Chapter 2915: Yin-Yang Two Swords Formation Reappears
Blackheart Demon Lord immediately composed himself, demonic qi surging from his body as his gaze fixed on Chi Yao.
Eleven layers of celestial realms hung like true divine palaces above Chi Yao's head, seemingly existing in void space. Countless rule divine patterns flowed between the eleven celestial realms, perfectly aligning with the rules of heaven and earth.
In the Heavenly Court, there were rumors that Chi Yao had devoured Zhang Ruochen and cultivated the "Thirty-Three Heavens," but unfortunately, Blackheart Demon Lord was unaware of this at the time, as he was in Shangqiu breaking through to the Supreme Realm.
Of course, even if he had heard this rumor, Blackheart Demon Lord would absolutely not believe it.
Because he understood more deeply than anyone how foolish it was to believe rumors.
Blackheart Demon Lord showed no panic whatsoever at Chi Yao becoming an Upper-Level God.
Upper-Level God initial stage, that was all!
Even a Great Perfection Upper-Level God like Mi Lianshan or Hai Shangminggong alone could not pose much of a threat to him.
Blackheart Demon Lord laughed, saying, "Excellent, you've broken through to Upper-Level God, making you a truly great medicinal herb. Devouring you will be enough to lay the foundation for this lord's charge to the God Venerable level."
Overwhelming demonic qi surged forth, instantly filling the entire space.
A Heavenly Demon Stone Inscription divine stele manifested a Heavenly Demon phantom within the demonic qi, striking a palm toward Chi Yao.
The Space-Time Chaos Lotus beneath Chi Yao's feet expanded to ten zhang in diameter, supporting a chaotic space that resisted the demonic qi's invasion. At the same time, she took out the Literary Vessel and held it in her palm.
"Whoosh!"
Countless densely packed characters flew from the Literary Vessel, merging with the Space-Time Chaos Lotus to block the Heavenly Demon phantom's palm strike.
The Space-Time Chaos Lotus was a supreme treasure of Xumi Saint Monk.
The Literary Vessel was forged by the Third Confucian Ancestor.
Although Chi Yao's cultivation might still be vastly inferior to Blackheart Demon Lord's, with the power of two former Heavenly-level figures aiding her, she could partially close the gap.
"Refining Divine Flame!"
Chi Yao launched the Literary Vessel, sending threads of flame flying from within it, turning into a rain of fire that charged at Blackheart Demon Lord.
The Heavenly Demon phantom was instantly incinerated by the flames.
Wherever Blackheart Demon Lord's demonic qi and rule divine patterns touched the Refining Divine Flame, they immediately emitted a sizzling sound, turning into wisps of green smoke, completely unable to resist.
"This is... this is the Flame God's Refining Divine Flame..."
Blackheart Demon Lord's expression changed drastically as he immediately retreated.
Having once cultivated in the Kunlun Realm, he was deeply aware of the Refining Divine Flame's fearsome power. In the past, the Flame God himself had been burned to death by the Refining Divine Flame he had cultivated.
This was a flame capable of refining Great Gods to death!
Of course, the amount of Refining Divine Flame in the Literary Vessel was limited.
Seizing this opportunity, Zhang Ruochen's Diamond Moon Wheel, hidden in his sleeve, flew out, spinning rapidly and erupting with dazzling golden light.
As Blackheart Demon Lord dodged the Refining Divine Flame, he swung the Dark Gold War Heaven Pillar, and with a booming crash, sent the Diamond Moon Wheel flying. However, the powerful impact still caused his form to shake and his fingers to ache.
"How could you possess such powerful martial arts cultivation?" Blackheart Demon Lord stared wide-eyed, even more shocked than when he discovered Chi Yao had successfully cultivated the "Thirty-Three Heavens."
He knew that the one who had crippled Zhang Ruochen's cultivation was the Qingtian of the Tiannan Life-Death Ruins.
Yet Zhang Ruochen had clearly just used divine qi to activate the Diamond Moon Wheel, and the power it unleashed was no weaker than some Upper-Level Gods.
Zhang Ruochen said calmly, "My martial arts cultivation was never weak to begin with. The so-called crippling of my cultivation was merely a play I performed with Senior Qingtian to deceive the gods of the Heavenly Court. Sword, come!"
Chi Yao took out the "Sixth Patriarch Zen-Release Painting" and waved her arm, sending densely packed sword lights flying from the scroll.
Among them were four divine swords and seven soul swords.
The seven soul swords flew into the Xuan Embryo, entering the Taiji circle.
"Swish! Swish! Swish!"
The four divine swords hovered around Zhang Ruochen, driven by divine qi, flying at extreme speed with sword qi crisscrossing.
The four swords merged into one, striking with unparalleled force against the Heavenly Demon Stone Inscription divine stele suppressing Bai Qinger's head. Sparks flew everywhere as the divine stele was sent flying.
"Four more divine swords!"
Seeing this, Blackheart Demon Lord gritted his teeth, nearly losing his composure.
Zhang Ruochen's gaze locked onto Chi Yao.
Chi Yao understood his intent. Holding a divine sword, she stepped through nine different footwork patterns, unleashing a profoundly mysterious sword intent fluctuation. At the same time, Zhang Ruochen also stepped through nine footwork patterns, executing nine variations of sword techniques.
A Yin-Yang Two Forms Diagram Seal manifested beneath and above Zhang Ruochen and Chi Yao, forming a vortex of swirling energy.
Blackheart Demon Lord said, "The Liangyi Sect's strongest sword formation, the Yin-Yang Two Swords Formation!"
"You have good eyesight."
Standing within the sword formation, Zhang Ruochen raised his sword with both hands, drawing upon the divine qi of heaven and earth and the sword dao rules of the world, slashing straight down.
The sword formation combined his and Chi Yao's power, unleashing a strike far beyond their individual cultivation levels.
The Yin-Yang Two Swords Formation was indeed profoundly mysterious, aligning with the great dao of heaven and earth. However, the sword formation manual Zhang Ruochen and Chi Yao had cultivated back then was not particularly powerful—merely a semblance of its true form.
But with their current cultivation levels and understanding of the sword dao, they could unleash the formation's true power.
Blackheart Demon Lord dared not be careless. He immediately summoned the four Heavenly Demon Stone Inscription divine steles, manifesting four Heavenly Demon phantoms that clashed with Zhang Ruochen's slashing sword strike.
"Boom!"
Blackheart Demon Lord retreated three steps backward, a strand of hair at his neck severed by the divine sword's light.
On the other side, the Yin-Yang Two Forms Diagram Seal shattered, and Zhang Ruochen and Chi Yao slid backward, their bodies crashing against the hard stone wall, blood qi churning within them.
"It seems we're still lacking when it comes to confronting a Great God," Zhang Ruochen thought to himself.
But Blackheart Demon Lord was already shocked beyond words. After Zhang Ruochen and Chi Yao manifested the Yin-Yang Two Swords Formation, with the empowerment of divine artifacts, their combat power had become no weaker than a powerhouse like Hai Shangminggong.
Zhang Ruochen said to Chi Yao and Bai Qinger, "Let's go. Don't fight him head-on."
Chi Yao and Bai Qinger were both decisive. They immediately charged into the gray deathly mist, entering a narrow passage.
"Where do you think you're going!"
Blackheart Demon Lord's body was covered in demonic patterns. Using the four Heavenly Demon Stone Inscription divine steles to protect himself, he swung the Dark Gold War Heaven Pillar, striking straight at Zhang Ruochen, who was fleeing last.
In the blink of an eye, the Dark Gold War Heaven Pillar reached Zhang Ruochen's head.
Zhang Ruochen suddenly stopped, turned around, and roared, "Love Sword!"
A soul sword flew from the Xuan Embryo, its light dazzling to the extreme.
The Love Sword ranked second in power among the seven soul swords.
Zhang Ruochen chose to use it because he had just manifested the Yin-Yang Two Swords Formation with Chi Yao. The Yin-Yang Two Swords Formation was somewhat similar to using soul swords—to fully unleash the formation's power, the two sword-wielders must share deep affection.
The emotions cultivated from the earlier formation manifestation were now fully unleashed by the Love Sword in this instant.
"Pfft!"
The Love Sword was unstoppable. It pierced through all of Blackheart Demon Lord's defenses in a single strike, flying through the gaps between the four Heavenly Demon Stone Inscription divine steles and striking his chest.
Blackheart Demon Lord's divine body was pierced through, and he was sent flying backward, blood spilling all over the ground.
Of course, the greatest damage was not to his physical body but to his soul.
After landing, Blackheart Demon Lord staggered backward, his spirit listless. He only managed to stay upright by supporting himself with the Dark Gold War Heaven Pillar and the Six-Sided War Hammer.
After unleashing this sword strike, Zhang Ruochen seemed to have exhausted all his spirit, appearing even more listless than Blackheart Demon Lord. Fortunately, Chi Yao rushed back, grabbed his arm, and wrapped him in divine qi before taking him away.
Blackheart Demon Lord recovered in an instant, panting heavily. He reached out and touched the divine blood on his chest, muttering to himself, "What kind of sword is this? Pfft!"
He spat out a mouthful of blood.
Blackheart Demon Lord quickly sat cross-legged, refining the residual power of the soul sword that had invaded his body.
...
Zhang Ruochen, Bai Qinger, and Chi Yao fled all the way, all three suffering from not insignificant injuries, but they dared not stop.
The place was filled with deathly qi and had many branching paths.
They didn't know how long they had fled. Sensing no trace of Blackheart Demon Lord pursuing them, they finally stopped, collapsing to the ground in exhaustion, not wanting to move a muscle.
In their confrontation with Blackheart Demon Lord, both their spirits and bodies had been stretched to the limit, unleashing their strongest techniques. They had exhausted both their divine qi and their spirit.
Yet they still couldn't prevail.
The gap between the Heaven-Mending Realm and the Supreme Realm was simply too vast.
Zhang Ruochen dared not remain so exhausted. Slowly, he propped himself up and stood.
He said with some regret, "Unfortunately, romantic love between a man and a woman is merely a small love, unable to fully unleash the Love Sword's power. Otherwise, that strike just now would have done far more than just wound Blackheart Demon Lord."
Chi Yao and Bai Qinger were both extraordinary individuals. They stood up, quietly circulating the meager divine qi within them to heal their injuries.
Controlling divine artifacts consumed a tremendous amount of divine qi.
"What about that divine corpse puppet of yours?" Chi Yao asked.
Zhang Ruochen's brow furrowed deeply as he shook his head gently.
Yulongxian's disappearance filled Zhang Ruochen with a strong sense of foreboding. Logically, she was just a divine corpse, completely under Zhang Ruochen's control. How could she have vanished after being sent flying by Blackheart Demon Lord?
Could it be that she had left on her own?
Or perhaps there were other cultivators here?
Zhang Ruochen raised his palm, feeling the erosion of the gray deathly qi in the air. He turned his gaze to Bai Qinger and asked, "Does this place feel familiar to you?"
Bai Qinger knew what Zhang Ruochen was referring to and nodded.
"Isn't this Star Heaven Cliff?" Chi Yao asked.
Zhang Ruochen's expression had already turned extremely grave. "Not only is it not Star Heaven Cliff, but it's very likely an extremely dangerous place."
The deathly qi here was too similar to that beneath the Yuchen Divine Temple.
Zhang Ruochen would rather go back now and fight Blackheart Demon Lord to the death than believe they were now beneath the Yuchen Divine Temple. Just a few days ago, he and Bai Qinger had nearly been dragged into the depths by the old corpse ghost, and the terror of that moment was still fresh in his memory.
Zhang Ruochen pressed his palm against the nearby stone wall and struck it lightly.
"Thud!"
The stone wall only dented slightly, leaving a palm print pattern.
Zhang Ruochen said, "The rock here contains a large amount of God Venerable substance. A God Venerable-level powerhouse once cultivated here, and for a very long time."
Refined God Venerable substance was one of the ten ultimate substances in the universe.
Chi Yao and Bai Qinger's hearts sank to the bottom, their bodies icy cold. They realized that the greatest danger they were about to face might very well not be Blackheart Demon Lord.