Jade Lake Lineage

After a long while, the Golden Light dissipated, the Sword Qi vanished, the groans faded, and the Daoist magic failed.

"This restriction is far more powerful than we thought," Kang Dabao said. They tried again, but the restriction separating the Jade Lake Underground River from the Stone Chamber Spirit Spring showed no signs of being broken. Zhang Qingran, one of the group, was the first to give up, sighing softly, "It seems that breaking the spell by force is not feasible."

"That's a really discouraging statement!" Sect Leader Kang Da felt a surge of displeasure, but before he could speak, Yuan Xiyue, the one with the highest cultivation and the most acute Divine Sense among them, spoke first, "Everyone, be careful, a water beast is approaching from behind."

Kang Dabao tensed up instantly, using his magical eyes to look behind him. A huge Jade Crocodile was leading several water beasts of different species with considerable cultivation as they swam over, causing him to frown deeply.

"It's that 'Spirit Awakening' Jade Crocodile from earlier." Jiang Qing's gaze sharpened, and he gripped his sword hilt tightly, as if recalling the battle with it. The fighting techniques of this water beast had clearly left a deep impression on Jiang Qing, making his tone heavy and unable to appear relaxed.

"We've been cornered here by this bunch of beasts?!" Sect Leader Kang Da sighed inwardly.

This is indeed a bit of bad luck. In his view, the water beasts accompanying the Jade Crocodile are also quite powerful, at least Second-Tier Middle-Grade, which is not weak.

On their side, Zhang Qingran's fighting skills weren't particularly outstanding, and Yuan Xiyue cultivated the Buddha Mother Wisdom Consort Dao, so these Demon Beast might not be able to use her abilities effectively. Relatively speaking, the only ones who could actually fight were the two of them, her fellow disciple and herself.

Comparing the two, this battle is unlikely to be won.

"Let's do it!" Kang Dabao was decisive; he unleashed Golden Light first before giving the order.

The Jade Crocodile, targeted by the Golden Light, showed a look of astonishment in a remarkably human-like manner, but it remained calm. It used water to form a shield, first deflecting all the Golden Light Sword Qi, and then swung its four legs violently, creating a wave of water before finally standing ten feet in front of Kang Dabao.

This Jade Crocodile is indeed quite skilled; the ease and nonchalance he exudes show that he is a cut above Sect Leader Kang Da.

With a flick of its tail, it first stopped the ferocious-looking Demon Beast behind it before speaking in a calm and composed manner, "You yellow-eyed cultivator over there, you must be the leader of this group of cultivators, right? Let's not fight yet, can we talk first?"

Even though he already knew from Jiang Qing that the leader of the Jade Crocodile had already Spirit Awakening and could speak, Kang Dabao was still slightly astonished after witnessing this scene with his own eyes.

The Sect Leader Kang Da, asked with a surprised and doubtful tone, "Shall we talk?"

"Of course, why should you doubt me, Yellow-Eyed? Even the Great Ancestor of Great Wei spent ten days and ten nights talking with the venerable ones of my Li Mountain Lineage before clarifying the boundaries between the Great Wei Immortal Dynasty and the Demon Land. If our predecessors did it, then we can certainly talk about it too." The Jade Crocodile spoke calmly, withdrawing its claws and teeth, and its aggressive ferocity from before had also subsided considerably.

For some reason, when Kang Dabao saw him nod, he actually sensed a trace of refinement in the latter's face with its gaping maw.

This felt quite strange, but before Sect Leader Kang Da could reply, the Jade Crocodile opposite him continued, "Yellow-eyed boy, do you know the origin of this Mountain-Viewing cave abode?"

"My family name is Kang," Kang Dabao glared at Jade Crocodile, not answering first, but instead retorting to Jade Crocodile.

The latter swayed its tail slightly and said in a deep voice, "Greetings, Fellow E Yuan."

After a brief introduction, this self-proclaimed E Yuan Jade Crocodile, began to speak on his own without waiting for Sect Leader Kang Da's reply:

"This Mountain-Viewing cave abode wasn't actually built by Guanyu, but rather refined by Xinyuan Guangzhi on an isolated island in the outer sea. In other words, it's not really a cave abode, but rather a relatively rare portable magical Law Treasure."

"Xinyuan Guangzhi? That's True Person Xinyuan?" Sect Leader Kang Da asked with surprise and doubt. E Yuan nodded in response to the question, "Indeed, in this Shannan Circuit, apart from a very few stupid and dull-witted people, there are indeed few who don't know the name Xinyuan Guangzhi."

Kang Dabao coughed lightly, while Jiang Qing's face turned red.

E Yuan didn't notice anything amiss and continued, "And it was precisely because Guanyu Yu obtained this personal Law Treasure and some of the inheritance left inside by Xinyuan Guangzhi that he became an extremely rare Rogue Cultivator with Golden Core in the Shannan Circuit."

"Such a rare personal Law Treasure, why didn't Guan Yu Shangxiu take it with him when Exalted Cultivator Guanyu for distant lands, but instead left it in Cloud Horn Prefecture?" Kang Dabao sensed something was amiss.

E Yuan couldn't answer this question posed by Sect Leader Kang Da, only shaking his head and saying, "I don't know the answer to that. However, I do know that this personal Law Treasure might be extremely valuable to Guanyu, but it's insignificant to Xinyuan Guangzhi."

Seeing the growing suspicion in Kang Dabao and the others' eyes, E Yuan said softly, "Perhaps describing Mountain-Viewing Cave as a personal Law Treasure is not quite appropriate. In fact, for Xinyuan Guangzhi, this cave abode is merely a larger spirit beast bag that he provided for his Star-Patterned Jade Spirit Turtle."

"A larger spirit beast pouch?!" The astonishment in everyone's voices was palpable.

This Mountain-Viewing cave abode contains mountains and rivers, tall buildings and jade palaces, Spirit Vein and treasures, and is comparable to some Dao of Alchemy with slightly weaker foundations. It turns out it's just a large spirit beast bag used by True Person Xinyuan?

What E Yuan said truly surprised Sect Leader Kang Da, who had little experience of the world and came from a poor background.

However, upon closer reflection, it would be quite a joke if the Star-Patterned Jade Spirit Turtle, which is comparable to Nascent Soul True Person cultivator, lived in a cramped and narrow spirit beast pouch like Little Qi all day long.

If this Mountain-Viewing cave abode is truly the dwelling place of a Fourth Tier Demon Beast, then it cannot be described as luxurious; rather, it is rather simple.

"The stone chamber you all just came from was once the lodging place of that Fourth Tier Star-Patterned Jade Spirit Turtle. However," E Yuan paused here, and then continued:

"Some of its finest treasures were plundered by that Guanyu hundreds of years ago. What you see and what he took are not what Xinyuan Guangzhi left behind, but rather what Guanyu didn't have time to take with him."

"I see." Kang Dabao nodded. This E Yuan had indeed told many things that outsiders wouldn't know, which showed his sincerity. So, Sect Leader Kang Da lowered his eyes and asked softly, "Then, I wonder what Fellow E Yuan wishes to discuss with me and my fellow Daoists?"

After Kang Dabao said this, E Yuan's eyes in its vertical pupils became noticeably more serious. It said, "Many of the Demon Cultivator in our Jade Lake Lineage are called Dao soldiers, but in reality they are nothing more than demon slaves imprisoned by Guanyu."

As for our Jade Crocodile clan, the strong are selected by that Guanyu and trained to fight; the weak are confined to Jade Lake to reproduce and never leave the ten-mile radius around Jade Lake.

After Guanyu left Shannan Circuit, our Jade Lake Lineage was hidden by them in formation, their purpose being to prevent us from escaping.

It wasn't until the last time the Mountain-Viewing cave abode was opened that a reckless cultivator triggered the remnant array set up by Guanyu in the South Ghost Cave, causing the Spirit Vein of the Mountain-Viewing Cave to tremble, which shook the array that concealed the Jade Lake.

Since then, many fellow cultivators in the Jade Lake have spent another ten years before they were able to meet with Fellow Daoist Kang and the other fellow cultivators at the time of the emergence of this new cave abode. The hardships they endured are beyond description to outsiders.

Sect Leader Kang Da's gaze sharpened; he could tell from the deep hatred in E Yuan's tone that there was no shortage of resentment. He didn't reply, but heard E Yuan say in a deep voice:

"Although we have been raised here since the time of Xinyuan Guangzhi, and can be considered natives of Mountain-Viewing Cave, the restrictions set up by Guanyu for our Jade Lake Lineage have caused our souls to be confused, making it difficult for us to find many vital places in Jade Lake."

If it weren't for these two fellow Daoists finding the underground river leading elsewhere for us, we would have been trapped in the lake for generations, just as that Guanyu fellow thought. Fellow Daoists, you freed us from our shackles; Crocodile E Yuan expresses his gratitude and apologizes for the previous disturbance."

Jiang Qing and Zhang Qingran were surprised. It turned out that those green giants hadn't been using their full strength, which explained why they hadn't had much trouble getting rid of them.

"It seems that these aquatic beasts, as long as they follow the waterways, are not subject to the restriction of not being allowed to stray more than ten miles from the shore."

Hearing E Yuan's tone soften, Kang Dabao naturally didn't let him finish his sentence. Instead, he said, "I was wondering earlier why there were so few fellow Daoists of the same clan who followed my junior brother and me into the stone chamber?"

"Nearly a hundred years ago, Guanyu's Purple-Scaled Mountain-Subduing Turtle once appeared in the Jade Lake. The Spring of Origin-Returning True Water in that stone chamber was transformed into Second-Tier Supreme-Grade spiritual liquid by the Star-Patterned Jade Spirit Turtle, which had lived there for hundreds of years. For ordinary low-level Demon Beast of the 'Hidden Six' category, it was a treasure."

If that Purple-Scaled Mountain-Subduing Turtle is still inside the Mountain-Viewing Cave, it would probably be Third Tier Demon Beast by now. We dare not enter that stone chamber until we have determined its true nature.

Upon hearing E Yuan's words, everyone's expressions became much more solemn.

Third Tier Demon Beast? Don't be fooled by the fact that the Daoist Black Shoes and his group could easily kill ordinary demonic beasts of the same tier.

Even if they could put aside their past grievances and work together to face a Third Tier Demon Beast comparable to Golden Core cultivator, they would still face certain death.

"It seems that both True Person Xinyuan and Exalted Cultivator Guanyu have a strong preference for the Demon Beast belonging to 'Hidden Six'," Kang Dabao thought to himself.

After further thought, Sect Leader Kang Da realized, "Back when the Star-Patterned Jade Spirit Turtle was still around, these Yaksha, Jade Crocodile, and Six-Winged Flying Dog in the Mountain-Viewing cave abode were probably just snacks that Fourth Tier Demon Beast would casually eat?"

Otherwise, what use would Senior Xinyuan, a Nascent Soul True Person, have for raising these Demon Beast below the Third Tier? It was only after Exalted Cultivator Guanyu found this villa that he regarded the Jade Crocodile Clan as a treasure. He even relocated his clansmen, who originally lived in the Cold Crow Mountain Range, to them and trained them into Dao soldiers for use in defending against enemies.

"That's not right," Sect Leader Kang Da began to have doubts again. Without stating it explicitly, he tentatively asked, "Rumors say that the Exalted Cultivator Guanyu once trained a Third Tier senior for a noble family, showing that he wasn't entirely harsh on the nobles. But from your tone, fellow Daoist, you seem quite resentful towards the Venerable Master... this..."

"Fellow Daoist Kang, please don't ask about anything else. The evil deeds committed by your two high-ranking human cultivators against my Jade Lake Lineage are too numerous to mention. If Fellow Daoist Kang wants to hear them, I could talk until the next time Mountain-Viewing Cave opens and still not finish," E Yuan paused here, "I suppose Sect Leader Kang isn't really concerned about these matters."

Seeing that the Jade Crocodile didn't respond, Kang Dabao didn't press the matter further and agreed, saying, "Fellow Daoist is indeed straightforward. Yes, we've gone too far afield. You mentioned wanting to discuss something beforehand; I wonder what you wanted to discuss?"

E Yuan's voice became much lower. "Our Jade Lake Lineage has spent many years collecting information on the layout of the Mountain-Viewing Cave from various places. By piecing it together, we can barely say that we have been able to get a glimpse of the entire cave abode."

We can help Fellow Daoist Kang and his party obtain the true treasures left behind by that scoundrel Guanyu in his villa here, and we will not share a single penny with them."

"Then what do we need to do?" Jiang Qing asked coldly from the side. He and Zhang Qingran had been chased so badly by these water beasts that they had no interest in cooperating with these alien races.

E Yuan's fierce glint vanished, and he earnestly said, "That Guanyu Yu left behind a Body-Cleansing Formation Plate, which can remove the spells on us. Although its grade is not high, only Second Tier, we Demon Cultivator have no knowledge of arrays. We ask for your help, fellow Daoists."

If my Jade Lake Lineage can be freed from this cage of Mountain-Viewing Cave, we will forever remember the great kindness of you fellow Daoists and repay your kindness with our life's gratitude!

"Second Tier array plate?" Sect Leader Kang Da murmured. Although it was easier to comprehend than Second Tier array, he and Jiang Qing were complete laymen. Their array skills were far inferior to those of these water beasts, so they could hardly accept the offer.

"Sect Leader Kang, do not worry. If it is only Second Tier array plate, I can handle it." Zhang Qingran, the female cultivator, rarely had the chance to display her skills other than her beauty, so she immediately stepped forward.

"This female cultivator is also an array master?" Kang Dabao felt a surge of unexpected joy. If he could successfully exchange her for Yuan Feng's possession, she would be worth even more.

"Then thank you very much, fellow Daoist." Even though E Yuan's mind was gloomy, he couldn't hide his excitement after hearing Zhang Qingran's words.

"Fellow Daoist, there's no need to hold back any tricks. Don't you think about what if I, Kang, go back on my word?" Kang Dabao was being petty first.

E Yuan shook his massive head, which was several feet long, and said in a deep voice, "You humans have too many underhanded tricks. Our Jade Lake Lineage has been locked in this Mountain-Viewing Cave for nearly a thousand years, and all our knowledgeable predecessors have been kidnapped by that scoundrel Guanyu. Fellow Daoist Kang, if you were to use any tricks, we would find it difficult to see through them, but..."

The Jade Crocodile's two vertical pupils, each the size of a teacup, gleamed with ferocity. "If Fellow Daoist Kang and your allegiance disregard the millennia-old wish of the Jade Lake Lineage and insist on breaking our promise, then the Jade Lake Lineage will show you what's what. This thousand-year-old resentment is not something an ordinary person can withstand."

E Yuan's words were chilling, causing Kang Dabao and his group to straighten their clothes and become serious, not daring to be negligent.

Seeing this, Sect Leader Kang Da had a plan in mind. "This Jade Lake is probably not without other cultivators passing through, but only Little Sanzi and Zhang Qingran have the lowest cultivation, so they are regarded as easy targets by these water beasts."

So, while these water beasts are numerous, their abilities are mostly questionable. That's why top Foundation Establishment like Uncle Black Shoes dare not cooperate with them—they're afraid they can't control them.

Wouldn't this create a situation where both sides are caught in a dilemma, like "a thin stick trying to fight a wolf, but both are afraid"?

Kang Dabao understood this, he felt much more at ease and said, "Putting aside everything else, my reputation is quite prestigious throughout the twenty-six prefectures of Shannan Circuit. Everyone knows I am a renowned man of integrity, so please rest assured, fellow Daoist."

After spouting his grand boast, Sect Leader Kang Da inwardly scoffed, "It's one thing for you to talk about credibility with others, but why talk about credibility with a scaly insect like you? Are you trying to build up a good reputation to be chosen as the Dragon King of Jade Lake in the future?"

Cloud Horn Prefecture is adjacent to the Cold Crow Mountain Range. The feud between the human and demon races has lasted for more than a thousand years. The previous dynasty was weak. Even after ten thousand years, humanity still did not flourish and was bullied by the Demon Race of the Li Mountain Lineage.

The powerful Demon Race even treated humans as livestock, often raising cultivators of various levels with Spirit Root as food to entertain distinguished guests. When the previous dynasty was at its weakest, the Demon Race lords were even so rampant that they would run to the capital region and abduct human Nascent True Person Nascent Soul for their debauchery and pleasure.

It was only after Great Wei established his dynasty that, with his unparalleled martial arts skills, the Great Ancestor killed three Fifth Tier demon lords in succession, which made all the demon lords in the Cold Crow Mountain Range cower in fear, and even the great demons above the Third Tier became much quieter.

Even so, back when the Mountain Barbarians were causing trouble, many Demon Cultivators were involved and fueled the flames. Therefore, if Kang Dabao had the chance this time, he would definitely not let E Yuan and the other water beasts Ruyi.

"After obtaining the treasure, find Uncle Black Shoes and eliminate this 'Spirit Awakening' Demon Beast first. It'll be a menace once it leaves; it can't be allowed to live."

E Yuan showed little interest in the solemn promises made by Sect Leader Kang Da. Even though its race had been trapped in the Mountain-Viewing cave abode for nearly a thousand years, the teachings of its predecessors had taught it that human cultivators were the most hypocritical, cunning, and untrustworthy.

"Once the Body-Cleansing Formation is activated, we will leave none of these people alive and devour them all. We will leave the Mountain-Viewing cave abode and head deep into the Cold Crow Mountain to join the Third Tier great demon! The suffering that Guanyu inflicted on my Jade Lake Lineage, we will repay to your human race."

"Alright, Fellow Daoist Crocodile, where shall we go first?" Kang Dabao finally got to the point.

The E Yuan narrowed his eyes, suppressing his anger, before saying, "Let's not go back to Jade Lake. Let's go to the Moonlight Palace first and find a key."

"Moonlight Palace? Fellow Daoist, are you saying that one can enter Moonlight Palace through the water veins?" Sect Leader Kang Da somewhat surprised, as this did not quite match what the previous generations had recorded.

E Yuan spoke with an air of self-righteousness, "The Star-Patterned Jade Spirit Turtle loves water. The Moonlight Palace was built by it when it imprisoned several Golden Core cultivators of the human race for its amusement. What's so strange about entering through the water veins? This is the proper way. It's just that Guanyu changed to the land route in order to conceal the traces of the Unity-Returning True Water."

"Fellow Daoist, your knowledge is truly profound; I, Kang, am utterly ashamed of my own inferiority. But I wonder what key we are seeking at the Moonlight Palace?"

"It's the key to that stone gate that Fellow Daoist Kang couldn't enter before," a hint of solemnity appeared in E Yuan's eyes. "Behind it is the Body-Cleansing Formation Plate left by Guanyu back then, as well as the real treasures he left behind."

E Yuan emphasized, "Treasures far more precious than those items in the Moonlight Palace!"