Volume 1 Volume 6 Chapter 61

Volume 6 Chapter 61: Shock and Recovery

Feeling the terrifying danger coming from afar, overwhelming and powerful, Xu Qingfan’s face changed dramatically.

Seeing Dongfang Qingling’s face turn pale as she gazed into the distance, Xu Qingfan became even more alarmed and quickly asked, "Junior Martial Sister Dongfang, what on earth is happening?"

Hearing Xu Qingfan’s question, Dongfang Qingling snapped out of her shock, quickly descended beside Xu Qingfan, and without caring about modesty, she carried Xu Qingfan on her back and fled into the distance.

At the same time, Dongfang Qingling took out a blue jade disc from her sleeve; with a wave of her hand, the disc transformed into a light circle that protected them both in the center. Xu Qingfan noticed that the defensive power of the light circle was average, but it did a good job of hiding their presence, making it a rather good magical tool.

However, Dongfang Qingling was completely focused on escaping and did not answer Xu Qingfan’s question. Besides sensing the terrifying aura from afar, Xu Qingfan didn’t know anything else.

Yet, the aura was indeed too horrifying. Xu Qingfan noticed that Little Black, who usually cared for nothing, had also lost its usual pride and was simply following Dongfang Qingling in escape. The source of that aura was still more than a hundred miles away, but at the moment Xu Qingfan sensed it, he felt as if he had instantly gone from the calm, desolate Southern Wasteland into a deep, terrifying hell; his body trembled uncontrollably. Judging by the aura, the being or demon beast that emitted it was likely stronger than a Mahayana cultivator.

"Junior Martial Sister Dongfang, what on earth is happening?"

Seeing Dongfang Qingling’s pale face as she focused on fleeing, Xu Qingfan felt anxious and confused, and he asked again.

Dongfang Qingling used all her speed to quickly fly behind another hill, gently placing Xu Qingfan down, and then she said with a pale face, "Monster! Demon!"

During these days, Xu Qingfan had witnessed Dongfang Qingling’s strong side. Now, seeing her so terrified made him uneasy, and he hurriedly asked, "What monster or demon? Is it a demon beast?"

Hearing Xu Qingfan’s words, a hint of confusion flashed in Dongfang Qingling’s eyes. She gradually regained her calm and hesitantly replied, "It is a demon, not human and not a demon beast."

Demon?

Xu Qingfan was deeply puzzled. After all, demons only existed in legends. How could they be real? Dongfang Qingling should know this too; why did she say that?

As the two talked, the terrifying presence drew nearer, and the fearful roars of beasts and the screams of demon beasts echoed continuously, as if the demons emitting this terrifying aura were now chasing the demon beasts of the Southern Wasteland. Although they were getting closer to where the two had been, they did not seem to be targeting them.

Seeing Xu Qingfan’s confusion, Dongfang Qingling gritted her teeth, picked him up, and carried him to the edge of the hill. After using a "Sky Eye Skill," they could just see the hill where they had previously been.

Demon beasts, hundreds of them, were desperately running for their lives. At this moment, the Southern Wasteland was severely wounded, and it was rare to see so many demon beasts gathered together. They ranged from Human Level to Earth Level, but no matter their strength, they all looked terrified and were running for their lives, completely escaping without the will to fight.

This was the scene Xu Qingfan saw at first glance.

Then, with a flash of dark light, a shadow suddenly appeared among the demon beasts. Even though Xu Qingfan’s heart was strong now, he couldn’t help but be shocked.

He finally understood what Dongfang Qingling meant by "demon".

This shadow was neither human nor beast, and it was certainly not a creature from the cultivation world or even the entire Shenzhou Continent. If he had to describe this shadow, the simplest and most direct words would be "demon".

The creature stood over ten feet tall, covered in scars. Its body seemed to have been torn apart and stitched back together. Its eyes glowed with a dark red light, and it exuded a feeling of death. Its mouth was enormous, taking up two-thirds of its face. It had features of various demon beasts: a serpent’s skin, a wolf’s paw, and an eagle’s claw. Most terrifying of all, its body was covered in countless eyes—some human, some demon beast, some red, some green, some whole, some broken—each reflecting resentment and fear, blinking frightfully.

When this demon entered the group of demon beasts, the countless eyes on its body suddenly twinkled. Within a hundred feet, the Five Elements Spirit Qi became chaotic, with lightning flashing, thunder booming, winds howling, and poisonous plants growing. It unleashed countless Five Elements techniques and wind and thunder methods all at once. Each technique was more powerful than before.

Under this terrifying attack from the demon, the nearby demon beast group suffered heavy losses, with the area becoming a blur of flesh and blood. The sounds of dying demon beasts were clearly audible.

Then, an even more horrifying event occurred.

The demon opened its enormous mouth, revealing countless sharp fangs, and a massive wave of black death energy erupted, instantly enveloping the injured demon beasts and their corpses within a hundred feet.

This death energy felt strange to Xu Qingfan, sending chills down his spine. Little Black, seeing this death energy, lost all its previous greed and excitement, leaving only terror.

As time passed, an inexplicable aura emerged from the dark, lifeless air, and in that moment, the entire Southern Wasteland seemed to transform into a ghostly hell.

After a long while, the dark mist slowly faded away. Xu Qingfan was shocked to see that the dead and injured demon beasts that had been everywhere in the black mist were now gone, and the monster covered in eyes had some of its eyes shining faintly while new ones had appeared.

Seeing this monster, Xu Qingfan felt a shiver run through him, not because of its terrifying presence, but because this species, which had never been recorded before, made him think of three words—"Shura Clan"!

Could it be that the Shura Clan has returned early?

If that is the case, then doomsday for the Shenzhou Continent is approaching swiftly.

However, after thinking for a moment, Xu Qingfan ultimately dismissed this idea.

The monster’s previous actions were clearly aimed at absorbing the energy and traits of the demon beasts. After the dead and injured demon beasts disappeared, some of its eyes became even more vivid, while others unexpectedly gained a new eye. This clearly meant that each eye represented a species it had absorbed; eyes becoming more vivid indicated a strengthening of that eye’s attributes, and gaining an extra eye meant it acquired some new traits and powers.

Such a terrifying monster could grow indefinitely, eventually reaching an extraordinary level before being destroyed by the Heavenly Way. A race as strong as this one would be among the most powerful even among numerous Shura Clan members. Although the Shura Clan had not been seen for tens of thousands of years, and many records were incomplete, the records of the most powerful races still existed. If this monster truly belonged to the Shura Clan, Xu Qingfan should have known.

But why did this monster appear suddenly, with no previous records or legends, and be so powerful?

Just as Xu Qingfan was puzzled, the monster chased after the demon beasts that were escaping into the distance, wanting to wipe them out completely.

However, when this monster passed by the hill where Xu Qingfan and Dongfang Qingling had just been, it suddenly stopped, as if it had discovered something very important. A look of rage appeared on its fierce face, making it seem even more terrifying. Its broken nose flared repeatedly, as if it was searching for a certain scent.

After a moment, this monster suddenly turned into a streak of black light and flashed to the spot where Xu Qingfan and Dongfang Qingling had been, searching continuously but finding no clues, which made it even more irritable.

After circling around the hill three times and still finding nothing, the monster could no longer contain its fury. A thunderous roar rang out, and countless eyes on its body brightened. With a booming sound, the ground shook, and smoke rose all around. Even Xu Qingfan, a hundred miles away, was instantly left covered in dust.

After a long time, when the dust settled, the monster stood in place, and the hill where it stood had already turned into flat land!

Seeing the monster’s terrifying power, both Xu Qingfan and Dongfang Qingling changed their expressions.

The monster stood there in a daze for a while but finally became alert again. It stopped chasing the demon beasts that had already run far away and began searching around the ruined hill instead.

The monster had a very violent temper. Whenever it faced an obstacle, whether it was a hill or a giant rock, it would roar and smash through, turning the Southern Wasteland into flat land. Yet, the monster seemed to have endless energy and showed no sign of tiredness.

As the search area grew larger, this monster would eventually find Xu Qingfan and Dongfang Qingling.

As the monster circled and searched in another direction, Xu Qingfan no longer hesitated and softly said to Dongfang Qingling, "Let’s run a little farther."

Hearing Xu Qingfan’s words, Dongfang Qingling quickly held him in her arms and flew towards a hill many miles away. When they landed on the hill, the monster had just completed its circle and was searching in their direction.

Although they weren’t found, it was very close!

So, as the monster’s search area kept expanding, Xu Qingfan and Dongfang Qingling carefully continued to hide on the outskirts. A few times, they almost got discovered. For a full week, they were on edge, nerves tight, barely daring to breathe loudly, not knowing if the demon beasts the monster had absorbed had particularly strong hearing.

Finally, after seven days, the monster’s patience reached its limit. It roared loudly and quickly flew away into the distance, leaving behind a flat area about three hundred miles wide.

As for Xu Qingfan and Dongfang Qingling, they hid behind the hills. If the monster searched for another day or two, they would surely be exposed.

Watching the monster fly quickly into the distance and slowly disappear from sight, Dongfang Qingling felt the pressure on her body vanish instantly, and she could not help but collapse to the ground, feeling weak as if she had just fought a great battle. Meanwhile, Little Black had shrunk on Xu Qingfan’s shoulder, no longer lively as before.

Xu Qingfan, however, looked thoughtful, whispering to himself, "Grievances… Zhong Ling…"

Hearing Xu Qingfan’s sudden words, Dongfang Qingling was slightly taken aback and asked, "Senior Brother Xu, what are you talking about?"

Xu Qingfan smiled wryly and said, "I think I can guess who that monster is and why he has turned into this form."

Dongfang Qingling was surprised and quickly asked, "Who is he? Why has he become like this?"

"He is the zombie master who kidnapped you before. A cultivator from the Zhong family mentioned that his name is Zhong Ling." Xu Qingfan said slowly, his face serious, "I wondered why that monster seemed to be looking for us lately, even though we have no conflicts with him. Why would he seek us with such a murderous intent? More importantly, the energy that monster used to absorb other demon beasts is called death energy, and it is very pure. From everyone I have seen, only Zhong Ling can control such pure death energy."

"But didn’t Zhong Ling say he was no match for you? Why has he become so strong and changed into this form?"

Dongfang Qingling recalled the monster’s appearance and, still feeling nervous, asked in disbelief…

"Resentment." Xu Qingfan repeated this word with a bitter smile and said slowly, "Though the death energy that monster uses is very pure, it is quite different from the death energy I have seen before. It seems to have undergone some mysterious transformation. Death energy is one of the fundamental energies of the world. Some energies can restrain it, and some can merge with it, but nothing can change it or make it mutate. The only possible cause is endless resentment. Resentment, though not an energy, is the darkest and deepest part of the heart. Only this emotion can cause death energy to mutate. Ghosts and zombies can control death energy, but the deeper the resentment, the more powerful the controlled death energy becomes."

While saying this, Xu Qingfan’s bitter smile grew more pronounced as he continued, "However, there are countless vengeful spirits and zombies in the world, and over thousands of years, only a few have managed to mutate death energy through resentment. Zhong Ling’s resentment must be very strong to transform the death energy within him to such an extent; that is truly unprecedented."

Dongfang Qingling nodded thoughtfully and said, "When we last saw him, he already seemed filled with deep resentment, behaving irrationally. I wonder what happened after we left that made his resentment grow even deeper and changed him into this form."

Listening to Dongfang Qingling, Xu Qingfan could not deny it, but he was thinking about something else in his heart.

"Even though Zhong Ling’s resentment caused the dead energy to mutate, the dead energy that Zhong Ling controlled before was too strong, far beyond what his own dead energy could achieve. Only the ‘Purgatory Staff’ could provide him with such powerful dead energy. So, does that mean the other part of the ‘Purgatory Staff’ is with him?"

Thinking of this, scenes from a previous divination unexpectedly appeared in Xu Qingfan’s mind. He was surrounded by demonic energy, with the ‘World Defying Sword’ in his left hand and the ‘Purgatory Staff’ in his right. When he wanted to retrieve the ‘World Defying Sword’, the other part of the ‘Purgatory Staff’ also appeared. Was this a coincidence, or was it destiny that had been preordained?

A sense of unease suddenly arose in Xu Qingfan’s heart.

"Pfft…"

Just as Xu Qingfan was deep in thought, Dongfang Qingling, who had finally relaxed her mood, couldn’t help but smile.

"What’s wrong?"

Xu Qingfan asked curiously.

Dongfang Qingling pointed at Xu Qingfan’s face, her cheeks turning red as she tried to hold back her laughter.

It turned out that during these days, the transformed Zhong Ling had tirelessly flattened a hill into flat land. While this might be good for humanity in the long run, Xu Qingfan had become uncontrollably affected while trying to hide. Dust was everywhere, and in the past few days, Dongfang Qingling had been so focused on helping Xu Qingfan escape that she had forgotten to take care of him, so now Xu Qingfan was covered in dirt, as if he had just rolled in a pile of ashes.

In an instant, Xu Qingfan understood what Dongfang Qingling was referring to, and he smiled as he said, "Aren’t you the same?"

Dongfang Qingling smiled and shook her head, took out a piece of cloth from her sleeve, wet it with water, and began to gently wipe Xu Qingfan, for women have a natural love for beauty, but at that moment, Dongfang Qingling only wanted to take care of Xu Qingfan first.

Seeing Dongfang Qingling bring the cloth closer to his face, Xu Qingfan instinctively reached out to take it, but as he lifted his hand, he suddenly froze.

Dongfang Qingling was also startled, as if she remembered something, and a trace of sadness flickered in her eyes.

"It seems that I am almost regaining my ability to move," Xu Qingfan said happily, smiling. "Finally, I won’t have to be taken care of like a useless person anymore."

As he spoke, Xu Qingfan raised his hand again, then lifted his foot, and discovered that he could barely move his limbs, but his body was still stiff; however, it seemed like he would recover in just a day or two.

"Yes," Dongfang Qingling replied, though her smile was a bit forced. "You will be better soon."

Although she felt a little tired, Dongfang Qingling really enjoyed taking care of Xu Qingfan during this time. It seemed that during these days, Xu Qingfan was no longer the Xu Qingfan of the Righteous Alliance or the Xu Qingfan of Jiuhua, but her Xu Qingfan.

Although she had reluctantly regained some ability to move, Dongfang Qingling still carefully wiped Xu Qingfan’s face, hands, and neck clean, and then attentively restored his grey "Tianyu Robe" back to white.

Two days later, Xu Qingfan finally recovered completely.

Knowing he could not find any trace of Jin Qinghan, Xu Qingfan had no choice but to leave the Southern Wasteland. He still had many things to finish, and maybe during these days, Jin Qinghan had already returned to the Righteous Alliance.

"Thank you for your help during this time."

Xu Qingfan said apologetically.

"It’s okay," Dongfang Qingling said softly, shaking her head.

"Actually, I am very happy." — This sentence had been brewing in her heart for a long time, but when it was on the tip of her tongue, she could not bring herself to say it.

"Let’s go, let’s visit Jiuhua first. It’s been a long time since we went there."

Xu Qingfan said with a smile, and he flew ahead toward the bustling Middle-earth.

Dongfang Qingling sighed silently in her heart and hurriedly followed him.