Chapter 304 – Desperate Situation: The Hero Appears

“No!!”

The sealing of the array elicited a shrill, mournful cry from Mingling Zi. After his wail, he desperately attacked the barrier of seals, trying to break through Heartcage City’s obstruction.

Naturally, he did not succeed.

The Grave Lord’s Realm before them was a grand array of seals personally crafted by the Celestial Master to imprison the Evil God’s body, its power and rank exceedingly lofty.

Previously, they had been able to breach it and partially unleash some of the Evil God’s power because the place had fallen into disrepair over the years, with no one maintaining or controlling it. Moreover, they were not the primary targets of the sealing array, which allowed them to find a sliver of weakness.

But now, Heartcage City’s seal had welcomed its master.

Indeed, it was Mu Lin who had actively activated this array’s seal.

Kind-hearted, he could not bear to see Mingling Zi exert so much effort only to gain nothing. Thus, he took the initiative to help Mingling Zi create a proper battlefield.

Even though the current Mu Lin had only barely obtained some control over the array and could not fully master Heartcage City’s formations, relying on the inherent strength of the array’s seals, he still confined Mingling Zi and the others within Heartcage City, forcing them into a face-to-face battle with the Scarlet Son.

Hmm… Mu Lin did not push them to utter despair.

The Demonic Sect disciple who had caused all this indeed deserved death, but the Daoist Sect’s Jade Daoist and Drunken Wanderer had not been involved in this matter. They could barely be considered innocent and had even attempted to thwart the Evil God Scion’s schemes.

More crucially, Mu Lin did not want the Scarlet Son to devour the Human Race’s prodigies and increase his power.

Therefore, while activating the array to seal off Heartcage City, Mu Lin also initiated Heartcage City’s sealing restrictions, suppressing the Scarlet Son’s power.

This had a certain effect.

“Hum!”

As Mu Lin willed it, an illusory tombstone suddenly appeared in the sky above Heartcage City, directly above the Scarlet Son’s head.

“Hiss!”

The moment the tombstone appeared, a force of decay and demise immediately spread out in all directions.

Simultaneously, the tombstone shared a hidden connection with the Scarlet Son.

This connection caused the Scarlet Son’s portrait and name to slowly be inscribed upon the tombstone.

“Crack!”

“Boom!”

“Rip…”

The tombstone was not large, but its appearance had a tremendous impact on the Scarlet Son.

First was the weight. At this moment, the Scarlet Son was as if bearing a towering mountain, instantly crushed by this immense force, his limbs snapping as he knelt to the ground.

These were the sources of the first two sounds: one was the sound of the Scarlet Son’s bones breaking, the other the thunderous crash of his massive body collapsing to its knees.

Next was the corrosion.

The tombstone brought death and decay. This power invaded the Scarlet Son’s body, causing his once boundless vitality to wither and deteriorate.

The most obvious manifestation was a foul, rotting stench emanating from the Scarlet Son’s form.

At the same time, his aura and physical size also grew feeble and broken under the tombstone’s suppression.

Detecting this scene, Mingling Zi, Jade Daoist, and the others, who had been in despair, all brightened with hope.

“Attack, quickly attack! Don’t let him recover, or we’ll all die!”

“Together, don’t think of slacking off anymore! If he doesn’t die, we all perish!”

“Kill!”

“Godchild, strike!”

The Scarlet Son’s waning aura emboldened the Human Race cultivators once more, driving them to charge toward him.

Sword energy, thunderous roars, Wrathfire, vengeful spirits… a barrage of spells was hurled indiscriminately at the Scarlet Son.

Corrupted by the forces of decay and death, his body could no longer maintain its defenses, and his Immortality was greatly diminished. Under this wave of attacks, the group achieved numerous successes.

This spurred Mingling Zi and the others to attack with even greater fervor, for they glimpsed the hope of victory.

Yet, while they rejoiced, the Scarlet Son – Nest was consumed by rage.

“You cannot kill me!”

“I have ascended to demigodhood. Even bearing the Death Tombstone, enduring the invasion of decay, I remain invincible in this world!”

“Wail!!”

As he spoke, a piercing banshee’s shriek erupted once more from one of his heads.

Simultaneously, a goat head spewed forth black flames.

These flames were filled with taboo and ill omen, and once they clung to something, they were nearly impossible to extinguish.

Even the Mana and spells of cultivators could not quell the flames; instead, they served as fuel, causing the dark, ominous fire to burn even more wildly.

“Everyone, be careful not to be touched by the black flames…”

Beyond the flames, the Scarlet Son’s bull head granted him unparalleled strength enhancement.

The snake head spewed a corrosive poison mist that consumed everything.

As for the lion head, it was like a voracious Black Hole, capable of devouring all things.

Even Jade Daoist’s divine thunder was swallowed whole by the Scarlet Son – Nest’s lion head and digested without issue.

…

The soul-rending banshee’s shriek, the strength-boosting bull head, the goat head spewing unquenchable black flames, the lion head devouring any attack… along with the peregrine falcon head that increased speed and the deer head that continuously healed itself…

After his successful transformation, the Scarlet Son was no longer human. Even fighting alone against many, even with part of his power suppressed and sealed by the Death Tombstone, the Scarlet Son remained overwhelmingly powerful.

Despite their prolonged siege, the group could not subdue him.

In fact, during the battle, he managed to kill another in retaliation.

That person was Ghost Shadow, a Demonic Sect cultivator who had once secretly cursed Mu Lin to death. He clearly excelled in assassination, relying on accumulated momentum for his strikes.

In Heartcage City, a confined area that forced frontal combat, he was naturally at a disadvantage.

Fortunately, his death was not in vain. Through his desperate outburst and the others’ diversionary efforts, one of the Scarlet Son’s heads was destroyed.

The goat head that spewed the unquenchable black flames was completely shattered, never to recover—well, at least not under the suppression of the Death Tombstone. Without the ceaseless erosion of death and decay, the Scarlet Son – Nest could quickly restore this head to its original state.

But there were no “ifs.” Now, he was truly wounded.

Soon, his second and third heads were also shattered.

This time, it was Fa Yan of the Celestial Buddha Sect and Jade Daoist who delivered the blows.

The former employed a secret technique of the Triple World of the Womb Treasury, multiplying his strength ninefold out of thin air. With this power, he not only shattered one of the Scarlet Son – Nest’s heads but also retreated safely to the rear unscathed.

However, after this strike, he was completely exhausted and no longer capable of fighting.

As for Jade Daoist, he relied on the Divine Lord. At the cost of completely burning the Divine Lord’s consciousness, he severed Scarlet Son’s lion head with a single slash.

Subsequently, the ox head was also riddled with holes by Mingling Zi.

This one also possessed formidable strength. Facing Scarlet Son’s assault, he transformed himself into countless venomous insects, burrowing into Scarlet Son’s body and gnawing at it from within. The ox head was especially ravaged by his devouring.

However, Scarlet Son Nest quickly responded. Using his own body as a nest, he spawned countless small bloodworms, which engaged in continuous combat with Mingling Zi’s venomous insects.

Simultaneously, under the influence of a bat head, he imbued his body with dense curse energy. Whenever Mingling Zi’s venomous insects gnawed at his flesh, they would immediately be cursed and grow feeble.

In this struggle, Mingling Zi was subtly at a disadvantage. Consequently, this utterly shameless Demonic Sect cultivator directly spoke up: “Scarlet Son, spare me. We have no enmity between us. As long as you don’t kill me, I won’t target you.”

“Fine. As long as you help me deal with Drunken Wanderer, I won’t kill you.”

These words… Mingling Zi naturally did not agree.

He was a selfish and wicked scoundrel, but not a fool.

He clearly understood that a verbal agreement held no binding force. If he betrayed and killed Drunken Wanderer, the next to suffer would undoubtedly be himself. Thus, he did not consent but instead said, “Swear an oath. Swear to the myriad Deities.”

In a world where Deities truly exist, a specific and directed oath genuinely possesses binding power.

Previously, it was due to an oath’s constraint that Mingling Zi cooperated with Scarlet Son Nest… At that time, the latter had sworn that the Divine Blood heart he refined was flawless and could be refined by anyone who obtained it.

In truth, the Divine Blood heart indeed had no issues; the problem lay with Scarlet Son. Had he not been able to resonate with the Divine Blood heart and command it the moment it was born, there was a high probability that the Divine Blood heart would have fallen into the hands of Mingling Zi or Fa Yan and been refined by them.

Therefore, oath constraints were credible. As long as Scarlet Son swore an oath, Mingling Zi would absolutely betray.

Unfortunately, although Scarlet Son Nest’s current state was somewhat wretched, he was confident of his inevitable victory.

Thus, he had no intention of swearing an oath at all.

“Force me to swear? You are not worthy!”

With these words, he charged toward the humans once more, engaging in mutual devouring with Mingling Zi.

Thus, the brutal battle continued within Heartcage City.

Amid the fierce combat, people died continuously, while others unleashed their trump cards.

Under the combined assaults of the group, Scarlet Son Nest’s condition steadily deteriorated. However, Mortal Shedding not only signified extraordinary strength but also represented vitality far surpassing ordinary beings.

Even though his body was pierced, four of his hearts shattered, and seven of his heads smashed, the advantage still lay with him.

The next moment, something even more despairing occurred.

Black Fiend Tiger, this son of a Demon King who had been engaging Scarlet Son in direct combat relying on his Demon Beast physique, after a prolonged period of gathering strength, actually performed a spatial blink and vanished without a trace from Heartcage City—he was unmistakably a Sacred Beast with control over spatial abilities, and of an exceedingly high level at that.

Otherwise, it would have been absolutely impossible for it to leave Heartcage City.

Its departure also placed the group of human prodigies in an increasingly precarious situation.

This, in turn, made the aristocratic families outside, Prince Liang, and the Daoist Sect elders increasingly anxious.

“Boom!”

In their worry, some even stepped into the Grave Lord’s Realm.

However, the moment these powerful figures entered, the Grave Lord’s contingency measures were triggered. Many were immediately invaded by the power of death, or a massive grave suddenly appeared, burying them alive.

The terrifying force instantly sobered the clan elders of the aristocratic families and the elders of the Daoist Sect, making them reluctant to force their way into the Grave Lord’s Realm.

Yet, their expressions remained extremely grim.

At the same time, they were also contemplating whether there were other methods to assist their own disciples.

“Can we identify the Scarlet Son’s weakness?”

“Useless. Once one enters Mortal Shedding, they are no longer ordinary mortals. Common weaknesses cannot kill him.”

“The gap between Mortal Shedding and the realms below is simply too vast!”

Perhaps due to the impending revival of the Evil God, or because their own disciples were on the brink of death, the clan elders of the aristocratic families and the Daoist Sect elders were all deeply anxious at this moment.

Prince Liang, whose temperament was not particularly strong and who had only reached the Earth Master realm through the Dragon Vein, even silently prayed to the myriad gods and buddhas, hoping someone would emerge to break the deadlock.

Yet, even as he prayed, he understood that under the rules of the Grave Lord’s Realm, the strength of Scarlet Son – Nest was nearly invincible.

This led him to curse the cultivators of the Demonic Sect.

“Bastards, scum! It’s all because of you! If not for you, none of this would have happened. Indeed, we should never cooperate with the Demonic Sect!”

Just as many were anxious and Prince Liang had completely despaired, Mu Lin, after a sigh, transferred into Heartcage City via the arrays.

He was preparing to take action.

His decision to act now was partly because he did not wish for Jade Daoist, Drunken Wanderer, and the others to die.

Regardless, these were human prodigies, humanity’s hope for surviving the Doomsday Calamity. If possible, he did not want these prodigies to perish.

Another reason was that he had entered the formation core too recently, and in such a short time, he could not fully master the arrays.

Consequently, he was unable to completely annihilate Scarlet Son – Nest using the arrays alone.

Thus, the injuries inflicted on Scarlet Son – Nest by others were a significant advantage for Mu Lin. Naturally, he would not allow these wounds to heal, forcing him to face a fully restored Scarlet Son.

“In its current state, it is most suitable for me to deal with.”

Stepping forward, Mu Lin felt somewhat confident in confronting Scarlet Son – Nest. Although he had not fully mastered Heartcage City or taken control of this magnificent town and its surrounding area, his prior accumulation—Ping’an Ancient County—combined with the exceptionally high quality of Heartcage City’s earth veins meant that even with partial control, Mu Lin’s City God Dharma Image had crossed the most critical threshold, evolving from a County City God to a Province City God.

In terms of realm, this placed him on equal footing with the Scarlet Son.

Hence, Mu Lin had the confidence to confront it.

However, while Mu Lin was confident in himself, others were unaware of his trump card.

When they noticed a sudden newcomer in Heartcage City, many initially felt excited, thinking an opportunity had arisen.

“To appear in Heartcage City at this moment—could there be a turning point?”

“It must be so. Otherwise, why would he go to Heartcage City under such circumstances, just to throw his life away… Huh? Wait… It’s him!”

Unfortunately, when the Clan Elders and powerful figures outside saw that the person who had appeared was Mu Lin, their excitement instantly collapsed.

“Damn it, I got my hopes up for nothing…”

“Mu Lin’s talent is indeed good, but he has cultivated for too short a time. This is simply not a battlefield he can handle.”

“Mingling Zi, Jade Daoist, Drunken Wanderer… they have all been defeated. Even the Black Fiend Tiger fled. None of them are a match for the Scarlet Son after his advancement. What use is him going there?”

“Alas… he’s acting too impulsively.”

Some sighed, some felt regret, while others were nearly driven to fury.

“Fool, why did you go over there!”

The ones who were furious were naturally Dongfang Ya, Si Ye, and Master Meng Rui.

As for Prince Liang and the East Sea King, they also frowned upon seeing Mu Lin enter the fray.

“Your intentions are good, and you have courage, but this action of yours is far too unwise!”

(End of Chapter)