Wielding the Thunders Across Two Worlds

BOOM—

BANG—

In the outskirts of Qinglu County, a muffled boom would occasionally echo out, but a look around revealed nothing unusual.

However, an observant person would notice that the ceaseless chirping of insects and birds, normally ever-present in the deep mountains and old forests, had vanished without a trace.

Aside from the occasional, strange noise, the surroundings were deathly silent. If not for the bright sun, the leisurely White Clouds, the verdant mountains, and the babbling streams, one might think they had arrived in the Hell Netherworld, a place utterly devoid of life.

The inability to contain the commotion within the Array, allowing wisps of Magical Power to leak out, indicated that the battle inside had reached its most intense stage.

As the Ink Flood Dragon twisted its massive body, its form was frozen for a moment by a seven-colored radiance.

In the next instant, the Tai Chi Sword Diagram seized the Ink Flood Dragon’s left front claw, the Flowing Gold Fire Bell restrained its right front claw, a Thunder Chain and several Celestial God Giant Beasts were at its back, and seven Divine Prisons hung above, almost completely immobilizing the Ink Flood Dragon.

The Ink Flood Dragon’s body paused mid-air. Its Demon Power then erupted, and though it could move again within a breath’s time, its defenses had dropped to their lowest point during those few critical moments.

The opportunity would only last for an instant!

SHING—

Taoist Yuan He flicked his Sword Pointing fingers repeatedly. The Pure Yang Flying Sword unleashed a golden Sword Light over a thousand meters long—even longer than the Ink Flood Dragon itself—as it descended from the sky.

The Pure Yang True Intent, coordinated with the Sound of the Three Pristine Ones, locked onto the Ink Flood Dragon’s Sea of Consciousness. The Pure Yang Sword Qi followed close behind, practically traversing space to stab at the center of the Ink Flood Dragon’s brow in an instant.

Taoist Yuan He seized this chance, unleashing what was perhaps the strongest sword strike of his life.

"The divine sword flashes, like tiger and dragon in flight! Let body and deed align, against destiny do not fight! With the might of heaven and earth, its power I convey! Pierce through the Three Pristine Ones, to Ziwei, make a way!"

TING! A soft chime rang out.

The Ink Flood Dragon was deeply pierced in the head by the Pure Yang Flying Sword. Searing hot Pure Yang True Qi surged in endlessly, like boiling water poured into a wok of oil, like the sun beating down on accumulated snow. The Ink Flood Dragon felt as if its brain was about to melt.

ROAR—

The dragon’s cry was filled with agony. The Ink Flood Dragon’s body writhed like a snake struck at its vital point. With a flick of its head, it flung the Flying Sword away, but Taoist Yuan He’s strike had indeed left it with a serious injury.

Black clouds gathered, and Black Water surged.

The Ink Flood Dragon coiled within the black clouds and Black Water, its eyes blazing with fury as it glared at its surroundings.

To the east, a golden light shimmered. To the West, thunder rumbled. To the south, a great sun hung in the sky. To the north, a Tai Chi symbol revolved.

Seven Divine Prisons flickered in and out of sight, Celestial God Giant Beasts each wielded a Divine Soldier, fierce winds and flames filled the sky, and a seven-colored radiance illuminated the void.

Feeling its nearly-depleted Magical Power and the searing pain from the wound on its brow, the Ink Flood Dragon knew it would never escape unless it used its hidden strength.

"Good! Very good!"

The Ink Flood Dragon couldn’t help but roar, "A few ants! I hadn’t even come to kill you yet, but you rely on a few strange Dharma Gates to dare and ambush me! Fine! Today, I will let you witness what it means to be too clever for your own good!"

"Haha..."

"Heh heh..."

"Hee hee..."

The Ink Flood Dragon finally heard the Mages who had ambushed it speak, though it was only laughter.

Laughter—some hearty, some cheerful, some world-weary, some teasing, some sinister, and some majestic—rose and fell, echoing throughout the Array Space.

The Ink Flood Dragon heard the mockery and disdain in their laughter.

"How dare you!" The Ink Flood Dragon was beside itself with rage. "Not even Qin Wuji or the Shuwen Princess would dare be so disrespectful to me! What are you lot supposed to be?!"

In the next moment, a surge of Demonic Qi erupted.

The Ink Flood Dragon’s eyes suddenly turned pure black, with blood-red patterns spreading through its pupils.

Strange, raised patterns appeared on the surface of the Ink Flood Dragon’s scales, and sharp, vicious bone spurs emerged from the gaps between them.

The greatest change was to the Flood Dragon’s head. Its originally short horns began to grow rapidly, but what sprouted were not majestic, divine Dragon Horns, but a gnarled and ferocious mess.

Bone spurs also appeared on the sides of its head, and its draconic fangs began to lengthen, growing barbs and looking increasingly sharp.

"Hahaha, have you ever seen anything like this? From now on, you are forbidden from calling me the Ink Flood Dragon."

"You will call me..."

"The Black Cloud Demon Dragon King!"

Boundless Demonic Qi surged and billowed. After the black clouds and Black Water merged with the Demonic Qi, it ran rampant, almost filling the entire Array Space.

The Ink Flood Dragon’s aura also continued to climb, reaching its peak within a few breaths.

"Break!"

The Ink Flood Dragon let out a great roar. With a swipe of its Dragon Claw, a black blade tore through the void, easily ripping apart the seven-colored radiance that had just approached it. Then, its claw struck the Array’s protective barrier.

VMMMM!

The Seven-Colored Jade Ruyi materialized in the sky. Then, the Eight Trigrams began flowing, and the True Qi from seven trigram figures converged upon the Seven-Colored Jade Ruyi. In the next moment, the entire Array Space was enveloped in a seven-colored radiance.

Magical Power containing Taoist True Qi infused the seven-colored radiance. Although Demonic Qi surged from the tip of the Ink Flood Dragon’s claw, it still failed to break through the Array.

"Is that all? Just some Demonic Qi? We’ve seen that before."

"Sorry, but our specialty just so happens to be a perfect match for dealing with Demonic Qi."

"And here you are, a Great Demon with several thousand years of Dao Practice. We’ve been fighting for ten days, and you still haven’t figured out our background?"

"No, no, no, he’s just a Fallen Demon in the shape of a mud loach. We’ll kill it today and take it back to make soup tomorrow."

TING-A-LING-LING—

The Sound of the Three Pristine Ones rang out, and the Ink Flood Dragon suddenly found the chime even more infuriating than before.

"Ants!" the Ink Flood Dragon bellowed. "I am the Black Cloud Demon Dragon King, personally appointed by the Demon Ancestor!"

The Ink Flood Dragon’s maw gaped open, and it spat out terrifying gouts of Demonic Qi. The Qi merged with the Black Water, transforming into horrifying demonic creatures that charged out in all directions.

Although the old Daoists maintaining the Array were dismissive with their words, they were all extremely serious in their hearts.

They had experienced the power of Demonic Qi before at Black Rock Mountain. It had indeed elevated the Netherfire Sect Leader’s strength to another level, and Demonic Qi itself was stronger than ordinary Demon Qi or Ghost Qi.

Therefore, as the Ink Flood Dragon unleashed its power, they also circulated their True Qi and activated their Magical Power.

A great battle erupted once more within the Nine Palace Eight Trigrams Array, and this time, the scale of the fight was far greater than before.

So great, in fact, that even Gu Zhao entered the fray.

"Dongjia Qian Yuan Heng, let righteous Qi swiftly flow! I receive the mandate of long life, and hold heaven and earth in my palm! Five Thunders Quick Descent Qi, Enter My Thunder Wheel! By my decree!"

The Five Directions Barbaric Thunder Spell!

Five-Colored Thunderclouds blotted out the sun, enveloping the Array Space. A terrifying, violet-gold Thunderbolt that seemed capable of destroying heaven and earth gathered all the Spiritual Power from the Five-Colored Thunderclouds and struck down abruptly.

KRA-KOOM!

ROAR—

The Ink Flood Dragon suddenly realized that even after unleashing its hidden power, even after transforming into a demon, it still couldn’t break the Array. In fact, it was rapidly weakening under the Array’s attacks.

"This is impossible!"

"I am the Black Cloud Demon Dragon King, the primordial king of this world’s Demon Realm!"

"I will not die!"

"Break for me! Open!"

The Ink Flood Dragon grew frantic, madly attacking the Array in the direction of Mo Lake to the West. "When I return to Mo Lake, I’ll kill every last one of you!"

"AHHHH!"

"I was just three away!"

"Demon Ancestor, save me!"

Listening to the Ink Flood Dragon’s roars, the old Daoists’ eyes flickered as they each fell into thought.