmly to the broken concrete floor!

The enormous impact created a deep, spiderweb-like crater in the ground.

Shen Chang'an's eyes were icy cold. He unleashed spiritual power from his feet, preparing to leap forward and deliver another kick to the head of Number Seven, who was pinned to the ground, to eliminate any future trouble.

Suddenly, his forward momentum abruptly stopped.

The Fifth Realm's perception went into overdrive, triggering a frantic warning. That sense of crisis actually came from the underground cavity that Number Nine had just blasted open with the Shadow Binding Death Array!

"Ahem... You are indeed very strong, worthy of being a genius of the Fifth Realm..."

Number Seven, pinned to the ground, laughed twistedly as blood gushed from the corner of his mouth, his eyes filled with insane resentment.

"But this is the 'life' I've painstakingly accumulated! Even if I die... you won't leave here alive!"

As soon as he finished speaking, the last glimmer of life in Number Seven's eyes vanished completely, but the sinister smile on his face froze.

Almost at the same moment.

"boom!"

The once peaceful underground cavern suddenly erupted like a volcano, spewing forth thick, almost tangible, black demonic energy.

Amidst this nauseating demonic aura, and aided by the faint ambient light, eight distorted figures of varying heights, like demons crawling out of hell, slowly rose from the underground cavern.

Shen Chang'an frowned slightly, stepped forward, and suddenly pulled the Calamity Cloud Spear from the corpse of Number Seven, shook off the blood, and held it horizontally in front of him.

By the light of the black flames, he finally saw the true faces of the eight figures.

Those were eight corpse puppets that had long since lost all signs of life! Their bodies were shrouded in resentment and demonic energy, their eyes were empty, and they exuded a terrifying pressure.

Puppetry created by evil cultivators can be mainly divided into three types based on the materials and fused energy.

Human puppets are made from the corpses of ordinary humans.

Demon puppets are made from the corpses of demons.

And the rarest and most dangerous demonic puppet, a special mutant that has fused with primordial demonic energy.

Shen Chang'an quickly scanned the eight puppets.

The six human puppets all possessed the peak aura of the third realm; the demonic puppet, covered in scales and clearly mutated from a pangolin, emitted the fluctuations of the early fourth realm.

What alarmed him most was the puppet standing in the very center.

It was a stitched-together mass of flesh that was almost unrecognizable as human, radiating pure demonic energy, and the spiritual pressure it faintly exuded had actually reached the fifth realm!

"That's disgusting."

Shen Chang'an narrowed his eyes, secretly weighing the situation. If it were just him alone, this lineup would only require a little effort. But now, with the unconscious Li Xiwan in his left arm, it was as if he had cut off his own arm, making his actions somewhat restrictive.

Just as Shen Chang'an's attention was entirely focused on the puppet below.

He didn't notice that Li Xiwan, whom he was protecting in his arms, had slightly opened her eyes because of the intense fluctuations in spiritual energy just now.

Although Shen Chang'an was wearing that lifelike mask depicting a twenty-six or twenty-seven-year-old, that familiar figure...

"Shen... Shen classmate..."

Her lips moved slightly, as if she wanted to call out his name, to ask him why he was here.

But having just endured mental torture, she was too weak; it felt as if a wad of cotton was stuck in her throat, and she couldn't utter a sound. All she could do was clutch the corner of Shen Chang'an's trench coat tightly.

"roar--!"

The eight puppets below seemed to have received the last instructions left by Number Seven before his death, letting out an inhuman roar and rushing towards Shen Chang'an in mid-air.

"Get out of here."

Shen Chang'an flicked his spear, channeling all his spiritual power into it. The black flames instantly blazed forth like a raging tornado.

He twirled the spear with one hand, and then swept the tip of the spear forward!

"boom--!!!"

A massive shockwave composed of pure black flames swept through the entire room like a tsunami.

The six third-realm puppets that rushed to the front had no chance to resist and were instantly burned to ashes by the terrifying high temperature, leaving not even a trace.

Although the demonic puppet and the fifth-realm demonic puppet were also affected by the black flames, they were not instantly killed thanks to their powerful physical bodies and demonic energy protection. They still charged forward fearlessly.

"I'll deal with you first."

Shen Chang'an's eyes turned cold as he locked his gaze on the thick-skinned demonic puppet. But before he could make a move, the fifth-realm demonic puppet had already launched its attack!

"Whoosh whoosh!"

The puppet's body, stitched together with various bits of flesh, suddenly split open, and several thick, black tentacles covered in barbs shot out like venomous snakes toward Shen Chang'an, sealing off all his escape routes.

Shen Chang'an snorted coldly and advanced instead of retreating.

He completely ignored the tentacles, and instead used his waist to hurl the cloud of tribulation in his hand like a spear at the demonic puppet!

At the same time, Fire Eyes unleashed its full power!

"burst!"

The tiny sparks of black flame that had been attached to the demon puppet instantly exploded violently, as if doused with gasoline! The demon puppet let out a scream and froze.

"Pfft!"

In that instant, the tribulation cloud pierced through the demon puppet's chest, pinning it firmly to the crumbling wall.

Having dealt with the demonic puppet, Shen Chang'an didn't even glance at the black tentacles that were already approaching his face. With a sudden flick of his free right hand, several thick iron chains, entirely formed from black flames, flew out like serpents.

"Click click click!"

The black flame chains instantly wrapped tightly around the demonic tentacles in mid-air.

"Come here!"

Shen Chang'an's right arm muscles bulged, and he suddenly pulled backward!

The Five Realms Demon Puppet on the other end also let out a low roar, and terrifying power tore in the opposite direction along its tentacles.

"He's quite strong."

Shen Chang'an muttered something to himself, a cold smile curling at the corner of his lips.

He didn't pull hard, but instead relaxed his grip.

"boom!"

The black flames wrapped around the tentacles seemed to have found the perfect fuse, spreading wildly along the tentacles and instantly igniting the entire massive body of the demonic puppet!

The demonic puppet let out a painful roar, frantically flailing its body against the flames.

Shen Chang'an decisively cut off the output of spiritual power, and the black flame chains instantly dissipated.

Taking advantage of the moment when the demonic puppet was distracted by the flames, Shen Chang'an quickly formed a hand seal with one hand.

A crude method of drawing a circle on the ground to confine oneself!

"rise!"

As Shen Chang'an shouted, the ground beneath the demon puppet's feet softened instantly, and countless hard soil and rocks surged wildly as if they were alive.

In the blink of an eye, a massive, semi-circular mound of earth formed, trapping the Fifth Realm Demon Puppet, whose body was engulfed in black flames, inside!