Chapter 253: The Reason for the Three-Faction Alliance

A demon beast treasure crystal smashed down; though his martial arts did not advance, it added a bit of knowledge.

It also added twenty years of lifespan, so it was not too much of a loss.

Shen Yi flipped through the miscellaneous books carried by True Person Master Changqing.

Most of them were things similar to "travelogues."

"So leisurely?"

Looking at the names of various factions that occasionally flashed across the pages.

Shen Yi fell into deep thought.

If only he could find a faction that mainly cultivated the Slain Hunyuan Realm and was as generous as the Wu Temple.

The two known immortal gates currently had no channels for contact.

It was hard enough to meet someone from the Xuan Guang Cave, and they still wanted to ambush and kill him.

Is it time to go beyond Great Qian?

At this thought, Shen Yi summoned Lady Qinghua and waited quietly for her to wake from her grief.

A full half-hour passed.

Only then did the confusion in Qinghua's eyes fade a bit: "Qinghua pays respects to my Lord."

"I want to know how Great Qian and the immortal gates guard their territories? Where are they located?" Shen Yi planned to understand the situation outside first to avoid being grabbed as cannon fodder for no reason.

"Guard?"

Qinghua shook her head in confusion: "It has always been the Thousand Demon Cave guarding the territory, preventing the immortal gates and Great Qian from intruding."

Hearing this, Shen Yi was slightly stunned.

This news did not quite fit his understanding of the Wu Temple.

"Within the scope of the Thousand Demon Cave, cultivator cave dwellings often appear in the world; the disciples of the immortal gates are like flies seeing a cracked egg, constantly seeking opportunities to get close."

Lady Qinghua sorted out her thoughts and answered cautiously: "Among them, the cultivators of the Wu Temple are the most rampant; their three-zhang-tall Golden Body Dharma Avatars completely conceal no aura, stepping into the area at will, which most easily attracts the attention of the Thousand Demon Cave."

"..."

Shen Yi fell silent for a moment; that was not concealing nothing, it was that they could not conceal it.

The brilliant Golden Body condensed from incense and vow power, once it appeared, reflected across the sky, as if wanting everyone eight hundred li away to know he had arrived.

"The Wu Temple cultivates the path of the Golden Body; why do they participate in matters of cultivator cave dwellings?" Shen Yi looked over in confusion.

They even went so far as to have many Soul Transformation cultivators perish, yet still continued to rush to their deaths; this was simply illogical.

"Cultivator cave dwellings occasionally also store Golden Body techniques, but this is not the main reason."

Lady Qinghua frowned and thought for a moment: "When the Blood-Transforming Demon Emperor chatted with other Demon Emperors, Qinghua once heard some things; those cultivators came from the same school and all had the habit of nurturing Age Trees; the fruit of the Age Trees can extend life by twenty years; they need to collect these fruits and send them to Mount Wutong."

"That's it!"

Qinghua raised her head and finally remembered: "They want to extend the lifespan of the Shenxu Laozu of Mount Wutong; this is also the reason why the three factions formed an alliance. Only if the Shenxu Laozu of Mount Wutong does not die can the Thousand Demon Cave be deterred."

"Moreover, the Wu Temple is different from the immortal gates; they take incense and vow power as their foundation. Compared to the other two immortal gates, their scope is too large, with too many burdens, so they need the help of Mount Wutong the most."

"Once they break away from the alliance, the Soul Transformation cultivators and the Wu Xian can still protect themselves; this is no different from the disciples of the immortal gates, but if the Nine Provinces are occupied by demons and they lose the replenishment of incense and vow power, they are no different from waiting to die."

Hearing this, Shen Yi silently shook his head.

Originally, he thought the Xuan Guang Cave was aggressive, and although Mount Wutong was high and mighty, it was also upholding justice.

It turned out this bunch of people were all working for Mount Wutong.

Now it made sense why the Wu Temple suffered the heaviest losses.

A group of Golden Body cultivators least suitable for infiltrating demon territories, yet they were the ones who could least afford to leave this alliance...

Having thought this through, Shen Yi asked again: "There is one more question; why do cultivator cave dwellings appear in demon territories?"

"This, Qinghua is not too clear on." Lady Qinghua paused for a moment, then said: "Actually, there are cave dwellings outside as well, but they are relatively few, and there are no Age Trees."

As she spoke, she looked at the miscellaneous book in Shen Yi's hand: "These should be maps recording the locations of the cave dwellings."

She pointed her finger at a sentence on the page.

"This writes about the strange phenomena occurring at Huangni Gorge, and the patterns of each appearance; according to the text, in about seventy years, my Lord can consider going to try it."

Shen Yi nodded thoughtfully, then pushed a pile of miscellaneous books over: "Organize the information recorded in them for me as soon as possible."

"Qinghua obeys."

Lady Qinghua hugged the miscellaneous books, found paper and brush in the room, and went to the desk to analyze them seriously.

Shen Yi was not idle either; although he could not cultivate Slain Hunyuan martial arts now and had no incense and vow power to improve his Golden Body.

But the body-refining method could be refined again.

Now the demon blood in his body had reached two hundred and ninety-one drops; he wondered if he could raise two more Demon Kings.

He poured the demon beast lifespan into the Nine Demons Transforming into Demons Great Art.

【In the first year, you fed all the demon blood in your body to that Jade Green Toad...】

Dragon, Mountain Lord, Poison Toad, Kong Que...

Almost every one of them had brought Shen Yi much assistance; now that they grew again, their corresponding divine abilities would become stronger.

Leaving other things aside, at least Kong Que's red light was now a bit slow when repairing injuries.

【In the seven thousand and seventy-second year, one hundred and thirty-six drops of demon blood were exhausted; terrifying crimson patterns covered the body of the Jade Green Toad; the deadly poison that made all living beings fear now added a few more eerie touches.】

【Slain Hunyuan. Nine Demons Transforming into Demons Great Art: Minor Success】

Shen Yi closed his eyes and suddenly felt a dry sensation as if his throat was smoking.

Crimson patterns also covered his skin, and even a faint red mist floated up.

The fine stinging pain seemed about to crack his body open.

"..."

No wonder it was demon martial arts; if nothing went wrong, Shen Yi would feel a bit unaccustomed.

Feed the remaining demon blood to Kong Que as well.

Until the last drop vanished into the sea of Qi.

【Year fifteen thousand and two hundred: Nanke Xian consumed the last of the demon blood. It spread its scarlet wings, seemingly still not fully satisfied...】

【Remaining lifespan of the demon: twenty-four thousand three hundred and twelve years】

Why does it seem to eat more and more?

Shen Yi felt both joy and worry; the joy was that the body's improvement was solid, but the worry was... he felt that even if he slaughtered every named demon in Great Qian, he might not be able to afford to feed these nine immortal demons.

There are five Demon Kings within his body.

He felt that if he met True Person Master Changqing again, he might be able to clash directly and shatter the other's Dao Infant with a single punch.

"My Lord."

Lady Qinghua suddenly turned around, first casting an admiring glance at the crimson patterns on Shen Yi that had not yet fully faded, then immediately realizing her presumption, she quickly lowered her head.

"Qinghua now knows why the cultivators of the Profound Light Cave have come."

"Look here; in about two months, not far from the Eight Directions Food Pavilion, a cave abode might open."

Hearing this, Shen Yi glanced sideways: "A restaurant?"

"It is a faction."

Qinghua explained: "Much like Qingqiu, they almost never involve themselves in the affairs of the immortal sects and the Thousand Demon Cavern. This servant was once invited to a banquet, where they ate a high-realm Demon King... Qinghua only received a bowl, which remains unforgettable to this day."

(End of this chapter)