With a massive dharma body arm torn off, Ning Hao Shou was furious. His colossal golden dharma body raised its head high, anger glinting in his eyes, and he said faintly, "Are you, the demon race, truly all beasts?!"
Fu Sheng's brows furrowed, and bamboo slips rose from his sleeves, transforming into offensive maneuvers that fiercely struck Ning Hao Shou's immense body. A twelfth-realm Eastern Yue Mountain Lord, entrenched in his own domain and in sync with the mountainous terrain of the Qinling region, his dharma body was as solid as a mountain. Suppressing him completely was no easy feat.
"Get lost!"
Ning Hao Shou's remaining arm suddenly spread its five fingers, and the ground emitted a violent hum. In the next moment, a dazzling golden sword, thousands of feet long, emerged from the mountainside. The instant Ning Hao Shou grasped it, the entire Eastern Yue began to ring incessantly. The surrounding mountains and rivers' fortune had been completely mobilized by Ning Hao Shou.
"Hiss!"
From the depths of the forest, a beam of ethereal light shot through the air, striking fiercely behind Ning Hao Shou's dharma body. The sword qi was extremely blazing, making the golden body tremble incessantly, and golden starlight fell continuously. The one who wielded the sword was a woman in a blue long skirt, a folded blue oil-paper umbrella on her back, holding a sharp blade. It was the twelfth-realm great demon Long Zheng.
"I'll do it!"
From the mountain forest to the side, accompanied by a thunderous roar, the twelfth-realm great demon Lu Hai in a green robe suddenly charged out, a river trailing behind him. The spear refined from a true dragon's spine in his hand swept out, manifesting a dharma image hundreds of feet tall. It struck Ning Hao Shou's waist fiercely, causing Ning Hao Shou to lose his balance completely.
"Go down!"
Ning Yuan Sheng spread his arms, his eyes blazing with fierce light. The colossal nine-headed lion dharma image behind him stretched across the mountains. It suddenly raised a sharp claw and pressed down heavily on Ning Hao Shou's shoulder, pinning the Mountain Lord's body fiercely onto the mountaintop. At the same time, Fu Sheng's golden carving knife glowed brilliantly again, and with a fierce downward strike, it carved a deep gash on Ning Hao Shou's neck.
As the human race's Eastern Yue, Ning Hao Shou was unwilling to die like this. With a low roar, the entire Eastern Yue trembled. Endless mountainous formations rose, transforming into stone cones, earth spikes, and the like, attacking the group of great demons. But at the same time, a graceful figure in a white dress appeared on the mountaintop. A sword light flashed, and overwhelming sword qi surged like a tide, crushing all of Ning Hao Shou's counterattacking mountainous formations.
Nan Qing Feng, the thirteenth realm of the Ancestral Mountain of the Demon Race.
At this point, three thirteenth-realm demons had already appeared in the Shu Prefecture region.
"Quickly fight!"
Nan Qing Feng's delicate brows furrowed, and she said, "We must be fast!"
As she spoke, she flickered past, landing like a falling leaf on Ning Hao Shou's dharma body's shoulder. But the moment her slender feet pressed down, Ning Hao Shou's entire body trembled, and his body sank dozens of feet. The dharma body slowly disintegrated. At the same time, Long Zheng's figure flashed past. With a turn of her wrist, strands of fine sword qi enveloped Ning Hao Shou's entire arm. When Long Zheng unleashed her sword intent, the entire arm was almost reduced to mere golden bones.
Lu Hai roared, revealing his evil dragon true form, and slammed fiercely into Ning Hao Shou's back. Fu Sheng, meanwhile, waved both his sleeves, and a string of bamboo slips spanned out. Confucian Dao spells filled with demonic energy rained down on Ning Hao Shou's back, turning the Mountain Lord's golden body into a sieve in an instant.
"That's enough!"
Ning Yuan Sheng roared, his true body streaking like lightning. The Blood Weeping Fan in his hand surged with demonic energy and pressed fiercely against the back of Ning Hao Shou's head. In the next moment, it pierced through the skull, and a wisp of demonic energy shot out from Ning Hao Shou's forehead. At the same time, Long Zheng leaped high into the air, and a sharp sword descended from the heavens, instantly severing the head of the pitiable human race's Eastern Yue Mountain Lord.
"Boom~~~"
With a deafening roar, Ning Hao Shou's head fell from the sky, transforming into a giant stone tens of feet in size and rolling down the mountain from the peak, crushing countless trees and forests. The entire Eastern Yue also seemed to have lost all its spiritual essence at this moment, and the Eastern Yue Mountain Lord Shrine became dim and lusterless.
Thus, the human race's Eastern Yue Mountain Lord officially perished.
...
"Hmph!"
As a twelfth-realm demon sword cultivator, Long Zheng's killing intent was unusually strong. She looked at the continuously disintegrating and falling Mountain Lord before her and then cast her gaze towards the dilapidated Mountain Lord Shrine not far away. She gritted her teeth, raised the sword in her hand, and looked towards the south, asking, "Can I raze it with one sword?"
On the hilltop, a fiery red glow descended, transforming into the figure of the great demon Yu Zhi in a long dress. She frowned and said, "The south will be ours, the demon race's territory sooner or later. Even if the plan of submersion succeeds, this Eastern Yue cannot be drowned, so let's keep it. Otherwise, after we the demon race take over the human territory, we will have to rebuild it, which will be a lot of trouble."
"Mm."
Long Zheng nodded. "I'll listen to you."
Yu Zhi floated up, riding the wind and looking at the twelfth-realm Mountain Lord's golden body that was continuously annihilating. She couldn't help but frown, feeling a bit regretful. How could she not feel regret? People like Ning Hao Shou had incredibly stubborn bones. He hadn't surrendered during the Xia-Shang War and preferred to fight to the death. After his death, he received divine decree from heaven and earth, becoming the human race's Eastern Yue Mountain Lord, guarding the mountains and rivers here for many years. Now, surrounded and killed by multiple thirteenth and twelfth-realm demons, he died without using the mountain and river formations to escape. Such a person was not only stubborn but also prioritized the overall situation. If only the demon race had more people like him.
Alas, she looked at Long Zheng, Lu Hai, and the others. The demon race was full of such vindictive, fierce, and venomous beings, all pursuing the legendary Great Desolation Slaughter and Enlightenment. In terms of state of mind, they were indeed far inferior to the peak cultivators of the human race.
She took out a ruler carved from green jade from her怀. The markings on the ruler were continuously disappearing. She frowned and looked at everyone, saying, "The Eastern Yue has fallen, and the Western Shu region is slowly sinking, but the speed is still too slow. Immediately set up the Nine Star Array. Nine Spirits True Monarch, after the Nine Star Array is completed, how to accelerate the decline of the fortune in the Western Shu region will be up to you."
"Don't worry, Lord Yu Zhi."
Ning Yuan Sheng cupped his fists and smiled. "Leave it to me."
Long Zheng wiped the golden bloodstains from her blade and looked again at the nearly annihilated Mountain Lord's golden body, unable to help but let out a snort. The legendary Ning Hao Shou, the human race's twelfth-realm Eastern Yue Mountain Lord, was nothing more than this.
...
Shu Prefecture, west of the Qinling Mountains.
Four beams of sword light simultaneously descended into the Qinling Mountains, transforming into four figures in the forest: Lin Zhao and Su Qing Jiu, Xu Zhi, and Huang Ting Yu. The moment they landed, Lin Zhao felt a tightness in his chest. Immediately after, the ground sank slightly. He hurriedly looked to the east, knowing that something must have happened there. However, his ninth-realm cultivation was too low to discern more information.
"What's wrong?" he asked, confused.
Su Qing Jiu, dressed in a white shirt and red skirt, like an immortal descending to the mortal world, also looked to the east. Her heart felt a slight heaviness; it was bad news, but she didn't know how to tell Lin Zhao Gege.
Huang Ting Yu and Xu Zhi's cultivation was slightly inferior. They could sense the mountain and river formations in the east becoming chaotic, but they didn't know what had happened. They could only speculate that Eastern Yue Ning Hao Shou might be in trouble.
Neither of them spoke.
"What exactly is going on?"
Lin Zhao frowned and asked, "Xiao Jiu'er?"
"Lin Zhao Gege."
Su Qing Jiu's delicate brows furrowed. "If I'm not mistaken, the human race's Eastern Yue Mountain Lord, Ning Hao Shou... should no longer be here. The mountain and river formations in the east are now very chaotic, and there are also faint traces of demonic energy. And to be able to kill Ning Hao Shou in an instant... at least three thirteenth-realm demons must have been mobilized, perhaps more."
"What should we do?"
Huang Ting Yu frowned. "Going to Eastern Yue now would be no different from seeking death. We are too few, and Lin Zhao's cultivation is too low, making him easy to kill."
"We're not going to Eastern Yue."
A cold glint appeared in Lin Zhao's eyes. "We'll settle the score for killing Ning Hao Shou slowly. There's no need to seek death now. All of you, suppress your aura to the lowest level and enter the Qinling Mountains. First, find the whereabouts of the Deer Seeking Sword. If you encounter any fifth-realm demons, kill them if you can, otherwise retreat. Do not hesitate."
"Understood."
Everyone nodded in unison.
Lin Zhao's heart was heavy. The situation in Shu Prefecture was beyond his imagination. He never expected that the opening move would be the death of the Eastern Yue Mountain Lord Ning Hao Shou. The current situation was far from optimistic. Therefore, Lin Zhao's actions in Western Shu would be even more meticulous, and he would never risk the lives of Xiao Jiu'er, Xu Zhi, and Old Huang.
...
Mo Family Ancestral Hall.
A flood dragon boat, loaded with 500 young Mo family cultivators, floated by. On the side of the flood dragon boat, Xu Shuo, in a green shirt with a long wooden box on his back, had a very solemn expression. He cupped his fists towards the group of Mo family members who were seeing him off and said, "I'm leaving."
"Shuo'er."
The fourteenth-realm patriarch frowned. "The situation in Shu Prefecture is now in your hands. Set up the array well, and don't let this world down."
"Yes, Master!"
Xu Shuo frowned and looked at his master again. This journey was dangerous, and he might never return.
"Junior Brother!"
In the crowd, a plump cultivator dressed as a second-generation disciple of the Mo family frowned. His face, though plump, was still handsome, but he had gained a lot of weight in middle age, his body like a barrel. On his back was a three-sectioned long spear wrapped in gray cloth. Among the new generation disciples of the Mo family, he was the senior disciple and also the strongest fighter, that was beyond doubt. Even three Xu Shuos combined might not be his match.
"Do you want me to go with you?" he asked.
Xu Shuo smiled. "Senior Brother, the sect is also not peaceful. It's better for you to stay and guard the Mo Family Ancestral Hall with Master. When it comes to fighting in Western Shu... I might not be very good at it, but with Su Qing Jiu, Huang Ting Yu, Long Dong Jun, and others, it will be fine."
"Then... return safely!"
"Mm."
Xu Shuo turned and stood at the bow of the boat, cupping his fists towards his master and fellow disciples. "Xu Shuo is leaving. May my human race's world be peaceful, and may my Mo Family Ancestral Hall be peaceful!"