SHEW!

The cluster of blood-colored patterns blew up Catie’s shriveled shell and returned to the bone.

After fusing back into the bone, it spread and gave birth to more Bloodline Crystal Chains, causing the bone to shine with dazzling blood-colored light.

Catie’s remains, however, were reduced to dust that scattered in the starry river.

Meanwhile, pieces of the three-headed python’s mangled body shrank as their rich flesh aura was gradually absorbed and refined by the bloody grid unleashed by the bone.

Astonishment filled Nie Tian’s eyes.

He had a feeling that the way the bone channeled power from the three-headed python’s remains was rather similar to Life Drain.

“Don’t tell me that my Blood Essence has vested it with the wonders of my bloodline... Or did it have such a wondrous ability the whole time?”

While Nie Tian drifted in thought, Pei Qiqi put the python head away in her ring of holding.

Then, she turned to him and said, “You don’t have to go to the Domain of Heaven’s Boundaries with us. We’ll find that teleportation portal and destroy it for you. You should spend more time with Dong Li.”

Before Nie Tian could say anything, Pei Qiqi signaled Yan Zhan, Jing Feiyang, and Xie Qian to leave with her.

With Cardy and Catie dead, the two Demon grand patriarchs that had come to the Domain of the Falling Stars had both been eliminated.

As far as Pei Qiqi thought, the Domain of the Falling Stars wouldn’t face any more invasions within a short time.

However, for all she knew, there were still six Demon grand patriarchs and an accessible teleportation portal in the Domain of Heaven’s Boundaries that needed to be taken care of.

Yan Zhan and the other experts would be more helpful if they went with her.

“What do you think, Nie Tian?” Yan Zhan asked for Nie Tian’s opinion.

Unlike the perfunctory expression he had before, his face was now filled with heartfelt respect as he spoke to him.

Before, he had treated Nie Tian respectfully simply because of his status as a Son of the Stars, but he had never respected him for his strength and ability.

Catie’s death, however, had changed his opinion of him.

Nie Tian nodded. “You guys should go with Senior Martial Sister Pei.”

Without saying another word, Yan Zhan left the Domain of the Falling Stars with Pei Qiqi, Xie Qian, and Jing Feiyang.

A few minutes later...

Under Nie Tian’s gaze, the three-headed python’s remains were drained of their residual flesh power and scattered like dust in the wind.

A peculiar blood-colored layer appeared over the whole bone before rapidly fusing and vanishing into it.

The bone recovered its original look and size, emanating crimson light. Even though it didn’t grow further, the flesh aura it contained had become much stronger than before.

WHOOSH!

Nie Tian grabbed the bone and returned to the location where the Flame Dragon Armor was refining the flame qilin corpse.

It hadn’t taken part in his battle against Catie.

“My consumption of Blood Essence has been great. I’d better recuperate now.”

The Phantasm grand patriarch corpse he had gained from Hou Chulan still had some residual flesh aura left. With it, Nie Tian started regenerating the Blood Essence he had lost.

A few days later...

A total of fifty drops of Blood Essence were restored to his heart.

Then, with the last remaining Blood Essence within the Phantasm corpse, he generated three more drops of Blood Essence, which he fused into the Star Behemoth bone.

The bone had displayed terrifying might in the recent battle, where it had taken it upon itself to draw his flesh power to slay Catie.

This had proved that his Blood Essence had indeed given a strong boost to the bone’s might.

This greatly spirited him.

...

At the Seven-star Blue Sea in the Domain of Heaven’s Boundaries.

A secret teleportation portal that connected to the Demon realms was floating over the blue sea. The reason why it had been transferred to this place was because the three-headed python’s unique bloodline had told it that this was the ideal place to hide a teleportation portal.

At this moment, Gutas from the Bispo Clan was standing by the teleportation portal with a grim face, as if he was waiting for someone.

SHEW! SHEW! SHEW!

Soon, Demon grand patriarchs returned from different corners of the Domain of Heaven’s Boundaries successively.

No matter what statuses the arriving Demons held, they all bowed respectfully towards Gutas. “Young Monarch!”

“Greetings, Young Monarch!”

Gutas nodded slowly.

Feimos and Hazlitt were the last to arrive. Upon arriving, Hazlitt asked, “Why did you summon us here, Young Monarch?”

“Cardy died in the Domain of the Falling Stars,” Gutas said with a heavy tone.

Upon hearing this, all six grand patriarchs gasped with astonishment.

Disbelief filled Feimos’ face as he said, “Young monarch! Are you sure?! Lord Cardy really died?! Who in the Domain of the Falling Stars had the ability to kill him? Even that Elder Yan Zhan wasn’t strong enough. He couldn’t have defeated Lord Cardy even with that Xie Qian’s help!”

“I don’t know who did it,” Gutas said, his face distorted with fury. “However, Cardy’s clan did send word to me, telling me that the drop of his Blood Essence that had been kept in his clan suddenly withered.”

As powerful as ninth grade grand patriarchs were, they couldn’t be brought back to life just by relying on a drop of their Blood Essence.

The purpose of keeping a drop of their Blood Essence in their clans was to allow their clans to learn about their death as soon as it happened.

For ninth grade grand patriarchs, only if their hearts were secured would they be able to rely on their heart to regather their flesh aura and come back to life.

Only tenth grade grand monarchs could be resurrected by relying on merely a drop of Blood Essence.

“Cardy died. There’s no doubt of that.” Gutas said, his face twitching. “Our four grand monarchs consumed significant power to fight the battle against the Ancient Fragmentary Star Palace in the Dead Star Sea. Especially later, when the sectmaster of the Void Spirit Society joined the battle, they had to go all-out to win. So they won’t be able to come here within a short time.”

From these words, Feimos and all of the other Demon grand patriarchs heard Gutas’ implicit suggestion to retreat.

“So you think we should...” Hazlitt waited for him to say the word.

However, Gutas didn’t give the answer they were waiting for. “Let’s wait a bit longer.”

“Wait for what?” Feimos asked, looking baffled.

Gutas knew that he wouldn’t be able to hide the truth anymore, so he said, “The truth is that I sent Catie from my clan on this mission before I summoned you. With that three-headed python of hers, she should have entered the Domain of the Falling Stars before Cardy did.”

The six grand patriarchs immediately understood the reason behind such an arrangement.

“Wait till she comes back with the dark stone, then we’ll go home.” Gutas didn’t try to hide what he was thinking. “By returning with that dark stone, at least we can make up for our loss of Cardy. Otherwise, I don’t know how I’ll report this mission to my father.”

“Okay, let’s wait till she returns.”

A few days later...

In a purple crystal that was clutched in Gutas’ hand, a drop of Catie’s Blood Essence suddenly scattered into wisps of flesh aura that rapidly dissipated.

As soon as it happened, all of the grand patriarchs present sensed the change in the purple crystal, and realized that she had suffered the same fate as Cardy.

“Catie!!” Gutas threw his head back and roared, wrath and madness filling his face.

Even though Cardy had been one of the most powerful Demon grand patriarchs, he hadn’t been a member of the Bispo Clan.

Catie, however, had been an important member of his clan, well-trusted by his father.

The death of Catie clearly gave Gutas a heavier blow than Cardy’s death.

Hazlitt couldn’t help but exclaim, “How is this possible?! Catie had that three-headed python! With its help, she could have been even harder to deal with than Lord Cardy. At least she could have escaped by relying on its profound spatial manipulation magics when she found herself in trouble.”

“She couldn’t even escape? She just... died...?” Feimos muttered in a low voice, fear filling his dark-purple pupils.

“I can’t return like this!! I can’t tell my father that I failed completely!!” Gutas yelled hysterically.

Just as he was going to give the order to purge the Domain of Heaven’s Boundaries, the six Demon grand patriarchs exclaimed, “Young monarch! You’ve got to go back! It’s no longer safe to stay here!”

Together, they grabbed him and dragged him into the teleportation portal despite his forceful resistance.