Chapter 312: What? Who? (3000)

【Year 732, under the intimidation of the Dark-Tail Demon Emperor's aura, the two Supreme Spirit Roots remained relatively obedient, yet they were utterly unyielding; no matter how you tried to influence them, they refused the toast only to demand the penalty; fortunately, through such a long time, you had become intimately familiar with their aura】

Shen Yi looked at the prompt, and his heart suddenly skipped a beat.

Could it be that they are in a rush again?

As expected, under his gaze, the two Spirit Roots instantly sank into his body, pulled by the Dao Infant into the Sea of Qi.

Then, a whip formed of crimson demonic energy struck the Lady Longyu and the Thunder Eagle without hesitation.

Both still feared the aura of the Dark-Tail Demon Emperor.

Years of torment had already left an indelible shadow in their hearts that could never be dispelled.

But the two only resisted instinctively; surging lightning magma mixed with gentle water clashed wildly within their bodies, nearly causing Shen Yi to lose his breath.

He gripped his neck hard, sharp claws digging straight into flesh and blood, blood flowing down through his fingers, veins exploding on his forehead.

This finally suppressed the cry of pain bursting from his throat.

Really risking one's life?

Shen Yi cursed twice in his heart, but could only endure it forcibly.

He knew the choice in the deduction was correct.

If the struggle continued, once the two Spirit Roots fully recovered and realized they were not the Dark-Tail Demon Emperor but merely a Hunyuan Realm cultivator with a facade, then it would be more than just pain.

The beating of the demonic energy whip made the two Spirit Roots recall the torment they had once suffered.

They let out a mournful cry.

Finally, they became much quieter.

【Year 2400, seeing the Spirit Roots no longer resisting, you finally began to try using the Dao Infant to devour them】

Crimson demonic energy instantly wrapped tightly around the two Spirit Roots.

The Thunder Eagle seemed to foresee its fate; just as it was about to sink into the Dao Infant, it suddenly let out a long cry, surging lightning magma filling the Dao Infant, as if trying to risk its life against Shen Yi.

In an instant.

Shen Yi personally experienced the true gap between a Supreme Spirit Root and the Age Wood.

His body appeared to have no abnormalities.

In reality, the entire Dao Infant emitted a dull crack sound at the moment the lightning magma erupted.

Fine cracks instantly spread out.

The Dao Infant seemed to have become a fragile porcelain vessel that would shatter completely with the slightest touch.

Shen Yi's eyes blurred for a moment.

The instant he came to his senses, he did not hesitate; sharp claws tore straight through his flesh, revealing the crimson Dao Infant, and immediately the Dark-Tail Spear fell into his palm.

Shen Yi gripped the spearhead and thrust it violently into his body, stabbing it into the Jin Lei Bai Yu.

"Screech!"

The Thunder Eagle let out a wail of fear from the depths of its heart.

It was then dragged into his body by the surging demonic energy.

【Year 3700, you finally subdued the Jin Lei Bai Yu; seeing the tragic state of its companion, the Lady Longyu Dao Fruit obediently crawled into your Dao Infant】

When thousands of years of evolution condensed into this instant's movement.

Shen Yi could see the changes in the Spirit Roots with his naked eyes.

He leaned exhausted against the bedframe, letting blood cover his entire body, even his breathing became intermittent.

A faint smile finally appeared on his clean face.

The deduction had finally returned to the right path; what remained was the long, grinding work.

"..."

Under the influence of the surging wave of exhaustion, Shen Yi slowly closed his eyes.

When the sky grew dim.

He suddenly woke up, instinctively gripping the Dark-Tail Spear beside him, then sensing Lady Qinghua guarding outside the door, only then did he relax slightly.

He saw that the wounds on his body had been healed by the Kong Que red light.

But below his heart, black scales had covered the area at some point, likely the change caused by him stabbing himself with the spear earlier.

The deduction on the panel before his eyes had stopped.

【Year 12000, you successfully refined the two Supreme Spirit Roots; the Great Dao of cultivation is now unobstructed; with the Lady Longyu as the kidneys and the White Jade as the lungs, one of the five viscera is missing, and reaching Soul Transformation is within reach】

This world became increasingly clear in Shen Yi's eyes.

He sheathed the Dark-Tail Spear, then extended both palms; clear water flowed on the left palm, while surging lightning magma churned on the right.

"..."

After becoming familiar with the changes in his body.

Shen Yi calmed his emotions.

This was paving the way for Soul Transformation; the road was now nearly paved, but he could not yet step onto it.

He took out the corpses of demons from his storage bag.

First were the two Extreme Realm Demon Kings; Shen Yi opened his mouth slightly and turned them into demon blood.

The two demons provided three hundred and twelve drops of demon blood.

Shen Yi mobilized the demons' lifespan and poured it into the Nine Demons Transforming into Demons Great Art.

Last time, feeding Bai Lu over a hundred drops of demon blood had not been enough; these three hundred-plus drops were probably not enough either.

While deducing body-refining martial arts, he took out the corpse of the Bai Yu Yao Huang.

It was still relatively safe now; although gnawing on a Demon Emperor was difficult, he could take his time.

The night was deep and silent.

In a slightly larger wooden house within the village.

Xu Hongde sat in the lower seat, facing seven elders with silver-white hair.

Though he was clan chief, every major decision required consultation with the clan elders—they were the only ones who had truly lived through those events.

"Look at this commotion."

Xu's third ancestor stared stiffly out the window: "Those who don't know might think you've welcomed a great demon."

Xu Hongde let out a bitter laugh: "I've already informed all of you elders of everything. How to decide—please tell me, my ancestral elders."

At these words, the clan elders exchanged glances.

Almost in unison, they said: "Set up the Four Symbols Subduing Demon Array to forge a good connection with him—but do not let him leave, unless he provides sufficient compensation to shift the array's entrance."

Hearing this, Xu Hongde showed no surprise—as if he had expected it.

Given the elders' nature, they would never trust an outsider.

Either Shen Yi would remain in the Xu family forever, to prevent this secluded place from being exposed; if he wished to leave, they would have to rearrange the array and change its entrance entirely.

As for freedom? That was pure nonsense.

"He saved Qing. The materials needed to alter the array—I, Hongde, will pay for them. That's settled."

Xu Hongde nodded and rose to take his leave.

Precisely because they had suffered betrayal, the entire Xu family had grown up steeped in those stories, and thus despised such acts with utter loathing.

There was no need to repay kindness with malice over a bit of heavenly treasure.

"..." The clan elders said no more.

Xu Hongde pushed open the door and stepped out; after walking a short distance, he saw Xu Wanyun and Qing.

"What? You really don't want to go out and see the world?" Xu Wanyun stamped her foot, gazing irritably at the horizon. Though this place was filled with birdsong and blossoms, everyone knew even the sky above was fake.

Like a prison, suffocating everyone.

"Father..." Qing had taken the pill; aside from a pale complexion, she was unharmed, gripping her sleeve tightly.

Xu Hongde raised his hand to cut her off: "Only you two in the entire Xu family want to leave. Don't mention this again."

"By the way, if you ever sneak into my study again to steal something, don't blame me for being ruthless."

"Hand it over!"

Xu Hongde extended his hand.

Qing pouted and pulled the thick book from her storage artifact, handing it over.

Watching her father walk away, she rolled her eyes and made a face.

Then, secretly pulling another identical thick book from her sleeve: "Hmph. Even the Illusionary Array can't see through it—so stupid."

"What now?" Xu Wanyun pinched her cheek.

"What else can we do? Do you trust Brother Shen? If you do, come with me."

Xu Wanyun had wanted to say she didn't trust him—but recalling how she'd panicked instinctively when he collapsed on the clouds, she could only nod, her voice barely a whisper: "Mm."

"Let's go."

Qing tugged her aunt and ran toward the house where the clan elders were.

She burst in recklessly.

"..."

The seven elders stared silently at the little girl; after a long pause, they smiled faintly: "You've come to be punished?"

Qing walked behind an old woman and squeezed her shoulders hard: "I didn't do anything wrong—why should I be punished?"

The old woman closed her eyes: "Sneaking out, bringing an outsider back—how is that not wrong?"

"Elder, look at this."

Qing pulled out a thin booklet and waved it before the old woman's face.

The old woman opened her eyes lazily—then froze, as if recalling some terrible memory: "The lost Xu family array manual... where did you get this?"

"Our Xu ancestors were humiliated by Xuan Guang Cave, captured by the Thousand Demon Caverns, and forced to set up arrays to ambush and kill the registered disciples of Mount Wutong."

"They no longer recognize the Xu family—or even consider themselves human cultivators."

"Because we never cared for them."

Qing placed the booklet into the old woman's hands and whispered: "This ancestor fought me in an array battle—and perished from backlash."

At these words, the old woman's hand emitted a creaking sound.

Finally, she let her head sink helplessly.

The Xu family had indeed abandoned the clan members taken away.

Having barely slain one Transformation of Spirit Realm True Person, they boasted their vengeance was complete—not unaware of what fate awaited those kin, but unwilling to think about it.

Now, they had come to this: kin killing kin.

"You've even outmatched those old things." The old woman drew Qing forward and gently stroked her head: "You're the most gifted descendant the Xu family has ever had. If you work hard, we'll one day leave this place and avenge them."

Qing pushed the elder's hand away: "By then, they'll all be dead."

"So what do you want to do?"

The old woman sighed helplessly, looking at the child.

Qing quickly pulled her aunt forward and vividly described Shen Yi's prowess: first killing Zhang Mingyang and Bai Yu Yao Huang, then slaying the Golden-Eyed Lion Emperor, finally piercing the Azure Feather Emperor with a single spear.

With each tale, she glanced at her aunt.

Xu Wanyun nodded blankly: "Yeah, that's right."

As Qing named one title after another, the elders' expressions slowly changed—but none spoke.

"I understand—he's a powerful cultivator, and also the temple priest of the Great Qian."

The old woman withdrew her smile and said flatly, "So he would absolutely never turn his weapon against us, is that right?"

Hearing this, A-Qing instinctively wanted to nod.

Immediately, however, she froze in place.

The weight of those words was too heavy; it weighed on the lives of all the clan members.

"I said you are still a child, did I not get that wrong?"

The old woman patted her shoulder, looked at A-Qing's dejected expression, then glanced at the small booklet in her hand, and suddenly said, "Actually, I have another proposal."

"Uh?" A-Qing raised her head.

"Have you seen the concept of a marriage alliance in the book?" The old woman's withered face regained its smile.

"I... I..." A-Qing suddenly stammered, her breathing grew rapid, and even her fingertips trembled; she was completely unprepared.

"We do not disagree with what he said."

The old woman slowly rose: "If you can persuade your aunt and that temple priest, there is still room for negotiation on this matter."

"Ah?" A-Qing was struck as if by lightning; she stopped stammering and stopped blushing, only lifting her head in a daze.

"I..." Xu Wanyun, equally stunned, pointed at her own nose.

(End of this chapter)