Chapter 654: Murderous Intent Unleashed

The Taishang Primordial True Scripture is a secret art passed down only within the Taishang Sect. How could Mister Bai possibly know it? Don't tell me he'd obtained it the same way the Dao Teacher had, by storming their sect and taking it by force? But that’s a feat only possible for someone who has defied the principles of heaven and earth and reached the Eternal Heavenly Venerable realm. Mister Bai is powerful, but he didn't seem to have reached the Eternal Life realm, did he?

A torrent of new doubts flooded Li Fan's mind in that instant.

In the span of those few heartbeats, Xu Ke had already dispersed the Beast Taming Art technique.

"Little Hei, look! Isn't that amazing? My cultivation really is still here in my dantian!" Xu Ke called out to Li Fan, his voice full of excitement.

Hearing Xu Ke's words, Li Fan didn't feel the same closeness as before. Instead, a flash of crimson darted through his eyes, and a sudden, ferocious rage welled up in his heart. Driven by pure instinct, he felt the urge to tear the noisy little thing before him into pieces.

Fortunately, it was Li Fan, not the Xuan Bird itself, who controlled this body now. So after only a moment, he returned to normal.

Completely unaware that he had just brushed against the gates of death, Xu Ke instead scrambled closer, patting Li Fan all over. With utmost concern, he asked, "Little Hei, what's wrong? You looked so scary just now!"

"You'd better keep your distance from me from now on. Otherwise, I can't guarantee I won't lose control and attack you next time," Li Fan said, glaring at him.

As if to confirm Li Fan's words, the roars of demonic beasts and the agonized screams of cultivators rose and fell one after another throughout the Beast Taming Sect.

"Our kind is naturally fierce and savage, and views humans as food. It's just that we were previously controlled and suppressed by the Beast Taming Art. Now that restraint has been removed. The demonic beasts that have spent a long time with their masters might have developed some feelings for them, so they might be fine. But the beasts that ordinary disciples only recently tamed? I'm afraid that once they regain their freedom, their first instinct will be to attack their original masters," Li Fan said in a cold voice.

The screams of the disciples continued, and Xu Ke couldn't help glancing outside. He seemed to catch a glimpse of the bloody scene, and his face paled slightly. "That's terrifying! How did the sect leader and the others not foresee this?"

Then his face shifted back to a playful grin as he leaned in again. "But I've been so good to you, Little Hei. I shouldn't be in any danger, right?"

Li Fan sensed the vicious, murderous energy within him. It was temporarily suppressed, yet far from dissipating, ready to explode into violence at any moment. He said nothing.

He felt he understood why Little Hei had eventually been separated from Xu Ke in actual history.

Just as he'd explained to Xu Ke, demonic beasts were born with a brutal nature, which made it difficult for them to coexist peacefully with humans.

In the beginning, the emotions cultivated through years of interaction could enable them to suppress the urge to kill, time and time again.

But eventually, the murderous intent would accumulate, and one day it would become impossible to suppress. Once it erupted completely, those so-called bonds would likely prove as fragile as paper.

And the vast disparity in power between a demonic beast and a Beast Taming Sect cultivator meant that if control were ever lost, the cultivator's only outcome was a miserable death.

Could this be the obsession that anchors the Beast Taming Sect Upheaval scenario? Because the Heaven's Will Xuan Bird, Little Hei, couldn't master its own killing urges, this ultimately led to its separation from its master, Xu Ke, and the two never met again from that day forward?

If that's the case, perhaps this time there is a way to resolve the obsession. The thought surfaced in Li Fan's mind, unbidden.

Possessing the Xuanhuang Immortal Heart Sutra, Li Fan's self-control far exceeded that of any demonic beast. He was confident that even if the murderous intent within him surged like towering waves, his mind would hold like an indestructible dam, keeping it firmly in check.

As his thoughts turned, Li Fan didn't directly answer Xu Ke's question.

Instead, he let out a cold laugh. "That Sovereign Tapir Tertius is called The Sagacious Beast. With him around, how could he possibly not have foreseen this exact situation?"

"But that..." Xu Ke's eyes went wide.

"The great calamity has only just begun, and one of the Ten Immortal Dao Sects, the Beast Taming Sect, is already preparing to flee. If news of this spreads, it would deal a crushing blow to every cultivator in the Xuanhuang World. The other sects among the Ten Immortal Dao Sects would never consent to such an act. They would surely step forward to stop it.

"So naturally, they need to give the cultivators of the Xuanhuang World an explanation. Since techniques can no longer be shared, their disciples slaughtered each other, and the sect suffered grievous losses. After all, the stench of blood soaking this ground can't be faked.

"And it conveniently serves as cover for the evacuation to the minor worlds." Li Fan spoke with ease and authority.

Xu Ke couldn't help but shiver. "Your mind is truly terrifying."

Then he stared at Li Fan, full of confusion. "But Little Hei, when did you get so clever? Have you been sneaking bites of some heavenly treasure again? That shouldn't be... I've been watching you the whole time..."

Upon hearing Xu Ke's words, a violent, murderous rage surged within Li Fan once again. He lashed out with a claw, giving the man a sharp blow to vent a fraction of his fury before slowly suppressing the rest.

The chaos within the Beast Taming Sect lasted a full three or four days.

Although a large number of junior disciples were killed or wounded, the rampaging demonic beasts were quickly recaptured and imprisoned. The sect's core strength, its elite disciples and elders, remained largely unaffected for the time being.

The plan to evacuate from the Xuanhuang World unfolded methodically.

And in the process, Li Fan gleaned another reason for the Beast Taming Sect's desperate urgency to leave from snippets of conversation among the sect's disciples.

It was to prevent a mad retaliation from the demonic beasts.

If demonic beasts and humans were two different races with conflicting interests vying for the same resources, then the relationship between demonic beasts and the Beast Taming Sect was one of mortal enmity, where only one side would walk away alive.

Demonic beasts were inherently prideful, believing their status to be above that of humans. Yet the Beast Taming Sect had used despicable means to enslave them. To every demonic beast, this was an unspeakable humiliation.

In the past, the Beast Taming Sect had been nestled deep within human territory, and the sect itself held many powerful demonic beasts captured and controlled by its cultivators.

So even if some demonic beasts wished to exact revenge, they lacked the power to do so, and risked only capture and enslavement in turn.

But times had changed. News of the Exclusivity of Techniques would soon reach the demonic beasts. Would these vengeful creatures pass up such a heaven-sent opportunity? They would undoubtedly come knocking, again and again.

Setting aside whether the Beast Taming Sect could withstand the beasts' revenge, if a true battle erupted between the two sides, it was hard to say which side the sect's own newly freed demonic beasts would choose to aid.

To avoid this terrifying scenario, withdrawing to safe territory had become a matter of pressing urgency.

"Hear my command, disciples of the Beast Taming Sect: only those demonic beasts that pass the test of the Ring of Loyalty may retreat with us. As for those that fail...

"Let them go."

Soon, that decree spread throughout the entire Beast Taming Sect.