Chapter 232: Meanwhile, Elsewhere…

As a Demon Grand Duke who had weathered countless battles in Hell, Weisasi’s reactions were anything but slow. Even though Ling Xiaoyou’s attack was a sudden ambush, he quickly recovered, paying no mind to her provocative words. Instead, he twisted his neck in an eerily contorted motion, narrowly dodging the arrow by a hair’s breadth.

Seeing that bizarre posture that looked like his neck had nearly done a full rotation, Ling Xiaoyou—despite lacking bones entirely—instinctively felt a phantom ache of bone-deep pain.

“You!”

After dodging the arrow, the Demon Grand Duke finally had the leisure to glare at Ling Xiaoyou, his voice dripping with disbelief and fury.

“Did you not hear a single word I just said?”

“I heard you. So what? It’s not like I’m scared you’ll beat me to death or something.”

Ling Xiaoyou said with utter nonchalance, raising the Cloud Water Bow in her hand once more as a pitch-black arrow condensed at the string. Judging by where she was aiming, she clearly intended to send a few more shots Weisasi’s way.

Seeing this, the Demon Grand Duke cursed inwardly. ‘Where in the hell did the Regulatory Division dig up such a reckless fool? Does she genuinely have no fear of death? Or does she have some kind of trump card giving her this unshakable confidence?’

But regardless of which possibility it was, the Demon Grand Duke certainly wasn’t about to abandon his plan just because of Ling Xiaoyou’s sudden assault.

Are you kidding? He had already eroded the seal to this extent. If he gave up now, all his efforts would be wasted—and who knew if he’d ever get another chance to continue eroding it. Sure, his true body was strong enough, but facing this many powerhouses all at once, he’d still be overwhelmed.

As Ling Xiaoyou had said earlier, even though he seemed to hold the upper hand, no one knew if these bastards might suddenly whip out some hidden ace to cripple him.

So he absolutely had to buy time!

The moment the thought crossed Weisasi’s mind, several arrows tore through the air with sharp whistling sounds, appearing right before his face in the blink of an eye.

Weisasi scrambled to dodge again, looking utterly pathetic. If anyone who didn’t know better saw him, they’d never guess that this man, desperately evading a little girl’s attacks, was the legendary Demon Grand Duke.

But watching Weisasi’s frantic dodging, Ling Xiaoyou felt no joy whatsoever. Instead, her expression grew grave and serious.

If Weisasi had abandoned the erosion and fought back the instant she attacked, that would’ve been fine. Sure, she’d be the one scurrying for cover, but the erosion would undoubtedly have been interrupted.

But now, even at the cost of his dignity as a Demon Grand Duke, he chose to dodge instead—that meant he refused to give up the erosion even if it meant losing face.

Either he had an unshakable will and his plan wouldn’t waver, or his erosion was already at a stage where completion was just around the corner.

Ling Xiaoyou figured these two possibilities weren’t mutually exclusive, which meant the erosion was at a critical juncture. Weisasi might not know what sunk costs meant, but his current behavior was a textbook demonstration of it.

At that thought, Ling Xiaoyou’s heart tightened. She stopped firing arrows alone and began weaving magic arts instead.

Torrential waters surged forth in this space-like void, resembling the Milky Way itself turning into a raging current, intent on scouring the enemy into nothing but dregs.

But her opponent was, after all, the Demon Grand Duke. Even as just a clone—and with most of his power funneled into eroding the seal—his understanding and experience with magic arts far surpassed Ling Xiaoyou’s by leagues.

Even without access to more power, he relied on his razor-sharp instincts to spot the weak points in Ling Xiaoyou’s spells, then effortlessly weathered her attacks from those angles at minimal cost.

Seeing this, Ling Xiaoyou grew more frantic, yet her mind remained ice-cold. Spell after spell streamed forth, wave after wave crashing toward Weisasi.

Elsewhere, in the void from over a dozen minutes earlier, the battle between the powerhouses still raged on.

Weisasi stood in the emptiness, mana surging through his hands, yet what manifested was the holy radiance belonging to the Church.

But beneath that radiance, the enemies he faced were no longer demons seducing hearts or devils baring their fangs—but the cultivators who guarded the countless hearths of the mortal world.

Under that glow, everyone felt as though countless thoughts were being born and sprouting within their minds, threatening to hijack and replace their very consciousness.

Fortunately, a Buddhist chant that rang out like a temple bell halted those thoughts mid-sprout and expelled them from everyone’s minds.

An old monk in plain monastic robes softly intoned the Buddha’s name as a radiance no less brilliant than the Church’s light rose behind him. A resplendent golden wheel emerged from within that light—his Merit Golden Wheel.

Upon the wheel materialized the faint projection of a Buddha, holding a flower in one hand with eyes gently shut. The next instant, as if sensing something, the Buddha’s eyes snapped open, their gaze locking onto the Church’s radiance.

The scriptures transformed into countless tiny characters, sealing everything around them tightly. Then, the Buddha rapidly chanted profound sutras, and beneath this lockdown, the Church’s holy glow dimmed swiftly until it vanished entirely.

Weisasi raised an eyebrow at the old monk, then his figure faded. When he reappeared, he was directly behind the monk. His sharp-clawed talons, as though carrying the trait of rending all things, effortlessly shattered the monk’s protective golden light and lunged straight for his heart.

Just as Weisasi was about to pierce through the old monk’s chest, a glimmer of silvery light flickered beside him. In the next breath, a sword aura that seemed to sever space itself carved through the void, slashing straight at Weisasi’s arm.

Weisasi’s pupils contracted. Sensing the terrifying force behind that sword aura, he chose not to take the strike head-on.

His form retreated at breakneck speed as intricate magic arrays bloomed across his body, pushing his speed even higher as he evaded the blade.

This exchange, though it looked prolonged, hadn’t even taken a single breath.

Bai Qiuyin’s figure materialized beside the old monk. She glanced at his condition—nothing serious, just a bit drained from sealing away the Church’s power—before charging after the Demon Grand Duke once more. Within an instant, the void erupted with yet another round of spine-chilling combat sounds.

The others followed suit, rushing in to support, leaving the old monk alone to recover.

“Guess I’m getting old after all. Can’t keep up with the fight anymore.”

The old monk glanced at Weisasi getting swarmed from all sides, let out a soft sigh, and spoke with regret.

“You’re younger than me. What’s this about being old?”

At that moment, a pleasant, gentle female voice cut in, interrupting the old monk.