Chapter 657: Spirit Essence

The heavenly demon Black Scales was truly insane; after learning that Li Yi was one of the killers of the great demon Feng Yu, the Yaowang 's daughter, he immediately went all out, deliberately enduring the incense-empowered Summon Wind Art in a desperate bid to trade his life for Li Yi's.

It seems this heavenly demon was indeed deeply loyal to the Yaowang.

This was near Earth's defensive line, surrounded by Earth's top experts; if the heavenly demon suffered severe injuries, even if he killed Li Yi, he would have little chance of escaping alive—so when he chose to strike this way, he never intended to survive, only to ensure Li Yi's death without fail.

And this strike truly made Li Yi feel mortal peril.

That terrifying spear now tore through the blazing sky of fire, lunging straight to Li Yi's face—such a ferocious attack was nearly certain victory; in an instant, Li Yi's skull would be pierced, his body instantly obliterated, his soul crushed and annihilated by demonic power, leaving no chance for his spirit to escape after bodily death.

But at this critical moment, the crimson giant bird on Li Yi's Chi Yu Zi Jin Armor came alive, automatically shielding him—it spread its wings wide, forming an astonishing barrier directly before him.

BOOM!

The strike landed on the crimson wings; though it threatened to pierce through, that brief delay was enough for Li Yi to react.

He shifted his body in an instant, dissolving into a vast mist that vanished from the spot.

"Feng Yu, the great demon. Damn it."

Seeing this, the heavenly demon Black Scales let out a furious, defiant roar to the sky—his attack, launched with full intent to die, had been blocked by the spirit essence of Feng Yu the great demon.

No, it wasn't Feng Yu's spirit essence—it was the spirit of the Dao artifact.

Previously, Li Yi hadn't understood why the bald Daoist had always cared so much about an artifact's spirit, but now he understood: in moments of crisis, a Dao artifact protecting its master could spare you from death—or even save your life.

One strike failed.

The heavenly demon Black Scales now fully absorbed Li Yi's Summon Wind Art.

Taking such a blow head-on left him in agony—his entire body burned with flame, his scales glowing red-hot, black smoke continuously rising from within; his heavenly demon spirit essence was being scorched and incinerated.

He then let out a piercing scream, unable to maintain his human form, suddenly transforming into a colossal demonic beast—serpentine, draconic, with twin horns, its body stretching over three hundred zhang long.

In the Demon God Realm, such beasts were called Jiao She.

Their bloodline was not high; reaching the heavenly demon tier already made them exceptional among Jiao She—most could never attain such a realm.

The massive serpent-spider spat flames, but the more it spat, the fiercer the fire burned; forced to act, it roared and channeled all its demonic power to suppress the flames within.

Black demonic energy surged over its body, and the searing heat of the heartfire finally began to recede.

Even so, Black Scales was wracked with unbearable pain and grievously wounded—but he had no time to assess his injuries; his enormous vertical pupils locked onto Li Yi.

Because Black Scales now sensed even greater peril.

And indeed, it was true.

Li Yi's face was expressionless; he held a divine wood bow, an obsidian-gold arrow already nocked, and as Long Hu's power surged, the bow was slowly drawn taut.

"Feng Yu the great demon's divine bow."

Black Scales recognized the bow—his soul trembled with terror.

In the Demon God Realm, Feng Yu the great demon had once wielded this bow, slaying countless other great demons; his strength was immense, and he was the most likely candidate to ascend to Yaowang.

But his journey to Earth ended in ruin—he and the Yaowang 's daughter both perished here, which was precisely why the Tian Yue Yaowang had spared no cost to invade Earth, demanding blood for blood from its evolvers.

"ROAR!"

Knowing the bow's power, Black Scales did not consider fleeing—escape was useless before the divine bow; he roared and charged Li Yi again, regardless of success, for this was now his only option.

Yet as the colossal Jiao She lunged toward him, Li Yi fired the obsidian-gold arrow without hesitation.

"SHHHH."

The arrow vanished instantly—nothing could withstand its path; heaven and earth were split open by a gaping rift—and then Black Scales' head was pierced clean through; though the wound was small, it was instantly fatal.

A weak, dying cry echoed.

The massive Jiao She lost all power to hover; its demonic energy scattered, the suppressed heartfire erupted again, and its colossal body tumbled from the sky.

"Won." Li Yi, seeing this, exhaled slightly, his tension easing.

The heavenly demons of the Demon God Realm were truly terrifying—combat prowess far exceeding that of cultivators from the Xuan Immortal World; though he was confident he could defeat the opponent in prolonged combat, the enemy's tendency to fight to the death made every clash dangerously unpredictable.

Using the divine bow to kill outright was far safer.

BOOM!

The thunderous crash of impact echoed as the Jiao She's body slammed into the ground—motionless, lifeless, utterly dead.

Li Yi slowly descended from the sky, glanced at the heavenly demon's corpse, and immediately stored it inside his Five Elements Bracelet—such a corpse was prime material for alchemy and artifact forging; he couldn't afford to leave it behind.

"Li Yi, you actually killed a heavenly demon?" Bai Sinan, witnessing Li Yi's victory, was both delighted and stunned.

He'd thought Li Yi merely holding off the enemy was impressive enough—never imagined he'd slain the heavenly demon outright.

"Just luck," Li Yi said. "All thanks to this divine bow—otherwise, in a direct fight, who knows who would have won."

"You're too modest—I saw it all. You'd already cornered the heavenly demon; he knew escape was impossible, so he chose to trade his life for yours. Only your defense saved you—if anyone else had been in your place, they'd be dead."

Bai Sinan shook his head, still shaken by the near-death encounter.

Li Yi said: "Heavenly demons of the Demon God Realm are truly powerful, with vast combat experience—any opening you show can be exploited to kill you. I never expected a creature of this level to launch a suicide strike so casually."

"I realize now I can't apply my experience fighting Xuan Immortal World cultivators here. Facing heavenly demons, you must treat even the weakest as a lion would a rabbit—give them not a single chance."

He reflected on himself.

If he'd drawn the divine bow right away, none of this would've happened.

But he wasn't Feng Yu the great demon—he couldn't wield the bow with ease; if he'd missed, disaster would follow. He needed the bald Daoist to forge him a Dao-level weapon—otherwise, he'd always be at a disadvantage in combat.

!

"The battle over there seems to have ended too. But I didn't pay attention—Bai Sinan, did you see any other heavenly demons break through the line?" Li Yi glanced toward the defensive line.

His own battle had ended; the other side's had too.

"One wounded heavenly demon escaped."

Bai Sinan's expression darkened slightly, then pointed: "That way—it moved fast, but several Thunder War Machines have already pursued it; not sure if they'll catch it."

"One heavenly demon escaped?" Li Yi frowned, staring at the direction.

"With so many heavenly demons launching a coordinated assault, and with full preparation, this is already the best outcome—only one got away," Bai Sinan said.

Li Yi said: "They used a great demon as cover to smuggle several heavenly demons across—this isn't simple."

"I think so too, but now isn't the time to discuss it. I'll take you to the defensive line camp—you've earned major merit by killing a heavenly demon; you might even get a reward." Bai Sinan said.

Li Yi said: "I didn't come here for rewards."

Still, he followed Bai Sinan to the defensive line camp.

At this moment,

The great battle had just ended, and all top experts within the line were stirred.

Li Yi casually scanned the area—all present were Qi or Spirit Soul-level evolvers, many with traces of multi-discipline cultivation, and no shortage of those who had crossed the Spirit Tribulation.

Beyond them, many non-Earth experts were also present.

They were all cross-realm allies, immensely powerful, though their reasons for aiding evolvers against the Demon God Realm remained unclear.

"Bai Sinan, was that southern demon dealt with by you?" A man clad in World Six Combat Energy Armor suddenly asked.

"No, I don't have that kind of strength—it was Li Yi. He personally killed a heavenly demon." Bai Sinan immediately shook his head, then pointed to Li Yi beside him.

Li Yi?

The man in combat armor's expression shifted slightly as he sized Li Yi up: "You're the Li Yi who fought the Xuan Immortal World? I've heard your name—never expected you to be stronger than I imagined. Impressive, impressive. I'm Zhang Yao, one of the squad leaders of the Demon God Realm line—pleased to meet you."

He extended his hand warmly.

Li Yi shook it: "Hello, I'm Li Yi. Pleased to meet you too."

Zhang Yao said: "Li Yi, you killed a heavenly demon—you're eligible to attend the strategy meeting. You might even be appointed squad leader directly. Of course, if you dislike formal duties, that's fine too—you'll still get to meet cross-realm experts, and I'm sure you'll find that interesting."

"Good, thank you for the suggestion." Li Yi nodded.

"I've other duties—I can't accompany you. Next time, just find me—I know this place well, ask me anything." Zhang Yao smiled, then bid them farewell.

"Zhang Yao is a military expert—not from the Golden Academy. You wouldn't have met him before, Li Yi," Bai Sinan added.

Li Yi now wanted to know where Xuan Yuezi was.

During the great demon's incursion, he hadn't seen Xuan Yuezi act—only Wu the Daoist had moved. He needed to ask Wu the Daoist where the recent Three Flower Realm experts had gone and what they were doing.

(End of Chapter)