69: The end is harvested, secret shortcut!

On the main peak of the Yellow Springs Demon Sect.

Inside the Sect’s main hall, which had an overall black aesthetic, several black pillars, each several zhang wide, rose from the ground. Many fierce demonic puppets were carved in relief on the stone pillars.

Each image of a demonic puppet contained a formidable Foundation Establishment pressure, and the pillars’ auras were interconnected. This place was the core of the Sect-protecting Formation.

“Sect Master!”

“Your subordinate is guilty. I should not have believed Old Demon Zhang, the Vice Sect Leader’s, nonsense and left the Sect so easily, which led to falling into the trap of the Jiao Demon and the Purple Cloud Second Sect, causing Vice Sect Leader Zhang to perish outside!”

Kong Ran, clad in a red robe, had long lost his former prestige as a Vice Sect Leader. He knelt in the main hall, kowtowing and begging for forgiveness from the thin, white-robed figure standing before the skeleton throne.

‘How is he not dead?!’

‘This aura doesn’t seem to indicate any injuries at all. This old fellow has been watching us from the main peak all along!!!’

At this moment, Kong Ran felt a deep unease in his heart.

This time, when he left the Sect with the two Foundation Establishment Hall Masters from Corpse Refining Peak, he had already been extremely cautious.

However, what Kong Ran and Old Demon Zhang hadn’t expected was that their whereabouts were suddenly exposed.

The Jiao Demon and three Golden Core Cultivators from the Purple Cloud Second Sect participated in this encirclement and killing. Moreover, the Golden Core Cultivators hidden in the dark seemed to have anticipated this, desperately grabbing Old Demon Zhang alone. In the end, it took three against one to keep Old Demon Zhang outside the Sect.

This left Kong Ran baffled.

He and Old Demon Zhang had been careful and cautious, yet they were still discovered. This made Kong Ran feel that their luck was utterly terrible.

“Hand over your Storage Pouch and Zhang Tian’s.”

Candle Demon Old Man, from above, spoke calmly.

He looked down slightly at Kong Ran, who was kneeling in the main hall. After sealing Gu Kun, his own injuries were too severe, and he had announced his seclusion early on.

Therefore, he had not imposed any Restrictions on Kong Ran and Zhang Tian, allowing these two Gray Cores to run rampant within the Sect, causing chaos.

They had plundered many benefits from the Sect for themselves.

Now, it was only right to make them spit it all out.

Candle Demon Old Man also knew that Kong Ran and his companion wanted to play a long game to catch a big fish, but what he hadn’t expected was that the Golden Core Cultivators from the Jiao Demon and the Purple Cloud Second Sect outside seemed to have known the information in advance and ambushed them outside the Sect.

This was beyond Candle Demon Old Man’s expectation.

Kong Ran and Zhang Tian, these two Gray Cores, were already like food on his plate. Yet, he hadn’t even eaten them himself.

Instead, those old fellows outside had bitten off a piece of his flesh, which was utterly detestable.

Therefore, Candle Demon Old Man no longer intended to hide. He revealed his hand and began to reel in the net!

“Yes… Yes, Sect Master!”

Kong Ran hurriedly handed over his personal Storage Pouch and Zhang Tian’s Storage Pouch, and honestly erased the Divine Soul imprint on his own Storage Pouch.

At this moment, Kong Ran felt as if the main hall was an ice cave, and a thousand-zhang ice mountain was pressing down on his head. This feeling was something he hadn’t experienced in many years.

In the main hall, dozens of steps away from Kong Ran, there was a two-headed winged snake demonic puppet, as large as a small mountain. Itsquietblue eyes, the size of bowls, stared at Kong Ran, who was kneeling on the ground, occasionally flicking out a long blue serpent’s tongue.

Candle Demon Old Man raised his hand, took the Storage Pouch, and swept his Divine Thought over it, his brow slightly furrowed.

Although there were many Spiritual items in the Storage Pouch, there was a significant difference from what he had expected.

“Where is the Law Seed?”

“And those few second-order high-grade Corpse Puppets.”

Candle Demon Old Man’s tone was displeased. The items in this Storage Pouch were too few for a Golden Core Cultivator within the Sect.

Kong Ran must have hidden quite a bit.

“Bang!”

Kong Ran suddenly kowtowed heavily, making a muffled sound throughout the main hall, his head striking a small pit into the jade slab.

“Sect Master!”

“The Law Seed nurtured by the Spiritual Vein was sought by Old Demon Zhang and given to one of his Juniors. After performing the Seed Seizing Art, he successfully achieved Foundation Establishment!”

“As for those few second-order high-grade Corpse Puppets, this time outside the Sect, they were all slain by the Jiao Demon and the Golden Core Old Daoists of the Purple Cloud Second Sect.”

Kong Ran hurriedly explained.

“Then I can only perform Soul Scouring.”

“Disobedient people never end well.”

As Candle Demon Old Man’s words fell, a Formation light projection, over ten zhang in diameter, immediately appeared beneath Kong Ran. A massive force emerged from the Void Realm, pressing entirely upon Kong Ran.

The next moment, Candle Demon Old Man appeared beside Kong Ran, raising his hand and pressing it onto Kong Ran’s head, who was fixed in place.

“No!”

“Sect Master!”

“My Sea of Consciousness has a Soul Scouring Restriction. You won’t be able to find anything useful. If Sect Master can spare my life…”

Kong Ran’s pupils suddenly constricted.

Was this old fellow really going to act against him?

Outside the Yellow Springs Demon Sect, there were powerful enemies like the Jiao Demon and the Purple Cloud Second Sect, with several Golden Core powerhouses surrounding them. He himself was also an Early Stage Golden Core Cultivator. Although he was a Gray Core, he was still a top-tier combat force!

He should be valuable for dealing with powerful enemies.

How could this be!?

Kong Ran panicked. This was not what he had envisioned. Even if he were to be dealt with, it shouldn’t be now.

Was this old fellow going to abandon the Yellow Springs Demon Sect?

Instantly, Kong Ran seemed to understand something. However, the Yellow Springs Demon Sect had a third-order Spiritual Vein, capable of nurturing Law Seeds. With the help of the Sect, this old fellow still had a chance to advance further.

Yet, he was now going to abandon it!

“Noisy!”

Candle Demon Old Man controlled the third-order Formation Plate in his hand. On this main peak, with this Formation Plate in hand, even when fighting a Cultivator of the same Middle Stage Golden Core, he could suppress him!

Let alone an Early Stage Golden Core Gray Core.

“Bang!” Candle Demon Old Man performed Soul Scouring without hesitation. One breath later, the Soul Scouring Restriction triggered, and Kong Ran’s head exploded directly.

The next moment, behind Candle Demon Old Man, a several-zhang-tall phantom of a candle stand formed. On this candle stand, a faint green candle flame burned.

Kong Ran’s Divine Soul was instantly absorbed into the green candle.

At the same time, Kong Ran’s body was also swallowed in one gulp by the two-headed winged snake, which had been waiting for a long time.

“Too little.”

“Far from enough.”

Candle Demon Old Man then transformed into a grayescapelight and flew straight towards the Immortal Caves of Kong Ran and Zhang Tian.

Even if Soul Scouring couldn’t find anything, he had ways to find some clues in their Immortal Caves. Everything these two old fellows left behind had to be dug out.

The Spiritual items in hand were too few, nowhere near enough to even half-fill that gluttonous beast. He had to harvest as many Spiritual items as possible.

...

A nameless small peak, about ten li northeast of Corpse Refining Peak.

Withered trees formed a forest, heavy with Corpse Qi.

Within the forest, there were many wandering ordinary Corpse Puppets.

Deep in the forest was a massive withered tree, with a trunk so thick that a dozen people could barely encircle it.

At this time, a Corpse Puppet, about a zhang tall and covered in red scales, stood before the tree.

The Red Scale Puppet, forming hand Seals, uttered several strange syllables. Immediately, a massive vortex, several zhang wide, appeared on the trunk of the huge withered tree in front of him. The other end of the vortex led to the ancient Seal Formation beneath Duan Shen Cliff!

This method of entering the ancient Seal Formation was re-organized from Shi Chuan’s intelligence and was extremely secretive. These syllables were ancient pronunciations, dating back a long time.

It was estimated that even the current Sect Master, or even the previous few Sect Masters, might not know about this shortcut.