Chapter 1036: Battling with Strength

Chapter 1036: Forceful Battle

The night was dark, and red snow continued to drift through the heavens and earth, dancing with that distant Yun Qu, bidding farewell to the infatuated woman.

Shangguan Yu'er and Shangguan Han Yue had dissipated, transforming into two wisps of mist and vanishing into the world.

Ye Chen rose to his feet, dragging his body covered in wounds, walking along the city wall with a bloodstained killing sword in hand. He staggered with each step, leaving bloody footprints behind, like a walking corpse, his silhouette desolate and aged.

The Da Chu cultivators guarding the city wall watched him in silence, offering no words.

The brutal war had buried Ye Chen's closest kin and their own loved ones, accompanied by grief in the night, along with sorrow.

Ye Chen didn't know how far he had walked; he only knew he wandered aimlessly along the city wall. His head full of white hair fluttered in the bloody wind, stained with streaks of red in the drifting snow.

Opposing the heavens, a lone star of calamity!

Ye Chen laughed bitterly. Anyone connected to him would be affected by heavenly retribution, meeting an untimely end one by one.

After some time, he finally paused, exhausted, and sat down. He curled up his body, leaning against the ruined city wall and hugging the bloodstained killing sword, falling into a deep sleep amid the raging wind and snow.

In Dan Cheng, a vast underground palace held a suspended alchemy furnace, burning with various true flames—over a hundred kinds by count.

Around the alchemy furnace stood not just one alchemist; Dan Mo, Dan Chen, Dan Yi, and many renowned alchemists from Da Chu were present. At their feet lay a great formation, a Dan array used for alchemy.

Besides these veteran alchemists, two graceful figures stood in the underground palace: Xuan Nu and Luo Xi.

"Luo Xi, are you afraid?"

Xuan Nu turned her head and gently stroked Luo Xi's little head.

"I can always be with him, so I'm not afraid."

Luo Xi's big eyes sparkled like gems, curving into crescent moons as she spoke.

"Xuan Nu, Luo Xi, actually, you two..."

"Master, no need to say more."

Xuan Nu smiled lightly, interrupting Dan Chen's words. "If our deaths can truly help Dan Cheng refine the Tian Ji Dan, if the Tian Ji Dan can truly help him break through, and if he, once fully realized, can truly turn the tide, then it's all worthwhile."

With that, Xuan Nu took Luo Xi's hand and walked resolutely toward the alchemy furnace.

In the moment they stepped into it, both turned back instinctively, gazing toward the direction of the Nan Chu city wall, as if they could see through countless miles to Ye Chen, curled up and asleep on the wall.

See you in the next life!

Both smiled through their tears, withdrew their reluctant gazes, and turned to leap into the alchemy furnace.

The night remained dark.

The heavens and earth, in this dark night, fell into an extraordinary silence.

This time, the Tian Mo forces waited a long while before attacking again, but their massive army halted outside the Nan Chu city wall. Both sides seemed to have an unspoken understanding—perhaps from fighting too long and suffering too many casualties, they were now in a temporary truce.

On the city wall, Ye Chen seemed unable to withstand the cold, curling up several times. His drooping white hair covered half his face, and through the strands, one could vaguely see his weary and aged features.

At some point, a graceful figure approached, bending down to squat before him. She reached out with a jade-like hand to part his disheveled white hair and gently stroked his face—it was Bi You, the daughter of the Dao Huang.

She, too, now had a full head of white hair. In the bloody battles, she had used forbidden techniques multiple times, burning her lifespan. Though only twenty years old, she had less than three days of life left.

Attack!

The silent night was shattered by a cold, authoritative voice.

Immediately, the Tian Mo army surged forward like rolling waves, rushing toward the Nan Chu city wall. Their formation was larger than any previous assault, as if intent on capturing Nan Chu in one fell swoop.

In an instant, Ye Chen opened his eyes, and the first thing he saw was Bi You with her white hair.

Bi You smiled but said nothing, helping him to his feet.

Ye Chen glanced at Bi You, and his heart stabbed with pain, as if he could see her dwindling lifespan. Unless something unexpected happened, Bi You wouldn't live past three days; she had truly reached the end of her life.

For these three days, I'll stay with you!

The two stood side by side, and Bi You turned with a smile.

Ye Chen said nothing, swinging his killing sword and slaying the Tian Mo that had climbed the wall.

Kill! Kill for me!

The Tian Mo demon generals roared in fury. A mere Nan Chu city wall had held them back for over a month, a tremendous humiliation for them. After all, Da Chu didn't even have a single Tian Jing expert!

Boom! Bang! Boom!

The battle erupted instantly, with both sides unleashing their Xu Tian killing arrays in a fierce exchange. Figures turned into blood mist in droves, staining the Nan Chu city wall.

Boom!

Before long, one of Nan Chu's city gates was breached, and the Tian Mo forces poured in like a tide.

Kill!

The Tian Mo soldiers and generals were like madmen, bloodthirsty and ferocious.

Fight!

The Da Chu cultivators went berserk as well. An elder cultivator charged into the Tian Mo ranks and self-destructed, dragging a group of them to the underworld.

Kill!

Starting with the first elder's self-destruction, others followed, rushing into the enemy lines and exploding without hesitation. The incoming Tian Mo were torn apart by the successive blasts, with blood and bones flying everywhere.

Pfft! Pfft! Pfft!

On the city wall, Ye Chen moved like a bolt of lightning, his killing sword swinging wildly without any pattern. Any Tian Mo that climbed up, aside from the demon generals, fell to a single strike from him.

Bi You stayed close by his side, following wherever he went.

Her combat power had reached its peak in the slaughter. In the mortal world, there's a saying for this: a final burst of light before fading. Perhaps that described her now—nearing transcendence, yet ending in tragedy.

In the midst of the fight, Ye Chen suddenly halted, his eyes coldly fixed on a purple-haired demon general rampaging on the city wall.

What Ye Chen targeted wasn't the demon general himself, but the thunder-wreathed war spear in his hand. It was that very spear that had pierced through him, Shangguan Han Yue, and Shangguan Yu'er.

The purple-haired demon general was incredibly powerful, or more accurately, the war spear he wielded was. It was a damaged Di Bing, inscribed with imperial dao principles, dominating all in its path.

Zheng!

Ye Chen's killing sword hummed as he charged straight for the demon general.

Ancient Holy Body!

The purple-haired demon general paled upon seeing him and turned to flee, knowing Ye Chen's strength and unwilling to clash directly, even with a damaged Di Bing in hand. Deep down, he was utterly afraid.

Stay!

Ye Chen stepped forward, shrinking the ground into inches, and instantly closed in, unleashing a heavenly sword strike.

The purple-haired demon general spun around, gripping the war spear with both hands and raising it to block.

Bang!

The sword and spear clashed, sparking brilliant flames. Though the war spear was a damaged Di Bing and fiercely powerful, Ye Chen's strike, though dominant, couldn't break its defense and sent him staggering back.

Seeing this, a hint of madness flashed in the purple-haired demon general's eyes. His mind echoed endlessly with the words of the Tian Mo Da Di: Whoever slays the Ancient Holy Body shall receive a strand of imperial blood.

Kill!

Driven by greed and ambition, he charged back, thrusting the spear through the void straight at Ye Chen's chest.

However, Ye Chen didn't dodge the spear; he let it pierce his chest.

Die!

The purple-haired demon general's eyes were savage, already envisioning the reward of imperial blood.

But in the next instant, he sensed an extreme danger. Before he could react, a divine light from Ye Chen's forehead shot toward him.

No... no!

The purple-haired demon general's eyes bulged, his pupils contracting.

Pfft!

Blood splattered as Ye Chen's divine light pierced his forehead and entered his divine sea, striking his life soul.

Ah...!

The purple-haired demon general let out a piercing scream, stumbling backward with each step, crushing swaths of the void. Blood streamed from his seven orifices, his soul wounded and divine sea shattered, as if his entire skull might burst.

Ye Chen pulled the war spear from his body and hurled it with force, nailing the retreating purple-haired demon general in mid-air.

Pfft!

After slaying the purple-haired demon general, Ye Chen spat out a mouthful of fresh blood. The war spear was a damaged Di Bing, and being pierced by it wasn't a joke—the imperial dao principles were rampaging through his body, destroying his foundations.

This fighting style was his only option.

Due to heavenly tribulation, dao injuries, and the relentless battles, his combat power was far from its peak. In this state, facing a demon general with a damaged Di Bing, he had no guaranteed victory.

So, he had risked severe injury to deliver a fatal blow. And it worked—he had slain the purple-haired demon general at the cost of his own heavy wounds.

He's injured; kill him!

The other demon generals on the wall swarmed toward him, sensing his vulnerability and aiming to finish Ye Chen off.

Ye Chen tried to grab the war spear that had nailed the purple-haired demon general—it was a damaged Di Bing with immense power.

But he had underestimated the damaged Di Bing. Even after its master's death, it escaped, its spirit possessing its own intelligence, leaving Ye Chen grasping at nothing.

Chaos Divine Cauldron, appear!

Ye Chen shouted coldly, summoning the Chaos Divine Cauldron to protect his body. In his hand appeared a blood knife, the Blood Spirit Divine Knife, a Tian Jing artifact. Though not as powerful as the damaged Di Bing, it was still extraordinarily formidable.

Buzz!

In a flash, a demon general attacked, thrusting a spear.

Ye Chen swiftly sidestepped, dodging the lethal strike, and countered with a knife, splitting the demon general on the city wall.

Kill!

Nine demon generals attacked simultaneously, channeling a demon mirror together, forcing Ye Chen to stagger and nearly lose his footing, his holy body shaken.

Bi You rushed in, striking the demon mirror with her sword, but was repelled with a mouthful of blood.

However, her interference weakened the mirror's power, giving the suppressed Ye Chen a chance to recover.

Break!

Ye Chen swept his hand across the sky, batting the demon mirror away, then stepped forward to reach a demon general.

Die!

That demon general's forehead revealed a vertical eye, firing a thunderbolt aimed at Ye Chen's soul.

Roar!

A dragon's roar echoed as the Dan Zu Dragon Soul emerged, devouring the demonic thunder.

The demon general's face changed, and he retreated quickly, but Ye Chen gave him no chance, stepping forward and beheading him with a knife.

Pfft! Pfft! Pfft!

In slaying that demon general, Ye Chen suffered heavy blows himself, his back slashed with dozens of gashes, exposing his holy bones clearly.