Sheng Lingxin's Burn (Part 1)

The three dazzling pillars of light had already drawn near while Long Haochen and Sheng Lingxin were speaking. Clearly visible beneath each of those three pillars were more than a hundred demons.

Although there were only three hundred in total, the pressure emanating from those three hundred demons was no weaker than that of the demon army on the other side.

Now that they were closer, Long Haochen could clearly make out the appearance of the three Demon God Pillars.

Beneath the central Demon God Pillar, which gleamed with fiery red light, a brilliant golden radiance shone. Yet it was not the golden light of the Light Attribute, but instead carried an intense aura of darkness and fire.

Within that radiance stood a massive warhorse, nearly two zhang tall and three zhang long. Seated upon its back was a demon god over one zhang in height.

His golden armor made his body appear incomparably powerful and magnificent. His head was actually that of a lion, while his body resembled a human's. The skin exposed on his face and hands was red.

Long Xingyu had once given Long Haochen a detailed account of the characteristics of the Seventy-Two Demon Gods Pillars and had required him to memorize them all.

The moment he saw that enormous figure, Long Haochen made his judgment. This was the fifty-second Demon God among the Seventy-Two Demon Gods Pillars, Anluoxian, known as the Flame Lion Demon. He excelled in the powers of fire and darkness. Nearly all demon gods were powerful magic warriors. Though he ranked only fifty-second, he was still a genuine Ninth Rank powerhouse.

To the left of Anluoxian, the Flame Lion Demon, beneath the black pillar of light, stood another incomparably burly demon god. This fellow also had a humanoid body, but the head of a bull. A pair of wings covered in black feathers extended from his back, and his entire body emitted a deep blue sheen. His upper body was bare, revealing muscles and sinews so knotted they could only be described as terrifying. He stood over five meters tall.

This was Saigong, the sixty-first-ranked Winged Bull Berserker Demon among the Seventy-Two Demon Gods Pillars.

The one on the other side, whose entire body gleamed with cyan light, looked the most human. He rode a cyan winged horse and was himself a handsome man over two meters tall. Yet both he and his horse possessed a pair of eerie crimson eyes. Shrouded in the cyan radiance around him, he appeared even more sinister.

This was Xi'er, the seventieth Demon God, the Azure Fiend Rider Demon.

Among all Seventy-Two Demon Gods Pillars, the last twelve Demon Gods were at the peak of the Eighth Rank, while the preceding sixty were all Ninth Rank. Of the three before them, one was Ninth Rank and two were Eighth Rank. Though all ranked near the bottom, they were still terrifying existences to Long Haochen and Sheng Lingxin.

In front of each of the three Demon Gods stood a hundred powerful demons. Given their status among the demons, they were not yet qualified to possess tribes of their own. These were all their personal guards.

Xi'er, the Azure Fiend Rider Demon, had the weakest guard unit: one hundred Fifth Rank Emerald Twin Blade Demons.

Saigong, the Winged Bull Berserker Demon, had one hundred Two-Headed Demon Vultures as his guards. They were also Fifth Rank, but the flying Two-Headed Demon Vultures were in no way inferior to Beta Flying Demons.

Meanwhile, Anluoxian, the Flame Lion Demon's guards consisted of one hundred Flame Demon Puppets, each over three meters tall and wreathed in scarlet flames. Every one of them possessed Sixth Rank cultivation.

Three Great Demon Gods and three hundred personal guards—standing here, they were like a Natural Chasm stretching across the only path by which the Radiant Angels Knight Order could retreat. Forcing their way through would be anything but easy.

Sheng Lingxin's voice rang in Long Haochen's ears. "We can't fight them head-on. The important thing is to stall for time. Demon Expelling Pass must have spotted those three demon bastards by now. Ten minutes. We only need to hold on for ten minutes at most before reinforcements arrive."

Hearing this, Long Haochen knew that Sheng Lingxin had acknowledged his decision to stay.

The Three Great Demon Gods had clearly not expected Sheng Lingxin, upon seeing them appear, to refrain from ordering the Radiant Angels Knight Order to charge and seize this lifeline back to Demon Expelling Pass. Instead, he had tightly organized their formation and ordered them to hold their ground. As a result, their overall reaction was a little slower.

Just as Sheng Lingxin had not expected the Three Great Demon Gods to arrange tactics specifically for the Radiant Angels Knight Order, these three Demon Gods had not expected Sheng Lingxin to act so decisively. After a brief moment of thought, they understood that Sheng Lingxin was waiting for reinforcements from Demon Expelling Pass. Thus, the three immediately gave the order to attack without hesitation. As long as they crushed the Radiant Angels Knight Order and the Dark Night Assassins, it would be a devastating blow to the Temple Alliance. They immediately commanded their personal guards to charge.

The Three Great Demon Gods completely ignored Sheng Lingxin and Long Haochen. How could two individuals possibly catch their attention? Moreover, they had never imagined that Sheng Lingxin, the Demon Expelling Pass Military Head, would personally lead the Radiant Angels Knight Order into battle.

Seeing that the enemy was less than a hundred meters away, Sheng Lingxin suddenly turned and smiled at Long Haochen. "Do you know why the demons have seventy-two Demon Gods but have never truly managed to destroy humanity? You should know that we humans have fewer than twenty Ninth Rank powerhouses."

Long Haochen shook his head blankly.

Sheng Lingxin said, "Because humanity still possesses the foundations left behind from our glorious age, as well as equipment the demons do not have. Stay where you are. They have clearly overlooked our presence, so I'll make them face us properly. Get ready to run. The moment I come back, take me and run to the left. Today, we'll see just how much time we can buy for the knight order."

"Wait. Take these. They can unleash your potential for a short time, but they'll leave you weakened afterward." As he spoke, Long Haochen handed Sheng Lingxin two pills from between his fingers: a Jade Body Protection Pill and a Spirit Burst Pill. As for Spirit Returning Pills, they were obviously useless to Sheng Lingxin, whose spiritual power base was close to thirty thousand.

Sheng Lingxin accepted the pills and tossed them directly into his mouth. He gave Long Haochen a somewhat surprised look. "I didn't expect you to be so wealthy. Prepare to sprint with everything you have. Use anything you've been saving for a critical moment."

As soon as he finished speaking, Sheng Lingxin lightly tapped the ground with the tip of his foot and drifted away.

This time, Long Haochen did not follow him. He had the courage to fight to the death, but he would never act recklessly. Even if there was only a sliver of hope, he would strive to seize it.

None of the enemies before him was weaker than he was, and there were also the immensely powerful Three Great Demon Gods. Carrying out Sheng Lingxin's tactics was clearly the most important thing. Vaguely, he had already understood what Sheng Lingxin intended to do.

The instant Sheng Lingxin shot forward, his body became blurred. Even with Long Haochen's senses, he could no longer catch his position.

Among the three hundred personal guards of the Three Great Demon Gods, the Emerald Twin Blade Demons were charging at the front. The foremost one was now less than fifty meters from Long Haochen.

Haoyue straightened its neck, its three large heads staring ahead. Since Long Haochen sat upon its back, he could not see its eyes.

Little Fire, Little Light, and Little Green—three heads and six eyes, yet all their gazes were identical. They held only endless coldness and arrogance, like a king ruling the world looking down upon his slaves. Even when their gazes shifted toward the three enormous Demon God Pillars in the distance, they remained the same.

Seated on Haoyue's back, Long Haochen swallowed a Jade Body Protection Pill, a Spirit Burst Pill, and a Spirit Returning Pill at the same time. In an instant, he felt his body rapidly grow feverish. Within the Saint Origin Spiritual Stove in his chest, his liquid Inner Spiritual Power boiled as it surged madly.

A layer of exhilarated red spread across Long Haochen's skin. Even his golden eyes seemed to contain two burning flames.

It was his first time taking a Spirit Burst Pill, and he had not expected its effect to be so fierce. The feverish sensation even affected his perception.

Bang! The foremost Emerald Twin Blade Demon suddenly sprang into the air and pounced directly at Long Haochen. Its enormous forelimbs rose, clearly intending to tear him apart.

"Kill!" Long Haochen shouted. At this moment, both his fighting spirit and killing intent were stronger than ever. With a forceful push of his legs, he launched himself from Haoyue's back and charged toward the Emerald Twin Blade Demon.

Haoyue was not the sort of magical beast that charged directly alongside an auxiliary knight. It was better at support and assisting attacks.

The instant Long Haochen leaped into the air, Little Light spat out a beam of golden radiance that attached itself to him. It was a mass of blazing flame—the very Sun Fire Long Haochen had used earlier.

However, unlike the Sun Fire Long Haochen had ignited himself, this mass of flame instantly flowed from his body onto his twin swords, enhancing his first attack.

The Holy Spirit Sword and Blue Rain, Hibiscus of Light, were like two suns suddenly lighting up the earth. Under the effect of the Spirit Burst Pill, Long Haochen's Inner Spiritual Power rose explosively.

Twin Sun Slash. Hard clash!

The Sun Fire released by Little Light was like the blazing radiance of Sun Slash. The two complemented each other, and together with Long Haochen in his explosive state, this strike was filled with an unstoppable dominance.

Boom—

With a crossing slash, Long Haochen's twin swords smashed viciously into the pair of bladed forelimbs of the Emerald Twin Blade Demon. A piercing shattering sound mixed with terrifying Light Attribute energy fluctuations erupted instantly.

The Emerald Twin Blade Demon's pair of forelimbs was blasted apart by Long Haochen in an instant, while Long Haochen himself landed on the ground under the force of the recoil.

It had to be said that these Demon God Guards were more ferocious than ordinary demons. Even with its most powerful weapons shattered, the Emerald Twin Blade Demon did not retreat. Instead, it crashed directly down at Long Haochen, attempting to crush him to death with its sturdy body.

A resounding dragon's roar rang out instantly. Long Haochen's twin swords entwined, and a faint layer of golden scales emerged around his body. Golden light soared upward. Amid a shrill scraping sound, the sturdy carapace on the Emerald Twin Blade Demon's chest shattered. The sharp blades of Blue Rain, Hibiscus of Light instantly ended its life.