Beast God Inner Core

Sword Gate's Golden Summit, the grand hall was magnificent and resplendent, majestic and spectacular.

Standing atop the Golden Summit, one bathed in sunlight for an extra hour each day compared to those below. In the center of the Golden Summit stood a high platform, upon which crouched a strange beast with four heads, each facing a different direction of the Great Wilderness.

The beast was like a sculpture; many Qi Refiners who had ascended the mountain had never seen it move even a fraction.

One day, the beast suddenly stirred, its golden fur bristling. One of its heads widened its eyes, staring intently in the direction of Beast God Ridge, and let out a low roar.

The roar was deep, shaking the Golden Summit.

Suddenly, a flash of white light appeared, and a white-robed Elder materialized on the platform. "Four-Clarity Beast, what happened?" he asked urgently.

The beast spoke, its voice vibrating, "Reporting to the Great Elder, there is movement in the Great Wilderness's Beast God Ridge, with a power akin to gods and demons faintly discernible."

Because the Four-Clarity Beast had four heads, it could observe all directions and see great distances. It was a rare and auspicious beast in the Great Wilderness, thus the Sword Gate Elders placed it at the highest point of Sword Gate Mountain to monitor the movements of the Great Wilderness for a hundred thousand li. If any anomalies or foreign invasions occurred, it could provide an early warning.

"Great Elder, please look."

The head of the Four-Clarity Beast facing Beast God Ridge widened its eyes, projecting a light screen. The screen faintly showed the scene of Beast God Ridge. In the center of the eight hundred li of Beast God Ridge, a terrifying sight appeared: a divine-demonic being, a thousand zhang tall, roared at the sky, shattering the clouds above!

This phenomenon was precisely Zhong Yue triggering the intermediate killing formation within the Beast God Seal, killing the Demonic Race Qi Refiner!

"This is..."

Flashes of white light appeared on the platform, transforming into Sword Gate Elders. Looking at the scene projected by the Four-Clarity Beast, they were all startled and exclaimed, "A God-level Seal!"

"Rumor has it that Beast God Ridge was formed from the remains of a fallen Beast God. Could the rumors be true? Is it truly formed from the Beast God's corpse?"

"The Beast God's corpse is a minor matter. The crucial issue is why there is a God-level Seal! Could the Beast God have sealed his own treasure?"

"This is bad. The Demonic Race from beyond the Great Wilderness has always coveted it. It was only because our Sword Gate suppressed it that they were unwilling to suffer heavy losses and did not invade. Now, the appearance of this God-level Seal in Beast God Ridge confirms that there is indeed a Beast God's treasure within. The Demonic Race beyond the Great Wilderness will likely target our Great Wilderness..."

The faces of numerous Sword Gate Elders were grave, feeling immense pressure. The current Sect Master of the Sword Gate was old, and internal strife had erupted within the Sword Gate over the succession of the next Sect Master. This external threat only added fuel to the fire!

"A time of troubles, a time of troubles indeed."

The eldest Elder, the Great Elder of the Youyu Clan, said solemnly, "News of the God-level Seal appearing in the Great Wilderness's Beast God Ridge cannot be hidden from the Demonic Race. Immediately summon all Elders to the Golden Summit to discuss countermeasures."

In the Golden Summit's grand hall, all the Sword Gate Elders were gathered. After hearing the situation, they fell silent. After a long while, an Elder from the Shuitu Clan slowly said, "The Sect Master is old and should not engage in war with the Demonic Race. In my opinion, if the Demonic Race comes to negotiate, allowing them to explore Beast God Ridge is not entirely out of the question. It's better to avoid trouble than to court it."

An Elder from the Leihu Clan, with a full beard, sneered, "The Great Wilderness was opened by our ancestors; not an inch of land can be ceded. If the Demonic Race comes to fight for it, then we fight them! We'll die fighting, with our heads held high. What is there to fear?"

"Cough, cough. While that may be true, the Sect Master is advanced in age, and the successor has not been decided. The younger generation has not yet grown. If our Sword Gate goes to war with the Demonic Race, the entire Great Wilderness might not be preserved!"

The Elder from the Shuitu Clan argued, "I'm not saying we must cede Beast God Ridge. I'm merely suggesting we allow the Demonic Race to explore it. At most, we'll lose some face, but we'll retain our substance and avoid conflict. Esteemed Senior Brothers, do you truly intend to go to war with the Demonic Race, causing countless casualties among our various tribes in the Great Wilderness? If you have a better solution, please share it!"

The Elders from the various Great Clans remained silent. The Elder from the Leihu Clan also frowned deeply.

After a moment, the Elder from the Youyu Clan coughed and said, "Junior Brother Zi'an, you have extensive connections, and outsiders often show you respect. If the Demonic Race indeed receives news of Beast God Ridge, you will be the one to negotiate with them. However, I have one condition: not an inch of our Great Wilderness's land will be yielded! The lives of our Great Wilderness people are more precious than gold! No matter who the Demonic Race sends, they must behave themselves upon reaching our Great Wilderness. If they dare to act rashly, then war it is, and neither side will be spared!"

The Elder from the Shuitu Clan quickly nodded and smiled, "Zi'an will surely not fail this mission! There is also one more matter. The sudden appearance of a God-level Seal in Beast God Ridge indicates that what is sealed within is no trivial matter. Should our Sword Gate not attempt to investigate first? Perhaps we can obtain some Beast God treasures and strengthen our Sword Gate."

"The Beast God's treasures should all be items of the Demonic Race. We are of the Human race; even if we obtain them, we cannot use them."

The Elder from the Youyu Clan shook his head. "Furthermore, breaking a God-level Seal is extremely taxing. How difficult it would be to obtain the Beast God's treasures! We might suffer losses in men and material, only to obtain treasures we cannot use. It would not be worth the effort. If Junior Brother Shui is interested, you can go and investigate, but do not focus too much energy on it."

The Elder from the Shuitu Clan, Shui Zi'an, nodded and smiled, "The Great Elder is right. I will then order people to investigate."

The Beast God Seal. Zhong Yue, stopping and starting along the way, finally approached the core location of the Beast God Seal. The Kindling Child, using his sight, looked around and suddenly breathed a sigh of relief, chuckling, "A close call, a close call! I didn't expect the dead Beast God to have other arrangements here, not just the Seven Kill Formation."

Zhong Yue's heart grew serious, and he quickly asked, "More than just the Seven Kill Formation?"

The Kindling Child floated out of his brow, landing on his shoulder. Its flame flickered as it chuckled, "Look at this river."

Zhong Yue peered intently and saw a thin stream of water winding its way from the core area of the Beast God Seal, flowing for eighteen bends and passing through several Seven Kill Formations.

However, the riverbed was broken in several places, failing to flow under all the stone tablets. This was likely due to changes in the terrain of the Beast God Seal, causing the river to deviate from its original course.

"This is the Yin Dragon River, also a killing formation, complementing the Seven Kill Formation. Besides this, the Grass and Trees Become Soldiers Formation has also been destroyed."

The Kindling Child sighed repeatedly, its heart itching with impatience. It stomped on his shoulder and said, "Such formations, if not completed, would be a great regret."

Zhong Yue coughed, reminding, "Kindling, the Beast God Essence is important."

The Kindling Child looked expectantly at his profile and asked, "After we collect the Beast God Essence, can we complete these three formations?"

Seeing its gaze, Zhong Yue's heart softened, and he nodded, "As you wish."

The Kindling Child hopped and cheered, then suddenly quieted down, clasping its hands together expectantly. "After we complete the formations, can we activate them for fun?"

Zhong Yue quickly shook his head. What a joke! A mere intermediate killing formation was already so terrifying. If a large-scale God-level killing formation were activated, wouldn't it pierce a hole in the sky?

Moreover, the Kindling Child wanted to activate three killing formations at once. The power of one killing formation was already unimaginable, let alone three!

The little flame pouted and said sullenly, "A pure-blooded Fuxi Divine Clan member would definitely agree to let me activate three great formations for fun..."

Zhong Yue pretended not to hear.

Not long after, guided by the Kindling Child, Zhong Yue arrived before a portal. The portal was like a circular opening, its surface stained with dried blood that formed totem patterns. However, due to the immense passage of time, the totem patterns were somewhat blurred.

Furthermore, this portal had been opened slightly, and streams of dense demonic energy, accompanied by a peculiar fragrance that permeated the lungs, were seeping out from within.

Zhong Yue sniffed and wondered, "This fragrance is so strange. Did the Beast God refine his essence into a spirit pill?"

"You guessed correctly."

The Kindling Child chuckled. "The Beast God Essence is indeed a spirit pill, but it's not called a spirit pill. It's called an Inner Core, something formed by the condensation of essence and energy during the cultivation of the Demonic Race. During the eras of Suihuang and Fuxi, the Demonic Race was the lowest of races. The gods would present a plate of Demonic God Inner Cores as a delicacy at banquets."

Zhong Yue was stunned. He heard Xin Huo say, "Looking at the current plight of your Human race, I estimate that at the current Gods' Banquet, the host will serve a plate of Human inner cores as a treat. The seal on this portal is already broken. Hurry inside, grab the Beast God Essence, and let's quickly complete the three killing formations! Oh, and hold your breath, don't inhale this fragrance. If you do, you'll prematurely transform into a demonic beast..."

Upon hearing this, Zhong Yue quickly held his breath. Suddenly, he felt an itch on the back of his hand. He quickly looked and saw scales growing beneath his skin. His heart filled with dread. He had only inhaled a few breaths of the fragrance, and already he was showing signs of assimilation into a demon!

If he were to consume the Beast God Essence, wouldn't he be certain to turn into a monster?

I hope Xin Huo is reliable...

He steadied himself and reached out to push the door. The portal opened with a creak. Zhong Yue immediately stepped inside. The fragrance grew even more potent, seeming to seep into his body through his pores.

Zhong Yue felt the itching intensify. He steadied himself again and visualized Suihuang in his Sea of Consciousness. Only then did the itching subside.

He looked up and saw that the space beyond the door was vast, hundreds of feet wide and tall. A luminous pearl hung in the air, shining brightly, round and full, illuminating the entire space.

"This is the Beast God's heart chamber, where his heart resides. Before dying, this Beast God merged his Spiritual Power and blood, forming the three great killing formations outside, all to protect his soul and this inner core."

The Kindling Child urged, "Quickly, quickly, take down this inner core so we can go outside and organize the formations!"

Zhong Yue closed his eyes. When he opened them, two flood dragons had appeared beneath his feet. Lightning crackled as the two flood dragons, baring their fangs and claws, flew towards the Demonic God's inner core in mid-air!

As soon as he reached out and grabbed the inner core, dense scales erupted from the skin of his palm!

"Quick! Stuff the Beast God Essence into your Sea of Consciousness!" Xin Huo shouted urgently.

"How do I stuff it in?"

Zhong Yue was somewhat flustered. This Beast God inner core was as large as a goose egg. How could it possibly fit into his head?

As they spoke, more scales grew, rapidly spreading towards his arm at an astonishing speed!

Xin Huo yelled, "Just stuff it in!"

Zhong Yue gritted his teeth and raised his hand, shoving the Beast God inner core towards his own brow!