Chapter 208 - 207: Situ

The Royal Family of the Yong Kingdom was the Zhang Clan.

The current Celestial Master Zhang of Ci Yun Temple also came from the Zhang Clan. Rumor had it that he was once a Prince who later dedicated himself to Cultivation, trained in the Tai Xu Sect's tradition, forsook the mortal world, and focused solely on being a Mystic Cultivator.

Chen Qingyang shot up from the ground, soaring into the sky. He locked onto the direction the old Demon Daoist had pointed to, pushed his Void Step Introduction to its limit, and sped away, a streak of white light trailing behind him.

'That man wanted to set a trap for me, which means the direction he pointed in must be correct. A distance of hundreds of miles is nothing for the Conscious Fish; it'll take almost no time at all.'

The places he passed over were marked by high mountains and dense forests, devoid of human presence. Below, peak after peak stood tall, like stone pillars piercing the clouds. They had peculiar shapes—some like peaches, some like people, others like beasts—each one different from the next.

Although the Cyan Nether State was vast, and Chen Qingyang had been to many places within it, he had never seen a landscape like this. It was truly one of a kind.

Wherever an Array was located, the Qi Mechanism would inevitably gather, and when powerful enough, it could even surge into the heavens.

In the eyes of the Conscious Fish, these signs were like a beacon in the dark. While Chen Qingyang himself was still more than a hundred miles away, he had already sensed the anomaly.

Knowing it was impossible for a Foundation Establishment Master to be guarding this place, he had the Yu'Er dive straight into the mountain valley.

The mountain valley was long and narrow, stretching for dozens of miles. Layers of blood-red mist churned in the air above it. At its widest point, the valley was barely half a mile across, and the blood mist clung to the terrain, so thick that it refused to disperse.

The Conscious Fish perceived it all: Yin Fiend energy, the stench of blood, and a strange, sinister aura. Everywhere it passed, even the grass and trees had been corroded into nothing, and the wild beasts of the mountains had become rotting corpses.

'How vicious!'

This confirmed his suspicion that this place was an Array.

As it descended further, the blood-red mist grew thicker, eventually becoming dense enough to obscure its vision. Within this crimson haze stood countless Soul-Summoning Banners. They were pure white, and against the backdrop of the blood mist, they created an exceptionally terrifying atmosphere.

The Qi Mechanisms of the Soul Banners linked them together, forming a formidable barrier that trapped a group of men and women within.

Dressed in either Daoist Robes or Long Coats, the group consisted of both young and old. All were seated in meditation, having summoned their own Magical Treasures, which emanated golden light as they desperately fought against the external Qi Mechanism.

Looking closer, he saw that every one of them wore an expression of exhaustion, their clothes tattered and torn. They had likely been fighting the Demon Sect Disciples for a long time.

Chen Qingyang judged that, at this rate, they would be completely overcome by the Array's Refinement within the next two or three days. It was already impossible for them to break out on their own.

Chen Qingyang paid the Array no mind. The Conscious Fish once again shot out of the heavy mist and searched the surroundings, quickly locking onto the tracks of the Demon Sect Disciples on the cliffs.

They were scattered in groups of two and three around the four sides of the valley. In front of each group stood a White Jade Stele, blank and without any inscriptions, rooted firmly in the earth.

The Demon Sect Disciples were all pouring their True Essence into them. These Inscriptionless Steles served as the Array Bases, connected through the earth to the white Soul Banners below. This was the Array Profound.

Finally, that strange aura was used to trap all the Daoist Sect disciples, preparing them for Refinement.

With the help of the Conscious Fish, Chen Qingyang's plans had always gone off without a hitch. In just a few moments, he had already figured out the complete details of the entire Array.

Just as the old Demon Sect cultivator had said, there were fifteen people here in total, split into five groups. One person controlled a single Inscriptionless Jade Stele by himself, four people controlled two steles, and the remaining ten were responsible for three.

The Cultivation of these ten people was mostly between the Essence Condensation Second and Third Realms. As for the other five, Chen Qingyang couldn't see through their Cultivation at all, but he could guess a few things just from their seating arrangement.

The one controlling the Inscriptionless Jade Stele alone had the highest Cultivation and the strongest Qi Mechanism—at least Essence Condensation Six Realms, on par with the experts from the Tai Xu Sect. The remaining four weren't weak either; they were at least at the Essence Condensation Four Realms, with some possibly even having reached the Essence Condensation Fifth Realm.

'With fifteen people like this, all with high Cultivation, if I had actually believed that old man from the Demon Sect, I would have been walking into my own grave.'

'Saving people is secondary; collecting the Immortal Seedlings is what's most important. An Essence Condensation Sixth Realm is still not a Half-Step Foundation Establishment, let alone a Foundation Establishment Master. If I use some tricks on the sly, I still have a chance to take out one or two of them right under his nose.'

'As for whether the people inside can break out after the Array Bases are destroyed, that will depend entirely on their own abilities.'

While Chen Qingyang was pondering this, he had already concealed his Qi Mechanism several miles away. He continued to use the Conscious Fish as his scout, letting it weave between the enemy cultivators, looking for an opportunity.

"Oh dear, I wonder when Senior Brother Guo will be back. With my meager Magical Power, I can't hold on for much longer!"

The speaker was a middle-aged woman. Though she was past her prime, she was still charming and seductive, with a provocative air about her. Her aura was very similar to that of the Demon Sect Disciples Chen Qingyang had seen back at the Four Golden Peaks.

The woman's Cultivation was only at the Essence Condensation Second Realm, the lowest among the group, which made controlling the Array particularly strenuous for her.

"Junior Sister, just hold on a little longer. No one at Ci Yun Temple is a match for Junior Brother Guo. Nothing will go wrong."

"Bah!" The woman spat. "I'm not worried about that old bastard! It's just that if he doesn't come back, I'll be stuck here forever. Once my True Essence runs out, I'll have to start burning my Essence Blood. I don't know what Senior Brother Liang was thinking, ignoring our real mission to go after four pathetic stalks of Immortal Grass. What rotten luck! The absolute worst…"

She cursed and grumbled, her words growing uglier by the second. She showed no regard for her own image, perfectly fitting Chen Qingyang's stereotype of a Demon Sect Disciple.

"Shut up! If Senior Brother Liang hears you, you'll be in for it! You know it's taking a toll on you, so why not shut your mouth and save your strength?" someone finally snapped, shouting at her to stop. Only then did the woman resentfully fall silent.

'So that old Demon Sect cultivator's surname is Guo,' Chen Qingyang realized. 'And he didn't just take a fancy to the Immortal Grass and decide to steal it, as he claimed. He was sent by this group to grab it on the side.'

Beyond that, the other locations were silent. Chen Qingyang observed for a moment, then decided to make his first move against the woman, to test the waters.

His Conscious Fish now possessed an Essence Condensation Third Realm Cultivation on its own and had also cultivated the Nanming Red Emperor's Technique. This produced the Yang Extreme True Fire, a perfect counter to the yin and evil energies of the Demon Sect. Furthermore, when it lay dormant, it was completely undetectable, making it more than capable of killing the woman in a single strike.

With a sudden eruption, a brilliant blaze of fire instantly engulfed the woman. A bloodcurdling scream tore through the evening sky, followed by a fleeting Qi Mechanism that shot into the valley and vanished in an instant.

"What happened?!"

Her companions were still looking on in shock and confusion when they saw blood pouring from the woman's seven orifices. Her body was burning hot, her eyes were wide open, and she was already dead.

In that instant, one of the Demon Sect Disciples caught a glimpse of the Conscious Fish's trail and gave chase. But the Yu'Er had chosen an incredibly clever route. After diving into the valley, the blood-red Qi Mechanism interfered with the disciple's senses. By the time he regained his focus and searched again, the Conscious Fish was long gone.

The man had no choice but to return, frustrated.

Chen Qingyang took a long, roundabout path before once again assuming a dormant state and silently approaching the group.

"Don't bother looking. She's already dead."

Because they had to maintain control of the Inscriptionless Jade Steles, the fifteen Demon Sect disciples, though startled, did not fall into chaos. Few of them moved from their positions, continuing to channel their power in front of the steles. Only the man who had just chased the Yu'Er walked over. He gave the woman's corpse a single glance before making his declaration.

"Senior Brother Situ, did you get a clear look? What exactly was that thing?"

This man had very distinctive features: a triangular face, bulging, fish-like eyes, and a deathly pale complexion, like the Inscriptionless Jade Steles themselves. He had a somewhat frightening appearance.

"I didn't see it clearly. I'd guess it was a Magical Artifact. It shot into the valley."

Another person nearby spoke up. "Where would a Magical Artifact come from? Aren't all those Daoist Sect dogs trapped in our Array?"

The man surnamed Situ said in a low voice, "There must be someone else out there. The fact that they don't dare to show themselves means their Cultivation isn't high enough to face us directly. From now on, we must leave one person on guard."

'This man is indeed clever,' Chen Qingyang thought. 'He's calm and composed, and he saw right through my situation with a single sentence.'

"But… Senior Brother Situ, I'm afraid I can't hold on!"

Originally, three people had been managing one Inscriptionless Jade Stele together. Now that Chen Qingyang had secretly killed one of them, the pressure on the remaining two had increased dramatically, and they couldn't help but cry out weakly.

"Hmph!" Senior Brother Situ snorted coldly. Then, he lightly rubbed two fingers together, and the skin on his fingertips peeled away, revealing the bright red flesh beneath.

He then used his bloody fingertips to draw a line in mid-air, and a bizarre scene unfolded: a giant mouth materialized out of nowhere, filled with fine, sharp, bone-white teeth. Its full red lips were like those of a beautiful woman, and its tongue flickered out like a serpent's.

This strange mouth hovered in mid-air. Its serpent-like tongue coiled around the woman's corpse, and with a few loud gulps—GULP, GULP—it swallowed her whole.

It licked its lips as if it had just savored an exquisite delicacy, then vanished into thin air.

This act terrified the one who had just been complaining into silence. Senior Brother Situ threatened them coldly, "Senior Brother Liang has given an order: even if you die, you die at this Array! When your True Essence is depleted, I'll use your flesh and blood to fuel it. Do that, and I can at least preserve your Divine Souls and help you cultivate as Yin Spirits. Otherwise…"

The threat was left unspoken, but it was perfectly clear. His junior brothers could only redouble their efforts to power the Array. Chen Qingyang's gaze shifted to the old man controlling a Jade Stele by himself. His expression hadn't changed from the beginning, and he seemed completely oblivious to what had just happened. 'This must be that Senior Brother Liang,' he concluded.

He had always been an excellent hunter, one who understood patience and excelled at waiting for the right moment.

The Conscious Fish continued to circle the group. With one person dead, the Demon Sect's side was now visibly strained. Even though Situ was patrolling back and forth, it wouldn't be long before he had to return and take over a position in the Array himself.

And sure enough, after half a day, someone else could no longer hold on. The Array fluctuated noticeably, almost giving the people trapped inside a chance to break through. Senior Brother Situ cursed them out, but when the critical moment came, he had no choice but to step in and take their place.

The situation the Demon Sect now faced was like trying to cover ten pots with nine lids—there would always be one left exposed.

In the Conscious Fish's field of view, three Cultivators at the Essence Condensation Second and Third Realms all looked like arrows at the end of their flight, their exhaustion plain to see.

The Conscious Fish lay in wait on the ground, biding its time. The moment everyone let their guard down, it erupted once more, lunging straight for one of the Essence Condensation Second Realm cultivators.

The result was the same. The man didn't even have time to let out a grunt before he collapsed, dead. The fish then shot down toward the valley again, but this time, it hadn't gone far before an immense, overwhelming pressure descended from all sides.

The air itself seemed to solidify, and the Conscious Fish began to encounter immense resistance.

'It seems the Array has been activated,' Chen Qingyang realized. 'Senior Brother Liang is making his move!'