After I stopped trying, a rich woman trained me into a demon emperor.

Zhou Ran broke through the water flow, his figure transforming into a long black-gold line that pierced straight at the location of Miao Laoshi's corpse.

Ahead, three golden-armored corpses sensed the killing intent and, without their master's command, formed the Three Talents Killing Formation to block the way.

This time, Zhou Ran did not make any attempt to test him. In his mind's eye, Li Chengfeng's domineering fighting spirit surged and roared, and every thought turned into the purest killing intent.

The power of the dual-level Invincible Body was unleashed in full force.

Taihuang raised his left arm high, and under the catalysis of the Qilin bone, his blood and demonic energy condensed on his fist into a nearly solid phantom of a short halberd.

That was the weapon Li Chengfeng used to suppress the Yangtze River!

"Smash it for me!"

With a sharp shout, Zhou Ran unleashed a short halberd phantom that swept across the air with a whooshing sound.

The attacking talisman-wielding corpse crossed its arms to block, but was cleanly severed at the root the instant of contact! The cut was as smooth as a mirror.

The black-gold primordial power, carrying the power of its own will, poured into its body through the broken opening.

The sinister runes on the corpse flickered rapidly, but they were unable to repair the wounds at all. Instead, they were burned into wisps of green smoke by the domineering blood and qi.

The power of Buddhist vows is the nemesis of all evil!

Behind them, the old corpse of Miao had lost all color in its face, which was so withered that it was just skin and bones.

He diverted his attention and frantically activated his magic in an attempt to stabilize the other two golden-armored corpses.

Click.

A slight sound of bones dislocating echoed at the edge of the noisy underwater battlefield.

Miao Yingying knelt down inside the water curtain barrier erected by Su Qingwu.

She raised her head and looked at Zhou Ran, who was fighting for his life, through the shimmering water. Then she looked at her grandfather, who had gone mad in his pursuit of the so-called orthodox tradition, on the corpse's shoulder.

She clenched her teeth, and the hesitation and struggle in her eyes eventually turned into a resolute stillness.

She reached down to her waist, where a row of bone needles were inserted to stitch up corpses and seal acupoints to stop bleeding.

Miao Yingying pulled out the thickest bone needle, turned her hand around, aimed it at her left wrist, and stabbed it in hard!

The bone needle pierced through the skin and flesh, penetrating directly into the blood vessels.

A stream of blood gushed from the needle groove, spreading into a glaring red in the water.

But this was not suicide.

Remove the needles and take the pulse.

She actually used this needle to forcefully sever the bloodline resonance within her body that was of the same origin as that silver bell!

The silver bell in Miao Laoshi's hand let out a mournful cry, and its light rapidly diminished by two-thirds, becoming dim.

The golden contract patterns that were spreading towards the old dragon's forehead also came to a standstill.

Miao Laoshi's body trembled violently. He suddenly turned his head, his bloodshot eyes fixed on his granddaughter in the distance, his eyes bulging as if about to burst.

"Yingying!"

You rebellious daughter!

What are you doing?!

Miao Yingying collapsed helplessly inside the barrier, her face drained of color, her breath faint.

The words he uttered, however, carried a calmness that seemed to shatter bones.

"Grandpa, if the Miao lineage you speak of can only survive by stepping on others and relying on the life of this wicked dragon..."

"Then we'd rather not have this kind of tradition that's full of bad karma."

The silver bell's light dimmed considerably, and Miao Laoshi's control over the old dragon plummeted.

The opportunity has arrived!

At this moment, Zhou Ran found an outlet for all his strength.

He forcefully suppressed the pain of his meridians rupturing inch by inch, and compressed and condensed all the remaining Primordial Origin and Demonic Essence in his body into his left arm.

The talisman-wielding corpse pounced on him from behind, its sharp claws scratching three deep, bone-revealing gashes into his back.

Another defensive golden-armored corpse raised its arms high, and a runic heavy shield slammed down on its head.

Zhou Ran did not turn around, nor did he block.

All his senses were shut down; only that dim silver bell remained his sole focus.

Taihuang's left arm shattered all obstacles, piercing straight through the chest cavity of the golden-armored corpse blocking the way.

A hand emerged from his back, piercing through the rotting flesh, its five fingers forming a claw, and gripped Miao Laoshi's thin, bell-like wrist with perfect precision!

Click click click!

The power of the primordial chaos surged into his fingertips, and with a cracking sound, the bones in Miao Laoshi's wrist shattered inch by inch.

He could no longer hold on, and the silver bell slipped from between his loosened fingers.

Zhou Ran reached back and grabbed the bone bell that had been linked to a thousand years of karma, tightly gripping it in his palm.

On the bell, the name of the first generation of Miao corpse drivers let out a final sigh that spanned a thousand years in Zhou Ran's palm.

Zhou Ran clenched his five fingers and exerted force.

bang.

The magical artifact's hard bone structure cracked under the strain of the Primordial Overlord Body.

The entire bell turned into countless tiny white dust particles, which scattered through Zhou Ran's fingers and landed on the murky riverbed.

The control center was completely destroyed.

Miao Laoshi's body was instantly drained of strength, and he slid down the broad shoulders of the golden-armored corpse, falling heavily into the cold, foul-smelling mud.

The three golden-armored corpses, now deprived of their master's spiritual power, had all the runes on their heads extinguished and fell straight into the water, where they remained motionless.

Miao Laoshi's head was bowed, his white hair scattered in the water. The old man who had schemed against everyone was now shaking uncontrollably.

A single, murky tear rolled down from his sunken eye socket, splashed into the sand, and disappeared.

"A thousand years..."

The old man's lips trembled, and a strained grinding sound came from his throat.

"Great-grandfather..."

I have failed my ancestors.

The Miao people's tradition of corpse driving...

Today, it's over.

The silver bell shattered, and all restraints were broken.

The last trace of golden spirit-controlling contract patterns on the old dragon's body quickly dissipated.

Those huge vertical pupils first looked blank.

It rolled its eyes, looking at the broken bell at the bottom of the water, then at Miao Yingying in the distance, and then at the ants running rampant on its territory.

next interest.

All clarity was completely swallowed up, leaving only scarlet ferocity and rage.

Four thousand years of imprisonment and humiliation transformed into a raging fire that consumed everything in its path.

Roar--

A loud roar exploded from the bottom of the river!

A white ripple spread out from the dragon's body, pushing aside the river water.

Wherever the sound waves passed, everyone felt their internal organs churning, and blood spilled from their mouths, noses, and ears.

The old dragon no longer had any scruples, nor did it distinguish between friend and foe.

The dragon's tail, covered in jet-black scales, swept and swirled fiercely with the force to tear apart the riverbed.

The first unlucky one was the leader of the Pai Sect, who was closest to the leader and had no time to evacuate while he was still using the Locking Dragon Mirror to set up the Blood Net!

"Crazy woman, just hang in there a little longer."

Seeing that his goal had been achieved, Zhou Ran put away the Yin-Gathering Banner and breathed a sigh of relief.

The more chaotic the scene, the more advantageous it is for him!

If it really was that old dragon that spat out its dragon core, the situation would be even more difficult to manage.

Before them were the Pai Church and the Black Dragon Society.

Behind them was Miao Laoshi, who was controlling the old dragon.

He was already at his limit, and if he wanted to seize the dragon core, not to mention that he would be possessed by the Night Demon.

The Su sisters and others will probably lose their lives.

Only by creating chaos again will he have a greater chance to reap the benefits!

The old dragon unleashed its divine tail strike.

The "Dragon-Locking Mirror," a thousand-year-old magical artifact that the leader of the Red Mountain Cult was very proud of and used to suppress the water veins.

The moment the dragon's tail touched it, it shattered into countless fragments, like a piece of glass.

The spirit of the ritual implement shrieked and vanished into nothingness.

The leader of the Red Mountain Cult let out a miserable cry.

His entire body, along with his protective inner energy, was slammed into the rocky wall at the bottom of the river by the extremely savage dragon tail.

A Golden Core stage cultivation level is insignificant in the face of a true ancient dragon.

"Bang!"

The hard rock strata were smashed into a human-shaped crater more than ten meters deep.

Half of his body was embedded in the stone, and he spewed out a mixture of flesh and entrails from his mouth.

Zhou Ran gasped.

I'm so glad I made the right choice.

Even if the old dragon spits out its core, its remaining cultivation level is still beyond what he can handle at present.

Miao Laoshi's goal of watching the fire from the sidelines was indeed achieved.

"Please, Ancestral Master... protect me... protect me..."

In the deep pit at the bottom of the river, he raised his only remaining hand, his fingers frantically making incantations that had failed...