Seeking the Young Master's Aid

The burly man was named Zuo Qiu. He was in quite a good mood. He had only been here a short while, yet he had already found something to gain. Back at the main altar, such an opportunity would never have fallen to him.

He sat atop a large boulder, watching the people below bustle about. The Ghost Head Broadsword lay beside him. A roast chicken was in his left hand and a jug of wine in his right. Breathing in the bloody scent within the cave, he found the meat fragrant and the wine sweet.

After the time it took to burn an incense stick, an altar had been arranged within the underground grotto. A pool a zhang wide had been dug before it.

Crimson Dragon Cult Leader Si Zhiyu personally acted, using the longsword in his hand to carve the altar's formation patterns into the ground.

Zuo Qiu watched for a while, then tossed the roast chicken and wine aside. With one kick, he sent Si Zhiyu sprawling to the side and cursed, "What kind of rubbish are you carving? No wonder the righteous and wicked paths joined hands to wipe you out. This formation opens a Demon Realm Passage, and when Demonic Qi leaks out, it merely releases a few Demonic Beasts and Fierce Beasts. What use is that to me? Do you even know what an altar is? It is used to offer sacrifices to the Mighty Figures of the Demon Realm, borrowing their power to condense Demonic Qi into Demon Pills."

The Crimson Dragon Cult Leader forcibly suppressed the fury in his heart and said with a placating smile, "This is the formation passed down within our cult."

"Useless trash. Move aside. I'll do it myself."

"This old man is dull-witted. Please, Venerable."

Still cursing under his breath, Zuo Qiu reached out and grabbed at the air. The broadsword flew into his hand, and amid swishing sounds, he carved out the formation in no time.

Si Zhiyu stared intently, committing the formation to memory.

"Pour all the blood in!"

At his command, several large barrels of blood were poured into the pool, and the stench of blood filled the entire cave.

A crimson Divine Statue with a dragon's head and human body was placed upon the altar table.

As several jade stones were set into the formation's base and True Qi was poured in, the formation activated at once.

The blood pool churned as though it had been brought to a boil. Billowing crimson mist rose up, coiling around and flowing into the crimson Divine Statue with a dragon's head and human body.

In an instant, the crimson Divine Statue blazed with light. Red radiance shone from its eyes and fell directly upon the Demon Realm Seal here.

The Seal, which barred the two realms like an iron gate, was instantly pierced through by that mysterious power.

Surging Demonic Qi seeped out, entering this realm along the two beams of red light. It gathered before the Divine Statue, forming a vortex and gradually condensing.

Delight appeared on Zuo Qiu's face. One look at the scene before him told him that it had worked.

After the time it took to burn an incense stick, every last drop of blood in the pool had vanished.

Zuo Qiu looked at the black round pill condensed before the Divine Statue and frowned slightly. Then the Ghost Head Saber resting on his shoulder flashed.

Guan Zhao, the Northern Heavenly King of the Crimson Dragon Cult and a True Martial Eighth Layer expert, only had time to feel his heart tighten. Before he could react in the slightest, his head had already flown from his shoulders.

Blood sprayed from his body and swiftly flowed into the crimson Divine Statue.

The primordial pill condensed from Demonic Qi immediately bloomed with white light, its original pitch-black color gradually fading.

Only then did the other members of the Crimson Dragon Cult at the side snap out of their shock. They all retreated several steps and drew their weapons.

A flash of anger passed through Crimson Dragon Cult Leader Si Zhiyu's eyes before he said in a deep voice, "Everyone, do not panic. Guan Zhao was originally a man of the Imperial Court and had been lying low among us for a long time. Today, the Venerable merely cleaned house."

Zuo Qiu laughed heartily. "Rest easy. You still have your uses to me, so I will not strike casually. It was merely a little short of the final touch just now. Had I not done that, this Sacred Demon Pill would have gone to waste after all that effort."

When the blood qi had completely vanished, the crimson Divine Statue returned to its ordinary state. All the Demonic Qi had also gathered into that pill.

The pill revealed its true appearance as well. Faint black and white light interwove and slowly flowed across its surface. One look was enough to tell that it was extraordinary.

Zuo Qiu reached out and drew it over. A trace of greed flashed in his eyes, but in the end, he placed it into a fist-sized jade gourd.

Only then did he ask, "This place cannot be used again for the next few years. Are there any other places within Great Gan that have Demon Realm Seals like this?"

"To my knowledge, apart from this place, there are five more such Seals. One is within the Lingxu Sect, one lies in the Qi River waters of South Goose Path, one is in Taiwu Mountain at the easternmost edge of Great Gan, and the other two are near the royal capital. One is at the headquarters of the Demon Suppression Division, and the other lies beneath North Spring Mountain."

"Which place is closest?"

"The Qi River waters of South Goose Path. The next closest is the Lingxu Sect."

"It would be best not to touch the Lingxu Sect. They are not so simple."

"Then only the vicinity of the royal capital remains."

A gleam of excited red light appeared in Zuo Qiu's eyes. "Then we will first head to South Goose Path, then take a look at Great Gan's royal capital. I am quite interested in that Gu Yuanqing as well. If we offer a Grandmaster's blood as sacrifice, the quality of the Sacred Demon Pill will improve by another measure."

"Your Majesty, within the Demon Suppression Division's Shuntian Prefecture garrison, over a thousand people, including Commander Pang Shishan, were all killed. Every drop of their blood was drained, and the murderer has vanished without a trace. However, judging by the sacrificial traces left in the Underground Cave, it should have been the work of the Crimson Dragon Cult. Yet strangely, the Seal was not affected, nor was there any trace of Demonic Qi at the scene."

"Your Majesty, at the Demon Suppression Division's South Goose Path garrison, Commander Qi Tinghua and two thousand Demon Suppression Division soldiers were all killed in battle. The scene was identical to Shuntian Prefecture. The Heavenly Policy Mansion has found traces of the Crimson Dragon Cult, but none of those sent to probe them returned alive."

"Your Majesty, Lord Tong, the South Goose Path Governor, led troops to encircle and kill the Crimson Dragon Cult members, but unfortunately fell in battle. Thirty thousand soldiers perished for the country! There is someone above the Grandmaster level within the Crimson Dragon Cult. Judging by their direction, they appear to be heading for the royal capital."

A string of bad news arrived without pause. Li Haotian could no longer keep his composure and thundered, "Above the Grandmaster level, again above the Grandmaster level? How could the Crimson Dragon Cult suddenly produce such a figure? I do not care what methods you use—within three days, you must find out who this person is!"

"This subject obeys the decree!"

After everyone had withdrawn,

Xu Lianying slowly spoke. "Your Majesty, I fear this time will be rather troublesome."

Li Haotian gave a cold snort. "Troublesome? If that man truly thinks that, with cultivation above the Grandmaster level, he can disregard the laws of my Great Gan and come and go freely through Great Gan's royal capital, then he has miscalculated."

"Your Majesty, you intend to...?"

"Correct. To guard against any eventuality, Chief Eunuch, go invite Royal Uncle Prince Qing here."

Such a tremendous disturbance could naturally not be concealed. Before long, the news spread like wildfire throughout Great Gan.

The Crimson Dragon Cult, once like rats crossing the street, suddenly emerged openly and killed tens of thousands of Imperial Court soldiers.

"Did you hear? The Spirit Ape Sword Sect was wiped out by the Crimson Dragon Cult. Not a single disciple escaped, and their grounds were razed flat."

"This time, something huge has happened in both the martial world and the Imperial Court. On the road from South Goose Path to the royal capital, I heard that many sects which once joined the campaign against the Crimson Dragon Cult fled overnight."

"I heard the Imperial Court has already sent people to invite the major sects to gather in the royal capital and resist the enemy together."

"The Crimson Dragon Cult commits every evil under heaven, slaughtering innocents and throwing the world into chaos. They are the common enemy of both righteous and wicked paths. This time, I fear another vicious battle is coming."

The Crimson Dragon Cult's boundless evil had long been engraved in people's hearts. Back then, a region stretching hundreds of li had fallen into the Demon Abyss. From top to bottom, the royal capital was gripped by panic, and many could not help fleeing to avoid danger for the time being.

Even Gu Yuanqing, though deep in the mountains, heard the news. Learning that so many people had been brutally massacred, anger rose in his heart as well.

That afternoon, the Deputy Commander of Divine Eagle Guard came before the courtyard on North Spring Mountain. He knelt upon the ground as though pushing down a golden mountain and toppling a jade pillar, then said in a deep voice, "I beg the young master to leave the mountain and save Great Gan from fire and water!"