Yunxiao's message sword talisman made Xuanwei's heart tighten. For the calm and composed eldest of the San Xiao to use the words "far-reaching implications," the origins of that Netherworld Taint Qi were surely far from simple.
He did not dare delay. After making brief arrangements for the Medicine Garden and leaving the underground Light Cocoon enough Chaos Spiritual Energy to "feed" on for several days, he immediately set off for Three Immortal Island once more.
Passing through the overseas clouds and Innate Array Formation with practiced ease, Xuanwei stepped onto this immortal sanctuary again. Unlike last time, when he had been gravely wounded and near death, carried inside by others, he was now full of vigor. Though his Heavenly Immortal cultivation was not considered outstanding, his aura was rounded and restrained, with azure, yellow, and chaotic Dao Rhyme concealed around him, lending him an extraordinary bearing.
Qiongxiao had already been waiting outside the island. Seeing him, she smiled gently. "Junior Brother, you're here. Eldest Sister is waiting for you in Tide-Listening Pavilion."
"Thank you for leading the way, Senior Sister Qiongxiao." Xuanwei cupped his hands and followed Qiongxiao inward. Along the way, he could sense friendly ripples of intent from the many Spiritual Plants and immortal birds on the island. Clearly, his previous treatment of the Seven Orifices Exquisite Lotus had earned him the goodwill of these living beings.
Tide-Listening Pavilion stood atop a seaside cliff on Three Immortal Island. Outside, waves crashed against the shore; inside, sandalwood incense curled through the air. Yunxiao sat alone within the pavilion. Before her floated a twisting, writhing strand of black airflow, tightly imprisoned by the golden light of the Primal Chaos Golden Dipper. It was precisely the strand of Netherworld Taint Qi that had previously been forced from the Seven Orifices Exquisite Lotus.
Yet even under the suppression of the Primal Chaos Golden Dipper, this strand of taint qi still radiated a foulness, deathly stillness, and... an ancient resentment that made one's heart quail.
"Senior Sister." Xuanwei stepped forward and bowed.
Yunxiao nodded slightly, her gaze still fixed on the strand of taint qi. Her cool voice held a trace of gravity. "You have come. I repeatedly scoured and refined this thing with the Primal Chaos Golden Dipper, yet the tiny core of its source remains extraordinarily stubborn. It even faintly points toward a... forbidden place that should no longer exist in this world."
"A forbidden place?" Xuanwei's heart clenched.
"Yes." Yunxiao flicked her finger, sending a stream of clear light into Xuanwei's brow. It contained vague information concerning an old event from the Primordial World. "Near the end of the Dragon-Han Primordial Calamity, before the conflict between Dao and demons, there was a Demon Lord under Demon Ancestor Luohu named Nine Nether. He wielded the power of underworldly death and silence, and once used Nine Nether Demonfire to temper the western lands, committing boundless slaughter. After the conflict between Dao and demons, Luohu was defeated and perished. The Nine Nether Demon Lord was jointly cast into the depths of the Ruins of Return by the Dao Ancestor and several great powers, while his dao ground, the Nine Nether Demon Domain, collapsed and was sealed. By all reason, his source demon qi should have long since dispersed between heaven and earth..."
Xuanwei sucked in a cold breath! A Demon Lord under Demon Ancestor Luohu?! That background was far too terrifying! Luohu had been a ruthless figure who had contended with Dao Ancestor Hongjun! Even if this was merely one of his subordinates, he was not someone Xuanwei could provoke at his current level!
"Senior Sister means... this strand of Netherworld Taint Qi may be connected to the long-destroyed Nine Nether Demon Domain? Could its seal have loosened?" Xuanwei's voice was dry.
"Not necessarily." Yunxiao shook her head. "It is more likely that when the demon domain collapsed, an exceedingly tiny fragment wrapped around this trace of source power and drifted to some corner of the Primordial World. Recently, it may have been activated for some reason and released this strand of taint qi, which happened to contaminate the spirit lotus on the island."
She looked at Xuanwei, her eyes sharp. "And according to my calculations, the place where that fragment drifted—and was activated—is most likely in the waters near Liubo Mountain in the East Sea!"
Liubo Mountain! Again, Liubo Mountain!
Xuanwei's heart jolted violently! He had only just escaped from there alive and had nearly been kept behind by that Mysterious Female Ink Turtle. Why was he connected to that cursed place again? And this time, it involved an ancient Demon Lord!
"This matter is of great importance." Yunxiao's expression turned solemn. "If a fragment of the Nine Nether Demon Domain has truly appeared, even if it is only an insignificant trace, should it fall into the hands of someone with evil intentions—or give birth to demonic creatures on its own—it will bring about a great calamity. We must find it and completely purify or seal it before it causes further harm!"
Her gaze fell upon Xuanwei. "You carry Chaos Qi and the vitality of the World Tree. You naturally suppress such foul, deathly power, and you have personally visited the vicinity of Liubo Mountain before. I wish to ask you to investigate the Liubo Sea region again with Bixiao and Qiongxiao, to search for the source of the taint qi. Are you willing?"
The corner of Xuanwei's mouth twitched. Of course he was unwilling! This was a remnant left behind by an ancient Demon Lord! It sounded like an absurdly troublesome and dangerous mission! But did he have room to refuse? Publicly speaking, this matter endangered the Primordial World. As a disciple of the Interception Sect, he had a duty to investigate. Privately speaking, Senior Sister Yunxiao had saved his life, and she was also someone he... held affection for. How could he decline?
"This disciple will not shirk his duty!" Xuanwei suppressed his unease and answered solemnly.
"Good." A faint trace of approval appeared on Yunxiao's face. "Bixiao and Qiongxiao are already making preparations. You will depart shortly. This mission is primarily one of investigation. If circumstances become untenable, retreat immediately. I will be ready to support you."
Before long, Xuanwei met up with Bixiao and Qiongxiao. Bixiao still looked eager for action, the Golden Flood Dragon Scissors humming in her hand as though impatient to slay demons and vanquish evil. Qiongxiao carefully checked their pills and talismans, then handed Xuanwei a Spirit Purifying Pearl that gave off a cool aura. It could resist the erosion of demon qi to a certain extent.
The three of them mounted their escaping lights, left Three Immortal Island, and headed once more toward that troublesome sea—the direction of Liubo Immortal Island.
This time, they did not head directly to the site where the secret realm had erupted last time. Instead, following Yunxiao's calculations using the source of the taint qi as a guide, they flew toward an unfamiliar stretch of sea farther south of Liubo Immortal Island.
The farther south they flew, the thinner the spiritual qi in the air became. It even carried a faint, chilling sense of deathly stillness. The seawater also turned deep and dark. The sea beasts occasionally swimming below had become increasingly vicious and grotesque in form, their eyes gleaming with bloodthirsty red light.
"Everyone, be careful. There is something wrong with these waters," Qiongxiao softly warned, her Dragon Binding Rope already quietly circling the three of them.
Xuanwei also spread his divine sense to its limit while secretly communicating with the Chaos Bead, ready to deploy the Chaos Domain at any moment. He could sense that the Chaos Bead in his sea of consciousness was also conveying a faint feeling of rejection toward this sea region.
After flying for roughly an hour, they saw an archipelago ahead shrouded in gray-black mist. The fog blocked divine sense, making it impossible to discern the islands' details. All they could feel was an intense aura of deathly stillness and resentment spreading from within, sharing the same origin as the Netherworld Taint Qi.
"This is the place!" Bixiao's gaze sharpened, and the Golden Flood Dragon Scissors were already poised to strike.
Just as the three prepared to descend from their escaping lights and approach to investigate—
"Roar!" "Awooo!"
Several roars filled with savagery and greed exploded from the sea below! Immediately afterward, seven or eight black shadows burst through the water and shot into the sky, blocking their path!
These were no ordinary sea demons. Their forms were even more twisted. Some were covered in bone spines, while others had multiple heads. Ghostly green soul flames burned in their eyes, and dense demon qi and death qi coiled around their bodies. They were clearly Demonic Beasts corrupted and demonized by the Nine Nether aura of this place! The three leading them had even reached the early Mysterious Immortal realm!
"Demonic Beasts! Be careful, they have no reason left—only the instincts to kill and devour!" Qiongxiao cried, and her Dragon Binding Rope shot out like a spirit serpent, instantly binding a charging True Immortal-level demonized octopus tightly.
Bixiao was even more direct. The Golden Flood Dragon Scissors transformed into two crossing streaks of heaven-shaking golden light, carrying an edge sharp enough to tear apart everything as they sheared toward the largest of the three Mysterious Immortal demonic beasts—the Spined Shark Demon!
Crack! A teeth-grating sound of shattering bones rang out. The Spined Shark Demon's protective demon qi was like paper before the Golden Flood Dragon Scissors, and its massive body was instantly cut in two, spraying demon blood everywhere!
However, the other two Mysterious Immortal demonic beasts had already taken the chance to pounce. One was the Shadow Bat Demon, swift as a ghost; the other was the thick-skinned, immensely powerful Corrosive Poison Crocodile Demon. Their target was unmistakably Xuanwei, whose aura appeared comparatively "weak"!
"Junior Brother Xuanwei!" Bixiao and Qiongxiao cried out. They wanted to come to his aid, but the other Demonic Beasts held them tightly entangled.
Though startled by the assault of two Mysterious Immortal demonic beasts, Xuanwei remained calm. He knew this was the moment to test the power he had newly gained!
Rather than meet them head-on, he flashed away. Deep Immortal Seclusion, combined with the Wood Element escape technique he had newly comprehended from the Azure Emperor Longevity Art, made him vanish from his original position like a phantom. The Shadow Bat Demon's pounce and the Corrosive Poison Crocodile Demon's venomous spray both missed.
The next instant, his figure appeared dozens of yards away, his hands rapidly forming seals!
"Chaos Domain, open!"
Buzz!
Within a radius of thirty yards centered on him, space instantly warped and blurred! It was as though a small world had formed on its own, its laws in chaos and its light dimmed! The two Mysterious Immortal demonic beasts that had missed their attacks charged straight into the domain and immediately felt as though they had fallen into a mud swamp. Their speed plummeted, their divine abilities became sluggish, and even their divine-sense perception was greatly weakened!
"What kind of divine ability is this?!" Bixiao and Qiongxiao could see it clearly from outside, and both were shocked and delighted. They could sense the abnormality in that area, yet could not see through its true nature.
Xuanwei stood at the center of the domain like the master of that chaotic space. With a thought, he mobilized the Chaos Qi within the domain, mixing it with his own immortal power and Wood Element Vitality. It became countless dull gray Chaos Sword Qi streaks containing the force of decomposition and annihilation, raining down upon the two demonic beasts in the domain like a violent storm!
Sss! Sss! Sss...!
When the Chaos Sword Qi struck the demonic beasts, their demon qi armor, strong enough to resist ordinary immortal arts, melted away like snow before the higher-level power of chaos. It was rapidly corroded and broken down! The Shadow Bat Demon let out a shrill scream as sword qi pierced through its wings, slowing it further. The Corrosive Poison Crocodile Demon's flesh split open, and the instant its poisonous blood flowed out, it was annihilated by Chaos Qi!
"Supreme Pure Divine Thunder!"
Xuanwei pressed his advantage, invoking a divine ability from the Supreme Pure Immortal Method! A bolt of violet-white lightning condensed in his hand. Though it was not as world-destroying as when Duobao or Yunxiao used it, bolstered by the Chaos Domain, this divine thunder still carried supreme majesty capable of shattering all techniques, exterminating evil, and purging demons as it crashed toward the sluggish Corrosive Poison Crocodile Demon!
Boom!
Lightning exploded, and demon qi scattered! The Corrosive Poison Crocodile Demon's massive body was blasted black. It gave one final unwilling roar before both body and demon soul were destroyed!
Seeing the situation turn against it, the other Shadow Bat Demon shrieked and tried to break free of the domain to flee.
"Trying to run?" Xuanwei snorted coldly. The Chaos Domain abruptly contracted, multiplying the pressure! At the same time, he brought out the "Wutu brick" he had not used in a long time... no, the Chaos Wutu Seal, condensed from Wutu Source and the power of chaos, and smashed it down like a small mountain!
Bang!
The already grievously wounded Shadow Bat Demon was struck by the seal's heavy force of suppression and instantly exploded into a cloud of blood mist and demon qi, which the Chaos Domain completely devoured and purified!
In the blink of an eye, two early Mysterious Immortal Demonic Beasts had fallen!
As the domain dispersed, Xuanwei's figure became clear again. His breathing was slightly hurried, and he had expended no small amount of immortal power, but his eyes were bright and his fighting spirit surged!
Bixiao and Qiongxiao had also dealt with the remaining Demonic Beasts. They flew to his side, their gazes filled with shock and admiration.
"Junior Brother Xuanwei! You... what divine ability was that just now? It was incredible!" Bixiao's beautiful eyes were wide with disbelief.
Qiongxiao also said softly, "Junior Brother possesses such methods. It seems your gains from this training far exceeded anything we imagined."
Xuanwei smiled faintly and was about to offer a few modest words when his expression suddenly changed. He sharply turned to look toward the depths of the island chain shrouded in gray-black mist!
When he had just used the Chaos Domain and the power of chaos to purify the demon qi, he had clearly felt it: deep within the islands, an even more immense and purer Nine Nether Source, carrying overwhelming resentment and deathly stillness, had been disturbed!
Moreover, that source seemed to have... locked onto him! Not because of his cultivation, but because of the unique chaotic and life-giving power on him that could purify demon qi!
A bone-chilling sense of danger, like an icy venomous snake, instantly coiled around his heart!
Before you continue