396: Chapter 396 Black Golden Lotus

Sword light tore through the vast sky, flames scorched the clouds, toxic mist corroded the Spiritual Qi, and a giant axe split mountains and shattered rocks...

Various attacks wove together into a web of death, their terrifying momentum enough to instantly crush any Golden Core Stage Cultivator or even an Early Stage Nascent Soul into powder!

The sword light was like an inverted galaxy, leaving pitch-black scars wherever it slashed across space.

The flames transformed into nine ferocious fire pythons, hissing and spitting out heaven-burning lava.

The toxic mist condensed into thousands of skeletal ghost faces, emitting ear-piercing shrieks.

As the giant axe descended, it manifested a phantasm of heaven-splitting power, as if it could even sever the Dao itself!

"You crazy woman, wuwuwu, why is my life so bitter!"

"I want to go home, I miss Grandpa, wuwuwu."

The Nine-Headed Golden Lion let out a low roar of terror and humiliation. It instinctively wanted to flee, but the Restriction within its Divine Soul rendered it unable to move.

Its eighteen beast eyes reflected the approaching light of death. Its golden fur stood on end, agitated by the violent Spiritual Pressure. It could only watch helplessly as the torrent of destruction rushed toward it. A flash of despair crossed its massive eyes—had it just escaped the tiger's mouth only to be dragged to its death by this crazy woman?

Just at this critical moment!

"Stop!!"

A hoarse shout, delivered with all his might and tinged with a certain desperation, suddenly erupted from the edge of the battlefield!

The voice was like a thunderclap bursting from a cold spring in the Nine Netherworlds, or the final roar of a dying Vicious Beast, momentarily drowning out the roar of all the Spells!

Li Jiuyou, who had taken the opportunity to escape, had returned without anyone knowing when!

He stopped at the edge of the chaotic battlefield. His black robe was torn to shreds, revealing skin as pale as paper underneath. His unhealed wounds were still gushing blood. His face was devoid of all color, and his body swayed, as if he might collapse completely at any moment.

His left arm was twisted unnaturally, evidently broken, while the fingers of his right hand were dug tightly into his palm, blood dripping through his knuckles.

Yet, one of his hands was held high with abnormal steadiness, cradling an object—

It was not the dark golden lotus everyone had imagined, but a lotus that was entirely an ancient, grayish-green color.

The lotus hovered three inches above his palm, rotating slowly. With every rotation, a visible gray ripple spread outward, and wherever it passed, even the light became twisted and blurred.

The lotus pedestal was also nine-petaled, but the petals were not layered; instead, they were somewhat tattered and curled, like stone carvings weathered by the ages, their surfaces covered in some kind of naturally formed, profoundly mysterious, and strange patterns.

These patterns sometimes resembled the movement of galaxies, sometimes like Dao runes; they were ever-changing, giving one the illusion that their Divine Soul would be sucked in if they stared for too long.

It did not emit astonishing energy fluctuations, nor did it have an alluring fragrance. Instead, a strange, heavy, and obscure aura that seemed capable of absorbing all light and sound permeated the area.

It was like a tombstone from the ancient past, quietly recounting the secrets of a lost civilization.

The moment it appeared, the violent and chaotic Spiritual Pressure around it seemed to be smoothed out and partially absorbed by some invisible force, becoming less agitated.

The space within a hundred-zhang radius suddenly became abnormally quiet; even the sound of the wind vanished, as if this area had been temporarily severed from the world.

This is...?

All the attacks about to strike Luo Xiaojiu once again eerily stalled for a split second.

The sword light hovered three inches from her brow, the fire pythons froze into twisted sculptures, the toxic mist skulls remained motionless with their ferocious expressions, and the giant axe phantasm locked in mid-air—it was as if someone had suddenly pressed the pause button on time.

Everyone's gaze, filled with suspicion and uncertainty, turned to the lotus in Li Jiuyou's hand, which was completely different from what they had expected.

A few experienced old Cultivators saw their pupils suddenly contract, and their lips began to tremble uncontrollably.

Li Jiuyou coughed violently, each cough sounding as if he were trying to cough up his internal organs. Crimson blood foam constantly spilled from the corner of his mouth. He looked around at the pursuers whose attention had been temporarily diverted, his voice hoarse but carrying a strange mockery:

"You... don't you want the 'Purifying World Green Lotus'?"

The Purifying World Green Lotus?! The legendary Innate Spiritual Root? The supreme holy object capable of purifying all things, stabilizing the Divine Soul, and even helping one comprehend the Dao? It wasn't the black imperial golden lotus?!

These words were like a ladle of cold water poured into boiling oil; the entire battlefield exploded into chaos.

Some gasped, some cried out in alarm, and more stared fixedly at that grayish-green lotus, their eyes bursting with terrifying greed.

The massive information gap and the strange Dao rhyme of the grayish-green lotus caused the brains of all the pursuers to freeze for a moment.

Their expressions froze on their faces, the Spell seals in their hands loosened unconsciously, and their breathing became rapid—the value of the Purifying World Green Lotus was more than ten times higher than the black imperial golden lotus!

Li Jiuyou watched their uncertain expressions, a cold, almost crazed smile tugging at his pale face:

"Stealing the wrong target... will get you killed, you know."

He suddenly threw the grayish-green lotus in his hand with all his might toward the empty sky on the other side, far away from Luo Xiaojiu!

The action was so decisive, it was as if he were tearing out his own heart and throwing it away!

"The real treasure—is here!!"

The grayish-green lotus traced a trajectory that was not dazzling as it flew toward another part of the airspace.

During its flight, the patterns on its surface suddenly shone brilliantly, projecting ancient and obscure images into the Void Realm: stars moving, all things growing, civilizations rising and falling... as if it were demonstrating the true meaning of some supreme Dao!

Despite their doubts, the ancient and obscure Dao rhyme radiating from the lotus could not be fake! What if it was real?!

Greed instantly overwhelmed reason once again!

"Grab it!!" "It's mine!" "Get lost!"

The gazes and bodies of the vast majority of the pursuers were once again uncontrollably drawn to the flying grayish-green lotus, and they surged toward that direction like a tidal wave!

They shoved and plotted against each other; some even attacked their own companions directly, just to get a step ahead.

A chaotic scramble instantly erupted in the other part of the airspace!

However, a dozen figures remained in place.

Those Human Race Cultivators and a few Demon Cultivators with exceptionally cold auras had flickering eyes. They looked at the distant green lotus, then at the heavily injured Li Jiuyou and the seemingly relieved Luo Xiaojiu, their faces twisting into even more ferocious smiles.

"Kid! A fine trick of swapping flowers for trees! You almost fooled us!"

"This is clearly a 'Broken Dao Gray Lotus'! Although it is a strange object and can simulate the Dao rhyme of many Spiritual Roots, its value is worlds apart from the black imperial golden lotus!"

"Your black imperial golden lotus hasn't been used at all! It must still be on you! Kill you, and it will be ours all the same!"

An old Cultivator with a wrinkled face laughed sinisterly. Between his fingers, which were as withered as chicken claws, seven blood-colored threads were wound, each one connected to the back of a young Cultivator's heart—these were clearly his disciples, but at this moment, they were being controlled by him like marionettes to block in front of him.

These dozen people were not drawn away; instead, their killing intent grew even stronger. They tacitly spread out to form a pincer movement, instantly turning into streams of light as they lunged straight at Li Jiuyou, who was already at the end of his rope on the cliff! The onslaught was even more ruthless and tricky than before!

The first to arrive was a blood-colored blade glow, within which thousands of aggrieved souls could be faintly seen wailing.

Following closely were three pitch-black bone nails, engraved with the ancient incantations "Immortal Execution," "God Annihilation," and "Dao Burial."

Finally, there was a Myriad Ghost Soul-Devouring Banner that blotted out the sky; when the banner unfurled, it was as if the gates of Hell had been opened!

The glimmer of hope that had just risen in Li Jiuyou's eyes instantly shattered, replaced by an even deeper despair.

He smiled bitterly and closed his eyes, waiting for the arrival of death.

He no longer had any trump cards left.

Just at this moment—

"Oh my, why aren't you listening?"

A crisp female voice, tinged with slight dissatisfaction and boredom, rang out abruptly.

This voice was light and pleasant, yet it made the hair on the bodies of the dozen attacking Cultivators stand on end, as if they had heard the chuckle of the Grim Reaper!

Luo Xiaojiu, who had been riding on the lion's back watching the show, had disappeared from the lion's back without anyone knowing when.

Where she had stood, a faint golden-red afterimage still lingered in the space, slowly dissipating.

In the next instant, she appeared like a ghost, silently in front of Li Jiuyou, with her back to him, facing the dozen attacking Cultivators.

Her skirt was still fluttering gently, and her hair had not yet fully fallen—her speed was so fast that even time seemed to lag by half a beat!

She stretched, her exquisite curves fully visible. That lazy posture made it seem as if she were not facing a life-and-death crisis, but rather sunning herself in her own courtyard, and then she lazily raised a hand.

Facing the dozen powerful attacks rushing toward her, she spread her five fingers, and then—clenched them gently.

"So noisy."

Three simple words, yet they were like an imperial edict issued by a monarch, carrying an authority that could not be defied!

Boom—!!!

A golden-red power of Qi and blood, far more terrifying and domineering than before, as if originating from the primordial prehistoric era, exploded from the center of her slender, jade-like hand!

This Qi and blood transformed into a tangible golden-red wave. Wherever it passed, the blood-colored blade glow shattered inch by inch, the pitch-black bone nails vaporized instantly, and the evil ghosts on the Myriad Ghost Soul-Devouring Banner were obliterated before they could even scream!

Even more terrifying was that this power contained a certain supreme will, like a sleeping ancient War God suddenly awakening. Merely the aftershock of a single breath caused the space within a thousand-zhang radius to begin to twist and tremble!

The ferocity on the faces of the dozen Cultivators instantly froze, replaced by boundless fear.

They wanted to retreat, wanted to flee, but found that their bodies were completely unable to move under this pressure. They could only watch helplessly as the destructive golden-red wave engulfed them...