Chapter 45: Monsters

The five Foundation Establishment cultivators in the sky were like fish being hooked, twitching and flailing there.

They tried every possible method to break the red threads, but to no avail.

In the distance, many members of their clans were still rushing forward like moths to a flame.

The cohesion of the clans was perfectly displayed, yet it was futile; it only served as nourishment for the anomaly, allowing the anomaly's already weakened shadow to recover bit by bit.

"All Han clan disciples, heed my command! Leave this place immediately! No one is to come back to save me!"

The Han clan leader, a middle-aged man with the appearance of a scholar, bit the tip of his tongue and let out a sharp, commanding shout.

The sound echoed continuously through the night sky, filled with despair and heroism.

Immediately after, another elderly man with a red face shouted loudly, "The Zhang clan disciples must not come either! Retreat quickly, find a place to rebuild your clan, and never set foot in this area again for all eternity!"

Soon, the leaders of the other three clans also issued their commands, their voices resounding through the night.

At this stage, they already knew there was no hope of survival, and it was even more impossible for the Qi Refining juniors of the clans to rescue them.

Death was merely a matter of time.

The disciples of the five clans in the distance were all faces of intense anxiety, yet they did not dare to charge forward any further.

"Go! If you don't leave now, it will be too late! Go! Go!"

Han Yuhe, the Han clan leader, watched with eyes wide as two more of his grandchildren were swallowed by the red threads, letting out a roar of fury.

"Go!"

The Han clan elder in charge of controlling the giant flying sword—Han Yuhe's younger brother—gritted his teeth, his face turning ashen as he made the decision. With a flash of sword light, he shot off into the distance.

The people from the other clans also chose to retreat, their faces filled with misery.

The clans had to be rebuilt, and the bloodlines had to continue; dying here would be meaningless.

Furthermore, they had made countless preparations for this escape, sacrificing the majority of their clan disciples; if they all died here, everything would become worthless.

Witnessing this scene of life-and-death separation, Chen Lin's emotions fluctuated below. He was both infected by the tragic situation and somewhat envious of their familial bonds.

In this world, he feared he would find it difficult to possess such emotions.

"Senior Brother, let's go too. The anomaly cannot be killed at all. If we don't leave now, it will be too late!"

Ye Jingyun's voice rang out, and Chen Lin and the Xia sisters also looked toward her.

"Sigh!"

Yu Yuehai, however, let out a sigh.

Then, he took out a pitch-black bottle, fumbled with it, and with a look of determination, opened the cap.

A wisp of black smoke drifted out from the bottle.

In the blink of an eye, it formed the illusory figure of a monster.

This shadow rolled continuously, making its true appearance difficult to discern, but it emitted waves of terrifying aura that made one shudder.

Affected by this aura, Chen Lin felt as if his very soul had frozen; let alone moving, even his thoughts became sluggish.

Aside from Yu Yuehai, no one else was doing any better.

"Jie jie, I am finally out! Lowly humans, how dare you imprison this Demon! Now, become this Demon's blood food!"

The rolling shadow let out a sinister, mocking laugh, and then lunged toward Yu Yuehai.

Yu Yuehai's expression remained unchanged. A black bead the size of a thumb appeared in his hand, and he squeezed it forcefully.

The bead itself did nothing, but the rolling shadow let out a scream of agony, its form shaking violently as if it might collapse at any moment.

"Do one thing for me, and I will grant you your freedom. Otherwise, I will scatter your soul right now!"

Having said that, he made a motion as if to squeeze the black bead again.

"Fine, fine, fine! Stop squeezing! I agree! What is it?"

The demon shadow hurriedly pleaded for mercy. Then, its body jerked as if sensing something, and it shouted in rage, "What did you do to my main body? How did it end up inside that anomaly?"

Immediately, it asked in suspicion, "You aren't asking me to deal with that anomaly, are you? That thing is unkillable; going there would be useless!"

"Hmph, I am not asking you to kill it. I only need you to strip its anomalous spirit away for me. Also, bring those five cultivators back to me, and then I will let you leave!"

Yu Yuehai glanced at the scene in the sky and spoke with an urgent tone.

"Then I'll have to think about it. Anomalies are very troublesome. Even if the spirit is gone, it won't die, it will just have to re-condense. It will definitely fight me to the death. Besides, you are unpredictable—how can I be sure you'll let me go?"

The demon shadow rolled around as it voiced its doubts.

"It doesn't matter. I can swear a Heart Demon Oath. When the time comes, I will definitely let you go!"

Yu Yuehai directly initiated a Heart Demon Oath, making Chen Lin grimace.

The man was far too practiced at making these oaths; his wording and tone were identical to when he made them to Chen Lin. It seemed he had made many of them.

Would such an oath actually have any binding power?

Although he didn't know what method the man used to circumvent the Heart Demon Oath, he knew that the oaths the man had made previously were no different from farting—completely useless.

Of course, he wasn't foolish enough to point this out to the demon shadow.

The demon shadow hesitated for a moment, then immediately rolled, "Fine, I'll trust you this once. Wait for my good news!"

With that, it turned into a wisp of black smoke and vanished instantly.

This was Chen Lin's first time seeing a so-called demon creature. There was no detailed information in the original owner's memories, and seeing it now, he couldn't help but click his tongue in secret.

This thing was truly eerie, and this world was strange enough to contain all sorts of oddities.

Just as the demon shadow vanished, a moment later, muffled thuds echoed from within the anomalous phantom in the sky, followed by a loud *bang* as it exploded once more.

Then, a pitch-black creature appeared out of thin air.

This creature was very tall; from such a distance, its features were unclear, but black mist rolled all over its body, and it seemed to be holding a white object in its hand.

"Hmph, a mere minor anomaly requires this Venerable to personally take action. Once I reclaim the Source Demon Bead, I will devour all of you!"

Muttering grumpily, the demon shadow turned into a cloud of black mist, swept up the five clan leaders who had fallen due to the broken red threads, and returned to Yu Yuehai's side.

"I've brought back what you wanted. Now, give me my Source Demon Bead!"

With a shake, the demon shadow tossed the five weakened individuals onto the ground and presented the white gaseous mass to Yu Yuehai, speaking in a heavy voice.

"Good. As expected of a powerhouse among the Night Demons, your methods are indeed formidable. Here is the bead!"

With a look of pleasant surprise in his eyes, Yu Yuehai collected the white gaseous mass into a container and then tossed the black bead toward the demon shadow.

"Jie jie jie! This Demon is finally free! Lowly human, I shall—ah! What are you doing?! You cunning human, how dare you violate the Heart Demon Oath! Prepare to be devoured by the Great Heart Demon!"

Amidst a series of screams, the demon shadow turned back into a wisp of black smoke, was collected by Yu Yuehai into the previous bottle, and the cap was slammed shut.

With the demon shadow contained, the pressure on Chen Lin and the others instantly lifted, and they returned to normal.

The leaders of the five great clans also stood up unsteadily.

Han Yuhe, the Han clan leader, was the first to bow. "Many thanks to Fellow Daoist Yu and Pavilion Master Ye for your assistance. I shall never forget this life-saving grace and will surely repay you handsomely!"

The other four also bowed one after another, looking as though they had survived a catastrophe.

"Haha, you all are too polite. However, there is no need to wait until later to repay the favor. Now is the most appropriate time!"

Yu Yuehai laughed loudly and suddenly struck!