Chapter 766: Demon King

The Ends of the Earth.

The small island was densely covered with jungles, where wild beasts roamed. Many villages were scattered throughout, though spiritual energy was scarce. However, in the very center of the island, there was a bubbling, bottomless, azure hot spring. Several clear streams flowed out from it, winding into the forest.

By the spring, a black-robed cultivator sat quietly cross-legged. After more than half a day, a brown-robed cultivator arrived, landing by the spring, and cupped his hands in greeting, saying:

“Fellow Daoist Feng, I have borrowed the Fire-Avoiding Barrier of Li.”

The loose cultivator surnamed Feng immediately jumped up from by the spring, clearly having been distracted just moments before. He replied:

“Many thanks, Fellow Daoist Fang. Bring it quickly!”

The cultivator surnamed Fang took out a glowing red jade bead from his sleeve, saying with evident reluctance:

“Please be careful… This was mortgaged against my family heirloom, the Wuting Talisman Brush… and I even had to add a spirit stone as rent. If it weren't for the special nature of the brush, they wouldn't have let me borrow it…”

The loose cultivator surnamed Feng glanced at him and said patiently:

“Don't worry, I've been to this island many times. These savages were also placed here by my great-ancestor for my descendants to use, precisely to prevent them from becoming powerful figures; they weren't even taught to read.”

“This island has always been scarce in spiritual energy. But when I came today, I noticed a faint trace of spiritual energy on the island, all due to the large boiling spring at its center. There must have been some change in the earth's meridians.”

He took out the jade bead and infused it with his magic power. It immediately expanded and diffused, transforming into a red barrier covered in runes, enveloping both men. As Cultivator Feng led the way, sinking into the lake, he said:

“I once visited Master Xia, the alchemist of Muhai. He mentioned that when spring water is azure, gushes forth from the ground with an upward surging force, and then transforms into water, it's called a 'Cave Spring.' There's also an extraordinary Daoist sect within the seas that cultivates this, and they call it 'Lu Water.'"

Cultivator Fang asked:

“Dew? What kind of dew? What level of person would one become upon cultivating it?”

Cultivator Feng shook his robe, pointed upwards, and said:

“Of course, higher than the heavens.”

The surrounding lake water was growing hotter and hotter. Cultivator Fang exclaimed in shock:

“Higher than the heavens? Is it a Foundation Establishment cultivator’s lineage!”

Cultivator Feng smiled without speaking, shaking his head. He said:

“That's called Purple Mansion! They are a Daoist lineage of Purple Mansion cultivators! Don't be fooled by how formidable the island masters are, moving mountains and filling seas; a Purple Mansion cultivator could kill them with a single glance.”

He changed the subject, saying:

“However, whatever is in this cave can cause such a widespread boiling, generating spiritual energy throughout the entire island. It must be a spirit item of the Foundation Establishment level. As long as we get our hands on it, we won't have to worry for the rest of our lives.”

Cultivator Fang sighed:

“I can only rely on your guidance, Fellow Daoist. I am merely a cultivator of miscellaneous qi. What good would even the best treasure do me? You, at least, cultivate pure qi; with this opportunity, you will surely rise steadily. Please don't forget to give me a helping hand.”

As they finished speaking, they had already entered the earth's meridians. On both sides, scalding steam mixed with flames caused their magic artifact to hum loudly. Cultivator Feng, clearly running low on magic power, had his companion take over, and said with a changed expression:

“So overbearing! We haven't even reached the depths of the earth's meridians yet… How can there be such terrifying earth fire here!”

Cultivator Fang's cultivation lineage was clearly inferior to his; he hadn't even seen earth fire before and could only pretend to nod. Cultivator Feng's expression changed several times in succession. Gritting his teeth, he said:

“How many elixirs do you have left?!”

Cultivator Fang listed off the few elixirs he had in his pocket. Cultivator Feng said decisively:

“We have enough elixirs. Since we've already reached this point, how can we return empty-handed? We must delve deeper into the earth's meridians to take a look. Even if we can't acquire anything, at least we'll know what's down there!”

He gritted his teeth and urged his magic power forward, flying for nearly fifteen minutes without stopping. Finally, the steam before them subsided slightly, and the underground flames flickered on and off. Faintly, they could discern an open space.

Inside this underground cavern, the stone slabs were smooth and covered with countless intricate patterns. In the very center, a deep black flame burned, flickering on an altar-like platform.

A surge of excitement rushed through both their minds, but before they could fully recover from the surprise, Cultivator Feng took advantage of a moment when the flames dimmed. He peered further, and faintly, beside the flames, he saw a skeleton!

The skeleton sat cross-legged, seemingly having been dead for many years. A gleaming golden storage bag, metallic in texture, lay beside it, shining even brighter amidst the flames.

Cultivator Feng's heart jolted, and great greed surged within him:

“It's actually the place where a cultivator achieved nirvana! My opportunity has arrived!”“It's actually the place where a cultivator achieved nirvana! My opportunity has arrived!”

Immediately, he retreated, whispering:

“I can't hold on much longer! Let's leave quickly!”

Both men were at their limits. The surrounding flames also grew brighter with the earth's meridian cycles. Cultivator Fang already felt the soles of his feet burning and nodded repeatedly. The two quickly disappeared into the sea of fire.

As soon as the two left, only a vast expanse of flames remained in the place. The skeleton on the ground twitched a finger, and flesh and skin immediately reappeared. His platinum-colored Daoist robe also reformed, revealing a dignified face.

Li Ximing took a deep breath, feeling quite relieved:

“Someone came!”

Li Ximing was trapped by Changxiao's Sangyu Can Jiuxuan Technique. As soon as he left this place, the flames on his body would appear like a beacon, so he had to suppress them with spirit items. In the past few months, he had already used more than ten drops. His only hope was for someone from the outside to arrive.

“This spring water is the least conspicuous, and it appears to be a result of changes in the earth's meridians, so it won't cause much commotion. However, the downside is that few people come here… After waiting for several months, only a first-level Qi Condensation cultivator arrived!”

A Qi Condensation cultivator was naturally useless. If he hadn't intentionally suppressed the flames, those two wouldn't have even seen him. So, Li Ximing decided not to act against them, but instead to cast a long line to catch a bigger fish.

“Qi Condensation is far from enough… At least a Foundation Establishment cultivator must come… only then will there be a chance to escape…”

The only item he had for Purple Mansion level healing was a Xuanque Jingxin Elixir. He still had a good number of precious medicinal ingredients and auxiliary herbs in his storage bag. Li Ximing, after all, was a Purple Mansion alchemist, and over these past few months, he had slowly found a way to heal himself. Unfortunately, it required at least a Foundation Establishment level demonic beast as the main ingredient, which he naturally couldn't refine while stuck here.

“If I can lure a few Foundation Establishment cultivators here and find a way to make them collect some spirit items for me… and then capture a female water demon beast, I'll be able to concoct an elixir… and temporarily suppress my injuries.”

He pondered for a moment. Using his immortal mirror, his spiritual sense soared out, watching the two men depart. But before they even left the island, the black-robed Cultivator Feng, taking advantage of his companion's depleted magic power, drew a sword from his storage bag and swiftly cut him into pieces.

‘How decisive… Now he doesn't even have to return the magic artifact… He can just keep it for himself.’

Li Ximing watched with cold eyes as Cultivator Feng left the island, a strange feeling rising in his heart:

‘Now I'm like a Purple Mansion demon lord suppressed in the earth's meridians, just like in the storybooks… waiting for some naive youngster to accidentally release me, and then after seventy-eight chapters of twists and turns, finally slay me with an immortal sword… What a beautiful story.’