Chapter 178 Demon Seal Suppressing Pill

The flames had not ceased, and the scorching heat wave was already rushing towards them. The air distorted, and the temperature inside the hall soared abruptly.

Red Refining Burning Heaven, the desperate trump card technique of the Beimang Fox Clan, sacrifices the user's Origin to gain instantaneous, heaven-burning power.

Chen Mu's pupils constricted. The dark light on his soul-slaying blade retracted, turning into a dense dark gold color—this was the hallmark of Hunyuan Calamity Astral Qi being pushed to its limit.

He did not retreat, but instead stepped forward. The Soul-Loss Art's soul-slaying Saber Intent was pushed to its limit, and the blade cut through the air, slashing straight at the thickest pillar of fire in the middle.

"Clang! Boom!"

The moment the blade collided with the fire pillar, a violent roar erupted in the air. The shockwave expanded from the point of impact, blowing away all remaining tables, chairs, and incense altars in the hall.

Chen Mu's body shook violently, and he retreated seven steps before steadying himself. The web between his thumb and forefinger, where he gripped the blade, split open, and fresh blood dripped down the hilt.

That pillar of fire was also slashed, flickering unsteadily, its power greatly reduced.

Meanwhile, Qi Huan endured his pain, his palms flying as five-colored cloud Qi transformed into layers of palm prints, like swirling clouds, striking the fire pillar on the left. The palm force collided with the flames, making a hissing sound. Although it did not completely extinguish them, it managed to hinder the momentum.

Liu Ziming led several brave constables, their blades flashing as they desperately hacked at the fire pillar on the right.

Their cultivation was insufficient; their blades melted rapidly upon touching the flames. Two of them were grazed by the fire waves, screaming as they rolled away, their bodies engulfed in flames, only to be desperately extinguished by their companions.

But this obstruction was enough.

Old Wang the Lame had remained standing in place, his eyes locked onto the demon fox. Just as she was channeling her secret technique, with her mind and demon power at their most turbulent, he raised his finger again.

Immediately, the demon fox was struck as if by lightning. Her demon power suffered a momentary disorder, and the five crimson fire pillars fluctuated, their power decreasing by another thirty percent.

Fierce light shot from Chen Mu's eyes. Ignoring the numbness in his arms, he pushed his Divine Void Step to its limit. His figure turned into a blurred afterimage, bypassing the flickering fire pillar directly in front of him, and instantly cut within three feet of the demon fox.

The soul-slaying blade struck like a viper spitting its tongue, piercing straight at the demon fox's heart.

The demon fox was terrified. She wanted to dodge, but her demon power was in disarray, and her movements were sluggish; she could only barely turn to the side.

"Puchi!"

The sound of the blade entering flesh was exceptionally clear.

The soul-slaying blade pierced through her left shoulder. The Soul-Loss Art's soul-slaying power and the destructive nature of the Hunyuan Calamity Astral Qi attached to the blade surged into the wound crazily, wantonly destroying her Meridians, demon pill, and even her Divine Soul.

Desperate straits.

A look of madness flashed in the fox demon's eyes. She suddenly raised her head to look at the crowd, and a smile of extreme resentment appeared on that devastatingly beautiful face.

"Do you... really think you've won?"

Before the words faded, a fierce light surged in her eyes. Ignoring her injuries, she suddenly opened her mouth and spat out a fist-sized, dark red blood bead.

Qi Huan's expression changed instantly, and he shouted sharply,

"Retreat quickly! It's her natal demon pill!"

For demons in this world, their entire cultivation is tied to their demon pill. The fact that this fox demon was forced to spit out her demon pill showed she was clearly at the end of her rope, determined to drag them down with her.

Chen Mu paused, not daring to be careless. He pushed his Divine Void Step to the limit, his figure retreating rapidly.

However, the blood bead was faster. It traced a strange arc in the air, but it was not aimed at Chen Mu; instead, it turned towards the City God's golden statue on the high dais.

"Oh no! She wants to destroy the temple! Stop her!"

Old Wang the Lame's voice carried shock and anger.

The City God Temple was the hub of Yin and Yang in Yunmeng. The City God's golden statue was the core of the temple. If the golden statue were destroyed, the temple would collapse completely. At that point, the Yin and Yang order in Yunmeng would be in chaos, the dead would have nowhere to return, and evil ghosts would spawn. The consequences would be unimaginable.

Chen Mu instantly understood the fox demon's intention. Knowing she had no hope of escape, she decided to destroy the temple and drag the entire city of Yunmeng down with her!

"Don't even think about it!"

Chen Mu roared, reached into his robe, pulled out the demon seal, and poured all the Hunyuan Calamity Astral Qi in his body into it.

He wasn't sure if this method would be effective, but since there was no way back, he might as well give it his all.

"Hum!"

The demon seal trembled, and a dragon's roar erupted from it. A black dragon phantom reappeared and rushed straight towards the blood bead, arriving first despite starting later, swallowing the blood bead whole.

"Boom!"

When the blood bead was swallowed, it exploded violently. The ground shook a few times, tiles fell with a clatter, and the black dragon phantom also rapidly dimmed and dissipated under the power of the demon pill's self-detonation.

But it had ultimately blocked the fox demon's mutually destructive attack.

The City God's golden statue only swayed slightly and was not significantly affected.

With her attack failing, the fox demon's aura withered at a visible rate. Her five fox tails hung down powerlessly, and the luster in her eyes faded rapidly.

She stumbled back a few steps, blood constantly gushing from her mouth, but she used her last bit of strength to form a strange seal with her hands.

"With my blood essence... I summon my true name... Beimang Fox Clan... Red Refining lineage... The enemy is here... irreconcilable!"

She practically roared the last eight words. As the word 'Heaven' fell, the rune exploded with a bang, turning into a thin thread of blood that shot into the sky, ignoring the obstruction of the temple roof, and instantly vanished from everyone's sight.

Secret technique to send a message!

After doing all this, the fox demon was like a candle in the wind, sinking softly to her knees, a crazed smile still hanging on the corners of her mouth.

"Just wait... all of you just wait... Beimang will not let you go... not one will be left..."

The voice grew lower, finally falling silent.

The pair of alluring eyes gradually dimmed, and her body slowly transformed back to its original form—a five-tailed Red Fox, lying quietly in a pool of blood.

[Slayed the Five-Tailed Red Fox demon, plundered 638 years of martial arts Lifespan.]

The System's notification arrived right on cue.

Chen Mu felt no joy, staring intently at the Red Fox corpse in front of him, his brows furrowed tightly.

Qi Huan approached, clutching his wound, his expression also exceptionally grave. After a long while, he sighed faintly.

"The Beimang Fox Clan is the most vindictive, especially the elites who have cultivated multiple tails. She used a secret technique to send a message before she died; the Beimang side must already know. This matter... I fear it will not end well."

Chen Mu nodded and slowly looked at the others in the hall.

Xu Changze had been executed, the Five-Tailed Demon Fox was dead, and the Yin soldiers and ghost officials had long since bowed in submission. The only ones still standing on the opposing side were the elite experts borrowed from the neighboring county.

And these few people were now looking at each other, their faces filled with confusion.

They had originally come on orders to help, promised a generous reward by Xu Changze, who had also invoked the names of their superiors, which was why they had come reluctantly. But who could have imagined that things would develop to this point?

Xu Changze had colluded with the demon fox, with evidence beyond doubt, and was now headless. They had been acting as accomplices, besieging their own kind who were killing demons and cleaning up the sect.

If this got back to the Prefecture, let alone the reward money, whether they could keep their jobs was questionable.

The bearded man's hand, which was gripping his blade, tightened and then relaxed. He sized up the few people, finally smiled bitterly, and threw his thick-backed broadsword onto the ground.

"Everyone, my apologies. We were just following orders and didn't know the internal situation. Now that Magistrate Xu... now that Xu Changze has colluded with demons, he deserves to die. Since the mastermind has been executed, we... shall take our leave."