CHAPTER 153: CHAPTER 151: ACTING SEPARATELY (ADDITIONAL CHAPTER SPONSORED BY BOOK FRIEND POLAR BEAR 2018)

The situation is extremely dire.

According to Cao Wenjin, once the demon beasts in the Broken Cloud Mountain Range form a "beast tide" and charge into the Liuyun Continent Cultivation Realm, it will take at least several years to end.

And the longest recorded "beast tide" lasted for more than thirty years!

Of course, the reason that "beast tide" lasted so long was due to special circumstances.

The reason was that a Tier Six Demon King transformed into human form during its tour of the Liuyun Continent Cultivation Realm and exposed its identity, resulting in it being besieged and slaughtered by several human Nascent Soul Stage cultivators.

Then, the other Tier Six Demon Kings in the Broken Cloud Mountain Range joined forces to launch a super beast tide that lasted for decades to avenge their fallen companion.

For Zhouyang and the others at this moment, even an ordinary beast tide would cause significant variables in their journey to the Liuyun Continent Cultivation Realm.

"According to the experiences summarized by cultivators in the Liuyun Continent Cultivation Realm, it takes about one or two months from the gathering of the beast tide to full mobilization, during which the high-tier demon beasts mostly gather to protect and activate the [Beast King Horn], unable to divert their attention."

"Once the beast tide is assembled, high-tier demon beasts will lead separate forces to attack the Six Great Immortal Cities and the sect clans near the Broken Cloud Mountain Range. Simultaneously, more high-tier demon beasts will drive beast hordes from the deep mountain range to occupy newly vacated areas outside."

"Therefore, we either retreat now or take the risk and traverse the beast tide outbreak area to enter the Liuyun Continent Cultivation Realm within this one or two-month window!"

Above the clouds, Cao Wenjin looked sternly at Zhouyang and Yang Wenxiong, slowly revealing the intelligence he had mastered.

Zhouyang and Yang Wenxiong listened quietly without speaking, as they both knew that Cao Wenjin had not yet spoken the words that he truly wanted to convey.

Indeed, after delivering the intelligence and seeing that neither of them showed any intention of asking questions, Cao Wenjin couldn’t help but give them a deep look and continued, "I am telling you all this to let you know that if we decide to traverse the beast tide outbreak area to enter the Liuyun Continent Cultivation Realm, we three must take separate actions."

"As for the reason, I am not afraid to tell you that every time a beast tide breaks out, there certainly will be a Tier Six Demon King manipulating and commanding from the shadows. Once we enter the outbreak area, even with the [Hidden Spirit Incense] to conceal magical power fluctuations, the chances of escaping the eyes of a Tier Six Demon King are less than thirty percent."

"Therefore, if I enter the outbreak area, I will need to flee at full speed, even resorting to the Blood Escape Secret Technique to save myself. If you follow me then, you will certainly face certain death!"

"Conversely, if we act separately, with me attracting the attention of high-tier demon beasts first, plus the fact that the demon beasts ahead are gathering at the assembly point, your chances of crossing the outbreak area alone are much higher."

Even though they had anticipated that Cao Wenjin’s following words would be unfavorable, Zhouyang and Yang Wenxiong still changed their expressions after hearing his words.

Cao Wenjin’s words sounded easy, but neither of them, experienced cultivators, could miss the hidden risks in his words.

It must be noted that they are not at the level of Cao Wenjin, a Golden Core Stage cultivator who can fly tens of thousands of miles in an hour and forcefully breakthrough even if discovered by demon beasts.

Given their flying speed, if they truly split up, they would inevitably have to abandon flying and switch to walking, which would maximize the chance of avoiding detection by demon beasts.

However, doing so makes it uncertain whether they can cross the beast tide outbreak area and reach the Liuyun Continent Cultivation Realm within one or two months.

"Patriarch, can’t we just take a detour? The beast tide outbreak area should have its limits, right? Can’t we leave this area and head to the Liuyun Continent Cultivation Realm by taking a detour?"

Zhouyang glanced at Yang Wenxiong, who remained silent beside him, gritted his teeth, and voiced the doubt in his heart.

He’s the one with the lowest cultivation here, and if they split up, he’s the most likely to encounter trouble.

Regarding a matter of life and death, even if he knows there might be secrets he’s unaware of, he still wants a clear answer for peace of mind.

"Youngster, how could you ask such a naive question when you’ve always been so smart? If we could take a detour, would I need to waste so much time here talking to you? Would there be a need to breach under the eyes of a Tier Six Demon King?"

As expected, upon hearing Zhouyang’s question, Cao Wenjin immediately scolded him bad-temperedly.

However, despite the scolding, he still explained the reason to Zhouyang.

"Do you think the dangers of the Broken Cloud Mountain Range consist of nothing but demon beasts? Let me tell you, if we don’t head to the Liuyun Continent Cultivation Realm from here and choose a detour, whether heading south or north, there are several natural hazards in the way. I am not confident of passing through them peacefully, let alone you two juniors!"

Cao Wenjin did not mention what those natural hazards entailed, but his explanation was enough for Zhouyang to give up.

Indeed, if there are dangers that even a Golden Core Stage cultivator like him cannot traverse, what can Zhouyang, a mere Mid-Stage Foundation Establishment cultivator, do?

"Alright then, since neither of you objects, let’s settle it. We’ll wait a few more days for the initial wave of the beast tide to pass before setting off."

Cao Wenjin waved his hand and finally made the decision.

After four days of waiting, seeing the vanguard of the beast tide had already passed, Cao Wenjin found a relatively safe open space, tossed Zhouyang and the other person there, and left first.

"No time to waste, I, Yang, will take my leave first as well. Fellow Daoist Zhou, take care, we shall meet again in Immortal Sun City!"

On a deserted mountain, after Cao Wenjin departed on a cloud, Yang Wenxiong, who was also left there, cupped his fists to Zhouyang in greeting before leaping off the mountain.

Immortal Sun City is a cultivator city established by the Profound Sun Immortal Sect outside its mountain gate. After deciding on a scattered breakout, Cao Wenjin made an agreement with Zhouyang and Yang Wenxiong to rendezvous in Immortal Sun City, provided all three of them arrive there safely.

To be safe, Zhouyang split the eighty thousand low-grade Spirit Stones on him into two parts, carrying twenty thousand Spirit Stones himself and temporarily entrusting the remaining sixty thousand to Cao Wenjin for safekeeping.

This way, if anything happened to him, Cao Wenjin could return later and pass the Spirit Stones to Zhou Minghan to repay his debts.

To ensure Zhouyang’s survival—or more precisely, to ensure the "Profound Sun Order" in his hand could continue to function—Cao Wenjin had earlier bestowed him half a piece of "Hidden Spirit Incense" and a Tier Four Middle-Grade Defense Spirit Talisman for protection.

Seeing Yang Wenxiong leave, Zhouyang also gathered his energy, applied the Light Body Technique to himself, and strode down the desolate mountain.

After Foundation Establishment, a cultivator’s body undergoes tempering with Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi, significantly enhancing physical strength, making it incomparable to Qi Cultivation Stage cultivators and mortals.

Zhouyang’s body, having been tempered by the "Qianyang Immortal Light" for over a decade, now had a physical strength that was on par with, if not stronger than, a Purple Mansion Stage cultivator like Yang Wenxiong.

Therefore, even in rugged mountainous terrain, he could cover two to three hundred miles in an hour, with a daily journey of a thousand miles being no problem.

As Zhouyang traversed the rugged mountains and ridges, his Divine Sense continuously scanned the area within several hundred meters around him, while his hand gripped a defensive magical artifact, ready to deploy it for protection at the slightest sign of trouble.

This was not an overreaction but a necessary precaution.

Previously, while traversing the Boundless Desert Sea, sandstorms and quicksand posed continuous threats to the safety of cultivators on the ground, and similarly, the Broken Cloud Mountain Range had its own dangers.

These dangers mainly arose from various highly toxic miasmas and poisonous fogs, venomous demon beasts and insects with no spiritual wisdom unaffected by the "Beast King Horn" summoning, and tree demons that, while immobile and resembling ordinary trees, would suddenly attack any cultivators within their reach.

Zhouyang’s physical body was powerful, possessing the extremely resistant "Qianyang Treasure Body" against toxins, coupled with the purging effect of the "Qianyang Immortal Light." Thus, he wasn’t overly concerned about ordinary miasmas and poisonous fogs.

However, the venomous demon beasts were a different story. With severe toxicity, some variants of poison insects with special bloodlines were potent enough to poison or injure even a Purple Mansion Stage cultivator!

Initially, not paying much attention, he was bitten by a colorful centipede lurking under fallen leaves. Despite taking an Antitoxic Pill he carried, it took a day or two to completely expel the toxin from his body.

After this lesson, he no longer dared to underestimate any venomous creatures here.

As for the tree demons, Zhouyang only encountered one along the way, and he managed to detect the anomaly and detour around it before it attacked.

In normal circumstances, Zhouyang would not fear these tree demons at all; his "Qianyang True Flame" worked effectively against these immobile plant-like demon beasts.

Unfortunately, given his current situation behind enemy lines, he dared not make a commotion; otherwise, he would have long been killing demons and chopping trees.

It should be known that the corpse of any Tier Two or higher tree demon serves as excellent material for refining puppet beasts and magical artifacts.

Though the rugged mountains concealed numerous dangers, they also nurtured rare Spirit Elixirs seldom seen outside.

Initially, most of those Spirit Elixirs were guarded by demon beasts, requiring cultivators to drive off or kill the beasts before collecting them.

But now, with the local demon beasts summoned away by the "Beast King Horn" and the demon beasts from the depths of the Broken Cloud Mountain Range yet to claim the territory, those Spirit Elixirs became conveniently available to Zhouyang.

Throughout his journey, he collected over a dozen mature Tier Three Spirit Elixirs and even more Tier Two Spirit Elixirs, to the point where he started being selective, only taking the especially rare ones.

He had limited Empty Jade Boxes, and without special Jade Boxes for preservation, harvested Spirit Elixirs would quickly lose their spiritual essence, becoming useless for alchemy.

Besides Spirit Elixirs, when encountering some valuable Tier Three Spirit Wood, Zhouyang would also chop it down on the spot, selecting useful parts to store in his Storage Bag.

At this moment, he was extremely grateful for having brought enough Storage Bags; otherwise, he would truly return empty-handed from this Treasure Mountain.

In just ten days of traversing the rugged mountains, Zhouyang had filled the space in his Storage Bags, forcing him to discard less valuable items to make room for more precious spiritual objects he found later.

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