Turbulence in the Demon Abyss

Daylight.

In the land of the Demon Abyss, vibrant and colorful, a white-haired youth rested beneath a large tree by the banks of the Nether Creek.

The canopy was pink, resembling cherry blossoms, and with every gust of wind, a rustling rain of petals fell.

He glanced at the girl still sleeping beside him, then toyed with a long spear in his hands.

【Crimson Flame Gilded Spear · Low-tier immortal-demonic weapon】

It was of immense value.

With a flicker of his divine sense, he stored it inside the Divine Sword Pool and stood up.

Xu Xian casually picked up a dry branch from the ground and drew a circle around the girl, chanting some incomprehensible tongue under his breath.

In a moment, the circle was complete and the formation activated.

He tossed the branch aside, clapped the dust from his hands, and spared a glance at the girl on the ground.

Out of the corner of his eye, he unexpectedly caught sight of the storage ring on her finger.

Frowning slightly, he hesitated for a long while before finally bending down to slide the storage ring off her finger.

Using a secret technique to wipe away her mark, he peered inside with his divine sense.

And wouldn't you know it.

There was quite a lot in there.

He rummaged through, taking out all the valuable items and demon yin stones, stuffing them into his own pockets.

Then, he slipped the storage ring back onto her finger.

He muttered to himself, "My lady, you can't blame me. Your family's waters are far too deep, and I'm not that great a swimmer. I'd rather not drown. As for that spear, I'm keeping it as my bounty. We're even now..."

After finishing his piece, he stepped out of the small formation and walked away without looking back at her again.

........

Ze Capital.

Upon the ruins, many officials from the Demon Abyss had arrived and were currently searching through the debris.

"Quickly, search thoroughly! See if there are any survivors!"

"What a tragedy... who could have done this?"

"Over five hundred households, more than two thousand souls, and not a single one left. Truly monstrous..."

On the other side, two demon men wearing green official robes and hats followed the trail of the battle until they found a corpse hacked into two.

One of them jumped into the sword crater, leaning down to investigate. He tilted his head back toward the other man standing at the edge of the pit and said with a grim expression, "My lord, it's a member of the heavenly demon race."

The other man's eyes narrowed.

A heavenly demon?

He looked toward both sides, seeing a gorge that stretched nearly a thousand miles across the landscape.

He could not imagine what kind of person could strike with such power in a single sword swing.

Raking his brain, the only people he could think of were those few Venerables in the Nether Capital.

The power of that sword strike from the previous night had been felt even in Min Capital, a thousand miles away, as the earth trembled. The resonance of that sword hum was as loud as a thunderclap.

"My lord, what should we do?" the man in the pit asked again.

Knitting his brows, he said in a heavy voice, "Continue the search with the men and see if there are any survivors. Seal this area and forbid anyone from approaching. This matter is of grave importance; I must personally go to the Nether Capital."

The man in the pit struck his chest with a fist and bowed slightly. "As you wish!"

The official jumped into the pit, and with a wave of his hand, he collected all of Chi Yan's scattered remains into his storage bag.

He gave his deputy a deep, silent look before departing, heading straight for the Nether Capital.

As he said, this matter was critical. An entire town under his jurisdiction had been slaughtered, seemingly by a celestial who had split the earth for a thousand miles.

Furthermore, there was the corpse of a heavenly demon.

Though mangled beyond recognition, it was still possible to identify that the man had red hair and twin horns.

This was a heavenly demon of the Chi surname. Recalling that a group of Crimson Demon Guards had passed through Min Capital a few days ago, this incident was certainly related to the Crimson Demon Palace.

The scale was too large for him to handle. He dared not delay and set off immediately to report this to the Demon Court in the Nether Capital, leaving it for the higher-ups to decide.

........

After Xu Xian left, Chi Ji woke up in a daze, feeling a sharp ache in her neck and a heavy weight in her head.

She pushed herself up and surveyed her surroundings, her gaze finally landing on the circle drawn on the ground beside her.

A small formation designed to keep beasts away.

Her eyes were indifferent as she struggled to recall everything that had happened.

Ambushed by assassins. Ze Capital wiped out. Her father's most capable general and the second strongest in the Crimson Demon Palace—Chi Yan, who had watched her grow up—had betrayed her.

Bai Mang had killed all the assassins and fled with her, only to be caught. Then, he had knocked her unconscious...

Everything felt like a dream.

Leaning against the tree trunk for support, she rubbed her stinging eyes and slowly processed it all.

It was all too surreal; she still found it hard to accept. While she felt fortunate to be alive, she couldn't help but worry about her father.

It was obvious that these people were targeting him.

She didn't leave but waited in place, regulating her breathing.

If she was alive, Bai Mang must be alive too.

Since he left this formation, she instinctively assumed he had gone to take care of something and would definitely come back for her.

So, she chose to wait.

She waited and waited.

She waited until the vibrant land lost its color and the Nether Creek before her turned pale under the moonlight.

She finally realized that Bai Mang was not coming back.

"Heh..."

The girl smiled bitterly, her expression filled with heartache and a disappointment she couldn't hide.

She had expected too much.

She whispered softly to herself.

"You money-grubber... you don't even want the money?"

"That was a million stones."

"Then again, compared to your life, what does money matter?"

After being backstabbed by her best friend, kidnapped by demonic cultivators, hunted by assassins, betrayed by a close relative, and witnessing the slaughter of a town, she was no longer the same Chi Ji. She had lost her innocence and her former pride.

She knew that the youth named Bai Mang was gone.

She didn't know where he came from or how he had saved her from Chi Yan. But Chi Ji knew why he had left.

The trouble surrounding her was too great, and he didn't want any part of it.

She understood. If she were in his shoes, she would have made the same choice. Besides, he had already done more than enough by saving her life.

Chi Ji stood up and stepped out of the formation. After one last deep look back, she followed the upstream flow of the Nether Creek.

Traveling by the light of the night, the girl's thoughts were a tangled mess.

.........

The distance from the Blazing Fortress to the Nether Pool wasn't exactly a hundred thousand miles, but it wasn't short either.

Just as Senior Brother Lei Yunche had said, the Demon Abyss was like a small world with its own laws, unique creatures, and vast stretches of land.

Following the creek into the river, Xu Xian traveled for two days.

After leaving the Nether Creek and entering the Nether River, the scenery on both banks became increasingly beautiful. The earth remained multicolored, but the trees here were larger and the grass grew as tall as a man.

The number of demons he encountered increased, most of them living along the riverbanks.

Aside from some large cities, there were scattered villages and small towns in between. Here, Xu Xian also came across stone-salvagers.

Some dug and searched along the banks like looking for a needle in a haystack. Others erected tall poles on the shore and stood atop them to watch the river. When they saw a stone drifting by, they would dive in to retrieve it, often leading to a group of people scrambling for a single stone.

It was quite a lively sight!

Shadow Soul Stones were expensive, and most of these scavengers on the lower reaches were ordinary demons who couldn't use them for cultivation. They would sell their finds for demon coins instead.

Along the riverbanks, there were merchants who specialized in buying back Shadow Soul Stones.

Finding just one stone was enough for an ordinary demon family to live comfortably for several years. One could say that Shadow Soul Stones were similar to gold in the mortal world, possessing high monetary value among the common folk.

After leaving Chi Ji and traveling alone, Xu Xian had kept a very low profile. He had not only changed into the hemp clothes worn by common demons but also actively concealed his cultivation level.

Of course, if he was unlucky enough to run into someone at or above his realm, he might still be exposed.

The Little Book Spirit had been in a deep slumber since unleashing that sword strike. No matter how Xu Xian called out, there was no response.

This slumber meant Xu Xian had temporarily lost his divine ability, the Pupil of Insight. He had also lost his all-seeing overhead perspective, which made him feel quite unaccustomed and much more alert.

In the past, the Pupil of Insight had provided immense convenience. The three-hundred-sixty-degree view was a must-have skill for fighting, to say nothing of its ability to warn of danger and hide his presence.

He could see through others' cultivation, know when a powerhouse was approaching to avoid danger, and even see through objects. He could even hide his own realm completely if he wished.

Now, he couldn't do any of that.

Fortunately, the simulation ability of the Pupil of Insight still functioned even while the Little Book Spirit slept, allowing him to maintain the appearance of an ordinary demon.

However, if he bled, his blood would be red.

Therefore... Xu Xian could not afford to get hurt. Otherwise, he would be discovered.

Luckily, the Immortal King's Cloak could still mask his aura, preventing others from sensing that he was human.

Over the past few days, he had been exceptionally careful, and his journey had been relatively smooth.

He secretly reminded himself to be more cautious about using that move in the future. Unless it was absolutely necessary, he couldn't use it again. Without the Little Book Spirit, things were truly troublesome.

As Xu Xian traveled upstream over the next few days, he occasionally met other demons and traveled with them, learning much more about the Demon Abyss.

He focused his inquiries on the Nether Capital and the market for Shadow Soul Stones.

The demons here said that the stones they found were merely scraps that had slipped through from the upper reaches, not worth mentioning. They claimed that at the upstream outlet of the Nether Pool, thousands—sometimes even tens of thousands—of Shadow Soul Stones could be harvested in a single day.

However, those areas were dominated by the Ten Great Demon God Palaces. Ordinary people couldn't even dream of scavenging there. The entire Demon Abyss could only live off the leftovers of these ten palaces.

The Ten Great Demon God Palaces were like the ten great aristocratic clans of the Demon Abyss. In this land established upon religion, there were no kings or sovereigns, especially in the thousands of years since the demon sovereign's fall.

The two priests in the Nether Hall were unable to completely suppress the ten demon gods. These ten demon gods had expanded their power aggressively.

They didn't just monopolize the Shadow Soul Stone trade; all the profitable businesses in the Demon Abyss were in their hands: casinos, brothels, martial arts halls, schools, river transport, and smuggling.

In some cities, the Demon Court would collect taxes once, and the demon god palaces would collect them again. Anyone doing business in the city had to pay protection fees as well. Their arrogance was extreme.

To the ordinary demons of the Demon Abyss, the heavenly demon race were like gods. People trembled at the mere mention of them. Heavenly demons could truly do whatever they pleased.

Even earthly demons often used their influence to bully others. In the Demon Abyss, if a heavenly demon killed you, it was for nothing. If they robbed you, it was for nothing. If they took you to their bed, it was for nothing...

Of course, the heavenly demons' innate sense of bloodline superiority made them loathe those of low birth. They wouldn't mate with lower demons. Even for their physical needs, they would only seek out fellow heavenly demons or, at the very least, earthly demon sex slaves.

While there were cases of men kidnapping common women, that was mostly done by earthly demons. Heavenly demons looked down on such acts, considering them beneath their dignity.

Many people could go their entire lives without ever seeing a heavenly demon.

Xu Xian was different. He had already seen three, fought them all, and killed two of them.

With this information, Xu Xian formed a rough plan. If it was true that thousands of stones were harvested daily from the Nether Pool, then the stockpile in the Nether Capital should be substantial. If his plan to dive for stones didn't work, he could probably acquire enough through other means.

A single Shadow Soul Stone weighed about ten kilograms. A million tons was a billion kilograms. That meant he needed to earn a hundred million Shadow Soul Stones.

With Xu Xian's current forging skills, he could actually earn that much if he worked patiently. However, he didn't want to do that.

For one, it would take too long—decades, maybe a century. That would be the death of him. Secondly, if he were to forge swords, he couldn't do it with his current identity. He'd need a more high-profile status; otherwise, he might earn the money but not live to spend it.

Moreover, he didn't want to cause too much of a stir. This wasn't the Demon Suppression Abyss, where the Wendao Sword Sect shielded him. Here, if his skills caught the eye of a heavenly demon, they might just force him into their service. The risk was too high.

Therefore, he had to find another way.

During his journey, Xu Xian also tried to ask about the Crimson Demon Palace, but most of those he met were common demons who knew nothing—or if they did, they didn't dare speak. Disrespecting a heavenly demon was a crime, and speaking ill of a demon god was even worse.

Xu Xian traveled leisurely, not in any rush. He stopped often to rest and wander, partly to understand the customs of the Demon Abyss and partly to wait for the Little Book Spirit to wake up.

The Nether Capital was the heart of the Demon Abyss, a place where crouching tigers and hidden dragons resided, and where demon gods lived. He felt it would be safer to go only after the Little Book Spirit awakened.

Meanwhile, Chi Ji, who had set out later than him, returned to the Nether Capital and the Crimson Demon Palace first.

The Crimson Demon naturally learned of everything. News of the incident at Ze Capital also reached the capital. Two heavenly demons had been killed, both of princely rank, and one of them was of the direct demon god bloodline.

This shocked the high-ranking officials of the Demon Abyss, and even the Nether Hall by the banks of the Nether Pool was alerted. A shadow of unrest loomed over the Nether Capital.

The sword strike that had split a thousand miles of mountains and rivers made the situation even more volatile and unpredictable.

The Demon Court, the demon god palaces, and even the Nether Religion dispatched powerhouses to investigate. They suppressed the news, confining everyone who knew the truth to ensure not a single word leaked out.

Chi Ji, being the only one who knew the whole truth, became the center of attention. Countless visitors arrived at her door, only to be turned away.

The Crimson Demon, now knowing the truth, was beyond furious and was determined to demand an explanation. A storm within the halls of power in the Demon Abyss was being dragged from the shadows into the light.

Inside the Crimson Demon Palace in the Nether Capital, the Crimson Demon slammed his palm onto the table and growled, "Small Priest, you've gone too far!"