"Whew!"

After a series of close encounters, the Flower Mantis finally couldn’t hold back and took a breath.

In an instant, black patterns appeared on the Flower Mantis’s pink body — signs of being poisoned.

As the poisonous mist invaded, the Life Essence Qi within the Flower Mantis quickly lost control, causing the [Sword Evil and Saber Gang] to dissipate rapidly as well.

"Haha, this is the consequence of you pushing me!"

"Even if I, Xiang Yao, am left with only one head, I am still an incarnation of Xiangliu!"

"If it weren’t for that damned Wu Yi, how could a mere mortal like you, even after practicing the Celestial Human Technique, possibly be my match?!"

Crazily laughing, Xiang Yao knew he had already won the final victory in this long pursuit.

Even if it came at a great cost, in the end, he had won!

"So you’re a head of Xiangliu..."

At this moment, seemingly cornered, the Flower Mantis spoke again.

With a tone mixed with a hint of realization, and a tinge of determination...

"Xiang Yao, have you ever thought about something?"

"In this area where Primordial Qi is chaotic, perhaps you’re not the only one whose power is restricted."

Xiang Yao’s pupils suddenly contracted, realizing something was amiss, and instinctively wanted to retreat, only to see a terrifying whirlwind of Primordial Qi surging around the Flower Mantis.

"The ’Perception Technique’ created by the Celestial Beings is indeed mysterious..."

"The only flaw is perhaps that the threshold for entry is relatively high."

"I’ve been cultivating in the Hundred Lands Mountain Range for so many years, and I’m barely getting started."

"However, I’m not seeking immortality, so the Primordial Spirit is just a means for me to sense and manipulate the Heaven and Earth Primordial Qi."

"Just like now, do you feel this chaotic Primordial Qi?"

The whirlpool of Primordial Qi, visible to the naked eye, was slowly taking shape, while the Flower Mantis within it remained extraordinarily calm.

As if dancing on the edge of a knife.

The Flower Mantis successfully leveraged its Life Essence Qi to invoke the vast and mighty power of the heavens and the earth.

However, the Flower Mantis did not use this Heaven and Earth Primordial Qi to manifest a Primordial Spirit.

Instead, it employed the most primitive, most violent method, infusing this immensely compatible Heaven and Earth Primordial Qi into its own body.

Boom!

In an instant, a sharp golden flash passed by.

The originally dissipated [Sword Evil and Saber Gang] reappeared on the Flower Mantis’s body surface.

This time, the [Sword Evil and Saber Gang] was stained with a layer of gold — a layer of gold symbolizing the Geng Metal of the Five Elements, a sharp aura of slaughter.

Tear...

With the support of Geng Metal Qi, those reinforced scales could no longer obstruct the Flower Mantis’s twin blades.

In just a quick encounter, countless scales were shattered.

Then, in a flash, the Flower Mantis’s twin blades deftly flicked off the Soul Jade at Xiang Yao’s vital spot.

"Ah!"

Another sorrowful wail echoed.

Without the support of the Soul Jade, Xiang Yao also lost that powerful vitality, flailing helplessly like a dying beast with its body severed in two.

"Whew!"

Seeing this, the Flower Mantis let out a deep breath of turbid air.

Ignoring the poison’s erosion, disregarding the chaos of the Heaven and Earth Primordial Qi, it leapt forward, aiming to grasp the Soul Jade floating in mid-air.

"Hey, this isn’t yours!"

Just as the Flower Mantis was about to touch the Soul Jade, a voice suddenly reached his ear.

The next instant, a figure, black and white, blurred in and out of view, snatching away the Soul Jade with speed surpassing the previous action.

...........................

"Hey, this isn’t yours!"

The black and white figure landed on the trunk of a large tree, transforming instantly into a form with a dog’s head on a human body.

Only to see the Celestial Erosion Monarch gently grasping the Soul Jade.

His eyes were as sharp as a blade, sweeping over the Flower Mantis and Xiang Yao.

Especially upon seeing Xiang Yao, the Celestial Erosion Monarch’s eyes shone fiercely, his killing intent unabashed.

"Xiangliu, I truly didn’t expect that after betraying Gonggong, one of your heads would still have the fortune to survive."

Xiangliu was the Water God of Great Xia and also a vassal of Gonggong.

Regardless of power, only considering history, Xiangliu’s existence even predates that of the current Gonggong.

As the Celestial Erosion Monarch knew, at his peak, Xiangliu might have even been an underling of the first Gonggong, one of the founders who helped the first Witch King establish Great Xia.

However, Xiangliu submitted to the first Gonggong not because he shared the ideology of "human-god co-governance."

On the contrary, Xiangliu was arguably the fiercest opposer of human rise back then.

Due to the flooding and poisoning of forests it caused, Xiangliu remains an indisputable Fierce Beast and Evil God in Great Xia’s mythology and legends.

Unfortunately, Xiangliu’s power was no match for the first Gonggong and was ultimately subdued, forced to become his subordinate.

After thousands of years, the first Gonggong chose to settle in the East Sea for various reasons, while Xiangliu was left in Great Xia, becoming the most reliable assistant of the new Gonggong.

Until Wu Yi Shoots the Sky, the gods were in crisis, and in the final battle at the East Sea, he chose to betray Wu Yi’s Primordial Spirit.

In that battle, Xiangliu played a crucial role, being the first Great Xia God to injure Wu Yi’s Primordial Spirit.

This evidences Xiangliu’s formidable strength.

At his peak, he had nine snake heads, each capable of transforming into a different calamity, equivalent to nine top-tier, closely connected Celestial Gods.

After that battle, Xiangliu preserved his strength by relying on his snake heads.

But Gonggong was severely wounded by Wu Yi and soon after returning to Great Xia, he had no choice but to announce his need for recuperation.

Yet Xiangliu chose to rebel at this time, seizing the opportunity to attack the recuperating Gonggong.

The exact details of that battle are unknown to the Celestial Erosion Monarch.

But the consequences of that war spread clearly throughout the Hundred Lands Mountain Range from the mouths of refugees flooding into the region.

The second Gonggong perished, and all statues dedicated to the second Gonggong crumbled.

Mimicking the ritual left by the first Witch King, the third Gonggong also began the selection process within the territory of Great Xia.

This is a secret ceremony by which the Gods of Great Xia preserve the gods’ strength to the fullest extent and challenge the Great Witches. The chosen one will successfully inherit the power of Gonggong.

Unlike the Witch King’s selection ceremony, without the suppression and inheritance of the Nine Tripods.

Only the powerful gods have the right to participate in this ceremony — to partake in this "Celestial God Inheritance Ceremony" that allows one to become the most powerful Water God.

As for the other protagonist of this great war?

Xiangliu’s head, drifting along the water vein rivers, was successively discovered by the lands along the way.

Wherever its head appeared or its blood flowed, the curse of death arrived as expected.

Rivers turned black, soil was polluted, all living beings perished, and plants could no longer sustain themselves.

The Great Witches exhausted all means, redirecting rivers and filling pits, yet they could never cure the waters and lands polluted by Xiangliu.

☞☞Monthly Ticket☜☜/☞☞Recommendation Ticket☜☜