“Follow the plan!”
Ling Xiao shouted, charging straight at Wanyan Jun and Chen Zui while closely monitoring the Plague Demon King’s movements.
Shangguan Lei, meanwhile, rushed toward the Demon General. Though his strength was inferior, his Ice Soul Silver Needles were ready for use again, making the Demon General wary, allowing him to hold his own for now.
“Gold Brick!”
As Wanyan Jun lunged, he tried to use his hidden weapon, the gold brick, against Ling Xiao, but came up empty-handed.
“Looking for this?” Ling Xiao grinned, pulling the gold brick from his Mountain and River World.
In truth, Ling Xiao had long doubted Wanyan Jun’s reliability. When Wanyan Jun used the gold brick against the plague beast earlier, Ling Xiao had already taken it into his Mountain and River World. What Wanyan Jun retrieved was merely a fake brick Ling Xiao crafted from gold. Wanyan Jun never noticed the switch.
“You! How do you have my gold brick!” Wanyan Jun panicked.
Despite his considerable cultivation at the peak of Mortal Realm Third Layer, he could have easily defeated Ling Xiao if serious, unless Ling Xiao entered his Human-Dragon form. But now, he was completely flustered.
“Take this!” Seizing the moment of Wanyan Jun’s panic, Ling Xiao hurled the gold brick. It shot out like a bolt of lightning, smashing into Wanyan Jun’s head.
The impact was formidable. Wanyan Jun collapsed, paralysed, not dead but utterly crippled, devoid of any fighting ability.
“Useless!” the Plague Demon King cursed, then opened his mouth and sucked, swallowing the still-living Wanyan Jun whole, instantly converting him into nourishment. The green glow around him visibly intensified.
“Gaga gaga, not bad, not bad. The body of a Yuehua Sect inner disciple is quite nourishing! I just hope the Emperor doesn’t blame me.” Amidst his eerie laughter, the Plague Demon King’s form began to change, gradually taking on Wanyan Jun’s appearance. “This vessel is still subpar, but it’ll do for temporary combat,” he muttered, his green eyes locking onto Ling Xiao again.
He now saw that Ling Xiao was the real threat on this battlefield. Kill him, and Shangguan Lei would be negligible.
Chen Zui was utterly stunned. Wanyan Jun had died before his eyes, devoured by the Plague Demon King. Fear gripped him as he realised the history books’ accounts of the True Demon Empire’s cruelty were no exaggeration. Even if he sincerely served the Plague Demon King, he’d still end up as food.
“Why aren’t you attacking?” the Plague Demon King asked coldly, glaring at Chen Zui.
“I… I… Ling Xiao, save me!” Chen Zui finally saw his own folly. Dealing with a demon king was worse than bargaining with a tiger. He scrambled toward Ling Xiao, believing only he could save him.
“Courting death!” The Plague Demon King sneered, launching a sudden attack so swift Chen Zui couldn’t react. A piercing sound rang out as Chen Zui felt something punch through his body, a cold, evil aura flooding his veins and blood.
“No! I don’t want to die, I don’t want to die! Ling Xiao, save me, and I won’t tell anyone you injured Wanyan Jun!” Even now, he was threatening Ling Xiao.
This guy was beyond saving.
“Idiot!” Ling Xiao had no intention of saving him. “If you’re dead, you can’t talk anyway, can you?”
“You! You can’t abandon me!” Chen Zui despaired, never imagining this would be his end—dying in an unknown demonic lair, perhaps as the Plague Demon King’s meal or a sacrifice for the True Demon Emperor’s revival. Either way, his death was too pathetic.
Crack! Chen Zui felt his heart shatter, his life force draining. His final sight was a gaping maw dripping with dark green liquid.
Seeing this, Shangguan Lei gasped. The Plague Demon King’s brutality matched the history books perfectly.
“Senior Brother Shangguan, focus on the Demon General. I’ll get you out alive. You’re not like those two—you still know what a底线 is,” Ling Xiao said, reassuring Shangguan Lei to prevent him from worrying about being silenced. For now, Ling Xiao needed Shangguan Lei to hold off the Demon General. His martial soul clone alone couldn’t handle him, and his real body had to face the Plague Demon King.
The key to this battle was the Plague Demon King, a Mortal Realm Fourth Layer early-stage warrior—the strongest enemy Ling Xiao had ever faced. Defeating him would determine whether he and Shangguan Lei could escape alive.
…
Swish, swish, swish! Thirty-six Tiangang Flying Swords shot out, trailing snow-white Golden Lotus True Essence, all aimed at the Plague Demon King. Ling Xiao’s real body emerged from the Mountain and River Martial Soul, confronting the Demon King head-on.
His martial soul clone, meanwhile, assisted Shangguan Lei against the Demon General, ensuring at least a stalemate so Shangguan Lei wouldn’t be overwhelmed. If Shangguan Lei died, the Demon General and Plague Demon King would team up, and Ling Xiao would be in serious trouble.
Pop, pop, pop! The thirty-six Tiangang Flying Swords were all blocked by a mass of green liquid formed in front of the Plague Demon King. It wasn’t hard but incredibly resilient, not one sword piercing through.
This Plague Demon King was no pushover.
“Gaga gaga, kid, you’ve got some tricks, but against me, you have no chance,” the Plague Demon King sneered, not pursuing Ling Xiao. Instead, he stood still, a massive, eerie mouth forming behind him, like an endless abyss, its depths unfathomable.
Ling Xiao had never seen or heard of such a martial soul. The mysterious realm was truly full of wonders. He’d once seen Li Anle’s martial soul, a fist, at the Yuehua Sect, but now he faced this abyss-like maw.
The mouth opened, not attacking but chewing. At the same time, Ling Xiao noticed the green glow around the Plague Demon King growing clearer.
His brows furrowed. This guy had to be dealt with immediately, or the consequences would be dire!
