Chapter 502 - 458: Inventory, Cognition

Day after day, until nearly a month had passed.

At dusk, the setting sun made the sky bleed.

The endlessly surging Beast Tide finally scattered like birds and beasts, receding like the ocean tide.

Beneath the blood-soaked sky, a boundless sea of blood still churned.

Countless human corpses and demon beast carcasses—some whole, some broken, some mere fragments—tumbled in the crimson seawater, a grim and glaring sight.

The surviving Cultivators, in groups of two and three, cleaned up the gory battlefield under the command of the Chen Family's Foundation Establishment cultivators.

High in the sky, Chen Family Cultivators hovered, casting spells. They assisted the Chen Family's Nascent Soul existence, who was suspended even higher, in manipulating the weather to obliterate the dense Blood Qi that had accumulated in the heavens.

Snowflakes as large as goose feathers drifted down. As the crimson color churning in the sky faded, the thick stench of blood that saturated the sea also visibly dissipated.

Chu Mu hovered above the sea. As the faint red glow around his body faded, the mottled bloodstains on his clothes vanished along with it.

He glanced at the cruel, boundless crimson scenery, then took a step. As if using Shrinking Inches, he crossed the entire sea region in just a few breaths and once again set foot on Earth Demon Island.

After the bloody battle, the island was desolate. The grueling fight had seen the Cultivators on Earth Demon Island replaced batch after batch. Even those who survived would likely find it difficult to face the aftermath with composure.

The entire Earth Demon Island was deathly silent. The few Cultivators visible were spattered with blood, unable to hide their exhaustion and the lingering terror in their hearts.

Chu Mu walked along the street, his pace unhurried. As he surveyed the bleak, desolate silence, a flicker of emotion stirred in his indifferent eyes.

'Between life and death, there is great terror!'

This month of grueling battle, with its countless scenes of life and death, had been a terrifying, life-or-death struggle even for many High Tier Cultivators. For the Low Tier Cultivators, who were treated like cannon fodder, it was unimaginably worse.

During the month-long battle, legion after legion composed entirely of Low Tier Cultivators were continuously thrown into this gory Bloodbath.

A legion of over a thousand Cultivators could be completely submerged in this Bloodbath without causing the slightest ripple.

Their only purpose was to trade their lives to wear down the surging Beast Tide.

Faced with such terror, it was natural that there were more than a few deserters on the front lines.

But without exception, they were all brutally suppressed and cut down on the spot.

He had spent dozens of days fighting within the Beast Tide, witnessing more life and death than he had seen in his entire life.

Whether it was the Qi Cultivation Realm, the Foundation Establishment Realm, or even the lofty Golden Core Realm, all were like weeds in the face of the overwhelming Beast Tide.

The only difference was the size of the storm each weed could withstand.

And within this Beast Tide, he alone had witnessed the fall of more than a handful of fellow Golden Core Cultivators.

This Beast Tide had undoubtedly refreshed his understanding of them.

He had originally thought that a Beast Tide was simply about overwhelming numbers, a case of many ants biting an elephant to death.

But what he saw this time was a Beast Tide that not only possessed nearly infinite, overwhelming, and relentless numbers...

...but also had clear organization and specific countermeasures aimed at High Tier Cultivators.

Take the two Tier Three Demon Beasts he first encountered. Normally, two Demon Beasts of different species, lacking full Spiritual Wisdom, would never cooperate so tacitly against a foe, even if swept up in a Beast Tide. More often, they would act on their savage, frenzied instincts.

And those two Tier Three Demon Beasts, swept up in the tide, were clearly not some direct descendants of a major Demon Race power who had their Spiritual Wisdom awakened early.

Yet, somehow, those two Tier Three Demon Beasts of different species were able to cooperate, even coordinating with that Demon Beast Puppet. They distracted He Fengshan's attention and enabled the Bone-Transforming Beast to launch a successful sneak attack by self-destructing.

And from his observations, such tacit cooperation wasn't limited to just the Red Cloud Beast and Golden-winged Bird he had encountered.

Within the Beast Tide, aside from the Low Tier Demon Beasts, the other Tier Two and Tier Three Demon Beasts were almost all coordinating in an organized fashion. It was obvious a Spiritual Demon was manipulating them from the shadows.

Furthermore, self-destructing Demon Beast Puppets like the Bone-Transforming Beast were hidden among the countless Low Tier Demon Beasts under this organization, cooperating with High Tier Demon Beasts to ambush and assassinate High Tier Cultivators within the Beast Tide.

Although the method was simple, it was undoubtedly extremely effective amidst the pervasive dangers of the Beast Tide.

A single opening could often easily cost a High Tier Cultivator their life.

'And this was just a Beast Tide that could only be considered a common offensive. Moreover, this was just the Profound Serpent Race…'

'What kind of terror would the horrifying Beast Tides of the past have been, the ones that drove straight in from the Outer Sea and dealt several major defeats to the Vast Sea Cultivation Immortal World?'

At this thought, a sense of urgency inexplicably welled up in Chu Mu's heart. The slight complacency born from reaching Core Formation had vanished without a trace.

'The higher you stand, the more you see, and the more terrifying it is.'

'In the eyes of those lofty existences, a Tier Three being is just a slightly larger ant, mere cannon fodder.'

'If I want to truly control my own destiny, I can only desperately climb higher, to even greater realms.'

'Only then can I avoid having my fate manipulated and being used as a pawn.'

Chu Mu pursed his lips and looked up at the snow-filled sky. Exhaling a breath of foul air, he took a step. His figure flickered, and when he reappeared, he was already at the True Understanding Base on the island.

After a month of grueling battle, only a few of the True Understanding Pavilion's several hundred Cultivators had survived. The once bustling base was now deathly silent.

Of the hundreds of Life Soul Lamps displayed on the first floor of the central high tower, only a handful remained lit. The rest were all dim and shattered.

Just then, the sound of several footsteps came from outside the door.

Immediately after, several disheveled figures appeared.

"Master."

The few of them bowed in salute.

Chu Mu turned to look. There were five people in total, led by Chang Hongshan. There were three Foundation Establishment Cultivators and two Qi Refining Perfect Cultivators.

Among the hundreds of Life Soul Lamps, only the ones belonging to these five people were still lit.

"Go and tend to your wounds first."

Chu Mu made a lifting gesture with his right hand, and several bottles of Elixirs floated before them. "After your injuries have healed, take my token, report to the Chen Family, and leave this island to return to the pavilion and recuperate."

Hearing this, their eyes couldn't help but light up. The deep exhaustion and terror etched between their brows seemed to dissipate considerably.

"Thank you, Elder."

The group bowed hurriedly, as if afraid Chu Mu would go back on his word.

Seeing their impatient expressions, a slight flicker of emotion crossed Chu Mu's placid face.

He naturally understood what these people were thinking.

The Demon Suppression Islands were isolated far out at sea. So many years of grueling warfare had long since turned the surrounding waters into a Forbidden Sea.

Without a Tier Three Cultivator leading the way, for ordinary Tier Two or Tier One Cultivators to venture out to sea alone was tantamount to suicide.

Even for the routine Demon Beast exterminations around the Demon Suppression Islands, multiple Tier Three Cultivators were always needed to lead the teams and guard against the unexpected.

And the safest way to leave the islands was, without a doubt, the Teleportation Array under the Chen Family's control.

But to control the many Cultivators on the Demon Suppression Islands, the Chen Family's grip on the Teleportation Array was extremely tight.

Not to mention, after this great battle, they were desperately short on manpower. The Chen Family would inevitably impose even stricter controls on the island's Cultivators.

Entering and leaving the Demon Suppression Islands would surely become more difficult; there might even be direct, compulsory measures.

Having survived this battle, with their level of Cultivation, they obviously harbored no more illusions.

'They probably don't want to stay here for a second longer.'

'Their impatience is the norm.'

These few were like this, and the other surviving Cultivators on the island were clearly no exception.

'Qi Cultivation, Foundation Establishment, Golden Core…'

'Even if the Chen Family could forcefully suppress them with their power, it would clearly only work for a time.'

'In the long run, the Demon Suppression Islands themselves will become a place where monstrous Resentment accumulates…'

'Everything seems to be proceeding in an orderly fashion, just as I predicted…'

"You may leave."

Chu Mu waved his hand, unable to hide his exhaustion.

"Thank you, Elder."

The group bowed respectfully and turned to leave, unable to wait.

Chu Mu slowly turned, glanced one last time at the rows of dimmed Life Soul Lamps, and his eyes flickered. The next second, his figure rippled, and when he reappeared, he was on the third floor of the high tower.

He sat down cross-legged. With a wave of his hand, the overwhelming stench of blood filled the room.

There were mangled Demon Beast carcasses, blood-stained Demon Pills, and Demon Souls still instinctively struggling against their seals.

The Nine Dragon Prison Suppression Tower floated before him. Wisps of fire flickered as a Fire Dragon coiled around it, and faint, terrifying fluctuations of Spiritual Pressure emanated from it.

Chu Mu glanced at the numerous Spiritual Materials he had harvested from the battle and took a quick inventory. He could be said to have profited handsomely from this fight.

From slaying six Tier Three Demon Beasts, he had obtained six Tier Three Demon Pills, six Tier Three Demon Souls, and six broken Demon Bodies.

As for Tier Two Demon Beasts, they were too numerous to count. Any that were caught in the wake of his attacks were completely annihilated. In the middle of the surging Beast Tide, he hadn't had the leisure to collect them. If it was convenient, he took them; if not, they were simply destroyed in the tide.

'Demon Soul, Demon Pill, Demon Body…'

'The entire body is a treasure. To an Artifact Refiner and Alchemist like me, every part can be perfectly utilized to its fullest potential.'

Chu Mu thought for a moment. After roughly figuring out how he would use these Spiritual Materials, his gaze finally settled on the Nine Dragon Prison Suppression Tower.

For him, the month-long battle and the slaying of six Tier Three Demon Beasts wasn't about the quantity of his loot.

What was important was that this battle had given him a much clearer understanding of his own strength and methods after Core Formation.

The existence of a Top Grade Golden Core was even more wondrous than he had imagined.

Even though he was only in the Early Stage of Golden Core, compared to other Early Stage Golden Core cultivators, his Essence, Qi, and Spirit were at least fifty percent stronger.

Combined with his cultivation of the Void Nether Saber Scripture and the Great Sun Scripture's Dharma and Body Cultivation—which had transformed along with his True Flame—even without considering his techniques, his profound Magical Power, Divine Soul, and powerful physical body were enough to crush the vast majority of Cultivators and Demon Beasts of the Same Tier.

However, since his Core Formation, he had mostly interacted with Nascent Soul Great Powers who could easily crush him, which had given him an almost delusional assessment of his own strength.

This grueling battle had finally shattered that deep-seated misconception.

And this Nine Dragon Prison Suppression Tower before him, with its combined offense and defense, as well as its suppressive and sealing effects, was almost perfectly as he had envisioned when empowered by his transformed Great Sun True Flame.

With the Nine Dragon Prison Suppression Tower for protection and his Flaming Long Saber, if he unleashed the Mighty Power of his Saber Intent, he was even confident he could fight a Tier Three Late Stage existence.

'It's still not enough…'

Recalling the slaughter within the Beast Tide, Chu Mu shook his head inwardly, suppressing his slightly inflated ego.

His strength was naturally quite impressive compared to ordinary Cultivators and Demon Beasts of the Same Tier.

But if he were to face those powerful Demon Beasts with high-grade bloodlines, or Cultivators with formidable techniques, it would be impossible for him to dominate so freely.

He had witnessed such powerful, high-grade bloodline Demon Beasts in the Beast Tide, and he had also seen Golden Core Cultivators with formidable techniques.

The Cultivation Immortal Realm was vast. Whether human or Demon, geniuses would always emerge.

And geniuses could rarely be judged by common sense.

'Guard against arrogance and impatience…'

Chu Mu calmed his mind, his expression gradually returning to a state of tranquility.

As he closed his eyes to regulate his breathing, his Magical Power surged. Wisps of Spiritual Qi gathered, and the dim Array Prohibition Patterns on the high tower lit up and began to operate.

Sealed off from the outside world, time flew by...

...