"Infinite Celestial Venerable!"

Dongyangzi squinted his eyes, shook his head and said, "A human life has just been added to the hands of the Divine Monarch."

Just as Dongyangzi appeared, he was ready to move Mo Xiaoniao away, but the Dao practice of Divine Monarch Xuan Ruo was indeed profound and he intercepted her.

Although Dongyangzi was prepared at the time, seeing Mo Xiaoniao swallowed whole still stirred his murderous intent.

"Hehe, you, the bull-nosed one, don't pretend to be virtuous. I've consumed far more than a million people. It's not like you didn't know, yet you never came to the Great Abyss Marsh to exorcise demons before. Why act all good now?"

Qi Ruoyun, also known as Divine Monarch Xuan Ruo, laughed coldly and then looked at Si Lingxi, a sinister grin flashing at his lips, "Hmm, others fear you, but I do not. When I return to the Southern Border, I'll manipulate the water vein and destroy your Phoenix Mountain!"

Si Lingxi remained indifferent, completely ignoring Divine Monarch Xuan Ruo's words. What responded to him was the overwhelming Phoenix Divine Fire.

"Damn it!"

Divine Monarch Xuan Ru cursed angrily, and with a wave of his hand, he stirred up a monstrous black wave that soared into the sky.

The next moment, a gigantic palm, spanning a hundred miles, formed in the sky, with white clouds leisurely adorning its surface and gentle breezes etching its lines.

It looked quite ordinary, yet its descent carried an overwhelming force, as if overturning heaven and earth.

"Boom!"

The clash of the monstrous black water and the white cloud giant palm echoed like a meteor striking the earth, with resounding booms that filled the entire sky, scattering clouds and black water.

The next instant, before Divine Monarch Xuan Ru could respond, a Fire Phoenix descended from the heavens, diving into the black water.

"Boom!"

Golden-red flames ignited the seawater, leaving the entire space marked by the scorch of the fire.

"Chirp!"

"Moo!"

After the phoenix cry, a strange roar followed, and a figure emerged from the flames, surrounded by black water, with poison gas swirling around.

"Trying to kill me? It's not that easy, you'll pay the price!"

Divine Monarch Xuan Ru laughed coldly, flicked his sleeves, releasing endless black water, then spat out a pearl.

Only to see this pearl was entirely black, yet its surface shimmered with iridescent hues. Initially only the size of a thumb, it grew to the size of a fist in a single breath, hovering atop Divine Monarch Xuan Ru's head.

"It's the Primordial Spirit Poison Pearl!"

"Beware!"

The Primordial Spirit Poison Pearl, crafted by Divine Monarch Xuan Ru using his primordial spirit, with all the poisons in the world, was far more terrifying than the black water and the normal poison gas he just released.

In the next moment, a realization dawned, as an enduring soul-infecting poison extended across the heavens.

Dongyangzi waved a hand, and a line of Innate Cloud Qi shielded himself and Yuanlin behind him.

Si Lingxi opened her mouth to spit out a flame that transformed into the Phoenix Sky Curtain, enveloping her and Lu Zheng together.

The Primordial Spirit Poison Pearl, formless and intangible, poisons from the soul aspect, its toxicity fierce, merging myriad poisons, eroding all.

Faint sounds emerged from the surface of the Innate Cloud Qi and Phoenix Sky Curtain, and then, out of nowhere, they eroded slightly.

"The Primordial Spirit Poison Pearl, indeed unmatched." Dongyangzi nodded as boundless Innate Cloud Qi surged once more.

Si Lingxi, too, pointed a finger, and nine Fire Phoenixes appeared in the heavens, each with an elegant neck and magnificent tail, noble and beautiful, flapping their wings proudly in the flames, swooping towards Divine Monarch Xuan Ru.

"Boom... Boom... Boom..."

After waves of thunderous explosions, Divine Monarch Xuan Ru still hovered in place, surrounded by black water, with the Poison Pearl fluctuating above, looking unscathed.

However, Si Lingxi and Dongyangzi, with their cultivation, easily discerned his true hollow and weak state.

At their level of cultivation and Dao practice, mere collisions of this magnitude shouldn't display such lack of momentum.

So…

Divine Monarch Xuan Ru was indeed severely injured…

…

The Innate Cloud Qi stretched for miles, black water floods surged across the four seas.

Each Fire Phoenix scorched the heavens and boiled the seas, while soul poison spread across the universe.

Dongyangzi, Si Lingxi, and Divine Monarch Xuan Ru battled within these realms.

Well, they may say it's a battle, but even Lu Zheng behind Si Lingxi could see that Divine Monarch Xuan Ru repeatedly attempted to break through Innate Cloud Qi and flee. 𝐟𝕣𝕖𝐞𝐰𝕖𝚋𝐧𝗼𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝗰𝐨𝐦

However, Dongyangzi, worthy of being the ancestor of White Cloud Temple, wielded the Purest Yang Innate Cloud Qi masterfully, seamless and dense, light yet firm, as Divine Monarch Xuan Ru exhaustively tried, yet still failed to leave a mark.

Meanwhile, Si Lingxi's Phoenix Divine Fire showed no signs of diminishing, as flames scorched the land, leaving a faint burnt aroma, bending light in the golden-red blaze.

At the battlefield's center stood Divine Monarch Xuan Ru in white robes.

The boundless black sea ebbed and surged beneath his feet, stirring billowing black waves, striking against the Four Directions and Baji of Innate Cloud Qi and Phoenix Divine Fire.

Above, the Primordial Spirit Poison Pearl emitted a haunting black glow, with waves of poison dispersing, tinting the originally fire-lit golden-red with patches of iridescent black.

Cloud Qi, Divine Fire, black water, and Primordial Spirit Poison fought in these realms, chaotic aura raging, scattered Divine Thoughts violently oscillating, and turbulent Spiritual Qi permeated.

Lu Zheng and Yuanlin watched shivering, knowing that without protection from those before them, they couldn't last a moment.

Yet facing the combined might of Si Lingxi and Dongyangzi, Divine Monarch Xuan Ru persisted.

…

Indeed, Divine Monarch Xuan Ru's cultivation was inferior to Dongyangzi and Si Lingxi, and he was gravely injured beforehand.

But that didn't mean Si Lingxi and Dongyangzi could effortlessly overpower Divine Monarch Xuan Ru, dispatching him with ease.

In contrast, they must prevent Divine Monarch Xuan Ru from resorting to desperate counterattacks or using his essence for surprise assaults, as they intended to thoroughly capture Divine Monarch Xuan Ru, ideally without sustaining damage themselves.

Such a goal is far more challenging than merely harming him or vanquishing him at any cost.

As Divine Monarch Xuan Ru, despite severe injury, had a lowered maximum strength output, insufficient endurance for prolonged combat, but not weakened in current combat power.

This battle wouldn't end in just a short time, or even within a couple of days.

Bear in mind, when the Great Black Heaven Heartless True Desire Demon Ancestor succeeded in tricking Si Lingxi, and deployed the Six Desires Celestial Demon Array, it intended to exhaust Si Lingxi for eighty-one days.

At their cultivation level, killing one isn't easy.

Thus, Lu Zheng stood behind Si Lingxi observing for three days, yet found little change.

Well, minor changes did occur; at least as Lu Zheng observed, the black water visibly thinned by two layers, the glow of the Primordial Spirit Poison Pearl appeared dimmer, and Divine Monarch Xuan Ru's eyes revealed traces of impatience and anxiety.