Wait a minute, where is my master?

As the black-green energy spread, the once dense sounds of self-destruction began to thin out sporadically.

And those Purple Spirit Elephant Clan demon cultivators, having received their orders, decisively shouted and bolted away in escape.

With the passage of time, the sounds gradually dwindled.

It was probably a few dozen breaths' worth of effort.

What was once an incredibly noisy environment around the Origin of the Demon Realm turned into a silent expanse.

If someone were to look down from high in the sky at this moment,

they would see a mass of black-green energy churning like monstrous waves over the entire territory of the Purple Spirit Elephant Clan, as if digesting something.

"Heh, I told you all it was all in vain."

The Origin of the Demon Realm mocked disdainfully, glancing around as he spoke to himself.

He examined those mounds of varying sizes of dust on the ground, his eyes revealing a trace of intoxication.

Under such circumstances, where scores of living creatures were easily eradicated, it was as if the Origin of the Demon Realm had regained some sense of the past—when he wielded the power to dictate life and death, and with a mere flick of his fingers, countless beings were reduced to ash. Similarly, this feeling momentarily made him forget the embarrassing situation that had transpired when he faced the barrier of golden spiritual power.

However, just as the Origin of the Demon Realm raised his arm, preparing to pose in a gesture of embracing freedom and to withdraw the surrounding black-green mist,

it just so happened that he noticed only seven and a half fingers left on his hand.

Thus...

The briefly forgotten matter was abruptly brought to mind.

He silently lowered his raised arms and emotionlessly controlled the black-green energy around him, causing it to swiftly coil back toward his body.

A moment later,

All the black-green energy retracted back into the Origin of the Demon Realm.

Feeling the power within him that had increased greatly, and looking around at the silent surroundings, he said softly,

"Although there weren't many in this clan with high cultivation, fortunately, there were quite a number of them, and their physical vitality was passable. I reckon it will be enough to break through that spiritual power barrier."

Having said this, the Origin of the Demon Realm took a step, intending to leave the place.

However, just as he turned and lifted a foot, he suddenly heard a slight disturbance coming from a ravine behind him.

The Origin of the Demon Realm slowly set his lifted foot back down, his indifferent face showing a hint of surprise and amusement.

Although he did not turn around at this moment, his Spiritual Sense clearly detected what was occurring.

The commotion in the ravine behind him was none other than the noise made by Little Purple Spirit Elephant, the very one who had charged towards him when he had first appeared and then fallen.

"Interesting, is it the influence of the remnants of the Divine Soul Fragment within this body that has affected me? I didn't even realize it myself—when I released the Annihilation Mist, I subconsciously avoided that area."

As the Origin of the Demon Realm spoke, his figure vanished from the spot, and in the next moment, he appeared beside the ravine.

He leaned over to stare at the Little Purple Spirit Elephant, which was struggling on the ground, and his tone was inexplicably contemplative.

"You must be a blood relative of this body of mine, otherwise, even after his soul has dissipated, how could there still be such a strong obsession to keep you alive.

"However, little one, it seems you have failed to... live up to his obsession."

As the Origin of the Demon Realm said this, he intended to habitually raise his hand and point to himself.

But for some reason, a force compelled him to stop this gesture abruptly mid-motion.

"Aaah!"

The Little Purple Spirit Elephant in the ravine let out a helpless wail, its little eyes filled with confusion and fear.

"Heh, I am not your father, but I could send you off to meet him... oh, that's not right. His soul has already scattered."

The Origin of the Demon Realm muttered to himself somewhat neurotically.

Opening his mouth, he spat out a stream of black-green mist that shot like an arrow towards the Little Purple Spirit Elephant in the ravine.

"Buzz!"

However, instead of obliterating the target into a pile of dust as he had imagined, the black-green mist was halted mid-air by an invisible force.

"You scoundrel, what skill is there in bullying a small animal!

"Just wait till I get over there!"

Suddenly, a voice transmitted from the very depths of the Demon Realm's Origin filled his mind, and he abruptly lifted his head to look around while Sensory Perception cautiously spread out in every direction.

However, after a thorough search, within a thousand miles, the Demon Realm's Origin did not see even a shadow.

"Who's playing tricks here? Show yourself!"

He spoke indifferently towards what was in front of him and, quite unexpectedly, released another surge of dark green energy toward the Little Purple Spirit Elephant in the gorge.

"Buzz!"

But this attack, just like the previous ones, was ineffective, dissolved by some unknown force.

It was as if there was an invisible barrier of energy around the surface of the gorge.

"You, at least an old-timer, should know better. To strike a little elephant that can't even shape-shift, and to play the stealth attack game.

"Pah! Some Demon Lord you are. Such a waste of all the effort those elders and Hall Masters in your sect took to rescue you."

As these words were spoken,

the expression of indifference on the face of the Demon Realm's Origin shifted instantaneously, and the sudden surge of dark green energy indicating his inner turmoil at that moment.

"What do you mean by these words?"

"Hahahaha, the Demon Lord, once so commanding across the Nine Provinces, has now fallen to a state where he can't even admit his own identity when it's revealed?

"Even if you are proceeding with caution, this action seems a bit too disgraceful."

The voice transmitted once more into the Demon Realm Origin's mind.

Whether it was an illusion or not, he always felt that the laugh in the voice this time seemed somewhat forced.

...

...

Meanwhile, on the road to the Purple Spirit Elephant Clan at the West Pole Peak,

inside the golden sphere of spiritual power,

Jin Xu, who had just finished transmitting those taunting words, humbly turned his head to look at the Bronze Gate beside him.

"Elder Qin, are you sure this will truly infuriate him and cause him to lose his composure?"

"Temple Master, please rest assured. Having followed him for so long, I understand the Demon Lord's temperament the best. His power... err, appearance... err."

Elder Qin originally wanted to say that the Demon Lord was top-notch in both appearance and strength, but after seeing the maskless young Taoist Jin Xu next to him, he had to hold back those words.

"Ahem, in any case, his biggest flaw is his excessive pride and vanity.

"Otherwise, a thousand years ago, he wouldn't have arrogantly faced the Four Symbols Formation laid by the ancestral masters of all the Immortal Sects in the Nine Provinces by himself."

The young Taoist nodded thoughtfully upon hearing this.

He then turned his attention back to the land of the Purple Spirit Elephant Clan.

————————

And why has the Bronze Gate—Elder Qin—suddenly appeared here?

How did Jin Xu manage to rescue the Purple Spirit Elephant at the crucial moment?

Let's rewind time to a quarter of an hour earlier.

At that time, the young Taoist was executing an Escape Technique, speeding toward the burial grounds of the Purple Spirit Elephant Clan.

At the same time, his Spiritual Sense also spread out rapidly in that direction for exploration.

And just as his Sensory Perception was about to reach near the burial grounds of the Purple Spirit Elephant Clan,

the young Taoist suddenly noticed a movement inside his storage bracelet.

He directed a sliver of his consciousness to look and discovered the Bronze Gate, previously in a strange posture and having fallen into a deep sleep alongside the Big Willow Tree, had woken up.