As they neared the defense line, they saw a scene of utter destruction and devastation. The wall lay broken, fortresses were shattered.
The protection formation had long dimmed. Everywhere they looked, there was only blood. There were not even bodies left.
As they looked closely, they saw that the dark mass was an amalgamation of countless human bodies and demonic energy. A grotesque fusion of countless human bodies twisted together limbs half-formed, torsos fused into writhing masses, faces stretched and frozen in silent screams. Demonic energy pulsed between the flesh like black lightning, binding everything into one towering abomination.
Elder Yun's eyes were bloodshot as he looked at the fortress, at the twisted faces of his comrades, and at the continuously overflowing demonic qi.
Qingyan looked at the elder and said, "First we need to contain that being, Elder, or it will destroy the whole region. It's a machine of slaughter the more it kills, the more it grows."
Elder Yun clenched his fists. "Thank you, Sect Master," he said hoarsely. "Help me take revenge for these comrades of mine."
As they drew nearer to the monster, they understood something else its roars were no simple sound. They were soul attacks. For those below Golden Core, they would be extremely dangerous, even lethal.
Elder Yun moved first. He stepped forward and thrust his palm outward. "Falling Heavens Burial Palm!"
Spiritual energy gathered violently around his arm, compressing into a massive golden imprint that carried the weight of collapsing mountains. The palm descended like a falling sky, slamming directly into the creature's torso.
With it, a large chunk of the creature was destroyed, and stumbling, it fell down. But in a mere moment, it regenerated again.
Then it roared and lunged at Elder Yun.
Elder Yun moved effortlessly, continuously dodging its attacks. For a dozen or so exchanges, neither side was able to seriously injure the other.
The creature's massive limbs tore through stone and earth, while Elder Yun's palm strikes shattered chunks of its body only for them to regenerate moments later.
Elder Yun's breathing grew heavier. His eyes darkened. He seemed to be losing himself to anger.
Seeing this, Qingyan stepped forward and placed a hand on Elder Yun's shoulder.
"Elder Yun," he said calmly, "do not let your state of mind be disturbed."
Elder Yun stiffened slightly. "Don't you see?" Qingyan continued. "Each time it regenerates, the demonic qi around it decreases significantly."
He narrowed his eyes at the towering mass. "We either have to burn it with spiritual fire or draw it away from its source of demonic energy."
Elder Yun looked pleadingly at him. "Sect Master Lan, please kill that beast here. If we take it somewhere else, that place will also get stained with demonic energy."
Qingyan looked at him, then at the beast, and said evenly, "I would, Elder Yun. But you have to hold that beast here. Sensing the fire, it might try to run."
Elder Yun bowed. "Don't worry, Sect Master. I won't let this beast run anywhere." He immediately flew toward it and used a prisoning technique.
As Qingyan prepared his attack, he took out a talisman he had obtained from the resources provided by the sects. Within seconds, the air around Qingyan appeared to melt, as though space itself were warping from intense heat.
The beast grew agitated. Its massive body fragmented into myriad pieces, writhing and attempting to escape, but it could not break free from the technique Elder Yun had cast.
Elder Yun himself was shocked by Lan Qingyan's display. The sudden fragmentation of the beast caught him off guard as parts of it began struggling violently, as if trying to flee.
Then Qingyan stood upright. With a flick of his fingers, a beam of fire shot toward the cage.
Elder Yun thought it would burn the entire mass. Instead, it struck mainly one fragment, only grazing the others.
The moment it hit, a scream rang out so piercing it nearly split the heavens. Even Elder Yun blanked out for a brief instant.
When he regained focus, he saw it. The struck fragment was burning rapidly, and the surrounding mass of bodies and demonic energy began collapsing inward chaotically.
Elder Yun turned to Lan Qingyan. "Sect Master… why did you attack that one mainly? How did you understand that was the main body?"
Lan Qingyan looked at him calmly. "Elder, didn't you see? Each time you attacked it, its center was never even scratched. It had a denser layer around it. The outer layer absorbed most of your attacks."
He paused briefly. "I feigned a powerful fire attack precisely to make it fragment and attempt to flee."
His eyes narrowed slightly. "And it fell into the trap."
Elder Yun looked at the burning wasteland and clasped his hands in respect.
Then he said to Lan Qingyan, "Sect Master, the region is in dire condition. I must establish another defense line."
He took out a map from his storage ring and handed it to Lan Qingyan.
"See, Sect Master. This is the most detailed map of the forbidden realm — its locations and routes. I must go and stabilize the region first."
Lan Qingyan nodded. He understood that stabilizing the region was an important task — not only because of the countless lives here, but also because if this region fell as well, the hope for the Azure Wind Region would grow much dimmer.
He then looked at the map as Elder Yun departed.
The forbidden realm was only a thousand or so kilometers away. With his speed, he would reach it within a few hours.
Without hesitation, Lan Qingyan took to the skies and began flying in that direction.