Chapter 325: with translation of chapter title

Seeing the abyssal beast that had left the black abyss mist, Yunhe instantly had no reservations.

Although he had discovered some characteristics of this thick black abyss mist, which could make cultivators like Xuè Wúhén and others so fearful, he still was unwilling to venture deep into it.

However, now that he had drawn this ferocious abyssal beast out of the black mist, things were completely different.

From the opponent's home ground, he had entered his own home ground.

With a smile on his face, Yunhe's expression flickered with a hint of coldness, and a tremendous surge of magical power instantly welled up from his body.

He flicked his finger, and a flying sword shot out from his sleeve.

As he continually retreated, the Five Elements Heavenly Thunder Sword transformed into a straight golden light, tracing a splendid arc in the air and shooting toward that fourth-level abyssal beast.

Ding!!

The flying sword landed on the beast's raised arm, and since it emitted an extremely crisp sound, it was as if it were nothing more than the purest collision of metal on metal.

Seeing this, Yunhe couldn't help but raise his eyebrows.

How could the strength of its rugged-looking armor be so great?

But although it was unexpected, Yunhe's hand movements did not pause because of this sight; he formed a seal with one hand and shouted lowly:

"Thunder!"

Boom!!

Just as the abyssal beast thought the flying sword was nothing more than that, the Five Elements Heavenly Thunder Sword suddenly burst forth with an incredibly terrifying heavenly thunder power!

The Five Elements Heavenly Thunder Sword is now a genuine fourth-level lower-grade magical treasure, and even this set of five flying swords of his has already given birth to a certain spirituality; moreover, as this treasure advanced to the fourth level, its spirituality has become noticeably more active.

It would not be wrong to say that the Five Elements Heavenly Thunder Sword is now a fourth-level lower-grade spiritual treasure.

A trembling golden thunder light suddenly appeared, like a coiling dragon dancing its body, biting tightly onto the beast's arm.

"Roar!!!"

This blow caused the abyssal beast to feel intense pain, especially the heavenly thunder power, which has an extremely strong restraining effect on this strange beast that lives by absorbing the special killing qi in the black abyss mist.

The abyssal beast, which had just been incredibly violent, now had its six eyes completely filled with terror.

Obviously, it never expected that this person before it actually possessed the ability to command heavenly thunder.

Then it violently swung its arm, forcibly swatting away the Five Elements Heavenly Thunder Sword.

The arm that had borne the brunt of the heavenly thunder's baptism had turned completely scorched black, and even its proud flesh could not withstand the heavenly thunder's power.

Although this beast's intelligence is low, its instincts are extremely strong.

At this moment it realized that although the person before it possessed something it liked, that person also posed a great threat to it.

If it did not flee now, it might very well fall here!

With almost no hesitation, the abyssal beast roared at Yunhe again, as if throwing down a harsh word, then turned and dove back into the black abyss mist that continued to surge behind it.

"No wonder people fear it so much; this defense is probably stronger than that of same-level demonic beasts, right?"

Actually, Yunhe himself was quite surprised.

He knew best just how powerful the "Heavenly Thunder Dragon's Chant" he had released earlier was; without exaggeration, if an early-stage Yuan Ying Cultivator had not made sufficient preparations, they could very well be killed by this strike!

Yet on the abyssal beast that was restrained, it merely destroyed the armor on one of its arms.

From this it can be seen.

Although this abyssal beast is naturally low in intelligence, it possesses a fleshly body stronger than that of same-level demonic beasts.

And many Yuan Ying Cultivators, if they were to get close to such a fleshly body, would likely have no option but to flee in their Yuan Ying form.

Seeing it turn, Yunhe had already made his preparations.

"Want to escape?"

The twin wings on his back suddenly gave a sharp shake, and in an instant wind and snow swirled about; as the temperature plummeted, thin layers of ice crystals instantly appeared on the beast's body, and under the continual blowing of the ice phoenix wings, the ice crystals on the beast grew thicker, markedly slowing its escape speed.

Yunhe's actions did not cease.

"Go!"

Then two more flying swords shot out from his body.

At the same time, a small shield appeared.

That small shield glowed with a deep earthen hue, expanding at a speed too fast for the naked eye to catch, and it intercepted the beast's escape route.

Moreover, as the hand signs in Yunhe's hand changed, the Five Elements Heavenly Thunder Sword that had been shot out earlier and the two Five Elements Heavenly Thunder Swords shot out later, after a surge of five-colored light, transformed into three ribbons of five-colored silk that wound toward the beast.

For a moment.

Yunhe could be said to have exhausted all his means!

Under so many divine abilities, the beast's attempt to flee was indeed met with considerable obstruction.

But even so, the abyssal beast could still move!

"What terrifying brute strength."

Yunhe couldn't help but sigh to himself.

The Demon-Subduing Armor that had already fallen before the beast like a wall had become the greatest barrier between it and the black abyss mist.

The abyssal beast's three arms lashed out fiercely.

Boom!!

A dull sound burst forth from the Demon-Subduing Armor.

Yet it suffered no damage at all, not even being knocked back the slightest bit!

This left the abyssal beast momentarily stunned.

Seeing this, Yunhe smiled.

Even if this abyssal beast's body were stronger and its flesh more terrifying, it is merely a fourth-level lower-grade strange beast, whereas the Demon-Subduing Armor, after Yunhe's repeated refinings, has barely reached the level of a fourth-level upper-grade magical treasure.

With such formidable defensive power, relying solely on bodily strength could not possibly shake the Demon-Subduing Armor.

This time.

Although Yunhe was curious about the Black Abyss Mist, and curious about what could cause the Corpse Soul Parasite to act strangely, his decision to act against the unknown Abyss Beast was not simply out of curiosity.

After reaching the Early Yuan Ying stage, he had never truly engaged in a head-on clash with a Yuan Ying Cultivator; even against Qi Zhou Changkong, it had been only a brief exchange.

Furthermore, he had later reforged the Subdue Demon Armor and also condensed the Ice Phoenix Wings; he had no clear concept of his current strength, which was somewhat vague.

It seemed he could beat an Early Yuan Ying Cultivator, yet he lacked full confidence.

And the Abyss Beast with low intelligence but great strength was the ideal specimen for him to test his own power.

No.

This time, at least he ascertained what level his escape speed stood at among Yuan Ying Cultivators, and how high the defensive capability of his Subdue Demon Armor had reached.

If relying solely on the strength of an Early Yuan Ying Cultivator, it would probably be difficult to breach the protection of the Subdue Demon Armor.

And obtaining such a conclusion gave him greater confidence for his later venture into the Floating Cloud Senior's cave dwelling.

Roar!!

But just as Yunhe's heart rose with a hint of self-satisfaction, he saw the Abyss Beast let out a fierce roar, and a thick black killing aura instantly surged over its body.

Moreover, within its roar was mixed a shock force targeting divine sense and divine soul!

If Yunhe's divine sense were not on par with a Mid Yuan Ying Cultivator, and he did not have some preparation against divine sense shock, that roar would indeed likely cause him to suffer a loss.

'Divine sense attack? No, it is that an unknown force stirs the killing aura, thereby producing an effect on divine sense and divine soul.'

Furthermore, that earlier shock was by no means weak; even Yunhe's current divine sense strength actually felt a bit dizzy.

If it were an ordinary Early Yuan Ying Cultivator with average divine sense, they might possibly experience a brief lapse of consciousness, right?

Facing such a physically powerful demonic beast, even an extremely brief lapse of consciousness would be extremely lethal; if this beast were to close in completely, even a Mid Yuan Ying Cultivator would likely be unable to withstand it.

'Its physical strength is terrifyingly strong, and it even possesses the ability to shock consciousness—no wonder Xue Wuhén and his group fear it like a tiger; a slight mistake, and an Early Yuan Ying Cultivator suffering heavy injury is almost inevitable.'

Yunhe slightly shook his head, quickly dispelling the hazy feeling in his mind, and his eyes narrowed.

The next second.

His divine sense materialized out of thin air, seeming to turn into a faintly visible long spear, and in an instant it pierced from before him into the Abyss Beast's brain.

However, once again what left Yunhe somewhat astonished was that.

His 'Seeking Immortal Divine Grant' that never failed against demonic beasts, actually failed?

His divine sense attack was like a stone sinking into the sea—it not only failed to inflict any impact on the Abyss Beast, but also pointlessly drained his own divine sense.

'This Abyss Beast'

For a moment, Yunhe actually did not know how to describe this beast.

All he could say was that

Heaven's Dao is fair; having deprived this beast of its intelligence, its remaining abilities are practically maxed out.

Being able to ignore divine sense attacks—this was still the first time Yunhe had encountered such a situation.

At the same time.

Within the Black Abyss Mist that was still spreading but had slowed considerably, there actually came a series of howling sounds.

Although it did not match the commotion caused by the roar of the Abyss Beast before him, there is no doubt that many Abyss Beasts still exist within that Black Abyss Mist, though their strength may not have reached the Fourth Level.

But if this Abyss Beast were to turn back toward the Black Abyss Mist, that would undoubtedly be greatly disadvantageous for Yunhe.

So, the time left for him is not much.

He drew a slight breath.

Yunhe's expression turned solemn, and the hand seal in his hand changed again.

'Lord of the Clouds!'

Nine Songs Sword Technique, sword form—Lord of the Clouds!

The Five Elements Heavenly Thunder Sword, which had transformed into five-colored silks entwining around the Abyss Beast's body, suddenly burst forth again with blinding, scorching golden lightning; three bolts of thunder merged into one, forming a vivid golden dragon that tore and coiled around the Abyss Beast's massive body tens of zhang tall.

'Roar!!'

This time the heavenly thunder's power was stronger than before by more than threefold, instantly bringing a reek of foul stench mixed with a burnt odor, as well as the Abyss Beast's agonized roar.

And Yunhe's mana surged forth almost without reserve; his sleeves flicked, sending out two more bolts of golden lightning that flew in succession and merged into that golden dragon.

In an instant, the dragon's momentum greatly increased.

'Slash!'

Just then Yunhe's cold, icy voice gave a low shout; the golden dragon's long cry rang out, and countless bolts of lightning exploded apart.

Boom!

The Abyss Beast's howling ceased abruptly.

But at the very instant the heavenly thunder's power dissipated, the place where the Abyss Beast had been suddenly welled up an extremely thick black mist.

At the same moment, the surging Black Abyss Mist suddenly expanded in a flash; although there was still some distance, it instantly enveloped the Subdue Demon Armor.

Within that Black Abyss Mist, it seemed as if countless Abyss Beasts were roaring and struggling.

Yunhe's heart was filled with astonishment, yet his hand movements were not slow at all; he first seized the opportunity to retract the Subdue Demon Armor and the Five Elements Heavenly Thunder Sword, then after a vigorous shake of the Ice Phoenix Wings, he swiftly retreated to open distance.

And the sudden expansion of that Black Abyss Mist seemed to gradually subside due to the death of this Fourth-Level Abyss Beast.

After flying a certain distance, Yunhe slightly relaxed his breath.

He opened his palm.

In the center of his palm lay only a single irregular black crystal.

Having slain that Fourth-Level Abyss Beast, he actually harvested only this piece of crystal?

And the Abyss Beast's formidable flesh, upon its death, turned into that black mist and dissipated, or rather merged again into the rolling Black Abyss Mist, as if its very self was merely a part of the Black Abyss Mist.

'In that case, dealing with an early Fourth-Level Abyss Beast is not much easier than handling an early Fourth-Level demonic beast, yet all one gains is a lump of this unknown black crystal—no wonder even cultivators of some strength avoid the Black Abyss Mist like the plague.'

But after staring at the black crystal in his palm for a long time, Yunhe's heart suddenly stirred, as if he had thought of something.

'Is this a Black Soul Crystal?!'

He remembered seeing a brief description of the "Black Soul Crystal" in an ancient book.

That ancient text said little, not detailed, only one line—

"The Black Soul Crystal is the product of souls materializing!"

And holding this crystal, Yunhe could clearly feel the corpse soul gu becoming increasingly restless..

Quite obvious.

What attracted the corpse soul gu was not the abyssal beast, but the Black Soul Crystal inside its body.

After a moment's thought, he understood the reason.

However, Yunhe still put away this Black Soul Crystal and did not immediately give it to the corpse soul gu.

For now he could not determine the exact value and function of the Black Soul Crystal, nor know if there were side effects, so he could not let the corpse soul gu consume it at will.

Feeling the massive consumption of his mana, Yunhe gave a wry smile.

Though the Demon-Subduing Armor and Ice Phoenix Wings are powerful, their drain on his mana is not trivial.

"Just this one Black Soul Crystal—if its value isn't high, it's indeed somewhat not worth the cost."

If I could obtain a fourth‑level monster pill from that abyssal beast's body, or its extraordinarily strong physique, that would be a gain; but having only a piece of Black Soul Crystal is truly unexpected.

"But I originally just wanted to test my strength; if I regard it as an additional gain, it's not hard to accept."

He took out a jade bottle, poured three elixirs into his mouth.

"His defensive ability and escape speed should be considered fairly good among early Nascent Soul cultivators, but his offensive capability is indeed somewhat lacking."

Flying away from the Black Abyss Mist toward the Falling Wind Valley, he couldn't help but self‑mock:

"Top‑tier survival ability, third‑tier offensive ability—call it second‑tier."

If others knew he regarded his heavenly thunder power and a set of fourth‑level low‑grade flying sword spirit treasures as merely second‑tier ability, they'd likely make the early Nascent Soul cultivators curse.

After all, if his set of five flying swords formed a sword array, combined with heavenly thunder power and sword technique, it could rival a fourth‑level mid‑grade magic treasure—not to mention it has already given birth to an artifact spirit.

But compared to his defensive and flight abilities, it can only be called second‑tier for now.

However, no matter how you say it.

Yunhe now has a clear understanding of his own strength.

Barring accidents, an ordinary early Nascent Soul cultivator would not be his match.

(End of chapter)