209: Sword Qi and Jade Pendant
Deep in the mountains and dense forests, heaven and earth lost their color.
A figure nearly a hundred zhang tall with Three Heads and Six Arms sat upon a White Lotus Throne.
The Dharma Image was as majestic as a mountain, its entire body wreathed in suffocating white divine light. Every ripple of its halo was accompanied by a heart-palpitating sensation.
Crack!
Bronze Bull's massive, mountain-like body flew backward like a kite with a broken string.
The powerful demon body he took such pride in appeared fragile and pathetic before a single beam of white light casually cast by that Dharma Image.
The armor on his chest shattered, and a deep, bone-deep wound slashed across his chest and abdomen, blood spraying out like a fountain.
"What powerful methods!"
Several strips of cloth wrapped around Red Maiden's body tore, revealing much of her spring-like skin.
Blood seeped from the corner of her mouth, and a look of horror appeared on her charming face.
The gap between major Realms was like a heavenly chasm.
This current encounter reminded her of when she first met the Alliance Leader, Sang Qianhua.
It was the same overwhelming power, and the same fear that struck from the bottom of one's heart.
It was just that Sang Qianhua hadn't harbored murderous intent back then, so her methods were relatively gentler.
The others present were in quite a miserable state.
The Dharma Image's six arms each held a different Magical Artifact.
A Golden Bell, a Precious Umbrella, a Long Staff, a Jade Cleansing Vase... every Magical Artifact was roaring, emitting astonishing waves of magical power.
"Ah!"
One shrill scream after another rang out in succession.
Some with weaker cultivation couldn't even manage to flee under this indiscriminate and terrifying pressure.
Some had their internal organs shattered by sound waves, while others were struck by beams of light and instantly turned into blood mist, leaving not even a whole corpse behind.
In just a few breaths, the mountain forest had become a purgatory.
Su Qingqian stood upon the White Lotus Throne, her expression as indifferent as ice. She looked down at the crowd below, like a deity judging Mortals.
"Your Highness Prince Ning, the games should come to an end."
Su Qingqian waved her jade hand lightly, and the Vajra-wrath Face of the Dharma Image behind her suddenly turned.
The wind howled.
A giant hand that blotted out the sun, carrying the sound of wind and thunder, clawed fiercely toward Zhao Ming.
Before the giant hand even landed, the terrifying wind pressure had already caused the ground around Zhao Ming to crack inch by inch. His entire body felt as if it were being crushed by a great mountain; even moving a single finger became incredibly difficult.
The shadow of death had never been so clear.
At the critical moment.
"Demoness! Do not be so arrogant!"
A clear and spirited long whistle suddenly pierced through the sky full of demonic wind and divine light.
Song Qingwu, who had also been knocked back and was bleeding from the corner of his mouth, had a light burning in his eyes.
He suddenly bit the tip of his tongue, spraying a mouthful of Vital Blood onto the Frost Cold Sword in his hand, and simultaneously took out a Sword Talisman from his robes, crushing it fiercely!
The next moment.
Boom!
A completely different, terrifying aura that surpassed everyone present instantly erupted from Song Qingwu's body.
It was a strand of Sword Qi.
A strand of Sword Qi so pure it was at the absolute limit, as if it could sever all things in the world and even make time itself stand still!
This Sword Qi was not cultivated by Song Qingwu himself, but was a killing move bestowed upon him by an Elder of the Lishan Sword Sect who had long since entered the Upper Three Ranks.
Once this sword was unleashed, it could kill even a true Fourth Rank Cultivator!
"Slash!"
Song Qingwu held his long sword and thrust it out.
Chime!
It was as if only this one dazzling sword light remained between heaven and earth.
The giant hand of the Dharma Image was split in two without any resistance under this sword strike!
"Tai!"
The Dharma Image seemed to possess a spirit of its own; the pain of the severed arm caused it to let out a low moan.
The massive palm crashed down, crushing a small hill and dissipating into a sky full of white light.
"Hmm?"
A look of surprise appeared on Su Qingqian's face, followed by intense annoyance.
She had already had two chances to capture Zhao Ming.
Yet she had been thwarted repeatedly; even she was starting to get a little angry.
"Quite the Lishan Sword Sect, for a single strand of Sword Qi to have such power."
Su Qingqian sneered and said softly, "Since you seek death, I shall grant it to you."
Her hands formed seals, weaving through hundreds of hand signs.
The hundred-zhang-tall Dharma Image waved its arms, and the sky resounded with booming explosions.
Two of the arms, holding the Golden Bell and the Precious Umbrella respectively, smashed down fiercely toward Song Qingwu.
Clang! Clang!
The Magical Artifacts roared, their sound waves like crashing tides.
With the profound Sword Qi empowering him, Song Qingwu could now battle a Fourth Rank Cultivator.
But the Dharma Image's offensive was ferocious. Though his sword techniques were endless and he blocked the attacks one after another, he no longer had any spare energy to look after Zhao Ming.
The remaining three arms of the Dharma Image, carrying even more violent killing intent, struck toward Zhao Ming from three different directions!
Su Qingqian looked at Zhao Ming, the smile in her beautiful eyes sending a chill through one's heart.
She had originally wanted to capture Zhao Ming alive, but now it seemed rather troublesome.
It would be better to wound him severely; as long as he had one breath left, she could heal him.
She had made up her mind to no longer worry about Zhao Ming's status, as long as she could plant the Demon Seed.
Rumble—
A battle at the Fourth Rank level completely erupted, and the destructive power it caused was no longer comparable to before.
Sword Qi and divine light crisscrossed, ravaging the mountain forest.
Swaths of dense forest were leveled, and rivers were evaporated.
The originally lush heart of the Taihang Mountains was now forcibly turned into a wasteland spanning dozens of miles.
The terrifying commotion reached all the way to the foot of the Taihang Mountains.
Meanwhile.
At the foot of the Taihang Mountains, in the cluster of Immortal Caves.
The ground was trembling. In the distant deep mountains, white light occasionally shot into the sky, and thunderous booms echoed.
The heart-palpitating pressure, even from a distance, still made it difficult for the various demons at the foot of the mountain to breathe.
"This... what's going on? Has a Great Demon King attacked?"
"Such a terrifying aura... even stronger than the previous East River Dragon King!"
Xu Qing's wives and concubines gathered together, their faces pale with fear and their eyes full of unease... At the center of the battlefield, the situation had reached a desperate end.
Song Qingwu was pinned down by two of the Dharma Image's arms. Even though his killing power had reached the Fourth Rank level, he could not break through the Dharma Image in a short time.
And Zhao Ming was facing the greatest crisis of his life.
"Puff!"
A giant fist from the Dharma Image came crashing down, its wind grazing his shoulder.
Just being grazed caused the bones on half his body to feel as if they had shattered. He spat out a mouthful of blood and was sent flying.
"Cough, cough..."
Zhao Ming slammed heavily onto the ground. He struggled to crawl up, only to find that the True Qi in his body was scattered, making even standing a luxury.
He looked up at the giant hand falling once again.
The shadow completely enveloped him, and the aura of death submerged him like a tide.
"Damn it! Truly damn it!"
Zhao Ming did not show fear, instead letting out a roar.
Just as the giant hand was about to envelop him.
The warm jade pendant that always hung at his waist, which he often toyed with, trembled slightly.
Buzz!
A strange humming sound rang out.
The sound wasn't loud, yet it drowned out the sky-filling roar.
Immediately following.
A glow suddenly lit up upon the jade pendant.
This light was not the golden Imperial Dragon Qi, nor was it the white Noble Spirit. It was a kind of... reddish-orange light, like a candle flame that was about to burn out yet was endlessly resilient!
The light seemed weak, like a flickering candle in the wind, but the moment it appeared, it seemed to ignite some kind of rule within the entire heaven and earth.
Boom!
A powerful aura erupted from the jade pendant.
"What is that?"
Su Qingqian's face changed slightly in mid-air. She sensed a feeling of crisis coming from that reddish-orange light.