Wasted Spiritual Root to Embark on Demonic Cultivation

Chapter 426

This brat.

As arrogant as ever.

“So you’re called Violet Lightning? Then I’ll play with you.”

With multiple Nascent Soul cultivators fighting, no matter how refined the construction materials of Withered Leaf City were, they could not withstand devastation at this level. Once Taihu’s reinforcements fully arrived, the entire city would be reduced to ruins.

Thus, in the alley battles below, whether Taihu cultivators or Crimson Kite cultivators, all were fleeing for their lives. Even when flying, none dared rise above three zhang, afraid of drawing the attention of Nascent Soul experts.

Wang Yu took the initiative and charged at Violet Lightning. His flesh-and-blood demonic sword swept upward in a lifting slash.

His Asura Dao Intent condensed automatically.

Killing intent and battle intent intertwined. Frigid demonic essence gathered into a terrifying sword qi capable of cleaving mountains and splitting seas. Its might was overwhelming, impossible to withstand.

This was the power of a fourth-rank supreme-grade magic treasure. Its ultimate spatial severing attribute rendered all defensive methods as frail as thin paper.

Decades ago, in the battle outside Strange Peak Pass, Violet Lightning had been inferior to him, but the difference had not been so obvious. Now, with magic treasure, brute force, cultivation realm, and an over-spec Dao Intent combined, even a casual swing of Wang Yu’s sword made Violet Lightning’s heart and gall tremble.

Wang Yu possessed far too many and far too powerful methods of crossing realms.

Even after sacrificing his life-bound treasure, the Violet Lightning Whip, in an attempt to block the incoming sword qi, he still failed.

It was failure like a mantis trying to stop a chariot.

The lightning-flashing bladed whip was instantly severed by the demonic sword. Just as the sword qi was about to pass through Violet Lightning’s body, a thunderclap exploded out of thin air.

A bolt of lightning split down from the heavens, enveloping Violet Lightning completely. When the sword qi struck the lightning mantle, it tore it apart for a brief instant before it rapidly healed.

The destruction of his life-bound treasure caused Violet Lightning’s face to turn pale.

At the same time, he looked around in uncertainty. Only then did he notice a lightning talisman glowing at his chest. It was this talisman that had summoned the thunder. Recognizing the familiar power, he blurted out: “Father?”

Wang Yu frowned and instantly retreated a hundred zhang.

The yin clouds drawn by demonic qi were dispersed by the new force, transforming instead into thunderclouds bearing divine sense fluctuations. A colossal face formed from lightning rapidly emerged.

The aura it revealed had clearly reached late-stage Nascent Soul, and not merely an initial entry. It was very likely at the great perfection realm.

In this world, there were ultimately far too many powerful experts.

This sudden change caused fighting across the battlefield to cease immediately. Fire Ghost Old Demon, Dark Demon Barbarian Lord, Dark Tiger Demon Lord, and the Thunder Corpse all gathered behind Wang Yu.

On the other side, Burning Heart, Liuying, Purple Cloud, and Flame Dragon Lord stood in a row beside Violet Lightning, staring gravely at the demonic cultivators.

After a moment of silence, the thunderous giant face spoke first. His gaze lingered meaningfully on Wang Yu.

“Demonic cultivators. Have you heard of this lord, Heavenly Capital Thunder Lord?”

Heavenly Capital?

Fire Ghost Old Demon was extremely wary and transmitted his voice to Wang Yu.

“Heavenly Capital Thunder Lord is the Dao Head of the Heavenly Thunder lineage of Thunderfire Temple. He once dueled the Vast Righteousness Sword Chief of the Sword Sect and fought for seven days and seven nights, losing by only a single move.

“Among late-stage Nascent Soul great perfection experts, he ranks among the very top. Do not act rashly.”

Wang Yu immediately understood. No wonder Violet Lightning had been so arrogant, not even giving face to Lei Yao. So he had such a towering backer.

He replied via voice transmission: “Relax. This is only a divine sense projection. Its power is limited.”

“But do not forget, we are within Taihu’s spiritual domain. If his true body uses a hidden teleportation formation to rush over, with the speed of a lightning-path cultivator, it may not take long.”

“Understood.”

Having assessed the situation, Wang Yu raised his voice and said:

“Heavenly Capital Senior’s great name is naturally thunderous to us juniors. Appearing now, are you intending to preserve your son’s life?”

The thunder giant face’s expression darkened slightly as he said calmly:

“Withdraw from Withered Leaf City immediately, and this Dao Head will spare your lives. Get lost.”

The final word boomed like heavenly thunder exploding beside the ear.

It left heads spinning and divine senses in disarray.

“Hmph.”

Relying on his profound divine sense foundation, Wang Yu recovered in less than half a breath and replied coldly:

“I called you Senior out of courtesy, yet you truly take yourself as some grand figure. In this world, the victor is king and the loser bandit. Your true body is not here. Do you really think a mere divine sense projection can reverse the situation?”

Since the other party had not immediately attacked, Wang Yu concluded that Heavenly Capital Thunder Lord lacked certainty and did not dare to act recklessly. He had merely tested them using Violet Lightning’s life.

Now there was no need for restraint.

Having been perfected to complete form, his fourth-rank divine ability, Soul-Extinguishing Death Light, was deployed for the first time in combat at this level. Gray divine light imbued with annihilation intent shot toward the thunder giant face in defiance of heaven itself.

Not only were Fire Ghost Old Demon and Dark Tiger shocked by his audacity, even Purple Cloud and the others were baffled.

“Has he gone mad? That is Heavenly Capital Thunder Lord. If not for the limitations of his cultivation technique, there would be a seat for him among the world’s Venerable Ones.”

“With Senior Heavenly Capital here, the situation has already turned.”

“These demonic scum are absolutely no match for my father.”

That final remark was spoken by Violet Lightning. A moment ago he had been terrified out of his wits. Now that the threat of death had receded, his arrogant, hedonistic nature resurfaced without restraint.

He even had the leisure to mock Wang Yu and the others.

Only Flame Dragon Lord Xiao Fulong and Liuying exchanged a subtle glance. Each saw the intent to retreat in the other’s eyes.

In what seemed like an instant, the Soul-Extinguishing Death Ray collided violently with the gigantic face of lightning. Thunder scattered in all directions while the gray light of death continued spreading. The aura belonging to Heavenly Capital Thunder Lord weakened rapidly.

“A flashy fake that cannot withstand a single blow.”

“Kill!”

Wang Yu’s head-on, unyielding temperament shocked the other demonic cultivators even further. As they came to understand him better, both fear and nostalgia rose in their hearts.

Once upon a time, they too had been so decisive and ruthless.

But after remaining in the Nascent Soul realm for many years, they had grown increasingly protective of their lives. Now that Wang Yu stood at the front, as long as they did not touch that youth called Violet Lightning, they likely would not incur the wrath of Heavenly Capital.

Thus, each sought out an opponent and reengaged.

Old Demon Fire Ghost chose Flame Dragon Lord Xiao Fulong this time. Both were fire-path cultivators. One cultivated dragon fire, the other crimson yin fire. Their cultivation levels were similar, making it a clash of needle against wheat tip.

At first glance, the two seemed evenly matched.

In truth, Xiao Fulong was slightly stronger. Whether in flame mastery or physical strength, he far surpassed Old Demon Fire Ghost.

Dark Tiger Demon Lord, in his fused state, took on Purple Cloud, effectively swapping opponents with Fire Ghost. For him, this was good news. At least he would not be beaten so badly.

Burning Heart faced Dark Demon.

Liuying confronted the Thunder Corpse.

Thus, only Violet Lightning and Wang Yu remained in the center of the battlefield.

Violet Lightning’s expression was incomparably grim. Inwardly, he continuously called out his father’s name.

The wise submit to circumstances. Once he realized he was utterly no match for Wang Yu, Violet Lightning clearly understood that if he wanted to live, he could only rely on his father.

Crack. Crack. Crack.

The surrounding temperature plummeted. Black ice spears rapidly condensed in the air. In the blink of an eye, they lit up the sky like countless stars. With a single thought from Wang Yu, the spears shot forth in unison.

Though the lightning giant face had been eroded by the Soul-Extinguishing Death Light, it could still hold on for a while longer.

Seeing his direct descendant in mortal danger, Heavenly Capital finally grew anxious.

The thundercloud formed from his gathered divine sense exploded violently.

A sea of lightning surged upward, arcs of electricity scattering in every direction. Half of Withered Leaf City was blasted into blackened powder like charcoal. When the wind blew, it looked as though black snow were falling.

Both beautiful and desolate.

Violet Lightning’s eyes changed. From clear and vacant, they became deep and icy. The divine sense of Heavenly Capital Thunder Lord had clearly poured into Violet Lightning’s body, taking control of it.

The difference was immediate.

Seizing the momentum of the boiling lightning sea, ten thousand lightning serpents leapt forth and collided with the canopy of ice spears, annihilating each other without clear victor.

Some divine abilities required special spiritual materials to cultivate because they altered the body itself.

When Heavenly Capital Thunder Lord borrowed his descendant’s body in this manner, certain powers could not be fully unleashed. He could only deepen what was possible based on Violet Lightning’s physical shell.

It was similar to Wang Yu seizing a new body.

His Body-Refinement cultivation would vanish. His Taiyin Nether Eyes, corpse demon secret arts, and even the demonic essence stored within his Qi sea would all disappear.

Only the essence of the Nascent Soul would remain, forcing him to start cultivation anew.

Though his realm and experience would allow him to progress much faster than the first time, it would still be a troublesome process.

What Heavenly Capital was doing now was no less than possession.

The only difference was that his method was temporary, using bloodline as a bond to perform this secret art. In certain situations, its effect was extremely powerful.

It was widely used to protect descendants. In secret realms that restricted cultivation ceilings, one could descend in this manner, stir up chaos, and seize benefits. Its applicability was broad.

The ice spear barrage had been neutralized, yet Wang Yu remained indifferent.

It had only been a probing strike.

His figure flickered, and thousands of Aurora phantom bodies stepped out from within him. Ice Soul Divine Light erupted suddenly. Azure beams shot forth like searchlights, densely converging upon “Violet Lightning.”

Beam-type divine abilities were reputed to have the fastest attack speed among all techniques. Within the same realm, they were nearly impossible to dodge.

Yet “Violet Lightning” forcibly found a safe path among the countless beams. His body transformed into lightning, weaving and flashing. Not even the corner of his robe was touched.

“What exquisite Lightning Escape Technique.”

“Thunder, come!”

Humiliated and mocked by a junior, “Violet Lightning” had no intention of exchanging words. His right hand clenched. Heavenly lightning descended and was constrained in his grasp, forming a thunder spear.

In an instant, it locked onto Wang Yu’s true body and shot forward.

Wang Yu countered with a slash of his flesh-and-blood demonic sword. Crimson sword qi collided with the thunder spear, and both were annihilated midair.

The power was the same as before, yet now it carried an additional layer of intent.

Lightning Dao Intent?

Wang Yu was not entirely certain. He stomped fiercely on the void beneath his feet, activating his Silver Blood divine strength. The air exploded with a deafening sonic boom.

His Force Domain fused with the flesh-and-blood demonic sword. [T/N: Changing Strength Domain to Force Domain from now on]

Though he did not practice sword arts, he was thoroughly familiar with how to unleash the power of a magic treasure. Even if Heavenly Capital Thunder Lord had seized control of Violet Lightning’s body and could draw out greater strength, he was still constrained by Violet Lightning’s physical vessel.

In Wang Yu’s eyes, even if one had mastered Great Accomplishment-level Dao Intent, so what? Being able to contend with an ordinary mid-stage Nascent Soul cultivator only proved that Violet Lightning’s foundation was insufficient.

He refused to believe that under such circumstances, the opponent could still unleash the power of a late-stage Nascent Soul great cultivator.

After this clash, lightning and aurora collided relentlessly, thunderous detonations echoing without end.

On the other battlefields, Fire Ghost was gradually unable to hold on. He was no match for Xiao Fulong. Meanwhile, the situation for Dark Demon and Dark Tiger was overwhelmingly favorable. Judging from the flow of battle, at most the time it took an incense stick to burn would decide one side.

The one holding the greatest advantage, however, was the Thunder Corpse.

This corpse was ferocious beyond measure and had been nourished to maturity with the flesh and blood of a Nascent Soul cultivator. Although Lady Liuying was not weak, the city’s grand formation had been broken earlier, damaging her vitality.

Lightning was also among the top-ranked forces in offensive power.

If this continued, she would likely be the first to fall.

The giant silver shears clashed repeatedly against the supremely yang and supremely firm lightning power. Suddenly, the Thunder Corpse threw its head back and roared. The corpse howl mixed with thunderous resonance, producing a soul-shaking effect.

Seeing this, Wang Yu employed a high-level divine sense technique of the Heavenly Soul Sect.

Split Mind, Divide Thought.

Fourth-rank Ice Chi Pill Flame surged from within his body, transforming into a pale blue ice-flame dragon. The separated sub-consciousness seized the opportunity and rammed headlong toward Lady Liuying.

The pill flame contained both extreme cold and extreme heat, two opposing forces fused together.

Combined with the suddenness of the sneak attack, Liuying let out a shrill scream. Her physical body turned to charred black ash, then was instantly sealed within ice. A delicate and miniature female nascent soul escaped from the ruined flesh.

Her Nascent Soul immediately activated a teleportation spatial shifting technique.

Wang Yu was cold-hearted by nature. He never showed mercy based on gender or appearance. The secret art Lock of Heaven, which he had prepared in advance, triggered at once, sealing ten li of surrounding space.

This moment of delay caused Liuying’s teleportation to fail, and she suffered backlash.

At the same time, Wang Yu’s true body was struck by “Violet Lightning’s” lightning.

Under normal circumstances, if someone had intervened at this moment, Liuying might still have had a chance to live.

But Purple Cloud, her pursuer, was utterly pale with shock.

His will to fight completely collapsed. First battered by Old Demon Fire Ghost, then restrained by Dark Tiger, and even the descending divine sense of Heavenly Capital Thunder Lord had failed to subdue the demonic cultivators.

The thought of retreat had long lingered in his mind.

Liuying’s failed Nascent Soul teleportation became the final straw. With his spirit broken and realizing the presence of Lock of Heaven, his rationality collapsed entirely.

He fled.

Without the slightest hesitation, he endured a vicious bite from Dark Tiger, half his arm torn away, and madly escaped toward the depths of Taihu.

Xiao Fulong’s expression changed drastically. Furious, he spat, “Useless trash. What a waste of the Nascent Soul your father left you.”

As his words fell, nine thick pillars of molten lava erupted from underground, briefly blocking Fire Ghost Old Demon. Xiao Fulong transformed into a streak of firelight and vanished into the dark clouds.

Torrential rain poured down.

Taihu’s situation deteriorated sharply.

One had their physical body annihilated, their Nascent Soul devoured by the Thunder Corpse, imprisoned within its abdomen by fiendish and corpse qi, not yet extinguished.

Two others fled in succession, leaving only True Lord Burning Heart of Thunderfire Temple. He too sank into despair.

Xiao Fulong could escape because he suppressed Fire Ghost.

Purple Cloud could escape because Dark Tiger Demon Lord was only at the third layer of the Nascent Soul realm. The gap between early and mid-stage was enormous. Even when fusing with a yin beast, they were only evenly matched.

But him?

He was no match for Dark Demon Barbarian Lord at all. There was no possibility of holding off the enemy and retreating safely. Especially after two had fled, Fire Ghost and Dark Tiger seemed to ignore “Violet Lightning” entirely.

They charged straight at him.

One against three?

That was giving him too much credit.

Burning Heart’s heart turned to ashes. As Dark Demon’s fist smashed toward him, inspiration suddenly flashed through his mind. He deliberately endured the punch.

His flesh and bones shattered instantly, his physical body destroyed by the barbarian’s blow. Yet the force of the impact propelled him violently beyond the ten-li radius sealed by Lock of Heaven.

Without hesitation, he abandoned his body.

His Nascent Soul emerged, activating teleportation. It turned into a streak of silver light and was swallowed by a tear in space, vanishing without a trace.

He too escaped, at the cost of his original body.

His potential was drastically reduced. Breaking through to mid-stage Nascent Soul in the future would become extraordinarily difficult. Truly catastrophic misfortune.

With their targets gone, Dark Demon Barbarian Lord landed and collected what Burning Heart had left behind. The three exchanged glances and turned toward Wang Yu.

Yet none made a move.

The outcome had been decided in a short span of time. There was no need to offend Heavenly Capital Thunder Lord further. The righteous-demonic war was not yet over. Being targeted by a Great Perfection cultivator at this stage would bring more loss than gain.

Wang Yu did not care in the slightest.