Chapter 128: A Gathering of Demons and Monsters

Hum—

Despite the confusion in his heart, his fingertip sword energy never ceased. Song Yan’s sword light traced white arcs through the profound Avici Hell. Each strike accurately pierced the ferocious ghosts lunging toward him, yet it was all in vain. As soon as those ghostly shadows dissipated, more twisted figures crawled out from the ink-black ground. It was endless.

"Old Song! These things are impossible to kill!" Li Qingfeng shouted. "We have to get out of here!"

Get out of here. Song Yan knew that, of course. The problem was how. They were both only at the Qi Condensation stage and could not yet traverse the skies. They had already tried their escape talismans, but those were completely ineffective here. The reflection of hell beneath their feet kept reaching out with palms, dragging them downward. What would happen if they were pulled under? No one knew.

Li Qingfeng’s current appearance was quite unique; a large black iron pot was inverted over his head, the inscriptions on its bottom glowing with a faint golden light, barely resisting the erosion of the surrounding demonic sounds. At the same time, he swung a kitchen knife in his hand, shattering nearby evil ghosts. Perhaps because he was using two artifacts at once, Li Qingfeng’s aura was unstable. In the brief moment his spiritual power faltered between slashes—a gap where old strength had been spent and new strength had not yet risen—the demonic claws reaching from the hellish reflection beneath him pulled sharply, dragging his body down. His legs were already nearly submerged in the ink.

"Old Song!" The crisis of life and death made him extremely frantic.

*Shhh.* Several streaks of sword energy flew over, circulating around Li Qingfeng and severing the palms reaching out from the ink. Song Yan seized the moment, grabbed him by the back, and hauled him out.

"Thanks, thanks." Li Qingfeng was left in a lingering state of fear. No sooner had he thanked Old Song than he began to curse under his breath: "Damn it..."

*Huff—* The feeling of having just walked through the gates of hell had truly shaken him.

There was no time for them to catch their breath. The two covered for each other, slowly "shuffling" toward the edge of Shigu Terrace. Every step was a struggle. Glancing sideways, he saw in the distance that Shen Huai of the Xuanyuan Sect was barely holding on alongside her fellow sect member, a male cultivator named Ji Chuanqiao. Under the manipulation of the Daoist techniques in Shen Huai’s hands, several copper coins shimmered with spiritual light, forming a simple spiritual array suspended beside them.

However, it was clear that the two were struggling to keep it up. The light on the copper coins was dimming at a speed visible to the naked eye, until at one moment, it suddenly vanished and returned to Shen Huai’s hand.

"Ah—" A shrill scream came from behind Shen Huai. Ji Chuanqiao was pounced upon by three ferocious ghosts at once, his protective spiritual robes shredded like thin paper and dissipated. Countless black palms reached out from the ink, clinging to his legs.

"Senior Sister Shen!" Ji Chuanqiao was flustered and cried out for help. Unable to move his legs, he could only wave his hands, trying to reach for Shen Huai. But he saw Shen Huai raise her cold eyes; after a single glance, she took a step to the side, moving further away from him.

"Senior Sister Shen..." Ji Chuanqiao’s expression was one of panic, and he kept calling out, "Senior Sister Shen!"

"Shen Huai! You bitch!"

"How can you refuse to help? You..."

The black palms grew more numerous, dense and suffocating, until they drowned him completely. Shen Huai did not even turn back to look again. She simply walked expressionless toward the direction away from Shigu Terrace. Behind her, Ji Chuanqiao’s figure had been completely dragged into the reflection of hell by the black palms. In the blink of an eye, a withered skeleton floated slowly to the surface. The bones trembled slightly before scattering in the wind, rolling toward the center of Shigu Terrace.

...

At the edge of the Avici Hell, Liu Ciming put away his transmission talisman, his expression grim. Several black shadows tore through the air; they were Foundation Establishment demonic cultivators, led by Zheng Daming and Fuming of the Yellow Springs Path.

"Brother Liu, quite the maneuver!" Zheng Daming’s figure was somewhat portly, and his eyes squinted as he smiled. He glanced at the mountain of white bones at the center of hell: "To kill a mere Qi Condensation cultivator and cause such a massive commotion."

"Spare me the sarcastic remarks." Liu Ciming’s face darkened, and he said in a deep voice, "It has been confirmed: that *Painting of Hell’s Metamorphosis* is a masterpiece by a Transformation stage cultivator."

"What?" Zheng Daming exclaimed, and even the silent Fuming nearby showed a look of surprise.

"It’s too late to say anything now. That bastard Jin Tianya has long since refined his own soul into the painting; he’s decided that if he can't have it, no one will, and now he’s intent on blowing this whole thing up." He glanced sideways toward the six major sects in the distance. The Yellow Springs Path could see them, and naturally, they could see the demonic cultivators of the Yellow Springs Path.

The sound of air being torn reached them as over a dozen Foundation Establishment cultivators from the six major sects arrived together. Elder Fu Xiao, who led them, held a jade ruyi that pulsed with spiritual light. She glared angrily: "Thieves of the Yellow Springs Path! It really was you causing this trouble!"

Liu Ciming had grievances he couldn't voice. However, now was not the time to argue with these so-called righteous cultivators. Just as the two sides were at daggers drawn and about to strike, a roar came from the direction of the Corpse Bone Abyss. Demonic shadows loomed as they surged through the air.

"Hahahaha..." A boisterous laugh rang out. The leading Demonic Ape, accompanied by a group of demon cultivators from the Corpse Bone Abyss, arrived outside the Avici Hell.

"Brother Liu, you’ve been so secretive and evasive these days; I thought it was something truly unspeakable," the Demonic Ape Hu Rifei mocked. "How did it end up like this?" He patted Liu Ciming on the shoulder: "Don't worry, brother. We are still allies. As long as you are willing to share a piece of the pie with my brothers and sisters from the Corpse Bone Abyss... I, old Hu, will definitely not let those holier-than-thou types stir up trouble."

Although he spoke to Liu Ciming, he looked toward the cultivators of the six sects. The elders of the six sects couldn't help but feel their hearts sink. If it were only the demonic cultivators of the Yellow Springs Path, then relying on the dozen or so Foundation Establishment cultivators present, they could still annihilate them at the cost of some effort. But with the addition of the demons from the Corpse Bone Abyss, the situation became very complicated. The six sects knew that the Corpse Bone Abyss and the Yellow Springs Path were not genuinely united, but in the face of their six major sects, a temporary alliance was highly likely.

Elder Fu Xiao lowered her jade ruyi slightly and exchanged a look with Xu Ziqing. Xu Ziqing understood immediately. The three forces formed a delicate balance of power. Among all the elders, only Shen Yu remained silent, his gaze flickering. He had long known the whereabouts of the *Painting of Hell’s Metamorphosis*, which was why he had rushed to Changping from the Xuanyuan Sect. But the current scene caught him off guard as well.

He looked into the distance toward the center of Shigu Terrace and saw, beneath the phantom of hell, white bones piled into a mountain. Yet the culprit behind it all had not moved a single inch from start to finish.

"Now that the masterpiece is out of control, is that figure on the bone mountain the spirit within the painting?"

If he could refine it, wouldn't that be equivalent to possessing the treasure itself? He cast a slight glance at the elders of the six sects beside him, as well as the demons of the Corpse Bone Abyss and the Yellow Springs Path. In terms of spiritual realm, he feared that only the leading demonic cultivator of the Yellow Springs Path and Elder Fu could contend with him. Added to that, he had a secret spiritual-refining treasure in his hands...

He hesitated no longer. He immediately surged his spiritual power and plunged into the reflection of the Avici Hell.