Chapter 217: Falling Into a Trap

Zhou Yi squinted at the void and sneered; Lao Niuqiu was indeed hiding on Gou Chen Xing, and the chaos in this wretched place was probably his doing.

With a tip of his toe, he instantly teleported to the Arctic ice sea, where a ten‑thousand‑foot abyss beneath his feet concealed a beast's lair that even the Demon Race avoids.

Ice shards rained down headlong, but Zhou Yi ignited golden flames around his body to forge a path, and wherever he passed the beast hordes sank to the sea floor like dumplings.

In less than the time it takes to sip half a cup of tea, he discovered a majestic structure like an underwater dragon palace, its beams etched with a nine‑headed Great Peng Bird motif.

"Old stick, do you still hide in your shell when guests arrive?" Zhou Yi flicked his hand, a golden ray slashing the door plaque, which cracked with a "crack!" into two halves.

The entire palace suddenly buzzed and trembled, and dense Demon script appeared on the walls' surfaces.

From the shadows came a sandpaper‑gritty laugh: "You think you can bait my two Dao clones like fish? You've underestimated me, but…" Before the words finished, Zhou Yi had already kicked open two obsidian doors, and the Great Hall was empty, not even a ghostly silhouette.

"Playing god!" Zhou Yi's palm gathered solar true fire that suddenly surged, illuminating the entire underwater palace as bright as daylight.

On the high platform floated a mass of humanoid black mist, within which the aged, fierce face of the Great Peng Bird could be vaguely seen.

The black mist twisted, emitting a metallic scrape: "My clone has long been fused to Gou Chen Xing's pulse; you want to kill me? Only if you turn the whole star into fireworks!" As it spoke, it suddenly morphed into a hundred‑foot giant Kun illusion, its maw opening to devour Zhou Yi.

"Is that all?" Zhou Yi formed his fingers into a sword, carving the character "Po" (Break) in the air; golden sword qi nailed the illusion to the wall, "Back then during the Lich‑Witch War you were a hiding turtle, now you've learned to drill holes?"

While speaking, he flung seven copper coins to lay a Confining Dragon Formation, and the entire sea floor suddenly filled with a dense star map.

Zhou Yi squinted at the illusion: "Playing golden cicada shedding its shell? Stuffing a Yuan‑Shen seal into a clone as a sacrificial pawn—your trick of swapping beams is slick!"

Only then did he realize that the Great Peng Bird before him was merely a Dao illusion; its true form had already slipped beyond the Nine Heavens.

The Dao illusion suddenly let out a grim laugh: "I was just casually setting an idle move, never expecting you brat to actually reach the Chaos Sea. This technique was meant for the Dao Ancestor, yet you kid got the short end of the stick; still, my fate is very hard."

"A hard fate is good for what?" Zhou Yi scoffed, "What's the difference from a stray dog now? Dare you return to Honghuang for a breath? This life you'll just be a hiding turtle in the Chaos Sea!"

The illusion twisted violently: "As long as I still have breath, I'll eventually skin you, and then the entire Human Race will be minced into dumpling filling for you."

"Wake up, old thing!" Zhou Yi suddenly produced a jade slip and waved it, "Since the Lich‑Witch War, the Heavenly Dao has already changed the script; the Human Race is now the Heavenly Dao's chosen champion. Dare you even tug a single hair of the Demon Race, you won't survive the Dao Ancestor's Thunder Light striking straight into the Chaos Sea?"

The illusion fell silent for the time it takes to sip half a cup of tea, and Zhou Yi seized the chance to fling a killer dagger: "You hide a Dao fragment here in this ghostly place, probably trying to covertly control Gou Chen Xing? Those hundreds of billions of Demon Race brats squabble daily, that's you stoking the fire from behind, isn't it?"

The Demon Master Great Peng Bird's fragment trembled like a winnowing sieve; Zhou Yi's words had struck his lung tube.

The illusion gritted its teeth: "That fool Di Qun used his natal star as a foundation, begged the lowly Nüwa to set a restriction; what's the result? Now Demon Emperor Taiyi is completely dead, and keeping these shrimp soldiers and crab generals can only lead to what climate?"

"The Honghuang Earth is the true foundation; no matter how big Gou Chen Xing is, it can't compare to the whole Honghuang," the Demon Master Great Peng Bird slammed the table, cracking the wooden chair armrests.

"Oh? Seems your true body still hides in the Honghuang realm? You're quite the master of playing in the dark under the lamp!" Zhou Yi crossed his arms, leaning against a stone pillar, a faint smile tugging his lips.

The Great Peng Bird illusion hovering in mid‑air trembled even more fiercely: "You brat dare twist my words?"

"Not only do I know you're in Honghuang, I've even guessed the backstage that helped you pull the cover‑up—Zhunti and Jieyin must have lent a lot of effort to the two Saints, right?"

Zhou Yi tossed the jade talisman in his hand, "When it comes to fence‑side tricks, the three realms truly can't find anyone more skilled than you. The Lich‑Witch War hasn't even begun, yet the Western Sect's merit pool already holds your reflection, doesn't it?"

The Great Peng Bird's illusion fell silent as still as a dead pool. As Zhou Yi listened to its words, his mind was as clear as a mirror; that creature must have been in league with the Western Heaven long ago.

Seeing the opponent play dumb, Zhou Yi scoffed, "Don't worry, I'm too lazy to pry your mouth open. Since your true body is hidden in Honghuang, you'll eventually come knocking, but…"

He suddenly lunged forward, Thunder Light flickering at his fingertips, "Hide more tightly; if I catch you early, this cat‑and‑mouse game won't be fun anymore."

Before the words finished, his five fingers formed claws and sealed the illusion, which turned to blue smoke before it could even struggle.

Zhou Yi flicked his wrist and left the Great Hall, gazing up at the sky‑blocking Gou Chen Xing with a sigh; this thing is larger than ten Mount Tai combined, housing hundreds of billions of Demon Race brats inside.

"Killing them all would be clean, but Nüwa's reputation…" He stroked his chin, then laughed, "Throw it to the Heavenly Court as a hot‑potato, how about that?"

Speaking, he produced a messaging jade slip and began to plot how to negotiate terms with the old Jade Emperor.

Gou Chen Xing lies in the Chaos depths beyond the Vast Wilderness World, a place even the Heavenly Dao's laws cannot reach.

Just this unique environment alone exerts a deadly attraction on Zhou Yi.

Whether as a secret training ground for the Human Race to cultivate combat power, or as a final refuge, this planet is a perfect choice.

The only remaining concern is the attitude of Nüwa, the clay‑shaping goddess. After all, hundreds of billions of Demon Race citizens still inhabit the planet, and as the Demon Race's Saint she cannot simply abandon them.

Moreover, with the information the Demon Master Great Peng Bird previously disclosed, distinguishing illusion from reality is difficult; this ancient monster who has lived from the early Honghuang to now can be believed at most three percent.

Zhou Yi knew in his heart that facing such an ageless slick, he must stay on high alert, or he'd fall into a trap in an instant.

However, there's no need to rush the plan concerning Gou Chen Xing. Since the pleasant discussion with that Saint at Nüwa's Palace last time, Zhou Yi feels there's ample room for negotiation.

As long as he's willing to spend time maneuvering, he can eventually coax Nüwa into agreement; at worst it's just a matter of conceding a few more benefits.

After marking the star‑map coordinates in his Sea of Knowledge, Zhou Yi turned and stepped into the Chaos turbulence, sprinting toward a specific direction.

Although this trip to the Chaos Sea didn't completely resolve the Demon Master Great Peng Bird problem, the unexpectedly discovered planet already counts as a great return ticket.

In fact, besides dealing with the Demon Master, Zhou Yi has a hidden goal: to locate the Chaos Bell that vanished with Taiyi's fall years ago.

Since the Demon Emperor's total annihilation, this primordial treasure has slipped into the Chaos, whereabouts unknown, and now all the big players of Honghuang are eyeing it.