Chapter 88: The Demon Lord’s Disciple [Third Update]

Inside the Hall of Primordial Abyss, every eye was fixed on Elder Zhang, and Zhou Xue too had drawn her fine brows tightly together.

Elder Zhang trembled all over. The hand clutching the jade slip seemed unable to believe the intelligence it had received.

Yang Yuanzi urged sharply, “Well? Speak! What are you shaking for?”

Lu Yuanjun stared at Elder Zhang, unable to hide the anticipation in his eyes.

Under the gaze of the entire hall, Elder Zhang drew a deep breath and said through clenched teeth:

“Pang Tuntian, Master of Green Cicada Valley, laid an ambush deep within the Hundred Thousand Mountains. Green Cicada Valley dispatched all its elites. The weakest among those who struck were at the Spirit-Molding Realm, nearly twenty thousand in total, and they even set up the Myriad Poisons Formation!”

The Myriad Poisons Formation!

Those three words moved everyone present. Guang Qiuxian spat out a mouthful of blood on the spot and collapsed weakly onto his prayer cushion.

“Green Cicada Valley! Despicable wretches!” Chen Anshi cursed through gritted teeth.

Yang Yuanzi looked as though he had been struck by lightning, rooted to the spot. The three direct disciples of the Third Branch also blanched, and Li Yu, the eldest among them, trembled all over.

Lu Yuanjun struggled to suppress the wild joy in his heart, yet the corners of his mouth could not help trying to lift. Fortunately, no one was paying attention to him at this moment.

Zhou Xue narrowed her eyes, cold light gathering within them.

“Wait! Sect Master, don’t panic! I’m not finished yet! Fang Wang isn’t dead!” Seeing Guang Qiuxian coughing blood, Elder Zhang hurriedly shouted, drawing everyone’s attention once more.

In an instant Yang Yuanzi appeared before him, seized his robe, and roared, “Can’t you finish everything in one breath, damn you?”

Elder Zhang said aggrievedly, “This news is too shocking. I hadn’t recovered from it myself just now. Fang Wang is fine. The ones in trouble are Green Cicada Valley!”

Without waiting for questions, he hurriedly continued:

“Green Cicada Valley sent nearly twenty thousand elite cultivators to besiege Fang Wang alone. Who could have known that he had a Demon King at his side? Man and demon together withstood Green Cicada Valley’s assault. On the battlefield, Fang Wang beheaded Pang Tuntian, Master of Green Cicada Valley. Even after they raised the Myriad Poisons Formation, Fang Wang smashed through it by force. He is suspected of having used the Nine Dragons Divine Transformation Art—and in a black dragon form never before heard of!”

“Green Cicada Valley suffered more than five thousand slain at Fang Wang’s hands. The exact casualties are still unclear, but in the end he slaughtered them into collapse, and they scattered in flight!”

“This news has already begun spreading through the cultivation world of Great Qi. The intelligence in my hand was forced out of a demonic cultivator of Green Cicada Valley by one of our direct disciples!”

After he finished in one breath, the entire Hall of Primordial Abyss fell silent. Every face was vacant with shock. Even Guang Qiuxian could not help staring with his mouth agape.

Zhou Xue’s expression returned to calm, and the corners of her lips rose slightly.

Lu Yuanjun looked thunderstruck, standing there in a daze.

Even Chen Anshi, who had just forcefully supported Lu Yuanjun, was stunned, as though doubting his own ears.

“Is it true?” Yang Yuanzi asked in a trembling voice, clutching Elder Zhang’s shoulders. His face had flushed red with excitement.

Elder Zhang was equally stirred. He thrust the jade slip toward Yang Yuanzi and said, “Absolutely true. If you don’t believe me, read it yourself!”

Yang Yuanzi immediately sent his divine sense into the jade slip.

“Hahahaha—”

Guang Qiuxian suddenly burst into loud laughter. Yet he laughed so hard that his injuries flared up, and he began coughing at once, hastily sitting in meditation to circulate his energy.

After Yang Yuanzi finished reading the jade slip, he too broke into laughter. The other elders crowded forward, snatching the slip from his hand and reading the intelligence one after another.

“It’s true!”

“He has already become this powerful?”

“The Heavenly Origin Precious Spirit has never appeared before. We truly cannot judge him by common measure.”

“No wonder Green Cicada Valley never came. So he kept them tied down.”

“Tied down? More than that. So many elders died, even their valley master is dead. Green Cicada Valley is finished!”

The elders discussed it excitedly. The direct disciples were equally exhilarated, whispering among themselves, while those close to Lu Yuanjun looked toward him with concern.

Lu Yuanjun had no choice but to force a delighted smile onto his face. Unfortunately, anyone could see how strained that smile was.

It could not be helped. The shock of this matter was simply too great.

If Fang Wang had merely broken through the encirclement, that alone would have been astonishing enough.

But Fang Wang had slaughtered his way through all of Green Cicada Valley.

It was utterly inconceivable.

Could it be that Fang Wang had already grown strong enough to contend with an entire sect by himself?

Zhao Chuanqian looked toward Guang Qiuxian and said in a deep voice, “Sect Master, the matter of the chief disciple’s position must be reconsidered.”

At once quite a few elders voiced their agreement. This time Yang Yuanzi said nothing. He stood to one side, sunk in overwhelming joy, unable to pull himself free for a long while.

Chen Anshi looked as though he wanted to speak, yet in the end he gave it up.

To cut down Green Cicada Valley in this way—this was a contribution of heaven-shaking magnitude.

Guang Qiuxian drew a deep breath and said, “The position of chief disciple will be discussed again after Fang Wang returns. During the time I am recovering from my injuries, all sect affairs shall be directed by Elder Zhao Chuanqian.”

No one objected. The great majority of elders wore expressions of delight. With a mighty cultivator like Fang Wang in the Grand Abyss Sect, its rise was now certain.

Lu Yuanjun’s expression remained steady. No one could see what he was thinking.

…

Splash, splash—

Deep in the mountains, Fang Wang sat cross-legged by a small lake, drawing in spiritual energy as he cultivated. On one side of the lake was a waterfall nearly fifty feet high, spraying mist and foam in all directions.

Not far away on the grass at his other side was a pile of storage bags. Little Purple was inspecting them one by one. Every time it opened a bag, venomous insects crawled out, only to be swallowed in a single bite by the snake, a nauseating sight.

Six days had passed since the battle with Green Cicada Valley. Fang Wang intended to return to the Grand Abyss Sect only after his spiritual power had fully recovered, lest some demonic sect lie in wait for him again along the road ahead.

“You may come out now. How long do you plan to remain hidden in the shadows?”

Fang Wang suddenly spoke. Slowly opening his eyes, he looked toward the woods on the far side of the lake.

At his words, Little Purple nervously raised its head and turned its gaze toward the opposite shore.

The forest across the lake remained utterly still. A full five breaths passed. Just as Little Purple was about to speak, a voice rang out:

“Oh my, the young master has discovered me. Do not be angry, young master. I have nothing to do with Green Cicada Valley. I followed you only because I was worried for you.”

The voice was seductively sweet, stirring the heart and inviting endless imaginings.

A graceful woman in green emerged from the forest. She was barefoot, and as she walked, her long white thighs flashed beneath the hem of her robe, pale almost to the point of glowing. Her collar was cut low, revealing a deep, tantalizing line. Her face was exquisitely beautiful, and her long hair was coiled into an elegant bun adorned with three jeweled hairpins.

At first glance, Fang Wang almost thought she had run out of a pleasure house, yet she gave him a distinctly dangerous feeling.

No weaker than Kong Xi of the Sword Sect.

Narrowing his eyes, Fang Wang asked, “Who are you?”

How absurdly fair she is…

The woman in green covered her mouth and laughed. “This humble one is called Tu Caiyi. Has the young master heard of me?”

Fang Wang stared at her. A Universe Fan condensed into his right hand, and he rose to his feet. “No. If you have come as an enemy, then come.”

“Oh my, how impatient you are. I already told you I came out of concern for you. Ah, and I forgot to mention my sect. I am from the Golden Firmament Sect, one of its Four Slaughtering Heavenly Kings—the Eastern Slaughtering Heavenly King. Surely the young master has heard of me now?” The woman in green spoke with affected coyness and even cast him a flirtatious glance.

Fang Wang nearly broke out in gooseflesh. This woman was so unbearably affected that he had to resist the urge to swat her with his fan.

Suppressing the impulse to strike, he asked, “The Golden Firmament Sect? Why have you come? Does it have something to do with Zhou Xue?”

“The young master truly is clever. Ever since the Sword Sect challenged you, Zhou Xue has not been at ease. She begged me to protect you in secret until you returned to the Grand Abyss Sect. Your battle against the Sword Sect left this humble one positively itching with excitement. A man like you is precisely the kind I favor most…” At that, Tu Caiyi even licked her lips.

So it really was Zhou Xue.

Warmth stirred in Fang Wang’s heart. That woman was just like him—saying one thing while meaning another.

Tu Caiyi sighed. “When I saw the young master besieged by Green Cicada Valley, I was frantic with worry. Who would have thought your abilities were so formidable? You and that snake demon cut straight through Green Cicada Valley. This humble one truly admires you.”

“Young master, I see you are restoring your spiritual power. Why not let me assist you? I possess a dual cultivation art that can greatly increase your cultivation.”

As she spoke, she fixed Fang Wang with a burning gaze.

Fang Wang did not fully trust her and refused at once. “No need. I don’t like women.”

Tu Caiyi froze at that.

Little Purple turned to look at Fang Wang, its serpent eyes suddenly bright.

“What status does Zhou Xue truly hold in the Golden Firmament Sect,” Fang Wang could not help asking, “that she could ask a Heavenly King like you to protect me?”

Tu Caiyi brushed back her hair and said, “Her? She is the cherished disciple of the Demon Lord. To be fair, she does have some discernment and has helped me more than once. I owe her my life.”

Her tone had already changed, cool and glamorous now, utterly unlike her earlier frivolity.

The Demon Lord’s disciple?

For some reason, Fang Wang felt a sudden inexplicable displeasure.

“May I ask whether this Demon Lord is a man or a woman?” Fang Wang asked, staring at Tu Caiyi.

At once Tu Caiyi covered her mouth and laughed.

“And what if the Demon Lord is a man? If he wished to take her as his wife, what then would you do?” Tu Caiyi asked with a cold sneer.

Fang Wang answered evenly, “I would do nothing. I only wanted the truth. Why must you provoke me?”

Tu Caiyi could not help shaking her head. “You are just like Zhou Xue. So young, yet already so seasoned. One cannot fool you. Very well, I will tell you plainly: the Demon Lord is a woman. Satisfied now?”

Fang Wang relaxed inwardly, though his face remained calm. “It would make no difference even if the Demon Lord were a man.”

Tu Caiyi rolled her eyes at him and snorted. “Hah. Men.”

Without waiting for him to answer, she said seriously, “Enough teasing. Come. There is a blessed ground nearby that will help you restore your spiritual power more quickly. The sooner you recover, the sooner I can escort you back to the Grand Abyss Sect, and the sooner I can take my leave. Staying here with a little boy like you is thoroughly dull.”

Fang Wang was speechless.

How had this woman’s manner reversed itself so completely?

“Truly?” he asked cautiously.

“Believe it or don’t!”

With that, Tu Caiyi turned and walked away, her supple waist swaying with each step.

At once Fang Wang raised a hand, drawing all the nearby storage bags to himself so that they circled around him. Then he leaped over the little lake.

Little Purple hurried after him and climbed onto his shoulder, whispering, “Young master, be careful. This woman is dangerous. I have a feeling she means us no good.”

Fang Wang replied softly, “Let’s go and see. If she harbors ill intent, then by following us, sooner or later she will make her move.”

He did not use voice transmission, saying it aloud on purpose for Tu Caiyi to hear.

Ahead of them, Tu Caiyi did not turn back, as though she had heard nothing at all.