Chapter 51: Chapter 51: Shadow Demon

Inside the gloomy Bell Tower, five hideous heads poked out from several pools of blood.

They stared at Yang Jing with terrified eyes. If Yang Jing had merely used a Thunder Technique or some other method to kill their companion, these Blood Evil Demons wouldn’t have been so horrified.

But Yang Jing had simply grabbed and squeezed, and their kin—summoned by the same Demon Summoning Technique—had died. Such an inexplicable death filled them with absolute terror.

Yang Jing activated his Cloud Escape, vanishing silently. The next moment, he appeared above a Blood Evil Demon, completely inverted, and reached out to grab its neck.

The Blood Evil Demon let out a terrified shriek, as if it were a mere mortal and Yang Jing was the bizarre, unknowable Celestial Demon.

With a spin, Yang Jing yanked the Blood Evil Demon out of its pool of blood. He used the Great Capturing Technique, his fingertips infused with Celestial True Yang. With a single, forceful squeeze, the Blood Evil Demon’s head burst like a ripe apple.

He landed lightly on the ground, holding the Blood Evil Demon’s corpse. The demon was dead, its body dissolving into pus and blood that dripped to the floor.

The four remaining Blood Evil Demons saw the entire process, yet they still couldn’t understand how their kin had died. They immediately shrank back into the filthy blood, intending to flee back to the Outer Realm.

These Blood Evil Demons may have been cannon fodder among the Outer Celestial Demons, but they were Celestial Demons nonetheless. ’I’m aiming for Celestial Dao Foundation Establishment,’ Yang Jing thought. ’How could I possibly let them escape?’

He placed both hands on the Demon Alarm Bell. A vast tide of Celestial True Yang surged forth, and the filthy blood coating the bell’s surface melted away like snow under the Great Sun. The four remaining Blood Evil Demons shrieked as the Celestial True Yang turned them to dust.

Once cleansed of the Blood Evil Demons’ corrosive taint, the Restrictions on the Demon Alarm Bell lit up one by one. Sensing the Blood Shadow Mosquitoes rampaging through the city and the terrifying Demonic Qi in the sky, the massive bell immediately began to shudder violently, as if it were about to explode.

The Demon Alarm Bell in Huashan County was a Tier Two Spiritual Artifact; its purpose was not merely to detect Demons and Demon Cultivators over a wide area. With each toll, the Blood Shadow Mosquitoes began to slow down. Some of the weaker ones were even killed by the vibrations outright.

Yang Jing froze and turned to look toward a corner of the Bell Tower.

“You can’t leave.”

That corner of the Bell Tower was completely empty.

Iron Head leaped, blocking the entrance to the Bell Tower. It looked as if it were facing a great enemy as aquamarine-gold Celestial True Yang flared like fire from its black fur.

A moment later, the mottled shadows on the ground suddenly began to ripple like water.

A Demon Shadow rose to its feet.

It looked vastly different from the Blood Evil Demons, appearing more humanoid. It had a pair of scarlet eyes and a body as withered as deadwood, covered in fine hair. Its form was a deep, impenetrable black that seemed to absorb all light.

“A Shadow Demon.”

Yang Jing recognized the Celestial Demon’s identity at a glance. ’I knew it,’ he thought. ’A cunning old Demon like Biyuan Ancestor would never entrust all his chips to Yu Yingwu and those three blood-hungry Demon Cultivators.’

For Demon Cultivators of the Dark Spring Demon Sect, the most reliable assets were always the Celestial Demons summoned via the Secret Technique Restrictions from the All Heavens Secret Demon Register. As long as one’s Magical Power was sufficient to suppress them, these Celestial Demons would work tirelessly and carry out their tasks to perfection.

They were Biyuan Ancestor’s true trump card.

The varieties of Outer Celestial Demons are numberless. They congregate in the void outside the Nine Heavens World, formless and intangible. When a Low Tier Celestial Demon is summoned into the Nine Heavens World, it requires a physical anchor to manifest. Otherwise, it will be squeezed back into the void by the Heaven and Earth Embryonic Membrane.

For instance, Blood Evil Demons require blood tainted by Demonic Qi, while Shadow Demons require Demon Hide.

Shadow Demons are masters of stealth, leaping between shadows, making them the ideal Low Tier Demon Fiend for reconnaissance and surveillance. Unfortunately, this one was too confident in its stealth abilities and had accidentally revealed its Qi Mechanism when Yang Jing killed the first Blood Evil Demon.

“Who are you! How can even a Demon Dog master Uppermost Grade Celestial True Yang!”

The Shadow Demon stared at Iron Head. For the first time in its existence as a Celestial Demon, it felt a sense of utter absurdity.

’A Demon Dog that has mastered Celestial True Yang… Is this some kind of joke!’

Yang Jing didn’t bother trying to interrogate the Shadow Demon; it was bound by one of Biyuan Ancestor’s Secret Technique Restrictions and couldn’t betray him. Questioning it would be pointless. He activated his Cloud Escape and appeared before it in a flash.

The Shadow Demon dissolved into a shadow to escape, but Iron Head lunged, catching it in its jaws.

With a single blast of Celestial True Yang, Iron Head incinerated the Shadow Demon to dust.

“Let’s go! There’s no way this is the only Celestial Demon in Huashan County! To the nodes of the Profound Black Celestial Star Array!”

With skeletons now littering Huashan County, the only things of value left were the Demon Alarm Bell and the Profound Black Celestial Star Array. The bell had been guarded by the Shadow Demon and six Blood Evil Demons—any ordinary Qi Cultivator who tried to approach would have been slaughtered. Only because Yang Jing wielded Celestial True Yang was he able to handle them so easily.

The Main Array Base of the Profound Black Celestial Star Array was incredibly solid, impossible for ordinary Celestial Demons to destroy. However, the array nodes scattered throughout Huashan County were a different matter. They were fragile, and some were completely unprotected.

Yang Jing tucked Iron Head, now back to its normal size, into his robes and leaped to the roof of the Bell Tower. It was the highest point in Huashan County, offering a commanding view of the entire city.

“Iron Head! Together, we’ll find all the nodes of the Grand Array below!”

Knowing the situation was urgent, Iron Head nodded obediently and pushed its Bright Qi Talent to the limit.

Arrays borrowed the Power of Heaven and Earth. An Array Master in the Qi Cultivation Stage could use a Tier Two Array to hold their own against a Foundation Establishment Cultivator for a time. To defeat the Three Capitals Blood Demon Mosquito Mother, Yang Jing’s best bet was to leverage the power of the Profound Black Celestial Star Array.

—

The Magical Combat in the sky had reached a fever pitch. Both combatants possessed profound Magical Power, and even after expending a tremendous amount, they still appeared full of Vitality.

A sword gash scarred the Yin Banner of Biyuan Ancestor, Wu Chunqiu. The banner’s surface, woven from all manner of precious materials, was nearly cut in half. This caused the Taiyin Demon Qi he used for protection to falter, riddled with openings.

He had used the Three Capitals Blood Demon Mosquito Mother to block a sword strike; half of one of its wings had been shorn off, and a great, bleeding wound was carved into its abdomen.

Song Min was in no better shape. She had several burns across her body. Wu Chunqiu’s Demon Flame was exceptionally vicious; though the flames were extinguished, the residual Demonic Qi clung to her like bone-boring maggots, burrowing into her flesh.

Just then, the dull toll of the Demon Alarm Bell from within Huashan County reached both of their ears.

Wu Chunqiu’s expression instantly turned grim and savage. He sensed that his Shadow Demon had been killed.

“Good. Very good. Did you know the measures I’ve prepared are enough to handle several Foundation Establishment Cultivators? At least seven! I intended to use them on any reinforcements that might arrive, but it looks like you’ll get to enjoy them all to yourself.”

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