Chapter 2641: Escape

After cultivators reach the Integration stage, their meridians expand, allowing them to hold more spiritual power. In addition, their divine souls also grow stronger.

For cultivators below the Integration stage, if their physical body is destroyed, their divine soul attaches to their Nascent Soul and they escape together. If the Nascent Soul is destroyed, they perish completely. However, once they reach the Integration stage, if their physical body is destroyed, both the Nascent Soul and the divine soul can escape separately.

Wang Changsheng naturally wouldn't believe such words. If they were truly to have restrictions placed upon them by the opponent, they would be like fish on a chopping block, entirely at the mercy of others.

He took a deep breath and let out a roar that echoed across a hundred thousand miles.

The void vibrated and warped as vast numbers of low-level demonic beasts surfaced. Demonic fish and shrimp covered the sea, their sheer numbers enough to make one's scalp tingle.

True Monarch Jinhong acted as if he heard nothing, completely unaffected.

Wang Changsheng frowned. It was one thing for Lin Shuo to possess a treasure that countered divine sense attacks, but True Monarch Jinhong had one too?

"A divine sense attack? I've long prepared for this move of yours. Since you don't know what's good for you, I'll send you on your way."

True Monarch Jinhong sneered, took out a small, light-golden bell, and gently shook it.

"Clang! Clang! Clang!"

A series of loud bell chimes rang out, spreading across tens of thousands of miles.

Wang Changsheng's expression remained normal, but Wang Ruyan let out a muffled groan and fell from the sky.

The void vibrated and warped as countless golden lights emerged, transforming into numerous golden flying swords that sliced through the air, heading straight for Wang Ruyan.

At the same time, a gigantic humanoid phantom appeared above True Monarch Jinhong's head. Golden light shot from both eyes of the phantom, and it also opened its mouth to spray out a beam of golden light.

The golden light blurred and vanished.

Wang Changsheng had escaped from Integration stage cultivators before, but those were members of the Witch Tribe, and at that time, he had used the distance to allow the Mirage Dragon to create illusions.

Ripples spread across the void in front of Wang Changsheng, and a golden light suddenly appeared, shooting straight for his forehead.

Wang Changsheng didn't know what kind of divine ability this was and dared not block it directly. He summoned a long azure-glowing halberd and struck at the golden light.

"Clang!"

With a dull thud of metal clashing, the azure halberd flew backward. The spot where it was struck by the golden light turned golden, and before long, the entire azure halberd had transformed into a golden halberd.

Transmute Objects into Gold!

Wang Changsheng formed a hand seal, and the golden halberd trembled slightly, swaying unsteadily.

Two beams of golden light shot forth, instantly appearing before Wang Changsheng.

Wang Changsheng dared not confront them directly. With a movement of his fists, dense azure fist shadows shot out, shattering the two golden lights.

With a flash of golden light, a massive, shimmering golden hand appeared out of thin air. Cries of battle soared to the heavens, and the clang of swords and blades resounded in Wang Changsheng's ears, making his eardrums throb.

True Monarch Jinhong sneered, thinking that even if Wang Changsheng was a body cultivator, he would be crippled if not killed by a direct hit.

Wang Changsheng was protected by his Golden Roc Pendant and remained completely unaffected. He swung his Grand Vast Spirit-Slaying Blade and met the attack.

With a "clang," Wang Changsheng was sent flying backward, his internal qi and blood churning. An Integration stage cultivator's spiritual power was far more abundant than his, and the divine abilities they unleashed were much more potent.

Wang Changsheng sensed something and his body flickered. A beam of golden light grazed past him, leaving a terrifying bloody gash on his left arm that bled profusely, with the white bone faintly visible.

His physical body could withstand low-grade Sky-reaching Spirit Treasures, so the golden light's power was considerable. If his physical body hadn't been strong, Wang Changsheng's left arm would likely have been severed.

A flicker of surprise crossed True Monarch Jinhong's eyes. For an ordinary Void Refinement cultivator, that arm would have long been broken. Wang Changsheng's body cultivation was quite impressive.

A blue light glowed on Wang Ruyan's chest, and a thick blue water curtain appeared out of thin air. The dense golden flying swords struck it, producing dull "thudding" sounds.

Picking the softest target, True Monarch Jinhong intended to eliminate Wang Ruyan first, then deal with Wang Changsheng.

His attack unsuccessful, True Monarch Jinhong was about to unleash another divine ability when a loud gong sound rang out.

The Soul-Shaking Gong!

The sound of the gong spread across tens of thousands of miles. Wang Xiangrong had already fled when Wang Changsheng was dealing with Lin Shuo; this was part of Wang Changsheng's plan.

Wang Ruyan had already affixed a Heavenly Soul Spirit-Protecting Talisman, and a dark light enveloped her entire body.

Even with the Heavenly Soul Spirit-Protecting Talisman, Wang Ruyan still felt some discomfort.

Whether it was a talisman or a treasure, it could only weaken the attack's power. If the caster's cultivation was too high, one would still be injured even with protective treasures.

If Wang Changsheng cultivated to the Mahayana stage and unleashed the Soul-Suppressing Roar, True Monarch Jinhong would still be injured, even with protective treasures.

True Monarch Jinhong was not so fortunate. Treasures for divine soul attacks were quite rare, mainly because the materials were hard to find. Heavenly Soul Stones, when refined into divine soul attack treasures, were not very powerful, and Profound Soul God Crystals were extremely rare.

He possessed treasures that weakened divine sense attacks, but none that weakened divine soul attacks; talismans for that were even rarer.

True Monarch Jinhong let out a muffled groan and fell from the sky, suffering no small amount of injury.

The sea surface surged violently, raising towering waves, each more turbulent than the last, ceaselessly crashing towards True Monarch Jinhong.

Five massive water tornadoes shot skyward, completely surrounding True Monarch Jinhong. Simultaneously, a colossal whirlpool, over a hundred thousand zhang in diameter, appeared on the sea surface. A powerful suction force pulled True Monarch Jinhong towards the seabed.

True Monarch Jinhong let out a cold snort, formed a hand seal, and the humanoid phantom roared, spraying out a shimmering golden mist that enveloped the whirlpool and water tornadoes below.

Wherever the golden mist passed, everything was frozen in place.

A loud dragon roar echoed, spreading across a hundred thousand miles.

True Monarch Jinhong felt the environment before him suddenly change. He abruptly found himself on a battlefield, with two Witch Tribe cultivators charging towards him.

"An illusion!"

True Monarch Jinhong was greatly alarmed. He was an early Integration stage cultivator; to be so easily trapped in an illusion, could this be a high-grade Sky-reaching Spirit Treasure?

True Monarch Jinhong's expression turned cold. His body erupted with golden light as he activated his Dharma Idol, attacking his surroundings.

Less than a quarter of an hour later, the illusion was broken, and True Monarch Jinhong escaped. Wang Changsheng and Wang Ruyan had already vanished.

True Monarch Jinhong extended his divine sense to its fullest, but found no trace of Wang Changsheng and Wang Ruyan. They had clearly escaped beyond his divine sense range.

He took out a golden, shimmering Dharma plate, cast a hand seal into it, and said in a deep voice, "Fellow Daoist Sun, I've discovered two Witch Tribe spies. They possess critical intelligence and are in this sea area. Immediately blockade this area and fully pursue them. One is male, a body cultivator, and one is female, a sound cultivator."

"Escaped from you? You must be joking!"

A man's voice, slightly astonished, rang out.

"They acquired True Monarch Xiaoyao's Soul-Shaking Gong and also mastered a powerful illusionary divine ability. Had it not been for that, how could I have let them escape? Alright, immediately send people to blockade this sea area. We must capture them."

"What? The Soul-Shaking Gong? I'll issue orders right away."

True Monarch Jinhong put away the Dharma plate, transformed into a golden streak of light, and vanished into the horizon.

Deep underwater, beneath the seabed.

Wang Changsheng, Wang Ruyan, and Wang Xiangrong lay on the back of the Dual-Pupil Rat. The rat moved swiftly across the seabed. Wang Xiangrong's face was pale, and his aura was weak.

Wang Changsheng's left arm was still bleeding profusely. Had it not been for the Soul-Shaking Gong, they wouldn't have been able to escape at all.

It was likely that the enemy would immediately blockade this sea area. Setting up formations would take time, and due to the ongoing war, there shouldn't be many formation masters left behind. They needed to escape this place as quickly as possible.