Chapter 105: Heaven-Suppressing Array!
Chapter 105: Heaven-Suppressing Array!
Rumble!
Under the raging might of the Earth-Fire Flame Demon, the entire mountain range shook violently. Rocks crumbled, and the skies and earth trembled.
With a furrowed brow, Long Xiao emitted a series of shimmering spear lights from his body which circled around him. These silver-hued rays split into two, and then four, and then eight...
In an instant, behind Long Xiao, a mighty array of spear lights surged forth like a torrential rain of arrows, sweeping towards the Earth-Fire Flame Demon.
However, the Earth-Fire Flame Demon remained unyielding, refusing to evade or dodge. With its formidable body, it met the barrage of spear lights head-on, refusing to back down.
Gush!
The blood of the Earth-Fire Flame Demon cascaded down like oil, saturating the area. Wherever the ink-black blood fell, the surrounding flames blazed fiercer, rapidly spreading.
"Die!"
Long Xiao lunged forward with his spear, propelling himself through the fiery barriers. With a firm grip on his weapon, he pierced towards the Earth-Fire Flame Demon's eye with unyielding determination.
The Earth-Fire Flame Demon roared intermittently. It swung its arms like a hurricane, forcefully deflecting Long Xiao's spear tip. The treasure-grade long spear whooshed as it struck the demon's ferocious face, and then ignited into flames.
Under the intense heat, Long Xiao's spear grew scalding hot, instantly searing his palm to a charred black.
"Ugh!"
With a grunt, Long Xiao forcefully seized the long spear and swiftly retreated with a leap.
Wen Tingguang swiftly flew forward, harnessing his water-based true essence to purge the fire poison infiltrating Long Xiao's body.
"Damn it!"
Long Xiao hadn't anticipated the Earth-Fire Flame Demon to be so formidable; even with his Demon-Slaying Storm Spear Technique, he couldn't subdue this creature.
"Roar! Roar!"
Having sustained significant injuries from Long Xiao's spear aura, the Earth-Fire Flame Demon let out frenzied roars. Its body bore numerous wounds, blasted open like ruptured oil reserves, with dark, viscous blood trickling steadily down its body.
However, instead of being weakened, its ferocity seemed to intensify in response to its injuries.
"What a formidable monster!"
Long Xiao exhaled deeply, his expression grave. Speaking with a heavy tone, he remarked, "I'm afraid that this Earth-Fire Flame Demon has already reached the pinnacle of a demon lord[1] and is on the verge of evolving into a demon king."
With a demeanor as grave as Long Xiao's, Wen Tingguang nodded slowly. "This Earth-Fire Flame Demon seems to have hit a snag in its advancement to demon king. Its mind was in chaos just now, unable to control itself, thus exposing its whereabouts. It's fortunate it didn't manage to advance. Otherwise, even if you and I joined forces, we would still be single-handedly suppressed by this monster!"
However, despite the Earth-Fire Flame Demon's unsuccessful advancement, demons inherently possess much greater strength than humans at the same level. Moreover, contending with a frenzied demon lord only worsened the predicament.
In the blink of an eye, the two humans and one demon were once again locked in fierce combat.
With Wen Tingguang and Long Xiao teaming up, the demon's movements were indeed significantly restrained, preventing the situation from becoming entirely one-sided.
Ling Feng remained hidden behind the massive rock, observing the exchange of formidable techniques between Wen Tingguang and Long Xiao, his eyes flickering with a growing sense of understanding.
The battle unfolding between these experts of the Spiritual Element Realm was truly awe-inspiring. For Ling Feng, witnessing their combat provided him with profound insight, as the capabilities of his Heavenly Dao Eye seemed to illuminate a path forward.
Previously, Ling Feng had never fathomed that martial artists could engage in such dynamic battles. However, the displays of Long Xiao and Wen Tingguang had now illuminated a clear direction for him.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The intense battle persisted, with the Earth-Fire Flame Demon showing no signs of fatigue. Despite its increasingly severe wounds, it relentlessly launched near-frenzied attacks.
Even when Wen Tingguang and Long Xiao joined forces, they found themselves firmly suppressed, completely on the back foot.
"Goodness, that creature is far too powerful! Even with two seniors teaming up, it's still not enough!"
"It's over, we're doomed!"
"Why am I so unlucky? I've only been with the Lingxi Sect for less than half a year!"
The warriors hidden throughout the mountains and forests all wore solemn expressions as their hopes were crushed once again in an instant.
"There's no other choice!"
Long Xiao declared, his fist clenched tightly. He then turned to Wen Tingguang, his voice heavy with determination. "Elder Wen, I still have a treasure in my possession. Although it was damaged by fifty to sixty percent during the last siege by the demonic beasts, it can still be somewhat used. I've heard of Elder Wen's expertise in soul attacks. I hope you can lend me a hand with your spiritual will to suppress this Earth-Fire Flame Demon."
The treasure Long Xiao held was known as the Suppression Heaven Cauldron. Only by utilizing the spiritual consciousness of the Spiritual Element Realm level and channeling it into spiritual will could one form the Suppression Heaven Array, effectively sealing away all demons.
This was a demon-suppressing treasure, attainable only by the high-ranking generals of the Black-Armored Cavalry.
There were no other choices at that critical moment, therefore Long Xiao resorted to using the damaged artifact, hoping it might offer a chance to subdue the Earth-Fire Flame Demon.
"General Long must be referring to the demon-suppressing treasure of the Black-Armored Cavalry, the Heaven-Suppressing Cauldron!" the knowledgeable Wen Tingguang immediately nodded. "Indeed, this artifact is specifically designed for subduing demons. At this point, we have no choice but to give it a try!"
"Agreed!"
Long Xiao nodded heavily, realizing that, in the face of life and death, there was no time for further contemplation.
"Heaven-Suppressing Array!"
Long Xiao tossed the black cauldron high into the air with both hands. Caught by the wind, the cauldron rapidly expanded, transforming into a colossal vessel stretching a hundred zhang wide, looming over the head of the Earth-Fire Flame Demon.
In an instant, an immense and boundless spiritual will seemed to imprison everything, descending like a faint purple curtain that completely enveloped the Earth-Fire Flame Demon, firmly sealing it within.
"Now! Unleash your spiritual will!" Long Xiao roared.
Wen Tingguang, grasping the situation, sheathed his sword and stood suspended in mid-air. With his hand raised, he positioned it on the right side of the Heaven-Suppressing Cauldron, where a blue beam of light emitted from his palm, imbuing the cauldron with his spiritual will.
In a flash, Long Xiao and Wen Tingguang, positioned on opposite sides, synchronized their formidable spiritual will, steadily consolidating the Heaven-Suppressing Array to thoroughly suppress the creature.
"Roar!"
However, the Earth-Fire Flame Demon seemed utterly unfazed by the Heaven-Suppressing Array, continuously pounding its hands against the array's luminous barrier.
Bang! Bang! Bang...!
The ferocious force relentlessly pounded against the luminous barrier of the array, causing faint signs of fragmentation to emerge under its surging power.
Moreover, cracks began to appear on the Heaven-Suppressing Cauldron.
"This is bad!" Long Xiao's eyes widened in alarm as he commanded the Heaven-Suppressing Array, "Execute the strangulation!"
Within the Heaven-Suppressing Array, terrifying sword qi surged forth, viciously constricting the Earth-Fire Flame Demon's body.
Spiritual will and sword qi surged fiercely inside, creating a realm of death that appeared to annihilate everything.
The spiritual will assailed the mind of the Earth-Fire Flame Demon, while the sword qi pierced through its body without hesitation.
Despite its formidable strength, the creature gradually succumbed to these relentless assaults, its body stiffening as it stood motionless.
Chi! Chi! Chi!
The creature's body was relentlessly sliced open by the sword qi, blood gushing forth like a waterfall. It appeared that the battle was over.
"Hmph, you wretched being, just die!"
Recognizing the opportune moment, Long Xiao swiftly formed a hand seal, pressing two fingers together, and thundered, "Ashes scatter — Annihilate!"
However, at that moment—
The Earth-Fire Flame Demon suddenly opened both of its eyes!
Its eyes emitted crimson streams, almost like it was crying blood, and were fixating intensely on Long Xiao. It then unleashed a resounding roar towards the sky.
1. demon tier list: demon marshal, soldier, general, lord, king ☜