noffsinger Chapter 1130 Dharma
Chapter 1130 Dharma
As the Thunder Mountain Demon King gazed at the magnificent formation faintly visible in the distance, two arcs of azure lightning shot from his eyes. Thunder rumbled around him, and the Demon King's aura suddenly spread out. The surrounding demon generals trembled in shock, their faces showing fear.
The giant ship that carried the demon army for three million miles has disappeared. Demonic birds spread their wings in the sky, and ferocious beasts gallop across the land. Their mournful roars spread in all directions, and the sound of hooves was like thunder and the sea, shaking heaven and earth.
After passing through the depths of the dark land, the demon beast army marched for a while longer. When they were only a few hundred miles away from the cultivator army, the three demon saints ordered the giant ship to stop and commanded all the demon beasts to leave the ship and deploy their formation ahead of schedule.
A hundred thousand demon beasts swept across the land like a tidal wave. The three demon saints broke away from the usual marching practices of the demon race, leaving the demon king's entourage behind, and took the lead.
The three demon saints hung high in the sky, their demon saintly aura emanating out without any concealment, which was extremely dazzling even in the dim land, greatly boosting the morale of the demon beast army.
Since the Demon Saints were like this, the Demon Kings could not remain in the army either. They stepped out from the crowd and came to the forefront of the army, acting as the sharpest arrows. Under the dark clouds, they were like dazzling shooting stars, piercing the dark red sky.
Ahead, several Nascent Soul stage human cultivators were enveloped in a beam of light, fleeing in panic; they were scouts sent out by the cultivator army.
The speed of a Nascent Soul cultivator was so slow in the eyes of the Thunder Mountain Demon King, but he had no intention of making a move.
At this moment, the Thunder Mountain Demon King only had the army of cultivators that had already formed a battle formation in the distance, and Bei Ming, who was very likely hiding among them and had made it lose face.
If the demon army can send out scouts to investigate the whereabouts of the cultivator army, the cultivator army will naturally also send out scout cultivators.
Many demon generals and scouts have already met untimely deaths. Two demon generals under the Thunder Mountain Demon King have had their life-giving lamps extinguished, undoubtedly killed by human Nascent Soul cultivators.
The cultivator army was already aware of the demon army's movements and was on high alert.
The two sides were still dozens of miles away from meeting when the three demon saints suddenly increased their speed. Seeing this, the Thunder Mountain Demon King no longer suppressed his killing intent and followed them.
Dozens of demon kings closely followed the demon saint and stopped in front of the cultivator army.
Tens of thousands of cultivators lined up in formation, stretching for several miles. As they watched the approaching Demon Saint and Demon King, more than half of the cultivators showed signs of panic, and their formation began to fall apart. Only after being reprimanded by the Void Refinement Protectors and Nascent Soul cultivators did they manage to regain their footing.
This is not their fault. Three demon saints led dozens of demon kings to attack, their momentum was fierce and their demonic aura was overwhelming. It was a scene they had never seen before.
These tens of thousands of cultivators had never participated in a war between two great worlds, and the lesser worlds they had conquered in the past were powerless to resist the Tai Xuan Sect.
Currently, the human race only has two Nascent Soul cultivators, while the opposing side has three Demon Saints. The balance of power has been reversed, which cannot help but make them feel alarmed.
Although the mysterious Elder Chen is an elder, everyone knows that he only has the cultivation level of Void Refinement and cannot be considered a true elder. If a fight were to break out, our side would probably not gain any advantage.
The Thunder Mountain Demon King, eager to find Bei Ming's figure, suddenly froze in place.
At the forefront of the cultivator army, three figures stood side by side, looking in this direction. One of them was none other than Bei Ming, whom he could not forget and hated to the core.
The Thunder Mountain Demon King had imagined countless times how he would tear Bei Ming to pieces upon seeing him again, how he would extract his soul and refine his spirit, and finally how he would grind his bones to dust, so that he would know the consequences of deceiving him.
Today he finally met Bei Ming, but it was somewhat different from what he had imagined.
Bei Ming's appearance remained unchanged; he was still as handsome and otherworldly as when he first met him in the main hall at the foot of Leishan Mountain. However, the respectful demeanor he had shown before was gone from his face.
At this moment, Bei Ming remained calm and composed, his face as still as a lake, unmoved even by the arrival of the Demon Saint.
Bei Ming did not conceal his cultivation level. The aura of a Perfected Void Refinement cultivator seemed even more condensed than his own, making the Thunder Mountain Demon King doubt his own eyes and his own divine sense.
Could this dark place hold some hidden secret, capable of creating illusions and affecting the five senses in addition to its unstable space and isolation of divine consciousness?
The army of 100,000 was still dozens of miles behind. The demonic bird flapped its wings with all its might, but it could not keep up with the speed of the demon saint and demon king and fell behind.
The cultivator army fell silent before them, the three demon saints and the Thunder Mountain Demon King staring intently at Bei Ming.
The other demon kings also recognized the human cultivator in the bounty poster, and found that Bei Ming's cultivation level was quite different from what was recorded in the bounty poster. They looked at this person with surprise and doubt.
The human cultivators were also extremely surprised. Apart from the dragon-human race and a few others such as Zhang Yanwei and Yun Jinyue, the other cultivators did not know why the demon saints and demon kings in front of them were staring so intently at Elder Chen, who only had the cultivation level of Void Refinement, and did not even put Elder Yuan and the Wei family head, two powerful beings at the Integration stage, in their eyes.
Finally, Wei Wushang broke the silence. He raised his hand to stroke his beard and chuckled, "What Fellow Daoist Chen said is indeed true. These three demon saints wish they could eat your flesh and sleep on your skin."
"Once they learned of our news, they brought their entire army and attacked in a fit of rage, saving us the trouble of launching our own offensive."
Chen Yuan's gaze swept over the three demon saints he could only look up to in the past, and over the Thunder Mountain Demon King who used to be high and mighty in front of him. Suddenly, a hint of apology appeared on his face: "I did not expect that I would actually attract them. My personal grudge has dragged Senior Brother Yuan and Fellow Daoist Wei into this. Please forgive me."
Elder Yuan flicked his sleeve: "Junior Brother Chen, what are you saying? We came in such a grand manner to lure out the Demon Saints. Now that all three Demon Saints have arrived, it's exactly what we've planned!"
The three voices were not loud, but they clearly reached the ears of all the human cultivators, the green mantises, and the dragon people, as well as the three demon saints and dozens of demon kings.
The restless army of cultivators gradually calmed down. Could it be that the three seniors had planned this all along, and that the overwhelming demon army in front of them was something they had deliberately brought here, and that they actually had a way to deal with the demon saint?
The three demon saints continued to stare at Chen Yuan. The Heavenly Pillar Demon Saint said, word by word, "Perfected Void Refinement... The True Dragon's Relic has fallen into your hands?"
Chen Yuan smiled slightly: "I was fortunate enough to gain something, and I must thank the demon saints for setting up the teleportation array to send me into the Xuanli Realm."
The Heavenly Pillar Demon Saint took a deep breath, feeling as if his heart was bleeding.
The moment he saw Chen Yuan's cultivation level, he knew that the True Dragon Treasure he had been dreaming of had fallen into this person's hands.
Otherwise, this person could never have crossed an entire major realm and touched the edge of the Integration Realm in just three hundred years.
The army of cultivators remained silent, but they all secretly glanced at Chen Yuan. How did this Elder Chen get involved with the True Dragon again?
Bloodtooth Demon Saint glanced at Elder Yuan and Wei Wushang, and said coldly, "The Tai Xuan Sect has great magnanimity. They are willing to give up the True Dragon Treasure to a mere Nascent Soul cultivator."
Wei Wushang and Elder Yuan exchanged a glance, a hint of embarrassment flashing in their eyes.
The Cold Shadow Demon Saint said coldly, "Since things have come to this, there's no point in saying more. So what if you've reached the peak of the Void Refinement stage? You're still not at the Integration stage. Do you two really think you can withstand the combined power of the three of us?"
As soon as she finished speaking, snowflakes began to fall around her, carried by the cold wind, gathering in one place and swirling around her, their speed increasing continuously, faintly emitting a sobbing sound, and her blue eyes turning frosty white.
At this moment, the army of 100,000 demon beasts was only about 20 miles away. Thousands of demon generals flew behind the demon king, slowed down their escape speed, and focused their eyes on Chen Yuan.
Chen Yuan saw several familiar faces, people who had once served under him in the Northern Underworld Cave. The most conspicuous among them was the Bone-Melting Demon General, whose imposing figure stood out among the surrounding demon generals.
He stared at Chen Yuan with his bull-like eyes, his big mouth tightly pursed, and he held a large axe in his hand.
Tianzhu Demon Saint slowly clenched his fist, his sharp eyes seeming to want to devour Chen Yuan alive. He secretly transmitted his voice to Hanying Demon Saint and Xuechi Demon Saint: "I trouble you two to hold these two back first. I will capture Beiming first, and then come to help you two. Leave these two Nascent Soul cultivators behind!"
Bloodtooth Demon Saint replied, "I will do as you say, and hand over the middle-aged scholar to me."
The Cold Shadow Demon Saint's eyes flashed, and she transmitted her voice, "I will deal with that person with graying temples."
"All demons, heed my command! Slaughter all human cultivators!"
The Heavenly Pillar Demon Saint roared, emanating a powerful aura. He flipped his hand and took out a dark, heavy hammer that looked somewhat similar to the divine weapon held by Zhong Ding.
He moved swiftly, heading straight for Chen Yuan, the sound of surging waves echoing in the void.
"A dignified Demon Saint, yet he attacks a Void Refinement cultivator! How shameless!"
Elder Yuan narrowed his eyes, stepped forward, and with a flick of his sleeve, a golden gourd appeared out of thin air in front of him. It spewed out a few wisps of wind, which transformed into several towering tornadoes that absorbed the fierce winds and lightning in the dimly lit place, adding to its power and blocking the Heavenly Pillar Demon Saint.
"Your opponent is me!"
The Cold Shadow Demon Saint lunged forward, flipping his hand to retrieve a long whip covered in ice spikes and frost ridges.
A white dragon phantom appeared behind her, with a slender body, antlers like a deer, tiger paws and eagle claws, and a dragon roar that shook the heavens.
The swirling ice and snow surged wildly in the wind, transforming into an ice tornado, storm against storm, hurtling towards Elder Yuan.
Bloodtooth Demon Saint looked at Wei Wushang and smiled coldly: "This saint will come and experience your methods!"
Suddenly, a three-foot-long sword appeared in the Bloodtooth Demon Saint's hand. The blade was extremely thin and sharp, and it flowed with wisps of dark red blood light. He took a step forward and headed straight for Wei Wushang.
At the same time, a Dharma image appeared behind him, which was a giant tiger rat with golden fur interspersed with black stripes. Its four fangs were blood red and protruded from its mouth, overlapping each other, making it look particularly ferocious.
As soon as the two demon saints made their move, they condensed their Dharma forms and went all out. The demonic energy in the world surged and dispersed the dark clouds, revealing the dark red shattered sky behind them.
Although the Heavenly Pillar Demon Saint had not yet condensed his Dharma Form, his opponent was Chen Yuan, who was only at the peak of the Void Refinement stage. Therefore, he took out a first-grade spiritual treasure weapon and attacked with rage and without mercy.
Following the three demon saints, the demon kings, demon generals, and demon commanders acted upon orders, many revealing their true forms. In an instant, ferocious demon beasts rushed in from all directions.
This was a battle a hundred times more brutal than a magical duel. There was no room for probing or maneuvering; they directly revealed their desperate methods.
On such a vast battlefield, only those who dare to fight to the death can truly survive.
Chen Yuan watched the Heavenly Pillar Demon Saint rushing towards him, his body remaining motionless, his eyes growing ever more profound.
Elder Yuan used his golden gourd to unleash a gust of wind, blocking the Heavenly Pillar Demon Saint. He then looked at the Cold Shadow Demon Saint rushing towards him, and without any panic, he flicked his sleeve, and a huge, silvery ball of light appeared out of thin air in front of him.
Elder Yuan raised his hand and formed a hand seal. The silver light faded, revealing a giant in silver armor, about ten feet tall, expressionless, with lifeless eyes, wielding a gleaming silver dragon spear—clearly a puppet. Elder Yuan changed his hand seal and pointed: "Go!"
The silver-armored giant's eyes gleamed with silver light. Suddenly, he raised the gleaming silver dragon spear in his hand, and his figure flew out abruptly, emanating a powerful aura that was no less than that of a Nascent Soul cultivator. He headed straight for the Cold Shadow Demon Saint.
"A mechanical giant?" The Cold Shadow Demon Saint's face was as cold as ice. "What use could it be at the initial stage of the Fusion Realm?"
She didn't slow down at all, and in the blink of an eye, she covered a distance of a thousand feet and engaged the silver-armored giant in close combat.
A raging frost tornado enveloped the silver-armored giant, and countless tiny ice blades, sharper than flying swords, swept across the giant's body, but left no trace on its gleaming silver armor.
The icy power, enough to instantly freeze a cultivator at the Void Refinement stage into ice, surged into the silver-armored giant's body, but it was like being swallowed by a bottomless pit, having no effect whatsoever. It only caused a layer of frost to faintly stain the armor on the silver-armored giant's body.
The Cold Shadow Demon Saint wielded his ice whip, and spatial cracks appeared in the already unstable and dimly lit place.
The whip suddenly extended to ten zhang in length, leaving numerous whip shadows in the air before falling towards the silver-armored giant's chest.
The silver-armored giant remained expressionless, wielding his spear to block the whip.
But within the seemingly soft, icy whip lies unimaginable power.
The silver-armored giant was sent flying a hundred feet backward before coming to a stop. Without any hesitation, it charged forward again.
Han Ying, the Demon Saint, brandished his long whip and frowned: "This one is rather troublesome. I would appreciate it if Fellow Daoist Tianzhu could hold him off for now. I should be able to deal with this puppet in at most half an hour!"
The Heavenly Pillar Demon Saint glanced at the silver-armored giant, then looked back at Chen Yuan, his eyes blazing with murderous intent. He raised a finger and shouted, "All demon kings, listen to my command! Join forces to surround and kill this man! Do not let him escape! Anyone who captures him alive will be considered to have fulfilled the bounty, and the reward will not be reduced in the slightest!"
Dozens of demon kings perked up, especially the late-stage Void Refinement demon kings, who all changed their targets and rushed towards Chen Yuan. Among them, the Thunder Mountain Demon King flapped his pair of wind and thunder wings and was the fastest, only a hundred feet away from Chen Yuan.
The Heavenly Pillar Demon Saint looked at Elder Yuan and smiled sneer: "You summoned this mechanical giant just to let this scoundrel live for another half an hour?"
Elder Yuan smiled leisurely: "Half an hour is enough. Heavenly Pillar Demon Saint, please."
The Heavenly Pillar Demon Saint immediately raised his giant hammer and slammed it down heavily on the sweeping tornado.
At the same time, a giant tortoise phantom materialized behind him, with thick limbs, an extremely thick shell, and a ferocious head resembling the head of a real dragon. It dragged a long dragon tail behind it, emerged from the sea waves, and let out a long dragon roar.
When facing Elder Yuan, the Heavenly Pillar Demon Saint no longer held back and condensed the Dragon Turtle Dharma Form.
Elder Yuan's expression tightened slightly, his aura surged, and a wisp of azure wind suddenly appeared behind him, rapidly expanding into a ten-zhang-long azure phantom with four wings.
This was the four-winged Azure Phoenix Dharma Image painstakingly condensed by Elder Yuan. With a flap of its wings, the Azure Phoenix unleashed a tornado from the golden gourd, its power increasing by half. Thousands of gusts of wind, like flying swords, hurtled towards the Heavenly Pillar Demon Saint.
From the time of Void Refinement cultivators onward, the key to victory in battles has been the contest of the power of laws.
Upon reaching the Integration stage, the understanding of the power of laws deepens, and the Dharma Form, as the manifestation of the power of laws, becomes even more important.
The Heavenly Pillar Demon Saint's cultivation is one level higher than Elder Yuan's. The Dragon Turtle Dharma Form he condensed is more solid than the Four-Winged Azure Phoenix Dharma Form, and the heavy hammer in his hand is also a top-grade first-class spiritual treasure weapon. His strength is obviously above his, so he must be careful.
Wei Wushang also made his move at this moment. He laughed loudly and summoned a row of nine bamboo scrolls. He slowly unfurled them, and they glowed with a lustrous light, revealing ancient and square seal characters. The characters were uneven and seemed to fly out of the bamboo scrolls.
Behind him emerged a large book, its pages turning to depict the changing of the sun and moon and the transformation of all things, appearing magnificent and grand.
Wei Wushang pointed his finger, and two seal characters flew out from the bamboo slip. One of the seal characters exploded in the air, and the dripping ink turned into three rattan shields, blocking his way.
The other seal character transforms into a striped tiger, extremely fierce, roaring as it pounces on the Bloodtooth Demon Saint.
At the same time, a milky white halo emanated from Wei Wushang's body, vast and righteous, splitting into two streams that flowed into the rattan shield and the striped tiger, causing them to be tinged with a layer of white light, becoming even more solid, and their energy surging several times over.
He cultivated Confucian techniques, and his righteous energy was so pure that compared to the righteous energy that the Green Willow Hermit of the human realm had cultivated over hundreds of years, it was like a firefly vying for the moon's brilliance.
However, when Bloodtooth Demon Saint saw Wei Wushang's Dharma form, he smiled contemptuously. The Dharma form is not better the grander it is, but the purer it is, especially the one that symbolizes the true spirit of this path.
Wei Wushang's Dharma form appears to be all-encompassing, containing more than one law of power, and its methods are ever-changing during combat.
However, as a result, the power of the laws he comprehended became extremely mixed, weaker than that of cultivators of the same level who specialized in one path, and he would never achieve great success.
The perfect union is his limit, and the further he cultivates, the more difficult it becomes.
……
Two Nascent Soul cultivators and three Demon Saints were locked in battle, a grand spectacle, yet neither side could gain the upper hand.
The army of 100,000 demon beasts was only a few miles away, and the demon king, demon generals and demon commanders had already arrived close.
However, since Wei Wushang and Elder Yuan had not given the order to engage in battle, the cultivator army maintained its formation, and no one dared to make a move on their own. They simply circulated their true essence, took out their magic weapons, and anxiously looked at Chen Yuan.
Chen Yuan glanced at the demon kings rushing forward, paused on the Thunder Mountain Demon King, and shouted sternly, "All cultivators, heed my command! Engage the demon army!"
The army finally received the order, and their formation suddenly broke apart. The cultivators who had mastered the Void Refinement stage, the Nascent Soul stage, and the Spirit Transformation stage were the first to rush out of the formation to meet the many demon kings, demon generals, and demon commanders who were charging towards them.
Meanwhile, many lower-level cultivators employ a variety of methods. Those who cultivate the Five Elements Techniques form groups of five, assembling into formations according to the Five Elements Techniques. Each person uses their supernatural abilities, and the Five Elements rotate, greatly increasing their power. The combined strength of the five can be equivalent to several times that of a demon of the same level.
Fu Xiu took out the talisman, his true essence surged wildly, and he summoned the phantom of the demon soul and the golden sword ice rain, bombarding it relentlessly.
The array master held the array plate, scattered array flags, and set up a killing array to lure the enemy into a trap. Green mantises and dragon people provided protection from the side. Relying on the array, they advanced and retreated with measured steps, gathering and dispersing invisibly.
The hundred cultivators of the Wei family gathered together, chanting scriptures. Righteous energy emanated from their heavenly spirits, coalescing into a ball shaped like a chicken egg. This ball then transformed into a hundred-foot-long halberd, which slashed out horizontally, killing a hundred demonic beasts in a single blow.
The Green Mantis, a dragon-human, possesses the simplest yet most formidable supernatural power.
The dragon-man was surrounded by mysterious yellow dragon energy, and his physical body was even stronger than that of the demon race of the same level. The Ruyi Divine Weapon in his hand, which was forged by the human race's weapon refiner, shone brightly. His golden dragon eyes burned like fire, and his dragon might was like a prison, causing the demon race to tremble in fear.
The Green Mantis Clan took flight, their slender, sharp blade-like arms forming a battle array. They moved swiftly and nimbly, leaving behind only a trail of white bones in their wake.
They did not fight alone, but joined forces with human cultivators. The dragonmen blocked the demons' attack head-on, while the green mantises harassed them from the side, and the human cultivators used their supernatural powers and magical treasures to kill the enemy.
Even those solitary cultivators possess magical treasures and artifacts far superior to the minions of demons of the same level. Furthermore, they have magical artifacts and supernatural powers to kill enemies, making it easy for one to fight ten.
Although the cultivator army numbered only tens of thousands, when they fought together, they could withstand an army ten times larger than the demon race. Instead of being at a disadvantage, they gained the upper hand.
This is the greatest advantage of the Spirit Realm over the Demon Realm. The demon race can only rely on their bloodline, and only demon generals can transform into human form and wield divine weapons and magical treasures.
For those demonic beasts that have not yet survived the tribulation of transformation, they can only rely on their physical bodies and innate supernatural abilities to fight.
However, their bloodlines have not yet matured, their physical bodies are not strong enough, their supernatural abilities are not as profound as those of human cultivators, and they have no magical treasures, talismans, formations, or pills to assist them. They are no match for human cultivators when facing them alone.
Unfortunately, the human cultivators also had the assistance of other races. Under the orders of Chen Yuan, Elder Yuan, and Wei Wushang, the cultivators of the Tai Xuan Sect and the Wei family, along with the dragon people and green mantises, practiced formations in the Spirit Realm for several years, achieving perfect coordination.
The demon army was divided into tens of thousands of races, from different demon realms, and belonged to different demon kings, demon generals, and demon commanders. It was impossible for them to form a battle formation to defend against the enemy. In fact, they hindered each other and could only rely on their numerical advantage to barely maintain the stalemate.
If the two armies continue fighting like this, the cultivator army will most likely win in the end.
However, the great war between the two races often does not depend on low-level cultivators. It is a bloody battle to the death. When there is no internal conflict within the realm, there is a prohibition against high-level cultivators slaughtering low-level cultivators.
There is only one agreement between the two realms on Tyrant Turtle Island: Mahayana cultivators cannot attack lower-level cultivators.
In this way, as long as the higher-level demon races determine the victor, even if the lower-level demon races are at a disadvantage, they can still turn the tide.
However, the human race has a larger number of high-level cultivators, and the demon race is usually at a disadvantage above the Void Refinement stage.
But this time is very different. The demon race has three demon saints, while the human race only has two Nascent Soul cultivators. If the battle continues, the demon race will undoubtedly win.
The lower-ranking demons were confused and unable to see the situation clearly, but the demon kings were well aware of it.
Now that victory was assured, all the demon kings wanted was to save their lives and, ideally, to achieve further merit.
No matter how many Void Refinement cultivators were killed, it was not as good as capturing Bei Ming. Three late-stage Void Refinement Demon Kings had their eyes on this thorn in the side of the three Demon Saints and charged over together with Thunder Mountain Demon King.
But a hundred feet away from Chen Yuan, they stopped, looked at each other, and their eyes showed wariness.
The Thunder Mountain Demon King said in a deep voice, "This person is someone the three Demon Saints must kill. The treasures listed in the bounty are incredibly rich. We don't need to compete for credit. Let's join forces to capture this person and split the reward equally, shall we?"
The other three demon kings exchanged glances and nodded in unison: "We will follow Fellow Daoist Leishan's suggestion!"
The three demon kings reached an agreement, turned to look at Chen Yuan with greed in their eyes, clearly regarding him as a sitting duck.
The Thunder Mountain Demon King coldly said, "Bei Ming, your death is near!"
He slowly drew a longsword, its body a deep purple, crackling with lightning. Another demon king, already impatient, rushed forward, shouting, "Why waste words with him? Quickly capture him!" (End of Chapter)