Chapter 638: Martial Evolution and Yuan Gate's Campaign
The slender beam unleashed by the Ancestral Symbol Eye tore through the void, carrying indescribable destructive force as it shot toward the two Demon Kings.
"Ah!"
Staring at the onrushing fatal strike, Earth Illusion King and Heaven Illusion King's Demon Fetus felt pure terror surge through them. For the first time, they truly sensed death looming overhead.
"This king refuses to die here!"
Earth Illusion King roared, his voice filled with unwilling rage. But no one heeded his cries. The Ancestral Symbol Eye remained merciless as the beam slammed into them.
Thud!
Upon impact, Earth Illusion King's body and Heaven Illusion King's Demon Fetus both shattered instantly, flooding the air with rolling black mist that tried to scatter in all directions.
Sss!
Just as Lin Langtian prepared to move in and eradicate the escaping demonic essence, the Demon‑Subduing Tower suddenly shuddered.
The eight demonic statues lining its inner walls opened their crimson eyes and then their jaws, which yawned wide like vortexes. They sucked in the fleeing black mist in great torrents, like dragons drawing in water, a sight both eerie and magnificent.
Lin Langtian paused, eyes narrowing as he watched.
As the black mist vanished into the statues' maws, the two Demon Kings' auras weakened rapidly. In less than two minutes, they were at death's door.
"Ah, you lowly humans dare to erase this king? Just you wait. One day, our race will flatten this entire plane and condemn you to eternal slavery!"
Their shrill, hate‑filled screams echoed through the tower as their essence was devoured.
"This king is not willing to die!"
"Not willing!"
The raging energy within the tower slowly dissipated, and with it, the last remnants of the two Otherworldly Demon Kings.
Two Demon Kings of the Infernal Prison had been utterly destroyed at Lin Langtian's hands.
He watched the scene with a faint smile. Who would have imagined that the two Demon Kings who had thrown the Celestial Demon Marten clan into chaos would fall together to a single Reincarnation Stage cultivator?
Demon Kings were notoriously hard to kill—even Samsara Stage experts struggled to finish them off.
As the rush of triumph faded, Lin Langtian's gaze drifted to the walls of the tower.
The eight demonic statues looked slightly larger than before, and their demonic might had grown heavier and more terrifying.
"This is…"
He blinked, then muttered in dawning excitement, "Could these eight statues actually strengthen themselves by devouring Demon King demonic qi?"
It made perfect sense. He had just watched them swallow the two Demon Kings' essence, and their transformation had followed immediately after.
"Your Eightfold Heavenly Demons are impressive indeed. Though still far from matching that divine art I once heard of in the Great Thousand World, its special trait lies in its ability to absorb Otherworldly Demon energy and evolve.
"Its potential is enormous. Once you reach the Great Thousand World and polish it further, it might even rival that supreme technique one day."
Ling Aunt's voice sounded in his mind, filled with rare praise.
Lin Langtian instantly understood which technique she meant—the legendary "Eightfold Pagoda" of the Pagoda clan.
His Eightfold Heavenly Demons were far weaker for now, but thanks to the Golden Spirit Wheel Mirror, they possessed a unique capacity for evolution—something incredibly rare, even monstrous.
As long as he continued to slay Otherworldly Demon experts and feed their energy to the statues, the power of the Eightfold Heavenly Demons would keep growing, perhaps one day reaching parity with the Eightfold Pagoda itself.
His breathing quickened, a fiery light flaring in his eyes.
For the moment, the technique was formidable enough. But in time, its limitations would show. The statues were forged from ordinary Demon Kings at best, with only one who had passed two Samsara Tribulations.
As such, it was excellent against typical Demon Kings and those who had passed a single tribulation, but might falter against enemies who had endured two or three Samsara Tribulations.
At Lin Langtian's pace of growth, he would soon be facing such monsters. Without evolution, the Eightfold Heavenly Demons would slowly become less relevant.
Now, however, having discovered its growth potential, he could continually raise its ceiling using his fallen foes as fuel—until it became one of the strongest martial arts on the Tianxuan Continent.
"Haha, looks like this martial art really is something special." Lin Langtian laughed aloud.
The Eightfold Pagoda was one of the Great Thousand World's thirty‑six supreme divine arts, coveted by countless experts.
His Eightfold Heavenly Demons might not yet match its power, but it had the potential to climb to the same heights. That alone made it worth every ounce of effort.
At this moment, he almost wished another two Demon Kings would appear, just to see how far the statues could be pushed. If all eight were elevated to the level of two‑tribulation Demon Kings, then once he stepped into Samsara, he might even dare to challenge those who had passed three tribulations.
Still, he knew better than to rush.
Demon Kings were the pinnacle of the Infernal Prison's strength. Even now, fighting two at once had pushed him to his limit. Against three or more—or against those who had already crossed the Samsara Tribulation—things could quickly become deadly.
With a small shake of his head, Lin Langtian stepped out of the Demon‑Subduing Tower. The structure shrank rapidly behind him, turning into a streak of light that vanished into his eye.
He waved his sleeve, drawing the lightly injured Wolf Demon King into the mirror's inner world. Then, staring at the apocalyptic battlefield left behind, he narrowed his eyes and flew away without a backward glance.
Killing two Demon Kings would not go unanswered. Once the Infernal Prison learned the truth, they would never let it stand. This place was no longer safe, and he had no intention of standing under a collapsing wall.
The matter of the Demon Region was nearly settled. It was time to return to the Eastern Xuan Region.
Half a day after Lin Langtian left, a strange black vortex appeared in the skies above the battlefield. Two immense, oppressive silhouettes stepped out of it.
"Heaven Illusion King and Earth Illusion King's auras end here. If nothing went wrong, they both fell in this place." one figure said, scanning the area grimly.
"What? Two Demon Kings dead at once… Even for the Infernal Prison, that's no minor loss. This place isn't far from the Celestial Demon Marten clan. Could they be responsible?" the other asked darkly.
The Infernal Prison had not suffered such a blow in a hundred years. Someone would have to pay.
"Unlikely. There's no trace of Celestial Demon Marten experts here—only the scent of a human and one of our own.
"The killers were likely one of our traitors working together with a human powerhouse." the first shadow said after a thorough inspection.
"A traitor in the Infernal Prison?"
The second figure stiffened, then snarled in fury.
"To think we would harbor a traitor… It seems without the Demon Emperor's presence, some have forgotten their place. All the more reason to hunt these culprits down and make an example of them."
"Indeed. With the Demon Emperor's return near at hand, it's time to reestablish our rules and prestige. Not just anyone gets to make the Infernal Prison suffer a loss like this." the first shadow rasped, eyes glowing red.
"We don't know where the traitor is hiding, but we can follow the human. This is the depths of the Demon Region—few humans come here.
"That narrows the trail considerably. Find the human, and we'll find our traitor."
The second silhouette bared razor‑sharp fangs in a chilling grin.
"Agreed."
The black vortex spun once more, and both figures disappeared as if they had never been there.
…
After leaving the Celestial Demon Marten territory, Lin Langtian flew toward the Wu Region without rest.
With his greatly enhanced strength, his speed was far beyond what it once was. Barely half a day later, he had already reached the border of the Wu Region. Within another ten minutes, the Wu Realm came into view.
"Big Brother, you're here!"
He had not concealed his aura upon entering the domain, and the commotion drew the attention of many Celestial Demon Marten experts. Figures streaked across the sky as Jin Wu's voice rang out in delight.
Lin Langtian let his figure fully appear, smiling as he gave Jin Wu a pat on the shoulder.
"You're the young clan leader of the Seven‑Slaughter Black Golden Crow clan now. You'll have to start behaving a bit more steadily."
"Hehe, don't worry, Big Brother. I remember. I just got excited when I saw you." Jin Wu scratched his head sheepishly. "Oh—how did things go with Brother Little Marten? Do you need my help?"
Lin Langtian shook his head. "It's settled. His father has come out of seclusion, and Little Marten has firmly taken his place as the Celestial Demon Marten clan's young chief. There's nothing to worry about."
"That's good." Jin Wu exhaled in relief, smiling.
"Your aura's changed quite a bit. Looks like you've made good progress while I've been gone."
Lin Langtian's eyes glinted as he sensed the mingling forces of life and death within Jin Wu, along with a faint trace of Samsara fluctuation.
In barely two months, Jin Wu had pushed to the half‑step Reincarnation Stage. Only a single barrier remained.
Beside him, Shuang Wu beamed, unable to hide her joy. "Brother Langtian, while you were away, the Grand Elder arranged for my brother to visit our ancestral land and accept the inheritance of our Seven‑Slaughter Black Golden Crow forebear.
"Since returning, his strength has soared. He should break through to Reincarnation very soon and formally become our clan leader."
Jin Wu chuckled awkwardly. "Compared to you, Big Brother, this little progress is nothing. I only got this far thanks to our ancestor's blessing."
Lin Langtian started, then smiled as he realized what that meant.
The Seven‑Slaughter Black Golden Crow's ancestor was likely the legendary Nine‑Slaughter Black Golden Crow. With such a bloodline connection, the benefits Jin Wu had received would be immense. Once he stepped into the Reincarnation Stage, he might very well rival those who had touched upon Samsara.
"By the way, Big Brother, there's good news and bad news from the Eastern Xuan Region." Jin Wu said quietly, a sharp glint flickering through his eyes.
As he finished speaking, the laughter faded from Lin Langtian's face, replaced by a cold, killing calm.
"The bad news is… Yuan Gate has started a war."
Jin Wu's voice dropped. "In the Eastern Xuan Region, of the original eight super sects—excluding Yuan Gate—only two remain."
Lin Langtian's eyes grew even colder. He had expected as much, but hearing it still made murderous intent surge within him.
"What about the Heavenly Palace?" he asked, his tone flat.
"I heard Yuan Gate struck at the Heavenly Palace first. Fortunately, they were well‑prepared. Yuan Gate failed to breach their defenses.
"After leaving a field of corpses behind at the Heavenly Palace and paying dearly, Yuan Gate pulled back to focus on wiping out the other super sects first." Jin Wu explained.
"Which two are left?"
Lin Langtian's eyes narrowed, and in his heart, an icy, peerless beauty's face surfaced unbidden.
"The good news," Jin Wu said, "is that the remaining two are the Nine Heavens Taixuan Palace… and Dao Sect.
"But… their situation isn't exactly good either."
Lin Langtian nodded slowly and exhaled. Turning eastward, he stared off into the distance.
After a long silence, his low, frosty voice drifted across the sky.
"It seems it's time to settle things with Yuan Gate once and for all."
(END CHAPTER)
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