ASER - Chapter 191
Chapter 191: Strange
The underground palace trembled violently; if not an earth-shattering cataclysm, it was at least a scene of wailing ghosts and howling wolves.
Without the siege of tens of thousands from the three Demon Spirit clans, the ten Grandmasters would have been enough to sweep away the three Demon Kings and the Demon Sound Sect. However, the problem was that this Demon Spirit horde existed, vast in number and high in level. There was a large contingent of Level 10, 11, and 12 Demon Spirits, enough to make even Grandmasters turn tail and flee in terror. Thus, after two or three rounds of bombardment from both sides, the 10-person professional assassination team had lost half of its Grandmasters. Of course, the Grandmasters initially wanted to escape, but Red Demon was bold and meticulous. It saw the advantage lay with its side. Moreover, the enemy had arrived too timely. It deeply suspected this was an advance party of imperial experts sent to probe, or perhaps they thought the demons were truly on the surface and had specially arranged a team of experts to lie in ambush underground, only to unexpectedly find the demons already there.
If they weren't eliminated, and they managed to escape to join forces with Chen Xun's imperial sky fleet above, the demons would surely be annihilated.
They could not be allowed to leave this place alive!
Red Demon's strategic acumen had always been formidable, and its temperament was ruthless and decisive. It ordered all Demon Spirits skilled in spatial talents to seal off this area, preventing even the Grandmasters from tearing open space to escape, while simultaneously launching a frenzied siege against the five remaining Grandmasters.
With no escape route, the Grandmasters could only desperately use their trump cards and self-destruct. A'Diao watched intently—impressive, five people produced six or seven Dao Tablets.
But this Grandmaster should be someone who survived from the founding era. The others... didn't seem to be from the current generation either.
Strange. Could it be that the Imperial Clan had made preparations long ago, using a secret technique similar to the Duanmu family's to put people into hibernation? However, Duanmu Biexue had been on the verge of death and had to be "frozen like a corpse." The Imperial Clan, on the other hand, seemed to have been prepared well in advance.
Toilet: "Actually, they wouldn't have needed to prepare that far in advance. Compared to the Imperial Clan, the Duanmu family's resources are definitely inferior. Although spiritual energy was cut off, resources containing spiritual energy didn't disappear, nor did those inheritances. This means the Imperial Clan could still preserve these human resources by expending resources, awaiting the resurgence of spiritual energy."
Damn, that was a real eye-opener!
A'Diao immediately realized she had fallen into a cognitive trap—she always thought that after the spiritual energy was cut off, spiritual cultivators became long-lived ordinary people. But that wasn't true. As long as there were Star Coins, skeletal remains, and other carriers of spiritual energy, the Imperial Clan, and indeed all spiritual cultivation factions, could naturally maintain their extraordinary powers for a long time, rather than directly devolving into ordinary people.
Then came the question—how many such individuals had the Imperial Clan hidden? If the Imperial Clan was like this, what about the three alien imperial clans, existences like Lushan, Lie Qin, and Nan Jin... and the numerous factions that had sprung up like mushrooms after the rain since the resurgence of spiritual energy, growing at terrifying speeds? How many had they hidden?
Originally, she had orchestrated this affair, partly because the curse was inevitable, and she wanted to seize the initiative, grab a huge fortune in resources for her own rapid development, and incidentally probe the depths of the Imperial Clan's human resources. She had specifically timed the appearance of the Lesser Spirit King, predicting the highest limit to be a single Grandmaster. Yet, they had brought a whole team of Grandmasters.
Were Grandmasters as common as cabbages? Even if the Imperial Clan had sufficient resources, manpower was irreversible because aptitude couldn't be easily created. But... she only just realized this.
"I have a feeling there are still Grandmasters waiting for me at the border, perhaps lying in ambush near the valley, as a second wave of attackers."
A'Diao's heart grew cold, but she didn't delay in coordinating with Red Demon to bombard the remaining Grandmasters.
Grandmasters were, after all, still powerful. Stubbornly withstanding such intense siege firepower, he used the equipment on his armor to send out two emergency messages.
It was a matter of life and death; he couldn't think of more. But these two messages were shattered by a strange electromagnetic force field as soon as they were sent.
Ten thousand meters up in the sky, within the warship.
Chen Xun, operating the equipment in the information center, pushed up his glasses and glanced at the intercepted messages. He also checked the ID location of the sender—it was in the nearby area. Although not close, choosing this position, in terms of explosive power and optimal attack timing, suggested a Grandmaster-level spatial expert.
And the other message was addressed to the capital.
It seemed it was sent to a Lesser Spirit King, hoping they would teleport over to rescue him.
A mere death warrior, even a Grandmaster—why would the Imperial Clan care?
Sending it was as good as not sending it.
However... the group hidden nearby should notice the situation and inform the capital.
Chen Xun picked up the coffee beside him and took a sip, his expression calm and composed.
In the underground palace, the Grandmaster received no response from either side. He instantly realized that either his superiors had abandoned him, or the message transmission had failed. Despair welled up in his heart, and this despair carried a hint of ferocity.
"You want to kill me? Go to hell!!"
The Dao Tablet on his body and the vast sword body talent he manifested suddenly merged into one.
A'Diao watched in astonishment. Dao Tablets and bloodline totems could merge?
However, its energy level abruptly rose to a level even higher than Yin-Yang energy.
So, never underestimate the strong.
There was a reason they could cultivate to the Grandmaster realm.
A'Diao felt her heart tremble with fear.
"Not good!!!"
This madman was going to self-destruct!
Red Demon was the first to react, instantly transforming into a stream of fire and darting deeper into the earth. But it was too late. If it was too late for Red Demon, what about the others?
The brilliance of a sun instantly erupted.
Boom!!!
Red Demon, Hidden Pupil, and everyone, all the high-level Demon Spirits in the core combat zone, were engulfed by this light.
Terrifying, too terrifying. The self-destruction of a Grandmaster, a Grandmaster who had fused a Dao Tablet with a bloodline totem.
The effect was like a small nuclear bomb.
Destruction.
At that moment, A'Diao feigned a terrified scream... while retracting her mental threads.
Buzz...
The sealed space maintained by a large number of Demon Spirits seemed on the verge of collapse.
The ground in the valley suddenly rumbled and shook. Living beings within a radius of dozens of li felt the powerful tremors.
The warship above had already detected these tremors, and the military began to investigate...
Deep underground, more than a thousand meters down, the underground palace was not just a pile of ruins, but definitely a scene of devastation. Under the extreme heat, the rocks glowed red, and the soil emitted a pungent, scorched smell.
At this moment, there were countless charred, shriveled corpses, and of course, a large number of Spirit Cores scattered among the rock powder and fragments.
These Demon Spirits couldn't even retain their bodies, turning directly into ash in an instant...
Amidst the billowing smoke, the few Grandmasters and the disciples of the Demon Sound Sect were all dead. Even the Demon Sound Sect Master's corpse lay there. There were many storage rings on the ground.
The dust settled.
But in this eerie silence... the flames on Red Demon's body had diminished significantly, and the Spirit Core within its chest was faintly visible, clearly having suffered heavy damage. It leaned against a broken rock, emitting a scorching, heavy aura.
"Hidden Pupil! How dare you! Red Demon, dodge!!" A'Diao, disguised as the White Scale Demon King, whose massive serpentine body was emitting the fragrance of roasted snake meat, clearly severely injured, still lunged forward to engage the black shadow that had launched a surprise attack.
Boom!!
Red Demon looked up just in time to see White Scale clash with Hidden Pupil, then, bang! A second explosion struck.
Hidden Pupil screamed as it was sent flying far away, its body mangled and on the brink of death, looking incredulously at White Scale, who was in an even worse state nearby.
"You..."
Are you insane! Killing Red Demon benefits us! I'm so devoted to you, how could you treat me like this!
A'Diao, however, spat out blood. Before her snake pupils dimmed, she cast a final, tear-filled glance at Red Demon, and then her snake head lolled to one side.
Dead.
Red Demon: "..."
However, Red Demon's reaction was to quickly scan White Scale's corpse with its mental body.
Within White Scale's massive body, A'Diao, completely hidden in its stomach, had perfectly concealed herself using White Scale's Demon King bodily tissues. But she also knew that Red Demon, being so cautious and cunning, needed to confirm if White Scale was truly dead.
It naturally received an affirmative answer, because after A'Diao withdrew her mental threads, this body had fully sustained the fatal damage.
She had successfully made the already dead White Scale die a second time.
Because Red Demon didn't know White Scale was being controlled by her, it naturally believed it without a doubt.
And Hidden Pupil, seeing the tears in White Scale's eyes before death, cursed inwardly, its mentality somewhat shattered.
You flirted with that damned Demon Sound Sect Master.
You had a secret crush on that flame rock-man who could barbecue on stone slabs.
Yet you completely ignored me, your devoted admirer?! Why!
Dying, it saw the killing intent in Red Demon's eyes as it looked towards him. It immediately struck first. Theoretically, among the three, it was the least injured because it was the fastest and best at concealment, thus avoiding most of the damage from the Grandmaster's explosion.
And Red Demon should be the most heavily injured, as it was the Grandmaster's primary target.
Kill it, kill it! If Hidden Pupil devoured their bodies, it could ascend to become the new overlord of Blood Kite Basin!
Hidden Pupil charged over. Red Demon let out a low roar and raised its massive flaming iron fist.
Bang!!!
Hidden Pupil was struck by the fist.
Before dying, it was still in disbelief. It still has strength left!!!
"Didn't expect that, did you? I was wary of you long ago."
After killing Hidden Pupil, Red Demon's body swayed, and it spat out a large amount of scalding, bright red lava-like blood.
It was, after all, at the end of its strength, but fortunately, it had survived.
Just as Red Demon was about to collect all the spoils... a corpse on the ground suddenly twitched.
And after the corpse stood up, it twisted its head.
It gave Red Demon a slight smile.
Red Demon narrowed its eyes. "No wonder you weren't afraid to get involved. You were never a living person to begin with."
The Demon Sound Sect Master spread his hands, absorbing a large amount of flesh and blood from the ground into his body. His injuries were rapidly recovering. He smiled and said, "Everyone says my Demon Sound Sect cultivates sound attacks, but they don't know I've long mastered the art of the living dead. It neither requires enduring the cruelty of the Corpse Spirit Dao, nor is it as fragile as the human race. However, even at Level 14, you Demon Spirits are stupider than I imagined. Two out of three Demon Kings dead in an instant. I was almost bursting with laughter just now."
This was a great humiliation. Red Demon suppressed its anger, its gaze sweeping over the people behind him. It suddenly realized, "You're not colluding with Lie Qin, but with Nan Jin. These people are from Nan Jin."
Because it sensed the unique shamanistic power of Nan Jin cultivators on them.
"Correct." The Demon Sound Sect Master's smile vanished in an instant. He suddenly attacked, intending to kill Red Demon in one blow.
He wouldn't die from talking too much like those foolish villains.
Two sentences were enough. Kill Red Demon first, take all the benefits, then leave this place as quickly as possible!
And his strength at this moment had clearly reached the peak of Mid Grandmaster.
However, just as the Demon Sound Sect Master attacked, his pupils trembled, because he saw the corpses of other flame giants in the ruins flying over.
Thud, thud, thud, one by one, they almost seamlessly adhered to and merged into Red Demon's body.
Injuries, perfectly recovered.
At that moment, not only was the Demon Sound Sect Master shocked, but even A'Diao, hiding inside White Scale's body, was astonished.
Impressive, my goodness.
Toilet: "This isn't a restorative secret art similar to Demon Sound's absorption. It's because these flame giants were originally part of its body. Before the battle began, this Red Demon divided its main body into many pieces. This is the terrifying aspect of elemental Demon Spirits."
A'Diao had truly never imagined such a maneuver before.
But evidently, the Demon Sound Sect Master hadn't expected it either. His first reaction was... to use a secret technique to sweep up all the Spirit Cores and storage rings, and flee?
No, before Red Demon could act, he activated his final killing move—crushing a teleportation array.
Buzz, the teleportation array activated.
Three Mid Grandmasters and a group of men instantly appeared beside him. Red Demon narrowed its eyes and sneered.
"So it wasn't Lie Qin, it was Nan Jin."
But did it make a difference?
No.
Red Demon wasn't afraid either; after all, the opponents weren't Grandmasters.
And the Demon Sound Sect Master did want to summon Grandmasters, but Grandmasters weren't cabbages. To avoid the Imperial Clan's probing at the border earlier, they hadn't arranged for any Grandmasters to come to the frontier.
So...
The Demon Sound Sect Master and his men surrounded Red Demon, unleashing their full power. Red Demon, having recovered its formidable Level 14 Demon King prowess, fought one against many. The battle was earth-shattering. The Demon Sound Sect Master's side was actually being suppressed. And terrifyingly, a large number of Demon Spirits from the periphery of the underground palace, who hadn't been killed, suddenly launched a combined mental shock...
Not good!
Buzz, buzz, buzz. The mental bodies of the Demon Sound Sect Master and his men all trembled, but just before being hit, they unleashed a barrage of attacks concentrated on Red Demon.
Both sides used their ultimate killing moves at the critical moment, and both endured the opponent's killing blows.
"Nan Jin Shamanistic Curse!" Red Demon roared in anger as it saw poisonous gas continuously emitting from the lava within its body.
On the other side, the Demon Sound Sect Master was sent flying into a wall, which collapsed. After spitting blood, he relied on the characteristics of a living dead to cling to a breath of life and quickly scrambled up. With a quick feint, he intended to use the others to hold back Red Demon while he himself escaped.
"Stay right there!" The heavily injured Red Demon roared in fury, about to give chase when suddenly... where the Demon Sound Sect Master passed, a black shadow flashed out from the corpse of the deceased White Scale Demon King.
Dual Core Yin-Yang Fusion, all techniques unleashed, 505 activated, boom!
The Demon Sound Sect Master didn't even see what his opponent looked like before his mental body went completely dark. Then his body was... his knees felt so weak.
Bang!!!
The moment he turned into a pig, he was completely disarmed + smoothly knelt down.
His mouth involuntarily uttered the standard words: "Noble master, thank you for allowing this lowly slave to kiss your noble right foot. This lowly slave kowtows to you."
His butt stuck out, his head kowtowed.
His head was blown apart.
Living dead?
The core of the head-lowering living dead technique was in the head. Blowing up your head meant ending your life. Living dead my ass!
A'Diao, after her explosive attack, instantly killed the critically injured Demon Sound Sect Master. Then, transforming into a black whirlwind, she swept away all the spoils, including the corpses of White Scale and Hidden Pupil, and then fled as wind... while escaping, she sent a message to Chen Xun.
If Red Demon could generate mental power from rage right now, it would definitely send A'Diao a billion-point critical hit.
What happened to being secretly in love with it and dying for it?
It was all a setup.
A setup!
Red Demon had an epiphany, its mentality shattered, and it roared... "Chase!"
Whoosh! It transformed into crimson flames and madly pursued A'Diao. The nearby Demon Spirits also rose with a howl, madly chasing, blockading, and attempting to surround A'Diao in the vast corridors of the underground palace.
She was now like a treacherous, cunning, shameless oil-stealing rat spirit, having made off with the sesame oil, attracting countless other rats in a frenzied pursuit...
She was also like bait; once scattered, all the fat koi in the pond would swarm out.
And at this moment, A'Diao was indeed surrounded.
Red Demon was only one corridor away from her... but it saw her activating a teleportation.
"No!"
Red Demon's mental shockwave madly traversed space, about to reach A'Diao, but the teleportation array had already formed. It saw this damned human enveloped by the teleportation halo, then raise a middle finger at it.
Bang! The mental shockwave hit nothing, dissipating in the air like a bubble. Red Demon rushed to where the teleportation halo lingered and struck with its palm.
It didn't even touch a corner of her clothes, but it smashed a five-meter-deep pit into the ground.
At this time, countless Demon Spirits from the surroundings also converged.
But amidst its anger, Red Demon suddenly calmed down. A sense of extreme crisis loomed in its mind, like how some creatures instinctively feel terror before a storm.
And at this moment, it also instinctively looked up.
The warship, ten thousand zhang high, had now descended to a hundred meters.
Then, 18 ships collectively fired a pillar of light.
The pillars of light networked, merged, then changed their impact trajectory, vertically concentrating and descending towards a core location.
That was where Red Demon and the others were located.
And in that instant, Red Demon also suddenly realized that this location happened to be where the distance between the underground palace and the surface was thinnest, and it was also outside the spatial blockade area previously created by the Demon Spirit horde.
Meaning, their heads were currently undefended.
And this pinpoint strike, a combined attack from 18 of the empire's strongest warships, was their death knell.
Originally, this kind of combined attack was considered impractical. It required charging, had a buffer time, poor accuracy, and significant energy dispersal, so it was abandoned decades ago after its invention.
But today, it was used.
First, A'Diao had gathered the Demon Spirits and found the most advantageous pinpoint location.
Second, Chen Xun had enhanced this attack tactic by adding a method of merging 18 energy trajectories, redirecting them, and fusing their density. Through high-density algorithms, he ensured the controllability of the converging beam.
Third, he persuaded the Commander to give it a try, because trying wouldn't hurt.
After all, faced with the inexplicable situation in the underground palace, the military warships were initially somewhat helpless, until Chen Xun overruled all objections and, with his previously demonstrated overwhelming technical authority, guaranteed the success of this attack. His abilities had been evident to all; Blood Abandonment City's survival to this point was largely due to his contributions. Otherwise, a mere Vice Minister of Works wouldn't be qualified to be on the same warship as the Commander and other high-ranking officials.
Indeed, it succeeded.
After a certain point in the valley was precisely struck, the ground caved in and cracked. A section of the underground palace was completely leveled. Countless Demon Spirits turned to ash in an instant, while the bodies of high-level Demon Spirits could withstand it for a while...
But only for a while. Because even Red Demon, while roaring and enduring this powerful light pillar attack, only lasted for 18 seconds. Before being annihilated, it issued one final command to most of the Demon Spirits in Blood Kite Basin.
Boom!
Everything was leveled.
On the screen, the Commander watched as the biggest threat on the border was wiped out in one fell swoop. He wasn't a fool. He couldn't help but look at the calm-faced Chen Xun.
The latter, however, had just finished his data calculations. Leaning back in his chair and wiping his glasses, he said, "I just deciphered the biological frequency it emitted. It should have already arranged for other Demon Spirits in Blood Kite Basin to surround Blood Abandonment City while we were out exterminating this place. It's a signal for a general offensive. Please, General, arrange for the main city defenses to be activated and for most troops to return to defend."
The Commander glanced at him, knowing this man was wary of him possibly being secretly ordered by the Imperial Clan to harm Chen A'Diao, hence the deliberate redeployment of most troops. But this was an overt strategy, impossible to refuse... And that Chen A'Diao, the main instigator of the devastating strike in the valley below, had probably absconded with a huge amount of spoils by now.
But she had left behind military merit.
They would all receive enormous benefits... This was strategy of the highest caliber.
The younger generation was more than just formidable; these two siblings were simply terrifying.
The Commander turned his face and gave an order, "Do as Lord Chen says."
His tone was solemn and respectful.
Because the military was very pragmatic, respecting only the strong.
And this time, achieving such a terrifying war result without shedding blood, resolving the perilous situation at the border that had persisted for some time, was simply... he wanted to weep with joy.
The gazes of other high-ranking military officials towards Chen Xun were also filled with immense awe.
Damn it, the Ministry of Works had struck gold. How did such an incredible genius end up in research and technology? Wouldn't he be better off in our military?
They didn't dare to dream of a monster like Chen A'Diao, nor did they dare to snatch her from Lushan.
But... what was the Ministry of Works?!
The Commander secretly began to scheme. To be honest, he, who was terrible at literary matters, had already thought up the official transfer request document.
Besides, that old dog, the Minister of Works, wasn't a good person either.
Chen Xun's work was perfectly completed. What about A'Diao?
After the teleportation was complete, A'Diao appeared on a plain in the southwest of Blood Kite Basin.
Damn it, finally done. She was just about to teleport back to Lushan.
Suddenly... she found that all the equipment signals on her armor had gone out.
Signal isolation.
Not good! She saw a man in a white robe and wearing a black mask ahead.
A Grandmaster had locked onto her and blocked her secondary teleportation.
He was here, the second Grandmaster, the ultimate hidden card lying in wait at the border, had arrived. And his methods were treacherous; he had actually seamlessly tailed her to her teleportation location.
A chilling killing intent descended upon her, but he was in no hurry to act, because...
A'Diao suddenly clutched her heart, and blood gushed from her mouth.
The white-robed Grandmaster coldly watched as eerie curse red marks spread over her body... then, very quickly, her pupils dimmed.
Thud, she collapsed.
At the same time, he received intelligence that Chen Ran and Chen Yang in the capital were all comatose and dying.
The curse had succeeded.
The Imperial Clan's methods were truly insidious and ruthless, and their techniques were indeed sophisticated.
When they said they would kill Chen A'Diao, they truly killed her.
And death by curse, the method that best absolved them of responsibility... they had achieved it.
Killing without spilling blood...
The white-robed Grandmaster sneered. Actually, he should have left by now, but his eyes were still fixed on A'Diao's storage ring. However, after struggling for three seconds, he gave up.
Once he took the storage ring, it would mean that after Chen A'Diao died by curse, someone had conspired... Lushan would use this to pursue the case and initiate an investigation. If any clues were found, either the Imperial Clan would push him out as a scapegoat, or he would be directly silenced by the Imperial Clan.
So, taking a step back ensured his safety, even though he knew this was a colossal fortune he couldn't earn in three hundred years.
He had considered the consequences of snatching it and hiding, but thinking of the incredible abilities of Spirit King level cultivators, he felt a sense of awe and decisively retreated...
But just as he teleported a short distance, he suddenly received a secret message from the Imperial Clan—she wasn't dead.
What, how is that possible!!
Deep within the Kyoto Imperial Palace.
Thirty seconds earlier, several old men from the Imperial Clan watched the activated Celestial Clan secret artifact. It had indeed been triggered by curse power and was being manipulated by them to act upon the Chen Gui bloodline.
After receiving confirmation from various sources, they all smiled.
But the NO1 among the old men was formidable. He looked at the total amount of curse power consumed by the secret artifact and the frequency of consumption, then suddenly frowned. "The amount is wrong, and its consumption frequency is increasing, not decreasing. Chen Ran and the others don't matter, they are insignificant. But for Chen A'Diao, the most terrifyingly talented in the Chen Gui lineage, if it had hit, it should have output a large amount of curse power at once, then slowed down or even stopped. Yet, it's at a slowly increasing frequency, indicating it hasn't successfully killed that Chen A'Diao. It's trying to overcome some barrier."
"What do you mean?! Could it be that Chen A'Diao severed her bloodline? That's impossible, right? Even our own Lesser Spirit Kings find it difficult to do that. Lushan couldn't possibly have someone help her achieve it. Could it be that old fox, the Mountain Head, thought of some method to prevent this risk for her beforehand?"
The old man NO1 narrowed his eyes. "I don't know. Perhaps she changed her gene sequence."
"But that would mean destroying the entire structural system of her original body, tantamount to abandoning her cultivation achievements... She wouldn't have been able to perform as she did today either."
So how did she manage to change her gene sequence and retain her cultivation?
As soon as the Grandmaster left, A'Diao climbed up, clutching her chest and wiping the blood from the corner of her mouth.
"Playing dead twice in one day, what bad luck. But at least I got rid of that plague god."
"That dog Old Daoist's ashes really do have some tricks."
The curse was real, and she had truly been attacked by the curse. But when she left Lushan to go to that mountaintop to dig for ashes, she had already thought that she must apply a layer of protection for herself before going to the border. So, what she went to dig for wasn't ashes, but her long-held suspicions about the Old Daoist.
This old fellow had managed to save her when her foundation was severed, and had provided her with so many books since she was young, cultivating and teaching her in various aspects. He was definitely no ordinary character, especially since his fake corpse had passed an official DNA test.
DNA manipulation was actually the most effective way to resolve bloodline curses—simple and crude, but the price was abandoning one's cultivation. A'Diao was unwilling and had dismissed this option.
And when she arrived at the mountaintop, she saw the changes in the Longan tree. Curses aside, she vaguely sensed that this was the old man hinting at her.
Sure enough, after obtaining the "ashes," she tested them on the airship and isolated some mysterious substance from them. She didn't know what it was, but it could strangely manipulate genetic changes without altering the fundamental gene sequence, thus not dismantling the cultivation system. It was more like a very high-level form of—transfiguration?
Yes, it could form an entirely different DNA system, overlaying the original DNA.
This was too terrifying. What level of substance could achieve such an effect? It seemed even the history of the founding era had no record of such a BUG.
A'Diao was tempted. She originally wanted to produce a batch to sell later and make a fortune, but she was quickly disabused of that notion.
The level was too high, too mysterious, and no information could be found. It couldn't be produced or analyzed. It was indecomposable, an existence impenetrable by current technology.
It was as if it was telling her: Save it, that foot-picking, stingy, sleazy old schemer is far above your level.
A'Diao was furious at the time. Such an incredible person had been stingy with her food since she was little, what kind of person was he! So incredible yet so secretive, refusing to show himself, even worse!
However, important matters still needed to be done. She could only carefully extract these substances from the ashes and then use them on herself.
So, before arriving at the border, she had already switched to a different set of DNA.
Even with such a trump card, she still felt it wasn't enough. She had also specifically contacted the Mountain Head, telling him she had a way to evade the curse. The Mountain Head was very surprised, but seeing A'Diao didn't want to elaborate, he didn't ask.
"So you want an assurance from me? I thought that with this layer of protection, you would maintain the dignity of the Chief and refuse to ask me for help."
Successive Chiefs had mostly fought their way through like this, with countless being schemed against by the Imperial Clan. The general unspoken rule was that Lesser Spirit Kings could not intervene; otherwise, if discovered, it would be an absolute falling out.
It was just that A'Diao's case was a bit special; she carried the fatal hidden danger of the curse, making her seem much weaker compared to other Chiefs.
"Being afraid of death isn't shameful," A'Diao replied simply, unafraid that this would damage the Mountain Head's and Lushan's assessment of her.
What she wanted was power, the authority of Tang Song. This couldn't be said, but the entire authority of Lushan was basically destined to be hers in the future, so her performance had to, as much as possible, avoid situations where she had to go home and ask for help.
But, one had to live first to contend for power.
She was very rational.
"Alright, if you send a signal, I will definitely come." After the Mountain Head's promise, A'Diao set off for the border.
And that curse just now... she had naturally and cunningly evaded it with this set of DNA.
"But my vomiting blood was real. It can only transfigure, not perfectly defend. The reason it could evade most of the curse was because the secret artifact's curse power wasn't strong enough, not direct enough. It was a secondary activation through an energy intermediary, and the activated curse wasn't very strong."
A'Diao felt a lingering fear, afraid of any unforeseen changes. She was just about to return to Lushan, and the teleportation array had just activated...
The signal was isolated again, and the teleportation array... bang!
It was blocked again. Turning her head, A'Diao saw the white-robed Grandmaster who had gone and returned.
Damn it!
A'Diao's scalp tingled. She turned and transformed into a black wind, about to flee.
However, that feeling in her heart came again, and this time it was dozens of times stronger than before.
A'Diao felt as if countless ants were crawling on her heart, gnawing into it inch by inch. And her physique, which had already been tempered to be extremely powerful, began to show terrifying curse marks spreading from within.
Pain!
The black wind, already halfway in the air, reverted to her original form and fell to the ground. As her palm gripped the earth, A'Diao saw the flesh of her arm being invaded by patches of curse red marks.
She thought she smelled the stench of rot.
How... could this be.
Why would a second wave of such a terrifying curse effect suddenly erupt?
Was it because the Celestial Clan had a more powerful curse artifact, or...
Just before her head felt like it was about to explode, A'Diao had a sudden realization—damn it, there was only one possibility.
Damn it, these old bastards from the Celestial Clan...
A'Diao's resentment reached its peak. At this moment, in Kyoto, on the Celestial Clan's side, the original secret artifact floated, and beneath it lay a corpse.
Chen Gui's corpse.
The old man NO1 manipulated Chen Gui's bloodline, using the bloodline within his body in conjunction with the secret artifact, amplifying the effect of the bloodline curse nearly a hundredfold, and it was precisely targeting Chen A'Diao alone.
His murky eyes were filled with killing intent.
A swift and decisive battle!
The old man quickened his operation... Across thousands of mountains and rivers, with a raise of his hand, he could kill this era's most terrifying genius.
All for Dantai!
Blood Kite Basin.
The white-robed Grandmaster sealed the space, coldly watching as terrifying, distorted blood qi erupted from A'Diao's body—blood qi torn from within her.
But his indifference stemmed from his intent to kill her. However, this mindset was soon replaced by another feeling, because of fear.
The pressure of the curse.
Could the curse descending upon her body also release pressure?
Boom!!!
The white-robed Grandmaster endured the pressure while maintaining the spatial seal, while A'Diao profoundly felt its deadliness... Her flesh rotted and split, threatening to torture her to death in an instant.
She finally felt the terrifying hatred of that Celestial Clan female from before her death.
After three hundred years, even its remnants were still horrifying.
Wow, blood gushed from her mouth and nose, and the pressure released from her body finally pressed down the grass and trees of the nearby plain, condensing and swirling above, seemingly forming a distorted Dharma image.
Its face couldn't be seen clearly, yet it achieved Heavenly Might.
The sky was majestic and imposing, clouds retreated, and a vast, killing aura descended upon the boundless expanse.
It was an endless golden light, originally flawless and supreme, yet due to hatred, it roiled with infinite curse marks...
It was generating something.
She would die, she would definitely die, this damn thing!!!
Lushan. The Mountain Head had actually been paying attention to news from the border, but even someone as powerful as a Spirit King couldn't be omniscient, so he didn't know A'Diao's exact location.
But the commotion in the valley was too great. He confirmed A'Diao was there and had even collaborated with Chen Xun to pull off something big.
And they succeeded.
Was the Mountain Head satisfied? It simply exceeded his expectations.
How long had it been, and she had already achieved something so significant, and successfully at that.
"Her future achievements might even rival the Founder's..." The Mountain Head suddenly had a wild thought.
Well, let's just call it a wild thought. He could already imagine Chen A'Diao rising from a chaotic era like the Founder, trampling the Imperial Clan, dominating the three nations, and becoming an unparalleled Chief.
But soon, he frowned, looking at the teleportation array before him. Something was wrong. Why hadn't she returned?
They had an agreement. That brat was afraid of death and insisted on setting the teleportation array to his home, saying she would immediately return to the safest place after succeeding, feeling secure only under her master's protection.
She was quite good with words.
He had agreed, but now...
Something must have happened!
The Mountain Head vanished in a flash.
In a classroom in Lushan's Fifth Heaven, Qing Zan, who was teaching, keenly sensed that a student's state was amiss.
Xu Ye. She had been restless for some time.
Just now, she felt a dull, throbbing pain in her head, and couldn't help but press her brow.
Her abnormality was noticed by those with strong mental bodies like Shen Huajing and Song Ling. Just as they were about to ask, Qing Zan appeared beside Xu Ye, her fingertip pressing Xu Ye's brow.
With a touch, her expression changed slightly.
"This is..."
"It's a curse."
The suddenly appearing Mountain Head abruptly grabbed Xu Ye. "The Chen family bloodline is cursed by the Celestial Clan. A'Diao is currently trapped in the Blood Kite Plain. I must find her."
"Although you inherited the Xu family's bloodline, your mental body is homogenous with your other brothers and sisters. I will now search for her location through your mental body. Do not resist."
The Mountain Head was informing, not asking, very assertively, because in his eyes, all the students here combined were not as important as one Chen A'Diao.
How could Xu Ye resist? Hearing this, she endured the pain and decisively opened up her mental body.
And Qing Zan, with a wave of her hand, prepared a teleportation array, ready to teleport at any moment.
Evidently, she was going too.
Song Ling and the others had already heard the Mountain Head's words. Their faces changed drastically, and they all looked towards the two imperial princes.
Especially those from the Qian Class, not a single one failed to connect this to a hidden conspiracy—a curse so sudden and so timely was definitely not a coincidence.
After all, the Qian Class students were, on average, highly intelligent. A look of disgust flashed in Xia Sanlu's eyes.
For someone like him who had climbed up from the bottom, this kind of insidious attack from the highest echelons evoked the strongest aversion.
Moreover, he had finally managed to latch onto the strongest backer, indirectly about to become a direct confidant of the future Mountain Head. This Imperial Clan... was truly detestable.
With the Imperial Clan around, it seemed they would never have a chance to rise.
Xia Sanlu lowered his head, concealing his emotions, while those like Shen Huajing and Nie Yuanyuan showed no emotion at all.
Handan Jidao was expressionless.
When the rabbit dies, the fox grieves.
And the two princes had strange expressions but said nothing, though a dark glint flashed in the Ninth Prince's eyes.
They would naturally not be privy to this matter, but why did they feel a faint sense of dread?
Such methods... might not necessarily be unused on them, the princes, in the future. Because those in power in the Imperial Clan now were many generations removed from them. Since ancient times, there was no father-son relationship in imperial families, let alone so-called ancestors separated by so many generations.
No one knew the fear in their two hearts.
The Mountain Head's methods were superb; he could actually track through a mental body. He soon saw memories deep within Xu Ye's soul.
Running, constantly running.
"Second Miss, Second Miss, don't go in, inside..."
Bang!
The door was pushed open. A pungent stench of filth and blood assailed her nostrils. She saw a small girl in a dim room being held down by servants and force-fed medicine. They were actually not much different in age, but she was so thin, looking several years younger. The strong smell of medicine was forced into her... choking out of her mouth and nose. But due to the pain, she struggled free and knocked over the medicine.
The bowl fell to the ground, shattering. She saw herself, and also Xie Yuqing, who had rushed over upon hearing the commotion.
"Diaodiao..."
The latter wanted to rush forward and hug her, but she grabbed a shard of the broken bowl from the ground and threw it forward.
"Go away, go away! I don't want to see you."
"I hate you all the most."
She tried to get up, but her leg bones, softened by illness, gave way, and she collapsed again with a sickening crack.
Broken.
She couldn't help but rush over to hug her.
But she was forcefully pushed away.
"I hate you, I hate you!"
"I hate you, sister, I hate mother... Woo, I hate you all!"
As she cursed, her voice was thin and weak, blood constantly trickled from her mouth and nose, her skin was bruised purple, and much of her hair had been pulled out due to pain. She looked terrible, but she was also a dying person.
How old was she, and how young did she look.
No one could save her, no one.
Medicine couldn't, doctors couldn't, surgery couldn't. It was as if she was fated to die.
Her little sister, it seemed, was about to die again.
The Mountain Head saw these things, but also, following this powerful mental signature, he captured it!
It was...
Suddenly, it broke, everything broke.
Buzz!!!
A faint aura of majesty was released from Xu Ye's body. It was very faint, but it made everyone, especially the students, feel a chill.
Fear, infinite fear.
What kind of existence was this?
It was...
The search was blocked because the Curse's Heavenly Might had been generated.
The power of the Celestial Clan could naturally block everything.
It was over.
The Mountain Head's face was grim. He decisively tore open space.
"I'll go east, you go west!"
Qing Zan understood. The two of them teleported to the border separately.
The Curse's Heavenly Might was about to form. The white-robed Grandmaster was basically certain of Chen A'Diao's fate, but he suddenly sensed a peculiar aura.
This aura was...
A'Diao continuously endured the terrifying power of the curse, while constantly stuffing several Dao Tablets into her Yinglong totem.
When she stuffed the first one, she almost felt her system was about to collapse.
But she didn't stop, madly stuffing in the remaining two.
One after another.
What was the consequence?
It was the continuous collapse of the mental solid in her mind sea.
Cracking, then cracking again, constantly cracking!!!
To resist this destructive consequence, it had to crack to save itself.
It was... the Yinglong, almost collapsing, suddenly let out a dragon's roar.
A rough and piercing dragon's roar erupted from A'Diao's body, then spread in all directions, and finally... crack!
Her flesh completely tore apart.
Skin splits, flesh parts, revealing silver scales. Body shatters, bones crush, a dragon's cry ascends.
Whoosh!!!
In the instant the Curse's Heavenly Might descended to kill her, A'Diao's body completely disintegrated, and a dragon emerged from within.
Transforming into a dragon, she actually transformed into a dragon.
This was a bloodline ability that only direct descendants of high-ranking alien races could possibly achieve.
The white-robed Grandmaster watched in shock as a small, two-meter-long silver dragon soared into the sky, directly impacting space. Flesh and blood splattered, but space tore open.
It darted into the sky, trying to escape, but the Curse's Heavenly Might followed like a shadow, and it didn't even need to chase.
Boom! A part of it entered its body, and a large part was still forming.
Whoosh, the originally majestic and divine little dragon's body was actually affected by the curse to the point of flesh disintegrating and scales shattering.
Pain, it was too painful. She didn't even have the ability to activate teleportation. It felt as if she would die every second she lost focus.
She could do nothing. The only thing to do was—endure it, endure it!!!
Before the other Curse's Heavenly Might arrived, A'Diao still managed to escape... while fleeing, she madly devoured resources. Whatever she had on hand, regardless of who it belonged to or where it came from, be it skeletal remains, Star Coins, or Spirit Cores, she devoured them like small mountains.
The four-clawed little Yinglong forcibly grew five claws, then six, then seven. The fallen fragments also continuously regenerated... and its dragon body was constantly growing larger.
Escape, she was escaping!!!
Blood Kite Basin. Blood Abandonment City's main military forces had indeed returned to defend, perfectly resisting the surprise attack from the Demon Spirit Lair. But the fierce battle was not yet over. Warships continuously bombarded from high altitude, while on the ground and in low-altitude areas, Duanmu Biexue and others, who had returned under orders, fought relentlessly.
The advantage was entirely on their side.
The situation was excellent. Just as the outcome of the battlefield was about to be decided, the Demon Spirits suddenly let out terrified howls. Before anyone could react, everyone heard a terrifying dragon's roar.
Looking up.
High above, a hundred-meter-long, majestic Yinglong trod with seven claws, appearing remarkably distinguished and divine, like a celestial dragon.
Among the attacking and defending cultivators, Zhao Yi and his superficial wife's faces changed цвет the moment they saw this Yinglong.
Isn't this A'Diao?
Is it her?
How did she suddenly grow so big? And she shouldn't be able to transform into a dragon, right? She used to have four claws, now seven...
"Her dragon ancestor?"
Just as Xie Jingyu was wondering, Jiang Zhou suddenly exclaimed, "Something's wrong, she's fleeing! That must be A'Diao!!"
Uh, that logic...
Seems quite natural.
Just as everyone collectively thought "Damn it," they saw terrifying streams of golden light streaking across the sky... directly chasing the seven-clawed Yinglong flying ahead.
Soon they would know if it was Chen A'Diao or not.
Because the incredibly awesome seven-clawed Yinglong, it cursed!
"Old Man Jiang, quickly tell Old Man Yu!! Damn it, this Celestial Clan curse is chasing me... tell him to come save me!!!"
"Damn, liar, saying you'd protect me as my master!"
"Two dead old men aren't even as reliable as Second Sister Qu!"
She cursed as she fled across the sky... in a blink, she rushed into the clouds, her speed too fast, disappearing from sight. But the two closest curses behind her, also the strongest two, were too fast, almost biting at her heels. A'Diao had to exhaust her energy to constantly resist the curse erupting within her body, while also consuming energy to burst with speed. Thus, she madly devoured resources, not even having time to stop and teleport, because teleportation also required time!
This burst of speed was abnormal. With her current cultivation, she couldn't possibly achieve such speed. It was by consuming the foundation of her dragon body to escape, tantamount to continuously burning her essence blood.
Jiang Zhou's face turned black. He couldn't bother with being cursed at or feeling suffocated. He was just about to contact someone, wait, Old Man Yu was?
"It's the Lushan Mountain Head!"
"Contact Lushan..."
Before the three of them could finish speaking, two halos of light streaked across the sky.
One of them, before its body fully materialized, waved its hand, unleashing a vast expanse of green light.
Space was shattered. The shattered space swallowed two curses that couldn't dodge in time, but the other curses were too terrifying, instantly teleporting away, avoiding her attack.
Qing Zan frowned. Amidst her fluttering robes, she pulled out the jade green hairpin from her head...
The hairpin instantly transformed into endless green light, densely sealing the space within a hundred-li radius, and also blocking some of the Curse's Heavenly Might. However, three still pierced through the space and escaped.
What level of power was this?
Lesser Spirit King level!
Too terrifying. Was this the Celestial Clan's curse?
Qing Zan ignored the Demon Spirits and Blood Abandonment City below, instead raising her hand and grabbing at the void.
The white-robed Grandmaster, who was about to flee upon seeing the Lesser Spirit King appear from afar, was yanked out of space by this large hand of green light.
"Using a curse to assassinate Lushan's Chief, sealing her teleportation and escape route for help. What a grand scheme."
"Three hundred years ago, no one in Tang Song dared to be so audacious."
The usually refined but cold female teacher directly manipulated power into his body... subjecting the Grandmaster to the painful state of his flesh and skin constantly tearing and repairing.
He wouldn't die, but what Chen A'Diao had suffered, he too must endure.
Those who had fought and survived three hundred years ago, regardless of gender or age, were all man-eating demons!
Afterward, she flew across the border sky with this screaming Grandmaster, like the ancient punishment of dragging a criminal by horseback...
The Mountain Head pursued A'Diao. His strength was far greater than Qing Zan's. He continuously closed the distance. Ahead, a majestic Orchid Blue River section and a faintly visible, hazy purplish-black barrier appeared. The strong sound of a waterfall could already be heard. Ahead was the Orchid Water Abyss!
Boom!!
The Mountain Head struck out, ferociously shattering a stream of curse light behind him. His figure amplified, his speed burst forth again, and he was about to catch A'Diao...
A'Diao, pressed by the powerful Curse's Heavenly Might about to catch up to her from behind, had no choice but to dive headfirst into the barrier of the Orchid Water Abyss.
The purplish-black mist howled, as if torn by dragon claws, while the curse behind her, like a knife, cut through a thousand meters of airflow in the sky... straight towards A'Diao's back.
But A'Diao had calculated it. She could almost escape, because the Mountain Head was about to arrive. As long as she maintained this speed...
Suddenly!
For an instant, her head spun.
Just for an instant.
Her speed faltered, and the stream of curse light behind her entered her body in a second.
In an instant, the most intense curse erupted.
The massive dragon body disintegrated in an instant, its dragon claws breaking. Her pupils were almost dimming, but she also sensed—the curse seemed to be weakening? The closer she got to the bottom, the weaker it seemed.
A'Diao decisively dived downwards.
Falling.
She was falling downwards...
"Chen A'Diao!!"
The Mountain Head arrived to witness this scene. He swooped down to pursue, but with a splash, the dragon body plunged into a rolling spiral vortex and disappeared in an instant.
He was about to follow when he received A'Diao's telepathic message from the moment she was swept away and disappeared.
"Don't come, someone dazed me, kill him!"
"This water abyss is strange, it (the curse) weakened, it can't kill me."
!!!!!
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