A World Within
The leader of the Demonfolk directly invited Ying Qianshan into the Demon Caves. Upon hearing the Demonfolk's words, Ying Qianshan hesitated.
Although these Demonfolk were not particularly powerful to Ying Qianshan, he was currently not fully recovered due to the Secret Technique, and his combat strength was reduced to only one-tenth. If he entered the Demon Caves, these Demonfolk would attack him en masse, and he would be no match for them.
"You don't want to go in? Then forget it," the leader of the Demonfolk said, seeing that Ying Qianshan hesitated and didn't seem to agree. He didn't force him, but stammered. Then he turned around and led hundreds of Demonfolk, carrying countless prey, toward the direction of the black Demonic Qi pillar.
"Wait, I'll go check..." Seeing the Demonfolk turn and leave one by one, Ying Qianshan felt anxious and called out.
Helpless, Ying Qianshan could not resist his curiosity about the Demon Caves. What was inside that could turn humans into Demonfolk? And the purity of the Demonic Qi contained in the black pillar of Demonic Qi Human Heart.
"Alright, alright, since you're willing to go in and take a look, I welcome you," the leading Demonfolk said, his expression revealing undisguised joy upon seeing Ying Qianshan change his mind.
The joy on the face of the leading Demonfolk surprised Ying Qianshan, but he didn't pay much attention to it. He nodded and, with Ying Wushuang still imprisoned, flew towards the pitch-black pillar of Demonic Qi.
Weak Water River!
Although it's called a river, its width of 18,000 li is so vast that it wouldn't be an exaggeration to call it a sea. Having obtained information about Ying Qianshan's whereabouts, Zhuge Xiang and the Black Water Profound Dragon, with the help of the Sea Calming Divine Needle, once again crossed the Weak Water River and returned to the Mortal Realm.
"So that guy was originally in the East Sea?" The Weak Water River connects to the coast of the East Sea. After returning, Zhuge Xiang and the Black Water Profound Dragon flew at full speed towards the address left by the Six-Eared Macaque.
Although Zhuge Xiang's cultivation level was only at the Third Layer level of the Dharma Aspect Realm, his strength was comparable to that of Gods and Buddhas of all Heavens. The Black Water Profound Dragon, needless to say, had already reached the Immortal-Demon level. The man and the dragon, moving at full speed, were so fast they could almost Space Rend. In the short time it takes to drink One Incense Stick of tea, they traveled from the shores of the East Sea to the deserted island where Ying Qianshan and Ying Wushuang were hiding.
The deserted island wasn't very big, but it wasn't small either, only about ten miles in circumference. Upon arriving at the island, Zhuge Xiang spread out his Divine Sense, instantly enveloping the entire island. However, he couldn't sense the whereabouts of Ying Qianshan and Ying Wushuang.
"Nothing? What's going on?" Zhuge Xiang asked, his Divine Sense spreading across every corner of the deserted island, but he couldn't sense the presence of Ying Qianshan and Ying Wushuang, which surprised him.
The information given by the Six-Eared Macaque is absolutely accurate. Could it be that I just missed it? When I arrived, Ying Qianshan and Ying Wushuang had already left?
"This place seems to have just been ravaged," the Black Water Profound Dragon, although its combat power was not much stronger than Zhuge Xiang 'Zhuge Xiang, was still a being of the Immortal-Demon level, with incredibly powerful Divine Sense. After some probing, it was able to perceive more things than Zhuge Xiang.
"Judging from the looks of it, this place was ravaged not long ago, like a wolf pack hunting. Even now, the animals on this deserted island are in a state of panic, but the perpetrators can't be found. Something's not right." Black Water Profound Dragon's dragon eyes swept across the area, and his Divine Sense could clearly perceive many things that Zhuge Xiang couldn't.
Zhuge Xiang's Divine Sense spread out only to find the whereabouts of Ying Qianshan and Ying Wushuang, but upon hearing the Black Water Profound Dragon's words, Zhuge Xiang's Divine Sense intensified and became even more refined.
As expected, the lingering aura on the deserted island was just as the Black Water Profound Dragon had said. So, where did those rampaging creatures on the deserted island go?
Black Water Profound Dragon slowly closed his eyes, increasing the intensity of his Divine Sense as he carefully searched every inch of the deserted island. Soon, he actually found some clues.
The Black Water Profound Dragon transformed into human form and moved to the center of the deserted island. In the center of the island was a huge crack. Staring at this crack, the Black Water Profound Dragon's expression was solemn.
"Demonic Qi, such pure Demonic Qi, it's practically like that of a powerful Demon Realm." Following the Black Water Profound Dragon to the underground fissure, Zhuge Xiang's Divine Sense also sensed a trace of residual Demonic Qi slowly dissipating in the air.
"If I'm not mistaken, the previous ravagers must have entered this crevice. This deserted island looks unremarkable, but it seems there's more to it than meets the eye," the Black Water Profound Dragon said, staring intently at the underground crevice.
The pure Demonic Qi contained within the crack startled even the Black Water Profound Dragon, who possessed cultivation at the Immortal-Demon level. What exactly lay within this crack?
"Ying Qianshan should have been on this island before, but he's gone now. Could he have also entered this rift?" Zhuge Xiang said, looking at the rift.
As he spoke, Zhuge Xiang leaped into the air, brandishing the Immortal Slaying Sword in his hand. Sharp Sword Qi shot out, cleaving through the cracks, while he himself sank towards the center of the deserted island.
"Huh? This island is quite unusual," Zhuge Xiang thought to himself, surprised as his Sword Qi slashed down.
With Zhuge Xiang's current strength, and the Immortal Slaying Sword in his hand being a Half-Demon Artifact, his Sword Qi should be enough to easily split a mountain with every move. However, Zhuge Xiang's Sword Qi could only split the ground a few dozen feet wide. The hardness of the ground Human Heart.
"Be careful," the Black Water Profound Dragon said as it sank down with Zhuge Xiang. It was unclear whether this was due to the deserted island or the pure Demonic Qi emanating from the cracks in the ground.
"This Demonic Qi is terrifyingly pure, yet it gives me a familiar feeling..." As he continued to tear apart the cracks in the ground with his Sword Qi, the pure Demonic Qi became increasingly clear as he descended, which surprised Zhuge Xiang.
Zhuge Xiang knew that he had never been to this island before. If he hadn't learned of its existence from the Six-Eared Macaque Zhuge Xiang, he might never have come here in his life. But the island was full of surprises, and the Demonic Qi emanating from it felt familiar to Zhuge Xiang, as if he had felt it somewhere before.
A flash of inspiration struck Zhuge Xiang, as if he had remembered something. But just as Zhuge Xiang was about to grasp this inspiration, suddenly, everything became clear before his eyes. It turned out that Zhuge Xiang and the Black Water Profound Dragon, one human and one dragon, had already sunk into the interior of this deserted island.
Looking around, although the interior of the deserted island was dimly lit, Zhuge Xiang's eyesight allowed him to clearly see everything inside.
The deserted island, exposed on the sea, is only a little over ten miles in circumference, but its interior is enormous, spanning about a hundred miles in circumference. The vast space could easily contain a mountain.
This deserted island, slumped down from above, resembles a wine bottle; its location on the island is merely the bottleneck.
Inside the deserted island, the vast space, though large enough to hold a mountain, is not entirely hollow. Within this interior space, there are also enormous passageways suspended in mid-air, connecting to each other. There are even large landmasses connecting these passageways, creating a network that makes the interior of the deserted island resemble a giant fortress.
Huge passageways stretched out, carrying many Demonfolk. Patches of land connected by these passageways were dotted with houses, appearing no different from ordinary people at first glance. However, the inhabitants of this deserted island were not humans, but Demonfolk, and the island's interior was permeated with a rich and pure Demonic Qi.
"The Demonic Qi here is even denser than in the Demon Realm..." Zhuge Xiang exclaimed in surprise upon entering the interior of this deserted island and observing the situation.
"Indeed, the Demonic Qi here is unusually dense," the Black Water Profound Dragon nodded in agreement, its dragon eyes scanning its surroundings warily. Such a mysterious place actually existed in the East Sea? Even the East Sea Dragon King probably didn't know about it. What secrets were hidden here?
Zhuge Xiang and Black Water Profound Dragon secretly sneaked into the inner space of this deserted island, carefully hiding and observing everything inside. However, Ying Qianshan and Ying Wushuang followed these Demonfolk into the inner space, where a leader of the Demonfolk introduced everything to Ying Qianshan.
Hundreds and thousands of Demonfolk entered the inner space, where countless Demonfolk had been eagerly awaiting their return. Seeing these Demonfolk returning from their hunt, their faces showed varying degrees of joy. Ying Qianshan could clearly sense that after entering the inner space, the violent and frenzied aura emanating from the hundreds and thousands of Demonfolk had subsided considerably.
On the deserted island, these Demonfolk were like mad dogs, powerful and with ferocious expressions. However, after entering the interior of the island, their Demonfolk subsided considerably, and their eyes became clearer. This change naturally attracted Ying Qianshan's attention.
"You... does the Demonic Qi here have the effect of calming your minds?" Ying Qianshan asked in surprise, sensing the incredibly dense Demonic Qi inside the deserted island.
"We've lived here for countless years, and we've become accustomed to the Demonic Qi here. On the contrary, once we leave this place, the sunlight outside will cause the Demonic Qi within us to boil, multiplying our demonic nature and eroding our sanity," the leading Demonfolk explained upon hearing Ying Qianshan's question.
Sure enough, once inside, even the Demonfolk had changed drastically. His eyes were now clearer than those of an ordinary person, and his speech was no longer hesitant or stuttering, but rather very coherent. (To be continued...)