"Please forgive me, Brother Feihong, but I only came out of seclusion this time to get some fresh air," Ni Daxing naturally refused.
Are you kidding? He thought. He was currently in the stage of switching to a Demon Technique, making leaps and bounds in his cultivation. He was preparing to stir up a massive flood in the Luoxing River to wipe out a million living beings and carve out a Demon Realm.
How could he possibly go out with Feihong Ancestor to track down demonic traces and eradicate Demons?
He was the Demon!
However, reminded by Feihong Ancestor, Ni Daxing couldn’t help but feel a bit hesitant about his flood plan.
He wondered which idiot had exposed not only themselves but also the Demon Ancestor, leading to the entire world searching for Demon Cultivators. In that case, stirring up a flood right now would be too eye-catching.
What should he do?
Ni Daxing subconsciously wanted to contact the Demon Ancestor for advice. However, he quickly stopped himself. First, his Demon Technique cultivation was still shallow; it wouldn’t be easy for him to contact the Demon Ancestor or vice versa. Second, if he asked the Demon Ancestor about everything, he would seem too incompetent. There was no rush; he had other methods!
Ni Daxing’s mind raced, while Feihong Ancestor nodded in understanding.
"Brother Ni is whole-heartedly devoted to your Techniques. I admire you," Feihong Ancestor sighed emotionally, then gave a self-deprecating laugh. "Unfortunately, I have reached the end of my path. I don’t have many pursuits left.
"However, since Brother Ni is out for some fresh air, there’s no need to stay at the bottom of Luoxing Lake all the time." Feihong Ancestor changed the subject, inviting him, "As you know, I am a wild goose. I always feel uncomfortable underwater. A few days ago, I took a stroll through the Prefecture City and discovered a newly opened tavern. The alcohol and meat are both excellent. It’s rare for us to meet, so why don’t we go up and have a few drinks?"
Having just rejected Feihong Ancestor’s invitation to hunt Demons together, Ni Daxing felt that refusing a meal on top of it would be too disrespectful.
So, he set down his wine cup and laughed heartily. "Brother Feihong is truly free-spirited as always. If it weren’t for you, I don’t know how much fine wine and good food I would have missed out on."
Feihong Ancestor laughed and stood up. "There’s no time like the present. Let’s go now and drink to our hearts’ content. Afterward, you can return to your seclusion, and I will head north to hunt Demons."
"Alright!" Ni Daxing nodded, and the two of them left Luoxing Lake together.
The two arrived at Luoxing Prefecture City and entered Star-Picking Tower, an establishment that had been open for less than half a year. They ordered the boss’s secret home-brewed alcohol and dishes meticulously prepared by the head chef.
Ni Daxing hadn’t contacted the Demon Ancestor in years. Sensing that Feihong Ancestor had a better grasp of the current situation regarding Demon Cultivators than he did, he couldn’t help but beat around the bush to gather some information.
"Mountain State Cloud Celestial Palace Master, Yun Fei’ang, was a famous rising star. I remember you even did him a favor. Has he become a Fallen Demon too?"
"That’s right. Beneath Cloud Heaven Cliff, there is a full three hundred miles of Demon Realm. Many civilians in Shanzhou were massacred by him, and the blame was pushed onto those Ghosts in the West."
"Those Ghost Gods in the West are no good either."
"That is true."
"Although Elder Gu Song was eccentric, he didn’t seem like the type to murder people, did he?" Ni Daxing asked again.
"It was because his lifespan was nearing its end, and he didn’t want to die," Feihong Ancestor said faintly.
Ni Daxing looked at Feihong Ancestor with a strange expression.
Feihong Ancestor looked back thoughtfully. "Life and death are determined by fate. I don’t want myself or my descendants to turn into those bizarre, twisted Demons."
Ni Daxing’s cheek twitched slightly. He forced a smile, showing no outward abnormalities.
"There’s no need to even mention Moon Devouring Sect Master and Netherfire Sect Leader. Those two were tyrannical and highly ambitious, but unfortunately, their innate talent couldn’t support their ambitions. Only by cultivating Demon Techniques could their desires be satisfied." Feihong Ancestor snorted. "Little do they know, cultivating Demon Techniques is a path of no return. When the Demon Ancestor descended ten thousand years ago, wasn’t he severely injured and forced into a slumber to this day? They willingly corrupted themselves to become the Demon Ancestor’s pawns, but they won’t escape death and the destruction of their Daos."
A trace of disdain flashed through Ni Daxing’s eyes, mocking the other’s ignorance, but he remained silent.
Right at that moment, Ni Daxing’s expression changed. He abruptly turned his head to look in the direction of Luoxing Lake.
"What’s wrong?" Feihong Ancestor asked, just as he picked up a slice of beef with his chopsticks.
Without a word, Ni Daxing leaped out of the tavern and bolted toward his home.
Feihong Ancestor’s eyes flickered. He casually tossed an ingot of silver onto the table and stretched his body like a wild goose. Moving with deceptive slowness, he was actually incredibly fast as he caught up to Ni Daxing’s side.
"Did someone break into your cave dwelling?" Feihong Ancestor asked.
"I don’t know what ignorant little..." Before Ni Daxing could finish his sentence, his expression turned to shock.
At this moment, they had just arrived near the shores of Luoxing Lake. The previously calm Luoxing Lake suddenly began to boil. The lake’s surface, which had been shimmering with silver stars, suddenly turned pitch-black. Then, wisps of black qi seeped out from the water.
This black qi appeared thin, but it contained a twisted, sinister aura that reeked of an intoxicating, corrupting madness.
Ni Daxing paled in shock.
But just as his mind raced, unable to comprehend how his cave dwelling’s Array had been breached so quickly, Feihong Ancestor, who was trailing a pace behind him, made his move.
He had originally been invited by Bai Fei to stall Ni Daxing for a while. Ni Daxing was a loner. He lived alone in his Luoxing Lake cave dwelling and didn’t interact much with others. Feihong Ancestor was the only one who had any sort of friendship with him. Thus, Bai Fei had sought out Feihong Ancestor.
Naturally, Feihong Ancestor hadn’t believed that Ni Daxing had become a Fallen Demon. But Bai Fei had said that as long as Feihong Ancestor stalled him for a bit, the people from Daluo Palace would be able to break through the Luoxing Lake cave dwelling’s Restrictions and find evidence of Ni Daxing Cultivating Demons. If it was confirmed that Ni Daxing had not become a Fallen Demon, they were willing to give him a proper explanation.
And so, Feihong Ancestor came. The moment he saw Demonic Qi surging from the lake, his doubts vanished. With the filter of friendship gone and the confirmation that the other party was indeed a Fallen Demon, Feihong Ancestor struck out decisively, without any hesitation.
Chopping out with his hand, Feihong Ancestor’s condensed Demon Power acted as a blade, striking Ni Daxing’s ribs. The blow sent him flying diagonally, away from the direction of Luoxing Lake.
Ni Daxing’s true Body belonged to the water attribute, and Luoxing Lake provided him with a geographical advantage. If he was allowed to enter the lake, fighting him would likely involve many more complications.
BOOM!
Still reeling from the shock of his cave dwelling’s seals being breached so quickly, Ni Daxing was caught off guard and sent flying by Feihong Ancestor’s hand chop.
However, since Feihong Ancestor had acted on the spur of the moment and Ni Daxing was a Great Demon with years of cultivation, he wasn’t injured despite being knocked away.
But just as Ni Daxing adjusted his posture and glared furiously at Feihong Ancestor, four figures shot forward and surrounded him.
One was a breathtakingly beautiful woman in a trailing white gauze dress, one was a spirited young man in embroidered robes and a jade belt, one was a middle-aged man in golden scale armor, and the last was an elderly man in a snug black outfit.
Ni Daxing’s pupils constricted abruptly. "Shen Yingzhou! Li Jue!"
The middle-aged man in golden scale armor and the elderly man in the black outfit were precisely the Director of the Pingzhou Spirit Court and the Altar Master of the Xuanwei Divine Sect’s Pingzhou branch.
As for the other two, they were naturally the White Spirit Mountain Master, Bai Fei, and the Sect Leader of the Wangzhou Holy Union Sect, Ye Yunsheng.
The next moment, the waters of Luoxing Lake exploded, and eight more figures burst out from the water.
"Blessed Infinite Celestial Venerable!"