Its cold gaze fixed on Elian. If not for Elian's precise timing and repeated efforts to corner it, the Green Lion Hound would have long escaped. It wouldn't have been forced into this desperate situation.
Consumed by a murderous rage, it spat out a green light—a concentrated blast of energy.
"Fall back!"
Seeing this, the cultivators shouted warnings while offering support.
This was the Green Lion Hound's inner core. Having broken through to the False Golden Core stage, its core was already beginning to evolve toward the Golden Core stage.
As its ultimate trump card, the core's power now rivaled the Golden Core level.
As the inner core surged toward him, Elian remained calm. He knew that retreating would only give the Green Lion Hound an opening to escape.
Among those present, only he had the means to kill the beast in one decisive strike. If it managed to escape by sustaining heavy injuries, the effort to surround and corner it would be wasted.
With this resolve, Elian summoned the Red Sun Void-Searing Furnace. In an instant, a crimson sun appeared in the sky, pouring waves of Red Sun True Flame toward the Green Lion Hound's core.
"Trouble."
The moment the Green Lion Hound saw the Red Sun Void-Searing Furnace, its heart sank into despair.
This was a fourth-tier artifact. While Elian's cultivation level was below that of a Golden Core cultivator, the furnace's immense power was enough to severely injure or even kill a False Golden Core beast.
The Red Sun True Flame quickly enveloped the beast's core. Within moments, its inner core suffered severe damage, forcing the Green Lion Hound to swallow it back.
But there was no reprieve. The Red Sun True Flame, along with the furnace itself, descended from the sky, intending to trap the Green Lion Hound within.
Once sealed inside the furnace, even a Golden Core-level demon would struggle to escape. For a False Golden Core beast, it would spell certain death.
Despite its desperation to flee, the cultivators closed in, leaving it with no path to escape. The furnace's lid clamped shut, sealing the Green Lion Hound inside.
"It's done."
Elian's face lit up with relief. The Red Sun Void-Searing Furnace, a fourth-tier treasure, was unparalleled in such circumstances. The Green Lion Hound had no chance of surviving.
Channeling his power, Elian intensified the furnace's flames. Within moments, the Green Lion Hound was completely incinerated.
The furnace lid opened, revealing its spoils: a Blood Essence Pill, a near-fourth-tier inner core, and several top-tier third-rank artifacts.
The Blood Essence Pill, refined from the Green Lion Hound's essence, could significantly enhance physical strength. This would be invaluable for cultivators aiming to break through to the Golden Core stage, as physical resilience was crucial.
After eliminating the Green Lion Hound, the group moved quickly to retake Jiaoyang Mountain and pursued the retreating Purple Mansion-level demons beasts.
For three hours, they chased and killed. Elian himself slew two more great demon beasts, while the rest secured their own victories.
By the time Jiang Linglong returned with the Azure Mane Lion King's corpse, Jiaoyang Mountain had been cleared of demonic forces.
The group gathered near the mountain's spiritual pool to tally their gains. To their astonishment, they had managed to kill nine Purple Mansion-level demons in total.
While the high-level demons had extraordinary escape abilities, the low-level demons were not as fortunate. Over five hundred Foundation Establishment-level demons were killed by Elian and the others.
Such was the brutality of war. While high-level cultivators often survived, Foundation Establishment and Qi Refinement-level fighters found escape nearly impossible.
This battle devastated the demon population in Jiaoyang Mountain. Over seventy years of unchecked breeding had produced over a hundred thousand low-level demons. With the mountain recaptured, these demon beasts now faced annihilation by the cultivators of the Three regions.
The aftermath was bittersweet. While the cost of low-tier magical tools would drop significantly, making cultivation resources more accessible, it was a stark reminder of the cycle of conflict.
Reflecting on the results, Elian smiled. "With the Azure Mane Lion King and the Green Lion Hound slain, the next demon invasion should be much easier to handle."
"Indeed," agreed a Purple Mansion cultivator from the Qian family. "Seventy years ago, Jiaoyang County fell, and our family lost two Purple Mansion elders. It feels like yesterday. Now, we've finally reclaimed our lands."
The group's joy was tempered by the somber mood of one elder, Patriarch Wang. A newly ascended Purple Mansion cultivator from the Wang family had fallen in this battle, and the loss weighed heavily on him.
"Our family brought newly ascended Purple Mansion cultivators, but with me and the patriarch guarding them, they faced no overwhelming threats," Elian noted.
But the Wang family hadn't been so fortunate. Their new Purple Mansion cultivator had encountered the Green Lion Hound in the chaos and was killed in just a few exchanges, leaving Patriarch Wang grieving and helpless.
Patriarch Wang sighed bitterly.
"I have only eighty years of lifespan left and am stuck at the sixth layer of the Purple Mansion stage. With my nephew gone, what hope does my family have?"
A heavy silence fell over the group. Jiang Linglong broke it, her expression softening.
"In the depths of Jiaoyang Mountain's fire veins, there are two Fire Crystals and a Purple Sun Jade. Take the Fire Crystals as compensation, and I will use the Purple Sun Jade to refine a Purple Qi Cloud Pattern Pill for you at a cost."
Patriarch Wang's gratitude was palpable.
"Thank you, Elder Jiang. Thank you so much!"
With reparations addressed, the group turned to divide the spoils of battle.
Though the assault had been hastily arranged, the loot was substantial.
The Azure Mane Lion King's corpse and inner core fell to Jiang Linglong, along with a fourth-tier artifact, the Azure Steel Blade.
The nine Purple Mansion-level demons contributed 18 third-rank artifacts. Though insufficient for everyone to claim one, Jiang Linglong promised to refine the inner cores into Foundation Establishment Pills, ensuring every clan received three or four pills each.
The Green Lion Hound, however, had provided the most valuable treasures: three heirloom-level artifacts—the Green Hound Celestial Sword, the Thunderstrike Golden Sun Halberd, and the Blue-Pattern Hexagonal Shield.
One elder, Pan Boyuan, gazed tearfully at the Thunderstrike Golden Sun Halberd.
"This was my predecessor's Natal Artifact. He died to buy time for our clan. I beg you all, let my family reclaim this treasure."
Though the group sympathized, the halberd's immense value as a clan treasure made them reluctant to part with it.
...
85+ chapters ahead on patreon: patreon.com/David_Lord
I need POWAAA! Gimme Power Stones :D