Translator: CinderTL
Just as the cultivators were reeling from the shock, the fallen Giant Demonic Beast suddenly levitated, abandoning its legs to soar through the air and lunge toward them.
The other three Giant Demonic Beasts followed suit.
Seeing the four monstrous creatures hurtling toward them, the forty cultivators lost their earlier composure.
These beasts seemed incapable of casting spells, but the sheer force behind their colossal bodies was lethal to Void Refinement Stage cultivators, causing instant death upon contact. Body Integration Stage cultivators would suffer severe injuries, and even Yuanrong and Daoist Monarch Yongcheng risked death if they let their guard down for a moment.
"What should we do now?" Daoist Monarch Yongcheng asked, his voice tinged with indecision.
The most rational course of action was to flee before the beasts could encircle them. However, the cave housing the teleportation array lay directly beneath them. While escape would be easy, any damage to the array would trap them here indefinitely.
Daoist Monarch Yongcheng hesitated, but the Void Refinement Stage cultivators had no such reservations. The shockwaves from the impending battle would annihilate them if the beasts drew near.
The teleportation array was vital, but survival came first.
A late-stage Void Refinement Stage male cultivator immediately soared into the sky, attempting to escape.
Seeing this, the other Void Refinement Stage cultivators followed suit.
Immediately, more Body Integration Stage cultivators joined the exodus.
Yuan Rong and Daoist Monarch Yongcheng's expressions shifted between dark and uncertain.
The juniors had acted without their orders, naturally displeasing the two elders.
However, none of their own sect's disciples had fled; only members of other sects had departed.
Yuan Rong glanced down at the vertical shaft, several dozen meters wide, that led directly to the underground cavern housing the teleportation array.
"The demons' momentum is overwhelming. We should temporarily avoid their full force."
With a flick of his wrist, he unleashed a palm strike toward the ground.
A gray-white handprint, tens of kilometers wide, materialized instantly and crashed down with a thunderous roar.
Boom!
The impact shook the earth violently.
Countless rocks and soil cascaded into the vertical shaft, quickly filling it completely. Even the deeper underground cavern was buried under the rubble.
"Fellow Daoist Yuan Rong, what are youβ?" Daoist Monarch Yongcheng's face was a mix of shock and confusion.
"Fellow Daoist Yongcheng, rest assured. I know what I'm doing. The teleportation array won't be damaged. These beasts may possess some intelligence, but they remain fundamentally ignorant and utterly clueless about human formations. With the array buried under this rubble, they're unlikely to waste effort digging through the rocks just to destroy it," Yuan Rong explained.
"Good," Daoist Monarch Yongcheng said, his expression of shock and doubt fading.
Having made a desperate choice, the two leaders gathered their fifteen disciples and prepared to ascend into the sky and flee.
However, the brief delay had allowed the four Giant Demonic Beasts to close in.
One of the beasts, having somehow procured a massive boulder several dozen meters wide, hurled it toward the group with both hands.
Meanwhile, the Giant Demonic Beast whose legs had been severed earlier was now less than ten kilometers away, rapidly closing the distance.
Daoist Monarch Yongcheng waved his banner, summoning a gale that crashed into the boulder.
The boulder shattered instantly into countless fragments of rock and dust, which continued to hurtle toward the group.
Yuanrong, in turn, summoned his nine flying swords and unleashed them at the legless Giant Demonic Beast.
As the swords neared, the beast suddenly disintegrated, transforming into tens of thousands of spider-bodied, human-headed demon beasts that swarmed forward.
This unexpected maneuver caught Yuanrong and Daoist Monarch Yongcheng completely off guard.
The demon beasts instantly breached their formation.
Fortunately, none of the fifteen disciples were ordinary cultivators. Moreover, while the demon beasts were numerous, most were only third-tier, with few reaching sixth-tier and none exceeding seventh-tier.
The group handled the demon beasts with ease.
In truth, there were stronger demon beasts present. Yuanrong noticed that as the Giant Demonic Beast disintegrated, four seventh-tier demonic beasts and one early-stage eighth-tier demonic beast emerged.
However, these five beasts didn't approach the group, clearly recognizing the danger and deliberately sending lesser minions to their deaths.
The fifteen cultivators annihilated the approaching low-tier demon beasts in less than a breath's time.
Yet this brief respite allowed three more Giant Demonic Beasts to close in.
The three beasts, with their six colossal hands, unleashed a sky-shattering barrage of strikes.
Before the palms even landed, the surging palm winds arrived first.
Among the fifteen cultivators were ten from the Azure Flame Sect and five from the Myriad Swords Pavilion.
Within the Azure Flame Sect's contingent, one cultivator was at the Great Ascension Stage, two were at the Body Integration Stage, and the remaining seven were at the Void Refinement Stage.
The Myriad Swords Pavilion's group consisted of Yuanrong, who was at the Great Ascension Stage, Shangguan Ren, who was at the Late Body Integration Stage, and three Void Refinement Stage cultivators.
The protective spiritual light surrounding the ten Void Refinement Stage cultivators shattered instantly under the force of the palm winds.
Seeing this, Daoist Monarch Yongcheng abruptly altered his hand seals.
The banner instantly unfurled in the wind, transforming into a colossal celestial canopy that shielded the group from above.
Across its surface, countless arcane runes flowed like swimming dragons.
Butβ
When six massive palms slammed into the canopy, Daoist Monarch Yongcheng realized they had gravely underestimated these demon beasts.
A metallic taste flooded his throat as the runes shattered instantly. The violent backlash surged through him, churning his Blood Qi and disrupting his spiritual power.
The canopy collapsed, reverting to its original banner form and hovering before Daoist Monarch Yongcheng.
His face was ashen, pale as gold leaf.
A flicker of horror flashed in Yuanrong's eyes. The power of the three Giant Demonic Beasts far exceeded his expectations.
With a swift motion, he summoned nine flying swords that whirled around him at blinding speed, rapidly coalescing into a spherical sword qi protective shield several zhang in diameter. The shield enveloped him, four Myriad Swords Pavilion disciples, and Daoist Monarch Yongcheng.
Shangguan Ren and the other three Myriad Swords Pavilion disciples were already at Yuanrong's side, so they were naturally included within the sword qi protective shield. Daoist Monarch Yongcheng, however, had been deliberately pulled into the shield by Yuanrong.
Daoist Monarch Yongcheng, having sensed Yuanrong's intentions, glanced at his nine fellow disciples around him. A flicker of inner conflict crossed his eyes, but ultimately he remained still, allowing Yuanrong to proceed.
He knew Yuanrong was trying to save him.
But if he was saved, his nine fellow disciples would likely perish.
Even if he fought to the death, he might not be able to save them all. Moreover, he didn't want to risk his life for these nine.
The sword qi protective shield plummeted toward the ground.
Two Giant Demonic Beasts pursued relentlessly, hurtling downward in hot pursuit.
Another Giant Demonic Beast swung its arms through the air with earth-shattering force.
Boom! Boom!
A series of muffled explosions echoed through the air.
Several figures fleeing in panic were a split second too slow, their bodies exploding into crimson blood mist.
Meanwhile, Yuanrong's escape wasn't going smoothly either.
One of the beasts, realizing it couldn't catch up, severed its own arms, sending them crashing down like giant pillars onto the sword qi protective shield below.
The shield withstood the impact of the massive limbs, but the force knocked it off course, sending it hurtling straight toward the ground.
Just before impact, Yuanrong finally managed to regain control of the shield, but the two Giant Demonic Beasts were already upon them.
(End of the Chapter)
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