Chapter 138: The Mysterious Demon's Strategy to Intercept Immortals

Under the phoenix bird's gaze, Yunhe's claw, which he was about to swing, halted in place.

It nimbly turned, landing on his own head, and lightly scratched.

Not scratching would have been fine, but the act of scratching even startled him.

Because he discovered that the lump-like protrusion on his head had vanished, replaced instead by a sharp horn.

The horn was dark black, not very long, not even straight, yet extremely sturdy—so much that Yunhe felt it was harder than his back shell.

Besides that, two lump-like protrusions grew on the left and right sides of his head; what they conceal is currently unclear.

But just the changes to his head already surprised Yunhe considerably.

What has he become now?

Meanwhile, the phoenix bird opposite him, seeing Yunhe's actions and expression change, couldn't help but let out a low laugh.

But soon, it was replaced by a heavier doubt.

The large turtle opposite him clearly looked startled and inexperienced, yet how could it absorb so much spiritual liquid from the Demon-washing Pool?

You know.

Even at the peak of the Demon-washing Pool, the most a demon beast could last inside was two months, after which body and spirit could no longer endure and they had to leave.

But what about that large turtle opposite him?

Two years!

That's two years!

The phoenix bird, which knows well the torment the Demon-washing Pool brings, understands the pain best.

If in the past, a demon beast had told it it could stay two years in the Demon-washing Pool, it would surely have laughed at the bragging without basis.

Until it personally saw this turtle endure two years in the Demon-washing Pool.

Most importantly, if it hadn't driven the turtle away, the large turtle would likely have continued to linger.

Even after driving him away, the turtle still acted as if trying to return, leaving the phoenix bird momentarily at a loss for words.

Meanwhile, Yunhe paid little heed to the phoenix bird's expression; at this moment he unfolded his Demon Sense and was observing himself.

The most obvious change was naturally his head: the previous lump had become a horn, and in addition two more lumps had appeared.

'Is he turning into a rhinoceros among turtles?'

Yunhe thought self-mockingly.

Besides that, his body also underwent some changes.

The most visible was that his scales and back shell darkened, as if fished out of an ink pool.

If one looked closely, it could be seen.

On each piece of shell on his turtle back, there seemed to be carved extremely fine patterns; though they looked ordinary, they appeared to contain some special regularity, carrying special functions.

Moreover, on each scale of his body appeared faint, wavy lines; though each scale's lines seemed different, close comparison made them seem entirely identical.

Next came the claws.

Previously, each claw had a thin layer of webbing between them, but now that webbing is gone.

Originally his claws were sturdy but short and not very flexible; without demonic power support, it was hard to perform delicate tasks.

Now his claws not only lost the webbing but became more slender and elongated, each joint becoming clearer, somewhat like

"Dragon claws?"

Yunhe gently moved them.

What kind of turtle is he now?

Dragon turtle? Black tortoise? Giant ao?

Unclear.

Actually, Yunhe has never been quite clear about what direction his transformation is heading.

But it doesn't matter; he can clearly sense his progress and change.

After checking his appearance, Yunhe began to use his Demon Sense for inner observation.

The biggest and most surprising thing was his inner elixir.

Normally, a second-stage demon beast being able to condense an inner elixir is already rare, but upon seeing his qi sea dantian, he was truly astonished.

"Three, three?"

In his qi sea dantian, what was originally one inner elixir had become three!

What does this mean?

Even after slaying countless demon beasts to harvest their inner elixirs, he had never seen a single demon beast possess three inner elixirs.

Although each of these three inner elixirs is somewhat smaller than his previous one, together they are absolutely much larger than the single one before.

Not only the number of inner elixirs, Yunhe also clearly felt a change in his demonic power.

The total amount of demonic power hasn't changed much, but to say its quality has undergone a qualitative leap is not an exaggeration.

He made a rough estimate: his current unit of demonic power is at least three times that of before!

What does that mean?

It means that when he now casts a technique, consuming the same wisp of demonic power, although it doesn't directly correspond to a threefold increase as exaggerated, it is at least more than double!

"Huu— huu—"

Yunhe's breathing became slightly hurried.

This is pure qualitative change bringing quantitative change, which in turn brings qualitative change!

Finally.

Yunhe's Demon Sense swept over his body.

His physical strength also increased by at least twofold!

Compared to before, his current physical strength may not match a third-rank demon beast, but it certainly equals that Rotten Wood Jiao that was ready to break through to third rank.

From head to toe, inside and out, even his Demon Sense—though his Cultivation Base hadn't increased much—his strength underwent a qualitative change.

Is this the effect of the Beast Cleansing Pool?

Little did he know.

Even if a normal demon beast could gain great benefits from entering the Beast Cleansing Pool, it could never be as exaggerated as him, possibly not even a tenth of his gain.

There's nothing to be done.

Other demon beasts can at most endure two months, but he simply sat there for two years—the gap is huge.

Thump! Thump! Thump!

The powerful heart's "thump-thump" beat was like someone drumming.

And as the heart beat and blood flowed, Yunhe suddenly froze in place.

In his mind, a large amount of unknown text suddenly appeared, dense and unfamiliar, accompanied by a strong impact that continually washed over his consciousness.

However, perhaps because he had endured the Beast Cleansing Pool's tempering for too long, this text that would originally have caused him prolonged pain let him quickly adapt to the change.

He didn't recognize these sudden texts in his mind, but he could clearly and accurately understand their meaning.

As he browsed, even though he had felt surprise several times in the past few days, he couldn't help but feel excitement rise.

Cultivation technique!

More precisely, an inherited cultivation technique!

He was no longer a novice among the demon race.

He clearly understood that although inherited techniques are stored in a demon beast's bloodline, not all demon beasts have the chance to awaken them, and even if they do, they usually need to attain human form before appearing.

Only an extremely small fraction can awaken an inherited technique before attaining human form.

Such demon beasts mostly possess extraordinary talent, and can even be called—True Spirit Descendants—to some extent.

Of course, they are still far from true True Spirits, but they are already ahead of many demon beasts.

As for the technique he obtained, it is called the Mysterious Beast Intercept Immortal Strategy.

Just by reading the beginning and a simple description, he realized this technique surpasses his current Mountain-bearing Technique in profundity—it is a top-tier demon race cultivation method!

However, he did not immediately dive into deep study of that technique; instead, he looked toward the Luan Bird hovering above the Beast Cleansing Pool.

After all, that creature had driven him out of the Beast Cleansing Pool and had been staring at him for a long time.

"Is this an Artifact Spirit?"

He had originally thought it was also a demon beast, but only when his Demon Sense swept over it did he notice something odd.

Noticing Yunhe's Demon Sense sweep, the Luan Bird furrowed its brow.

"You may leave; the spiritual liquid in the Beast Cleansing Pool has been exhausted by you. To accumulate to that level again would take at least another century, and after that century it would be useless to you."

A clear, childlike voice, reminiscent of a young girl, tinged with helplessness, echoed in Yunhe's mind.

Hearing that, Yunhe stared blankly and looked toward the Beast Cleansing Pool.

Although the crimson pool water remained, it indeed lacked the profound, mysterious wonder he felt when he first entered.

"Are you an Artifact Spirit?"

Yunhe, however, did not immediately leave; if nothing unexpected happened, that Poison Jiao would still be guarding the entrance, and he at least needed some time to experience and adapt to his bodily changes.

Moreover, the Luan Bird aroused his curiosity, and he felt no hostility from it.

Chirp—!!

He saw the Luan Bird flap its wings, circle above the Beast Cleansing Pool for a while, then angrily say:

"You're the Artifact Spirit! I'm a Formation Spirit, a Formation Spirit!"

"Formation Spirit?"

Immediately, Yunhe recalled that when a formation reaches a certain rank, a Formation Spirit can indeed be born—an existence even rarer than an Artifact Spirit.

But ordinary Formation Spirits couldn't possibly possess such a spiritual body and wisdom, could they?

Could it be a Formation Spirit that has existed for tens of thousands of years?

He lightly scratched his chin, claws scraping against scales, producing a metallic sound.

"Sorry, so you're the Formation Spirit of the Beast Cleansing Pool? To guard the Beast Cleansing Pool? This Beast Cleansing Pool can actually cleanse demon beast bloodlines to purify their essence blood—truly extraordinary. Who built this Beast Cleansing Pool, and why is it now so desolate?"

He fired off a string of questions like cannonballs, leaving the Luan Bird stunned one after another.

After a long while, the Luan Bird finally reacted, flapping its wings fiercely in the air, and replied irritably:

"Why should I tell you?"

Yunhe tapped his brow, showing a look of realization: "Oh, you forgot."

He had intended to goad him, but the Luan Bird actually showed a pained expression of longing and futile thought.

"Really forgot?"

Seeing the other's expression grow more painful, Yunhe hurriedly spoke again.

"What's your name?"

This time, the Luan Bird's reaction was swift, as if deeply etched into its consciousness, and it instinctively said:

"I am Qing Yao, I love eating green grapes the most, my parents, my parents are"

But when it spoke of its parents, it showed an even more painful expression.

"Parents?"

Yunhe's pupils constricted slightly.

How could a Formation Spirit have parents?

Unless someone used a special method to extract its soul and spirit, then forcibly sealed it into the formation to serve as a Formation Spirit.

Such methods aren't rare in the cultivation world; some high-level cultivators will draw the souls of powerful demon beasts, refine them into magic treasures, condensing them into Artifact Spirits—this is the postnatal Artifact Spirit refining method.

Chirp—chirp!!

Qing Yao's painful long cry echoed in the vast hall.

Yunhe slapped his storage bag, and several chicken-egg-sized green astringent fruits appeared in his claws, giving off a faint fragrance.

Is this the 'green grape' you mentioned?

Although this 'green grape' is also a spiritual fruit, it isn't very precious; it's an auxiliary ingredient for refining some elixirs.

Seeming to have smelled the fragrance, Qing Yao stopped her painful struggle, gazed at Yunhe's palm, and her eyes suddenly brightened.

With a flap of its wings, it swiftly landed before him.

Upon approaching, Yunhe found that this phoenix bird was indeed handsome, not comparable to any demonic beast he had previously encountered.

Just that.

When the phoenix bird went to eat the 'green grape', it found its beak passed straight through the fruit, through Yunhe's claw.

Unconvinced, it pecked a few more times.

Qing Yao's movements gradually slowed, until finally she froze in place.

It seemed to finally realize; now it is merely a formation spirit.

It has no physical body.

Its gaze dimmed.

How many years has it been?

How many years has it been since it became a formation spirit?

It also doesn't remember; it has forgotten many things, even forgetting its parents, forgetting when this place fell into ruin, forgetting the taste of its favorite food, the 'green grape'.

Thanks.

Qing Yao's voice sounded again, seeming plain yet mixed with some sorrow.

Watching the phoenix bird fly back to the 'Wash Demon Pool', Yunhe rubbed the 'green grape' in his claws, also feeling quite moved.

Having become a formation spirit, as the formation does not perish, the spirit does not vanish; with the special efficacy of the 'Wash Demon Pool', this phoenix bird can be said to be immortal throughout the ages.

Yet confined to such a corner, feeling its memories gradually fade, life devoid of any waves or ups and downs—what does it matter even if it is eternal?

Longevity is what Yunhe pursues.

But the premise of everything is established under the condition of freedom without bonds.

If gaining longevity requires sacrificing freedom as a price, what meaning does obtaining longevity have?

After all, pursuing longevity is merely to gain freedom in the face of time and death.

I didn't expect that, although you are only a second-tier beast, your spiritual intelligence is not low; no wonder you could stay in the 'Wash Demon Pool' for two years.

Qing Yao seemed to quickly recover from her previous pain and sorrow; her lively eyes looked at the black great turtle before her, the depths of her eyes filled with envy, deep envy.

(End of chapter)