Wielding the Thunders Across Two Worlds

Chapter 309: Chapter 308: Becoming a Fallen Demon? We Beat Demons

"Netherfire Sect Leader, you’re next!"

With the Five Flames Venerable defeated and the Netherfire Sect Leader having accomplished little, the confidence of the eight old Taoists managing the array soared. With Gu Zhao holding the Central Palace and empowering them with his profound Magical Power, they were certain they could take the Sect Leader’s life as well.

Thus, the positions of the Eight Trigrams Array shifted, and the Eight Gates transformed.

Taoist Yan Song’s Taiyi Divine Wind, Taoist Yi Hong’s Qi-Body Unity, Taoist Ming Yu’s Five Directions Yang Thunder, Taoist Jing Feng’s Fengdu Divine Prison, Taoist Yan Ling’s Taiyi Divine Light, Taoist Shen Hao’s Flowing Gold Fire Bell, Taoist Yu Zhang’s Celestial Pig Divine Curse, Taoist Qingyuan’s Black and White Tai Chi...

Each of these abilities was a classic of the Taoist Sect. Any one of them, practiced alone, could lead to an extremely high realm of Cultivation, making it a top-tier Dharma Gate renowned throughout the land. Now, they were combined into an array, forming the Eight Trigrams and Eight Gates, with a power so immense it could easily trap the Netherfire Sect Leader within.

Furthermore, with Gu Zhao holding the Central Palace and channeling his Magical Power into the Eight Gates, the Eight Trigrams Array was as unshakeable as a mountain.

But the Netherfire Sect Leader was acting a little strange.

Although the Five Flames Venerable had all been defeated and the Eight Trigrams Array still blanketed the sky, the Jade Fire in his eyes burned ever brighter, and the ferocity in his expression grew more distinct.

"A fine array. Those useless subordinates of mine were no match for you." The Netherfire Sect Leader showed no concern for the deaths of the Five Flames Venerable, even displaying a degree of self-awareness. "Even I would find it difficult to break this array."

At this, a sinister grin spread across the Netherfire Sect Leader’s face. "Do you know why I didn’t use my full strength just now?"

Before anyone could answer, the Netherfire Sect Leader answered his own question. "Because they were always meant to die."

The Netherfire Sect Leader raised his right hand, and five points of light appeared in his palm. His lips curled into a wide sneer. "These are slivers of their True Spirits. They were my companions for centuries, after all. I was a bit hesitant, but since you’ve forced my hand, I won’t hold back any longer."

As soon as he finished speaking, the Netherfire Sect Leader swallowed the five points of light in a single gulp.

In the next instant, everything changed!

All of Black Rock Mountain rumbled. The torrent of Evil Qi that had been spewing forth suddenly halted, then transformed into a twisted, malevolent aura that surged into the bodies of everyone on the mountain.

"AHHHH!"

The several hundred people on Black Rock Mountain screamed hoarsely, their eyes glowing with black light. They all let out bestial roars as their auras surged. Under the influence of this black qi, seven or eight of them even broke through to the next cultivation realm.

"Break the array! Kill them!" the Netherfire Sect Leader shrieked.

"Kill!"

The hundreds of people on Black Rock Mountain roared in unison. Led by the seven or eight who had broken through, they began casting techniques, attacking the celestial canopy of the Eight Trigrams Array that covered the mountain. The power of their combined assault surpassed that of the Five Flames Venerable.

Meanwhile, the Netherfire Sect Leader’s aura skyrocketed. He began to exude a bizarre, evil presence, and his facial features started to warp and contort.

He then stretched out his hands, and a longsword wreathed in black qi and a long cord shimmering with black light appeared in them.

With a flick of his left hand, he sent the long cord flying. It grew longer and longer, crossing the void in an instant, passing through countless streams of Saber Qi as it snaked toward Taoist Yi Hong’s true body.

At that moment, the Dui position had shifted to become the Life Gate, a point where both offense and defense were momentarily weaker. The Netherfire Sect Leader had somehow seen through it.

The Eight Trigrams Formation instantly shifted again; the Dui position transformed into the Shock Gate. Taoist Yi Hong swept his Yanyue Saber horizontally, unleashing a hundred-foot-long wave of Saber Qi that tore through the void, aimed straight for the Netherfire Sect Leader.

But the Netherfire Sect Leader simply unleashed a blast of Sword Qi of his own, effortlessly shattering Taoist Yi Hong’s attack, which had been empowered by the array. His Sword Qi even had enough power left over to press the attack before it was finally dispersed by the Taiyi Divine Wind.

"What’s going on with him?" Taoist Yan Song couldn’t help but ask.

"It’s not Ghost Qi, not Yin Qi, and not Evil Qi. It feels... like something not of this world," Taoist Shen Hao said, his white brows deeply furrowed.

Taoist Yu Zhang added, "And it’s deeply unsettling."

Gu Zhao felt the Five Thunders Order pulse within his Sea of Consciousness. "This is Demonic Qi! The Netherfire Sect Leader is practicing a Demon Technique!"

"Hahahaha!" The Netherfire Sect Leader roared with laughter. "This is the Great Netherworld Green Flame Demon Skill! Once mastered, one becomes a Fallen Demon in body and is unrivaled in this world!"

As the Netherfire Sect Leader laughed, his body became increasingly distorted. His two eyes began to drift toward the center of his face, and the green flames within them burned even more intensely.

At the same time, the Netherfire Sect Leader’s back convulsed, and two more arms burst from his body. One new hand held a Great Seal that emanated black qi, while the other held a Copper Pot that gushed Demonic Qi.

The Netherfire Sect Leader’s appearance was growing to resemble the Divine Statue worshipped in the small town below the mountain. His aura had also far surpassed what it was when he first appeared.

This was the true power of the Netherfire Sect Leader after practicing the Demon Technique.

Taoist Yi Hong’s eyes hardened. "His Magical Power is now on par with that Ink Flood Dragon!"

Taoist Yan Song shook his head. "Don’t forget, that Ink Flood Dragon was only eating people. It wasn’t engaged in Magical Combat."

"There’s no need to compare him to the Ink Flood Dragon," Taoist Ming Yu said calmly. "In any case, both he and that Ink Flood Dragon are fated to die."

Taoist Shen Hao’s white eyebrows shot up. "’Become a Fallen Demon in body and be unrivaled in this world?’ What a coincidence. We specialize in fighting Demons!"

Taoist Qingyuan nodded, his fighting spirit soaring. "That’s right! We specialize in fighting Demons!"

Taoist Jing Feng and Taoist Yu Zhang didn’t respond verbally.

Instead, the three Divine Prisons in the northeast suddenly bore down on the Netherfire Sect Leader. Behind them, the faint, looming figure of what looked like the Emperor of the Underworld appeared, radiating a grim and terrifying pressure.

Meanwhile, in the southeastern sky, three Divine Statues, each hundreds of feet tall, flashed into existence. Brimming with immense Divine Power and ultimate killing intent, they slashed down at the Netherfire Sect Leader with Sword Qi.

The two old Taoists who practiced the Black Law and the Way of the Northern Emperor truly lived up to their reputations as the Taoist Sect’s executioners. When they unleashed their full power, the once majestic and magnificent Eight Trigrams Array instantly transformed into a killing field.

The Mingling Prison, Fire Shadow Prison, and Copper Pillar Prison—three Divine Prisons in one—nearly fused together as they bore down on the Netherfire Sect Leader’s Sea of Consciousness.

The Divine Statues formed by the Celestial Pig Great Curse radiated a heaven-shaking, solemn majesty, intent on suppressing and annihilating the Demon Fiend before them.

"Shift!"

The other six Taoists acted in unison, shifting the northeastern Kun Position into the Death Gate, the southeastern Qian Position into the Shock Gate, and the western Zhen Position into the Hurt Gate.

Taoist Ming Yu pointed his Dharma Sword, and a bolt of Five Yang Thunders as thick as a water cistern shot out from the Five-Colored Thunderclouds. His attack formed a triangular pincer with those of the other two Taoists, striking at the Netherfire Sect Leader.

The Netherfire Sect Leader roared. Black qi surged from the Copper Pot to form a Protective Body shield as he slashed at the three Divine Prisons with his longsword, lashed out at the three Divine Statues with his cord, and met the Purple Gold Thunderbolt with his Great Seal.

BOOM!

With a deafening crash, the Netherfire Sect Leader, by his own power, managed to block the full-force attack from three of the Eight Trigrams Array’s Evil Gates.

However, Gu Zhao, holding the Central Palace, infused his Magical Power into the formation. Taoist True Qi circulated through the Central Palace, upgrading the Eight Trigrams Array into a Nine Palace Eight Trigrams Array and causing its power to skyrocket.

The Fengdu Dharma Aspect grew even more imposing, the pressure from the Celestial Pig Great Curse intensified, and the purple-gold light of the Five Directions Yang Thunder became even more brilliant.

"This time, the phrase ’Exorcising Demons and Evil Spirits’ is truly fitting." Gu Zhao reached out, and a Three Pristine Ones Bell appeared in his hand. With a gentle shake, its ring spread across the heavens.

"Slay the Demon!"

At his command, the heavens and earth stirred!

The array’s power surged. In an instant, the seven or eight masters who had just been empowered were annihilated: their bodies were extinguished by the Tai Chi, sliced to pieces by saber blades, shattered by the Thunderbolt, their forms obliterated by the Celestial Pig’s power, their flesh scoured from their bones by the Divine Wind, their spirits burned away, their souls seized by the Divine Light, and their minds destroyed in the Divine Prison.

"AHHH..."

The sound of wretched screams was incessant as a boundless tide of Evil Qi rolled forth.

The Netherfire Sect Leader, who moments ago had believed himself to be invincible, could only watch helplessly as all the sect members infused with Demonic Qi were slaughtered. He himself was once again suppressed by the array.

"This is impossible!?" The Netherfire Sect Leader found it inconceivable. His Demonic Qi raged once more, and his four Magical Treasures erupted with a power far beyond their normal limits.

"Nothing is impossible," Gu Zhao’s calm voice sounded beside his ear.

The next moment, Magical Power from the eight directions converged. A bolt of purple-gold lightning, far surpassing the earlier Five Directions Yang Thunder, formed in the very center of the sky. It then transformed into a world-rending Thunderbolt Divine Sword that slashed down toward the Netherfire Sect Leader.

His longsword shattered, his cord snapped, his Great Seal was sent flying, and his Copper Pot cracked.

The Magical Treasures the Netherfire Sect Leader had nurtured with Demonic Qi were useless. He was struck from the sky by the Thunderbolt, crashing down into Black Rock Mountain with a tremendous boom.

"AHHHH!" The Netherfire Sect Leader burst from the ground.

Although his aura was in disarray, his menacing presence was even stronger than before. His once slightly distorted features had now completely mutated. His two eyes had merged into a single cyclopean eye, from which the Jade Fire within released waves of Demonic Qi.

"I will have you..."

BOOM!

Another Thunderbolt descended from the heavens, not only cutting him off but blasting him back into the mountain.

BOOM!

BOOM! BOOM!

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

After dozens of continuous Thunderbolt strikes, the Five Thunders Order in Gu Zhao’s Sea of Consciousness finally received a thick surge of Evil Qi.

’So much damn chatter. I already told you, fighting Demons is our specialty.’