The addition of Chi Ming and the Black Demon Dragon caused the battle to shift instantly.
The scales of victory had already tilted as spirit artifacts collided in midair and terrifying figures charged through the fray.
By the Nether Pool, the sea of clouds continued to boil under the ravaging energy.
Amidst the rain-drenched banks of the Nether Pool, wave after wave of Ruoshui crashed ruthlessly against the shore.
Many in-the-know members of the Heavenly Demon race were already fleeing the Inner City in carriages and on demon falcons.
These abnormal occurrences threw the entire Nether Capital into a state of chaos.
It was even more severe than the explosion that had occurred over a month ago.
One could hear the occasional impoverished scholar looking up at the sky and lamenting.
"These are turbulent times... turbulent times indeed. The Demon Abyss is in danger, and the demon race is doomed."
The enforcement squads were short-handed and could barely look after themselves, while the city guards chose to play it safe and remained stationary.
The Demon Guards and Nether Guards were internally divided, each faction acting on its own and obstructing the others.
The Demon God Guards intervened forcefully, taking control of the city's defenses, the Demon Dao Pavilion, and other critical locations.
Divine sons and goddesses were secretly plotting, gathering their clansmen and standing by for any unexpected developments.
The battle had lasted for nearly half a day, yet the commotion only grew louder.
They understood clearly that this was no longer a simple probe but a desperate, grinding struggle.
It was quite possible that a demon god might truly fall today.
Furthermore, the strengths of both sides were so evenly matched that no one could say for certain who would emerge victorious.
They weren't even sure who was allied with whom.
Logically, the ten demon gods launching a joint attack should be on the same side.
But if they were on the same side, how could a ten-against-two fight last this long? In their subconscious, they believed that if that were the case, the High and Small Priests should have been defeated long ago.
Even if they didn't die, they should have fled, and the battle should have ended.
There was no way it could have lasted until now.
Perhaps some demon gods had defected mid-battle to side with the High and Small Priests, but they had no way of knowing which families they belonged to.
Who could ever truly guess the thoughts of a god?
Beneath the Nether Pool, within the Cloud-Marsh World, the little book spirit spoke with a solemn expression, "This is bad. That red-haired guy has made his move. Those two women definitely won't be able to hold out."
Xu Xian nodded silently. Two fists were no match for four hands, and even a fierce tiger feared a pack of wolves—especially since this Chi Ming was also a tiger himself.
"He was hiding quite a bit!"
"What do we do now? Should we keep watching?"
Xu Xian did not reply, simply stroking his chin as he continued to stare into the Bixu Mirror.
"If I were her, I'd run if I couldn't win. She should be able to escape," the little book spirit muttered to itself.
Xu Xian disagreed, replying, "That won't do. If she runs, who's going to help me get the Shadow Soul Stones?"
The little book spirit threw up its hands and teased in a resigned tone, "If she doesn't run, she can only wait for death."
Xu Xian did not argue. With a wave of his sleeve, he put away the Bixu Mirror.
The little book spirit was startled and grew anxious. "Why did you put it away? I haven't seen enough!"
Xu Xian rolled his eyes. "Watch, watch, watch. All you know is how to watch. There is work to be done."
The little book spirit was puzzled. "What work?"
A flash of cunning flickered in Xu Xian's eyes as he smiled mischievously. "The hero saving the beauty!"
The little book spirit froze for a moment before quickly catching on. It clapped its small hands and said excitedly, "Great! I love the hero saving the beauty trope. How exciting!"
Xu Xian summoned the Shadow Soul Stone Mecha and climbed inside.
After several days of tormenting the giant tortoise, the creature had either lost the energy to maintain the power of the boundary wall over the waters or had simply given up, wishing Xu Xian would just leave, and voluntarily retracted the boundary wall.
In short, the invisible wall that had previously blocked Xu Xian from returning had vanished.
He only needed to withdraw the demon qi power imbued in the mecha, and the entire suit would sink naturally into the Ruoshui like a common Shadow Soul Stone falling from the sky.
It sank bit by bit.
Then the world inverted once more. After a brief sensation of dizziness, the Shadow Soul Stone Mecha began to float toward the surface at an extremely high speed.
The little book spirit's voice never stopped as it reminded him, "Master, that giant tortoise is still soaking in filth. Are we just going to leave it?"
"Yeah, just let it soak. I'll come back to disgust it more later."
That giant tortoise couldn't run away. Since he had no way to deal with it for now, he could only leave it there.
Besides.
He had more important things to do right now.
He felt that an old saying put it very well: misfortune is where fortune hides, and fortune is where misfortune lurks. Everything has two sides.
There is good and bad, gain and loss. Opportunity and risk coexist.
The massive battle currently unfolding at the Nether Pool was dangerous. A smart person would naturally not involve themselves, lest they meet an untimely end.
But from another perspective, this was also an opportunity for Xu Xian.
If handled correctly, his Shadow Soul Stone harvesting plan could proceed smoothly and even be significantly accelerated.
At this moment, the twelve demon gods of the Demon Abyss were locked in a fierce battle, and the entire Nether Capital was bound to be in turmoil.
The High Priest was currently at a disadvantage, and the battlefield was shifting toward the Nether Capital.
He could see that the High Priest would eventually flee, not out of fear, but because she didn't want her sister, the Small Priest, to die because of her.
If they fled, the others would certainly give chase, and they would inevitably approach the Nether Capital. By then, the eyes of the entire world would be fixed on this epoch-making struggle.
This was a once-in-a-thousand-years opportunity for Xu Xian.
Imagine it.
At such a moment, if he were to stage a performance of Manifesting Sanctity and quell this conflict in front of all the demons in the Nether Capital, what would the effect be?
This scene... no, this grand entrance would surely shock every demon and leave an eternal, unforgettable impression on them.
When the conflict ceased, he would have not only protected the High and Small Priests, performing the hero saving the beauty.
He would also have made the entire Demon Abyss remember and know of him.
Then he could weave a little story to conclude the event perfectly.
By then, it wouldn't be up to those demon gods to decide.
Once everything was over, he would only need to say the word, and they would obediently hand over the Shadow Soul Stones.
He felt excited just thinking about it!
As the mecha ascended, Xu Xian did not stay idle inside. He used the Simulation Art: Truth in Falsehood to change his hair color.
Red, yellow, green, blue, and black—he forced them all onto his hair, creating a gradient from top to bottom or having the colors interlace in halves.
He made it look quite impressive.
It was as if he had a rainbow on his head, and even his pair of demon horns had rings of rainbow colors.
Watching this, the little book spirit knew exactly what was happening.
Its master was about to show off.
And this time, it was going to be a massive stunt!
Of course, this also meant that some people were going to be hurt—not physically, but by a critical blow to their souls.
Having finished his disguise, Xu Xian drew closer to the surface.
He asked the little book spirit, "How is it? Do I look handsome?"
Looking at the man before it, who was even more enchanting than a woman, the little book spirit praised him sincerely.
"Gender aside, calling you the number one beauty of the Demon Abyss is well-deserved."
Xu Xian narrowed his eyes, feeling quite pleased. He chuckled, "You really have an eye for these things."
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