Staying in the sect, controlling beasts and cultivating immortals

A deafening roar, so muffled it seemed as if a heavenly drum had been shattered! The entire imperial city trembled violently! The light screen flashed with an earthy yellow light, the phantom of the Xuan Turtle roared in agony, and large sections of the runes representing the earth's veins on its shell dimmed! Mo Heng, at the core of the main formation, turned pale and coughed up a mouthful of blood. The formation plate flickered wildly, almost out of control! The power contained in that spear was terrifying, combining the strength of three hundred Blood Skeleton Guards, further enhanced by the Blood Sea Styx power of Elder Blood Nether, far exceeding a single strike from an ordinary early-stage Void Refinement cultivator!
The light barrier dented violently, cracking open with countless spiderweb-like fissures. Though not completely shattered, it teetered on the brink of collapse! The battle formation composed of the Blood Skeleton Guards also trembled under the immense recoil, their formation slightly disrupted.

"Hmph! Resist stubbornly! Let's see how many spears you can block!" Elder Blood Nether's blood-red eyes turned cold, and he raised his withered claws again. The Blood Sea and the River of the Underworld surged, injecting even more terrifying power into the Blood Bone Spear! The second strike was already brewing!
Meanwhile, Elder Soul Lock and Faceless had appeared near Chen Xueqing like ghosts. The Nine Nether Soul Suppressing Banner unleashed a storm of foul soul energy, descending upon her and attempting to erode Chen Xueqing's life shield. Faceless, wielding a dagger in his remaining hand, moved erratically in the shadows, each flash aimed at Chen Xueqing's vitals with cunning and ruthless angles. Combined with Elder Soul Lock's soul energy interference, the situation was fraught with danger!

Chen Xueqing pursed her lips, fully activating the Life Gem and the Azure Lotus in her hand. The emerald light shield swayed violently in the Soul Fiend Storm, while the Azure Lotus cast rays of purifying light, constantly dispelling the filth. She moved nimbly, dodging the Faceless One's assassinations with the help of thorny vines, but the difference in their cultivation levels was too great, and the shield's light visibly dimmed.

"Xueqing!" Wang Cheng, seeing Chen Xueqing's predicament, was filled with rage and wanted to turn back to help, but was held back by the other three demonic offspring. These demonic offspring were exceptionally fierce and fearless, their filthy attacks constantly eroding his Bloodthirst Domain.

Just when things were beset by internal and external troubles and at a critical juncture—

"boom!"

Deep within the imperial city, the tightly closed stone door of the secret meditation chamber suddenly shattered!

An indescribable, terrifying pressure, like an ancient beast awakening from its slumber, swept across the entire battlefield with boundless fury and chilling killing intent! The chaotic energy currents momentarily halted!
A figure emerged from the smoke and dust, stepping on the ripples of shattered space.

His face still had an unnatural pallor, and his robes were even stained with traces of decay that had not been completely dispelled. His aura was no longer the perfect and flawless one he had at his peak; instead, it carried a kind of violent and... resolute force that came from someone who had not yet recovered from serious injuries but had forcibly broken through his cultivation!
But those eyes shone with an astonishing light! Deep within their pupils, chaotic divine runes swirled like a galaxy, and the Guixu Sword Seal hung upside down like divine punishment! Their icy gaze pierced through the chaotic battlefield, like two unsheathed peerless divine swords, instantly locking onto Elder Xue Ming atop the crest of the blood river!
"Blood Demon Old Ghost..." Yu Changsheng's voice was terrifyingly calm, yet it contained a murderous intent that could change the very heavens and earth. "You have wounded my comrades and invaded my homeland... Today, I will use your blood and soul to sacrifice for my Sword of Return to Nothingness!"

Before he finished speaking, the Chaos Purple Spirit Emperor Sword, which was floating beside him, emitted an unprecedented, soaring sword cry that seemed to tear the heavens apart! On the sword's blade, the Returning Void Sword Seal burst forth with a gray-black light that engulfed everything! Deep within the northern ley lines of Qingzhou, the ancient filthy pupa that had been sealed and suppressed by the six beasts seemed to sense something as well, and throbbed violently with unease, causing the ley lines to tremble once more!

Yu Changsheng emerges from seclusion! The rage of a peak Void Refinement cultivator, mixed with the unhealed fury of his Dao injuries and the supreme power of the Chaos Returning to the Void, is about to ignite this entire sky! The Blood Sea's weaponry clashes with the Chaos Returning to the Void; the final collision is imminent!
Yu Changsheng forced his way out of the barrier, and the Chaos Purple Spirit Emperor Sword pointed directly at Elder Xue Ming.

"You have wounded my comrades and invaded my homeland... Today, I will use your blood and soul to consecrate my Sword of Return to Nothingness!"

The chaotic sword light tore through the sky, but before it could even touch the Blood Sea and the River Styx, Yu Changsheng suddenly spat out a mouthful of foul blood containing the laws of gray defeat.

The backlash from the Dao injury threatened to rupture his meridians, but he used his sword to brace himself and forcefully stabilize his body.

"At your last gasp, you dare to boast of your courage? Today I will strip you of your Dao bones and refine your soul!" Xue Ming laughed wildly, and the Blood River transformed into a gigantic hand that blotted out the sky and pressed down.

At the critical moment, Wang Cheng burned his domineering blood and crashed into the giant palm, while Chen Xueqing activated the Green Lotus Origin to create a life barrier...

"The Blood Demon..."

Yu Changsheng's voice was not loud, and even had a hoarse quality from his serious injuries, but it was like the friction of ancient ice, clearly piercing through the roar of the Blood Sea and the River Styx, the screams of the Nine-Child Mother Demon, and the booming of the Blood Skeleton Guard battle formation. Every word was like a cold chisel, driving deep into the souls of all Xuanming cultivators.

"They hurt my brothers and sisters, they invaded my homeland..."

He strode through the air, the shattered spatial ripples yielding beneath his feet. The Chaos Purple Spirit Emperor Sword hovered beside him, its blade humming, the Returning Void Sword Seal spinning like a miniature black hole devouring everything, radiating a deathly sharpness that froze the entire battlefield.

"Today, I will use your blood and soul to consecrate my Sword of Return to Nothingness!"

His voice was firm and resolute.

“Zheng——!!!”

The sword's cry resounded throughout the heavens! It was no longer clear and melodious, but carried a violent force capable of tearing apart the universe and ending eternity!

The Chaos Purple Spirit Emperor Sword moved. Without any fancy trajectory, only a pure, extremely dark gray sword light, condensed like the first ray of annihilation light at the dawn of creation, slashed fiercely down towards Elder Blood Nether on the crest of the Blood River!

Where the sword light passed, space didn't shatter, but silently transformed into a primordial stream of void particles! Time seemed to be forcibly severed, leaving behind eternal black cracks! The filthy stench, the surging waves of blood, and even the pervasive soul energy, upon touching the sword light, were utterly annihilated like grains of sand thrown into the Eye of Return to Nothingness, without even a ripple! This sword strike condensed the fury of Yu Changsheng at the peak of the Void Refinement stage, and incorporated his supreme understanding of the Dao of Chaos Return to Nothingness. It was the strongest attack he could unleash at this moment, even at the cost of his injured body!
However, just as this world-destroying sword light was about to touch the viscous, filthy waves of the Blood Sea Styx—

"puff!"

Yu Changsheng's body trembled violently, and he suddenly spat out a mouthful of blood! This blood was not bright red, but rather a chilling grayish-brown color, mixed with wisps of withered roots that looked like living things, exuding an aura of decay and death!
Backlash from Dao injury!

He forcefully broke through the barrier, forcibly invoked the primordial chaos, and forcefully unleashed this sword strike that surpassed all limits, like a dam bursting open on a cracked levee! The withered Daoist imprint from the ancient, decaying pupa, which had been entrenched deep within his Dao foundation, retaliated instantly like a venomous snake smelling blood! His meridians felt as if they were being pierced by billions of withered needles, on the verge of tearing apart. The ashen, decaying pupa phantom in his sea of ​​consciousness roared once more, frantically devouring his will!

He staggered, almost falling from the sky. His face turned ashen, his aura fluctuated violently, and he plummeted from the vast peak of the Void Refinement Realm to the bottom! He used his sword to prop himself up, forcibly stabilizing his swaying body. His knuckles turned white from the excessive force, and the chaotic divine rune on his back flickered and dimmed.

"Hahahaha—!" Elder Xueming's maniacal laughter was like the hooting of an owl, echoing through the sky, filled with cruel smugness and disdain. "At your last gasp! Plagued by Dao injuries, you still dare to act so fiercely in front of me? Your Chaotic Dao Bone and Returning Void Sword Soul will be accepted by me today! They will perfectly help my Netherworld Blood Sea Dao reach its pinnacle!"

His withered palm pressed down sharply!
"The Blood Sea and the Styx River, overturning the heavens!"

Rumble!
The blood-red river that stretched across the sky, surging and roaring, suddenly boiled and reversed! Endless waves of blood, floating bones, and howling vengeful spirits instantly coalesced into a gigantic blood-red hand that blotted out the sky! The giant hand was clearly patterned, composed of the most filthy netherworld blood and evil energy, and in its palm, a huge, pus-filled evil eye suddenly opened, locking onto Yu Changsheng! As the evil eye opened and closed, a terrifying will that froze the soul and corrupted all laws descended with a deafening roar, pressing down fiercely on Yu Changsheng!
Before the giant hand even arrived, its terrifying pressure caused the light barrier of the imperial city below to dent violently. Mo Heng coughed up blood again, and cracks spread across the array plate. Wang Cheng's protective blood flames were torn open by the two demonic offspring, leaving a deep, bone-revealing claw mark on his shoulder, which was then frantically eroded by the dark, deathly aura. Chen Xueqing's life shield, under the ghostly howls of the Soul-Locking Banner and the relentless attacks of the Faceless Dagger, was already as thin as a cicada's wing, teetering on the verge of collapse!

A close call!
"Old Yu—!!"

Wang Cheng's eyes widened in fury as he let out a heart-wrenching roar! Looking at Yu Changsheng's staggering figure spitting blood, and at the blood-red giant hand that blotted out the sky and exuded the power to destroy the world, an unprecedented ferocity and determination, mixed with the brotherhood of sharing life and death, erupted like volcanic lava at the core of his Tyrant Blood Chaos Burning Heaven Domain!

"Blood and stagnation as fuel, chaos as fire! Burn my broken body, protect my limbs! Open for me—!!!"

He no longer suppressed or held back! Deep within his dantian, the chaotic mark bestowed upon him by Yu Changsheng, which had become one with the origin of his domineering body, was completely detonated by him!

boom!
Wang Cheng's entire body instantly transformed into a humanoid crimson-gold sun burning at its zenith! His domineering blood sublimated in a boiling frenzy, and his Heaven-Burning Domain collapsed and condensed inwards! The crimson-gold flames were no longer emitted outwards, but instead erupted from every pore and every bone in his body! His skin and flesh began to carbonize and crack in the flames, revealing the sinews and bones beneath flowing with magma-like crimson-gold blood and chaotic gray energy! A terrifying aura, so intense it seemed to incinerate him along with the heavens and earth, surged into the sky!

The barrier of being half-step into the Void Refinement stage was completely shattered at this moment by this resolute act of burning the body and soul!

He was no longer "approaching" the Void Refinement stage, but rather, at the cost of his life and origin, he briefly and violently stepped into the threshold of that realm—the Overlord Blood Burning Heaven · Void Refinement Soul Burning State!
"Blood Demon Old Dog! If you want to mess with Old Yu, you'll have to get past me first! Tyrant Blood Chaos - Burning Heaven Ashes - Break!!!"

Wang Cheng's burning figure transformed into a crimson-gold fire meteor that pierced through the heavens and earth. Ignoring the surrounding demons and the distance in space, he charged with a fierce will to burn the eight wastelands and perish together with them, crashing headlong into the evil eye in the palm of the crimson giant hand that was pressing down! On the fist, the extremely compressed power of incineration mixed with the newly born power of Void Refinement and that trace of the true meaning of breaking the law and returning to the void, even causing the space itself to begin to melt and collapse prematurely!
"Brother Changsheng!" Chen Xueqing's eyes welled with tears, her heart aching terribly, yet she knew this was not the time for sorrow. Wang Cheng's desperate attack had bought her her only chance!
She suddenly bit her tongue, spitting a mouthful of life-giving blood onto the Pure Lotus in her hand!
"The blue lotus possesses a spirit, purifying the world and protecting all living beings! With my very essence, I summon your true spirit! Open—!"

hum!
The Pure Lotus erupted with an unprecedentedly brilliant azure divine light! The lotus petals unfolded layer by layer, and at the center of the flower, a point of pure, seven-colored lotus heart light, seemingly containing the primordial mystery of life, suddenly shone! This light was gentle yet incredibly resilient, instantly breaking through the filthy soul seal of the Soul-Locking Banner!
Chen Xueqing's figure seemed to merge with the green lotus, transforming into an incredibly solid and enormous green lotus phantom that stretched between Yu Changsheng and the giant palm of the Blood Sea! The lotus phantom slowly rotated, with ancient purification Dao patterns flowing on each petal, radiating an unparalleled Dao charm that cleansed the universe and protected all living beings!

This is not defense, but the ultimate protection that sacrifices the very essence of life—Azure Lotus Purification: Life Barrier!
Boom! Crack—!!!
The first explosive sound came from the very top of the sky!

Wang Cheng's burning crimson-gold fire meteor crashed hard into the evil eye in the palm of the blood-red giant hand!

An indescribable, terrifying energy exploded there! Crimson-gold flames of annihilation clashed and annihilated the filthy, viscous blood! The Evil Eye let out a shrill, agonizing scream, as massive amounts of pus, blood, and filthy soul power sprayed and evaporated like a waterfall! Wang Cheng's fist was deeply embedded in the core of the Evil Eye. His burning body trembled violently, and one arm, along with half of his shoulder, instantly turned to ashes under the crushing force of the blood and backlash! But the flames in his eyes burned even more fiercely, the power of burning the heavens holding back the Evil Eye, causing the downward momentum of the colossal hand that blotted out the sky to freeze for a moment!

Boom——! ! !
A second loud bang followed immediately!

The edge of the blood-red giant hand slammed down on the Azure Lotus Purification Barrier that Chen Xueqing had activated with her life essence!
The emerald light clashed violently with the filthy blood-red light, producing a piercing sound of disintegration! The illusory lotus trembled violently, the light on its petals rapidly dimming, and fine cracks even began to appear at the edges! Chen Xueqing felt as if she had been struck by a heavy hammer; her delicate body trembled violently, her face instantly turning translucent, and mouthfuls of blood gushed from her mouth, staining the lotus before her crimson. The light of the Life Gem also became extremely weak; she was almost sacrificing her divine soul to maintain this last barrier protecting Yu Changsheng!
The two devastating collisions, like two towering pillars, forcefully held back the all-destroying Netherworld Blood Palm!
"Insects! Insects! Die! Die! Die!" Elder Xue Ming was filled with shock and rage. He never expected that two "juniors" could unleash such power that shook his divine abilities! He frantically activated his magic power, and the power of the Blood Sea and the Nether River surged into his giant palm. The evil eye in his palm shone brightly, and the filthy blood light was like boiling acid, frantically eroding Wang Cheng's flames of destruction and Chen Xueqing's purification barrier!
Crack! The cracks on the Azure Lotus Barrier widened! Under the corrosive influence of the blood light, the bones of Wang Cheng's arm, embedded with the Evil Eye, creaked under the weight of the crimson light!

In that precarious moment, when the barrier seemed about to crumble at any instant, and Wang Cheng and Chen Xueqing were about to be crushed to dust by the blood-red palm—

The figure, leaning on the air with his sword, his aura waning, moved. (End of Chapter)