Desolate Devouring Art

Chapter 822 - Subduing the Sword

The azure flood dragon looked at Liu Wuxie with hopeful and pleading eyes.

When Fiery emerged from the beast pouch, it stood on the ground and spoke in a strange language that Liu Wuxie couldn't understand. The language was too archaic, and only divine beasts of ancient times could comprehend it.

Since the flood dragon had awakened its bloodline, it had inherited fragments of the dragon clan's memory and could understand parts of the divine beast's language.

The two divine beasts communicated for a while before Fiery stopped and turned to look at Liu Wuxie.

There was a fierce battle taking place outside as Wei Wang led the group of human cultivators to this place. The temple had no exit, so Liu Wuxie had no path of retreat.

Fiery began gesturing rapidly, relaying the information it had gathered from the azure flood dragon. The process took nearly three minutes before Liu Wuxie finally pieced together most of the story. However, some details remained unclear, and he could only fill in the gaps based on what he had learned.

Meanwhile, the battle outside had reached its climax. The Twin-Headed Serpents fought fearlessly, sacrificing themselves to form a barricade to try to block Wei Wang and the other cultivators from entering.

Fifty thousand years ago, a mysterious group had ventured into the deep sea and captured countless flood dragons, including this azure flood dragon. It had just been born, and its parents were captured and killed, and their oil harvested.

As a result, the azure flood dragon was trapped here, unable to leave. It had relied on the environment here to cultivate for fifty thousand years before it finally awakened the dragon bloodline.

At first, Liu Wuxie was skeptical. If the azure flood dragon had been able to leave earlier, why had it returned underground?

But through Fiery's gestures, Liu Wuxie learned that the azure flood dragon couldn't leave because of the sword before him. It had suppressed its soul, and the dragon's soul could only be released by pulling it out. Thus, the azure flood dragon couldn't leave the mountain.

The group who had set up this place had told the azure flood dragon that it could command the Twin-Headed Serpents to fend off intruders until the altar was fully revived. Only when the sword was removed would the azure flood dragon regain its freedom.

However, during an accidental excursion, the azure flood dragon encountered humans and exposed this place, attracting hordes of cultivators.

If the azure flood dragon left the mountain for more than ten thousand meters, its soul would shatter. Humans had three souls and seven spirits, and so did dragons. The flood dragon's soul had been extracted and suppressed beneath the sword. Without the soul, it would soon perish.

The flood dragon had endured staying here for fifty thousand years and subdued countless Twin-Headed Serpents to survive.

Liu Wuxie also learned that the divine avatar's altar was beneath this sword, and if the sword were removed, it would expose itself. The flood dragon would also regain its freedom and be able to leave.

That solved the mystery. The builders of this place were likely descendants of the Witcher Clan.

The agony on the azure flood dragon's face deepened as the increasing presence of human cultivators destabilized the golden sword, intensifying the pain from its trapped dragon soul.

Witcher Clan's cruelty knew no bounds. They had slaughtered countless flood dragons in their attempt to resurrect someone, and as if that wasn't enough, they had imprisoned one as a guardian of this forsaken place. This was sheer brutality, but humans were no different; they would stop at nothing to achieve their goals.

The Twin-Headed Serpents guarding the passage were sent flying away with their blood and flesh splattering.

Right then, Wei Wang led a group inside, and a sinister smile crept on his face upon seeing the flood dragon. Though more Twin-Headed Serpents were surging into the hall, they didn't dare to approach as the humans were too powerful—the disparity in their strength was too great.

"Boy, I'll deal with you after I capture the azure dragon!" Wei Wang sneered, casting a glance at Liu Wuxie before turning his focus back to the dragon. After all, he would've already subdued the azure dragon if not for Liu Wuxie.

Liu Wuxie had no path of retreat—his only option was to pull out the sword and free the flood dragon. Once the dragon reclaimed its soul, its strength would surge, and with it holding off the human cultivators, Liu Wuxie would have the perfect chance to escape.

When he had refined She Bishi's embryo, the entire underground world had collapsed, and he wondered if the same thing would happen here again. After all, chaos would provide him with an opportunity to flee.

His fate was tied with the azure flood dragon. If the flood dragon died, he would also die here. Thus, saving the flood dragon was the only option, as it would also save him.

Without hesitation, he sprang toward the sword.

"Stop him!" Wei Wang roared. He didn't know what Liu Wuxie was trying to do, but stopping him was undoubtedly the right choice.

Over a dozen cultivators at the True Profound Realm charged toward Liu Wuxie, trying to stop him from pulling the sword.

The azure flood dragon let out a thunderous roar, and the Twin-Headed Serpents pounced at the True Profound Realm cultivators, trying to buy time for Liu Wuxie.

Right then, Wei Wang and the other Spirit Profound Realm cultivators also attacked, charging straight at the flood dragon, and a battle broke out instantly.

A cultivator at the pinnacle of the True Profound Realm evaded the Twin-Headed Serpents' assault and charged at Liu Wuxie.

"Die, brat!" he roared and swung his sword at Liu Wuxie.

"Get lost!" Liu Wuxie roared. Although he couldn't deal with those at the Spirit Profound Realm, he feared no one at the True Profound Realm. With a swift slash of the Heretic Blade, he unleashed a blade ray that cut through the air.

His attacker was forced back, leaving everyone shocked. They couldn't believe it—how could someone at the Nascent Transformation Realm hold his ground against a True Profound Realm cultivator?

"Everyone, stop him! Don't let him touch that sword!" Wei Wang roared. He realized that the sword was unusual and that the flood dragon's agony was likely related to it. If it were removed, the consequences would be unimaginable.

More cultivators lunged at Liu Wuxie. However, the Twin-Headed Serpents formed a barricade to stop them.

In the blink of an eye, Liu Wuxie reached the sword and took a deep breath before grabbing its hilt with his right hand.

A tremendous force radiated from the sword, nearly knocking him away. The sword rejected anyone who tried to touch it, unleashing metal-attribute energy into Liu Wuxie's body, trying to tear him apart.

The entire temple was filled with a powerful surge of metal-attribute energy, forcing all the nearby cultivators back. They couldn't withstand the erosion of the metal-attribute energy, and Liu Wuxie was no exception as he gritted his teeth.

But he knew there was no turning back. If he couldn't free the flood dragon, he would also have to die here.

He channeled his true essence and the ancient deity's energy into his arm. As he grabbed the sword, the muscles in his arm began to bulge with explosive power.

"Rise!" Liu Wuxie roared, and the entire temple began to tremble like an earthquake had struck.

Wei Wang and the others battled the azure flood dragon fiercely, who was bound in place, barely able to move.

"Quick, stop him! Don't let him pull out the sword!" Wei Wang shouted again, his urgency growing.

But the human cultivators lacked coordination, and there weren't many who heeded his call. After all, Wei Wang wouldn't share the azure flood dragon with them even if he managed to capture it.

No one was foolish enough to throw their lives away—they knew they would be nothing more than cannon fodder for the Twin-Headed Serpents.

Why should they take the risk, only for Wei Wang to reap the benefits?

Since no one stepped forward, Liu Wuxie had the perfect opportunity. Such was human nature—only when interests aligned would they stand together. But the moment their interests conflicted, the group would inevitably fall apart.

A terrifying surge of true essence and ancient deity's power poured into the golden sword. Finally, the blade began to waver. Slowly, it rose—one-third of its length emerging from the ground, while the remaining portion remained embedded.

With a sliver of its power released, the azure flood dragon jerked its head back and let out a thunderous roar, unleashing a sudden outburst of power that snapped the chains into pieces.

"This is bad!" Everyone now understood the true purpose of the golden sword—it had been suppressing the azure flood dragon all along. If the sword were fully removed, the dragon would regain its full strength.

However, it was too late to stop Liu Wuxie. The golden sword rose as Liu Wuxie's true essence depleted rapidly. Even the liquified spiritual energy within the Sky Devouring Divine Cauldron was rapidly vanishing.

As the ground began to collapse, a golden altar appeared before Liu Wuxie with a nearly-formed divine avatar.

"Ru Shou!" Liu Wuxie's eyes widened in shock—the embryo had confirmed his speculation. It was the Metal Divine Avatar, Ru Shou!

The golden sword greedily absorbed streams of golden energy, channeling them into the altar, accelerating Ru Shou's resurrection.

At last, the surrounding cultivators came to their senses. Since capturing the azure dragon was no longer an option, their focus shifted to the golden sword—an invaluable treasure in its own right.

The sword radiated immense metal-attribute energy, making it highly coveted by swordsmen looking to refine their weapons and enhance their cultivation.

When the final segment of the sword was removed with one final pull, the sword firmly landed in Liu Wuxie's grasp. The sword was shockingly heavy, weighing tens of thousands of kilograms.

It was forged from an immense concentration of precious metals. But there was no time to admire it as he quickly stored it inside the interspatial ring before turning to look at the altar below.

He planned to retrieve Ru Shou's embryo, refine it, and absorb the ancient deity's laws contained within.

At the same time, the azure flood dragon's soul finally returned to its body, and its power surged exponentially. In an instant, it had ascended to the level of a fourth-grade spiritual beast, placing it on par with a fourth-level Spirit Profound Realm cultivator.

Its strength had instantly surpassed the likes of Wei Wang, and its physique was also two times stronger than before.

A series of earth-shaking roars erupted from the azure flood dragon, its overwhelming presence sending shockwaves through the underground world. The ceiling trembled, and massive rocks began to rain down as the entire mountain started collapsing. Everyone inside was on the verge of being buried alive.

"Damn it!" Wei Wang roared in fury as he stomped his foot in frustration. Yet again, Liu Wuxie had ruined everything for him when he was about to succeed.

With its soul restored, the azure flood dragon soared into the air, its sheer presence shattering any falling debris upon impact.

"Brat, I want you dead!" The Spirit Profound Realm cultivators were enraged and could only turn their wrath on Liu Wuxie.

Without his constant interference, they would not have been in such a catastrophic situation.