Release

On Mirror Moon Lake, the sky and earth shook.

The Lake God's cave abode is gradually returning from the [Yin World] to the present world.

"Too slow! Too slow!" The demon leader grew impatient, rose, and revealed its true form—a giant whale with gray horns on its forehead. It swallowed several Rogue Cultivator cultivators whole, its flesh and blood splattering as it chewed, and roared with a ferocious laugh, "The worlds of Yin and Yang are truly separated by life and death! My children, build more cave abode to draw in death energy!"

The numerous demons, unable to contain themselves any longer, rushed forward to kill the Rogue Cultivator.

Rogue Cultivator abandoned any thought of cave abode fortuitous opportunity and began to scatter and flee.

These Rogue Cultivator are a mixed bag, a disorganized bunch, and have never been bound by the Immortal Alliance. Many of them have even been Bandit Cultivator.

Xue Yang had never taken it seriously, only frowning and restraining the Immortal Alliance cultivators to watch coldly.

Most of the Rogue Cultivator knew the Immortal Alliance's ways and didn't want to make trouble for themselves, so they fled towards Liu Zhijian, crying out for help, "Fellow Daoist Liu, save us!"

Liu Zhijian was not the type to stand by and watch someone die, so he remained silent and slowly got up.

On the Mirror Moon Lake, a majestic mountain range seems to have appeared out of nowhere.

The ferocious momentum of the rampaging demons, which had been unstoppable, was actually halted here.

While the Rogue Cultivator levels of the rogue cultivators varied, their ability to escape was first-rate. They immediately swarmed behind Liu Zhijian.

The gray horned whale demon had already reverted to its original form, transforming into a burly man with a human body and a fish head. He naturally recognized Liu Zhijian and, without further ado, grinned ferociously, "Come and fight!"

Liu Zhijian took a deep breath and swung his fishing rod forcefully.

A golden light flashed.

The golden fishhook pierced the flesh of the gray horned shark whale demon in an instant.

"Huh?!" The gray horned whale demon had no way to dodge or avoid it.

He felt a sharp pain and saw a thin fishing line in front of him, one end hanging on his flesh and the other end on the black fishing rod in the hands of the cultivator by the lake.

The gray horned whale demon reached out to pull, but couldn't break it at all; instead, it was cut and bled profusely.

Without hesitation, he revealed his true form and crashed into the lake.

The thin fishing line taut instantly.

Liu Zhijian felt a tremendous force surge towards him, and his black wooden fishing rod was pulled into a bow shape. He focused his Law Power and stood still, engaging in a contest of strength with the gray horned whale demon from a distance!

The gray horned whale demon fell into the water and immediately gained immense strength, rampaging wildly in an attempt to drag Liu Zhijian was on the other side, into the water.

The fishing line sliced through, cutting many small monsters in two.

"Fellow Daoist Grayhorn, I've come to save you!" The black-clad Devil Cultivator, who had been watching the spectacle with great interest, glanced at Liu Zhijian and laughed loudly, "A righteous Child of Fate?! He's perfect for providing resources for my cultivation!"

"Fellow Daoist Heba, why do this?!" Xue Yang could stand by Rogue Cultivator be slaughtered, but he couldn't allow the demons to surround and kill Liu Zhijian. He sighed and stopped Heba Yansi, advising, "Wouldn't it be better to wait until the Lake God's cave abode returns to the mortal world and each of us can take the spiritual treasures within? Why fight each other and create unnecessary bloodshed?"

"I cultivate [Sha Qi], how could I fear battle?!" Heba Yansi sneered, shifting his gaze from Liu Zhijian to Xue Yang: "Fine! Let me see if the Xue Household has improved at all after all these years of bullying in Southern Reach!"

Knowing that this battle was unavoidable, Xue Yang took out several small flags and held them in his hands, determined to delay the inevitable rather than fight to the death.

On the other side.

The power struggle between Liu Zhijian and the Grey Horned Whale Demon has reached a fever pitch.

The two were evenly matched, but at this moment, it was clear that the gray horned whale demon was relying on its powerful physical body to gradually gain the upper hand.

"I have already grasped some of the true meaning of [Old Man by the Stream], but this [Immortal Foundation] is not [Body Divine Ability] after all. Competing with this demon in brute force is like using a short weapon against a long one." Liu Zhijian gripped the fishing rod tightly, his figure slightly unsteady. Even though he might be dragged into the lake at any moment, he did not let go. A thought flashed through his mind, and a mysterious feeling came the Unseen the fishing line and the fishing rod.

"It hurts, it hurts..."

"... We need to drag this fisherman down with us..."

"... swim deeper..."

"It hurts, it hurts..."

It turned out to be the scattered thoughts of the gray horned whale demon.

Liu Zhijian's spirits lifted, and he adjusted the angle of his fishing rod every time the gray horned whale monster submerged and struggled. Relying on his years of experience in playing fish, he conserved his energy and gradually turned the tide.

Seeing Liu Zhijian becoming increasingly adept at dealing with the demon leader, the Rogue Cultivator on the shore were greatly encouraged.

Being hunted down is certainly not a pleasant experience.

But if it's about slaying demons and obtaining treasure, that's a different story.

Liu Zhijian realized his strengths and suddenly pulled the fishing rod, stirring up the gray horned whale demon's painful thoughts.

The gray horned whale demon felt the pain in its flesh intensify several times over in an instant. It suppressed all other thoughts and struggled fiercely based solely on instinct.

"It really worked!"

Liu Zhijian secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

[The Old Man by the Stream] can bewitch the mind and sway the intellect; it is indeed very effective.

Even in its rudimentary form, it can turn this whale demon, who Qi Refining Perfection, into a stupid fish driven only by instinct.

Liu Zhijian's skill in playing fish was naturally extremely proficient.

They are now becoming increasingly adept at using cunning and manipulation.

Boom!

The gray horned whale demon had gone completely berserk, leaping and crashing into the lake, wasting its energy without a care.

Amidst the excruciating pain, many distracting thoughts were suppressed, yet a few stubborn and unwavering ideas remained undisturbed.

Liu Zhijian's heart stirred, and he went to test the waters and make connections.

A tremendous fear traveled along the fishing line, along with some fragmented memories.

Within the enormous palace, there were many blurry figures, likely all sea monsters.

One of them, with a human body and a dragon's head, sat high in the hall and executed several great demons in succession, causing the demons in the hall to prostrate themselves on the ground, trembling with fear.

The gray horned whale demon's body stiffened, and it slowly sank into the water, ceasing its struggle.

No matter how much Liu Zhijian pulled on the fishing line, it did not resist.

"How wondrous is the [Old Man by the Stream]!"

Liu Zhijian could guess that the human-bodied, dragon-headed shadow must be a dragon prince from the sea. While pulling the fishing line, he was also caught up in another thought.

This time, what came through the fishing line was a warm and joyful feeling.

In the distance, somewhere at sea, under a blue sky and azure waters, several gray narwhals are frolicking and playing, sometimes chasing schools of fish, sometimes ambushing water birds.

"Is this a childhood memory of the whale demon, or a descendant of its offspring?"

Liu Zhijian couldn't tell either.

This ferocious and bloodthirsty monster, whether exhausted, or its mind stolen, or both, is unknown.

Not only did she offer no resistance, but she also showed some obedience, and Liu Zhijian easily dragged her to the shore.

The gray horned whale looked at Liu Zhijian with its huge eyes, showing little resentment or fear, but rather a sense of relief at facing death. It gently slapped the surface of the water and let out a long, drawn-out whale call.

Liu Zhijian paused for a moment, but without hesitation, he drew the Golden Bamboo Thunder Sword and killed him with a single strike.

The Rogue Cultivator by the lake cheered and their morale soared. They even turned around and chased after the demon.

Many cultivators from the Immortal Alliance disregarded Xue Yang's ban and joined the battle to hunt down demons.

Among the demons, several whale-like creatures let out long, mournful cries and began to charge and kill recklessly.

The remaining demons, however, lost their will to fight and, without any demonic restraint, were in complete chaos, yet dared not retreat.

"What a waste!" Heba Yansi was in the distance, easily repelled Xue Yang, but did not continue the pursuit. His gaze was fixed on Liu Zhijian, who was full of Manifestation. His whole body was filled with Sha Qi, like a demon god descending to earth. He sensed in the the Unseen that his [Foundation Establishment] fortuitous opportunity was here. "Grandfather once said that this trip out of the island for training might bring great fortuitous opportunity. It turns out that it should be here."

"[Sha Qi] is the source of calamity, the true demon within the Dao!"

"I am the Demon Child, and today I have encountered the Child of Fate; a life-or-death struggle is inevitable!"

"If one can seize its destiny and life, one can ascend to the [Foundation Establishment] level!"