Nine Transformations of the True Spirit.

Qin Wuyai pondered for a moment, then slowly said, "That depends on how far the demon realm we ascend to is from the spirit realm."

“If the distance is too far, my method will not work.”

Daoist Cangsong snorted coldly, but his expression softened considerably.

Qin Wuyai's refusal to readily agree made him seem even more credible.

Lu Wangquan frowned: "If we are unable to return to the Spirit Realm, and four Nascent Soul cultivators remain in the Demon Realm, wouldn't we be at their mercy?"

He was also quite dissatisfied with Qin Wuyai for concealing the truth about the spatial passage.

Qin Wuyai smiled and said, "Since we were able to come to this world from the human realm, after we ascend, we shouldn't be too far from the spirit realm."

"I am at least 50% confident that I can return to the spirit world."

Lu Wangquan's eyes flashed: "Fellow Daoist Qin, you are quite resourceful. Not only do you know the spatial passage to this realm, but you also know the method to return from the demon realm to the spirit realm. I wonder where you obtained this knowledge?"

Qin Wuyai said, "This was passed down by our ancestor, and I, Qin, am also inheriting the legacy of my predecessors."

Daoist Cangsong coldly said, "Is that so? Our sect is descended from the ancient Tai Xuan Sect, yet I have never heard of such a secret technique. Is your sect's foundation even deeper than that of the Tai Xuan Sect?"

Faced with Cangsong Daoren's questioning, Qin Wuyai remained unperturbed, a smile playing on his lips: "Our sect is naturally inferior to Taixuan Sect, but our Ancestor Danxuzi is proficient in alchemy and has a close relationship with several Void Refinement cultivators who have descended to the human realm."

"I was once taught by a cultivator who had mastered the Void Refinement stage, and learned many profound and secret techniques, which were passed down to later generations. This method was obtained in this way."

Daoist Cangsong sneered: "A Void Refinement expert from the Upper Realm would actually pass down such a secret technique?"

Qin Wuyai was repeatedly questioned, and his smile finally faded. He said indifferently, "If Fellow Daoist Cangsong does not believe me, you may stay in this realm."

"I, Qin, would not risk my life. In the spatial passage, I shared life and death with my three fellow Daoists. If the secret technique proves useless, so be it."

Before Daoist Cangsong could speak, Chen Yuan interrupted him, saying, "Our endless arguing here will not help anything and will only cause more trouble."

"Now that the four of us have gathered together, Fellow Daoist Ren's whereabouts are unknown. He may have been killed by the Demon Commander, or he may have been captured by him."

"But in any case, the demon race may become aware of our existence at any time and take precautions."

"The most urgent task is to come up with a countermeasure as soon as possible, and strike suddenly while we are in the dark and the demons are in the light, catching the demons off guard."

The Taoist Cangsong finally calmed down. Although he was angry, he had already made his stance clear since he had followed Chen Yuan and Qin Wuyai to the Misty Forest and would not stand idly by.

Qin Wuyai had wanted to go to the Demon Realm from the very beginning and then return to the Spirit Realm, which was the only way for the group to ascend to the Upper Realm.

Lu Wangquan knew that the arrow was already on the bowstring and had no choice but to be released. No matter how dissatisfied he was with Qin Wuyai, he could only choose to join forces with him at this time.

Chen Yuan looked around, and none of the three objected. His gaze finally settled on Qin Wuyai: "Fellow Daoist Qin has been planning this matter for hundreds of years. He should have anticipated today's situation. May I ask what advice you have for me?"

Qin Wuyai glanced at Cangsong Daoren and Lu Wangquan. The two looked indifferent, but did not say anything to stop him.

He then spoke: "Then I, Qin, will offer my humble opinion as a starting point. Before coming to this world, I knew that in ancient times, this world was conquered by cultivators from the human realm."

"It was only after the Demon King descended that they were defeated, so this realm is very likely under the rule of the demon race..."

The three listened quietly. Lu Wangquan and Cangsong Daoist had already learned from Chen Yuan that there were legends about the Tai Xuan Realm in this world.

"Humans and demons have been irreconcilable enemies since ancient times. There is absolutely no way that the demons would compromise and allow us to enter the spatial passage."

"The only way is to fight to the death, and we must not let the demon race report our plan to seek ascension to the demon race in the upper realm."

"If the demon race of the human realm learns of this, and we enter the ascension passage again, we will be walking into a trap, like turtles in a jar, and we will surely die."

Chen Yuan said thoughtfully, "In that case, we must act quickly and capture all five demon generals in one fell swoop."

Qin Wuyai nodded: "Not bad."

Cangsong Daoren coldly replied, "Absolutely impossible! Although I have lived in seclusion in the depths of the South China Sea for the past few years, I am aware of the power of the demon race. The eight royal families have ruled this realm for tens of thousands of years and have an extremely profound foundation."

"Those five demon generals are separated by hundreds of thousands of miles, and they also have the help of a great formation. How can we capture them all in one fell swoop?"

Qin Wuyai smiled slightly: "This matter is indeed somewhat troublesome. I was originally at a loss, but now it's different."

He turned to look at Chen Yuan: "Fellow Daoist Chen, with your Zhu Yan True Fire, you can easily erase the Blood Silk Gu and control the life and death of others, which gives you an opportunity to take advantage of the situation."

"As long as Fellow Daoist Chen enslaves a few high-ranking demon generals, we can easily lure those five demon commanders out of the formation, then join forces to ambush and kill them, and the matter will be settled."

Lu Wangquan and Daoist Cangsong both looked over, their eyes revealing a hint of anticipation.

Chen Yuan pondered for a moment, then slowly shook his head: "Fellow Daoist Qin's thinking is a bit too simplistic. Human cultivators in this world have been oppressed by the demon race for tens of thousands of years, and their situation is extremely difficult. Yet there are still so many Nascent Soul cultivators who resist so tenaciously."

"The demon race is inherently fierce. Those who can become high-ranking demon generals are all people of strong character and will not easily submit. They would rather die at my hands than have their lives controlled by me."

Qin Wuyai lowered his head and pondered for a moment before slowly speaking: "My proposal to enslave high-ranking demon generals is in order to ambush and kill those five demon commanders."

"As long as we can lure out the demon general, it doesn't necessarily have to take a lot of time and effort. Enslaving a high-ranking demon general or killing him is also acceptable."

The Cangsong Daoist said, "Although there are many high-ranking demon generals in the demon race, they do not easily leave their clans." "If we want to kill them, we must first lure them out, which is probably no easier than enslaving high-ranking demon generals."

Lu Wangquan nodded: "Fellow Daoist Cangsong is right. I once ambushed and killed a demon general of the Nightmare Crow clan in order to investigate the situation of this world and obtain a map of the Qingxu Mountains."

"It took me three months to ambush and kill this low-level demon general, which was quite troublesome."

"To lure and kill a high-ranking demon general, one must first find out about his social interactions, whereabouts, and habits before taking a targeted approach."

"If you don't want to waste time, you have to do what Fellow Daoist Ren did and make a big commotion to lure high-level demon generals away from the clan territory."

"To ambush and kill five demon generals, we would need to lure out at least five high-ranking demon generals, and that might not even be enough."

"It's unknown how much time it will take, and it's very easy to alert the enemy."

Daoist Cangsong frowned: "Would it be easier if we replaced it with a high-ranking cultivator from the Divine Sect?"

Before Chen Yuan could speak, Qin Wuyai shook his head: "In the eyes of the demon race, the great cultivators of the Divine Sect are nothing more than human slaves with higher cultivation levels. The Demon Commander will not personally take action for them."

Chen Yuan's heart stirred, and he said, "Although the demon race looks down on human cultivators, the Divine Cult cultivators are not without foundation after thousands of years."

"Chen once secretly traded with a mid-level demon general of the Azure Dragon lineage through a Nascent Soul cultivator from the Dragon God Sect, and purchased a three-thousand-year-old spiritual herb, which allowed his injuries to heal."

“Other cultivators of the divine sect must also have their own connections. It’s not impossible that they could even get in touch with high-ranking demon generals.”

"With the help of human cultivators from this realm, as long as we plan patiently, we can use these divine cultivators to lure out high-ranking demon generals and then plot against the demon commander."

"Although it will take a bit longer, it's more reliable. What do you three think?"

The three exchanged a glance, and Qin Wuyai asked, "May I ask how long you need, fellow Daoist?"

Chen Yuan pondered for a moment and said, "If we want to avoid revealing any flaws, it will take at least ten years, and possibly twenty years."

All three frowned. Daoist Cangsong said, "This plan is not advisable; ten years is too long."

Chen Yuan was taken aback. Lu Wangquan secretly transmitted his voice to him: "Fellow Daoist Chen has a long lifespan, but the three of us have very little lifespan left. We must ascend to the Upper Realm as soon as possible. We cannot delay."

Chen Yuan suddenly realized, pondered for a moment, and then said, "It would be very troublesome to deal with five demon generals, but it would be much simpler to deal with just one demon general."

“Shen Jibai has had many dealings with Yin Lu, a high-ranking demon general of the Howling Moon Silver Wolf clan. Now that he has abandoned the darkness and turned to the light, we can use him to lure Yin Lu out and kill him.”

“Even if Yin Qianjie doesn’t come out in person, high-ranking demon generals will come to investigate.”

"Once there are too many casualties, Yin Qianjie will eventually show up, and then we can take action."

Qin Wuyai frowned: "With Yin Qianjie dead, the other four demon generals will definitely become alert. What should we do then?"

Chen Yuan's expression turned serious: "Do you three really think that you can capture all five demon generals without lifting a finger?"

"We have come to this world on a risky journey, and seeking a way to ascend to immortality is as difficult as ascending to heaven. Only by proceeding cautiously step by step can we have a chance of victory."

The three men's expressions turned serious. Lu Wangquan said, "It seems Fellow Daoist Chen has had this idea for a while. You might as well speak frankly."

Chen Yuan said solemnly, "Our confrontation with the demon race is like two armies facing off, each with its own strengths and weaknesses."

"Our disadvantage is naturally that we are outnumbered and weak. Although we have the human race in this world to command, their strength is weak and they are not of much use."

"But we are not without advantages. Firstly, although we had some misunderstandings in the past, we are now working together to seek a way to ascend to immortality."

"Secondly, we have not yet revealed our identities, and the demon race is unaware that five Nascent Soul cultivators have crossed over from another realm."

"Thirdly, although the human race in this world is weak and can only build cities in remote and dangerous places, they have no weaknesses and do not need to worry too much about their actions."

The three nodded in agreement.

Chen Yuan added, "Besides being powerful and having a deep foundation, the demon race is actually weak in many ways."

"Firstly, the eight royal families are constantly fighting each other, and they harbor deep resentment towards one another."

"If we exclude the three clans of Sky-Supporting Divine Turtle, Nightmare Crow, and Fiend Tiger, which do not have a Demon General, the remaining five royal clans, with Demon Generals in charge, will fight even more fiercely and have deep-seated grudges."

"Secondly, the demon race occupies a vast territory and has many burdens. They are naturally not afraid of the human race in this world, but they are full of flaws in front of us."

"What we need to do is to take advantage of their unpreparedness and kill one of their demon generals. This is what is meant by 'it is better to cut off one finger than to injure all ten.'"

"Then, we will employ hit-and-run tactics to slaughter the demon generals of various races, destroy the spiritual veins and mines, and remove the blood-veined Gu from the bodies of the cultivators of the major religious sects."

"It would be best if these cultists could return to the human race."

"Otherwise, it could also make the demon race suspicious of him and dare not give him important positions."

"We will use various means to weaken their branches and exhaust their resources, waiting until their strength diminishes and the situation reverses before launching a direct and forceful attack. This is the right path." (End of Chapter)