Chapter 346: A Million Blood Grievances, Penetrating-Space Spiritual Sense

Night passed in the blink of an eye; Brother Qian Chen and the others stood atop a desolate peak, where grotesque rock formations, carved by malevolent miasma and heavenly gales, resembled demons baring fangs and claws.

The entire mountain bore deep ravines and towering peaks, all shrouded in a faint veil of malevolent miasma.

Thus, neither humans nor demons dared approach.

Around the hour of the rooster's crow on the second day, morning light pierced the gorge, casting bizarre shadows of the surrounding rocks onto the cliff faces.

Only then did Brother Qian Chen slowly stabilize the water-mirror orb before him.

The mirror, three zhang in diameter, hung above their heads, composed of countless intricate, mysterious talismans, emitting a faint spiritual glow that rivaled the dim radiance of the newborn sun.

It floated in the sky like a second sun risen above.

The seven Xuantian star stones on the hilt of Youqing Sword shimmered with starlight, arranged as the Big Dipper, floating within the mirror; on its reverse side, the spectral shape of the Big Dipper suddenly appeared.

Floating in Brother Qian Chen's hand were the remains and dantian of an ancient wolf general; faint lunar demonic qi was squeezed from them and channeled into Youqing Sword, forming a small white wolf entwined around the blade.

As Brother Qian Chen leapt upward, his right hand pressing upon the hilt of Youqing Sword embedded in the mirror's array, he lifted the water-mirror—larger than his own body—and shot upward a hundred zhang, reaching the cloudline atop the peak.

With both hands pressed outward, Brother Qian Chen directed the mirror's light downward; where the glassy beam passed, stone and soil turned transparent, exposing every insect hidden within the rocks.

"Mirror of Illuminating Demons, seeking traces for a thousand li! Seeing as clear as torchlight, illuminating ten thousand li!"

Brother Qian Chen roared, lifting the mirror's light, which instantly swept across the demonic realm; every qi current within ten thousand li was drawn into the mirror.

He held this gaze for half an hour, capturing every thread, every speck of the demonic realm—when he finally descended, even his divine power left his face pale.

Yan Shu immediately drew his sword to guard him.

Brother Qian Chen pulled out a Six-Mechanism Qi-Replenishing Pill, meditated for three quarters of an hour, and his color slowly returned.

You San and Hu Wu Liu stood beside him, utterly stunned.

Though they knew none of the details of this Dao art, they had clearly seen when the mirror's light pierced the surrounding rocks: fifty li below, every detail was laid bare—what kind of divine power was this?

Yan Shu had always spoken of Brother Qian Chen and the others as equals, yet the two had remained skeptical. Ning Ning Qingchen, at least, carried a mature aura; calling her a female cultivator skilled in preserving youth was not unreasonable. But Brother Qian Chen still bore a faint down on his upper lip—a true "yellow-mouthed child."

And Si Princess Qingcheng radiated the naive innocence of an unworldly girl—could such a cultivator truly be a Jin Dan True Person? If so, then Jin Dan cultivators in Qiongming World had wasted their entire lives!

But now, they fully believed.

Brother Qian Chen's mirror had scanned a hundred li—a feat no Jin Dan Grand Master in the Alliance could achieve, let alone the later scene where the mirror swept across the demonic realm. To capture ten thousand li of mountains and rivers within a single mirror—even if he achieved only one-tenth of what he claimed—it was a divine power of staggering magnitude.

Enough to stand as the pillar of the Human Cultivator Alliance.

"Among the Five Demon Kings, the Black Ox King is at odds with the others—ignore him for now; the Dragon Tree King rarely moves and is too close to the Kong Que Demon King; the White Bone King lives in isolation—no need to rush; the Kong Que King's cultivation is too high—I felt even my ten-thousand-li mirror could not pierce his demon city, so I deliberately avoided him."

"Thus, only one demon remains targetable."

Ning Ning Qingchen nodded: "The Wise Zhi Zhi Lang Wang is cunning, steeped in wolf nature, commanding a million wolf demons. If we alarm him, he'll rally his packs and vanish—truly a major nuisance. And eliminating him would strike greater fear into the demons than any other king."

Yan Shu smiled: "Brother, you still have the remains and dantian of another Xiao Wu Yue Tianlang—binding by bloodline to locate it won't be hard!"

Si Princess Qingcheng nodded vigorously: "Brother and sister are right!"

Brother Qian Chen opened his palm; the mirror lay flat upon it, revealing the demonic realm's mountains, rivers, terrain, and distribution of demonic qi with perfect clarity: "Just now, I scoured the entire demonic realm with the Mirror of Illuminating Demons—I found six hundred and seventy-two Xiao Wu Yue Tianlang!"

Yan Shu sneered: "They breed well, don't they?"

The smile carried unmistakable bloodlust.

"The strongest among them, nearing ancestral return, must be the Wise Zhi Zhi Lang Wang. His cultivation is indeed formidable—combined with his ancient bloodline, he must be treated as a Yang Shen."

Ning Ning Qingchen sighed: "The Lord of Reincarnation's bounty for them is still too low."

"Xiao Wu Yue Tianlang naturally condense Taiyin True Miasma; their dantian holds essence miasma gathered from the moon—extremely beneficial for your cultivation of Guanghan Palace's Ice Soul Divine Light. Other ancient demonic beasts each possess unique abilities: the Dragon Tree King likely yields Primordial Yi Wood Essence and Yi Wood Miasma; the Black Ox King, as seen through the Mirror, cultivates Gui Water Miasma."

"If the Kong Que Demon King is an ancient peacock—a phoenix-class beast—he naturally condenses Five-Color Divine Light, akin to Xu Xu Daofu's Five-Color Mystic Light, yet infused with Primordial Five Elements qi."

"One of the Thirty-Six Heavenly Gale Great Divine Arts—the Five Elements Great Escape—is said to originate from the Kong Que Clan, making it a supreme dantian."

Brother Qian Chen smiled cruelly: "Refining demons into pills is one of the Four Supreme Sects' Dao of Alchemy. I have considerable expertise—I can strip away a demon's innate divine arts and forge them into ancient Great Divine Art pills. Swallow them, and you gain the divine art—even a Great Divine Art. In the end, we won't lose."

"Add in their heavenly treasures and artifacts, and it's fair enough," Ning Ning Qingchen nodded slightly.

Beside them, You San was utterly dumbfounded.

His eyes bulged as he stared at Brother Qian Chen and the others like a group of lawless madmen.

How could they speak so arrogantly? They already treated the Wise Zhi Zhi Lang Wang as a dead man? He is one of the Five Demon Kings—what realm are you in?

He has committed boundless slaughter against humans, the most voracious eater of men among the Five Demon Kings, his blood-miasma so thick it cannot be dissolved. How many human cultivators have sought to kill him—and yet he still lives.

Now, it is the Wise Zhi Zhi Lang Wang who hunts humans; wherever he goes, countless human cultivators are forced to retreat in grief and fury—each of his patrols unleashes torrents of slaughter.

Because wolf nature is the most cunning, and wolves excel at ambush and pack-hunting. No matter how hidden a human hiding place, his wolf packs will find it.

The reason humans have no refuge beyond Guzhu Kingdom is, nine times out of ten, due to this demon.

In the hearts of Qiongming World's humans, the Wise Zhi Zhi Lang Wang is a monstrous creature—cruel, cunning, and unimaginably brutal.

Among the human populace, the Wise Zhi Zhi Lang Wang's name alone can stop children from crying at night.

Guzhu Kingdom—Guzhu Kingdom—not only refers to the single bamboo stalk standing after the great fire consumed the Ten Thousand Bamboo Mountains, but also to the fact that after the fall of Great Ming, the once-thriving human resistance lands were reduced to that lone bamboo.

Ning Ning Qingchen asked: "Where is this demon now? Are there any other Demon Kings nearby who might come to his aid?"

You San rushed to answer: "The Wise Zhi Zhi Lang Wang's movements are unpredictable; he always has several hundred elite wolf guards, including many demon generals and great generals—far too dangerous to confront. Let's pick another Demon King! Beyond the Five, there are rising Demon Kings, ostracized by the Five, living in isolation…"

He only wanted them to set more realistic targets.

"If they live in isolation, how can killing them compare to slaying one of the Five Demon Kings in boosting morale?" Brother Qian Chen shook his head in refusal.

"These beasts all have territorial instincts. Except the Dragon Tree King, who sees himself as the Kong Que Demon King's steward—like his personal eunuch never leaving his side—the other Demon Kings never gather close, except during campaigns."

"Moreover, the Mirror has pinned the Wise Zhi Zhi Lang Wang's location in a remote area; his escort pack is likely still roaming."

"We can ambush him en route—he won't receive aid from other Demon Kings!"

"Then let's do it!" Yan Shu turned to Brother Qian Chen: "Brother, lead the way!"

Brother Qian Chen nodded slightly; Yan Shu wrapped You San and Hu Wu Liu in sword-light, Ning Ning Qingchen and Si Princess Qingcheng followed with their own flight arts—in an instant, the four beams of light shot skyward, vanishing into the azure void.

An hour later, the group arrived upon a vast plain, stretching thousands of li, utterly barren—only the toughest wild grasses could grow.

On the blade of Youqing Sword, the Seven Stars glowed, pointing in one direction.

Brother Qian Chen and Yan Shu paused briefly, using the Art of Observing Qi; ahead, a thick demonic aura surged skyward—confirming their target, they concealed their sword-light and flew toward it.

………

On a lush grassland far away, hundreds of tents were pitched beside a clear river.

In a golden tent as tall as a dome, covering dozens of zhang, a wolf as large as a mountain lay sprawled upon a fur rug.

Its fur was pure white, shimmering with silver light, majestic and awe-inspiring.

Around it, dozens of fox demons, transformed into human form yet retaining subtle fox traits, tended to it, brushing its fur and expertly braiding its long mane; they watched the great Demon King with fear and reverence.

A tiny, legless bai dog demon, no taller than a fox spirit's waist, cowered nearby, grinning obsequiously.

"Great King, the Kong Que Great Ming King has sent word: mobilize your wolf packs to encircle Guzhu Kingdom and exterminate the last human cultivators!"

"Hmph?" The white wolf's face twisted into a lifelike, cunning sneer. "To slaughter all humans? How delightful for the Kong Que King—cut off human lineage, kill the Ziti King—what benefit is that to me?"

"Without human remnants to distract them, won't the Kong Que King turn his next target on our mighty wolf clan?"

"I've barely stirred those fools to turn against the Black Ox King, sowing discord between him and the Kong Que and Dragon Tree Kings. Had the Dragon Tree King not been so blindly loyal to the Kong Que King, I'd already be forming an alliance of four kings to counter him!"

"If we kill all humans, what will our wolves eat? The two-legged sheep grow fewer by the day. I thought the Black Ox King could raise fat herds for us—but that fool, though he looks honest, raises humans no plumper than mine!"

"Keeping Guzhu Kingdom gives our young ones a place to raid and hone their bloodline—isn't that better? Can humans ever return to their former glory? Even if they did, we are no longer the demons of old!"

The white wolf grunted, rose, shook its mane; the fox spirits bowed and withdrew.

It turned to the bai dog demon: "Still, we must show proper respect—he is our overlord. Go arrange a few…"

At that moment, the Wise Zhi Zhi Lang Wang suddenly lifted its head, pupils contracting, limbs lowering into a posture of extreme alertness; it roared, and all its guards snapped to attention.

A crescent-shaped mark appeared on the Wise Zhi Zhi Lang Wang's brow; its immense demonic spiritual sense swept upward, striking the heavens. Yan Shu's body flared with a thread of sword intent, unleashing countless sword qi to shred the incoming demonic spiritual sense.

Si Princess Qingcheng could only activate her divine talisman to block the demonic sense.

Ning Ning Qingchen was shielded behind Brother Qian Chen; in his hand, the water-mirror orb trembled slightly, emitting a soft hum. The Seven Stars shifted, the mirror's light exploding outward a hundred zhang—gathering heavenly pure qi and concentrating the sun's radiance into a blinding beam that slammed down upon the golden tent below.

The terrifying beam crashed downward; the Wise Zhi Zhi Lang Wang howled to the sky, its crescent mark drawing together the spiritual senses of the surrounding wolves, forming a solid, tangible spiritual force that struck the skyward beam head-on.

"Heaven-Striking Earth-Shattering, Penetrating-Space Great Spiritual Sense Art!"

Brother Qian Chen was slightly startled: "This Wise Zhi Zhi Lang Wang is a spiritual cultivator!"

The powerful spiritual sense carried the wails of millions of dying humans, their curses, fury, despair, and desolation—after resisting the Mirror's light, it pierced through space and slammed into Brother Qian Chen, Yan Shu, and the others' minds.

You San and Hu Wu Liu collapsed instantly, seven orifices bleeding; had Brother Qian Chen not swiftly used his Sleeve of Heaven and Earth to seal them away, their skulls would have exploded from the wailing.

The accumulated resentment of millions of humans, gathered by the Wise Zhi Zhi Lang Wang's demonic sense and amplified by tens of thousands of wolf demons, formed the Penetrating-Space Great Spiritual Sense Art.

This overwhelming wave of despair and hatred became a divine art—its strike shattered Yan Shu's eyelids, blood and tears streaming from his tiger-like eyes.

Ning Ning Qingchen held fast to her Dao heart, transforming her Guanghan Ice Soul Pill into an icy core to seal her spiritual sense.

Si Princess Qingcheng could not bear to look back, silently weeping; her divine power dissolved the endless resentment, and her single spark of compassion allowed her to feel the sorrow deeply—but spared her from its harm.

Protected by the Dao Dust Pearl, the Penetrating-Space Great Spiritual Sense Art could not shake Brother Qian Chen in the slightest—but even the Dao Dust Pearl could not suppress the rage rising from his very soul.

From his hand, the magnetic light bottle erupted—twinned Yuan Ci Divine Light, carrying countless silver sands, surged downward over the grassland.

Eighty-one jade-green and purple Lei Ze Divine Sands leapt, unleashing torrents of thunder.

Instantly, a sea of lightning rained from the heavens.

The Penetrating-Space Great Spiritual Sense Art shattered instantly…

The Wise Zhi Zhi Lang Wang let out a whimper like a dying dog, its body flashing into a streak of light, vanishing—reappearing a hundred li away in an instant.

Behind it, the entire grassland—thousands of wolf guards—were blasted into bloody pulp, then charred to ash; rolling thunder plowed through the land dozens of times.

Brother Qian Chen wielded the Five Thunder Arts; the nascent form of Zixiao Divine Thunder mingled with the storm, shattering any wolf generals still resisting, only collecting their demonic dantian.

"Demon, die!"

Yan Shu, riding tens of thousands of sword qi, launched his sword pill, commanding a river of blades toward the Wise Zhi Zhi Lang Wang.

At that moment, sword qi rained like a storm, spanning dozens of li, completely covering the Wise Zhi Zhi Lang Wang's true form.

"Aowu!" The Wise Zhi Zhi Lang Wang tucked its tail, eyes blood-red, its crescent mark now a blood-red moon—as if opening a third eye.

The crescent mark emitted a beam of bloodlight, meeting Yan Shu's sword qi head-on…