Chapter 42: The Mythical Demonic Lord, Heavenly Ghost Transformation Technique

Suyu also fell into a daze, but Ao Run was right beside him and woke him up with a tail slap across his face.

Holding his face, Suyu seriously suspected that she had done it on purpose.

However, the laughter did not last long before it was interrupted. Many bewildered players suddenly snapped out of it and fled back in a cold sweat.

"Boom!"

The river water exploded, and a giant flaming cauldron surged out of the surface. Waves of intense flames rushed in all directions like a tide. Xu Nan stood atop the giant cauldron, waving the banner in his hand repeatedly as hundreds of sword auras descended overwhelmingly into the riverbed.

At this moment, the river water was dyed in various colors by the glowing light like an overturned palette of paints, and it quickly began to burn. The mixture of different colored flames was exceptionally eerie.

The sword auras entered the water like clay oxen entering the sea.

Yet Xu Nan kept waving the banner as if he hadn't noticed, while simultaneously stomping his foot. The giant cauldron slowly rotated, and endless flames spewed fiercely from its mouth, forming a massive flame vortex around the giant cauldron that slowly ascended.

The flame vortex grew larger and larger, and the aura emanating from within the cauldron became increasingly intense, resembling an impending volcanic eruption.

Right at this moment, movement finally stirred underwater. The river water violently trembled and rapidly bulged upward.

"Hum!"

A deafening, muffled explosion burst out. The river water was forced apart by an invisible power, and a dreamlike humanoid figure composed of five-colored brilliance rose from the bottom of the water. The moment it broke the surface, the five-colored divine light quickly drifted and scattered away.

Mirage Demon / Sovereign of Bewildering Heavens (Terror) (Possessed): Leader, Level 186 / Level 210, Aquatic Tribe, Bivalve.

Attributes: Vital Qi ???, Demonic Qi ???, Attack ???, Speed ???, Demonic Arts: ???

The instant this colorful figure appeared, Suyu lapsed into a momentary trance, and an unprecedented sense of danger rushed toward his face.

"Fall back!"

He decisively controlled the Spirit Fish Flying Shuttle to increase the distance.

The colorful humanoid figure didn't even look around; it raised its hand and made a grasping motion in the void. Billions of tons of river water rose, converging into a water dragon several kilometers long that soared into the sky.

Xu Nan pointed with his hand, and a fireball resembling the sun flew out from the giant cauldron, illuminating the night sky within a radius of several dozen kilometers as it plummeted like a shooting star.

"Rumble!"

The water dragon collapsed layer by layer as if cutting through rotten wood, and the scattered flames and water vapor exploded to fill the entire heaven and earth.

In less than two short seconds, the several-kilometer-long water dragon was shattered, and the sun broke through the water dragon, plunging toward the five-colored humanoid figure.

The humanoid figure let out a cold snort, raised its hand and grabbed into the void. Infinite colorful divine light flew out and condensed into a colorful, heaven-propping giant hand spanning hundreds of acres to meet it, shocking enough to rival a deity supporting the sun.

A deafening explosion echoed through the heavens and earth, and the earth-shattering energy impact swept across everything like a tide.

Suyu retreated again and again, quickly falling back to a small mountain more than ten kilometers outside the riverbank.

The earth-shattering explosion drove the river water to form giant waves over a hundred meters high that submerged the riverbank, surging up the small mountain to a height of thousands of meters.

"Now that truly is immortals fighting!"

The momentum generated by the battle between the two sides was too powerful; even the aftermath could easily kill them instantly.

Having retreated to a safe position, Suyu finally had the leisure to think.

From the data he had seen, this was a mirage demon possessed by a high-ranking demonic lord named the Sovereign of Bewildering Heavens. Xu Nan had likely accepted a bounty mission to hunt him down.

Anyone who could be called a Demonic Lord must be a Earth Immortal expert above level 200.

Logically speaking, given Xu Nan's strength, he should not have been a match for the Demonic Lord. Unfortunately, the mirage demon possessed by the Demonic Lord was only level 186, not yet reaching level 200, putting it in the same major realm as Xu Nan.

In the realm of Beyond, the cultivation levels of practitioners were divided as follows:

The first realm was called Drawing Qi into the Body, also known as the Qi Refining Realm, with levels ranging from 1 to 99. The Taoist sect called them Qi Refiners, the Buddhist sect called them monks, the demon race called them sprites and monsters, and the demonic sect called them demon humans.

The second realm was called Refining Qi into Spirit. Because it required establishing a Tao foundation, it was also known as the Tao Foundation Realm, with levels from 100 to 199. The Taoist sect called them scattered immortals, the Buddhist sect called them dharma masters, and the demon and demonic sects called them demon spirits and demonic spirits respectively.

The third realm was called Refining Spirit to Return to Void, refining an immortal golden elixir, also known as the Golden Elixir Realm, with levels from 200 to 299. The Taoist sect called them Earth Immortals, the Buddhist sect called them Vajra, and the demon and demonic sects called them Great Demons.

The fourth realm was Refining Void and Combining with the Tao, transcending the heavenly and human tribulations to condense a pure yang primordial spirit and a flawless immortal body, accumulating the supreme vital force of one *yuanhui*, with levels of 300 and above. The Taoist sect called them Heavenly Immortals, the Buddhist sect called them Arhats, and the demon and demonic sects called them Heavenly Demons and Heavenly Fiends.

Great Demon was the general term used in the cultivation world for void-returning demonic cultivators, while Demonic Lord was the specific title of a demonic cultivator.

The Sovereign of Bewildering Heavens was not a native of Blue Mountain Island; he originated from a demonic sect called the Demon Soul Hall on another archipelago more than 80 million kilometers away from Blue Mountain Island. Having failed in a magical duel with a mortal enemy, his physical body was destroyed, leaving only his primordial spirit to escape.

Chased all the way, he fled to Blue Mountain Island. To recover from his injuries, he slaughtered a town of tens of thousands of people to refine his arts, only to be discovered by the Danxia Sect, which issued a bounty that attracted a large number of experts to hunt him down.

Chased and fleeing all the way until he was nearly at his wits' end, he had no choice but to possess a mirage demon.

He had been hiding at the bottom of the river, slowly recovering his magical power. Fearing discovery, he could only use the mirage demon's innate abilities to lure unlucky victims.

Yet he never expected that even so, he would still be discovered.

After possessing the mirage demon, due to differences between races, he could not yet fully master the mirage demon's body and magic power, failing to unleash his former strength at all. Coupled with the fact that seven or eight out of ten of his original demonic treasures were lost, he now found that even a mere scattered immortal dared to hunt him down, which made the Sovereign of Bewildering Heavens extremely furious.

However, anger could not change the outcome; losing was losing, simply because he couldn't win.

Following an earth-shattering exchange between the two sides, as his magical power gradually depleted, the Sovereign of Bewildering Heavens felt his primordial spirit and the demonic body at the bottom of the river begin to grow stiff. The body, which was already not fully compatible, began to detach as his magic power decreased.

If this continued, he might be rejected by the body, leading to the failure of the possession.

Thinking of this, his will to fight completely vanished. He once again raised the seizing giant hand to sweep away and smooth out the boundless flames across the river surface, and his primordial spirit turned and sank into the water.

Seeing this, Xu Nan shook the giant cauldron beneath his feet. The giant cauldron sank, pressing down the river water as it descended into the depths.

As the giant cauldron submerged, the river surface quickly returned to calm, save for the occasional reddish tint in the river water and pillars of flame erupting from the surface.

"Is the fight over?"

The group of onlookers looked at each other in dismay; no one dared to go over, let alone enter the river.

Suyu didn't dare to go either. Instead, Ao Run sprawled against the window, wagging her tail and looking eager to try.

"Should we go down and take a look?"

Suyu shook his head directly.

"Too dangerous."

"Coward. How can you grow without striving? If you aren't going, I will."

With that, she flew out from the window of the Spirit Fish Flying Shuttle and plunged headfirst into the Yuan River.

"Alas..."

Suyu reached out a hand, but Ao Run had already flown far away.

"Fine!"

He abandoned the idea of forcefully calling her back.

She was a BOSS after all, with over two million health points and protective magic treasures; a little recklessness wouldn't hurt.

The river surface continued to churn with waves as before, and the intermittent flashing and extinguishing of the river surface along with erupting flames indicated that the riverbed was far from peaceful.

As time passed, seeing that the river surface had calmed down, some people began to grow restless, and one after another, people stealthily slipped into the river.

Suyu waited for a while. Feeling somewhat worried about Ao Run, he gritted his teeth, drove the Spirit Fish Flying Shuttle, and plunged headfirst into the river.

As soon as he entered the water, he found that the river temperature was exceptionally high. The deeper he went, the brighter it became, and the depths of the river glowed fiery red as if a sun resided there.

He rapidly descended to the depths of the river and arrived near the fissure. He saw a giant cauldron over a hundred meters in diameter, surrounded by surging fierce flames, suspended above the fissure and slowly rotating. The violent blazing flames poured into the fissure, fiercely clashing with the five-colored divine light.

A coiling dragon with jade-blue dragon scales hovered above the fissure, constantly driving a precious pearl to smash into the cleft.

With every strike, the fissure shook violently, and streams of five-colored divine light surged out.

There were quite a few people watching from the surroundings, but no one dared to make a move.

Suyu hadn't intended to intervene, but as soon as he got close, he heard Xu Nan's voice transmitted directly into his mind:

"Thank you, little brother, for lending me a hand. I will share a piece of the spoils with you after we subdue this demon later."

Suyu immediately realized that Xu Nan had misunderstood, thinking that he had sent Ao Run to assist.

Naturally, he wouldn't explain and chose to remain silent.

"Since it has come to this, I might as well lend another hand."

Suyu pressed his lips together, communicated with the Town Sea Pearl in his mind, and pressed his hand forward into the void:

"Town Sea!"

A full five thousand units of magical power poured into it, and an invisible force burst forth, instantly sweeping outward to a radius of ten kilometers.

The divine light and river water gushing from the fissure were rapidly frozen as the invisible force swept past.

"Excellent!"

Seeing this, Xu Nan was overjoyed and rapidly drove his magic treasure. The giant cauldron plunged heavily downward, causing the barrier formed by the five-colored divine light to sink.

Immediately following this, Ao Run activated her precious pearl and smashed it down. Accompanied by a sound resembling shattering glass, the five-colored divine light barrier shattered.

The previously evenly matched situation instantly lost its balance. Flames and sword auras pierced through the shattered barrier and shot into the fissure, and the giant cauldron's flames slowly sank into the cleft.

Seeing this, Suyu felt a surge of joy in his heart. Since he could play a major role, he could rightfully claim a share of the spoils later.

"Boom!"

The fissure vibrated violently, and terrifying ripples surged skyward along the edges of the cleft. The Gui-water essence, fierce flames, shattered five-colored divine light, and pulverized mud mixed together to transform into a colorful chaos that shot into the sky and dispersed, permeating a water area over ten kilometers wide.

"Boom!"

Accompanied by a violent, muffled sound, all noise and ripples vanished. A surge of warm current flowed within Suyu's body, and checking his status, he found he had gained an additional 1.36 million slaughter experience points and 122 points of Taoist attainment. At the same time, Xu Nan's voice echoed in his ears:

"The Demonic Lord has been executed. Little brother, you may come in."

Suyu immediately communicated with Ao Run to ask if it was safe. Receiving her confirmation, he flew toward the fissure.

The Spirit Fish Flying Shuttle descended along the fissure, plunging two or three kilometers in one breath until it reached the bottom. There, he saw the blazing flame cauldron suppressing the riverbed, beneath which was a shattered giant clam embedded in the mud and sand.

Just the part exposed above the water was five to six hundred meters long, and the portion embedded in the mud was estimated to be seven to eight hundred meters, totaling over a thousand meters in size.

Clearly, this was the true body of the mirage demon, but it had already been beaten to pieces.

Meanwhile, Xu Nan was holding a ball of light inside which five-colored divine light mixed with a circle of black smoke darting about frantically, occasionally stopping to gather into an angry face that howled silently.

"Finally caught you."

With a flick of his hand, he stowed the light sphere away and looked up at Suyu, appearing in high spirits.

"You helped me a great deal."

He flipped his hand, revealing five items placed before him on his palm:

"These are the spoils of war from this demon; you may choose one at will."

Suyu lowered his gaze, and the names and attributes of the five spoils floated before him.

The first item was a pale white skull the size of a palm, a Tier 6 demonic treasure known as the Bone Sarira. When deployed, it could summon a elite-template bone demon of level 100.

The bone demon possessed a four-headed, six-armed skeletal body, 1.5 million health points, 300,000 mana, 5,000 physique, 5,000 strength, a speed of 1,500 kilometers per hour, two Tier 6 Bone Sariras, two Tier 6 bone rings, and two Tier 6 Bone-Piercing Heart Swords.

It had mastered the advanced Qi refining technique *Bone Refining Heart Grand Art* to the 100th layer, the advanced basic sword manual *Bone-Eroding Heart Sword Art* to the 100th layer, and the *Five-Fire Yin Thunder* to the 92nd layer.

The second item was a demonic sect secret technique: *Mystic Soul Refining Demon Art*, a method used to erase the soul of a sprite or monster and refine it into a puppet.

The third item was a mirage demon inner core, which could be used for alchemy or to forge illusion-type magic treasures.

The fourth item was a thunder technique: *Yin Thunder*, refined using the ten-thousand-year gloomy and baleful Qi in the lungs of the earth. It specialized in defiling flying swords and magic treasures, causing people, characters, and rocks alike to dissolve into nothingness the moment they came into contact with it.

The fifth item was a transformation technique: *Heavenly Ghost Transformation Technique (Exquisite)*. Heavenly ghosts were naturally adept at the five-element flying escape abilities, could transform between reality and illusion at will, possessed immense strength, and granted +1000 health, +200 mana, +30 physique, +50 strength, and +20 speed per level gained. It featured the Heavenly Ghost Body, Five-Element Escape Technique, and Reality-Illusion Transformation.

Prerequisites for learning: Innate Constitution 20 points, Innate Comprehension 15 points.

"They're all good things!"

It was clear that Xu Nan was quite generous, as these five spoils of war were all exceptional.

He glanced over them, and an idea already formed in his mind.

Demonic sect magic treasures and secret arts were definitely out of the question; they didn't match his cultivation method and wouldn't unleash their true power.

The mirage demon inner core was quite good indeed. If he could find a master weapon-crafter, he could forge a Tier 7 magic treasure, but an illusion-type magic treasure...

The Yin Thunder possessed immense power, but similarly lacked full compatibility.

The Heavenly Ghost Transformation Technique...

"Could it be that Ding Lingyu's divine general avatar is actually a transformation technique?"

"Very likely."

Suyu suppressed the doubts in his heart and spoke up:

"I want the Heavenly Ghost Transformation Technique!"

Xu Nan smiled and said:

"No problem."

With a flick of his hand, the jade slip recording the Heavenly Ghost Transformation Technique flew over, and he reached out to catch it.

Xu Nan put away the rest of the items and said with a smile:

"Little brother has good cultivation and possesses a dragon spirit pet; your future is boundless. I am a true successor of the Danxia Sect. If little brother comes to the Danxia Sect to apprentice in the future, you can look for me, and I will guarantee you a quota as an official disciple."

Suyu quickly bowed:

"Thank you, Senior!"

Of course he wouldn't go, but since a senior thought highly of him, he naturally had to show the proper courtesy.

"I'm off!"

Xu Nan waved his large sleeve, transformed into a beam of light, and soared into the sky.

As soon as the expert left, Ao Run flew over, circled around him, leaned her massive head close to his face, and said:

"See that? Without striving, how could you obtain these benefits?"

Suyu gave her a blank stare.

"If I had over a level 100 and over two million health points, I could be even more reckless than you."

With that, he descended to the mirage demon's corpse, pressed his hand against the gigantic shell, and with a thought, the giant clam—measuring over a thousand meters in length—was stowed away, occupying only a single inventory slot.

A huge pit several hundred meters wide remained in its place, and a surge of intense spiritual Qi rushed toward his face.

"There is a large spiritual eye right under here."

Ao Run flew into the giant pit, circled around once, and returned to say:

"We could build a cave dwelling in this place."

Suyu shook his head and said:

"I don't have the capital for that."

He flipped over to lie atop Ao Run's head and said:

"Let's go back to the temporary cave dwelling."

The dragon turned and rushed out of the fissure, flying toward the west.

Returning to the temporary cave dwelling, after setting Suyu down, Ao Run continued outside to massacre monsters wildly, leaving him somewhat speechless.

"Damn, she's even more diligent than I am..."

With the stone door closed, Suyu took out the Heavenly Ghost Transformation Technique jade slip, pressed it against his forehead, and with a thought, the jade slip shattered, transforming into tiny, dense tadpole-like runes that sank into the center of his brows.

Opening his panel, the Heavenly Ghost Transformation Technique had appeared under the Taoist Arts column.