Chapter 151 - Puppet Warfare

Su Ming had studied ancient records in the Sect Library and recognized the property. Just like Mystical Flames, there were Mystical Waters. Among them, River Styx Water was particularly sinister. It was said to embody the laws of death and decay, corroding whatever it touched.

Chen Wuhen had tempered his body with this mystical water, fusing its death energy directly into his flesh and bone. He was practically an undying corpse clad in human skin.

Chen Wuhen noticed Su Ming’s gaze and grinned savagely.

"You took my full blow earlier and only coughed a bit of blood," Chen Wuhen said, his tongue running across his pale lips in feverish greed. "What kind of secret are you hiding, young Peak Master?"

"You have destroyed several of my vessels, but I do not mind. Once I tear your soul from your body, your flesh will become my new vessel! With your body and my foundation, I will have another peerless Vessel?"

Chen Wuhen raised the Blood Moon Sabre high above his head.

The dark energy around him erupted into a colossal blood vortex. The laws of death and decay wrapped around the dark steel as he leveled the sabre at Su Ming.

"Die for me!"

The crimson vortex howled as it tore the sky, slicing through the air with a screech.

Su Ming did not retreat. He planted his footing on the empty air, channeling his Yin-Yang Origin Flame into the Crimson Heaven Sword. Golden Violet flame coiled around the sword. With a sharp flick of his wrist, he met the descending strike head-on.

Clang!

The collision shattered the surrounding clouds. A violent shockwave rippled outward, tearing through the dense fog. The sheer weight behind Chen Wuhen’s strike sent a dull ache running through Su Ming’s wrists, forcing him back several paces through the air.

"Hahaha! Keep dancing, young Peak Master!" Chen Wuhen laughed, his sabre blurring into a relentless barrage of blood-red arcs. "You will not be able to save a single one of them!"

Su Ming parried each strike with precise movements, reading his opponent’s trajectory with Essence Sight empowered by the Insight Halo. His sword traced defensive arcs, deflecting the blood-red barrage.

In the foggy basin below, the situation had deteriorated into pure chaos.

***

Dense grey mist rolled across the basin, heavy with the stench of rotting blood and bones. The corrosive vapors hissed against the ground, eating away the protective barriers of the righteous cultivators.

On top of a shattered stone pillar in the distance, Elder Yun Song stood with a twisted grin. His fingers twitched rhythmically like a spider plucking its web.

Beside him, the towering eight-armed Quasi-Saint Grade Yin-Flesh Puppet moved eerily. Thousands of black spiritual threads trailed from its jagged fingertips, piercing directly into the napes and meridians of the twenty Heavenly Cloud Sect elders.

The tranced elders drew their weapons, pointing them toward Peak Master Lei Zhenwu. Their eyes were devoid of light as they formed a standard Heavenly Cloud offensive formation.

"Kill him!" Yun Song roared, his malicious voice echoing through the fog. "Let the esteemed Peak Master taste the blades of his own Sect members!"

The twenty elders lunged forward in unison. Twenty glowing Qi attacks converged into a Coiling Dragon, thrusting directly toward Peak Master Lei Zhenwu.

"Damned demonic fiends!" Lei Zhenwu roared.

Lei Zhenwu stepped forward, his dark steel armor clanking with immense weight. His Saint-grade Thunder Halberd swung in a wide arc, azure sparks crackling across its heavy blade. But as the familiar faces of his sect elders filled his vision, he restrained his power.

He could not release his full strength. If he was not careful, a single stray bolt of lightning from his Saint realm cultivation would reduce their bodies to ash.

Gritting his teeth, Lei Zhenwu reversed his grip. He slammed the blunt iron shaft of his halberd against the ground, unleashing a dense wave of pressure.

Boom!

The concussive force knocked aside the first five elders immediately, which pushed them back several steps. But before Lei Zhenwu could advance to sever the black threads, the remaining fifteen elders swarmed his flanks.

The Tiger Demon did not stay idle either. Finding holes in his defence, it lunged from behind with its molten fists directly pointed at Lei Zhenwu.

He was completely pinned, encircled by the enemies. Every move he made was restrained for the sake of saving the lives of his own brethren.

"What is the matter, Peak Master Lei?" Yun Song mocked from the pillar, twitching his fingers to tighten the puppet threads. "Are you afraid of hurting your own men? If you hold back, you will die here!"

Right as Lei Zhenwu deflected two more swords, the hairs on the back of his neck stood on end.

From the dark mist behind him, a sinister shadow stepped out.

It was the possessed Academy Scholar, Yan Jingshu. His scholarly robes were stained with dried blood, and his pale hands held an ancient bronze mirror inscribed with mystical patterns.

The Profound Reversal Mirror!

He channeled the dark crimson energy of the blood sacrifice array into the mirror. The bronze surface flared with dark crimson light, condensing into a ray of pure death.

A concentrated beam of red-and-black death energy shot from the bronze mirror, aiming straight for Lei Zhenwu’s heart while his back was turned!

Lei Zhenwu’s battle instincts flared. Sensing the fatal attack, he twisted his massive torso with unnatural speed. He brought the heavy blade of his halberd downward like a hammer strike.

Crack!

The halberd slammed into the incoming death ray. Blinding red and black sparks exploded in all directions, scorching the earth and gouging deep craters into the stone floor. The sheer impact pushed Lei Zhenwu back.

"Sneaking around like a rat!" Lei Zhenwu roared. He thrust his halberd forward, unleashing a bolt of lightning straight at Yan Jingshu’s chest.

But Yan Jingshu did not flinch. He raised the Profound Reversal Mirror face-on.

The azure lightning slammed into the bronze mirror. The ancient runes on its border spun madly, absorbing the lightning in an instant before flashing with blinding brilliance.