Chapter 44: The Appearance of the Divine Bird (Part 1)

On Mount Taixuan, a celestial spectacle unfolded. In the sky, the iridescent five-colored divine dragon, emitting dazzling streams of light and accompanied by a thunderous roar, surged toward the three-headed spiritual serpent hovering above. The radiant hues of the five-colored light in the sky formed a rotating band, ascending with astonishing speed. In the blink of an eye, it collided with the spiritual serpent.

In the heavens, the three-headed spiritual serpent coiled like a black mountain peak, blocking half of the sky. As the radiant five-colored dragon approached with ferocious claws and teeth, the three-headed spiritual serpent roared back, unleashing two beams of dazzling light—one red, one white—that descended with cataclysmic force, aimed squarely at the five-colored dragon.

As the two forces collided, a deafening boom echoed through the sky, filling it with a myriad of colorful lights that formed a dazzling pattern, akin to fireworks. The red and white beams intersected with the band of light created by the five-colored dragon, each resisting the other's attack with full force. The powerful momentum and strength erupted in a violent collision, and the resulting explosions reverberated through the air, sending waves of destructive force toward Mount Taixuan, causing the entire mountain to tremble, and everyone to be engulfed in a tumultuous storm.

The celestial swords, driven by Li Changchun with all his might, converged into a rainbow-colored band of light, providing full support to the five-colored dragon as it fiercely resisted the attacks of the three-headed spiritual serpent's icy fire. With the full support of the celestial sword formation, the five-colored dragon also launched a counterattack, momentarily halting its descent.

Meanwhile, in the sky, the five-colored Elysian Orchid had completely transformed into gold. The rotating petals of golden light merged back into the main body of the Elysian Orchid. The dazzling light gradually subsided and disappeared from the sky. In that instant, the true form of the five-colored Elysian Orchid reappeared. It had transformed from its original size of one foot into a one-inch five-colored miraculous flower. This flower, also comprised of five colors, with each petal shimmering in a different hue, was surrounded by a golden glow, giving it an aura of mystery. At the same time, the mutated five-colored Elysian Orchid, now smaller in size, also seemed to have a slender stem.

As Zhang Aoxue and Cang Yue pondered the strange transformation of the five-colored Elysian Orchid, a sense of faint sorrow arose in their hearts. Indeed, Lu Yun's earlier intuition had proven correct—the five-colored Elysian Orchid had indeed sought to transcend all obstacles and ascend to the heavenly capital. However, fate had intervened, and amidst the overwhelming obstruction of the three-headed spiritual serpent, a series of unforeseen changes had occurred. And in the midst of all these mutations, the only beneficiaries were Zhang Aoxue and Cang Yue. At this moment, both women couldn't help but feel a strange sensation—Lu Yun seemed to know everything in advance, which was why he had urged them to assist the five-colored Elysian Orchid with all their might, resulting in unforeseen benefits. This made both women feel that Lu Yun harbored some unfathomable secrets, as if he always knew everything in advance.

While the two women were lost in thought, the light of the five-colored Elysian Orchid flashed once again. The five petals suddenly began to flow with colorful light, converging instantly into a beam of light with a diameter of inches, which shot directly into the sky. At this moment, everyone on Mount Taixuan was forced to close their eyes due to the dazzling light. Each person was deeply shaken by the incomprehensible spectacle, which was truly miraculous. At the same time, in the sky, the three-headed spiritual serpent let out a furious roar. Its body was pierced instantly by the beam of light, causing it to tremble violently and sway incessantly. As if venting its anger, the five-colored Elysian Orchid unleashed an unparalleled beam of light. However, after injuring the three-headed spiritual serpent, it seemed to grow weary, and its light gradually dimmed.

On Mount Taixuan, all the experts from the six academies were captivated by the celestial phenomenon in the sky. They saw a silent wave of energy ripple through the air, and a black lotus platform appeared out of nowhere, three yards away from the five-colored Elysian Orchid. Simultaneously, a demonic fairy, emanating a flowing black light, reappeared alongside the black lotus without distinction. After these two, a ghostly fairy also materialized in the void. Three demonic creatures, in unison, launched a full-scale attack on the five-colored Elysian Orchid, initiating another struggle for dominance.

Zhang Aoxue and Cang Yue's expressions changed abruptly as the radiance of the Purple Shadow Divine Sword and the Howling Moon Divine Sword above their heads surged simultaneously. Two dazzling rays of light, one purple and one white, erupted from the two women, and their exquisite battle armor revealed its power at that moment. With a shout, Zhang Aoxue moved like lightning, seizing the Purple Shadow Divine Sword with her right hand. A purple light, as swift as a startled swan, appeared above the black lotus, and she swung the sword downward. At the same time, Cang Yue launched her attack. The golden light of the Howling Moon Divine Sword formed a vast sword net around the five-colored Elysian Orchid, firmly protecting it and preventing the demonic fairy and the ghostly fairy from getting close.

In mid-air, a cold laugh emanated from the black lotus as a black lotus energy shadow suddenly shot out from it, aiming at Zhang Aoxue's Purple Shadow Divine Sword. Zhang Aoxue's eyes flashed with divine light as she exerted even more force with her right hand, fiercely colliding with the sudden attack of the black lotus energy shadow. The light and shadows flickered unpredictably, and when the divine sword touched the black lotus energy shadow, a myriad of strange lights danced in the sky. Countless black lights, under the strong impact of the Purple Shadow Divine Sword, dissipated in an instant. In mid-air, a dazzling purple sword column struck fiercely at the black lotus platform. A terrified cry rang out, and the night soul inside the black lotus roared, "No, it can't be, you—?" The voice was quickly drowned out by the powerful explosion.

Upon closer inspection, the originally flowing black lotus suddenly dimmed, and the three-yard-sized black lotus platform, struck by the Purple Shadow Divine Sword, plummeted rapidly, instantly shrinking to three feet in size. It was evident that although Zhang Aoxue's sword couldn't destroy the black lotus, it had inflicted heavy damage on it. Especially the night soul inside, it never expected Zhang Aoxue's cultivation to increase several times in such a short time, which was simply illogical. Zhang Aoxue herself seemed surprised that her cultivation had soared so dramatically, which was truly unbelievable even to her.

On the other side, Cang Yue was in a predicament against the attacks of the demonic fairy and the ghostly fairy. Having been severely injured by the demonic fairy's bizarre mental power earlier, she was particularly wary of it at this moment. As for the ghostly fairy, she had managed to restrain it with her divine sword, so there wasn't much of a problem. At this moment, Cang Yue stood in front of the five-colored Elysian Orchid, her body blocking it. With a sword, she repelled the ghostly fairy, while at the same time avoiding the attacks of the demonic fairy. Just as the demonic fairy chuckled sinisterly, a series of mental attacks came crashing down, and the Mo Clan's "Traceless Heart Desire" technique once again demonstrated its astonishing power.

Cang Yue's expression changed slightly as she gathered all her energy, preparing to defend against the demonic fairy's mental attacks. However, at this moment, a brilliant light suddenly burst forth from the white battle armor on her body, enveloping her instantly. The white light shimmered around her, and the demonic fairy's domineering mental attacks were instantly rebounded. Cang Yue felt a sense of joy in her heart, as she could clearly feel everything that was happening to her. She never expected that the white battle armor would have such miraculous effects, which was truly unexpected. With a cold gaze, Cang Yue, no longer constrained, moved sideways and swung her Howling Moon Divine Sword, emitting a dazzling golden sword aura, straight at the demonic fairy.

A roar of anger sounded out, and the black light shield surrounding the demonic fairy instantly shattered, revealing its true form. Cang Yue's Howling Moon Divine Sword, with traces of green blood, floated in the air, everything seeming extremely eerie. After the demonic fairy roared, its body suddenly flashed and appeared three zhang away, looking at Cang Yue in horror, its eyes filled with disbelief. Like the black lotus, it couldn't believe the reality before its eyes. Just an hour ago, it had severely wounded Cang Yue, but now, everything had been reversed. With a flash of black light, the demonic fairy's humanoid form was once again concealed by the black light shield.

Zhang Aoxue glanced at Cang Yue and said softly, "Now, let's protect the five-colored Elysian Orchid with all our might. I believe with our current cultivation strength, these three monsters won't be able to harm us." After speaking, she cast a glance upwards. Cang Yue shifted her body two zhang in mid-air and stood next to Zhang Aoxue, tightly guarding the five-colored Elysian Orchid. The two women exchanged a smile, and both divine swords erupted with radiant light, guarding the Elysian Orchid from behind, one on the left and one on the right.