Mo Tiange sighed inwardly.
She hadn't truly hoped the demon cultivators would let her go willingly; she had only wished to sway Bai Ling with words, to buy a little time so Qin Xi and the others could regroup and come to her rescue. Now, it seemed she had failed.
Just moments ago, with seven Nascent Souls and a puppet, they could still maneuver among these demon cultivators. Now, with only her left, even with the Chaos Heaven-Transforming Box in hand, it would be difficult to face the siege of over a dozen demon cultivators, let alone one of the Tenth Rank.
The only plan now was to fight her way out, to do her utmost and leave the rest to fate. If she truly perished here, it would mean her destiny in this life was insufficient, that she could not ascend to immortality. In her next life, she would try again.
In an instant, she had made her decision, a chilling killing intent radiating from her entire being.
This killing intent made Bai Ling take notice. She hadn't thought much of humans originally. Even if this human was the only one in the current world to have experienced the Core Formation Heavenly Tribulation, she was an ancient demon cultivator who had always lived in ancient spaces. In ancient times, the Core Formation Heavenly Tribulation was a commonplace event. This human cultivator was, in her eyes, just an ordinary Nascent Soul cultivator. But this killing intent and that peculiar magical treasure made her feel this human was not easy to deal with.
Mo Tiange flicked her sleeve, a surge of abundant spiritual energy filling her surroundings. The Chaos Heaven-Transforming Box had already vanished.
Before Bai Ling, the lightning sphere condensed from thunder—first white, then azure, then purple, and finally gold. In just this short time, it had evolved directly from white lightning into Golden Lightning.
Seeing this, Mo Tiange's pupils contracted. She also practiced lightning-based spells; how could she not know the rarity of Golden Lightning? Apart from herself, she had never seen anyone else cultivate Golden Lightning. And she had only managed it thanks to the lightning from the Heavenly Tribulation. Otherwise, even if she had cultivated the Heavenly Thunder Great Method, she would likely never see Golden Lightning in her lifetime.
Back in the Guixu Sea, hadn't this Fellow Daoist Bai's lightning spells not been Golden Lightning? Had she hidden her strength, or had she cultivated it later? Or, like herself, extracted it from the Heavenly Tribulation? Whichever it was, she would not be easy to deal with.
The Heaven-Earth Fan swept through the air, the Azure Dragon Bearing Lightning striking first.
Bai Ling sneered, her sleeve swaying slightly as the thunder sphere before her drifted out leisurely.
The refining method of the Heaven-Earth Fan was originally based on integrating formations into the artifact and controlling it with formations. To match the cultivation method Mo Tiange practiced, the materials used contained all five elements, unlike ordinary magical treasures which focused on a single element. Thus, it could manifest anything of the five elements. However, limited by her cultivation level, initially, the Heaven-Earth Fan could only manifest things like flowers, grass, flying birds, and illusory landscapes. Later, as her cultivation increased and it was nurtured, it could manifest lethal attacks of the five elements. And after her Core Formation Heavenly Tribulation awakened the Azure Dragon's breath within it, it could summon the Shadow of the Azure Dragon.
The Shadow of the Azure Dragon shared the same principle as Qin Xi's Vermilion Bird Bow and Jing Xingzhi's White Tiger Single Sword, except their techniques were purely offensive, making them more destructive. The Shadow of the Azure Dragon focused on protection and defense, relatively gentler.
However, this didn't mean the Shadow of the Azure Dragon couldn't attack. It had its own unique way of assault.
The two strands of Golden Lightning met. Bai Ling's Golden Lightning was more powerful, with a "puff" sound as it tried to swallow Mo Tiange's smaller Golden Lightning.
Bai Ling curled her lips into a smile, watching Mo Tiange with great leisure. "This concubine doesn't know where Fellow Daoist cultivated your Golden Lightning, but I'm afraid your Golden Lightning hasn't been fully mastered yet..."
Before she could finish, a tremendous roar of "Ao Wu!" sounded. The Azure Dragon that had been bearing the Golden Lightning lunged forward, bit off a piece of Bai Ling's Golden Lightning, and swallowed it in one gulp.
Bai Ling's expression changed abruptly.
Mo Tiange couldn't help but laugh. "Apologies. My Heavenly Thunder Great Method may not be fully mastered, but the Azure Dragon's breath is no fake."
A fierce light flashed in Bai Ling's eyes. She no longer engaged in conversation, forming a hand seal and silently activating a spell to control her Golden Lightning.
Mo Tiange's pressure increased tenfold. A Tenth Rank great demon was no joke, and this one was an ancient demon cultivator to boot. But she could only grit her teeth and hold on. With over a dozen demon cultivators surrounding her, the moment she showed signs of collapse, they would swarm her. And by her side, only a single puppet stood guard.
Bai Ling's advantage lay in her cultivation level—Tenth Rank strength, controlling Golden Lightning more potent than hers. But Mo Tiange had her own advantages. Besides Golden Lightning, she had the Azure Dragon. Golden Lightning was static; the Azure Dragon was alive.
She closed her eyes. The Heaven-Earth Fan floated before her as she silently mobilized the Azure Dragon's breath within it, gradually stirring the Shadow of the Azure Dragon.
"Hmph!" Seeming to sense the Azure Dragon slowly growing stronger, Bai Ling snorted coldly and suddenly manifested three golden rays, shooting them toward Mo Tiange.
Mo Tiange opened her eyes, giving Bai Ling a cold glance. This was taking advantage of her insufficient cultivation, unable to divide her attention while locked in this contest. The golden rays arrived in an instant. The puppet beside her suddenly stepped forward, the Fusheng Sword slashing down.
"Chi! Chi! Chi!" Three sounds as the golden rays struck the Fusheng Sword, all blocked. But the puppet abruptly lost power and plummeted downward.
Bai Ling let out a light laugh. "You don't even have a helper now. With so many of us demon cultivators, do you think you can win?"
Mo Tiange snorted lightly, not answering, seeming utterly unconcerned. In reality, her heart was exceedingly heavy. Over a dozen demon cultivators, one a Tenth Rank great demon—how could she escape this encirclement alone? Her gaze involuntarily drifted into the distance. Unfortunately, she saw no streaks of escaping light flying toward her.
Bai Ling noticed this, and her smile grew sweeter. "That's your husband, isn't it? Pity, he can't come. Old Hei is over there; he'll be lucky to protect himself."
"Heh..." Mo Tiange revealed a supremely confident smile. "Protect himself? Fellow Daoist Bai seems to think too highly of you demon cultivators. Aren't you currently at war with the Guixu Sea? I'm afraid by then, your losses above the Eighth Rank will be so severe you won't be able to continue fighting."
"Naive..." Bai Ling found it laughable and was about to mock her properly when her smile suddenly froze, replaced by an expression of utter astonishment. "You..."
Behind her, the ice-crystal-like box appeared soundlessly, a wisp of intangible aura coiling around her arm.
Chaos Qi, formless, intangible, soundless, traceless. Bai Ling had long been guarding against the Chaos Heaven-Transforming Box, but she hadn't expected this magical treasure to be so terrifying.
A pained look crossed her face. She swung her hand, severing her right arm outright, and teleported away. With this movement, the Golden Lightning she lost control of was seized by the Azure Dragon, which swallowed it in one gulp.
"Pfft!" Bai Ling spat out a mouthful of blood, glaring fiercely at Mo Tiange.
"Naive? Is Fellow Daoist Bai referring to herself?" The Azure Dragon retreated into the Heaven-Earth Fan. Mo Tiange held the Chaos Heaven-Transforming Box in her palm, casting a disdainful glance at her.
Blood dripped down profusely; she could barely control herself from reverting to her true form. Bai Ling took a deep breath and smiled self-deprecatingly. "Hunting geese all day, only to be pecked by a goose in the end. I underestimated the cultivators of this era, thinking that as an ancient demon cultivator, I could look down upon the human world. I didn't expect this human world also has genius cultivators with astonishing destinies." Wiping the blood from her severed arm, a new arm visibly regrew from the wound at a rapid pace. She asked, "Fellow Daoist, what exactly is this magical treasure? I was already on guard. Why couldn't I sense its appearance at all?"
Mo Tiange shook her head. "Apologies. That question, I must beg your pardon, I cannot answer."
Bai Ling had only asked casually. Whether human cultivators or demon cultivators, none would casually reveal the secrets of their magical treasures. She sighed. "This concubine originally wanted to give Fellow Daoist a quick death. Pity, Fellow Daoist is too capable..." She waved her hand, her tone indifferent. "Kill her."
Although the physical injury was inconsequential, the Golden Lightning she had cultivated for many years had been devoured by the Azure Dragon. She was already severely wounded.
Facing over a dozen demon cultivators, Mo Tiange's expression was stern and fearless. At this moment, fear served no purpose; it would only hasten her death.
The Azure Dragon appeared again. Having devoured Bai Ling's Golden Lightning, its power had greatly increased. Discovering this, Mo Tiange almost wanted to thank her. Apart from the Heavenly Tribulation, Golden Lightning was almost impossible to find; one could only cultivate it slowly, bit by bit. Bai Ling's Golden Lightning, cultivated over who knows how many years, was much stronger than hers. What a windfall.
The demon cultivators were closing in. Mo Tiange flicked her sleeve. The Azure Dragon continuously spewed forth Golden Lightning, transforming into thunder pillars that crashed down like a torrential rain, turning several miles around into a world of lightning.
The lightning illuminated Mo Tiange's figure, her robes fluttering like a phantom, yet her voice came through clearly: "Gentlemen, if you want my life, you'll have to wager your own..."
Qin Xi's heart suddenly skipped a beat. Instinctively, he turned his head and saw, not far away amidst the roaring sea wind, a suddenly appearing ocean paved with Golden Lightning.
"Tian Ge..." His face turned deathly pale. His sword formation unfurled as he charged toward it, cutting a path.
Jing Xingzhi, who had already joined them, shouted, "What are you doing?"
"Tian Ge is in danger!" He only said these four words before rushing over.
Demon cultivators came to block his path ahead. Without hesitation, he unleashed his sword. A vast sea of swords pressed down upon them; no matter what magical treasure or spell they used, none could withstand its edge.
A pitch-black, twin-winged demon cultivator blocked his way. A massive swamp quietly materialized.
Qin Xi took a deep breath, calming his mind. This was a Tenth Rank demon cultivator. To break through his obstruction, he had to go all out.
The sword formation surrounding him transformed—eight became four, four became two, two became one. Thousands of sword lights instantly merged into a single sword, a sword burning with flames throughout, with the faint shadow of a Vermilion Bird flickering within.
At the Foundation Establishment stage, the Three Yang True Fire Sword was merely a powerful flying sword. After Core Formation, the Three Yang True Fire Sword could transform into a sword formation, overwhelming with momentum. At the Nascent Soul stage, he could refine the sword formation back into a single sword—this sword, gathering the might of the sword formation, possessed the force of ten thousand jun.
The Three Yang True Fire Sword swept out diagonally, ignoring the swamp beneath his feet, directly targeting Old Hei.
A straightforward slash, yet carrying an irresistible momentum. Under this pressure, Old Hei dared not underestimate it. The swamp instantly surged upward, attempting to engulf the sword light.
"Keng—" A clear, sharp sound rang out. A White Tiger suddenly appeared, pouncing toward Old Hei. Jing Xingzhi raised his sword to block in front. "Go quickly!"
Qin Xi was startled, then nodded. "Thank you!" He sheathed the Three Yang True Fire Sword and flew toward Mo Tiange's location.
At this very moment, on a white cloud very close to them, two young men sat or lounged. One wore a deep blue daoist robe embroidered with gold, handsome and striking. The other wore simple white robes, elegant and transcendent. The battle below was raging fiercely, yet they lazily played chess, only occasionally glancing down.
"Hoo—" The blue-robed youth covered his mouth as he yawned and said, "A Ling, aren't you going to help?"