Chapter 321: Chapter 212: The Truth_2

But… it still only treats the symptoms, not the root cause.

The Demonic Qi inside her body remained difficult to refine.

If forced to do so, even if she managed to dispel the Demonic Qi in the end, her life would hardly be preserved.

Is the entanglement of Yuan Spirit and Demonic Qi in this world indeed so deeply rooted?

Or is it that my Thunder Series skills are too inferior to refine the Demonic Qi and ensure her survival at the same time?

Both are true!

Xu Yang always knew that his mastery of the Thunder Series, to the eyes of mortals, was indeed extremely proficient, even perfect, but that was only in the eyes of mortals after all.

In the eyes of true Immortal Gods and before the actual heavenly thunder, his little tricks barely made it to the table.

Therefore, at this moment, he couldn’t do it; he was unable to refine the Demonic Qi while preserving her life.

There were still deficiencies, many deficiencies.

Yet, Xu Yang was not discouraged; on the contrary, he was somewhat pleased.

Deficiencies meant there was room for improvement, a possibility for growth.

In cultivation, it’s not the difficulty of the path one should fear, but the absence of a path altogether.

Only by pushing forward from the pole’s summit can one reach the peak and transcend the ordinary to become a saint.

…

“Hm!”

When the mana receded and the thunder vanished, Li Suhong also slowly woke, surveying her surroundings with a slightly bewildered gaze.

She was immediately taken aback upon seeing a stranger in front of her, hurriedly sitting up, only to find her clothes completely shredded, not a thread on her. This realization filled her with terror. Not having time to even gather her thoughts, she reached for her sword despite the weakness of her body.

However…

Xu Yang didn’t even glance at her. His sword acted as a pen, and once again he cast a Talisman into the air, which turned into Spirited Light and surged into her brow, suppressing her mind once more. Her uncontrolled body remained rigid, like a statue rooted to the ground.

“Watch her.”

Xu Yang dropped this instruction and then, without waiting to see how Qing reacted, turned and walked toward his own hut.

Qing stood still, looking at the departing Xu Yang, then at Li Suhong, as naked and unmoving as a statue, unsure of what to do.

But this was of no concern to Xu Yang. Inside the hut, in front of the Mana Altar, he took out the soul of Taoist Zhu Yang which he had specifically preserved, preparing to begin a soul search.

This Taoist Zhu Yang, having achieved the full potential of Foundation Establishment, was considered a power to be reckoned with as a Loose Cultivator. Even the Great Xing’s Searching Immortal Envoys like Yuwen Jie and Shen Hongyu had to give him face, and even worked with him to divide the spoils of the Wuzhe Spirit Fish.

Pity he met Xu Yang.

The might of the Thunder Series need not be mentioned; it was particularly effective against demons and Evil Cultivators.

Even with a whole tier of difference between Qi Refinement and Foundation Establishment, a cultivator tainted by demons could hardly withstand the Thunder Series’ righteousness. In just three strikes, their lives were ended.

Death was to be expected.

If they did not die, that would be the unusual.

Zhuanzhou Mengdie, the Three Teachings Co-Dao, and now with top-tier potential and top-tier Cultivation Techniques; if even with all these one couldn’t fight beyond one’s tier in the early stages, then what was the point of cultivating at all? Better to just find a place and smash one’s head dead, saving oneself the embarrassment and the waste of resources.

…

Compared to the battle before his death, searching the soul afterward proved more troublesome.

Although a dead ghost posed no threat to him, a soul search could lead to incomplete information.

Information was precisely what Xu Yang lacked. He needed to understand this world, and the situation in this Demon Realm, to figure out just what was going on so that he could break free from this absolute predicament and escape to safety.

Yes, an absolute predicament. Even for him, it remained a predicament.

Long before the others, he had sensed the anomalies in the heavens and earth, the changes in the demon currents, and had immediately set out, planning to wisely keep himself unharmed and flee a thousand miles away.

Then he discovered that this place had become a land confined by Demonic Qi.

The Demonic Qi was rampant, blocking the heavens and sealing the earth, seemingly with an Illusion Array at work, leaving no visible exit.

This came as a surprise to Xu Yang.

After all, he was a fourth-tier Array Formation Grandmaster.

Though his Cultivation was too low and his Mana insufficient, preventing him from using many techniques, his insight remained.

The fact that he couldn’t find an exit spoke volumes about the horror of this Demon Realm.

Xu Yang even had the feeling that this Demon Realm wasn’t just an ordinary array; it concealed a force that he currently couldn’t understand.

What kind of force?

He had no idea.

But one thing was certain.

He was trapped, confined within this Demon Realm.

This was unexpected, beyond his plans.

Regarding this, Xu Yang didn’t have a good solution. He could only take one step at a time and try to break through.

How to break through?

First, he needed to understand his own situation.

Know yourself and the enemy, and you will never be in peril in a hundred battles. Without clarity on both friend and foe, how could one talk about breaking through and triumphing?

Therefore, Xu Yang needed information, vital information that could help him clarify everything and discern the situation.

Such a crucial moment required the use of techniques to ensure absolute success.

First, incense was offered upon the altar, then ghost gods were summoned.

It was still the Yin Mountain Jifa, the Five Chaotic Generals and Soldiers.

Aside from combat, this method had many uses; the Five Chaotic Generals and Soldiers it cultivated each had their own duties and specialized in different techniques.

For instance, the “Patrolling the River and Lake’s Five Chaotics” that he had now raised were the “Water Army” among the Five Chaotic Generals and Soldiers, able to mobilize the power of the Martial World and move extremely quickly in water, with various spells and strong water combat capabilities.

Now, Xu Yang was preparing to draw out five Underworld Ghosts to form a squad of “Handcuff Soul Five Rampages” to help him search for souls.

Although training the troops at this moment seemed somewhat like hurried preparations for battle, having them was better than not, wasn’t it?

Soon, the five ghosts were refined and entered the Mana Altar.

Xu Yang sat down cross-legged, casting spells with all his might, beginning the soul search.

“Ahhh!!!”

Amid a piercing scream, memories flowed like water, information emerged, as if pages turning before his eyes.

“Heavenly Demon?”

“Ancient Immortals?”

“Spiritual Treasure?”

“Corpse Resolution?”

“Demon Realm?”

“Demon Catastrophe!”

“Nine Sects Alliance, the whole sect’s Ascension?”

“Three Death Lands, Nine Demon Realms?”

“Demon Seed, Demon Fetus, Demon Object, True Demon?”

“Five Visceral Pills Technique, Slaughtering Demon Fetus Skill, Corpse Resolution Immortal Technique…”

The Secret Techniques shattered the soul, but the memories flowed out in their entirety.

Xu Yang, sitting on the cushion, only opened his eyes after a long time.

“So that’s how it is, that’s how it is!”

“The trial of demonic nature, the Corpse Resolution Technique!”

“The Sealed Death Land, the cataclysm of the Demon Catastrophe!”

“A glimmer of survival in a desperate situation?”

“Could it be… the will of heaven?”

Xu Yang murmured to himself, having sorted it all out.

All of this had to start from a time long, long ago.

In the distant past, this world was but an ordinary Cultivation World of Yuan Spirits.

Though it lacked the sky-full of deities and buddhas like the World of Dao and Law, there were still many Ancient Immortals who cultivated with the Heavenly Earth Prime Spirits and even received the inheritance of Taoism, Buddhism, and Confucianism.

According to Taoist Zhu Yang’s memories and Xu Yang’s own comparisons, the power of these ancient immortals was far inferior to the deities and buddhas of the World of Dao and Law, at best they were equivalent to real-world Integration Great Power, or Mahayana True Immortals, and possibly even less.

Even though the powers of these ancient immortals were limited, the resources of this world were incredibly rich, with an abundance of prime spirits in heaven and earth, highly suitable for Yuan Spirit cultivators, leading to a golden age of cultivation with many sects thriving and numerous Spiritual Treasures as their potential, their fortunes enduring, and their teachings prosperous.

Until then, the Heavenly Demon descended!

Where did the Heavenly Demon come from?

No one knew.

It was only known that the Heavenly Demon was sinister and taboo, an entity not tolerated by heaven and earth.

The ancient immortals battled against it fiercely, upturning the heavens and the earth, blood flowing into rivers.

In that battle, the ancient immortals dyed the sky with their blood, while the Heavenly Demon suffered countless deaths and injuries.

Eventually, the “Heavenly Demon Gate” was sealed, and the ancient immortals won a tragic victory.

But this victory was indeed tragic; not only did they suffer heavy losses, but they also failed to completely eradicate the scourge of the Heavenly Demon.

Although the Heavenly Demon was defeated, three great Demon Artifacts remained firmly embedded in this world, forming three Death Lands that not even immortals could enter.

Beyond the three Death Lands, there were also nine Demon Regions which were remnants of the calamity left by the Heavenly Demon.

The combination of the two contaminated heaven and earth, causing the prime spirits and Demonic Qi to merge, gradually transforming into prime spirit Demonic Qi.

The surviving ancient immortals wanted to eradicate these three Death Lands and nine Demon Regions, but after numerous attempts, they found that behind these places seemed to be connected to the Heavenly Demon Realm, continuously supported by the Heavenly Demon Realm.

After several attempts, even risking everything, the ancient immortals were still unable to uproot these Death Lands and Demon Regions.

Having no choice, the ancient immortals could only choose Ascension, to the Upper Realm in search of magic-breaking and world-saving methods.

But like the ascenders of the World of Dao and Law, those ancient immortals who ascended disappeared without a trace, and as the last ancient immortal sitting in meditation passed away, there was no one who returned to resolve the demonic disaster.

The demonic disaster was unresolved, and the Demon Catastrophe did not subside.

With the foul and evil prime spirit Demonic Qi,

how could one cultivate?

Thus, after the last ancient immortal passed away in meditation, this world never saw another immortal again.

Until later, the Corpse Resolution Immortal Technique was revealed to the world.