Chapter 222 Sword Meteor Mysterious Jiao

"Roar!"

A heaven-shaking, earth-shattering howl rang out. The Male Dragon had gone completely mad, no longer caring about any Move or strategy. Its body twisted wildly, and its demonic power erupted recklessly, forming waves of chaotic shockwaves.

The young girl's face went slightly pale. She withdrew her sword and retreated immediately. The jade bell rang urgently, laying down a sonic barrier before her to resist the violent demonic power. Chen Mu quickly withdrew his blade and retreated, barely suppressing the roiling blood and Qi in his chest.

He lifted his head slightly, a cold sneer curling at the corner of his mouth. This Male Dragon had exhausted all its tricks and had reached the end of its rope.

The young girl steadied her figure, cold light gathering in her eyes. She extended her left hand and lightly flicked the jade bell at her waist.

"Clear Sound, Soul Suppression."

The jade bell rang out suddenly, the sound clear and resonant, as if it could cleanse all filth in the world. Wherever it passed, the chaotic demonic power actually stagnated.

At the same time, the clear-as-water blade in the young girl's hand suddenly erupted with blinding golden light. It flowed and gathered along the sword body, finally condensing into a point of golden radiance at the tip.

"Die."

She let out a soft shout, her voice merging with the sword, and delivered a straight thrust directly at the Male Dragon.

"Pfft!"

The long sword instantly plunged into the Male Dragon's right eye, sinking in up to the hilt.

The moment it pierced through, the golden light gathered on the sword erupted with a roar, transforming into thousands of golden Sword Qi. It surged wildly into the head of the Python-Dragon through the eye socket, shredding its brain matter and destroying its demonic soul.

The Male Dragon's howl stopped abruptly. It fell straight onto the creek beach, smashing a deep pit. Gravel scattered everywhere. Those dark golden scales lost their luster at a speed visible to the naked eye, becoming covered in a layer of grayish-white.

The young girl's hand holding the sword remained as steady as a rock. Even as the dragon body struggled frantically, she remained firmly planted in place, only her moon-white robes flapping loudly amidst the spraying demonic blood.

Chen Mu stood ten zhang away, holding his blade, breathing heavily. He stared fixedly at the dying Dragon. His Heart-Awakening Realm Hunyuan Astral Qi surged ceaselessly, rapidly repairing his injuries, but the few strikes he had just made while walking on the edge of life and death had exhausted all his strength.

However, he dared not relax. The young girl's sword had already cut off its life force, but even a centipede does not stiffen after death, let alone a great demon of this caliber.

"Haa... haa..."

The Male Dragon let out a dying gasp in its throat. A large amount of dark golden blood seeped from its pierced right eye. It turned its head with extreme difficulty, its gaze falling on the corpse of the Mother Dragon not far away, which had already lost all signs of life. The grief in its eyes almost materialized, and then it looked at the remains of the three young dragons on the creek beach.

Then it opened its mouth. What came out was not a dragon's cry, but intermittent, hoarse, and distorted human speech.

"I... and Yuanji... have cultivated in Black Rock Mountain... for a thousand years... seeking only... to become a Dragon and transcend..."

"How could you... bear to... kill my wife and children... this hatred... this grudge... where is the Heavenly Dao?"

With every word it spoke, its breath faded rapidly. The last few words were spoken with the last of its remaining life force, the sound shaking the surroundings.

The valley was silent. The young girl silently sheathed her sword. The jade bell rang once, then returned to silence.

She stood with her back to the Male Dragon, shoulders straight, as if she hadn't heard this grief-stricken accusation, or perhaps she had heard too many similar words before.

Bai Junyi's lips moved as if he wanted to say something, but it aggravated his injuries, and in the end, it only turned into a sigh. Shen Suning also turned her face away, unable to bear looking any longer.

Only Chen Mu slowly straightened his body, meeting the Male Dragon's gradually dilating pupils, and answered calmly.

"Outside Black Rock Mountain, the commoners of Shi Town suffered a night raid by the Black-Scaled Demon Snake. More than half were killed or injured, and bones paved the streets."

"The Tian Di Xuan Three Teams of the Demon Suppression Division, over thirty Demon Hunting Division members entered the mountain to investigate the golden bell warning, and the entire army was wiped out in Youxu Valley, with not even bones remaining."

"You ask where the Heavenly Dao is? Then I ask you, how should their lives be accounted for?"

The sorrow and indignation in the Male Dragon's single eye stalled, then a wave of desolation welled up. It barely squeezed out a few broken, miserable laughs. The laughter, mixed with blood foam, echoed in the valley.

"Survival of the fittest... the cycle of Heavenly Dao... today I die... one day... you too... will be blood food..."

Chen Mu smiled slightly.

"That's right. You say that for Yao Race cultivation, survival of the fittest is the Law of Heaven and Earth. Your wife was weak after giving birth and needed blood food to recover, so you drove snakes to cause disaster, luring Cultivators into the valley to serve as provisions. This is the way of survival in your eyes, the cycle of Heavenly Dao."

"Then, for human Cultivators to protect the peace of a region and to avenge their colleagues, wielding blades to enter the mountains to slay demons and eliminate evil is also our way of survival, and it is also the cycle of Heavenly Dao."

"You ask me why today, and I answer you that it is simply because our stances are different. A blood feud has been forged, and only when one side completely falls can it be resolved."

Chen Mu's voice was not loud, but every word was like a blade, hacking at the Male Dragon's remaining consciousness.

"Demons eat humans, humans slay demons. This is a bloody world to begin with. Where do so many 'whys' come from?"

The Male Dragon stared at him blankly, making rattling sounds in its throat, but it could no longer spit out a single word. Finally, the dragon head fell powerlessly, shaking the ground. Its single eye dimmed completely, yet it still stared fixedly at the remains of its wife and children on the shallow beach, refusing to close its eyes even in death.

The Demon King had been eliminated, but no System notification sounded, which confirmed that Chen Mu's contribution just now was indeed limited; the fatal blow and most of the damage came from that mysterious Jade Bell Guard girl.

Chen Mu was not surprised by this, nor was he dejected. He slowly exhaled a breath of turbid air and put away the soul-slaying blade.

Bai Junyi struggled to stand up. Shen Suning struggled to crawl up to treat the arrow wounds of Bai Junyi and Feng Qing. Ling Xiaoning, who had been knocked unconscious by the shockwave earlier, also woke up slowly, looking around in confusion.

Shi Yong was seriously injured, Lu Dachuan was on the verge of death, and Ji Xiang had lost too much blood and was already unconscious. Only Li Hu was gone, without even a corpse left.

In this battle, had it not been for the intervention of the Jade Bell Guard, they would likely have ended up like the Tian Di Xuan Three Teams, with the entire army wiped out.

Chen Mu turned slowly, his gaze falling on that moon-white figure.

The young girl had already sheathed her sword. As the three-foot-long blade returned to its scabbard, it emitted a clear chime, harmonizing with the lingering resonance of the jade bell at her waist. A few drops of dark golden dragon blood splashed onto her moon-white martial attire, like snow falling on plum blossoms. Not only did it not make her look disheveled, but it added a touch of solemn, heroic spirit.

She turned around, her gaze sweeping over the wreckage on the ground, then looked up, meeting Chen Mu's probing gaze.

"From the Demon Suppression Division?"

Chen Mu nodded and bowed slightly, his voice somewhat hoarse due to his injuries.

"Demon Hunting Division, Bing-Ten, Chen Mu."

"Bing-Ten?"

The young girl suddenly spoke, her tone carrying a hint of surprise and playfulness.

"A newcomer who just joined the division, yet you were able to fight the Python-Dragon in Youxu Valley, slay its young, and even walk on the edge of the blade to strike at the gaps when the Male Dragon was in a frenzy? Interesting."

As she said this, she looked Chen Mu up and down a few times and nodded slightly.

"Breaking through in battle, yet your Foundation is exceptionally solid. Your Protective Aura's characteristics are unheard of. Your blade technique is ruthless and precise, adept at attacking vital points, and your Heart-Nature... is quite calm."

She paused, a glimmer of near-appreciation passing through her eyes.

"Master Liao often says that among the young generation of the Prefecture Demon Suppression Division, Qin Zheng can be considered a talent, but his arrogance is too great, lacking flexibility. The others are either overly brave but lack agility, or their Heart-Nature is not yet settled. Now it seems, he missed one."