The night was as black as ink, stars twinkling, and the bright moon hung high in the sky. Its pure light spilled onto the earth, but when it fell upon the long street, it turned purple, as if draping a thin layer of purple gauze over the area.
Outside the purple gauze, cold winds swept through, and the rustling of withered branches and leaves echoed faintly. Distant shadows of trees swayed as if whispering secrets to the night.
Within the purple gauze, a chilling wind howled, chasing after a figure retreating rapidly as if imbued with the momentum of the advantaged side, challenging the darkness.
The ground of the long street cracked as the retreating figure landed, leaving two long marks on the ground. Several dozen feet away, they steadied themselves with one hand pressed against the ground.
Under the purple moonlight, it could be seen that this person was none other than the mysterious woman. Right now, she was no longer as calm as before. Cracks had already appeared on the mask on her face and her eyes revealed a dark glint as she stared at Xu Qing, who was walking toward her.
"It's rumored that you snatched the divine source of the Crimson Goddess. Previously, you didn't make many moves in the Imperial Academy, so I couldn't sense it clearly. Now that the moonlight has changed because of you, it seems that the rumors are true."
Xu Qing's expression was as usual. Under the moonlight, it was as though he was walking in his kingdom. As he walked toward the woman, the purple light in his surroundings increased greatly, dyeing the world and invading the surroundings, forming a terrifying divine figure that devoured everything.
"However, this just increases my interest."
"Last time, I didn't want to expose myself in the Star Emperor Sect and attract some unnecessary trouble, so I didn't use my secret art. This time…"
In the depths of the woman's eyes, strange images appeared. In her left eye, there was the curled-up form of an infant, while in her right eye, there was the hunched figure of an old woman. Each emitted its own aura, converging to form a bizarre force imbued with the essence of life and death, swirling around her.
Behind her, black and white shapes formed, each taking on a fan-like pattern distributed to the left and right. They rotated around each other, manipulating the laws of heaven and earth, shaking the rules of the world with astonishing momentum.
For the first time in this battle, ripples appeared in Xu Qing's eyes.
Back then, outside the Star Emperor Branch Sect, he had sensed that the other party's aura was bizarre. It was like a god but not a god, like a cultivator but not a cultivator. This had attracted his attention back then. Now that they were fighting again, this feeling was even more obvious.
"You talk a lot of nonsense."
Xu Qing spoke calmly, raising his right hand and waving it. In an instant, the surrounding purple moonlight gleamed brilliantly, as if materializing into substantial beams resembling long spears, all rushing towards the mysterious woman in a flash.
From afar, tens of thousands of moonlight beams approached from all directions, their speed surpassing lightning as they enveloped every direction, leaving the mysterious woman with nowhere to escape.
At this critical moment, the mysterious woman's pupils contracted, and her hands quickly formed seals, then she fiercely waved them outward. Instantly, the black and white fan-shaped patterns behind her enveloped her like wings.
A rumbling sound echoed out as all the moonlight spears landed with a lethal force and destructive might.
The black and white wings continued to tremble. Although they blocked everything, the impact from the moonlight still caused the woman inside to cough up blood. However, she ultimately blocked this attack.
A sharp glint appeared in Xu Qing's eyes. He rushed forward and the third god form instantly formed behind him. Its malevolent body stood in the sky and followed Xu Qing, approaching the mysterious woman.
It was also at this moment that a voice emanated from within the black and white fan-shaped patterns.
"One bloodline, transformed into three souls. Three souls tempered into nine divinities. Nine divinities refined into my true self. This is… Withering Flame Demon Magic True Self Dao!"
The instant the woman's voice rang out, muffled thunder rang out in the void above her and three illusory mountain peaks appeared out of thin air.
The three mountains were inverted, their peaks facing the ground.
One was completely formed of ice and frost, containing boundless coldness.
The second was crimson red like blood, almost like an immense pile of corpses.
The third was a mountain of molten rock, that brimmed with supreme majesty.
The moment they appeared, the three mountains rushed toward Xu Qing Their aura was filled with ancientness.
"What divine ability is this! It's filled with ancient intent…"
Xu Qing's expression darkened. With a thought, more soul threads rushed out of his body. They quickly weaved into the first god form and the second god form beside the third god form in the air.
Looking around, under the purple moonlight, Xu Qing's three god forms appeared simultaneously as never before.
If it was before he killed Bai Xiaozhuo, Xu Qing wouldn't have been able to accomplish this. His number of soul threads couldn't support it. Only the current 2 million soul threads could allow him to form all three forms at the same time.
The moment they appeared, they were like three gods, forming a triangle and enveloping Xu Qing in the center. Each of them moved with Xu Qing's gestures, heading toward the three mountains.
In an instant, anomalous substances spread and the surroundings became blurry. The purple moonlight became extremely dense.
At the next instant, Xu Qing's first god form's punch landed on the ice mountain. As the mountain rumbled, the second god form arrived and got close to the second mountain. Black poison mist spread and transformed into a huge demon that devoured ruthlessly.
After that, the third god form lifted the Purple Moon high in the air and threw it toward the molten rocks mountain.
The sky changed colors and the wind howled. The three mountains in the air trembled violently as cracks appeared on them, spreading rapidly until they shattered into pieces.
They were originally illusory but as they shattered and returned to nothingness, they disappeared without a trace. However, if one took a closer look, they would see… that when they dissipated, rainbow light flashed on all the fragments.
The backlash from the destruction of the divine ability caused the mysterious woman to cough up blood. Her aura became weak and her body staggered back.
"It's impossible for such a huge commotion to be unnoticed. Regardless of whether it's the Imperial City's array formation or the various forces, it's impossible for them not to sense it."
A cold glint flashed in Xu Qing's eyes.
"However, even now, this place is still quiet… Unless it's the same as the assassination attempt I encountered back then, there's only another possibility."
"This woman's identity… is extraordinary!"
At the thought of this, Xu Qing's body swayed. His three god forms in the air also emitted divine might. Together with Xu Qing, they headed straight for the woman.
Although there was blood at the corner of the mysterious woman's mouth, she was clearly still unconvinced. The provocation in her eyes was still there as she stared at Xu Qing. Her right eye suddenly closed, leaving only her left eye open.
In her left eye, the curled-up infant moved slightly.
With this movement, the white fan behind the woman rapidly expanded and unfolded in the sky, revealing a painting inside.
The painting was quite simple, just an endless expanse of water marsh.
As it appeared, the woman uttered a low chant.
"Marsh Kingdom!"
With that utterance, the world shifted. The imperial city seemed to vanish, along with the streets where Xu Qing and the woman stood, replaced by a vast expanse of marshland.
A strong sense of crisis surged in Xu Qing's heart as, in the depths of this marsh, the roar of a behemoth shook the watery space.
Immediately after, a huge horn soared into the sky like a towering peak, one after another, tilting towards Xu Qing.
Surging and billowing, it stirred thousands of layers of marsh flowers, resembling a stampede of ten thousand horses, with majestic momentum.
At this critical moment, Xu Qing didn't hesitate at all. He rushed up and lifted his hands in the air. He then performed a series of hand seals and pressed his palms together. In an instant, the three god forms in the surroundings instantly moved toward Xu Qing and fused with his body.
In the blink of an eye, a figure that had gathered three layers of god form appeared.
Crystal for bones, soul threads for flesh, poisonous mist transformed into armor, Heavenly Dao imprints, and three furnaces burning fiercely at its chest, forming a terrifying aura.
The Purple Moon rose behind it, and behind the Purple Moon was an even larger sundial shadow.
At this moment, the shadow spread out in all directions, forming the intent of the forbidden zone. The coffin in the depths was also swaying rapidly and murmurs spread in all directions.
This was Xu Qing's strongest form currently.
He lifted his right hand and pressed down on the marsh. A divine voice echoed from his mouth.
"Withering Flame Demon Magic True Self Dao!"
As soon as Xu Qing finished speaking, rainbow light erupted from his body. After it spread in all directions, the void rumbled. The three inverted mountains that had appeared earlier actually appeared again.
This scene caused the expression of the mysterious female to change drastically, revealing disbelief.
"You…"
Before she could finish speaking, the rainbow light in Xu Qing's eyes flickered. He lifted his right hand and pointed at the ground. Immediately, the first ice mountain landed with great force and rushed toward the rising horn.
Amidst the deafening sounds, the marsh rumbled. After that, it was the second mountain, followed by the third mountain. The three mountains pressed down and the marsh swayed, causing space to be unstable.
The final blow came from Xu Qing's main body. His body was like a shooting star as he landed a punch on the marsh.
An unwilling roar rang out from the depths of the marsh. It was as though the existence hidden inside wanted to rush out completely, but due to some reasons, it couldn't do so in a short period of time.
Hence, this space collapsed first and the world recovered.
The white fan painting behind the mysterious woman shattered into pieces. Her expression was filled with disbelief as she looked at Xu Qing, who was standing there like a demonic god. She wanted to activate the secret art of her right eye.
"Destiny control…"
However, due to the continuous backlash, the old woman in her right eye had just moved when the black fan dissipated on its own.
The woman spat out another mouthful of blood and a life-
and-death crisis appeared. She was about to speak.
In the blink of an eye, Xu Qing's figure had already disappeared from her vision. At the next moment, the female felt a huge force blasting over. Although she struggled with all her strength and barely dodged the fatal blow, she couldn't avoid Xu Qing's palm that had changed from a fist to a palm.
A slap landed on her face.
The mask collapsed, revealing a lovely face. However, the gushing blood and the bruised half of her face destroyed the beauty and her body rolled back uncontrollably.
Before she could land, Xu Qing's figure caught up with her and emerged behind her. When he lifted his right hand, a dagger appeared and he ruthlessly slashed at the mysterious woman's fair neck.
No matter who the other party was, since the other party approached and attacked first, Xu Qing had no habit of sparing them.
Blood gushed out and the head flew up.
At the same time, countless soul threads spread out and rushed toward the woman's body and head, rapidly devouring them.
The woman's body turned into ashes.
However, Xu Qing frowned. The soul threads didn't devour any soul. This body… didn't have a soul.
At the next instant, Xu Qing sensed something and looked at the place where the female had turned into ashes. The ashes gathered there and formed a resplendent butterfly.
This butterfly was illusory and colorful. As it flapped its wings, countless starlight scattered down. A serene voice rang out from its body.
"You…"
In the blink of an eye, the soul threads rushed over and the butterfly collapsed.
However, it quickly formed again.
Xu Qing's gaze was cold.
The woman's voice continued to echo.
"You've previously killed. Your anger should have subsided by now, right?"
With a boom, the million soul threads went again and the butterfly perished again. However, as expected, it reformed.
"That's enough!"
Boom!
After about fifteen minutes, Xu Qing expressionlessly walked into the distance. The butterfly followed behind him and its voice continued to echo.
"You're so petty. You haven't calmed down yet. I was just joking with you earlier. If you still want to fight, you can destroy me a hundred times."
"Aiya, don't be angry. I know you're curious about my cultivation art. You should be curious about my background too, right?"
"I'm from the Summer Immortal Palace."
"I'm under the Palace Master's orders to invite you to the Summer Immortal Palace."
Xu Qing stopped in his tracks.
