422 - Senior Sister Is on Top
Her strength had clearly not yet recovered, yet she could still use the power of the Five Elements Spirit Beads to contend with the relentless lightning without falling behind. "Devil" frowned, sneering, "As expected of the Main God, opportunities always fall into your hands effortlessly. However... this ends now!" The Devil exerted her power once again. This time, she held nothing back, unleashing the full extent of the virtual figure's strength. Instantly, a fierce storm raged, boundless lightning struck furiously, and hundreds of bolts crashed down out of nowhere! The immense power seemed to tear the heavens and rend the earth! "Formation, come forth!" Tang Muxi no longer attempted to withstand it head-on using the Phantom God. Understanding her disadvantage, she immediately activated the Eight Trigrams of Heaven and Earth, deploying three layers of protective formations in succession. The Eight Trigrams of Heaven and Earth was a divine artifact, and under normal circumstances, only divine power could break it. However, the Devil had long become one with the heavens and the earth, capable of contending with the Dao itself. How could she fail to break through a mere protective formation? She chuckled softly, lamenting Tang Muxi's futile efforts, and directed a trace of divine aura from the Phantasmal Seal precisely onto the protective formation. With a resounding crash, the divine aura and black lightning struck simultaneously, shattering two layers of the formation. Tang Muxi suffered a backlash, her internal energy threatening to flow in reverse. Fortunately, the Jishi Lantern protected its master just in time; otherwise, she might have been truly injured. With the loss of the first two protective layers, the pressure on the final layer increased dramatically. Hundreds of surging lightning pillars descended, nearly piercing through the entire formation. Sweat poured down Tang Muxi's forehead, her legs trembling, barely able to hold on. Just as the overwhelming heavenly lightning was about to break through the protection and strike Tang Muxi, a dark streak of light flashed by, cutting off the last of the lightning with a desperate resolve. Tang Muxi looked up in confusion, only to see Jiang Yin standing in front of her, emitting a fearsome demonic aura, her body scarred and holding a demonic blade steadfastly. In an instant, tears welled up. She knew that standing before her was not the first Demon Emperor but her wife and senior apprentice sister. Jiang Yin's half-arm was charred black by the lightning, the wound grotesque and hideous, yet she remained unwavering. She looked up, her gaze fixed on the "Devil," and declared, "I promised to protect her." A single sentence rendered "Devil" silent for a long time. She wanted to ask, do you remember promising to kill her for me? But she didn't ask. She was Jiang Yin's enemy, unworthy of genuine affection, and betrayal was expected at any time. Yet, when she looked at her beloved blade from the past, that self-mockery became deeply engraved in her heart. She had plotted for millennia out of hatred and jealousy, but in the end, she was still devoid of true feelings around her. The Dao would soon come to the rescue, but with her power, she could easily kill Jiang Yin and Tang Muxi before that happened. Yet, for some reason, the "Devil" did not strike immediately. She silently watched Jiang Yin and the Infernal Blade until a figure of a green phoenix appeared at the peak of Mount Senluo. Then, she spoke slowly. "I am an evildoer. Next time we meet, I will show no mercy. Sparing your life today is my millennial redemption. After today, we are only enemies." With that, she allowed the ghostly flames to descend upon the demon realm, taking the Phantasmal Seal and returning to the heavens and earth. Chapter 241 Wen Dai sensed another tremor in the demon realm, thinking someone was again attempting to attack the divine beast avatars. Darkening her expression, she stepped out immediately. When she arrived outside the palace, she saw that the peak of Mount Senluo was ablaze with ghostly flames. Golden formations and inky black lightning clashed violently, releasing formidable energy waves. Wen Dai felt a surge of horror, realizing what was happening in an instant and rushed towards the peak. By the time she arrived, a woman bathed in crimson light was holding the Phantasmal Seal, slowly fading back into the heavens and earth. Wen Dai had never seen this person before, but she keenly noticed that the figure was just a difficult-to-maintain phantom. Even so, she dared not be careless. How could she? The remnant phantom bore the power to bring about an apocalypse, capable of stirring the elements at will. Ordinary cultivators would be no match for her, and even Wen Dai would struggle to contend. Fortunately, she hadn't attacked. A sense of relief and exhaustion surged within Wen Dai, and she quickly regained her composure, hurrying to Tang Muxi's side. "Are you injured, Divine Lord?" Tang Muxi shook her head, feeling intense fatigue. Catching sight of the gruesome wound on Jiang Yin's arm, it felt as if her heart had been gouged out. She picked up the Lotus Lantern and quickly went to Jiang Yin's side, using the brilliant light to help her recover. "Senior Sister, don't act recklessly next time." Tang Muxi lightly touched the wound, her eyes filled with pain and confusion, her mind a chaotic mess, hesitating for a long time before finding the right words. Jiang Yin waited a moment, seeing she didn't pursue the matter, making all her prepared explanations useless. She had imagined many outcomes of being exposed—angry accusations or heartbroken departures—but in any case, none would end well. Now, avoiding the topic felt like a slow torment, leaving her without a proper response. "Muxi, I..." Jiang Yin noticed the complex emotions in her junior sister's eyes, her heart tightened, and she mustered the courage to confess. But before she could continue, Wen Dai interrupted, "This is bad! The barrier won't hold!" Though the "Devil" had spared them, she hadn't withdrawn the boundless ghostly flames conjured by the Phantasmal Seal. Her power was extraordinary, rivaling the Dao, and the Phantasmal Seal in her hands unleashed unrivaled strength. Not to mention that Tang Muxi had sacrificed a bit of blood, greatly enhancing the power of these ghostly flames to an unprecedented peak. The sky was ablaze with flames, like a rain of fiery meteors, carrying divine artifact power and smashing down upon the demon realm. At the same time, the four divine beast avatars erupted with divine light, converging to form the true forms of the divine beasts, holding up the barrier to protect the entire demon realm. Millennia ago, this barrier would have been sufficient to fend off an invasion from the entire demon realm. But now, as time had passed, the barrier had rapidly weakened. Even the combined efforts of the four divine beast avatars struggled to withstand the ghostly flames from the Phantasmal Seal. The demon realm quaked, the earth trembled, and the barrier was on the brink of collapse under the relentless onslaught of the ghostly flames. Tang Muxi stepped forward once more, placing the Jishi Lantern and the Eight Trigrams of Heaven and Earth in front of her, using her blood to gather the power of the divine artifacts.