Chapter 263: Covering the Sky and Blocking the Sun, Besieging Ding'anju

Liu Xia untied the horse and gave it a shout, and the horse trotted off along the path they had come.

Seeing him do this, Banxia was very curious: "Aren't you afraid this horse will get lost?"

"This is what's called 'an old horse knows the way,'" Liu Xia said with a smile as he tidied the ropes. "It was a military horse to begin with; after a battle, there are plenty of horses on the field, and many will find their own way back after the fighting."

Find their own way back?

Banxia was greatly astonished; wasn't this a dog?

Lingxiang just smiled: "Although we are still some distance from Ding'anju, it is a life nonetheless. It was fine to let it struggle on the battlefield, but there is no need to drag it along to die for affairs outside our own."

Although Xin Yi had offered her many comforting words when he left, the look on his face could not deceive her; if she guessed correctly, the area outside Ding'anju must already be in utter chaos.

Lingxiang took out two Spirit-Concealing Talismans and handed them over, saying: "I fear there will be a fierce battle ahead. To avoid an ambush by the Demon Race, it is best to conceal our aura and sneak in quietly."

Although they were prepared, the scene before them after arriving outside Ding'anju shocked the three of them: the small courtyard that was originally surrounded by forest was now nowhere to be seen, completely buried under a dense, swarming mass of demon monsters; even from a distance, the heaven-shaking roars could still be heard.

How could it be described as anything but utter chaos?

Although there was the protection of Chengxin Zhenren's Dharma Array, with such a large number of demon monsters, people would be smothered to death even if they weren't killed!

"This... how can this be solved?" Liu Xia was also stunned by the sight before him, asking with his mouth agape.

Lingxiang did not know what to do for a moment; even if they went in, they wouldn't be enough to fill the gaps between the monsters' teeth, it would be nothing more than throwing their lives away, let alone saving anyone.

"Judging by the current situation, Senior Brother Chengxin must be in seclusion, otherwise he would not let the demon monsters be so arrogant," Lingxiang speculated, though she felt uneasy in her heart.

It was said that Chengxin Zhenren had the most profound cultivation in the entire Yuanqing Sect, but she had never seen her Third Senior Brother's true abilities. Furthermore, even if his cultivation were high, could he really achieve Communication with Heaven?

Even with the cultivation of Communication with Heaven, facing so many demon creatures, it would likely be difficult to resolve in a short time, right?

Banxia, hearing this, did not understand: "Seclusion? Seclusion at a time like this?"

Lingxiang only blamed herself for not thinking things through and failing to make complete preparations before leaving, then she sighed and explained: "Were you injured by these demon monsters during your Second Martial Exercise?"

Banxia nodded, then shook her head—she was indeed unscathed; it was Long Qi and the others who were injured.

"These demon monsters that have not yet gained wisdom only inadvertently leave Miasma Poison when they injure someone, which can be neutralized with a few pills. However, if a high-cultivation member of the Demon Race does it intentionally, they will leave Demon Miasma on the person regardless of whether they live or die. If it is not removed as soon as possible, the injured person will gradually fall into the demonic path."

"And removing the miasma is extremely taxing on one's mental energy; it is no exaggeration to say it consumes one's cultivation," Lingxiang said, her brows locked in a frown. "Therefore, those with low cultivation cannot perform the method of miasma removal for others."

Miasma Poison is like planting a Demon Seed in a person, and removing the miasma means pulling this Demon Seed out by the roots.

So that was the reason; Banxia suddenly realized upon hearing this, thinking to herself that no wonder Daoist Chiyanzi had become so weak after removing the miasma for Maidong last time.

Lingxiang nodded: "Normally, after removing miasma for someone, one must enter seclusion to circulate seven Small Heavenly Cycles to recover, and the injured person must enter seclusion for one hundred and twenty days to circulate a Large Heavenly Cycle before they can fully recover, but..."

But as things stand now, that is truly impossible...

Thinking of it this way, Lingxiang suddenly felt very strange. Take Xiaobai, for instance; although he is not a orthodox member of the Demon Race, he is a Resentment Demon who was tortured by the demonic path for hundreds of years before finally becoming clear-headed. By rights, Huiwu hasn't been a demon for long, so how did he manage to avoid having his mind swallowed by the demonic path?

Or rather, does he still have his sanity, yet remains struggling and sinking within the demonic path?

Lingxiang hurriedly shook her head: what is the point of worrying about this now? How others are doing has nothing to do with her. Right now, she must quickly think of a strategy.

"If... if we sneak close and eliminate them from the outer perimeter first?" Liu Xia was extremely anxious but could not think of any way to break the situation.

"Are you crazy!" Banxia cried out upon hearing this, then suddenly realized their current situation and hurriedly covered her mouth, looking toward Ding'anju.

Fortunately, fortunately, compared to the heaps of lunatics down the mountain, her voice was truly insignificant; she figured that even if the wind blew it over, that group of monsters below wouldn't be able to hear it.

However, she still lowered her voice and said: "Look at that group of monsters down the mountain, each one as sturdy as a wild beast. Don't talk about you going to exterminate them; I'm afraid you'd be eaten as a snack before you even got close."

Lingxiang's eyes lit up, but she didn't say much, only nodding and saying: "Banxia is right. Do not underestimate those demon monsters; although they have not yet achieved Spirit Communication or gained wisdom, they have the instincts of wild beasts and their five senses are very sharp."

"Then we can't just let them destroy the Dharma Array like this, what if..." Liu Xia couldn't help but think of the Second Martial Exercise.

Lingxiang knew what Liu Xia was thinking and just smiled and shook her head: "Senior Brother Chengxin is different from me. He is in the Yuan Ying Void Realm; in another hundred years or so, he might be able to break through to Transforming Divinity. Never mind these low-level demon monsters, even if Bai Wuchang came, he might not be able to break his Dharma Array."

"But... but even so, we can't just leave these demon monsters alone, can we?" Banxia really couldn't think of any way to resolve the current predicament.

"That is naturally not the case. I do have a plan," Lingxiang smiled. "Speaking of which, I owe it to Banxia for reminding me. It will just require the two of you to run an errand."

Liu Xia and Banxia looked at each other upon hearing this and hurriedly asked what the method was.

Lingxiang gave a crafty smile and beckoned the two of them to lean in: "Like this, like this... and like that, like that..."

Outside the array, the demon monsters roared heaven-shakingly. At first, they were just clamoring on the ground, but unexpectedly, in less than half a day, they were climbing over one another. Before long, they were like a curtain, covering Ding'anju completely.

Long Qi and Zhao Wuyang had never seen such a formation and were both somewhat at a loss, but the two of them had absolutely no way to deal with it.

The two of them were also finding every day like a year, but now that it was pitch black inside the array, they had no way of knowing what time it was.

Even worse, Long Qi was becoming increasingly weak.

Originally, he thought his headache and fever were just due to his external injuries, but he didn't expect that he would now start having hallucinations. Besides the roars of the demon monsters filling his ears, there was also a laugh echoing incessantly.

The laughter sounded very manic; he felt as if he were submerged in a quagmire, and accompanying the laughter was a giant hand, constantly pulling him downward.

Long Qi was terrified that Zhao Wuyang would worry, so he tried hard to keep his mind clear, but the more he persisted, the more chaotic and unbearable it became.

Finally, Long Qi could no longer support himself and fell straight backward.

Zhao Wuyang was shocked at the sight and hurriedly patted Long Qi's face, calling out to him, but when he touched Long Qi, he discovered that Long Qi was terrifyingly hot.

In the chaos, Long Qi could vaguely hear Zhao Wuyang's calls, which were masked by the roars of the demon monsters, but he was simply too tired and subconsciously replied: "It's nothing... it's nothing..."

Darkness surged like a tide, striking directly at his Divine Court. Just as Long Qi was about to sink, a voice suddenly rang out:

"You demon monsters, you are merely acting under orders. The Huitian Pill is here, follow me at once!"