Chapter 2040: Massacre

The woman in palace attire suddenly tossed the copper coin in her hand high into the air. With a flash, it transformed into a copper basin about a foot in size, which then descended from the sky and landed perfectly in the center of the stone platform.

The surface of the basin was covered with incredibly complex layers of runes, and inside, a shimmering purple orb flickered continuously, as if something was hidden within, yet it was impossible to discern anything clearly.

The woman in palace attire's expression remained unchanged as she calmly pointed a slender finger at each of the eight wooden figures surrounding them.

Immediately, the previously motionless wooden figures suddenly began to emit layers of eerie black mist. The mist then condensed, transforming into eight distinct, ferocious ghost faces.

These faces let out terrifying growls from behind the wooden figures and struggled, shaking their heads back and forth, yet they couldn't move too far from the figures, appearing firmly bound to them.

"Prepare the offerings," the woman in palace attire commanded indifferently, seemingly oblivious to the strange phenomenon with the wooden figures.

"Yes, Master!" the black-armored man replied instantly. He then flew with a flash to directly above the stone platform and abruptly slapped his waist.

With a soft pop, a palm-sized, dark leather pouch flew out from his person. It spun, then expanded to roughly ten feet in size, and inverted itself above the purple copper basin.

The pouch's opening immediately split, spraying a stream of blood that poured down onto the purple orb in the basin.

A strange phenomenon occurred. Despite the blood pouring down like a waterfall, the seemingly small purple basin absorbed it all as if it were a bottomless pit, never overflowing.

The black-armored man, however, showed no surprise. He simply continued to conjure a spell with one hand, urging the black leather pouch.

For the duration of a meal, the pouch poured out at least a thousand catties of blood, yet it continued to flow ceaselessly, showing no signs of diminishing or stopping.

"That's enough, it's almost done. This vital blood was obtained by slaying those ancient beasts of the Integration Stage, and it wasn't easy to collect. It's better to conserve some," the woman in palace attire suddenly remarked, her elegant brows twitching slightly.

"Understood," the black-armored man replied, immediately reaching out with one hand and making a grabbing motion towards the pouch.

The black leather pouch, which had been gushing blood, instantly ceased its flow with a flash of light from its opening. It then returned to its original size and flew back to the man.

The woman in palace attire, however, took a shallow breath. With a hand gesture, a brilliant light flashed behind her, and an enormous pink flower tree materialized.

This flower tree was crystalline and translucent, its branches laden with fist-sized, wondrous pink flowers that emitted wafts of an exotic fragrance, intoxicating anyone who inhaled it.

After her figure blurred, the woman in palace attire vanished from her spot.

The next moment, she reappeared directly above the flower tree, her bare foot, as white as jade, delicately stepping onto one of the wondrous flowers at the very top. Her stance was perfectly stable, without a single tremor.

With a turn of her hand, a bone blade, as white as jade, appeared in her grasp. It was incredibly thin and exceptionally sharp.

The woman in palace attire's expression remained calm as she slowly raised an arm, revealing a section of her fair wrist, like jade or ivory, from beneath her long sleeve.

With a slight flick of the bone blade, a white line instantly flashed across her wrist.

A thick, pale silver liquid, forming a silver thread, dripped from her wrist onto the crystalline flower tree below, then vanished into it in a flash.

A loud buzzing sound erupted.

The pale pink flower tree instantly transformed into a pale silver color, with silver blossoms adorning its branches, presenting a dazzling sight from afar.

After waiting for a short while, the woman in palace attire withdrew her wrist and opened her small, delicate mouth.

A scent of orchids wafted over her wrist.

The faint blood mark vanished without a trace amidst a flash of white light.

Only then did the woman in palace attire glance down at the purple basin, her eyes gleaming. With a turn of her hand, the bone blade disappeared, replaced by a piece of black silk, like a brocade handkerchief, which she then tossed into the air.

The sky within the water curtain was instantly etched, as a layer of ink-black night descended, completely obscuring all external light, allowing not a single ray to penetrate.

The woman in palace attire then lifted her jade-like foot and lightly stepped onto the flower tree below with her toes.

With a "bang," the enormous flower tree exploded in mid-air, sending countless silver specks shooting upwards.

Numerous silver stars instantly appeared on the black night sky. Under the woman's urging, they began to slowly rotate according to an exceedingly mysterious pattern.

The scene within the water curtain had astonishingly transformed into an entirely different world.

The woman in palace attire's eyes flashed with a crystalline silver light. Her figure blurred, then expanded, transforming into a colossal, radiant white phantom, dozens of feet tall.

Immediately, an enchanting incantation echoed in the void.

The countless stars in the sky revolved faster and faster around the white phantom, periodically forming intricate and profound celestial star maps.

At the same time, the light cluster within the copper basin suddenly began to slowly float upwards. Beneath the myriad stars, it started to undulate and condense, constantly changing.

It would sometimes transform into a specific pattern, and at other times form several strange runes, dazzling the observer.

At some point, a resplendent golden compass appeared before the woman in palace attire. Her ten slender, jade-like fingers tapped it continuously, either rapidly or slowly, causing bursts of multi-colored light to erupt from the compass intermittently.

Her ten fingers moved with delicate agility, and while her actions seemed effortless, each tap made her face grow visibly paler. The cold silver light in her beautiful eyes flickered, gradually intensifying.

The eight ghost heads behind the eight wooden figures at the corners of the stone platform, at some unknown point, began to spew thick, powerful beams of light towards the sky, like eight colossal pillars supporting the vast, awe-inspiring celestial shackles.

Half an hour later, from the direction of the Coral Archipelago, a team of several dozen demons, riding winged demonic beasts resembling sharks, leisurely sped towards the water curtain.

Although these demonic beasts appeared clumsy in their movements, their flight speed was incredibly fast, reaching the vicinity of the water curtain in an instant.

However, these demons evidently did not detect the concealed colossal water curtain, and their team was about to swiftly pass by without any intention of stopping.

But just then, something unexpected occurred!

With a tremendous "rumbling" sound, the previously invisible water curtain suddenly flashed into existence in the void. Then, expanding and contracting, it burst open out of thin air.

A torrent of blue light, like monstrous waves, instantly rolled outwards in all directions, forming a colossal blue vortex in the air.

This team of demonic guards was naturally startled. To evade, they all patted the winged fish-like demonic beasts they rode.

The demonic beasts let out a series of low growls, then opened their mouths and sprayed forth streams of greenish-blue light, which spun into layers of green energy shields before them, protecting their entire bodies.

When the massive waves of water swept down, they were surprisingly parted by these swiftly appearing energy shields.

These demons were momentarily flustered, yet not a single one was actually harmed. However, they were naturally both shocked and enraged, and most of them immediately drew their weapons, gazing at the vortex with uncertainty and suspicion.

Amidst the rumbling sound, the blue vortex rapidly shrank, eventually dissipating and vanishing, revealing two figures.

They were precisely the woman in white palace attire and the black-armored man.

At this moment, the woman held the golden compass in one hand. Her face was devoid of color, but her eyes shone with dazzling silver light. Her expression was strangely complex, a mixture of disbelief, pleasant surprise, and hesitant uncertainty.

The black-armored man, meanwhile, stared blankly around, his gaze somewhat surprised.

The leading demonic guard, who was at the Deification Stage, swept his divine sense over the two figures and was instantly startled.

He couldn't sense any cultivation level from either the woman in palace attire or the black-armored man, though the extremely pure demonic energy emanating from the black-armored man was completely undisguised.

Therefore, this high-ranking demon leader, filled with dread, quickly dismounted his demonic beast, bowed respectfully to the two figures opposite him, and cautiously asked:

"I am Shi Shuo of the Fierce Demon Clan. May I ask which clan you two seniors belong to, and is there anything this junior can do to assist you?"

The black-armored man's eyes coldly swept over the demonic team, but he said nothing. The next moment, his gaze immediately returned to the woman in palace attire, and he respectfully asked:

"Master, how should these low-ranking clansmen be dealt with?"

"Since they've discovered us, eliminate them," the woman in palace attire commanded without even raising her head, her gaze fixed on the compass in her hand.

Her voice was devoid of emotion, as if the Fierce Demon clan members around her were mere ants in her eyes.

Hearing this, the black-armored man showed no surprise. Instead, a fierce glint flashed in his eyes as he immediately assented. He then turned to face the Fierce Demon clan members, his face contorted into a bloodthirsty, savage expression.

"No, run!" The quick-witted leading demon of the Deification Stage felt a chill in his heart upon hearing the conversation between the woman in palace attire and the black-armored man. He immediately shouted, retreating swiftly. At the same time, he raised one hand, and a fist-sized bead flew out from his palm. Simultaneously, a spiritual light flashed beneath his feet, revealing a massive black blade. Man and blade merged into one, transforming into a streak of black light that shot towards the Coral Archipelago, fleeing.

Seeing this clear signal, the other Fierce Demon guards were greatly alarmed and naturally scattered in all directions to escape.

Witnessing this, the black-armored man let out a wild laugh and waved his arms, releasing a surge of black mist from his sleeves that swept outwards.

Sharp cries constantly echoed within the black mist, where various demonic insects vaguely appeared and disappeared. With a single swirl, the mist completely engulfed all the surrounding demonic guards attempting to flee.

Immediately, screams of agony erupted one after another from within!

The man himself glanced at the black streak of light fleeing hundreds of feet away, a cruel smirk appearing at the corner of his mouth. His figure blurred, and he transformed into a rolling black wind, giving chase.

A short while later, after a mournful cry echoed in the distance, the man returned, carrying a bloody severed head.

After tossing the object in his hand into the black mist, he stood silently beside the woman, his face resuming its previous respectful expression.

By then, the screams within the surrounding black mist had also completely faded.

With a single roll, the black mist vanished entirely into the man's body, leaving no trace.

From beginning to end, the woman in palace attire never once raised her head to look. She merely stroked the golden compass in her hand with several fingers, her jade-like face displaying an ever-changing expression of uncertainty.