Chapter Nine: Only Death in Battle

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At that moment, the defensive shield of water shattered, and the venomous serpents formed from chains lunged straight for Song Changsheng.

"Fire Sun Array, arise!" Song Changsheng raised his hands in a gesture, and a dense weave of crimson array patterns unfurled beneath his feet, instantly enveloping all present.

A phantom sun appeared above his head. As soon as the "serpent" touched the scorching brilliance, it hissed and sizzled, a veil of blood mist rising in its wake.

"Damn it!" The demonic cultivator hastily drew back his chains. In just those few moments, what had been smooth links were now pitted and scarred, his heart aching with loss.

"Arrogant wretch, die!" The demonic cultivator at the eighth level of Qi Refinement bellowed, launching a crimson orb thick with murderous energy straight at Song Changsheng.

One hand controlling the array, Song Changsheng formed a seal with the other, causing the precious gourd to spin furiously and collide with the orb. For a while, neither side gained the upper hand.

"This one is troublesome—let's attack together."

The remaining three each unleashed their magical implements, and four enemies converged, besieging Song Changsheng. The pressure mounted.

His fingers wove ceaselessly through spell seals. With a resonant hum, twelve triangular array flags emerged from the earth. Song Changsheng’s eyes blazed; he shouted, "Blazing Sun Scorches the Sky!"

The sun above turned a fiery orange, and flames erupted from the ground, transforming the array’s domain into a sea of fire.

This was no ordinary fire. Once touched, it clung like a parasite, impossible to shake off. The enemies had to channel much of their spiritual power just to ward it away.

This, Song Changsheng seized as his chance. The "Fire" character appeared in his right palm, granting him command over the firestorm.

"Rain of Fire!"

With a downward gesture, the phantom sun released a torrent of fire. Bolstered by the array and Song Changsheng's mastery of the Water-Fire Control Art, the power of this first-tier fire spell soared, so much so that even the ninth-level demonic cultivator could not ignore it and had to brace himself.

For a moment, Song Changsheng suppressed all four opponents.

Yet his brow remained furrowed; he knew his spiritual power would not last. He must find a way to break the deadlock.

"You are the one." His gaze locked onto a short demonic cultivator, obviously exhausted at his fourth level of Qi Refinement.

Song Changsheng moved in a flash, appearing before the hapless enemy in the blink of an eye.

The demonic cultivator panicked, hastily channeling his dark arts to resist, but Song Changsheng flicked his finger, sending a burst of flame straight through his skull.

Before the slain foe could collapse, his body was consumed by fire and reduced to ash.

"Ninth Brother!" The ninth-level demonic cultivator’s eyes nearly burst with rage, and he lunged at Song Changsheng, his chain now agile and deadly.

Song Changsheng was caught off guard, the chain scraping his arm and tearing away a chunk of flesh.

"Fight!"

Instead of fear, the injury ignited his fighting spirit. Determination flashed in his eyes as he drew a porcelain vial from his pouch and gulped down most of its contents.

His eyes widened; he felt a surge of violent spiritual energy erupting from his center, flooding his limbs and bones.

Where he had been depleted, his power now rose in torrents.

"Ah—!" Song Changsheng roared skyward. The precious gourd burst forth, repelling the magical implements entangling him and returning to his side.

Now, wielding the Water-Fire Gourd, crowned by the blazing sun, with fire dragons twining about him, he seemed a war god incarnate.

"Impossible..." The demonic cultivator was stunned. Could this be the spiritual power of a mere Qi Refinement cultivator?

"Command!"

Song Changsheng thrust both arms forward, sending fire dragons surging from his sides. The last fourth-level demonic cultivator was caught off guard and instantly incinerated.

"Damn it! We’ll die fighting!" The two remaining demonic cultivators’ eyes turned ruthless as they attacked from both sides.

His meridians and dantian bulged painfully with the flood of energy, ready to be unleashed.

"Come!"

The entire array seemed to come alive; twelve flags whirled about Song Changsheng, and the sun overhead plummeted toward the eighth-level demonic cultivator.

Having spent so much energy resisting the flames, the enemy now found himself powerless before the descending sun.

He could only watch as he was swallowed whole...

Splash.

The full-force strike slew the eighth-level demonic cultivator, but Song Changsheng paid dearly for it—the chain struck his chest, making his organs tremble.

"Come, fight me to the death!" Blood on his lips, Song Changsheng’s eyes burned with madness. He was fearless now.

"Arrogant!" The last demonic cultivator was weak, but there was no retreat—only one could survive.

"Grand Blood Demon Art!"

With a roar, blood light enveloped the demonic cultivator as he began burning his own life force.

Song Changsheng faced him unflinchingly, eyes blazing. "Today, you shall never enter the cycle of rebirth!"

In a flash, they collided with dazzling light. The sea of fire roiled, bodies entwined, and a figure crashed to the ground, instantly reduced to ashes.

As the flames gradually faded, only Song Changsheng remained, kneeling, surrounded by shattered array flags.

"Cough, cough... A ninth-level Qi Refinement cultivator truly is powerful." Song Changsheng clutched his chest, staggering to his feet—victorious, but barely.

He swallowed a few healing pills and surveyed the scorched land, hundreds of meters laid bare. Fortunately, he’d restrained the fire, or the mountain itself would be a wasteland.

The demonic cultivators were all ash; only their magical implements and pouches remained, preserved in the flames.

He collected them, took a moment to recover, then prepared to support Song Luding and the others.

Before he could move, a murderous voice sounded nearby: "Second Brother and the others fell to your hand? We underestimated you."

Song Changsheng looked over to see four black-robed figures emerge from the dense woods.

The masked man tossed the unconscious Song Changying to the ground and said coldly, "Those two old fools are already in the underworld. Hand over those children, or I guarantee she’ll suffer worse than death."

Song Changsheng’s eyes blazed with fury. "Beast!"

"Hmph. Refuse and I’ll crush her skull right now!" The masked man pressed his foot on Song Changying’s head, his tone full of threat.

As Song Changsheng wavered between advance and retreat, a streak of rainbow light descended from the sky, and a cold voice rang out: "You are not qualified!"

The masked man’s vision blurred. His three companions were instantly riddled with needle rain, dying where they stood.

A stabbing pain pierced his chest. Looking down, he saw a needle as fine as a hair trembling in his heart.

Terror gripped him as he tried to pull it out, but suddenly his feet left the ground.

Looking down, he saw a female cultivator with murderous eyes holding him aloft by the throat.

"Mother, cough..." Song Changsheng felt enormous relief—she had arrived just in time.

Seeing her son battered and bloodied, Xia Yunxue’s fury reached its peak. She glared at the masked man. "Speak—who sent you?"

...