Chương 76: The Final Strike

The death of Tian Jianwei caused no ripples within Blood Lion Mountain. The beast tide had now raged for nearly two months. Nearly half of the spirit beasts had already been slain. Of the fifty plus Foundation Establishment cultivators, more than ten had fallen. Over fifty Foundation Establishment spirit beasts had also been killed. Among them, five were of Tier 2, upper grade.

Aside from those blessed with extraordinary innate talents, ordinary spirit beasts of the same grade stood no chance against human cultivators. After all, humans wielded spirit artifacts and bolstered themselves with pills. Purple Mansion Realm spirit beasts could also use spirit artifacts. But since they had no means of forging their own, the only way to acquire such tools was to kill human cultivators. High above, the Purple Mansion Realm battlefield grew increasingly ferocious.

Waves of terrifying energy radiated in all directions. The battle between the two Purple Mansion human cultivators and the five Purple Mansion spirit beasts had reached a fever pitch. Fang Xinjin was going all out. In addition to his Black Glass Mirror, he wielded another Tier 3, upper grade artifact. The Star Picking Pearl. A perfectly round, fist sized pearl, it brimmed with dense stellar energy.

Channeled by Fang Xinjin's power, the twisting, condensing stellar energy morphed into a variety of weapons like swords, spears, axes, and halberds. A vast, overwhelming display of might, brutally suppressing the sixth level Purple Mansion Realm Raging Blood Lion. The third level Purple Mansion Realm Raging Blood Lion trembled, a trace of blood seeping from the corner of its mouth. Fang Xinjin, unleashing his full strength, suppressed two beasts. And Zhou Yuezi was doing the same.

Even fighting three against one, he held his ground without falling behind. —— On the Foundation Establishment battlefield, the frenzy had reached its peak. With every hour that passed, another Foundation Establishment spirit beast fell. All the human cultivators had been driven mad by the promise of Foundation Establishment Pills. As time passed, the spirit beast army began to show the first signs of breaking. The sixth level Purple Mansion Realm Raging Blood Lion was incandescent with rage.

The Purple Mansion battlefield was deadlocked. The Tier 2, upper grade spirit beasts were being suppressed by the late stage cultivators from the Fang and Zhou families. Although the mid and low stage beasts were numerous, the cultivators' diverse techniques allowed them to advance steadily. Though cultivators fell from time to time, overall, they held the advantage. Zhang Huaijin, in particular, had become a legend on the Blood Lion Mountain's battlefield.

In just two months, he had slain nearly twenty Foundation Establishment spirit beasts. If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it. The spirit beasts had long since marked him as a thorn in their side. If not for the interference of the late stage Foundation Establishment cultivators from the Fang and Zhou families, they would have surrounded and killed him already. Zhang Huaijin had initially intended to hold back. But plans changed.

The appearance of the Foundation Establishment Pills drove every cultivator into a frenzy, their combat prowess soaring. They all wanted to accumulate enough merit points to break into the top ten. Earning a spot in the top ten would guarantee at least one Foundation Establishment Pill. For Foundation Establishment families, this was an opportunity they could not afford to miss. As time flowed on, the scales of victory tipped toward humanity.

In this battle, no Purple Mansion Realm cultivators had been lost, but nearly fifty Foundation Establishment spirit beasts had died. On the human side, fifteen Foundation Establishment cultivators had fallen. If the spiritual energy within Blood Lion Mountain's spirit vein had been more abundant, the casualties among the Foundation Establishment cultivators would have been even lower.

"Clan leader, we must retreat!" the third level Purple Mansion Realm Raging Blood Lion transmitted to the sixth level Purple Mansion Realm Raging Blood Lion. The Raging Blood Lion chieftain surveyed the battlefield below. Seeing that the spirit beasts had been sufficiently worn down, he gave the order to withdraw. The Qi Refining spirit beasts were the first to retreat, falling back in an orderly fashion. The human Qi Refining cultivators breathed a collective sigh of relief.

Looking around at the gruesome battlefield, their faces were pale with dismay. Then, the Foundation Establishment Realm spirit beasts began to pull back. The Foundation Establishment cultivators from Qingtai Prefecture did not give chase. As the spirit beasts gradually retreated, the beast tide was slowly coming to an end.

"Twenty years from now, it won't be this easy for you," the sixth level Raging Blood Lion rumbled slowly. The remaining Purple Mansion spirit beasts also retreated. Fang Xinjin's expression remained calm, his eyes indifference. Zhou Yuezi was still locked in combat with the three spirit beasts. Everyone bore some degree of injury. The Blood Jade Spider was the most severely wounded.

"Twenty years from now," Fang Xinjin said, his voice cold as ice, "I will surely kill you." The Raging Blood Lion let out a cold snort, forced Fang Xinjin back, and turned to flee. The three Purple Mansion spirit beasts fighting Zhou Yuezi, the Raging Blood Lion and the Goldback Mantis, unleashed their full power, forcing him back as well. But the Blood Jade Spider, hindered by its injuries, was a step too slow.

"Fellow Daoist Fang! Now!" Zhou Yuezi's voice was laced with excitement. Boom! Within the previously calm Nine Star Black Glass Array, nine blazing stellar rays condensed, merging like pillars of silver white light. A thirty meter tall phantom of a silver glass dragon materialized, unleashing terrifying power, a strike comparable to that of a late stage Purple Mansion Realm spirit beast. Boom! Rumble! Though a mere phantom, the immense glass dragon carried a powerful draconic majesty.

The dense stellar energy surged with incredible speed engulfing both the Blood Jade Spider and the sixth level Raging Blood Lion. Boom! Crash! Incredibly powerful energy waves clashed and collided. The surrounding space twisted faintly, and the entire Blood Lion Mountain began to tremble. Rocks shattered, tumbling down the mountainside. The array itself shuddered continuously. A flicker of terror crossed the eyes of some Qi Refining Realm cultivators.

Two spirit beasts high in the sky suddenly vomited gouts of blood. The Raging Blood Lion, its body drenched in gore and bearing serious wounds, burst out from the chaotic storm of energy.

"Fang Xinjin! In the next battle, I will have my revenge!" It had never expected Fang Xinjin to have saved such a finishing blow for their departure.

"I look forward to it," Fang Xinjin said, a slow smile finally spreading across his usually cold face. Because the Blood Jade Spider had gone silent. Already seriously injured, it had been struck by this final, fatal blow, the culmination of decades of stored power within the Nine Star Black Glass Array. A direct kill on a Purple Mansion Realm spirit beast. The sixth level Raging Blood Lion was also severely wounded. It had been on the very cusp breaking into the seventh level.

Without unforeseen circumstances, it would have broken through to the late stage within the next twenty years. Now, that breakthrough would inevitably be delayed. And the longer that delay, the greater the advantage for the humans. Of the spirit beasts the Qingtai Prefecture faced, one Purple Mansion spirit beast had fallen. Twenty years from now, when the next spirit beast tide comes, Qingtai Prefecture will hold the upper hand. And the greater their advantage, the greater their harvest would be.

This was a plan Fang Xinjin and Zhou Yuezi had devised long ago, to catch the enemy off guard and reap the greatest possible reward. The Goldback Mantis and the fourth level Raging Blood Lion shuddered inwardly. If the Blood Jade Spider hadn't been injured and slow… Perhaps one of them would be the one lying there dead. Several Tier 2 Blood Jade Spiders howled with fury, wanting to turn back and retrieve their clan leader's body. But the spirit beasts of other tribes held them back. To return now would be suicide.

The corpse of a Purple Mansion Realm spirit beast was something the humans would never let go of.