Chapter 239: The Only Way

"Ah Chuan, run. Don't worry about me," Liu Qiyue advised her husband through a mental message, looking at him.She gazed at Meng Chuan's profile, wanting to imprint his image in her memory.She felt a deep reluctance.Reluctant to leave her husband, reluctant to leave their children, yet she understood that in battle, difficult choices were essential. It was better for one of them to survive than for both to perish.

"Don't worry, Qiyue," Meng Chuan replied via mental message. "We just need to hold on a little longer; Yuanchu Mountain will send powerful demon-slayers to assist us."

"Ah Chuan, the fastest reinforcements would be a King-level demon-slayer from Luotang Pass," Liu Qiyue communicated. "Even that would take half a tea's time, which is too long. We won't make it. Don't get yourself trapped because of me. Our children are still young and need someone to care for them."

"Don't worry, I have a plan," Meng Chuan said.

Meng Chuan understood the situation clearly.As for rescue?If Venerable Luotang personally came, it would indeed be swift. However, Luotang Pass could not afford to fall! If Venerable Luotang appeared, the Blackrock Great Demon King would undoubtedly send back a distress message about a 'Creation realm enemy' before dying. The demon race would immediately realize that Venerable Qin Wu was stationed at Yuanchu Mountain, making Venerable Luotang's intervention highly likely.The demon race would then very likely attack Luotang Pass immediately.As the only super-large pass within the Great Zhou Dynasty, without a Creation realm Venerable guarding it, it would be impossible to defend. The fall of Luotang Pass would be catastrophic.

As Meng Chuan and his wife had anticipated, Yuanchu Mountain had indeed dispatched King Lyu Yue from Luotang Pass for the rescue.The last time Meng Chuan had fought the Crouching Horn Great Demon King, King Lyu Yue was also the one sent as reinforcement. It was the same this time because Luotang Pass only had two King-level demon-slayers, and King Lyu Yue was faster, so he was naturally chosen.

Amidst the clouds and mist, King Lyu Yue transformed into a streak of black light, speeding along with a look of urgency in his eyes."Meng Chuan and Liu Qiyue, calling for help multiple times? It sounds very dangerous.""You two must hold on! I'll be there in five hundred *li*!" King Lyu Yue thought silently, traveling at full speed.

"Charge."Suddenly, Meng Chuan integrated his Essence Soul power into his physical body, moving at full speed with his wife.Their speed increased by nearly thirty percent, but the Blackrock Great Demon King snorted, and a faint red glow appeared all over its body. Its running pace also accelerated by twenty to thirty percent, still making it faster than Meng Chuan and his wife.

"To think I'm forced to use forbidden arts," the Blackrock Great Demon King growled, its eyes growing even more ferocious as it strode forward.

"The distance is still closing; we can't shake him off," Meng Chuan thought anxiously. "What should I do?"Qiyue had to be saved!But how?"Even with my Essence Soul power, I only have the strength of a top Marquis-level demon-slayer. I can't stop this mountain demon great demon king at all."

"There's no other way," Meng Chuan said, glancing at his wife. "Qiyue, I'll distract him. You take the chance to escape this domain.""How will you distract him?" Liu Qiyue asked immediately through a mental message. "Ah Chuan, don't be reckless.""I have a way."

Meng Chuan let go of his wife and instead moved to confront the Blackrock Great Demon King.The Blackrock Great Demon King was not surprised; instead, it was delighted. "Excellent!" it roared.Its biggest fear was Meng Chuan abandoning his wife and escaping alone, which would leave it helpless. To it, Meng Chuan was far more important than Liu Qiyue. Liu Qiyue's survival would simply mean one more human expert. However, if Meng Chuan survived, he could protect vast territories with his speed, and his Essence Soul talent indicated terrifying potential.

"Kill," the Black Mountain Great Demon King roared, stomping with immense force, causing the ground to quake. Simultaneously, it swung its massive hammer with a thunderous roar.The enormous hammer, twenty to thirty *zhang* in diameter, was like a small mountain, charging with terrifying power. It distorted the very air it passed through, and its might made Meng Chuan's heart clench. He immediately used his Swallow Flight technique to arc away, narrowly avoiding the terrifying hammer.But then, another massive hammer struck."Boom!"The surrounding world was churned by the two hammers, plunging into chaos with surging waves of power.Meng Chuan vaguely sensed that the two hammers formed a kind of formation, and once caught within it, it would be difficult to escape.

"Escape."He no longer approached, instead using his movement technique to flee into the distance."Escape? Then I'll kill your wife!" the Blackrock Great Demon King roared, its voice echoing through the heavens and earth. It didn't pursue Meng Chuan, instead striding rapidly towards Liu Qiyue, intending to force Meng Chuan back to save her.

Liu Qiyue watched Meng Chuan flee into the distance, and her previously furrowed brow relaxed completely.Ah Chuan had made his choice.This was a wise decision on the battlefield; at least one of them could survive."Ah Chuan, take good care of our children," Liu Qiyue murmured inwardly.

As Meng Chuan used his movement technique to escape into the distance, his eyes held a look of grim determination."To save Qiyue, there's only one way.""Break through.""To the Darkstar Realm!"There was a hint of madness in Meng Chuan's eyes.

For demon-slayers, breaking through each major cultivation realm required extreme caution, and the later the realm, the more perilous it became. Even a slight mistake could cause one's body to explode into dust. Breaking through from the Great Sun Realm to the Darkstar Realm was particularly challenging; one had to reach the 'Dao Realm' to finally condense a 'Darkstar.' It required refining the Essence Soul and using its power to meticulously control every wisp of true essence.One also needed to be sufficiently young, as the Dantian space had to be youthful and resilient enough to withstand the impact of the breakthrough. After the age of sixty, the chances of successful breakthrough gradually decreased.Moreover, it demanded quiet cultivation!Even a minor disturbance could lead to failure.Meng Chuan currently had no opportunity for quiet cultivation, nor could he slowly adjust his state of mind or calmly prepare for the breakthrough. He had to attempt an impromptu breakthrough, which carried an extremely high risk.

"My physical body has immense vitality, and my Dantian space is far more resilient than that of my peers," Meng Chuan mused."My Essence Soul is at the third level, and my control over true essence with Essence Soul power is far more precise and subtle than others at my level. Even attempting an impromptu breakthrough, I have over eighty percent chance of success."Eighty percent?Yuanchu Mountain's rule was a hundred percent certainty! It strictly required breakthroughs to be done in seclusion.After all, failure meant losing everything. Attempting a breakthrough to the Darkstar Realm during a battle? That was sheer madness.But for Meng Chuan, although death was a possibility, with an eighty percent chance of success and the ability to save his wife, he would naturally choose this path.Moreover, this was the only way to save his wife.Facing a peak fourth-heaven demon king possessing the 'Dragon Water Domain,' he truly had no other options.

"Here we go!"Meng Chuan had no time to waste. The Blackrock Great Demon King would catch up to his wife very soon, so he had to break through incredibly fast.Instantly, his Essence Soul power completely merged with his Great Sun Realm true essence and also with his Dantian space.Within the vast Dantian space, a dazzling 'Great Sun' floated, emitting golden light, every wisp of which was Great Sun Realm true essence.Due to his cultivation of the body-refining lineage, Meng Chuan's physical body was exceptionally strong, with a profound foundation, making his Dantian space large enough. The 'Great Sun' within him had also reached its limit. Even throughout history, at the Great Sun Realm level, Meng Chuan's true essence was considered the most abundant and purest. Any further increase? The 'Great Sun' would completely collapse.

"Breakthrough."There was no time for second thoughts.His Essence Soul power merged into the 'Great Sun,' controlling countless golden rays, instantly activating them."Boom."Using the profound principles of Yin and Yang transformations he had comprehended from his 'Dao of the Blade,' the true essence accumulated within the 'Great Sun' erupted completely. The 'Great Sun's' light suddenly intensified a thousand, even ten thousand times, filling every corner of his Dantian space.This true essence erupted under Meng Chuan's guidance, reaching its peak, but then the core of the 'Great Sun' began to exert an attractive force.Yin arose from the extreme of Yang!"Contract." Essence Soul power manipulated the true essence to furiously contract, rapidly shrinking like a whirlpool. The contraction was so intense that the true essence solidified, condensing into a liquid, and then into a solid state.Though described slowly, the 'Great Sun' first erupted then contracted, eventually shrinking into an extremely small, dim sphere, countless times smaller than the previous Great Sun. The entire Dantian space grew dark.The solidified, dark red sphere faintly emanated tendrils of dark red energy, yet its might was awe-inspiring.This was the 'Darkstar.'