Immortal-Exterminating Divine Venerable

The Divine General Talisman.

Not only did the Divine General Talisman grant Yang Xiao the strength of a Divine General, but it also elevated his Spiritual Power to the same level. It was truly profound.

And because of this, he was incredibly confident at this moment.

He planned to seize this opportunity to annihilate the Netherworld Erosion Demon Venerable in one fell swoop.

Seeing that the two were ready,

the Artifact Spirit of the Divine-Demonic Stele spoke coolly. ”To ensure fairness, I will use the power of the Divine-Demonic Stele to create a Forbidden Realm. Inside, you will be unable to deactivate the Divine General Talisman, but you may surrender. Just be clear on one thing: if you lose, you will also lose your qualification to become my master. Now, enter.”

As it spoke, the phantom-like figure raised a hand.

Instantly, the entire Divine-Demonic Stele began to shine with immense brilliance.

A new realm materialized within Yang Xiao’s sea of consciousness.

Upon seeing this realm, the Netherworld Erosion Demon Venerable couldn’t help but hesitate.

Yang Xiao, however, strode in without a second thought.

He trusted that the Divine-Demonic Stele would not harm him.

”What’s the matter? Are you afraid?”

Seeing the Netherworld Erosion Demon Venerable’s reluctance to enter, the Artifact Spirit of the Divine-Demonic Stele spoke coolly.

Even though he knew it was a taunt, the Netherworld Erosion Demon Venerable still roared in response, ”Afraid? I am a great Demon Venerable! What is there for me to be afraid of?”

With a cold snort,

the Netherworld Erosion Demon Venerable stepped into the Forbidden Realm.

The moment he entered,

his expression turned grim.

He, who could have previously deactivated the Divine General Talisman at will, discovered that he was now genuinely unable to do so.

However, when he saw the human brat before him looking so unconcerned, even brimming with confidence,

the Netherworld Erosion Demon Venerable’s worries were assuaged.

He sneered coldly. ”So happy when death is at your door... Don’t tell me you actually think that using a Divine General Talisman makes you comparable to me? How laughable! Now, die for me!”

With that, the Netherworld Erosion Demon Venerable attacked.

His first move was a killing blow.

Countless tendrils of black mist materialized into ink-black blades that surged violently toward Yang Xiao.

The Divine General Talisman was incredibly profound. Through some unknown mechanism, it could convert the energy stored within it into any form the user desired.

For instance, the Netherworld Erosion Demon Venerable was now wielding pure Corrosive Magic Power, which was terrifyingly potent.

Even if Yang Xiao could dodge the blades, he would be doomed the moment he was touched by the black mist. His flesh and bone would dissolve, and his Divine Soul would melt away.

Death would be certain.

’This Forbidden Realm may prevent me from deactivating the Divine General Talisman, but it also strips this kid of his home-field advantage. Back in his sea of consciousness, it would’ve been somewhat difficult for me to kill him completely. But in here? Heh heh, he’s a dead man. So what if he has the same strength as me? How much of it can he even control?’

A smile played on the Netherworld Erosion Demon Venerable’s face.

He held Yang Xiao in utter contempt.

This was especially true when he saw Yang Xiao standing there, completely motionless,

as if he didn’t even have the ability to dodge.

A sense of smugness swelled within him.

’A mere human, not even a True God... he probably can’t even control this sudden surge of power. Tsk, tsk. How pitiful. Looks like that Artifact Spirit is on my side after all.’

The more the Netherworld Erosion Demon Venerable thought about it, the more certain he became.

His gaze toward Yang Xiao grew even more scornful.

But just then,

Yang Xiao moved.

He ignored all the blades and black mist before him.

Raising a hand, he threw a single punch.

This punch, like all his others, was completely unadorned. It was as plain as a punch from an ordinary person; even a Martial Disciple’s strike would have looked flashier.

Yet, it was precisely this unremarkable punch

that shattered all the black mist and ink-black blades before him.

The will of the Netherworld Erosion Demon Venerable contained within was instantly dispersed,

turning it all into pure energy.

Immediately after,

Yang Xiao turned his hand upright, using it as a sword, and assumed the stance of Celestial Moon.

In an instant, the black mist and blade fragments, now stripped of their will, surged toward his palm with a SWOOSH.

Then,

as the black mist and blade fragments entered Yang Xiao’s palm, they began to emit a dazzling white light.

That light,

like the color of the moon,

was incomparably white.

Pure.

It formed a stark contrast with the black mist.

The Netherworld Erosion Demon Venerable stared, dumbfounded.

This rapid series of changes left him unable to react for a moment.

By the time he came to his senses,

Yang Xiao’s palm,

now like an indestructible sword, was slashing down toward him.

’This is bad! The kid actually has a Fist Technique that embodies the simplicity of the Great Dao, and a Swordsmanship this profound and mysterious. If that strike lands, I’ll be hit by a double blow from both my own power and his! No, I have to evade the brunt of this attack first.’

The Netherworld Erosion Demon Venerable was, after all, a Demon Venerable Level existence.

His insight was astounding.

Although he had been completely dismissive of Yang Xiao before, the moment his opponent revealed his true strength, he instantly determined that he could not meet the attack head-on.

He had to avoid its edge.

As long as he dodged this one strike, he would still have a chance.

However, just as he was about to dodge,

a terrifying pressure suddenly descended upon him.

The Netherworld Erosion Demon Venerable was shocked to find

that he couldn’t move.

It felt as if countless Divine Mountains were pressing down on him, making every step an immense struggle. He was completely immobilized.

”It’s the Artifact Spirit! I understand now! The Artifact Spirit is trying to kill me!”

The Netherworld Erosion Demon Venerable understood everything in that instant.

He roared,

his eyes filled with the fury of betrayal.

But his realization came too late.

The Sword Technique that Yang Xiao executed with his hand as a sword was also his most powerful one: Celestial Moon.

It slammed down onto the Netherworld Erosion Demon Venerable’s body.

That terrifying Sword Intent

sliced the Netherworld Erosion Demon Venerable clean in two.

It obliterated all of his will within.

The Netherworld Erosion Demon Venerable’s entire body began to dissipate,

dissolving into formless clumps of ownerless black mist.

The mist spread out.

’Did I win?’

The thought flashed through Yang Xiao’s mind.

He had just used all of his strength.

In order to completely destroy the Demon Venerable’s will and kill him outright, he had poured everything he had into that attack. Now, he didn’t have a shred of strength left.

His entire body was in a state of exhaustion.

It had been a massive gamble.

If the Netherworld Erosion Demon Venerable hadn’t died,

he would have surely lost.

But now, it seemed he had won.

Yang Xiao was not the only one who thought so.

The Artifact Spirit of the Divine-Demonic Stele thought so as well.

Within the Forbidden Realm, it was the Dominator of all, and it could clearly sense that Yang Xiao’s strike had annihilated all of the Netherworld Erosion Demon Venerable’s will, leaving only pure Demonic Power behind.

’I originally had no expectations for this kid. A mere Mortal who hasn’t even reached the level of a True God—what could he possibly do? I only set up this scheme using him as bait, luring the Dark Night Demon God into my trap with the position of master as the prize. I never thought this kid would actually... he’s truly surprised me.’

For the first time, the Artifact Spirit of the Divine-Demonic Stele began to take Yang Xiao seriously.

If helping him at the beginning was due to Xue Yi’s request—a simple exchange—

then now, the Artifact Spirit of the Divine-Demonic Stele had grown to genuinely appreciate Yang Xiao.

It even couldn’t help but think,

’if this little fellow had reached the Burial God Celestial Abyss first, perhaps I might have even chosen him as the Inheritor.’

Because at this moment,

it could already sense the aura of the Divine-Demon Body on Yang Xiao.

To have cultivated a Divine-Demon Body on his own...

This made him far more suitable than Xue Yi to inherit the Dao of the Master of Gods and Demons.

”Unfortunately, he does not have the bloodline of the Master of Gods and Demons.”

The Divine-Demonic Stele sighed softly.

Over the past million years, it had stood guard in the Burial God Celestial Abyss and encountered countless geniuses.

Naturally, some of them were even stronger than Xue Yi.

But because of this one fact,

it had been unable to choose any of them as the Inheritor.

Therefore, even though Yang Xiao was stronger than Xue Yi, it could only sigh in regret, unable to select him as the Inheritor.

But this sense of regret paradoxically made the Artifact Spirit feel closer to Yang Xiao.

It couldn’t help but ask Xue Yi,

”Are you sure you don’t want to see him?”

Xue Yi was silent for a moment, then smiled.

It was a brilliant smile.

A proud smile.

”There’s no need. We’re leaving anyway, so why see him again? Besides, seeing him doing so well is enough for me. From now on, I have to work hard. I can’t let that guy get too far ahead of me. Otherwise, how could I ever be worthy of him?”

Xue Yi said with a smile,

but her heart was completely serious.

This was who she was.

A woman who was proud and ambitious, yet also exceptionally sensitive and insecure.

”Alright. If that’s the case, then let’s go.”

The Artifact Spirit of the Divine-Demonic Stele said, its voice tinged with regret.

Still, this was for the best.

It was better to avoid too many attachments.

But just as the Divine-Demonic Stele was about to depart,

a dark and sinister voice

suddenly echoed within Yang Xiao’s sea of consciousness.

”You all dared to conspire against me! Good. Very good! Today, even if I must risk everything, even if it means destroying this body, I will kill this human brat! I’d like to see if you can save him then!”

As the voice fell,

a massive amount of black mist suddenly erupted within Yang Xiao’s sea of consciousness.

The mist began to converge frantically.

Yang Xiao.

The Artifact Spirit.

Xue Yi.

At that very moment, all of their expressions changed drastically.

Was he trying to take everyone down with him?

This was truly a disaster!