Chapter 699: Xu Family (I)

Within the demon cave, the Vermilion Bird's cry resounded throughout the area. Flames filled the sky, locked in an inseparable struggle with overwhelming demonic will. Elsewhere in the dark void, an enormous Arhat dharma form radiating brilliant golden light pursued the other yao. A group of Nascent Soul realm cultivators watched the Deity Transformation realm battle from extremely far away, their faces filled with yearning.

Among them, an elderly man with snow-white hair and beard raised his head toward the horizon. As he watched the sea of flames filling the sky clash with the overwhelming demonic will, complicated emotions filled his eyes.

"Third Elder!"

"Greetings, Third Elder!"

While the old man was lost in thought, the Shi Family group that had fled earlier arrived and bowed respectfully to him.

The old man returned to his senses and swept his eyes over them one by one. Everyone was present except Shi Tianyun.

"Where is Tianyun?" the old man asked calmly, with little concern in his voice.

Shi Tianyun possessed a Divine Movement Talisman. Even if he encountered a Nascent Soul realm expert, he could escape safely without any danger to his life.

"Elder, Brother Tianyun parted ways with us as soon as we left the stronghold city," the young man leading the group replied.

The old man nodded slightly. "I see."

Shi Tianyun had previously asked him to intervene and see whether he could secretly tamper with anything, so the old man knew of Shi Tianyun's scheme. After all, what member of the Shi Family could resist being tempted by a superior vessel like Xiao Yu? Even the old man himself was quite interested in Xiao Yu.

"The demon cave is about to descend into chaos! Pass down my order. All disciples below the Golden Core realm are to evacuate the demon cave. None may remain here!" The old man narrowed his eyes as he watched another figure wreathed in towering demonic flames flee deeper into the demon cave.

His expression turned grave. This time, two eight-pattern yao comparable to the Deity Transformation realm had successfully invaded this world. The situation was becoming serious. After a long while, the old man withdrew his eyes from the distant sky, flipped his right hand, and produced a jade communication talisman.

"Has something else serious happened?" the old man murmured.

This jade talisman was reserved for conveying important messages. Its use meant that something significant had occurred. With a thought, the old man extended his spiritual sense into the talisman and read the message it carried. A terrifying momentum suddenly erupted from his body, and his expression turned exceedingly grim.

Yun'er is dead!

The Divine Movement Talisman had activated successfully, but all it had teleported back was a blood-soaked severed arm.

"Damn it! Who killed Yun'er?" Fury blazed in the third elder's eyes as his figure vanished from the spot.

Before long, after expending vast amounts of energy to perform repeated short-range teleportations, he arrived at the Shi Family's stronghold within the demon cave. This was the destination linked to the Divine Movement Talisman. Inside the stronghold, the third elder clutched Shi Tianyun's severed arm with an extremely grim expression.

***

At the very heart of the demon cave's depths lay three uncontrolled space-time nodes surrounded by vast numbers of powerful yao. Known as a forbidden zone within the Bloody Trial Grounds, it was the most dangerous region in the entire demon cave.

Fiery-red magma churned and bubbled. It spread across the pitch-black earth like a vast spiderweb, appearing strikingly out of place within the dark demon cave.

A black wind howled past, and a humanoid figure covered in pitch-black scales mysteriously emerged from the dark void.

Lin Zheyu's expression shifted slightly as he surveyed the fiery-red magma region with interest. "A habitat of the Purple Flame Qilin yao. Is there a space-time node here leading to their ancestral territory?"

Under the continuous corrosion of demonic qi and yao will, the deepest reaches of the demon cave had undergone complete demonization. The environment here was now scarcely different from the Purple Flame Qilin yao's natural habitat in the demon realm.

"Roar!"

A Purple Flame Qilin yao covered in scales suddenly burst up from the magma. Lin Zheyu's figure flickered and vanished from the spot. A moment later, the creature's head exploded with a boom, leaving behind a headless body. With a thought, he stored the headless Purple Flame Qilin yao within the Primordial Chaos Pool.

"Not bad. It's a five-pattern Purple Flame Qilin yao. I wonder whether there are any six-pattern or even seven-pattern Purple Flame Qilin yao here," Lin Zheyu said with a smile.

Discovering the Purple Flame Qilin yao was an unexpected delight. The scales covering his body had been cultivated through comprehending the demonic patterns of this race. If he wished to further improve the Primordial Golden Body and the structure of his divine patterns, studying the demonic patterns of the Purple Flame Qilin yao was indispensable. His powerful perception spread outward and penetrated the magma in search of a six-pattern Purple Flame Qilin yao.

After a long while, the corners of Lin Zheyu's lips curved into a faint smile.

Found one!

His figure flickered, and he plunged into the scorching magma with a splash. ℯℯ𝑙.

Lin Zheyu swiftly moved through the magma, casually subduing any weaker Purple Flame Qilin yao he encountered and storing them within the Primordial Chaos Pool. Before long, he reached the location of the six-pattern Purple Flame Qilin yao he had detected. Deep within the magma, a purple creature covered in purple scales and possessing a dragon-like tail lay quietly coiled.

Waves of mysterious energy emanated from its body, and it remained completely unaware of Lin Zheyu's arrival. Middle six-pattern level. Not bad. Lin Zheyu smiled and nodded as he observed the Purple Flame Qilin yao nearby. His figure flickered as the blood qi within him surged into motion, and he charged toward the creature with Voidcleaver in hand.

The Purple Flame Qilin yao abruptly opened its lantern-sized eyes as an overwhelming sense of danger suddenly seized it.

The intense sense of danger made the Purple Flame Qilin tremble, and a trace of fear flashed through its eyes, which were normally filled with savage bloodlust. Although it could not detect Lin Zheyu's aura, it chose to trust its instincts and flee. Energy erupted from its body as it raced deeper into the magma.

The instant the Purple Flame Qilin yao sprang away, an icy saber light tore through the fiery-red magma and entered through the center of its brow, cleaving it in half.

"Awooo!"

The moment Lin Zheyu unleashed his blood qi, a terrifying aura erupted from deep within the magma.

"Time to go!"

The moment Lin Zheyu sensed the aura, he stored the Purple Flame Qilin yao's body and suppressed it within the Primordial Chaos Pool before disappearing from the spot. This was the deepest region of the demon cave, where many terrifyingly powerful yao dwelled. If he fought another yao here and became entangled in battle, escaping would become troublesome. The slightest carelessness could even cost him his life. This was precisely why the area was known as the forbidden zone of the Bloody Trial Grounds.

My yao form is still too weak. Otherwise, I could use it to hunt yao without worrying about attracting other powerful yao, Lin Zheyu thought.

There was still a considerable difference between his yao form and a genuine yao. At best, he resembled one of the weaker yao used as cannon fodder. After all, Lin Zheyu was not a true yao, and the demonic patterns within his body did not form a complete system, leaving them riddled with flaws. He possessed the shape of a yao but could not display a yao's true strength.

Moreover, Lin Zheyu could not use the Seven Absolute Sabers while in his yao form, depriving him of his most powerful offensive technique. Relying solely on yao abilities, he could not kill a six-pattern yao within a short time. Otherwise, he would have activated Yao Transformation and assumed his yao form long ago, without any need to worry about other powerful yao.

Not long after Lin Zheyu departed, an energy fluctuation rippled through the fiery-red magma. A Purple Flame Qilin yao radiating a terrifying aura abruptly appeared where he had previously stood.

"His aura has disappeared. What astonishing concealment!" the seven-pattern Purple Flame Qilin exclaimed in surprise.

The Purple Flame Qilin race was born to live in magma like this, where every aspect of their strength and perception received a tremendous boost. Yet even under these conditions, it could not detect the other party's presence. It could not find so much as a trace of the human.

"Strange..." the Purple Flame Qilin yao murmured as it repeatedly teleported over short distances, searching everywhere for the human who had just been there.

However, no matter how it searched, it could not find the slightest trace of Lin Zheyu's aura. It was as though he had vanished into thin air, making the situation exceedingly bizarre.

Lin Zheyu watched the seven-pattern Purple Flame Qilin yao disappear with some regret. "I'm still too weak. If I could capture this seven-pattern Purple Flame Qilin yao for research as well, the results would undoubtedly be much better."

At that moment, he was hiding among a group of weak Purple Flame Qilin yao, using the Heaven-Deceiving Art and his yao aura to conceal his presence. As long as he did not expose the blood qi of a living being, even an eight-pattern Purple Flame Qilin yao might fail to find him without conducting a meticulous search.