Chapter 836: Dethronement
Chapter 836: Dethronement
Fang Xi remained noncommittal, but scoffed inwardly:
‘Do they think I haven't seen the world. . . Back in the day, I've even witnessed the Demonic Sect's Eighteen Subtle Appearance Celestial Maidens setting up formations. . . ’
Such an attitude immediately left the white-robed Grand Venerable somewhat at a loss.
Fortunately, not long after, Fang Xi chuckled lightly: “This venerable one is currently cultivating a secret art, which requires abstaining from female companionship. . . Your kind intentions, junior, can only be appreciated. ”
“So that’s how it is. . . This junior was inconsiderate. ”
The white-robed Grand Venerable didn't know whether to believe him or not, but immediately clapped his hands. The female cultivators bowed and withdrew, some feeling relieved, others harboring a trace of regret.
High-level cultivators were temperamental; among them, some naturally didn't wish to be taken and become playthings.
But there were also those who regretted not being able to make contact with a Void Amalgamation grand mighty figure.
As for whether Fang Xi's face beneath his bamboo hat was aged or young, handsome or ugly. . . none of that was a concern.
“This venerable one is ‘Qing He Zi’, and I have come here primarily for the Human Race battlefield. . . ”
Fang Xi said: “Before this venerable one went into seclusion, the Human World was still peaceful and uneventful. But upon emerging, I find that the human race has actually allied with the Demon Race to battle the Yao Race and the Alien Alliance. . . The changes in worldly affairs are truly unpredictable. . . ”
“Indeed. . . Our sect has also had many high-level cultivators dispatched to the front lines. Senior, do you wish to know the latest intelligence on the Human Race battlefield? ”
The white-robed Grand Venerable smiled: “Coincidentally, our sect keeps monthly backups; this junior shall fetch them for senior now. . . ”
“Not just my Human Race, but also the latest movements of the Yao Race, Demon Race, and Alien Alliance. This venerable one wants it all. ”
Fang Xi added.
In reality, he was more interested in the movements of the high-level cultivators of both the Yao and Demon Races.
But he couldn't say that directly.
“Understood! ”
The white-robed Grand Venerable immediately called over a burly man in black, and after giving a few instructions, the man promptly withdrew.
“Senior, please enjoy some spirit tea. . . Our pavilion's ‘Luo Tian Tea’ is quite well-known in this vicinity. ”
The white-robed Grand Venerable lifted his teacup and said.
“Oh? Then I must give it a try. . . ”
Fang Xi picked up the teacup and saw that the tea infusion was clearly layered, appearing to have thirty-three tiers.
The topmost layer of tea was emerald green like jade, with the most exquisite flavor in the mouth.
As he drank through the layers, each one unexpectedly offered a different taste, prompting a smile from him: “Quite ingenious. . . ”
Beyond that, there was nothing particularly remarkable about it.
After all, he had drunk plenty of spirit tea. In his Earthly Immortal Spiritual Realm now, there was even a seventh-stage ‘Nine Hearts Immortal Tea Tree’!
Such spirit tea, when brewed directly, was all of the seventh-stage, top-grade.
Moreover, it had the potential to advance to the eighth-stage in the future, or even become a true ‘Immortal Tea’, with quite excellent supplementary effects.
Long-term consumption could even provide a slight benefit for future attempts to break through the Mahayana bottleneck.
In comparison, this Luo Tian Tea truly only excelled in its novelty.
Just as Fang Xi was halfway through his tea, the burly man in black returned with a flash of escape light, holding a tray.
On the tray were palm-sized green leaves.
Within the veins of the leaves were strange seal characters.
“These are ‘Luo Tian Azure Leaves’, storage and communication artifacts specially developed by our sect. . . Senior, please. ”
The white-robed Grand Venerable said respectfully.
“Mm. ”
Fang Xi picked up a ‘Luo Tian Azure Leaf’, and with a slight touch of his divine consciousness, he understood its function.
Immediately after, extremely realistic scenes appeared before his eyes, as if he were personally present.
What met his gaze were dilapidated city walls and dry, cracked earth.
Monsters of the ‘Jiuchi Race’ with four legs, two wings, and chaotic heads were savagely slaughtering the cultivators on the ground.
This was clearly a battlefield, and from the looks of it, the human race was in a disadvantageous position. . .
“Three years ago, the Jiuchi Race breached the ‘Heixuan Domain’s’ largest city – ‘Zetian City’! ”
Beside the images, a line of narration-like text appeared.
Then, the scene shifted again, and a series of fleeting images flashed by.
“The Void Amalgamation cultivator of Zetian Sect had his Dharmic Body damaged, and only his Nascent Soul escaped, while the rest of the sect elders and disciples suffered heavy losses. . . ”
“The Yao Race army marched on ‘Manlong Mountain’, confronting the human allied forces led by Jin Gangzi and Five Elements Child. . . ”
“Long Qingzi’s Po Suo Twin Cities also faced siege by the alien race and have now been besieged for over twenty years. . . ”
“Mo Yunzi, in alliance with the Demon Race army, routed a Yao Race army, slaying two Yao Race Void Amalgamation cultivators. . . ”
Fang Xi first checked the human race's news, and couldn't help but be surprised: “Has the Human Race's Five Sons not been selected yet? What about the other Mahayana cultivators of our race? Are there any records of their actions? ”
“Well. . . the Human Race Five Sons have indeed not been fully selected yet. ”
The white-robed Grand Venerable looked somewhat helpless.
Normally, the position of the Human Race Five Sons would be a lucrative and desirable post, but at this point, they were practically being roasted over a fire.
Some Void Amalgamation cultivators who were originally capable of competing had begun to retreat in droves.
As for those who sought wealth and glory through peril, their cultivation was insufficient, making it difficult for them to command respect!
Thus, the selection had been protracted until now, leaving even Fang Xi speechless.
“As for the movements of the Mahayana Ancestors. . . we mere Return to Void cultivators truly have no idea. ” The white-robed Grand Venerable said with a wry smile as he explained.
Upon hearing this, Fang Xi couldn't help but fall silent.
According to previous intelligence, three Mahayana cultivators of the human race were in poor condition and would be unable to act within a thousand years.
Now, the high-level combat strength of the human race was likely stretched thin.
He remained silent for a moment, then picked up another Luo Tian Azure Leaf to examine the various ‘powerhouses’ that had appeared from the Yao Race and Alien Alliance!
Among them, Void Amalgamation cultivators were merely a fleeting glance; only those at the late-stage Void Amalgamation realm or higher garnered his slight attention.
Of course, the movements of Mahayana cultivators were of paramount importance.
Since he had chosen to travel openly, such preparations had to be made.
Otherwise, if he were to coincidentally encounter an alien Mahayana cultivator, Fang Xi would have no choice but to first summon his Shinto Avatar to cover his escape.
“Eh? ”
Suddenly, Fang Xi saw a piece of news regarding the Demon Race, and his eyes flickered.
“Changes have occurred among the Demon Race’s Six Kings: the Zizai Tianmo Wang has been dethroned from among the Six Kings? How is that possible? ”
“Indeed, this junior was also very confused when I first received this news. After all, the Zizai Tianmo Wang was subtly considered the head of the Demon Race’s Six Kings, a being with the potential to break through to Mahayana. How could he possibly be abandoned? ”
The white-robed Grand Venerable smiled and explained: “Later, with more detailed intelligence gathered, we managed to piece together some guesses about the internal situation. . . It seems the Zizai Tianmo Wang's previous attempt to break through the Mahayana bottleneck must have failed. Not only did it fail, but he also suffered a severe backlash, resulting in grievous injuries. . . Perhaps even his cultivation realm has fallen. . . Senior should know that in the Demon Race's territory, the law of the jungle is the natural order. . . ”
Fang Xi nodded.
Among the human race's orthodox forces, at least they still cared about appearances.
But the Demon Race had no such qualms; they would directly seize whatever they desired and frequently engage in slaughter. . .
The Zizai Tianmo Wang had committed many wicked deeds before.
Looking at it now, it seems retribution has arrived?
‘It's just that the karmic laws of the Earthly Immortal World are weak. . . even one who is utterly evil won't suffer any heavenly punishment. . . ’
‘At most, it's because his enemies weren't entirely eradicated, which might cause his future human tribulation to escalate rapidly. . . ’
Fang Xi looked at the end of the intelligence report, which stated that the ‘Zizai Tianmo Wang’ had vanished without a trace after being defeated by the ‘Wrathful Venerable Demon King’.
However, in his perception, the mark of the ‘All-Heavens Precious Mirror’ fragment within the Demon Race was extremely clear.
This meant there was no need to search; the Zizai Tianmo Wang was simply nowhere to hide from his perception!
‘Since the Zizai Tianmo Wang is no longer one of the Demon Race’s Six Kings, merely an ordinary demon, killing him wouldn't significantly impact the war. . . ’
Fang Xi had coveted the Zizai Tianmo Wang for a long time.
After all, his External Avatar was still only at the Perfected Return to Void realm!
His true body needed to be permanently stationed on Trapped Sky Island, and the Penglai Immortal Pavilion lacking a Void Amalgamation cultivator to oversee it for long periods was not ideal either.
If he could take down the Zizai Tianmo Wang, his External Avatar advancing to Void Amalgamation, or even breaking through to mid-stage Void Amalgamation, would be as easy as turning his hand.
Furthermore, he could obtain another fragment of the All-Heavens Precious Mirror.
Although rumors outside claimed that the reason the Zizai Tianmo Wang could breach realms and seize the cultivation and everything from cultivators of the ‘Myriad Manifestations True Demon Arts’ was due to a Heavenly Demon secret treasure.
But Fang Xi knew that the ‘Heavenly Demon secret treasure’ was merely a fragment of his own All-Heavens Precious Mirror.
‘I just didn't expect the after-effects of failing to break through to Mahayana to be so severe? ’
A trace of doubt surfaced in Fang Xi’s mind.
Immediately, he began planning his route to the Demon Race.
‘Currently heading to the Demon Race. . . I haven't been to the Demon Race territory before, so I haven't left any spatial coordinates. ’
‘Therefore, to get there, I'd have to go to the nearest spatial coordinate node, and then cross the border between the human and demon territories. . . ’
It had to be said, this path was extremely arduous.
But for Fang Xi, who was now at mid-stage Void Amalgamation, it was no big deal.
‘Alas, departing from the human race for the Demon Race. . . the safest route is still Three Realms Mountain! ’
‘This place has long been occupied by the Yao Race and Alien Alliance. If I were to be discovered going this way. . . my trouble would be immense. ’
‘Fortunately, when I previously hunted demonic cultivators, I had already visited the Demon Heaven Mountain Range and established a spatial coordinate node there. . . ’
With his plans settled, Fang Xi rose lightly.
“Respectfully seeing Senior off! ”
The white-robed Grand Venerable hastily bowed, only to see Fang Xi's escape light flash, and his figure astonishingly vanish.
He let out a long breath, feeling somewhat adrift and lost.
It wasn't until he saw a bag of Immortal Jade on the seat that his face immediately brightened with a smile again. . .
...
Demon Race territory.
Inside a grotto.
Dark stalactites hung down, their tips even growing grotesque human faces.
“No. . . don't. . . ”
A demonic light suddenly shot out from the ground, transforming into a monstrous demon with curved ram horns and a hideous face.
His cultivation had astonishingly reached the Perfected Return to Void realm. While roaring in panic, a blood-colored longsword appeared in his hand.
The longsword let out a sword cry like an infant wailing, and he fiercely slashed it behind him!
Whoosh! Whoosh!
Countless red threads pierced through the void, with countless seal characters seemingly shimmering within them.
But these runes, after rushing into a demonic shadow, all dissipated.
That demonic shadow sneered, and a layer of purple demonic mist appeared, enveloping the Return to Void demon: “It's useless. . . you cultivate this king's cultivation method. . . you are destined to offer up everything you are, to be this king's nourishment. ”
Accompanied by a teeth-grinding sound, a chewing noise emanated from within the demonic mist.
Immediately after, the ram-horned demon's head was thrown out, rolling a few times on the ground, its eyes wide open.
“You dared to try to take advantage while this king was gravely injured. . . You are merely this king's nourishment, how dare you act like this? ”
The tall demonic shadow sneered repeatedly, then seemed to painfully hunch over: “Heavenly Demon. . . ”
Comments