Aberration

The ownership of the three Demon Beast corpses was somewhat troublesome. The three Li family members had helped hold back the three Demon Beasts and contributed quite a bit, but the Wang Clan had contributed even more. It did not seem appropriate for either side to take all three corpses.

Wang Daoyuan pondered inwardly: The Li family intended to befriend us, and Li Xinghe was also a friend of the clan head. Outside Golden Goose City, the clan head had even taken the initiative to help the Li family out of trouble. He must have intended to befriend them as well.

This time, the Li family had stepped in to help, so we owed them a small favor. Better to give all three Demon Beast corpses to them. That would repay the favor and show our goodwill.

Thus, he said, "We have the three of you to thank for lending us aid this time. Otherwise, members of the Wang Clan would inevitably have suffered casualties. Please accept these three Demon Beasts."

Li Xinghe, the Li family head, said, "You are too polite, little friend. These three juniors of my Li family are rather useless and did not help much. We only slew these three Demon Beasts thanks to your more than twenty Talismans. You should keep them instead."

The two sides pushed the matter back and forth for quite some time. In the end, they decided that the Li family would take two Demon Beasts, while the Wang Clan took one.

The three Li family members had suffered no losses and had gained two Demon Beast corpses worth fifty or sixty Spirit Stones. All of them beamed with joy. Wang Daoyuan had obtained one Demon Beast corpse. Though it was worth far less than twenty-odd Talismans, he did not care about such trifles. Being able to form a good relationship with the Li family made that small loss worthwhile.

After eliminating the second wave of Demon Beasts, the beast horde seemed to have given up probing the small hill. No more Demon Beasts came over, and Wang Daoyuan finally had some time to inspect the situation across the battlefield.

The cliff face on the small hill's left flank was so steep that most Demon Beasts struggled even to climb it. Few went there to probe, and the Lineages stationed there had nothing to do.

The open ground on the small hill's right flank was exceedingly lively. Thousands of Demon Beasts charged forward without regard for their lives. The several Lineages led by the Yang family relied on earthen walls and used Spirit Crossbows to shoot the beasts. Once the Demon Beasts drew near, Talismans and spells greeted them.

The cultivators handled matters with ease, effortlessly keeping the Demon Beasts more than twenty paces away. Beyond twenty paces before the earthen wall, over a thousand Demon Beast corpses had piled up, and the mound was no lower than the wall itself.

With the corpse pile obstructing them, the Spirit Crossbows inflicted fewer and fewer casualties, while the Demon Beasts' charges grew fiercer wave after wave. Some had even reached the earthen wall. At this rate, the beasts would break through it within a quarter-hour.

More than a thousand people lay in ambush on the eastern side of Cart Gorge, mostly old Lineages and direct descendants of the Netherworld Sect who were close to them. Aside from the squad led by Yang Zhiyuan, which faced the beast horde head-on, the other squads faced relatively few Demon Beasts.

It had to be said that the Yang family had fairly good connections. As soon as things grew strained here, the other squads immediately sent people to reinforce them and helped the Yang family stabilize the defensive line.

However, there were not many reinforcements, only a little over a hundred cultivators. The other squads still had to guard their own lines. If they sent too many troops away, their own defenses would fail, and the Netherworld Sect would certainly settle accounts with them afterward.

Half an hour passed. Under wave after wave of Demon Beast assaults, the earthen wall Yang Zhiyuan had built collapsed with a thunderous crash. Thousands of Demon Beasts rushed directly into the cultivator ranks, and the two sides began fighting hand-to-hand.

Wang Daoyuan was deeply puzzled by the battle. The Demon Beasts had already been trapped, yet the cultivators west of Cart Gorge did not strike while the iron was hot and wipe them out in one stroke. Instead, they allowed the beasts to attack the thinly defended eastern side of the gorge. No matter how he looked at it, it resembled killing with a borrowed blade—using the Demon Beasts to weaken the old Lineages.

Wang Daoyuan's guess was correct. More than ten li west of Cart Gorge, three Violet Mansion elders were discussing matters in low voices.

Liu Jinhui said anxiously, "It is harmless enough if the two elders wish to weaken the old Lineages, but you must not sacrifice public duty for private interests. If the Demon Beasts escape, our Netherworld Sect will suffer the greatest losses. The two of you should stop while you are ahead. If we do not attack now, the Demon Beasts will all get away."

Zhou Qi nodded. "Elder Liu speaks reasonably. We should stop while we are ahead and place the greater good first."

The Black Robe Elder wished nothing more than for the old Lineages to die to the last man. The scheme of killing with a borrowed blade had also been strongly advocated by him. Elders Zhou and Liu had no ties with the old Lineages, but the Black Robe Elder had insisted time and again and even invoked Elder Jin. The two could not readily refuse.

At this point, the cultivators on the eastern side of the gorge had suffered grievous casualties, and the Demon Beasts breaking out was only a matter of time. Though the Black Robe Elder wanted to destroy the old Lineages, that did not mean he wanted to stake his own future on it. If the Demon Beasts escaped, all three Violet Mansion elders would be held accountable.

Therefore, the Black Robe Elder no longer objected. At Zhou Qi's command, the three thousand cultivators lying in ambush on the western side of Cart Gorge pounced upon the Demon Beasts like hungry tigers leaving their cage.

Moments later, the three thousand cultivators charged into the beast horde. After multiple rounds of attrition, only around four thousand Demon Beasts remained, while fewer than three thousand demon birds were left.

More than two hundred Foundation Establishment Cultivators flew through the air on their artifacts, encircling and exterminating the demon birds. Several dozen more Foundation Establishment Cultivators assisted the Qi Refinement cultivators on the ground in clearing out the Demon Beasts.

There was no longer any talk of intercepting a breakout. The entire battlefield had become a pot of porridge. Every now and then, a few crafty Demon Beasts tried to escape amid the chaos, only to have their heads severed by the Flying Swords of Foundation Establishment Cultivators observing the battle the moment they left the battlefield.

Given the current state of the battle, the annihilation of the Demon Beasts and demon birds was already certain. Yet in such a massive melee, casualties would be severe.

The Netherworld Sect's own cultivators were well equipped and had entered the battle last, so their casualties would not be great. The Lineage cultivators, however, were another matter.

Wang Daoyuan secretly resolved that the Lineage needed to adjust its goals after returning. They had once focused wholeheartedly on integrating into the Netherworld Sect, but that now seemed unreliable. The Yang family had a Violet Mansion ancestor within the Netherworld Sect, yet they had still been set up this time.

Even if the Wang Clan had Foundation Establishment Cultivators within the Netherworld Sect, how could they compare with the Yang family? Would they not still be cannon fodder when the time came? They had swallowed their anger and humbled themselves to join the Netherworld Sect, only to become cannon fodder?

A cunning rabbit needed three burrows to avoid death. The Wang Clan had only the Netherworld Sect as its one burrow, and the sect did not even take them seriously. Now that the Netherworld Sect and Crimson Sun Palace frequently erupted into great battles, who knew when they would be treated as cannon fodder and dragged to the front lines?

After all, the Wang Clan's hatred value on Crimson Sun Palace's side had long since burst through the roof. They were simply perfect bait.

For the Lineage's continued survival, they had to have a way out. After this battle, he still needed to urge the clan head to make plans early.

The battle below the small hill had already become one-sided. At most, two or three more hours would end the fighting, and they could conveniently clean up the battlefield as well.

The cultivators who had not joined the melee also relaxed their vigilance. They would soon be able to go home.

Wang Daoxing said happily, "This trip has been truly satisfying. What a pity we are about to head home already."

The six granduncles were also in high spirits. Though they had prepared themselves not to return when they set out, no one who could return alive wanted to die.

Wang Daoyuan feared that they had relaxed too much and would be unable to react if something changed. He reminded them, "It is not that simple. Everyone, do not lower your guard."

Everyone looked astonished. Only Wang Shouye chuckled. "You noticed something was wrong too? Why not say it aloud and see whether the two of us reached the same conclusion?"

Wang Daoyuan activated a Soundproofing Talisman to prevent anyone from overhearing, then said, "This beast horde has advanced and retreated in orderly fashion, as though someone were commanding them in battle.

"And that Black Wind when they ambushed the merchant convoy—it could increase the range at which spells inflicted damage. I have never heard of human cultivators or Demon Beasts possessing such a spell.

"It may be a secret technique created by some human cultivator, or a spell belonging to some mutated Demon Beast. It may even be some kind of magical artifact.

"In my view, regardless of which it is, Foundation Establishment Cultivators could never possibly wield such a spell.

"This beast horde is not as simple as it appears. At the very least..."

Wang Shouye chuckled. "At the very least, a third-rank Demon Beast or a Violet Mansion Cultivator is hiding behind it. The hidden party deliberately revealed their methods. The only reasonable explanation is that they want more Netherworld Sect elders to come.

"Since they used more than ten thousand Demon Beasts and demon birds as the price to lay this trap, it certainly will not end so easily. Their goal is definitely not to deal with little shrimps like us. They are most likely targeting the Netherworld Sect's elders.

"Using so many Demon Beasts and demon birds as bait to fish for Netherworld Sect elders, the hidden party should have sufficient means to deal with the three elders.

"The Netherworld Sect should also have a backup plan. Next, it will depend on whose strength is greater.

"Unless the hidden party believes they have no chance of victory and does not act again, a great battle between Violet Mansion Cultivators lies right before us. We Qi Refinement little shrimps should hurry and find a way to save our lives!"

Wang Daoyuan thought to himself: The clan head truly had a sharp eye for judging people. Twelfth Uncle usually acted frivolous and lazy, unwilling to concern himself with anything, yet he truly had the makings of a clan head. His insight and judgment were absolutely no worse than mine.

The Netherworld Sect had used dozens of carriages as bait to fish for Demon Beasts, while the other side had used the beast horde to fish for the Netherworld Sect. The Netherworld Sect most likely had a backup plan as well. Both sides were old thousand-layer cakes. It remained to be seen who would be the final fisherman.

The other eight Wang Clan members were all greatly shocked. They had thought they would soon be heading home, never expecting that it would be a case of "the mouse pulls the wooden shovel—the big head comes afterward."

Seeing everyone at a loss, Wang Daoyuan simply stopped wasting words. "Stop letting your imaginations run wild. Make preparations. If anything happens, first activate a Defense Talisman to protect yourselves, then find a chance to flee.

"Remember, you absolutely cannot be the first to flee. Otherwise, they will certainly settle accounts after autumn. Wait until more than fifty people have fled before running yourselves. Even if the Netherworld Sect looks for trouble afterward, they will not be able to pin it on us.

"Also, you must flee separately. Once the enemy acts, their strength will definitely be beyond what we can resist. Staying together is meaningless and will instead draw attention.

"After escaping, do not return to Golden Goose City, lest the Netherworld Sect seize us again as substitutes for the dead. Return directly to Jade Spring Peak."

Wang Shouye had no objections. The others had already been stunned senseless and could only nod blankly, naturally unable to offer any opinions.

Wang Daoyuan gave each person another five Talismans for escaping, then quietly waited for the storm to come.

There were fewer and fewer Demon Beasts and demon birds on the battlefield, and Wang Daoyuan grew increasingly tense. The hidden party could act at any moment. Knowing something was about to happen yet being powerless to stop it, unable even to flee early and only able to wait for danger to descend, was a suffocating feeling.

The Demon Beasts on the battlefield were soon exterminated completely, and the Netherworld Sect cultivators began cleaning up the battlefield. Such a good opportunity naturally would not fall to non-members of the Netherworld Sect, much less cultivators from the old Lineages.

After all the Demon Beasts and demon birds had been eliminated, Wang Zhian returned to the small hill. After all, he was the Wang Clan's only Foundation Establishment Cultivator, yet he had been drawn away to deal with the demon birds. Without a Foundation Establishment Cultivator holding the fort, the Qi Refinement cultivators might have suffered grievous losses.

Wang Zhian landed atop the small hill and was somewhat surprised to see that none of his clansmen had been injured or killed.

Wang Daoyuan sent a voice transmission reporting what had happened in the battle against the Demon Beasts, as well as his and Wang Shouye's deductions. Before he could finish, they heard the buzzing sound of insects beating their wings. Moments later, the wingbeats rumbled like thunder, echoing throughout the entire valley.