Six-Armed Serpent Demon

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Leaving aside physical harm, the Crimson Blade will strip away all the impurities such as emotions, memories, love, and hatred from the soul fragments it cuts off, transforming the remaining parts into pure soul energy, which is then absorbed and stored in the crimson blade.

The holder can use this soul energy to enhance the power of "Crimson Kiss," or to achieve other purposes. For example, souls are the currency and energy source of the lower planes; demons and devils can use them to draw soul energy, create soul stones, or even use them as casting materials. Another example is Patrick, the previous owner of the Crimson Blade, who used it to collect soul fragments to create "jewels" after receiving secret techniques from his lord Demogorgon.

For Ivy Beatrice, it's even simpler.

She once demonstrated her ability to directly devour souls in front of Patrick: with just a gentle suck on the recurve blade, the soul power that mortals and ordinary supernatural beings could not easily manipulate would obediently turn into a pale red glow, be absorbed by her, and then transformed into her own power.

This is an ability that only demon lords and gods could possess.

Ivy Beatrice hasn't relied on absorbing souls to increase her strength for some time now, because to her now, the souls of ordinary people are like dust, having almost no effect on her.

But now, the scorching, malevolent divinity is continuously being transformed into a vast, pure, and peaceful energy through the "Crimson Blade," flowing into the hands and arms of the six-armed serpent demon and being absorbed by her body.

The constant infusion of energy made her groan comfortably.

The emerald green vertical pupils became even brighter.

Diraz roared angrily in Ivy-Beate's mind, but Ivy-Beate merely curled the corners of her mouth slightly, thus blocking out the noise of the demonic concubine in her mind.

Diraz had set a trap for her. Although she couldn't be sure what the outcome would be, the sudden sense of crisis she felt when she placed her palm directly on the dragon's head to begin meditating reminded her of the impending crisis.

She had a sudden inspiration and thought of the "Crimson Kiss's" ability to remove impurities.

This method is indeed working well now; I no longer feel that chill down my spine.

This put her at ease.

Ivy Beatrice took a deep breath and focused her consciousness into the spiritual world.

She saw it.

This time, the blue-purple accretion disk of the black hole slowly rotated, and countless points of light scattered towards the Milky Way, generating colorful nebulae that veiled the dark void with a beautiful veil.

The North Star is brighter now.

Ivy Beatrice felt a continuous flow of divine power entering her brain through the sensory nerves in her arm, and then flowing into her spine.

Suddenly, along with the influx of divine power, unimaginable pain traveled from the back of her head down her spine to her tailbone, as if a sharp blade had ripped open her back.

But her spirituality told her that this was the right thing to do: stay calm, persevere, and don't hesitate.

The six-armed serpent demon gritted her teeth, feeling herself growing heavier and heavier, almost unbearable. So she used one hand to continue holding the "Crimson Kiss" piercing between the dragon's eyes, maintaining the transmission of divinity, while using her other five hands to support herself on the stone floor.

But to her astonishment, she saw seven white jade-like hands supporting her on the ground.

—When did I get two extra hands?

That's when she thought to observe her own body.

Ivy Beatrice then discovered that a pair of brand new jade arms had grown out from under her third pair of arms.

The changes did not only occur in the upper body of the human form.

Originally twenty feet long, its body had somehow grown a quarter longer, and the intense pain continued as the giant snake's body slowly extended.

The lower half of its serpentine body was still covered in jet-black scales, reflecting the client's satisfied light. Each scale shimmered with mysterious magical symbols, and golden divine flames occasionally flickered across these symbols.

Moreover, these scales are no longer limited to the snake's body.

With a single thought from Ivy Beatrice, new jet-black scales swiftly covered her abdomen, chest, and even neck, then spread and enveloped her eight arms, as if adding a natural black armor to herself.

Not enough...

but…

She looked at the stone floor not far away. The demonic marks, resembling the black stone texture, had faded even further, almost invisible to the naked eye.

Meanwhile, at the Stargazing Tower in Samarach.

The condensed flesh and blood of the little devil transformed into a ball of flesh, which then extended countless tentacles in all directions, hanging itself from the top of the observatory and its pillars, like a fleshy pupa.

This is a modified variant of the legendary magic "Trigger Resurrection" by Zaire, which he calls "Trigger Substitute Death".

The exclusive legendary spell "Trigger Death," modified by Zaire, has the same function as the legendary spell "Trigger Resurrection": it automatically triggers the spell upon the caster's death, allowing them to revive.

However, this magic was specifically designed for beings from lower planes. It could sacrifice his lesser demonic creatures at the same time as Zaire's resurrection, thereby obscuring the demonic mark and bypassing the world rules that restricted him as a great demon, allowing him to be resurrected directly in the prime material plane.

The humanoid Zaire tore open its fleshy membrane, like a butterfly emerging from its chrysalis.

He fell naked and covered in blood onto the floor of the observatory, slowly propped himself up, gasping for breath, and vomited out large amounts of flesh and blood.

He stood up, panting, leaning on the stone pillar.

Only then did he see a maidservant not far away staring at him in terror, trembling with fear.

He noticed the overturned silver plate, scattered berries, and spilled wine at her feet.

The Stargazing Tower was the solitary meditation place of the Archmage Zaire. Normally, no one was allowed to ascend to the top without his permission. But this girl was his most favored maid, and she had become somewhat arrogant. And this time, her arrogance was ill-timed.

Zaire smiled gently at the maid.

In the past, this smile would have a calming effect on any woman. But at this moment, the intense sense of defeat filled his eyes with incomprehension, rage, and hatred, and coupled with the blood all over his face, the smile clearly had the opposite effect.

The maid was so frightened that she shrank back.

Zaire's smile vanished.

The maid's terrified and helpless appearance involuntarily reminded him of her from his past life—that foolish, timid, and submissive woman.

This inexplicably ignited his anger, and he also felt a dull pain in his jaw and tongue.

—How dare you treat me like this when you used to do everything for me!

—You weren't like this before…

Zaire uttered a single word.

A terrifying, dark voice echoed from the top floor of the observatory. This was the devil's signature magical ability, "Blasphemy."

The maid's expression remained frozen on her face.

The next second, blood, now black as ink, flowed from her eyes, ears, and nose. The lifeless body fell straight down.

Zaire frowned, feeling a slight sense of relief.

He suddenly remembered that he should have made her get him some clothes and boots before killing her.

—But whatever, let's leave it at that.

Zaire laughed hoarsely, his eyes filled with a furious glint of annoyance.

“I underestimated you, my dear,” he muttered to himself. “So be it. I’m going to tear your head and spine off your six arms and spin them alive, and then slowly roast them in the fires of purgatory for millions of years… All I need by my side is your head.”

The human form rapidly increased in height and weight, transforming back into a great demon, before suddenly disappearing.

Zaire used "Advanced Teleportation" to send himself directly back to the underground passageway in the Sanlaqi Mountains, the place where he had just died.

Chapter 158 He

At this very moment, Ivy Beatrice found herself in trouble.

The six-armed serpent demon's eyes were always protected by the "True Knowledge Technique," allowing it to see through any illusion.

But now she was astonished to see that the surrounding scenery was sometimes in the underground chamber of the Sanlaqi Mountains, and sometimes back in the mysterious and ancient Four Symbols Tower.

Without anyone noticing, the stone slabs beneath them transformed into massive palace-style golden bricks, with rivers of mercury flowing freely around them. Inside the bronze armillary sphere, the golden flames that had nearly died out now burned much brighter.

At the same time, an ancient and simple true name echoed in her mind, but what came out of her mouth were two lengthy honorific titles: "Nine Heavens Thunder Ancestor Great Emperor Great Brahma Primordial Qian Yuan Giant Light Doumu Purple Light Golden Venerable Holy Empress Heavenly Empress Perfect Bright Dao Mother Heavenly Venerable" and "Brahma Qi Dharma Master Doumu Purple Light Heavenly Empress Marici Heavenly Great Saint".

Even their emerald-green vertical pupils were stunned.

These two titles, Ivy-Beate, no, Chu Shixin had heard of them before.

She remembered.

In her previous life, Chu Shixin's maternal grandfather was quite knowledgeable about classical culture, and her limited impressions of these two honorific titles came from her grandfather's study.

When Chu Shixin was very young, one evening she saw a telescope in her maternal grandfather's study. Curious, she looked through the telescope and saw countless stars in the sky... So her grandfather put her on his lap and taught her how to observe the stars. That stargazing session began with the North Star.

"That's Polaris, also known as the North Star. According to astronomical texts, Polaris is located in the Ziwei Palace, also called the North Star, the most revered star in the heavens. Pointing towards it are the seven stars of the Big Dipper. The Big Dipper and the North Star together form Doumu. This is the divine position bestowed upon the 'Golden Spirit Mother' after her death in the novel *Investiture of the Gods*. In Taoist scriptures, this divine position is extremely important. Doumu Ziguang Yuanzun is revered as the primordial Yin Goddess of Taoism, the mother of the stars of the Big Dipper…"

"However, the Chinese worship of the Big Dipper can be traced back 10,000 years. A rock painting discovered in Shizitan, Ji County, Shanxi Province, dating back 10,000 years, is the earliest known surviving example of ancient people's star worship. The rock painting is an abstract depiction of a female nude figure, with seven dots above her head and six dots around her legs, symbolizing the Big Dipper and the Southern Dipper respectively..."

"In the astrology of the Qin and Han dynasties, the Big Dipper was the most important standard star. Since ancient times, the Chinese have referred to the first as 'Kui Shou' or 'Kui Yuan.' 'Kui' means ghost or dipper, reflecting the concept that the Big Dipper governs killing and is the primary celestial body. Official histories preserve numerous records of celestial phenomena, and because the Big Dipper governs killing, celestial phenomena related to it are generally associated with punishment. Furthermore, due to the Big Dipper's unique position revolving around Polaris, it was believed to have the power to divide the four seasons and distinguish yin and yang. Because of the theory of the interaction between heaven and man, people believed that the brightness of the Big Dipper also reflected the merits and demerits of the emperor. Polaris was the imperial star. Therefore, the Analects says, 'Governing with virtue is like the North Star, which remains in its place while all the other stars revolve around it…'"

Her maternal grandfather told her the story of the Big Dipper in a soft, gentle voice, though his voice betrayed his advanced age.

"The most extreme believer in the Big Dipper was Wang Mang of the Han Dynasty. He was a devout follower of divination and prophecies. After usurping the throne, he had five stones of bronze cast into the 'Wei Dou,' which was essentially a bronze statue in the shape of the Big Dipper. He used this to ward off evil spirits and pray for his own invincibility. After the Wei Dou was cast, Wang Mang had his officials carry it on their backs. He kept it with him wherever he went, and constantly had the celestial officials report the Big Dipper's position so he could adjust its orbit around him to align with the heavens…"

"During the Song Dynasty, Zhang Boduan, one of the Five Patriarchs of the Southern School of Quanzhen Taoism, wrote a poem saying that medicine only takes form when it encounters its corresponding qi, and that aligning with the Dao is natural. Swallowing a single golden elixir, one realizes that one's fate is not determined by heaven. Meanwhile, Zhongli Quan and Lü Dongbin, two of the Five Patriarchs of the Northern School, transformed external alchemy into internal alchemy, unifying scattered cultivation methods such as internal observation, visualization, and qi circulation into a unified system known as internal alchemy, laying the foundation for the later Taoist system of internal alchemy and external talismans. The key to internal alchemy is to correspond the Big Dipper with the human body, cultivating qi through visualization of celestial deities. The initial stage of matching yin and yang requires visualizing a goddess who governs primordial yin qi, and whose position must correspond to that of the Primordial Heavenly Venerable who governs primordial yang qi. Thus, Doumu Yuanjun, the head goddess of Taoism, was born…"

Ivy Beatrice remembers this scene happening when Chu Shixin was in kindergarten in her previous life.

Her maternal grandfather passed away before she started elementary school. He was an avid stargazer. He was already confused when he told her these stories, rambling on and on without caring whether she understood or not.

This was originally a trivial matter, a memory from so long ago that it should have been forgotten long ago, but for some reason, it has now come to mind clearly.

She also recalled that the stars her grandfather saw that night were exactly the same as the ones she saw right now in the Four Symbols Tower of the spiritual world.

Before Ivy Beatrice could think any further, a sharp, piercing pain jolted her awake.

The emerald green vertical pupils blinked.

The surrounding environment transformed back into the Boto family's underground chamber.

Ivy-Beate looked down with some difficulty and saw that her alabaster chest and body were being pierced by four cold, black spears. This cold, black material... was cold iron, a metal that was the bane of demonic bodies.

Dark blue-black poisonous blood spilled from the corner of his mouth.

Ivy Beatrice forced herself to lift her head and saw the figure of the great devil Zaire standing in the doorway.

He was grinning maliciously at her.

Ivy Beatrice tried to cast a spell to leave, but found that the divine energy flowing from the "Crimson Kiss" was getting hotter and hotter, and her hand holding the knife was stuck to the hilt.

He felt as if he were one with the Soul Drinker Red Blade and the huge dragon head stone sculpture, unable to break free.

With her free hand, she laboriously pulled out four spears and threw them to the ground. The eight blue-black blood holes that pierced her chest and back, though not yet healed, were quickly covered by her jet-black scales.

"You're back pretty quickly," she said dismissively. "How many times did you use your legendary magic today? Do you have any more?"

Unless one possesses divinity, even a great demon, like a legendary mage, cannot cast legendary magic indefinitely.

Zaire was quite frank: "Exhausted... but enough to deal with you."

Almost simultaneously, dozens of spears appeared around the Great Demon's body, all floating and pointing at Ivy-Beate.

These spears were all made of cold iron.

Ivy Beatrice's heart sank slightly.

"You've grown two more hands and grown quite a bit taller in just a few minutes. Divinity is indeed a wonderful thing. Once I kill you, it will be mine."

Zaire said, "Constant anti-magic field, so this is the method you've been scheming to use against me, because I'm a legendary mage? I must commend you for your imagination, and it has indeed affected me somewhat, but your little anti-magic tricks end here."

If there is any magic that can counter the "anti-magic field," it is undoubtedly "telekinesis," which uses telekinesis to manipulate objects and throw them at a target.

This is because the intense force of "mind control" only occurs at the moment of throwing. What urges the object to continue flying and cause damage to the target afterwards is the physical inertia of the object's own mass, just like shooting an arrow or throwing a stone.

If someone like Zaire throws a spear from outside the "anti-magic field" into Ivy-Beate using telekinesis, the "anti-magic field" becomes unable to stop them.

Moreover, he combined telekinesis with magic such as "acceleration" when he threw the spear.

“Next time, thirty, no, one hundred and twenty would be even better,” Zaire said with a smile. “I forgot to tell you, I also really enjoy studying time-related magic.”

Ivy Beatrice smiled too.

“You talk too much nonsense,” she said. “So you think you can do telepathy?”

His emerald-green vertical pupils gleamed.

The next second, all the floating cold iron spears trembled simultaneously. But in the end, they came to a steady stop in mid-air.

Zaire laughed heartily.

He said mockingly, "Compete with a legendary mage for control of magic? What are you thinking!"

Ivy Beatrice laughed too, in the same mocking tone: "Who said I was fighting you for control of magic?"

Zaire raised an eyebrow, then scoffed, "Stubborn to the end."

However, suddenly, an excruciating, piercing pain once again pierced his chest and abdomen.

Zaire looked down in astonishment, just in time to see the silver-blue sword tip emerging from his chest. Unbeknownst to him, the "Mand of the Spellbreaker," which had been lying on the ground, had silently risen and pierced Zaire's heart from behind. This paladin's greatsword, with its "Good" alignment, was the bane of all evil creatures; a single strike pierced the great demon's body, covered in black and red scales and muscles, as easily as piercing tofu. Moreover, its "Anti-Magic" attribute had even affected his magical circulation.

Zaire roared in fury, "Aaaaaah, I'm going to rip you apart, you damn stinking [beep]!"

Just then, he saw Ivy Beatrice across from him raise a hand, her index finger pointing at him.