Demon Capital Slayer

Chapter 88 Rising Dragon in the Sea of ​​Clouds
The water flow supported the body, making one feel no weight at all.

No, it wasn't flowing water, but wind and fog, clouds and rain.

Yu Jian felt as if he were swimming in boundless darkness.

Its body moved forward in a serpentine motion.

Prey, find the most suitable prey...

The words he heard before the ceremony began lingered in his mind.

But there were no beasts around to be prey, darkness shrouded everything, and even his own existence was slowly disappearing, with only bubbles of different sizes floating by.

Occasionally, one can glimpse what is happening inside the sword; it is not an empty bubble, but a series of stages.

Every stage carries its own story, just as different worlds carry their own sacred destinies.

So, where exactly is the most suitable prey?
Yu Jian couldn't help but feel a little anxious, but his firm will quickly calmed these meaningless emotions.

He felt a sudden inspiration, as if something was resonating with him, and he immediately focused his attention to find its source.

Then, Yu Jian saw a ray of light, the light of flame.

He swam towards the direction from which the light came. Gradually, he began to see his surroundings clearly and also began to realize that his own appearance was different.

Its slender, snake-like steel body, its magnificent golden antler crown resembling a deer, its sharp, knife-like iron eagle claws, and its unbreakable scales resembling melted and re-solidified glass, layer upon layer, all permeated from the inside out with a mercury black color like ancient jade, with only the edges gleaming with a faint light.

The silvery-white mane, the exact opposite of the scales, extends backward along the spine, like a burning mountain range, exuding an almost explosive vitality, or like molten silver mist, reflecting an incomparably brilliant and dazzling energy.

Various components from different organisms are perfectly integrated in an unimaginable way.

With a pinch and a grasp, the clouds follow the wind.

Between its beginning and end, it summons thunder and controls rain.

Thus, the invisible elephant is the most suitable prey...

Looking at his reflection in the void, Yu Jian suddenly had this thought.

He then followed the direction from which the resonance came and found a sword.

The strange ancient sword with seven small branches, the bronze-forged sword was surrounded by firelight, but it was more like a seal than its own power, the iron was bound by fire.

The sword echoed with the wails of countless souls, placing one on an eternal battlefield, where one could witness the ceaseless war and slaughter, with crimson blood sweeping around and accompanied by endless, maniacal laughter.

It was the voice of a god, the god of storms, the god of the sea, the god of war, the god of the sword, displaying the chaotic face of a wild god.

Yujian disliked this thing, even loathed and hated it intensely.

This emotion had no origin, yet he wanted to destroy it, just as he wanted to destroy the very thing it symbolized.

There was no reason why he knew he could do it, was capable of doing it, and had already done it!

With incomparably sharp fangs!

click!
The sword shattered.

It turned into a dozen pieces and was swallowed.

An incredibly violent force surged in, but an even more domineering force suppressed it.

What can quell a storm?
The dream has begun.

Meanwhile, in reality, the underground test site of the Steel House Company has fallen into chaos.

"What did you do!" Tianyu Lingyin demanded loudly.

She was still equipped with the Aslo Frame, and her movements, which were originally clumsy, now appeared incredibly agile, as if she were using her innate limbs rather than operating a machine.

The blinding red warning lights replaced the normal lighting, and the mechanical iron fist was raised high, its five fingers smoothly and freely clenched into a fist, aimed at the bewildered Motoko Steel House.

"It's just a spiritual offering; I've never seen anything like it before," the woman said, forcing herself to remain calm.

Inside the test site, a sudden storm is sweeping through.

The researchers all lay down on the ground. At first, a few were a beat slower and almost got swept away, but fortunately, Tianyu Lingyin reacted quickly enough and grabbed them and pressed them back to the ground.

The girl was kind-hearted; despite it being their first meeting, she risked her life to save him. Even though there might have been some bruises or fractures in the process, it was still better than being caught in a storm and experiencing the effects of a washing machine.

Right now, everyone is leaning against the wall, bending over.

Only Amane Rinne, equipped with the Asura Frame, could barely move due to the weight of her equipment.

After saving everyone, she finally couldn't help but loudly question Motoko Hideya.

And in the eye of the storm, there stood a white chair, perfectly still.

Mikage sat in the chair, leaning forward, his hands casually resting on his knees, his head slightly raised, his gaze fixed blankly on the distance, his eyes unfocused. Amane Suzune nervously swallowed, unable to resist asking again.

"How could the ritual of 'fuling' cause such a commotion?"

"If I had known, I wouldn't have chosen to do it here."

With a wry smile, Motoko bent over, and two steel nails shot out from inside her high heels, embedding themselves in the ground to stabilize her stance.

"No, perhaps this was a lucky accident. The underground test site has multiple layers of seals to isolate spiritual energy fluctuations. The other people present are not cultivators and cannot understand what is happening. This has prevented the boy's secret from being exposed."

Although, I don't know what kind of terrifying secret it is.

"..." Upon hearing this, Tenyu Rin slowly lowered her mechanical iron fist.

What the other party said makes some sense; she has no reason to cause such a commotion in her own business.

Fortunately, the storm showed no signs of expanding further, but the ground of the test site began to creak and groan as metal deformed, revealing a heavy and sturdy steel armor belt laid beneath the wear-resistant and corrosion-resistant surface material.

At this moment, the steel is wailing.

Tianyu Lingyin's eyes widened instantly. She clearly saw that circles of depressions appeared on the ground around Yujian, as if an invisible, unseen serpent was slithering around the white-haired boy.

The dent was actually a snake coil mark magnified many times over. In detail, you could see dense scale patterns, which were being forcibly imprinted into the depths of the steel by an unimaginable, exaggerated force.

"That's... a snake?" Tianyu Lingyin murmured to herself.

"No, it's something even more terrifying." Motoko Hideya subconsciously lowered her voice.

Recalling the changes in the smoke, she remembered the dragon-snake battle she had heard about in Northeast Asian shamanic tales.

Legend has it that the black dragon "Muduli" symbolizes the most powerful forces of mountains and water in nature.

Every rainy season, He would rush into the great river to fight a fierce battle with the demon Yeruli, who had transformed into a white snake. When the latter had the upper hand, the river would turn into a frozen white, while when the former had the upper hand, the river would turn back into a deep color.

In the end, Muduli will always prevail, but his dragon blood and scales will fall into the water, giving the entire river a unique black hue at the end of winter.

Therefore, in the animistic legends of shamanism, the black dragon holds an extremely high position, being both the incarnation of a god and the guardian of all spirits.

But Motoko Hideya remembered that her mother-in-law had also said that, like an unstoppable, violent flood, dragons also possess the ultimate destructive attribute.

Aside from worshipping the great river, shamans only wear dragon-head masks and perform top-secret rituals when absolutely necessary.

"Can one become a god, or a demon?"

Motoko Hideya whispered in a voice that no one else could hear.

What is Yu Jian doing at this moment?
He's dreaming.

The air was filled with melodious traditional Chinese music, and countless graceful figures were dancing before my eyes.

In the distance, one can see vast expanses of pure white, pristine sea of ​​clouds.
Nearby was a small table laden with all sorts of delicious food.

It felt as if I was attending a banquet, but I couldn't see anyone around me.

Only one lonely figure sat alone at the head of the table, as if the entire banquet had been prepared for him alone.

Yu Jian rubbed his temples. He remembered that he had completed the spirit-summoning ritual. Although the prey he caught was a bit strange, he should be considered to have succeeded, right?
What's going on with all this?

In a daze, he saw the host of the banquet come up to him and sit opposite him.

The other person's appearance was blurry and indistinct, but all that could be seen was that he was a very tall man.

"My anger has subsided, but what about yours?" The man's voice was completely flat, as if an ancient stone statue was barely speaking.

Yu Jian felt bewildered and confused by this question.

The man didn't seem to expect a reply.

He poured himself a glass of wine and pushed it over.

"Forget it, go enjoy your youth, young people."

Despite it being their first meeting, Yujian instinctively trusted the other person.

So, he raised his glass and drank the clear, cool liquor.

In an instant, he realized that it was not wine.

It's the sun!

A blazing red sun sets high in the sky!

(End of this chapter)