191: Good versus evil, five women display their power

On the battlefield outside Lingxiao City, the shouts of battle shook the clouds. Cultivators from Heavenly Demon Valley and the Yin Corpse Sect surged toward the Lingxiao Sect like a tide. Black Devilish Qi and gray corpse Qi intertwined, transforming into a massive cloud of evil that blanketed the sky above the battlefield, creating an oppressive atmosphere that made it hard to breathe. Although the morale of the Righteous Path allied forces soared with the support of Lu Chen and the other four, the evil Cultivators were numerous and fought with fearless desperation. Especially the corpse puppets of the Yin Corpse Sect; even with severed limbs, they continued to struggle and launch attacks, inflicting significant casualties on the Righteous Path alliance.

"We can't let this stalemate continue!" Lu Chen held the holy spirit sword, the gold and black Origin Power surging within his body as the pressure of the Mahayana Stage spread out. "We must concentrate our strength to crush the main force of the evil factions!"

"Right!" The four women responded in unison. The five of them simultaneously activated the Five Directions Unified Heart Formation, and five-colored spiritual light wove into a massive light screen, shielding the surrounding Righteous Path Cultivators behind them. Lu Chen held the dragon origin pearl in his hand and, following the methods of the Dragon Origin Pearl Application Technique, injected his own Origin Power. The dragon origin pearl instantly erupted with dazzling golden light, resonating with the light screen and emitting a majestic purifying power.

"Yu Lan, dismantle the corpse puppet formation!" Lu Chen commanded.

Yu Lan nodded, the Concentric Pendant at her neck glowing with pink spiritual light as the golden sound waves of the Sacred Word Art spread out like a tide: "Sacred Word · Break Evil!" Wherever the sound waves passed, the movements of the Yin Corpse Sect's corpse puppets instantly froze, the red light in their eyes dimmed, and the black evil runes on their bodies rapidly dissipated like melting snow. Those Cultivators controlled by Evil Energy also regained their senses one after another, looking at the surrounding battlefield in a daze.

"Fantastic!" Seeing this, the Righteous Path Cultivators' morale rose even higher as they launched their counterattacks.

The Sea Cultivation Saintess seized the opportunity, her hands forming seals to summon the waters of the Heavenly River. Dark clouds gathered in the sky, and a massive waterfall cascaded down like a galloping giant dragon, washing toward the Heavenly Demon Valley camp. The Heavenly River water contained pure water-element spiritual energy, which had an extremely strong restraining effect on Devilish Qi. Cultivators of Heavenly Demon Valley were swept into the waves, their internal Devilish Qi rapidly dissipating as they were washed away in disarray, screaming.

"Ice Clan Saintess, freeze their retreat!" Lu Chen ordered again.

The Ice Clan Saintess's surrounding cold air surged violently, and ice-element Origin Power poured out, turning into a sky full of frost. The frost fell upon the Yin Corpse Sect's path of retreat, instantly freezing into an ice wall dozens of zhang high, trapping thousands of corpse puppets and Yin Corpse Sect Cultivators in the center of the battlefield and cutting off their escape. The ice wall was covered in ice-element runes, emitting a piercing chill that made the corpse puppets afraid to approach.

Luo Water Immortal used the Jade Pool Immortal Light to heal the Righteous Path Cultivators. Soft white light fell like spring rain, and the wounded Cultivators felt a warm energy surge into their bodies; their wounds healed rapidly, and their spiritual power slowly recovered. While healing, she kept a vigilant eye on the battlefield, especially the movements of the Heavenly Demon Valley Master, Heavenly Demon.

Lu Chen held the holy spirit sword, the golden light of the dragon origin pearl coiling around the blade, transforming into a gold-and-black Sword Qi that charged toward the densest concentration of evil Cultivators. Wherever the Sword Qi passed, devil Cultivators and corpse puppets were cut down, their black Devilish Qi and gray corpse Qi turning into wisps of green smoke under the effect of the purification power, dissipating into the air.

"Lu Chen, you brat, do not be so arrogant!" Heavenly Demon saw his Disciples suffering heavy casualties, and a flash of fury crossed his eyes. He had been injured by the dragon origin pearl previously, and the Devilish Qi in his body was chaotic, but to reverse the defeat, he had to forcibly activate his cultivation and sacrifice the Heavenly Demon Valley's treasure—the heavenly demon banner.

As soon as the heavenly demon banner appeared, the Devilish Qi of the entire battlefield surged instantly. The banner was inscribed with eerie evil runes, and countless hideous evil shadows flew out from it, letting out shrill shrieks as they pounced toward Lu Chen and the others. These evil shadows were condensed from Extraterritorial Evil Energy and possessed extreme corrosiveness and aggressiveness; wherever they passed, the ground cracked into huge gullies, and vegetation turned to ash.

"Not good! This heavenly demon banner contains dense Extraterritorial Evil Energy!" Luo Water Immortal's expression changed. She could feel that the power within the evil shadows shared the same source as the Evil Energy fragments suppressed in the Myriad Immortals Secret Realm.

A sharp glint flashed in Lu Chen's eyes as he tossed the dragon origin pearl into the air: "Dragon Origin Power, Purify Evil!"

The dragon origin pearl erupted with dazzling golden light in the sky, transforming into a massive golden light screen that enveloped the evil shadows. Dragon Origin Power was the Origin Power of the ancient divine dragon and had a natural restraining effect on Extraterritorial Evil Energy. The evil shadows rapidly dissolved within the light screen, making a sizzling sound.

Seeing this, Heavenly Demon steeled his heart and spat out a mouthful of essence blood onto the heavenly demon banner: "Heavenly Demon Descends, Evil Energy Unites!"

The light of the heavenly demon banner surged instantly, the number of evil shadows increased, and their power grew stronger. The golden light screen began to vibrate violently, and dense cracks appeared. Lu Chen circulated the Origin Power within his body, continuously injecting it into the dragon origin pearl, only then did the light of the screen barely stabilize.

"We'll help you!" Seeing this, the four women simultaneously injected their spiritual power into the Five Directions Unified Heart Formation. The five-colored spiritual light merged with the golden light screen, forming an even sturdier protective barrier, while simultaneously transforming into five streaks of Sword Qi that blasted toward the heavenly demon banner.

Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!

The five streaks of Sword Qi struck the heavenly demon banner simultaneously. The banner vibrated violently, and the light of the evil runes instantly dimmed. Heavenly Demon spat out a mouthful of blood, his face as pale as paper, clearly having suffered a heavy blow. However, he was still unwilling to give up and tried to activate the heavenly demon banner again, only to find that Lu Chen's figure had already appeared before him.

"Heavenly Demon, your time has come!" The holy spirit sword in Lu Chen's hand flickered with gold and black spiritual light as it thrust toward Heavenly Demon's chest.

A flash of fear crossed Heavenly Demon's eyes. He wanted to dodge, but he was locked in place by the power of the Five Directions Unified Heart Formation and could not move. Just as the holy spirit sword was about to pierce his chest, he suddenly revealed an eerie smile, and the Devilish Qi in his body surged frantically: "Even if I die, I'll take you down with me!"

A streak of black Evil Energy erupted from Heavenly Demon's body, transforming into a sharp evil spike that shot toward the center of Lu Chen's forehead. This evil spike contained Heavenly Demon's lifelong cultivation and Extraterritorial Evil Energy; its speed was so fast that Lu Chen had no time to dodge.

"Lu Chen! Watch out!" A flash of determination crossed Luo Water Immortal's eyes. Without hesitation, she lunged forward, shielding Lu Chen with her body.

The evil spike struck Luo Water Immortal's back fiercely. She spat out a mouthful of blood, her face instantly turning as pale as paper as her body slumped down.

"Water Immortal!" Lu Chen's eyes were filled with shock and heartache. He caught Luo Water Immortal in his arms, and without hesitation, he plunged the holy spirit sword into Heavenly Demon's chest, crushing his heart.

Heavenly Demon let out a shrill scream. Under the purification of the Holy Spirit Power and Dragon Origin Power, his body rapidly dissolved, finally turning into a wisp of black smoke that dissipated into the air.

With Heavenly Demon's death, the Heavenly Demon Valley Cultivators became a leaderless flock and tried to flee. However, the Heavenly River water summoned by the Sea Cultivation Saintess and the ice wall of the Ice Clan Saintess had already blocked all exits. The Righteous Path alliance took the opportunity to launch a fierce assault, slaughtering the remaining evil Cultivators.

Lu Chen held Luo Water Immortal and landed quickly on the ground, circulating his Origin Power and Dragon Origin Power to heal her. "Water Immortal, how are you? Don't scare me!"

Luo Water Immortal weakly opened her eyes. Looking at Lu Chen's anxious face, a gentle smile curved her lips: "I... I'm fine... To be able to block this strike for you, I... I am willing..."

Yu Lan, the Sea Cultivation Saintess, and the Ice Clan Saintess also gathered around, their eyes full of worry. Yu Lan took out a High Grade Healing Pill and fed it to Luo Water Immortal; the Sea Cultivation Saintess channeled the power of Star Water to nourish her Meridians; and the Ice Clan Saintess used ice-element Origin to stabilize the chaotic spiritual power within her body.

Under the combined efforts of the four, Luo Water Immortal's aura gradually stabilized, and a hint of color returned to her face. She looked at Lu Chen, her eyes full of deep affection: "Lu Chen, after this, I am even more certain that you are the person I've been looking for all my life. No matter how many hardships and obstacles lie ahead, I want to be with you."

Lu Chen gripped her hand tightly, his eyes filled with emotion: "Water Immortal, thank you. From now on, I will definitely protect you and never let you suffer the slightest harm again."

At that moment, a streak of golden light flew out from where Heavenly Demon had dissipated and landed in Lu Chen's hand, transforming into an ancient small booklet. It was exactly the "Righteous and Evil Combined Attack Technique." The booklet recorded a combined attack method for Righteous Path and evil Cultivators, allowing the strength of many to be perfectly fused, exerting combat power far beyond the individual, and it had an especially strong restraining effect on Extraterritorial Evil Energy.

Lu Chen put away the "Righteous and Evil Combined Attack Technique," his heart full of joy. With this secret technique, there would be an extra layer of protection for the Righteous Path alliance when confronting evil factions and Extraterritorial Evil Energy in the future.

On the other side of the battlefield, fragments of the heavenly demon banner lay scattered on the ground. From one of the fragments, a wisp of black Evil Energy flew out, like a nimble poisonous snake, quietly burrowing into the ground. This wisp of Evil Energy followed the underground veins, rapidly flying toward the altar of the Yin Corpse Sect, resonating with the black patterns on the altar and emitting an even denser aura of Evil Energy.

The Sect Master of the Yin Corpse Sect, seeing that Heavenly Demon was dead and the evil army had suffered a crushing defeat, had already had his Soul Flying Away and Spirit Scattering in fear and fled in the chaos. However, the altar he left behind began to operate slowly under the nourishment of the Evil Energy, emitting an eerie light.

Lu Chen noticed this escaping wisp of Evil Energy, and a look of gravity flashed in his eyes. He knew that this wisp of Evil Energy was connected to the Yin Corpse Sect's altar and must hide an even greater conspiracy. The corpse puppets of the Yin Corpse Sect were originally refined using Evil Clan Evil Energy, and now with the nourishment of this wisp of Evil Energy, they would likely become even more terrifying.

"Yu Lan, Sea Cultivation, Bing'er, Water Immortal, we must destroy the Yin Corpse Sect's altar as soon as possible to stop the Evil Energy from spreading further," Lu Chen said in a heavy voice.

The four women nodded one after another, their eyes full of determination. Although Luo Water Immortal's injuries had not yet healed, she still struggled to stand up: "I'll go too. I can purify Evil Energy; perhaps I can help."

Lu Chen pressed her down and said gently, "Your injuries still require rest. Rest at the Lingxiao Sect first; we'll be back soon."

Luo Water Immortal knew she couldn't help much at the moment, so she could only nod: "You must all be careful."

Lu Chen, Yu Lan, the Sea Cultivation Saintess, and the Ice Clan Saintess turned and flew toward the Yin Corpse Sect's altar. On the battlefield, the Righteous Path Cultivators were clearing the aftermath and treating the wounded. True Man Lingxiao walked to Lu Chen's side, his eyes full of admiration: "Young friend Lu Chen, thank you for your help today; otherwise, the Lingxiao Sect might have been destroyed today."

"True Man Lingxiao is too polite," Lu Chen said with a cupped-hand salute. "It is the responsibility of every Cultivator to protect the Righteous Path and resist the evil factions. The Yin Corpse Sect's altar hides an even greater conspiracy; we must destroy it as soon as possible."

"I will go with you!" True Man Lingxiao said. "The Sect Master of the Yin Corpse Sect is sinister and cunning; the altar must be surrounded by Restrictions. One more person means more strength."

Lu Chen nodded and flew toward the Yin Corpse Sect's altar with True Man Lingxiao, Yu Lan, and the other two women. He knew that destroying the altar was only the first step. The conspiracy between Heavenly Demon Valley, the Yin Corpse Sect, and the Extraterritorial Evil Clan, as well as the secret behind that escaping wisp of Evil Energy, all needed to be uncovered one by one.

An even more dangerous battle was about to unfold at the Yin Corpse Sect's altar. But Lu Chen and the four women shared deep affection, great strength, and firm conviction. No matter how many hardships and obstacles lay ahead, they would stand side by side, facing them together to protect this Nine Heavens Immortal Realm and resist the invasion of the Extraterritorial Evil Clan.