Chapter 531

Chapter 531: The Hidden Monster Tribulation

Li Hui, as the Master, only intervenes at critical moments; facing tribulation must be done by oneself for it to have meaning! Looking at Yao’er and the others now, their cultivation is no longer what it used to be. Each of them is not to be underestimated, especially as they are well-prepared to handle the initial onslaught of the tribulation without fear.

The Ball, the Black Mountain Old Demon, the Ancient Turtle of the Jade Pool, along with Ao Chongguang and Ao Chonglin, all the demons within the Mysterious Pearl take this opportunity to face tribulation.

The scope of the monster tribulation expands more and more, crashing down upon the abandoned garden, while the remaining formations start to activate, mitigating some of the tribulation for the demons.

Li Hui notices a peculiar thing: his disciples seem to be exhilarated. They face the overwhelming monster tribulation with joy rather than fear, their faces lit up like festival-goers. They toss out talisman after talisman and form formations, gathering the spiritual energy of the Great Thousand Cave to send into the Mysterious Pearl, occasionally praising each other or boasting a bit, showing friendship and competition openly, with little cunning shown.

“It seems they’ve been bottled up for too long; they should be let out for some practice soon, and then sent to Mei Niang for proper training.”

The monster tribulation is so extensive and dense that anyone can see it. Many cultivators want to get a closer look, but since Li Hui sneaked into the Yuan Chen Heavenly Mansion through a secret path, it would be hard for them to reach here from other directions. Additionally, the summons of the monster tribulation disrupt the heavenly secrets, making it not easy to deduce the location of this secret path.

For two full hours, Li Hui remains a spectator. No matter how many tribulation thunders crash down from the sky, Yao’er and the others have ways to deal with them, even manipulating the talisman formation to attract the lightning and create talisman flags, applying his principle of nourishing talismans with all living things.

“Roar…”

Ao Chonglin roars at the sky, his form expanding to twenty zhang. Holding the Nine Heavens Divine Thunder Demonic Talisman, he surprisingly attracts the electric light and power spreading in the sky and on the ground, his scales opening and closing like a mouth, until, after a moment, no trace of tribulation thunder and lightning is visible.

“Roar…”

Ao Chongguang also bursts forth with poisonous light, similarly expanding to twenty zhang, corroding Earth, Water, Fire, and Wind alongside Ao Chonglin as they advance.

The two demon dragons grow dragon horns; Ao Chonglin develops golden horns and Ao Chongguang silver horns, both reaching the Late Condense Essence stage. For half-demons to achieve such progress is impressive; they have not faced tribulation but rather used the talisman formations and calamity power to enhance their abilities, fully unleashing their potential.

Yao’er calls out, “The tribulation is entering its mid-stage, and the spiritual energy meets the requirements. I will release the restrictions to let the Celestial Tree grow; everyone be careful!”

“Yes!”

The demons all take on their roles, and the disciples wave their talisman flags.

Li Hui nods repeatedly, observing that everyone is going about their tasks with great order, and when they work together, they show a strong sense of synergy. Now, it remains to be seen how much the Celestial Tree can yield for the Xuancha Cave Heaven.

As the monster tribulation reaches its terrifying peak, Yao’er releases her restraints and lets the Celestial Tree grow wildly. The group has their hearts in their throats but soon erupts in cheers as the accumulation of calamity power disturbs the cosmic senses, with the monster tribulation wreaking havoc, blocking the even more terrifying calamity that the Celestial Tree would face.

Yao’er rallies, “Come on! Brothers and sisters, let’s advance together and ride the heavenly ladder to soar up!”

“Sister is mighty, and Father is mighty!” The demons shout in unison. Li Hui rubs his ears and thinks, “In the future, if others call me a demon master, they won’t be wrong. The Heavenly Talisman Sect is just like the Heavenly Demon Sect—confused!”

“Moo, moo, moo…” The azure bull lets out a booming cry, breaking free of restraints to advance, and this chaos adds to the tumult, doubling his power once he enters the tribulation.

“Do you want to face tribulation too?” Li Hui laughs in exasperation, nearly wishing to give him a kick.

The tree demons raised by the disciples emerge one after another, adding dozens of demonic energies into the Mysterious Pearl. When the insect demons hatch from their eggs, even more demonic energy will swell.

The Ball praises, “This is wonderful! I think we can pass this on as a tradition. Every disciple can raise a few demons upon entering, and the Heavenly Talisman Sect is sure to prosper.”

“Hmph, whether it flourishes or not is hard to say. I think, many years down the line, the Heavenly Talisman Sect should change its name to the Ten Thousand Demon Sect,” Li Hui smacks his forehead. How did it suddenly rise to the level of tradition? It’s important to note that the spiritual plants used to generate tree demons are not cheap; a large household can’t afford such waste!

“You make it sound quite good! We could branch out into a Ten Thousand Demon Sect,” The Ball beams with excitement.

“Go away; stay wherever it’s cool!” Li Hui brushes him off with disinterest.

With Yao’er and the tree demons’ abilities, it poses no difficulty to aid their younger generations in becoming demons; the true challenge is for them to face the tribulation. Zhong Yuan and the other disciples step in, controlling the talisman formation to disperse the tribulations. This intertwines the fortunes of the Heavenly Talisman Sect with the demonic energies, forging a bond as strong as steel, with no distinctions between them!

This is the essence of a sect; this is the way of the path. You exist within me, and I within you. Cause and effect entangle deeply, sharing life and death. If one is bullied, a multitude will spring forth. Especially at the inception of establishing the sect, when the disciples are most united, it has already started to take shape, brewing great momentum now.

The trends favor them, and nothing goes awry!

Li Hui creates a snowball at the peak of a snow-covered mountain, choosing the right moment to let it roll down the slope; today, it has grown into a massive snowball.

Gathering a little can form a pelt; accumulating sand can build a tower. With the disciples and demons combined, they now total sixty. Yao’er is the first to break the limitations and step into the Bosa stage. As a tree demon, her Legal form becomes the Golden Jade Peaches Tree, beginning to ascend and trace back to the origins of the peach tree, unleashing various phenomena, as if brilliant tree shadows are descending.

“Boom, boom, boom…” The terrifying heavenly tribulation manifests, as if thunder descends from the heavens, not wanting Yao’er to return to her roots.

This is significant; the tribulation’s power obliterates the garden and radiates outward. Li Hui hurriedly intervenes, manipulating the talisman formation set by the disciples to guide the calamity power forward to break through the formations that radiated red light earlier.

The heavenly tribulation is vast, and the formations in the front operate chaotically, causing the red light to fail to lock onto a specific target. Regardless of the dangers ahead, they are gradually wearing down the obstacles.

Most of the disciples have chosen claw-type secret techniques or cultivation methods, frequently invoking storms to draw up talismans, completing dozens or even hundreds of them in the blink of an eye. Their accumulation is impressive, nearly reaching the level of Li Hui at the Condense Essence stage.

So far, no disciples have advanced to the Bosa stage, but they themselves are not lacking in talent. Additionally, they have simplified treasure cabinets to boost their potential, leading to a rapid pace of cultivation. Zhong Yuan and Jin Feng have already reached the Late Condense Essence stage, while most of the other disciples are in the Mid Condense Essence stage; they probably just need about six more months to reach the Bosa stage.

Thanks to Yao’er and the disciples’ efforts, the Xuancha Cave Heaven has already established a scripture repository. Li Hui has yet to enrich the collection; even the records from before are sufficient for the disciples’ studies. Once the collection is filled out, it will be enough for many to dedicate a lifetime to research.

The existence of treasure cabinets is remarkable, as they can maximize the opening of bottlenecks. Talismans can assist cultivators in facing tribulations and avoiding dangers, while also enabling the raising of demons. The Heavenly Talisman Sect is already qualified to soar to great heights. When Li Hui takes in thirty-six disciples, they will in turn accept apprentices, and in just ten years, a new generation can be born; a hundred years later, no one knows what it might turn into.

After all, Old Li didn’t have the sudden thought to use gold needles in the Golden Luan Great Thousand Cave. He only took in a cow demon and had to wait a long time to save the demon embryo, never even entering the Yuan Chen Heavenly Mansion or knowing about its existence in the Golden Luan Cave, nor did he support the demons in their advancement.

As the saying goes: "A quick step leads to quick progress," and indeed, just one quick step has changed everything dramatically.

The monster tribulation continues to exert its power, and this exhibition is delightful, like an umbrella that prevents the heavens from noticing that the Celestial Tree is growing. Meanwhile, Yao’er and the demons reap tremendous benefits, rapidly increasing their cultivation levels by a millennium, giving them even more confidence in opposing the heavenly tribulation.