Vertical and Horizontal Alliances, Meeting Beneath the Tribulation (Part 1)

Old Crow saw it clearly. These wisps of smoke were precisely the remnants of Guiyan's body, which had originally been heading toward destruction. He had not noticed before, but now it was clear that Guiyan's form no longer resembled flesh and blood in the slightest. It was composed of a chaotic blend of primordial energy with complex properties. Part of it bore the characteristics of this world's heaven-and-earth energy, while the rest had been so affected by one another that their origins were no longer distinguishable. Back in the day, Old Crow had dealt with Sand Demon Lord as well. That one had pushed the Netherworld Nine Hidden Secret Art to an unprecedented peak, and his Nine Hidden Demonic Body had reached the realm of neither death nor decay. Yet even he had not, like Guiyan, completely shed the nature of flesh, blood, and soul to become such a muddled mass of primordial energy. Looking closer, it actually resembled the dense barrier before him that blocked his perception. Hmm, this vague impression... where had he seen it before? If it were flesh and blood, if it possessed the substance of a soul, then no matter how it had mutated, after taking a blow from the Taiyuan Hidden Star Heavenly Demon Wuliang Method, all life should have been extinguished. Yet after these several dozen streams of smoke merged together, they visibly rebuilt body and soul. Its features went from blurred to distinct, until it finally became a lifelike Guiyan once more. The newly formed Guiyan took another step and landed atop the Black Flood Dragon, which lay prostrate and unable to rise. One foot pressed on the dragon's head. Without any visible exertion, the Black Flood Dragon, whose life or death had been uncertain moments ago, let out a low groan.