244 - Elasia Saga

In an instant, the entire ruins of Frost Blossom Palace were engulfed in a massive storm of demonic energy. The air currents all began swirling toward Fu Yan. “Whoosh, whoosh…” At this moment, Fu Yan’s body had been lifted into the sky by the immense convergence of demonic energy. It was as if an overwhelming force was set to devour the entire landscape, an utterly terrifying sight. The head of the demon spirit was forcibly drawn in and desperately resisted the deadly pull surrounding it, barely managing to stabilize itself about seven or eight meters from Fu Yan. Despite this, it felt its strength rapidly being absorbed by Fu Yan opposite it, and bizarrely, it found no means to stop it. Seeing this, the demon spirit couldn’t help but curse under its breath. The commotion around was immense, and Bai Yueli, who had been immersed in cultivation below, suddenly opened her eyes. Initially, Bai Yueli found her cultivation smooth; the demonic energy gathered was indeed potent, and without having inherited half of the original Demon Lord’s power, it would have been difficult to absorb. She glanced sideways at Fu Yan to confirm she too was utilizing the demonic energy for cultivation, and then Bai Yueli relaxed internally. Soon, she closed her eyes again and resumed her cultivation earnestly. However, it wasn’t long before Bai Yueli sensed something was amiss. The absorption of demonic energy became increasingly difficult, as though she had hit a saturation point. Yet, it had only been about a quarter of an hour since she began meditating, and it shouldn’t take this long to hit a limit. Realizing the difficulty in absorbing further energy, she unconsciously furrowed her brows. Attempting to circulate her energy again, Bai Yueli belatedly realized it wasn’t her limit; rather, an external force was competing fiercely for the surrounding demonic energy. “Hmm—” Somewhat puzzled, as she was about to open her eyes to investigate, she heard Fu Yan’s voice not far away, sounding pained, with muffled groans filtering through. Assuming Fu Yan hit a bottleneck in her cultivation, Bai Yueli quickly adjusted her breathing to prevent any mishaps due to impatience or haste. During this time, the disturbance grew louder, and Bai Yueli distinctly felt a powerful force pulling, as if summoned in unison toward one direction. Moments later, she managed to calm her energies and opened her eyes. “Whoosh!” A shadow zipped past her, and Bai Yueli focused to see it was the demon spirit’s head, clearly in bad shape. Suddenly thinking of something, Bai Yueli quickly looked up towards Fu Yan in the sky. She saw Fu Yan standing with her arms spread wide as all the air currents in the atmosphere surged toward her, with nearly her entire body submerged in demonic energy. Her eyes were tightly shut, face contorted in agony. Bai Yueli was seized by a wave of terror and, without a second’s thought, darted in a flash to appear before Fu Yan. “Fu Yan?” she called in a deep voice, but there was no response from the unseeing Fu Yan. Her heart sank, yet Bai Yueli forced herself to stay calm, studying Fu Yan for a solution. The chaotic forces around impacted Bai Yueli significantly, so she steadied herself quickly, trying to awaken Fu Yan’s consciousness: “Fu Yan! Fu Yan…” Again and again, her voice achieved nothing, lost like stones sinking in the sea. In a hurry, she raised her hand, striking towards the connection of demonic energy engulfing Fu Yan in an attempt to sever it. With a loud “bang,” her power was rebounded almost instantly, flinging Bai Yueli several meters away to land near the demon spirit’s head. Steadying herself, Bai Yueli cast a glance sideways at the demon spirit’s head, which was struggling against the devouring force from Fu Yan. But she had no time for it, quickly refocusing on Fu Yan. Just as she prepared to dash forward again, she felt her energy rapidly draining. Like the demon spirit beside her, Bai Yueli’s power uncontrollably surged towards Fu Yan. In the next moment, with an astonished expression, she found herself being pulled in. “Swish!” Thankfully, at that moment, Lu Xiaowen dashed forward from afar. Ignoring the demon spirit, he instead shouted to Bai Yueli in amazement, “Get out of here now!” Reaching out, he stabilized her position. Yet, before he finished speaking, he felt his spiritual power quickly siphoning away with the air currents. He intended to retreat with Bai Yueli, but it was too late. In the celestial sphere, Fu Yan and the demon spirit head were held by an invisible force, draining their powers while they could only resist powerlessly. “Senior, what’s happening to Fu Yan?” Bai Yueli glanced slightly at Lu Xiaowen, struggling to voice her question. Lu Xiaowen was equally perplexed, staring intently at Fu Yan immersed in the demonic energy, feeling utterly at a loss: “I’m not sure, she seems out of control. How can she withstand this much demonic energy?” Bai Yueli couldn’t explain it either, knowing only of Fu Yan's unique energy sea that could transform both spiritual and demonic energies into her own, a scenario far beyond her understanding. A roar erupted from below; the black dragon’s true form soared upwards. For some reason, only Fu Juan remained unaffected, possibly due to her weak power providing nothing to absorb. Watching Bai Yueli and Lu Xiaowen, she acted swiftly, unleashing dragon flames to separate them from Fu Yan. Yet the fiery breath was swiftly drawn to Fu Yan and disappeared into the turbulent demonic energies. Black Dragon: “…” Fu Yan seemed like a bottomless pit, desperately soaking up all the energies around. “If you don't want to die, stop her quickly!” The demon spirit’s head suddenly spoke, startling Bai Yueli and Lu Xiaowen, who quickly turned to look at it. Even if it was unsettling for a fleshy head to speak, given it had a mouth, it seemed plausible. Though pale, the demon spirit’s head stabilized itself, glaring at Bai Yueli and Lu Xiaowen, continuing, “Don’t look at me; if she absorbs all my power, she’ll immediately succumb to demonization.” “What does that mean?” Bai Yueli probed, not missing any subtle expression on the demon spirit’s head. The demon spirit let out a mocking laugh, its voice unusually cold, stating, “She’ll become a demon, either losing all reason or becoming a true demon spirit.” As Bai Yueli and Lu Xiaowen were processing these words, Fu Yan in the demonic energy center regained a serene composure, her once tightly closed eyes opening. “Fu Yan!” Bai Yueli cried out anxiously upon seeing her. Fu Yan’s eyes were devoid of any expression, her gaze two dark abysses. “If this drags on, you’ll be drained too. Just sever the space around her,” the demon spirit’s head urged, fear even seeping into its arrogant eyes. Bai Yueli and Lu Xiaowen had to reassess the situation carefully. The demon spirit wasn’t lying; there was no need. Even the slightest chance, Bai Yueli wouldn’t allow Fu Yan to become a murderous demon. And indeed, they were running out of options, their powers nearly exhausted. Exchanging a glance, Bai Yueli and Lu Xiaowen understood; the latter sighed, “We have to contain Fu Yan now.” If not, they’d lose their lives here. Bai Yueli recognized it too but found her power largely absorbed by Fu Yan, unable to sever the space as they once did during the Demon Lord’s tribulation. Seemingly aware of Bai Yueli's thoughts, Lu Xiaowen quickly pulled out a formation talisman from his robe and explained, "This array will sever Fu Yan's connection to the surrounding area." This way, Fu Yan would no longer be able to absorb the demonic energy of the realm or the powers of others. Upon saying this, Lu Xiaowen immediately threw the talisman into the air, which flashed with a burst of light. “Swish! Swish!” Almost simultaneously, Bai Yueli and Lu Xiaowen fell straight down from the sky. Fortunately, the black dragon moved swiftly, catching both of them safely. The demon spirit head wasn't as fortunate. With its power nearly exhausted, it plummeted down, landing heavily on the mountain's platform, leaving one to wonder if it suffered a concussion. Seeing this, Bai Yueli patted the black dragon urgently. Understanding her intent, it unleashed another stream of dragon fire, enveloping the demon spirit head completely. By now, most of the surrounding demonic energy had been absorbed by Fu Yan. The demon spirit was even weaker than Bai Yueli and Lu Xiaowen, unable to recover or escape. Above, with no other forces left to absorb, Fu Yan's form finally emerged clearly from the remnants of demonic energy.