A Compendium of One Hundred Demons: My Path to Immortality in a World of Demons and Monsters

As night fell, the campfire blazed brightly in the Demon Valley camp.

Xu Yuan was sitting in the tent, about to continue his cultivation, when he suddenly sensed an aura approaching.

The next moment, a figure appeared out of thin air; it was the middle-aged scholar from earlier that day.

This person had a friendly smile, and his aura was restrained, making it impossible to discern his true strength.

"Young Master Xu, I apologize for disturbing you." He cupped his hands and said, "My surname is Du, and my given name is An."

Xu Yuan rose and returned the greeting: "What advice do you have for me, Mr. Du?"

Du An smiled, took out a jade slip from his sleeve, and placed it on the table.

"This is an invitation from Tianwu Academy," he said softly. "We have all witnessed your performance today. If you are interested after the Demon-Slaying Tournament, you may come to the capital to find me with this jade slip."

Xu Yuan's heart skipped a beat, but his face remained calm: "Thank you for your kind words, Mr. Du, but I still have some doubts—"

"Does the young master want to ask why today, instead of waiting until the final rankings are released?" Du An asked with a smile.

Xu Yuan nodded.

Duan looked at him meaningfully: "Because today's battle is enough to prove your potential, young master. As for the final ranking... that's just icing on the cake."

He paused, then said, "However, young master, you should know that our Tianwu Academy has always been selective in its recruitment of students, preferring quality over quantity. This invitation is merely an entry ticket; whether you can truly enroll depends on passing the entrance examination."

"Entrance exam?"

"You'll know when the time comes." Du An cupped his hands in greeting. "The message has been delivered. I'll take my leave now."

He turned and left, disappearing into the night.

Xu Yuan picked up the jade slip and probed it with his true essence.

The jade slip contained only four large, elegant characters:

"Tianwu Academy!"

Xu Yuan put away the jade slip, a slight smile playing on his lips.

Kyoto, Tianwu Academy...

The world is getting bigger and bigger.

But Xu Yuan was not afraid of the long journey.

Meanwhile, at the Liu family camp.

Liu Ruyan also sat cross-legged, with two men in black standing in front of her, their auras heavy and imposing.

"Miss, we've found out." A man in black whispered, "The black light Xu Yuan used to slay the demon today is suspected to be... a funerary artifact from an ancient text!"

Liu Ruyan's eyes narrowed: "A funerary object?"

"Yes, your subordinate consulted ancient texts and found that the Netherworld Artifacts are the treasures of the ancient Netherworld Palace, each possessing unfathomable power. If he truly possesses one of these Netherworld Artifacts..."

Liu Ruyan was silent for a moment, then suddenly smiled.

That smile was cold.

"So what if it's a funerary object?" She stood up and walked to the tent flap. "My master once said, 'A common man is innocent, but possessing a treasure is a crime.' Does this country bumpkin from a mountain village deserve to possess such a treasure?"

She turned to look at the two men in black.

"Pass down the order: after the Demon-Slaying Assembly, I want him... never to leave Cangzhou City!"

"yes!"

A night breeze swept by, swirling up a withered leaf.

In the Valley of Demons, the campfire gradually died down.

But an unseen undercurrent is gradually stirring...

On the fifth and sixth days of the Demon-Slaying Tournament, everyone was resting.

Xu Yuan also did not go out hunting, but stayed in the camp to digest the gains of the past few days.

He extracted the demon core from the Crimson Scale Python and used his newly acquired [Demon Core Devouring] ability to refine it directly.

The immense demonic power flowed like a river into the sea, and under the transformation of the [Body of Eternal Hunger], it turned into pure true essence.

[Progress of opening the ninth acupoint "Central Hub": 100%]

[Progress of opening the tenth acupoint "Suspension Pivot": 8%]

[Soul Strength +12%]

[New Feature: Demonic Aura Perception (Can sense the flow of demonic aura and predict its attack trajectory)]

Xu Yuan opened his eyes and let out a long breath.

Condense the ten acupoints!

Only two apertures away from reaching the mid-stage of the Condensation Aperture realm!

He stretched his limbs, feeling the surging true energy within his body, and a satisfied smile appeared on his lips.

At this moment, the tent flap was lifted, and Meng Hu immediately poked his head in.

"Brother Xu! Come out quickly, something terrible has happened!"

Xu Yuan raised an eyebrow: "What's wrong?"

"The draw results for your opponents in the arena battles are in!" Meng Hu said with a strange expression. "Guess who your opponent is for the first match?"

"Who?"

"Liu Ruyan!"

Xu Yuan was stunned for a moment, then smiled.

"interesting."

…………

On the seventh day, the arena battles officially began.

In the center of Demon Spirit Valley, a huge arena, three zhang high, had been erected in advance, with banners waving all around and the stands packed with people.

Today's arena battles will determine the final rankings of the Demon-Slaying Tournament.

The first match was between Xu Yuan and Liu Ruyan.

Xu Yuan walked slowly onto the arena, dressed in a blue robe, his expression calm.

Opposite her, Liu Ruyan wore a fiery red dress, a long sword hanging at her waist, her phoenix eyes filled with icy killing intent.

The audience was abuzz with discussion.

"Xu Yuan versus Liu Ruyan? This is the opening act!"

"Liu Ruyan has condensed nine apertures, while Xu Yuan is only at the early stage of aperture condensation. Isn't this suicide?"

"What do you know! Xu Yuan single-handedly killed the Crimson Scale Python, a half-step Demon General, yesterday!"

"That's different! The Crimson Scale Python is a demon, and Xu Yuan clearly succeeded by using some unknown treasure. But Liu Ruyan is an inner disciple of the Green Mountain Sect, with a long and distinguished lineage and a wealth of secret techniques. How can a demon compare to her?"

"That's true. It seems that Xu Yuan's chances are slim."

“…………”

On the high platform, Shangguan Yunhe sat in the center, his gaze fixed on Xu Yuan with great interest.

The white-haired old man stroked his beard and smiled, the middle-aged scholar waved his feather fan, and the man in black robes remained motionless.

Shen Moyan stood below the stage, arms crossed, a smile playing on his lips.

Beside him, Lin Xiaotian frowned and asked, "Senior Brother Shen, can Xu Yuan really defeat Liu Ruyan?"

Shen Moyan said calmly, "Whether we can win or not, we'll only know after we fight."

"clang--!"

With the sound of the gong, the arena battle officially began amidst the anticipation of the crowd!

Liu Ruyan drew her sword from its sheath; the blade was crimson red, faintly radiating a scorching aura.

"Xu Yuan, I've been waiting for this day for a long time," she said coldly. "Today, I will make you pay for my brother's life!"

Xu Yuan looked at her and suddenly smiled.

"Miss Liu, you keep saying I killed your brother, but do you have any evidence?"

"Evidence?" Liu Ruyan sneered. "You were the last person my brother saw before he disappeared. What more evidence do you need?"

"The last time he saw me?" Xu Yuan shook his head. "I've never seen him before, so how can you say it was the last time he saw me?"

"Nonsense!" Liu Ruyan was too lazy to waste any more words. With a wave of her longsword, a crimson sword aura roared out!

The sword energy was extremely hot, and the air distorted wherever it passed.

Xu Yuan neither dodged nor evaded, his right hand forming a fist, unleashing the [Yaksha Power] and [Demon Transformation] simultaneously, and he threw a punch!

"Bang--!"

The sword energy was shattered by the force of the fist, turning into a sky full of sparks.

Liu Ruyan's pupils contracted slightly.

Although her sword strike was merely a test, it still possessed seventy percent of her power, something an ordinary early-stage Qi Condensation cultivator simply couldn't withstand.

Xu Yuan, however, only used one punch!

"You've got some skill." She snorted coldly, and with a flash, her longsword transformed into a sky full of sword shadows, pouring down like a torrential rain!

"Crimson Flame Sword Technique—A Single Spark Can Start a Prairie Fire!"

Sword shadows filled the sky, each carrying a scorching aura, enveloping Xu Yuan.

A gasp of surprise immediately erupted from the audience.

"It's the Liu family's Crimson Flame Sword Technique!"

"It's said that when mastered to its peak, it can burn mountains and boil seas! Liu Ruyan's sword strike has at least reached thirty percent of that level!"

"Xu Yuan is finished!"

However, Xu Yuan remained standing in the same spot.

With his [Yin Qi Perception] and [Demon Qi Perception] abilities fully activated, those sword shadows instantly transformed into countless flowing trajectories in his eyes.

And every trajectory began to have a traceable pattern.

After a moment, Xu Yuan finally moved.

He moved like a ghost among the sword shadows, narrowly avoiding them each time they were about to strike.

Three breaths later, the sword shadow dissipated.

Xu Yuan remained standing in the same spot, completely unharmed.

The entire room fell silent!