268: Yu Qingyan

Two hours quickly passed.

The power of the ten thousand demon blood quenching pool had quietly upgraded.

At this moment, what entangled the five individuals was no longer just the burning pain transmitted from their skin, muscles, and bones; there was also the endless influx of violent Qi into their Sea of Consciousness, like a rapidly rising tide attempting to completely drown their minds.

The two prodigies from the Five Elders Gate now wore solemn expressions, sweat continuously seeping from their foreheads.

Their Sea of Consciousness was filled with distorted demon soul phantoms; those sharp shrieks and venomous curses clung like maggots to bone, constantly gnawing at their Dao Heart.

The two had no choice but to be exceptionally focused, using their Divine Soul to resist that violent Qi.

It was as if on a battlefield, one person was completely surrounded by the Yao Race.

Yu Qingyan's Sea of Consciousness, however, presented a different scene.

Her fair and beautiful face now showed strange changes once again.

It was as if an innocent Cultivator had fallen into the hands of the Yao Race, awaiting their interrogation and torture.

A peculiar sense of pleasure spread through her Divine Soul, like parched land encountering sweet rain, causing her tense mind to relax.

She experienced a taste she had never known before.

Those shrieking demon soul phantoms collided in her Sea of Consciousness, each impact deepening the delight in her eyes.

This series of expression changes left Li Pingan utterly bewildered.

He was somewhat curious: was this young lady truly following the martial path? Why did it feel completely different to him?

Yet, if she wasn't a Body Refining Cultivator, why did she face that pain as easily as he did?

Ye Hao's Sea of Consciousness, meanwhile, was a fierce battlefield.

Countless demon soul phantoms transformed into malevolent ghosts wielding sharp blades, shrieking as they pounced toward the Origin of his Divine Soul; the surrounding violent Qi even condensed into chains, attempting to bind his Divine Soul.

Ye Hao gritted his teeth, channeling all the spiritual power within his body toward his Sea of Consciousness, condensing it into a longsword gleaming with cold light; each swing could shatter several demon soul phantoms.

Amid their respective torments, their own physiques were gradually undergoing marrow cleansing and meridian purging.

Li Pingan was the most clear-headed person at this moment.

He was particularly aware of the strength of his Physical Body.

Previously, during the battle with Fu Yunze in the third Demon Suppressing Tower, that final step tempered by the purple lightning had been crossed.

He was now equivalent to being at the eighth layer of the Nascent Soul Realm.

He wondered if he could persist in this ten thousand demon blood quenching pool for two days, whether he could advance even further from this already high point.

Then he could consider attempting a Breakthrough to the fifth layer of the martial path.

"Mmm~"

Just as Li Pingan was pondering, Yu Qingyan beside him couldn't help but let out another charming, delicate moan.

A faint blush spread across her face, and her entire expression now seemed somewhat resistant.

Li Pingan guessed: it seemed this young lady was starting to find it difficult... In the Chusheng Sect!

The usual scene of Immortal Qi swirling and Disciples coming and going incessantly had long since vanished.

Even after that previous incident with Zhenyue Daoren's betrayal, when tens of thousands of Yao Race beings were released from the Demon Suppressing Tower, although the Cultivators of the Chusheng Sect were also panicked, they still retained some confidence.

At that time, they merely cursed Zhenyue Daoren's treacherous actions during their cultivation breaks, then turned back to focus on their cultivation, treating it as a temporary disturbance.

But now, with the Sect's secret refining of demon transformation pills and their atrocities against commoners being exposed to the public, the entire Chusheng Sect had completely teetered on the brink of collapse.

On the first day the news spread, the Third Elder fled overnight with the Sect's Magic Treasure, without leaving a single word of explanation.

Following closely was the disintegration of morale among the Inner Sect Elders.

Those Elders who once sat high in the halls, guiding Disciples in their cultivation, now secretly sought ways out one after another.

Only then did the Inner Sect Disciples and Outer Sect Disciples finally realize, belatedly, that things had already deteriorated to an irreparable extent.

They looked at the empty Elder Hall, listened to the outside world's condemnation of the Chusheng Sect, and panic spread through their hearts like a tide, making it difficult to even focus on cultivation.

What made them even more despairing was:

Neither the Sect Master nor the powerful Grand Elder had appeared from start to finish; they neither refuted the rumors nor provided any clear explanation, as if tacitly acknowledging all the atrocities.

They had abandoned the Sect to its destruction.

Recently, fellow Sect members who went out, as long as they identified themselves as Disciples of the Chusheng Sect, were directly beaten to death.

And it was glorified as: we're beating you beasts.

Behind the Sect Main Hall, in the back mountains, clouds and mist perpetually swirled, rarely tread by ordinary Disciples.

Deep within this seemingly serene area lay a Secret Realm shrouded by Restrictions; inside the Secret Realm, there was no daylight, only a few Soul Lamps emitting light suspended in mid-air, illuminating the surroundings.

True Person Tianxuan sat on a chair, slowly opening his eyes.

Before him, three women were brought forward, escorted by two Disciples.

"Old Ancestor, please see."

A fawning voice rang out; the speaker was a middle-aged Daoist Nun. Her face was piled with smiles, but her eyes swept over the three women like a venomous snake.

As her words fell, she gave a meaningful glance to the Disciples beside her; the two Disciples immediately stepped forward, each holding three jade trays. On the trays lay pitch-black Demon Pills emitting faint Demonic Qi.

Without waiting for the three women to resist, the Disciples forcibly pinched their jaws and fed the Demon Pills into their mouths one by one.

The Demon Pills dissolved upon entry; an icy, piercing Demonic Qi instantly surged down their throats into their bodies. The three women simultaneously let out suppressed cries of pain, their bodies convulsing violently.

But that wasn't all; the Daoist Nun then took out three dark-red demon transformation pills from her Storage Pouch. She personally stepped forward and fed the pills into the mouths of the three women once more.

"Ah——!"

The moment the pills entered their stomachs, extremely shrill shrieks instantly resounded through heaven and earth.

The three women twisted violently like ice cubes thrown into a blazing fire, collapsing to the ground and curling into balls.

Their skin changed at a visible pace; originally fair skin gradually became covered with a layer of fine scales, their fingers lengthened and sharpened, nails transforming into sharp claws, and their ears slowly became pointed and elongated.

One incense stick's time later!

The three women had already lost their human forms, completely transforming into three Yao Race beings of different shapes. One resembled a leopard, covered in black scales with fierce eyes; one was like a giant wolf, with dark gray fur and exposed fangs; and the last resembled a venomous snake, body winding, flicking a forked tongue.

But the moment they completed their transformation, two of the Yao Race beings suddenly trembled all over, their massive bodies crashing to the ground; the ferocity in their eyes rapidly faded, replaced by lifeless stillness.

They had actually lost their breath the instant their transformation was complete.

Only the snake-like Yao Race being still maintained weak breath, slowly writhing on the ground.

"Old Ancestor, out of ten people, only three can successfully transform into Yao Race beings; this is already the result after we repeatedly adjusted the Pill Formula."

The Daoist Nun hurried forward to explain.

"Although two died immediately after transforming, achieving a thirty percent success rate is already a significant Breakthrough."

True Person Tianxuan looked at the sole surviving Yao Race being, finally showing delight on his face, the fervor in his eyes almost overflowing. He waved his hand, his tone full of satisfaction:

"A thirty percent chance is already quite high; after all, the path of transforming into a Yao Race is inherently Heaven-Defying. To achieve such results, you've done well."

As soon as he finished speaking, True Person Tianxuan raised his hand and gently waved it toward the surviving snake-like Yao Race being.

Without any warning, the Yao Race being's body instantly exploded like ignited gunpowder, "Boom!" turning into a mist of blood filling the sky. The blood mist lingered in the air for a moment before slowly dissipating.

And where the blood mist dissipated, a pitch-dark red Demon Pill emitting pure Demonic Qi slowly appeared, suspended in mid-air—exactly the Demon Pill that had been consumed earlier.

True Person Tianxuan reached out and grabbed the Demon Pill, examining it carefully for a moment; it showed no signs of damage!

"Good, good, it truly succeeded in transforming into a Yao Race being, not a defective Half-human, Half-demon being."

"Well done!"

Immediately after, he casually took out an exquisitely crafted brocade box, its body lustrous and smooth, and handed it to the Daoist Nun beside him: "Refine the essence blood inside into demon transformation pills."

"Once accomplished, you may take any Magic Treasure or Cultivation Technique and Divine Ability within the Sect."