164: Taming the Demon Ape

"Put in more effort! His aura has weakened; he can't hold on much longer!"

Lu Tao held a Formation Flag, his spiritual power continuously pouring into the flagpole, his voice raspy from the exertion.

"Qi Yunling, hurry up! My arms are almost too heavy to lift!"

Zhao Lie gritted his teeth as he held on, the Formation Flag trembling slightly in his hands, and the light of the lightning chains dimmed somewhat.

"I am already doing my best!"

Qi Yunling stood by the magma pool, his Face pale as paper, his hands rapidly forming complex hand seals.

Streaks of pale golden taming runes flew toward the Crimson Flame Demonic Ape, only to be repeatedly blocked by his Domain of the Flaming Prison.

Not far away, Lu Tao, Zhao Lie, and Chen Miaoyin each guarded a position, their Formation Flags echoing each other from afar as they activated the Thunderous Evil-Suppressing Grand Formation, with countless beams of lightning shooting from the formation eyes to firmly restrict the Crimson Flame Demonic Ape's movements.

The Evil-Suppressing Tower in the center of the formation hummed loudly, and one brilliant beam of evil-suppressing divine light after another descended like a waterfall, striking the Crimson Flame Demonic Ape, each impact causing him to let out a painful roar.

Song Moting and Murong Yue stood side by side, both operating their Cultivation Techniques at full power; Song Moting was surrounded by bone-chilling cold, a Frost Bead continuously releasing pale blue cold air that spread steadily in all directions.

Murong Yue's water dragon ribbon was also pushed to its limit, exerting all her water-attributed spiritual power to assist Song Moting.

The ice, water power, and the flames in the cavern contended with each other, barely suppressing the lava's firepower and buying time for the others.

Qi Yunling was filled with urgency; since ascending to the Nascent Soul Stage, he had been unable to tame a decent Fourth-Tier Yao Beast.

This Fourth-Tier Middle Stage Crimson Flame Demonic Ape was powerful, but it was impossible to tame him with his strength alone.

But now, with so many Nascent Soul Cultivators joining forces to suppress him, the opportunity to tame him was right before him, and he refused to give up no matter what.

"Brother Han, you've come at just the right time!"

Zhao Lie caught a glimpse of Su Ling out of the corner of his eye and immediately shouted at the top of his lungs, his arm holding the Formation Flag trembling slightly from the continuous infusion of spiritual power, "Quick, pour in your lightning mana; let's suppress this beast together!"

According to the original plan, Su Ling and Luo Xuanxiao were both supposed to participate in suppressing the Crimson Flame Demonic Ape.

However, for one thing, Luo Xuanxiao and Qi Yunling were already at odds because of Chen Miaoyin.

Secondly, the resource point he guarded was very close to the Wuyun Sect, and he was uneasy about leaving it for too long, so he insisted on leaving early.

Su Ling, mindful of their old friendship, saw him off, which was why he arrived back a step late.

"Alright!"

Su Ling responded by leaping into the air, his figure landing beside Chen Miaoyin like a bolt of azure lightning.

He pinched a seal with his fingertips to activate the coiling dragon bell, and a pale azure bell-shaped barrier enveloped him, insulating him from the scorching heat within the cavern.

At the same time, his immense lightning mana surged like a rushing river, rapidly pouring into the Formation Flag.

With the reinforcement of his Azure Firmament lightning power, the originally incandescent lightning chains gradually took on a deep azure hue, the lightning patterns on the chains becoming clearer, and the crackling power of the lightning surged by another thirty percent.

Even the Crimson Flame Demonic Ape's Domain of the Flaming Prison was weakened as a result, and the temperature dropped rapidly.

The bound Crimson Flame Demonic Ape, seemingly sensing that he could no longer escape his fate, let out a mournful cry filled with unwillingness; his struggles grew increasingly sluggish, and a layer of despondency gradually clouded his scarlet eyes.

Su Ling's joining finally allowed Chen Miaoyin to breathe a sigh of relief; she quickly took a white jade flute from her Storage Pouch, brushed her fingertips across the instrument, and clear, soothing flute music slowly flowed out.

This was her specialty, the Technique of Illusory Sound, which could subtly wear down the Crimson Flame Demonic Ape's will to resist, paving the way for Qi Yunling's taming process.

Qi Yunling's expression was one of extreme focus, his hands flying as he cast one taming rune after another, flashing with mysterious luster like golden streams of light, which precisely imprinted themselves into the Crimson Flame Demonic Ape's mind.

With each rune that landed, the Crimson Flame Demonic Ape's struggle weakened a fraction, and the ferocious glint in his eyes faded slightly.

This high-intensity standoff lasted for over an hour.

Only when the restless lava in the magma pool gradually calmed down and no more scorching pillars of fire shot into the sky could this taming process be considered truly concluded.

The Crimson Flame Demonic Ape lay listlessly by the magma pool, his massive body trembling slightly, his eyes filled with indignation and powerlessness, devoid of his previous mania.

"Haha! Finally done!"

Qi Yunling released his tightly clenched hand seals and laughed heartily with his hands on his hips, the fatigue on his Face replaced by unconcealable triumph.

Subduing this Crimson Flame Demonic Ape meant he now had two Nascent Soul-level Yao Beast pets in his possession.

The Fourth-Tier Middle Stage Crimson Flame Demonic Ape, plus the previously acquired Swift Wind Golden Pupil Falcon, which was comparable to a Nascent Soul Early Stage Cultivator.

With one person and two pets, plus his own Nascent Soul cultivation, such combat power was already equivalent to three Nascent Soul Cultivators joining forces, enough to top the entire Nether Prison Plane.

Looking around, perhaps only a scant three or four people, such as Luo Qianjie and Lu Tao, could compare to him.

As a Cultivator from a small Sect, he was now able to stand on equal footing with the True Immortal Disciples of top-tier major Sects.

Such a growth rate was truly astonishing.

At this thought, Qi Yunling immediately turned around and bowed deeply to everyone, his tone filled with gratitude, "If not for the all-out help of you Fellow Daoists, I would never have been able to tame this Fourth-Tier Demonic Ape... I won't say any more superfluous words of thanks; if you ever need my help in the future, just speak up, and I will not hesitate!"

"Rest assured, if there is a real need, I won't stand on ceremony with you!"

Lu Tao, being straightforward, patted his chest and responded boisterously, his Face full of hearty smiles.

The others also smiled and nodded, offering their congratulations to Qi Yunling.

The smiles in their eyes contained both sincere congratulations and a hint of expectation for the future.

In fact, the reason everyone was willing to help with such full effort, besides doing it for Chen Miaoyin's sake, was more importantly for considerations regarding the subsequent National War.

Having one more ally with extraordinary combat power meant having a better chance of winning on the dangerous battlefield.

Lu Tao's subsequent plan was also very clear: on one hand, stabilize his own points ranking and do his best to compete for first place.

On the other hand, help Su Ling, Zhao Lie, and the others accumulate points, striving to further improve their rankings.

After all, if they could break into the top one hundred or even the top fifty of the overall points leaderboard...

For Zhao Lie, Murong Yue, and the others, it would have tremendous benefits, whether in terms of resource rewards or future development.

As for why Qi Yunling would take the initiative to target the Crimson Flame Demonic Ape, besides wanting to enhance his own combat power, it was more importantly because he had been stimulated by the spoils of war previously obtained by Su Ling and the others.

It was precisely because of this that he changed his usual laid-back manner, took the initiative to ask everyone for help, and thus brought about today's taming.