Zhou Wuji cultivated many techniques, but the highest level was actually the Big Dipper as Eyes.
This method uses the stars as eyes; while it cannot be said to survey the entire world, it is sufficient to observe the situation within a radius of one or two hundred miles.
Having served multiple shifts, he has gained a certain understanding of the situation in the Yunze area.
In any case, the strongest demon is only at the Fifth Rank.
The stronger the demon, the stronger its Qi and Blood and qi. These naturally born demons, no matter how well they hide, rely on instinct and are vastly different in level from cultivators using Secret Method.
Even Fifth Rank Grand Master of Yin Yang Dao like Cui Wancheng, who had cultivated Secret Method for decades, could not escape the notice of the Big Dipper as Eyes, nor even the reflection of his Mind Mirror.
Because he was well-prepared, he dared to enter Yunze, but he would not go deep into Yunze, and he would stay far away from the entrance of Dream Marsh.
Zhou Wuji locked onto his target, controlled his Qi, and traversed the water, moving at a speed almost as fast as a swift horse.
But he moved like Flowing Clouds, fast yet graceful and unrestrained, without a trace of haste.
In less than an hour, Zhou Wuji had arrived in front of a tall fir tree.
The cedar tree has an umbrella-like canopy, with sparse, dense green leaves and hundreds of exposed, intertwined roots that resemble strangely shaped treehouses.
Zhou Wuji first activated the Big Dipper Heavenly Gang Divine Incantation to bless himself, and then activated the Seven Stars Demon-Slaying Sword.
Seven azure light swords disappeared almost silently into the depths of the tree canopy. As the azure light swirled and the branches and leaves fluttered, a giant black python charged out.
The azure lightsabers slashed at the giant python's black scales, sending sparks flying everywhere. Several lightsabers also cut through the scales, leaving tiny sword marks on the python's body.
The giant python was five or six zhang long. The Seven Stars Demon-Slaying Sword caused it very little damage, but the Law Power made it very uneasy and very angry.
The giant python was quite intelligent and quickly locked onto Zhou Wuji, the little creature, spewing out a large plume of black gas.
In an instant, the black mist spread over an area of several dozen feet. Any grass, trees, or leaves that came into contact with the black mist immediately turned black and rotted.
Zhou Wuji, protected by his azure light robe, kept all the poisonous gas out.
Three of the seven stars that shone on the chest of the azure light robe had faded, and the robe's radiance had dimmed considerably.
This demonstrates the potency of the python's venom.
Zhou Wuji corrected himself in his mind; it should be a giant snake, as pythons are generally non-venomous. This giant snake's venom was extremely potent.
This kind of monster has little intelligence; releasing poison gas over a large area consumes a lot of its energy, but it doesn't pose much of a threat to it.
Sensing that Zhou Wuji's life force was growing stronger, the giant snake opened its mouth wide and bit straight at Zhou Wuji.
The giant snake had an enormous body, yet its attack speed was as fast as an arrow released from a bow.
Zhou Wuji waited until the snake's head was right in front of him before drawing his sword.
The radiant sword rainbow transformed into a blazing sun, and the giant serpent's head flew up with the sword wheel, its severed body gushing blood.
Upon landing, the snake's head frantically spewed poisonous gas, while its headless body writhed wildly in the swamp, sending tree roots and bushes flying everywhere...
Zhou Wuji sheathed his sword and once again cast the Big Dipper Heavenly Gang Divine Incantation on himself.
The perfected Xiaoxiang Sword allowed the Sunset Sword to fully integrate with the Tianji Profound Yang Sword Qi, and combined with the sharpness of the White Rainbow Sword itself, it was able to kill this Sixth Rank giant serpent with a single strike.
If even one condition had been missing, he wouldn't have been able to kill the giant serpent so easily.
Seeing the four taels and eight coins of Origin Profound Spirit on the Northern Emperor's Book of Heavenly Punishment, Zhou Wuji was very satisfied...
The giant snake's flesh and blood weigh at least three or four thousand pounds, and its skin can be tanned into leather armor, which can be sold for a good price.
However, he will need to hunt high-level monsters frequently in the future. He should make a profit each time he goes out, so as not to arouse suspicion after only two attempts.
Those who can enter Cloud Marsh Lower Court have gone through layers of screening; there are absolutely no fools among them.
After weighing the pros and cons, Zhou Wuji decided not to make that small amount of money.
He had enough money, and selling monster corpses wouldn't earn him much. Compared to the attention it would attract, the money was insignificant.
Such a large Sixth Rank demon shouldn't be wasted like this.
As Alchemist well-versed in the Green Satchel Scripture (a classic text on alchemy), Zhou Wuji knew very well that the essence of snake-like demons lay in their gallbladders.
The dead giant snake had lost its protective Yao Qi, and the location of its gallbladder was easily found with a glance from the Mind Mirror.
Zhou Wuji drew his sword and dug out the snake's gall bladder, which was as big as an adult's fist and had a faint, spiritual light emanating from its green body.
It must be because Yunze is a place with abundant spiritual energy, so the giant snakes eat and live well, and their gallbladders are of particularly high quality.
"When cooked with a few medicinal herbs, it greatly benefits cultivation."
Zhou Wuji muttered to himself that his cultivation was now so refined that eating this stuff wouldn't be of much use to him, but it would be extremely useful to Wuming and Yang Tie Ying.
Five Yin Pouch put away the snake gallbladders, and Zhou Wuji saw that the smell of blood had attracted several crocodiles that were about ten feet long.
The crocodiles didn't see Zhou Wuji at all, or rather, they didn't even notice that there was a person there. They were attracted by the strong smell of blood gushing from the giant snake and were busy tearing at the snake's flesh.
Zhou Wuji flicked his finger, and the White Eyebrow Needle transformed into a silver light that pierced the crocodile's eyeball. A wisp of Sword Qi attached to the White Eyebrow Needle then exploded, shattering the crocodile's brain into pieces.
Crocodiles are enormous and possess abundant spiritual energy, but due to their physical size, they are unable to gather Yao Qi energy to protect themselves, making them completely defenseless against flying needles.
In the blink of an eye, all four crocodiles were motionless.
Life in Yunze was thriving. The crocodile had just died when a flock of birds appeared, along with some snakes and insects, all seemingly appearing out of nowhere.
In no time at all, the giant snake's corpse was covered with all sorts of insects, ants, and birds, making it look quite frightening.
The giant snake's flesh and blood were also poisonous, and many insects and ants died quickly, but even more insects crawled onto it.
As more and more demonic creatures gathered, Zhou Wuji figured that waiting here would allow him to kill some of Demon Beast.
He immediately floated down to the canopy of the cedar tree. The clouds and mist obscured the sunlight, and the dense, lush leaves completely blocked out the sunlight.
Without sunlight, Zhou Wuji felt free to activate the Five Yin Pouch to shield himself, completely concealing his life Spiritual Qi.
Before long, Zhou Wuji heard a soft whistling sound from the sky, and in a flash, a white crow landed on the snake's head.
The bird was about a foot tall, with glossy white feathers. It stood between the snake's eyes, its small, bright golden eyes gleaming. With its head slightly raised, it exuded an air of arrogance.
The strong wind that accompanied the landing of the Bai Ya actually drove away all the snakes and insects in the vicinity.
It looked around and, finding nothing amiss, lowered its head to peck at the snake's head. Its long, sharp black beak easily tore open the snake's scales.
Zhou Wuji used the Mirror of the Mind Mirror the bird and discovered that its life force was quite strong. This small bird was actually able to condense True Qi, or rather, Yao Qi, within its body.
In terms of life level, this white raven is on the same level as the dead giant snake, or even on a higher level of intelligence.
Even though Sixth Rank demon is good-looking, Zhou Wuji wouldn't let it go.
With no one around, he no longer held back. His eyes shone with a crystalline light as he unleashed the Northern Dipper Heavenly Pivot Yin Thunder, while simultaneously putting away the Five Yin Pouch.
Sixth Rank cultivator can store Thunder Method in their acupoints, but to unleash it to its fullest potential, they need to hold hand seals and chant incantations.
Zhou Wuji was different. He had mastered the Northern Dipper Heavenly Pivot Yin Thunder to perfection, and with the blessing of the Northern Emperor's Book of Heavenly Punishment, he could even release Thunder Method directly through his gaze.
Such spellcasting is completely unexpected, secretive, and swift.
The Bai Ya was leisurely pecking at the meat when, unexpectedly, a lightning bolt struck from nowhere.
Sensing something was wrong, the Bai Ya spread its wings to fly away, only to be struck squarely by a lightning bolt.
Lightning crackled, and layers of white spiritual light rose around the Bai Ya to protect itself, but it was still inevitably pierced by the lightning. Its whole body convulsed, and its white feathers flew wildly, but it still managed to stand up.
Zhou Wuji sensed the sharp Geng Metal aura emanating from the Bai Ya. The True Qi condensed by this bird actually resonated with the five elements of heaven and earth, making it vastly different from the Yao Qi of ordinary demons.
But he didn't care. A mere Sixth Rank demon was enough to be killed by a second bolt of Yin Thunder.
He wasn't in a hurry to act; he just felt that the bird was somewhat mysterious, and since there were no other demons around, he wasn't in a rush.
The Bai Ya barely withstood a bolt of the Northern Dipper Heavenly Pivot Yin Thunder, but it was blasted black by the lightning and looked miserable.
Its two claws were too soft to grip, and its body swayed uncontrollably from side to side.
The bird looked rather disheveled and comical, a stark contrast to its earlier eerie and beautiful appearance, which made Zhou Wuji laugh as well.
He smiled, but showed no mercy. Just as his eyes flashed with a glint of light, preparing to unleash a torrent of Yin Thunder, the bird spotted the figure hidden in the treetops and cried out, "Spare me! Spare me!"
Bai Ya's voice was slightly hoarse, and his tone was anxious and full of emotion.
Zhou Wuji was greatly surprised; this bird could actually talk!
Some birds can talk, but ultimately their intelligence is very low; they mostly just Wuyi repeat what people say.
Even when conversing with people, it's mostly simple dialogues corresponding to extremely simple scenarios.
Zhou Wuji has encountered many demons, some even at the Fifth Rank rank. In fact, most of them have very low intelligence, and even simple communication is very difficult for them.
Bai Ya consciously and accurately expresses his thoughts, and his tone of voice is just like a human's, very standard.
If you listen with your eyes closed, you'll think it's a lazy bum begging for mercy.
Zhou Wuji became interested, and his eyes flashed with spiritual light as he once again unleashed Yin Thunder Yin Thunder, though its power was reduced by more than half.
The bird, its body charred black, saw the lightning approaching again and angrily opened its beak to curse, "You son of a bitch!"
As lightning struck, the Bai Ya trembled violently, puffing out black smoke, and collapsed headfirst...
When Bai Ya woke up again, she saw Zhou Wuji's smiling face. Bai Ya resisted the urge to peck at him, and barely managed to flap her wings, losing many more charred feathers.
The Bai Ya looked at its own pitch-black appearance, and a deep sorrow welled up within it. Tears welled up in its golden eyes and rolled down its cheeks.
Zhou Wuji found it even funnier; this thing could actually cry. How interesting.
He asked, "How can you talk?"
"It's not difficult to speak human language!" Bai Ya said, tilting his head back with an air of arrogance.
"Simply speaking isn't difficult; the challenge lies in accurately expressing thoughts and emotions, which requires a linguistic environment."
"You're just a bird, who can you talk to?"
Zhou Wuji shook his head slightly. As he spoke, he suddenly thought of something and was immediately startled.
He immediately stopped smiling and asked in a deep voice, "Who is your master?"
The Bai Ya's golden eyes darted around. "My master is incredibly powerful. If you harm me, he will never forgive you and will kill your entire nest and family..."