Qin Sang quietly retrieved the spirit talisman he had obtained from the youth. Holding the true demonic qi in hand, he attempted to activate the talisman, but it remained as still and silent as before. It seemed something was still amiss.
"Xiang Yi and Immortal Aunt Yue hold very high statuses within the Business Alliance, and Xiang Yi is even a confidant of the Alliance Lord. Could the Alliance Lord of the Eastern Pole Alliance be some great archdemon? But rumors say that even modern demonic cultivators cannot endure the corrosion of ancient true demonic qi. What on earth is the background of Immortal Aunt Yue's old friend?"
Qin Sang stowed away the talisman, turning these thoughts over in his mind.
When he tried to recall the Alliance Lord of the Eastern Pole Alliance, he was surprised to realize that the person's image was extremely hazy and veiled in deep mystery. There seemed to be numerous rumors, yet all were ambiguous and dubious; the figure was thoroughly concealed.
The Alliance Lords of the other two Business Alliances were much the same; not even their true cultivation realms could be stated with certainty.
By contrast, the Demon Lord and the leader of the orthodox factions—Lingzhuzi, Sect Master of the Tiandao Sect—were less enigmatic. It was certain that both were Great Cultivators of the late Nascent Soul stage.
"Truth blended with falsehood, falsehood masking truth; each faction entangled within another, while the Witch Clan and Demon Clan glare hungrily from without. The cultivation world here is truly chaotic."
Qin Sang sighed inwardly and decided not to delve too deeply into such matters, lest he invite trouble upon himself.
Meanwhile, Immortal Aunt Yue silently slipped toward the bottom of the valley, descending slowly along the cliff wall.
As she plunged deeper, she found the mist below turning blacker and blacker, the true demonic qi growing increasingly dense.
Just then, Immortal Aunt Yue's expression tightened slightly. With a sudden flick of her arm, her five fingers spread open, and several transparent threads shot out from her fingertips, vanishing into the heavy mist in the blink of an eye.
Not far beneath her, perched on a protruding rock, stood a vulture the size of a grown man. It appeared to be sleeping, but in truth, it was wide awake and standing guard.
Being in this place inevitably subjected it to the corrosion of the true demonic qi.
This black-feathered vulture had tucked its head beneath a wing and stood on one leg. Waves of lustrous light rippled across its plumage, allowing it to resist the true demonic qi.
The transparent threads descended from above, yet despite its alertness, the vulture remained completely oblivious.
Only when the threads reached its body did the vulture suddenly sense danger. Its wings snapped open, and it craned its neck to utter a piercing shriek, but no sound escaped its throat. Panic flooded its eyes.
In an instant, the threads wrapped tightly around the vulture, leaving it unable to move an inch.
Immortal Aunt Yue appeared on the rock, frowning as she stared down at the vulture.
"The anomaly truly alerted a great demon. This vulture has the strength of the peak Demon Spirit stage and was left here as a lookout, while the other demon beasts went to deliver the report."
Immortal Aunt Yue glanced upward, a flicker of worry in her eyes. "Judging by the scene here, the true demonic qi must have leaked out only within the past few days. There is still time..."
After pondering briefly, Immortal Aunt Yue curled her palm into a loose fist. Flames flared along the threads, instantly reducing the vulture's body to ash. She then continued her descent.
The bottom of the valley was exceedingly deep.
More and more true demonic qi welled up from within, forcing even Immortal Aunt Yue to activate her magic treasure for protection against its corrosive effect.
Apart from that vulture, there were no other demon beasts in the valley.
Reassured, Immortal Aunt Yue descended until her feet finally touched solid ground amidst the pitch-black darkness.
"Fortunately, the accumulated true demonic qi here isn't vast. Otherwise, with my cultivation, even I wouldn't dare force my way inside! Success or failure hinges on this single move—do not let me down!"
A flash of fervor gleamed in Immortal Aunt Yue's eyes. After groping about for a moment, she found an inconspicuous cave entrance.
Exceptionally pure true demonic qi was pouring continuously from the opening. The surrounding area was in complete shambles; the restrictions had been wiped clean by the outburst of true demonic qi.
Confirming there were no traces of a great demon, Immortal Aunt Yue eagerly slipped into the cave.
The cave was rugged and winding, sloping downward. Immortal Aunt Yue soon arrived at a subterranean hall. Suddenly, a snap sounded beneath her foot. Picking up the fragment to look, she realized she had stepped on a piece of shattered jade.
At the sight of the shattered jade, Immortal Aunt Yue's complexion changed drastically. She strode briskly into the hall, only to see more and more broken jade, practically blanketing the ground.
"Could they all have shattered?"
Immortal Aunt Yue's throat grew dry. These were jade coffins she had left behind in the past, now reduced to rubble!
"Open!"
Immortal Aunt Yue gave a low cry. Threads shot out in all directions, bursting with flames that briefly forced back the surrounding true demonic qi, revealing the hall in clear view.
In the center of the hall lay a complex grand formation, and at the heart of the formation, a jade coffin sat prominently, completely intact.
Inside the jade coffin lay a young girl!
The girl was exceptionally beautiful and pure, lying within the jade coffin with her eyes gently closed, like a sleeping beauty.
She did not have a stitch of clothing on, her figure exquisitely curved. Her skin possessed an unnatural, striking fair complexion—bordering on pale, devoid of any trace of color.
Seeing the girl in the coffin, Immortal Aunt Yue's eyes flared with intense delight. In a flash, she appeared beside the jade coffin, leaning down to stare intently at the girl with obsessive longing.
She reached out her bark-like hands and caressed the jade coffin as though stroking the girl's cheeks, filled with tenderness and care.
Seeing the girl's nostrils twitch ever so slightly, Immortal Aunt Yue laughed silently.
She quickly recovered from her ecstasy, cast a wary glance toward the cave entrance, and bit her fingertip, using her fresh blood to draw arcane runes upon the jade coffin.
Blood runes spread across the coffin, glowing with crimson light.
The next moment, all the blood runes sank completely into the jade coffin.
Immortal Aunt Yue lifted with force, and the jade coffin opened in response. The girl's eyelids trembled before slowly parting. Looking dazed and bewildered, she gradually sat up from within the jade coffin.
"You're awake?"
Immortal Aunt Yue's voice sounded like an incantation. The girl shuddered, terror flashing across her face, seemingly frightened of Immortal Aunt Yue to the core.
"Do you remember your name? Who am I to you?"
Immortal Aunt Yue stared into the girl's eyes, her voice deep and low, like an enchanting demonic whisper.
"I..."
The girl parted her lips, but agony suddenly twisted her face. Clutching her head, her body trembled violently.
Immortal Aunt Yue looked on coldly, neither speaking nor intervening.
"My name is Su Nü! You are Master."
The girl abruptly stopped shaking, looking blank and staring blankly right at Immortal Aunt Yue.
The corners of Immortal Aunt Yue's mouth curved slightly upward. In a seductive, coaxing tone, she said, "That is right! Your name is Su Nü, and you are my disciple! Now, you are the only Su Nü! Do you remember your ability? Show it to me!"
Su Nü looked around with a vacant expression.
At that moment, Immortal Aunt Yue released one of her threads, allowing a wisp of true demonic qi to surge in. The girl instinctively raised her hand and caught the true demonic qi, subconsciously channeling her cultivation technique. Then, an astonishing sight occurred.
The true demonic qi was drawn straight into the girl's body. She let out a sharp cry and curled up on the ground in excruciating pain, but the qi was subsequently devoured by five strange meridians within her.
Though the devouring process was not fast, the true demonic qi gradually became docile.
The girl recovered, still wearing an innocent, bewildered look.
By now, the smile on Immortal Aunt Yue's face could no longer be contained. Her wrinkles bunched together as she burst into wild laughter. "Haha... Five Yin Exquisite Body! It truly is the Five Yin Exquisite Body! That secret technique really works! With the aid of ancient true demonic qi, one truly can forge a Houtian Five Yin Exquisite Body! The ancients did not deceive me!"
Chapter 848