Roar!

The words of the Toad Demon startled the Yaksha, causing it to quickly turn and retreat, while the steel fork stirred up a vortex of black smoke, making the hall seem to be engulfed in the undercurrent of a river.

The decaying wooden racks around shattered with a rumble, even the incense burner covered in verdigris creaked and twisted as it collapsed...

The Yaksha creature is quite peculiar, there are Sky Yakshas, Earth Yakshas, and Water Yakshas, spanning land, sea, and air.

But to be precise, it is not a race, but composed of various dark entities that have cultivated into form.

Wu Jiu had long forgotten his past life, only remembering that after death, his body sank into the river, filled with resentment, unintentionally harming many people, eventually transforming from a Fierce Ghost into an intelligent existence, now becoming an Old Demon in the Celestial Tribulation Realm.

He was inherently malevolent, and after joining the Jingjiang Water Mansion, he further exerted dominance, causing even the local Astronomical Bureau to dare not meddle, even if he casually feasted.

But this place is indeed peculiar.

It was one thing to clash with a Black Fish Demon, but to be ambushed and killed by the naturally restraining Crane Immortal.

However, the three Old Demons that accompanied were each bewitched by that strange ancient stage, scaring him half to death, leaving him with no arrogance, immediately resorting to his most proficient skill.

The decaying roof of the hall collapsed with a thunderous sound, the Yaksha retreated and vigilantly observed the surroundings.

But seemingly... there was no danger.

The Yaksha's eyes were fixed on the collapsed area of the hall, where there was an odd bronze statue, appearing to be a woman but was blue-faced, with fangs, and three heads and six arms.

This divine statue had been knocked over by a bronze beam onto the ground, no matter how one looked at it, it seemed like just an ordinary divine statue.

The Yaksha turned to look, and the Toad Demon had vanished without a trace, causing him immense frustration.

"This cowardly toad, when we get out, I shall report to the master and have you skinned and turned into a drum!"

After speaking, he dragged the steel fork and headed in another direction.

Behind him, the fallen divine statue suddenly opened its blood-red eyes...

...

Inside the Water and Land Hall.

Zhang Kui closely examined the murals.

After the suddenly appearing Divine Spirit taught the human race to cultivate, the land was lush and green, with many small people singing and dancing.

But shortly thereafter,

a three-headed, six-armed monster emerged from the mountains, cracking the earth and withering the crops...

In the great river, a Black Dragon stirred up storms, flooding vast farmlands...

Under a blood-red sun, led by a giant black locust, swarms of locusts covered the sky and devoured everything...

Elder Huayan said in a deep voice nearby, "After we entered, we encountered three Celestial Tribulation Realm Water Demons. Though we managed to slay two in the ensuing battle, everyone who came with us died, and the Crane Immortal was critically injured and unconscious."

"As we were figuring a way out, more Old Demons came, Daoist friend Qiu Canzi valiantly died, fortunately, that peculiar stage suddenly appeared, leading me to find this place."

"Since humans began cultivating grains, droughts, floods, and locusts have been great calamities. I thought these murals were merely praising the Divine Spirit, but had not expected these three demons to truly be sealed here..."

Zhang Kui furrowed his brows and continued to look forward.

The three demons were captured by the divine being bathed in golden light, along with a host of Divine Generals; the Black Dragon was skinned and dismantled, with the enormous bones constructed into a stage, suppressed with an unknown method.

And the three-headed, six-armed creature, seemingly an alien Drought Fiend demon, likewise had its flesh stripped and thrown into a furnace to be made into a divine statue.

Elder Huayan elaborated alongside:

"These two methods of suppression were common in ancient times. Many Taoist temples were built using giant demon bones, day and night using incense and human essence to dissolve resentment. There is a fishbone temple on the Lai State Canal Mountain."

"But this Locust Demon is somewhat odd..."

Zhang Kui turned his head to look, seeing in the mural, several fierce-looking Divine Generals holding iron chains, binding the enormous Locust Demon layer by layer.

The Locust Demon wildly struggled, viciously howling at the Divine Generals, seemingly ready to break free at any moment.

Zhang Kui muttered with a frown, "The Evil Dragon and Drought Fiend were skinned and dismantled, why not kill this Locust Demon..."

"That is precisely what puzzles me."

Elder Huayan slightly shook his head, eyes full of concern, "The dragon bone stage has developed supernatural qualities. If these demons rampage and allow the creatures to break free, it will be troublesome..."

Zhang Kui couldn't help but glance at the mural depicting the chaos wreaked by a magical beast, barren land for miles, humans cannibalizing each other, his face immediately turned grim, eyes flashing with ferocity.

"State Preceptor Cui instructed outside to ignore these demonic beings, but now it seems, there's no choice but to get involved."

Elder Huayan shook his head,

"You brat, what nonsense are you talking about, let's go. Just say I perished in there today; even if this old man meets his demise, I will ensure these demons remain here!"

Zhang Kui laughed heartily,

"Senior, have you forgotten my nature? I've already slain one Celestial Tribulation Realm Old Demon; I don't mind killing a few more."

As he spoke, Lu Li let his sword light emerge, spinning around his body.

Elder Huayan's eyes lit up,

"What a remarkable flying sword, its killing intent is astonishing, and it's unparalleled in sharpness. It can contend with the Celestial Tribulation Realm. I indeed didn't misjudge you."

He shook his head slightly as he spoke,

"But this alone is not enough. There are at least three or four Old Demons. Your future is bright; you should leave and protect the human race in the future."

"How about this then?"

Zhang Kui didn't argue and gradually faded away.

Elder Huayan glanced at him and continued shaking his head,

"The Invisibility Skill is exquisite, but..."

As he spoke, he widened his eyes and fell speechless.

Just now, he could see through Zhang Kui's skill, but now he couldn't sense any presence, as if the hall was completely empty.

Not far away, Zhang Kui's gradually receding laughter came, "Senior, heal yourself for a while, I'll go investigate..."

Elder Huayan was initially stunned, then a glimmer of hope appeared in his eyes. He took out a pill, popped one into his mouth, sat down cross-legged, and placed his hand on the Immortal Crane, channeling mana to aid in healing.

Shortly, the Immortal Crane awoke with a soft groan, coughed up some blood, "Old bastard, aren't you dead yet?"

"Stop speaking nonsense, we have a death battle ahead."

"Alright, alright, a bunch of useless riff-raff, makes me furious..."

On the other side, Zhang Kui sped swiftly above the hall, his eyes filled with murderous intent.

Indeed, he wasn't overconfident; he even didn't factor in Elder Huayan's combat power, wanting to kill all Old Demons by himself.

The Flying Sword Skill's lethality was already sufficient, but there were other methods to multiply his combat power, like using the Invisibility Skill with flying sword assassinations, or the Body Fixing Skill with flying sword's strong attack.

After upgrading the Invisibility Skill to level four, he could already conceal it from Elder Huayan. Unless the Old Demons had special measures, they likely couldn't detect him either.

He also upgraded the Body Fixing Skill to level four. As long as he could immobilize the opponent for a moment, the speed of the flying sword would be enough for a lethal strike.

Not to mention he used the remaining points to upgrade his Qi Prohibition Skill to level three, for added security.

Suddenly, his expression tensed, and he slowed down.

He saw a partially collapsed wall ahead, behind which squatted a Toad Demon, body already in human form, clad in armor, broad and stout, holding a Wolf Fang Club with its big belly exposed.

Though it looked ridiculous, its aura was genuinely that of the Celestial Tribulation Realm, especially the tumors on the back of the Toad Demon's neck, large and small, each a human face with various expressions of joy, anger, sorrow, and happiness, making it appear quite eerie.

Zhang Kui suppressed his killing intent and slowly crept behind it, looking to strike hard, hoping for a lethal blow.

Just then, an angry roar sounded abruptly, a Yaksha with formidable horns approached amid rolling black smoke, "Formless Toad Monarch, how dare you escape!"

Another one?

Zhang Kui frowned, immediately holding his breath and concentrating his energy.

The Old Demon called Formless Toad Monarch let out a dry laugh, "Ninth Wu, you're not dead? Don't blame me; that divine statue looked somewhat sinister, I didn't want to die in vain."

"Hmph, nonsense."

The Yaksha snorted coldly, baring its fangs, "It may look like three heads and six arms, but it's just an ordinary divine statue. Even after I collapsed the hall, there was no movement."

The Formless Toad Monarch awkwardly smiled, "That perhaps was my illusion. This place is indeed dangerous, Ninth Wu, don't be too foolish."

"Out there we are the powerful ones who can summon wind and rain, yet they don't use their own people in the Water Mansion, but want us to die instead. How does that make sense."

The murderous glow in the Yaksha's eyes gradually faded, "Though that's true, there still needs to be an explanation. Don't forget about the two, they are subordinates of Immortal Wu."

The Toad grinned, "That's simple, we'll wait here. If they find us, great; if not, we'll leave immediately."

The Yaksha's eyes flickered, nodded, and carrying its steel fork, found a stone to sit on.

Hidden in the distance, Zhang Kui listened and understood. This Water Mansion is indeed full of smoke and intrigue, each with their own plans.

But what alarmed him more was the divine statue with three heads and six arms mentioned by the Yaksha, could it be the one sealing the exotic Drought Fiend?

Zhang Kui felt a bit worried. With these two Old Demons together, they would be hard to deal with. It's better to first examine the sealed creature.

With this in mind, he immediately retreated slowly, detouring towards the direction the Yaksha came from.

As he left, the spot he originally hid in suddenly began to buzz and vibrate, and a black dragon bone stage slowly appeared.

A flash of black light passed, and the weapons of the Toad Demon and Yaksha immediately clattered to the ground as their eyes turned vacant and they walked towards the stage...

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.