txolops Chapter 390 Nascent Soul Battle
Chapter 390 Nascent Soul Battle
The fluctuations were extremely well concealed; if Luo Ming's divine sense hadn't far surpassed that of others of the same level, he probably wouldn't have been able to detect them at all.
"Heh, they've come after all," Luo Ming thought with a cold laugh.
"It seems that those old guys from other demonic sects couldn't hold back any longer and decided to take advantage of the moment when the Fiery Sun Bird was undergoing its tribulation and the Spirit Control Sect was on full alert to secretly make some moves, or even... directly sabotage it."
His expression remained unchanged, still displaying the slightly tense and vigilant look befitting a Foundation Establishment disciple as he gazed into the distance, seemingly unaware of the approaching danger.
At the same time, he fully activated the Concealing Yuan Technique and the Myriad Spirits Blood Technique, concealing his own qi and blood, mana fluctuations, and even life aura to the extreme, disguising himself as no different from an ordinary Foundation Establishment disciple.
He didn't want to be caught up in a conflict of this level at this moment by leaking even the slightest bit of his aura, which would be a sure way to cause trouble for himself.
High in the sky, on a seemingly empty cloud, the Cold Toad Master, who was sitting cross-legged with his eyes closed and whose divine sense covered a large area below, suddenly opened his eyes, which were as cold as ice for ten thousand years!
Deep within his pupils, a fleeting glimpse of icy blue runes seemed to appear! He stared intently at the void in the direction from which Luo Ming had just sensed the anomaly, his voice icy, carrying undisguised hostility:
"Who are you, fellow Daoist? Why are you hiding so secretively? Now that you're here, why the need for such furtive behavior?"
"Hehehe..." A hoarse, dry laugh, like sandpaper rubbing together, echoed from the void.
Immediately afterwards, a strange fireball, no bigger than a fist, bluish-black in color, with pale green sparks leaping around its edges, appeared out of thin air without warning. The fireball slowly rotated, emitting a sinister and intense aura.
Within the fireball, light and shadow distorted, and the phantom of an old man wearing a dark green Taoist robe, with a gaunt face like a skeleton and narrow, slit-like eyes, gradually became clear. It was none other than Yan Lie, the Nascent Soul Elder of the Demon Flame Sect, known for his fiery temper and vicious techniques!
"Fellow Daoist Han Chan's 'Mysterious Ice Spirit Eye' is indeed well-deserved of its reputation. I was confident in my skill with the 'Azure Sun Concealment Technique,' but I never expected that even from this distance, you would see through it at a glance. I admire you, I admire you." Yan Lie's illusory figure grinned, his voice filled with mockery.
Master Hanchan's face darkened, and his eyes flashed with cold light: "Old Monster Yan! Instead of staying properly in your Demon Flame Sect's 'Burning Heaven Valley,' you secretly infiltrated my Spirit Control Sect's territory. What are you trying to do?"
"Haha, Fellow Daoist Han Chan, you flatter me." Yan Lie's illusory figure chuckled, a fierce glint flashing in his eyes.
"I merely heard of the unparalleled power of your 'Frosty Soul Divine Ability,' and today, having the opportunity, I was eager to test my skills! Let's see if your Profound Ice is more powerful, or my Azure Sun Demonic Fire is superior!"
Before he finished speaking, his illusory sleeve swept sharply in the direction of the Cold Toad Immortal!
"call--!!"
The suspended dark blue fireball suddenly exploded, transforming into a bizarre sea of fire that blotted out the sun and exuded a bone-corroding, sinister aura. Like a flood bursting its banks, it swept towards the Cold Toad Immortal!
"Hmph! A mere trick!" Master Hanchan snorted coldly. Facing the surging Azure Sun Demon Fire, he neither dodged nor avoided it, but opened his mouth and spat it out!
"call out!"
A "Frost Soul Pearl," only the size of an egg, crystal clear and as if carved from millennia-old ice, spun and flew out, heading towards the sea of bluish-black flames!
"Hiss hiss hiss—!!!"
In an instant, high above, the dark blue sea of fire and the crystalline cold light intertwined and collided, erupting with continuous booming sounds and terrifying energy turbulence, turning that area of the sky into chaos!
Immediately afterwards, from several other directions around the Yuling Sect's mountain gate, there were also violent bursts of spiritual energy and the unique, earth-shattering battle fluctuations of Nascent Soul stage cultivators!
Clearly, the Ghost Spirit Sect, the Demon Flame Sect, and possibly other forces sent far more than just Yan Lie! They came prepared, launching a multi-pronged attack simultaneously to distract and disperse the defensive forces of the Spirit Control Sect, creating chaos and an opportunity for a fatal blow against the Blazing Sun Bird!
Below, look towards the East Peak.
Liu Yu looked up at the terrifying sight of the blue sea of fire colliding with the ice high in the sky, and the distant booming sounds of magical artifacts clashing. Her eyebrows furrowed tightly, and her pretty face was filled with solemnity and doubt.
"Yan Lie... the old monster from the Demon Flame Sect... how could they have arrived so quickly? How did the news leak out? I was only informed at the last minute, just before the Blazing Sun Bird started to trigger the lightning tribulation..." Liu Yu's mind raced, and she felt a faint sense of unease.
The timing and targeting of these people's appearance were too precise, as if they had an uncanny grasp of the Spirit Control Sect's plans. There might indeed be a mole within the sect, and one of considerable rank!
Meanwhile, in the sky, higher and closer to the valley where the Fiery Sun Bird was undergoing its tribulation, another battlefield was taking place.
Dongmen Tu, the sect leader of the Yuling Sect, stood on a giant flying centipede that was over thirty feet long, its body was as red as blood, it had four pairs of transparent membranous wings on its back, a ferocious mouth on its head, and its body was surrounded by a thick dark green poisonous mist! The aura emanating from this centipede had reached the peak of the seventh level. It was one of Dongmen Tu's natal spirit insects, which he had cultivated for many years, and it was extremely fierce.
Turn the page, and you'll find yourself in another world.
Dongmen Tu's face was so gloomy it was almost dripping with water. His gaze was fixed on the figure that was quietly suspended in the void not far ahead, surrounded by ghostly energy and with an indistinct face—the current sect leader of the Ghost Spirit Sect!
"Sect Leader Wang!" Dongmen Tu's voice was icy, filled with barely suppressed rage. "Does today's action mean that the Ghost Spirit Sect is going to completely break ties with my Spirit Control Sect and start a war? Aren't you afraid that afterwards, my Spirit Control Sect will mobilize the entire sect to fight your sect to the death?"
Upon hearing this, the Ghost Spirit Sect Master let out a low laugh, his tone somewhat nonchalant:
"Brother Dongmen, why be angry? Our two sects live next door to each other, and occasional friction is normal. Today's matter is simply that we are each doing what we should do. Besides... Brother Dongmen, have you forgotten that more than a hundred years ago, when my Ghost Spirit Sect's 'Nine-Child Ghost Mother' attempted to advance to the Nascent Soul stage, didn't your sect 'coincidentally' practice a formation nearby, disturbing the Ghost Mother and causing her to fail in her advancement and suffer great damage? It's just a matter of returning the favor, Brother Dongmen, why make such a fuss?"
"You...!" Dongmen Tu was speechless for a moment, his anger intensifying. It was true that the Yuling Sect had secretly sabotaged things back then, but that was then, and this is now!
"Since Sect Leader Wang has put it this way, then I have nothing more to say!"
Without further ado, Dongmen Tu unleashed his aura, and the crimson flying centipede beneath his feet let out a sharp hiss, spewing out a large plume of dark green poisonous mist that merged with the eerie gray aura emanating from Dongmen Tu himself, transforming into a massive gray-green tornado that swept towards the phantom of the Ghost Spirit Sect Master!
"Let me see just how much Master Wang has improved his 'Heavenly Ghost Divine Power' over the years!"
"Haha, I've been wanting to see if Brother Dongmen's Soul Fusion Technique is still as domineering as it was back then!" The ghostly figure of the Ghost Spirit Sect Master laughed loudly, showing no sign of backing down. Yin energy surged around him, and countless ferocious ghost faces appeared and howled, transforming into a ghost domain that covered the heavens and the earth, meeting the gray-green tornado head-on!
"boom--!!!"
The two divine abilities, representing the highest level of power of the Spirit Control Sect and the Ghost Spirit Gate, collided fiercely! The power and commotion they unleashed far surpassed the battle between Cold Toad Master and Yan Lie!
……
At this moment, among all the battle groups, the only one who was not directly disturbed and was able to concentrate on dealing with the current situation was perhaps the peak master of Lieyang Peak—Master Lieyang.
He still stood on that blue stone platform, his red hair dancing wildly, flames rising around him, and his eyes seemed to have turned into two burning flames, fixedly locked on the crimson-gold "sun" under the tribulation clouds that was frantically fighting against endless tribulation lightning.
His hands were constantly forming complex and profound hand seals. As the "partner" and controller of the Fiery Sun Bird for hundreds of years, the most important task for the Fiery Sun Venerable at this moment was not to fight the enemy, but to do his best to maintain and strengthen the restriction deep in the Fiery Sun Bird's soul!
If the restrictions loosen, or if the Fiery Sun Bird breaks free of its restraints the moment it successfully transcends its tribulation and its strength increases dramatically, it might even turn against its master... The consequences would be far more terrifying than the threat posed by the Nascent Soul enemies outside! An out-of-control, level-eight Fiery Sun Bird possessing the Golden Crow True Fire, with its destructive power and hatred for the Spirit Control Sect, would absolutely be a terrifying disaster!
Therefore, Venerable Lieyang dared not be distracted in the slightest, devoting all his mind and magical power to controlling the Lieyang Bird. The deafening sounds of battle outside seemed to have nothing to do with him.
"Soon...almost there!" Venerable Lieyang growled. "As long as the Lieyang Bird successfully withstands the final waves of lightning tribulation and completely stabilizes its transformation realm, with the power of its newly awakened 'Golden Crow True Fire,' it will definitely be able to severely injure those insidious old ghosts like the Demon Flame Sect and the Ghost Spirit Sect! Hmph, you will have to repay today's humiliation tenfold!"
He looked up and saw that beneath the tribulation clouds, the Fiery Sun Bird had swelled to nearly twice its size compared to before its tribulation! Its hundred-foot-tall body was completely enveloped in raging crimson-gold flames!
Each bolt of silver lightning, as thick as a bucket, struck down fiercely, but instead of dispersing the crimson-gold flames, it was as if an iron hammer was forging divine iron. With each strike, the gold in the flames became even more intense, and the high temperature emitted became even more terrifying!
The surrounding rocks had long since turned into crimson magma, and the air was distorted and steaming, as if even space itself was about to be ignited by this supreme yang fire.
Upon seeing this scene, Master Lieyang couldn't help but show an uncontrollable joy on his aged face; this was exactly what he had hoped for!
The tribulation tempering not only failed to destroy the Fiery Sun Bird, but also accelerated the awakening and fusion of the "Golden Crow True Fire"! With such power, once successful, its strength would be far beyond that of an ordinary newly transformed demon beast!
However, beneath the joy lay a deeper worry and vigilance.
He abruptly turned his head, his gaze sharp as lightning, sweeping over the edge of the bluestone platform where the four late-stage Core Formation cultivators, whom he had already arranged to sit cross-legged, their expressions tense, stood. He shouted sternly:
"Yes! We will obey the Peak Master's decree!" The four Core Formation cultivators trembled and bowed in response, their voices filled with barely suppressed excitement.
After giving his instructions, Master Lieyang felt a little more at ease and focused all his attention back on the place where he was undergoing tribulation, secretly praying that the last few waves of lightning tribulation would pass quickly so that the Lieyang Bird could successfully complete its tribulation.