Chapter 317: What Kind of Spiritual Beast Do You Want?

"Sir, you must be joking. Our melons are grown in sandy soil. Unripe? If they were unripe, would I even be selling them?"

The greater demon, disguised as a melon vendor, reacted quickly. With a flicker in his eyes, he bowed obsequiously and replied.

"So, you guarantee this melon is ripe?" Li Changshou sneered, lightly tossing the large melon in his hand. He chuckled, "What if it's not ripe?"

"Th-this... Sir... I'm a law-abiding melon seller; I wouldn't possibly sell you an unripe one!" A bead of cold sweat trickled down the demon melon vendor's forehead, and his limbs trembled slightly. The greater demon himself didn't understand why he was so afraid of a mere Witch tribesman. They had come to eradicate these Witch tribe divine envoys of the Sea God Sect... Yet now, just one melon, and a few seemingly innocuous questions from the other party, felt like a powerful spell, causing the greater demon's composure to almost crumble!

The demon melon vendor whispered, "Sir, this melon of mine... c-can I not sell it?"

"Hmm? Not selling? Are you implying I'm bullying merchants?" Li Changshou's Bear Paper-Effigy's eyes widened. His left hand moved like a blur, grabbing the demon melon vendor by the collar and pulling him up forcefully.

The demon melon vendor was a half-beat too slow. By the time he tried to dodge, his vision blurred, and his demonic power completely vanished! Demonic Soul Seal!

Li Changshou released the collar with his left hand, seamlessly pushing out a palm. The palm strike seemed effortless as it pressed against the melon vendor's chest, but faint blue ripples emanated from his chest, and a dark shadow shot out from behind the melon vendor, crashing onto the pile of melons. The melon vendor's body instantly withered, devoid of breath and soul, becoming a cold corpse. The dark shadow, now confined by Li Changshou's immortal power, revealed its true form on the melon pile: a badger-like demonic beast...

"A demon? Seize it!" Li Changshou roared. The divine envoys behind him immediately rushed forward, their arms, thicker than an ordinary person's thighs, stretched out and grabbed, nearly tearing the greater demon apart! —Perhaps from excessive nutrition over the years, the divine power of the Bear Village envoys had somewhat increased. Of course, their strength was still far surpassed by the clever little one who 'got beaten by her dad in the middle of the night'.

In that instant, the greater demon, now in its true form, with its demonic soul sealed and pinned down by several strong men from Bear Village, suddenly understood! Whether the melon was guaranteed ripe or not seemed like a simple 'mortal farming problem' or a more complex 'vendor credibility issue'. It could also be a philosophical question, or more likely, a secret code used exclusively by the local humans... Regardless, he had fallen for it! His attention had been diverted, leaving him no chance to counterattack! Humans, how cunning!

Li Changshou flicked a finger again, instantly crippling the greater demon's cultivation. The surrounding mortals, three beats too slow, were now screaming incessantly. Though, the scene was a bit... off. "The Sea God has manifested!" "Lord Envoy caught a monster!" "Wow, such a big beast! How many meals would that make if roasted?"

Li Changshou's mouth twitched. How had the mortals of Anshui City become so unhinged? This was a Heavenly Immortal-level greater demon! If there weren't powerful human Qi Refiners present, this greater demon could obliterate a town in moments! Although doing so would entangle it in karma, inevitably leading to its death by divine lightning... Never mind. How could he blame his followers for their incorrect reaction? It was his protection that had gone too far.

Just then, the other greater demons, who had been hiding nearby and blending into the city, were already taking advantage of the chaos to flee into various corners. Li Changshou had initiated the attack; how could he let them escape?

Immediately, Li Changshou shouted, "Tell everyone to stop studying the new doctrines and come out to search the city! There's a demon in the city, there must be others!"

A divine envoy nearby asked, "Lord! What about this badger demon?" "Carry it outside the city and roast it! Remember to bring some scallions, ginger, and garlic!"

Hearing this, the other greater demons shivered. One greater demon couldn't hold back, directly tearing apart its borrowed body to reveal its true form as a silver eagle. It let out a sharp shriek in the air and soared out of the city!

This stirred up a thousand waves! The gates of the Sea God Temple were flung open, and hundreds of sturdy Sea God Sect divine envoys, armed with iron hammers, great swords, clappers, and various other immortal treasures, rushed out, yelling wildly and shouting in all directions. Some shouted for mortals to immediately squat down and then quickly return home. Others shouted not to let the demons escape, claiming that the silver eagle was at least a few thousand years old and would be incredibly nourishing to eat!

The remaining three greater demons immediately panicked. Especially since, among these Sea God Sect divine envoys, there were dozens of fierce, uncontainable auras. These auras were incredibly strange, like the natural enemies of their demon race, making these demons' hearts pound erratically!

"Run!" The few greater demons each tore off their disguises, revealed their true forms, and frantically fled towards the city outskirts. A small area of Anshui City instantly descended into chaos. Several greater demons frantically fled in front, while hundreds of the strongest Sea God Sect divine envoys, wielding various weapons, gave chase from behind, each one running like the wind. The men and women of Bear Village, to avoid trampling mortals, specifically leaped onto the rooftops and raced at full speed. As for the mortals in the city... they were a little excited, even a little thrilled. They ran to tell others, calling friends, miraculously overcoming their instinctive fear. Under Li Changshou's speechless gaze, they followed the divine envoys on the rooftops, laughing and making noise.

This... It seemed a large-scale public safety education campaign was needed within the Sea God Sect's jurisdiction!

Moments later, hundreds of envoys rushed out of Anshui City. The few greater demons, however, were following orders, flying at a leisurely pace like bait, luring the Sea God Sect divine envoys towards a dense forest outside the city. Naturally, there was a demonic trap ahead, but with continuous instructions from the Sea God Lord, these envoys showed no fear! Dozens of pure-blood Witches, whose physiques were closer to innate Dao bodies, quietly blended into the leading ranks, using the chaotic aura of the Witch tribesmen to conceal their presence.

Within the dense forest, demonic qi permeated the air; outside the city, the Witch tribesmen were fierce. Meanwhile, Li Changshou calmly proceeded according to his plan, having secretly positioned several paper-effigies underground within the forest. A bit of tranquilizer, a bit of disorientation.

The executioners sent by the Western Sect had formed a simple encirclement within the dense forest here, with the strongest greater demons hiding at the rear, having already decided on the timing of their strike. They intended to wait until the Sea God Sect divine envoys charged into the center of the ambush, then encircle them from all sides and attack simultaneously, resolving the battle as quickly as possible, then retreating to claim their reward. Seeing how naive and charge-happy the Witch tribesmen appeared, these demons couldn't help but feel a sense of disdain. Witches, truly simpletons of ancient times!

However, these greater demons quickly looked bewildered... The change happened too fast, catching the demons off guard! Just as the hundreds of Sea God Sect divine envoys entered the forest and reached the periphery of the demon encirclement, a black bear demon suddenly darted out from behind a large tree, turned its head, and roared, "This subordinate obeys! I'll charge first!" With that, it dashed forward, charging towards the hundreds of envoys! Hundreds of yards away, a white-clad demon man leaped from the tree canopy and shouted, "Kill!" Immediately, twenty or thirty demons, ambushing in various locations, rushed out, chasing the black bear demon! Seeing a comrade charge out, most of the demons, without much thought, immediately revealed themselves, quickly forming a 'legion' of over three hundred demons! They either flew through the sky, burrowed through the ground, or sprinted forward, engaging the Sea God Sect envoy group! The remaining smaller portion of demons either sensed that something was wrong and already intended to retreat, or they were sound asleep, completely unconscious. The encirclement these demons had set up was thus inexplicably dissolved, causing the few demon commanders to stomp their feet and curse in frustration...

Li Changshou, who had just arrived outside the forest, chuckled at the sight. These makeshift rabble were indeed full of holes. The black bear demon and the white-clad demon man were merely two paper-effigies he had secretly imbued with demonic qi drawn from the 'badger demon', allowing them to infiltrate the enemy's encirclement using evasion techniques. A basic move, nothing extraordinary, just a common stratagem.

From Li Changshou's sleeve, paper figures flew out, carrying array foundations and employing evasion techniques, circling to the left and right. Meanwhile, Li Changshou's Golden Immortal-level paper-effigy did not join the battle, instead continuing to monitor all areas, not daring to relax for a moment.

The front lines were about to clash; the dozens of Sea God Sect divine envoys at the very front simultaneously leaped aside to the left and right! Ox-Head and Horse-Face, indistinguishable without their masks, led forty-six Battle Witches who suddenly accelerated. Their figures moved like phantoms, pounding huge pits into the ground, unleashing the true aura of the Witch tribe! Forty-eight surges of blood-qi soared into the sky like wolf smoke, even staining the lingering glow of the setting sun blood-red! The demons were greatly startled, their formation thrown into chaos!

Just then, pillars of light rose from various parts of the dense forest. These light pillars converged towards a central point, swiftly forming a grand array that sealed off an area spanning dozens of miles! At each of the twelve array foundations, three paper-effigies of late Heavenly Immortal cultivation sat cross-legged, ready to infuse their immortal power into the foundations to reinforce the array and ensure not a single demon escaped! Inside Anshui City, hundreds of Witch tribesmen from Bear Village were also running about, searching for any overlooked demons...

As the sun set, blood flowed like a river in the dense forest, and greater demons were torn to shreds barehanded by the Battle Witches, their various corpses scattered everywhere. The dozens of Battle Witches, fighting bathed in blood, exuded fierce glares, their blood-qi growing even thicker, recreating the grandeur of ancient wars! Not to mention the demons, who deeply understood the Witches' ferocity, even the divine envoys of Bear Village, who carried half Witch blood, turned pale, huddling in corners, forming defensive battle formations... trembling, at a loss.

Half an hour later. The forty-eight Witches, each dragging two or three demonic beast carcasses that they remembered tasted good, proceeded to a beach by the sea, surrounded by the Bear Village divine envoys. They took a sea bath, skillfully set up barbecues, and the aroma of roasted meat drifted for a hundred miles around...

Ox-Head and Horse-Face put their masks back on and sat in a corner of the beach, watching their tribesmen sing and dance with contentment. The sea breeze ruffled the flowing mane of Horse-Face, who spoke with deep sentiment: "Ox, do you remember? Those years, we chased demonic beasts, happily running under the setting sun." "Ah, Horse!" Ox-Head sighed deeply, "Such days have finally returned." "How did happiness disappear? Whinny!" "Compared to that, I'm more curious, what benefits do these demons get from joining a certain sect? Moo!"

Then, a voice came from behind: "Most of them were probably forced into it by a certain sect." Hearing the familiar voice, Ox-Head and Horse-Face shivered and immediately stood up. Li Changshou squeezed out from the trunk of a large tree nearby and bowed to Ox-Head and Horse-Face, "Thank you both for coming to help."

"Lord Sea God, you're too kind," Ox-Head said, rubbing his large hands and chuckling, "How can this be considered... *cough*, well, never mind the thanks or gifts. Earlier, Junior Brother Changshou of the Immortal Ascension Sect said you'd also have seasonings here..." Horse-Face beside him couldn't help but roll his eyes, "Your skin is getting thicker and thicker, Ox!" "What? What spirit beasts? What kind of spirit beasts kept by Changshou do you want?!" Ox-Head's ox-eyes widened, "Horse-Face, how can you be so unappreciative! Nonsense! We're here to help today! Even if those Witch tribesmen are distantly related, they are still a branch of our Witch tribe! Horse-Face, how could you say that! Do you have any conscience left? You even want those pink spirit beasts raised by Junior Brother Changshou of the Immortal Ascension Sect!?" Horse-Face was instantly speechless, so exasperated he nearly fainted.

"No worries, no worries, don't fret, both of you." Li Changshou smiled as he took out two treasure bags, gifting several jars of seasonings, and added, "To be honest, I've already sent people to the Immortal Ascension Sect and various market towns to purchase a batch of spirit beasts. Please stay here for a while longer, you two and your Witch tribe brethren; the spirit beasts will be delivered gradually. We can also observe if the other party has any follow-up attacks."

Ox-Head shook his head playfully and chuckled, "Then, we shall obey the Sea God Lord's command! Hehe... oh wait, moo, moo!" "Get lost! You've ruined the reputation of our Underworld!" Horse-Face couldn't help but curse, raising his long, slender leg to kick Ox-Head. Ox-Head laughed loudly and leaped aside, and the two Soul Reapers quickly tumbled into a playful brawl. In an instant, masks and shoes flew, and the starry night mirrored the color of the sea.

Li Changshou was also amused, leaving behind hearty laughter on the beach.

Li Changshou chatted with Ox-Head and Horse-Face for a while. A Battle Witch brought over large cuts of excellent roasted meat. Ox-Head and Horse-Face were not stingy, distributing about... zero point zero one percent of their slightly spicy seasoning to the Witch tribesmen. The fragrant and spicy flavor quickly ignited the beach, causing many Witches to howl excitedly as they ate. Ox-Head picked out the fattest piece of roasted meat and offered it, but Li Changshou awkwardly shook his head, refusing. He couldn't help it; he had a slight mental block.

They continued eating until the moon hung high in the sky. Li Changshou called over the hundred divine envoys waiting in the distance and had them carry the Battle Witches, who had eaten so much they couldn't walk, back to the Sea God Temple...

Li Changshou estimated that the Western Sect probably wouldn't make any more moves. After all, they had exposed their operational intent and suffered minor casualties. When the risk completely outweighs the reward, anyone with an ounce of sense wouldn't continue... Yet, Li Changshou still played it safe, maintaining a monitoring network for thousands of miles around the Sea God Temple, not letting his guard down for a moment. Half of his attention was on the Sea God Sect, while the other half was dedicated to investigating the waterways of the Southern Continent. Naturally, a portion of his mind remained constantly at Little Qiong Peak. His roots were there; he couldn't neglect it.

Over the next two months, these Witches continued to live comfortably in Anshui City, enjoying all sorts of earthly delicacies. Perhaps feeling a bit embarrassed about getting free food and lodging, these Witches found themselves something to do—they began to drill the Witch tribe divine envoys. After only a few days of training, all the envoys couldn't get out of bed or walk, crying and howling as if their muscular bodies were for nothing... Li Changshou didn't pay much attention to this; improving the envoys' combat strength was beneficial and harmless.

After careful consideration, Li Changshou intentionally brought Long Ji to Anshui City, allowing her to 'accidentally' discover the existence of the Witches and Witch tribesmen. Covertly, Li Changshou handed thirty Immortal Peaches to the paper-effigy there, to be secretly brought back to the Immortal Ascension Sect. How to make everyone happily eat the peaches became a problem Li Changshou had to ponder. Currently, Li Changshou's main plans were threefold: A, pretend these were ordinary immortal peaches; B, secretly inform Sect Master Kong Xuan and say they were bestowed by him; C, knock out his master and junior sister one by one and feed them the peaches. For caution, Li Changshou decided on a fourth plan. He would brew a portion of the Immortal Peaches into wine, claiming he had inadvertently created an immortal wine that could not be replicated, and offer it to his martial uncles, martial grand-uncles, and martial grand-grand-uncles to taste. As for his junior sister and master, he could simply tell them the truth and let them enjoy the whole Immortal Peaches.

"Will such Immortal Peaches be helpful to Elder Wan Linjun?" Conveniently, he had previously refined several enlightenment-enhancing spirit elixirs; this time, he would send those to the elder as well. A Grand Poison Immortal at the Golden Immortal realm... Tsk, just thinking about it was exciting.