Volume 1 Volume 7 Chapter 23

Volume 7 Chapter 23: The Return of the Demons (Part 1)

In the legendary Yaoguang Island, a thick black mist spread out, making it impossible to see what was inside. Only a few tall shadows moved within the mist, and along with these dark figures, there were some points of red light, which seemed to be the glow from their eyes, as if demons from deep in hell had come to life.

With the waves of black mist, faint sounds of wailing could be heard. Even though it was still several miles away, a chilling wind blew through, making one feel spine-tingling fear.

Wang Li was a person with a strong mind, but this Yaoguang Island seemed to have a powerful, heart-stirring force. Wang Li felt his body begin to tremble uncontrollably and couldn’t help but want to turn around and run away, never wanting to come close to such a hellish existence again.

"Are you scared?"

Xu Qingfan turned to Wang Li and asked.

"As long as I can take my revenge, I am not afraid."

Wang Li took a deep breath and gradually calmed down from his initial panic, answering in a steady voice.

Xu Qingfan looked deeply into Wang Li’s eyes, hoping to see fear, but what he found was the opposite: determination.

"Maybe I am talking too much," Xu Qingfan said lightly. "But this is about your whole life. I will ask one last time: do you really not regret it? If you regret it now, it is not too late."

"I do not regret it," Wang Li said slowly, staring at the terrifying scene of Yaoguang Island.

"Okay, let’s go in."

Xu Qingfan nodded, turned to take a deep look at Tianshu Island, and quickly flew with Wang Li towards the hellish Yaoguang Island. As they moved, the surrounding sea mist quickly closed around them. When Xu Qingfan and Wang Li entered Yaoguang Island, it instantly returned to normal.

Meanwhile, inside Tianshu Island, Liu Ziqing quietly watched the direction where Xu Qingfan and Wang Li had disappeared, suddenly smiled slightly, and turned to go back into his house.

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"Do not move around, and do not leave a three-meter radius around me. This black mist is the purest form of death energy in the world. If you touch it even slightly, it will corrode you into nothingness in an instant. At that time, I won’t be able to save you, do you understand?"

After entering Yaoguang Island, Xu Qingfan brought Wang Li down to the ground. With a change of hand gesture, a circle of pure and holy light filled with endless majesty appeared around Xu Qingfan and Wang Li, blocking the black mist and protecting them inside. After doing all this, Xu Qingfan turned to Wang Li and advised him with great seriousness.

Wang Li nodded and stayed close to Xu Qingfan, looking curiously at everything in Yaoguang Island.

As Xu Qingfan and Wang Li continued deeper into Yaoguang Island, Wang Li saw that everywhere inside Yaoguang Island was filled with a dark, lifeless energy. Within this darkness, the ground was covered with black, cocoon-like objects that emitted a dim, ghostly light, as if caterpillars were transforming into butterflies. As they wriggled, they absorbed the dark lifelessness of Yaoguang Island, and the more dark energy they absorbed, the brighter their colors became.

Wang Li noticed that as they ventured further into Yaoguang Island, the lifeless energy around them grew thicker, and the black cocoon-like objects became larger. He felt as if countless eyes, cold and indifferent, were watching him, as if the owners of these eyes were like the Grim Reaper.

Wang Li finally understood where his earlier panic had come from.

"Island Master, what are these black cocoons? Why do I always feel like they are watching me?"

Finally, Wang Li couldn’t help but ask.

"This is one of the biggest secrets of my Rainbow Spirit Seven Islands," Xu Qingfan said slowly.

Hearing Xu Qingfan’s words, Wang Li was about to apologize for his curiosity when Xu Qingfan continued softly, "But you will be living here for a while, and you will become one of the core members of Rainbow Spirit Seven Islands. It’s okay to tell you: these black cocoon-like objects are formed during the evolution of a demon beast called ‘Dark Crow.’ Inside each cocoon are ‘Dark Crows.’ This demon beast is very unique; it evolves by absorbing lifeless energy. For the past thirty-three years, they have been constantly absorbing this energy. After everything ends, just how powerful they will become, to be honest, I can’t say, but I can be sure that their power will be one of our greatest aids in the future."

Wang Li nodded silently, turning his head to continually observe the black cocoon-like objects. Hearing that these cocoons would assist him in seeking revenge in the future, his initial fear disappeared.

However, even so, Wang Li still felt a deep sense of unease. After so many years among cultivators, he had learned to judge the strength of extraordinary beings by their aura. And these black cocoon-like objects, even the weakest one, he felt, was much more powerful than Wang Yuxian.

"Thud… thud…"

When Xu Qingfan and Wang Li went deep into Yaoguang Island for about a mile, a loud shaking sound began, and the ground suddenly trembled, as if a very tall monster was moving. In an instant, a giant creature, ten zhang tall with a bloody and fleshly body surrounded by endless black mist, suddenly appeared in front of Wang Li.

As if sensing something, the creature turned its head to look at Xu Qingfan and Wang Li, its eyes glowing with a dim red light, and its face was extremely ugly and terrifying, as if its skin had been stripped away, with blood continuously dripping. This was the black giant figure that Wang Li had noticed outside the island.

However, the creature seemed to have no intelligence at all. After glancing at Wang Li and Xu Qingfan, it turned its head away in confusion and continued walking into the distance.

Wang Li held back his fear and asked Xu Qingfan, "Island Master, what is this monster…?"

Xu Qingfan sighed and explained, "These monsters were created using the power that I intended to give you. For the past three or four years, I have been experimenting with how to use this power, but I found that if there is no host, the result is just mindless, soulless beings… That is why I agreed to give you this power. To be honest, your character, your hatred, and your situation make you the most suitable host for this power."

Wang Li nodded, silently watching the terrifying monster disappear into the distance.

Xu Qingfan continued, "I have created six of these monsters over the years. They are made from that power. Once you obtain this power, you may be able to control them. Although these monsters have average strength now, they have strong defense and healing abilities, as well as great potential for development. They might become excellent allies for you in the future."

Wang Li quietly nodded, and when he looked back at the departing creature, his gaze was filled with intense determination.

After walking with Xu Qingfan for a while, Wang Li finally reached his destination.

This seemed to be the center of Yaoguang Island. The black cocoon-like objects that were once everywhere had now only left two or three, but they were as tall as adults, and the lifeless energy around was much denser than before.

In front of Wang Li was a black-and-white barrier, and it seemed that all the lifeless energy from Yaoguang Island was leaking out from this barrier. Through the barrier, Wang Li vaguely saw that the lifeless energy inside had already turned into liquid.

As Xu Qingfan opened the barrier and led Wang Li inside, Wang Li saw a huge cocoon-like object standing in front of him, about thirty feet tall. Unlike the black cocoon-like objects he had seen before, this one was particularly tall and not entirely black; it was mixed with a lot of golden threads, forming a mysterious pattern that looked like a naturally formed array. This allowed the cocoon to absorb lifeless energy much faster than the black cocoon-like objects outside.

On top of the cocoon was a green skeleton staff, and a black bead floated in the air above the staff. It seemed that all the lifeless energy of Yaoguang Island was being released by this staff, while the lifeless energy within a hundred feet was all condensed around this black bead.

Wang Li did not know that this green skeleton staff was a powerful treasure called the "Purgatory Staff" in the cultivation world, and the cocoon-like object mixed with black and gold contained Xu Qingfan’s spirit pet Little Black.

When Xu Qingfan set it up years ago, he found that it could even transform the world’s Spirit Qi into lifeless energy, so he set up the array to cover the entire Yaoguang Island, helping Little Black and over three thousand Dark Crows evolve. However, considering that Little Black would eventually need to control all the Dark Crows, Xu Qingfan used another treasure from the Zhong family, the "Death Spirit Pearl," along with the array he had set up to gather most of the lifeless energy around Little Black, speeding up Little Black’s evolution while controlling the strength of the other Dark Crows. After all, the demon beast world respects strength. If any Dark Crow’s power approached that of Little Black, it would break free from his control. So Xu Qingfan aimed to enhance these Dark Crows’ strength while limiting their growth.

With a nostalgic look at the golden-black cocoon, Xu Qingfan waved his hand, and silently, a deep pit appeared beneath him and Wang Li. When Wang Li entered, he found that there was no trace of lifeless energy inside, and he no longer needed to carefully follow Xu Qingfan.

Inside the pit, the most noticeable feature was a mysterious array set up on the ground, measuring about twenty feet in diameter. In addition, there was a simple stone table and a stone chair in the corner.

Xu Qingfan walked up to the stone chair and sat down. He quietly looked at Wang Li and suddenly asked, "Wang Li, before we start, I want to ask you something. If I want to take you as my student, would you be willing?"