Chapter 358: From the Tianyang Sect

She turned to look and saw four Cultivators.

Judging from the unsettling aura emanating from them, they didn’t seem to be local Cultivators.

Considering what had happened with the Spirit Fox Sect, Song Jiulai suspected that these outsiders were the ones stirring up trouble.

Of the four, the one with the highest cultivation was at the Golden Core Early Stage.

He exuded the same pressure she had felt from Ma Feng.

He was the one who had blocked Song Jiulai’s probing strike, yet he hadn’t fully grasped the peculiar nature of her Moonlight Sword Technique.

The other three were at the Late-stage Foundation Establishment.

Before, Song Jiulai would have had to carefully consider her options against such numbers.

But now... ’Excellent!’

’You’ve passed up the road to heaven only to storm the gates of hell!’

She didn’t say a word, just watched them in silence.

The leader, a Golden Core Early Stage Cultivator named Qian Lingdong, looked at Song Jiulai and let out a sinister chuckle.

The very next second, Song Jiulai struck first!

A Palm Thunder shot through the air and struck down.

It was one of the fastest forms of Magic, perfect for a sneak attack.

Qian Lingdong’s expression changed as he yelled, "You’re courting death!"

He never imagined that Song Jiulai would dare to attack without a single word being exchanged.

’A mere Late-stage Qi Refining cultivator... She simply doesn’t know—’

’With a flick of my hand, a single small Ice Blade is all it will take to cut this female cultivator down!’

Wait?!

Several more Palm Thunders bombarded him, followed immediately by the coalescing power of the Moonlight Sword Technique.

Song Jiulai executed her Lotus Birth Kill, effortlessly dodging the Ice Blade attacks. The other Late-stage Foundation Establishment Cultivators also reacted, their faces twisting in horror. "She’s not in the Late-stage Qi Refining!"

The moment Song Jiulai attacked, the pressure from her Spiritual Energy was clearly far beyond that of the Late-stage Qi Refining.

Hiding one’s cultivation truly was the perfect way to set a trap.

Moreover, these Late-stage Foundation Establishment Cultivators were no match for her at all.

Her Moonlight Sword Technique could affect cultivators at the same Level to a certain degree. Against someone a major Level above her, the effect was minuscule, but not non-existent.

She sent a Palm Thunder at each of them. Qian Lingdong had intended to block the attacks for his companions, but influenced by the Moonlight Sword Technique, his movements slowed for a fraction of a second.

Of the others, the two who reacted fastest barely managed to dodge.

One was struck head-on.

Fortunately, he had a protective Magic Treasure on him. A single Palm Thunder wasn’t enough to cause any serious damage.

However, it still sent the Spiritual Energy in his body into turmoil.

"There’s something wrong with this female cultivator!"

His face was a mask of horror; a single bolt of lightning had shattered his Protective Body Technique!

Qian Lingdong, the one at the Golden Core Early Stage, also realized the situation was dire.

He immediately took out his own Magic Treasure, no longer intending to hold back.

Meanwhile, another Cultivator, seeing that things were going south, quietly began to back away.

Even in a four-on-one fight, Song Jiulai knew these people were no ordinary opponents. They might even be connected to Demon Cultivators from other Sects.

To prevent any unforeseen complications, she decided to end the fight quickly.

Without a moment’s hesitation, she swallowed a drop of Spiritual Liquid condensed from the Spirit Bottle, a Magic Treasure given to her by Chihe Zhenren.

As she swallowed the drop, Song Jiulai’s aura changed in an instant!

She had entered the Golden Core Stage!

It was a profound sensation. Song Jiulai could feel her cultivation and Spiritual Energy surging to immense levels, and she even seemed to gain a faint glimmer of insight into the Golden Core Early Stage.

It made Song Jiulai feel as if she was one step closer to achieving a true Golden Core.

She then took out the Heavenly Grade Treasure Chihe Zhenren had given her: the Heaven and Earth Demon Suppression Disc!

The Heaven and Earth Demon Suppression Disc rose high, its massive chessboard form blanketing the sky and radiating an overwhelming pressure.

Qian Lingdong’s heart pounded wildly in his chest. He couldn’t believe it. "You... You actually possess a Heavenly Grade Treasure!"

That formidable aura—it had to be Heavenly Grade!

In that instant, Qian Lingdong was scared out of his wits.

’I never should have messed with her,’ he thought.

But Song Jiulai merely narrowed her eyes and attacked without a shred of hesitation.

She first activated the disc’s Trapping Technique. The might of the Heaven and Earth Demon Suppression Disc was not to be underestimated; under the crushing pressure of the Heavenly Grade Treasure, the single Array it formed was suffocating.

Now at the Golden Core Early Stage, and backed by the Heaven and Earth Demon Suppression Disc, Song Jiulai completely overwhelmed her opponents.

With hardly any effort, she cut down Qian Lingdong and his companions.

It was so easy, she could scarcely believe it herself.

Before she knew it, she had gone from struggling in fights against higher-Level opponents to now effortlessly dominating those at her own Level.

Only she knew the mix of bitterness, sweetness, and sheer satisfaction she had felt along this journey!

’Damn, Chihe Zhenren really is a great master!’

Even though she had relied on two Magic Treasures, it was definitive proof that the items Chihe Zhenren gave her were the real deal—and incredibly powerful.

"Senior! Senior, I beg you, please spare me! This junior is willing to be your slave, to do whatever you command!"

Before her was the one survivor Song Jiulai had intentionally left alive.

It wasn’t Qian Lingdong, the one at the Golden Core Early Stage.

Instead, it was the man who had tried to flee at the start of the fight.

Seeing his cunning, Song Jiulai had made sure to catch him first.

Song Jiulai glanced at him, then flicked her hand, sending a wave of Spiritual Energy to bind him. She asked him directly, "Are you from the Tianyang Sect?"

The man’s face twitched, his hesitation obvious. Song Jiulai simply clenched her fist, and he was immediately wracked with excruciating pain.

"I’ll talk! I’ll talk!"

Yun Yan howled in pain. "Senior, this junior is indeed from the Fire Demon Sect, a vassal of the Tianyang Sect! My name is Yun Yan!"

Seeing that he was finally cooperating, Song Jiulai relented.

She then modified a clause from her system’s rules, manifesting it as a sheet of paper before him. "Make a Blood Handprint."

Staring at the floating paper, Yun Yan was stunned, his heart pounding. "Senior?"

"I told you to do it, so hurry up!"

Yun Yan didn’t dare delay and could only press his Blood Handprint onto the paper.

With a wave of her hand, Song Jiulai made the contract vanish.

’The system’s rules are far more binding than the Heavenly Dao around here,’ Song Jiulai thought, then said, "Now, you will answer everything I ask. If you lie, your body will explode. If you don’t believe me, feel free to give it a try."

Yun Yan’s pupils contracted. He immediately began kowtowing to Song Jiulai. "I wouldn’t dare! This junior will confess everything Senior wishes to know!"

After seeing how easily Song Jiulai had killed Qian Lingdong and the others, how could Yun Yan dare to harbor any rebellious thoughts?

"Why were you on the Spirit Fox Sect’s territory?"

Yun Yan answered immediately. "We were using it as a temporary base. After the Spirit Fox Sect was destroyed, no one dared to come here, so we used it as a hiding spot."

"Was the destruction of the Spirit Fox Sect your doing?"

Yun Yan hesitated for just a second and immediately felt a searing pain in his chest. Terrified, he confessed at once, "Senior, it wasn’t directly related to me! Qian Lingdong, the man from before, and a Cultivator named Ma Feng belong to the same Sect. The destruction of the Spirit Fox Sect had to do with them."

"Because I come from the same place, I’m under their control. But by the time we got here, the Spirit Fox Sect had already been annihilated. Rumor has it they worked with a Demon Cultivator surnamed Yuan. I swear, this junior knows nothing else!"

After blurting this out, Yun Yan was drenched in sweat.

The searing pain in his chest slowly faded.

Since nothing else happened, it proved he hadn’t been lying.

A thought struck Song Jiulai, and she asked her system, ’Is that Demon Cultivator the one who attacked me back in Demon Cave Valley?’