"Senior Brother, we must report this to the sect leader," Su Yun said as she stared at the vanished spirit herbs.
"..." Ziyun narrowed his eyes, sensing something far more sinister at play.
For centuries, the Qingyun Sect had known peace—yet now, after the recruitment trials, the skies had been struck by heavenly lightning, and the herb garden had been plundered.
Suddenly, a bone-chilling cold crept up their spines.
The two looked up in unison, their gazes locking onto a distant figure wreathed in pitch-black demonic energy, streaking toward them like a falling calamity!
Purple-dark flames coiled around the figure, the air shrieking as if space itself recoiled from its power.
It was Della!
"Junior Sister, beware—an enemy approaches!" Ziyun's pupils contracted as he reacted first. His hands moved like fluttering butterflies, weaving intricate seals. Golden light erupted from his fingertips, forming razor-sharp talismans that shot toward the Rider of the End, Della, with piercing whistles!
"Hum—"
"Hum—"
The seals struck Della one after another—Binding Seals and Demon-Sealing Talismans infused with Nascent Soul-level power. Yet the moment they touched her ink-black armor, they vanished without a trace, swallowed whole as if sinking into an abyss.
Ziyun's eyes widened in disbelief. Though injured, he was still a Nascent Soul cultivator—normally, a single strike from him would leave even fellow Nascent Soul experts reeling. Yet now, his attacks had no effect whatsoever on this dark figure?
Boom!
"Senior Brother, watch out!" Su Yun cried, her figure darting back like a startled swan.
With a flick of her jade-like hand, she retrieved a whip from her storage pouch—one crackling with azure lightning and entwined with crimson flames. The Nine Thunderfire Whip, a treasured artifact of their sect.
"Nine Thunderfire Whip, rise!"
At her command, the whip lashed out like a serpent, lightning and fire intertwining as it struck Della with devastating force.
Spells had failed, but the whip's sheer physical power left its mark—sparks erupted where it landed, leaving faint white streaks on Della's armor.
Yet her resilience defied reason. The damage only slowed her for half a breath.
The Rider of the End, once towering dozens of meters tall, had condensed tenfold—her defenses now doubled.
In the next instant, Della stood before Ziyun, her Twilight Hammer raised high. Dark-purple runes swirled along its surface, radiating annihilation as it descended toward him!
Ziyun felt an overwhelming pressure, his hair standing on end, his Nascent Soul trembling within him.
He barely managed to teleport several meters away.
"Boom!"
The hammer struck the earth with a deafening crash, shaking the ground like a magnitude-10 earthquake.
Half the herb garden shattered instantly, its center pulverized into dust.
"My garden!" Su Yun's eyes turned bloodshot, her fury blazing like an inferno.
"I'll skin you alive and imprison your soul in a furnace to burn for eternity!" she shrieked, her whip lashing out even more wildly. Lightning and fire danced along Della's armor, sparks erupting with every strike—yet Della remained unmoved, her indifference mocking Su Yun's futile efforts.
The Nine Thunderfire Whip was renowned not just for its physical might, but for the fire and lightning spiritual energy woven into it—energy capable of searing an enemy's soul.
But Della, as Ye Chuan's avatar, had no soul. She was immune to spells, her physical resistance unmatched. An unstoppable, tireless puppet, she advanced step by step, Twilight Hammer in hand.
"Boom!"
"Boom!"
"Boom!"
Each swing of her hammer gouged massive craters into the earth, shockwaves hurling rocks and plants into the air.
Ye Chuan had already stolen the spirit herbs—now, not even a single blade of grass remained.
Though Della's movements were slow, her relentless destruction had already reduced the garden's spiritual soil to ruins, its energy dissipating into the wind.
Su Yun watched her life's work crumble, her desperation bordering on madness. Her whip strikes grew fiercer, yet they might as well have been tickling Della.
"Junior Sister, stay calm! We must join forces and set up an array!" Ziyun shouted, realizing their current approach was hopeless.
As he spoke, he crushed a sect-issued communication token. Golden light shot into the sky, exploding above the Qingyun Sect—a signal calling for reinforcements.
"Understood!" Su Yun forced down her rage, rising into the air beside Ziyun.
Their hands moved in unison, weaving seals as they chanted incantations. A colossal array—spanning thousands of feet—materialized in the void, its Nascent Soul-level aura surging like a storm.
"Qingyun Demon-Sealing Array!" they roared together.
The array blazed with radiant light, its translucent hues swirling as thousands of spirit swords materialized within it. With razor-sharp intent, they shot toward Della!
"Whoosh! Whoosh!"
The swords pierced Della's body—yet her armor absorbed their energy once more, leaving her unharmed.
Impossible!
Even the array had no effect?
What kind of monster was this?
Ziyun and Su Yun paled. Before they could react, Della's violet wings snapped open, unleashing a terrifying force!
She broke free of the array's restraints like a black meteor, her Twilight Hammer crashing toward Ziyun's chest with the weight of a mountain!
"Crash!"
A dull impact echoed as Ziyun—already weakened from his injuries—was sent flying. He skidded hundreds of meters across the ground, having taken the full brunt of the blow.
"Senior Brother!"
At that moment, reinforcements arrived.
"Master! Disciple Huang Haotian of the Flying Sword Peak has come to aid you!"
Ye Chuan led a group of disciples into the garden, their faces aghast at the devastation.
"H-how is this possible?"
"Guh—!" Ziyun spat blood, his hand trembling as he pointed at Della.
"All disciples—slay this demon!"