"No, don't, give back the Ferocious Demon Core to me!"
The ancient Gu Shixun, frail and old, screamed desperately, unwilling to lose his demonic soul.
However, Mu Qingqing paid him no heed. She directly extracted the Ferocious Demon Core and stored it within her Star Wheel Pupils.
This Ferocious Demon Core was meant to be returned to Chu Ruoxuan, as the demonic soul had long been fused with Chu Ruoxuan's soul.
Without this demonic soul, Chu Ruoxuan's physical body would be nothing but an empty shell.
Seeing Gu Shixun before her, on the verge of death and utterly depleted, Mu Qingqing saw no reason to concern herself.
Having been drained of his life essence by the demonic soul, the man was already close to death.
The defeat of the Ferocious Demon Core brought a glimmer of hope to the people of Mingguang City.
The other Saint Emperors, witnessing Mu Qingqing's performance, were astonished.
Dao Yuanming, meanwhile, remained entangled with three Nether Gods.
"Damn it, can you three darkies stop moving? My ultimate move missed again!"
Dao Yuanming cursed, watching the three incredibly fast black figures.
"Yo, Dean, need a hand?"
Mu Qingqing observed from the side, a slight smile gracing her lips.
"You little brat, stop spectating and come help me."
"I can help, but who was it hiding in the shadows watching the fun in the Lin family dungeon last time?"
"Uh... let's not dwell on such a trivial matter."
Dao Yuanming coughed dryly.
Mu Qingqing only intended to tease the Dean a bit. With Mingguang City facing a crisis, she would undoubtedly intervene.
Under her control, the Sixteen Star Moon Chains transformed into streaks of silver lightning, weaving rapidly amongst the three Nether Gods.
Even with their incredible speed, the Nether Gods were unable to escape the lock of Mu Qingqing's Star Wheel Pupils.
They were instantly bound by the chains.
Dao Yuanming seized the opportunity to retrieve a top-grade True Artifact, the Gryphon Spear, from his Spatial Ring.
Simultaneously, he traced mysterious runes in the air, infusing them into the Gryphon Spear.
The Gryphon Spear's power surged, reaching the level of a Half-Saint Artifact.
Mu Qingqing's eyes lit up; the Dean's runic techniques were indeed miraculous.
Then, Dao Yuanming gathered his strength and hurled the spear. The Gryphon Spear, imbued with a world-piercing sharpness and swirling with a tempest, tore through the three Nether Gods.
With a resounding boom.
The bodies of the three Nether Gods exploded.
Dao Yuanming, as expected of a peak Saint Emperor, annihilated three five-star Saint Emperor level Nether Gods with a single strike.
After dealing with these three Nether Gods, Mu Qingqing and Dao Yuanming did not delay, rushing to assist the other Saint Emperors.
Meanwhile, the demon Yuan Qing had already exchanged dozens of blows with Emperor Ming.
The two remained evenly matched.
Yuan Qing was growing impatient.
Emperor Ming's combat prowess was terrifying; even with the combined might of himself and the Shadow Bat King, it was difficult to subdue Emperor Ming.
Seeing that the Ferocious Demon Core had been dealt with by an unknown woman and several of his summoned Nether Gods were dead,
Yuan Qing, sensing the unfavorable turn of events, decided not to continue the fight and began to retreat.
"You think you can escape!"
Emperor Ming would not let this opportunity to eliminate the demon slip away. He immediately unleashed his Saint Artifact, the Sacred Illumination Sword!
As the Sacred Illumination Sword was drawn, the sky was instantly bathed in sacred light.
Although Emperor Ming was a Saint-level artifact refiner, Saint Artifacts were notoriously difficult to forge, and their materials were scarce.
Therefore, he had only managed to refine two Saint Artifacts so far: the Saint Dragon Pagoda and the Sacred Illumination Sword.
The fact that he was deploying the Sacred Illumination Sword indicated that Shen Wei intended to kill Yuan Qing.
The Sacred Illumination Sword, combined with the Sacred Light Sword Intent, unleashed a strike that created a colossal sword in the sky, seemingly cleaving it apart.
However, Yuan Qing was not easily dealt with. With a wave of his hand, a mirror radiating profound righteousness appeared before him.
A Saint Artifact, the Profound Heaven Mirror!
The brilliance emitted by the Profound Heaven Mirror blocked Emperor Ming's Sacred Illumination Sword.
Upon seeing this mirror, Shen Wei's expression drastically changed: "This is the Profound Heaven Mirror from Xuan Kong Mountain!"
Now Shen Wei found it incomprehensible; not only did Yuan Qing know the Seven Kill Sword Technique of the Mortal Heart Divine Court, but he also possessed the Profound Heaven Mirror of Xuan Kong Mountain.
Yuan Qing, seizing this moment, successfully opened a void tunnel and escaped the scene.
With Yuan Qing's departure, the remaining Nether Gods and demonic creatures were left leaderless.
Under the combined assault of Mu Qingqing and the other Saint Emperors, they were all annihilated.
Although Yuan Qing escaped, the crisis in Mingguang City was temporarily resolved.
Emperor Ming addressed the other Saint Emperors: "You have all worked hard. Thank you for your assistance; Mingguang City was able to overcome this crisis because of you."
"Your Majesty Emperor Ming, you need not say such things. As Saint Emperors of Mingguang City, it is our duty to act."
"If thanks are to be given, it must be to Emperor Dao, and… to this peak Saint Emperor."
The other Saint Emperors shifted their gaze to Mu Qingqing.
Truth be told, if not for Mu Qingqing's appearance and her elimination of the formidable Ferocious Demon Core,
They likely would not have achieved victory.
Emperor Ming looked at Dao Yuanming curiously: "Old gambler, how did your Saint Emperor student appear in Mingguang City?"
While Mu Qingqing's intervention had aided them, Emperor Ming and the other Saint Emperors were puzzled by her timely arrival.
Furthermore, no one had sensed her approach; it was as if she had materialized out of thin air in Mingguang City.
As Dao Yuanming was about to answer, Mu Qingqing winked at him, signaling him not to reveal her identity.
Dao Yuanming understood, coughed slightly, and feigned seriousness, "Well... actually, this girl came to Mingguang City with me from the start. She just left for a while midway and arrived a bit late."
"However, this little girl's timing was quite good, and she helped us a great deal."
Hearing this, the other Saint Emperors chimed in with praise.
"So she's a student of Senior Emperor Dao, my apologies."
"I never expected that when Emperor Dao returned to Mingguang City, he wouldn't cause trouble but would instead bring a peak Saint Emperor."
"Indeed, Senior Emperor Dao actually contributed to Mingguang City for once."
Dao Yuanming: "..."
Why do these words sound so awkward? Are they praising me or insulting me?
However, Emperor Ming, knowing Dao Yuanming better than anyone, could see that the old gambler was deliberately withholding something about Mu Qingqing.
Emperor Ming's gaze remained fixed on Mu Qingqing, as if trying to discern something from her.
Moreover, he found Mu Qingqing's male attire strangely familiar, resembling that worn by Xin Ci.
Dao Yuanming quickly shielded Mu Qingqing and said to Emperor Ming, "Shen Wei, why are you staring at my student like that? Are you trying to eat young grass, old bull?"
"Get lost, you old gambler. Your words are becoming more outrageous."
Emperor Ming rolled his eyes at Dao Yuanming, clearly annoyed.
However, he knew that despite Dao Yuanming's tendency to cause trouble, the old gambler would never betray him.
Therefore, this woman before him was likely not an enemy.
"By the way, Senior Emperor Ming, this is Chu Ruoxuan's demonic soul."
A sharp glint flashed in Mu Qingqing's Star Wheel Pupils, and a small vortex appeared.
A ball of purple demonic soul emerged from it.
Emperor Ming's body trembled, and he exclaimed excitedly, "This is Ruoxuan's demonic soul!"
But Emperor Ming soon shook his head in despair, "It's no use even if the demonic soul is back. Ruoxuan cannot be saved."