The sound of a sharp weapon piercing flesh was terrifying. Shi Guiyuan was caught off guard and struck by his sword on the spot, his dantian collapsing at an extremely fast speed.
The sudden death of a sect leader was no less dramatic than the death of Xie Buwen, the former sect leader of the Tianxuan Sect.
Han Tao was taken aback, clearly not expecting Shen Changting to do this so suddenly.
Shen Changting drew his Tai'a sword and said calmly to Shi Guiyuan, who was barely clinging to life, "You're right, I can't defeat Han Tao by myself."
From the day they began their plan, he lost the courage of a swordsman to forge ahead and dare to fight against heaven and earth; his swordsmanship was damaged.
Wasn't Shi Guiyuan the same?
Shen Changting moved swiftly, flicking his sword again, and to Fu Mingxu's astonishment, threw Shi Guiyuan's corpse toward Yanmo.
Fu Mingxu sensed something was wrong, but Han Tao covered his eyes with his hand, saying, "Don't look."
He couldn't help but blink as his slightly warm palms covered his eyes.
Han Tao felt a slight itch on his palm as long eyelashes brushed against it, and his gaze toward Shen Changting was extremely cold.
The flesh and blood of the Mahayana stage cultivator became Yama's food. His demonic energy surged, but when Shen Changting removed the magic array, he became terrifyingly obedient.
"You're very clever." Shen Changting glanced at him indifferently, the last drop of blood falling from the tip of his sword. "But I've already mastered the method to control Yama, and you can't beat us now."
How to control Enma?
Fu Mingxu lowered Han Tao's blindfold and, upon seeing Yama behind him, suddenly remembered the demonic seed he had been trapped in the sword energy cage.
"Back then, the Dragon and Phoenix Clan used phoenix blood and dragon marrow as a catalyst and the Dragon and Phoenix Realm as a prison to seal Yama, thus stripping the demonic seed's essence from him and sending the entire realm into the void," Han Tao said, following the newly added memories in his mind. "You and Shi Guiyuan and the others created the demonic seed, presumably to control Yama, right?"
Shen Changting nodded with a smile: "You're right. It's a pity you can't take this message out with you."
Without the demon seed, Yama is like a giant demon shell with overwhelming demonic energy.
Upon learning of what he and Shi Guiyuan had done, Fu Mingxu couldn't help but admire their audacity. Their artificial demon seeds and puppetry techniques were similar in principle, except that the latter used various rare and precious materials, while the former used their own disciples as a field to cultivate and experiment within their sea of consciousness.
He twirled the Tai'a sword beautifully, then Shen Changting slashed his palm with the sword, the broken blood droplets seeming to be drawn into the forehead of the Yama behind him.
In a daze, Fu Mingxu seemed to hear the mournful cry of the Tai'a sword.
The gaze from those blood-red eyes made him extremely uncomfortable, but he didn't turn his head away, ignoring the pain in his ankle, as chaotic energy circulated throughout his body.
Almost the instant Shen Changting looked in this direction, Fu Mingxu was enveloped in a thick dragon aura. The next moment, Han Tao flew away carrying a dazzling golden light.
Before he could speak, Fu Mingxu's heart leaped into his throat. Protected by the dragon's aura, he was immobilized in place and could only watch helplessly as the two clashed again.
No, it's one person and one demon against Han Tao.
Two against one.
"Despicable and shameless!" Fu Mingxu's good manners collapsed at this moment, and he immediately cursed, "Shen Changting, have you no shame at all!"
Shen Changting, who was in mid-air, paused, clearly stung by his words.
Han Tao wielded a golden sword, his other hand radiating golden light. He glanced back at Han Tao and smiled, saying, "Well said."
The space was shrouded in demonic energy, making the already blood-red area even more eerie and sinister.
Fu Mingxu couldn't help but glance at Yanmo, who was radiating demonic energy and was ruthless in his attacks. Even after being cleaved in two by Han Tao's sword, Yanmo still fearlessly charged forward. Yanmo truly seemed like a soulless puppet being controlled by someone.
But he knew it wasn't that simple. Just from the ever-present, watchful gaze that followed him, he knew things weren't as simple as they seemed.
He stood in the dragon's aura and thought for a while, then finally transmitted the matter of that gaze to Han Tao.
Han Tao didn't stop moving and quickly replied, "It shouldn't be Yama. Stay there and don't move."
Not Enma?
Am I just overthinking things?
When they went to check again, the battle between the three had reached a fever pitch.
Since Han Tao chose to address the root cause, it means he was confident.
Fu Mingxu was not worried that he would be unable to extricate himself, especially since the two of them and the demon were still fighting an hour later, and Han Tao not only did not fall behind, but also seemed to have a slight advantage. He was even more at ease.
"I'll take care of it soon," Han Tao reassured him telepathically.
After watching for another hour, Fu Mingxu began to feel a bit bored.
When he smelled a faint sweet fragrance in the air, his heart skipped a beat. When he looked closely, he saw Han Tao facing him, with a bloodstain on his chin.
Fu Mingxu saw it all clearly, and his anger flared up.
"Are you injured?" he asked telepathically after calming down.
Han Tao's reply was breathless: "It's nothing, I was just affected by Shen Changting's sword energy."
Compared to this, he was more pleased with Fu Mingxu's concern, and turned around and acted even faster.
Fu Mingxu watched the surging demonic energy, fearing that the demonic seed within the Cold Tao Dragon Soul would be affected. Just in case, he restored his connection with the Mirror Spirit.
"Mirror Spirit, do you have any ideas?"
The spirit of the Heaven and Earth Mystic Mirror bounced around in the dantian twice and shouted, "Let me out, I'll beat them to death!"
After a moment of silence, Fu Mingxu spoke: "Your current master is not a true immortal."
The Mirror Spirit belatedly understood his meaning and immediately sprang to attention: "Let's go, let's go! I'll take you to find treasures and improve your cultivation!"
"Wait." He grabbed the chaotic entity that had appeared on his shoulder and frowned as he asked, "I want to use the Heaven and Earth Mystic Mirror again."
The Heaven and Earth Mystic Mirror is an upgraded magical artifact; otherwise, it wouldn't have remained by the side of True Immortal Yuan Tong.
However, the time since he awakened his bloodline was too short, and he had not had time to cultivate many things in his inherited memories. After the high-level Heaven and Earth Mystic Mirror recognized him as its master, it was naturally limited by the master's cultivation level, and the effects he could use were limited.
The Mirror Spirit, which had just been so aggressive, fell silent. Its small body rolled around in Fu Mingxu's palm, and it sighed, "Go ahead and use it. Don't blame me if you don't have enough chaotic energy left."
As long as it works, that's fine. Fu Mingxu didn't have time to think too much. When he saw Han Tao surrounded by demonic energy, he summoned the Heaven and Earth Mystic Mirror and poured all the chaotic energy in his dantian into it. When the Heaven and Earth Mystic Mirror showed the light of heavenly secrets, it moved according to his will, and the warm white light attacked Yanmo.
When the white light met the demonic energy, it was like cold water being poured into a boiling oil pan; the demonic energy immediately boiled over.
Shen Changting was shocked and shouted angrily, "What have you done?"
The intense pain in his ankle made Fu Mingxu gasp, but he didn't dare stop making hand seals and forced a smile: "It's nothing, I'm just helping you finish the battle quickly."
The power of Heavenly Secrets enveloped Yama in an instant, and according to his plan, he could only temporarily isolate himself from the Heavenly Secrets.
The Tai'a sword hummed as Shen Changting barely caught the golden light emanating from it at full power. His expression changed drastically after sensing that the connection between himself and the demonic seed within Yama had been severed.
Looking at the motionless, expressionless Yama, Fu Mingxu knew that his earlier idea had worked.
He glanced at Han Tao, and the two looked at each other from afar, instantly understanding each other's meaning.
The golden sword roared with the sound of a dragon, and the golden eyes revealed a fierce nature. Han Tao, expressionless, slashed with all his might. In the gusts of wind, the lines of his face became even more stern.
As the two swords clashed, Shen Changting was forced to retreat repeatedly. The Tai'a sword was blocked in front of him, humming continuously, and fine cracks appeared on its blade.
The situation was very favorable, and at this moment, the demonic energy on Yama's body was also isolated by the Heaven and Earth Mystic Mirror.
Han Tao leaped again, and countless golden lights followed the golden sword, transforming into an unstoppable sharpness. Fu Mingxu covered his eyes with his hand, and when he lowered it again, he saw that the tip of his golden sword was already pointing at Shen Changting's throat. The Tai'a sword was thrown from his hand and stuck in front of its master, the blade swaying slightly, as if it was using its last strength to protect its master.
Fu Mingxu, enduring the soreness in his legs and the intense pain in his ankles, finally let out a heavy sigh of relief after glancing at Yanmo, who was still motionless.
Just then, a complaint came from the Mirror Spirit in his mind: "I was careless. I only just realized that the treasure I was looking for for you has already been swallowed by that dragon."
With his mind at ease, Fu Mingxu couldn't help but ask, "What exactly is this treasure you're talking about?"
“It’s the skeleton of the Ancestral Dragon, containing a large amount of chaotic energy.” The Mirror Spirit’s tone held a hint of grievance. “I originally wanted to give you a surprise.”
The remains of the First Dragon?
Fu Mingxu understood and said nonchalantly, "That's alright, it's no different for him to eat than for me."
The spirit clearly didn't understand. "Master, what do you mean?"
"Ahem." A scene flashed through Fu Mingxu's mind, and two faint blushes inexplicably appeared on the tips of his ears. "I'll tell you about this later. I don't have time now."
"The Heavenly Secrets Concealment Power of the Heavenly Mirror will soon disappear. I'll go find Han Tao to discuss how to deal with it."
Knowing this was a big deal, the Mirror Spirit suppressed her curiosity and didn't ask any further questions.
On the other side, Shen Changting's face was ashen. The Tai'a Sword was his natal magic weapon, and now that his natal sword was damaged, he was in no better shape.
Fu Mingxu stood in the dragon's breath and shouted, "Han Tao, let me out!"
Han Tao maintained his stance holding the golden sword, only slightly tilting his head. His movement was small, but Shen Changting, standing below, could clearly see the icy smile in his eyes the instant he tilted his head, his taut jawline relaxed, and a faint smile appeared in his golden eyes.
He kept Shen Changting under control while watching Fu Mingxu run towards him with a smile.
"I can only temporarily isolate the demonic seed's sensing power within Yama's body." Because he had to suppress the pain in his ankle, Fu Mingxu's breathing became slightly labored, and even his cheeks were flushed. "You need to think of a solution quickly."
Most importantly, once the power of the Heaven and Earth Mystic Mirror disappears, he will likely be affected by the Demon Bone Chain Circle again, and even more severely than last time.
So he wanted things to end here quickly, and he wanted to go back to the cave in the waterfall.
"No!" Shen Changting seemed to have guessed what he was going to do. His previous high spirits disappeared, and for the first time, a look of fear appeared on his face.
Han Tao remained unmoved. He flipped his sword and slammed it down hard on Shen Changting's neck, knocking him unconscious with perfect accuracy.
The golden sword in his hand disappeared, and he used his hand as a claw to reach directly into Yama's sea of consciousness, forcibly pulling out the artificial demon seed.
Judging from his skill level, Fu Mingxu felt that this wasn't the first time he had done it.
After taking out the artificial demon seed, Han Tao destroyed it with dragon energy almost without stopping. Then, with a flash of golden light, Yama was slammed into the sealing array he had previously created.
"Wait for me a moment." He glanced down at Fu Mingxu and quickly took out various magic array crystals from his storage bag to reinforce the sealing array.
The moment the Heaven and Earth Mystic Mirror was retracted, Fu Mingxu's legs went weak, and he sat down on the ground.
Without the suppression of the chaotic energy, the heat surged through his body again, and tears quickly welled up in his eyes.
He watched Han Tao's busy figure and could only bite his lips tightly, afraid that he would blurt it out if he opened his mouth.
Just then, the feeling of being spied on, which had disappeared, returned.
Remembering what Han Tao had said before, Fu Mingxu did not look at Yan Mo this time. Instead, he closed his eyes and then suddenly opened them the instant his gaze was almost glued to Yan Mo, quickly finding the direction of his gaze.
Just as Han Tao took out a piece of the Ancestral Dragon Scale to put into the array eye, Fu Mingxu saw a small child in the shadows of the blood-red space.
The little boy had a very deceptive, chubby face, and gave a silly smile after noticing his gaze.
How could there be children in this secret realm?
Alarm bells rang in Fu Mingxu's mind. The last trace of chaotic energy in his dantian instantly began to circulate, and the corrosive power of the demon bone chain ring spread rapidly.
He grabbed the Tai'a sword in front of Shen Changting and used it for defense.
As the final movement of the Hantao Formation was completed, Fu Mingxu's sense of crisis reached its peak.