Nine Transformations of the True Spirit.

Chen Yuan and Qin Wuyai had no objections. The four of them discussed the details again. Chen Yuan removed the divine sense barrier and summoned Cui Yuheng and Yuan Ting Zhenren into the building.

Chen Yuan solemnly said, "After some discussion, the four of us have decided to take action against the demon race a year from now, aiming to wipe out the eight royal families in one fell swoop and restore a bright and clear world for our human cultivators!"

The two men shuddered, about to speak, but Chen Yuan stopped them with a raised hand, his voice low and deep: "This battle is no small matter. The demon race is powerful and has a profound foundation."

"We are outnumbered and outgunned, so we must take a risky approach. You should think it over carefully. If you participate in the war, you will face a nine-out-of-ten chance of death."

Master Yuan Ting said resolutely, "How could I be like Shen Jibai, a coward who fears death? I am willing to obey the orders of the four seniors and fight to the death!"

Cui Yuheng said, word by word, "What I have been thinking about day and night is how to destroy the demon race. Now I can finally fight them honorably. I have no regrets even if I die."

Chen Yuan smiled slightly: "Although this battle is quite risky, we will not act rashly if there is no chance of victory."

"However, before that, Fellow Daoist Cangsong needs to find a place with abundant spiritual energy to recuperate from his injuries..."

There is only one medium-sized spiritual vein in Yuan Ting Zhenren's cave. Lu Wangquan will continue to stay here to recuperate, while Cangsong Daoren will have to find another place.

Cui Yuheng immediately spoke up: "My cave dwelling contains a medium-sized spiritual vein, which is comparable to this place. I respectfully invite Senior Cangsong to come here."

The Taoist Cangsong stroked his beard and said with a smile, "Then I will trouble you."

Cui Yuheng said, "Senior, you flatter me. Please give me any instructions, and I will do my best."

The Taoist Cangsong smiled, but did not speak.

The human cultivators in this realm have already been subdued by Chen Yuan, and three of them, being great cultivators, have even had the Vermilion Flame planted in their veins. Naturally, he wouldn't overstep his bounds.

Lu Wangquan pondered for a moment and asked, "Last time outside the Qingxu Mountains, I asked my friend Cui to investigate the whereabouts of Gu Hongzi, and then I came to my friend Yuan Ting's cave to recuperate."

"Young friend, you went to Xingzhu City to wait for Fellow Daoist Chen's return, but you haven't seen him since. Now that we meet again, I wonder if you have gained anything?"

Upon hearing this, the other three all looked at Cui Yuheng with a hint of curiosity in their eyes.

Qin Wuyai and Cangsong Daoist had both heard this name from Chen Yuan. Among the human cultivators in this world, it seemed that only this person knew the legends of the ancient human world.

Apart from one early-stage Nascent Soul cultivator, the others did not believe it.

This Gu Hongzi knows even the ancient secrets of tens of thousands of years ago. He should also know many secrets about the demon race that has ruled this world for tens of thousands of years, and may even know the location of the ascension passage.

If they can find out this person's identity, it might be helpful for the four of them in dealing with the demon race.

Cui Yuheng looked apologetic: "I am ashamed. I was so moved to see the four seniors today that I forgot about this matter for a moment."

"After receiving instructions from Senior Lu, I went to visit several reclusive cultivators to inquire about the whereabouts of this Gu Hongzi."

"But I visited six reclusive cultivators in a row, and none of them had ever heard of this person's name."

"Having no other choice, I went to inquire with Fellow Daoist Zhang Xuancang, who had met this Gu Hongzi once before."

"But he met this Gu Hongzi when he was searching for treasure in the Qingxu Mountains. They traveled together for a few days before parting ways."

"At the time, the person was wearing a mask to cover his face, and his voice was hoarse and dry, which was obviously a disguise."

"Fellow Daoist Zhang did witness Gu Hongzi's battle with someone, but he only shot out a streak of azure light, which killed a mid-level demon general, and then disappeared."

"Fellow Daoist Zhang only caught a glimpse of it and did not know what kind of magic weapon it was. He only knew that this person was extraordinary. Even a mid-level demon general was no match for him. He probably had the cultivation of the late Nascent Soul stage."

Upon hearing this, the four of them frowned.

The lone goose left no trace, so it seems impossible to find its whereabouts in the short term.

A hint of doubt flashed in Lu Wangquan's eyes as he murmured, "This Gu Hongzi was previously unknown, concealing his face and hiding his true nature, and he didn't even reveal his magical treasures or supernatural abilities."

"They sound so similar to the four of us. Could they also have crossed over from the human realm?"

The Taoist Cangsong paused, stroking his beard with his right hand, and shook his head slightly: "Besides us, there are no Nascent Soul cultivators in the human realm, and it is absolutely impossible for a great cultivator to cross the spatial passage. If this person is a cultivator from the human realm, how could he have crossed over to this realm?"

Qin Wuyai said calmly, "We were able to come to this world thanks to Fellow Daoist Chen. There is absolutely no way that this Gu Hongzi came from the human realm."

Upon hearing this, Cui Yuheng and Yuan Ting Zhenren quietly glanced at Chen Yuan. It turned out that these four Nascent Soul seniors were able to cross the perilous spatial passage and arrive in this world thanks to Senior Chen.

They recalled the scene of Chen Yuan wiping away the Blood Silk Gu with the strange white spiritual fire, and a sense of entitlement arose in their hearts.

No matter what other tricks this Senior Chen can use to erase the Blood Veil Gu, it doesn't seem surprising.

When he looked at the other three Nascent Soul seniors, he was still very respectful, but he lacked some of the heartfelt awe he felt.

……

The identity of Gu Hongzi remained a mystery, and the group didn't pay much attention to it.

He's at most a high-level cultivator. Lu Wangquan's request for Cui Yuheng to investigate this person's identity was just a casual move and wouldn't have a significant impact on the situation.

Lu Wangquan then stayed in the Misty Forest to recuperate, while Cui Yuheng led Daoist Cangsong to his cave to heal. Qin Wuyai and Chen Yuan returned to Xingzhu City together. Yuan Ting Zhenren went to find Shen Jibai, Fairy Zhu, and Master Jiuyuan, asking them to pay their respects to Chen Yuan and Qin Wuyai in Xingzhu City, as their help would be needed in the upcoming battle.

On their way back to Xingzhu City, Chen Yuan asked, "Does Fellow Daoist Qin know where the exit of that spatial passage is?"

Qin Wuyai's eyes flashed: "Why did Fellow Daoist Chen ask about this matter?"

Chen Yuan said calmly, "Although we were able to catch them off guard in this battle and have a good chance of winning, the risks are also extremely high. If we are ultimately defeated, we will still need to find a way out."

Qin Wuyai said with a half-smile, "I thought Fellow Daoist Chen was resolute and full of vigor, but I didn't expect him to have moments of fear in battle."

Chen Yuan said, "It's not that I'm afraid of fighting, it's just that I'm taking precautions."

Qin Wuyai shook his head: "I'm afraid I'll have to disappoint you, fellow Daoist. My mastery of spatial power is far inferior to yours."

"With the flapping of the Void Cicada's wings, the spatial fluctuations were violent and chaotic, and I, Qin, did not know the exact location of the spatial passage's exit."

Chen Yuan raised an eyebrow: "So, we have no way out. If we cannot win, we will all perish here."

Qin Wuyai nodded slightly: "Indeed, I hope Fellow Daoist Chen will not hold back. Use whatever means you have. If you fail, you will die trying."

Chen Yuan gave Qin Wuyai a meaningful look: "I will naturally not hold back, but among the four of us, only you are at the mid-stage of the Nascent Soul realm, with the deepest cultivation and the most powerful methods. You are the mainstay of this battle."

"The demon race has ruled this world for tens of thousands of years, and we don't know how many hidden cards they have. They are probably not as simple as they appear on the surface."

"If Fellow Daoist Qin continues to hold back his skills, we are afraid we will not have much of a chance of winning."

Qin Wuyai narrowed his eyes slightly and said calmly, "Fellow Daoist, rest assured, this concerns ascension, and I will naturally do my utmost."

……

After returning to Xingzhu City, Chen Yuan continued to refine the remaining two Demon Essence Pills, while Qin Wuyai meditated and adjusted his breathing in his cave.

Two months later, Chen Yuan refined the elixir, and his cultivation level increased slightly.

For an ordinary Nascent Soul cultivator, refining five pills would be equivalent to a hundred years of arduous cultivation.

But for Chen Yuan, even with the sixteen early-stage Nascent Soul pills he refined in the mortal realm, he had only just broken free from the initial Nascent Soul stage.

Another month later, Master Yuanting led Shen Jibai, Fairy Zhu, and Master Jiuyuan to Xingzhu City to pay their respects to Chen Yuan and Qin Wuyai.

Fairy Zhu was overjoyed to learn that four Nascent Soul cultivators had crossed over to deal with the demon race. She was extremely respectful in front of the two Nascent Soul seniors.

When Master Jiuyuan learned that Chen Yuan and his companions were about to take action against the demon race, he was greatly encouraged and showed a rare display of generosity.

However, Shen Jibai's smile was somewhat forced. He had already learned from Chen Yuan that he needed to lure out Yin Lu.

This was not difficult. He had secretly relied on the Howling Moon Silver Wolf clan for over a hundred years, and had a Blood Silk Gu planted in his body. All of this was done through Yin Lu's communication with him.

Shen Jibai's life was in someone else's hands, and Yin Lu offered him spirit stones and pills as bait, so he was willing to cooperate and repeatedly provided information.

Following Yinlu's instructions, he killed other royal family members and their affiliated demon generals, earning Yinlu's trust.

When Chen Yuan spoke, he had already come up with at least three reasons to lure Yin Lu out of the clan's territory.

But Chen Yuan's target was not just a small Yin Lu, but the patriarch of the Howling Moon Silver Wolf clan, and one of the five great demon generals of the Ten Thousand Demon Continent—"Howling Moon Wolf King" Yin Qianjie.

The demons of this realm are different from those of the human realm. They can communicate with the upper realm, and only demon cultivators who have reached the Void Refinement stage can be called Demon Kings.

However, the Refining Void Demon King was far away in the Upper Realm, while the Demon General stood at the top of this Realm.

Yin Qianjie might not care about these empty titles, but the Howling Moon Silver Wolf clan held this ancestor who had protected their clan for thousands of years in high esteem, bestowing upon him the title of Howling Moon Wolf King and praising him endlessly.

Shen Jibai was captured by Yin Qianjie himself. He had a moment of greed for life and was then infected with the Blood Silk Gu.

If Yin Qianjie hadn't made a move, he might have died at the hands of a high-ranking demon general of the Howling Moon Silver Wolf clan, but he would never have been captured alive.

Yin Qianjie simply made a casual move, and Shen Jibai was completely powerless to fight back.

He still remembers the overwhelming power of the Demon General, and the feeling of despair he felt was etched into his very being.

Shen Jibai had sought refuge with the demon race to save his life, so he certainly didn't want to confront them again, much less face Yin Qianjie once more.

Although he didn't need to fight the demon general, the thought of those high-ranking demon generals from the eight royal families sent chills down his spine.

Shen Jibai did not believe that Chen Yuan and the other three would have time to deal with the five demon generals and the five great cultivators.

But Shen Jibai was also very clear that ever since the Fire Lotus mark was planted in his body, he had no room for bargaining with Chen Yuan.

Seeing the exhilarated and excited state of Master Jiuyuan, Master Yuanting, and Fairy Zhu, Shen Jibai felt a sense of sorrow.

I wonder how many of the five great cultivators of the human race will survive this great battle? (End of Chapter)