Chapter 413: The Old Demon of Tian Nan

"Damn it!"

"Are you a rabbit, why run so fast!"

The two demonic cultivators behind him saw Chunxu Zi's speed increasing further and grew frantic.

They had barely managed to track Chunxu Zi down.

If Chunxu Zi escaped, next time he'd likely come with that fishing-loving Xuan Yu Daoist—and then it would be them who had to run.

Don't think he's just a fisherman.

When it comes to fighting, they're no match for that Daoist.

Chunxu Zi, while flying with immortal techniques, glanced back and sneered:

"Do you think you're worthy to block me?"

Yet just as he turned his head, believing he had escaped to safety—

Thick black smoke surged up from the sea beneath him.

Instantly blocking his path ahead.

Chunxu Zi's pupils shrank sharply.

'Another demonic cultivator!'

In the blink of an eye, he saw a middle-aged man with a hooked nose and cold, grim features staring at him.

That gaze made Chunxu Zi inexplicably irritable.

He glanced back at the two demonic cultivators behind him.

If all three surrounded him—

The situation would become dangerous.

He drew a deep breath, raised his right hand into a sword finger, and merged his body with his flying sword, shooting toward Li Rui's direction at blinding speed.

Faster than anything could follow.

Just as he was about to pass Li Rui—

Suddenly—

A wailing, ghostly cry echoed at his ear.

Chunxu Zi recalled a legendary demonic artifact and his face changed instantly.

The next instant—

He saw the middle-aged man's sleeves billow.

A small black-veiled flag flew out, swelling violently in the wind.

Finally growing into a white banner ten zhang wide, engulfing him entirely.

Chunxu Zi's pupils shrank sharply, his face turning ashen.

He spat out three words through clenched teeth:

"Ten Thousand Souls Banner!"

He never imagined this demon who appeared out of nowhere possessed the Ten Thousand Souls Banner—something only the greatest demonic masters dared to forge.

While still stunned—

He heard the middle-aged man speak in a hoarse voice:

"Enter my banner, become my soul spirit."

No sooner had the words left his lips—

Chunxu Zi felt the entire world darken, ghostly shadows glowing all around him, as if trapped in the deepest hell.

"No!"

A piercing scream erupted from the white banner.

Instantly incinerated!

The two demonic cultivators chasing him saw this and turned pale.

They recognized it too.

That white banner was the infamous Ten Thousand Souls Banner.

They had been framed by their senior brother and fled out of desperation—labeled demons by the outside world.

But this man before them? He was the true demon!

At that very moment—

Li Rui retracted the Thousand Souls Banner and fixed his icy gaze on the two.

One of them felt his face stiffen and forced a smile: "Elder, we two were also chasing that man. Since you've already consumed him, we won't trouble you further."

He bowed slightly.

Then turned to leave.

Even demonic cultivators like them didn't want to cross paths with a true demon like this.

Since Chunxu Zi was already dead, they had no reason to fight this demon to the death.

But just as he turned—

He heard Li Rui's voice: "Did I say you could leave?"

The two exchanged glances, their faces darkening.

Demonic cultivators truly were as ruthless as the legends said.

They were about to speak—

But Li Rui cut them off: "Hand over one treasure each. Today, I'll spare you."

Pluck every feather as it flies!

This only deepened their stereotype of demons.

Yet if this demon had been too easygoing, they'd have grown suspicious.

A brief glance passed between them.

Then, without a word, each pulled a treasure from their robes and threw it forward.

Li Rui reached out with a giant hand.

One was a formation flag, the other a grade-three elixir.

Only then did he smile, sweeping his sleeve: "Go."

Hearing Li Rui's words,

The two cultivators finally exhaled a long breath of relief.

One of them suddenly spoke: "We don't know your name, Elder, but we greatly admire you."

This demon's power was terrifying—he must be well-known in the Southern Seas.

A cold snort came in reply: "I don't change my name. I am the Old Demon of Tian Nan. Have you heard of me?"

Both men's expressions brightened.

The Old Demon of Tian Nan!

Indeed, a true demonic powerhouse.

"Elder, then we won't trouble you further."

Saying this,

The two fled like streaks of divine light, vanishing beyond the horizon.

Once certain the two cultivators were gone,

Li Rui dove into the sea.

He fled hundreds of li before reverting to his original form.

He glanced at the Thousand Souls Banner in his sleeve.

Truly effective!

In a single glance, Chunxu Zi was trapped inside the banner.

At this moment,

Chunxu Zi had turned to a pile of withered bones.

He had not become a soul spirit—Li Rui had used immense power to obliterate his soul and spirit entirely.

If one plots against me, one must be ready to be killed in return.

A few days ago,

Chunxu Zi was inquiring about him; yet he too had been secretly observing Chunxu Zi.

He could almost confirm one thing:

Chunxu Zi intended harm against him.

Li Rui had long decided to kill him.

But the Southern Seas' Immortal Market was guarded by the Great Immortal of the Southern Seas—he couldn't act openly.

Yet he never expected to encounter him out at sea.

Naturally, he wouldn't let him go.

Li Rui never liked leaving troubles for himself—he preferred to eliminate them early.

Hmm.

Physical elimination.

He didn't even give Chunxu Zi a chance to become a soul spirit—he destroyed him outright.

Although refining Chunxu Zi into a soul spirit would boost the Thousand Souls Banner's power, he still had to remain in Qingwei Sect—what if Qingding True Person had some unforeseen trick up his sleeve?

The consequences would be unthinkable.

One must not lose the forest for the trees.

So Li Rui had no intention of keeping him.

"No wonder it's the Thousand Souls Banner."

This was Li Rui's first time using the Thousand Souls Banner against an enemy; its power was even more brutal than he'd imagined.

Chunxu Zi, a powerful figure at the peak of Tongxuan, was sealed away in a single strike—truly formidable.

Of course.

The magic treasure's strength was one thing, but the key was Li Rui himself being powerful enough.

He was only newly entered into Tongxuan.

Yet he carried the Dao Embryo, Immortal Form, and other great weapons; even without the Thousand Souls Banner, he could have slain Chunxu Zi.

He merely wished to conceal his identity.

Hence he chose to pose as a demonic cultivator.

He had seen Sheng Daoist's dark arts—though he never practiced them, they were more than enough to deceive others, and with the Thousand Souls Banner, the hallmark of demonic cultivators, no one would suspect him.

At least those two cultivators found no flaw.

Just as he finished everything and prepared to leave,

a line of small characters appeared.

【Congratulations, Host, you have completed the Primary Plot Achievement—Struggle.】

【Pursuing the Immortal Dao inevitably brings enmity with other cultivators. Having enmity is not the problem—the key is how you resolve it. Congratulations, Host, you ended the karmic ties with the most direct method possible.】

【Achievement "Struggle" completed. Reward calculation in progress.】

【Achievement rating: C.】

【Obtained 20 Achievement Points!】

【Name: Li Rui】

【Age: 25】

【Talents: Martial Bone, Extraordinary Comprehension, Insightful Eyes, Great Dream Immortal Travel, Demon-Slaying Victory, Dao Seed】

【Cultivation Technique: Ten Thousand Eons Evergreen Art】

【Item: Spirit-Raising Book】

【Achievements: 70/100】

Li Rui glanced at it.

The curve of his lips deepened.

A month passed.

The Southern Sea Immortal Market closed.

Many cultivators descended from the Immortal Island and departed individually.

Lin Lang and the other two were among the crowd.

"Brother Zhu, have you heard? Recently, demonic cultivators in the Southern Sea caused chaos—especially a demon lord named Tiannan Old Demon, who forged the heinous Ten Thousand Souls Banner."

Lin Lang's eyes showed fear.

He was a merchant, and feared most those who were unreasonable, ready to kill at the slightest provocation—and who were also powerful.

"We must be extra cautious on our way back."

Li Rui's expression remained unchanged:

"Brother Lin speaks wisely."

The three boarded the great ship.

The Tianyuan Trading Association's sails unfurled, cutting through wind and waves.

To Lin Lang's surprise,

along the entire journey, they encountered neither the rumored Tiannan Old Demon nor a single demonic cultivator.

Little did he know,

not only ordinary cultivators feared true demons—fake demons feared them too.

A great demon who had forged a Ten Thousand Souls Banner—everyone who saw him would tremble inside.

Perhaps the only one unafraid was Li Rui.

Half a month earlier,

Qingwei Sect.

In a room hanging a jade tablet,

Crack!

A sharp sound—the jade tablet inscribed with "Chunxu Zi" shattered into countless fragments, clattering to the ground.

The young Daoist, who had been dozing off, jolted awake.

He stared wide-eyed at the shards on the floor.

Fear spread across his face.

The Life Talisman had broken!

This was Qingwei Sect's chamber for managing Life Talismans.

Life Talismans were special talismans crafted by Talisman Masters, usually paired: when one bearer died, the other would sense it and shatter spontaneously.

Life Talismans were precious; only Qingding True Person's few disciples and the most promising inner sect disciples qualified for them.

The young Daoist glanced at the Life Talisman.

Once he confirmed whose it was,

he sucked in a sharp breath.

Chunxu Zi!

【Something's happened—something huge!】

The young Daoist sat down hard on the floor, terrified.

Who was Chunxu Zi?

He was Qingding True Person's disciple—his status in Qingwei Sect was terrifyingly high!

The young Daoist finally managed to stand.

He stumbled out of the room and reported the matter.

Soon,

Xianyu Daoist left the sect that very day.

He headed south, crossing the sea.

Three months later,

On the peak of Changqing Peak in Qingwei Sect, a vortex of spiritual energy coalesced.

Closest to Changqing Peak,

Sang Kong, a Wu Kingdom official sipping tea on the mountaintop, gazed at the distant spiritual vortex and smiled faintly.

"Already achieved it so soon?"

Clearly,

Li Rui had broken through.

From now on, both the Yu and Wu Kingdoms' envoys stationed at Qingwei Sect were Tongxuan Realm experts.

It was a good thing.

Though they belonged to different kingdoms,

their interests aligned within Qingwei Sect, not to mention Li Rui's ties with the Grand Witch and the Third Princess.

Li Rui growing stronger,

he was delighted.

Meanwhile,

Elders and disciples within Qingwei Sect all looked up, gazing toward the commotion on Changqing Peak.

Many didn't even know who lived atop Changqing Peak—they knew nothing of the details.

They never imagined,

someone atop Changqing Peak had taken that step and attained the Upper Three Ranks.

"The spiritual energy is dense—his foundation is solid."

Said an old man with white hair and beard.

He looked even older than Qingding True Person.

Beside him, Ziyang Daoist nodded: "I'm somewhat familiar with Lord Li—he truly has exceptional talent."

The elder beside him,

was Xuanwei Daoist, Qingding True Person's eldest disciple.

A cultivator who looked like an old man.

There were usually only two reasons: either he began cultivation too late, or he had lived too long.

Li Rui was the former; his senior brother was the latter.

Master Xuanwei: "Achieving the Great Primordial state of martial Dao certainly has its extraordinary aspects."

Unlike others.

Their seven master-brothers were raised from childhood in seclusion under the True Person Qingding, following the orthodox path of cultivation.

They cultivate the Small Primordial state.

Each has its own merits.

He understands the Great Primordial state extremely well—without using magic treasures, in pure spellcraft, body cultivators nearly crush all others.

And Li Rui's current aura is also extraordinary among Great Primordial cultivators.

Master Xuanwei withdrew his gaze.

At that moment, his companion, Master Ziyang, spoke: "Brother, word has come from Second Brother: Sixth Brother was indeed murdered by evil ones, his soul scattered and destroyed—likely the work of demonic cultivators from the Southern Seas."

"I heard a great demon has emerged in the Southern Seas, having forged the Ten Thousand Souls Banner."

"Great Brother, do you think it might be that demon who killed Sixth Brother?"

"It sounds right—he's called the Old Demon of Tiannan."

Master Ziyang still trembled with lingering fear.

He had gone to the Southern Seas Immortal Market together with Chunxu Zi.

But Chunxu Zi always found excuses to send him away, leaving alone.

Then, after the Southern Seas Immortal Market ended and they returned to Qingwei Sect, they discovered their brother Chunxu Zi was dead.

Master Xuanwei nodded:

"Fate is ordained by Heaven. Brother Chunxu was destined to meet this tribulation—it was his trial, and he could not escape it."

Master Ziyang fell silent.

His eldest brother was always like this—passive and non-interfering by nature.

A flicker of hesitation crossed his eyes:

"Great Brother, during those days at the Southern Seas Immortal Market, Brother Chunxu seemed unusual—he appeared to be searching for something. Could his death be connected to this?"

Master Xuanwei: "Have you told Brother Xuanfish about this?"

"I have."

"Then that's enough."

He gazed at the distant phenomenon fading away.

Master Xuanwei suddenly felt bored. He waved his hand: "Enough. Brother Xuanfish will handle this himself. I'll go back to my cultivation."

"Yes, Brother."

Master Ziyang bowed, watching as Master Xuanwei departed.

A faint stirring stirred in his heart.

His eldest brother was good in every way, kind to others—but he could feel the coldness at the deepest core of his soul.

Perhaps in Master Xuanwei's eyes, his fellow brothers were no different from flowers and grass by the roadside.

Coldness.

That transcendent, detached coldness.

Master Ziyang felt a chill and pulled his robe tighter.

He glanced toward the direction of Changqing Peak.

"I should go offer congratulations to Lord Li—Qingwei Sect's courtesies must never be neglected."

Thinking this, he set off toward Changqing Peak.

"Lord Li, congratulations! Master Ziyang, what a coincidence—you're here too!"

Sang Kong saw the phenomenon vanish.

He was the first to ascend Changqing Peak.

He hadn't expected Master Ziyang of Qingwei Sect to be equally eager.

"Lord Sang, what a coincidence."

Master Ziyang smiled.

The two ascended together, and soon spotted Li Rui waiting at the small courtyard atop the peak, having sensed their presence.

At this moment, Li Rui's aura was immensely powerful.

He radiated an ethereal, transcendent bearing, brimming with divine radiance.

Both men felt a sharp chill in their hearts.

What an exceptional seed for cultivation!

(End of Chapter)

(End of chapter)