Chapter 1518: Yellow Oriole

The mist in the green pool below churned violently, and a surge of pure spiritual energy overflowed, causing the nearby ground to rumble and tremble.

The two Underworld Thunder Beasts exchanged shocked and furious glances, simultaneously letting out savage roars. Then, the electrical arcs around their bodies retracted as they stood upright on their lower limbs, just like humans. Swirls of dark, strange winds emerged around them, revolving around the two upright fierce beasts and completely engulfing them.

The white-haired beautiful woman, Mu Qing, and the others were greatly alarmed by this sight. With their experience, they knew nothing good would come of this; the two Underworld Thunder Beasts were clearly preparing to unleash formidable divine abilities.

Immediately, the beautiful woman let out a low whistle, and her long white hair instantly grew to an incredible length, which she then flung towards the empty space in front of them. Countless white streaks shot through the air, instantly engulfing the black wind. Each of these white streaks was as straight as a needle, emitting piercing screams and appearing incredibly potent.

Meanwhile, Mu Qing formed a hand seal, and her body radiated a brilliant light. Bowl-sized flower shadows materialized and floated around her, slightly blurring before transforming into multicolored Dharma Wheels. The edges of these Dharma Wheels were incredibly thin, and with a rapid spin, they shot out silently and violently. For a moment, the air was filled with chilling light and countless white streaks, sending shivers down one's spine. Both divine abilities were clearly extraordinary!

But then, an unexpected scene unfolded. The two beasts within the black wind made no movement at all, even as the dense barrage of Dharma Wheels and white streaks shot towards them. However, a strange sound like metal grinding then emanated from within, and all attacks rebounded from the wind. Both attacks seemed to have struck an impenetrable wall of copper and iron.

The two women were momentarily stunned. Just then, the black wind swirled and dispersed, revealing two humanoid demonic creatures, ten zhang tall and with ferocious faces. They had horns on their heads and were covered in silver scales, having transformed from the original Underworld Thunder Beasts. Their limbs and bodies were now remarkably human-like!

What made Mu Qing's expression solemn was that as soon as the two beasts materialized, they immediately formed hand seals with both hands, each opening their mouths and spitting out an object. One object flashed with a dark light, revealing a small, hazy black banner. The other emitted myriad white rays, revealing an exquisitely crafted magic plate.

"Not good, stop them quickly! They're trying to activate the restrictions laid down by that race!" The blood-robed man reacted first, shouting in sudden alarm. Immediately, he abandoned activating his puppet. Instead, he shook both sleeves, and a pair of several-inch-long short swords flew out with a clear hum. They flashed and vanished, transforming into two streaks of bloody light that shot directly towards the two artifacts.

However, the two humanoid Underworld Thunder Beasts seemed to have anticipated this. They simultaneously shook their heads, and their two single horns detached themselves, transforming into two streaks of lightning that met the incoming attack. After two resounding "booms," the horns and the bloody light collided, erupting with dazzling electrical light. With thunderous force, they instantly shattered the two short swords. The sheer power left everyone dumbfounded!

This was hardly surprising. These horns were inherently the hardest parts of the beasts' bodies, and having been refined for untold millennia, their toughness alone was comparable to spirit-treasure grade blades. The immense power unleashed by the two transformed fierce beasts was thus to be expected.

However, the two single horns didn't merely deliver one strike. After another flash, they eerily vanished from their spot. The next moment, two streaks of lightning roared forth from the void, appearing several zhang in front of the blood-robed man and launching a thunderous strike without hesitation. These two Underworld Thunder Beasts clearly perceived the blood-robed man as the weakest of the three opponents and intended to eliminate him first with a combined assault.

The blood-robed man was startled, but the two single horns were too fast; it was too late to dodge. In shock and fury, a flash of bloody light emanated from him, and two bloody shadows shot out from his body like projections, blocking his front. These were precisely the blood puppets he had refined. Immediately, his blood-colored long robe billowed, and a layer of crimson light shield suddenly appeared on his body.

Although these two blood puppets were not weak, the two single horns suddenly merged into one, transforming into a lightning-fast thunder cone. It pierced through the bodies of the two bloody shadows as if through rotten wood, then struck the blood-robed man. The two bloody shadows in the middle instantly dissipated and vanished amidst the thunderous roar, and the crimson light shield only delayed the thunder cone for a moment before it was pierced through like paper. With an earth-shattering bang, a blood-hole the size of a bowl appeared on the blood-robed man's chest.

Strange lights flickered in the blood-robed man's eyes, and he slapped his body furiously with his hands, moving like turning wheels. In one breath, he applied over a dozen blood-colored talismans, and then a bizarre situation unfolded. Despite the large blood-hole, not a single drop of blood flowed. All the flesh at the edges wriggled, rapidly healing towards the center. Seeing this, the beautiful woman and Mu Qing's expressions relaxed. If the blood-robed man had truly been annihilated due to a moment of carelessness, they alone would not have been able to hold off the two Underworld Thunder Beasts for long.

But then, the thunder cone circled behind the blood-robed man and flashed back. This time, it was clearly aiming for the blood-robed man's head. But before Mu Qing and the beautiful woman could intervene, a black shadow suddenly flashed in the air, and a purplish-red palm, like a cattail-leaf fan, swept towards it. Although this hand was abnormally huge, its speed was incredibly swift. The giant hand blurred slightly, then flashed like an illusion, snatching the thunder cone and holding it tightly, refusing to let go.

But the next moment, a tremendous roar erupted from within the giant hand! The thunder cone erupted with countless electrical lights, shooting out like silver snakes and flashing through the gaps between the fingers. After a few flashes, the thunder cone reached the two humanoid Underworld Thunder Beasts. Then, with a flicker, it split into two once more, re-entering the tops of their heads and transforming back into two silver single horns. The two horns shone with dazzling silver light, appearing completely unharmed despite the fierce exchange they had just endured.

However, precisely because of this slight delay, the two beasts opposite had already finished activating the small banner and magic plate in front of them. Simultaneously, they opened their mouths, and two clumps of vital blood transformed into a blood mist, spraying onto the artifacts. The small banner and magic plate flashed with light, instantly absorbing all the blood mist. Then, the banner transformed into a black cloud that shot skyward, and after a flash, vanished into the ceiling of the great hall. The magic plate, meanwhile, dropped downwards, transforming into a white mist that merged into the ground.

Mu Qing and the white-haired beautiful woman were alarmed. Before they could even think of immediately taking action to re-engage the two beasts, a sudden change occurred! On the surface of the exquisitely crafted hall ceiling, spiritual light burst forth, and black patterns suddenly appeared. They wriggled and combined like earthworms, transforming into a dark, massive formation. The entire formation flickered with black light, its center exceptionally dark and profound. Wild winds howled within, as if it had forcefully opened a path to another dimension.

At the same time, the ground below also radiated white light, and fist-sized runes emerged from underground. The originally trembling and buzzing green pool, at the moment the runes appeared, revealed a large golden light formation amidst churning mist. As this golden light formation emerged from the mist, it instantly enveloped the entire pool beneath it, its golden radiance making it impossible to look directly at. Although they didn't know the situation beneath the pool enveloped by the golden formation, the trembling of the ground outside the pool and other unusual phenomena instantly vanished.

Mu Qing and the white-haired beautiful woman were naturally both shocked and enraged. Although they absolutely did not believe Six-legged would truly be trapped so easily below, once this restriction was activated, it would certainly be impossible to obtain the divine milk quickly. What was more troublesome was that the black light formation in the air was continuously expanding, also enveloping the several people below. Under the fierce urging of the two beasts, it slowly detached from the top of the great hall and began to descend. This meant they either had to relinquish the airspace above the green pool or bravely confront the restriction directly.

"Fellow Daoist Mu, let us combine our strength for one strike and shatter this thing first. Brother Earthblood, you and that puppet cover us for a moment." Just as Mu Qing hesitated slightly, the white-haired beautiful woman's ancient voice suddenly transmitted into her ear. Her thoughts turned, and she nodded. It seemed this was the only way!

At the same time, the blood-robed man, standing atop the purple blood puppet, also heard the same telepathic message. The large, normally fatal hole in his chest had already healed almost completely; aside from a slight dimming of his eyes, he appeared to be fine. Hearing the old woman's telepathic message, the blood-robed man furrowed his brows, then glanced at the large hand of the purple blood puppet below, which was still grasping the thunder cone. He saw that the inner surfaces of its five fingers were charred black, and a faint burnt smell subtly emanated from them. The blood-robed man let out a long breath, then slowly nodded as well.

He suddenly tapped the purple blood puppet beneath his foot with one foot, while simultaneously reaching into his sleeve with one hand and throwing out a golden wooden box. He chanted a spell and pointed at it, and immediately the box lid flew open, releasing seven streaks of escape light of different colors. The light retracted, revealing seven puppets of varying forms. Some were shaped like demonic beasts, others dressed as flying spirits, and some were half-human, half-demon. There were even two insect-beast shaped puppets: one resembling a giant earthworm, and the other, a giant ant magnified countless times. All seven puppets were crafted from metallic materials, their surfaces covered with runes, clearly the meticulous creations of Old Monster Earthblood.

Upon seeing this, the white-haired beautiful woman let out a low laugh. With a quick spin of her body, eight wisps of black qi flew out from her, each containing a blurry figure clad in black armor. These were precisely the eight Yin-armored Ghost Kings that the beautiful woman had put away and who had been secretly recovering their vitality. As soon as the eight Ghost Kings appeared, they silently knelt in a circle around the white-haired beautiful woman. Dark yin qi emanated from their bodies, instantly transforming into a large black cloud.

On the other side, Mu Qing's body flickered, and her skin surprisingly turned an emerald green. Forming hand seals with both hands, countless green threads appeared and materialized. Patches of strange flowers and exotic herbs instantly materialized, vaguely surrounding and enveloping her.

The two half-human, half-demon Underworld Thunder Beasts in the air, however, completely disregarded the actions of the three below. Both merely furiously urged the aerial formation, their bodies flashing with spiritual light. They appeared to have great confidence in this restriction.

Seeing that both sides were truly about to engage in a decisive battle, Han Li, who was hiding in a corner, subtly changed his expression. He shook his sleeve, and over a dozen green spherical beads rolled into his palm. Then, he squinted his eyes slightly and gazed calmly towards another corner of the great hall. Over there, the green qi and the spherical bead it enveloped finally began to stir!