Chapter 854: Incense Power Empowerment

The Golden Feather Demon King revealed his true form, surging forth with boundless demonic power; with but a single flap of his vast wings, he unleashed a storm of violent gales that tore the earth from its foundations—any cultivator of lesser strength would be sucked into the gales and torn apart alive.

"The Demon King of the Demon God Realm seeks to take advantage while Xiangxiangzi and Xuan Yuezi are away, hoping to crush us all with overwhelming force—how greedy." Li Yi clenched his fists tightly, his gaze cold as he stared at the golden roc whose wings blotted out the heavens.

Though the four of them had just barely withstood the Demon King's strike and protected the battlefield behind them, sparing others from the fallout, the true danger had not passed—this meant the Demon King of the Demon God Realm had entered the fight himself.

This would be another brutal battle.

The Golden Feather Demon King flapped his wings and arrived above the battlefield in an instant; his massive wings blotted out the sky, dimming heaven and earth—but this was only the beginning. As his demonic power surged again, all sensed a lethal aura.

Suddenly, countless feathers on the Golden Feather Demon King erupted into millions of golden rays, interweaving to shroud his colossal form, as if a golden sun had appeared in the heavens.

All things were engulfed in golden light; the mountains and rivers for a thousand li trembled beneath the Demon King's might.

This golden sun did not radiate heat; instead, as the golden radiance spread, all things melted away—a piercing, indescribable pain pierced Li Yi's body.

Rocks, trees, mountains, rivers—all dissolved at an unimaginable speed.

This dissolution was not mere destruction—it was ripped apart into fine powder by an ultimate force.

Realizing this, Li Yi shouted urgently: "Everyone, retreat into the Immortal Warship! Do not come out—the Demon King's true target is you!"

Jiang Yue, Liu Yunbai, Ye Jingtian, and dozens of Earth's evolvers turned pale; the crimson-gold divine light radiating from their bodies was rapidly fading. Under these conditions, they could not hold out long—once their protective light vanished, their bodies would be exposed to the Demon King's power and die instantly.

Li Yi's shout immediately jolted them awake.

Without the slightest hesitation, everyone retreated into the Immortal Warship at top speed.

The Immortal Warship, forged entirely of crimson-gold metal, could easily deflect even the Demon King's power; even if struck head-on, the vessel would remain intact.

Seeing dozens of experts vanish into the Immortal Warship with lightning speed,

the Golden Feather Demon King erupted in fury. He had entered the battle specifically to erase Earth's top combat force and deliver a devastating blow—but twice now, his strikes had failed to achieve their goal.

"If I can't kill these people, then I'll take your life instead."

Suddenly, from the golden-lit heavens, a pair of icy eyes locked onto Li Yi.

He could see that Li Yi was the leader of this group—and the Heavenly Moon Demon King had once sought to kill him. Though the Heavenly Moon Demon King had died for unknown reasons and failed, he had no objection to fulfilling that wish for him.

The next instant,

amid the sea of golden light, a spear carved from jade-like gemstone tore through space, surging with terrifying Demon King power toward Li Yi.

This was the Demon King's weapon: the Divine Jade Spear.

The Golden Feather Demon King was clearly serious—this strike would make even peers wary, let alone Li Yi, whose strength was far weaker.

Clearly, this was a guaranteed kill targeting Li Yi.

Li Yi, clad in five layers of crimson-gold battle armor and resisting the golden light, felt nothing of this deadly strike—because the golden radiance was saturated with the Demon King's aura, blocking his perception.

Though his Primordial Spirit was warning him, Li Yi paid it little heed—after all, under the Demon King's overwhelming power, which evolver's soul didn't sense danger?

"Taiyi, beware."

Yet Miao Huizi sensed a shocking surge of killing intent at this critical moment—though she could not pinpoint the source amid the golden light, she was certain: the Demon King's target was Li Yi.

Without hesitation, Miao Huizi moved instantly to Li Yi's side.

But the moment she arrived, the terrifying Demon King weapon struck her directly.

"Foolish woman," the Golden Feather Demon King sneered inwardly.

To block a Demon King weapon with bare flesh was suicide—but it was fine. Killing Li Yi would also eliminate a potential threat. He could tell Miao Huizi was extraordinarily profound, just one step away from reaching the Demon King realm.

Yet soon, something stunned the Golden Feather Demon King.

The Demon King weapon struck Miao Huizi—but did not pierce her instantly. Instead, the collision rang like metal striking metal, sparks and violent energy spraying outward, annihilating everything nearby.

"How can this woman's body be so terrifying?" the Golden Feather Demon King was shocked.

He did not know that after her rebirth, Miao Huizi's body had been forged from Crimson-Gold Stone People—not mortal flesh—and possessed astonishing defense. Without such a transformation, she could never have achieved the Three Flowers in such a short time, standing just one step from perfection.

Yet even with her incredible bodily defense, blocking the Demon King weapon was not without cost—the weapon still pierced her abdomen, and the violent residual force surged toward Li Yi behind her.

BOOM!

Li Yi was struck by the force, his crimson-gold divine light instantly shattered. He was flung backward, his battle armor cracking in multiple places—but since most of the force had been absorbed by Miao Huizi, he suffered only minor injuries.

But Miao Huizi was in dire straits: her body pierced, her life essence leaking rapidly, blood gushing from her mouth. The Dao Flower representing her life force immediately dimmed, its petals beginning to wither.

"Li Yi."

The sudden turn shocked Wang Chengjun and Li Weiguo—they immediately realized the Demon King's malicious intent: to use the golden light as cover to ambush Li Yi.

Li Yi was the key figure in this war—if he died, all was lost.

They exchanged a glance, then roared and charged toward the Golden Feather Demon King. Previously, all three of them had barely held their own against a Demon King; now, with Zhang Xinghua dead, their combined strength had plummeted—they could no longer match the Demon King. All they could do now was fight desperately to stall him, denying him another chance to strike.

With their Qi Yun power surging, their strength did catch the Golden Feather Demon King's attention—but compared to when they had fought the Heavenly Moon Demon King, they were no longer a threat.

For the Qi Yun cultivation method had a flaw: the weaker Earth's Qi Yun became, the weaker they grew.

With Earth's defenses collapsing and many evolvers fleeing across dimensions, the survivors within the base had lost hope for the future—thus, the Qi Yun they could now gather was a shadow of its peak.

"A nuisance, indeed. First, I'll kill you two."

Instantly, from within the golden sun, a figure coalesced.

He shed his demonic form, taking human shape, and raised his hand to unleash a full-power Demon King strike toward Wang Chengjun and Li Weiguo.

This strike held nothing back—it was the peak of the Demon King's combat power.

Wang Chengjun and Li Weiguo met it head-on—but were swiftly overpowered, spitting blood as they were flung backward, crashing into the earth and shattering dozens of li of ground.

"The three of you could once stand against the Heavenly Moon Demon King—but now that one is gone, you're pitifully weak. At best, you have half a Demon King's strength. Just surviving is already a miracle—do you really think you can defy heaven?"

The Golden Feather Demon King stood calmly, stepping on golden light, his gaze sweeping the battlefield with disdain.

"Again!" Wang Chengjun and Li Weiguo, bloodied, roared and surged from the ground, ready to fight the Demon King once more.

"So stubborn? Today, I'll send you both to your deaths. Don't think waiting will bring reinforcements—your two allies are already held fast by the Silver Fang Demon King. They cannot help you." The Golden Feather Demon King spoke coldly, crushing their last hope.

Yet at the same moment,

the roar of Dragon and Tiger shook the heavens, shattering the Demon King's power—a powerful force, bolstered by torrents of thunder, surged toward him.

The Golden Feather Demon King glanced casually, then raised one hand and slapped downward.

Demon King power erupted—the heavens and earth trembled.

The Dragon and Tiger roars vanished instantly; the thunderous light shattered and scattered under the blow.

"Your power is decent—but still far below a Demon King's. Li Yi, you're impressive. Your potential is immense—no wonder the Heavenly Moon Demon King came down himself to kill you." The Golden Feather Demon King sneered: "But even with help, you must be suffering from blocking my Demon King weapon."

Li Yi's face was dark. He stood on auspicious clouds, wielding Dragon and Tiger power, wreathed in lightning and thunder, his killing intent blazing—but his skin was torn in many places, blood seeping out. Clearly, he had been wounded.

"A Demon King resorting to ambush? How despicable."

"In the Demon God Realm, killing is always like this—there's no such thing as despicable or noble." The Golden Feather Demon King's gaze shifted to another direction.

Miao Huizi had not died, but after taking the Demon King weapon's blow, she was forced to withdraw—she could no longer fight.

Otherwise, with four of them united, even the Demon King Golden Feather would have some caution.

"Attack together. You have no other choice." The Golden Feather Demon King reached out into the air and seized—immediately, the jade spear erupted from the ruins, returning to his grasp.

With the Demon King weapon in hand, the Golden Feather Demon King's power surged to its peak—more terrifying than before.

Li Yi now understood: Xiangxiangzi and Xuan Yuezi had not returned because they were trapped—had they been able to spare even a moment, they would have arrived by now.

Yet he was not without desperate measures.

At this moment,

the main cannon of the Immortal Warship, long ignored, suddenly activated—and fired a shot at high speed toward the distant sky.

The blast tore open space, opening a dimensional gate.

Instantly,

a force of incense power burst forth from the gate, flooding the heavens in an instant, drawn like a magnet toward Li Yi.

"Hmm?"

This sudden change alerted the Golden Feather Demon King to something unusual.

Instantly,

he unfurled golden wings from his back, golden feathers sprouting across his skin—he had partially transformed, becoming half-human, half-demon.

In this state, the Golden Feather Demon King retained the full power of his demonic form while keeping the mobility of his human body.

With a single flap of his golden wings,

the Golden Feather Demon King appeared before Li Yi as if teleporting—the Divine Jade Spear, fueled by terrifying demonic power, shattered space and slashed toward Li Yi.

This strike could cleave heaven and earth—and Li Yi's body along with them.

(End of Chapter)