Hatred seethed in Mo Yuan's heart as he glared at the looming Heavenly Suppression Seal with murderous intensity.
The towering demonic mountain was just about to crush Song Wanníng when, all of a sudden, her figure blurred and vanished without a trace.
The Demon Sovereign's smirk instantly froze. Almost at the same time, he released his divine sense in all directions, frantically scanning for Song Wanníng's whereabouts.
But strangely enough, no matter how he searched, he couldn't find the slightest trace of her aura. It was as if she had simply ceased to exist.
Fury welled up inside him, but before he could even retract the Heavenly Suppression Seal , a pack of demon beasts surged toward him once more.
They all shared a common rage, determined to take down the one who had injured them.
Man and beasts clashed again in a frenzied melee.
But in the very next instant, a streak of sword light slashed toward the back of his neck. A chilling wave of dread surged through him. Without hesitation, the Demon Sovereign twisted around and counterattacked.
He raised a palm and barely dodged the sword strike, only to have a demon beast's claw plunge straight through his abdomen, dragging out a bloody length of intestine.
"Hiss—!"
He let out a gasp of pain, his face turning deathly pale. Gritting his teeth, he swung his hand like a blade and struck the beast with a powerful slash.
The demon beast shrieked in agony and crashed to the ground with a thunderous thud.
At that moment, Song Wanníng's sword light came at him again. This time, she fused her exotic flame, golden flying sword, and sword technique into one.
A roaring golden dragon, wreathed in searing fire, shot forward like a blazing comet. It streaked through the air, its fangs aimed directly at the Demon Sovereign's heart.
Everything happened in a blink. He moved to block the blow, but the sheer force of it sent him flying.
Behind him, the Thunder Demon Wolf's electric orb closed in again, driving him to the brink of collapse. Enraged, he gritted his teeth and swung his staff in a desperate counter.
In just a few breaths, they had exchanged multiple deadly moves.
All around them, spiritual and demonic energies surged wildly. The pressure from the battle was overwhelming, forcing nearby cultivators to steer clear, not daring to get even remotely close.
…
"You bitch! You teamed up with that bastard to screw me over?"
Another attack missed. The Demon Sovereign had lost track of Song Wanníng's presence again. He roared in frustration, his body already covered in wounds and streaked with blood. His appearance had become utterly wretched.
A full fifteen minutes had passed, yet that woman hadn't even suffered a scratch. The insult was intolerable. Every time he was about to land a serious blow, she would vanish completely. It wasn't just spatial relocation—it was as if she blinked out of existence. What was the point of fighting if none of his attacks could touch her?
Meanwhile, he himself had been clawed and battered by the demon beasts and the cursed woman. He was breathing heavily, exhausted, and on the verge of collapse.
"So much whining. What's the use?" Mo Yuan's cold sneer rang out. "If your skills fall short, stop blaming others. Today, you're destined to die right here."
"You little bastard! I should've strangled you the moment you were born!"
The Demon Sovereign spat out blood, overcome with bitter regret. He should have killed her the moment she was born, ended it before it began. Who would have thought that woman—at the very brink of death—had secretly smuggled the child away?
"And you think you're going to kill me now? We'll see who really dies today!"
With a furious bellow, the Demon Sovereign launched himself at the demon beasts again. Though already battered, they had no way to retreat. Cornered and exhausted, they were barely hanging on.
But escape was no longer an option. They couldn't outrun him, and they couldn't overpower him.
Desperation flared in their eyes. With no other choice, the beasts gathered themselves and lashed out in another desperate counterattack.
Suddenly, Song Wanníng flashed into view, killing intent burning in her gaze.
Thanks to Mo Yuan's spatial shifts, she had only used up spiritual power so far and hadn't taken any physical damage. But she knew they couldn't drag this out forever. If they wanted to kill the Demon Sovereign, this couldn't go on.
She would have to risk it all.
Sword in hand, Song Wanníng unleashed a series of fierce strikes. She cycled through nearly every sword technique she knew, each one more aggressive than the last.
But the difference in cultivation realms was too great. Despite everything, the Demon Sovereign still held on.
Worse, in pushing so hard for victory, she left herself open and was soon struck by a fierce counterattack that sent her flying.
"Urgh—!"
His blow hit square in the chest, and she felt her breath catch sharply before blood spurted from her lips.
She immediately sent a message to Mo Yuan: don't use the teleportation unless her life was truly at risk.
Worried but trusting her decision, Mo Yuan agreed.
His gaze remained locked on her figure, ready to act at a moment's notice.
Inside the bubble, Song Wanníng rushed forward again.
The Demon Sovereign was grievously wounded. His power had clearly waned.
This was her chance.
If she was going to fight him head-on, it was now. And perhaps, in doing so, she'd break through her own limits.
"Roar—!"
The demon beasts surged forward again, mustering the last of their strength.
Spells and techniques lit up the battlefield in a chaotic storm of color and energy.
The space around them twisted and warped, even exploded in places. Rifts tore open in midair with howling force, turning the fight even more deadly.
Whoosh—
Song Wanníng darted past one such spatial rift. The sharp, swirling wind shredded part of her skirt into fine dust, which vanished into the void. Her pupils contracted. She began trying to maneuver the Demon Sovereign toward the rifts. But the rifts shifted unpredictably, flickering in and out of place. In just a short time, both sides—humans and beasts—were covered in wounds, physically and mentally exhausted.
Especially the Demon Sovereign. Since entering the battle, he hadn't had a moment to breathe. Even after swallowing a demon pill to recover, his mind was fraying. His movements had grown visibly sluggish.
Song Wanníng, however, only seemed to grow fiercer. The more she was pushed, the more determined she became. Though her body was covered in injuries, her eyes blazed with a brilliant, unshakable light.
Seeing this, the Demon Sovereign couldn't help but curse under his breath and launched another weary attack.
…
Time slipped by, and another quarter-hour passed in the blink of an eye.
A flaming sword beam collided with a demonic dragon in a violent clash. Shockwaves erupted, spreading out in all directions. The earth trembled violently. Mountains cracked. The ground heaved and split open.
Both Song Wanníng and the Demon Sovereign were blasted away, tumbling to the ground as blood poured from their mouths.
"Cough—!"
She spat up more blood and hastily pulled out a pill to swallow. That explosion could've ended her, had Mo Yuan not shifted her out of harm's way just in time. Looking around, she saw that one of the demon beasts had already died. The rest were barely clinging to life, too injured to even fight back.
A flick of her sword would be enough to finish them.
Then she turned her eyes on the Demon Sovereign across from her. His condition was even worse. His robes were little more than charred scraps clinging to burnt skin. Blood streaked across his body, bones jutted out in multiple places. He looked more like a corpse than a man.
His long black hair had come loose, unevenly scorched and soaked with blood. He opened his mouth, and dark blood flowed freely. His body sagged to the ground, too weak to even sit upright, eyes filled with hatred and disbelief.
The Demon Sovereign forced down another pill, struggling to rise. He could barely stand, leaning heavily on his staff just to stay upright.
He had never imagined that Song Wanníng would be this impossible to kill.