"I wonder how much I'll harvest this time?"
Beside the corpse of a dead Ring-Headed Turtle, Luo Chen's demon crab puppet lay silently in wait, feigning mutual destruction with its foe.
Meanwhile, his entire focus was fixed on the chaotic battlefield ahead.
The situation was three against one, virtually no different from before—still three Demon Spider Crabs overwhelming a single Tier 3 Ring-Headed Turtle.
The only difference was perhaps that this Ring-Headed Turtle possessed formidable defense, holding out under the trio's siege for an entire day and night.
If not for Han Zhan alerting him to come over, Luo Chen wouldn't even have considered making a move here.
"It's already heavily wounded. Even if it survives, it won't have any hope of advancing further. And with its clan's very survival on the line, I wonder if it will dare to self-detonate."
Luo Chen mused inwardly.
Not every Ring-Headed Turtle Demon King chose self-detonation when driven to desperation.
That required absolute resolve!
Throughout this entire day and night, capitalizing on the mutual destruction between battling Demon Kings, Luo Chen had harvested only five Demon Crab Kings.
Of course, this number was already substantial.
In the previous year, he had only managed to covertly capture seven Demon Kings in total.
A single day's work rivaled an entire year; the gains were undeniably immense.
Having reached this tally, Luo Chen was actually inclined to withdraw.
Twelve Tier 3 demon crabs were enough to brew a truly staggering amount of Black Emperor Paste.
Supplying the rest through market purchases later on would be more than enough to sustain his cultivation from the late stage of Desolate Ancient Tier 3 up to Tier 4.
Naturally, now that an opportunity presented itself, he wasn't about to pass it up. Who would complain about having too many cultivation resources?
Looking at the Demon King battle growing ever more oppressive and desperate, Luo Chen felt a stir of emotion.
A prime opportunity to fish in troubled waters on a battlefield like this was hard to come across more than a few times in one's lifetime.
Unlike battles among human cultivators, doing this a few times on a battlefield of cultivators would easily expose him.
On a demonic beast battlefield, however, the immense swarm of low-tier beasts instead afforded Luo Chen cover to hide.
Moreover, the demonic beasts' weak divine sense was another factor that let him scavenge undisturbed.
Possessing formidable concealment methods, combined with the support of Han Zhan, a Nascent Soul Perfected Cultivator, was what allowed him to navigate the demonic beast battlefield like a fish in water.
Right as he was contemplating this, the battle ahead gradually neared its end.
When he sensed the lingering Ring-Headed Turtle erupt with potent demonic qi in a final flash of vitality, Luo Chen's spirit tightened.
"Here it comes!"
The demon crab puppet submerged into the earth, slipping into the prepared Hunyuan Cauldron.
According to his previous routine, the next step was to endure the initial shockwave of the Demon King's self-detonation using his natal magic treasure, the Hunyuan Cauldron, and then sneak attack a demon crab amid the ensuing chaos.
If one died directly from the blast, that would be even better, saving him the trouble.
Just as Luo Chen slipped into the Hunyuan Cauldron's interior space, the battle outside reached its conclusion.
Boundless demonic qi surged vigorously from the Ring-Headed Turtle Demon King like a dying ember's final flare.
Inevitably, the very next moment would bring an earth-shattering blast—
The exact spectacle Luo Chen was eagerly awaiting from inside the cauldron.
Yet after waiting several breaths, aside from a single shriek, no massive upheaval came from outside.
"Strange?"
Inside the cauldron, Luo Chen showed a look of confusion.
Subconsciously, he extended his divine sense to peer toward the center of the battlefield.
What met his view was the Ring-Headed Turtle, neck severed, bleeding from all seven orifices in death.
Its colossal body was bound tight in dense white spider silk, entirely devoid of life or fluctuation.
The final strike of its dying struggle had been cut short, aborted before it could even begin!
Right as Luo Chen was observing, all three Demon Spider Crabs whipped their heads around, staring directly where Luo Chen was.
"Damn it, I'm spotted!"
Just as Luo Chen realized things had gone south—
"Get out here!"
The three demons shouted in unison, striking simultaneously.
Three concentrated orbs of demonic qi came hurtling forward with a deafening rumble.
Attacking together in flawless coordination, boundless power slammed directly into the subterranean ground.
Clang!
A sharp ringing of colliding metal abruptly echoed.
Soil sprayed in all directions as surging demonic qi erupted into a massive explosion.
Amid the roaring blast, a small cauldron suddenly flew out, glowing with spiritual brilliance as a figure with a sullen face materialized beside it.
"Damn it!"
True to the Demon Spider Crab clan's reputation for the sharpest perception, the three demons joining forces had actually detected Luo Chen's divine sense.
Cursing under his breath, Luo Chen didn't hesitate for a moment. Grabbing the Hunyuan Cauldron, he flew backward in retreat.
It wasn't as if he had never been discovered before.
If one walked by the river often enough, one's shoes were bound to get wet.
Previously, however, he had mostly been spotted by a single Demon King; striking fast enough allowed him to kill the target like a thunderbolt before word could get out.
This time, all three demons were present at once!
Therefore, Luo Chen fled decisively.
As for the three demons, upon seeing Luo Chen, they were initially stunned.
"A human cultivator?"
"A Golden Core cultivator?"
Before their astonishment could spread, the slightly older Demon Spider Crab Demon King suddenly realized:
"This must be the mastermind the Patriarch mentioned! Lingering here to watch our battle, he was almost certainly planning to ambush us."
At those words, the other two demons' expressions shifted drastically.
"Don't let him get away!"
"Pursue!"
"Notify the Patriarch, and notify the experts of the other four clans on the battlefield! Have them dispatch Tier 3 kin to surround and kill him!"
In mere moments, the three demons reached an agreement.
Demonic qi rose into the air as three figures took off in hot pursuit in the direction Luo Chen fled.
...
"Damn it! That Ring-Headed Turtle Demon King was clearly on the verge of self-detonating, so how did it stop so abruptly?"
"Luo Chen, self-detonation is not infallible; there are many means in this world to prevent it. Evidently, with the Ring-Headed Turtle clan on Xuanyan Island facing extinction and numerous Demon Kings detonating themselves to take their enemies down with them—inflicting heavy casualties on the five royal crab clans—the clans prepared countermeasures in advance. While the Demon Spider Crab clan isn't particularly formidable in combat, their perception and abilities in suppression and sealing are exceptional. With three of them joining forces, sealing a demon of the same tier is no difficult task."
"Fair enough. With everything going so smoothly lately, I underestimated these beasts."
"What do you plan to do next?"
"What else can I do? Run! This Xuanyan Island is no place for me to linger."
Divine sense transmissions took only a split second.
After their brief exchange, Luo Chen and Han Zhan had already settled on a plan.
Immediately, he had Han Zhan seek out an optimal escape route while Luo Chen surged with magic power, accelerating his flight.
Not only that, spiritual light manifested behind him as a pair of wings snapped open.
With that, his flight speed multiplied several times over in an instant.
With just a few flutters, the three Demon Spider Crabs chasing from behind were left far in the distance.
Across the battlefield, a crimson streak flashed past, its surging magic power stirring up gusts of wind and clouds.
Such an unusual sight immediately drew numerous eyes.
Seeing this, the three pursuing Demon Spider Crabs could not help but stare wide-eyed.
"What blazing speed!"
"Damn it, he's too fast! What did the Patriarch say?"
"Not good! The message was only just sent out, and the Patriarch hasn't replied yet. The other clans probably won't have time to dispatch anyone to intercept him either. At this rate, he'll really get away!"
In an instant, the three demons grew frantic with exasperation.
Yet they did not slow their pace, continuing to pursue Luo Chen relentlessly.
On the battlefield, it was not merely low-tier beasts that noticed this commotion.
Several Tier 3 Demon Kings who had concluded their battles spotted it as well.
No matter what, this war was an internal strife among the demon clans of the Xuanyan Sea Domain; it was no place for human cultivators to meddle.
That was their shared consensus!
Precisely because of this, Gu Shaoshang had been driven off when he set foot on the island on the first day.
Now that Luo Chen was exposed, experts of the five royal crab clans began stepping forward to intercept him.
...
"Get lost!"
Facing an Azure Emperor Crab rushing forward to intercept him, Luo Chen slashed out with his sword without a second word.
A boundless sword light cleaved down with immense force.
Meeting with peerless magic power in that hurried clash, the early-stage Tier 3 Azure Emperor Crab had half its body sheared away in a single exchange.
Without sparing it a glance, Luo Chen flew past, hurtling forward even faster and more urgently!
Behind him, the severely wounded Tier 3 Azure Emperor Crab scrambled to retrieve its severed half to mend itself.
Watching Luo Chen's receding figure, sheer horror shone in its eyes.
The power of a single sword strike was actually terrifying to such a degree?
Just what cultivation realm was this person in?
"Another Tier 3 demon crab is intercepting you ahead, at the mid-stage of Tier 3."
Hearing the divine sense transmission, Luo Chen's expression remained impassive.
Channeling his magic power, he formed an incantation seal with his right hand, preparing a spell.
Soon, a massive demon crab breaking away from the battlefield came charging into view. Looking bright red as if boiled through, it was unmistakably of the Red Rock Crab clan.
Before the beast could even draw near, Luo Chen brazenly thrust a palm forward.
A massive azure palm print bore down with a tremendous crash.
Boom!
A deafening roar reverberated through the heavens and earth. Before the Demon King could even get close, it was terrified to its very core by the overwhelming might of this palm strike.
It hastily deployed defensive measures in an attempt to resist the blow.
Yet the peerless force swept horizontally across, battering it back several hundred zhang.
Without checking the outcome, Luo Chen fluttered his wings, rocketing his speed to the absolute limit of his human form.
"Three Demon Spider Crab Demon Kings ahead. Their cultivation isn't high—only early-stage—but their positioning is rather subtle. Be careful."
Hearing Han Zhan's transmission, Luo Chen's calm expression shifted slightly.
Within his line of sight, three Demon Spider Crabs covered in white markings were guarding the direct line of his forward path.
This was Luo Chen's shortest path off the island, as well as the optimal route.
He couldn't afford to take a detour!
Seeing Luo Chen approach, the three Demon Spider Crabs acted without hesitation, opening their mouths to spew vast sheets of spider silk.
Each dug their eight legs firmly into the ground, forming a tripartite tripod stance.
In an instant, an immense inescapable net of heaven and earth unfurled, blanketing a perimeter of several li.
Against such a containment formation, virtually any Golden Core cultivator would be utterly unable to break through; even if one could, their momentum would inevitably be halted.
Yet faced with this, Luo Chen had no intention of slowing down in the slightest.
With a thought, layers of azure flames immediately surfaced over the sword in his hand.
The flames blazed furiously, enveloping the Profound Fire Sword entirely.
Then!
Spiritual light flared as his eyes narrowed, spotting the weakest point in that sprawling net.
"Go!"
With a low cry, the Profound Fire Sword broke through the air, piercing straight into the core of the net.
Swoosh!
The sword light streaked ahead, colliding with the sky-covering web in a flash.
Demonic qi and magic power clashed in an instant; what should have resulted in a stalemate was instead punctured like paper under the spread of the Wither-Bloom True Fire.
The Profound Fire Sword tore open the heaven-and-earth net, punching through a gap.
Seizing this opening, Luo Chen slipped clean out of the encirclement.
On the ground, the three Demon Spider Crab Demon Kings looked at each other in disbelief.
Their Demon Spider Crab clan preferred to form three-member teams to make up for individual shortcomings in combat strength.
Moreover, by joining forces, they moved and retreated methodically, relying on one another, making their sealing and suppressing demon arts all but invincible.
Even the self-detonations of the Ring-Headed Turtles that threatened the other royal clans were hardly something they feared.
Yet just now, their meticulously prepared net had been pierced so effortlessly?
"Those flames..."
As they muttered, a look of horror emerged in their eyes.
Having escaped the blockade, Luo Chen couldn't care less what they thought.
There were far too many experts of his tier on this battlefield.
He could not stop under any circumstances!
Otherwise, even with the Ring-Headed Turtle clan serving as a distraction, he would surely be swallowed by the boundless sea of the beast war.
When that time came, no matter how confident he was, survival would be impossible.
His only option was to make a clean break right now, fleeing a thousand li to escape Xuanyan Island!
"Luo Chen, you are about to fly past the surveillance range of the Water Mirror Art. With the divine sense of my remnant soul, I can scout at most a hundred li ahead for you."
"Multiple Demon Kings in the vicinity are pursuing you. If they form an encirclement, you won't escape even with wings."
"However, they aren't as fast as you, so they cannot complete the encirclement. There is only one thing you must consider: break past the Grand Demon King ahead, and you cannot linger for more than ten breaths."
Han Zhan's divine sense transmission entered his ears.
Luo Chen's nerves were strung to the absolute limit.
Another one blocking the path!
And not just any ordinary foe, but a late-stage Tier 3 Grand Demon King.
"Which clan?" he asked in a deep voice.
"A Nine-Clawed Poison King Crab!"
Luo Chen's expression shifted slightly. This was the clan he least wanted to provoke.
Over all these years, Black King and Tianxuan had never once captured a Nine-Clawed Poison King Crab.
This was entirely because these crabs were thoroughly poisonous; their toxins corroded magic power, and if tainted by it, one's Golden Core could easily be contaminated.
Even some Nascent Soul cultivators were unwilling to touch such demons.
At the thought of a Grand Demon King of the Nine-Clawed Poison King Crab clan blocking his path ahead, Luo Chen's heart sank.
Detour?
No!
Numerous Demon Kings in the area were converging toward him; taking a detour was out of the question.
His only choice was to charge!
Gritting his teeth, he flapped the Broken Moon Wings furiously.
Amid sweeping gales, Luo Chen flew at breakneck speed.
Soon, the pitch-black silhouette of a demon crab perched atop a hill looked up at him.
Aside from it, there was no one else around.
When Luo Chen looked closely, what kind of hill was that beneath the demon?
It was unmistakably a mountain of corpses piled high from the carcasses of Ring-Headed Turtles!
Gazing at Luo Chen's incoming figure, the demon gave a sinister grin and spat.
A mouthful of black water spewed out into the air, releasing a sickening, foul stench.
Upon touching the air, the black water transformed, billowing into clouds of black mist that spread in all directions, thoroughly blanketing this stretch of heaven and earth.
This was the most classic attack method of the Nine-Clawed Poison King Crab clan—transforming the venom condensed over an entire lifetime into an attack.
Evidently, taking Luo Chen's flight speed into account, knowing ordinary means couldn't stop him, it had dispersed the poison into a mist of maximum surface area.
So long as Luo Chen was touched by even a speck, he would suffer terribly.
Not only that.
After releasing the poisonous mist, the Grand Demon King leaped into the air. Opening its grotesque maw, its flesh rolled back, and a curved black hook floated forth.
It had actually refined its ninth claw into something akin to a human Golden Core cultivator's natal magic treasure!
A black hook? A poison hook!
Poised to strike, the demon spoke in human tongue:
"Human, you had better stay right here!"
To this, Luo Chen uttered not a word, not slowing his speed in the slightest.
Flapping his wings, he plunged directly into the vast sea of poisonous mist.
Seeing this, the Grand Demon King sneered.
"Fleeing in blind panic, are you?"
Yet in the very next instant, its sneer caught in its throat.
From within the thick poisonous mist erupted a series of sizzling hisses.
It sounded just like boiling oil spluttering in a giant cauldron.
Looking closely, within the poison mist, a fiery-red cloud cluster expanded outward, pushing back layers of the surrounding mist.
That cloud cluster resembled miasma, yet also resembled baleful qi.
As this unique cloud collided with the poison mist, the two began mutually eroding each other.
Seeing its natal venom, refined over hundreds of years, rapidly diminishing, the Nine-Clawed Poison King Crab Grand Demon King felt a pang of distress.
Unable to sit by any longer, it struck out directly with the black poison hook.
With a shrill whistle, it pierced into the poisonous mist to kill.
Right at this moment, cloaked in his Blazing Fire Miasma, Luo Chen broke through the mist.
Facing the incoming black poison hook, he flicked his fingers repeatedly. Three black rays shot out in tight succession, leaving no room for a hair's breadth between them.
Ding!
Ding!
Ding!
In the blink of an eye, the three black rays clashed in midair with the black poison hook in rapid succession.
On the first collision, the poison hook was unstoppable, scattering the spiritual brilliance of the first black ray.
On the second, the hook paused; after a moment of stalemate, it continued forward, though much of the dense demonic qi wreathing it had dispersed.
On the third, the poison hook abruptly froze stiff in midair.
Not only that, but the Grand Demon King controlling its natal treasure underwent a drastic change in expression, its body freezing for an instant.
Taking advantage of this split second, Luo Chen flew past its form and sped into the distance.
Glancing back at the hideous demon crab behind him, Han Zhan's voice sounded in his mind:
"I can't help you with the path ahead; you'll have to judge for yourself. Don't worry about the swamp here—I will take Black King and quietly slip into the deep sea to retreat."
Luo Chen gave an affirmative hum and beckoned behind him.
At once, one of the three black rays flew back to follow him.
Of the remaining two, one had lost all vitality, while the other wobbled into the air, struggling to follow.
However, having recovered, the Grand Demon King lashed out with its poison hook, striking the black ray down into the dust.
Looking closely, it was none other than a black nail.
Watching Luo Chen's receding figure, the Grand Demon King's expression turned somber.
What methods!
Three nails: one struck the body of the poison hook, one scattered the surrounding demonic qi, and one severed its connection to its natal treasure in a fleeting instant.
And before that, there was that cloud cluster resembling miasma.
Both of its meticulously prepared trump cards had been dismantled one by one in an instant.
For this person's combat prowess to be so formidable that he could make such flawless judgments in the midst of battle was simply unbelievable.
Were human cultivators truly like this?
It was said that Gu Shaoshang had clashed briefly with several Tier 3 demon crabs, displaying remarkable skill that earned the recognition of all five clans.
Figures like these truly held endless hidden cards, far beyond what Tier 3 demons with their simplistic techniques could compare to.
Perhaps only upon ascending to Tier 4, altering their meridians, and transforming into human form could they match such humans!
The Transformation Stage!
The Grand Demon King's gaze fell upon Xuanyan Island beneath its feet. So long as they conquered this place, it would be the key opportunity for its future advancement to the Transformation Stage.
As thoughts flickered through its mind, silhouettes from the surrounding area converged upon it.
Among them were some of the Nine-Clawed Poison King Crab clan, but most hailed from the other four clans.
Looking at the back of the departing Luo Chen, they couldn't help but question:
"Demon King Jiunan, why did you let that Golden Core cultivator leave?"
"This person is very likely the mastermind behind Tianxuan Island, the one who caused heavy losses to our clans over recent years! He must be killed!"
"Could it be that because your Nine-Clawed Poison King Crab clan suffered no losses, you stood by and let him escape?"
Faced with the chorus of questioning voices, Jiunan remained unmoved. Looking down from above, its gaze swept over all the Demon Kings.
With just a single glance, its cold, cruel gaze sent a shiver through every demon present, making them instinctively lower their heads.
"Hmph!"
With a cold snort, Grand Demon King Jiunan said faintly, "It was not that I let him go, but that the man possessed many methods. He used a secret treasure to temporarily sever the connection between me and my natal treasure. A momentary lapse gave him the chance to break through."
"As for why I am not pursuing?"
Grand Demon King Jiunan smacked its chops, a cruel grin spreading across its face.
"Rest assured. Fellow Daoist Jin Ao previously pursued an enemy off the island, fighting a great battle in the sea. Calculating the time, that battle should already be over. If he returns along that route, he will certainly cross paths with this thief."
"Heh, before long, you will be seeing that man's corpse."
Chapter 554