With Demonic Dao Traces powering the attacks of the Demonic Sentinels, its attacks could be particularly dangerous for several cultivators.

Demonic Qi was already something that could cause the Qi of immortals to go in an array, not to mention Demonic Dao Traces that would easily punch through their defenses if they were not prepared.

Even if they had used defensive Qi skills, there was a chance that the Demonic Dao Skill would be able to overpower it. It did not work the same as immortal Qi after all, and there was no guarantee a normal Qi skill would defend against it.

After all, Dao Skills were often a lot more powerful than most Qi skills. One of the few ways of defending against them was to use another Dao Skill. But that would only be possible if the person fighting knew that the opponent was using a Dao Skill.

In the case of the Demonic Sentinel it was almost instantaneous and none of the common signs, such as the appearance of a Dao Embryo and Dao Shell were noted. Even the presence of Dao Traces was hard to note, especially if they were something a person had not experienced before, like the Demonic Dao Traces.

As such, Elder Hu was disadvantaged from the start.

~CLANG~CLANG~CLANG~

The arms of the Demonic Sentinel struggled against the lances that were impaling it and tried to pull them out. But these were no normal lances and the starlight in them seemingly overpowered the Demonic Sentinel's Demonic energy.

"We need to find the source of Demonic Qi as well as the Dao Trace Vessel for the statue. It will stop working if both are removed.

" Ziran informed.

~WOONG~

And just as he said this, the Demonic Sentinel seemingly charged up for another attack. Its hundreds of eyes moved and glared at the lances that were impaling it. Then a second later, they glowed red, before shooting beams at the lances.

~SHATTER~

The lances only lasted for a couple of seconds before breaking under the power of a Dao Skill.

"I'll hold it back!

" Lin Mu shouted before punching at the Demonic Sentinel, trying to keep it in place.

But Lin Mu did not have the same disadvantage as Elder Hu. He fought against the Demonic Sentinel with the Longgui Bulwark armor active. It protected him from the statue's attacks that came from all directions while also amplifying his own power.

The eight arms of the Demonic Sentinel moved like snakes trying to hit Lin Mu's vulnerabilities, but they were unable to do so.

"HAAA!

" Lin Mu raised both his hands and brought them down like a hammer at the center of the statue.

~BANG~

The Demonic Sentinel was struck hard and pushed back, its arms flailing around but unable to strike Lin Mu.

~HUSSA~

Lin Mu slid back, putting some distance between him and the Demonic Sentinel. He had seen the red beams and knew that they were the greater threat than the physical attacks. 'It cannot use them nonstop, and needs to charge every so often.' Lin Mu understood from seeing the delay between the usage of the Dao Skill.

"But where is its power source?

" he wondered, trying to scan the statue with his Spatial Perception.

Their immortal sense was still suppressed in this area, thus they were disadvantaged on the analytical side too. Otherwise, it would have been much easier for them to navigate the trapped areas.

But after a while, Lin Mu was still unable to determine where the power source of the Demonic Sentinel was.

"I can't tell where the power source is!

" Lin Mu informed them, before heading in to block the Demonic Sentinel again.

Its arms glowed with red energy, as it started to utilize a different type of attacks now. Each blow of the statue's arm left red trails behind it while the power behind them increased by at least twice.

~SHING~

"Let's see how you fare against a blade!

" Lin Mu reckoned if he couldn't spot it from the surface, he might as well cut into it.

He drew out both Afternoon Pine and Ocean Raker, using them at once.

~SLASH~

He swung out Ocean Raker first, creating a long energy rift infused with Sword Intent that charged at the Demonic Sentinel. ~HONG~

He swung out Afternoon Pine next, using the inbuilt Qi skill. Metal elemental immortal Qi surged into the blade along with Lin Mu's Sword Intent, transforming into a yellow metal pine tree that tried to shred the Demonic Sentinel.

'If not for Immortal Sense being suppressed, I could have let Afternoon Pine fight on its own.' Lin Mu thought to himself.

The Immortal weapons needed Immortal sense to control them. If the Immortal Sense was restricted, it meant that the weapons could only be used when the cultivator was holding them physically. Sparks flew everywhere, as the sword slashes collided with the Demonic Sentinel. Its body was tough and only faint scratches were left on it, despite Lin Mu's attacks. But this didn't mean that his attacks were doing nothing.

The metal pine tree was especially good at holding it back, as its branches intertwined with the Demonic Sentinel's arms and its trunk acted like an anchor keeping the statue in place.

"So this works…

" Lin Mu noted and used Afternoon Pine's skill six more times, causing multiple metal pine trees to sprout.

These entangled the Demonic Sentinel even more, keeping its arms occupied. Even if its arms managed to break the branches, the other trees grew more to keep it in place.

With the Demonic Sentinel being held in place, Lin Mu could now focus on larger attacks. ~huu~

As such, he took a deep breath and sheathed Afternoon Pine. Instead, he held Ocean Raker with both hands and raised it up high.

While Afternoon Pine was more versatile, making Lin Mu use it more; in terms of pure power, Ocean Raker was actually better.

'Perhaps a more concentrated slash might break through its defenses.' Lin Mu thought to himself, as a plan appeared in his mind.