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

Above the Northern Sea, just as Shen Chang'an retracted his spiritual domain, the seawater beneath his feet suddenly trembled.

The demonic energy that had been gradually receding suddenly surged back into the depths, dragging down the floating rocks, broken armor, and wreckage. The waves that had been churning just moments before quickly subsided, revealing the wet, dark edges of several reef islands.

Several powerful demons who were cleaning up the battlefield stopped at the same time and looked into the water.

The Xuan Yuan Zhen Hai Seal in Du Yue's palm trembled violently.

The illusory image of the sea that appeared at the bottom of the seal flickered, and suddenly a blinding golden light shone from the deepest part.

She immediately formed a hand seal, urging the ancient seal to suppress downwards. The golden dragon patterns disappeared into the seawater one after another, but were held back by a rising force and slowly rolled back.

Du Yue's face paled, and she unfurled her sleeves, sending the power of the Nine Heavens Phoenix Robe into the ancient seal.

But the aura from underwater was still approaching. Cang Gu came to her side, and as soon as his divine sense touched the seabed, his eyes suddenly changed.

This aura originated from the same source as the avatar from before, but the difference between the two was so great that it made his heart sink.

"Everyone back off!"

Before the shouts could even reach the battlefield, the Xuan Yuan Zhen Hai Seal rose into the air on its own, and a powerful dragon roar erupted from within it.

The dragon patterns on all four sides of the ancient seal simultaneously raised their heads, and golden light surged from the bottom of the seal, condensing into a massive dragon shadow in the high sky. Long whiskers hung down, horns stood tall, and the moment it opened its eyes, the bloodlines of all the aquatic creatures nearby trembled.

Cang Gu stared at that silhouette, his body momentarily frozen, his eyes filled with shock.

The golden dragon then swooped down and plunged straight into the Northern Sea.

The sea was parted by the dragon's body, revealing layers of ancient underwater array patterns. A dragon's shadow rose from the intact sea-suppressing pillar, while the broken pillar itself emitted a faint golden light. Further away, among the wreckage that had long since sunk to the seabed and was buried by silt and demonic energy, phantom figures slowly raised their heads.

Some had broken bodies, some had broken dragon horns, and their consciousness had long since dissipated. Only when the dragon roared did they follow their last remaining instincts and converge towards the top of the abyss.

For a moment, the entire seabed was as bright as day.

Du Yue maintained the hand seal, but her fingertips had begun to tremble.

"Something... has broken through the seal!"

"This time, what appeared... was his true form!"

boom!

A loud bang suddenly came from below.

The six-legged Netherworld Beast strode upstream against the current, colliding head-on with the first dragon soul. It opened its massive maw, and dark blue light spewed from its throat, colliding with the golden light emitted by the dragon shadow, causing large sections of the nearby seabed to crack.

More dragon souls rushed in from both sides, wrapping around its six legs and back.

The broken dragon claw dug into the bone armor, and golden light burned along the wound, forcibly slowing down the speed at which the Netherhound charged upwards.

The furious roar of the six-legged demon shook the sea.

Mingzhao stood on its back, raised his white bone hammer, and met a huge dragon soul that was swooping down, then slammed it down.

The short hammer struck the dragon's forehead squarely, the golden light abruptly halting. Cracks spread from between its horns, instantly piercing its head and torso. The remnant soul, dormant for countless years, shattered into countless points of light.

He twisted his wrist and slammed the hammer to the side, shattering the two remaining dragons that were binding the Netherworld Beast.

The golden dragon manifested by the Zhenhai Seal immediately coiled down, gathering the lingering soul light around it, and continued to pounce on him.

Mingzhao raised his eyes, his gaze following the aura deep within the dragon's shadow, looking up at the sky, where the connection led to Du Yue.

He sneered, "If the true Demon Emperor were to wield this seal, I would respect you to some extent."

"What a pity, she's just a callow youth."

He raised his bone hammer and struck the enormous golden dragon with it. The golden light that had been connecting on the sea surface suddenly split apart.

The enormous dragon shadow swirled backward, a gash running through its body through its chest and abdomen. Du Yue swayed, her hand seals nearly disintegrating, and blood spilled from her lips.

Immediately afterwards, a skull covered in bone armor burst through the water.

The six-legged Netherworld Beast raised its head and roared, a dark blue light shining through the seams of its armor. Its six legs stepped on the surging seawater, lifting its massive body into the air, while black currents surged into the sky behind it, sweeping away all the remaining soul light.

Mingzhao stood on its back, his long black robe already torn.

Grayish-white debris continued to peel away from his shoulder, and where the stone slab had once been embedded between his brows, only a narrow, empty hole remained. As he moved further away from the Abyss Gate, the repulsion from heaven and earth grew stronger.

But that aura belonging to the Ninth Realm was still spreading outwards.

The closest powerful demons were forced to retreat, and the array patterns on the sea surface sank layer by layer. Several warships that had not yet returned to their positions rocked violently, and cracking sounds came from their decks and hulls.

"How is this possible?"

Everyone looked at the True Name Seed before them; there was no doubt about its aura.

Cang Gu was the first to regain his senses and immediately took action.

The Dingcang Pearl fell onto the head of the Minghou, and the seawater condensed into azure chains that wrapped around its neck.

The others reacted quickly as well. Peng Lie swooped down from the sky, his golden blades clashing as he slashed down, while Yuan Chongyue wielded his staff, shattering the waves and striking Ming Zhao's side.

Lion's spear followed closely behind the shadow of the staff.

The clan leaders launched another offensive.

The six-legged Minghou suddenly turned its head, bit a water chain that was not yet tightened, and stomped down with its six legs, dragging the rest of the chains straight.

Taking advantage of the momentum, Mingzhao turned around and smashed the White Bone Hammer towards Fuyue Cudgel.

boom!

A loud bang.

Yuan Chongyue's arms were thrown back by the impact, his palms torn and bloody, and he almost lost his grip on the Fuyue Staff. The shock traveled along his arms and into his shoulders and back, sending his massive body flying.

Several layers of water curtains were shattered one after another until the phantom of Xuanjia rose from behind and caught him.

Lion's spear struck at that very moment.

Mingzhao lowered his wrist, the hammerhead striking the spear and bending it. Shi Lie used the momentum to retract his spear, but was still struck in the chest by the residual force of the sweep, blood spurting from his golden mane as his body plummeted towards the sea.

Peng Lie immediately spun his wing blades to intercept the black stream that was chasing Shi Lie.

Mingzhao swung his hammer backhand, deflecting the oncoming golden blade. Peng Lie hurriedly turned, but his wingtip was still grazed, dozens of golden feathers scattered with blood, and his body swayed as well.

Shen Chang'an looked at that figure.

Just now, everyone was able to take turns restraining the avatar, but now, facing the real body, even with the combined efforts of several clan leaders, they could not even shake his position.

Worse still, the underwater demonic energy continues to replenish the battlefield.

The black currents near the Abyss Gate surged upwards along the still-partially collapsed passage, spreading out in all directions across the Northern Sea. Some of it was absorbed into Ming Zhao's body, while the remainder mixed with the seawater, re-eroding the Sea-Suppressing Array.

The only good news now is that this world is rejecting him.

Shen Chang'an raised his hand to form a hand seal.

The spiritual realm spread out beneath their feet, and black flames surged from the roots of the phoenix tree, burning along the sea surface towards the place where the demonic energy was most concentrated.

"Draw the demonic energy here!"

Upon hearing the sound, several Tianpeng Clan cultivators changed the wind direction, pushing the dissipating black mist toward the flames.

The jet-black fire lines quickly connected, forming a fire net where the demonic energy surged. The demonic energy crashed into it, constantly being burned and disintegrated, with only a few exceptionally condensed fragments able to pass through the flames and continue rising.