Chapter 225: Bane of Evil, The Corpse Tide Approaches

In the days that followed, Lu Yuan and Qin Ruoning settled down peacefully along this section of the blockade line.

The overall situation of the defense line they were responsible for was quite good; during the day, when the Yang energy was at its peak, the thousands of Corpse Demons in the Yin Corpse Mountain Range were rarely active, and only at night would they become exceptionally active, occasionally crossing the mountain range in small groups to assault the defense line.

The War Hall cultivators had deployed Detection Arrays everywhere outside the Yin Corpse Mountain Range, and once a Corpse Tide struck, they would issue a warning. Generally, such situations were handled by the group of cultivators under Lu Yuan and Qin Ruoning, and unless they encountered a Corpse King-level threat or a large-scale Corpse Tide, the two of them would not be disturbed.

After all, Golden Core Real Persons were the backbone of the Immortal City, and even while guarding the front lines, they needed to cultivate, so naturally, they would not waste their energy on small fry.

Of course, in a dangerous area like the Yin Corpse Mountain Range, the Corpse Demons that emerged could not all be small fry; as time passed, just two months later, a large Corpse Tide broke through the mountain blockade and was discovered by the cultivators under Lu Yuan.

This Corpse Tide was formed by hundreds of various beast corpses, and leading them was a pitch-black, snake-shaped Corpse King nearly ten zhang long; wherever it passed, the earth shook and the mountains swayed, and its entire body was surrounded by oily green poisonous corpse mist, which could be said to be overflowing with fierce might.

Judging by the concentration of its corpse aura and its might, this was clearly a mid-tier Corpse King, corresponding to a mid-stage Golden Core cultivator.

Against a Corpse King of this level, two early-stage Golden Core cultivators could normally only be said to be barely able to cope, and one moment of carelessness could lead to them being buried in the corpse's maw.

Therefore, upon discovering this corpse, those Foundation Establishment and Qi Refining stage cultivators were terrified, and Qin Ruoning was also extremely solemn, as if facing a great enemy; only Lu Yuan was pleased to see such a hunt, feeling extremely excited, and he flew forward at the first opportunity to engage in a fierce battle with this snake-shaped Corpse King.

Although with his current strength, he could completely finish off this Corpse King with a single sword strike, he still had to keep a low profile under the eyes of the other cultivators around him, pretending to struggle as he coordinated with Qin Ruoning to wage a great battle against the snake-shaped Corpse King.

It had to be said that this snake-shaped Corpse King was indeed monstrously fierce and extremely difficult to deal with.

Beyond its tyrannical and bloodthirsty nature, the Corpse King level had already recovered a sliver of instinctual intelligence, and it could even spontaneously inhale and exhale corpse aura and death aura to strengthen itself; coupled with the inherently formidable physique of the beast while it was alive, the toughness of this Corpse King's body was comparable to a Three-Tier defensive Dharma Artifact, and Qin Ruoning's Dharma Artifact, the Canglan Seal, could often only leave a dent when it struck.

It was only Lu Yuan who, despite playing the pig to eat the tiger, could not hide the sharpness of the Seven Star Longyuan Sword Pill, and he was still able to leave streaks of wounds on the snake corpse.

At the same time, in the midst of the slaughter, he even had the mood to test the Earthly Fiend Art he had just unlocked: 【Slaying Demons】.

【Slaying Demons】: Can imbue weapons with Dharma Techniques, capable of driving away ghosts and subduing demons, as well as eliminating formless demonic entities; it specifically counters all evil spirits and ghosts in the world.

This art is an auxiliary Dharma Technique, equivalent to being able to enchant weapons and Dharma Artifacts, thereby enabling them to possess the ability to restrain all demons, ghosts, and monsters.

The snake-shaped Corpse King before him, with its monstrous fierce might and swirling poisonous mist, and even the Corpse Demon frenzy raging across the entire Yuanling Heaven, were undoubtedly the most typical of evil entities; thus, the 【Slaying Demons】 technique Lu Yuan unleashed immediately exerted an astonishing effect.

For the same sword strike, the Sword Pill augmented with the Slaying Demons technique saw its power and the damage it caused increase significantly, with the margin even reaching over fifty percent!

And this was while Lu Yuan had just unlocked 【Slaying Demons】 and had not yet upgraded it to the effect of a Supernatural Power; if this art were transformed into a Supernatural Power, the power of his Flying Sword and Sword Pill against these Corpse Demons would likely multiply several times over!

Furthermore, generally speaking, all Corpse Demon blood possesses extremely strong corrosive properties, and high-tier Corpse Demons even more so; if a cultivator's Dharma Artifact comes into contact with it too much, it is highly likely to lead to the contamination of the artifact's spirituality and a sharp decline in its quality and power.

However, the Sword Pill under the augmentation of Lu Yuan's 【Slaying Demons】 technique could be said to be unstained by even a speck of dust; even the corpse blood and corpse poison of a mid-tier Corpse King like the snake-shaped one could not contaminate it in the slightest.

Therefore, after the performance was about done, Lu Yuan, having gone through a "bitter battle," finally struck down the snake corpse's head with one fierce blow and then reaped the joyful cheers of his subordinates.

Afterwards, Lu Yuan took the initiative to assist these Foundation Establishment and Qi Refining stage subordinates in slaughtering all hundreds of Corpse Demons, thereby obtaining a full eleven wisps of Heavenly Dao Merit!

Eleven wisps of Heavenly Dao Merit, converted, amounted to 1,100 units of Luck Power credited to his account, and it came so easily and quickly.

Lu Yuan was in a pleasant mood, and those subordinates of his were even more grateful as they gathered around, their flattery pouring in like a tide.

After all, all those below the Golden Core stage are ants; on this front line, even Foundation Establishment cultivators often face fatal threats and have little sense of security.

At such times, if the leading Golden Core Real Person is powerful and willing to offer protection, it is undoubtedly something all cultivators yearn for.

Lu Yuan naturally did not care about the flattery and compliments of these people; he merely ordered them to collect the heads of all the Corpse Demons and notify the War Affairs Elder responsible for recording war merits at the main camp to conduct an inventory and record them.

Regardless of whether they were voluntary or forced, for any cultivator who went to the front line, the heads of the Corpse Demons they killed were the only evidence to prove their own merits, and even Golden Core Real Persons were no exception.

The War Affairs Elder who came to count and record the war merits was named Zhou Chuhai; although he only had the cultivation level of a False Core and was frail and aged, he had once been a trusted attendant of True Monarch Huanglong during his Foundation Establishment and Golden Core periods and was highly valued, which was why he was dispatched to be responsible for such important matters as merit recording, and even the Elders of the War Hall dared not offend him.

Upon receiving the news and arriving at this camp, Zhou Chuhai, accompanied by his attendant disciples, was slightly surprised to verify that Lu Yuan and Qin Ruoning had actually killed a mid-tier Corpse King, but he said nothing more, immediately using an Image Stone to leave behind proof and records, and then used a Storage Bag to take away all the Corpse Demon heads before leaving gracefully.

For one mid-tier Corpse King and hundreds of Corpse Demons, the two of them could be counted as one B-grade Medium Merit, and the cultivators under them, calculated at a lower grade, also received one C-grade Medium Merit; although Lu Yuan did not care at all about this merit, it did not prevent the morale of those Foundation Establishment and Qi Refining cultivators from soaring, and they became completely convinced by Lu Yuan and Qin Ruoning.

Just like that, in the days that followed.

After returning, Lu Yuan immediately spent 14,000 units of Luck Power to directly promote 【Slaying Demons】 to the level of a Supernatural Power.

And subsequent experiments showed that after he used this Supernatural Power to augment the Seven Star Longyuan Sword Pill, the lethality of the Sword Pill against Corpse Demons increased several times over; Corpse Demons that previously required three parts of his strength to kill could now be slain without using even half a part of his strength under this Supernatural Power!

With such an astonishing increase, Lu Yuan was naturally overjoyed and wished he could immediately rush into the Yin Corpse Mountain Range to slaughter in all directions, even hoping to encounter the Four-Tier Heavenly Corpse that might exist within to test his mettle.

A Four-Tier Heavenly Corpse corresponds to a Nascent Soul-level Great Cultivator, and ordinary Golden Core or even perfected cultivators would encounter disaster if they met one, but for Lu Yuan, who was about to break through to the mid-stage of Refining Qi into Spirit and possessed 【Slaying Demons】 and many other Supernatural Powers, he would inevitably restrain it firmly, and slaying it might not be such a difficult task.

However, thinking was just thinking; Lu Yuan was not yet that reckless, and he kept a low profile under the eyes of the three Hall Masters and Deputy Hall Masters of the War Hall, taking no action.

Just like that, he guarded the line while leisurely cultivating; even though the spiritual energy environment here was far worse than in the Immortal City, it had little impact on him, as every time he performed Nine Breaths Serving Qi, he could directly extract vast Original Qi from the void, allowing his cultivation to progress visibly every single day.

This day, half a year later.

Inside the simple cave dwelling where he had set up an isolation array, Lu Yuan sat cross-legged, his Dharma Power aura surging, and a sound like the roaring of ocean tides emanated from within and outside his body.

Looking inward, one could see that the Pill Embryo condensed by his Refining Qi into Spirit in his dantian, which was initially only the size of a soybean, was now the size of a human fist, and the Original Qi contained within it was as vast as a boundless ocean, which was inconceivable.

The Pill Embryo in his belly was now glowing with rosy light, round and agile, representing that he had cultivated to near perfection at this stage; whenever the Pill Embryo transformed, turning into a Spirit Embryo, it would signify that he had officially stepped into the mid-stage of Refining Qi into Spirit and could stand shoulder-to-shoulder with Nascent Soul Great Cultivators.

And this day was already very close.

Just at this moment.

Hum.

A burst of vibration and humming sounded from his waist, and Lu Yuan, who had just finished circulating Nine Breaths Serving Qi, suddenly opened his eyes.

Reaching out to take the source of the vibration at his waist, he saw that the Warning Talisman previously issued to him and Qin Ruoning by the War Hall Elder was emitting a rapid red light, and after he stimulated it with Dharma Power, the low and murderous voice of War Hall Master Xing Tian-ding immediately came through:

"A large-scale Corpse Tide has appeared; all War Cultivators on other defense lines, leave half your manpower to garrison, and the rest come immediately to support the East Third Section defense line!"

Lu Yuan's heart gave a sudden jolt, and he immediately walked out of the cave dwelling, happening to see Qin Ruoning also flying out from her own cave dwelling, her urgent voice spreading throughout the entire camp:

"A large-scale Corpse Tide has occurred at the Third Section defense line; except for the First and Second Squads, everyone else follow us two and depart for support immediately!"

At this moment, the sun was setting, the remaining light like blood; as Qin Ruoning's voice spread, the previously calm camp suddenly surged with waves, and the cultivators who were patrolling or meditating became restless, then quickly gathered, each with a tense expression, as if facing a great enemy.

A large-scale Corpse Tide meant that thousands upon thousands of Corpse Demons were assaulting the defense line, and there were no shortage of Corpse King-level threats; once it occurred, it was a life-and-death test for any cultivator.

However, there was no time to boost morale at this moment; Lu Yuan immediately joined up with Qin Ruoning and led dozens of cultivators to fly toward the East Section defense line.

The defense line established by Longshan Immortal City here stretched for hundreds of miles, and the East Third Section defense line was about a hundred miles away from their camp; the two of them exerted their full speed and arrived at their destination after a short while, subsequently drawing a slight breath of cold air.

They saw that under the gloomy sky, black mist was rolling and hissing shook the heavens; hundreds and thousands of cultivators were scattered in the void, and under their Dharma techniques, countless frost, flames, wind, rain, thunder, and lightning were sweeping in all directions.

And through the radiance of Dharma Power, one could see that a black wave had risen outside the Yin Corpse Mountain Range, rushing rapidly toward the garrisoned cultivators.

That wave was clearly not a real ocean wave, but was composed of countless Corpse Demons entangled together—some human, some beastly, dense and innumerable; even in the sky, there was already a patch of black, oppressive flying Corpse Demons like a passing dark cloud, blotting out the sun!

The Corpse Tide stretched for several miles, like a ghost realm demon cave emerging from a flood; the scene was simply like the gates of the underworld opening, releasing countless evil ghosts, and a single glance made one's hair stand on end!

The world had become a ghost realm; countless Corpse Demons were roaring and screeching, spraying out patches of corpse aura and poisonous gas, which swept toward the defense line of the Immortal City cultivators like a storm, and at the very front of the defense line, three figures with vast auras and Dharma Power radiance stood proudly.

"Good beast."

"Today, it is just right to kill to my heart's content!"

The one in the lead was none other than the War Hall's Hall Master, Xing Tianding; this Golden Core Cultivator at the Jiedan Late Stage first took a deep breath. Immediately following was a thunderous shout, and as this shout rang out, he formed a hand seal, and a massive Sword Qi, spanning several dozen zhang, surged forth, sweeping through the air; lightning flashed and exploded, roaring like thunder, as if a Heaven god had sent down a thunderous punishment.

The sword light, violent as a thunderclap, was clearly visible even from several dozen miles away; as his Sword Qi swept out, the world let out a mournful cry, and the large swaths of flying Corpse Demon in the sky bore the brunt of it, being mowed down like leeks, and then, amidst the bursting of countless lightning rays, they were instantly torn asunder, turning into countless charred corpse fragments that scattered in all directions.

With the Sword Qi crisscrossing, in just a few passes, a large area of the dense, incoming corpse swarm ahead was cleared; this War Hall Elder had impressively held back the entire sky's tide of Corpse Demon with his own strength!

"Hahaha, Hall Master Xing's Divine Firmament Imperial Thunder Sword has become increasingly mighty; as expected, when dealing with these corpse ghosts, thunder techniques are truly the first among all techniques."

"However, although we are not skilled in thunder techniques, we will not let you have all the glory!"

Just at this moment, the two Deputy Hall Masters behind Xing Tianding also laughed heartily; one formed a hand seal, and a crimson light bloomed in their hand, quickly transforming into a massive fire dragon that roared across the sky.

Wherever the fire dragon passed, heat waves rolled and the air boiled; it slammed fiercely into the massive corpse swarm on the ground, instantly igniting a raging sea of fire, enveloping an unknown number of Corpse Demon and turning them into charred corpses.

As for the other, they tossed out a white feather fan; with just one heavy wave, a gale rose in the void, and countless wind dragons roared, sweeping across the sky; between Heaven and Earth, sand and stones flew instantly, the sound of wind and clouds howling was incessant, and the corpse aura and poison gas spewed out by the thousands of Corpse Demon were all fiercely blown away.

The Yin Corpse Mountain Range had six defensive lines, and there were naturally more than just these three Hall Master and Deputy Hall Masters who were Golden Core Cultivator; at slightly further positions, there were also five Golden Core Real Person from Longshan Immortal City who struck out fiercely to resist the Corpse Tide.

Besides this, there were also hundreds or thousands of low-level cultivators shouting and cheering, simultaneously unleashing various Dharma Technique and Dharma Artifact, forming an extremely magnificent scene.

"Fellow Daoist Qin, let us also head over!"

With various lights flickering and power surging, Lu Yuan found it inappropriate to just watch and admire, so he immediately flew to the front line with Qin Ruoning, preparing to strike.

But just at this moment.

Roar.

On the ground, within that rolling Corpse Tide that was several stories high, a heaven-shaking and earth-shattering roar suddenly erupted, causing the mountains and rivers to tremble and the earth to rumble; a suffocating death aura and sense of oppression swept across the firmament like a tsunami, as if some terrifying monster had awakened!