Chapter 559 - 302: Thousand-Mile Chase (Part 2)

But now, Ling Changqing discovered this shortcut to recovery was far more effective—it was just utterly inhumane.

"Master, the recovery effect is the same whether you kill those Foreign Warriors or the Demonic Cultivators and refine their souls!"

Gong Ling explained. Of course, she would never let Ling Changqing wantonly slaughter mortals; the karmic retribution would be far too severe.

"That’s a relief."

Ling Changqing sighed in relief. He looked around and said, "We should have the clan arrange for some Cultivators to handle the aftermath. This place needs to be restored, and we must also strengthen patrols in the surrounding sea regions!"

Since the first attack by the Foreign Warriors had already occurred, the surrounding seas would likely know no peace in the days to come. The Cultivators from the Primordial Demon Palace would certainly continue to cause trouble.

"My love, if we don’t root out the Primordial Demon Palace’s Cultivators, these attacks will never end. We can’t possibly stand guard out here forever, can we?"

Ziyunxi’s delicate brow furrowed. As the Sect Leader of Xianyin Pavilion, she knew the nature of those fiends all too well.

"Very well. I’ll try using Celestial Secret Calculation to see just how many Demon Cultivators have come to this part of the sea."

As he spoke, Ling Changqing took the Jade Colored Copper Mirror and the Divination Jade Coins from Meng Feiyu and began to silently channel his Divine Technique.

As he continuously poured his Magical Power into it, the Jade Colored Copper Mirror emitted a barely audible hum, and the dozen or so Divination Jade Coins began to slowly circle and dance in the air.

An indescribably profound and mysterious aura emerged around them, and the muffled sound of thunder faintly echoed from the unseen void.

A moment later, four dim, blood-red points of light flickered across the surface of the Jade Colored Copper Mirror before vanishing.

"I have a result!"

Ling Changqing’s expression turned icy. In the vast coastal region of Yuzhou, the Primordial Demon Palace had dispatched four teams of Demon Cultivators. They were carrying a large number of Outer Heaven exotic beasts to be released at random locations.

Their mission was to systematically slaughter the mortals and Low Grade Cultivators in the area to harvest Soul Crystals.

After a certain amount of time, once the Foreign Warriors had slaughtered every living being in these sea regions, the Demon Cultivators would return to retrieve them and bring vast quantities of Soul Crystals back to their Sect.

With enough Soul Crystals, the Primordial Demon Palace’s power would inevitably increase by leaps and bounds. Then, they could pursue even grander ambitions, such as repelling the major powers that were besieging Shunzhou.

"My love, are we going to hunt them down now?"

Qin Mengxuan asked.

"Of course. If we let these bastards run rampant, our territory will suffer again sooner or later!"

Ling Changqing declared. Since he had already pinpointed the whereabouts of the Primordial Demon Palace’s four teams, there was no way he would let them escape.

After a brief discussion with the ladies, he decided to use the Bian Wujian Gate. It would allow them to catch up to these Demon Cultivator teams in the shortest possible time and annihilate every last one of them.

...

Thousands of miles away.

A blood-purple Tianzhou Skyboat, two hundred zhang in length, traveled at a leisurely pace.

"...What’s our position?"

Inside a luxurious cabin, the Demon Cultivator Elder, Mo Xuan, asked with a grim expression and a harsh tone.

"Elder, it appears we’ve reached the Nanqiang Sea Region!"

A scantily clad female Demon Cultivator with a seductive face replied in a cloying voice.

Mo Xuan set down the White Jade Wine Jar in his hand, a hint of coldness appearing on his gaunt, severe face.

"It’s of no concern. These places will soon become deadlands anyway. Under the indiscriminate attacks of our Divine Race’s warriors, no living creature can survive!"

He was acting on the orders of the Demon Palace’s Sect Leader, Daoist Monarch Qianhuan, having infiltrated the coastal regions of Yuzhou with a group of disciples to carry out a "cleansing" mission.

The Tianzhou Skyboat itself was a Top Grade Magical Treasure with a vast interior space, concealing hundreds of thousands of Foreign Warriors from the Outer Heaven.

In every sea region they reached, Elder Mo Xuan would command the release of several hundred Foreign Warriors, letting them wantonly slaughter the mortals on the islands and extract their souls to refine into Soul Crystals.

After a set period, Elder Mo Xuan would return to retrieve the Foreign Warriors that had completed their slaughter, then proceed to the next sea region to repeat the process.

The journey so far had been smooth sailing for Elder Mo Xuan. The coastal regions of Yuzhou had no major powers to begin with; even Nascent Soul Cultivators were a rare sight. How could those Small Clans and Minor Sects possibly resist the slaughter of the Foreign Warriors?

As a result, Elder Mo Xuan’s Storage Magical Artifact already held tens of thousands of Soul Crystals. Even though the majority had to be handed over to the Sect, he could still secretly skim a considerable amount for himself.

It was, without a doubt, the most profitable assignment Elder Mo Xuan had received in centuries—a cushy job so rich with spoils that he was growing tired of collecting them.

With so many Soul Crystals, Elder Mo Xuan was already daydreaming about the wonderful prospect of returning, shattering his shackles, and advancing to the Void Refining Realm.

"Hmm? These next few islands look quite large. There should be a good number of mortals living on them."

Elder Mo Xuan studied the sea chart and ordered in a low voice, "Deploy two thousand warriors of the Divine Race this time. That should be enough."

"Yes, Elder!"

The group of Demon Cultivators answered in unison.

However, before they could act, a sudden, massive BOOM echoed from outside, and the Tianzhou Skyboat shuddered violently.

"What’s going on? Which blind bastard dares to ambush a vessel of our Primordial Divine Palace?"

Elder Mo Xuan was startled for a second before flying into a rage.

"Elder, unidentified Cultivators are attacking us!"

A panicked Late-stage Golden Core Demon Cultivator rushed in from outside to report.

Without a word, Elder Mo Xuan’s figure transformed into a streak of light and shot out of the cabin, appearing on the foredeck.

He was immediately met by an incredibly condensed, blinding Sword Aura that slashed down toward him, arriving in the blink of an eye.

"Outrageous!"

Mo Xuan roared, flicking his wrist to summon a pitch-black Big Banner. It transformed into roiling black clouds that enveloped him, just barely blocking the terrifying Sword Aura.

But when he got a clear look at the number of attackers and their Cultivation Realms, his face instantly turned as black as the bottom of a pot.

There were dozens of masked Female Cultivators, most of whom were experts at the Nascent Soul and Divinity Transformation Realms. The few leading them were even at the Void Refining Realm!

Aboard the Primordial Demon Palace’s Tianzhou Skyboat, only Elder Mo Xuan himself was at the Divinity Transformation Realm. The rest were merely at the Nascent Soul or Golden Core Level.

Even with all of their Foreign Warriors, they couldn’t possibly stand against a single Refining Void Powerhouse.

’How are we supposed to fight this?’

Elder Mo Xuan summoned several more defensive Magical Treasures. As he struggled to hold his ground against his opponents, he shouted frantically,

"May I ask which power you ladies hail from? Our Primordial Divine Palace had no intention of causing offense! Please, be merciful..."

Unfortunately for him, the group of masked Female Cultivators didn’t deign to reply. A variety of Spiritual Treasures and powerful Divine Techniques rained down on him, nearly overwhelming him entirely.

Behind him, hundreds of Demon Cultivators roared and charged out of the Tower Boat, only to be intercepted by Ling Changqing. Myriad streams of bone-chilling, unstoppable, brilliant white Sword Qi descended, enveloping all of them.

With his current combat prowess, dispatching this mob was effortless. Despite their desperate resistance, they were beheaded one after another, their Divine Souls captured and devoured by the Era Star Palace.

A few dozen breaths later, Mo Xuan let out a final, wretched scream as all of his defensive measures shattered. His body was instantly torn to shreds, leaving only a few intact Storage Magical Artifacts to fall into Qin Mengxuan’s hands.

"Shall we go take a look inside?"

Ling Changqing said, sharing the information he’d obtained from the Soul Search with the ladies.

The Tianzhou Skyboat still housed a large number of Foreign Warriors. Naturally, none could be spared; they all had to be slaughtered.

"My love, let me go first!"

The Kunpeng Maiden, Qingsi, said quickly, rushing ahead of him into the Tower Boat’s interior.

As a pure-blooded descendant of the Ancient Divine Beast, the Kunpeng, her physical toughness was naturally beyond imagination, allowing her to easily withstand any potential ambushes or sneak attacks.

Ling Changqing didn’t object and followed her into the Tower Boat’s cabins. The other ladies gathered around, cautiously forming a protective circle with him at the center.

There were few living Demon Cultivators left inside the Tower Boat. Thanks to the Soul Search, Ling Changqing already knew the Tianzhou Skyboat’s entire internal layout and easily located the chamber where the Foreign Warriors were kept.

Qingsi dispatched the dozen or so Demon Cultivators guarding the entrance. Bai Qingyi and Qin Mengxuan charged in first, followed by Liu Ying Ziyi and Ziyunxi. Ling Changqing and Meng Feiyu brought up the rear.

The space inside the Tower Boat was dozens of li across, as large as a small city. Ugly, ferocious Foreign Warriors exuding a thick, savage aura were everywhere.

Upon suddenly seeing unfamiliar Cultivators break in, the creatures were visibly stunned for a moment. Then they reacted, roaring and howling as they swarmed toward the group in a frenzy.

But for all their numbers, the strongest among them was only at the Golden Core Peak Level. How could they possibly be a match for the ladies?

A few moments later, the space fell silent once more. Not a single Foreign Warrior was left alive.