Old Devil Mou appeared behind the old man, striking without a shred of mercy. The fire lotus he unleashed was condensed from the Dongming Cold Flame.

Over the years, while recovering from his injuries, he had painstakingly refined this spiritual flame until he finally subdued it.

The Dongming Cold Flame took the form of a blue lotus bud. Its flames glowed faintly, not bursting with grandeur, but the outline of its petals could already be seen.

Whoosh! The fire lotus was hauntingly beautiful, containing the purest essence of cold flames.

The old man’s full attention was on the Devil-Suppressing Stele, and before he could react, his protective spiritual qi was torn apart as if by decaying paper. The terrifying chill nearly froze his entire body solid.

At the brink of death, he frantically circulated his true essence toward his back, activating his defensive astra, but the effect was minimal.

Boom! The fire lotus exploded.

A torrent of blue flame surged forth like a massive python, slamming into the old man. He let out a scream as a bloody hole appeared in his back, his body gravely wounded. In that instant, the Devil-Suppressing Stele lost control.

***

The ancient devil, though forced back by the combined assault of the Devil Lord and the Xiyou Leader, showed no panic. Instead, a faint sneer tugged at the corner of his mouth.

In truth, the Devil-Suppressing Stele was a supreme treasure forged by cultivators specifically to suppress him. He could never truly command the stele, and forcing control would only trigger its backlash.

His attempt to seize the stele had been nothing but a ruse, a feint to keep the old man and the others from splitting their focus. However, events had taken a turn far beyond what the ancient devil had anticipated.

The one who ambushed the descendant of the Four Saints and tried to seize the Devil-Suppressing Stele was not the person he had expected.

When he saw Old Devil Mou, the ancient devil’s eyes shifted instantly. His subordinates had not shown up at all. The Devil Lord’s move to seize the Devil-Suppressing Stele shocked him even more.

Seeing how the situation had unfolded, the ancient devil was decisive; he immediately turned and lunged toward the Xiyou Leader.

A cold smile curved across the Devil Lord’s lips as he gathered his true essence and wrapped it around the Devil-Suppressing Stele, ready to claim the treasure.

Just then, another sudden change occurred. Beside the Devil-Suppressing Stele, a figure appeared out of thin air without any warning.

The newcomer held a fly-whisk, exuding the refined aura of an immortal sage. With a calm smile and eyes full of pride and mockery, he gazed at the Devil Lord. It was Lingzhuzi, who had secretly followed them here.

"Daoist, I did not expect you to have such ambition, daring to covet the relic of the Four Saints. In that case, I shall not decline the invitation." Lingzhuzi laughed heartily.

The Devil Lord’s smile froze in place, his face twisting with fury as he roared, "Lingzhuzi! You dare!"

"Why wouldn’t I dare?" Lingzhuzi retorted sharply, flicking his fly-whisk forward. The silvery threads lashed out toward the Devil-Suppressing Stele, faster than the Devil Lord himself.

The Devil Lord erupted in rage, shaping his true essence into a saber and slashing at Lingzhuzi while his body shot forward at top speed, lunging for the stele.

High above, Old Devil Mou, seeing the old man still alive despite his wounds, flashed forward once more. He condensed the cold flames again, determined to finish the job and grant the man no chance to recover.

But as he moved, something in the scene below caught his eye, making him pause in surprise.

The Devil Lord had promised to spare him in exchange for one task: When the ancient devil appeared and the descendant of the Four Saints was forced to reveal himself, Old Devil Mou would strike from the shadows to help seize the treasure.

The plan had gone smoothly until now. At the final moment, someone else had emerged from hiding to compete for the stele. And that someone was none other than his most hated enemy, Heavenly Dao Sect's leader, Lingzhuzi.

Lingzhuzi was his lifelong foe. If Lingzhuzi obtained the treasure, Old Devil Mou would never regain his freedom unless he broke through to the late stage of the Spiritual Infant Realm.

He prepared to recall the fire lotus and force Lingzhuzi back, but a strange unease suddenly crept into his heart.

Did Lingzhuzi merely happen to be at Yitian Peak by chance, or did he plan this all along? If it is premeditated, then he is likely not alone.

"Crap!" The thought barely surfaced when Old Devil Mou suddenly sensed a gust of killing wind behind him. The aura was razor-sharp, making his scalp tingle.

The mantis stalks the cicada, unaware of the oriole behind[1].

From the void behind him, a graceful figure stepped forth. Her eyes were cold and sharp. It was Madam Li.

With a flick of her fingers, a phoenix hairpin shot out, transforming into a flaming true phoenix that tore through the air straight for Old Devil Mou’s back. It was an attack from the same position as his own ambush.

Old Devil Mou’s injuries had not yet healed, and his fire lotus was already spent. He had never expected someone to be watching him in secret all this time. The moment he sensed the phoenix hairpin’s aura, he knew he could not block it. He let out a cry and hurled himself forward with all his might.

***

High above, in the mountain col, two separate clashes raged on, both reaching their most critical moments.

"Senior Brother!" A sorrowful cry suddenly echoed from the sky.

The old woman rushed over without pause, only to see the Devil Lord and Lingzhuzi struggling for the Devil-Suppressing Stele, while her senior brother lay dying after being ambushed by Old Devil Mou.

"Seeking death!" Furious, the old woman pressed her palm on her brow and let out a muffled groan.

Her aura began to soar rapidly. No one knew what secret technique she had used. Her cultivation, originally only at the peak of the middle stage of the Spiritual Infant Realm, comparable to the three alliance leaders, suddenly broke through that boundary and rose to stand equal with the Devil Lord and Lingzhuzi.

At the same time, the Devil-Suppressing Stele flickered between light and dark before erupting with overwhelming power, blasting away the fly-whisk and soaring into the sky.

Boom! A surge of azure light burst forth like a roaring tidal wave.

The old woman plunged downward, directing the power of the Devil-Suppressing Stele. The azure light rolled outward, her intent fixed solely on saving the dying old man. As a result, Old Devil Mou bore the full brunt of the assault.

No one had expected that another uninvited guest would join the battle at this moment.

Lingzhuzi and the Devil Lord, locked in their contest, could only watch helplessly as the supreme treasure flew away.

The most unfortunate one was Old Devil Mou. Calamity struck again before he could catch his breath.

In the blink of an eye, he found himself caught between two opposing forces, with nowhere to advance or retreat.

Under the old woman’s control, the Devil-Suppressing Stele’s power far surpassed what it had been earlier. Old Devil Mou had already expended his strength fending off the phoenix hairpin, and his face turned ghastly pale.

"Save me!" From within the mountain col came the desperate cry of the Xiyou Leader.

The ancient devil had abandoned the Devil-Suppressing Stele and was now lunging straight at her. The Xiyou Leader’s situation turned perilous.

If the Devil Lord had succeeded in taking the Devil-Suppressing Stele, he and Old Devil Mou could have joined forces to suppress the ancient devil and stabilize the situation. But with disaster striking one after another, she was now left to face the ancient devil and his devilish servant alone.

The Devil Lord too was torn between choices. There was no longer any chance of claiming the Devil-Suppressing Stele. The question was whether to save Old Devil Mou or the Xiyou Leader.

Seeing the terrifying power radiating from the Devil-Suppressing Stele, he gritted his teeth and turned toward the Xiyou Leader instead.

Boom!

Splatter! Blood splattered across the sky.

Old Devil Mou’s body twisted grotesquely, no longer resembling a human. A gaping hole opened through his torso, his Spiritual Infant unable to escape. Like a tattered rag, his body plummeted down the cliff, dead on the spot.

Madam Li, sensing the might of the Devil-Suppressing Stele, turned pale and hastily retreated. Even so, she was struck by the lingering shockwave, coughed up blood, and was sent flying backward.

Whoosh! The old woman descended from the heavens, catching the wounded old man in her arms while positioning the Devil-Suppressing Stele before her. Her cold eyes swept across the battlefield.

Realizing that there was no longer any point in fighting, Lingzhuzi sighed softly, put away his fly-whisk, and flashed to Madam Li’s side.

Madam Li’s face was as pale as gold foil. Seeing her phoenix hairpin severely damaged, its spiritual essence greatly diminished, she felt a pang of heartache. She nodded to Lingzhuzi, wiped the blood from her lips, swallowed a spirit pill, and sat cross-legged to begin healing her wounds.

1. Explained previously, this is a Chinese saying that means one who is unaware of the greater danger while pursuing a smaller gain. ☜