Undying Life

Chapter 940: More Dominant Than the Mist of Red Luan

"Stop, let me handle Zhong Shan alone!" Burning Lamp cried out in despair. He couldn't afford any more chaos; another disruption and he would surely fall back to the Ancient Immortal realm.

Burning Lamp's words were exactly what Sima Yuan and the leader of the Purple Cloud Sect wanted to hear.

Sima Yuan didn't dare move, frustrated that Yellow Dragon seemed on the verge of collapse. The distant yellow mist was too far away, making it extremely difficult to absorb.

The leader of the Purple Cloud Sect was equally frustrated. Every encounter with Zhong Shan resulted in his misfortune. His spear had just broken, and attacking Zhong Shan again with a shield seemed absurd.

As Burning Lamp prepared to eliminate Zhong Shan alone, Zhong Shan wasn't idle. A torrent of dark energy surged from his Emperor's Diagram, engulfing the surroundings. The entire area turned blood red, and endless ghosts screamed in torment within the dark energy.

Zhong Shan knew that after the sinister eye's display, Yellow Dragon, Burning Lamp, and the leader of the Purple Cloud Sect were surrounded by misfortune. While their strength hadn't decreased, they were under a significant omen of bad luck. He needed to stall for time—the longer he delayed, the worse their luck would become.

The overwhelming dark energy flooded the area, completely obscuring the entire mountain and blocking the powerhouses' vision. Zhong Shan swiftly moved towards the Qiankun Cauldron, intending to take it and leave quickly.

"Trying to escape?" Burning Lamp roared.

He thrust his hand out, and a wave of red energy formed in the void, pressing towards Zhong Shan, forcibly dispersing the dark energy.

Zhong Shan's expression changed. The Emperor's Diagram unfolded rapidly, and the severely injured Eight Extremes Heavenly Tail re-emerged, barely recovered, and the four Immortal Execution Swords met the attack head-on.

"Boom～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～!"

Burning Lamp now commanded the power of the heavenly way. Under its might, everything was an illusion.

The dark energy exploded, scattering. The four Immortal Execution Swords of the Eight Extremes Heavenly Tail bent under the impact, nearly breaking. The red energy struck the Eight Extremes Heavenly Tail, causing it to tremble violently, almost shattering. Zhong Shan managed to retract it into his Niwan Palace at the last moment, preventing it from being obliterated.

Even so, the Eight Extremes Heavenly Tail was now critically injured, barely hanging on.

Although the red energy diminished significantly, it still aggressively impacted the Emperor's Diagram.

With a loud noise, most of it was transmitted to the netherworld, but a powerful shockwave still reached Zhong Shan through the Emperor's Diagram.

The tremor of the heavenly way was terrifying. Even a small amount was too much for Zhong Shan to withstand.

Demonic Body Tempering! Seventh Layer!

"Rumble!"

Zhong Shan reached his strongest state, but even then, the tremor from the heavenly way was too much for him. His bones creaked as if they were all breaking.

With sheer willpower, Zhong Shan forced himself to stay upright, staring coldly at Burning Lamp.

Since the dawn of time, Zhong Shan had never been this severely injured!

Zhong Shan was hurt, but Burning Lamp was in worse shape. Using the power of the heavenly way while his realm was unstable caused him to be repelled by the heavenly way, shaking his realm even more.

Burning Lamp's face turned pale, realizing he couldn't move anymore. Another strike would definitely push him back to the Ancient Immortal realm.

The difference between the Ancient Immortal and Ancestral Immortal realms might seem like just one step, but Burning Lamp had been stuck at this level for hundreds of thousands of years, reincarnating three times before finally breaking through. Was he really going to fall back again?

A green lantern fell upon his head, forming a strong protective barrier. Burning Lamp sat down cross-legged, beginning to stabilize his realm with a tearful expression.

This scene, witnessed by Sima Yuan and the leader of the Purple Cloud Sect, made it seem as though Zhong Shan had again managed to cause Burning Lamp significant trouble! Was Zhong Shan a monster? How had he managed that?

Yellow Dragon, in a bid to avoid collapsing, continuously absorbed the distant yellow mist. The leader of the Purple Cloud Sect, although charred and severely injured, and having suffered the collapse of his world and a severe hit to his spiritual consciousness, was undeniably the most free to act at this moment and still powerful enough to overpower Zhong Shan.

Kill Zhong Shan?

The leader of the Purple Cloud Sect hesitated. Could he kill Zhong Shan in his current state? Did Zhong Shan still have more tricks up his sleeve?

Zhong Shan ignored the hesitant leader of the Purple Cloud Sect and slowly walked to the Qiankun Cauldron. Gently lifting it, he began to float leisurely in one direction.

The leader of the Purple Cloud Sect, seeing Zhong Shan about to leave, steeled his resolve and prepared to chase after him.

"Bang!"

The storage bracelet on his wrist suddenly exploded, completely disintegrating. The explosion seemed to trigger an old injury from long ago, causing it to flare up at the worst possible moment.

Filled with frustration, the leader of the Purple Cloud Sect hurriedly stabilized his injuries.

"My Yellow Dragon is falling apart. Quickly, forget about Zhong Shan for now! He's as good as crippled in his current state. Within this grand formation, he can't escape. Leader of the Purple Cloud Sect, absorb the yellow mist, merge it with Yellow Dragon, and together, let's stabilize Yellow Dragon. We'll eliminate Burning Lamp and then take the Qiankun Cauldron!" Sima Yuan shouted.

Sima Yuan's idea was sound. If they could control Yellow Dragon and eliminate the severely injured Burning Lamp, Zhong Shan would be at their mercy. The Walled Dragon Formation sealed off all exits—no one could escape, not even Zhong Shan at his peak, let alone now.

The leader of the Purple Cloud Sect nodded, albeit reluctantly. Although he coveted the Qiankun Cauldron, he knew they could claim it later. Their priority was to deal with Burning Lamp first.

Zhong Shan, carrying the Qiankun Cauldron, flew into the distance, quickly disappearing from sight and entering the yellow mist.

The yellow mist, which couldn't affect Zhong Shan in his prime, now continuously damaged his heavily injured body.

After only a short while in the yellow mist, Zhong Shan felt intense pain all over his body.

He quickly moved towards the Qiankun Cauldron.

The moment Zhong Shan entered the Qiankun Cauldron, his eyes widened.

The two women he had thrown in earlier, Princess Nine-Tails and the Sacred King Taichu, were entangled with each other, their clothes stripped away, their faces flushed, seemingly affected by the Red Luan Mist, rubbing against each other and making soft sounds.

What was this? They were the same person, interacting with themselves?

This thought quickly passed, and Zhong Shan's expression turned perplexed. He hadn't released the Red Luan Mist, and even if he had, it shouldn't affect two Ancient Immortals. What was going on?

Then Zhong Shan noticed the peach-colored energy at the bottom of the Qiankun Cauldron. The energy swirled endlessly. Earlier, Zhong Shan had found it strange. Could it be this energy?

A soft, sensual moan from Princess Nine-Tails broke his thoughts, sending a wave of seduction into Zhong Shan's mind.

Zhong Shan felt a shiver, his bones turning to jelly.

"The charm of the Nine-Tailed Fox is indeed formidable," Zhong Shan murmured, shaking his head.

At that moment, a surge of peach-colored energy rushed into Zhong Shan's body.

As soon as it entered, Zhong Shan's body turned a bright red. This energy was more domineering than the Red Luan Mist. What was this?

Zhong Shan was slightly alarmed as the peach-colored energy surged into his mind, rapidly repairing the depletion of the Red Luan Lotus at his brow and pushing the evolution of the Red Luan Mist.

Zhong Shan suddenly realized that this peach-colored energy had a significant effect on his Red Luan Heavenly Scripture.

At the eighth level of the Red Luan Heavenly Scripture, Zhong Shan had tried everything to make it break through, but to no avail. Now, it seemed he had found the opportunity.

Zhong Shan felt a surge of joy but knew he had to escape the 'Trapped Dragon Formation' as soon as possible; otherwise, Sima Yuan would surely find him.

After only a short time inside the cauldron, Zhong Shan emerged again, carrying the Qiankun Cauldron and flying rapidly towards the distance.

However, the peach-colored energy could only repair the depletion of the Red Luan Lotus and not his injuries. As soon as he left the cauldron, the yellow mist began to erode his body once more. Unable to bear it, he would re-enter the cauldron, then emerge again when he felt slightly better, continuing this cycle as he flew westward.

Zhong Shan knew of an exit from the Trapped Dragon Formation—Sima Zongheng's location.

The Trapped Dragon Formation was like a miniature world, a seemingly sealed environment extending from heaven to earth, forming a large circular space.

In a valley, the depowered Sima Zongheng lay on a large boulder, filled with frustration. He had already vomited a liter of blood, his face pale from blood loss, staring at a hundred-zhang-wide tear in the formation.

"Patriarch, you must succeed; otherwise, I, Zongheng, will bear the blame for this!" Sima Zongheng weakly murmured.

The formation could still function, and Sima Zongheng held onto a sliver of hope that the tear wasn't significant.

As Sima Zongheng continued to pray, a figure suddenly flew out of the tear.

It was Zhong Shan! Carrying a large cauldron, he leisurely floated out.

"The Qiankun Cauldron!" Sima Zongheng cried out.

At that moment, Sima Zongheng realized that something major had gone wrong. This small tear had ruined the Patriarch's grand plan. The Qiankun Cauldron had just floated out right in front of him, but Sima Zongheng was powerless, a failure for which he couldn't escape the blame even in death.

Another mouthful of blood surged up his chest, but he forced it back down.

Seeing Zhong Shan's speed, Sima Zongheng suddenly realized Zhong Shan was severely injured. Such a slow pace indicated extreme injury. In his previous state, Sima Zongheng could have crushed him with a finger and taken the Qiankun Cauldron.

Watching the cauldron float away, Sima Zongheng couldn't hold back any longer.

"Puh!" "Puh!"

A series of blood vomits later, Sima Zongheng weakly closed his eyes, drawing his last breath.

Thus, Sima Zongheng became the first immortal to die from excessive blood loss, a story that would surely become a laughingstock among other cultivators if discovered.

Zhong Shan flew out of the Trapped Dragon Formation, but fearing detection by other powerhouses, he didn't fly too far. Finding a secluded valley outside the danger zone, he hid with the Qiankun Cauldron, setting up several formations before quickly retreating into the cauldron.

As soon as he entered, two delicate bodies entwined around him, pulling him deeper into the Qiankun Cauldron.