Chapter 656: Great Demon 19

Tan You said, "But you command their respect. I know this is hard on everyone. But since it has come to this, it’s even more important that we live on—and live for a long time. Only then will all our years of suffering not be in vain."

Tan You’s words were enough to make Bai Ze cast aside any thoughts of death.

"You’re right. I must live on, and I must live a good life."

Having successfully persuaded Bai Ze, a great weight was lifted from Tan You’s heart. Her eyes swept over the assembled demon beasts, and she frowned. "The plant spirits are also part of the Demon Clan. Why are none of them here?"

Bai Ze’s gaze grew grim. "Cultivators have always been arrogant. The plant spirits have no Combat Power, so they won’t form contracts with them. More often, they are simply integrated into the Alchemy Dao. Any plant spirit fortunate enough to attain a human form is sent to Dan Peak or a forbidden ground to cultivate Spiritual Medicine."

"And of course, when a plant spirit faces a tribulation, the Cultivators offer no help. They just leave them to live or die on their own."

Tan You sneered and suddenly produced a brilliant, jade-green leaf from her sleeve. "This is from a tea tree, isn’t it? And an exceedingly rare Enlightenment Tea Tree, no less. I will be taking it."

The Cultivators panicked. "You mustn’t—"

Tan You shot him a look. "I am informing you, not negotiating. Any being that has cultivated a consciousness, be it plant or beast, belongs to the Demon Clan."

"It is only right and proper for the children of the Demon Clan to return to their own lands."

"If any of you disagree, I don’t mind staining my hands with a few more human lives."

All the Cultivators fell silent. The little mouse waved its paws, and seven or eight demon beasts leaped from Tan You’s shoulder, all of them rushing toward the back of the mountain. In less time than it takes an incense stick to burn, hundreds of plant spirits—some transformed, some not—stood before Tan You.

At the very front was a middle-aged man. Seeing him, Tan You couldn’t help but blink. "There’s something profound about you. You feel exceptionally young, yet at the same time, ancient. It’s quite mystical."

The man clasped his fist in a salute to Tan You. "I have not yet properly thanked you. If not for you, who knows how long we plant spirits would have remained on that back mountain, never to see the light of day."

Tan You didn’t take the credit. "The credit isn’t mine alone. My Combat Power is nothing special. It was everyone’s strength that gave me the opportunity to put on this bold front."

Tan You was well aware of her own abilities. While her skill with Arrays was exceptional, when it came to sheer Combat Power, she was certainly no match for the Great Demons who had accompanied her. In fact, many of the demon beasts they had just rescued had cultivation levels higher than her own.

The Enlightenment Tea Tree didn’t elaborate. "Over the years, the Tianyuan Sect has plundered nearly all the plant spirits from the Ten-Direction Great Mountain. Those who had cultivated for long enough were used for Alchemy. The ones remaining are all younger ones."

"Because of my unique nature, I was fortunate enough to escape that fate. However, over the years, they’ve siphoned off nearly all of my Dao charm."

Tan You simply nodded. "So this is all the so-called righteous Cultivators of the mortal world amount to. Senior, let’s go home. Every inch of the Tianyuan Sect’s land is soaked in the blood and tears of the Demon Clan. It’s nauseatingly foul."

The Enlightenment Tea Tree nodded. He lifted his gaze toward Dan Peak to the northwest. "That is the Tianyuan Sect’s Dan Peak. Who knows how many plant spirits met their end there... *Sigh*..."

Tan You glanced at Cang Long. Cang Long understood immediately. "Got it!"

With a mere thought, a massive fireball erupted from Cang Long’s mouth. It slammed into Dan Peak, instantly engulfing the northwestern area in a blazing light.

The remaining Cultivators, whether from Dan Peak or not, all frowned in anguish. But they were at the mercy of others; what could they do but endure?

Watching Dan Peak burn to the ground, the Enlightenment Tea Tree let out a long sigh. "And so, it’s dust to dust. From now on, I’ll have to trouble Little Silver to look after us."

Tan You smiled back. "We’ll all look after each other."

Just as the horde of demon beasts was about to depart, the elder with the highest cultivation—a Body Integration Realm master—stepped forward. Every demon beast turned to look at him. He hastily clasped his hands in a deep bow. "Our sect committed a grievous error and has already paid the due price. My Lady, could you please dismantle this killing Array?"

"The Cultivators of our sect are still young. I implore you, My Lady, to be merciful and leave us a path to survival."

As he fell to his knees, the surviving Cultivators couldn’t help but do the same. "Please, Senior, grant us a way to live!"

The tip of the Nine-tailed Fox’s tail curled around Tan You’s wrist. "What’s your call?"

Tan You chuckled. "Didn’t I already say? We’re civilized demon beasts. Are we really so bloodthirsty that we’d kill on sight? Besides, we’re already pushing the limits with what we’ve done. If we commit any more slaughter, the powers that be would be more than happy to strike me dead. Am I that foolish?"

The little mouse squeaked, "Huanhuan isn’t foolish! Huanhuan’s the smartest!"

Tan You said helplessly, "I’d be even happier if you didn’t call me Huanhuan. Let’s go. On to the other sects. There are still some scores that need to be settled."

Hearing that Tan You was heading for the other sects, the Tianyuan Sect elders breathed a collective sigh of relief. ’How could we be the only ones to suffer such a cataclysmic disaster? Of course, everyone else should share in the misfortune. Misery loves company, after all.’

The Red Flame Tiger’s voice rumbled, "I like the sound of that! I’ve been itching to get out and stretch my limbs!"

Tan You just smiled. "Don’t go overboard. If you get struck by Heavenly Thunder, I won’t be able to help you."

The Red Flame Tiger replied, "Got it. You think I’m that reckless?"

The Demon Clan’s quest for vengeance against the Tianyuan Sect was impossible to hide, and with such a massive commotion, the other sects couldn’t remain ignorant even if they wanted to. They considered taking the opportunity to kill their own contracted demon beasts, but they knew that if they did, there would be no going back.

If they spared the demon beasts’ lives, they could likely settle the matter with a compensation of Spirit Stones. But if their hands were stained with a demon beast’s life, then it would be a life for a life. They could always find ways to earn more Spirit Stones, but once their life was gone, everything was gone.

The Cultivators were perfectly capable of making that calculation.

As a result, the vengeance tour of Tan You and the demon beast army went exceptionally smoothly. The main reason was that before she even had a chance to deploy her God Trapping Array, the sects would tactfully offer up their demon beasts, Spirit Stones, and everything else.

The Tianyuan Sect’s fall from the number one sect in the Cultivation World to a third-rate one happened overnight. The crucial factor was that even Mahayana Realm experts were helpless against the God Trapping Array. So how could these other sects possibly be foolish enough to clash head-on with Tan You’s killing Array?

After all, nobody wanted to become the next Tianyuan Sect. It wasn’t easy to build up a sect’s foundation over generations; how could they let it all be destroyed over this?

Tan You, her body coiled around a glittering golden storage bracelet, clicked her tongue in boredom. "This is no fun. Don’t any of these Cultivators have a backbone?"

Bai Ze walked beside Tan You, casually stroking her small head. "No matter how much of a backbone they have, who wouldn’t be terrified after seeing that dense barrage of Heavenly Thunder?"

"Speaking of which, how are your injuries? Your Tier-8 injuries hadn’t fully healed, and now you’ve added new ones on top of them."