Desolate Devouring Art

After absorbing the Heavenly Derivation Codex, the Heavenly Dao Book's deductive ability had multiplied several hundredfold. Within only a few breaths, it identified the safest and most efficient route through the Ghostswift Vines to the Liver Palace gate.

Even that path provided only a fifty percent chance of success. Every alternative fell below ten percent, rendering them far more hopeless. Fifty percent offered little comfort, but it was enough for Liu Wuxie to gamble everything.

Regardless of the price, Liu Wuxie had to enter the Liver Palace and gather the five elemental divine cores. He immersed his divine sense within the Heavenly Dao Book, carefully studying every calculated route and preparing a countermeasure for each danger he might encounter.

Drawing a deep breath, he approached the boundary of the Ghostswift Vines. His movement immediately captured the nearby cultivator's attention.

"What does that brat think he's doing?" someone in the crowd asked.

Many cultivators remained unaware that Liu Wuxie had already entered the Spirit Immortal Realm. They still believed him to be a mere True Immortal and therefore failed to recognize him.

"Another idiot who doesn't know his own limits."

Several cultivators had recently attempted the same feat, believing they could pass through the Ghostswift Vines. Every one of them had been devoured without exception, leaving not even a bone behind.

Many cultivators began discussing among themselves. "Brother, what kind of freak is Liu Wuxie? Why does every treasure in this place end up in his hands?"

They had already spent so much time inside the Ancient Origin Spatial Realm, yet most had failed to obtain even a single feather, much less a worthwhile treasure.

While the crowd remained absorbed in conversation, Liu Wuxie abruptly vanished from the ground and shot skyward. His mastery of the fourth form of the Divine Ninefold Step had grown considerably, allowing him to fly thousands of meters with ease. Furthermore, the immense reserves of immortal energy within the Desolate World could more than sustain the energy consumed by flight.

"That's Liu Wuxie!"

The instant Liu Wuxie's aura erupted, the crowd finally recognized him. Cultivators gathered in the distance immediately charged toward his position without hesitation.

They still moved one step too late. By the time they reached the spot where Liu Wuxie had stood, he was already soaring above the Ghostswift Vines.

Helplessness gripped the crowd as they watched Liu Wuxie plunge directly into the dangerous region covered by Ghostswift Vines. No one could intervene. They could only stand at the boundary and watch Liu Wuxie charge deeper into the vine-infested region.

"Stay calm. Liu Wuxie must have found a route through the vines," someone called out.

The cultivators remained along the edge of the vine-covered ground, none daring to advance another step. All they could do was follow Liu Wuxie's progress with their eyes as he flew toward the gate.

After failing to find Liu Wuxie elsewhere, Shen Can, Zhu Li, and the others also made their way toward the Liver Palace gate. Liu Wuxie's name was already echoing across the area when they arrived.

Shen Can lunged forward without pause and slashed his sword downward, unleashing a devastating sword ray that crossed a thousand meters in an instant.

"Everyone, attack together. Drive Liu Wuxie into the vines," Wei Wenbin roared, urging the crowd to join the assault. If they could force Liu Wuxie down into the Ghostswift Vines, his death would become all but inevitable.

A dazzling storm of techniques erupted into the sky and swept relentlessly toward Liu Wuxie.

This was precisely why Liu Wuxie had hoped to enter the Liver Palace before everyone else. Once Shen Can and the others arrived, they would inevitably interfere with his plan. In the end, however, Liu Wuxie had still moved one step too slowly.

"All of you are courting death," Liu Wuxie roared, fury igniting within him. The Bloodthirst Blade appeared in his grasp, and one slash shattered Shen Can's approaching sword ray.

At that exact moment, the Ghostswift Vines lying dormant across the ground suddenly awakened. Like corpses clawing out of their graves, they surged skyward and stretched countless tendrils into the heavens.

Danger closed around Liu Wuxie from both sides. He had to withstand the assault of the Ghostswift Vines while remaining vigilant against the relentless attacks from Shen Can and the others.

Blackie could offer no assistance in the air. It could not fly, and the Ghostswift Vines would swallow it the moment it fell from the sky. Rather than helping Liu Wuxie, Blackie would only become a burden.

Each Ghostswift Vine resembled a colossal tentacle, its surface bristling with countless razor-sharp barbs. The chilling sight was enough to make anyone’s spine tense.

Wei Wenbin's and the others' attacks arrived at that moment. They could not fight Liu Wuxie at close range, but launching techniques across a thousand meters posed no difficulty.

Dozens of swords shrieked through the air, emitting piercing whistles as they raced toward Liu Wuxie's back.

Frigid light flashed within Liu Wuxie's eyes. Boundless murderous intent erupted from his body and condensed into the towering phantom of a demonic god behind him.

"Divine Fire Blade!"

The Bloodthirst Blade plunged from the heavens as Liu Wuxie executed the third form of the Heavenly Crest Divine Blade Art. Endless flames erupted the instant the attack descended, flooding the sky with fire.

The inferno swept across the heavens, scorching mountains and drying rivers wherever it passed. This was the Divine Fire Blade's true essence. Even though fire didn't directly suppress the wood element, it could still transform the surrounding world into a boundless sea of flames.

Sharp crackling erupted from the Ghostswift Vines the moment the flames touched them. This was no ordinary fire, but heartfire.

After Liu Wuxie had refined the Divine Fire Core, dozens of volcanoes had risen across the Desolate World. The flames he now commanded came directly from those volcanoes and carried unmatched destructive power. Only Liu Wuxie could wield the Heart Palace's power against the Liver Palace.

Once Liu Wuxie escaped the Ghostswift Vines, only the attacks from Wei Wenbin and the others remained in his path.

"Sky Devouring Divine Cauldron, swallow them all," Liu Wuxie roared.

A pitch-black vortex instantly opened across the sky and devoured every approaching attack, erasing them without leaving the faintest trace.

Within the blink of an eye, Liu Wuxie unleashed two devastating techniques. Even the flying swords racing toward him vanished into the black vortex, where the demonic flames inside the Sky Devouring Divine Cauldron refined them.

"Aaargh!"

The cultivators whose lifebound artifacts had been devoured clutched their heads and screamed as the backlash tore through them.

Before Liu Wuxie could draw another breath, a second barrage of attacks surged toward him. Shen Can and the others had clearly resolved to deny him even a moment of respite.

Meanwhile, the Ghostswift Vines carpeting the ground writhed and twisted around one another. Every vine within a radius of several thousand meters rapidly converged and fused into a single monstrous tendril.

Thousands of vines became one, and the resulting colossal tendril shot toward Liu Wuxie's head with terrifying speed.

Fortunately, the Heavenly Dao Book had already predicted this development. Anyone else in Liu Wuxie's position would have been powerless against that monstrous tendril. Despite the warning, he now found himself trapped between the Ghostswift Vines and the incoming immortal arts, leaving him with little hope of survival.

"Accept your death, Liu Wuxie!" Wei Wenbin laughed wildly, eager to see how Liu Wuxie could possibly escape.

The monstrous tendril ignored the surrounding flames and blotted out the sky, completely sealing Liu Wuxie's path forward. He could neither retreat nor descend, and rising any higher was impossible. His only path lay straight ahead, with his life hanging by a thread.

The Sky Devouring Divine Cauldron had barely returned when another wave of immortal arts hurtled toward Liu Wuxie, denying him even a chance to breathe. The monstrous tendril suddenly split open. A hideous face emerged within it, filled with rows of sinister teeth that would terrify anyone who looked at them.

Liu Wuxie stood trapped deep inside the monstrous tendrils, without an inch of space left to evade.

Other cultivators were delighted by the sight. At last, they believed the grievances Liu Wuxie had inflicted upon them would finally be avenged.

When the monstrous tendril closed to within half a meter of Liu Wuxie, a mocking smile abruptly lifted the corners of his lips. A loud rustle tore through the air, and Liu Wuxie vanished as though the world itself had erased him. The monstrous tendril had sealed every possible direction, yet he disappeared all the same.

"What the hell just happened?!" one cultivator cursed, unable to comprehend how Liu Wuxie had vanished before his eyes.

"Where did Liu Wuxie go?"

Everyone stared in shock, and even Shen Can appeared completely bewildered. The monstrous tendril had encircled Liu Wuxie, leaving no opening to escape even if wings had sprouted from his back. None could understand how he had slipped through the Ghostswift Vines.

"Can anyone explain what the hell we're looking at?!" the low-level Profound Immortals shouted.

A clamor of arguments erupted throughout the surroundings. Some insisted that the monstrous tendril had already swallowed Liu Wuxie, while others claimed that he had merely concealed himself somewhere nearby.

Wei Wenbin's mouth hung open, and his eyes nearly bulged from their sockets. The impossible sight filled his heart with overwhelming dread.

Liu Wuxie possessed far too many mysterious abilities. His low cultivation had previously prevented him from revealing their full power. Now that his cultivation had risen, every technique and talent at his disposal had become even more terrifying.

"Quick, look over there," someone in the crowd suddenly shouted.

While everyone continued debating Liu Wuxie's fate, he abruptly reappeared in another section of the battlefield without the slightest injury.

"How is that even possible?!"

Nearly a hundred meters now separated Liu Wuxie from the monstrous tendril, making everyone wonder whether he could teleport. Yet even teleportation should not have allowed him to escape the tendril's complete encirclement. What cultivators called teleportation was merely movement driven to an extreme speed, not true teleportation in which someone vanished from one location and materialized elsewhere.

Regardless of Liu Wuxie's speed, the monstrous tendril had completely enclosed him. The instant he moved, it should have detected his movement and captured him.

Wei Wenbin and the others stopped attacking because Liu Wuxie had already moved beyond their effective range. Continuing the assault would accomplish little, as their techniques could no longer inflict meaningful harm upon him. Rather than squander more energy, they chose to preserve their strength.

Furious that Liu Wuxie had escaped, the monstrous tendril mobilized still more Ghostswift Vines and sent them surging into the sky.

"The fifth form of the Divine Ninefold Step is truly formidable. It even allows me to perform Flash," Liu Wuxie murmured calmly. He hovered like an immortal crane while immortal energy gathered behind him, condensing into a pair of wings.

Liu Wuxie had escaped using the fifth form of the Divine Ninefold Step. Each form possessed a unique profound ability, and flash differed fundamentally from ordinary instantaneous movement.

Instantaneous movement depended entirely upon overwhelming speed. Flash instead allowed Liu Wuxie to traverse space itself, opening two separate points in space-time and creating a passage between them.

A cruel smile spread across Liu Wuxie's lips as the Ghostswift Vines surged toward him and obscured the sky. With Shen Can and the others no longer interfering, he could finally fight without restraint.

Liu Wuxie swung the Bloodthirst Blade three times in rapid succession and unleashed Instant Flash, Mountain Blade, and Divine Fire Blade.

The Heavenly Crest Divine Blade Art possessed extraordinary profundity. Liu Wuxie could unleash its techniques separately or layer them together. Instant Flash, for example, could merge with Mountain Blade and grant the resulting strike both instantaneous speed and the crushing weight of a mountain. By combining all three forms, Liu Wuxie created an entirely new attack whose power vastly surpassed that of any one of them used alone.

The approaching Ghostswift Vines exploded one after another beneath the overwhelming blade force, unable to endure its crushing might. Countless fragments of shattered Ghostswift Vines scattered through the air before dissolving into heaven and earth.

By the time the monstrous tendril tried to pursue Liu Wuxie, the opportunity had already passed. Several consecutive flashes carried Liu Wuxie far beyond the monstrous tendril's reach.

"Alas, the Divine Wood Core will fall into Liu Wuxie's hands," some cultivators murmured.

They could already envision the inevitable conclusion. Once Liu Wuxie obtained the Divine Wood Core, he would possess four different divine cores, each priceless beyond measure.

Shen Can remained rooted in place without speaking or moving. Inside him, however, fury burned like a raging inferno on the verge of eruption.

After destroying the Ghostswift Vines obstructing his path, Liu Wuxie surged ahead without resistance and rapidly approached the colossal tree. At the same time, he secretly summoned the mysterious axe imprint. This was not the Spleen Palace gate, so Blackie's strength was unnecessary.

The Spleen Palace gate had possessed far greater density and sturdiness. Even the mysterious axe imprint might have failed to split it open.

"Now, descend," Liu Wuxie roared.

When only a few dozen meters remained between Liu Wuxie and the Liver Palace gate, the mysterious axe imprint finally came crashing down.

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