Chapter 46: Mo Jiu is Slain, Zheng Tuo's Joy Turns to Sorrow

“There is indeed demonic energy!”

Lei Xing’s expression was solemn.

With his strength, it was easy for him to discern the attributes of the demonic energy.

Hearing of the demonic energy, Lei Jiu immediately became vigilant.

“Let’s go. Let’s see which death-seeking demon brat dares to trespass into my Falling Immortal Sect.”

Lei Xing strode forward, entering the withered mountain through a cave entrance.

Without a word, Lei Jiu followed closely behind.

As soon as the father and son entered the cave, their vision blurred, and they suddenly appeared atop a lake of blood.

The two stood upon the blood lake, surrounded by endless crimson waters.

The sky was a murky gray, as if they had arrived in an eternal, lonely land of death.

“A confusion array!”

Lei Jiu was slightly startled. The presence of a confusion array meant the opponent was well-prepared.

*However, a mere confusion array dares to act so arrogantly before me.*

Lightning flashed in Lei Jiu’s eyes. He opened his mouth and let out a thunderous roar: “Thunder, come!”

*Rumble...*

A dull, oppressive sound of thunder emanated from within his body, as if a divine punishment of heavenly lightning were being nurtured inside him.

Simultaneously, as his fierce shout rang out, several streaks of lightning erupted from his body.

Countless bolts of electricity and lightning snakes scattered in all directions.

“Ah...” “Ah...” “Ah...”

Several strange screams drifted from the surroundings.

The blood lake instantly collapsed, dissolving into nothingness.

“Trying to run!”

Lei Jiu struck directly.

“Thunder Lock!”

With a sharp cry, four chains flashing with silvery-white electric arcs flew from his hands, accurately binding the fleeing demons.

Lei Jiu exerted force with his wrists, intending to capture the four demons.

However, just as the chains tightened, four muffled thuds echoed from the ends of the chains.

The four demons chose to self-detonate immediately, leaving behind only four pools of blood.

“As expected of the demonic nature.”

Lei Jiu retracted the four chains and looked toward his father.

Peak Master Lei Xing said nothing; he simply strode toward the center of the cave.

In the center of the cave sat a stone platform that looked quite abrupt.

“An ancient teleportation array?”

Zheng Tuo recognized at a glance that the style of the stone platform was an extremely ancient type of teleportation array.

This kind of array had long been obsolete because its flaws were obvious: it consumed vast amounts of spirit stones, and the teleportation process itself was dangerous.

Its only advantage was that the teleportation was unpredictable, making it difficult to lock onto the destination.

“A teleportation array!”

Peak Master Lei Xing was also surprised.

How could an ancient teleportation array exist within the Falling Immortal Sect?

Looking at the several gray spirit stones scattered on the ground, the array must have been activated many times.

“Father, let me destroy it.”

Lightning flickered in Lei Jiu’s palm as he prepared to destroy the ancient array.

“Wait!”

Lei Xing stared at the ancient teleportation array, lost in thought.

“If I am not mistaken, this is a two-way teleportation array. This means one can use it to enter the demon race's stronghold.”

Lei Xing had his own plan.

The demons had appeared suddenly, and there had been no clues until now.

Since they had appeared in the Falling Immortal Sect, such a significant clue was not something he could easily abandon.

“Father, you can't. What if the other side has set up special countermeasures?”

Lei Jiu expressed his concern.

Although his father was a late-stage Golden Core expert, the opponents were demons; their methods could not be judged by common logic.

“It is fine. To serve the Falling Immortal Sect and to eradicate the demons for the Eastern Region, I, Lei Xing, shall naturally charge at the front.”

Lei Xing took out several spirit stones and embedded them into the ancient teleportation array, preparing to activate the formation.

“Junior Brother, wait.”

Several voices drifted from afar.

Yun Yangzi and the other four Peak Masters had arrived.

Even Zheng Tuo’s master, Wu Dao, had rushed over.

“Junior Brother, I will go with you,” Yun Yangzi said.

“Take me along,” Yun Qianren interjected, attempting to join.

“No need.”

Yun Yangzi stopped Yun Qianren.

“Yun Ding, the four of you must destroy this teleportation array immediately after the two of us leave. Furthermore, until we return, no one is permitted to descend the mountain.”

Yun Yangzi looked at the four of them with extreme gravity.

“Understood,” the four replied in unison.

Clearly, the appearance of the ancient teleportation array suggested that demon spies had infiltrated the Falling Immortal Sect.

After Yun Yangzi and Lei Xing entered the array and departed, Yun Ding and the others immediately acted to destroy the array.

At the same time.

In a withered mountain far from the Falling Immortal Sect.

Mo Jiu, who was currently enjoying the company of a beautiful woman, suddenly shuddered, and then vanished from the spot.

“You beast, where do you think you're going!”

Lei Xing’s furious roar echoed, carrying a terrifying power akin to heavenly thunder that overturned the entire withered mountain.

Feeling Lei Xing’s terrifying lightning power, Mo Jiu knew he could not escape.

With a loud shout, he performed a遁 (escape technique). *Bang!* His entire body exploded into a mist of blood.

As the blood mist drifted, a streak of blood-light, several times faster than lightning, vanished into the horizon in the blink of an eye.

“A blood-escape technique that burns one's life force,” Lei Xing muttered. Lightning crackled around him as he prepared to give chase.

“Leave him to me. You clean up this place.”

Yun Yangzi stepped upon auspicious clouds. He appeared to move slowly, but in reality, he was impossibly fast, vanishing into the distance in a single breath.

Lei Xing looked down at the trembling demon slaves beneath his feet and raised his hand high.

*Rumble...*

Thunder rolled. Unbekably, the area was already covered in dense, dark clouds.

“Ten Thousand... Thunder... Heaven... Descent!”

Lei Xing’s low, angry roar sounded like a judgment from the Heavenly Dao.

In an instant, countless bolts of lightning transformed into silver lightning dragons, descending from the heavens and submerging the entire withered mountain.

***

On Falling Immortal Mountain, within the Falling Immortal Sect.

Zheng Tuo felt uneasy.

He wondered if his martial uncle Yun Yangzi and martial uncle Lei Xing could actually take down Mo Jiu.

Although Mo Jiu’s strength wasn't immense, he was a member of the True Demon race—the royalty among demons. He surely possessed some bizarre methods.

If Mo Jiu were allowed to escape, catching him again would be as difficult as ascending to heaven.

This worry did not last long.

One day later, Martial Uncle Lei Xing returned.

After inquiring with his master Wu Dao, Zheng Tuo learned that the demon stronghold had been wiped out by Martial Uncle Lei Xing; all demons, except for the Great Demon, had been cleared out.

Hearing that Mo Jiu had not been caught, Zheng Tuo’s anxiety persisted.

As long as Mo Jiu lived, he could breed countless more demons.

*What should I do?*

Thinking to himself, Zheng Tuo took out an incense burner and lit three sticks of incense.

“Heavenly Lord, if you have any spirit, please take Mo Jiu away so he stops harming good people. Please, I beg you, I beg you.”

Zheng Tuo bowed three times to the heavens and placed the three sticks of incense.

Regardless, this was the only thing he could do.

Another day passed, and Yun Yangzi returned.

Upon inquiry, Zheng Tuo finally received good news.

After being captured, Mo Jiu had destroyed his own divine soul and died completely.

Finally, some good news.

Zheng Tuo’s heart was half-relieved.

As for why it was only "half," it was because they had not yet discovered why the demons had appeared in the Eastern Region.

However, the slaying of Mo Jiu was indeed a heartening piece of news.

To celebrate the death of Mo Jiu, Zheng Tuo specifically slaughtered a pig and prepared a sumptuous feast to reward himself.

He thought to himself, *If it weren't for my three sticks of incense to summon the gods, Mo Jiu might have actually escaped.*

At the same time, the Falling Immortal Sect organized a "Celestial Fate" event.

It was ostensibly to provide benefits to everyone, but in reality, it was a covert investigation for demon spies.

In the end, a total of twelve demon spies were caught.

In the following days, a small team was stationed at Falling Immortal Peak specifically to investigate the sect disciples, fearing that demon spies might still be lurking among them.

Finally, more than half a year had passed since the demon incident.

Calculating the time, Zheng Tuo felt he could now leave Falling Immortal Mountain.

The first stop after leaving the mountain was the place where the demonic energy had first been discovered.

In the entire Falling Immortal Sect, this was the only place that made him feel uncomfortable.

Thinking of this, he had a feeling: what if the demons had set up special measures here, allowing them to infiltrate the sect through this spot in the future?

Therefore, he came here.

He specifically set up a powerful "Bone-to-Ash" array to refine the entire withered mountain.

The refining process lasted for seven full days.

After seven days, the small mountain was leveled.

Even so, Zheng Tuo was still not at ease.

He took out alarm spirit talismans and set up numerous traps in the area.

If there were any disturbances here within the next hundred years, he would receive information immediately.

After finishing, he specifically erected several stone monuments around the area, inscribed with words forbidding entry.

Once finished, Zheng Tuo nodded in satisfaction.

The stone in his heart had finally settled.

Life must go on; he would have to be even more cautious in the future and must never offend another troublesome fellow like the demons.

***

Meanwhile, in a forest at an unknown distance from the Falling Immortal Sect.

A deer was leisurely grazing on tender grass.

Suddenly!

The deer collapsed without warning.

Then, it began to wither visibly, as if its flesh and blood were being sucked dry.

*Puchi!*

An arm thrust out from the deer's belly.

“Cough, cough...”

“That bastard Yun Yangzi, actually destroying my true body! If I do not avenge this, I swear I will never be a demon again!”

Mo Jiu looked extremely weak.

Facing Yun Yangzi, he stood no chance of winning.

Fortunately, he had kept a trump card: he had split his divine soul into two.

With one divine soul body dead, he still had the other.

Although doing this significantly reduced his strength and would take a hundred years to recover, preserving his life was more important than anything.

“Yun Yangzi.”

Mo Jiu gnashed his teeth.

“You think that because you destroyed my teleportation array, I have no way to enter your Falling Immortal Sect?”

As Mo Jiu spoke, a palm-sized array disk appeared in his hand.

*As long as this array disk exists, I can enter your sect whenever I wish.*

The smile on Mo Jiu’s face grew increasingly crazed.

Suddenly!

The array disk in his palm trembled violently.

Then, before his horrified eyes, it burst into flames.

“How is this possible?! Who? Who did this?!”

Mo Jiu was enraged and immediately tried to activate the disk.

He wanted to see which damn bastard had ruined his plans.

As the array disk activated, an image appeared.

In the image, a figure was walking away.

Upon seeing that figure, Mo Jiu instantly exploded in rage.

“Bastard! I knew it was you!”

Mo Jiu went mad.

He slammed both hands onto the ground.

It could be seen that, using his hands as the center point, the surrounding lush greenery withered frantically.

Within a few breaths, all life on the hilltop where he stood had withered away.

“Bastard! Bastard! Bastard...!”

Mo Jiu stared deathly at the figure in the image, biting his teeth so hard they shattered.

Right now, he only wanted to etch that figure into his memory. *One day, I will eat your flesh, gnaw your bones, and torture your divine soul. I will make you know what it means to wish for death.*

At the same time.

The departing Zheng Tuo felt a chill run down his spine, an uncomfortable sensation as if he were being watched.

“There really is something fishy about this place.”

Zheng Tuo stopped walking and turned back to look at the withered mountain he had just destroyed.

“To be safe, let me do it one more time.”

Returning to the ruins of the withered mountain, he set up the Bone-to-Ash array again and proceeded to blow the place up five more times before finally stopping.

“Bastard, it really was you.”

In the final moments as the array disk in Mo Jiu's hand burned to nothing, he had captured Zheng Tuo's likeness.

Although Zheng Tuo was using a disguise, under those shrewd eyes, he would never mistake him.

“Ahhh...!”

Mo Jiu roared, trembling with rage, his face contorted, nearly passing out from fury.

Four or five years of effort had vanished into thin air; his cultivation was lost, and he had nearly lost his life, all because of this guy.

“Bastard! I, Mo Jiu, swear that I will slay you in this lifetime! If I break this oath, I am willing to suffer the Nine Heavens Thunder Tribulation, the punishment of ten thousand venomous insects eating my heart, and fall into the Avici Hell, never to be reincarnated!”

***

Unaware that Mo Jiu was not dead and that he had been thoroughly targeted by him, Zheng Tuo finished cleaning up the ruins of the withered mountain and returned to Falling Immortal Mountain.

Calculating the time, five years of his ten-year plan had passed.

His path in the Dao of Arrays was now on the right track; he could simply continue his cultivation methodically.

Next, because his strength had reached the seventh stage of Qi Refining, he needed to undergo Spirit Tempering.

For Spirit Tempering, naturally, the help of Spirit Tempering Pills would be the greatest.

With this intention, he headed to the Library to practice the Dao of Alchemy.

(End of Chapter)