His mocking voice made the surrounding air tremble.
"Since you are born with a rebellious spirit, then I shall pluck out your rebellious bones one by one, and from this day forth, you shall bow to me and submit!"
Countless black runes combined to form a giant palm, which swiped fiercely towards Gu Junshi.
Its approach was faster than the speed of light, and Gu Junshi had no time to dodge.
With a deafening crash, she was exploded into a mass of flesh and blood, leaving no trace of her bones. The mist of blood sprayed out like a mushroom cloud, shocking everyone into trembling, their eyes wide with disbelief.
Why did Gu Junshi suddenly turn against the Demon God?
But in the end, she was too overconfident. She hadn't expected that compared to her, the Demon God was like a raging inferno consuming mountains; how could a mere stubborn stone like her withstand it? In just one exchange, the Demon God had crushed her into a pulp.
"Let's… let's all go together."
"Go to our deaths together?"
The situation before them offered no time for them to slowly piece together the cause and effect, but the innate fear stemming from the suppression of a higher authority kept them from daring to advance rashly.
"Even if we retreat, where can we retreat to now? Think of your sects, your families, your dear friends. If you retreat now, how will you face them in the future?"
"Easy for you to say. That's the Demon God. He doesn't even need to reveal his true form; his divine sense alone is enough to deal with us. Who would willingly go to their deaths for nothing?"
Arguments ensued as they were spurred into disarray by Gu Junshi's death, their bodies going cold and trembling.
In their eyes, Gu Junshi was already someone they could never hope to reach. Her full-power strike had only angered the Demon God, while a casual move from the Demon God had caused her death and the annihilation of her soul.
What could they possibly do? Apart from being cannon fodder, it was all in vain.
"Hey, hey, stop arguing. Look at that!"
Following the direction of the speaker, they saw a cluster of blood foam floating in the air, which was strangely "alive." It churned and contracted, then slowly boiled and condensed, reforming into a bloody silhouette.
That figure, it had to be said, looked quite familiar… wasn't that Gu Junshi, who had just been crushed by the Demon God?!
A dark robe floated out and enveloped her, followed by the growth of a torso and limbs. In a short while, a complete Gu Junshi reappeared before everyone's eyes.
"..."
A living person from nowhere?!
"How… how did she come back to life?! She clearly had nothing left but the dregs moments ago!"
"She has long since transcended the mortal coil. Perhaps she relied on some secret technique or her modified body to be reborn."
The crowd couldn't understand her actions, but regarding Gu Junshi's resurrection, they were momentarily unsure whether to be shocked or delighted.
Only a few were genuinely happy that she was still alive.
For instance, Tan Ya, who felt utterly useless, and the elder abbot, who was also still trembling with lingering fear.
Having already planted a demonic seed in Gu Junshi, the Demon God had anticipated that she wouldn't die so easily. He scanned the revived Gu Junshi, and though not surprised, he was somewhat perplexed.
"Since ancient times, only gods possess immortality. Even immortals do not. What trickery have you used to deceive the heavens!"
After her rebirth, Gu Junshi's body had visibly changed from before.
The half-corrupted face where her bones had been demonized was now re-formed with flesh and blood. The gray-white flames within her pupils regained their vitality, with heat blooming like fragrant grass, reviving the blue-green eyes.
She made a dash, her external incarnations multiplying by one into hundreds of her figures, scattering across the misty, heavy sky.
The sky was somber, yet she stood out exceptionally.
"Lord Demon God, I must thank you for the demonic essence you bestowed upon me, giving me half an immortal body and half a demonic body. My cultivation, which had been stagnant, has now advanced. Now, you are immortal and imperishable, and I too am uninjured and unending."
"You cultivate the Heavenly Dao's Great Unfeeling Art? That technique can at most lead you to the realm of immortals. Immortality and invulnerability are the realms of gods. Gu Junshi, do you truly believe I would believe your words?"
"It's not exactly that. Although I am neither immortal, demonic, nor divine, you, Demon God, are also left with only half your divine realm at this moment, your divine power waning. Perhaps we can be considered evenly matched now."
As she spoke, she wielded the formless sword. The once unadorned sword body, following her will, transformed into an eight-foot-long blade with eight petals at the tip, concentrating its attack on the pair of unpredictable red pupils in the sky.
The red pupils were half of the Demon God's manifestation in this world. If they were destroyed, the Demon God's other half, which had not yet departed, along with his demonic consciousness, would also be in a difficult situation.
Although the Demon God was immortal and imperishable, his demonic essence could be gradually depleted, and his remnant body could be imprisoned for all eternity. This was what the Heavenly Dao had originally intended to do, but a major change occurred midway.
The demon race vanished into the abyss, and the Underworld separated from the Six Realms. The Demon God and his race orchestrated a series of conspiracies and variables solely to accumulate power for the Demon God and to release him.
The Demon God did not take Gu Junshi's immediate aggression to heart.
Those demonic eyes instantly dyed the sky red, a more sinister and menacing color than flames igniting the heavens, a color that would instill ill omens and dread in anyone who saw it.
"Gu Junshi, I appreciate ambition and spirit in a person, for that is what sets you apart from the mediocre. However, I also dislike those who are overly unappreciative. It seems that unless I show you the gap between you and me, you will not be content."
Gu Junshi's azure eyes, separated by thousands of miles of space-time, met the Demon God's gaze. Her hundreds of clones, along with her true body, spoke in unison, their might like that of a multitude.
"Isn't a gap precisely something that is meant to be broken by someone?"
If the Demon God had appeared in his full strength, he would have long ago crushed this rebellious Gu Junshi into powder. However, he currently needed her to deal with the Heavenly Dao and help him completely escape his predicament, which was why he had endured a bit of patience to engage in banter with her.
"Hahaha… How many years has it been? How many years has it been since I last heard such boastful words from someone who doesn't know the immensity of heaven and earth! I admit that you, Gu Junshi, are indeed somewhat special, and in some aspects, even I cannot see through you. However, do you truly believe that with your transmigration soul, you are so blessed, having luckily gained immortal destiny and stolen my demonic essence, that you can provoke and contend with me?"
"I don't consider myself particularly special. But this vast world, Gu wants to explore other realms. Therefore, I can only trouble you, Lord Demon God, to make some space for Gu!"
The Heavenly Dao had used this world to imprison the Demon God, but at the same time, it had also firmly trapped this world. They were mutually restrained. If she wanted to leave, she had to remove the Demon God, this great mountain blocking her path.
Her clones transformed into long, thick black thorny whips and lashed out. However, the Demon God was not so easily approached. Gu Junshi had been able to wound his divine sense before because he had been too confident in her, absolutely certain that she was like him and would not foolishly betray him at such a critical moment.
Unexpectedly, Gu Junshi had attacked him at the moment he least expected it.