Heavenly Demon's Malice Bears Evil Fruit, Three Paths of Immortals and Demons Pursue the Colorful Luan

In the pear blossom grove, Wei Chongwei calculated for quite a while. Not only did he fail to get what he wanted, he was struck by an inexplicable force's backlash, sending his blood and qi churning. It took him a long while to suppress it.

"Humph—"

He flicked his whisk, blocking the attack of the Seven Saints Magic.

Wei Lingzheng hurried forward. "Uncle, how did it go?"

"Are you certain it was only Fu Xiangfeng himself? His father wasn't nearby?"

Wei Chongwei said gravely, "I used the 'Void Spirit-Reversal Art' to calculate. Not only could I not locate Fu Xiangfeng, I could not even calculate a trace of information about him."

"Could it be the Fu Family's Heto Calculation Canon?"

Wei Chongwei glanced at Wei Lingzheng. Realizing he had said something foolish, Wei Lingzheng gave an awkward, guileless laugh.

The Heto Calculation Canon divined past and future and comprehended the ultimate principles of heaven and earth. It was the Fu Family's treasure that guarded their lineage. It was said that only Golden Core Realm cultivators could practice it. Fu Danwei could not possibly have come out traveling with his grandson while perfectly well, could he?

Another person said, "Uncle, the Fu Family has several False Core cultivators. Perhaps they know the Heto secret arts as well? Maybe Fu Xiangfeng is traveling with one of them?"

"Impossible. Those False Core cultivators of the Fu Family are stationed across their various spirit isles. None of them has the leisure to wander around outside."

The Fu Family currently had only five False Core cultivators in total. They were all the backbone of the Fu Family's suppression of water demons in various regions. Who would follow Fu Xiangfeng around on some idle ramble?

Moreover, Wei Chongwei vaguely felt that the force obstructing his calculations was not the Heto Calculation Canon.

"The Fu Family excels at divination, so it would not be strange for them to possess other arts. But for someone to block my calculations, their cultivation in the path of calculation cannot be underestimated. Could it be a Mysterious Embryo Realm cultivator?"

After considering it, Wei Chongwei asked again, "Fu Yinggu truly wasn't there?"

"When we fought at dawn, Fu Yinggu was not at his side."

"Forget it. Let him go. Over these next few years, give the Fu Family's Cypress Sovereign Hall more leeway. We must not let that old ghost erupt before his death and take us down in a jade-and-stone burn."

The crowd exchanged glances. Those bald cultivators then asked Wei Chongwei to divine the whereabouts of another young woman from the Fu Family.

"A female cultivator of the Fu Family?"

Looking at their shaved heads, Wei Chongwei frowned. "I had thought you had fought some water beast somewhere and ended up looking like this. It was the Fu Family again?"

With a flick of his whisk, he activated the Floral Divination Art once more.

In an instant, lightning flashed, and the pear blossoms turned to ash again.

Seeing the looks in his nephews' eyes, Wei Chongwei's old face reddened. He harrumphed. "This girl is no simple matter either. The Fu Family's younger generation is quite good. But merely quite good."

A cold gleam flashed in his eyes as he once again performed the Void Spirit-Reversal Art.

Fu Liuhui drove the Jade Dragonfly Vessel swiftly onward.

Suddenly, the sachet at her waist ignited on its own.

"The warning sachet Sixth Brother gave me?"

Fu Liuhui's heart lurched. She understood that someone was divining her.

In the Yanlong Waters, divination was an exceedingly profound art. The family most skilled in divination was undoubtedly the Fu Family. Yet Fu Liuhui had devoted herself to sword practice and had never studied divination. She could not calculate causes and consequences as Fu Henghua could.

But having spent so many years fooling around with Heng Hua, Fu Liuhui had her own means of shielding herself.

She removed the already-charred sachet, from which a pinch of yarrow stalks spilled out.

Yarrow stalks were often used for divination.

Fu Liuhui drew a circle with plant ash, then took out the hair she had collected from those Wei Family men not long ago.

"Good thing I kept something up my sleeve—the Hair-Coiling Curse."

In the understanding of witchcraft, hair contained spiritual power and was sometimes as important as one's life itself. Through hair, one could cast curses upon a cultivator's physical body.

Heng Hua had once secretly taught Fu Liuhui a Fate-Transferring Substitute Art. It used another person's hair to shift attacks targeting oneself onto them.

Under the Hair-Coiling Curse, a strand of black hair automatically curled into a "doll."

She cut off one of her own hairs and tied it to the hair doll, then tossed the doll into the circle.

Drawing the Yuanjun Sword, Fu Liuhui stepped through the Seven-Star Steps and directed her flying sword at the circle of plant ash.

"Stop!"

The hair doll ignited without wind. As a gust swept past, it carried the plant ash into the water.

That force spying upon her immediately withdrew.

Fu Liuhui sped up the Jade Dragonfly Vessel and headed to rendezvous with Fu Henghua.

Yet Heng Hua's Seven Sages Heaven-Misting Illusion Art had not only obscured Wei Chongwei's divination, it had also prevented Fu Liuhui from locating Fu Heyi through her Huangqiong sense.

She could only travel over the water according to her memories, estimate Heng Hua's route, and first head for the reef region where Heng Hua and the other man had opened their boat market, hoping to catch up from behind.

On Skyhanging Isle, Wei Chongwei caught a trace of spiritual opportunity, and layer upon layer of scenes emerged before his eyes.

He saw someone run to a mortal kingdom under Wei Family rule to drink wine. Then that person sneaked into the royal palace and cavorted with the royal consorts.

At first, Wei Chongwei was still muttering to himself. This Fu Family girl actually dared to come to Wei Family territory. But the more he watched, the more wrong it felt.

Was this not the small kingdom the Wei Family had destroyed twenty years ago?

From this divination, Wei Chongwei understood the entire chain of cause and effect.

That supposed rebellion by the small kingdom back then had actually been a charge deliberately fabricated because his own clan nephew coveted the beauty of the ruler's consort?

Wei Chongwei looked at one of his nephews nearby, glared fiercely at him twice, and abandoned the calculation.

Wei Linghe did not understand why his uncle was glaring at him. He cautiously asked, "Clan Uncle, could it be that this girl cannot be calculated either?"

"Humph, you fools could not even keep hold of your own hair. That girl is using your hair to work her art now. If I forcibly break her spell, I will only endanger your lives. No more calculating!"

Forget it. It was only an island kingdom. If it had been destroyed, then it had been destroyed.

Wei Chongwei did not take the matter to heart, nor was he in the mood to keep fussing over it.

The Fu Family was, after all, a great lineage in the divination tradition. Even a little girl fresh from the nest was not so easy to bully.

With a dark expression, he waved his hand. "All of you, leave. Leave."

In everyone's eyes, Fu Danwei's deterrent power had grown even stronger over these past years. Naturally, the Wei Family would not dare act recklessly during Fu Danwei's final years.

Seeing that his uncle would not stand up for them, Wei Lingzheng felt unwilling to accept it.

Then he suddenly remembered something and hurriedly said to Wei Chongwei, who was preparing to continue cultivating, "Uncle, when I fought Fu Xiangfeng, I saw people from the Jadeflame Trading House nearby. Could it have been them?"

"The Jadeflame Trading House?"

Wei Chongwei abruptly turned back and asked sternly, "You saw people from the Jadeflame Trading House together with Fu Xiangfeng?"

"This nephew's cultivation is not inferior to Fu Xiangfeng's. The reason I was defeated alongside several brothers was because experts from the Jadeflame Trading House interfered. This nephew suspects that the Fu Family may have a secret deal with the Jadeflame Trading House."

Wei Chongwei sank into thought.

Of course, he knew that Coiling Dragon Island had spent the past few years frantically seeking medicines for extending life and attaining longevity, hoping to keep Fu Danwei alive.

Could the Jadeflame Trading House have come here to extend Fu Danwei's lifespan?

Wei Chongwei knew that one of the Jadeflame Trading House's five elder stewards had once received a great favor from Fu Danwei.

"Boy, prepare the spirit boat. I am leaving the island."

Wei Lingzheng's eyes lit up. "Uncle, are you coming with us to seek revenge on Fu Xiangfeng?"

Wei Chongwei shot him a glare. "I am merely inviting the Fu Family to Skyhanging Isle as guests."

Over these past years, he had not dared to make a move against the Fu Family. But Fu Xiangfeng could forget about obtaining any life-extending medicine for Fu Danwei.

After Heng Hua concealed the heavenly secrets, he leaped down from the top of the boat.

"Impressive, impressive."

Fu Xiangfeng and Hengshou stood at the bow. Fu Xiangfeng gave him a thumbs-up. "Heng Hua, your Dao arts truly are formidable. Did you see this in a book too?"

"Mm." Heng Hua answered vaguely, unwilling to discuss this magic in detail.

Hengshou stared anxiously at Fu Henghua, afraid that his young master's enthusiasm for studying demonic arts would flare up again.

"Veiling heaven and covering the sun, overturning waters and bewildering rivers, reversing yin and yang, concealing the heavenly secrets through illusion. I believe that once this art is cast, unless a great Golden Core Realm cultivator makes a move, it will be exceedingly difficult for anyone to find our traces. Only—"

"Only what?"

"How will we travel from here? You have used this illusion art to blind the nearby waters, and even the spirit-vein magnetic fields cannot be observed."

"Eh?"

Seeing Hengshou emerge from the cabin, Heng Hua suddenly remembered something.

Hengshou said mournfully, "Young Master. The Water Chart Compass navigates based on the primordial magnetism of each island's spirit veins. Under your illusion art, the water chart is useless. Can you adjust it, or use another method to guide us for now?"

"I forgot, I forgot. I forgot for a moment. The Colorful-Luan Spirit Ship needs the compass for guidance."

Heng Hua rubbed his little head and gave an embarrassed smile.

He had not gone out for so many years. How could he remember matters like water-chart navigation?

"Do not worry. I will use the sun as a guide and change to another method of finding the way."

Heng Hua pointed to the sky. A ray of sunlight condensed into a beam, parting the mist over the water and indicating a route for them.

Wave after wave of exhaustion rose in his mind. Heng Hua sensed that not much of his Creation True Qi remained.

"That will do. Follow the route marked by the sunlight. Once you leave these waters, the Water Chart Compass will work again."

Having said that, Heng Hua hurried back into the cabin to rest.

Watching the sunlight form a golden needle at the bow to guide them, Xiang Feng sighed. "That kid buries himself in books every day. He really has learned quite a few strange things."

Fu Xiangfeng did not know either the earlier technique for concealing heavenly secrets or this method of calculating navigation.

Xiaoyu asked beside him, "Third Young Master has traveled far and wide. Have you not learned navigation arts?"

"I learned a few, but I tried them just now, and every one of them failed. Little Six's illusion art is of an extremely high grade."

Hengshou went back to steer the boat, thinking, Of course. That is the Demon Dao's most renowned Heaven-Misting Illusion Art. If the Devil Master cast it, even immortals would fall into illusion. Using it merely to shield against divination is like using a great talent for a trivial task. But... I hope Young Master behaves himself and does not condense another Heavenly Demon Golden Core.

A hundred li beyond Coiling Dragon Island, black mist drifted from the water onto a reef isle.

A cold and sinister voice rang out. "How are things?"

At the sound, Yan Qianyu's thoughts stirred, and all manner of demonic thoughts flooded into his Dao heart. He nearly fell into the demonic path.

A heavenly demon!

People from the Demon Palace had come!

Yan Qianyu gathered his mind and carefully stood behind the others.

The demons of the Profound Heart Altar hurried forward. "Greetings, Hall Master Liu."

After bowing, a gray-robed man reported, "Hall Master Fang has already drawn out Old Ghost Fu's demonic obstruction. With a bit more effort, we can lure him into becoming a demon."

A crimson eye emerged from the core of the black mist and looked toward the demonic altar deep in the reef region. A man with unbound hair and hemp clothes was working magic upon the altar, summoning the power of an outer-realm heavenly demon.

"You have done well."

"Thank you for your praise, Hall Master, but..."

"But what?"

"There has been a small complication. Fu Beidou is on the island as well."

"Fu Beidou is here?"

In an instant, the oppressive force brought by the black mist vanished completely.

Seven groups of demonic patterns rose from the black mist and swiftly shrouded the reef region.

The voice from the black mist cried out in terror, "You beasts, why did you not say so sooner?"

Fu Danwei alone was already difficult enough to handle. If Fu Beidou was there too, would they not simply be serving themselves up on a platter if the two joined forces?

The black mist was a Golden Core Realm demonic cultivator, one of the Demon Palace's three deputy hall masters. Yet he knew his own limits. He could not defeat even the dying Fu Danwei head-on, much less the Beidou Sword Immortal at the height of his strength.

"Seven Sages Heaven-Misting Illusion Art."

The seven groups of demonic patterns intertwined and danced through the air. Clouds of brilliantly colored smoke wrapped the reefs layer upon layer, inside and out, ensuring that Fu Danwei and the other man could not notice them.

Just then, a splendid painted pleasure boat sailed out from Coiling Dragon Island.

The painted boat had three decks, with five-colored ribbons and banners of colored clouds fluttering from it.

Si Tong, Xian Tong, and Yun Tong played and chatted at the bow.

The black mist stared fixedly at the splendid painted boat, not daring to speak for a long time.

One demonic cultivator gathered his courage and said, "Hall Master, I heard the Fu Family girls are heading to the Yin Family for a gathering. Should we strike midway—" He made a throat-slitting gesture.

Bang—

The black mist lashed out a tentacle, sending the man tumbling into the water.

"Idiot! Fu Beidou is on the boat!"

Liu Yuli did not dare circulate his power recklessly again. He carefully concealed everyone until the painted boat had departed.

Sword Immortal was the honorific title for Golden Core level sword cultivators. Every Sword Immortal possessed their own natal sword intent, an intent that accorded with heaven and earth and was peerlessly lethal.

Liu Yuli knew that even if his physical body were intact, he would not dare take a single sword strike from Fu Beidou head-on, much less now that his fleshly body had been damaged.

Seeing the looks in his subordinates' eyes, Liu Yuli immediately found an excuse. "Ahem... Our target is Fu Danwei. Luring him into demonhood is the serious matter. As for Fu Beidou, we shall spare him for now. Junior Brother, did you succeed?"

The eye within the black mist looked toward the demonic altar.

Fang Zichu, Hall Master of the Profound Heart Altar, nodded faintly. "I have already summoned an outer-realm heavenly demon. Within seven days, Fu Danwei's spirit and soul can be severely damaged. Then Senior Brother and I will work magic together to pull him into the Demon Dao."

Fu Danwei was also known as a Sword Immortal. Once such a figure entered the Demon Dao and became the Demon-Slaughter Sword Immortal, his combat strength would rival that of a Soul Formation cultivator.

"No hurry. Fu Danwei has always styled himself as righteous and chivalrous. If the two of us make our move, we may instead provoke his unyielding nature and force him to fight us until the fish dies and the net breaks."

Liu Yuli smiled. "First, let Fu Danwei's demonic nature erupt and make him seize the body of his own grandson. Once he commits such a great act of rebellion against all principle and flaws appear in his Dao heart, you and I will strike and pull him into the Demon Dao."

"But Fu Xiangfeng left the island yesterday," Fang Zichu said, looking toward the departing splendid painted boat. "And now these girls have left as well. Whom can he possess?"

"Junior Brother does not know. Fu Danwei has a grandson he treasures most. That grandson lost both parents thirty years ago and was personally raised by him."

The black mist let out a sinister cackle. "In past years, the Fu Family members were all occupied with business outside, and only grandfather and grandson remained on Coiling Dragon Island. It was not until recent years that Zhang Qiulan returned with her grandsons and granddaughters.

"Speaking of closeness, Fu Henghua shares the deepest bond with Fu Danwei.

"Senior Brother has cultivated in the Yuanming Waters for so long. How do you know such things so clearly?"

Liu Yuli merely smiled without answering.

Following his line of reasoning, Fang Zichu said, "If he is so close to this grandson, he may not be willing to possess him, would he?"

"But this grandson has the strongest bloodline purity the Fu Family has seen in a hundred years. If he possesses him, he will need only a few decades to restore a Golden Core Realm cultivator's strength."

This was the grand play he had carefully prepared.

Twenty years ago, he had spared no expense in sending the Demon Palace's supreme heart method, the Myriad Transformations Free Demon Scripture, onto Coiling Dragon Island. He had even found a way to send over a supreme spirit fruit capable of purifying one's bloodline.

Liu Yuli wanted more than Fu Danwei's death. He wanted Fu Danwei utterly disgraced, to taste the agony of grandfather and grandson tearing each other apart!

For Fu Danwei to seize his grandson's body, the best choice would be Fu Henghua. And in Liu Yuli's view, Fu Henghua was so skilled at studying books that he would certainly deduce the Heavenly Demon Art from the "ancient texts" Liu Yuli had left behind.

When Fu Danwei attempted possession, he would resist with demonic arts. Once grandfather and grandson turned against each other, it would be time for Liu Yuli to make his move.

"My lord, could the one you mean be that brat called Fu Henghua?" the demon cultivator who had crawled out of the water said angrily. "Yesterday, Fu Xiangfeng left the island with a young man..."

"Fu Henghua left the island?"

Another tentacle slammed him back into the water.

Liu Yuli flew into a rage. "Why didn't you report such important news sooner?!"

This meticulously prepared grand spectacle absolutely could not fall through!

Moreover, Liu Yuli had a selfish motive of his own.

If Fu Henghua truly cultivated the Heavenly Demon Art and studied the "Heavenly Demon Unfettered Dharma Body," then Liu Yuli could possess him as well, rather than wandering outside through the Demon Mist Shadow Method.

"Go bring Fu Henghua back! No, bring both brothers back. If one doesn't work, there's still the other as a spare."

The best outcome would be for Fu Danwei to fail in possessing Fu Henghua. After Liu Yuli captured him, he would help Fu Danwei possess Fu Xiangfeng, while he himself took Fu Henghua's body.