"Hah?" Tianyi couldn't help but let out a sound of surprise. In the Buzhou Immortal Sect, the Xiyi Talismans were seen as something of a gimmick that a few people bought. Most still preferred the formation cards.
Tianyi didn't expect that a business mogul like Daoist Moneybag would think so highly of the Xiyi Talismans that haven't really caught on in the Buhzou Immortal Sect. He did want it to become popular, but he expected it to take much longer. Or is it just a tactic to form a relationship with me?
Although Tianyi didn't have great interpersonal skills, he did understand the importance of having connections. Not that he needed to flatter anyone since his mother had an exalted position and power. Still, that did not mean Tianyi was averse to the notion.
"I'm also very interested, but I think we should hold off such talks till after the demons have been exterminated. It is hardly the opportune time to discuss such matters now." Tianyi replied, showing a business smile.
"Of course, of course. I was in too much of a rush and forgot about the circumstances." Daoist Moneybag said with an affable smile on his face that hid his greedy nature as a businessman.
The two of them returned to observing the battlefield.
On one of the islands, Lushu looked at the Xiyi Talisman in his hand with a bitter smile. He was one of the numerous late body transformation acolytes or acupoint opening masters who formed a line of defense and repelled the demons.
The defenders weren't repelling the demons out of their personal strength but using the magical tool known as the Xiyi Talisman.
Lushu had known that the Xiyi Talismans were powerful, but it was only when he saw how powerful it was with his own two eyes that allowed him to genuinely comprehend how great it was. At the same time, it made him feel a sense of loss. What were the acupoint opening masters of the Demon Cage Realm worth when your strength depended on how fast you could unleash the Xiyi Talisman?
With the Xiyi Talisman, even a regular mortal could easily crush an acupoint opening master like Azure Leaf. It made Lushu feel that all of his struggles to become stronger were a joke, like everything was pointless.
No matter how hard I try, I can't even compare to this tool. This wasn't only Lushu's thoughts. Using his eyes, Lushu could see the same thought run through the minds of several other acupoint opening masters and peak body transformation acolytes.
No! There is a point! Grandmaster Xi already explained that the Xiyi Talismans could only continuously unleash such attacks within the territory of the Vast Heaven Islands. Outside, they might need to recharge for a long time before being able to be used again, and for that, the strength of cultivators like me is still needed! Lushu comforted himself.
In the Demon Cage Realm, one's worth was determined by their fighting ability. So a tool that made the strongest human experts of the Demon Cage Realm useless was akin to saying that they were no longer needed. This was especially the case for people like Lushu. He had attained what he had now due to his strength. If he did not have his strength, he would return to that weak orphan no one cared about, and even Ziye might leave him.
Didn't Grandmaster Xi say that these can only unleash techniques at the Soul Nourishing Realm at most? As long as I reach that realm, the Soul Nourishing Realm, I will be able to stand above once more! Lushu thought. He didn’t believe an actual soul nourishing grandmaster would be worse than a mere tool.
Lushu began to eye the demons with a calculative gaze, looking for demons of the Golden Crow Clan with a pure bloodline. In the past six months, he managed to fully digest the blood essence that he had absorbed into his body and even opened a few more acupoints using his own efforts. Lushu didn't plan on absorbing blood essence to forcibly open acupoints but increase the Golden Crow bloodline in his body and form a sturdier foundation.
It seemed that the forces of the Vast Heaven Islands had the advantage as numerous demons fell one after the other due to the attacks unleashed by the Xiyi Talisman. Of particular note was the spatial attacks unleashed by the Xiyi Talisman. The attack's power seemed to increase due to the synergy it had with the Vast Heaven Islands's domain.
But, such a situation did not last long. After an hour...
CRACK!
A body transformation acolyte looked in surprise as he saw a large crack appear on his Xiyi Talisman. A small explosion occurred and caused the acolyte to drop the broken Xiyi Talisman in his hand in fright.
He wasn't the only one as more and more Xiyi Talisman broke down, some exploded, and others didn't. Due to the constraint of time, Tianyi had to downgrade the many features of the Xiyi Talisman, including durability. Tianyi was even forced to create pseudo clones in manufacturing using his Constellation Incarnation Technique.
As a result, many of them started to break down after the tenth Nascent Soul Realm attack or the hundredth Core Formation Realm attack unleashed. The residents of Fan City were stunned for a moment, looking a little lost at the breakdown of the tool that made them feel invincible. One moment, they were powerful people that even the strongest cultivators of the Demon Cage Realm had to be wary of, but after the loss of the talisman, they returned to normal as if awakening from a dream.
The disparity between the high and the low they felt couldn't be put into words, but they quickly broke out of it. Recalling Tianyi's instructions, they all quickly retreated away from the battlefield, and their bodies disappeared as if vanishing into thin air after reaching a certain distance.
The other people still operating the Xiyi Talismans saw this, and the expression on their faces became severe. Previously, they had felt a rush of high from dominating the demons who had suppressed them and terrorized them for so long, so they were rampant in unleashing their attacks. With the reminder of the Xiyi Talisman's limited uses, they began to use them conservatively. No longer did they unleash attack after attack willy nilly, they now aimed for the biggest amount of casualties with a single attack.
But, no matter how hard the residents of Fan City tried to extend the mileage of the Xiyi Talismans, the talismans were already at their limits. Soon, all the talisman holders were vanishing from the defensive lines.
The disciples from the Huang Realm had no expectations for the cultivators of the Demon Cage Realm to defend against the demons, and only Tianyi was confident in his Xiyi Talisman tearing a chunk out of the demon army's forces. Asking the cultivators of the Demon Cage Realm to fight the demons head-on was just asking for needless sacrifices.
"They eliminated more than I thought they would," Tianyi commented. He had already brought down the number of demons to seventy percent thanks to his use of a weakened version of spatial collapse combined with his control of the Vast Heaven Islands. Although Tianyi made a little mistake and allowed a tear to the Vast Void to manifest, he quickly fixed that.
Now the number of demons was further brought down to a quarter of its original numbers. The demons were fatigued, while the disciples were fully rested. This did not mean that the demons only had a quarter of their strength left. Most of their Nascent Soul Realm level demons were still alive, and the Unity Realm level demon elders had not struck yet. In conclusion, the demons still had a total of about sixty to seventy percent of their total power.
"Huh?" Tianyi exclaimed when he saw that a single person still hadn't returned. The cultivators of Fan City had been teleported by Tianyi back into Fan City. It was true that Tianyi couldn't use his teleportation due to the interference of the Demon Cage Realm, but in the Vast Heaven Islands, which excluded the Demon Cage Realm's influence, teleporting others was as easy as blinking to Tianyi.
That lone cultivator was Lushu.
Lushu had coordinated with an acupoint opening master next to him. The acupoint opening master had shot several fire-attribute attacks. The instant he did so, Lushu had released the full power of his martial body, the Pure Yang Feather Martial Body!
His body began glowing like molten gold with golden gears floating around it. The instant he did so, Lushu had entered one of the fireballs unleashed by the acupoint opening master's Xiyi Talisman, hiding his presence within the attack.
That's too reckless. Tianyi couldn't help but think, but he was interested in what Lushu was planning, so he didn’t take action.
It soon became evident when the fire attacks rushed towards a yellow crow demon at the Nascent Soul Realm. The demon's body was already heavily battered, but it still looked to have a lot of fight left in it.
The yellow crow snorted and swept its wings, causing the Core Formation Realm fire attacks to disappear. At this moment, Lushu jumped shot out of the dispersed remnant fire like a cannonball towards the demon.
The crow demon released a squawk of surprise before it quickly opened its beaks, and a yellow ball of flame could be seen gathering between its beaks. However, before the yellow crow could unleash its attack, Lushu held out his Xiyi Talisman and unleashed a spiritual attack.
The spiritual attack only caused the demons to be dazed for a moment or two, so many Fan City cultivators did not use it much, but at this time, Lushu used it and caused the nascent soul grandmaster equivalent demon to be stunned for a brief moment.
And that brief moment was all Lushu needed.
Lushu released several Nascent Soul Realm attacks in succession, ignoring the strain he was placing on the Xiyi Talisman. Thus, a mighty Nascent Soul Realm level demon was slain by Lushu using the Xiyi Talisman.
In the earlier battle, some Nascent Soul Realm level demons died, but most of them died at the beginning due to being caught unprepared. For Lushu to kill one, even a fatigued one, was still impressive.
But how are you going to make it back? Tianyi asked internally. He recalled saying they would only be teleported back to Fan City if they reached a certain point on the islands. Tianyi didn't mention that he could teleport anyone within the Vast Heaven Islands, provided that they were weaker than him.
The scene of Lushu being besieged by furious demons did not occur, nor was there a scene of Lushu desperately trying to fly back to the floating islands. Instead, a demon elder attacked.
"Human, prepare to die!" Ashflame Crow roared. Although faint, he could detect the aura of his descendant, who had inherited the pure bloodline of the golden crow, within Lushu. He knew that Lushu was somehow connected to the human that killed his descendant.
For all his words towards Ragingflame Crow of allowing vengeance to cloud his judgment, Ashflame Crow acted nearly as thoughtless when the target of his grudge appeared.
Ashflame Crow's body was covered in grey and white flames as he charged towards Lushu. Wherever he passed, a trail of fire would be left behind him, making his path towards Lushu resemble that of a spear piercing towards its target.
Lushu was stunned for a moment, and a never-before-felt sense of danger erupted in his heart. He never felt this level of danger, not even when the nine demons pressured Azure Leaf City. Compared to that time, Lushu couldn't completely comprehend how much danger he was in, but he knew that if he did not flee, he would definitely die.
The moment Ashflame Crow entered the domain of the Vast Heaven Islands, the flames surrounding him were reduced by fifty percent, and the flames outside of the Vast Heaven Islands began to rank amok as if they were a bunch of drunk bees with no leadership.
Not good! Ashflame Crow thought.
Ashflame Crow instantly felt something wrong the moment he entered the domain of the Vast Heaven Islands. A unity venerable or equivalent's greatest strength was their connection with heaven and earth. After entering, Ashflame Crow felt his connection with the world disappear. It was not obstructed, nor was it muted, it was simply just gone.
Having been struck awake from his rage-induced madness, Ashflame Crow chose the correct route and tried to fly out of the cultivator's domain. As a Unity Realm level demon, he was at least ten times more powerful than an average unity venerable even without harmonizing with the world, but he also knew that his enemies were monsters capable of fighting unity venerables at the Nascent Soul Realm.
Unfortunately for Ashflame Crow, the momentum from his charge had forced him over a hundred meters deep into the domain. No matter how hard he tried, Ashflame Crow could not fly out fast enough. The more time passed, the more it seemed that his speed had decreased. In fact, it even seemed he was flying backward despite how absurd it sounded.
"Demon, since you have entered our territory, why don't we discuss some things? I feel that bringing so many demons isn't very nice."
Ashflame Crow stopped his futile struggles when he heard those words and turned around. There wasn't only one person but several cultivators. Ashflame Crow had gathered information on each and every one of them as a competent commander would.
The speaker was a fatty that had a pleasant smile on his face, Daoist Moneybag.
In the group's center was a handsome man with an ordinary-looking sword in hand, Xia Yushan.
Between the two was a gloomy-looking man that contained an insidious aura, Hun Jusang.
To Xia Yushan's right was a devilishly beautiful man that even caused Ashflame Crow, a demon, to sigh in amazement, Ji Wutong.
And next to Ji Wutong was a man who didn't look as outstanding but was clad in a righteous aura, Bing Huoyuan!
To Ashflame Crow's relief, as much as he didn't want to admit it, the one who he was most wary of didn't appear. As the creator of the Vast Heaven Islands, the demon elder was especially worried for Tianyi since he defied common sense.
Ashflame Crow had contacted the Golden Crow Ancestor, and even the ancestor said to be careful of Tianyi. In Ashflame Crow's eyes, the most dangerous individual was Tianyi, so he placed Tianyi's strength equal or above that of demon elders. And history proved he was right as Tianyi's creation, the Vast Heaven Islands, had dealt a considerable amount of casualties to the demon army in an instant.
Still, that didn't mean Ashflame Crow did not have any tricks up his feathers. "Hmpf, where's the creator of this queer place? Do you think that only a mere five of you will be enough to hold me down?"
All five of the elite disciples' faces darkened, Xia Yushan especially. With a frosty tone, Xia Yushan ordered, "Attack!"
"Hah?" Tianyi couldn't help but let out a sound of surprise. In the Buzhou Immortal Sect, the Xiyi Talismans were seen as something of a gimmick that a few people bought. Most still preferred the formation cards.
Tianyi didn't expect that a business mogul like Daoist Moneybag would think so highly of the Xiyi Talismans that haven't really caught on in the Buhzou Immortal Sect. He did want it to become popular, but he expected it to take much longer. Or is it just a tactic to form a relationship with me?
Although Tianyi didn't have great interpersonal skills, he did understand the importance of having connections. Not that he needed to flatter anyone since his mother had an exalted position and power. Still, that did not mean Tianyi was averse to the notion.
"I'm also very interested, but I think we should hold off such talks till after the demons have been exterminated. It is hardly the opportune time to discuss such matters now." Tianyi replied, showing a business smile.
"Of course, of course. I was in too much of a rush and forgot about the circumstances." Daoist Moneybag said with an affable smile on his face that hid his greedy nature as a businessman.
The two of them returned to observing the battlefield.
On one of the islands, Lushu looked at the Xiyi Talisman in his hand with a bitter smile. He was one of the numerous late body transformation acolytes or acupoint opening masters who formed a line of defense and repelled the demons.
The defenders weren't repelling the demons out of their personal strength but using the magical tool known as the Xiyi Talisman.
Lushu had known that the Xiyi Talismans were powerful, but it was only when he saw how powerful it was with his own two eyes that allowed him to genuinely comprehend how great it was. At the same time, it made him feel a sense of loss. What were the acupoint opening masters of the Demon Cage Realm worth when your strength depended on how fast you could unleash the Xiyi Talisman?
With the Xiyi Talisman, even a regular mortal could easily crush an acupoint opening master like Azure Leaf. It made Lushu feel that all of his struggles to become stronger were a joke, like everything was pointless.
No matter how hard I try, I can't even compare to this tool. This wasn't only Lushu's thoughts. Using his eyes, Lushu could see the same thought run through the minds of several other acupoint opening masters and peak body transformation acolytes.
No! There is a point! Grandmaster Xi already explained that the Xiyi Talismans could only continuously unleash such attacks within the territory of the Vast Heaven Islands. Outside, they might need to recharge for a long time before being able to be used again, and for that, the strength of cultivators like me is still needed! Lushu comforted himself.
In the Demon Cage Realm, one's worth was determined by their fighting ability. So a tool that made the strongest human experts of the Demon Cage Realm useless was akin to saying that they were no longer needed. This was especially the case for people like Lushu. He had attained what he had now due to his strength. If he did not have his strength, he would return to that weak orphan no one cared about, and even Ziye might leave him.
Didn't Grandmaster Xi say that these can only unleash techniques at the Soul Nourishing Realm at most? As long as I reach that realm, the Soul Nourishing Realm, I will be able to stand above once more! Lushu thought. He didn’t believe an actual soul nourishing grandmaster would be worse than a mere tool.
Lushu began to eye the demons with a calculative gaze, looking for demons of the Golden Crow Clan with a pure bloodline. In the past six months, he managed to fully digest the blood essence that he had absorbed into his body and even opened a few more acupoints using his own efforts. Lushu didn't plan on absorbing blood essence to forcibly open acupoints but increase the Golden Crow bloodline in his body and form a sturdier foundation.
It seemed that the forces of the Vast Heaven Islands had the advantage as numerous demons fell one after the other due to the attacks unleashed by the Xiyi Talisman. Of particular note was the spatial attacks unleashed by the Xiyi Talisman. The attack's power seemed to increase due to the synergy it had with the Vast Heaven Islands's domain.
But, such a situation did not last long. After an hour...
CRACK!
A body transformation acolyte looked in surprise as he saw a large crack appear on his Xiyi Talisman. A small explosion occurred and caused the acolyte to drop the broken Xiyi Talisman in his hand in fright.
He wasn't the only one as more and more Xiyi Talisman broke down, some exploded, and others didn't. Due to the constraint of time, Tianyi had to downgrade the many features of the Xiyi Talisman, including durability. Tianyi was even forced to create pseudo clones in manufacturing using his Constellation Incarnation Technique.
As a result, many of them started to break down after the tenth Nascent Soul Realm attack or the hundredth Core Formation Realm attack unleashed. The residents of Fan City were stunned for a moment, looking a little lost at the breakdown of the tool that made them feel invincible. One moment, they were powerful people that even the strongest cultivators of the Demon Cage Realm had to be wary of, but after the loss of the talisman, they returned to normal as if awakening from a dream.
The disparity between the high and the low they felt couldn't be put into words, but they quickly broke out of it. Recalling Tianyi's instructions, they all quickly retreated away from the battlefield, and their bodies disappeared as if vanishing into thin air after reaching a certain distance.
The other people still operating the Xiyi Talismans saw this, and the expression on their faces became severe. Previously, they had felt a rush of high from dominating the demons who had suppressed them and terrorized them for so long, so they were rampant in unleashing their attacks. With the reminder of the Xiyi Talisman's limited uses, they began to use them conservatively. No longer did they unleash attack after attack willy nilly, they now aimed for the biggest amount of casualties with a single attack.
But, no matter how hard the residents of Fan City tried to extend the mileage of the Xiyi Talismans, the talismans were already at their limits. Soon, all the talisman holders were vanishing from the defensive lines.
The disciples from the Huang Realm had no expectations for the cultivators of the Demon Cage Realm to defend against the demons, and only Tianyi was confident in his Xiyi Talisman tearing a chunk out of the demon army's forces. Asking the cultivators of the Demon Cage Realm to fight the demons head-on was just asking for needless sacrifices.
"They eliminated more than I thought they would," Tianyi commented. He had already brought down the number of demons to seventy percent thanks to his use of a weakened version of spatial collapse combined with his control of the Vast Heaven Islands. Although Tianyi made a little mistake and allowed a tear to the Vast Void to manifest, he quickly fixed that.
Now the number of demons was further brought down to a quarter of its original numbers. The demons were fatigued, while the disciples were fully rested. This did not mean that the demons only had a quarter of their strength left. Most of their Nascent Soul Realm level demons were still alive, and the Unity Realm level demon elders had not struck yet. In conclusion, the demons still had a total of about sixty to seventy percent of their total power.
"Huh?" Tianyi exclaimed when he saw that a single person still hadn't returned. The cultivators of Fan City had been teleported by Tianyi back into Fan City. It was true that Tianyi couldn't use his teleportation due to the interference of the Demon Cage Realm, but in the Vast Heaven Islands, which excluded the Demon Cage Realm's influence, teleporting others was as easy as blinking to Tianyi.
That lone cultivator was Lushu.
Lushu had coordinated with an acupoint opening master next to him. The acupoint opening master had shot several fire-attribute attacks. The instant he did so, Lushu had released the full power of his martial body, the Pure Yang Feather Martial Body!
His body began glowing like molten gold with golden gears floating around it. The instant he did so, Lushu had entered one of the fireballs unleashed by the acupoint opening master's Xiyi Talisman, hiding his presence within the attack.
That's too reckless. Tianyi couldn't help but think, but he was interested in what Lushu was planning, so he didn’t take action.
It soon became evident when the fire attacks rushed towards a yellow crow demon at the Nascent Soul Realm. The demon's body was already heavily battered, but it still looked to have a lot of fight left in it.
The yellow crow snorted and swept its wings, causing the Core Formation Realm fire attacks to disappear. At this moment, Lushu jumped shot out of the dispersed remnant fire like a cannonball towards the demon.
The crow demon released a squawk of surprise before it quickly opened its beaks, and a yellow ball of flame could be seen gathering between its beaks. However, before the yellow crow could unleash its attack, Lushu held out his Xiyi Talisman and unleashed a spiritual attack.
The spiritual attack only caused the demons to be dazed for a moment or two, so many Fan City cultivators did not use it much, but at this time, Lushu used it and caused the nascent soul grandmaster equivalent demon to be stunned for a brief moment.
And that brief moment was all Lushu needed.
Lushu released several Nascent Soul Realm attacks in succession, ignoring the strain he was placing on the Xiyi Talisman. Thus, a mighty Nascent Soul Realm level demon was slain by Lushu using the Xiyi Talisman.
In the earlier battle, some Nascent Soul Realm level demons died, but most of them died at the beginning due to being caught unprepared. For Lushu to kill one, even a fatigued one, was still impressive.
But how are you going to make it back? Tianyi asked internally. He recalled saying they would only be teleported back to Fan City if they reached a certain point on the islands. Tianyi didn't mention that he could teleport anyone within the Vast Heaven Islands, provided that they were weaker than him.
The scene of Lushu being besieged by furious demons did not occur, nor was there a scene of Lushu desperately trying to fly back to the floating islands. Instead, a demon elder attacked.
"Human, prepare to die!" Ashflame Crow roared. Although faint, he could detect the aura of his descendant, who had inherited the pure bloodline of the golden crow, within Lushu. He knew that Lushu was somehow connected to the human that killed his descendant.
For all his words towards Ragingflame Crow of allowing vengeance to cloud his judgment, Ashflame Crow acted nearly as thoughtless when the target of his grudge appeared.
Ashflame Crow's body was covered in grey and white flames as he charged towards Lushu. Wherever he passed, a trail of fire would be left behind him, making his path towards Lushu resemble that of a spear piercing towards its target.
Lushu was stunned for a moment, and a never-before-felt sense of danger erupted in his heart. He never felt this level of danger, not even when the nine demons pressured Azure Leaf City. Compared to that time, Lushu couldn't completely comprehend how much danger he was in, but he knew that if he did not flee, he would definitely die.
The moment Ashflame Crow entered the domain of the Vast Heaven Islands, the flames surrounding him were reduced by fifty percent, and the flames outside of the Vast Heaven Islands began to rank amok as if they were a bunch of drunk bees with no leadership.
Not good! Ashflame Crow thought.
Ashflame Crow instantly felt something wrong the moment he entered the domain of the Vast Heaven Islands. A unity venerable or equivalent's greatest strength was their connection with heaven and earth. After entering, Ashflame Crow felt his connection with the world disappear. It was not obstructed, nor was it muted, it was simply just gone.
Having been struck awake from his rage-induced madness, Ashflame Crow chose the correct route and tried to fly out of the cultivator's domain. As a Unity Realm level demon, he was at least ten times more powerful than an average unity venerable even without harmonizing with the world, but he also knew that his enemies were monsters capable of fighting unity venerables at the Nascent Soul Realm.
Unfortunately for Ashflame Crow, the momentum from his charge had forced him over a hundred meters deep into the domain. No matter how hard he tried, Ashflame Crow could not fly out fast enough. The more time passed, the more it seemed that his speed had decreased. In fact, it even seemed he was flying backward despite how absurd it sounded.
"Demon, since you have entered our territory, why don't we discuss some things? I feel that bringing so many demons isn't very nice."
Ashflame Crow stopped his futile struggles when he heard those words and turned around. There wasn't only one person but several cultivators. Ashflame Crow had gathered information on each and every one of them as a competent commander would.
The speaker was a fatty that had a pleasant smile on his face, Daoist Moneybag.
In the group's center was a handsome man with an ordinary-looking sword in hand, Xia Yushan.
Between the two was a gloomy-looking man that contained an insidious aura, Hun Jusang.
To Xia Yushan's right was a devilishly beautiful man that even caused Ashflame Crow, a demon, to sigh in amazement, Ji Wutong.
And next to Ji Wutong was a man who didn't look as outstanding but was clad in a righteous aura, Bing Huoyuan!
To Ashflame Crow's relief, as much as he didn't want to admit it, the one who he was most wary of didn't appear. As the creator of the Vast Heaven Islands, the demon elder was especially worried for Tianyi since he defied common sense.
Ashflame Crow had contacted the Golden Crow Ancestor, and even the ancestor said to be careful of Tianyi. In Ashflame Crow's eyes, the most dangerous individual was Tianyi, so he placed Tianyi's strength equal or above that of demon elders. And history proved he was right as Tianyi's creation, the Vast Heaven Islands, had dealt a considerable amount of casualties to the demon army in an instant.
Still, that didn't mean Ashflame Crow did not have any tricks up his feathers. "Hmpf, where's the creator of this queer place? Do you think that only a mere five of you will be enough to hold me down?"
All five of the elite disciples' faces darkened, Xia Yushan especially. With a frosty tone, Xia Yushan ordered, "Attack!"
