Chapter 331: Soul-Devouring Heavenly Demon

Facing the hundreds of ghosts released by the Ten Thousand Ghost Banner, Zhang Nuo acted as if he did not see them. A grey radiance surged from his body, instantly enveloping him. At the same time, one of his hands quickly moved behind his back, while the other pointed into the void to execute several Dharma techniques, which respectively merged into the Flying Swords before him.

Suddenly, these Flying Swords swelled in size, becoming a full zhang in length. With the sound of air being torn, they flashed and charged into the midst of the ghosts!

Flashes of spirit light flickered. Zhang Nuo's Flying Swords did not have much effect against the ghosts' attacks. Although he did slay a few, how could hundreds of ghosts be dealt with by a mere few Flying Swords?

A cold sneer appeared on Jin Buhuan's face. Even Zhang Nuo's master, Lin Fan, would have had to retreat when faced with such a large number of ghosts. He did not expect this brat to charge straight in; was he throwing his life away?

Watching everything before his eyes, nine white threads as thin as silkworms suddenly erupted from the palm of Zhang Nuo's hand hidden behind his back. These threads then danced wildly, and soon, a small white lotus slowly bloomed!

This was the small-scale Lotus Fall sword formation. Some time ago, Chunyangzi had told Zhang Nuo that because his physical body had been tempered by the Immovable Underworld King technique, it was much tougher than that of an average Dharma Cultivator. Using his physical body to attack the opponent unexpectedly would often yield excellent results.

However, Zhang Nuo did not understand close-quarters combat, so Chunyangzi helped him devise this move: miniaturizing the Lotus Fall sword formation to be activated only in the palm of his hand. In this way, the immense power contained within the sword formation was concentrated into a single point. As long as one was struck by the "lotus" in his hand, even a cultivator who specialized in Body Refining would have no way to escape unscathed!

Zhang Nuo reckoned that even if he exhausted all the Magic Treasures on his person, he might not be able to take down the old man before him in a short time. On the contrary, the longer the battle dragged on, the more disadvantageous it would be for him!

When he saw Jin Buhuan activate the Ten Thousand Ghost Banner, Zhang Nuo's mind shifted, and he knew the opportunity had arrived! That was why he did not fear the ghosts and charged straight toward the old man!

Jin Buhuan had no idea what he was thinking, fully believing that Zhang Nuo had been blinded by rage and had lost his composure!

Swish! Swish! With a few soft sounds, the several zhang-long Flying Swords Zhang Nuo had previously unleashed streaked through the air like white ribbons. With the spirit light shining brilliantly, Jin Buhuan's naked eyes were actually unable to see what was happening in front of him!

Taking advantage of this opportunity, Yin Qi flashed at the center of Zhang Nuo's brow, and the Hell Butterfly flashed out. Without a moment's hesitation, the black butterfly opened its mouth, and as its suction force rose, an invisible vortex formed in the surrounding space. The ghosts released by the Ten Thousand Ghost Banner were sucked directly into the vortex and then entered the belly of the Hell Butterfly!

All of this happened very quickly. In the blink of an eye, the hundreds of ghosts vanished. When the white ribbons from the Flying Swords disappeared, Jin Buhuan stared at Zhang Nuo as if he had seen a ghost!

He had no idea what method the opponent had used to instantly wipe out those ghosts. With a ferocious grin at the old man, Zhang Nuo left an afterimage in place and arrived right in front of Jin Buhuan!

At this moment, Jin Buhuan felt a slight shock in his heart. Zhang Nuo, who was originally a Dharma Cultivator, had suddenly gotten so close to him; nothing good could come of it. He immediately soared into the sky, and while his Divine Sense moved in tandem, the black Kuluotou and the purple-gold Flying Sword both slashed toward Zhang Nuo. Meanwhile, he shook the Ten Thousand Ghost Banner in his hand again. After several sounds of ghosts wailing and wolves howling, the banner surface shot out a full thousand ghosts! They lunged at Zhang Nuo from above!

Zhang Nuo's movement technique was already very fast, but he did not expect Jin Buhuan's escape speed to be slow either. Sensing two powerful pressures attacking from above and behind, he did not even turn his head. The spirit light of the Flying Swords beside him flashed, blocking the incoming purple-gold Flying Sword! After a burst of metallic clashing, the purple-gold Flying Sword circled slightly and returned to the old man's side.

Then, with a flap of the Butterfly Wings on his back, he dodged the attacks of the numerous ghosts overhead. At this moment, the black Kuluotou turned into a streak of black light and struck directly at Zhang Nuo's back.

Zhang Nuo did not deliberately block the black Kuluotou. Instead, when it attacked from behind him, he turned around abruptly and launched the blooming white lotus he was holding in his palm!

The white "lotus" was only the size of a fist, but its surface was crisscrossed with sword Qi, and waves of unsettling Spirit Power fluctuations emanated from it.

Boom!

Just as Jin Buhuan was wondering what it was that Zhang Nuo had unleashed, the small-scale Lotus Fall sword formation collided with the black Kuluotou!

After a heaven-shaking, earth-shattering roar, the power accumulated by the lotus erupted instantly with the pistil as the center. Countless scorching sword Qi slashed directly onto the black Kuluotou!

Suddenly, the black Kuluotou seemed to feel pain, as a wail resembling a human voice emanated from within it. With a flash of black light, it flew back to the old man's side!

Jin Buhuan looked at the black Kuluotou before him in shock. He saw tiny cracks appearing on its skull, and its teeth "clattered" together a few times, as if it were saying something!

"It's alive?"

Seeing the black Kuluotou's jaw move slightly, a wave of suspicion arose in Zhang Nuo's heart! Could the old man's skull Magic Treasure possess life?

With a movement of his Divine Sense, he gathered the released Flying Swords back to his side, then soared into the air to stand face-to-face with the old man in mid-air. He hadn't expected that the previous strike, while failing to hit the old man, would instead alert the enemy. If he wanted to get close to the old man again, it probably wouldn't be such an easy task!

Wrapped in Evil Qi and grey radiance, Zhang Nuo flapped the Butterfly Wings on his back slightly, and his pair of blood-red eyes finally slowly returned to their normal color!

Listening to the words of the black Kuluotou, Jin Buhuan cast his gaze upon Zhang Nuo. It seemed this brat had been playing the fool just now. If he had dodged in time, that earth-shattering strike would likely have landed on him!

Stroking the cracked skull with one hand, the old man revealed a look of heartache. Suddenly, he let out a cold snort and unleashed the black Kuluotou once more, but this time it was not aimed at Zhang Nuo; it simply hovered in mid-air.

Immediately following this, a bizarre scene occurred! The thousands of ghosts that Jin Buhuan had just released surged toward the black Kuluotou. As they coalesced, they actually formed a body two zhang tall! And the head of the body was that black skull!

Awoo!

A sharp, ear-piercing sound emanated from the skull's mouth. Zhang Nuo's pupils shrank abruptly. It seemed his previous guess was not wrong at all; the old man's skull Magic Treasure was indeed a living thing! The massive body it formed was identical to a human figure, except that on the body, a terrifying ghost face was opening its mouth wide, wanting to swallow Zhang Nuo whole!

Zhang Nuo raised his eyebrows slightly. Although he had the Hell Butterfly as a trump card, he still dared not underestimate this behemoth before him!

"Zhang Nuo! It is your good fortune to have the chance to see the 'Soul-Devouring Heavenly Demon'! Prepare to offer up your soul!"

Jin Buhuan said coldly. Then, as he urged his Divine Sense, the seemingly massive and clumsy body of the "Soul-Devouring Heavenly Demon" flashed in mid-air and lunged directly at Zhang Nuo!

In this situation, Zhang Nuo dared not hold anything back. He flipped one hand, and two five-colored Flying Swords immediately appeared in his palm—they were the "Heaven Splitting Scissors"!

Without a second thought, he unleashed them. The two Flying Swords streaked across the sky, their forms expanding to over a zhang in size, and they both slashed at the waist of the charging "Soul-Devouring Heavenly Demon"!

Swish! Swish! After two soft sounds, the two five-colored Flying Swords passed through as if they had slashed through empty space, appearing not to have harmed the "Soul-Devouring Heavenly Demon" in the slightest!

The ghost face slashed by the Flying Swords only revealed a slight look of pain before quickly returning to its original state! Zhang Nuo's heart skipped a beat. With a movement of his Divine Sense, the two five-colored Flying Swords merged together after passing through the "Soul-Devouring Heavenly Demon," transforming into a giant pair of scissors!

The scissors radiated five-colored light throughout their body and snipped directly at the waist of the "Soul-Devouring Heavenly Demon" from behind!

Crack!

Following a crisp sound, the moment the two scissor blades closed, the surrounding void distorted, and the body of the "Soul-Devouring Heavenly Demon" was forcibly split in two!

Jin Buhuan, who had been standing in the back observing the battle, saw the Heaven Splitting Scissors appear and his aged skin twitched a few times, but he instantly returned to his cold, sneering expression!

Zhang Nuo had succeeded with one strike, but before the joy on his face could fade, he saw the body of the "Soul-Devouring Heavenly Demon," just cut in two, condense and merge back together again!

"A troublesome fellow!"

After Zhang Nuo cursed hatefully, he moved his Divine Sense again, and the Heaven Splitting Scissors turned into a streak of five-colored light, attacking straight toward Jin Buhuan! At the same time, he moved his body, flipped one hand, and a fist-sized Silver Flame appeared in his palm, which he then swung out.

As the Silver Flame rushed toward the "Soul-Devouring Heavenly Demon," Zhang Nuo retracted the Butterfly Wings on his back! Following a flash at the center of his brow, a black butterfly only a few inches in size appeared!

The light transformed by the Heaven Splitting Scissors flashed and arrived before the old man. He unleashed several snips in succession, scaring Jin Buhuan into retreating repeatedly. He had witnessed the power of these scissors just now and would certainly not use a Magic Treasure to resist them head-on!

Just as his body flashed, a change occurred at the "Soul-Devouring Heavenly Demon" ahead! A sea of silver fire, dozens of zhang in size, appeared out of thin air, trapping the entire body of the "Soul-Devouring Heavenly Demon" within it!

The next moment, Zhang Nuo flew to the front of the "Soul-Devouring Heavenly Demon." The Hell Butterfly at the center of his brow opened its mouth slightly, and a tremendous suction force pulled the ghosts that composed the body of the "Soul-Devouring Heavenly Demon" directly into its mouth!

In the blink of an eye, the massive body of the "Soul-Devouring Heavenly Demon" shrank at a speed visible to the naked eye, until only the black skull remained! Although the black skull had no skin or flesh and no expression could be seen, it was not hard to tell from the "clattering" sound it emitted that it was very afraid of the Hell Butterfly!

Turning its body, the black skull tried to flee back to the old man's side! At this moment, Zhang Nuo let out a cold snort:

"Still want to run? Not that easy!"

As soon as his voice fell, he flipped his hand again, and a small, pale-blue Small Tripod appeared in his palm!