When Tian Flying Swallow entered the Asura Prison, the ground beneath her feet was warm and carried a rusty smell. She looked up and was nearly stunned by the sight before her—countless armored ghost soldiers were fighting each other. Some rode skeletal horses and wielded giant axes, while others floated in the air casting spells. Every collision splattered black blood, and the corpses on the ground piled up like small mountains, yet new ghost soldiers continued to crawl out of the ground. These Oni Clan seemed to be born for war, and after dying in battle, they could regenerate into new Oni Clan after a period of time.
"Is this the Asura Hell on the way to battle or not? It truly lives up to its name." She took out the Nine Dragons Jade Seal from her waist. The Nine Dragons Jade Seal is now the most precious treasure of the Yan Nation, capable of severing ghostly energy. As the Empress of the Yan Nation, she has witnessed many wars, but she has never seen such a brutal slaughter, with an unyielding malevolent aura floating in the air.
She didn't rush into the battle, but instead found a high vantage point to observe. Tsubasa had said that the Soul Crystal of the Asura Prison were mostly found in the bodies of high-ranking ghost generals who had died in battle, especially those ghost commanders who wore crowns, who might have " High-Grade Asura Soul Crystal " hidden inside their bodies, which could greatly enhance their combat power.
Sure enough, in the center of the battlefield, two crowned ghost generals were locked in fierce combat. One wielded a giant hammer, each strike capable of shattering swathes of ghost soldiers; the other brandished a long saber, the flashes of which reduced ghost soldiers to ashes. Tian Flying Swallow gripped the Nine Dragons Jade Seal tightly, awaiting the perfect moment—she would wait until both were severely weakened before reaping the benefits.
Half an hour later, the opportunity finally arrived. The ghost general wielding the hammer was struck in the chest by the long sword, gushing out black blood; the ghost general wielding the sword also had an arm broken by the giant hammer, and his movements were noticeably slower. Tian Flying Swallow leaped down, and the Nine Dragons Jade Seal, carrying the " Nine Dragons Heaven-Burning Art " passed down from the Yan Nation, sent two divine dragons to pierce the throats of the two ghost generals at the same time.
"Humans?!" The two ghost generals roared simultaneously, but they were powerless to resist. The moment the dragon of destiny pierced their throats, the two turned into black ash, leaving behind two fist-sized red Soul Crystal, which were the Soul Crystal that Tian Flying Swallow was looking for.
She had just picked up the Soul Crystal when the surrounding ghost soldiers suddenly stopped fighting, and countless empty eyes stared at her. Tian Flying Swallow's expression changed slightly—she had killed their leader, and these ghost soldiers were likely to attack her fiercely.
"Perfect timing." She gripped the Nine Dragons Jade Seal tightly, unleashing the Nine Dragons Nine Dragons Heaven-Burning Art at full power, causing the Nine Dragons Jade Seal to burst into flames. "Perfect timing to show you just how powerful the Empress of Yan Nation truly is!"
The black blood on the ground still emitted a chilling aura, and the two red Soul Crystal she had just picked up burned her palms. Tian Flying Swallow took a half-step back, clutching the crystal cores, and looked up at the ghost soldiers surrounding her—their armor gleamed in the setting sun, numbering at least a thousand. Their swords and axes were still dripping with the blood of their own kind, yet they no longer slashed at each other. Instead, they stared at her with empty eye sockets, letting out low growls, as if brewing an even fiercer counterattack.
"Killed the leader and now you're banding together? You're more disciplined than those mortal soldiers." She weighed the Nine Dragons Jade Seal in her hand. The nine dragons carved on the seal glowed faintly red under the influence of her National Fortune. But she thought to herself: Besides the ferocity in these ghost soldiers' eyes, why is there also a hint of... greed?
Just as he was pondering this, a sudden "boom" came from behind him—not the crisp sound of clashing swords and axes, but the earth shaking. Tian Flying Swallow turned around sharply and saw that the mountain of corpses at the edge of the battlefield had suddenly collapsed. Countless figures wearing dark gold armor crawled out of the pile of corpses, half a head taller than the two ghost generals from before. Their armor was engraved with skull patterns, and their weapons gleamed with a blackish-purple light. With each step they took, the black blood beneath their feet receded—it was the Asura Ghost Generals again!
She counted; there were more than twenty who had just crawled out. Then, another group surged out from the black mist in the distance, numbering over a hundred. Behind the Ghost Commander, ten Kageko taller than mountains of corpses slowly rose to their feet: some had burning skulls as their heads, others were covered in barbed armor, and the one in the very center was helmetless, revealing a scarred face. He held a giant sword wider than a city gate, the bits of flesh clinging to the blade dried into scabs.
"The Ten Great Asura Demon Kings..." Tian Flying Swallow gripped the Nine Dragons Jade Seal tightly, her knuckles turning white. She had seen records in the Ten Family's archives that the Demon Kings of the Asura Prison were forged through slaughter, each having slain millions of souls. Their malevolent aura could solidify into a true form, dissipating ordinary Ninjutsu upon contact—even more deadly, she saw clearly the eyes of the scarred Demon King; they weren't empty, but gleaming with greed, staring intently at her chest.
"This is the National Fortune of a human nation. Just getting close to it seems to subtly increase one's cultivation level..." The scarred-faced ghost king spoke, his voice like ten dull knives being sharpened. "This human girl carries the National Fortune of a living world, and it's so strong... If we devour her, we can break through our limits and become Ghost Emperor!"
"Kill! Seize the National Fortune!" The other nine ghost kings roared excitedly, their voices colliding and shaking the air. Hundreds of Asura ghost generals rushed forward first, some throwing out chains, some spewing black fire, and one ghost general raised his hand to summon a forest of bones, sharp spikes emerging from the ground, trying to pin Tian Flying Swallow to the spot.
Tian Flying Swallow's feet barely touched the ground before she floated back several feet. Bone forest emerged, brushing against her armor, its sharp spikes dripping poison and burning small craters into the ground. She raised the Nine Dragons Jade Seal above her head and said in a deep voice, " Nine Dragons Heaven-Burning Art, fully activated!"
As soon as she finished speaking, the dragon patterns on the jade seal suddenly came to life! The first crimson dragon emerged from the jade seal, spewing forth a ball of raging fire that burned the three ghost generals at the forefront, causing them to howl in agony, and instantly charring the skull patterns on their armor. The second azure dragon followed, its tail whipping across the bone forest, shattering it into dust with a "crack." Immediately afterward, nine dragons of different colors—yellow, white, black, purple...—rushed out one after another, circling above her head, the golden light on their scales causing the black mist to retreat three feet.
"What the hell is this?" the burning skull-headed demon king roared, spewing out a pillar of black fire that lunged at the Crimson Dragon. The Crimson Dragon didn't dodge, charging head-on into the fire. The two balls of fire collided and exploded with a deafening boom. The black fire pillar was actually burned and recoiled. Taking advantage of the moment, the Crimson Dragon bit down on the skull, "Crack!" shattering half a piece of bone. The demon king staggered backward in pain, the flames in its eye sockets flickering.
Taking advantage of the opportunity, Tian Flying Swallow controlled the nine divine dragons to charge into the group of ghost generals. The yellow dragon smashed the chains with its claws, the white dragon's breath froze the black fire, and the purple dragon was the most ruthless, directly drilling into the gap in a ghost general's armor and exploding from the inside out—the ghost general let out a "roar," his armor shattered into pieces, his body turned into a cloud of black mist, and a dark red Soul Crystal fell out from the spot, smaller than the one he had just picked up, but heavier.
"Could I still find a bargain?" Tian Flying Swallow's eyes lit up. She reached into her spatial ring with her left hand and pulled out an empty jade bottle—the one that had just contained the Soul Crystal. She casually wrapped the bottle in her National Fortune fortune and tossed it over, where the Soul Crystal was caught. In that moment of distraction, the scarred-faced ghost king suddenly rushed over, his giant sword whistling as it slashed down. The malevolent energy within the blade condensed into countless tiny knives, stabbing at her.