Over the years, Han Yi had witnessed numerous battles between Legendary Qi Refining cultivators.
But now, facing one himself, he realized that without a Top-Grade Magic Artifact, he was essentially defenseless.
These Legendary Qi Refining cultivators were not like the Eighth Layer Qi Refining cultivators he had encountered in Heavenfall City. They stood at the very pinnacle of Qi Refining, wielding only Top-Grade Magic Artifacts.
Han Yi's Chengying Sword, while a superior High-Grade Magic Artifact, was still just High-Grade. Though the gap between High-Grade and Top-Grade seemed minimal, the difference in power was immense.
This realization flashed through his mind in an instant.
With this understanding, a fierce glint appeared in Han Yi's eyes.
He sheathed the Chengying Sword behind him, retrieved his six daggers, and pulled another Mid-Grade Sword Artifact from his Storage Pouch: the Crimson Haze Sword.
This was the second Mid-Grade Sword Artifact he had brought into the Cave Heaven World. The first, the Seven Stars Sword, had self-destructed during his confrontation with Xie Jingshan, buying him the crucial time needed to swallow the Grand Void Token Fragment.
Next, Han Yi's divine sense surged wildly, enveloping the Crimson Haze Sword.
"Kill!"
The Crimson Haze Sword trailed a terrifying pale crimson glow as it activated, instantly shattering the sound barrier with a deafening sonic boom. It hurtled straight toward the Rock Demon's fearsome eyes.
The Rock Demon roared in fury, swinging its massive axe to block the attack. But in that instant, the Crimson Haze Sword surged with renewed speed, dodging the descending axe and closing within three meters of the demon's eyes.
A grayish-white beam erupted from the Rock Demon's eyes—its innate Divine Ability, Petrification.
However...
Han Yi, standing over ten meters away, had never intended to severely wound the Rock Demon, let alone kill it. He knew his limitations: without the Golden Light Shuttle, he stood no chance of defeating this Rock Demon, equivalent to a Legendary Qi Refining cultivator, with only a High-Grade Magic Artifact Chengying Sword and a set of Mid-Grade Magic Artifact Wind Demon Daggers.
Therefore, his plan was simple: delay it.
Seeing the Crimson Haze Sword close within three meters of the Rock Demon's head, a ruthless glint flashed across Han Yi's face.
"Explode!"
Without hesitation, he detonated the sword artifact.
At that very moment...
Han Yi retrieved two more Spirit Talismans from his Storage Pouch: a Divine Annihilation Talisman and an Escape Talisman. Without hesitation, he flicked the Divine Annihilation Talisman into the air.
The talisman ignited spontaneously, instantly turning to ashes.
He slapped the Escape Talisman onto his body.
The moment the sword artifact self-detonated and the Divine Annihilation Talisman activated, Han Yi silently escaped over a hundred meters away, vanishing without a trace.
A split second later, the sword artifact's explosion completed. Shattered fragments transformed into a rain of blades, propelled by the terrifying Spirit Energy storm toward the Rock Demon's face.
However, a gray light flashed through the air, freezing the sword shards mid-flight, barely a meter from their origin.
Simultaneously, the Divine Annihilation Talisman unleashed its power. An invisible wave pierced the Rock Demon's skull, causing it to roar skyward. Gray light poured from its eyes, turning everything in its path into pale petrified rock.
Having fled about three hundred meters, Han Yi felt a chill run down his spine. The rapidly escalating aura of terror and the earth-shattering roar behind him sent shivers down his spine.
"Legendary... This is what it truly means to be Legendary."
For the first time, Han Yi gained a true understanding of the power of a Legendary being.
No wonder he had single-handedly carved out an unprecedented title beyond the Peak Qi Refining Stage.
At the time, he had believed himself capable of battling a Legendary cultivator, but in retrospect, he realized his confidence had been misplaced.
The Yellow Turban Immortal Cultivator in that mysterious Land was merely a construct of Heavenly Crafting. Compared to true cultivators, it possessed overwhelming brute force but lacked adaptability. Moreover, during the trial, the Yellow Turban Immortal Cultivator had only defended passively, never attacking. Had it unleashed its full power, Han Yi doubted he would have lasted three breaths.
From then on, Han Yi proceeded with greater caution. To avoid being slowed down, he swiftly evaded four-meter-tall demons. When confronted by five-meter-tall demons, he used surplus Magic Artifacts and Spirit Talismans to buy himself time to escape.
Boom!
Deep within the Imperial Demon City, a towering palace collapsed with a thunderous crash, toppled by a nine-meter-tall Imperial Demon.
Within a three-hundred-meter radius of the Imperial Demon's corpse, over thirty figures radiated lethal killing intent. Their surging Spirit Qi collided violently, neither side yielding an inch.
These were over thirty Legendary Qi Refining cultivators.
Of the fifty-odd Legendary cultivators who had participated in the battle for the Jade Capital Grand Void Token, roughly twenty had perished. Only thirty or so remained, standing amidst the ruins of the palace.
"Strange," Xie Jingshan of the Spirit Battle Sect murmured, hovering in mid-air. Only four of his Battle Banners remained before him. To secure victory, he had self-detonated five of these Top-Grade Magic Artifacts, a testament to the immense stakes he had placed on this confrontation.
"From what I understand, that should be the Demon Emperor of the Demon Race," another Legendary female cultivator declared, her crimson eyes sweeping across the battlefield.
"According to the rules of the Cave Heaven World, the Grand Void Light Pillar should dissipate and reveal the Grand Void Token upon the death of the strongest member of the foreign race guarding it. Did we kill the wrong person?"
Suddenly, she raised a hand and lightly tapped the Demon Emperor, who lay dozens of meters away. Without activating any visible Magic Artifact, the Demon Emperor's corpse, which had been crushing the palace ruins, abruptly shattered into countless fragments. Instead of a foul stench, the Emperor's Blood exuded a mysterious, refreshing fragrance.
If collected, this blood could be refined into high-grade Medicinal Pills, used to nurture Spirit Plants, or consumed by Body Refiners to enhance their physical strength.
However, compared to the Jade Capital Grand Void Token, the Demon Emperor's corpse was utterly insignificant.
"It's completely dead," the Legendary Female Cultivator remarked, her expression puzzled.
When Han Yi arrived, he saw the colossal corpse, towering nine meters tall like an ancient giant, mysteriously sliced into countless pieces.
In the center of the vast plaza, the once-magnificent palace complex had been reduced to rubble, covering an area equivalent to over a hundred football fields. The corpse lay amidst the ruins, while Han Yi stood at the plaza's edge.
Even from this distance, Han Yi could still detect the delicate fragrance emanating from the shattered remains of the Demon Emperor's body.
"What a waste," Han Yi murmured. "This would have been excellent material for pill refinement and alchemy."
He shifted his gaze from the corpse and scanned his surroundings.
Thirty-odd Legendary Qi Refining cultivators stood spaced apart, forming a loose perimeter around the corpse.
At the plaza's edge, over five hundred cultivators stood openly, their presence undisguised, their auras subtly suppressed as they silently awaited the unfolding events.
Just then, a blood-colored light erupted from the shattered remains of the Demon Emperor's corpse. With blinding speed, far too fast for anyone to react, it pulsed outward in all directions.
Hum!
Simultaneously, a crimson glow rose from the ground at the edges of the plaza. Like a vast, blood-soaked cloth, it stretched toward the heavens and then converged inward, forming a massive, sky-obscuring blood-colored curtain. This crimson dome sealed off the plaza entirely, even enveloping the Grand Void Light Pillar summoned by the Jade Capital Grand Void Token.
Trapped within this barrier, the Grand Void Light Pillar vanished instantly, dissolving into nine Grand Void Tokens that drifted gently downward.
At that very moment, a deep tremor shook the ruins beneath the Demon Emperor's corpse.
Thump... thump... thump!
The rhythm started fast and frantic, then slowed to a steady pulse. The people on the plaza recognized the sound.
A heartbeat.
The heartbeat of a member of the Demon Race.