Chapter 944: Burning One's Own Body

Though the Purple Dragon God-Deity had severely wounded Li Yi, he knew well that things were not as favorable as they appeared—unleashing power of this caliber came at a cost, so he must immediately slay this man and use his ruined body to hold back the Eastern Pole Celestial Sovereign; only then could he reverse the tide of battle.

If he spent too long in this state, his god-deity body would suffer catastrophic damage, and even he might perish here.

Thus, the Purple Dragon God-Deity dared not delay; he transformed once more into a purple true dragon sword, wielding the most condensed god-deity power, and slashed again at Li Yi—this strike would sever the man’s head and end the battle once and for all.

Li Yi now sensed another lethal threat; though grievously wounded, such injuries were not fatal to one of his caliber—they would only hinder his next moves.

If he failed to counter the coming assault, he indeed might die here.

No hesitation.

Li Yi immediately retracted his hundred-zhang body, returning to his normal size; with surging magic power, his torn wounds sealed shut, divine force like thunder continuously purging the lingering god-deity energy. His primordial spirit, protected by the sacred artifact Crimson Lotus, remained unharmed, and his combat power was barely sustained.

“You think only you can fight to the death? You can unleash power far beyond your usual limit? So can I.”

At that moment, he let out a long roar; his hundred-plus acupoints burned with divine blood, while the illusory magical flowers and his own primordial spirit flowers also ignited. As the crystalline Dao flowers withered, a force of magic and primordial spirit power far exceeding his normal limits erupted forth.

“Burning the Three Flowers atop the head?”

Daoists who witnessed this instantly understood Li Yi’s action.

This technique was not uncommon—many Daoists in dire straits would burn their Three Flowers to gain power far beyond their usual, but after the battle, their realms would plummet, forcing them to cultivate anew.

But Li Yi was doing more than merely burning his Three Flowers—his divine blood was burning too. This was the desperate method unique to the Savage Lands’ divine-blood warriors; burning divine blood caused irreversible damage.

It drastically reduced the concentration of divine blood within the body; many direct descendants of divine blood who burned theirs were reduced to common warriors.

He was trading his future for fleeting combat power.

As his divine blood burned, an unexpected event occurred: above Li Yi’s head, countless lightning bolts converged, and a silver life flower flickered into view, as if about to bloom.

The sheer volume of divine blood within his hundred-plus acupoints was so immense that, in a brief moment, he condensed his final life flower—a situation utterly inconceivable.

“Celestial Sovereign Taiyi, don’t push yourself so hard—I’ll assist you,” the Eastern Pole Celestial Sovereign cried urgently, wanting to aid Li Yi through this crisis—even if it meant killing fewer demon kings.

“No need for help. In this state, you’re no match for the Purple Dragon God-Deity. To oppose him, you must fight to the death. I burn my body to gain strength—trust me with the rest of this battle,” Li Yi’s voice rang out, rejecting the Eastern Pole Celestial Sovereign’s aid.

This was not arrogance.

It was for the greater good—other god-deities might still appear, so some top-tier combat power must be preserved. He had already fought this far; there was no room for retreat.

Hearing this, the Eastern Pole Celestial Sovereign, though understanding, hurled his Dao-attained artifact—the Three Treasures Jade Ruyi.

The artifact transformed into a mountain spanning before Li Yi, shielding him, attempting to block the Purple Dragon God-Deity’s attack.

But the Purple Dragon God-Deity surged forward, divine light flowing with terrifying force; with a single strike, he shattered the Dao-attained artifact, the Three Treasures Jade Ruyi, and the residual force continued toward Li Yi’s skull—failure to block it would be fatal.

“Boom!”

But the next instant.

A terrifying energy collision echoed across heaven and earth, shattering space itself and opening countless interdimensional gates—as if all worlds across the multiverse had opened at once.

Among these worlds were cultivation realms; their cultivators stared in terror toward this battle, fearing such a clash might spill over and obliterate their own worlds.

“What?”

Yet at the center of the energy clash, the Purple Dragon King’s dozens-of-zhang-long true dragon body was now firmly locked in midair by a pair of indestructible hands—limitless magic power and divine force formed countless chains, rendering him utterly immobile.

His attack had been blocked.

Then the Purple Dragon God-Deity saw: the human warrior’s entire body was cracked, and from every fissure, overwhelming power surged forth as if unable to be contained.

The fleeting combat power gained from burning everything was so astonishing that even he, a god-deity, felt an inexplicable tremor.

But the Purple Dragon God-Deity understood: the cost this opponent bore was even greater. In moments, this troublesome enemy would perish on his own—even if he survived, his cultivation base would collapse, posing no further threat.

“Human, very good. Keep fighting me like this—see how long you can last,” he roared in dragon-song, his purple dragon body still unleashing power beyond his peak, trying to break free of the chains.

Li Yi, now with his Three Flowers blazing, shot divine light from his eyes; his power reached an unprecedented height. He did not answer his foe’s taunt, but roared and swung one fist, striking out.

The blow looked ordinary—but its force filled all who witnessed it with dread.

One punch—and the Purple Dragon God-Deity’s body was instantly pierced; his indestructible dragon scales, at this moment, proved pathetically fragile, offering no protection whatsoever.

His god-deity body wounded, the Purple Dragon let out a pained dragon-roar; his state destabilized, and his dozens-of-zhang-long form suddenly swelled to its original six-thousand-zhang length.

Though his body grew larger, the Purple Dragon God-Deity’s aura plummeted; torrents of dragon blood sprayed outward, staining the myriad worlds.

Li Yi fared no better—after delivering that single punch, one of his arms exploded; flesh and muscle were ground to dust by the force, and with a gust of wind, they vanished entirely—this level of power had exceeded his limits.

Yet even so, Li Yi refused to miss this chance to kill the Purple Dragon God-Deity. If he failed to slay him now, once this true dragon recovered, another brutal battle would follow—and he would have no means to burn himself a second time.

“Kill.”

With unwavering resolve, Li Yi ignored his own condition, stepped forward, and tore through space as if teleporting, appearing instantly before the true dragon.

The Purple Dragon God-Deity saw him; his massive dragon eyes narrowed slightly, revealing alarm—but as a god-deity, he did not hesitate. He spat forth a divine light carrying a coiled dragon staff.

This strike aimed not to kill Li Yi, but merely to block his attack.

Li Yi faced it without dodging or retreating; he raised his hand and struck again with his second punch, unleashing all his burned power. The force was so terrifying it instantly flung back the coiled dragon staff, annihilated the god-deity energy, and then slammed heavily into the Purple Dragon God-Deity’s colossal dragon body.

Heaven and earth split; the giant dragon body was pierced again by a grotesque wound, so terrible it threatened to cleave the true dragon in two.

The Purple Dragon God-Deity wailed; his dragon blood dyed the churning sea crimson, and his massive body helplessly plummeted from the sky.

After only a second strike, he was defeated.

He could no longer fight.

Not only because of his injuries, but also because his prior condensation of god-deity power had already damaged himself.

Seeing the colossal, blood-drenched dragon plummeting from the heavens, all demon kings fell into despair.

Had the Purple Dragon God-Deity been defeated?

By that human warrior?

How could this be?

This was a god-deity-level true dragon—an invincible being of heaven and earth. How could a mere human possess the power to defeat a god-deity? Hadn’t the god-deity just gained the upper hand, moments from killing him?

How could it have turned like this so quickly?

Yet Li Yi, after delivering his second punch, had lost both arms; as his power dissipated, the cracks across his body lessened, but his life flower had vanished, and the incense-condensed primordial spirit power was nearly gone—this peak state was far too fleeting.

But the battle was not over.

Li Yi, clinging to his ruined body, roared and summoned a massive axe, channeling all his remaining power into it. Guided by his primordial spirit force, the crimson-gold divine artifact erupted with unparalleled might and slashed toward the falling Purple Dragon God-Deity.

This strike was the final kill—meant to send this god-deity to his end.

The Purple Dragon God-Deity sensed it; he let out a furious, unwilling dragon-roar. As the axe descended, his dragon soul fled his body, abandoning his god-deity form, and immediately fled.

The battle was lost; there was no point in sacrificing his life here. He had already given much to the god-deity realm—he had no regrets.

His dragon soul fled, opened a spatial gate, crossed dimensions, and vanished into an unknown world.

Without its soul, the god-deity body did not fall still—it roared instinctively and charged headlong into the axe.

But the outcome was decided.

Amid flying dragon blood, a massive dragon head was severed clean.

Thus, this god-deity-level battle ended completely.

At that moment, every cultivator, demon king, and great demon on the battlefield froze briefly.

“Li Yi won,” the Earthly evolvers, too, widened their eyes in shock and disbelief.

They had never imagined that, after such a grueling battle, the Purple Dragon God-Deity had been reversed and slain by Li Yi.

But the next instant.

Two rays of aurora shot toward the battlefield.

They were Xuan Yuezi and Xiang Xiangzi—their expressions frantic, fully aware that Li Yi’s condition was dire; any demon king could take his life now. They must protect him.