The Blood Crystal Pillars

The newcomer emitted an unusual radiance, hovering midair as he looked down at Qin Huai. His intact wings, compared to Qin Huai’s frost-bitten, fragmented wings, created an image reminiscent of a nobleman standing beside a beggar.

“Little rat, tell me your name. I will grant you a quick death,” the demon called from above.

“My name is Qin Huai, the leader of the Qingzhou Alliance,” Qin Huai calmly answered, his gaze fixed on the demon.

“Qin Huai? Qingzhou Alliance? What is that?” The demon chuckled in disdain.

“Ah, I forgot. You may not recognize me by that name… I’m also known as Zhou Cunzhong. Does that ring a bell?”

“Zhou Cunzhong… the Demon of Qingzhou!” The demon’s pupils narrowed, but his expression quickly morphed into one of amusement. “So what if you are the Demon of Qingzhou? This is the blood sea, our Kun Peng clan’s territory. Even if you are the Demon of Qingzhou, you might not be my equal. With those broken wings of yours, do you think you can catch up to me?”

Snickering, the demon lunged at Qin Huai. His wings trembled, and with a bang, he disappeared from sight.

Qin Huai’s eyes followed the swift black shadow that reappeared in front of him. Such speed… Qin Huai’s own wings flapped, and an air kick exploded with white light.

Bang!

The demon, who seemed to be playing the role of the hunter, swayed in mid-air, narrowly dodging Qin Huai’s assault.

“Phew… That was close,” the demon said, his face reflecting residual fear. One of his wings had been grazed, causing feathers to scatter in the air. But his face quickly turned smug again.

Remarkably, as a fifth-level bone pattern realm entity, he had resisted Qin Huai’s attack without injury and even managed to taunt him. “I never expected that facing even the top prodigies of Qingzhou, I could rise above my level.” The demon’s smile remained, despite his close brush with death. If he had been even a step slower, Qin Huai’s attack would have struck through him.

However, he had survived — a feat that would have been unlikely on the ground.

“Let me guess, how long can your shaky wings hold out?” the demon began to jest audaciously.

As long as he didn’t initiate the attack, he wasn’t in danger. Judging by the situation, even if Qin Huai had another pair of wings, catching up with his great roc wings would be impossible.

“Tsk, tsk. Given the state of your wings, it’s hard to believe you managed to ascend this high. It must be your remarkable vitality. Truly impressive,” the demon teased.

“Silent, are we?” The demon’s gaze lingered on Qin Huai. “Isn’t it ridiculous for me to be talking to myself?”

“Then why don’t you attack?” Qin Huai queried.

“Do you take me for a fool? Although you can’t keep pace with me, if I give you a chance to get close, I’ll surely die. I won’t give you that chance. All I need to do is call…”

Boom!

Suddenly, Qin Huai materialized in front of him. As ice fragments dispersed midair, the battered flesh and feathers from his damaged wings cascaded down.

“What…” The demon’s eyes widened in surprise. He hadn’t anticipated Qin Huai’s sudden burst of speed.

Bang!

A punch landed squarely between the demon’s eyes, obliterating his head instantly. A resounding clang echoed as Qin Huai’s face momentarily reddened. “Ding! You have collected a [Kun Peng Seed (Fragment) x1], [Kun Peng Seed (904/2,000)]!”

“Ding! You’ve collected…”

“There’s no need for a trial. Your speed is apparently at this level,” Qin Huai said calmly.

He had managed to match this demon’s speed and defeat him, but at a substantial cost — the lifespan of his wings. Each time he accelerated to such speeds, his wings deteriorated a bit further.

While the altitude of seventy thousand feet was like a casual stroll in the garden for the Kun Peng’s wings, for Qin Huai’s, it was a dangerous journey through blade-edged mountains and fiery seas. This was only possible due to the support of his robust blood essence.

“The gap between bloodlines is as wide as a chasm,” Qin Huai muttered.

He continued his journey towards the center. As time passed, he could increasingly spot demons cavorting above the blood sea, in various postures — standing, lying, or even hanging upside down.

Qin Huai took a deep breath, drawing in the frigid air like a blacksmith’s bellows. His breathing gradually slowed as he invoked the wind breath technique, trying his best to explore the center of the fog and the sea of clouds.

Occasionally, he could spot blood crystal pillars hovering over the sea of blood. These silent monoliths neither sank nor emitted sound. They seemed devoid of life, as if frozen into eternal silence.

Qin Huai ran his hand over one of these pillars, carefully probing for some hidden depth. But ultimately, he found nothing.

“What are these blood crystal pillars?” Qin Huai muttered softly. action

“These things must be some form of life essence,” a sudden voice whispered in his ear.

Qin Huai’s hair stood on end as he reflexively swiped his palm to the side.

“Wait!”

Bang!

A broad palm suddenly grabbed Qin Huai’s wrist. The tremendous force was startling, successfully suppressing his attack.