BOOM!
With an unstoppable, tyrannical presence, Chen Xuanba's broadsword, like the Dawn Hammer, brutally tore through the Sea of Fire Purgatory and stabbed straight toward the Purple Mansion Daoist's chest.
"PFFT!"
The Purple Mansion Daoist of the Blazing Fire Sect coughed up a mouthful of blood.
Covered in his own blood and beaten to the point of being unable to fight back, the skinny old Daoist of the Blazing Fire Sect had a sudden look of realization and began to laugh, a morbid, crazed sound.
"I understand now! You're trying to change your cultivation path!"
RUMBLE!
As soon as he spoke, it was as if heaven and earth themselves had reacted.
In an instant, thunder roared and a Yin Wind howled across the land, like the wrath of a furious god.
Chen Xuanba was furious. "How dare you, old dog!"
BANG!
Along with a deafening bang, Chen Xuanba's wild and unrestrained tyrannical Demon Sword, seemingly imbued with endless destructive power, successfully broke through the Purple Mansion Daoist's fiercely burning flame defense.
The black clouds roiled, and the raging flames were extinguished.
In the sky, a Life Star suddenly dimmed. But before he died, this Purple Mansion ancestor of the Blazing Fire Sect laughed heartily.
He made no attempt to defend or resist. Instead, he used his last ounce of strength to scream hysterically.
"Chen Xuanba, Holy Sect Demon Son, seeks to change his cultivation path to attain the Divinity Transformation Fruit Position of [Sea Gold]! I, the junior scholar Chen Qingjing, invite all fellow Daoists in the world to stop him!"
BOOM!
A shocking clap of thunder exploded in the sky.
The Purple Mansion had fallen, its Life Star dimmed.
Chen Qingjing's broken body fell like a shooting star, but his final words transformed into a rolling thunder that echoed between heaven and earth.
Chen Xuanba's face was as dark as water, and he gritted his teeth so hard they audibly scraped together.
He hadn't expected the old man's true intention wasn't to gather intelligence, but to discover which cultivation path he was switching to.
"Vile old dog! I will tear you to pieces and imprison your Divine Soul in the Soul-Devouring Demon Abyss for all eternity, never to be reborn!"
Chen Xuanba shot downwards.
His tyrannical Demon Sword slashed through the air, instantly opening a deep gash from which blood gushed like a blooming red lotus.
The skinny old man's entire Blood Qi was extracted by an unseen force, transforming into crimson threads that flowed directly into the Demon Sword.
And that wasn't all. Chen Xuanba also captured his Divine Soul. Just as he'd sworn, the old man could forget about being reborn in this lifetime!
The Demon Disciples watching from below were deeply shaken.
Anyone with discerning eyes could see that the esteemed Master Demon Child, Chen Xuanba, had not used his full strength when killing the Purple Mansion Daoist from the Blazing Fire Sect!
As for terms like "cultivation path" and "Fruit Position," the Demon Disciples hadn't understood a single word.
...
The sky began to pale with the first light of dawn.
Just then, he felt a sudden warmth from the Communication Jade Talisman in his robes, and a rushed voice came through.
"Junior Brother Tang, I've run into that Foundation Establishment Cultivator..."
Hou Qi didn't get to finish.
It was immediately followed by a distress call from Tang Tianhe: "In danger. Come quickly."
Seeing the faintly lit sky, Qin Xuan suddenly recalled the contents of the two Divinations.
[Middle-Middle Draw: Go to Yellow Demon Peak to search for the spy. At dawn, you will encounter a Qi Cultivation Seventh Layer Cultivator at full strength. By using all your techniques, you will barely manage to kill them, exhausting yourself completely. You will obtain a Ninth-Grade Opportunity, but a fellow disciple will loot your 'corpse.' No mortal danger. Neutral.]
[Middle-Lower Draw: Go to Celestial Demon Peak to search for the spy. At dawn, you will encounter a Foundation Establishment Cultivator. You will gain nothing. The Sect Array's protection will not reach you in time. There is a risk of death. Ominous.]
The Golden Finger was right!
Looking at the distant horizon, he realized it was exactly dawn!
"Wait for me here. Senior Brother Hou ran into a Foundation Establishment Cultivator on Celestial Demon Peak. I'm going to save him!"
Qin Xuan threw out the sentence, tapped his toes lightly, and shot toward Celestial Demon Peak without a backward glance.
Hou Qi was on Celestial Demon Peak.
The other Demon Disciples were stunned for a moment before they processed his words.
Save Senior Brother Hou?
One Demon Disciple stared at Qin Xuan's departing figure in awe and muttered.
"When did Senior Brother Qin get so brave? He's even willing to take on a Foundation Establishment Cultivator?!"
The other Demon Disciples deeply agreed, nodding one after another.
...
Qin Xuan reached the foot of Profound Demon Peak.
Once he was sure no one was watching, a Blood Talisman on his Lifebound Longsword lit up. His figure instantly became illusory and vanished into the void.
If any Demon Disciples had been there, they would have been flabbergasted, because while Qin Xuan had claimed he was going to save Hou Qi, he had instead turned and sped toward Yellow Demon Peak, where Tang Tianhe was.
'I'm on Profound Demon Peak right now. Celestial Demon Peak is too far, and there's a Foundation Establishment Cultivator there. Saving Hou Qi is not worth it at all.'
'Tang Tianhe is on Yellow Demon Peak, which is closer and safer.'
Most importantly, there was a Ninth-Grade Opportunity over there.
Every little bit counts.
Qin Xuan's Realm had already broken through to the Qi Cultivation Sixth Layer. Even against a Qi Cultivation Seventh Layer Cultivator at full strength, he could fight them to a standstill with a relentless barrage of Ghost Shadow Seven Kills, not to mention that his opponent's strength would already be greatly depleted by Tang Tianhe.
...
「Daqian, Cyan Cloud Sect」
Dozens of towering mountain peaks floated in the sky. Immortal Cranes danced through the air, their wings shedding streams of light as they weaved through the mist-shrouded horizon, creating a scene like a paradise on earth.
From time to time, Cultivators could be seen standing on flying swords, transforming into sword-light rainbows as they streaked across the sky.
On the Lingxu Platform of the centermost and tallest majestic, floating peak, sat a young man in a cyan Daoist Robe, his presence transcendent and otherworldly. A faint golden light surrounded him, as if he carried an infinite and vast Dao Rhyme, making him one with heaven and earth.
The young man was handsome with fair skin and appeared to be in his twenties, yet his full head of snow-white hair and ancient aura spoke of immense age.
Suddenly, the young man's eyes snapped open. A brilliant light flashed within them, like an inverted river of stars that could see through the Nine Heavens and ten earths.
"Little Qingjing, did you succeed?"
With a flip of his hand, a vast Star Map materialized in his palm.
Hundreds of Life Stars hung upon it, glowing brightly.
The next moment, the Life Star representing his disciple, Chen Qingjing, dimmed and extinguished without any warning!
Immediately after, a familiar, old, and weak voice echoed in his ears.
"Chen Xuanba, Holy Sect Demon Son, seeks to change his cultivation path to attain the Fruit Position of [Sea Gold]! I, the junior scholar Chen Qingjing, invite all fellow Daoists in the world to stop him!"
"Good!"
The young man shot to his feet. He pinched his fingers together in a divinatory gesture and instantly understood.
"No wonder I could never divine the specific reason."
"So that old fiend Dugu Hong secretly switched this Demon Pup's cultivation path from [Sand Gold] to [Sea Gold], and he's only missing a Yin Wood Position."
"But this is good. Now, I only need to seal all the Zhanmeng Grotto Heavens under Daqian's jurisdiction, and he can forget about ever succeeding!"
The young man took a single step forward.
The scenery around him shifted, and in an instant, he had traveled millions of miles to a Grotto Heaven Blessed Land.
Within the Grotto Heaven, a lush, verdant Taiyi Yin Vine, teeming with Spiritual Qi and of an unknown age, appeared before him with its tangled roots and branches.
The young man waved his hand, and the Vitality of the once-flourishing Taiyi Yin Vine was instantly snuffed out.
At that moment, all Cultivators in the world who were seeking to attain the [Yin Wood] Position felt their hearts tighten as their Cultivation inexplicably dropped by several degrees!
The young man's dark pupils narrowed slightly.
His gaze pierced through the clouds, staring directly into the firmament.
"This is only the first."
"Qingjing, Lin'Er, rest assured. Your master will not let you die in vain!"
...