Chapter 335: Soul Banner

Such incredible speed, appearing so suddenly nearby.

Even her Divine Sense hadn’t had time to react.

All signs pointed to the other party being at the Mid Golden Core Stage, at the very least.

Song Jiulai’s scalp went numb.

A massive, skull-like Blood Hand Claw suddenly appeared, wreathed in a dense black fog.

This attack was even stronger than Ma Feng’s.

Though it moved slowly, it seemed to affect Song Jiulai’s movements, rendering her momentarily powerless to escape its grip.

By the time she realized it, the Blood Handprint had already descended upon her out of thin air.

Its massive shadow loomed, and one could almost picture the scene of Song Jiulai being effortlessly crushed to death.

Song Jiulai’s pupils contracted. Behind the Blood Handprint, she saw a figure in cyan-gray robes.

The Blood Handprint successfully seized Song Jiulai.

CRUNCH—

As the Blood Handprint clamped down, Song Jiulai instantly felt an immense crushing force.

Even with the resistance from her Nine Transformations Dragon Bone Heart Method, she heard the horrifying crunch of her own bones being squeezed and deformed.

It was a terrifying sound.

The Spiritual Energy within her organs was thrown into chaos. This one attack from the Blood Handprint was several times more terrifying than Ma Feng’s.

A sinister red aura even drilled into Song Jiulai’s body.

It immediately began to interfere with her Spiritual Energy, obstructing its circulation.

The crushing pressure from a Mid Golden Core Stage expert forced her to spit out an even bigger mouthful of blood than before.

It was like choking on water and spitting it all out at once.

With the Spiritual Energy in her body thrown into chaos, she lost control and plummeted like a kite with a broken string.

Only as she was about to hit the ground did she manage to recite the mantra and slow her descent, avoiding an even nastier fall.

System: "Why didn’t you let me teleport you away?"

When it had sensed the danger, the system had been ready to teleport her straight back. After all, compared to the energy needed to cross the Dragon Frost Swamp, the cost of returning to the Sect from here was negligible.

But Song Jiulai hadn’t let it.

"As long as these injuries don’t kill me, it’s fine."

As long as she didn’t die, everything else was manageable.

As Song Jiulai pushed herself to her feet, the movement pulled at her wounds, and she coughed violently.

And yet, the very bones that had seemed on the verge of being crushed just moments ago were now slowly recovering as she stood up.

Furthermore, the red aura that had drilled into Song Jiulai’s body was once again chased down and devoured by the Little Golden Dragon.

It then circled back to the Little Green Dragon and resumed its revolution. The previously motionless Little Green Dragon began to slowly circulate once more.

Her eyes lit up as she wiped the blood from the corner of her mouth. "See? I was right. Getting seriously injured has its perks. I just can’t take this kind of hit too many times. Am I going to become some kind of masochist?"

’The killing power of a Mid Golden Core Stage cultivator is much stronger than that of the Golden Core Early Stage.’

’But it wasn’t enough to kill me in one blow. It was close—and close isn’t dead.’

’It’s even more beneficial for the Little Golden Dragon inside me.’

It was just that these "benefits" made Song Jiulai a little worried about her future mental state.

The system sighed. "Hey, we don’t have to develop a fetish for this." She looked so miserable when she was taking that hit. "I really can’t bear to watch you get beaten up."

Song Jiulai’s eyes remained fixed on the Cultivator whose figure was gradually appearing. "Then you can come out and take the hits for me."

System: "...Aren’t you just making things difficult for me?"

Still, it felt a little gratified.

As long as she had a safety net, Song Jiulai could be utterly ruthless with herself.

It seemed the big data algorithm had its reasons for randomly selecting her back then.

The Cultivator in the sky had originally worn a scornful sneer.

The fact that he had killed Ma Feng by running him through with a single sword strike meant he was no ordinary Mid Golden Core Stage cultivator.

He had thought one blow would be enough to take the life of this other Cultivator he was chasing.

He never expected that after the female cultivator fell to the ground, she would merely spit out a mouthful of blood and then slowly get back to her feet.

What’s more, her injuries were visibly healing.

The Cultivator in the sky’s pupils contracted instantly.

He knew full well the power of the Cultivation Technique he practiced.

’This female cultivator is at the Golden Core Early Stage at most, yet she actually withstood my Bone-cutting Blood-shocking Claw!’

’Is it a Protective Dharma Treasure, or has she cultivated a unique Defense Technique?’

The male cultivator’s eyes narrowed. In that instant, Song Jiulai’s Divine Sense detected a slight change in his eyes.

Green, slitted pupils.

’He’s a Demon Cultivator!’

Under certain circumstances, when a Demon Cultivator casts a Spell, it is very easy for them to expose their true identity.

He was at the Mid Golden Core Stage, and although he could assume the appearance of a member of the Human Clan, some slip-ups were unavoidable when casting Spells.

As Song Jiulai came to this realization, the male cultivator’s expression changed. He had felt her Divine Sense probing him, and he roared in fury, "You’re courting death!"

’To suffer such heavy injuries and be lucky enough to survive, yet she still dares to use her Divine Sense on me.’

’This is an undeniable provocation.’

’Besides, I can’t let anyone find out I’m here.’

’No matter what, I have to silence this female cultivator today.’

’I just don’t understand why she didn’t even try to dodge that last attack.’

The Demon Cultivator raised his hand, and another Blood Hand Claw materialized.

Song Jiulai immediately swallowed a Qi Replenishing Pill and a Blood Replenishing Pill.

’If I pop these too often, the Elixir Pills’ effects will be greatly diminished.’

’So I can’t just keep taking hits like this.’

As the Blood Hand Claw approached, she unleashed several bolts of Palm Thunder with incredible speed, then used her Moonlight Sword Technique to meet the attack head-on, deflecting some of its power.

"SPFFT—"

The Blood Hand Claw seized Song Jiulai again, and this time, the sickening crack of her bones was exceptionally clear.

This was, without a doubt, the most severe injury she had sustained since she began cultivating the Nine Transformations Dragon Bone.

Her bones shattered, only to be forcibly knit back together by the Elixir Pills she had just swallowed. The exquisite agony of the process went without saying.

The pain was so intense Song Jiulai wanted to curse a blue streak. She couldn’t help but exclaim, "Why can players turn off pain, but I can’t!"

The system comforted her, "No pain, no gain. Remembering the hardship will make you appreciate the better future to come."

Song Jiulai hissed in a breath of cold air. "What kind of toxic, last-century self-help garbage is that?"

The Little Golden Dragon devoured the sinister, cold aura from the Blood Hand Claw and once again channeled it back into the Little Green Dragon.

The Little Green Dragon, which had been just a faint afterimage, now showed signs of truly taking shape.

Although it was only a phantasm, a very faint green aura—entirely different from that of the Little Golden Dragon—emerged.

It rapidly circulated throughout Song Jiulai’s entire body.

That thread of green aura began to mend the bones that were covered in fractures from the constant attacks.

He watched as Song Jiulai shook her head, astounded that she still had the strength to move.

She had taken two of his heavy blows and still wasn’t dead.

The Mid Golden Core Stage male cultivator seemed to realize something: this Golden Core Early Stage cultivator from the Human Clan clearly had a bizarre Cultivation Technique.

This time, he stopped holding back and raised his hand to summon his Magic Treasure.

A Red Banner, which also radiated a terrifying aura, appeared.

’A Soul Banner!’

This was the first time Song Jiulai had ever seen a Magic Treasure of this kind.

As the Soul Banner appeared, a savage grin spread across the Demon Cultivator’s face. "You can die inside my Soul Banner and become my ten thousandth soul!"

If he weren’t wary of drawing attention, he wouldn’t have wanted to bring out the Soul Banner at all.

It was far too likely to attract the attention of others.

But this female cultivator was bizarre, and besides, his Soul Banner needed just one final soul to officially become a Ten Thousand Souls Banner. With her, his Magic Treasure could advance to the next level!

She was the perfect sacrifice!