Chapter 2393: The Power of Soul Devouring

This so-called "mouth" was, in fact, a jagged, fanged slit that had opened beneath the little figure's face.

The headless body of the Blood-Glow Serpent writhed frantically in the little figure's mouth, black venom spurting several feet high from its wounds.

A shimmering crystal light flowed over the golden figure's body, and all the venom was instantly isolated by an invisible force.

The tall old man was utterly horrified by this sight.

Before he could even form another thought, a cold glint suddenly flashed in the golden figure's eyes, and it gazed chillingly at the old man in the distance.

In an instant, the tall old man felt a chill on his skin as two crystalline sword lights suddenly shot out from the void right in front of him.

The two sword lights appeared unremarkable, but with a swirl, they incredibly swiftly struck the light screen in front of the old man.

There was a crisp "bang."

Upon contact, the green light screen abruptly trembled on its surface, then shattered into pieces.

As the crystalline sword light flashed again, the old man felt an extreme chill suddenly appear on his face. Startled, he no longer held back. Five-colored light condensed between his brows, instantly transforming into a five-colored shield that expanded several *zhang* in size against the wind, completely shielding his entire body.

The surface of the giant shield was covered with intricate layers of spirit patterns, and countless vibrant runes flickered in and out of sight.

With two "thwack" sounds, the two crystalline sword lights struck the giant shield, one after the other.

As the first sword light made contact with the giant shield, blinding light and intense tremors erupted between them.

Although the sword light dissipated into thin air, a wide crack appeared on the giant shield.

When the second crystalline sword light struck the same spot an instant later, the five-colored giant shield was unable to resist and was cut in half.

With no obstruction, the second sword light immediately swept down behind it.

All of this seemed complex, but in reality, it happened in an instant.

To the tall old man, he had barely conjured the five-colored shield before it split into two with a cracking sound. Then, after a flash of cold light, his vision went black.

To outsiders, after a crystalline light wrapped around the old man's neck, his large head immediately rolled off.

Almost simultaneously, the crimson dragon phantom behind him suddenly exploded, and surging electric arcs violently struck the surrounding void.

With a "whoosh."

A crimson ball of light burst out from the old man's headless body, unobtrusively blending into the lightning and shooting off in a certain direction.

There was a muffled thud.

The golden figure, shrouded in golden light, vanished from its original spot. The next moment, with a ripple, it suddenly appeared in front of the crimson ball of light.

It simply raised an arm and forcibly slammed the ball of light from the air onto the ground.

After the crimson light in the crater below receded, a Nascent Soul figure, similar in height to the golden figure, immediately appeared. Its face was contorted in a ferocious expression, but fear was even more prevalent within it.

The Nascent Soul suddenly gritted its teeth, made a hand seal, and a surge of blood mist abruptly erupted from its body. At the same time, crimson lightning arcs crackled around its form, as if it were about to unleash some secret technique.

But just then, a thick, crystalline sword light appeared behind the Nascent Soul without any warning. It flashed with a cold glint and silently struck down.

With a "thud!"

After the blood mist parted, the old man's Nascent Soul, concealed within, wore an expression of disbelief. Then, with a scream, its body split into two from top to bottom, dissipating into scattered points of spiritual light and vanishing.

Thus, a renowned Grand Ancestor of Crimson Lightning so easily met his demise at the hands of the Gold Devouring Beetle King.

At this moment, Xue Po, who had already retreated to the side, let out a long breath. She took a few steps forward, bowed respectfully to the small figure formed by the Gold Devouring Beetle King, and said with a joyful expression:

"Thank you, Senior, for saving me. Otherwise, I might truly not have escaped this person's clutches this time."

"I merely act on my master's orders. Now, continue with your affairs. I will be watching in the shadows," the golden figure said in a faint voice. It then raised a hand, drawing the storage bracelet from the old man's remains into its grasp. With a flicker of its body, it blurred and vanished.

At this point, the Gold Devouring Beetle King's intelligence had clearly advanced significantly compared to when it first transformed.

After Xue Po bowed again towards where the little figure had vanished, she cast a slightly regretful glance at the two Body Integration Stage puppets, then floated away from the area.

Although she had avoided touching the heavily restricted buildings nearby, no reaction had occurred yet. She believed her true body was certainly not trapped in this area, so she naturally needed to hurry to the next location.

After witnessing the Gold Devouring Beetle King's astonishing abilities, she finally gained some courage to explore deeper into the area.

Ten days later, near the giant gate outside the Myriad Moon Mountain Range, the thousands of high-level cultivators who had gathered there had, at some unknown point, retreated more than ten miles away. They observed the gate from a distance, occasionally pointing and discussing something.

At the edge of the basin, only five to six hundred Blood Sky cultivators, clearly belonging to the same force, remained. They were setting up an enormous super formation, seemingly enveloping the entire basin.

These individuals wore identical attire, and the insignia on their cuffs clearly indicated that they were all high-ranking disciples of the Blood Bone Sect.

In front of these individuals stood two people side by side.

One was an old man with deep-set eyes and an aquiline nose, dressed in a white feathered robe.

The other was an unusually short and stout woman with grotesquely ugly features, her cheeks marked with black spirit tattoos.

The aura emanating from these two was terrifyingly strong; they were, in fact, two unfathomably powerful Mahayana stage cultivators.

At this moment, as the Blood Bone Sect disciples continuously arranged the formation, the two conversed quietly with each other.

"Hmph, I knew there was something amiss with Old Monster Xiao staying in Blood Crane City for so many years without moving an inch. As expected, he secretly obtained the true key to the Heavenly Cauldron Palace without revealing a single detail to us. If it weren't for a slip of information from Lady Wanhua's disciples, you and I would likely still be in the dark, unaware," the aquiline-nosed elder snorted softly to the woman.

"Hehe, you can't blame Old Monster Xiao for that. Although we belong to the same sect, we don't have much personal camaraderie. If you or I had obtained the Heavenly Cauldron Palace key, we would likely have secretly hidden it too. After all, no matter how many treasures there are, monopolizing them alone is vastly different from sharing them among three," the woman said. Despite her outwardly ugly and common appearance, her voice was surprisingly sweet, like that of a seventeen or eighteen-year-old girl.

These two were, astonishingly, the Blood Bone Sect's other two Mahayana stage Grand Elders.

"That's true. We heard that the Heavenly Cauldron Palace contains the legacy of True Lord Heavenly Cauldron. After learning that, we certainly wouldn't have let him enter alone. But then again, it's said there's more than one true key to the Heavenly Cauldron Palace. Even without our interference, other Mahayana cultivators would surely have become involved. Old Monster Xiao's decision to conceal this might not have been wise," the aquiline-nosed elder replied with a cold chuckle.

"Never mind, what's the point of discussing this further? Although we received the information, we were ultimately a step too late; those with the keys have already been inside for days. In that case, we can only set up a formation here and wait for the people inside to emerge, then demand our share," the woman said indifferently.

"Based on similar past experiences, the exit points for these individuals should be somewhat random. Only about two or three tenths of them will likely reappear here; most will probably be directly transported to other places," the aquiline-nosed elder pondered slightly.

"Two or three tenths is ideal. If everyone who entered were to appear here, even with the formation's assistance, we would likely be powerless against so many individuals. After all, most of those who went in earlier are cultivators of our same rank, with abilities no less than ours. Only with fewer numbers can the two of us be confident in securing a share of the treasures. These restrictive formations probably won't even need to be truly activated then; they merely serve as a significant bargaining chip for us," the woman replied confidently.

"So, Fellow Daoist Ruyi, that was your thinking! No wonder you brought so many disciples here with us. This strategy is brilliant!" the aquiline-nosed elder chuckled, clapping his hands.

With an earth-shattering roar, a crystalline wall shattered inch by inch under a single strike from Han Li, who had transformed into a giant ape.

After taking a large stride, the giant ape suddenly stepped into a teleportation formation that had previously been protected by the crystal wall. Then, with a blur, it vanished without a trace from the center.

The next moment, the giant ape (Han Li's transformed body) felt a flash of light before its eyes and abruptly appeared above a small mountain peak, over a thousand *zhang* high. The temporary light formation beneath it then dissipated with a "bang."

The giant ape's eyes swept around like lightning, taking in the surrounding situation clearly.

Although this mountain was not particularly high, its occupied area was considerable. Its edges were surprisingly close to seven or eight areas isolated by light screens.

One of these was precisely the area he had just left after breaking through its restrictions.

Han Li, with a thoughtful expression, gazed at each of these areas. He seemed to finally make a decision and was about to move his body to fly towards a certain area.

But just then, the nearby void suddenly rippled. About a *li* away, another light formation abruptly appeared in mid-air. Then, with a swirl of radiant light in its center, three figures swiftly emerged from within.

As soon as Han Li clearly saw the appearance of these three, his gaze subtly narrowed.

As the light formation beneath their feet also flashed and vanished, these three naturally saw the giant ape that Han Li had transformed into. After exchanging startled glances and transmitting a message, they moved their bodies and flew directly towards Han Li.

The aura around all three suddenly intensified, showing no attempt to conceal their hostility.

A cold light flashed in the giant ape's eyes (Han Li's transformed body). It suddenly raised an arm and, without a word, chopped its furry giant palm towards the three figures opposite it in the void.

After a deafening "boom," an invisible immense force suddenly transformed into a gale that swept towards the three figures.

"What is the meaning of this, Senior? Do you intend to fight the three of us?"

The three gaunt old men merely swayed, then instantly split into three different positions to avoid the gale. At the same time, one of them asked with a sinister expression.