C1472 Who will Eat Who?

Yu Yiyi and the ice blade were engulfed by a multitude of tentacles, vanishing from sight. Her mystical link with the Bane within the Crucible of Evil was obscured, leaving her unable to mentally summon the Bane for battle while ensnared by the tentacles.

Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh!

From the Crucible of Evil, hovering above the Dragon Slaying Stage, a stream of delicate, miniature colorful dragons emerged. The dragons willingly integrated with the stage below, replenishing the long-depleted energy of the Chronowyrm. The cauldron was now devoid of any water from the Seven-Colored Lake.

Bane demons waited aimlessly for commands within the different layers of the little world inside the cauldron. Neither Yu Yuan, the master, nor Yu Yiyi, the cauldron spirit, could communicate with the Crucible of Evil or mobilize the Bane.

On the tenth level, the Shadowfox, the sole entity with spiritual wisdom, had been split in two. At this moment, the Shadowfox was desperately drawing power from the Bane below to mend its divided demonform, unable to assist anyone else.

"He's still too young, unaware of his own limits," Yuan Qingxi murmured, keeping an eye on White Bone's movements. The Voodoo Shades behind him, ready to lunge at Yu Yuan with menacing gestures, were restrained by his command.

Yu Yuan's chest, neck, waist, and other critical areas were impaled by the monstrous tentacles. As the tentacles, sharp as spears, penetrated his body, most of his form submerged in the Seven-Colored Lake's Evil Devils, a ghastly sound of teeth gnawing on bone and flesh emanated from within.

Recognizing the sound, Yuan Qingxi realized the demon had exerted its full power and halted the Voodoo Shades from any superfluous actions, lest the demon mistake his intent as directing the Voodoo Shades to compete for the kill.

"Incredible, the sheer magnitude of vital energy is beyond belief! Such exquisite purity is unprecedented," exclaimed Huangyin, the Terra Fiend progenitor. His contemplative stance shifted as he involuntarily looked up, his empty eye sockets ablaze with a purple dark fire that sent shivers down the spine.

His cry of astonishment emanated from within the demonform he had assimilated, as though it were an echo of another devil soul within him.

His incantations were relentless, beckoning Sky Fiends, specters, and Otherkin without pause.

"Mr. Yuan, you might not be able to fathom the extent of this young one's vital energy."

Huangyin furrowed his brow, struggling momentarily to find the precise adjective, "He's terrifying, but in a different way! Not like the spiritual level of Boulderdawn, but... with a physical strength akin to a Dark Deity!"

When the demon's tentacle penetrated Yu Yuan's flesh, Huangyin sensed an infinite surge of blood energy, akin to the depths of a vast ocean.

Such powerful and overwhelming vitality was something Huangyin had never encountered in his old foes from Boulderdawn.

In this new era, only beings like the Untamed, the Moonfang Tiger, and the Kylin, or the peak Otherkin warriors from the Star River beyond our world, could boast such potent vital energy.

And yet, Huangyin felt that the vital energy within Yu Yuan might even surpass that of a Dark Deity!

Woo! Woo! Woo!

The grotesque, bloated demon began to frantically sway its myriad tentacles in the Seven-Colored Lake.

The demon heads and eye-like anomalies attached to the tentacles gazed eagerly at Huangyin, as if pleading for something.

It was impatient to begin!

With a pleased smile, Huangyin nodded and said, "Go ahead and feast."

A chorus of excited howls rose from the demon's tentacles as those that had pierced Yu Yuan's body shimmered with a kaleidoscope of colors.

In reality, streams of arc light raced within the tentacles, transferring from the demon's body into Yu Yuan.

Puff! Puff! Puff!

The tentacles, rooted in Yu Yuan's critical spots, caused excess psionic power to spray out like a burst of miniature fireworks.

Yu Yuan's lean and muscular body suddenly seemed to wither slightly.

Gurgle!

His blood and flesh appeared to be ensnared by the crimson rainbow light, tugging and pulling towards the demon's body.

The corpulent demon, savoring the taste of such exquisite vitality, trembled in the Seven-Colored Lake and began to inch closer.

It was moving towards Yu Yuan on its own volition!

"What will become of it? I don't know why, but I have this feeling..."

Yuan Qingxi's temples throbbed as he witnessed the demon's frenzied demeanor, something he had never encountered before. In contrast, Yu Yuan appeared bewildered, his three souls disturbed and his memory in disarray. Unaware, his vital energy was rapidly drained by the bloated demon's razor-like tentacles. Yet, Yu Yuan's expression remained eerily calm, as if he were numb to pain.

Despite the chaos of his three souls and the muddle of his memories, one would expect at least an instinctive response to such agony. Yuan Qingxi vividly recalled how others, consumed by this demon, endured tortures akin to the depths of hell, unable to live or die. Never had he seen any creature, with flesh and blood being extracted by the demon's tentacles, maintain a composure like Yu Yuan's—even with his consciousness shattered by the Evil Curse.

"I have no idea what it will become. Mr. Yuan, this young man's flesh and blood contain the force of life itself, not to mention the pure Shadow Moon Essence! You probably couldn't have imagined he'd be so extraordinary and powerful," Huangyin said, his excitement matching that of the demon.

"Perhaps it will evolve into something beyond our wildest dreams! I have a feeling that after its transformation, it will possess the strength to defy the highest powers!" Huangyin, the forefather of the Terra Fiends, danced and cackled with delight. "After being oppressed for tens of thousands of years, it seems we've finally received a boon from the heavens—a lavish feast for it to relish!"

A primal roar erupted, as if a million years of suppression had found a moment of release.

*Roar! Howl!*

Over fifty thousand devils, ghosts, and otherworldly beings echoed his call, warping the sky and shaking the earth around the Seven-Colored Lake.

"No! Something's not right; I have a bad feeling about this!" Yuan Qingxi shrieked.

But his cries were lost amidst the cacophony of the devils, ghosts, and tainted spirits. Huangyin, caught up in his own frenzied excitement, did not hear him. Or perhaps, he was so engrossed in his own world that he no longer paid any heed to Yuan Qingxi.

With a great splash, the massive demon leaped from the Seven-Colored Lake, its grotesque form staggering awkwardly as it emerged.

"Huangyin! Be careful!"

Yuan Qingxi's voice pierced the air with another shrill scream, accompanied by a soul-piercing cry that targeted Huangyin's devil soul.

He sensed that the bulky demon wasn't leaping out of the Seven-Colored Lake by its own volition.

Rather, it seemed as though it was being yanked out against its will, pulled forcibly into flight.

Who could be pulling it?

With whom was it connected?

It had to be either Yu Yiyi, ensnared by its tentacles, or Yu Yuan, pierced by them!

Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh!

Visible to the naked eye, the seven-colored arc light streaked through its massive form like lightning, seemingly stripping away its vital energy and causing its enormous body to visibly shrink.

Then, the thickened arc light swiftly vanished into Yu Yuan's body through the tentacles.

Yu Yuan's previously withered form suddenly swelled, then just as quickly reverted to its original state.

With this subtle transformation, Yu Yuan's body appeared to have assimilated all the arc light drawn from the demon, and he seemed eager for more.

"He's fighting back on instinct! Huangyin, his instinctive response to the attack is— it's just incredible!"

Yuan Qingxi babbled incoherently, his voice filled with astonishment.

He was convinced that Yu Yuan's three souls were still constrained by his Evil Curse, unable to clear their confusion or recalibrate.

This meant that Yu Yuan's counterattack against the demon was purely instinctual!

Huangyin's face turned grave. "Could it be?"

The once bloated demon, having departed the Seven-Colored Lake, now appeared less swollen as it absorbed copious amounts of arc light into Yu Yuan's body.

It seemed to have lost much of its girth.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

The tentacles that had once been like spears, piercing Yu Yuan's critical points, now became slick and pliable, shaking wildly with great undulations.

It looked as though the demon was desperately trying to retract its tentacles.

Yet, it was unable to do so.

Instead, its body continued to draw perilously close to Yu Yuan, its multitude of devil souls and consciousness now quivering in terror, pleading for Huangyin's assistance.

To the demon, Yu Yuan's body was akin to an abyss, and within that abyss lurked countless malevolent beings.

These beings clutched its tentacles firmly, pulling with ferocious strength.

They were dragging it, all of it, into Yu Yuan's body.

It was terrified.

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