Seeing Great Demon Luo's action, Li Qingqiu immediately made his move. The Soul-Stealing Flying Sword above his head shot forth violently, instantly killing its way to Great Demon Luo.
Boom—
Great Demon Luo erupted with terrifying ghostly qi and forcibly blocked Li Qingqiu's Soul-Stealing Flying Sword.
He bit down on the infant's arm in his hand, staring fixedly at Li Qingqiu, his eyes filled with greed and madness.
"Li Qingqiu, to force me to this point—you would be a world-renowned peerless prodigy even in the Azure Dragon Domain. Unfortunately, since you refuse to leave me a path to live, then you cannot blame me!"
Great Demon Luo's voice rang out, yet he did not loosen his bite. His gaze remained locked onto Li Qingqiu.
Li Qingqiu could clearly feel Great Demon Luo's aura rising rapidly.
Frowning, Li Qingqiu immediately injected more vital energy. Heavenly thunder burst from the Soul-Stealing Flying Sword, bombarding the entire Daoist temple.
Beneath the night sky, the lightning upon this barren mountain was dazzling beyond compare.
No matter how the heavenly thunder struck him, Great Demon Luo's body did not sway. His flesh was blasted and charred away, exposing white bone, yet he continued biting the infant in his hand, refusing to release it.
Li Qingqiu noticed that his ghostly qi was gradually turning blood-red, surging ever higher.
Boom—
A terrifying force suddenly erupted from the vertical eye on Great Demon Luo's forehead. Blood-red ghostly qi surged forth like a river bursting through a dam, unstoppable, directly blasting Li Qingqiu away.
Rolling blood-red ghostly qi erupted from the barren mountain, stretching for several miles—magnificent and terrifying.
Li Qingqiu landed upon the wasteland, his feet carving through the snow and kicking up twin plumes of snow mist. He steadied himself and shook the Tianhong Sword in his hand, dispersing the blood-red ghostly qi clinging to its blade.
"Master, this fiend is far too powerful. I fear he will not be easy to deal with!"
Chu Jing emerged upon the Tianhong Sword and spoke with a grave expression.
Tonight, he had tasted Li Qingqiu's vital energy. That overwhelming strength had intoxicated him. Yet even such a powerful Li Qingqiu had been unable to slay Great Demon Luo. Great Demon Luo's strength had far exceeded his expectations.
"So many evil ghosts have already died. He has clearly been forced into a corner as well. Why not let him go? He would surely lie low for several years—perhaps even more than a dozen years," Chu Jing suggested.
Seeing Li Qingqiu knocked back, he feared that Li Qingqiu might fall here tonight.
Li Qingqiu naturally understood what he was thinking. Staring at the barren mountain, he said, "It is not that I refuse to let him go—it is that he refuses to let me go."
As his words fell, a fierce gale descended from the sky. Chu Jing instinctively looked up and saw Great Demon Luo appear out of thin air above them, his claws slashing down.
Chu Jing had no time to react. His eyes widened involuntarily.
Just as Great Demon Luo's sharp claws were about to touch Li Qingqiu, a surge of scorching white qi burst from Li Qingqiu's body, directly shaking Great Demon Luo back.
Great Demon Luo landed upon the mountain ridge. At this moment, his entire body was covered in blood-red fur. His face had grown demonic and grotesque, and the vertical eye on his forehead had enlarged further, as though it might tear through his skin at any moment.
He raised his right hand. His blade-like fingers had been scorched black, wisps of smoke rising from them.
He looked once more at Li Qingqiu in the distance, astonishment in his eyes. He had not expected Li Qingqiu to possess such a method.
Chu Jing was also surprised.
That white qi just now…
He recalled the scene of Hu Yan cultivating, and his expression turned strange.
Could it be that Hu Yan had inherited Li Qingqiu's true teachings?
Thinking carefully, he realized that he did not know Li Qingqiu all that well—especially after becoming Jing Gong. During his time at Qingxiao Sect, he had rarely stayed by Li Qingqiu's side.
Hope rekindled in his heart.
Could it be that Master still had another trump card?
Li Qingqiu turned to look at Great Demon Luo standing upon the ridge in the distance, his heart filled with emotion.
This Great Demon Luo was truly extraordinary—to have forced him to this extent.
He cultivated the Supreme Purity and Primordial Harmony Sutra and the Heavenly Firmament Golden Body Art. In addition, he possessed the fates Born Sword Maniac, Heavenly Thunder Spiritual Root, Hundred-Refined Demon Body, Mortal God and Ghost, Hundredfold Tempering, and Vast and Righteous Energy. Even so, he could not easily annihilate Great Demon Luo.
Perhaps Great Demon Luo had also been a peerless genius in life.
Li Qingqiu raised the Tianhong Sword once more, holding the blade horizontally beside his cheek. The sword reflected his icy eyes.
A terrifying sword momentum erupted from within him, causing the earth to tremble. Dazzling sword light burst forth from beneath his feet, illuminating him from bottom to top.
Standing 100 zhang away, Great Demon Luo felt the immense sword momentum radiating from Li Qingqiu. He likewise raised his right hand, condensing a ghost sword. With its tip pointed downward, ghostly qi spread outward. One ghost after another emerged from beneath the earth, scrambling to climb onto the ghost sword and merge into it.
At the same time—
Within Cloud Emperor City, Jiang Zhaoxia, who was battling the snake-bodied woman, seemed to sense something and abruptly turned his head toward the outskirts of the city.
"That is…"
Jiang Zhaoxia was shocked. He had not expected Li Qingqiu to have already mastered the third sword of the Immortal Severing Three Swords. Even Shen Yue and Xu Ning had yet to master it. As for himself, the reason he had comprehended it was due to fortune, not his own effort.
Moreover, the third sword of the Immortal Severing Three Swords that Li Qingqiu was about to unleash was far more powerful than his own.
After the shock came worry. Just what kind of terrifying existence was this Great Demon Luo, to have forced his senior brother to this point?
"Where are you looking?"
The snake-bodied woman's cold voice rang out. Jiang Zhaoxia twisted his body, evading her strike.
He transformed into a streak of sword light and flew to the roof of a distant house. Raising his sword, he held it horizontally beside his face. A fierce sword momentum burst from within him, causing the building beneath his feet to tremble violently as tiles flew upward.
The snake-bodied woman raised her arm. Ghostly qi expanded outward, covering the entire district. One ghost snake after another emerged from the ghostly qi, all charging toward Jiang Zhaoxia.
Jiang Zhaoxia's gaze sharpened, and he immediately swung his sword.
Immortal Severing Three Swords—the third sword!
The moment he swung, a dazzling brilliance burst forth at the horizon, illuminating the night sky.
It was Li Qingqiu unleashing the third sword of the Immortal Severing Three Swords.
Unlike Jiang Zhaoxia, Li Qingqiu's vital energy contained the power of heavenly thunder, making the spectacle even more vast and overwhelming.
With a single slash, night turned into day!
Li Qingqiu unleashed an unprecedented sword.
Facing this strike, Great Demon Luo instantly sensed danger. He instinctively tried to dodge, only to discover in horror that the surrounding space seemed frozen, preventing him from using any technique to shift position. He had no choice but to raise his sword and slash out, unleashing the strongest sword he had ever wielded since becoming a ghost.
Black sword qi swept across the mountain wilderness, like a massive stroke of ink splashed upon a canvas beneath the daylight.
One white and one black—the two sword qi collided!
Heavenly thunder intertwined as evil spirits struggled!
The white sword qi paused for only a moment before forcefully crushing the black sword qi, collapsing the mountain ridge and engulfing Great Demon Luo's figure.
Sword qi ran rampant, crushing hillside after hillside in its path, unstoppable.
Chu Jing's vision was swallowed by the blinding white light, preventing him from seeing what lay ahead. Yet the sword technique Li Qingqiu had unleashed left him shaken to the core.
What kind of sword art was this? It was utterly terrifying!
Chu Jing felt that no one in this world could withstand this sword—unless their cultivation realm far exceeded Li Qingqiu's.
The daylight between heaven and earth lasted nearly 10 breaths before suddenly fading.
Li Qingqiu slowly lowered his right arm that held the sword. He felt his legs weaken, nearly collapsing to his knees, but he endured.
He planted the Tianhong Sword before him, barely steadying his body.
"Go and see."
Li Qingqiu gave the order. Upon hearing this, Chu Jing immediately flew forward.
That single strike had consumed more than half of Li Qingqiu's vital energy, nearly exhausting him. He had never expended such an immense amount of vital energy in one blow before. It placed tremendous strain upon his physical body. Fortunately, he had been cultivating the Heavenly Firmament Golden Body Art regularly.
The third sword of the Immortal Severing Three Swords was known as the unavoidable sword. Such was the profundity of divine abilities—it was not merely a simple attack of sword qi.
Precisely because Great Demon Luo could not evade it, Li Qingqiu had dared to expend his vital energy so lavishly.
His divine sense could no longer detect Great Demon Luo's presence.
It was a pity. Li Qingqiu had originally intended to probe Great Demon Luo's memories, but Great Demon Luo had been too powerful.
Previously, he had attempted to subdue Gui Bei with the Soul-Refining Banner, yet Great Demon Luo had rescued Gui Bei from beneath the banner. That incident made him wary of using the Soul-Refining Banner recklessly again, fearing unintended consequences.
Soon, Chu Jing returned, excitement evident in his voice. "He is completely reduced to nothing—his body destroyed and soul scattered!"
He had sensed Great Demon Luo's remnant soul dissipating into the air. Only after it had completely vanished did he return to report.
"Go check the Daoist temple from earlier."
Li Qingqiu issued another order. Chu Jing immediately complied and flew off.
Li Qingqiu sat down to meditate. Raising his hand, he inserted needles into his own body, using the Secret Technique — Rejuvenation Ghost-Immortal Needles to stabilize his meridians.
The spiritual energy of heaven and earth suddenly surged toward him. Nangong E and Lin Chuan emerged from underground, guarding at his sides.
"What a terrifying sword…"
Nangong E gazed ahead and muttered, her face filled with shock.
Following her gaze, a massive fissure stretched across the barren land ahead. Hillsides along its path had been torn apart. Its length extended for countless miles, as though an immortal deity had drawn a single stroke across the desolate earth.
Lin Chuan also stared blankly at the destruction before them.
After a while—
Chu Jing returned, carrying an infant. Arriving at Li Qingqiu's side, he said in a low voice, "The ground beneath that Daoist temple was filled with corpses. There were no living people."
Li Qingqiu opened his eyes and glanced at the infant. It was the ghost infant that Great Demon Luo had bitten.
The ghost infant had not a trace of blood or vitality. The bitten arm had already healed. Curled up tightly, its small fists were clenched.
Li Qingqiu could sense that it was merely an empty shell without a soul. Moreover, this shell was not a flesh-and-blood body but a ghost body.
As Li Qingqiu hesitated over how to handle the ghost infant, he noticed Nangong E and Lin Chuan staring at it intently.
"You want it?" Li Qingqiu asked.
Lin Chuan and Nangong E came back to their senses and hurriedly nodded.
Nangong E added, "I will not take it. This is the ghost body of a male infant."
Li Qingqiu pondered briefly. "Then let Lin Chuan have it."
Upon hearing this, Lin Chuan immediately pounced forward and dove into the ghost infant's body.
Chu Jing crouched down and placed the ghost infant on the ground.
Li Qingqiu instructed them to keep watch while he continued circulating his technique.
After some time, Li Qingqiu rose to his feet. Turning, he looked at the ghost infant on the ground. He could sense that Lin Chuan had already occupied the body, though time would be needed to fully merge with the ghostly qi.
He instructed Chu Jing to pick up the ghost infant, then they headed back toward Cloud Emperor City.
On the other side—
The battle situation in Cloud Emperor City had completely changed. With Great Demon Luo dead, all corpse ghosts collapsed to the ground, turning into pools of rotting flesh. The disciples of Qingxiao Sect began surrounding and attacking the remaining evil ghosts and specters.