The moment she left the formation's protective perimeter, Su Jiu felt dense demonic qi sweeping toward her.
At first glance, the pitch-black mass seemed to have no physical substance.
It had neither the limbs nor the flesh of a magic beast, nor even a general outline. It was exceedingly pliable, and in that brief span, it had already shifted through several forms before her.
Like a puddle of water, it had no fixed body...
Su Jiu had read similar accounts of such things in books. People called them... demonic beasts.
Demonic beasts differed from magic beasts, and from demons as well. Though they had no fixed bodies, they possessed independent consciousness.
Like magic beasts, their bloodlust sprang from instinct. Even though they could think, the moment they encountered blood, their murderous nature overwhelmed what little awareness they possessed.
Thus, among the demonic races, demonic beasts occupied the very bottom of the food chain despite their formidable destructive power.
At the very top, naturally, stood demons with intelligence.
Such as the Phantom Blood Demon Su Jiu had once encountered.
Both demons and magic beasts could consume demonic beasts to strengthen themselves. Demonic beasts also devoured one another, and among their kind, only the strongest deserved to survive.
Moreover, demonic beasts would never die completely.
The Phantom Blood Demon was formidable, but there were ways to destroy it besides innate origin qi.
Demonic beasts were different. Without innate origin qi, subduing them was effectively the only way to resolve the problem once and for all.
Even the strongest cultivator could only disperse their divine souls. Their lingering demonic qi and demonic nature would remain.
Hundreds or thousands of years later, they would revive all the same and wreak havoc upon the living.
Of course, one could take another path-for example, allowing a