Chapter 619 - 416: Change of Plans (2)

Chapter 619: Chapter 416: Change of Plans (2)

Ruan Zhumei prepared to report everything she knew back to Black Dragon Hall.

She needed to emphasize the mysterious Spirit Refiner’s current strength—Elder Jin Daolei had already fallen to him within the Dragon Demon Palace.

Elder Jin Daolei hadn’t resisted for long.

All of this was information that could illustrate the mysterious Spirit Refiner’s strength.

Their previous intelligence had indicated that the mysterious Spirit Refiner could quickly kill a Late-stage Core Formation Ghost Cultivator. That information alone had been shocking enough, but everything happening now proved they had still underestimated the Spirit Refiner’s power.

After Ruan Zhumei transmitted this information to Black Dragon Hall, she started spitting her silk again, constantly expanding the range of her web.

These silk threads were more effective than ordinary Divine Sense.

Her silk threads could detect things that Divine Sense could not.

Ruan Zhumei was doing all this to guard against a surprise attack from the mysterious Spirit Refiner.

At this very moment, not far from Ruan Zhumei, Fang Yun was lurking.

’Another Demon at the Peak of Core Formation.’

Without a doubt, this had to be one of Black Dragon Hall’s Core Formation Elders.

When Fang Yun saw this Elder at the Peak of Core Formation from Black Dragon Hall, he knew he had misjudged how seriously Black Dragon Hall was taking them.

Black Dragon Hall took them far more seriously than he had imagined.

Otherwise, Black Dragon Hall wouldn’t have assigned two Elders at the Peak of Core Formation to guard the Dragon Demon Palace.

And that was just the number of Elders at the Peak of Core Formation. There were likely many more from Black Dragon Hall in the first three realms of the Core Formation Stage.

’I’ve been discovered anyway. Might as well deal with this Peak of Core Formation Demon first.’

Fang Yun began to approach the Black Dragon Hall Elder, Ruan Zhumei. He struck from just outside the edge of the web she had laid. He knew that the moment he touched the threads, she would detect him.

The Half-Hidden Spirit Boots’ concealment effect worked against common detection methods. While they could be adjusted to counter special detection methods like this, doing so would weaken their effectiveness against common ones. The trade-off wasn’t worth it.

Specialized detection methods usually came with significant limitations.

For example, this Black Dragon Hall Elder’s silk-spitting technique. Once a thread was spat out, it became fixed in place, offering very little flexibility. Moreover, it consumed a great deal of power.

"Here!"

The moment Fang Yun struck, Ruan Zhumei instantly detected his direction and locked onto his position.

’I must meet the mysterious Spirit Refiner’s attack with my full strength.’

This was a lesson learned from the late Jin Daolei. Ruan Zhumei suspected Jin Daolei hadn’t used his full power when he first encountered the mysterious Spirit Refiner. However, judging from the eruption of Demon Power, even if it wasn’t his full strength, he must have used at least eighty percent.

This was her suspicion. In truth, she preferred to believe that Jin Daolei had already used his full power against the mysterious Spirit Refiner.

「Elsewhere in the Dragon Demon Palace.」

The moment Fang Yun struck, the Dragon Demon Palace Master finally sensed a Spiritual Power fluctuation on the Core Array Plate in his hands.

Without a shred of hesitation, the Dragon Demon Palace Master locked onto the Spiritual Power fluctuation and mobilized the full power of the Grand Array to bombard him.

"Die, mysterious Spirit Refiner!"

With the mysterious Spirit Refiner found and locked on to, the Dragon Demon Palace Master could finally breathe a sigh of relief.

Locking onto the mysterious Spirit Refiner was the crucial part.

’Thankfully, I was clever enough to prepare. Even if the mysterious Spirit Refiner knows the layout of the palaces here, it will be very difficult for him to find my location quickly.’

’I adjusted the layout long ago, precisely to deal with his impending attack.’

"Wait... The mysterious Spirit Refiner is only at the mid-stage of Core Formation?"

The Dragon Demon Palace Master only realized this after he had initiated the Grand Array’s attack against the mysterious Spirit Refiner.

If he hadn’t already been breathing a sigh of relief, it might have taken him even longer to realize it.

"No way..." The Dragon Demon Palace Master was shocked.

Based on the mysterious Spirit Refiner’s performance, his Realm should be at the Late-stage Core Formation at the absolute minimum. How could his Cultivation only be at the mid-stage?

In other words, possessing such strength at the mid-stage of Core Formation meant the mysterious Spirit Refiner was far more terrifying than he had ever imagined.

If Black Dragon Hall had learned of this sooner, they would have undoubtedly put in more effort, dispatching even more Elders to handle this problem.

"This just goes to show the mysterious Spirit Refiner’s potential. After we kill him, Black Dragon Hall’s reward for us will be even greater."

The Dragon Demon Palace Master was growing excited.

The mysterious Spirit Refiner must die!

...

The moment Fang Yun struck with his full power, he had already anticipated that he would be locked onto by the Dragon Demon Palace’s Grand Array.

’Under these circumstances, if the Grand Array still couldn’t lock onto me, it would just mean the thing is completely useless.’

He wasn’t worried about it.

Right now, besides thinking about how to kill more Demons, he was already considering what would happen after he annihilated the Dragon Demon Palace.

’Black Dragon Hall’s investment here far exceeds our expectations. The consequence is that after we destroy the Dragon Demon Palace, we’ll likely face even greater pressure.’

After sending his Lifebound Magical Treasure, the Profound Jade Sword, flying, Fang Yun summoned his other Lifebound Magical Treasure, the No-leak Shield.

Attacking and defending simultaneously was incredibly easy for him.

The Profound Jade Sword shot straight toward the Black Dragon Hall Elder at the Peak of Core Formation.

Compared to the previous Elder from Black Dragon Hall, this one’s defensive measures were somewhat weaker.

Countless silk threads shot out to stop the Profound Jade Sword’s advance, but not a single one could slow it in the slightest.

’How is this possible!’

Ruan Zhumei was utterly astonished.

Even though she thought she was mentally prepared, she had still underestimated the power of the mysterious Spirit Refiner’s Attacking Methods.

’The power of this strike... it’s even stronger than one from a Sword Cultivator at the Peak of Core Formation, isn’t it?’

At this moment, Ruan Zhumei faced a fact she was unwilling to admit: she had sensed that the mysterious Spirit Refiner’s Cultivation was only at the mid-stage of Core Formation.

This completely defied her understanding.

Of course, she had no time to dwell on the issue, because the pale golden Long Sword was almost upon her.

Cocoon!

Her life on the line, Ruan Zhumei consumed a massive amount of her blood essence. Not only did the speed at which she spat silk increase, but its color also changed from white to deep crimson.

The crimson threads rapidly enveloped Ruan Zhumei’s body, forming a massive Blood Cocoon.

The pale golden Long Sword seemed to meet some resistance, but it still passed smoothly through the massive Blood Cocoon. Its tip emerged carrying a crumbling Golden Core.

Another Black Dragon Hall Elder at the Peak of Core Formation had fallen.

’Killing two Demons at the Peak of Core Formation... even without any bonuses, the base Talent Points I get should break a hundred million.’

At this thought, Fang Yun’s mood improved considerably.

The very moment he killed the Black Dragon Hall Elder, several bolts of purplish-black lightning, each as thick as a bowl, struck down at him, crackling with immense Demon Power.

This was the Dragon Demon Palace’s Grand Array attacking him.

’As expected of an attack from a Third Tier Grand Array. An ordinary Late-stage Core Formation Cultivator could barely block a few of these.’

Fang Yun could block an attack of this magnitude with extreme ease using his No-leak Shield.

’The most terrifying aspect of a Grand Array is its ability to attack relentlessly, drawing on the power of the Earth Vein to wear you down in a battle of attrition.’

’Even a normal Cultivator at the Peak of Core Formation couldn’t afford such a drain on their power.’

The No-leak Shield was his Lifebound Magical Treasure, and his eight-star Combat Talent reduced the Spiritual Power cost of his abilities. As such, even after blocking dozens of the purplish-black lightning bolts, he had consumed very little Spiritual Power.

If he wanted, he could hold out here for a full day and night without depleting his Spiritual Power, and that was without even using any Spiritual Power Recovery Elixirs.

’I’ve revealed enough information. The best plan now is to stay put and wait for Supreme Elder Miao and the others to fight their way here.’

The No-leak Shield protected his entire body. If Fang Yun wanted to move, he could do so with ease.

He could defend, move, and attack—all with his full power, all at the same time.

This was a full-scale eruption of his power, and thanks to the boost from his Combat Talent, he could pull it off with incredible ease.

Right now, he was only defending normally, but he needed to create the illusion that he was defending with his full strength.

’While in a state of all-out defense, one can’t move effectively.’

This was the plan Fang Yun had decided on in the spur of the moment.

His previous plan clearly couldn’t keep up with the current developments.