Chapter 144: Domination and... a Comeback?

"Hahaha...!!! I told you it wasn't enough!! And you still wouldn't believe it!!" The gray-robed figure wore a ferocious expression, his facial features twisted together. In one hand, he raised a snake-headed cane high, while the other gripped a broad saber. The surrounding array surged to life, trapping Liu Ping firmly within its boundary.

Countless bloody saber shadows flashed across the air, leaving wave after wave of deep wounds upon Liu Ping's divine demon physique, a truly devastating condition. At this moment, he felt as though he had sunk into a quagmire; the more he struggled, the deeper he sank.

This sensation was excruciating. Despite doing everything in his power to clash with the gray-robed figure or attempt to tear through the array, every single method proved futile. The array controlled by this gray-robed entity was simply too formidable.

Seemingly unsatisfied with merely achieving this result, the gray-robed figure sneered as he looked at the utterly battered Liu Ping, stating flatly, "Well, the game ends here. I am quite tired of this back-and-forth, so you may die now."

The moment those words left his lips, the center of the array suddenly flared with brilliant light.

Blood-colored mist churned and condensed into a colossal saber, several dozens of feet in length. As the giant blade lifted, it radiated an incomparably terrifying aura, causing everyone trapped within the arena to feel a profound sense of powerlessness and suffocation.

Facing such an attack, even Ling'er—who had always been exceptionally arrogant—turned solemn and issued a warning: "Little master, be careful. This is the ultimate offensive technique of the array, driven by the master's very own vital blood. It seems this fellow is about to risk his life."

"I know." Even under such dire circumstances, Liu Ping felt not a single shred of defeat. The means of a demon commander were boundless; the battle might appear perilous right now, but it was merely the true beginning.

Hearing her little master's voice, Ling'er fell silent.

Beside Liu Ping, Yingning tightly embraced him, a look of agony crossing her face. Under the control of the talisman seals, she was completely unable to move. It had taken all her effort just to let Liu Ping maneuver her to hold onto him; even a sliver of cooperation was her absolute limit, and sending a voice transmission was entirely out of the question. Watching Liu Ping fall into such a desperate predicament filled her with profound self-blame.

Swish!

The giant blade slashed down fiercely with an indomitable momentum akin to a righteous sword. Yet this was a saber, and its advantage in a downward slash far surpassed that of a sword. Even without saber intent or a dwelling spirit—making it seem somewhat hollow on the surface—it was still not something Liu Ping could afford to underestimate.

The righteous sword met the attack head-on, colliding with the massive blade.

Boom!!

The explosion generated by the impact resounded once more. The surrounding ruins had long since been torn into unrecognizable wreckage, yet the array on the ground remained entirely intact, continuing to exert its power.

However, the light of the array was gradually dimming, a clear sign that the spirit stones powering it were nearly depleted.

Witnessing this, Liu Ping knew his deduction had been correct, but this realization brought him no joy, for in the next second, the sudden disappearance of the gray-robed figure shattered all his calculations.

The array's effects cleared from his view, but given the recent clash, the gray-robed figure should have been standing right where he was, desperately maintaining control. Why had he suddenly vanished? Was he truly unafraid of having his son and subordinates slaughtered?

Suddenly, Liu Ping felt a chill grip his heart as an inexplicable sense of crisis surged upward.

He jerked his head upward, and indeed, the figure of the gray-robed elder had reappeared high above in the sky.

A full moon hung in the heavens, and the gray-robed figure stood in its exact center, gazing coldly down at Liu Ping with the same expression as before—the look one gives to a dead man.

Bang, bang, bang! The moonlight, which had previously shone down so gently, transformed out of thin air into a barrage of attacks. Liu Ping's divine demon physique suffered heavy trauma once more, and he could not suppress a mouthful of fresh blood.

This form of intangible attack was the most troublesome to deal with. While his divine demon physique excelled at breaking all spells through pure strength, he was currently bogged down as if trapped in deep mud, unable to unleash even a fraction of his true power. Coupled with a formidable opponent, he had undoubtedly fallen into a grueling battle.

The brilliant moonlight pierced through the crimson mist as a fresh wave of attacks descended, instantly followed by a second wave—still composed of that omnipresent moonlight. Finally, Liu Ping was forced to reveal his first trump card.

With a flick of his wrist, an infinite array of weaponry erupted instantly from his treasure pouch, spilling out a mountain of magical treasures in the blink of an eye.

This caused the gray-robed figure above to frown slightly in utter astonishment. What on earth was the boy planning? Did he intend to form an array? But under such relentless attacks, how could he possibly have the time? Could it be... could he possibly be trying to control all these magical treasures simultaneously?

An absurd thought flashed through his mind, but before he could even dismiss it, he witnessed a sight that left him dumbfounded: countless magical implements rapidly combined behind the divine demon, forming a pair of chilling, iron-blooded wings that expanded perfectly to the sides before folding inward to block every single incoming moonlight attack.

"Even so, what can you possibly change...?" The surprise vanished, and the gray-robed figure regained his composure. Narrowing his eyes slightly, he opened his mouth wide, and countless streams of moonlight were instantly swallowed into his belly.

Being able to "eat" light was a rather bizarre description, yet the old rat demon was genuinely devouring it, swallowing down the moonlight as if a giant whale were drinking the sea.

Liu Ping's wings flared, and with a fierce flap, he vanished in a blink, reappearing directly before the gray-robed figure. Such ferocious valor failed to alter the elder's expression in the slightest, for his spell had long since been completed; he had merely been waiting for Liu Ping to arrive.

*You disappoint me so,* he thought to himself. *Such power is potent, but why didn't he use it from the very beginning? Utterly foolish!* The disdain in his eyes couldn't have been more obvious. The moment Liu Ping's attack was about to land, the elder finally snapped his jaws open.

Boom!

The moonlight surged outward like a cannonball, colliding with the dao-soldier wings and shattering them to pieces at the very first point of contact.

A chill struck Liu Ping's heart. He swung his sword again in a desperate slash to barely deflect the remaining force, watching as the scattered components of the dao-soldier wings rapidly reassembled themselves, leaving him with an unavoidable sense of absurdity.

"This is hardly surprising. What I do find strange is that a mere cultivator at the second transformation of human immortality could employ such a spell and hold out against me for so long."

High above, the gray-robed figure looked down and commented indifferently, "Neither arrays nor saber techniques are my true forte. I attained sentience by consuming the moonlight; from the very beginning, my style of combat was predestined. Yet for hundreds of years, I have never revealed this ability—not even my son knew of it. That you could force me to deploy it is enough for you to take pride in."

"Your combat style from start to finish has been foolish to the extreme. There are countless ways I could have killed you, yet you lacked all self-awareness, imagining that your divine general shell could conquer all and cut me down here."

"While I admit you have talent, it is deeply regrettable, because you are simply far too foolish."

Liu Ping offered no rebuttal. Instead, he replied calmly, "Foolish...? Perhaps. If I had resorted to the dao-soldier wings and laid out all my trump cards from the very start, perhaps the fight would have been easier. But had I done so, I would have had zero chance of victory."

The gray-robed figure froze, then sneered, "And you actually believe you still have a chance of victory?"

Liu Ping smiled faintly. "Of course I do."

The gray-robed figure retorted, "I'd love to hear the details."

Liu Ping said nothing more. Instead, he closed his eyes. Just a single breath later, he opened them again.

Those eyes, which had been calm only a moment before, had now transformed into a brilliant green. At the same time, countless intricate patterns flared across the surface of his divine demon physique. Hints of emerald began to dot the faint blue skin, rapidly spreading across his entire body until the green and blue merged seamlessly, indistinguishable from one another.

A terrifyingly immense surge of power erupted alongside the emerald light. The wounds covering his divine demon physique began to heal at a visible, rapid pace. A ferocious and tyrannical aura burst outward in all directions, causing the expression of the previously unflappable gray-robed figure in the sky to finally change.

From the very beginning, Liu Ping knew his odds of winning were slim. If Ling'er refused to intervene, his probability of victory would not exceed ten percent.

Therefore, he had deliberately dragged out the battle to buy enough time to comprehend the Wood Divine Demon. Resorting to the dao-soldier wings or other methods would have required multitasking, making true comprehension impossible. Thus, he neither wanted nor could afford to use his other cards, willingly enduring injury after injury to achieve his goal.

Long ago, when he left the dragon palace and sat upon the Azure Dragon's back out of sheer boredom, Liu Ping had consumed those three prime azure rhyme pills in an attempt to manifest the Wood Divine Demon. Though he gained countless insights, the actual progress had been modest. Fortunately, the improvement was still substantial; the fact that he could now manifest a single arm of the divine demon at will was proof of that.

When he first released the divine demon physique, a steady stream of inspirations had instantly welled up within him, leading to the ensuing battle. He had even attempted to let Ling'er fight on his behalf so he could concentrate entirely on comprehending the Wood Divine Demon. However, Ling'er's attitude made him realize one thing: this was his own battle, and this was his own divine demon physique. Blindly relying on others was not a viable path. Perhaps it would work the first time, and perhaps it would work the second, but in the end, the consequences would be catastrophic.

None of this was known to the gray-robed figure above, but looking at the scene before him, how could he remain ignorant?

"Were you... hiding your strength all along?" The gray-robed figure's expression shifted dramatically as he asked in sheer disbelief. The young man before him was merely at the second transformation of human immortality, yet while fighting for his life against a demon commander, he had still held back his true power? How utterly absurd!

If that wasn't the case... then there was only one other possibility! As that second possibility crossed his mind, a shudder ran through him. Unwilling as he was to believe it, Liu Ping's next words confirmed it entirely.

"No, this is power I've only just comprehended." Liu Ping shook his head slightly, saying calmly, "I was undergoing an epiphany throughout our entire battle. Although my offensive power remained decent, my speed and agility were inevitably lagging, which is why I acted as a stationary target for so long. But right now, everything is entirely different."

"I'd like to see just how different you are now compared to before!" The gray-robed figure opened his mouth wide once more, devouring a massive influx of moonlight before spitting it out with ferocious force. The moonlight surged forth like a cannonball, its attack power greater and more terrifying than before by a full fifty percent!

Swish! The moonlight projectile crushed downward with terrifying momentum, resembling a gigantic falling meteorite moving at a startling speed!

Had this happened earlier, Liu Ping would likely have sustained severe injuries instantly, perhaps even failing to maintain his divine demon physique.

Yet he was entirely different now. Seemingly slow yet startlingly swift, he extended his right hand and snapped his fingers.

*Snap!*

A vibrant green seed materialized instantly right before him. The seed sprouted at breathtaking speed, transforming in the blink of an eye into a towering ancient tree that effortlessly intercepted and blocked the incoming moonlight projectile.

"How is this possible?!" The gray-robed figure found it hard to believe his eyes. His own attack had been casually neutralized just like that?

"Being unable to accept reality is the hallmark of a beaten dog." Liu Ping slowly withdrew his right hand, speaking in a flat tone dripping with mockery.

"Damn it!! Go to hell!!" Overwhelmed by an unprecedented wave of humiliation, the gray-robed figure spat out a curse, his face twisted in utter fury. He opened his mouth once more to swallow the ambient moonlight.

"Too slow." Liu Ping shook his head. With a single thought, the towering tree in mid-air rapidly extended its branches, instantly wrapping around the demon commander and binding him tightly. The attack he had just begun charging was snuffed out before it could even launch.

"Right now, you don't even possess the qualification to lay a finger on me." Liu Ping stated the fact indifferently.

To the gray-robed figure, these words sounded like the ultimate mockery, grating harshly against his ears. His eyes turned blood-red as he struggled frantically, yet no matter how hard he exerted himself, he could not break free from the binding tree. All his resistance proved entirely futile.

Down on the ground, the group of lesser demons had been utterly stunned into silence by the unfolding battle. They stood frozen like statues. Watching their demon commander fall into defeat filled them with rage, but far more than that, it instilled in them a sense of utter disbelief and profound terror. If even the demon commander had lost, what hope did they have? Every single one of them lacked the courage to move, even the earth-gray demon was no exception.

"Is that so?"

At that exact moment, the gray-robed figure sneered, abruptly halting his struggles. A look of profound pity washed over his face. "Do you honestly believe you've won?" (To be continued.)