Serpent Ancestor

Chapter 156: Ancient cultivator, practicing in secrecy

"Who is the Demon Lord?"

"What kind of cultivation does this person have to make Qin Xuanji address him as a junior?"

Everyone's minds buzzed, their hearts stirred by waves of shock.

Qin Xuanji, the most talented individual of the Heavenly Puppet Sect, an unparalleled Chosen not seen in a millennium, invincible within the Core Formation Stage.

Even the Elemental Infant ancestor of the Chu Kingdom couldn't kill him and had to retreat.

For someone to make Qin Xuanji pay respects, what level of cultivation does this youth possess?!

"Back then, the Divine Puppet Sect made a vow with me to never set foot here again. Have you forgotten?" The Demon Lord looked at the person before him, seemingly assessing.

Qin Xuanji slightly bowed, neither humble nor arrogant, "I respect the ancestors and seniors, hence my true self did not come. But as a cultivator, we go against the heavens, how could we be bound by some old rules?"

His words were not arrogant but heartfelt.

In the entire Heavenly Puppet Sect, only he dared to face the Demon Lord's reputation and come to this place.

The Demon Lord remained expressionless, coldly saying, "Sounds nice, but aren't you just testing my limits?"

"Let me make it clear to you now, I don't care what kind of avatars, puppets, or external incarnations you use, as long as they belong to the Divine Puppet Sect, they should not appear within the Wu Mountain range. Today, consider this a lesson."

He opened his mouth and sucked in, pulling Qin Xuanji's figure towards him.

Suddenly, Qin Xuanji's eyes flared with ghostly fire, breaking free from the constraints, his body igniting and quickly dissipating into smoke.

"Extreme Realm?"

The Demon Lord's eyes flashed with a hint of surprise, murmuring, "This person is indeed extraordinary, no wonder he has such confidence."

Extreme Realm represents the ultimate power within a certain realm.

For example, Xu Hei possesses the Extreme Realm of the Foundation Establishment Stage.

The Demon Lord thought that in this era of thin Spiritual Qi, the Extreme Realm would be very rare, yet he encountered one as soon as he emerged.

The Demon Lord picked up the token and coldly spoke into it, "Defying the heavens? You were hiding from me just now, which shows fear and trepidation, yet you talk about defying the heavens!"

These words, transmitted through Qin Xuanji's token, crossed an endless distance and echoed in Qin Xuanji's mind.

This would become Qin Xuanji's inner demon.

…………

Jiangling, the capital city of the Chu Kingdom.

In a quiet room, Qin Xuanji sat on a prayer mat, suddenly opening his eyes, the voice from earlier reverberating in his mind.

"Good, this tribulation comes at the right time!"

Qin Xuanji was not panicked; instead, he was very calm, "As long as I overcome this tribulation, I can form my Elemental Infant!"

He, the strongest Core Formation in the history of the Qin Kingdom, and also the youngest.

He respects neither heaven nor earth, neither ghosts nor gods, nor ancestors. Even when facing the Elemental Infant ancestor of the Chu Kingdom, he is fearless.

But the moment the Demon Lord appeared, he felt a deep sense of powerlessness, like an ant.

—Divine Transformation Stage!

This was the first time in Qin Xuanji's life facing the Divine Transformation Stage, and also the first time he felt fear. However, as long as he crossed this hurdle, the world would be wide open.

"You've seen the Demon Lord, how did it go?"

A voice came from the void ahead, belonging to the Elemental Infant ancestor of the Heavenly Puppet Sect.

"The Demon Lord is not dead, and now appears in a youthful form."

Qin Xuanji spoke to the void ahead.

The voice was silent for a long time before asking, "Qin Xuanji, do you believe anyone or any demonic beast could survive from ancient times to the present?"

Qin Xuanji shook his head, "I don't believe it."

Elemental Infant cultivators have a lifespan of over a thousand years.

The Divine Transformation Stage can reach up to three thousand years.

Even so, it's still too far from ancient times.

"Then what do you think the Demon Lord is?" the old voice asked again.

Qin Xuanji was silent for a moment before decisively saying, "He is practicing in a way that deceives the heavens."

A cultivator's lifespan is limited by the laws of the heavens, and they cannot live indefinitely. Even defying the heavens won't work; only by deceiving the heavens can they avoid its scrutiny.

"That's a good guess."

A figure appeared, the Elemental Infant ancestor walked up to him, solemnly saying, "The day you unravel the mystery of the Demon Lord will be the day you form your Elemental Infant."

"By then, no matter how the Demon Lord deceives the heavens, he won't be able to hide."

…………

Wild Giant Elephant Tribe.

With Qin Xuanji's disappearance, the Iron Mountain Sect's momentum was gone.

The Demon Lord didn't even glance at them, leaving directly.

It was as if his appearance was merely to counterbalance the Heavenly Puppet Sect, indifferent to everything else.

Xu Hei let out a sigh of relief, truly afraid that the Demon Lord would notice him, as he had too many secrets.

Tie Niu's eyes flickered, trying to slip away, but Man Jin gave him no chance, crushing him like a mountain, completely obliterating him.

The remaining members of the Iron Mountain Sect were swiftly defeated by the combined efforts of Xu Hei, Xiao Chou, and the elephant herd, leaving none alive.

Xu Hei wasted no time, using the Soul-absorbing Flag to draw in all their souls, allowing the snake spirit to devour them.

Thus, the Iron Mountain Sect, which was supposed to replace the Mountain Movers Sect, perished halfway before it even began.

Man Jin's burning flames extinguished as he walked up to Xu Hei, weakly saying, "Brother Xu, I owe you a great favor again, I..."

Before he could finish, his body swayed and fell to the ground.

Man Jin's body rapidly shrank, the massive mountain-like figure deflating like a punctured balloon, visibly shrinking, even his life force rapidly waning.

"Chieftain!"

"Big brother!"

Cries of alarm came from the surrounding elephants, who gathered around, extremely anxious.

Without a word, Xu Hei immediately took out a pill and administered it to him, giving him three in succession before Man Jin's aura stabilized, no longer declining.

"He's too severely injured, his life force greatly depleted, he needs rest," Xu Hei said solemnly.

To kill two Core Formation cultivators, Man Jin had exerted all his strength, burning his life force at a heavy cost.

The elephant herd fell into silence.

This time, they suffered great losses, with their leader unconscious and many elite tribesmen dead or wounded.

The silver lining was that their children were unharmed.

Xu Hei's warning was crucial for them.

"We cannot repay Senior Xu's kindness."

An old elephant was moved to tears.

All the elephants bowed to Xu Hei.

Such kindness cannot be expressed in words; it's no exaggeration to say that in the future, they would be willing to go through fire and water for Xu Hei.

At this moment, the lion pack led by the Purple Lightning Lion King arrived belatedly.

"Damn it! I was trapped by a formation, only just arriving now," the Purple Lightning Lion King cursed.

Xu Hei was not surprised by this; Qin Xuanji's arrangements would certainly have also stalled the Purple Lightning Lion King, otherwise, he wouldn't have been lured in.

Xu Hei held no grudge.

Ultimately, it was about strength!

If not for the Demon Lord's sudden intervention, Xu Hei didn't know what kind of situation he would have faced.

Qin Xuanji was too powerful, the strongest Core Formation cultivator he had ever seen, capable of making a mid-stage Core Formation cultivator cough up blood with just a glance, terrifyingly strong.

The only methods Xu Hei could think of were using eight Small Teleportation Talismans or merging with the Black Dragon Pagoda, and whether he could escape would purely depend on luck.

"Lei Meng, you need not blame yourself; this was a conspiracy against me."

Xu Hei briefly explained what had happened.

"What do you mean against you? This was clearly against all of us demonic beasts!"

The Purple Lightning Lion King was furious.

With his fiery temper, he wished to destroy another city, but now he was powerless to do so. Impulsiveness does not mean courting death.

"The Heavenly Puppet Sect being targeted by the Demon Lord likely means they won't dare to come again. Do you still plan to move thousands of miles away?" Xu Hei asked.

The Purple Lightning Lion King pondered for a long time before sighing.

"The Heavenly Puppet Sect may not come, but they can send others. The major sects in the Qin Kingdom, like this Iron Mountain Sect, are as numerous as cattle, not to mention the super families like the Bai Family."

"We are too weak to challenge them."

The Purple Lightning Lion King looked at the unconscious Man Jin, thought of his own situation, and could only swallow this bitter pill.

They couldn't rely on the Demon Lord for everything. The Wu Mountain Range was vast and endless, with countless demon clans; the Demon Lord couldn't possibly look after them individually.

Frankly, they were insignificant among the demon clans.

No one could fathom the Demon Lord's intentions.

"Senior Lei Meng, if you don't mind, why not settle here? Our Wild Giant Elephant Tribe welcomes you," an old elephant suggested.