35: Chapter 35 Mysterious Cloud Realm

The seventh day of the third lunar month, night, a dark night with a high wind.

Led by Wanjin Sanren, the old man from the Zhou Family, and a low-key Formation Master in black robes from further away (who called himself Mr. Mo, Qi Refining Level 4).

They gathered over thirty Cultivators who prided themselves on their cultivation or skill in breaking Restrictions.

They quietly infiltrated the Black Iron Mine, heading straight for the core area Li Changsheng had marked as "Extremely Dangerous."

They avoided the Li Family's visible guards, unaware that Li Changsheng had long ago set up faint Spiritual Qi alerts along the key paths.

"They have entered."

Inside the Li residence, Li Changsheng sensed the Spiritual Qi mark he had left behind being triggered; he stood up abruptly, his expression grim.

"A bunch of idiots!"

He immediately took Li Changhu and several of his most elite guards and rushed to the mine.

Li Zhenshan and the Grand Elder remained to hold down the Family, in case anyone tried to take advantage of the situation.

By the time Li Changsheng arrived at the hidden cave entrance, intense sounds of fighting, shouts of alarm, screams, and... were already coming from within.

A bizarre sound that made one's scalp tingle, as if countless people were whispering, mixed with frenzied howling!

A thick scent of blood and cold Devilish Qi were surging out from the cave entrance!

"Damn it!"

Li Changsheng's heart sank, and he rushed into the cave without hesitation.

The scene inside the cave was like Hell.

The karst cave and stone chambers were in shambles, clearly having undergone rough searching and destruction.

And the stone door in the deepest part had actually been forcibly blasted open!

Scorched marks and the strange flashing of runes remained on the stone door fragments; it was clear that Mr. Mo had used some kind of method to break the Restriction!

The cavern behind the stone door was even more horrific.

The dark green pool water was churning violently, emitting a foul stench.

The suspended cyan crystal flickered in and out of light, its surface covered in cracks!

Of the nine stone pillars, two of the seven that had originally been intact were now violently destroyed, their runes completely dimmed!

Beside the pool, over a dozen corpses lay scattered about, all gaunt and withered, their essence and blood completely drained, their faces frozen in extreme terror.

In mid-air, a mass of shadows, several times more solid than before and constantly twisting and changing, was dancing crazily!

It sometimes transformed into a hideous ghostly face, and sometimes scattered into black mist filling the sky; wherever it passed, the remaining Cultivators fled in terror.

But the black mist was like maggots on bones; once it touched them, the Cultivators would shriek and wither at a speed visible to the naked eye, their Divine Soul and flesh devoured completely!

It was the partially released "Spirit Devourer" devilish consciousness!

Although still weak, it was far from one-ten-thousandth of its peak state.

But against these Cultivators who were at most Qi Refining Level 4 or 5, it was like a tiger entering a flock of sheep!

"Run!"

"It's a devilish creature! An ancient devilish creature!"

"Mr. Mo! Fellow Daoist Duanyue! Save..."

Screams rose one after another.

Wanjin Sanren swung a copper hammer with his one arm, the wind of the hammer whistling.

But he could only slightly push back the black mist; his own left shoulder had already been eroded by the mist, turning pitch black, and his aura was withered.

The old man from the Zhou Family offered up a small tortoise-shell shield, its Spiritual Qi flashing, but it quickly dimmed under the erosion of the black mist, hanging by a thread.

And the culprit, Mr. Mo, was hiding in a corner, his face pale as he tried to set up a temporary Formation to trap the devilish consciousness, but his hands were trembling; he was clearly scared out of his wits.

"A bunch of scoundrels!"

Seeing this, Li Changhu was both shocked and furious.

Li Changsheng swept his gaze across the scene, instantly assessing the situation.

Because the devilish consciousness had devoured the essence, blood, and souls of over a dozen Cultivators, its power had recovered a small portion, and it was even more manic due to the further damage to the Seal.

It had to be stopped immediately!

"Li Changhu, take the men and retreat outside the stone door, guard the entrance, no one is allowed to enter or leave!"

Li Changsheng ordered, and at the same time, he had already rushed toward the rampaging shadow like an arrow released from a bow!

"Brother Changsheng!"

Li Changhu exclaimed, but knowing that he would only be a burden if he went up, he gritted his teeth and led the men to retreat.

Li Changsheng's intrusion immediately drew the attention of the "Spirit Devourer."

"Another one... fresh... powerful... blood..."

Chaotic thoughts flooded toward Li Changsheng, filled with greed.

"Changsheng... Dao Body... delicious..."

The black mist split off a strand, transforming into a giant ghostly claw that swiped down at his head!

Before the ghostly claw reached him, the evil force that devoured essence and blood and eroded the Divine Soul had already made Li Changsheng's blood and Qi churn.

"Evil creature! How dare you continue to act so violently!"

Li Changsheng shouted sternly, his internal Spiritual Qi and True Qi fusing once again, and he threw a punch!

The fist force, interwoven with pale cyan and dark gold, carrying the intent to break evil, slammed fiercely into the ghostly claw!

"Sizzle!"

The ghostly claw was blasted apart for the most part, but the remaining black mist still swirled around him.

The Spiritual Qi protective membrane on Li Changsheng's body flashed rapidly, isolating the erosive force, but he also felt his Spiritual Qi consuming rapidly.

"What are you all still standing there for! If you don't want to die, join forces to suppress it!"

Li Changsheng shouted to the remaining Wanjin Sanren and the others.

Wanjin Sanren and the others woke up as if from a dream; in this life-or-death moment, they couldn't afford to worry about much else, and one after another, they gritted their teeth and unleashed their strongest techniques, attacking the main body of the devilish consciousness.

For a time, Spiritual Qi, Magical Artifacts, and Talismans flew wildly inside the cavern, battling the churning black mist.

Although the devilish consciousness was temporarily held back, its fierce might did not diminish.

From time to time, a scream would ring out, and another person would be devoured.

Li Changsheng fought while observing.

He discovered that the core of the devilish consciousness seemed to be connected to the cracked cyan crystal and something beneath the pool water.

To suppress it completely, he had to repair or utilize the remaining Seal stone pillars!

While resisting the attacks of the devilish consciousness, he moved quickly, arriving at the two newly broken stone pillars.

At the break in the stone pillar, the remaining ancient runes were rapidly dimming, and Devilish Qi was constantly overflowing from the broken opening.

"It needs Spiritual Qi... a large amount of pure Spiritual Qi to activate the remaining runes and temporarily reconnect the power of the Seal!"

Li Changsheng understood instantly.

He bit the tip of his tongue, spraying a mouthful of essence blood onto his left palm, and with his right hand's fingers together, he mixed the essence blood with his own Spiritual Qi, quickly drawing in the air.

What he was drawing was a basic "Spirit-Sealing Talisman" recorded in the "Small Heavenly Cycle Qi Induction Mantra"!

This Talisman was not high-grade, but it had the advantage of being upright and peaceful, and it had a reinforcing effect on Seal-type Formations.

"Go!"

The blood Talisman formed, turning into a red light that sank into the base of one of the broken stone pillars.

The stone pillar shook slightly, and the Devilish Qi overflowing from the break lessened slightly.

It worked!

Li Changsheng's spirits lifted, and he did the same, beginning to draw a Spirit-Sealing Talisman for the other broken stone pillar.

At the same time, he roared at Wanjin Sanren and the others.

"Attack the crystal above the pool water and the pool water itself!"

"Scatter its power!"

"Mr. Mo!"

"Aren't you a Formation Master?"

"Find a way to stabilize the remaining stone pillars!"

Wanjin Sanren and the others, at this moment, regarded Li Changsheng as their last straw.

Hearing this, they disregarded their injuries and attacked the crystal and the pool water desperately.

Mr. Mo also tremblingly took out a few Formation Flags, barely setting up a small auxiliary Formation to stabilize the Spiritual Qi, reinforcing the remaining stone pillars.

With everyone cooperating desperately, the offensive of the "Spirit Devourer" devilish consciousness was slightly contained.

Li Changsheng finally completed the temporary "Seal" on the two broken stone pillars.

"With four out of nine pillars missing, the power of the Seal is greatly damaged... it can only be trapped temporarily, not suppressed."

Li Changsheng understood this in his heart, but what he wanted was this moment of breathing room!

He took a deep breath and poured the remaining Spiritual Qi and True Qi in his body without reservation into the two stone pillars he had repaired earliest.

At the same time, he turned the strand of pure True Qi contained within his body from the "Spirit Ape Health-Preserving Technique" into a brilliant clear light, striking it into the central cyan crystal!

"Seal!"

The clear light sank into the crystal, and the crystal suddenly erupted with blinding light!

The pool water churned even more violently, and the devilish consciousness let out a pained shriek.

The churning black mist was forcibly sucked back into the crystal in part, and the remaining portion also became much thinner and more sluggish.

"Leave quickly!"

Li Changsheng shouted sternly to the survivors.

Wanjin Sanren, the old man from the Zhou Family, Mr. Mo, and a mere seven or eight other lucky ones scrambled out of the cave, fleeing outside without looking back.