Hearing a faint burst of screams from Mirror Sky City, Zhang Yuhe felt puzzled.
It didn't make sense.
How could his own family be fighting?
He was confused, so he asked Litian.
Litian faintly replied, "Senior brother, you forgot. In addition to the monks, there's also a Horned Demon clan in the city."
"Wait, are you saying that the Horned Demon Clan is slaughtering the monks of the He and Li families in the city?"
"Massacre? It might be more accurate to call it 'eating.'"
"Cannibalism?"
Zhang Yuhe was shocked upon hearing this.
Though it was recorded in the classics, that demons sometimes eat people—especially powerful monks—who were considered a delicacy for the demons, he had always thought such stories were exaggerated. He believed they were propaganda to demonize the race and stir hatred among the Yu Fan Tian monks toward them.
To his surprise, it seemed there was some truth to it.
Zhang Yuhe couldn't imagine it. The demon race looked almost identical to humans, except for some extra features. To him, the difference between demons and humans was like the difference between the white race and the black race. The idea that demons would eat people was horrific.
Litian glanced at Zhang Yuhe, recognizing his disbelief, and explained, "The Horned Demons on the altar need to consume a lot of magic power to open the interface channel, and the best source of nourishment for demons is a Terran monk. So, it's no surprise they eat them."
After hearing Litian's explanation, Zhang Yuhe began to understand. The Horned Demon clan on the altar, feeling their magic power depleting, had taken the monks from the He and Li families as a food source.
After all, the demon clan had been trapped in Yu Fantian for 100,000 years, and all their supplies were long gone. To replenish their magic power, the Horned Demons were forced to attack the monks in the city.
Zhang Yuhe now understood that the demon race and the human race were as different as humans and cattle. While people might find it normal to eat beef and mutton, it would be unimaginable for cattle and sheep to accept it.
Hearing the screams from the city, Zhang Yuhe felt a chill.
"No, we need to move faster."
Thinking of this, Zhang Yuhe made a gesture, and the nine flying swords around him quickly flew into the distance, positioning themselves at various points around Mirror Sky City.
"Senior brother, what are you doing?" Litian asked, surprised by Zhang Yuhe's actions. "Wouldn't it be faster to simply attack with lightning? The city's defensive formation is almost gone."
"I want to speed it up."
Litian was speechless at this answer.
Why bother doing it yourself? The Nine Python Forbidden Spirit Array was highly defensive, and it would take a lot of time to break it with their own strength. Since Zhang Yuhe had already arranged the Dehydration Mine Array, why not just use it to break the formation?
It felt like a waste of effort.
Litian had tried hitting the city's defense before, and it was like trying to punch a mountain. It didn't work.
But Zhang Yuhe was determined, and Litian didn't object. He also punched the air towards the Mirror Sky City's light curtain.
"Rumble..."
While Litian continued attacking, Zhang Yuhe focused on the sword array.
Once the nine flying swords were in position, he quickly pinched a spell.
"Sword formation, rise."
On the periphery of Mirror Sky City, a large area of sword light erupted. The light morphed into invisible sword qi that rapidly swept toward the light curtain.
"This…"
Litian was stunned. "What kind of supernatural power is this? It's too strong."
How could a sword array arranged by an Avatar-level monk cover such a vast area?
The Nine Heavens Mixed Yuan Sword Formation seamlessly integrated both attack and defense. The sword array's range? There was no upper limit.
As long as Zhang Yuhe had enough mana and his divine sense could reach it, he could control it across the entire city. Since Mirror Sky City wasn't large, and Zhang Yuhe's divine sense was in the late stage of Transformation, it was easy for him to envelop it.
As for mana power, that was no problem. Zhang Yuhe's vast dantian could easily support the consumption.
Of course, the larger the sword array's range, the less concentrated the sword qi would be. However, it didn't matter. Even at a reduced density, there was still a vast amount of invisible sword qi sweeping toward the light curtain.
Litian, feeling embarrassed, retracted his fist and stepped aside.
Compared to Zhang Yuhe, he felt like a child.
His punch had been futile, but Zhang Yuhe's sword qi had shown remarkable results.
With the sword qi sweeping over the light curtain, the Mirror Sky City's defense was finally reaching its limit.
"Rumble..."
A bolt of lightning struck the light curtain, causing it to explode.
Without the protective formation, the scene within the city was fully revealed to the two of them.
The city was shrouded in thick demonic energy, and the air was heavy with the stench of blood.
Zhang Yuhe furrowed his brow as he looked up. A huge vortex had appeared in the sky. Through it, he could faintly see countless shadowy figures swirling within.
"Has the passage already opened?"
Zhang Yuhe had never witnessed such a scene before and was about to ask Litian when he turned around and saw Litian already charging at the Horned Demon clan on the altar, swinging his fist.
"Senior brother is so brave," Zhang Yuhe thought silently.
But before he could finish his thought, Litian was hit hard by a Horned Demon, coughing up blood and flying backward.
He continued to fall through the air but managed to shout, "Senior brother, be careful! This demon is in the Void Refining Realm."
"Wait, what?"
Zhang Yuhe was shocked. How could there be a demon in the Void Refining Realm?
The Void Refining Realm was a massive threshold for monks. Only one in a hundred million could reach such a level. Cultivators in the Void Refining Realm could crush an army of gods without breaking a sweat.
Zhang Yuhe couldn't believe it. There were only two of them here, and they were just cultivators. How could they possibly fight a demon at such a level?
But Zhang Yuhe didn't run.
Despite the strength of the Void Refining Realm demon, he had already set up a large array, including the Nine Heavens Mixed Yuan Sword Formation and the Decanter Water Guiding Thunder Array.
With these two formations, they stood a chance.
And even if he wanted to run now, it might be too late. The Heavenly Desolate Flying Immortal Technique was incredibly fast, but against a Void Refining Realm demon, it might not be enough.
Better to fight than to flee.