37: Chapter 37 Falling short of success

Li Zhenshan's eyes were bloodshot as he organized the guards and the young men, attempting to resist and evacuate.

However, in the face of the Spirit Devourer's indiscriminate and wide-ranging devouring demonic might, the resistance of the Mortals was like a mantis trying to stop a chariot.

Once a Martial Artist of the Houtian Realm was touched by the Devilish Qi, they would scream and turn into withered bones within a mere few breaths.

Even the Grand Elder, Li Changhu, and the few others who had just entered the Xiantian Realm could only barely protect themselves.

They protected a small group of people around them as they retreated.

Watching large swathes of the town being swallowed by the Devilish Qi, and thousands of townspeople dying in despair, they felt powerless.

Li Changsheng's eyes were split with rage; he frantically circulated his Spiritual Qi and True Qi, attempting to rush forward and block it.

But the Spirit Devourer at this moment, having absorbed a large amount of the townspeople's vital blood and souls, was recovering its power rapidly—it was many times stronger than it had been in the mine!

When he threw a punch, he could only temporarily disperse a small patch of Devilish Qi, which was instantly filled back in by even more Devilish Qi.

He was like a lonely boat in a raging sea; although he could protect himself, he was powerless to stop this massacre sweeping across the entire town!

In just half an hour, the majority of Qinghe Town had turned into a dead zone!

The streets were littered with corpses, filled with shriveled and horrifying remains. A rough estimate suggested that the casualties already exceeded several thousand!

The Devilish Qi continued to spread, devouring all signs of life!

"Could it be... that Heaven wishes to destroy my Li family and annihilate my Qinghe Town?!"

Blood spilled from the corner of Li Zhenshan's mouth as he looked at the tragic scene before him, nearly fainting.

Just at this darkest moment, a brilliant cyan sword light suddenly illuminated the horizon!

The sword light was extremely far away at first, but in the blink of an eye, it tore through the air and arrived, like the dawn light piercing through the dark night!

Following the sword light, a figure in white robes arrived, stepping through the air. Their sleeves fluttered, and their aura was sharp yet upright.

It was none other than the Qinglan Sword Sect Outer Sect Disciple who had appeared months ago and gifted Li Changsheng a Jade Slip: Liu Qingchen!

Liu Qingchen swept his gaze over the hellish scene below and the raging, monstrous Devilish Qi, causing his usually cold face to show shock and gravity.

Liu Qingchen did not hesitate; he pressed his fingers together and pointed.

The ancient sword "Qiushui" on his back unsheathed with a clang, transforming into a cyan sword rainbow dozens of zhang long. Carrying a cold, pure Sword Intent that breaks evil, it slashed fiercely toward the core where the Spirit Devourer's Devilish Qi was densest!

"Prodigy! How dare you commit such atrocities!"

This strike had power far exceeding any attack Li Changsheng had ever seen!

Wherever the cyan sword rainbow passed, the Devilish Qi melted like ice and snow, emitting a "hissing" burning sound. The massive shadow at the core also let out a shriek of pain, rolling to avoid the blade's edge!

"Qinglan Sword Sect?!"

A trace of fear and rage leaked from the chaotic consciousness.

Liu Qingchen changed his sword techniques in succession. The "Qiushui" sword transformed into a sky full of sword shadows, forming a simple sword array that temporarily trapped the main body of the Spirit Devourer's Devilish Qi in one area.

It slowed down its devouring speed, buying a moment of respite for the surviving civilians below.

However, he immediately realized that although this monster had been worn down by the Seal and was extremely weak, its essence was extremely high, and it was exceptionally cunning.

Although his Sword Intent could suppress it, it would be difficult to completely eliminate it or re-Seal it in a short period.

Especially with countless survivors below needing protection, he was afraid to act rashly for fear of causing collateral damage.

"This devil is ferocious and stubborn; it cannot be contained by me alone!"

Liu Qingchen made a swift decision. He took a palm-sized, crystal-clear cyan jade talisman from his robes and crushed it without hesitation!

The moment the jade talisman shattered, a clear and resonant sword hum soared into the sky.

It transformed into an invisible ripple that pierced through space, transmitting toward the direction of the Qinglan Sword Sect.

This was an emergency distress talisman that only important Disciples within the Sect were qualified to carry!

Almost at the same time the jade talisman shattered, thousands of miles away at the Qinglan Sword Sect, atop a mist-shrouded spirit peak, a white-haired Elder who had been meditating on a prayer mat with an aura as deep as the ocean suddenly opened his eyes.

A flash of sword light seemed to pass through his eyes.

"The direction of Qinghe Town... Ancient Devilish Qi?"

"Liu Qingchen crushed the distress jade talisman?"

The Elder frowned slightly, and the next moment, his figure vanished from the prayer mat.

Above Qinghe Town.

Liu Qingchen exerted his full strength to activate the sword array, maneuvering against the Spirit Devourer.

Li Changsheng also seized the opportunity to coordinate his attacks, attempting to force the Devilish Qi away from the densely populated areas.

But the Spirit Devourer was extremely cunning, constantly splitting off small strands of Devilish Qi to harass the surroundings, devouring the remaining living beings to replenish itself, leaving Liu Qingchen exhausted.

Just as Liu Qingchen began to feel the pressure and a gap appeared in the sword array, a sudden change occurred!

In the sky, a crack opened without any warning!

A cyan beam of light, formed purely from Sword Intent condensed to the extreme, crashed down from it, accurately shrouding the core area of the Spirit Devourer's Devilish Qi!

Within the beam of light, countless tiny Sword Qi cut horizontally and vertically, emitting a "humming" sound, carrying a terrifying power that was grand and righteous, cleansing the universe!

"Ah——!!!"

The Spirit Devourer let out an unprecedented, shrill scream!

The massive shadow struggled, twisted, and evaporated violently within the beam of light!

Its total amount of Devilish Qi was purified and dissolved at a speed visible to the naked eye!

The beam of light lasted for about ten breaths before slowly dissipating.

In the sky, an old man wearing simple cyan robes with hair like a crane and a youthful face stood with his hands behind his back, his gaze like lightning, scanning below.

It was one of the Deacon Elders of the Qinglan Sword Sect responsible for this Outer Sect recruitment, Immortal Master Yun Yin!

A true Golden Core Stage great Cultivator!

Merely the pressure naturally emitted by him caused the remaining Devilish Qi to tremble, leaving all the survivors below in awe, giving rise to a feeling of wanting to prostrate and worship.

At this moment, the Spirit Devourer's demonic body had been broken apart by nearly half, its aura withered to the extreme. The terrifying shadow had shrunk by several circles, becoming illusory and transparent, as if it would completely dissipate at any moment.

"The ancient demonic consciousness 'Spirit Devourer'... to think a remnant soul still existed, escaping that calamity back then."

Immortal Master Yun Yin's voice was calm, yet carried the vicissitudes of someone who could see through everything.

"Unfortunately, you have met me today."

He raised his hand, preparing to completely finish off this monster.

However, at this juncture where the outcome seemed decided.

The Spirit Devourer's remnant soul, weak to the extreme, flashed a trace of extreme malice and cunning in its flickering eyes!

It did not attempt to resist or flee at all; instead, it suddenly contracted and condensed its remaining, core strand of Origin demonic consciousness, transforming into a tiny, pitch-black thread with almost no energy fluctuations.

Taking advantage of the brief moment before Immortal Master Yun Yin struck, amid the gap in the induced Spiritual Qi fluctuations, it "whooshed" and dove into the depths of the earth's veins below, which were already riddled with holes and filled with Devilish Qi!

It disappeared without a trace!

Immortal Master Yun Yin was slightly taken aback.

Immediately, his Divine Sense swept out, covering a radius of a hundred miles, but he could no longer capture the slightest trace of that demonic consciousness core!

It seemed to have completely merged into the earth's veins and vanished.

Or perhaps it had used some extremely profound escape technique and fled.

"What a cunning monster!"

Immortal Master Yun Yin frowned tightly and withdrew his palm.

"To think it knew how to sacrifice the pawn to save the rook, leaving behind most of its demonic body and aura to attract attention while its core Origin escaped into the depths of the earth's veins to hibernate using a secret technique..."

Immortal Master Yun Yin sensed for a moment, but still found nothing.

"Given the thin Spiritual Qi of this world and the special conditions of the earth's veins, it will need at least... ten years to recover to the strength it had when it broke the Seal."

"And the longer time passes, the more it will recover, the deeper it will hide, and the harder it will be to eradicate."

Immortal Master Yun Yin descended from the clouds, looking at the pale-faced Liu Qingchen and Li Changsheng, who was covered in blood but still had a determined gaze.

"This devil is cunning and has become a major threat to this area."

"Its essence is extremely high; ordinary means are insufficient to completely exterminate it."

"We must report to the Sect and request a Nascent Soul Stage Elder who specializes in sealing, purification, or tracking, or even use the Sect's heavy treasures, to ensure nothing goes wrong."

"We must drag it out from the earth's veins and purify it completely to eliminate future trouble."