Chapter 1533: Xu Yang's True Intentions

As expected, Qianmo soon discovered that the earth-attribute elements around her became fragile. It felt as if the restrictive force of a swamp had been directly evaporated by intense heat.

This was equivalent to using high concentrations of necromantic energy to alter the environment for earth-attribute elements, fundamentally suppressing the circulation of earth-attribute power within Qianmo. It effectively severed her ability to control earth-attribute forces.

“Hahaha, how do you feel now? In my eyes, you are utterly useless because you can no longer wield the earth-attribute power that you were most proud of. Without your signature talent, I wonder what strength you have left to contend with me.”

Then, from the center of the blood-red skull, the Chief Elder suddenly spat out an incredibly chilling blade. This was a strangely shaped, blood-colored long saber, on whose blade was etched a ferocious skull. Brilliant necromantic energy swirled around the weapon, clearly indicating it was forged from the souls of countless living beings.

“I never expected such a lineage to exist among the Six Paths of Human Spirits. It seems the civilization upheld by the Kunlun Divine Path has gone astray. If it isn't adjusted within the shortest possible time, this civilization might, in just a few years, degenerate into a truly corrupt one. By then, who knows how many human cultivators will be harmed.”

Through his illusory body, Xu Yang understood all the energy changes within this localized battlefield, and naturally, he also saw through the true nature of this being who should not have existed in the world.

However, none of this diminished the immense destructive power of the opponent's assault. The blood-colored long saber shot forth without warning, locking firmly onto Qianmo's main body.

Xu Yang immediately sensed danger and decisively sent a psychic guide to Qianmo. Upon receiving Xu Yang's psychic energy, Qianmo unhesitatingly altered her physical form, abandoning her current human silhouette.

She immediately transformed into her complete giant serpent form. This was Qianmo's first transformation into her full serpent form since reaching the tenth-level Demon Saint realm.

A demon-beast physical body possesses superior offensive and defensive attributes and combat talents, making it ideal for countering necromantic energy laden with a heavy aura of death.

As expected, the Demon Saint in her giant serpent form was incomparable to the previous ninth-level Giant Serpent King. With a mere flick of her powerful tail, she was able to send the incredibly potent, murderous long saber flying away. This feat required an almost insurmountable level of defense.

Predictably, the Chief Elder had not anticipated that his long saber, tempered with the blood of endless lost souls, would fail to inflict significant damage. Gritting his teeth, the Chief Elder of the Netherworld lineage was enraged and finally decided to unleash his ultimate arcane technique ahead of time.

“Very well, since you are so stubborn, I shall make you understand the vast difference between us.”

In the next moment, the massive blood-red skull began to frantically devour all the surrounding purplish-black skulls, transforming them into the purest necromantic energy. Their essence was swallowed into the mouth of the enormous blood-red totem.

On one hand, this replenished him with even denser necromantic energy. On the other hand, the massive blood-red skull itself underwent a transformation, seemingly becoming a soft, gigantic face.

From its position in the void, it seemed to pull the entire sky, and for a moment, the entire localized battlefield's sky turned a bloody, crimson red. Qianmo's ears were filled with the endless, tortured screams and wails of unrestrained spirits, causing her immense spiritual interference.

Qianmo was originally a human-souled demon beast with deep obsessions. Now, facing such heavy interference from necromantic energy, she suddenly lost her abundant combat desire and became somewhat listless.

Her soul also fell into an extremely restless state. The most terrifying aspect of necromantic energy is its effect of decay and wilting on life force, along with its corrosive effect on human souls. Any one of these characteristics could inflict unimaginable harm on the girl.

“Damn it, this guy is indeed a formidable opponent.” His greatest advantage in mastering necromantic energy was his ability to perfectly conceal his weaknesses. For other opponents, no matter how powerful they might be, death always remained the greatest threat to any living being, and the easiest inner flaw to exploit.

However, for those of the Netherworld lineage, death was even a form of rebirth and a means to achieve eternal value.

For them, it had become an honor. Practitioners of necromantic techniques under such a premise had long transcended life and death, to the extent that every part of their physical bodies could be used as a bargaining chip for more potent necromantic power.

The enormous blood-red skull before them was the perfect embodiment of this situation. They could sacrifice everything they had to gain immense power; this was almost a lineage power that “harms a thousand enemies while incurring eight hundred self-inflicted wounds.”

Qianmo gritted her teeth, momentarily at a loss for what to do.

At this critical juncture, Xu Yang's soul voice transmitted once again.

“Don't get too caught up in resisting and breaking his necromantic power. You cannot deal with this kind of power in a short time. You only need to find the true location of his main body, hidden within these spectral illusions. Severely damaging his physical body will disrupt his control over necromantic energy.”

Xu Yang's words offered Qianmo a degree of enlightenment but also plunged her into new confusion.

“But even if I knew the true hiding place of his physical body, Your Excellency, I wouldn't have sufficient means to kill him with a single blow.”

Xu Yang chuckled softly and shook his head. “There’s no need to kill him directly. You only need to make him realize the disparity in power between you two. That will already be a victory on the spiritual level.”

Upon hearing Xu Yang's words, Qianmo immediately felt a surge of clarity. She had been overly fixated on finding a way to utterly kill her opponent, but from the perspective of a higher realm of understanding, killing an opponent and conquering an opponent were outcomes of completely different echelons.

What Xu Yang and the others needed most now was the latter. Otherwise, if everything could be resolved by simply crushing it, Xu Yang wouldn't need to rely on the demon race to personally intervene. He could simply employ supreme secret techniques to destroy all lineages of the entire Kunlun Divine Path.

But what benefit would that bring to the countless living beings?

Enlightened by Xu Yang's guidance, Qianmo finally developed a new combat strategy. She began continuously simplifying her cultivation methods, even weakening her own power, in order to gain stronger improvements in agility, significantly enhancing her mobility.