Chapter 451: The Demon General (IV)

“Get ready! We can’t let them escape!” the Wolf King said in a deep voice to Merk and the others beside him.
The strength displayed by the Demon General made them reassess the situation. They had originally thought Rod could handle him, but now it was uncertain—Rod might even be in danger. Thus, the Wolf King was already prepared to fight at any moment, ready to step in if Rod was in peril.
The two weapons clashed again, and instantly, the entire world seemed to dim, giving off an illusion of unreality. One side of the sky took on a gorgeous purple-gold hue, while the other side was covered in a eerie darkness, so black it seemed void-like.
“Boom… boom…” A thunderous roar, like a massive explosion, filled the air.
The entire Water Screen City seemed to tremble under this roar, shaking as if struck by an explosion.
At that moment, those who were sleeping were awakened, and those watching from the shadows were stunned.
Could this really be done by human power? It felt incredible, like a dream!
At the center of the explosion, a huge black hole gradually formed, like an open maw emitting a powerful suction force. Yet, in just an instant, it began to heal.
The fierce battle continued, leaving the entire street in ruins due to the two combatants’ clashes. Houses and shops were reduced to piles of debris.
Dust filled the air, and the cold wind howled, creating an extremely icy atmosphere.
“You’re strong!” Rod finally admitted, still feeling a dull numbness in his arm and pain at his knuckles, with traces of blood flowing. The intense collision had torn his knuckles, and the lingering pain from the force was unbearable.
“Stop talking nonsense and keep fighting!” The Demon General roared, showing his boldness.
The battle grew more intense. In the blink of an eye, over a hundred exchanges had taken place, yet neither side had an advantage. The fierce fighting kept everyone watching from afar on edge, unable to breathe easily.
Two figures flashed back and forth in the air, visible only as two lights—one purple-gold and one black. It was only by their colors that one could tell who they were. Often, the two colors intertwined tightly, making it difficult to distinguish them.

In the distance, the Wolf King and the others grew more anxious, but they didn’t know what to do. They could no longer intervene in this battle—interfering recklessly would benefit no one and might even harm Rod. So all they could do was wait anxiously.

It was unclear how many times they had separated. Watching the demonic general on the other side fight with growing courage, Rod inwardly groaned. Was this the strength expected of a mid-stage warrior in the Yang Xuan realm? That abnormally high strength was hardly inferior to his own. After all, even ordinary late-stage Yang Xuan realm warriors were not his match, yet now he had encountered someone even more extraordinary. Rod could only sigh that there were always those better than him.

His combat qi had been depleted to a certain extent, leaving him feeling exhausted. A surge of heat was building within his dantian, surprising Rod, who then remembered that he had stored his divine essence inside it.

Seeming to sense the powerful demonic aura, it grew somewhat violent at that moment.

The divine essence—right, how could he forget it could be used? Rod smiled bitterly. It should help him a lot in battle. He had almost forgotten that it was also a magical artifact. Moreover, under Andrews’ guidance in the Netherworld, he had managed to control it to some extent.

With this thought, Rod’s confidence soared. With a loud shout, he summoned the divine essence from his dantian.

Instantly, golden light enveloped his body, and the wounds on his body began to heal rapidly with its help. His combat qi armor, which had once appeared dim, quickly regained its luster under the golden light, looking vibrant once again.

Looking at the divine essence, Rod felt somewhat emotional. In truth, it was just a square-shaped magical artifact, like a token. Holding it in his hand, he immediately felt a sacred aura spreading throughout his body. It was very similar to the aura emanating from the Xuanyuan Sacred Sword—both were auras of righteousness.

At this moment, Rod held the Xuanyuan Sacred Sword in his right hand and the golden divine essence in his left, exuding an even greater sense of sacred might.

“Divine Essence!” Upon seeing Rod summon the divine essence, the demonic general’s expression changed for the first time, showing signs of panic and concern. He watched Rod warily, seemingly worried about something.

The divine essence seemed almost alive. Sensing the demonic general’s aura, it emitted a buzzing sound, filled with excitement. It tried several times to break free from Rod’s control and rush over to the other side—its fighting spirit was intense.

“Cataclysmic Strike!” This was the first technique Rod learned from his divine essence, and it was also the simplest. He used it right away, as battles at this level made it impossible to determine a clear winner easily. Rod had no intention of wasting any more time.

Looking at the chaotic streets below, he frowned slightly.

“Phantom Step!” With a loud roar, this time the demon general’s expression turned grave. His feet seemed to sprout lotus flowers as he moved swiftly through the air, at a speed more than twice as fast as before!

In an instant, the entire world seemed filled with his figure, with countless illusions appearing and disappearing repeatedly.

By invoking his divine essence, Rod firmly controlled it with his mental power from below. Using this technique consumed more mental energy than he had imagined, making it somewhat strenuous. This showed just how powerful the techniques contained within the divine essence were. Even for Rod, using his first technique was so difficult, let alone the more advanced ones.

It wasn’t that Rod didn’t want to use his divine essence at the start of the battle, but he couldn’t. Back in the Netherworld, Andrews had strictly instructed him that unless absolutely necessary, it was best not to fight using his divine essence. Not only did it drain energy, but it was also dangerous. If the enemy’s strength far exceeded his own and his divine essence was shattered, he would surely die. Even when fighting opponents of the same level, he needed to exhaust their combat energy and mental power as much as possible—only then would using his divine essence be a prudent choice.

The golden light of the divine essence amplified thousands of times in an instant, descending like a giant palm. The golden hand exuded an imposing aura, as if the entire Water Screen City was enveloped within it.

Boom… Boom…

Thunder rumbled in the sky, with purple lightning weaving through the heavens like dragons. The divine essence finally stabilized at a size of dozens of meters before plunging downward rapidly.

A wave of energy reached first, locking onto the demon general across from him. Then, it seemed to fall slowly, yet it gave the impression that there was no escape.

“Retreat quickly!” Even though they were hundreds of meters away and knew the divine essence wouldn’t harm them, the Wolf King couldn’t help but shout in alarm. Merk and the others around him instinctively retreated once again, fearing being caught in the blast. At the same time, their combat energy began to flow automatically to resist that terrifying aura.

“Illusion Strike!” Seeing that all his escape routes were blocked, the demon general’s eyes flashed with determination. After roaring loudly…

Hundreds of illusions rushed toward the sky at once, their target clearly the divine essence. In the next moment, these illusions all charged at the divine essence simultaneously.
Black light and golden light clashed once again. In an instant, the world was left with only two colors—gold and black!
Boom… Boom… Boom…
Continuous crashing sounds filled the air as the divine essence began to tremble slightly, becoming unstable under the fierce attacks of the demon general.
On the other side, Rod’s face turned pale as he struggled to keep the divine essence stable. To his surprise, the golden light began to devour the energy emitted by the demon general.
Indeed, after a short while, the dim light was gradually overshadowed. Upon closer inspection, it could be seen that the demon general’s complexion was even worse than Rod’s—pale, with a trace of blood at the corners of his mouth.
If he hadn’t fought Rod repeatedly earlier, he might not have suffered such damage resisting the attacks of the divine essence. Unfortunately, those previous battles had exhausted him, draining much of his combat energy and leaving him weak, which allowed Rod to gain the upper hand. After all, Rod’s strength was already superior, and with the help of the divine essence—whose very nature was the demon soul’s natural enemy—it was obvious he had no chance of winning.
Even if their strengths had been equal, Rod, with the divine essence’s support and its use from the start of the battle, would still have had the upper hand.
“Break through!” Rod shouted angrily.
Instantly, the brilliance of the divine essence flared up again, illuminating the entire night sky and casting Water Screen City in a sea of golden light.
The shadow was swallowed at an accelerating pace and vanished in an instant. A muffled groan followed, as a figure plummeted to the ground with a heavy impact.
The victorious divine essence seized the opportunity, covering the defeated demon general on the ground.
Surrounded by golden light, agonized screams echoed, terrifying to hear. The figure twisted desperately, trying to struggle, but under the golden light, it had nowhere to hide and was trapped forever.
After that, Rod rushed forward and restrained the struggling demon general.
At that moment, Sognar, the Wolf King, and the others also arrived quickly at Rod’s side. Seeing the demon general bound, they all breathed a sigh of relief.