53: The sect offers sacrifices to the heavens, with boundless magical power

After Daoist Jingling spat out a mouthful of clotted blood, his breathing immediately became much smoother.

He glared fiercely at Lu Ming, then suddenly bared his teeth and laughed.

"Hahahahaha..."

"You little beast, I admit you have some skill, but this is as far as you go. This old man has had enough fun!!!"

With that, his lean body suddenly floated into the air. He formed hand seals and chanted incantations.

"Five Yin Soul Devour, Blood as Sacrifice!"

As Daoist Jingling let out a sharp cry, the black mist around him began to condense, gradually forming a gigantic ghost image, three zhang tall.

The ghost image had a green face and fangs, with eerie green flames burning in its eyes. The moment it appeared, it exuded a suffocating pressure.

"You little beast, what if your physical body is strong? Do you understand what the Air-Treading Realm is?"

Daoist Jingling looked down from above, his expression grim, his voice tinged with a hint of smugness.

If he couldn't win in close combat, then he would just make it so Lu Ming couldn't get close!

Heaven against earth—wasn't this a pure crushing victory?

"You little beast, pay with your life for Xiaolong!"

He waved his two fingers, and the ghost image suddenly raised its giant hand, slamming it down fiercely towards Lu Ming.

That giant hand blotted out the sky and the sun, carrying an aura of world-destroying power.

Boom!

The giant hand descended, and the ground instantly exploded.

That world-destroying aura transformed into an invisible shockwave, uprooting the surrounding trees. Broken branches and leaves, mixed with mud and sand, danced wildly in the air.

The once relatively flat ground collapsed into a massive crater.

Lu Ming's position was completely covered by the giant hand, and for a moment, his condition was unclear.

Daoist Jingling hovered in mid-air, his smug expression growing more intense. Even a mid-stage Fourth Realm cultivator couldn't withstand this attack, let alone a boy in the Third Realm.

But after the dust settled, there was no sign of Lu Ming in the giant crater.

"Old man, are you looking for me?"

Lu Ming's sneering voice suddenly came from behind him.

Daoist Jingling's pupils violently constricted, and the hairs on his entire body stood on end. Like a rabbit targeted by a venomous snake, he spun around abruptly.

He saw Lu Ming, who had somehow flown behind him, enveloped in a crimson lightning aura.

The crimson arcs of electricity crackled, and each flash of lightning carried a bone-chilling malevolent aura, causing Daoist Jingling's breathing to hitch.

"Aren't you in the Third Realm... how can you fly!!!"

Daoist Jingling cried out in alarm, retreating. He hastily formed defensive hand seals, and the ghost image also spread its giant arms to shield him.

A cold glint flashed in Lu Ming's eyes. The crimson lightning suddenly surged, and a crimson lightning spear instantly materialized.

"Chila——"

The lightning spear flew out, fiercely impaling the ghost image. The black mist was instantly torn apart, and the eerie green flames flickered violently.

The ghost image let out a painful roar, its giant hands flailing wildly, but it couldn't even touch the corner of Lu Ming's clothes.

Daoist Jingling's face turned pale. He could clearly feel the ghost image's power rapidly draining away. This boy's strength far exceeded his expectations.

He gritted his teeth and suddenly spat out a large mouthful of vital blood. The vital blood landed on the ghost image, instantly transforming into bizarre runes: "Five Yin Sacrifice, Soul-Burning Strike!"

Lu Ming laughed loudly: "Too late, old man! If you don't use your ultimate when you initiate a fight, then you can just keep holding onto it and wait for death!"

With that, the Thunderclap Killing Burst suddenly unfolded.

The overwhelming destructive aura completely suppressed Daoist Jingling, rendering him unable to move.

Immediately, Lu Ming swung the long saber in his hand in a crescent arc.

"No!"

Daoist Jingling's eyes were bloodshot. He used his last ounce of strength, trying to control the ghost image to block.

But suppressed by the Thunderclap Killing Burst, the ghost image's movements became incredibly sluggish. It could only watch helplessly as the crescent saber light drew closer and closer.

"Puchi——"

The saber light cut through him without any obstruction.

Daoist Jingling's eyes were wide and round, filled with disbelief.

Finally, his head lolled to the side, completely losing all signs of life. His body, like a kite with a broken string, plummeted towards the deep crater below.

Lu Ming landed beside the corpse, just as he was about to open the blind box.

"Roar——"

A non-human roar came from the deepest part of the processing plant. The sound was filled with savagery and madness.

The roar pierced the sky.

The once relatively bright sky instantly turned as dark as ink, and even the air began to grow hot.

Lu Ming narrowed his eyes, gripping the long saber in his hand tightly, his gaze fixed on the depths of the processing plant.

He could feel that something extremely terrifying was awakening.

"Hahahaha, the big treasure is about to take shape!"

"Junior Brother, Xiaolong, where did you two get so much malevolent energy? It's truly exhilarating!"

The laughter was like a sudden clap of thunder. A dark shadow rapidly approached.

But when Xuan Yin saw the two corpses on the ground, his laughter turned into a scream: "Xiaolong!!! Junior Brother!!!!"

He sharply turned his head, staring fiercely at Lu Ming.

Lu Ming gave an awkward laugh: "Uh... sudden malevolent energy? Here, see if it's coming from them."

Zhao Li and the other two watched this bizarre scene, wanting to laugh but not daring to.

Indeed, it truly proved the saying: when the sect offers sacrifices to the heavens, its magic power is boundless.

"It's you... you killed them!" Xuan Yin suddenly looked up, the crimson light behind his bronze mask almost bursting forth. "I will grind your bones to dust, make your soul scatter, and prevent you from reincarnating forever!"

Damn it, is this never-ending?!

Lu Ming was enraged: "Come, all of you! How many more people are inside? All of you come to me! Don't keep killing one and then having another come; it's really annoying!"

"Really annoying?" Xuan Yin burst into maniacal laughter, his voice filled with sorrow and madness. "When I let you taste the pain of ten thousand ants devouring your heart, you'll know what 'really annoying' is!"

Xuan Yin, despite his grief and indignation, had not lost his sanity.

His strength was not much different from his Junior Brother's; both were around the early Fourth Realm.

Since his Junior Brother had been slain by this fiend, going up himself would only be serving as cannon fodder.

He couldn't win, so what to do?

Call for backup!

Xuan Yin no longer cared that the Drought Demon had not yet fully formed; he frantically shook the bell.

A Drought Demon that already had one foot in the Fifth Realm—how could it lose, you ask me?

Once the Drought Demon slays this fiend and smoothly enters the Fifth Realm, even if he returns to the sect, those old fogies won't be able to hold him accountable.

The farce was over!

The bronze bell in Old Ghost Xuan Yin's hand emitted a piercing shriek. The bell's sound penetrated the factory building, and a thunderous roar of collapsing earth veins came from deep within.

The bloody vortex in the center of the altar suddenly expanded, and a giant claw covered in black scales burst out of the ground. The viscous liquid dripping from its fingertips corroded the ground, creating bubbling deep pits.

"Roar——"

Half of the Drought Demon's body struggled out of the ground, its red-haired face roaring at the sky.

It had not yet fully formed, but it already had the rudimentary shape of a domain.

As the domain expanded, the air became incredibly hot.

The river water began to boil, bubbling and steaming, with water vapor rising into the air.

The plants on the riverbank withered and charred at a visible rate, as if being scorched by an invisible flame.

Strong! Incredibly strong!

Lu Ming's brows furrowed, and he tightened his grip on the long saber.

This was the strongest opponent he had encountered since his rebirth.

No wonder they all said that without entering the Fifth Realm, one would forever be an ant.

Wang Yaowen and the others were even more suppressed, unable to catch their breath, their faces filled with horror as they looked at the terrifying creature.

Just then, a clear, cold voice suddenly boomed in everyone's ears.

"Old Ghost Xuan Yin, how dare you!"