Your Spell Version is Too Low!

’They all give off a pulse. Do all these Netherworld Cultivators have Spiritual Objects on them?’

’And this pulse... it’s pointing to the [Skull Curse]?’

Clearly sensing the pulse coming from the Netherworld Cultivators, a faint smile couldn’t help but appear on Qi Yun’s indifferent face.

’What’s he smiling about?’

Noticing the strange smile on Qi Yun’s face, the group of Netherworld Cultivators felt a chill run down their spines.

That smile... it was the joy of a predator that had just found its prey.

’He’s all alone. Don’t tell me he actually wants to fight us?’

A brief, deathly silence spread through the standoff, and the air seemed to freeze.

Qi Yun attacked without hesitation!

He was actually planning to single-handedly slaughter all the Netherworld Cultivators before him!

"Has he gone mad?! He wants to take all of us on alone?!" one of the Netherworld Cultivators exclaimed in astonishment, barely able to believe his eyes.

However, Qi Yun’s attack was far more vicious and deadly than they could have ever imagined.

With a furious push of his will, the endless Abyssal Iron Sand surrounding him began to spin and grind against itself at an extremely high frequency.

The next moment.

Countless burning, rotating, crimson grains of iron sand transformed into a destructive metal storm, blasting indiscriminately toward all the Netherworld Cultivators ahead.

Each pellet contained the terrifying kinetic energy and searing heat to pierce through solid gold and stone!

The Netherworld Cultivators, who had never seen such a bizarre and ferocious method of attack, had their expressions change drastically, but their reactions were also extremely fast.

"Yin Swamp, rise!"

The leader shouted sharply. The dozen or so of them almost simultaneously formed spell signs, and a dense Yin Death Qi surged into the sky.

In an instant, a rift leading to the Yin Netherworld was torn in the void before them.

Countless pale, swollen, and even decaying arms frantically reached out from it. They layered and intertwined, instantly forming a massive, twisted bulwark of ghostly hands that stood firm before them!

PFFT! PFFT! PFFT! PFFT!—!

A frenzied sound of impacts, as dense as rain on banana leaves, rang out.

The crimson iron sand pellets viciously hammered into the pale, ghostly hand barrier, erupting in countless sparks and scorched marks. Bone fragments and Yin Qi flew everywhere.

The ghostly hand barrier trembled violently, but it managed to withstand the first wave of the incredibly ferocious bombardment.

"Hmph! Is that all you’ve got?" Having blocked the attack, a savage glint flashed in one Netherworld Cultivator’s eyes. He immediately cast a counter-spell, and the others simultaneously channeled their True Qi.

Twisted, sinister, visible gray-black soundwaves chorused from their mouths. Like life-reaping ripples, they ignored physical barriers and struck directly at the Divine Soul, blasting toward Qi Yun.

The Yellow Springs Netherworld was most proficient in methods of Divine Soul Attack.

But just as the sinister soundwaves were about to touch "Qi Yun"...

The "Qi Yun" who had been standing there, the one who had just launched the terrifying attack, suddenly blurred like a reflection in water or a flower in a mirror.

Then, with a soft POP, it shattered completely, turning into a wispy, slowly dissipating cloud of azure smoke.

"What?!"

"An Illusion Body?"

"When did he—!"

The savage sneers on the faces of all the Netherworld Cultivators froze instantly, replaced by utter astonishment.

A ghostly figure had already appeared silently behind them.

"Li Fire falls to chaos, a demon’s thought becomes the core.

With heresy, command the righteous; through reversal, refine Bing and Ding.

The heart’s flame burns the Dao, and the Sword Demon is born.

Slaughter heaven and sunder earth, let all of creation burn as one."

’Nanming Sword Demon...’

"...Fully unleashed!!!"

As he rapidly chanted the spell, Qi Yun’s entire body, from the inside out, abruptly transformed into a violently burning, twisting, and rising humanoid flame of purplish-red.

BOOM!!!

Endless Nanming Demon Fire surged madly from his body but did not disperse.

Instead, it highly condensed, compressed, and took shape behind him.

In the blink of an eye, it formed a massive "ring of light" composed of countless terrifying Sword Qi, each condensed to the extreme and burning with raging Demon Fire.

The Sword Wheel Light Ring rotated slowly. Each strand of Sword Qi emitted a hum that pierced the Divine Soul, radiating an ultimate sharpness capable of incinerating all things and sundering all illusions.

The next instant!

Countless streams of Sword Qi, cloaked in destructive Nanming Demon Fire, surged forward like a nine-heavens flood bursting its dams, crushing everything before them.

Wherever the Sword Qi passed, the air was completely vaporized, leaving behind twisted scorch marks!

"Not good!!"

"Block it, quickly!"

Only now did the Netherworld Cultivators feel the fatal threat, their scalps instantly tingling with terror.

Roaring, they frantically channeled the Yinming True Qi in their bodies. All sorts of Defensive Magical Artifacts, Protective Ghost Techniques, and Yin Energy Barriers lit up in an attempt to block the destructive torrent.

But faced with the fully unleashed [Nanming Sword Demon], all of it seemed pale and powerless.

TSSSSSSSS—

The Sword Qi, imbued with Demon Fire that specialized in countering illusions and evil spirits, easily tore through the Netherworld Cultivators’ techniques.

Their defenses were like butter under a hot knife—pierced, torn, and incinerated!

The streams of Sword Qi effortlessly penetrated their Body Protection Techniques, ripped apart their Magic Robes, and the Demon Fire mercilessly burned their flesh, meridians, and even their souls.

In a single exchange, the dozen or so elite cultivators of the Yellow Springs Netherworld were sent flying by the utterly unstoppable, terrifying attack.

Every one of them was charred black, their wounds grotesque, and their auras instantly weakened to the extreme.

They were completely and grievously injured, with no strength left to fight.

He had defeated all the Netherworld Cultivators in a single blow!

But the second after he unleashed this devastating attack, the overwhelming demonic Sword Momentum on Qi Yun receded as quickly as the tide.

He abruptly deactivated the [Nanming Sword Demon] state, revealing his true body.

At this moment, thick white steam rolled off his entire body, and the veins on his temples throbbed violently, giving him an exceptionally fearsome appearance.

Between his brows, a strange black energy flickered in and out of existence, squirming like a living thing and emitting an aura of madness and tyranny.

’The power of the Nanming Sword Demon is too immense. Unleashing it at full strength actually caused my Heart Demon to stir... It almost made me fall into the Demon Dao of indiscriminate slaughter...’

Taking a deep breath, he forcibly circulated his True Qi to suppress the surging evil thoughts. Qi Yun waved his hand, and three White Bone Skeletons flew out, cackling grotesquely as they shot toward the now-defenseless group of Netherworld Cultivators.

Bone and Marrow Extraction!

As streams of incomparably pure Cultivation were transferred to him, Qi Yun’s pale complexion gradually improved, and his chaotic Heart and Spirit stabilized.

"Haaa..." He let out a long breath of Muddy Qi. After absorbing the power of more than a dozen Netherworld Cultivators, Qi Yun’s depleted aura returned to its peak, and had even advanced.

Although he hadn’t broken through to the Qi Refining Sixth Layer, his True Qi Cultivation had risen to another level.

"It was a bit risky, but the rewards were plentiful." Glancing at the number on the back of his hand, Qi Yun couldn’t help but reveal a satisfied smile.

[14,936]

"This is way more Spirit Points than I get from killing those disgusting poisonous insects." He mused with a smile, then turned his gaze to the pile of Storage Pouches before him.

Almost every single one of these Storage Pouches was emitting that familiar pulse!

And they all pointed to... the [Skull Curse].

...

PS: The novel goes up for sale tomorrow! I’m truly grateful for all the support from my friends during this time. Without you all, I wouldn’t have had the motivation to keep writing. So tomorrow, I’m hoping you can support me with that first subscription. It would be a huge morale boost and give me the confidence to continue. Thank you all so much!