Chapter 349: Cloud and Thunder Crown

After drawing him out, Qin Sang followed his original plan, using the Spirit Concealment Art to feign an early Foundation Establishment cultivation level. He pretended not to notice he was being tracked, thereby luring Liang Yan to make his move.

Unexpectedly, Liang Yan was incredibly patient, waiting until now to act.

This also gave Qin Sang ample time to prepare.

Feigning a spirit injury, he enticed Liang Yan into the trap. First, the Yin-Yang Compass interfered with Liang Yan's Spirit-Binding Rope. Immediately after, the Ten Directions Yama Array unfolded, successfully trapping Liang Yan within it.

How could Liang Yan not recognize the Kuiyin Sect's signature magical artifact? His face instantly changed, and he exclaimed, "The Ten Directions Yama Array!"

At this moment, how could Liang Yan not realize he had been thoroughly outmaneuvered?

Who was this opponent? Why was he being targeted? Why had his Heart-Devouring Gu failed?

Thoughts raced through Liang Yan's mind, but he understood that none of that mattered now. He knew the Ten Directions Yama Array was terrifying. His only remaining thought was to escape the array as quickly as possible. Only by breaking free from this ghostly formation could he hope to retaliate; otherwise, he was doomed.

"Cloud Thunder Crown!"

Liang Yan suddenly let out a low roar. Above his head, a blinding silver light erupted.

Underneath Liang Yan's hood, he had previously worn only an ordinary headband to keep his long hair in place. At this moment, the headband's form suddenly transformed. It was actually a magical artifact!

The headband transformed into an exquisitely beautiful diadem. Its hanging tassels resembled miniature rainbows, and around these rainbows, auspicious clouds swirled.

It shimmered with vibrant colors, extraordinarily splendid!

"Crack!" A thunderclap boomed from clear skies. The surrounding mountains trembled.

The auspicious clouds turned menacing, transforming into swirling thunderclouds that exuded pure, positive cloud-thunder power.

"Zzt!" Thunder surged, and blinding lightning enveloped Liang Yan. Protected by the Cloud Thunder Crown, he appeared to walk amidst a shower of lightning.

Surprisingly, the shadowy spirit threads were blocked by the cloud-thunder power, unable to assault his spirit.

At this moment, Qin Sang had quietly emerged from the muddy swamp. Seeing this, a hint of surprise flashed in his eyes. Liang Yan's magical artifact, the Cloud Thunder Crown, was truly remarkable; the cloud-thunder power it contained was precisely the bane of evil cultivators.

When the shadowy spirit threads met the cloud-thunder power, they were struck by lightning, severed inch by inch, and their power greatly diminished. It seemed unlikely they could break through the defense quickly.

This effectively restricted the Ten Directions Yama Array's most potent attack.

Such a specifically targeted magical artifact was very likely prepared by Liang Yan precisely for the Ten Directions Yama Array.

Qin Sang's eyes flickered. Without hesitation, he swept his hand across his waist, and the fiendish corpse, refined from Dai Yue's accomplice, flew out from his corpse puppet bag.

This person had been a mid-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator in life. After being refined into a fiendish corpse, it could still play a certain role in this battle.

The fiendish corpse charged into the Ten Directions Yama Array. Moving like lightning, it instantly appeared behind Liang Yan, its fist, imbued with extremely cold Earth Fiend Qi, shooting straight for Liang Yan's back.

Sensing the powerful gust from behind, Liang Yan hastily turned sideways. He pointed a finger at the fiendish corpse, and a black stone, spinning rapidly, shot out from his fingertip.

The stone was initially tiny, no bigger than a fingernail, but it grew rapidly with the wind. In an instant, it transformed into a gigantic boulder, crashing down on the fiendish corpse with the force of Mount Tai.

The enormous stone, wrapped in fierce winds and rolling black smoke, truly resembled a ferocious black dragon. No wonder it was named the Black Dragon Stone.

Even outside the grand array, Qin Sang could feel the oppressive force emanating from the Black Dragon Stone. This magical artifact's immense weight, heavy as a thousand pounds, was certainly no exaggeration.

Seeing this, Qin Sang dared not let the fiendish corpse take the blow head-on.

The fiendish corpse hastily retreated, crossing its arms to block.

With a dull thud, the fiendish corpse was violently sent flying by the Black Dragon Stone. It reeled back, nearly sent out of the Ten Directions Yama Array's range, before barely managing to steady itself. Deep indentations appeared on its arms, which had nearly been shattered by the Black Dragon Stone.

Liang Yan was relentless, urging the Black Dragon Stone to continue its pursuit. At the same time, his figure moved swiftly, attempting to use the Black Dragon Stone to clear a path and break out of the array.

With the Black Dragon Stone's momentum strong, the fiendish corpse alone couldn't restrain Liang Yan. Seeing this, Qin Sang immediately changed his strategy. He left a portion of the shadowy spirit threads to continue entangling Liang Yan, while simultaneously activating a portion of the array's power to manifest a ferocious evil spirit.

The evil spirit appeared and bravely lunged at Liang Yan.

Meanwhile, Earth Fiend Qi surged around the fiendish corpse. Its injuries instantly healed, and it charged forward again.

For a moment, Liang Yan was caught between the pincer attack of the evil spirit and the fiendish corpse.

The evil spirit and the fiendish corpse would strike and then withdraw, avoiding direct confrontation with the Black Dragon Stone.

Relying solely on the Black Dragon Stone, though incredibly agile, Liang Yan found himself overwhelmed on all sides. At the same time, the Cloud Thunder Crown on his head was under constant assault from the shadowy spirit threads, and its cloud-thunder power was rapidly depleting.

At this point, Liang Yan's heart was filled with extreme anxiety. The Cloud Thunder Crown's power wasn't inexhaustible. If he couldn't escape soon, once the cloud-thunder power was exhausted and the shadowy spirit threads broke through, he would simply become a lamb to the slaughter!

Liang Yan let out a low cry, fully activating his spiritual power, and urgently recalled the Spirit-Binding Rope.

"Swish! Swish!..." The Spirit-Binding Rope transformed into a streak of lightning. With a sway, it caught up to the fiendish corpse. Though the fiendish corpse dodged left and right, it couldn't escape. It was ensnared by the Spirit-Binding Rope and firmly bound.

Simultaneously, the Black Dragon Stone locked onto the evil spirit and slammed down fiercely.

Just as the Black Dragon Stone was about to crush the evil spirit into dust, Liang Yan's expression drastically changed.

Behind him, a sword shadow suddenly appeared. It had been lurking for who knew how long, choosing this precise moment to launch a sneak attack!

By the time Liang Yan noticed the Ebony Sword, it was too late.

In his horror, Liang Yan did his utmost to protect his vital points. However, he hadn't expected the Ebony Sword's target wasn't him, but the thunderclouds above his head.

"Whoosh!" With a thunderous crash, the thunderclouds shattered into pieces. The Cloud Thunder Crown itself suffered the impact, instantly cracking into fragments and breaking apart.

"No!"

Liang Yan shrieked in terror. Qin Sang ignored him, activating the Ten Directions Yama Array without reservation. Overwhelming shadowy spirit threads instantly extinguished the remaining cloud-thunder power on Liang Yan's body and began assaulting his spirit.

"Ah..."

This time, it was Liang Yan who screamed in agony. He clutched his head with both hands, appearing to lose his mind. He made a final struggle, spurring the Black Dragon Stone to crash wildly around him.

Qin Sang's figure flickered repeatedly, easily dodging the Black Dragon Stone's charges. He darted to Liang Yan's side, and with a raised hand, the Celestial Poison Veil transformed into a cloud of poisonous miasma, enveloping Liang Yan completely.

With the shadowy spirit threads and the Celestial Poison Veil, Liang Yan had no chance to resist.

The Black Dragon Stone and Spirit-Binding Rope simultaneously lost their efficacy. Their spiritual lights dimmed, and they fell to the ground. Just as they were about to be swallowed by the swamp, a streak of spiritual power swept down from above, collecting them.

Qin Sang collected the two magical artifacts and glanced at the captured Liang Yan.

From the moment he fell into the trap and was lured out of Fengcang Market by the Heart-Devouring Gu, the outcome was already sealed. Liang Yan not having Shi Hong with him also removed Qin Sang's reservations, allowing him to fight with full power.

The only variable was the Cloud Thunder Crown, which surprisingly resisted the shadowy spirit threads, forcing Qin Sang to take a more circuitous approach. Fortunately, it had no real impact on the final result.