459 - Senior Sister Is on Top

Peng! A colossal force exploded on the sponge, causing waves tens of meters high. The already tumultuous sea became even more frenzied under the onslaught of heavenly lightning! Thunder light shattered, and angry waves roared, as though eager to rend the earth apart. Jiang Yin was tightly protected by the Qian-Kun Bagua Formation. She did not need to face the remnants of the berserk energy directly, but even so, she could clearly understand its formidable power. Not to mention her drastically reduced cultivation level at that moment. Even in her prime, she would have had little chance of victory against her junior sister now. She glanced at the chaotic waves around her and sighed softly, "Don't be so reckless next time." Earlier, it was her junior sister who advised her, but now their roles were thoroughly reversed. Tang Muxi scraped her nose and chuckled twice, nodding on the surface, but who could say if she truly took it to heart? Her attack was highly effective, channeling the domineering power of thunder into the sea, making most of the water crackle and spark. Zhuolong had sensed their intrusion from the beginning, but it kept itself hidden beneath the water, unwilling to show itself. There was no other reason than its awareness of the intimidating aura surrounding Tang Muxi. If possible, it preferred not to become enemies. Unfortunately, while it sought to avoid conflict, Tang Muxi was determined otherwise, mobilizing the power of a divine artifact to fiercely assault the sea. The fierce thunder arrived in an instant. Zhuolong could no longer retreat; it let out a deep roar, using its potent ghost energy to shatter the thunder. Understanding the opponent’s unfathomable strength, it unleashed its full power as soon as it appeared, aiming to catch them off guard. Suddenly, the surrounding space fractured, and countless streams of ghost energy transformed into gigantic spears, attacking from all directions. Simultaneously, a dark shadow burst from the sea, accompanied by dozens of massive water columns, charging urgently toward Tang Muxi. This was Zhuolong’s all-out strike, moving at an astonishing speed, arriving in an instant. Even Wen Dai would find it difficult to fully retreat in this situation. But Tang Muxi was different; she had already regained her strength. Though she appeared to be in the Great Ascension Stage, she had actually reached an unparalleled level of mastery. Holding the authority of heaven and earth, and wielding a divine artifact, no one—except the Dao of Heaven itself—could defeat her. Tang Muxi was well-prepared, counterattacking the moment Zhuolong struck. She scattered the spiritual threads with the Qian-Kun Bagua while wielding the Nine Calamities Sword to shatter the ghostly water columns. Zhuolong spat out a chilling ghost flame, attempting to burn the approaching threads. However, how could a tribulation period entity destroy the power of a divine artifact? In a mere instant, the abysmal ghost flame was entirely consumed. Failing in one strike, defeat was already imminent. Zhuolong immediately tore through the void, intending to escape to the Ghost Realm. Its reaction was swift, and in ordinary times, it would certainly have fled. But now, facing the master deity here, regardless of its full effort, escape was impossible. "Trying to run? Take this!" Tang Muxi hurled the Heaven Demon Halberd with full force, piercing Zhuolong's back scales just as it was about to escape. Though she hadn't used her full strength, the attack severely wounded Zhuolong. The escape was delayed for an instant. In the next moment, countless spiritual threads bound its body. A Binding Spirit Formation—once touched, all power is sealed. Zhuolong wailed, its thunderous roar shaking the heavens and the earth. Its body went limp, utterly losing the power to resist. In a mere few exchanges between the human and the dragon, the battle had concluded. Tang Muxi, successful, looked excitedly at Jiang Yin, her eyes gleaming with anticipation. Though unspoken, her meaning was clear to all. Jiang Yin pursed her lips, unwilling to give her the satisfaction. But, confronting those expectant eyes, her heart softened, full of doting affection. "Alright, alright, very impressive. Congratulations on achieving what I could never do in my lifetime." Even at the peak of her cultivation, dealing with a tribulation-ranked Zhuolong within a few moves was beyond her reach. Tang Muxi pouted in dissatisfaction, "Halfhearted praise!" "Never mind, half-praise is better than none." Tang Muxi snorted softly and bound the wounded Zhuolong tighter before dragging it before Jiang Yin. Seeing it still resist persistently, she added a few more layers, "Senior sister, can you still sense the aura of the Celestial Soul Jade?" This time, with no corrosive rainwater, the spell's construction was much smoother. Jiang Yin used the Soul Jade Essence to sense but found not a trace of the Soul Jade's aura, though she detected two demon orbs in Zhuolong's dantian. One was larger, harmonizing completely with its body’s aura, emitting waves of dragon power. The other was pure, cold, and vastly different from Zhuolong's power. Two demon orbs? Jiang Yin suddenly understood, lamenting, "So that's it. The Celestial Soul Jade was absorbed by you to become a second demon orb! Fool! Such reckless waste! You should have returned it to me!" A beast can use only one demon orb. Having two would not enhance its power but could cause rejection with its original orb, leading to qi deviation. Zhuolong was fortunate. The Celestial Soul Jade had pure and tolerant power, coexisting peacefully with its soul force, merely absorbing a small amount occasionally. No wonder, ten years later, Zhuolong’s strength had not improved but had slightly declined. It was due to the second demon orb siphoning its power. "Never mind. I knew it would be hard to retrieve when I discarded it. Keeping this inner orb will only harm you; let me extract it now as compensation." As Jiang Yin's words fell, she suddenly summoned the Demon Prison Blade, slicing open Zhuolong's dantian and extracting the second demon orb. Nurtured by Zhuolong for over ten years, this demon orb was full of power. Holding it, one could feel its immense soul force. Jiang Yin intended to keep it to restore her strength. But before she could store it, she saw Xiangdie fluttering toward it, its wings beating eagerly as if drawn by a flame. Jiang Yin paused, "You want it?" To be honest, this demon orb was incredibly beneficial to her. Absorbing it could significantly speed up her recovery, perhaps even spur a breakthrough. Yet, as she looked at the luminous spirit butterfly, recalling its unusual behavior today, an odd premonition struck her. Xiangdie was a creature created by her junior sister, nurtured by divine blood. Despite this, it could not cultivate into a form. Every creature has a lifespan; though Jiang Yin did not know how long Xiangdie could live, she knew it would eventually fade away.