Chapter 0979: Heroes Battling the Devil

Li Luo, Qin Yi, and Zhu Dayu's group began to fight off the endless hordes of corrupted people. However, the battle in the sky had turned even more intense and dangerous at this point.

With Li Lingjing, Qin Ying, and Zhu Zhu as the leaders of the group, they had pushed themselves to the limit as their Heavenly Pearls shone radiantly like stars in the sky, constantly devouring worldly natural energy to sustain their bodies.

The fishy, black river, on the other hand, had created a gigantic, white hand to retaliate. A mouth filled with countless fangs dripping with black liquid opened up in the middle of the palm. It spewed out a stream of black light that swept towards the group.

The black light was terrifyingly powerful, and it left everyone in a difficult situation as it seemed to squirm and move like a living creature, making it difficult to target.

A five-pearl was struck by the black light, which had penetrated his defenses. When the hit landed, the black light swiftly infiltrated his body. A few breaths later, he screamed pitifully. His entire body then erupted with innumerable black worms that had completely gorged up every bit of his flesh and bone, leaving nothing behind.

Not a single shred was left behind.

This frightened everyone and left them sweating buckets. As a result, they hastily took out treasured artifacts and activated resonance arts to protect their bodies, afraid to let even a trace of the black light stain their skin.

The eight Heavenly Pearls behind Li Lingjing brightened as she gripped the Aquamarine Bamboo Python Staff tightly. Then a stream of azure light surfaced on the staff's body and surrounded it.

The halo of light gave off a delectable fragrance, but the truth was terrifying. This was a halo containing poisonous gas. Anything that approached Li Lingjing would inevitably be dissolved into nothingness just by being near her.

This was the protective ability of the Aquamarine Bamboo Python Staff, and it demonstrated how unique it was.

Every time Li Lingjing activated her resonant power, the staff wrapped in azure light would meet the black light headfirst whilst the azure python would strike it.

With a swing of the staff, the void started to show signs of shattering. The force seemed to be able to blow even a mountain to pieces.

Bang!

Li Lingjing smashed the staff downwards, leaving an afterimage in its wake as it heavily collided with the black light once again. The black light broke into pieces, and numerous worms that were too small to be seen with the naked eye started to shoot towards her. However, the staff emanated a poisonous gas that corroded the worms into nothingness.

"This is an amazing treasured artifact," Li Lingjing thought to herself. Without its aid, she would have to rely on her own resonant power to ward off the worms, forcing her to split her concentration.

Looking at the others around her, it seemed that everyone was in quite a sorry state. Only she was safe from the Soul Eater True Devil's attacks for the time being.

However, Li Lingjing knew that her situation would only be temporary.

Others might not be able to sense it, but she could. The gaze hidden within the mist was solely focused upon her.

It was as though a spotlight was shining upon her. "Everyone, don't hold back any longer. We have to destroy the black river!" Qin Ying exhorted. As time went by, the number of hands coming out of the river were increasing, and they would be in a precarious position if things continued this way.

When his words resounded throughout the group, he was the first to take action. Golden resonant power erupted into the sky, transforming into dozens of golden feathers. These feathers were like swords and were piercing to the eye.

Duke Art: Golden Feathersword Technique!

Qin Ying roared, and the golden feathers resembling massive swords that could pierce through the skies struck downwards, directly chopping countless alabaster hands into pieces before striking directly at the black river.

Zhu Zhu's attack swiftly followed. She grasped her massive hammer and waved it once, manifesting a humongous, crimson mountain before her. It was so incredibly heavy that its sheer presence and weight caused the air to tremble.

The crimson mountain was added to the weight of the hammer. With a low grunt, the veins on her arm twitched as she hefted it and struck downwards.

Bang!

The entire area was struck by an ear-rending sonic boom, kicking up a frightening gust of wind that buffeted everyone.

Duke Art: Mountain Moving Strength!

Li Lingjing chimed in at this point. A humongous Abyssal Serpent manifested behind her before transforming into an obsidian light that shrouded the Aquamarine Bamboo Python Staff. The aquamarine python then shot outwards and underwent a transformation. A hint of obsidian color could be seen on its scales, and its body swelled up immensely, looking like a legendary inky-green flood dragon.

The inky-green python turned into a stream of rainbow light, shattering the black lights that were coming towards them and striking the black river with great force.

She might not have used a Duke Art, but the attack was not at all inferior to the ones Qin Ying and Zhu Zhu had dished out. In fact, it was even stronger than theirs.

It was clear that the Aquamarine Bamboo Python Staff had increased her battle power to the point that she would not be at a disadvantage even if she were to face a nine-pearl.

The other cultivators also activated their most powerful resonant arts, and the entire sky was filled with energy undulations. All sorts of Duke Arts weaved through the air and struck the black river heavily.

When faced with everyone's combined efforts, the numerous gigantic hands that were sticking out of the black river were destroyed, sending huge waves roiling across the surface. It looked as though the black river was gradually shrinking.

A short while later, the black river was broken into several pieces, looking like a writhing snake that had been chopped into a few segments.

Outside the main hall, the group fending off the corrupted felt their morale soar.

Li Luo turned to glance at the scene, but there was no trace of relief in his gaze. Instead, the lines on his forehead furrowed even more deeply. He had fought against the Soul Eater True Devil in the past, so he knew how hard it was to deal with this unique Other. Although it had been suppressed by the Spiritual Resonance Cave and its strength was gravely weakened, they alone might not be enough to deal with it.

As these thoughts passed through Li Luo's mind, the face in the black mist began to laugh. The sound was grating, as if countless painful wails had condensed into a single cry. It instantly aroused the negative emotions in everyone's hearts.

The black mist then descended from the sky, condensing in the air. A humanoid figure took shape a few moments later.

This figure was like a fleshy mountain, looking even more stalwart than the likes of Zhu Dayu and Zhu Zhu. Its most unsettling feature was its head. It was constantly spinning, and a new face appeared after each rotation.

Qin Ying, Zhu Zhu, and the rest felt a chill in their hearts. They could see their own faces within the constantly changing faces.

At this time, a bloody hole was ripped open on the side of its neck, where a black worm tunneled out. It opened its maws and bit off an entire face with a crunch. The sound of it chewing was truly sickening, causing everyone's hair to stand on end.

Every time a face was eaten, the body of the strange figure expanded and the terrifying aura coming from it increased in strength accordingly.

This scene was both bone-chilling and eerie to everyone present.

Li Lingjing's glum voice sounded out. "When we struck the black river with our attacks, it absorbed a strand of resonant power from each one of us. That’s what allowed it to create replicas of our faces. As it gobbles our energy up, it will continue to strengthen unceasingly."

Everyone felt their scalps turn numb. This Other truly possessed a strange ability.

"We have to stop it from getting even stronger!" Qin Ying shouted.

Even without his reminder, the rest had already begun to renew their assault. Resonance arts poured out from them, targeting the mountainous figure.

Bang!

Bloody holes riddled the Soul Eater True Devil's body, but countless black worms crawled out of them a moment later, filling up the gaps that had been created.

The Soul Eater True Devil didn’t take long to finish eating the replicated faces of everyone present. It then transformed into a faceless entity, but its towering body stood confidently in the sky, emanating a daunting sense of pressure that restrained everyone.

However, worldly natural energy suddenly poured into the area, and a mysterious power began to restrict the ever-strengthening Soul Eater True Devil.

The Spiritual Resonance Cave's rules were now acting upon it with even greater intensity.

Even then, the Soul Eater True Devil still struck fear in the hearts of everyone present.

It resisted the suppression of the Spiritual Resonance Cave and struck out with a gigantic hand. This attack seemed to ignore the distance between itself and everyone else, and it appeared directly before them.

As the hand descended, the void began to show signs of shattering.

Li Lingjing, Qin Ying, and Zhu Zhu were the three strongest, allowing them to quickly shrug off the influence of the Soul Eater True Devil and retreat.

Though they had managed to dodge the first strike, there were two who were unable to do so. They were captured by the hand, then a mouth opened up in the middle of the palm, baring its sharp fangs. With a few crunches, the two were completely swallowed up, causing blood to spill and stain the skies.

It was horrifying to watch.

The Soul Eater True Devil began to laugh with a strange sound. A ray of blood light was spat out by the mouth, and within it were the twisted and pained faces of the two who had just been eaten.

This light then swept towards the trio. They could not directly evade it in time, having to utilize their own methods to block it.

Bang!

An explosion echoed throughout the skies.

The three were sent flying before landing heavily on the ground.

A wall was smashed into pieces where Qin Ying and Zhu Zhu lay defeated, each vomiting a mouthful of blood. It was clear that they had been seriously injured from that one attack.

Everyone's hearts sank. If the three strongest amongst them had worked together and yet were grievously injured, how could they survive?

Li Lingjing, on the other hand, was not left in such a miserable state. Her figure flashed and she appeared by Li Luo's side.

Li Luo hurriedly supported her as he asked, "Cousin Lingjing, are you alright?"

Li Lingjing grabbed Li Luo's hand, placing something within it before she hurriedly let go. Her gaze was gloomy as she said in a low voice, "Cousin Li Luo, activate this rune if something goes wrong. It can protect you from the black mist. That way, you can escape quickly."

Li Luo was shocked as he glanced at his palm. He could see a black rune writhing within.

"Don't let anyone else discover it. The Soul Eater True Devil is too strong, and only you can escape. The others..."

There was no pity in her words, only indifference.

"Let them remain and be the bait that attracts its attention."

The moment she finished speaking, she once again soared into the sky and engaged in a struggle with the Soul Eater True Devil. Li Luo wasn’t even given time to react.