Chapter 827: The Most Hidden Ruthless Demon

On the Tianyu Continent, the burrow at the demon summoning formation, where Old Niu had originally pretended to be stationed, had been reopened. Without damaging any part of the formation’s structure, a series of Immortal Dao counter-formations had been re-laid both inside and outside the grand formation. Within the underground passage, streams of immortal light were rapidly traversing, leveraging the earth’s power.

Thousands of immortal lights were already traveling along the underground leyline river, not to mention the constant influx of immortal lights converging at the burrow’s entrance.

After emerging from the seabed, many immortals jointly cast water manipulation spells, constructing a murky passage directly on the seabed to continue their approach to Black Wasteland from beneath the sea.

Besides the many immortal cultivators still traveling underwater, more than a dozen terrifyingly powerful immortal lights had already arrived outside Black Wasteland from the Nine Heavens. Among them was Daoist Yuan, the Sect Master of Qianyuan Sect. The other cultivators looked out together at the boundless Black Wasteland in the distance. If one only looked at its appearance, one might truly mistake it for a land of spiritual beauty.

“This is the Black Wasteland. Its land area is unfathomable, and the number of demons is countless. Legends say that ancient demons are buried deep within Black Wasteland, and many of the demons here originate from them.”

“Our joint effort this time is to severely crush the might of the Black Wasteland demons. Even if ancient demons were to revive, they would perish under our immortal arts!”

“Indeed, we are going this time to strive to rescue all the people of Tianyu Continent, and to give the Black Wasteland demons an unforgettable lesson!”

If ordinary cultivators were to say these words, it would be utterly laughable. However, these cultivators in the sky were masters who had suppressed countless demons, and they possessed the cultivation and confidence to speak this way.

Daoist Yuan calmly looked at the distant land and turned to face the two long-bearded elders beside him.

“Esteemed Daoist friends with long beards, I ask the two of you to take action regarding the general location, and also to pinpoint the demon lairs and monster caves along the way.”

“Daoist Yuan, please rest assured. Just leave it to me and Daoist Lian.”

“Yes, thank you for your trouble. And to everyone else, when the time comes, my junior brother and I will jointly perform the Qianyuan Sect’s mountain-moving technique. I hope everyone will cast spells to assist me!”

Daoist Yuan’s cultivation was exceptional, and as the initiator of this immortal operation, it was natural for him to temporarily take on the role of main speaker. In the face of a greater cause, even immortal cultivators who had disputes with Qianyuan Sect did not say much, and readily agreed.

“Daoist Yuan, please rest assured!”

“Daoist friend, you can cast your spells with peace of mind when the time comes; we will certainly provide strong assistance.”

“Indeed, but only after all demons have been slaughtered.”

“My Qiuyue Mountain has lost hundreds of disciples! This time, we must utterly dismember the demons who have wreaked havoc on my Tianyu Continent!”

This was a rare collective action by various Immortal Dao sects. Although there had been many disagreements, they had now, through coordination, developed a complete plan. Besides the inevitable demon-slaying and evil-purging, a significant force would be immediately dispatched to completely seize control of the demons’ grotto-heavens.

For this purpose, the two long-bearded elders of the Heavenly Secret Pavilion would also follow up immediately. After breaking into the grotto-heavens, they would join the other immortal cultivators in a full effort to seize control, swiftly destroying the grotto-heaven core formations set up by the demons and removing the demonic imprints on the grotto-heaven’s spatial principles to claim the laws governing its temporal changes.

They even envisioned a bloody battle entirely on the demons’ home ground within the grotto-heavens.

Of course, if Ji Yuan and the old beggar were here, they would certainly tell these immortal masters from Tianyu Continent that they were overthinking things.

Although there were demons proficient in various mystical arts, they still lacked the ability to control grotto-heavens. Furthermore, the grotto-heaven where numerous human-animal kingdoms were located was not under the exclusive control of a single demon king; many factions existed, and no one would be pleased if someone could fully command the grotto-heaven. While some grotto-heavens had their spatial powers partially controlled by various parties, it was entirely different from the grotto-heaven blessed lands of renowned Immortal Dao sects.

On the other side, for a period of time, Ji Yuan and the old beggar had almost traversed every corner of this small grotto-heaven, visiting more than a dozen human-animal kingdoms of varying sizes and passing through several deserted cities that had long been devoid of any living inhabitants.

With a clear understanding of the distribution of demons, Ji Yuan and the old beggar would occasionally appear in native settlements, sometimes slightly altering their appearance, other times appearing in their original forms.

A rough estimate showed that within the entire small grotto-heaven, besides the few million people from Tianyu Continent, the native population surprisingly exceeded ten million.

What surprised Ji Yuan and the old beggar was that some people were actually hidden deep in the mountains and old forests, completely cut off from the outside world, hoping to escape the control of the monsters, and they had successfully survived. As for whether the monsters were pretending not to know, that remained unclear.

One day, the old beggar, meditating on a mountaintop, suddenly opened his eyes and looked at Ji Yuan, who was also sitting quietly beside him.

“Mister Ji, my senior brothers have already crossed the sea.”

Ji Yuan also opened his eyes and looked up at the sky.

“Then we should also go see that so-called Myriad Demon Banquet, and how many attendees have arrived.”

The next moment, the two transformed into a streak of light and departed from one of the grotto-heaven’s entrances. This grotto-heaven also had more than one entrance, but these were fixed, unlike those that could be controlled by the Heavenly Secret Pavilion.

This second exit was clearly in a good location. As soon as Ji Yuan and the old beggar emerged, they sensed a multitude of demonic auras. Two discreet streaks of light avoided the demons guarding the entrance, and after flying for a moment, they reappeared on the mid-slope of a relatively remote mountain peak.

This time, Ji Yuan and the old beggar didn’t even change their appearances; they merely transformed the faint immortal spiritual energy around them into a demonic aura. Of course, the old beggar’s attire changed into normal clothes, as transformed demons generally wouldn’t wear tattered rags.

“Ho, it’s quite lively!”

The old beggar spoke with a hint of sarcasm, while Ji Yuan remained silent. Both their gazes were fixed on a point dozens of miles away, where the sky was faintly covered by the demonic and evil auras emanating from various demons. Under the sight of a master’s spiritual eye, it was truly sky-obscuring and sun-blotting, and demonic winds and evil energies were constantly converging from all directions.

“That should be where the so-called Myriad Demon Banquet is being held, right?”

Hearing Ji Yuan’s words, the old beggar nodded and said:

“It should be. I wonder how that Ox Demon is doing?”

“Let’s go see.”

Ji Yuan’s words made the old beggar slightly surprised.

“We’re just going to go like this?”

“Why not?”

Ji Yuan smiled and looked at the old beggar, who then also smiled.

“There’s no harm in it. This old beggar will go with Mister Ji to see the world and witness what this den of myriad demons looks like.”

The two made no attempt to conceal themselves, acting as if they were two ordinary transformed demons, and flew towards the place where demons gathered. However, less than fifteen minutes later, Ji Yuan and the old beggar, despite being prepared, were still greatly surprised.

The demonic and evil auras they sensed as they passed by, both in quantity and quality, far exceeded their expectations. They had never believed that the Myriad Demon Banquet would only have ten thousand demons, but at this moment, they found it truly astonishing.

What Ji Yuan and the old beggar saw was supposed to be a continuous stretch of mountains, but many tall peaks had been leveled halfway up, and on some peaks, towering monstrous beings were continuously swinging giant axes, chopping and chiseling.

“Rumble… rumble… rumble…”

Pieces of rock fragments flew everywhere, and trees toppled one by one, as a mountain peak was gradually leveled.

There were also some demons resembling gigantic pangolins, crawling at the foot of some mountains, continuously swinging their enormous claws inwards, digging out all the earth and rocks to create massive cave halls within the mountain bellies.

On the ground, demons were continuously digging, eventually causing subterranean fire to emerge.

One massive venue after another, either completed or under construction, and mountain peaks whose interiors had been or were about to be hollowed out, all served as the stage for the Myriad Demon Banquet.

Stoves and even alchemy furnaces were set up everywhere, with countless lesser demons bustling about inside and out. The cave halls within the mountains served as temporary resting places for many demons, and the number of powerful demon lords resting in the mountain interiors was unknown.

Everything indicated that a grand event would soon begin…

Inside a cave hall within a mountain peak, the area was illuminated by the flames of oil refined using secret techniques. This hall was like a small plaza, fully equipped with tables, chairs, and various utensils, and judging by their styles, many of them were from Tianyu Continent.

The hall had three or four very wide entrances, from which one could see the conditions of the surrounding mountains. Essentially, many other mountain peaks also contained similar halls.

In a corner of this cave hall, several members of the Apocalypse Alliance sat around stone tables. Among them were Lu Shan Jun, Wang Youhong, Shi Jiu, and others. Old Niu was also seated among them.

Of course, there was no shortage of food and drink on the stone tables, but the quantities were not large. Since the Myriad Demon Banquet hadn’t officially begun, “fresh main dishes” would not be served. However, at this moment, Wang Youhong and Shi Jiu were somewhat distracted, their eyes occasionally darting towards Old Niu, who was sometimes boisterous and sometimes laughing loudly, and Lu Wu, who was occasionally smiling and drinking beside Old Niu.

‘This brute ox and Lu Wu are truly ruthless!’

This was a thought shared by both Wang Youhong and Shi Jiu. Many members of the Apocalypse Alliance knew that Niu Batian and Lu Wu had known each other for a long time; even their joint entry into the alliance was a result of one joining first and then recommending the other.

But previously, besides knowing that both demons were exceptionally talented, almost all demons who had interacted with Old Niu thought he was a short-tempered but simple-minded demon, while Lu Wu appeared cultivated and eloquent.

Later, however, it was discovered that Lu Wu was actually extremely gloomy and ruthless, someone not to be provoked. But unexpectedly, the one who had hidden his true nature most deeply was that brute ox.

Yes, Wang Youhong and Shi Jiu, putting aside how the brute ox managed to persuade Lu Wu, how could they not know what consequences these two demons had caused?

Niu Batian was highly versatile and somehow managed to connect with Demon King Wenyan. He also maintained excellent relations with several other demon kings and directly pledged allegiance to Demon King Wenyan, while Lu Shan Jun pledged allegiance to another demon king.

These two terrifyingly powerful demons were subordinates almost all demon kings desired. Niu Batian and Lu Wu explicitly stated that the Apocalypse Alliance was now fragmented, but it contained many demons with limitless potential. Therefore, the various great kings should invite all of them to the Myriad Demon Banquet, and then, through incentives and their persuasion, recruit a large number of demons into their ranks.

This was an irresistible temptation. If possible, not too many were needed; even recruiting a few would be a huge boost, requiring minimal additional effort.

Several demon kings, privately and selectively, invited all the Apocalypse Alliance demons they knew were hidden in Black Wasteland. They arranged for all of them to be in the adjacent cave halls within their respective spheres of influence, concealing this matter from many other powerful demons and demon kings.

Even Shi Jiu received an invitation, and he was greatly astonished when he received it. He had thought his ancient tomb lair in Black Wasteland was very well hidden, but unexpectedly, one of the demon kings had known about it all along. Wang Youhong, who was lingering on the outskirts, and other Apocalypse Alliance members also received invitations.

It can be said that, except for those whose identities were originally extremely mysterious, or who, like Tu Siyan, had identities in famous places such as the Jade Fox Grotto-heaven and had escaped to hide, almost all Apocalypse Alliance members who had temporarily sought refuge in Black Wasteland were now here.

When Wang Youhong and Shi Jiu, bewildered, gathered here with numerous Apocalypse Alliance members, they naturally privately asked Old Niu what was going on. Old Niu at that time merely said with a guileless smile:

“We cannot escape Mister Ji’s control. Therefore, to minimize the possibility of exposure and the extent of retaliation within the Apocalypse Alliance in the future, old friends of the Apocalypse Alliance, let’s all ‘go’ together…”

The tone and demeanor of this statement were exactly like Old Niu’s before, but it would lead to a terrifying consequence, making Wang Youhong and Shi Jiu, who were already in the same boat as Old Niu, shiver with dread.