Chapter 749: Determination
Translator: AnubisTL
Above the East Sea Region, a tall, swaying figure flew erratically, appearing on the verge of plunging into the sea at any moment.
Finally, as if unable to maintain its altitude, the figure plummeted into the deep blue ocean with a splash.
Splash!
"Are you mad? Diving into the water now? Do you have no regard for your life?"
The figure was naturally Li Qing. The Profound Yellow True Flame, startled by his sudden action, could no longer maintain its composure.
As a heavenly spirit fire, an immortal and indestructible entity, it would inevitably reignite even if extinguished. Thus, it had remained remarkably calm about Li Qing’s life or death.
After all, once they returned to land, even if Li Qing perished, the flame would suffer no harm.
But now that Li Qing had plunged into the deep sea, if he were to die in this vast underwater realm, the flame feared it would be trapped in eternal darkness beneath the waves.
Ignoring the Profound Yellow True Flame’s frantic cries, Li Qing activated the Kunpeng Divine Power within him, transforming into a Swimming Kun. Even underwater, he could maintain astonishing speed.
Li Qing’s figure darted through the seawater at breakneck speed, finally leading him to a sea clan creature dwelling in a rocky cave.
It was a late second-tier Profound Armor Golden Turtle, nearing the formation of its demon core. Though its bloodline was ordinary, it had already developed rudimentary spiritual intelligence.
The turtle was startled to see a human race intruder in its cave abode, its expression quickly turning hostile.
But before it could fully unleash its aggression, a surge of overwhelming divine sense power stunned it into unconsciousness.
Though Li Qing’s physical body was in dire straits, his divine soul remained intact, his divine sense power largely undiminished.
He effortlessly breached the turtle’s Sea of Consciousness, swiftly extracting a location deep within the ocean:
The Sea Rift Valley!
Good, not too far!
Having secured the location, Li Qing reactivated the Kunpeng Divine Power and swam toward the area where vast numbers of demonic corpses lay buried.
"I’m warning you, the poison is already invading your heart meridian. Even I can’t hold it back for much longer."
"You’d better abandon this fleshly body and use the remaining power of the Three Spirit Flames to protect your nascent soul as it escapes. Otherwise, your nascent soul will also be tainted by this lethal poison."
Abandon his fleshly body and let his nascent soul flee?
This was indeed his last resort, but Li Qing didn’t want to resort to it. If he did, he would have to find a new body to seize.
Although his divine soul was powerful and his success rate for body seizing was high, he didn’t want to take that path.
He still had another option: collect enough demonic race corpses, return to his sect, and use the blood lotus to refine essence blood. This would infuse his decaying body with sufficient vitality and vital essence.
With this, he could use the Dao Tribulation Limitless Sutra to undergo a metamorphosis, emerging from this desperate situation with a new life.
"Keep protecting me as best you can. I’ll handle the heart meridian," Li Qing replied weakly, then focused on swimming toward the Sea Rift Valley.
The Profound Yellow True Flame couldn’t contain its anxiety. "Once the spirit fire’s remaining power is exhausted, you’ll lose its protection. Even if you abandon your fleshly body, your nascent soul will be tainted by this lethal poison when it escapes. Then everything will truly be for naught!"
This was the deadly poison of the Heavenly Poison Physique. Even a cultivator’s nascent soul would instantly dissolve upon contact, utterly extinguishing their existence.
The Profound Yellow True Flame naturally didn’t want Li Qing to continue such a reckless course in the deep sea, fearing it might drag them both into eternal oblivion at the bottom of the ocean.
Li Qing ignored the warning, replying calmly, "Cease your nonsense."
After swimming for quite some time, a pitch-black Sea Rift Valley finally appeared before him.
The abyss was so deep that not a single ray of light penetrated its depths. Wisps of demonic qi seeped from the rift’s edges.
Without hesitation, Li Qing plunged into the darkness, his figure vanishing instantly into the rift’s depths.
Meanwhile, in the central sea territory, the battlefield where Heaven’s End Island had once stood was utterly devastated. Demonic qi raged through the seawater, extinguishing all life. The spiritual energy of heaven and earth had become chaotic and disordered, transforming the area into a cursed land.
The miraculous island that had once floated in the sky had vanished completely, leaving only a towering tower standing amidst the desolation.
Severed limbs and shattered demonic bodies floated on the crimson-stained surface, mingling with fragments of demonic flesh.
The battle, which had involved multiple great powers at the Divine Transformation stage, had finally subsided.
An ancient dark azure flood dragon flew in from the distance, its body wreathed in mist. Yet a hint of regret flickered in its eyes.
"I couldn’t catch him," the dragon lamented. "That winged ancient demon’s speed truly surpasses all others. He ultimately escaped."
At the summit of the towering tower, Wan Shengtian and Valley Master Nie Yuan of the Bright King Valley slowly emerged.
Valley Master Nie Yuan’s face was as pale as paper, his aura withered to its limit. He spoke weakly, "That ancient demon wielding the massive scythe was cunning, its demonic treasures endless. It was a formidable and peerless foe."
"Failing to capture it now leaves us with endless future troubles."
Valley Master Nie Yuan nodded solemnly. "Brother Wan, you mustn’t blame yourself too harshly. Enduring against two ancient demons of the same cultivation level for so long, and even managing to rescue the Nascent Soul cultivators trapped within the four demonic rings—that was already a remarkable feat."
"Moreover, this battle wasn’t without its gains. We at least slew a Crystal Demon Clan member at the Divine Transformation stage, and the fire demon leader suffered grievous injuries, rendering it unable to act for the foreseeable future."
Yet Wan Shengtian remained unconvinced. "After planning this operation for so long, only to slay a single ancient demon... I can’t help but feel dissatisfied."
The Azure Flood Dragon King sighed. "Alas, none of us anticipated the sudden appearance of a fourth Divine Transformation stage ancient demon. We’ve been monitoring the other three for so long, yet never suspected reinforcements. They must have descended from the Cloud Marsh Domain."
"Besides that, there are also some ancient demons in the nascent soul realm."
Hearing this, the three great powers at the pinnacle of the Human Realm—all in the divine transformation stage—suddenly remembered that a large group of nascent soul realm ancient demons had been sent to hunt down the fleeing cultivators!
"Wait! My Second Brother is among those being hunted! I must go find him!" the Azure Flood Dragon King declared, turning his flood dragon body around. "Nie Yuan, you and Wan Shengtian go search for a human cultivator named Li Qing. His artifact refinement skills are extraordinary—this Azure Dragon Treasure Mace was refined by him. We can’t let him fall into the hands of the demonic race!"
The Master of the Bright King Valley and Wan Shengtian were both slightly startled by this revelation.
"You old flood dragon! Why didn’t you mention something so important earlier?" Nie Yuan demanded, his voice stern as he began searching the surrounding sea territory. "It’s been so long already. Even if his artifact refinement technique is extraordinary, he’s likely already dead, with so many ancient demons of his level hunting him down!"
The heavily injured Wan Shengtian also joined the search. They both understood the immense importance of a fifth-tier refiner capable of crafting spirit treasures in this critical situation.
Under the relentless search of three Divine Transformation stage great powers, the surrounding sea territory was scoured from top to bottom.
Finally, the three converged above a sea area shrouded in emerald green poisonous miasma, their expressions grave as they surveyed the scene.
"What kind of poison is this miasma? It’s so potent that no life can survive here," Valley Master Nie Yuan of the Bright King Valley murmured, even he felt a faint sense of threat from the miasma.
Wan Shengtian echoed, "The other Nascent Soul cultivators who were being hunted have either been captured alive or self-detonated their nascent souls. Only the situation at this battlefield remains unclear."
"I heard that Fellow Daoist Li Qing possesses heavenly spirit fire. There are indeed traces of multiple heavenly spirit fires lingering here, suggesting he engaged in a fierce battle with the ancient demons. Whether he survived remains a mystery."
None of the three Divine Transformation stage great powers dared to consider the possibility that Li Qing had single-handedly slain over twenty Nascent Soul realm ancient demons. Yet the highly toxic miasma before them was clearly beyond the endurance of any Nascent Soul cultivator.
Even those who had been exposed to the poisonous miasma had to drink an entire pot of antidote.
"Could they have perished together, yet left no remains?" the Azure Flood Dragon King mused, puzzled. He had already found his Second Brother, the Black Flood Dragon King, barely clinging to life after being hunted by over a dozen ancient demons. His essence blood had been completely drained; had the Azure Flood Dragon King not arrived in time, only he and his Fourth Brother would have remained of the Flood Dragon Clan.
Nie Yuan said slowly, "We must uncover the fate of an artifact refiner capable of crafting Fifth-Tier Spirit Treasures, whether he lives or dies!"
"The ancient demons descended to capture him alive. Perhaps Fellow Daoist Li isn’t dead, merely in demonic hands."
"..."
Unbeknownst to the three Divine Transformation stage great powers, the "Fellow Daoist Li" they spoke of was already on the brink of death.
Above the East Sea Region, a drenched, towering figure struggled to rise from the waves. Shaking and swaying, he flew toward the Azure Ridge Domain.
(End of the Chapter)
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