Chapter 276: Xiang Ge Severely Injured
Troop Devouring Ghost Moth consumed too much energy and temporarily fell into a deep sleep, but Su Yan did not dare to relax at all. He directly extracted the demonic essence from all the fierce insects and the contracted beast Rhinoceros Tiger in the Insect Realm Space, transforming it into an infusion injected into the Blood Bone Centipede King’s body.
Blood Bone Centipede King fully spread its six wings and flew at full speed, heading directly outside the Golden Peng Mountain Range.
Su Yan spared no cost and ignored the consumption, releasing batches upon batches of Blood Bees and Fiend Bees.
The swarms spread out without regard for cost, dispersing to every place in the Golden Peng Mountain Range and the surrounding mountain ranges.
These swarms were destined to have no return; with such diffusion, there was no possibility of recalling them. Once their vitality was exhausted, they would die.
But this was Su Yan’s only choice, because the appearance of Decaying Snake Ancestor and the appearance of Green Saber Gu Elder already indicated that they had killed too ruthlessly, attracting the attention of higher-level powerhouses.
Su Yan’s face was grim, and the true essence in his body was already less than one-third.
He took out pills and swallowed them, quickly recovering his true essence.
‘Starry Sky Martial Artists with three elixirs complete and star apertures connected can preliminarily communicate with heaven and earth even without forming a star chart, yet the gap is so great…’
Although it was only a distant clash with Decaying Snake Ancestor, the condensed intensity of that true essence and the majestic power all showed that he was very likely not a match.
Admittedly, his true essence capacity and intensity far surpassed ordinary Dan Qiao Realm Martial Artists, but compared to Starry Sky Martial Artists who could communicate with heaven and earth, the gap was still very large.
He did not know what other means Decaying Snake Ancestor had, but if all fierce insects were deployed, plus his Myriad Insect Prison Suppressing Tower, it would at most result in a mutually destructive situation.
Moreover, the probability of this was probably less than forty percent, and it would require the cost of fierce insects dying in battle.
‘Blood Bone Centipede King is fast, but still not comparable to evasion techniques. I must find a fierce insect truly proficient in evasion techniques, and an assassination weapon…’
Being forced to flee by Decaying Snake Ancestor did not discourage Su Yan; if they met again next time, he would wait until his three elixirs nine revolutions.
Even without three elixirs nine revolutions, as long as Qi and Blood Golden Core Nine Revolutions, plus opening another round of minor star apertures and preparing a great killing weapon, he would have a way to blow up that old man’s golden core.
The Golden Peng Mountain Range’s defenses were particularly tight, especially after Decaying Snake Ancestor issued orders; almost every major city and town outside had Dan Qiao Realm Martial Artists stationed, with heavy troops forming formations.
In Liu He City, there were three thousand martial artists. The leader was Dan Qiao Realm Elder Tu Li Shu from the Earth Cocoon Cave, with Third Heaven Peak cultivation; he was only one step away from breakthrough after further perfecting his golden core.
“Fellow Daoist Tu, the orders have already been passed down. Fully activate the grand formation. Unless absolutely necessary, we few must not separate.”
The speaker was a yellow-robed fat man with white beard and face, eyes like a wolf, full of seriousness on his face.
Huang Hao was naturally full of worry in his heart; he was only Second Heaven cultivation, just like the other two fellow daoists beside him, all merely responsible for garrisoning.
He originally thought someone had offended Decaying Snake Ancestor Wei Wu, which was why the order to blockade was issued.
He never expected this matter to undergo such a shocking change.
Tu Li Shu saw his unease and also slightly darkened his face, saying, “That thief is formidable; even Green Saber Gu Elder and the others fell to him. He is probably an outstanding figure at Third Heaven.”
“Yes, if it were a Starry Sky Martial Artist who could consecutively kill three Third Heaven Martial Artists, it wouldn’t be too surprising. But he is only Third Heaven…”
The woman beside showed a wry smile. Shu Han Yun felt bitter in her heart; she was also only Second Heaven cultivation. People stronger than her were killed like cutting melons and vegetables, inevitably evoking sorrow for the hare’s death and the fox’s grief.
“That person must be a heavenly prodigy from Beast King Sect. As long as we don’t greedily seek merit and advance rashly, staying in the city will naturally be safe…”
As soon as the words fell, a falcon suddenly sped in and instantly landed in his hand.
Tu Li Shu immediately sensed something wrong. Upon checking the falcon’s message, he said gravely, “Blood Bees fill the sky over Huang City; it is likely the thief attacking, trying to slip through.”
Hearing this, Huang Hao furrowed his brows tightly: “Huang City is in the northwest, over three hundred li from here. This falcon message reaching us probably means luring the tiger away from the mountain.”
None of them wanted to take risks; one Tu Li Shu plus three Second Heaven Martial Artists might not hold out longer than Green Saber Gu Elder and the others.
Even if Decaying Snake Ancestor and the others were prepared for immediate reinforcement, they were not completely ignorant of the thief, but there was still danger.
However, before they could decide, whether falcons or Bell Sensing Gu, messages suddenly came one after another.
Four hundred li away, East Mountain Valley under attack, Blood Bees filling the sky, no less than ten thousand.
One hundred li away, Eagle Cry Mountain invaded by Blood Bees, grand formation surrounded…
In an instant, it was like beacons rising everywhere, all incoming messages.
The four people’s faces went numb; they no longer knew what to do.
Tu Li Shu made a decisive decision: “Fully activate the grand formation to seal Liu He City. You three must go to Eagle Cry Mountain; it’s only a hundred li away. If you don’t go and the person slips away from there, we will bear the blame.”
“Then what about here?”
“I will stay to guard.”
Huang Hao, Shu Han Yun, and Shi Boyong’s faces changed abruptly. Seeing their expressions, Tu Li Shu narrowed his eyes: “Do fellow daoists have other opinions?”
“But”
How could Shu Han Yun and the other two dare refuse? Not to mention Tu Li Shu’s greater strength and the Earth Cocoon Cave’s dominance, with him in charge here, if the three didn’t go and something happened, all the blame would fall on them.
The three exchanged a glance, flew out of Liu He City immediately. Their speed was extremely fast, but they did not take the usual route; they circled slightly before heading straight to Eagle Cry Mountain.
“Chaos everywhere; that Beast King Sect thief is probably desperate.”
Tu Li Shu’s gaze was like a knife, face grim. Such a big commotion was definitely to escape; he just didn’t know if it was East Mountain Valley or Eagle Cry Mountain.
“Run the formation array to the maximum; don’t spare those origin stones!”
What Tu Li Shu relied on was the grand formation. With the grand formation, even if the opponent was formidable, they couldn’t break it in a short time.
The reason Green Saber Gu Elder and the others failed was precisely because they fought an encounter battle without any defense.
The formation was like a dome covering the city. Gilded golden light emerged on the city walls, and about a hundred zhang above the city, light formed a dome, like a semi-transparent eggshell.
Seeing the city protection grand formation activate, Tu Li Shu felt slightly reassured.
Rumbling thunder
The ground suddenly shook, and Tu Li Shu’s face changed drastically.
Suddenly, cracks spread across the ground, the sky abruptly darkened, and a massive shadow enveloped outside Liu He City.
Tu Li Shu looked toward the direction the shadow came from; his pupils contracted sharply, eyes widened, face full of terror.
“Giant, Giant Spirit?!”
Molten Mountain Giant Scorpion’s massive body appeared outside Liu He City like a living volcano, heat waves seemingly burning the entire city.
Tu Li Shu shouted: “Hold off that Giant Spirit’s attack!”
His Earth Cocoon spiritual insect true intent emerged, like a ghostly skull face, body like fleshy ginseng, directly injecting all his true essence into the grand formation, immediately becoming the main array controller.
The formation array fully activated; the barrier gleamed like glass, firmly isolating Molten Mountain Giant Scorpion outside.
Tu Li Shu’s eyes locked tightly on Molten Mountain Giant Scorpion, his heart tense to the extreme.
Boom
Molten Mountain Giant Scorpion moved its massive body and directly crashed toward the city protection grand formation.
Lava and Spirit Melting Fire encircled its body, like a sun walking on the ground.
Its body like a star, it slammed into the barrier.
The barrier erupted with powerful force, displaying unimaginable toughness.
However, this city protection grand formation seemed somewhat stretched thin before Molten Mountain Giant Scorpion’s enormous body.
Molten Mountain Giant Scorpion’s tail hook was like a flaming giant cannon, condensing endless Spirit Melting Fire, blasting out with a boom, continuous attacks eroding the barrier.
Tu Li Shu’s veins bulged; true essence surged into the array like a breached dam. Not just him—all martial artists in the array and the origin stone reserves supplying the grand formation provided energy continuously.
But the energy supply speed far couldn’t keep up with the continuous destructive intensity.
The barrier melted like metal walls, gradually dissolving under the continuous burning of Spirit Melting Fire; a massive hole suddenly appeared.
The Spirit Melting Fire pillar raged like out of control, bombarding into Liu He City.
In one strike, hundreds of martial artists turned to ash; city wall bricks and stones melted into molten lava.
Tu Li Shu suffered backlash from the grand formation in an instant, meridians damaged, his face pale as thin paper.
Flee!
At this moment, he had only one thought: immediately escape this city. The formation was broken; even alone, this feral beast with a nascent Giant Spirit form was not something he could handle.
However, before he could move, a pitch-black ancient tower smashed onto him. Crackling sounds entered his ears; his entire chest cavity caved in. In his dying moments, with his peripheral vision, he saw one man and one woman withdraw Molten Mountain Giant Scorpion, then fly directly outside the Golden Peng Mountain Range without looking back.
Liu He City no longer had any Dan Qiao Realm, nor divine sense probes. Su Yan could leave almost unhindered.
The last thought flashing in Tu Li Shu’s mind was only one sentence: ‘Why did I let Shu Han Yun and the three leave?!’
Su Yan left Liu He City and flew three or four hundred li with Blood Bone Centipede King, finally exiting the range controlled by Decaying Snake Ancestor.
“At this distance, they shouldn’t be able to catch up.”
The two stopped and landed on a solitary peak to rest and regulate their breathing. This place was already not far from Cold Shadow Peak, in an area they controlled.
Even if Decaying Snake Ancestor wanted to pursue and kill him, he had to consider if he could do so safely here.
Su Yan showed a pensive expression. In the previous battle, Molten Mountain Giant Scorpion’s power was evident—not possessing power far exceeding Dan Qiao Realm Martial Artists, but its more majestic demonic essence and powerful body; this was the foundation of Molten Mountain Giant Scorpion.
‘Its rank is still third-order, but initially possessing Giant Spirit might. Though movements slightly slow, its defense, power, sustained burst power, and massive body make the Giant Spirit probably a natural war giant beast.’
Giant Spirit feral beasts, compared to naturally variant feral beasts, had strength equivalent to several same-rank Dan Qiao Realm Martial Artists.
This was still in combat; if placed on the battlefield, crushing military formations, breaking city protection grand formations—with innate high defense and high attack traits, it could continuously wear down and collapse formations.
The previous battle wasn’t instantly breaking the city protection grand formation’s threshold, but continuous attacks dragging it down.
“Lord, I want to return to the Wuyi City front line and Yanwu Mountain Range to take charge.”
Nangong Hong Yue finished regulating her breathing, stood up, and said to Su Yan.
“Hm?”
Su Yan slightly furrowed his brows looking at her. Nangong Hong Yue said, “During wartime, Lord bringing a non-sect Dan Qiao Realm into the city is inconvenient and prone to gossip. Moreover, Yanwu Mountain Range is newly stabilized; if operated rapidly, using the Wuyi City line to resist the great war from demonic sects, we may develop faster.”
A flash of determination in Nangong Hong Yue’s eyes. Now that her enemies were eliminated, with no revenge target left, only one goal gradually taking root in her heart remained—to operate Sacred Insect Dao into the number one sect inside and outside Lingnan Prefecture.
No wonder she had such thoughts; her gaze flowed like autumn ripples, unconsciously falling on Su Yan.
Fierce insects without equal; whether Molten Mountain Giant Scorpion or Heavenly Fiend Mother Locust, all were rare variants in the world. Moreover, this man had the ability to transform bloodlines.
Although Su Yan was now only a Dan Qiao Martial Artist, chased by Starry Sky Martial Artists, one day he would surely stand at legendary realms like Golden Body Realm, at least so she believed.
What Nangong Hong Yue wanted now was to help Su Yan.
“Alright.” Su Yan nodded. With Nangong Hong Yue by his side handling matters, it was indeed more worry-free, but compared to Sacred Insect Dao’s development, it would be a waste of talent.
He flipped his palm and took out two bottles of pills: “Dragon Scale Body Strengthening Pill; refine your physical body first, accumulate enough qi and blood. Also, True Essence Golden Core must advance two more revolutions. No need to rush.”
“Thank you, Lord.”
Nangong Hong Yue took the pills without politeness; under fierce insect bloodlines, they needed no extra words.
After bidding farewell to Su Yan, she immediately flew toward Wuyi City.
Su Yan needed resources for cultivation; Sacred Insect Dao would frantically gather resources in this war.
Chaos was the ladder upward. Sword One Sect rose that way back then; Sacred Insect Dao might not be unable.
Determination flashed in her eyes; she kept thinking: ‘Since Yuan Ye and Bai Cang have joined Sacred Insect Dao, they must play a role—whether guiding or finding ways to seize resources, push brothers Yang Kun, Wang Cang, and others into Dan Qiao Realm, and also Ling Yuer and those in Yanwu Mountain Range…’
In Yanwu Mountain Range, Yu Luo, Wu Nan, and Na Goru were all Dan Qiao Realm, but they needed to suppress Yanwu Mountain Range. Only thus could they control areas held by Tianshui Sect and other three forces, as well as surrounding covetous tribes and sects.
The only people who could be mobilized were Ling Yuer and the four others.
However, these four were previously half-step Dan Qiao; now with fierce insect bodies, breaking through to Dan Qiao Realm was no difficult matter.
Once they broke through, Sacred Insect Dao would have over ten Dan Qiao Realm, qualifying as a third-rate force in Lingnan Prefecture, just lacking Dharma Aspect Realm.
Don’t think it’s merely third-rate; this was a ranked third-rate force that even Dharma Aspect Realm forces had to consider.
Not about strength level, but a sufficiently large foundation. No matter how strong the Dharma Aspect Realm, they couldn’t exterminate it entirely; as long as backing forces existed, they couldn’t be ignored.
And once Su Yan broke through to Dharma Aspect Realm, or directly had Gu Sanqian secretly back it, it would be an indisputable second-rate force.
With Nangong Hong Yue gone, Su Yan naturally headed straight to Cold Shadow Peak.
As soon as he arrived at Cold Shadow Peak, he saw Xiang Ge, pale-faced with one arm withered to just skin and flesh, appearing before him.
“Good nephew disciple, you’ve finally come. Quickly refine Seven Star Rejuvenation Pill for me; this arm was all for you.”
