182: Chapter 182 Then why don't you go?

Great Demon Xiong Kuo's one-zhang-tall body stirred up a gale in mid-air, his right fist raised high, covered in a thick layer of dark golden light, descending like an iron hammer from the heavens.

"Watch me smash you to death, you old fossil!"

"Boom~"

"Arrogant!!"

Insulted by Great Demon Xiong Kuo, Great Elder Jian Sanyuan's expression turned ugly, yet he did not retreat. He gripped his sword with his right hand, Sword Qi condensing on the blade, and a beam of white light, brighter than before, erupted from the tip of the sword to meet Great Demon Xiong Kuo's fist.

"Boom!!"

This collision was far more violent than the last.

A wave of Qi exploded outward.

It knocked the front-row Disciples of both sides to the ground.

A larger crater was blasted into the ground, and gravel sprayed like rain, clattering against the ground in a cacophony.

The mist within a radius of several dozen zhang was swept clean by the shockwave, revealing the grayish-white sky.

Before the aftermath of the collision had dispersed, Great Demon Xiong Kuo's figure had already been sent flying.

His one-zhang-tall body, like a toppled mountain, flew backward for several dozen zhang, crashing into a giant boulder behind him. The boulder shattered with a boom, and the rubble buried half of his body.

The dark golden light exploded from the surface of his body, peeling away like shattered glass, revealing the grayish-white skin beneath.

His Bear King Body was shattered.

Great Demon Xiong Kuo climbed out of the rubble, his steps unsteady, blood hanging from the corner of his mouth. There was a deep sword mark on his chest, extending from his collarbone to his abdomen, with flesh rolled back and blood gushing out.

His right arm hung at his side, his fingers trembling. The dark golden light on his fist had completely vanished, revealing charred flesh and broken nails.

"Damn it."

His strength was fading.

It wasn't dispersed by Great Elder Jian Sanyuan, but suppressed by something.

The Demon Power within him was still there, but it felt as if it had been grabbed by the throat by an invisible hand, unable to surge forth no matter what.

The flow of Demon Power in his Meridians had slowed by half, and the Demon Core in his Dantian was spinning slower and slower, like a rusted machine slowly grinding to a halt.

"Damn."

"My strength... has been restricted!"

He raised his head to look at Great Elder Jian Sanyuan opposite him, his eyes filled with unwillingness.

Great Elder Jian Sanyuan stood where he was, his gray robes fluttering, the white light still flowing on his blade.

He watched Great Demon Xiong Kuo climb out of the rubble, making no move to attack again.

After that one strike.

The three thousand Disciples behind him erupted into earth-shaking cheers.

"Elder Jian is mighty!"

"Heavenly Sword Sect is invincible!"

"Kill that bear!"

The cheers echoed through the valley. Color returned to the faces of those Qi Refining Disciples, and one by one, they were eager to charge and slaughter the Yao Race.

"Old Bear!"

The Rift-Wind Wolf King was the first to rush up.

He shoved aside the rubble, dragged Great Demon Xiong Kuo out, and supported his left arm.

Great Demon Xiong Kuo's body was too heavy; even the Rift-Wind Wolf King's half-step third-rank Demon body stumbled, and he had to grit his teeth to steady himself.

The Azure-Horned Deer King rushed over from the other side and supported Great Demon Xiong Kuo's right arm. The two of them, one on the left and one on the right, helped Great Demon Xiong Kuo to a flat rock and made him sit down.

Great Demon Xiong Kuo sat down on the rock with a thud, causing the stone to sink a few inches into the mud.

"That really hurts."

Blood was still seeping from his chest, dark red blood flowing down his belly fur, dripping onto the ground and staining the soil beneath his feet dark red.

His breathing was heavy and rapid, like a broken bellows, pulling, pausing, then pulling again.

"Don't move!"

The Azure-Horned Deer King raised his right claw, a cluster of cyan light shimmering in his palm, and slowly lowered it onto the sword mark on Great Demon Xiong Kuo's chest.

"Hum~"

The moment the cyan Demon Power touched the wound, Great Demon Xiong Kuo's body tensed violently, his teeth grinding with a crunching sound.

Under the shroud of the cyan light, the flesh at the wound began to peristalsis slowly, the severed blood vessels reconnected one by one, and the rolled-back flesh closed up bit by bit.

New granulation tissue grew from the edges of the wound, as fine as hair, intertwining to slowly fill the gaping tear.

The bleeding stopped.

But that sword mark remained, extending from his collarbone to his abdomen, like a centipede crawling on Great Demon Xiong Kuo's chest, hideous and terrifying.

The Azure-Horned Deer King's cyan Demon Power had only stopped the bleeding and sealed the wound; the Sword Qi left deep in the wound by Great Elder Jian Sanyuan was still there.

Those strands of white Sword Qi, as fine as ox hair, occupied Great Demon Xiong Kuo's Meridians, acting like tiny knives, constantly cutting at the tissues inside his body.

The Azure-Horned Deer King's Demon Power was shredded by that Sword Qi time and time again; each time, he had to re-condense it and re-cast the spell.

After a few breaths.

The Azure-Horned Deer King's expression darkened.

"The Sword Qi Great Elder Jian Sanyuan left in your body won't dissipate. My Demon Power can only stop the bleeding and seal the wound; it cannot expel it."

Great Demon Xiong Kuo gritted his teeth, gasping for air, his voice hoarse: "If it can't be expelled, then don't worry about it for now. As long as I can fight, that's enough."

The Rift-Wind Wolf King crouched beside Great Demon Xiong Kuo, his amber pupils staring at the eight Golden Core auras opposite them, his claws digging into the mud, his knuckles turning white.

At this moment.

Behind Great Elder Jian Sanyuan, several figures stepped forward one after another.

The first to speak was the Xuanyi Sect Grand Elder, Sect Leader Xuanqingzi. He had a pale, beardless face and an indifferent expression, wearing a black Daoist robe embroidered with dark golden runes.

"Fellow Daoist Sanyuan, now that this bear demon has no combat strength left, why not strike directly and kill it?"

Great Elder Jian Sanyuan turned his head, looked at Sect Leader Xuanqingzi, and gave a cold snort.

"Then why don't you go?"

Sect Leader Xuanqingzi's smile stiffened for a moment, and the xuantian mirror in his hand spun once, but he did not respond.

The two exchanged a glance, then simultaneously averted their gazes to look toward the depths.

"Hum~"

"Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh~"

Just then, a wave of floral fragrance drifted over.

It was as if thousands of flowers had bloomed simultaneously; the fragrance surged out from the depths of Taiyue Mountain, spreading along with the mist, covering the sky and earth.

After the floral fragrance.

Beams of golden light shot out from the direction of the bamboo forest, carrying the scent of fireworks.

The golden light fell upon the Yao Race without a sound or fluctuation, simply spreading down quietly like an invisible veil.

"Hum~"

Great Demon Xiong Kuo's body stiffened violently.

He looked down at his own hands, his pupils constricting sharply.

The sense of powerlessness that had suppressed him from within was receding, like the first crack appearing on a frozen river in springtime.

Demon Power surged out from his Dantian, rushing through his Meridians, more than twice as fast as before.

He tried to clench his fist, his knuckles creaking, and the dark golden light on his fist lit up again. Although it was still faint, it had returned.

"Hahaha!!"

Great Demon Xiong Kuo laughed loudly, his Demon Power boiling within him.

The Rift-Wind Wolf King stood up, his amber pupils flashing with brilliance.

Under the strange phenomenon.

Three thousand members of the Yao Race looked up in unison.

The floral fragrance grew stronger, and the golden light grew more intense.

From the direction of the bamboo forest, a pale green figure walked out of the mist.

It was Lady Hua.

She was barefoot, stepping on the rubble and mud, the red string on her ankle swaying gently in the breeze.

Her pale green dress trailed on the ground, the hem stained with a few bamboo leaves and dew. Her long hair was casually held up by a wooden hairpin, with a few strands of dark hair hanging by her ears.

Her face was still as cold and detached as ever, the petal silhouettes at the edges of her eyes flickering in the golden light, like a lotus flower half-opened in the morning sun.

But her aura had changed.

It was no longer the gentle and refined aura the Yao Race had seen before; at this moment, all the Yao Race could perceive that Lady Hua possessed an elusive, sharp edge that made them dare not look too closely.

Lady Hua walked to the front of the Yao Race's formation and stopped.