“If I am not mistaken, Fairy Qinghe’s magic artifact has a time limit each time it is used, doesn’t it?”
In the void, the Fake Buddha sneered repeatedly.
With the addition of those shadowy evil spirits to the battlefield, the Fake Buddha felt significantly less pressured.
Although the strength of these shadowy evil spirits was not formidable and could not dictate the outcome of the battle,
their vast numbers and peculiar abilities created a chaotic situation. Both Princess Pingyao and the Headless Holy Monk found themselves bogged down and unable to inflict significant damage on the Fake Buddha in the void.
Observing the scene, Li Muyang narrowed his eyes.
“So… that’s how it is.”
The evil creatures emerging from the palace were all similar to those parasitic entities found inside General Zhong back in the day.
These evil creatures originated from living beings in the mortal world, contaminated by the Ancient Resentment Well, and incubated within their bodies. They were later brought back to the well by their deranged hosts.
Just like the case of General Zhong.
Even General Zhong alone incubated one or two hundred of these evil spirits within his body.
Throughout the long years that passed, countless people across Tianyuan Continent had been polluted by the Ancient Resentment Well, eventually succumbing to madness. The number of evil spirits spawned was staggeringly vast.
The Sword Cultivators of the Mysterious Sword Sect were dedicated to hunting down these peculiar creatures.
Unlike the Evil God, whose strength was suppressed by the seals of the Ancient Resentment Well, these evil spirits originating from mortal beings were weaker, yet far more troublesome due to their ability to roam freely in the mortal world, compounded by their sheer abundance.
In her letter to Li Muyang, Liu Li Fairy also mentioned these monstrous evil spirits. The Mysterious Sword Sect had driven away most of them and pursued them into the Ancient Resentment Well, hoping to eradicate this unusual threat entirely.
The Sword Cultivators followed the trail to this city under the protection of the Buddha.
The Fake Grand Enlightenment Buddha’s disguise was so flawless that even Chu Qingxue and the others failed to realize it was actually a monstrous Fake Buddha, mistakenly believing the evil spirits’ arrival here was coincidental.
Little did they know, this city served as the final lair of the evil spirits.
Now watching the Fake Buddha’s derisive laughter in the void, Li Muyang coldly remarked, “The most powerful among these evil spirits only reach the Purple Mansion Realm. No matter their numbers, they’re just ants.”
“The question is, will the ants eventually bite the elephant to death, or will the elephant crush the ant swarm first? That remains to be seen!”
Li Muyang manipulated Princess Pingyao, mowing down scores of evil spirits within the massive black swarm.
With Princess Pingyao’s combat prowess a mere step away from that of a True Immortal, killing these evil spirits was no harder than squashing bugs.
Together with the Headless Holy Monk, Li Muyang slaughtered freely within the black sea of evil spirits, occasionally managing to inflict some damage on the Fake Buddha floating in the void.
It was a brutal war of attrition.
If Li Muyang and the Headless Holy Monk could repel the evil spirits’ onslaught, they might join forces with the phantom created by the Xuanji Talisman to critically injure the Fake Buddha.
But if the evil spirits endured until the Xuanji Talisman’s phantom faded, the Fake Buddha would turn his free hands to slay Li Muyang…
…
“Brother, we’ve returned to land.”
Yu Chan’s voice rang beside him. Immersed in the game, Li Muyang furrowed his brow and chose to log out, opening his eyes.
In the game, the number of evil spirits was far beyond what he’d anticipated.
Together with Miao Fengjun, he had slaughtered countless enemies in the skies, yet the palace continued to spew forth hordes of evil spirits.
For each evil spirit he crushed, ten more surged from the palace.
The vile creatures converged into a black torrent above the skies. Eventually, Li Muyang and Miao Fengjun found themselves outpaced by the evil spirits’ endless emergence.
Not only were they unable to deal any damage to the Fake Buddha in the void, but they also became ensnared in the endless tide of abominations, struggling to break free.
After more than a hundred tries, each attempt failed to break through the ocean of evil spirits, leaving Li Muyang to be effortlessly killed by the freed-up Fake Buddha.
These hundreds of bitter defeats left Li Muyang numb to loading save files.
“This final boss is truly troublesome…”
Li Muyang felt frustrated.
He even regretted dismissing the Sword Cultivators of the Mysterious Sword Sect before the battle began.
If the Sword Cultivators had stayed, Li Muyang would have had additional reinforcements.
But such thoughts were quickly abandoned by Li Muyang.
The Sword Cultivators of the Mysterious Sword Sect weren’t numerous, and the strongest among them had only reached the Heavenly Eternal Realm. They couldn’t alter the course of the conflict.
The Fake Grand Enlightenment Buddha hadn’t destroyed the Sword Cultivators likely due to his fear of the True Man of Green Leaves.
After all, it was the True Man of Green Leaves who had driven the Fake Buddha into the Ancient Resentment Well, leaving him with psychological scars.
A thousand years ago, he had been hunted to desperation by the True Man of Green Leaves, and even now, a millennium later, he might not dare provoke the Mysterious Sword Sect.
Thus, the Fake Buddha treated the Sword Cultivators courteously, while hiding the evil spirits, attempting to send these troublesome cultivators away.
Yet his caution didn’t mean he lacked the capability to eliminate the Sword Cultivators.
From Li Muyang’s omniscient perspective, if the Fake Buddha truly intended to act, he could annihilate Chu Qingxue and her group with ease.
“Perhaps this isn’t the moment for the final battle against the Fake Buddha yet?”
Li Muyang pondered, arriving at this conclusion.
After more than a hundred failed attempts, victory seemed out of reach. Every effort ended in ruin, with no light of hope in sight.
Even the toughest previous game levels hadn’t been this grueling.
Moreover, the main quest only specified defeating the Fake Buddha without setting a time limit.
Perhaps Li Muyang should take Little Wild Grass’s magic artifact and escape, leveling up and building strength outside first before returning to confront the final boss?
Shifting his line of thought, Li Muyang discovered a new path forward.
However, now wasn’t the time to test this new plan, as he and Yu Chan had already passed through the mist and returned to land.
Responding to Yu Chan’s call, Li Muyang opened his eyes to see the sandy beaches by Misty Sea and the expansive land ahead.
Regaining his sense of direction upon returning to land, he stated, “We must head to Jiuyuan City immediately to stop Chou Yuyan.”
With Mo Immortal’s remains and the Red Evil Bell in hand, stopping Chou Yuyan wouldn’t be too challenging.
But as Li Muyang finished speaking, two streaks of Tunneling Light suddenly flew from the distant clouds.
Unexpectedly, the lost Wild Boar Demon Third Lady and Hehuan Sect’s Young Sect Master Liu Lian’er emerged, riding Tunneling Light towards him.
It appeared they had been waiting for him here all along, flying directly in front of Li Muyang.
Seeing the two women, Li Muyang was somewhat taken aback.
“Where did you two suddenly pop out of?”
The Third Lady glared at Li Muyang and said, “How dare you ask! Disappearing all of a sudden, then running off to Misty Sea… You’ve got guts! I thought you weren’t coming back!”
Li Muyang turned his gaze to Liu Lian’er, only to see her shake her head innocently, indicating she knew nothing.
Slightly narrowing his eyes, Li Muyang redirected his attention to the Third Lady: “It seems you’ve been hiding your true abilities, capable of pinpointing my approximate location…”
The Third Lady had demonstrated such power before, but back then, she had a group of demon kindred by her side.
Now, even alone, she retained the same abilities?
Li Muyang said, “Still, your arrival is perfect. There’s something I need you to do.”
Looking at the Wild Boar Demon before him, Li Muyang instructed, “Yan Xiaoru is on the verge of death. Contact your master immediately and request Senior Dantai’s assistance!”