For the demon cultivators to emerge in such a continuous offensive trend, the Demon Realm's side had to pay a heavy price as well. This attack would also cause them great damage to their vitality. At the very least, for every low-rank demon cultivator that came through the crack, the lives of dozens, or even hundreds, of other demon cultivators had to be sacrificed.
So, what about a Demon Lord breaking through? The death rate would be even more terrifying. Today, the rhythm of their attacks came in waves, one higher than the last.
For a time, the fog was filled with the sounds of battle cries. Bursts of light, whether pale or black, continuously flashed and died out, only to erupt again…
In a patch of fog, Li Changting seemed much more relaxed. It wasn't just her; most of the disciples from Never-Parting Peak were the same. They were surrounded by a dense sea of Gu-insects of all sizes. Whenever a demon cultivator appeared, the insects would swarm forward, submerging the enemy in a sea of bugs in the next moment.
The only ones who could compare to them were the disciples from Spirit Insect Peak. The roars of various birds and Demonic Beasts shook the heavens as they fought with demon cultivators or Demonic Beasts, splashing blood everywhere. The probability of their masters falling in battle was much lower for a period of time.
However, although the disciples of the two peaks seemed at ease, they consumed Divine Sense the fastest. Controlling a large number of flying insects or Gu-insects required powerful Divine Sense support. If not for their companions supporting them, they would not dare to consume their Divine Sense so recklessly.
"Actually, I don't think Ancestor needed to rush us down here. Look at those cultivators from the Ten-Pace Courtyard, they are quite ferocious. In their fight against the demon cultivators, their chances of winning are not small," Li Changting said to Zhao Min beside her, taking the opportunity to rest while holding a Spirit Stone.
The cultivators from the Ten-Pace Courtyard in the distance were exceptionally conspicuous, even in the dense fog. Often, a single person would crisscross a radius of several hundred feet, their sword qi overflowing as they engaged in a bloody slaughter with the demon cultivators. From time to time, either a demon cultivator or a sword cultivator would be mangled and fall from the sky.
In the next moment, the sword cultivator's figure would quickly disappear into the dense fog. However, this seemingly free-roaming fighting style often led to a single person being surrounded by several demon cultivators, and their demise was only a matter of time.
Sword cultivators were the cultivators with the strongest offensive power in this world. Their battles were almost inextricably linked with the word "brutal." Pressing ever forward, life and death were decided in the space of a breath.
"Although they are our generational enemies, they are still cultivators of the Desolate Moon Continent. Is this necessary?"
Zhao Min held her sword in one hand, while the slender fingers of her other hand tapped continuously in the air. Seventy to eighty golden-brown, beetle-like Gu-insects were buzzing as they fought with a demon cultivator. A layer of fine sweat had already beaded on her smooth forehead. In less than a hundred breaths since she came down, she had already consumed nearly half of her Divine Sense.
As she spoke with Li Changting, her beautiful eyes swept across the distance. There, the beautiful head of a female cultivator was flying high in the air, her face still wearing a look of disbelief. She was a female cultivator from the Ten-Pace Courtyard, and her body had been torn to pieces by a demon cultivator.
Her death, however, triggered an even more frenzied attack from the few Ten-Pace Courtyard sword cultivators around her. Sword light rained down from their bodies, and a hundred flying swords instantly minced that demon cultivator into nothing. During this, a thin sword cultivator, his face streaked with tears, let out a roar and caught the falling head, his eyes seeming to split with rage.
Sword cultivators also had sword formations, but the coordination required was more difficult. Therefore, powerful sword cultivators would choose to unleash a rain of swords on their own. Only sword cultivators with weaker relationships and strength would swallow their pride and form sword formations to face the enemy.
"Did that little lover of yours cultivate some kind of Plucking Yin to Nourish Yang cultivation method? I haven't seen him for a year, he might have a harem of wives and concubines outside. His current strength is definitely the strongest among the Foundation Establishment disciples of Little Bamboo Peak. How much Primordial Yin did he have to absorb to achieve that? Hehe…"
Li Changting withdrew her gaze and changed the subject with a smile. Such scenes happened almost every day in the Devil's Cliff Crevice. She had seen too much of it and didn't want to talk about the Ten-Pace Courtyard cultivators anymore. As she spoke, she formed a hand seal, and another large swarm of Gu-insects flew out, pouncing into the dense fog ahead where heavy black shadows had appeared.
Hearing her words, Zhao Min's face remained largely unmoved. She had heard Li Changting's words too many times and it was best to ignore them. But she still retorted, "You… you are really disgusting…"
There was no respect for a Golden Core cultivator whatsoever. At the same time, a wisp of her Divine Sense quietly swept toward Li Yan's side. The scene that appeared in her Divine Sense made Zhao Min's hand, which was forming a seal, pause involuntarily.
'That demon cultivator was killed by him? Why couldn't I detect much fluctuation of spiritual power from the battle?' A thought of disbelief rose in Zhao Min's mind.
"Giggle, look at your expression. If it's not some evil art of Plucking Yin to Nourish Yang, what other cultivation method could allow his strength to increase so quickly in such a short time!" Li Changting's hands moved like fluttering butterflies, forming one hand seal after another as she giggled.
In her heart, she was amazed at Li Yan's strength, but she still couldn't get an accurate assessment of his specific combat power. From her current Golden Core realm perspective, besides feeling that Li Yan was very strong, she couldn't probe anything else. It was as if a layer of mist shrouded Li Yan, just like the surrounding cyan-black fog, preventing her from seeing through him.
Li Yan's attacks were not only bizarre but also extremely effective and swift. Even she couldn't see them completely. Although she was teasing Zhao Min, her heart was already quite shocked.
Looking around, on the entire battlefield, only Li Changting was so unconventional, still having the heart to chat with someone during a battle…
Two breaths earlier, the thin demon cultivator opposite Li Yan had a green chain wrapped around each of his strong arms. It was unknown what material the chains were made of. When Li Yan's palm struck it, his hand actually felt a bit sore and swollen, something that hadn't happened in his recent fights.
But that was all. After knocking the chain away with a palm, the green chain bent in mid-air like a snake striking, shooting down from above toward Li Yan's head.
At the same time, Li Yan felt a malevolent wind at his back. The other green chain on the demon cultivator's arm had instantly wrapped around to Li Yan's back from the side. Like an abruptly appearing arrow, it shot straight for Li Yan's back.
The speed was so fast that Gong Chenying on the other side, who had been keeping an eye on the situation, couldn't help but be startled. The cultivator attacking Li Yan was the strongest among the three cultivators and one beast that had attacked their group of four simultaneously. He was so strong that Gong Chenying herself was not sure if she could defeat him without getting injured.
But she didn't have time to warn him. The speed of her kick toward the urn-like demon cultivator in front of her did not decrease. With a shake of the green long-halberd in her right hand, a ball of green light was about to shoot off the halberd toward Li Yan's back.
But Li Yan's reaction was faster, so fast that Gong Chenying's Divine Sense couldn't keep up for an instant. Li Yan had disappeared like a ghost.
With a "bang," Gong Chenying's lightning-fast kick, despite the urn-like demon cultivator's desperate attempt to dodge, struck its target. Although the urn-like demon cultivator avoided his chin, he was still kicked in the shoulder socket.
The demon cultivator's mountain-like body was instantly sent flying. He let out a heavy, muffled grunt. Although his demon clan body, as tough as refined steel, blocked the blow, a huge force instantly penetrated his body and spread out with a bang.
Almost instantly, the urn-like demon cultivator's heart was hit by a huge shockwave. An indescribable piercing pain shot through his brain, and he spat out a mouthful of blood, which sprayed high into the air.
At the same time, Gong Chenying thought she was hallucinating. Just as the tip of her foot touched the urn-like demon cultivator's clothes, Li Yan's figure became somewhat ethereal.
Simultaneously, a ghostly figure flashed above the thin demon cultivator opposite Li Yan. This made Gong Chenying's rescue attempt freeze.
The thin demon cultivator also felt that something was wrong with Li Yan's body in front of him, but he couldn't react in time to figure out what it was. But the sensation of his attack hitting its mark made the hair on his body stand on end. His two-handed pincer attack, which he was sure would succeed, only produced two sharp sounds of breaking air as they crossed in front of him.
The thin demon cultivator immediately sensed something was wrong. He was a commander in the army and had experienced hundreds of battles, large and small. He knew something was amiss, but his old strength was spent, and new strength had not yet been generated.
He saw the look of disbelief in Gong Chenying's eyes as she turned her head from the other side. The next moment, the thin demon cultivator's body split apart from the top of his head downwards, instantly becoming two halves. A large amount of blood spurted out. A figure grabbed the flying Demonic Core, leaving behind an afterimage as it flashed past. And at the position where Li Yan had been in the circular formation with Gong Chenying and the others, Li Yan was now facing forward, staring at a sky full of blood rain.
From beginning to end, the thin demon cultivator didn't even have time to let out a scream. At this moment, Wei Chituo was just retracting his Demon-Subduing Pestle from the vines in front of him, and Lin Daqiao, while retreating, had only just launched a black light from his hand.
Everything happened incredibly fast.
All four of them had only exchanged one blow with their opponents. Only one breath of time had passed.
It was just that Gong Chenying and Li Yan were obviously faster. Gong Chenying had quickly dodged and counter-attacked before the opponent's attack arrived, sending the opponent flying and heavily injuring them. This should have been the most fluid duel among the group.
But Li Yan was even faster. In one breath, he had not only intercepted the sneak attack in advance but had also launched two consecutive counter-attacks, killing the opponent in the blink of an eye. And he himself seemed as if he had never left his original spot.
It was one thing for the other battle groups around them not to notice, but this scene left Gong Chenying and the other two staring in stunned disbelief.
Except for the urn-like demon cultivator who had been kicked away by Gong Chenying and was still flying back through the air, even the one person and one beast attacking Wei Chituo and Lin Daqiao were somewhat dazed.
The thin demon cultivator was the one with the highest cultivation, strongest combat power, and most dueling experience in their attack group. He was a formidable existence with the strength to challenge for the rank of Demon Lord. But in just one exchange, without even a scream, he had become two halves of a corpse falling into the dense fog. This made the person and the beast feel an inexplicable fear welling up in their hearts.
However, it was impossible for them to retreat now. Even Lin Daqiao, who had the lowest cultivation here, the black light shooting from his hand expanded in the wind, and a ball of ink-like liquid was already in front of the Demonic Beast.
Lin Daqiao had taken on a large number of missions with Wen Xinliang, often death missions that exceeded their own realm. But time and again, they had walked out after a bloodbath, surviving by the skin of their teeth. First, both of them were intelligent. Second, the cultivation methods of the Malevolent Spirit Sect did not rely on brute force. Even the Spirit Insect Peak, which specialized in refining Demonic Beasts, preferred to win with skill when fighting.
So, the moment Lin Daqiao saw that he couldn't win by force, he used the momentum to deflect the blow and threw out a ball of poison. This was an almost instinctive, subconscious action.
"Little… Little Junior Brother, what is your cultivation level?"
Lin Daqiao couldn't help but blurt out after his Divine Sense scanned the result on Li Yan's side.
If Li Yan's realm had made Lin Daqiao's jaw drop when he first saw him, then the series of bizarre scenes of Li Yan killing his opponent had left him in a state of shock that could no longer be expressed with words.