Jian Dan's smile faded as soon as she received Yue Liang's voice transmission.
She hadn't yet asked why the raccoon beasts had been driven to extinction by the beast race, but the answer was already playing out right before her.
"Heh... little raccoon. You're next."
The evil cultivator's rough voice rumbled from within the black mist that cloaked his entire body, addressing Yue Liang directly.
Yue Liang bared her small, sharp teeth and began slashing with her little claws. Each swing tore through the corrupted souls swarming her, erasing them completely.
The Unity stage demon cultivator had released the spirits from the Ten Thousand Souls Banner he summoned. First came the blackened souls of Golden Core cultivators, followed by Nascent Soul, Divine Transformation, and Divine Soul stage spirits. In mere moments, black fog flooded the entire Fu family estate.
Outside the spatial barrier, Tian Yun Zhēnzūn finished his soul search. With one palm, he slammed it down onto Fu Heng's head and killed him on the spot.
"Jian Li, clear the area around the Fu estate. If Jian Lu's spatial domain breaks, we're going to be in for a tough battle. Prepare accordingly."
Tian Yun Zhēnzūn spoke calmly. Jian Li nodded with a solemn expression and immediately took Jian Wu and the other two to carry out the order.
Tian Yun Zhēnzūn looked down at the battle below, where four figures clashed amid flickering black light. His face remained expressionless. In his mind, the Fu family was already beyond saving.
Whether the remaining Fu cultivators were innocent didn't matter anymore. They had challenged a sect, the very force sworn to protect them. That alone revealed their malicious intent.
Inside the domain, Jian Dan and the others stood at the four cardinal points, attacking the blackened souls rushing toward them. Jian Dan's strikes carried exotic flames that ignited the moment they touched a soul, burning it away completely.
Jian Xu, with his Light Spiritual Root, wielded sword techniques infused with light. His Golden Severance sliced cleanly through the corrupted spirits, disintegrating them in blinding white sword light.
Wu Siyuan had dual roots of Metal and Water. His alternating sword strikes from both elements tore through the weaker spirits in an instant, reducing them to black smoke.
Jian Gui, the weakest of the four, was self-aware enough to target only spirits below Divine Transformation. His brown, earth-based sword light weaved through the sky, hunting down Golden Core and Nascent Soul level spirits with precision.
In the air, the evil cultivator kept up a constant stream of corrupted spirits from the banner to stall the four of them, all while focusing his main assault on Yue Liang. The four cultivators were no real threat to him, but the raccoon beast was. She had reached Tier Six, which meant she could actually injure him.
Yue Liang fought carefully, recalling Jian Dan's instructions and never straying too far from her. The moment she sensed the demon cultivator's gaze shift to her, she crushed a Divine Soul spirit rushing her, then blinked in a flash of light back onto Jian Dan's shoulder.
"Zūnzhǔ, he's aiming for me now!"
She wasn't just reporting. It was also a warning to stay alert.
Jian Dan nodded, sword still flashing as she cut down the next wave of incoming spirits.
"Senior Brother, destroy his soul banner first. If we don't, we'll be overwhelmed. He'll eventually breach my domain."
She transmitted directly to Jian Xu. Understanding her plan, he flew toward her. The two quickly regrouped and prepared a joint assault on the now-enlarged Ten Thousand Souls Banner floating overhead.
Wu Siyuan and Jian Gui pivoted at once, standing back-to-back and guarding two directions each, cutting down the blackened spirits so the two Zhēnzūn could act freely.
Jian Gui's strength lagged behind, and he struggled against the Divine Soul spirits. But the Bodhi Beads he wore shone with a soft Buddhist light, shielding him when one of the spirits tried to tear his Primordial Soul free.
A muffled boom rang out.
Jian Dan's blood surged violently. The evil cultivator had begun attacking the spatial domain directly. A Soul Locking Spike, glinting with black light, stabbed at one specific point on the barrier.
Jian Dan narrowed her eyes. The Yin-Yang Taiji Disk within her began spinning rapidly, spiritual and demonic energies twisting together and rising upward. As they fused into chaotic energy, the outer membrane of the barrier shifted from a spiritual lightfilm into a swirling aura of Primordial Chaos.
"Chuan, help reinforce the barrier."
A single willow leaf fluttered down, merging into the barrier and spreading out in soft green veins, like the pattern of flower petals. The magnolia blossom that defined the domain came to life once more.
The combination of Jian Dan's transformation and Liu Chuan's support solidified the barrier, allowing it to endure the Unity-stage attack.
"Senior Brother, it's our turn!"
"Right. Let's go!"
With the demon cultivator multitasking—controlling the Ten Thousand Souls Banner, attacking the barrier, and targeting Yue Liang—Jian Dan and Jian Xu moved as one. Their twin swords struck in unison. Gray and white sword lights flashed repeatedly toward the banner.
In just three breaths, over a hundred sword strikes slammed into the Ten Thousand Souls Banner. The roiling black smoke around it began to thin.
Seeing the results, Jian Dan and Jian Xu redoubled their efforts. The souls leaking from the banner weakened, their forms growing translucent. The entire banner began to destabilize.
"Keep going!"
Jian Xu led with Golden Severance. Jian Dan immediately followed up with Chaos Reigns. Their crisscrossing attacks pounded the banner relentlessly. Screams echoed from within, as the trapped souls began to wail in terror.
The demon cultivator finally turned his full attention to the banner. He formed a new hand seal and injected it with even darker energy, steadying the banner once more. Then, a wicked grin spread across his face.
"So I underestimated you after all. You've got some tricks, I'll give you that."
Yue Liang leapt off Jian Dan's shoulder and transformed midair into a massive, ten-meter-tall raccoon beast. She let out a piercing, echoing cry.
"Chii!"
The sound struck directly at the evil cultivator's mind, disrupting his sea of consciousness. He staggered, dazed for just a breath.
That moment was all Jian Dan and Jian Xu needed. Their blades descended again, sword light flashing in rapid succession toward the weakened banner.
Snapping out of it, the demon cultivator roared in fury. He struck back at Yue Liang with a devastating blow. A flash of black light flickered in her eyes, but she couldn't dodge in time. The attack slammed into her, sending her hurtling through the air.
"Yue Liang!"
Jian Dan saw it happen. She immediately launched Chaos Reigns again, breaking up the evil cultivator's follow-up strike.
Yue Liang's body was soaked in blood, but she steadied herself midair. Through their contract, she sent a message directly into Jian Dan's mind.
"Zūnzhǔ, attack the small corner at the very bottom of the banner. That's its weak point."
Jian Dan flew back to Jian Xu's side and gave him a sharp look. He understood at once. They launched their third round of attacks, targeting only the point Yue Liang had mentioned.
"Zūnzhǔ," Yue Liang sent another message, "I'll stall him for a few breaths. Please destroy the Ten Thousand Souls Banner. It's his life-bound artifact."
Jian Dan clenched her teeth. "Understood."
Bloodied and bruised, Yue Liang didn't stop. She twisted and turned through the air, constantly howling, her cries piercing into the demon cultivator's mind to disrupt his focus.
"Cotton Candy, go help her!"
"Yes, Master!"
Cotton Candy had been growing restless for a while. At Jian Dan's command, she immediately teleported beside Yue Liang. A fluffy white cloud wrapped around her, shielding her body and blinking unpredictably as they harassed the enemy.
Wu Siyuan and Jian Gui wore grim expressions. Their spiritual energy flowed like water into their swords, cutting down any blackened souls that dared approach the two Zhēnzūn.
A sharp crack rang out, echoing in everyone's ears.