“Wu Sheng, do you dare?” The withered dwarf’s eyes widened in fury as he looked at the severed arm, his voice sharp with anger.

However, as soon as the words left his mouth, the withered dwarf realized that the other demonic cultivators were under the influence of the illusion technique, not intentionally betraying him.

But it was already too late.

After “Wu Sheng” severed the withered dwarf’s arm, the dwarf’s combat power was already diminished. Unable to resist Bao Siyan’s attack, he was once again defeated. The cyan magic sword struck again, removing his other arm with a scream of agony.

At this moment, Wei Tu, who had been prepared, moved swiftly. His right palm covered the withered dwarf’s forehead, and he uttered a word, “Seal.”

Suddenly, a vermilion talisman appeared on Wei Tu’s right palm and was pressed onto the withered dwarf’s forehead.

With a flash of light from the talisman, the withered dwarf’s magical power instantly vanished, trapped within the vermilion talisman on his forehead.

This talisman was the “Seal Spirit Talisman” taught by Che Gongwei during his first lecture to Wei Tu and the other disciples.

—This talisman had the ability to seal magical power. In combat, it could give the user an advantage by enhancing their own magical power by a small amount, making it last longer than the enemy’s.

However, when used on an enemy, it sealed their magical power.

Che Gongwei had never taught his disciples to use it this way because sealing a cultivator’s magic was dangerous. A slight mistake could backfire.

But now, Wei Tu was using his Golden Core cultivation to suppress a Foundation Establishment cultivator, so there was no such concern.

Moreover, Wei Tu, confident in his peak second-tier body cultivation, wasn’t afraid to engage the withered dwarf in close combat.

After sealing the withered dwarf’s magic, Wei Tu repeated the process and used the “Seal Spirit Talisman” to seal the magical power of the other four Foundation Establishment demonic cultivators.

Now that he and Bao Siyan were working together, if the goal was simply to kill these demonic cultivators, the battle would be far easier than before.

In their surprise attack, Wei Tu could have used his Cuiyun Needle to directly eliminate the other demonic cultivators, not just the yellow-faced one.

The reason he spared them was that he and Bao Siyan needed information from these cultivators in order to find a way out of this secret place.

Their true enemies weren’t these Foundation Establishment demonic cultivators, but the Golden Core demonic cultivators who had entered the “Underground Palace.”

“Bao Dao-you, let’s work together to search their souls and seize their spirits.” After removing the storage bags from the five Foundation Establishment demonic cultivators, Wei Tu looked at Bao Siyan and spoke in a low voice.

—With a Golden Core cultivation, one could use divine sense to forcibly search the souls of lower-ranked demonic cultivators and steal their memories.

“Good.” Bao Siyan nodded and quickly moved to stand in front of one of the Foundation Establishment demonic cultivators. She placed her palm on his forehead.

Meanwhile, Wei Tu’s first target for soul-searching was “Wu Sheng,” the demonic cultivator second only to the withered dwarf in their group.

“Soul search!” Wei Tu’s right palm rested on Wu Sheng’s head. As he spoke, his magic power surged, and green light poured into Wu Sheng’s mind.

However, only a moment later, Wu Sheng’s head exploded like a watermelon, blood and brains spilling everywhere.

Wei Tu looked up and saw that the demonic cultivator Bao Siyan was working on had also died, just like Wu Sheng. His brows furrowed slightly.

“As we initially expected, these demonic cultivators are not simple. They all have prohibitions placed on them, making soul-searching difficult…” Bao Siyan sighed lightly as she wiped the blood from her hands.

“Luckily, we didn’t kill them right away. There are still three left. If we are careful, we may be able to bypass the prohibitions in their minds.” Wei Tu spoke with a grave tone.

The reason they had held back earlier was to capture as many of these demonic cultivators alive as possible.

For the next one, Wei Tu was more cautious. His divine sense carefully penetrated the demonic cultivator’s mind, extracting any useful information.

“Ghost Luo Demon Lord? Heavenly Extinction Demon Palace? Tai Xu Realm?” Information flowed from this demonic cultivator’s mind and was stolen by Wei Tu.

Just as Wei Tu was about to delve deeper, the demonic cultivator’s head exploded, just like Wu Sheng’s before.

“Only ‘Wei Tai’ remains.” Bao Siyan discarded the body of the demonic cultivator she had just dealt with, and with Wei Tu, they both focused on the withered dwarf.

Though they hadn’t uncovered the deeper secrets during the soul-searching, they now knew the withered dwarf’s name clearly.

Wei Tu nodded. Together, he and Bao Siyan stood on either side of the withered dwarf “Wei Tai” and placed their palms on his head to begin the soul search.

—Since their cultivation techniques were the same, they didn’t need to worry about a clash of magic when soul-searching together, ensuring Wei Tai didn’t die prematurely.

With the experience from the previous two soul searches and the information they obtained, this time, the soul search on the withered dwarf lasted longer.

“The situation is not as optimistic as we hoped,” Bao Siyan said after the restriction in Wei Tai’s mind was triggered and his death followed. She retracted her jade palm, her brows slightly furrowed.

According to the memories in Wei Tai’s mind, this “Tai Xu Realm” had once been the place of inheritance for one of the Five Demonic Sects, the “Stone Demon Sect,” thousands of years ago. However, after the destruction of the “Stone Demon Sect,” the “Tai Xu Realm” had suddenly disappeared.

But over a hundred years ago, the “Ghost Luo Demon Lord” from the Heavenly Extinction Demon Palace suddenly heard some information about the “Tai Xu Realm,” and thus, sent their group to Zheng Kingdom in search of it.

“The three border countries—Zheng Kingdom, Liang Kingdom, and Jing Kingdom—were the result of the righteous alliance’s expansion and conquest of the demonic territory thousands of years ago.”

“It was at that time that the Stone Demon Sect was destroyed, and the Heavenly Maiden Sect, a former righteous sect that had betrayed, replaced it and became one of the new Five Demonic Sects.”

Wei Tu, combining the information from Wei Tai’s memories and what he already knew, pondered over the historical background of the disappearance of the “Tai Xu Realm.”

Over fifty years ago, when he ambushed “Lv Yuanli” and other demonic cultivators, he accidentally learned that the Heavenly Maiden Sect was once a righteous sect.

A few years ago, the two letters Zhao Jiangwu sent him further clarified that the three border countries once belonged to the demonic lands.

From this, Wei Tu could easily infer that Zheng Kingdom must have been the territory of the “Stone Demon Sect” and possibly the core of their sect.

“The Tai Xu Realm has two domains: an outer and an inner. We are now in the outer domain, and only the inner domain might have a teleportation array to leave this secret realm.”

“As the place of inheritance for the Stone Demon Sect, one must pass through seven Demonic Passes to reach the inner domain…”

After sorting through the information, Bao Siyan glanced at Wei Tu, her expression becoming slightly grim.

With the information gathered from Wei Tai, though they had a rough map of the “Tai Xu Realm” and wouldn’t be wandering aimlessly, the task of overcoming the “Seven Demonic Passes” was clearly not an easy one.

“The Underground Palace and the Tai Xu Realm are tombs within tombs. Master Shentu built the Underground Palace here… As a Nascent Soul cultivator, he must have explored the Tai Xu Realm.”

“Perhaps, in Master Shentu’s legacy, there is a way to pass the seven Demonic Passes and reach the inner domain.”

Bao Siyan looked at Wei Tu, speculating that the “Daoist Sword-Wielding Scroll” in his possession contained the method for entering the inner domain of the Tai Xu Realm.

After all, the “Daoist Sword-Wielding Scroll” had been hanging above the stone door leading to the Tai Xu Realm.

“The Daoist Sword-Wielding Scroll?” Wei Tu was momentarily stunned but then understood. He took out the Daoist Sword-Wielding Scroll from the jade box in his storage bag.

Upon opening it, both Wei Tu and Bao Siyan immediately discovered the secret of the “Daoist Sword-Wielding Scroll.”

Inside the red crystal cave, the direction of the sword’s tip on the scroll was slightly off compared to the position it had been in the gray stone hall.

This angle was about the width of a finger.

Though subtle, with Wei Tu and Bao Siyan’s memories, noticing this discrepancy wasn’t difficult.

To test his guess, Wei Tu turned the “Daoist Sword-Wielding Scroll” upside down.

At that moment, the sword-wielding action of the Daoist became that of holding the sword upside down.

“Path to survival!” Wei Tu saw this and felt his tense nerves finally relax a bit.

With the “Daoist Sword-Wielding Scroll” as a guide, their escape seemed much more assured. Perhaps there would even be other opportunities in the Tai Xu Realm.

After all, the Tai Xu Realm was once a place left behind by the Stone Demon Sect, a top-tier Nascent Soul force.

Just then, Wei Tu, who had been relieved, suddenly tensed up again. He glanced at Bao Siyan and said, “Quick, we must go,” before swiftly following the guidance of the “Daoist Sword-Wielding Scroll” and flying off.

“What?” Bao Siyan was stunned for a moment, not understanding, but she chose to trust Wei Tu and quickly followed him, diving into the depths of the “Blood Mirage Demon Mist.”

What Bao Siyan didn’t know was that, at that very moment, Wei Tu had sensed the second-tier Seven-Colored Illusion Moth he had placed in the stone hall earlier.

The “sudden appearance” of this spirit moth meant that the group of Golden Core demonic cultivators had followed their path and entered the “Tai Xu Realm.”

Earlier, Wei Tu had placed the second-tier Seven-Colored Illusion Moth for this exact purpose.

However—

What Wei Tu hadn’t expected was that the stone door leading to the “Tai Xu Realm,” which he and Bao Siyan had spent over two months searching for, would be found so easily by these Golden Core demonic cultivators.

On the other side.

At the entrance to the Underground Palace, beneath the empty stone door.

At this moment, five figures appeared.

Among them, three stood in the front, while two stood behind.

The three figures in the front were a middle-aged man dressed in a Confucian robe with a cold, sharp gaze, a beautiful woman in a white dress with her hair up in a bun, and an older woman in blue clothing.

Each of them radiated a pressure unique to Golden Core cultivators.

The two behind them were a young man and a young woman, and judging by their affectionate expressions, it was easy to guess that they were a couple.

“My nephew, along with the other Foundation Establishment cultivators, has triggered the restrictions in their minds and died.” The moment the stone door opened, the Confucian-robed man’s face changed suddenly, and then, as if thinking of something, his expression turned gloomy as he glanced at the blue-clad woman.

“Ningyan, if you hadn’t insisted on bringing these two juniors along and delayed the time, my subordinates wouldn’t have died!” he said coldly.

“You will take responsibility for this!”

The Confucian-robed man, the “Ghost Luo Demon Lord,” continued in a cold voice.

He could sense that Wei Tai and the others had died no more than two days ago.

With his speed, he should have been able to arrive in time.

The death of the seven Foundation Establishment subordinates was a considerable loss for him, the “Ghost Luo Demon Lord.” Moreover, the secret treasures they carried were equivalent to the death of a Golden Core cultivator.

Hearing this, the blue-clad woman, Ningyan, furrowed her brows slightly. She also replied coldly, “If I hadn’t been keeping an eye on Fu Lin and Yu Yuan, and they were sent by that bitch Hong Yi to the battlefield and died, would the Demon Lord also compensate for my losses?”

Upon hearing this, the Confucian-robed man, the “Ghost Luo Demon Lord,” his face immediately darkened, and a faint black aura seemed to envelop him, almost as if he was about to explode.

“Enough, both of you. If you want to fight, do it after we’ve explored this Tai Xu Realm. Now, making a scene will only benefit the righteous cultivators who have entered the Tai Xu Realm,” said the woman in white, laughing as she stepped forward to mediate.

Upon hearing this, the Ghost Luo Demon Lord shot a cold glance at the Ancestor Ningyan, then flicked his sleeve, and the black aura around him gradually faded away.

Behind the blue-clad woman, Fu Lin and Leng Yuyuan, upon hearing the words of the woman in white, let out a sigh of relief.

If a fight had truly broken out, even with Ancestor Ningyan’s help, it would have been nearly impossible for them to escape.

The “Ghost Luo Demon Lord” was a peak Golden Core cultivator, just a step away from reaching the Nascent Soul realm.

“Baizhi, you are a respected elder of the Heavenly Maiden Sect. The Stone Demon Sect was eventually destroyed by your Heavenly Maiden Sect. You should know more about the Tai Xu Realm than anyone else,” Ancestor Ningyan said, not thanking the woman in white for her intervention. Instead, she turned her gaze toward Baizhi, attempting to extract information about the Tai Xu Realm.

“My understanding of the Tai Xu Realm is limited. Only the Sect Leader of the Heavenly Maiden Sect knows the hidden secrets of the Tai Xu Realm. With my status, I’m afraid I can’t know much,” Baizhi smiled as she shook her head slightly.

The Heavenly Maiden Sect practiced both body cultivation and spiritual techniques. Even when facing the Ghost Luo Demon Lord, she had the confidence to retreat unharmed, and naturally, she wasn’t afraid of Ancestor Ningyan’s threats at this moment.

“Enough, don’t say more. Baizhi, you lead the way,” the Ghost Luo Demon Lord interrupted their conversation.

He was confident in his own strength and wasn’t worried about what tricks Baizhi might try here.

Hearing this, the blue-clad woman didn’t argue and nodded in acknowledgment.

“Fu Lang, once we’re in the Tai Xu Realm, stay close to me and my aunt,” Leng Yuyuan said, holding Fu Lin’s large hand, her eyes showing affection as she softly spoke.

Fu Lin, seemingly intimidated by the Ghost Luo Demon Lord, appeared a little dazed. He nodded and edged closer to Ancestor Ningyan.

Moments later.

After their discussion, the Ghost Luo Demon Lord and his group quickly followed Baizhi into the red crystal cave, heading towards the place where Wei Tai and the other Foundation Establishment cultivators had died.

…

Deep within the Blood Mirage Demon Mist.

Wei Tu and Bao Siyan, guided by the “Daoist Sword-Wielding Scroll,” were not easily able to pass through the Blood Mirage Demon Mist.

After flying for some time, they encountered a large group of “Blood Mirage Beasts.”

These beasts, though not the most powerful, were massive in scale and significantly slowed down Wei Tu and Bao Siyan’s flight, making them quite troublesome.

“Chirp! Chirp!” At this moment, the Wind-Cleaving Eagle standing on Wei Tu’s shoulder suddenly let out several cries, releasing a dark blue flame.

Under this blue flame, the Blood Mirage Beasts immediately scattered, as if avoiding venomous creatures, retreating far to the side.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep