The Next Realm

In the Pei Province Demon Slayer Division, Patrol Hall.

The usually spacious main hall was filled with Martial Artists.

Si Miaoyin and Ling Yan, who were already Inspectors of the Patrol Hall, were naturally present.

Even Yang Zhiru sat to the side, quietly sipping tea.

In the center of the hall, nearly ten stretchers wrapped in white cloth were laid out on the floor.

The Hall Master of the Patrol Hall sat at the head seat, his expression somewhat grim.

The forensic personnel from the Logistics Hall were meticulously examining the condition of each corpse.

The sole surviving Inspector was also lying on a stretcher.

He was already delirious, his face contorted as if enduring immense pain.

Sounds of pained groans echoed through the hall.

Physicians from the Logistics Hall attended to him on either side, but they could only channel True Qi into him.

This was only enough to slightly alleviate the pain and temporarily suppress the worsening of his condition.

Their expressions revealed their powerlessness to truly heal him.

This kind of illness was too bizarre; they had never encountered anything like it before.

The corpses bore no external wounds.

It was as if their souls had been struck, their life force siphoned from within.

The Martial Artists around them also frowned, all shocked by the bizarre and terrifying demonic arts.

"According to intelligence from the Flying Eagle Hall, these deceased Inspectors lost all contact after passing through Youpu City."

"Later, a Martial Artist from the Flying Eagle Hall, while gathering information, caught a glimpse of Youpu City from a distance."

"It can now be basically confirmed..."

"Youpu City has completely fallen into the hands of demons, and the citizens and Martial Artists within… likely..."

With that, what followed was self-evident.

"When the bodies of these Inspectors were discovered, they were neatly hung on the city walls of a nearby small town."

"The soldiers in this town, upon seeing them, immediately notified the Magistrate. A member of the Flying Eagle Hall happened to be passing by and relayed the information back to the Demon Slayer Division..."

After this person finished reporting, the surrounding Martial Artists began to murmur amongst themselves.

The Hall Master of the Patrol Hall scanned the crowd. "Everyone, please speak your minds freely. There's no need to hesitate."

"The demons are warning us!"

"They deliberately killed them but didn't consume the bodies, instead hanging them on the city walls. This is clearly a provocation and a show of force!"

"We should gather our forces and launch a crackdown on Youpu City!"

The Hall Master of the Patrol Hall listened silently to the Martial Artists' discussion.

"Then, has everyone considered how to deal with these bizarre methods of attack?"

"And who is willing to be the vanguard for this crackdown?"

At his words, many fell silent. Everyone stammered, hesitant to commit.

They truly had no idea how to counter these strange attack methods.

The cultivation techniques and martial arts of the Demon Slayer Division almost exclusively focused on physical damage and physical defense.

In simpler terms, they emphasized attack power and armor.

Their research and foundation in resisting magical arts and demonic resistance were extremely superficial and lacking.

They were severely lacking in countermeasures against various strange demonic arts.

Before this, Martial Artists of the Demon Slayer Division had almost always employed the method of overwhelming force with sheer power, defeating seasoned experts with unrefined techniques.

If that didn't work, they could also overwhelm demons with sheer numbers.

But now, with the demons' power growing, the Demon Slayer Division was already stretched thin.

How could they afford to deploy a large number of Martial Artists to one location so lavishly?

Should other areas be neglected?

They shouldn't lose the bigger picture for a minor gain!

Ling Yan hesitated slightly. "Could we consider dispatching Martial Artists of a higher realm?"

The surrounding Martial Artists pondered this.

Many nodded, seeming to think this was a feasible approach!

Si Miaoyin, however, shook her head. "Among this batch of deceased Inspectors, the highest realm was the third level of the Profound Realm."

"Martial Artists at the third level of the Profound Realm had no ability to resist under such attacks."

"Would a few more levels of cultivation make them able to resist it?"

"Right now, we're already short-handed. We shouldn't be carelessly sacrificing the lives of Martial Artists!"

"If we want to play it safe, the Martial Artists we send out must at least be above the Profound Realm!"

Above the Profound Realm!

Upon hearing this, the many Martial Artists fell silent again.

Martial Artists above the Profound Realm were on the level of Hall Masters in the eight halls of the Demon Slayer Division!

It was practically asking the Hall Masters to personally take action.

But, it was impossible to actually have the Hall Masters come themselves, right?

Sending out Martial Artists of a higher realm might indeed solve the problem.

But don't forget, the Demon Kings among the demons are not to be trifled with!

It's a relationship of mutual checks and balances. If you make a move, will they just sit idly by?

This is difficult!

For a moment, the situation once again fell into a deadlock, and everyone was at a loss.

Yang Zhiru lightly sipped his tea. As the Hall Master of the Purification Hall, the division with the top combat power in the Demon Slayer Division, he naturally had a way to solve the problem. Even if sheer force could overcome all, his subordinates could achieve it!

But as mentioned before, it was indeed too costly, and there was a high chance of losing many Martial Artists.

It's not easy to cultivate an outstanding Martial Artist. To lose them like this would be truly uneconomical!

In just one month, Li Xuanxiao began his journey back.

Three Profound Realm Demon Kings, along with their subordinate Apex Realm Great Demons, provided him with a considerable amount of Demon Points.

After completing these three tasks, he didn't immediately return. Instead, he lingered outside for a few more rounds, still feeling unsatisfied.

He truly reaped unexpected rewards, killing several more Profound Realm Demon Kings!

There were also nearly a hundred Apex Realm Great Demons!

His Demon Points also gradually increased during this process.

Why bother with missions? Just wandering outside would suffice!

Li Xuanxiao thought to himself, then immediately dismissed the idea.

After all, besides Demon Points, he also needed Contribution Points to exchange for more cultivation techniques and martial arts.

[Consuming 3000 Demon Points, Ancient Subtle Life Lotus has reached Sublimity Realm!]

The Demon Points in his hand instantly decreased significantly, but in return, his realm advanced once more.

From the eighth layer of the Profound Realm to the peak of the Profound Realm!

The True Qi within his body, which was like a dense fog, was now beginning to transform into a more viscous liquid state!

Holy crap!

Li Xuanxiao was shocked. The last time such a peculiar change occurred was during the last time!

Pah!

It happened when he advanced from the Profound Realm to the Apex Realm!

The reason why the Apex Realm and the Profound Realm represented a qualitative leap was precisely because of this True Qi, which was a dimensional reduction attack on internal energy!

Now that this change had occurred again, it meant...

The new form of power that was about to transform would also be a dimensional reduction attack on True Qi!

To put it directly, once he reached the next realm, his strength would once again undergo a earth-shattering improvement!

What was this new form of power called?

And what was the next realm?

Li Xuanxiao felt invigorated, filled with anticipation!

He summoned the system to continue allocating points.

[Consuming 500 Demon Points, My Buddha Illuminates Seal has entered Greater Mastery realm!]

[Consuming 500 Demon Points, Pure Lotus Bloom has entered Greater Mastery realm!]

He opened his personal status panel again.

[Host: Li Xuanxiao]

[Realm: Profound Realm Peak]

[Cultivation Techniques: Evergreen Art (Sublimity), Apex - Myriad Manifestations Violet Zenith Art (Sublimity), Profound - Ancient Subtle Life Lotus (Sublimity)]

[Martial Arts: Focused Spirit Slash (Sublimity), Soaring Hawk Nine Steps (Sublimity), Thousand Peaks Ruin Blade (Sublimity), Apex - Silent Heart Sutra (Sublimity), Apex - Ride the Wind (Sublimity), Profound - My Buddha Illuminates Seal (Greater Mastery), Profound - Pure Lotus Bloom (Greater Mastery), Profound - Rainbow Light Travel (Greater Mastery)]

[Demon Points: 300]