Above the Qi Sea, white qi blotted out the sky, surging and crashing.
Sealing Qi Demon Immortal looked down from on high, gazing upon Ancestor Qi Sea, his demonic might vast and overwhelming. The phantom projection of Xi Di loomed clearly above his head, ensuring he stood firmly in an invincible position.
"Young Qi Sea, this old man's cultivation — may I borrow some Gu from you?" Sealing Qi Demon Immortal spoke once more.
Fang Yuan's expression turned grave.
Their previous clash had already revealed many of Sealing Qi Demon Immortal's secrets and true capabilities.
Setting aside the various killing moves Sealing Qi Demon Immortal possessed, his trump card was clearly the heaven-and-earth secret realm Xi Di. Relying on this secret realm, he could suppress all Qi Path Gu Immortals under heaven.
If it were any other school of cultivation, Sealing Qi Demon Immortal wouldn't have enjoyed such a tremendous advantage. But Ancestor Qi Sea specialized exclusively in the Qi Path, making him severely constrained.
This also offered a glimpse into Sealing Qi Demon Immortal's character.
Though he acted domineeringly, he was far from mindless — he knew to leverage his greatest strengths. After his resurrection, he hadn't engaged the three factions in prolonged battle but had wisely withdrawn. Along the way, he had refined and completed Xi Di, boosting his combat power. Now he had come before Ancestor Qi Sea once more, forcefully demanding to borrow Immortal Gu.
Once he obtained an Eighth Transformation Qi Path Immortal Gu, his strength would undoubtedly soar, and he would truly establish himself at the pinnacle of combat power in the current world.
Relying solely on the methods available through his Ancestor Qi Sea identity, Fang Yuan was indeed no match for Sealing Qi Demon Immortal. But he did not panic.
Fang Yuan had always preferred to plan thoroughly before acting.
He had long since received intelligence about Sealing Qi Demon Immortal's threat and had improved the Qi Sea Grand Formation well in advance. As long as he retreated into the formation, he could hold out for a while longer.
If Sealing Qi Demon Immortal charged into the formation, Fang Yuan could detonate it directly, creating a prime opportunity to retreat.
Come to think of it, Fang Yuan had obtained this self-destruction technique from Fang Dichang. Back then, to seize the Bean God Palace, Fang Dichang had deliberately schemed against Fang Yuan — intending to sacrifice Suan the Incalculable, a Wisdom Path Gu Immortal, by detonating the Immortal Gu House he had set up inside the Bean God Palace, thereby breaking through his bottleneck and refining the palace in one stroke.
Fang Yuan had seen through the scheme, captured Fang Dichang, and obtained the self-destruction Immortal Gu House technique through soul-searching. He had since refined it and incorporated it into the Qi Sea Grand Formation.
Once detonated, the power would be terrifying. Even if it couldn't threaten Sealing Qi Demon Immortal's life, it would certainly be enough to delay and hinder him for a time.
On this point, Fang Yuan was entirely confident.
It was just that...
If Fang Yuan used the formation's self-destruction to retreat, the value of his Ancestor Qi Sea identity would diminish considerably.
To preserve this identity, Fang Yuan had deliberately restrained his Qi Path methods even during the Battle of Destiny. He had used the Qi Sea Boundless killing move only once.
If Fang Yuan retreated, it would mean Ancestor Qi Sea had been defeated by Sealing Qi Demon Immortal. Ancestor Qi Sea's reputation would suffer greatly, and his ability to rally support in the Eastern Sea would be severely diminished.
Sealing Qi Demon Immortal frowned slightly. He had called out twice, and Ancestor Qi Sea had responded neither time. This pushed his already limited patience to its breaking point.
He let out a cold snort and was about to strike again when suddenly a blood-colored rainbow light pierced through the sky, shooting straight toward his face.
Sealing Qi Demon Immortal swiftly dodged, and then he saw the Demon Slaying Board appear at the edge of the sky.
"Heavenly Court, it's you again!" Sealing Qi Demon Immortal sneered. "I haven't come looking for trouble with you, yet here you are provoking me. After your crushing defeat in the Battle of Destiny, what gives you the audacity to act this way?"
"The Heavenly Court upholds the Righteous Path of humanity. What guides our actions is not audacity, but conviction!" A response came from within the Demon Slaying Board.
But the voice was not Gu Yue Fang Zheng's — it was a woman's.
Listening from the side, Fang Yuan's heart stirred. "Qin Dingling came in person? So the manifestation of my luck foretold outside help — it was referring to her!"
Sealing Qi Demon Immortal extended his finger and made several pointing gestures toward the incoming Demon Slaying Board.
The atmosphere surged and shifted, rapidly condensing into spheres. In an instant, hundreds of pale white qi spheres shot toward the Demon Slaying Board like meteors chasing the moon, triggering wave after wave of explosions.
The Demon Slaying Board's momentum halted abruptly, its form violently shaken by the blasts.
Sealing Qi Demon Immortal was about to say something when his expression suddenly shifted. He pulled back swiftly, darting away with lightning speed.
The blood-colored rainbow light that the Demon Slaying Board had fired earlier had actually circled back for another strike.
Sealing Qi Demon Immortal dodged the blood-colored light, but to his surprise, a golden radiance suddenly pierced through from within.
The golden radiance rapidly condensed above Sealing Qi Demon Immortal's head, transforming into a pair of enormous golden scissors.
Click-clack. Click-clack.
The golden scissors snipped repeatedly above Sealing Qi Demon Immortal's head, seemingly missing their mark.
But Sealing Qi Demon Immortal's face changed drastically.
"This is a Fortune Path technique!"
He hurriedly activated his inspection killing move, and his heart immediately ached. "Damn it — those golden scissors are cutting away at my fortune!"
Sealing Qi Demon Immortal placed great importance on maintaining his fortune. His successful resurrection and subsequent dismantling of the turbulent sea to mend Xi Di had already depleted his fortune considerably. This attack from the golden scissors only made things worse.
"Qi Sea, Heavenly Court — this old man will remember this debt. When the time comes, I will settle accounts with you properly." Sealing Qi Demon Immortal's voice shook heaven and earth.
After leaving these words behind, he immediately plunged into the towering white qi currents and swiftly withdrew from the battlefield, vanishing without a trace.
"He's retreated again?" From within the Demon Slaying Board, Gu Yue Fang Zheng watched in stunned disbelief.