Nine Transformations of the True Spirit.

Hundreds of millions of miles away from Beiming Island, a vast plateau, spanning tens of thousands of miles, rises abruptly from the ground, reaching a height of thousands of feet.

The ground is covered with frosty white frozen soil, stretching endlessly and never fading away.

In such a harsh environment, as far as the eye can see, there are almost no trees, only low grass and moss that cling to the ground, growing tenaciously.

But this barren land is teeming with life, home to millions of low-level demonic beasts.

In the center of the plateau, even more majestic mountains rise up, perpetually covered with snow.

One after another, enormous one-horned rhinoceroses slowly traversed the towering mountains, easily crossing even the steepest terrain with remarkable agility, which seemed disproportionate to their bulky bodies.

Demon generals and human slaves occasionally flew by in the sky. Among them, the demon generals were particularly burly, standing at least two zhang tall, with a skin that was faintly grayish-white, making them easy to distinguish.

Most of the slaves wore thick fur coats, which upon closer inspection were found to be made of the fur of demonic beasts.

The high-altitude mountains are extremely cold, and the air contains a faint, icy power that human cultivators, with their weak bodies, find difficult to withstand.

At the top of the most precipitous mountain peak stands a stone tablet several meters high, inscribed with the four large characters "Kuangxi Cave Mansion," carved with a bold and imposing style.

At this moment, heavy snow was falling from the sky, and the wind was howling. Snowflakes the size of a palm swept across the stone tablet, but left no trace before quietly disappearing.

Halfway up the mountain, a cave dwelling with its stone door tightly closed, was where the Mad Rhinoceros Demon General was cultivating with his eyes closed. His gray-white, muscular body sat cross-legged, like a silent stone sculpture.

Beneath him, a spirit-gathering array glowed faintly, drawing in the spiritual energy of heaven and earth, which condensed into a thin layer of spiritual mist.

With each breath, the Mad Rhino Demon General's aura fluctuated, emanating a chilling pressure.

Time passed silently during his cultivation. A month later, he stopped cultivating, and the powerful pressure of his mid-level demon general gradually subsided as he opened his eyes.

Two beams of light shot out, illuminating the dim stone chamber, before disappearing.

The Mad Rhino Demon General sighed softly, stood up, and showed a hint of dejection on his face.

He secluded himself for months, constantly nourishing his physical body with spiritual energy, but only managed to improve it slightly. He was still a long way from becoming a high-level demon general.

He clenched his enormous fist, feeling the immense power surging within him, yet a bitter smile appeared on his rugged face.

The Mad Rhinoceros bloodline is known for its immense strength, and as the only demon general of the Mad Rhinoceros clan, his strength is even more formidable.

When he was a low-level demon general, he fought against a mid-level demon general without being at a disadvantage, which earned him the appreciation of the Wood-Eating Demon King.

Later, he made great contributions in the war between the two worlds and was granted this territory of millions of miles by the Wood Erosion Demon King, where he established the Mad Rhinoceros Cave, which has been there for ten thousand years.

His cultivation never stopped. After more than four thousand years of arduous training, he ventured into dangerous places several times to search for rare and precious materials, experiencing life-and-death crises. Finally, more than five thousand years ago, he advanced to the mid-level Demon General rank.

He continued his arduous cultivation, nourishing his body with the spiritual energy of heaven and earth, and painstakingly searching for body-tempering herbs to improve his cultivation.

Two thousand years ago, he finally raised his physical body and cultivation to the peak of the mid-level demon general, only a hair's breadth away from the high-level demon general.

But after that, his physical body and cultivation stagnated, and he could not make any progress.

The Mad Rhino Demon General knew that without an extraordinary stroke of luck, his cultivation path would likely end here.

The bloodline of the Mad Rhinoceros is inherently mediocre, possessing no other advantages besides immense strength, and its potential is extremely limited.

Before the Mad Rhino Demon General, the Mad Rhino clan had never produced a Demon General, and even high-ranking Demon Generals were few and far between.

Although the lineage of low- to mid-level demon generals has never been broken, they are only slightly stronger than pure wild demons.

The Mad Rhinoceros Demon General already possessed a pure bloodline that was a rare find in the clan, but he only cultivated to the level of a high-ranking demon general before stopping there.

Fortunately, during the war between the two realms, he happened to encounter a critically injured early-stage Nascent Soul cultivator and killed him with all his might.

He nearly lost his life in the counterattack of that early-stage Nascent Soul cultivator, but he managed to escape with his powerful physique.

With the treasure in the hands of that early Nascent Soul cultivator, and the reward from the demon general he was attached to at the time, he finally broke through the bottleneck and became the only demon general in the history of the Mad Rhino Clan.

Afterwards, opening his own domain and breaking through to the intermediate-level demon general were also quite smooth, making the Mad Rhino Demon General full of pride and even giving rise to the ambition to glimpse the realm of the demon king.

But just as he was making great strides and trying to break through to become a high-ranking demon general, he ran into a mountain.

He could easily destroy a thousand-foot mountain, but he couldn't break through this invisible mountain.

Two thousand years of time have forced him to admit that the potential of the Mad Rhino bloodline has been exhausted.

Even without body-tempering herbs, his physical body could slowly strengthen with the nourishment of the spiritual energy of heaven and earth, though it would take more time.

But now, even though he has been nourishing himself with the spiritual energy of heaven and earth for several months, his physical body has not improved in the slightest.

Even the effects of a three-thousand-year-old body-tempering herb are negligible.

Perhaps only a few legendary body-refining artifacts can help him break through this bottleneck.

But those rare treasures, coveted even by demon kings and demon saints, would never fall into the hands of a mere mid-level demon general like him.

In the past, when the Mad Rhinoceros Demon General's cultivation was advancing rapidly, he didn't care much about the difference in bloodlines, thinking that the royal and holy bloodlines were just more powerful in terms of talent and supernatural abilities.

His immense strength was also incredibly powerful, enough to briefly contend with a demon general whose cultivation was a level higher, and he might even have a chance of winning.

But now, he finally understands why the demon race takes bloodline as its foundation.

Without a sufficiently powerful bloodline and an extraordinary stroke of luck, one can forget about ever reaching a higher realm.

The Mad Rhinoceros Demon General stood up, took heavy steps, walked out of the cultivation room, and came to a beautifully furnished stone hall.

Two beautiful, curvaceous human female cultivators stood there, their expressions respectful, with gentle smiles on their faces.

While a Nascent Soul cultivator's cultivation level in the early stages is like an ant in front of the Mad Rhinoceros Demon General, it is already quite high among human slaves, especially among beautiful female slaves, where it is even more rare.

They were the concubines of the Mad Rhinoceros Demon General. When they saw him walk out of the cultivation room, they immediately came forward, bowed gracefully, and greeted him sweetly.

A surge of heat rose in the heart of the Mad Rhino Demon General, and the dejection caused by his stagnant cultivation was suppressed.

He strode over to his two concubines, reached out his large hands, roughly turned them around, pressed them side by side onto the stone table, and lifted their thin gauze robes.

…………

An hour later, the Mad Rhino Demon General straightened his clothes and walked out of the cave, looking refreshed. Behind him, two concubines lay naked on a soft blanket, their faces flushed, their breaths weak, their expressions pained, and their bodies covered in bruises.

The Mad Rhino Demon General's cultivation was too high and his strength too great. Although he had tried to control himself, his concubine, who was in the early stage of the Nascent Soul realm, still could not withstand it and was left with many scars.

However, their bodies had already been sealed with divine soul restrictions, leaving them no room for resistance and forcing them to silently endure.

The Mad Rhino Demon General still felt some regret. If it were a Nascent Soul cultivator, he would be able to ravage it at will. It would be better if it were a female demon general.

However, female demon generals who have taken human form are extremely rare among the demon race; the Mad Rhinoceros Demon General only has five under his command.

Moreover, these five demon generals each had their own flaws in appearance. Some were too burly, some still retained some characteristics from before their transformation, and some were ugly, making them incomparable to the fair-skinned and beautiful human female cultivators.

In the past, the Mad Rhino Demon General wished he could use all his cultivation resources to temper his physical body and improve his cultivation level.

He found it hard to understand why many demon generals would go to great lengths to exchange top-grade spirit stones, or even more precious top-grade spiritual materials, cultivation pills, and body-tempering herbs, for human female cultivators to take as concubines.

Now he finally understood that when cultivation is hindered and one is disheartened, a gentle and beautiful concubine is a hundred times better than a cold, hard top-grade spirit stone.

However, he had become accustomed to ascetic training and had a clan to care for, so he was ultimately reluctant to spend too many spirit stones on human female slaves.

He bought several female cultivators who had reached the Core Formation stage to help them reach the Nascent Soul stage. He was lucky enough to get two concubines who were at the early Nascent Soul stage.

This is also what most demon generals do, as it saves a lot of spirit stones compared to directly buying Nascent Soul female slaves.

However, after the divine soul restriction was placed, his cultivation level mostly stopped there, leaving the Mad Rhino Demon General unable to fully enjoy himself each time.

With a slight regret, he left the cave, his escape light flashing as he flew towards a grand hall atop a distant mountain peak, preparing to summon the demon generals of his clan to deal with the numerous matters that had accumulated over the past few months.

Just as the Mad Rhinoceros Demon General flew out of the mountain peak, a shooting star suddenly appeared on the horizon, heading straight for this place.

The Mad Rhinoceros Demon General's eyes narrowed; this was clearly a streak of light.

The meteor was extremely fast, and it quickly covered a distance of hundreds of miles before flying into the mountains.

The Mad Rhinoceros Demon General spread his divine sense and could vaguely see the figure in the escape light.

This person was dressed in a black outfit, and his size was about the same as that of the slaves under the command of the Mad Rhino Demon General. He wore a gold-threaded openwork mask that covered half of his face, making it impossible to see his appearance.

But behind the mask, a pair of dazzling, cold, and ruthless silver pupils swirled with wisps of lightning, containing a trace of supreme divine might.

Looking into those silver eyes, the Mad Rhino Demon General inexplicably recalled the Transformation Lightning Tribulation that had nearly killed him, and a sense of dread arose in his heart, causing him to freeze in place.

The arrival of the group was so imposing that it alarmed the entire mountain range. The demon generals and human slaves in the sky, as well as the giant rhinoceros with one horn in the mountains, all looked up at them with expressions of astonishment.

A mid-level demon general with ashen skin rose from the mountain and went to meet him, shouting, "Who goes there...?"

Before he could finish speaking, the man in black glanced at him with an indifferent look in his eyes.

He flicked his finger, and a bolt of lightning shot out, piercing through the demon general's vital point and leaving a charred wound.

The mid-level demon general suddenly stopped, his face still bearing the stern expression of his rebuke, before he suddenly exploded, turning into a pile of charred ash!
The deafening explosion of the demon general finally made the Mad Rhinoceros Demon Commander suppress his slight tremor. He flew into a rage and shouted, "Who dares to run wild in the Mad Rhinoceros Cave!"

He took the initiative to greet the man in black. This man dared to trespass into the Mad Rhinoceros Cave and even killed a Mad Rhinoceros Demon General right in front of him. This was truly outrageous!

Mad Rhino Demon General could see clearly that the man in black had revealed his aura when he made his move, indicating that he was also a mid-level demon general, just like himself.

Moreover, his aura is not as profound as mine, suggesting that he has only recently advanced to the mid-level demon general rank.

With such cultivation, yet so unrestrained, the Mad Rhinoceros Demon General naturally would not back down, nor could he afford to.

Otherwise, if today's events were to spread, the Mad Rhino Cave would surely become the target of other demon generals.

Several demon generals had originally taken to the sky, but upon seeing the Mad Rhinoceros Demon Commander personally take action and sensing the oppressive aura emanating from the man in black, they immediately descended and dared not interfere in the battle between the demon generals.

The many giant rhinoceroses traveling through the mountains shrank their necks, but did not hide away. Instead, they looked up at the sky, anticipating how the Mad Rhinoceros Demon Commander would punish this audacious madman.

The man in black flew right up to the Mad Rhinoceros Demon General before stopping. He didn't say anything, just gave him a cold look, and then raised his hand to form a hand seal.

His eyes shone brightly with silver light, and suddenly dark clouds gathered in the sky. Within a few breaths, they covered an area of ​​a hundred miles, layer upon layer, obscuring the sky and the sun. The entire mountain range was darkened in an instant, with only wisps of lightning flashing between the clouds.

The Mad Rhinoceros Demon General's expression changed drastically. He suddenly stopped, and his fierce aura vanished without a trace.

The low-hanging leaden clouds seemed to press down on his heart, and the trembling he had suppressed welled up again from the bottom of his heart, making the feeling of facing the tribulation of transformation even stronger.

He felt like an ant facing the might of heaven and earth, about to be pulverized at any moment.

Having experienced countless battles and faced life-or-death situations many times, the Mad Rhino Demon General was incredibly experienced in combat. He immediately realized that this was a thunderous divine power containing the might of a heavenly tribulation, which he could not possibly withstand!
He roared, and his demonic power surged forth, instantly transforming into a gray-white, one-horned giant rhinoceros a hundred feet tall, which then turned and flew back to the mountain peak where his cave was located.

The mountain peak is surrounded by an array that can block high-level demon generals. Only by using the array and relying on his powerful physical body can he possibly block this thunderous divine power.

The Mad Rhinoceros Demon General was filled with regret at this moment. Why had he been so stingy with spirit stones and not set up a large array around the entire mountain range?

But it's too late to say anything now; no demon general would set up such a grand formation.

He never imagined that a mid-level demon general would violate the rules set by the Great Sages, launch a surprise attack on the Mad Rhino Cave, and even unleash such a powerful divine ability!
The man in black gave a cold laugh: "Too late!"

He pointed his finger, and the dark clouds all stopped abruptly. With a deafening roar, a bolt of lightning descended from the sky, stealing all the light from heaven and earth. It twisted and turned, striking the one-horned giant rhinoceros.

The giant rhinoceros's body suddenly stiffened as an enormous wound pierced its vital organs. The light in its eyes faded, and it crashed to the ground.

Only one thought echoed in its mind: Why would such a powerful demon general attack it?

The man in black waved his hand, and the dark clouds dispersed, allowing the sunlight to shine down again, but the entire mountain range fell into a deathly silence.

The demon general, the human slave, and the one-horned giant rhinoceros stared intently at the corpse of the Mad Rhinoceros Demon General. Suddenly, a scream rang out, and they all fled towards the outside of the mountain range. Only the human slave, who had been placed under a restriction by the Mad Rhinoceros Demon General, perished here.

The man in black ignored the fleeing people, descended in a flash of light, and his silver eyes returned to normal.

He flicked his finger, and a bolt of lightning shot out, severing the Mad Rhinoceros Demon General's single horn.

Then, with a wave of his hand, a grayish-white demon core flew out of the wound and landed in his palm.

The man in black smiled slightly, put away the demon core, and vanished in a flash, leaving only the hundred-foot-long, one-horned giant rhinoceros, still twitching slightly, and the chaotic rhinoceros clan. (End of Chapter)