The Mad Blood Old Demon’s face was fierce, the bloody river above his head becoming even more monstrous in hue.
As the river surged, endless spiritual energy coalesced around him.
The river and spiritual energy stirred the wind and clouds all around, completely collapsing space.
The Mad Blood Old Demon roared furiously and charged directly at Bai Meng.
"Struggling is meaningless," Bai Meng’s fist gathered demonic qi and he punched through the firmament, tearing it apart like a river breaking the sun’s path, a roaring river, his punch sending the Mad Blood Old Demon crashing into the earth’s depths.
With more and more sinister faces surging through the air, Mixed Yuan Ancient City had long since become a Sea of Blood Purgatory.
Ordinary martial artists simply couldn’t endure it; the only ones still alive were those of the One Leaf Ancient God and Five Ancestors of Stone Stele caliber.
The scent of blood pervaded the entire city, while the central coliseum stood in eerily silent vigil.
The Mad Blood Old Demon flew out from the earth’s depths, his face pale, a faint trail of blood at the corner of his mouth, his body faintly emanating wisps of demonic qi.
With his True Fate injured, the demonic qi in his mind could no longer be suppressed.
With a roar from the Mad Blood Old Demon, darkness enveloped his sight; boundless demonic qi wrapped around him, dragging him into the most despairing memories of his life.
A mortal had borne Destiny, the Mad Blood Old Demon swore that he would remember that one sword for the rest of his life.
It shattered all his pride and sent him tumbling from the heavens.
As he watched that man wield eternal splendor embodying Destiny, he felt despair.
Memories shifted, and he found himself back home, where his family’s corpses lay in pools of blood, a sight just as despairing.
"If living is so exhausting, why not try it out? Death is the ultimate release," a voice inside kept tempting him.
Then he saw the Mad Blood Old Demon slowly raise his right hand, digging toward the heart in his chest.
Demonic qi congregated around him and, at the same time, the bloody river atop his head flickered, intertwining bloodlight with demonic qi.
The Mad Blood Old Demon’s expression was erratic as he let out a roar, and the demonic qi around him was instantly dispelled.
Although disheveled, his eyes were now remarkably clearer.
"Were it not for the suppression of my realm by this world, how could you possibly have escaped my Despair Domain," Bai Meng remarked indifferently upon witnessing the scene.
Just as the Mad Blood Old Demon was about to speak, he felt a slight pain in his back and turned around, only to see several people stabbing into his back with their weapons.
These people had all been corrupted by demonic qi before, the same ones who had gouged out their own hearts.
They now attacked the Mad Blood Old Demon like puppets, utterly without consciousness.
However, as a Mysterious Immortal Realm powerhouse, the Mad Blood Old Demon was unaffected by their attacks.
With a sweep of his arm, endless spiritual energy swarmed in, obliterating these people, reducing them to ash.
As more and more people assaulted him, the Mad Blood Old Demon grew increasingly vexed, the bloody river above his head surging.
The mighty Sea of Blood roared and erased all these attackers in its waves.
Another knife pierced his body, and the Mad Blood Old Demon turned his head, only to see a little girl standing right in front of him.
"Qi," his voice trembled as he called out.
However, at that moment the little girl had no consciousness, simply picking up the knife and repeatedly stabbing the old man.
"It’s all grandpa’s fault, I failed to protect you," the Mad Blood Old Demon’s body trembled slightly, and a hint of moisture appeared in the corners of his eyes.
As the bloody river in his hands surged, the little girl in front of him gradually faded away into the river.
He lifted his head, his gaze calmly meeting Bai Meng’s; within that calmness, insanity was palpable.
"You must be in great pain," Bai Meng said indifferently.
He was, from the beginning to the end, not one to smile or laugh lightly, "Let me end your suffering."
As Bai Meng’s words fell, the Demonic Qi in the sky once again began to surge.
However, this time, the Mad Blood Old Demon did not choose to clash head-on but instead directed the roaring Blood River toward the barrier nearby.
With a "boom", the thunderous sound resonated through heaven and earth.
Layers of ripples flashed across the barrier, with faint blue light twinkling, still intact and undamaged.
The Mad Blood Old Demon’s expression changed slightly as he delivered another blow to the barrier, yet still, there was no change.
"It’s useless. Stop wasting your strength," Bai Meng shook his head slightly, his hand filled with roiling Demonic Qi as he reached directly for the elder.
"If we are to die, we’ll die together," the Mad Blood Old Demon roared, as the blood-red river above his head surged toward Xu Zimei to kill him.
Seeing this, Bai Meng snorted coldly and slightly raised his other hand, sending two streams of Demonic Qi along different trajectories squeezing the Mad Blood Old Demon from both sides.
With a "boom", endless air waves exploded in mid-air.
It was as if a mushroom cloud rose in the air, with the surrounding space completely shattering.
As the dust settled from the sky, one could see the Mad Blood Old Demon lying on the ground, barely alive.
The True Fate Blood River above his head had long shattered into countless fragments, and there was not a single part of his body that was unscathed.
Most importantly, there were also cracks on his Divine Soul within him.
Faint footsteps sounded in his ears as Xu Zimei slowly walked up to the barely alive Mad Blood Old Demon.
"You will get what you deserve," the old man said weakly.
"Life is like a book filled with stories of highs and lows. Until the final moment, you never know what the outcome will be," Xu Zimei replied indifferently.
As his words fell, Endless Demonic Qi instantly engulfed the Mad Blood Old Demon.
Within the Demonic Qi, countless ferocious faces roared angrily.
As the Demonic Qi dissipated, one could see the Mad Blood Old Demon slowly rise from the ground like a puppet.
"Master, I have inscribed the Demon Seal in his True Fate," Bai Meng said respectfully, "Now, he is no different from a puppet.
However, his Divine Soul and True Fate have suffered severe injuries, and his strength can only be maintained at the level of the Saint Vein Realm."
Xu Zimei nodded then looked around. The entire city was now enveloped by Demonic Qi.
Demons’ mist obscured everything, obliterating the entire city within it.
All of these people had been marked with the Demon Seal and turned into puppets.
Following Bai Meng, Xu Zimei made his way past ruins and rubble, arriving before the Five Ancestors of Stone Stele.
At this moment, all five also stood with vacant gazes.
Xu Zimei opened up the Storage Rings of the five and searched through them.
He frowned slightly- the item he wanted was not there.
"It seems that these five were also afraid of retaliation from the Imperial Rule Immortal Sect and dared not keep the items on them," Xu Zimei murmured to himself.
"How are the Ye Family members?"
"They are trapped inside their residence. I haven’t touched them," Bai Meng replied promptly.