A man-made demonic beast rampage

Gongsun Tuo stood atop a mountain, his hands clasped behind his back.

His brows were slightly furrowed as he gazed into the depths of Ten Thousand Peaks Forest. An Earth Master Hall disciple approached from behind and bowed.

"Hall Master, Mr. Bowen has been found. Elder Fu Shi has gone to invite him personally."

At this, Gongsun Tuo's brows relaxed, and a faint smile touched his lips. "Tell Fu Shi to be courteous. He must not slight Mr. Bowen."

The Earth Master Hall disciple answered, "Yes," and slowly withdrew down the mountain.

Gongsun Tuo looked toward Ten Thousand Peaks Forest, his smile widening until he gradually began to laugh aloud.

Meanwhile, Yang Xiao strolled through the mountain forest. Not far behind him, a yellow glow lit up the earth and spread in every direction.

Yet whenever the yellow glow reached his back, Yang Xiao would take another step. One pursued and the other fled, but it could never catch him.

After the Heavenly Master Palace and the Earth Master Hall discovered the dead, large numbers of experts were startled awake. Once awake, they no longer dared to rest.

They assembled large groups of experts overnight to search for him using Light of the Earth.

They could not catch him even by day, let alone now that a bank of dark clouds had hidden the beautiful moonlight.

When night receded and dawn broke, Yang Xiao found a demonic beast's cave, beat its original owner—a Flying Cloud Demon Leopard—to death, and stowed the corpse in his Storage Ring. Then he found some wild fruit nearby to fill his stomach.

He blocked the entrance and sealed off the Earth Vein. Tired after walking all day, Yang Xiao slept in the cave.

Outside, the Heavenly Master Palace, the Earth Master Hall, and the other scattered forces searched all night without success, then gradually returned to camp to rest.

Yang Xiao stretched and woke in the beast's den. As he opened the Earth Vein formation, roars sounded outside.

He peered out of the cave. He had actually slept through the entire day. The sky was now darkening, and demonic beasts were emerging to hunt.

Looking into the distance, he saw a black snake two meters thick, its tail out of sight, swallow a passing Redfire Bull in one gulp.

As the black snake digested the Redfire Bull, an eagle's cry rang out. A Flying Eagle the size of an adult seized the snake and soared high into the sky. Before long, the snake's corpse fell from above.

Watching this, Yang Xiao lowered his head in thought. Sneak attacks by one man were always too inefficient. If he lured over a whole pack of demonic beasts, the scene would surely be spectacular.

He acted at once. Yang Xiao stepped forward and brushed his right hand over the black snake's corpse. The next moment, both he and the snake vanished, reappearing a hundred meters away.

The Flying Eagle descending to enjoy its meal saw this, and its green eyes turned fiery red. Its piercing screech tore through the night as it streaked toward Yang Xiao in a flash of green light.

Yang Xiao glanced back and smiled faintly. This was exactly the effect he wanted.

As an Earth Master's sole means of traveling on foot, Shrinking Earth to Inches far surpassed the speed of cultivators and demonic beasts of the same level.

Relying on Shrinking Earth to Inches, he stole demonic beast eggs throughout Ten Thousand Peaks Forest, interrupted intimate moments between male and female beasts, threw stones, brought down lightning, and employed all sorts of other tricks, successfully attracting the attention of several hundred nearby demonic beasts.

"Big brother, sorry. Please don't join in." Yang Xiao had just been about to drop a bolt of lightning between a pair of Blackwater Mystic Serpents when two terrifying auras suddenly enveloped him. On closer inspection, they were actually two Soul Seed Realm Blackwater Mystic Serpents.

Frightened, he turned and ran, but after only a few steps, he stopped again. The earth shook as several hundred crazed demonic beasts charged toward him from the other side.

He instantly changed direction. When the beasts on both sides drew close, Yang Xiao rose into the air and headed toward the camp from memory, casually casting a Lesser Spirit Art to hide the moon behind dark clouds.

"You little bastards from the Heavenly Master Palace, the Earth Master Hall, and whatever other damned lot you belong to, come out and face your granddaddy Yang Xiao! Tonight, I'm taking all of you on alone!" Seeing the firelight and buildings ahead, Yang Xiao's eyes gleamed. He drew a deep breath into his belly and roared.

Yang Xiao's roar startled the camp awake. Hundreds of figures flew into the sky, while another hundred suddenly appeared on the ground.

"Where is that brat Yang Xiao? Today, I'll tear out his tendons and rip out his bones!" Murong Chong flew forward, his voice echoing all around.

Roar!

His words were answered by the roars of hundreds of demonic beasts.

Murong Chong looked toward the sound and immediately spotted Yang Xiao leading the charge. He was about to strike him with heavenly lightning, but then his gaze shifted farther back. Hundreds of demonic beasts were charging with their bloody maws gaping wide. At that speed, they would reach the camp before long.

Murong Chong's expression changed in alarm, his aura faltered, and he nearly fell out of the sky. He was not alone; everyone in the camp had now seen the scene, and their faces turned deathly pale.

Murong Chong waved a hand and unleashed a bolt of lightning, hastily retreating. "Stay away!"

Yang Xiao stepped to the right. The lightning fell past his body and struck a Leopard Demon that had leaped up, charring it black.

He bared a mouthful of white teeth and chuckled. "Weep! Howl! It'll only make me more excited! Awooo!"

Pah, please automatically disregard that last bit.

A faint black mist enveloped the surroundings, and a pair of scarlet eyes shone within it. While everyone was still reeling in horror, Yang Xiao charged into the camp. The hundreds of demonic beasts behind him rampaged through it like wolves among sheep. The two Soul Seed Realm Blackwater Mystic Serpents were especially ferocious, plunging into the crowd and swallowing people one after another. Each sweep of their tails left another swath of disciples gravely wounded.

By now, no one could spare any attention for Yang Xiao. They all brought out their Spirit Artifacts to fight the demonic beasts, and the mingled screams of beasts and humans echoed through the sky above the camp.

Blood vessels bulged in Murong Chong's eyes. He flew into the sky and casually brought down a bolt of lightning, killing a Flying Eagle that lunged at him, then roared, "Yang Xiao! If I don't kill you, I swear I'm no man!"

He swept his gaze across the camp, searching for Yang Xiao. Suddenly, his eyes fixed on a small hill nearby. Yang Xiao waved his right hand at him, then turned and vanished into the night.

With his disciples' screams filling his ears, rage surged through Murong Chong's heart. He became a streak of light and chased after him.

Seeing the streak of light behind him, Yang Xiao's lips curled slightly. If he killed only a few Sea Condensation Realm disciples tonight, how could that possibly repay him for... the agony of being chased thousands of kilometers by demonic beasts?

He ran wildly until he reached a place where two mountains converged. The Earth Vein Qi here was dense, making it an excellent place for an Earth Master to fight.

Yang Xiao clasped his hands behind his back, connected with the Earth Vein Qi, and calmly awaited Murong Chong's arrival.

Before long, a streak of light stopped between the two mountains. After chasing him for so long, Murong Chong's fury had been cooled by the breeze, and ominous suspicions had already arisen in his heart. But as a cultivator who had spent many years in the Soul Seed Realm, he did not believe he could fail to kill a junior who had only just entered the Sea Condensation Realm.

Murong Chong surveyed his surroundings and sneered. "Brat, this place has rather fine feng shui. But if you want to be buried here, I refuse to oblige. Today, I'll make sure you die without an intact corpse."

By this point, their conflict was no longer merely over a Heart of the Earth. The dignity of the Earth Master Hall was also at stake.

Yang Xiao raised his chin slightly, a trace of killing intent flashing through his eyes, and smiled chillingly. "What a coincidence. That's exactly what I wanted to say to you."

As his words fell, half of each mountain to his left and right collapsed. Earth Vein Qi flowed into the shattered rock, forming a stone palm.

Since Yang Xiao had dared to lure Murong Chong here, how could he have failed to make preparations? The dense Earth Vein Qi here could raise the power of Earth’s Right Hand another notch.

Murong Chong snorted coldly and thrust both hands toward the heavens. His powerful magical energy formed a pillar of light that shot straight into the sky.

"With my mortal heart, I summon heavenly lightning."

Layers of dark clouds gathered overhead, making the night even blacker. Everything within a thousand kilometers plunged into darkness.

Lightning flashed in the sky, and a bolt of white light struck down. Half the stone palm instantly collapsed, but the heavenly lightning's remaining force struck Yang Xiao in the chest.

At the same time, the remaining half of the stone palm crushed Murong Chong against the ground. A stream of blood flowed out along the stone palm.

Struck by heavenly lightning, Yang Xiao shuddered all over. Fortunately, the stone palm had blocked most of its power, and only a small portion had hit him.

Blood dripped from his black robe onto the soil. Forcing his wounded body onward, Yang Xiao walked through the blood toward the stone palm and moved it aside. Beneath it, Murong Chong stared fiercely ahead, then toppled backward.

Yang Xiao breathed a sigh of relief. A veteran Soul Seed Realm expert like Murong Chong was truly terrifying. He had nearly lost his life.

He removed Murong Chong's Storage Ring, buried his corpse a hundred meters underground with a wave of his hand, then turned and left.

As for his earlier words, he no longer had time to carry them out. His battle with Murong Chong had nearly cost him half his life.

Dragging his gravely wounded body along, he found a patch of ground and buried himself beneath it. With practiced movements, he took out over a hundred Low-Grade Earth Vein Crystals and arranged a small Spirit-Gathering Formation, then gradually sank into sleep.

Two beams of white light shone through the small ventilation hole. Yang Xiao's eyelids twitched, then his eyes abruptly opened. Looking down, he saw that his wounds had almost healed. With his healing ability, it would not be long before the scar on his chest peeled away, exposing the fair, tender skin beneath.

He climbed out of the ground and was greeted by a two-winged flying leopard. Yang Xiao took out the Thundercloud Fan and unfolded it. The Nine Thunder Formation formed in an instant, and bolts of mortal lightning struck the leopard. The aroma of half-cooked meat drifted over.

Using what was at hand, he drew over dry firewood, lit a campfire, set up an iron pot, and summoned rain to fill it with Rootless Water. He formed a Spell Blade, and the two-winged flying leopard's body gradually shrank as slices of succulent meat flew into the pot.

He took out the seasonings Yang You'er had prepared for him and poured them into the pot. Today's breakfast—leopard meat delivered the moment he opened his eyes—was cooking.

He covered the iron pot. After yesterday's battle, the Heavenly Master Palace, the Earth Master Hall, and the others pursuing him had suffered grievous losses. They could not possibly organize another pursuit in less than two or three days.

He could use this time to get some proper rest.

Yang Xiao took twenty-odd Storage Rings from inside his robe, all "gifts" from his enemies. He sorted through his spoils: five hundred high-grade Earth Vein Crystals, four thousand Mid-Grade Earth Vein Crystals, and over ten thousand Low-Grade Earth Vein Crystals.

There were also more than twenty Spirit Artifacts. Once he returned to the city, he could sell them at the Perching Phoenix Pavilion for some Earth Vein Crystals and make another handsome profit. He could also have a suitable Spirit Artifact forged while he was there.

The Hundred-Spirit Spider Rope was no longer powerful enough. It could still deal with Sea Condensation Realm cultivators, but against Soul Seed Realm experts, he would feel embarrassed even bringing it out.

Bubbling sounds rose from the pot. Yang Xiao lifted the lid, and a rich aroma washed over his face.

Bowl and chopsticks went to work, and the leopard meat in the pot rapidly dwindled. Half a quarter-hour later, Yang Xiao headed toward the camp with his belly full, using Shrinking Earth to Inches.

As the instigator of the Demon Beast Uprising, how could he fail to admire his own masterpiece? He could listen to his enemies' wails while he was at it and cheer himself up.

Yang Xiao did not dare approach the camp too closely, fearing an ambush.

He stood on a small hill far away and gazed toward it.

Hundreds of stone houses had collapsed, and trails of thick smoke drifted through the air. There was not a person in sight in the camp, nor a single corpse.

The camp's forces had been somewhat stronger than the demonic beasts. At first, they simply had not reacted in time. After he and Murong Chong left, the cultivators in the camp must have recovered and joined forces, killing some beasts and driving off others to win the battle.

The reason there was now neither a single person nor a corpse was surely that the people in the camp feared his retaliation and another wave of the Demon Beast Uprising. Better to retreat early, replenish their experts, then return to attack.

He gazed toward the garrison. He could no longer go back. Although he had won this battle, the enemy's losses had not been as great as he had imagined. They still had two Living Spirit Realm cultivators who had yet to

make a move. They were probably lying in ambush along the route he would have to take.

As he saw it, his only way to survive was to find his way behind the demonic beasts and wait quietly for their great uprising. Then he could follow in their wake and fight his way back to the garrison alongside them.

As for charging straight through, that method was somewhat risky. He did not know whether Butcher had received the news. If not, he would be killed by the enemy's experts before he even made it halfway.