Chapter 2051: Sealing the Soul

A Mortal's Journey to Immortality, Volume 10: Battle in the Demon Realm

"Hmm, but just to be safe, we still need someone to go and investigate. Elder Hui, I'll trouble you with this," the Patriarch of the Long family said to the black-robed man beside him after a moment of contemplation.

"It's a small matter. I can make a round trip in half a day," the man named Hui nodded upon hearing this. With a flash of dark light, he transformed into a long streak and shot through the air.

"Now, I have some questions for the two of you. If you answer truthfully, you will naturally be rewarded. But if there's even a hint of falsehood, you should know the consequences," the Patriarch of the Long family finally turned his gaze to the two demon cultivators and said plainly.

"Senior, please ask anything. We will tell you everything we know," the large demon cultivator responded immediately, a shiver running through him.

The demon elder, too, dared not breathe, his face full of deference.

"How far is Blood Crow City from here? Besides this city, what's the nearest city? Also, what's your city lord's name, and what's his cultivation level?" the Patriarch of the Long family asked in one breath.

Fortunately, though there were many questions, none were taboo or required concealment. So, after a slight shock, the large demon cultivator immediately replied truthfully:

"To answer Senior, Blood Crow City is about one hundred thousand li from here. The nearest other city would probably be Night Cultivation City, but it would take at least two months to get there. As for our city lord, he is Lord Bing Qiandan, who is likely at the mid-stage Demon Venerable realm."

"A mid-stage Demon Venerable, his cultivation isn't weak. What's the current situation in Blood Crow City? Are there any teleportation arrays connecting to other cities, or other ways to bypass the beast tide to the east?" The Patriarch of the Long family nodded and continued to press for information.

"Our city is currently under martial law to prevent sudden attacks from the Butterfly-tailed Beasts. However, if seniors wish to enter, there will certainly be no problem. As for teleportation arrays, we don't have any. Our city is too small to support a permanent teleportation array. There are ways to bypass the beast tide, of course, but the time it would take would likely be much longer than just a dozen days. It would be more advisable for seniors to wait for the beast tide to pass on its own before continuing your journey," the large demon cultivator replied honestly after a moment of hesitation.

"Regardless of how much time it takes, first tell me the method for bypassing the beast tide. I will judge its suitability myself. Also, you should have a map of the vicinity, right? Bring it out so I can make a copy," the Patriarch of the Long family said expressionlessly.

"Yes, Senior, this junior spoke out of turn earlier! The beast tide to the east affects a considerable area. To bypass it, one would have to pass through the Dead Leaf Forest to the south or the northern grasslands..." The large demon cultivator's expression changed in surprise, and he immediately began to explain rapidly without any further hesitation. Finally, he pulled a dark, crystalline stone from his robe and handed it to the Patriarch of the Long family.

The Patriarch of the Long family took the black crystal stone. Without ceremony, he also took out a white crystal stone and copied all its contents.

The Long family had specifically collected some of these items, which resembled spirit realm jade slips, before entering the Demon Realm.

Their functions and methods of use were similar to ordinary jade slips. However, activating these items required a certain amount of demonic qi to be mixed with spiritual power.

However, this small amount of demonic qi was negligible for someone like Han Li, who cultivated demonic arts. Even for others who possessed False Demonic Pearls, it posed no problem.

To avoid suspicion from the demon cultivators, the group had already been distributed a batch of such Demon Realm items.

Therefore, after the Patriarch of the Long family finished copying the map, he tossed the crystal stone to the others, allowing Saintess Qianqiu and the rest to copy it as well.

With the detailed map of the vicinity, they could naturally thoroughly study various methods to avoid the beast tide.

As a result, everyone, including Han Li, frowned after privately studying the map, finding the situation quite tricky.

"Fellow Daoist Han, if there truly is a Butterfly-tailed Beast tide to the east, it seems genuinely impossible to bypass it. Why don't we stay in the vicinity for a day or two and continue our journey once the beast tide has passed? After all, a delay of merely ten-odd days isn't critical for us. As for Blood Crow City, there's no need to go there, just in case," the Patriarch of the Long family's telepathic message suddenly sounded in Han Li's ear as he pondered in silence.

As a late-stage Integration cultivator, Han Li was naturally one of the first people the Patriarch of the Long family consulted.

"It's indeed not worth risking entering the eastern beast tide for such a short delay. However, regarding Blood Crow City, I think we should go in," Han Li said after a moment of contemplation.

"Oh, Brother Han, you must have your reasons for saying so. Could you enlighten me?" the Patriarch of the Long family sounded slightly surprised by the reply.

"Brother Long, your reluctance to enter the city is naturally due to fear of having our identities exposed. However, Blood Crow City is merely a small city, and it doesn't even have a teleportation array, so it's unlikely to have overly powerful restrictions. Our disguises should not be seen through. The main reason I suggest going to Blood Crow City is that we might stay in the Demon Realm for decades, even tens of years. Over such a long period, interaction with some demon cultivators will be unavoidable. While the False Demonic Pearls can disguise our aura, a simple understanding based on limited information might still lead to flaws in our speech and behavior. Furthermore, besides the Spirit Cleansing Pond and Pure Spirit Lotus, there should be other spiritual herbs in the Demon Realm that are rare in the Spirit Realm and could be quite beneficial to us. Brother Long, would you not want to take this opportunity to collect some?" Han Li calmly replied via telepathy.

"Brother Han's words do make sense. I'll discuss it with Fellow Daoist Qianqiu and the others first before deciding how to proceed." After listening, the Patriarch of the Long family's expression changed for a while, and he finally seemed convinced as he replied.

"Of course. I imagine Immortal Qianqiu and the other spirit race fellow daoists are even more eager to enter Blood Crow City than we are," Han Li replied with a soft, knowing chuckle.

"Heh heh, that's true. Indeed, there are several rare materials that the spirit race greatly needs, which can only be found in abundance in the Demon Realm," the Patriarch of the Long family was slightly startled at first, but then burst into laughter. He then stopped his conversation with Han Li and sent a telepathic message to Saintess Qianqiu.

Upon hearing the Patriarch of the Long family's telepathic message, Saintess Qianqiu initially showed a hint of surprise, but then her lips curled into a slight smile, and she immediately began discussing eagerly via telepathy.

Their conversation did not last long. Saintess Qianqiu did not even consult with the other Sacred Spirits again before giving the Patriarch of the Long family a very clear reply.

As expected, on this matter, these spirit race individuals had already made their decisions in secret.

When the Patriarch of the Long family replied to Han Li, he confirmed the decision for the group to temporarily enter Blood Crow City, provided the eastern beast tide was indeed present.

As for this decision, the feathered-robed maiden and the long-haired man from the Lin family were naturally informed a little later.

Neither of them had any differing opinions, looking indifferent.

The large demon cultivator and the demon elder naturally understood what Han Li and the others had been discussing, but they remained extremely honest, not daring to make any slight movements.

After all, with so many "Demon Venerable" lords gathered there, it would be effortless for any one of them to take their lives.

And so, half a day later, a tearing sound echoed in the sky, and a dark light shot over. It was the black-robed man who had gone to scout, flying back.

"Brother Hui, was your trip smooth? Have you ascertained the situation of the beast tide?"

As soon as the light landed, the Patriarch of the Long family immediately stepped forward a few paces and asked with a smile.

"Brother Long, there are indeed countless Butterfly-tailed Beasts blocking the way to the east, occupying the entire eastern route. I'm somewhat ashamed, but I didn't dare get too close. I merely observed from a distance for a while before flying back to report to all of you, fellow daoists," the black-robed man said with a wry smile and began to recount the results of his investigation.

Although the Patriarch of the Long family had long anticipated this, he still carefully asked several specific questions about the beast tide. He then lowered his head in thought for a moment before suddenly raising an arm and flicking a finger.

*Thump, thump*, two muffled thuds!

Two streaks of golden light shot out like lightning, disappearing in a flash into the bodies of the two demon cultivators who stood bound.

Neither of them could have imagined that a Demon Venerable Lord would suddenly attack them, and in such a surreptitious manner. Almost as soon as the golden light entered their bodies, they immediately fell, completely unprepared.

Aside from Han Li, the expressions of the others could not help but change.

"Brother Long, what is the meaning of this? Do we still need them to guide us to Blood Crow City?" the old Confucian scholar Zang Xing asked, his eyes flickering slightly.

"Don't we already know the location of Blood Crow City? Why would we need these two demon cultivators to guide us? Moreover, I did not take their lives; I merely knocked them unconscious," the Patriarch of the Long family said without changing his expression.

"Oh, could Fellow Daoist Long be planning to..." Zang Xing, a being who had gained sentience countless millennia ago, immediately showed a hint of understanding upon hearing this.

"Exactly. Rashly killing these two might attract the attention of Blood Crow City's lord. While we needn't fear a mere mid-stage Demon Venerable, it's better to avoid unnecessary trouble. I intend to use the Great Soul Sealing Art to temporarily seal their memories of us, and then release them. As for us, we'll simply disguise ourselves as ordinary demon cultivators and blend into Blood Crow City. This way, I imagine the demon cultivators of that city won't pay us much attention," the Patriarch of the Long family said with confidence.

"This is indeed a good method, but is your Great Soul Sealing Art reliable, Brother Long? We wouldn't want the Demon Venerable of Blood Crow City to notice anything amiss," the long-haired man from the Lin family asked with some concern.

"Heh heh, this technique is a secret art passed down by an ancient great power. Unless a Demon Race Holy Ancestor personally inspects them, absolutely no one will discover anything unusual about these two. Otherwise, wouldn't I be adding feet to a snake?" the Patriarch of the Long family chuckled.

Seeing the Patriarch of the Long family so confident, the others naturally felt at ease. With a single-handed grab, the Patriarch of the Long family instantly drew the demon elder closer. He then exhaled a cloud of purple light that completely enveloped the elder's face.

Next, with golden light flickering in his eyes, he stared intently at the elder's eyes, while simultaneously chanting incantations and casting his spell.