Chapter 434: King of the Black Mist, Wandering Soul Fire
From the Seven Kingdoms Alliance to the vicinity of the Black Fog Mountain Range near the Righteous Dao Alliance, a pale cyan flying light burning with blood-red flames streaked across the sky like a blood-flame meteor, diving into the Black Fog Mountain Range. Its speed far exceeded the typical escape speed of a mid-stage Nascent Soul cultivator.
Half an hour later.
A man in a cyan robe, with a broad forehead and ordinary facial features, descended into a deep valley within the Black Fog Mountain Range.
“What rotten luck! A dignified leader of the Demonic Sect, one of the top powerhouses in Great Qing, relentlessly chasing after a mere early-stage Nascent Soul cultivator.”
The cyan-robed man sat cross-legged, his face slightly pale, and began circulating the Evergreen Technique to restore his mana and vitality.
He had sealed his cultivation and concealed his aura in the Seven Kingdoms Alliance, and had finally found a good opportunity to quietly travel to the Righteous Dao Alliance.
But somehow, something went wrong, and he ended up being targeted by the second Nascent Soul of the demonic sect leader, Underworld Demon Lord.
The second Nascent Soul of the Grand Elder of the Nether Spring Sect possessed divine abilities on par with a mid-stage Nascent Soul cultivator.
The cyan-robed man had the confidence to contend with him, but once entangled in battle with this second Nascent Soul, it would draw reinforcements from the other Nascent Soul experts of the Six Demonic Sects.
In the worst-case scenario, if the Grand Elder of the Nether Spring Sect himself arrived, things would turn truly dangerous.
The Underworld Demon Lord was a master of tracking. The cyan-robed man had tried many methods but could not fully shake him off.
Each time he used the Blood God Escape Technique, he had to sacrifice a great deal of blood essence and vitality, even shortening his lifespan. If he weren't a cultivator of the Evergreen Technique, such a cost would be unbearable.
“Hopefully, the strange black mist and the chaotic demonic aura in the Black Fog Mountain Range can interfere with his tracking senses.”
He put into effect the concealment methods of the Evergreen Technique, along with a disguise secret art, blending seamlessly into the surrounding vegetation and environment.
He was aware of some rumors about the Black Fog Mountain Range.
It was said that deep within this massive mountain range that spanned across Great Qing and branched out into countless offshoots, there resided a descendant of a true spirit, a Human-Faced Flood Dragon.
This true spirit descendant possessed a lifespan many times that of a human and had once reached an agreement with the leaders of both righteous and demonic paths of the previous generation in Great Qing to live in peace and not interfere with human civilization.
Whoosh!
Hundreds of li away, a mass of dark yellow nether water tens of zhang in diameter, swept across the sky like a mysterious river from another realm.
Splash!
The nether water condensed in mid-air, forming a solid body. At the center, a dim spirit-form infant was quickly enveloped by the water, which then morphed into a figure, a man in yellow robes with an unusual face and an overwhelming presence.
The mysterious True Monarch, formed from nether water, pinched his fingers to divine the surroundings, his brow slowly furrowing.
In the end, he cast a deep glance toward the general direction where True Monarch Cyanwood was hiding.
“The Sacred Sect has yet to fully dominate the Eastern Region, and the Ten Sects of the Xuan Gate have never ceased their scheming and backdoor dealings. Now is not the time to stir up trouble…”
The yellow-robed True Monarch made his calculations expressionlessly.
Whoosh! Swish!
His form dissolved once more into a mass of dim nether water, traversing the misty skies and leaving the depths of the Black Fog Mountain Range.
...
Whoosh!
Hidden deep in the valley, True Monarch Cyanwood secretly let out a sigh of relief.
“Looks like I gambled right!”
“The second Nascent Soul of the Underworld Demon Lord doesn’t want to fight a great battle with me deep within the Black Fog Mountain Range, lest he draws the attention of the fourth-rank demon kings here. Especially that legendary ‘King of the Black Mist’, even if the Grand Elder of the Nether Spring Sect came personally, he’d gain nothing good.”
After delving deep into the Black Fog Mountain Range, True Monarch Cyanwood noticed that the circulation of his mana had become somewhat sluggish, and his recovery of energy was clearly slower.
This was due to the suppressive effect of the strange black mist.
In the depths of the mountains, if a cultivator of equal level fought a fourth-rank demon king, the latter would have the advantage of terrain and natural forces.
The second Nascent Soul of the Underworld Demon Lord had made his intent clear during their previous encounter.
It turned out that the Nether Spring Sect, being one of the ancient and powerful sects of Great Qing, had records related to the Ancient Trees Evergreen Technique in their sect archives and knew a few of its secrets.
Ten thousand years ago, the legendary Great Cultivator Yan Donglai arrived in Great Qing.
At the time, the heads of both righteous and demonic factions had the fortune to meet and converse with him, among them was the head cultivator of the Nether Spring Sect.
While pursuing Cyanwood, the second Nascent Soul had stated that he bore no ill will and hoped Cyanwood would join the Nether Spring Sect, promising to treat him as an honored guest.
But how could True Monarch Cyanwood trust the promises of the Demonic Sect?
Even if the Nether Spring Sect’s intentions were sincere, joining them wouldn’t be a good choice. It would inevitably come with restrictions, far more than his current freedom.
For instance, they might ask him to shorten his lifespan to save some important cultivator or forcefully nurture some rare treasure of heaven and earth. Even with generous compensation, he was unwilling to do such things.
“This journey to the Righteous Dao Alliance, regardless of success, I’ll have to leave the land of Great Qing afterward.”
True Monarch Cyanwood made a silent decision.
For some unknown reason, after cultivating the Evergreen Technique to the Nascent Soul stage, progressing further had become abnormally difficult.
Although within the territory of Great Qing, limited by the spirit veins and fate of heaven and earth, breaking through to mid-stage Nascent Soul was already a rarity.
Most Nascent Soul cultivators could not advance beyond early stage in their entire lives, this was considered normal.
But Cyanwood had a hunch: if he could devour the Evergreen Dao Fruit of a certain "fellow disciple," he might break through smoothly and from then on he could truly reign supreme over Great Qing.
That "fellow disciple" had indeed reached the Nascent Soul stage, but in terms of cultivation and foundation, he was at least two hundred years behind Cyanwood.
Based on the intelligence he had, Cyanwood knew that Lan Changqing had a fourth-rank demon king under his control.
But decades ago, Cyanwood had secretly raised a fourth-rank spirit beast in the Southern Region, along with other hidden cards.
Therefore, he was full of confidence.
He had the advantage in cultivation. Before Lan Changqing reached the peak of early-stage Nascent Soul, this was the last window to strike.
True Monarch Cyanwood recovered his mana while observing his surroundings, calculating the timing and direction to leave the Black Fog Mountain Range.
He had to be cautious of the Underworld Demon Lord lying in wait outside the mountains. To be safe, he planned to stay hidden for a few more years.
At that moment, True Monarch Cyanwood suddenly felt an inexplicable unease, as if an unknown presence was silently watching him.
He swept his spiritual sense around, but the range was limited by the eerie black mist, and he found nothing nearby.
...
At the same time on a towering, crimson-black peak several dozen li away, a tall and mysterious green-faced man stood silently.
This green-faced man was clearly not human. Horn-like protrusions rose from his head, and his long, powerful arms were covered in fine, dark green scales. His facial features and upper body resembled a human’s, but from the waist down, instead of legs, he had a smooth flood dragon tail, floating three feet above the ground.
At this moment, this uncrowned king of the Black Fog Mountain Range cast his indifferent gaze through layers of dark mist, peering into the distant valley where the cyan-robed man sat.
“Lord Greenface, in recent years, human cultivators have frequently entered the Black Fog Mountain Range to hunt high-level members of our race. This Nascent Soul cultivator even dared to intrude into the core region of the mountains, violating the ancient agreement...”
From the black mist behind the green-faced flood dragon man emerged a transformed demon king, silver-moon skinned, with a wolf head and human body.
This demon king was of earth-grade bloodline, a Heavenly Moon Wolf.
In the presence of the green-faced flood dragon, the Heavenly Moon Wolf King wore a look of deep reverence and flattery. From the depths of his bloodline surged a primal fear and instinctive submission.
“This man appears to be a cultivator of the Evergreen Technique, possibly even one of Yan Donglai's pieces from his layout from back then. Such karma is not something we should become entangled in. Moreover, he is at odds with a leader of the Demonic Path and hasn’t hunted any demon beasts in the Black Fog Mountain Range…”
The green-faced man’s expression didn’t change in the slightest. The Heavenly Moon Wolf King’s words didn’t sway him at all.
“Hmph. If this involves the legendary cultivator Yan Donglai, we must tread carefully.”
The Heavenly Moon Wolf King nodded in agreement, but deep within his silver pupils, a faint green glow flashed for an instant.
If Lan Chang'an or the former Zhao Siyao were here and saw this Heavenly Moon Wolf King, they would undoubtedly feel a strange sense of familiarity.
“The more chaotic the human cultivation world becomes, the better for us.”
The Human-Faced Flood Dragon withdrew his gaze from True Monarch Cyanwood, as if sensing that the latter had picked up on his attention.
As a descendant of a true spirit, he too had his limitations and helplessness.
Over the years, trapped within the Black Fog Mountain Range, his cultivation had been unable to progress any further.
The higher the innate bloodline talent, the harsher the conditions required for growth. The resources he needed had long been lost to time.
“A shallow pond cannot raise a true dragon. It’s more suited for turtles to thrive.”
Had he lived in ancient times, or on a higher world, forget the late fourth rank—he would’ve already broken through to fifth rank, stepping into the Deity Transformation level.
But Great Qing, on the Heaven Honoured Continent, was a barren land with weak spiritual veins. For most, mid-stage Nascent Soul was the ultimate limit.
Heaven and earth’s fortune leaned toward the human path. Even after thousands of years of accumulation, it was only a miracle that a single Nascent Soul Great Cultivator could be born.
A few centuries ago, after one such miracle emerged from the Ten Xuan Sects, the hopes of other Nascent Soul cultivators for a Great Cultivator breakthrough were crushed. Let alone for a non-human that lacked even the world’s karmic blessing.
Fortunately, though the human cultivation civilization was powerful, it was endlessly plagued by internal strife. Thus, the demon race in the Black Fog Mountain Range had been able to survive to this day.
The Human-Faced Flood Dragon feared no top human cultivators of Great Qing, even Nascent Soul Great Cultivators.
Within his stronghold in the Black Fog Mountain Range, even if such experts came in person, he had the confidence to fight back and drive them off.
The only real threat came if the leaders of the cultivation sects joined forces for a coordinated extermination.
Therefore, from time to time, the Human-Faced Flood Dragon would quietly slip into the human world to fan the flames of their infighting.
The cultivation nations near the Black Fog Mountain Range, like the former Jing Kingdom and Liang Kingdom had never grown strong. Beyond the limitations of geography, he had played a part in that.
...
“What brings you here today?”
The green-faced man’s voice was deep and hollow, as if echoing from his abdomen.
“Reporting to Lord Greenface, Madam has been feeling unwell lately. It might be…”
The Heavenly Moon Wolf King bowed as he made his report.
“What? Is Xuemei about to give birth-”
For the first time, the Human-Faced Flood Dragon’s expression and voice showed a flicker of emotion.
Whoosh—!
In the Heavenly Moon Wolf King’s vision, the figure of Lord Greenface blurred and disappeared.
Moments later, at the heart of the Black Fog Mountain Range, within a vast and opulent mysterious cave residence.
“Husband, you’ve returned.”
A plump woman in a purple dress struggled to endure her pain. Beads of cold sweat rolled down her forehead as she managed a weak smile.
Her hand rested on her large, pregnant belly, and she lay half-reclined on a bed, unable to rise.
She appeared to be in her thirties, and though her face had become rounder with age and weight, faint traces of the ethereal beauty she once possessed could still be seen.
“Xuemei, don’t hurt the child,”
The Human-Faced Flood Dragon approached the bed, revealing a rare tenderness, and gently supported the woman in purple.
As a true spirit descendant, passing on his bloodline was extremely difficult.
He had tried countless times to reproduce with various high-bloodline females, but the results were almost always failures.
Either the offspring were deformed monstrosities, or they lacked the pure bloodline of the Human-Faced Flood Dragon.
He never expected that this Core Formation human servant girl brought back from the human world would miraculously conceive his child.
This time was clearly different.
Fu Xuemei had been pregnant for three full years, an extraordinarily long time.
The Human-Faced Flood Dragon could gradually sense the presence of a new life in her womb, one that resonated deeply with his own bloodline.
And suddenly, he found himself more deeply tied to the Black Fog Mountain Range, which had nurtured him for thousands of years.
In the past, he’d considered leaving Great Qing entirely, to explore foreign provinces or even overseas in search of a breakthrough.
But if he were to leave, the countless demon folk under his rule in the Black Fog Mountain Range would suffer a devastating fate. Soon enough, this place would become a mere backyard for human cultivation sects.
What’s more, the other provinces were already staked out and controlled.
Crossing multiple domains would expose his whereabouts and aura, potentially triggering a coordinated attack by several Nascent Soul Great Cultivators seeking valuable materials. After all, on the Heaven Honoured Continent, the dominant civilization in cultivation was still the human race.
Now, he had to not only protect his people, but also to create a nurturing environment for his future offspring.
“Husband… I feel it’s about to come out…”
Fu Xuemei gently caressed her pregnant belly. Her expression was hard to read, was it joy or sorrow? Her emotions were complicated, a mix of countless feelings.
Back then, she had been the personal disciple of Immortal Huanglong, the proud daughter of heaven. Never in her wildest dreams would she have imagined carrying the child of a different race one day.
Yet, this had been part of the agreement she made long ago.
She had been deceived by Huang Lang Immortal and lured into Beast King Valley. It was Lord Greenface who had saved her, and promised to revive her Huang Dragon Beast.
In return, she willingly became a servant, vowing to serve her master, never expecting to be so “fortunate” as to bear a true spirit descendant’s child.
From then on, her status soared, and she was treated with great care and respect by the Human-Faced Flood Dragon.
He even bestowed fourth-rank life-extending treasures upon her. Using rare spiritual materials and the power of true spirit bloodline, he significantly enhanced the quality of her True Dan.
With such fortune, the status of being the consort of the Black Mist King far surpassed what any human woman could ever dream of.
Yet deep inside, Fu Xuemei’s heart was not truly at peace.
Her fondest memories remained frozen in time, before she reached Core Formation, in those youthful days at Huanglong Immortal City.
At some point, the trajectory of fate had shifted, and those days would never return again.
...
On the border of the Righteous Dao Alliance, Yuanliu Immortal City.
A glorious victory had ignited the morale of the Righteous Dao Alliance's cultivator army.
In this battle, not only were two demonic Nascent Soul cultivators killed and defeated, but the victors also pursued and eradicated large numbers of demonic cultivators, seizing a staggering amount of spoils.
“Master.”
Lord Earthrock arrived, presenting the spoils from the two Nascent Soul cultivators, as well as spoils from slain demonic Core Formation cultivators.
Lan Chang'an quickly took stock.
True Monarch Black Feather had lost his physical body, and his Nascent Soul had been captured alive. Thus, the entirety of his belongings was taken, the most substantial gain.
Included was a set of magical treasures such as the ancient longbow, fourth-rank materials, spirit herbs, and spiritual pills.
Among them was a pair of fourth-rank spirit wings, of excellent quality and spiritual luster. They seemed to have undergone some minor modification and seemed to be embryonic materials for a magical treasure that had yet to be refined.
“So, True Monarch Black Feather was preparing to forge a pair of flying wings as an inferior replacement for the Black Heaven Wings. He must have spent considerable wealth and effort.”
This discovery brought a small delight to Lan Chang'an.
This pair of fourth-rank wings could be used to enhance the Exotic Spirit Peacock Puppet.
Elder Ten Thousand Crane’s Nascent Soul had escaped, leaving behind only partial spoils, including the magical treasure Feathered Needles and a damaged black robe.
Additionally, hundreds of spirit cranes remained from the collapse of the Ten Thousand Crane Grand Formation.
With these high-grade materials, along with the ones acquired during his trip to Fengyuan Kingdom and the two sect territories over a decade ago, where he had killed two other Nascent Soul elders, Lan Chang'an now had enough puppet materials to forge a quasi-fourth-rank puppet.
In the past, supplementing his puppet army had consumed a huge amount of resources. Naturally, Lan Chang'an had no intention of building a mere quasi-fourth-rank puppet.
If he could assemble three or more fourth-rank puppets in the future, he could form a fourth-rank puppet army formation.
To maximize combat efficiency, the puppets in a puppet formation should ideally be of similar type and compatible in function.
The Exotic Spirit Peacock Puppet was too different from the Green Armor Puppet, making them unsuitable for a formation.
If he ever had the chance to construct a new fourth-rank puppet, it would be best to use the Green Armor Puppet as the core. That way, Puppet Master Wei could help share the burden of mental control and command the formation more effectively.
“These spirit beast rations and earth-element spirit materials, all of them are bestowed upon you.”
With a grand sweep of his sleeve, Lan Chang'an allocated a portion of the spoils to Lord Earthrock.
In the previous battle, Lord Earthrock had suffered serious injuries and had contributed the most. To capture True Monarch Black Feather, it had taken the brunt of the attack from the demonic cultivator’s heavy magical treasure with its own body.
Fairy Xia had been struck by Elder Ten Thousand Crane’s Feathered Needles and had taken a great risk, nearly sustaining critical injuries.
In contrast, Lan Chang'an, the master, only acted at the final decisive moment, making his contribution relatively modest.
“Thank you, Master, for your generosity.”
Lord Earthrock beamed and gratefully accepted the rewards. It then swallowed a healing spiritual pill and began channeling demonic energy to recover from injuries.
Among fourth-rank demon kings, Lord Earthrock’s talent was considered average. Even with ample resources, nearly ninety years of cultivation still left it some distance from the peak of early fourth rank.
...
“True Monarch Lan, Wenyue, with this great victory at Yuanliu City, the morale of the Righteous Dao Alliance will soar. This will have a significant impact on the war with the Demonic Path. The headquarters will surely award you both handsomely.”
True Monarch Golden Moon no longer carried her usual aloofness. She wore a gentle smile befitting an elder as she proactively engaged Lan Chang'an and Xia Wenyue in conversation, clearly seeking to mend the rift between them.
During the exchange, she subtly expressed interest in receiving a share of the spoils.
Though she had arrived at the end of the battle, her presence had at least served as a deterrent. Lan Chang'an didn’t act stingily, he gave her a superior-grade magical treasure and several dozen spirit cranes.
These spirit cranes bore the beast control seals of Elder Ten Thousand Crane. Though they couldn’t be used in combat, they could be taken back for breeding purposes, valuable assets for her sect’s spirit beast cultivation.
Fairy Xia had received spoils even richer than her master True Monarch Golden Moon.
Having killed multiple Nascent Soul old monsters, such spoils no longer held particular appeal for Lan Chang'an.
What he truly valued was the Nascent Soul spiritual body.
True Monarch Black Feather’s Nascent Soul had been captured and sealed. But Lan Chang'an couldn’t publicly use the Nine Seal Stele to devour it.
Each time the Nine Seal Stele consumed a Nascent Soul, it provided Lan Chang'an with an enormous influx of memory and knowledge, becoming a part of his own foundation.
He instructed Fairy Xia to stay in Yuanliu City to accompany True Monarch Golden Moon.
He himself didn’t linger. He swiftly left Yuanliu Immortal City and returned to his fortified frontline city where he was stationed.
True Monarch Fang was still leading the demonic army in attacking the stronghold.
Though the loss of the fourth-rank demon king had drastically weakened their offensive power, there were still variables if time dragged on.
...
After flying several hundred li from Yuanliu City, Lan Chang'an lowered his flight altitude and briefly paused in the skies above a desolate graveyard.
He muttered to himself:
“In tonight’s battle, why didn’t you act? If you had, Elder Ten Thousand Crane might have escaped smoothly.”
In the eerie graveyard, ghostly lights floated among the tombs, and cold, chilling winds occasionally howled through the air.
Suddenly, beneath a nameless tombstone, a faint and distorted shadowy ghost twisted into a vaguely humanoid silhouette, cloaked and indistinct.
“I am an elder of Unseen Gate in charge of this region’s battlefield. I have the authority to decide whether or not to act. In this operation, I was only responsible for providing intelligence and coordination, I never promised to join the battle. Besides, this is merely a shadow clone, it cannot contend with a Nascent Soul cultivator head-on.”
The cloaked figure’s voice was low and hollow, his tone detached, like that of a third-party observer.
Lan Chang'an pondered silently. So the Unseen Gate operated as he had expected.
The Unseen Gate also had footholds in the rear lines, but had very few resident Nascent Soul cultivators on the main battlefields, usually just one per major front. Some minor fronts might not even have one stationed at all.
To hire an Unseen Gate assassin required paying a heavy favor. For example, when Beast King Valley had temporarily enlisted the sect’s mid-stage Nascent Soul vice sect master.
Each stationed elder of Unseen Gate was like a regional governor, wielding considerable autonomy.
Thus, even though True Monarch Jue Ying hadn’t shown up to help in the last battle, Beast King Valley had no real grounds for complaint.
The reasons could be anything, not wanting to expose his presence, or simply not arriving in time.
After all, the Unseen Gate wasn’t obligated to risk itself on behalf of Beast King Valley.
“True Monarch Jue Ying, don’t forget, you owe me a life. When do you plan to repay that promise?”
Lan Chang'an stood with hands behind his back, transmitting his voice silently.
Under the tombstone, the shadowy figure stiffened ever so slightly.
In the span of a few heartbeats, spiritual sense between the Nascent Soul cultivators flickered like lightning, exchanging thoughts at instantaneous speeds.
In the skies above the desolate graveyard, Lan Chang'an only paused for a few moments before soaring off again.
No one knew what he and the ghostly soul fire in the graveyard had truly exchanged.
(End of chapter)