A large red drum sat atop a high platform. Its surface was covered with a blood-stained Beast Hide, and its body was inlaid with countless crystals.

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

With each beat of the drum, rings of fiery waves surged forth, causing the surrounding temperature to rise rapidly.

In the distance, Feiyue Lake was the target. Portions of its water began to bubble and boil, and countless fish and shrimp floated to the surface, their bellies turned up.

The Demon-Locking Divine Fire Drum, a Mid-Grade Magical Treasure!

The drummer was none other than the Qingfeng Sect’s Sect Leader, Wei Dao. He held a pair of drumsticks, each tipped with a red Spirit Stone.

Each strike consumed a tremendous amount of energy. Beads of sweat rolled down his forehead, his face flushed, and his Magical Power drained away like a river.

Activating a Magical Treasure with a mere Late-Stage Foundation Establishment Cultivation should have been impossible.

That Wei Dao could manage it was thanks not only to his abundant Magical Power, but mostly to the pair of Top-Grade Fire Element Spirit Stones embedded in his drumsticks.

Top-Grade Spirit Stones were fundamentally different from their Mid-Grade and Low-Grade counterparts. Whether used in an Array or by a Cultivator to replenish Magical Power, their effect was to achieve twice the result with half the effort.

By leveraging the unique property of Top-Grade Spirit Stones—that their power could be used directly without conversion—the vast Fire Element Spiritual Power within them allowed the Demon-Locking Divine Fire Drum to unleash over seventy percent of its might. 𝒻𝑟ℯℯ𝑤𝑒𝑏𝑛𝘰𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝒸𝑜𝘮

This Fire Element Magical Treasure was one of the few area-of-effect heirlooms in the Qingfeng Sect’s arsenal, making it the perfect counter to the many Water Beasts of Feiyue Lake.

This was why Wei Dao had brought this Treasure; by using Top-Grade Spirit Stones, he could produce an effect equivalent to half a Core Formation True Man.

As the waves of fire advanced, the Water Beasts of Feiyue Lake began leaping from the water, losing their home-field advantage.

On the ground, battalions of Cultivators stood in formation. The Battle Arrays at their very center also began to gather immense Fire Element Spiritual Power.

These were the All Heaven Fiery Battle Arrays, specially modified by the Array Hall’s Cultivators to deal with Feiyue Lake.

Each Battle Array was equipped with twelve additional All Heaven Fiery Battle Banners, which could convert all of the array’s attacks into Fire Element-based assaults.

Meanwhile, in the sky, a Five-Colored Ship had joined the three Wind Shuttles. All of them gathered Spirit Light, preparing to take aim at the Demon Beasts in Feiyue Lake and attack.

’So Feiyue Lake is much bigger than I imagined...’

Bai Zichen still hadn’t been assigned a specific task. He remained a free agent, responsible for assessing the battlefield and supporting any teams that fell into a difficult fight.

The misty waters of Feiyue Lake stretched as far as the eye could see, a sprawling network of waterways covering at least tens of thousands of acres.

He could even vaguely make out a small island in the center of the lake.

’Without the Demon-Locking Divine Fire Drum showing its might, I can’t imagine how many lives would have to be sacrificed just to advance step by step.’

"Everyone, slay all the Demon Beasts! The day of our victory is at hand!"

Liang Yu’s shout, amplified by Magic, echoed across the entire battlefield.

The army of Cultivators advanced slowly, confronting the various Demon Beasts that had scrambled ashore, unable to bear the heat of the lake.

BOOM!

A thirty-foot-tall, bare-chested giant landed before the formations. His muscles bulged like blocks of refined steel, and he wielded a pair of massive iron rods.

With a single swing of an iron rod, he struck a Tier One Peak water buffalo at the waist, splitting it in two and unleashing a shower of blood.

This giant was the manifestation of a Tier Three Talisman: the Dragon Tiger Warrior Talisman.

It was from the same lineage as the Yellow Turban Strongman Talisman used in the assault on the Mo Family, but this was an upgraded and enhanced version.

The Dragon Tiger Warrior’s strength was comparable to a Perfect Foundation Establishment Cultivator, and it could last for four hours.

For the sake of Feiyue Lake, the Qingfeng Sect had brought out countless treasures from the bottom of their coffers, leaving the Cultivation Families and the many Loose Cultivators utterly dumbfounded.

In the past few days, tens of thousands of various Fire Element Talismans had been transported to the army each day.

Now, as they were activated, the sky filled with fiery sparks that raked across Feiyue Lake. Half of the Tier One Demon Beasts were instantly annihilated under such an offensive.

SPLASH!

A giant carp leaped from the water, spouting a pillar of water from its mouth that extinguished several clusters of flames.

It was immediately targeted by two Battle Arrays. Four pillars of fire descended, trapping it.

Two Foundation Establishment Cultivators flew forward, activating their Spiritual Artifacts and unleashing a frantic bombardment on the giant carp.

With the appearance of Tier Two Demon Beasts, the intensity of the battle rose another notch.

A floating island gradually drifted toward the shore. As it rose steadily, it revealed four pillar-like limbs—it was actually a millennial turtle.

It was one of the Tier Two Peak Demon Beasts of Feiyue Lake!

This old turtle had first appeared in the Qingfeng Sect’s records six hundred years ago, at which time it was still just a Tier Two Low-Grade Demon Beast.

The scattered, Copper Coin-shaped patterns on its shell were its most distinct markings.

Aside from the Copper Coin patterns growing larger, the shapes and positions of the other markings hadn’t changed at all, confirming it was the very same turtle.

"Dragon Tiger Warrior, eliminate the demon!"

Liang Yu formed a hand seal and directed the Dragon Tiger Warrior to confront the millennial turtle.

The Dragon Tiger Warrior Talisman was among the absolute best of the Tier Three Talismans. At present, no one in the Qingfeng Sect’s Talisman Hall possessed the skill to create one.

Even the Talisman Hall Master, Luoo Qiuzhen, was still a long way from mastering such a technique.

The Qingfeng Sect’s current stock all came from a former Core Formation Ancestor who had specialized in the Talisman Dao.

However, because they were so difficult to create and required several special Tier Three Spiritual Materials as consumables, the Ancestor had left behind only a precious few of these Tier Three Dragon Tiger Warrior Talismans.

Over hundreds of years, several had been used for various purposes. The Dragon Tiger Warrior now clashing with the millennial turtle, iron rods in hand, was the very last one.

"What terrifying defense!" Yingg Zhong exclaimed as he watched the Dragon Tiger Warrior smash a rod onto the turtle’s back. The blow, carrying an unknown amount of Divine Power, let out a deafening crash. Yet the turtle’s shell remained perfectly intact, without a single crack. "If we were to fight it, our attacks would just be tickling it. We could probably hit it for days with no effect."

"Don’t worry," Liang Yu said, his eyes fixed on the battle as he extended his Divine Sense to its maximum range. "The old turtle’s defense is extraordinary, practically invincible below the Core Formation realm, but its attack power is merely average. The Dragon Tiger Warrior will have no problem holding out for two hours. We should focus our attention on that golden toad. If it escapes, it can poison hundreds, even thousands, of Cultivators in an instant."

Besides the mysterious Flood Dragon, the two greatest Demon Beasts in Feiyue Lake were the millennial turtle and the Hundred Poison Golden Toad.

The Hundred Poison Golden Toad was only the size of a calf, but its body contained an incredibly potent toxin. A single puff of poison mist carried on the wind could kill hundreds of Cultivators on the battlefield within fifteen minutes.

Its most potent venom could poison even a Core Formation True Man.

After waiting for what felt like half a day, they finally heard a faint croak. The Hundred Poison Golden Toad had appeared.

A red-haired Foundation Establishment Cultivator was struck. His face turned black, he foamed at the mouth, and he plummeted from the sky.

Fortunately, his nearby companions managed to rescue him.

Liang Yu and his two companions each swallowed an Antitoxic Pill before charging forward to trap the Hundred Poison Golden Toad.

They threw three large, silver-thread nets, ensnaring the Hundred Poison Golden Toad. Runes began to glow all over the nets’ surfaces.

The weight, like that of a mountain, crushed it into a small ball.

CROAK! CROAK! CROAK!

The Hundred Poison Golden Toad’s belly swelled with rage. The blisters on its body pulsed with green light as it spat out a glob of ink-like venom. The stench was so foul that even catching a whiff from a distance was enough to make one nauseous.

As the ink-like venom hit the silver-thread nets, a series of sizzling, corrosive sounds erupted, and large holes quickly appeared in the mesh.

"I knew these targeted Low-Grade Spiritual Artifacts would be useless," Luoo Qiuzhen said with dissatisfaction. Even with three talismans blocking the air, he could still smell the foul stench. "The difference in Tier is just too great. What does it matter if there’s a counter-effect?"

"Stick to the plan. We’ll set up an array to trap it," Liang Yu responded. "Its power is all in its toxins. It’s devastating against Low-Tier Cultivators, but since we came prepared, it’s actually far less of a threat to us than the Jade-Eyed Golden-Eyed Ape."

Liang Yu slapped the Jade Pendant at his waist. A Clear Spirit Light spread out, instantly repelling much of the foul odor.

...

’Someone else will deal with those troublesome Demon Beasts. I should just stick to ordinary ones and rack up contribution points...’

A Tier Two Low-Grade water buffalo lay at Bai Zichen’s feet. He watched the distant clash between Tier Two Peak Demon Beasts, imagining how he would fare if he were in the fight.

’If my cultivation were a bit higher, the Sect might have drafted me into a squad to deal with the Tier Two Peak Demon Beasts.’

The situation at Feiyue Lake was complex, and since it was a water-based battlefield, he definitely wouldn’t have time to collect materials.

He quickly harvested the most valuable parts from the water buffalo’s corpse before throwing himself back into the fray.

’After mastering Sword Qi Thunder Sound, dealing with Tier Two Low-Grade Demon Beasts has certainly gotten a lot easier...’

As more and more Tier Two Demon Beasts appeared, the cultivators’ army began to suffer casualties.

A squad of Cultivators, driven by a school of flying fish, fell into the lake. Before anyone could rescue them, they were dragged out of sight by a swarm of Demon Beasts that erupted from the water.

A grotesque, winged fish, unafraid of the flames, withstood countless Fire Element Techniques to snatch two Loose Cultivators in its jaws before splashing back into the depths.

On the high platform, Sect Leader Wei Dao saw the battle’s slow progress and spat a mouthful of Essence Blood onto the drum’s surface.

A golden flame emerged from the Demon-Locking Divine Fire Drum. It flickered as it rose into the air, radiating a terrifying power.

"True Sun Fire, go!"

Wei Dao put forth all his strength. His drumsticks fell once more. The two newly replaced Top-Grade Fire Element Spirit Stones instantly shattered into dust, their energy surging into the golden True Sun Fire as one final burst of Spiritual Power.

As if it had swallowed a Ten-Complete Great Replenishing Pill, the True Sun Fire’s flames erupted. It blazed a path forward, incinerating every Demon Beast in its way and shooting directly toward the Lake Heart Island.

WHOOSH!

The waters in the depths of Feiyue Lake parted. A dragon’s roar echoed out, and everyone on the battlefield felt their hearts sink, as if a massive boulder was pressing down on them.

The Demon Beasts, in contrast, became energized. Some Tier One Demon Beasts even grew scales on their bodies, making it much more difficult for Magical Artifacts to cut them.

A black shadow flashed past. A Foundation Establishment Cultivator screamed and instantly exploded into a cloud of blood and gore. Neither his Protective Techniques nor his Defense Spiritual Artifacts had done anything to stop it.

"The Flood Dragon!"

Bai Zichen’s face was a mask of horror. He subconsciously took two steps back.

He hadn’t even been able to react when the hundred-foot-long Flood Dragon appeared. In other words, if the Flood Dragon had chosen to vent its anger on him, he would have had no chance of escape.

He had little confidence that his Five Crystal Body alone would allow him to fare much better than that unfortunate Cultivator.

This Flood Dragon was clad in white scales, its head adorned with whiskers and horns. It already possessed a hint of a true Dragon Shadow.

Its aura was so powerful that the moment it appeared, the thousands of Cultivators and countless Demon Beasts on the field became mere background characters. It was like the sun had risen over Feiyue Lake.

The True Sun Fire, which Wei Dao had unleashed from the Demon-Locking Divine Fire Drum at the cost of his Primordial Qi via a Secret Technique, was met by the Flood Dragon’s Demon Pill. The flame was frozen in place and quickly extinguished.

"Vile beast, die!"

A figure appeared from the far distance. Before his voice had even faded, he was already before the Flood Dragon, reaching out with his bare hands to grab the Demon Pill.

ROAR!

The Flood Dragon roared in anger, feeling its dignity had been challenged. A mere four-limbed beast dared to engage it in close combat.

It recalled its Demon Pill and, treating it like a Magical Treasure, smashed it directly at the figure.

A Tier Three Demon Beast’s Inner Core contained the majority of its Magical Power and Essence Blood. Its might surpassed even that of a human Cultivator’s Lifebound Magical Treasure.

The force behind that single strike was well over a hundred thousand pounds.

The figure stood his ground. A Five-Colored Spiritual Light surged around his body, looking like a thick layer of Treasure Armor.

Without dodging or evading, he threw a punch, colliding head-on with the Demon Pill!