The Black King Xiao left this world peacefully.

…

While the White King Xiao distracted Chu Liang with conversation, it was merely a diversion. The Black King Xiao remained still, but the shadow beneath his feet had already begun speeding toward Chu Liang.

Just as the shadow was about to reach his feet, Chu Liang suddenly swung his sword. In his hands, the Demon-Slaying Sword, infused with Severing the Void sword intent, drove straight into the ground beneath him.

Shhhk!

With a single slash, Chu Liang cut through the overwhelming wave of yin qi.

The motionless form of the Black King Xiao shattered instantly. From beneath Chu Liang’s feet, a plume of black smoke erupted and surged upward, quickly reforming into the Black King Xiao.

"Graahh!" it howled in fury.

Clearly, it hadn’t expected Chu Liang to be so powerful. What was meant to be a fatal ambush had backfired, leaving it wounded, humiliated, and furious.

Its upper body twisted into the form of a striped tiger, jaws wide as it lunged forward, aiming to swallow Chu Liang whole. This time, it chose brute force.

Chu Liang swung the Demon-Slaying Sword upward from the ground, sending flames roaring into the sky.

Boom!

Waves of sword qi exploded outward. Before the tiger could devour him, it was cleaved clean in two by the divine blade. But the Black King Xiao did not die. Its body split into two clouds of black mist that swept around to flank Chu Liang. Each one solidified into a figure of its own and struck at the same time.

In a flash, Chu Liang activated the Mystical Winged Divine Dragon Transcendent Form. A pair of mighty, scaled wings burst from his back, shielding both sides. At the same time, he activated the Dragon God Mark and invoked his lightning arts, casting the immortal art—Five-Lightning Heart of the Sky!

From the moment he first obtained the Dragon God Mark, a thought had lingered in his mind. If he could summon divine lightning with this mark, then what would happen if he combined it with lightning immortal arts? Wouldn’t that be like giving wings to a tiger?

Could the Dragon God Mark be paired with the Five-Lightning Heart of the Sky?

It was easy to come up with ideas but much harder to put them into practice. That was especially true for divine techniques. They took time to understand and even longer to master. Crafting one from nothing was an even greater challenge.

Fusing two incompatible techniques was no simple task. It took endless effort and experimentation before he finally achieved success.

Chu Liang gave it a name—Divine Dragon Lightning Art.

Thunder answered in bursts, shaking the heavens.

Bolts of lightning exploded around him, and in the blink of an eye, the Black King Xiao’s corporeal form was shattered once more and reduced to a swirling mass of black mist.

The Divine Dragon Lightning Art merged the most dominant elements of the Dragon God Mark and the Five-Lightning Heart of the Sky, elevating them to a whole new level. One of its key features was that it was a natural counter to ghosts and all manner of evil spirits!

"Aaargh!" the Black King Xiao howled in pain and tried to flee.

It launched upward, tearing through the ceiling. But instead of the sky, it met a wall of radiant white light and crashed straight into it.

Bang!

The force of the collision echoed through the chamber. That wasn’t a soft impact.

Chu Liang chuckled and said, "This is the Ninefold Pure Yang Sky Net Formation. I spent twenty thousand spirit stones just on the formation diagram. How exactly do you plan on escaping?"

As soon as he realized he’d be facing the Twin Ghost Xiaos, Chu Liang sought out the Formation Sage, Dong Futu, and obtained this powerful ghost-slaying formation. The diagram was outrageously priced, and the materials were even more expensive. But if it meant capturing the two Ghost Xiaos, no price was too high.

Back on the surface, Lin Bei and Ye Yongxing had already worked together to lay down the formation, covering the entire underground area beneath the Xiao Residence. With Ye Yongxing’s deep understanding of formations, Chu Liang had full confidence in its success.

Lin Bei's contribution was equally significant. He handled communication and oversaw the evacuation of the surrounding townsfolk.

Only now, as divine light flickered around it after the impact, did the Black King Xiao finally realize just how prepared this young man was.

This young man was more terrifying than any pure-blood True Dragon they had ever faced.

…

At that moment, the White King Xiao wasn’t just standing idly by. In fact, it was in an even more miserable state than the Black King Xiao.

Just as it prepared to move in and assist, a crimson figure dropped from the sky. One punch sent it flying, and only then did it see the figure clearly. The crimson figure was a little girl in a red jacket. She looked no more than ten years old. Yet, her skin felt as tough as bronze and bones felt as rigid as iron, and her punch carried the strength to shatter mountains.

Jiang Guo was like the iron-eating beast. She had no cultivation manuals, no divine techniques, and no understanding of the Great Dao. What she possessed was raw, devastating force—the natural power of a Cataclysmic Ba, born to bring calamity.

Thanks to the Whale-Riding Immortal’s efforts, her natural calamity-inducing powers had been suppressed. She no longer brought droughts or earthquakes wherever she went. As for her abnormally great strength? That had only grown stronger.

The Twin Ghost Xiaos, though powerful demons at the peak of the seventh realm, were ill-suited for head-on battles. Their strengths lay in trickery, manipulation, and shifting to suit any situation. And so, in a direct clash, they crumbled on contact.

The costly formation had already been activated. Given enough time, the Twin Ghost Xiaos might have broken free. But with two powerful enemies pressing in, they had no chance to escape unnoticed.

This place had become an inescapable octagon cage. No one was getting out until the enemies were crushed.

Xiao Youde watched the divine battle unfold in terror. Trembling, he curled into a corner, praying it might be safe there. The very next moment, the White King Xiao was sent flying straight at him.

Boom!

It was a solid, bone-crunching impact.

By the time the White King Xiao reformed as a puff of white smoke, Xiao Youde had already been flattened into a thin smear on the floor.

"This won’t work!" the White King Xiao couldn't bother saving his loyal underling. It could barely keep itself alive! With a snap decision, it rushed to join the Black King Xiao in the fight against Chu Liang.

The Black King Xiao instantly understood its intent. Both the Ghost Xiaos dissolved into smoke, twisting and spiraling through the cavern like a storm.

In an instant, the entire chamber descended into chaos. Chu Liang’s vision blurred, and his senses were overwhelmed.

When Chu Liang finally slashed open a space with the Demon-Slaying Sword, the cave fell into stillness.

Before him stood Jiang Guo.

To his left was a second Jiang Guo.

To his right was another version of himself.

The Twin Ghost Xiaos had finally resorted to their strongest skill—transformation. Now, the battlefield was crowded with two Chu Liangs and two Jiang Guos, making it impossible to tell who was real and who was not.

Just as the Twin Ghost Xiaos thought the illusion might buy them some time, Chu Liang suddenly shouted, "Pick one and hit it!"

Immediately, all four figures sprang into action.

Thud! Smash! Crack! Bang!

In the whirlwind of fists and feet, the Twin Ghost Xiaos suddenly realized Chu Liang’s plan.

Both Chu Liang and Jiang Guo possessed not only terrifying strength but also incredibly durable bodies. A few hits between them wouldn’t cause any real harm. But the Twin Ghost Xiaos, with their far weaker forms, couldn’t withstand the brutality of such chaotic close combat.

In no time, both the Twin Ghost Xiaos were battered and bruised, forced to retreat from the brawl.

The White King Xiao revealed its true form once more. Its jade-like body was now covered in cracks.

"You forced me to do this," it snarled.

Then it spat out a crystalline orb filled with swirling violet mist. Within its depths shimmered what looked like a miniature galaxy.

At the top of the orb, a faint fracture was visible.

It was the Dragon God's Orb.

As soon as Chu Liang saw the orb, a deep resonance stirred within him. It was as if his very soul had been touched by divine light. There was no doubt. This orb was linked to his Dragon God Mark.

"Die!" roared the White King Xiao.

The moment the words left its mouth, violet mist erupted from the fracture in the Dragon God's Orb. Each thread of mist carried hundreds of divine lightning bolts, and once unleashed, they would form a storm of millions.

In the blink of an eye, the entire underground lair could be wiped clean by this storm of divine lightning bolts.

This power surpassed the limits of the seventh realm. It was the strength of a master of the Heavenly Origin, and it came from a damaged relic of the Dragon God.

Any other seventh-realm cultivator, no matter how profound their cultivation or vast their spell arsenal, would be doomed. But this was Chu Liang.

He stared into the swirling violet mist of divine thunder. His Dragon God Mark responded, flaring to life and unleashing a blinding violet radiance.

Whoosh!

The violet light from Chu Liang’s brow shone on the mist, forcing it back into the Dragon God's Orb. The White King Xiao, however, kept trying to draw it out again—leaving the two locked in a deadlock.

It was clear now—Chu Liang’s Dragon God Mark exerted the same level of control over the violet mist as the orb itself.

The White King Xiao was shaken. From the Demon-Slaying Sword that suppressed evil spirits, to the Ninefold Pure Yang Sky Net Formation that trapped ghosts, and now even the Dragon God's Orb! It was like this young man was born to destroy the Twin Ghost Xiaos!

Could it be that the heavens had already sent this young man to take their lives?

On the other side, Jiang Guo’s battle instincts kicked in. Without hesitation, she charged at White King Xiao, who was still locked in a standoff with Chu Liang. If she could defeat White King Xiao, the Dragon God's Orb would lose its wielder, and the only thing that could threaten her would no longer be unleash any power.

"AHHH!" Black King Xiao roared as it flew in and wrapped its arms around her. At the same time, he shouted, "I’ll self-destruct and take them with me! Use the Dragon God's Orb to break the formation and escape!"

At the critical moment, it was willing to trade its life for the White King Xiao’s escape.

The White King Xiao didn’t hesitate. It knew even a moment’s delay could cost them everything. It raised the Dragon God's Orb to the sky, and violet mist surged upward, flooding into the barrier overhead. A moment later, a divine bolt of lightning burst forth, crashing against the formation. Even a barrier designed to restrain ghosts crumbled under the sheer power of the Dragon God's Orb.

"Trying to run?" Chu Liang muttered.

The moment the White King Xiao shifted its focus, Chu Liang seized the opening. With a mighty roar, he unleashed the Sword Strike of Severing the Void!

The White King Xiao frantically raised the Dragon God’s Orb to block, but Chu Liang twisted the sword qi mid-swing, and with a single, devastating stroke, he cleaved through most of its body.

Sssshhk!

The White King Xiao’s body was cleaved apart without a single drop of blood. Only radiant threads of spiritual energy drifted through the air as its head and right shoulder were sent flying, leaving behind a severed arm and half a torso gripping the Dragon God’s Orb.

It didn’t want to give up. But it had no choice.

What the Twin Ghost Xiaos encountered today wasn’t just a powerful opponent. It was their natural nemesis.

Chu Liang grabbed hold of the Dragon God’s Orb and turned to the two targets before him.

He could have stopped the White King Xiao from escaping if he had chosen to. But the Black King Xiao had seized Jiang Guo, and cracks were beginning to spread across its body. It was clearly on the verge of self-detonation.

A self-destruction by an evil spirit at the peak of the seventh realm was no small matter. Even Jiang Guo, as the Cataclysmic Ba, could be in danger.

Chu Liang made his decision in an instant and shouted, "Trying to blow yourself up? Not on my watch!"

Whoosh!

With the Dragon God's Orb in his palm, the mist surged forth several times faster. A wisp of violet fog, fused with countless divine lightning, wrapped tightly around the Black King Xiao.

Crackle! BOOM!

The Black King Xiao was instantly engulfed in divine lightning, paralyzed and frozen within the violet-gold divine light.

Chu Liang raised his Demon-Slaying Sword high. With overwhelming sword intent, like a wrathful deity descending from the heavens, he brought it down.

As the sword qi closed in, the Black King Xiao let out a furious wail, "Aaaah! I refuse to accept this! We tread cautiously for over three thousand years, evading countless hunts, establishing countless of such families like the Xiao Clan across the land. We did all that just to create one safe haven! And now it's all ruined by two snot-nosed youngsters? I refuse to accept this!"

Swish!

The Sword Strike of Severing the Void descended, and the Black King Xiao was cleaved in two.

As the golden mark drifted into his body, Chu Liang landed softly on the ground with a satisfied expression.

"Call me young all you want," he said, "but this ancestor right here isn’t exactly younger than the two of you."