Chapter 208: The Heavenly Demon Beyond the Dao; the Compass Stirs
With a wave of his hand, the Tianyang Immortal Venerable projected the image of a bizarre creature.
The creature had nine pitch-black wings sprouting from its back and four incredibly sharp claws on its body, and it was sheathed all over in scales that gave off a pitch-black, eerie aura.
Most important of all, the creature had four eyes, each one pitch-black and unfathomably deep.
With but a single glance, Lu Xiaoyao could feel the terrifying might of the thing.
"This... is the Heavenly Demon Beyond the Dao?"
Lu Xiaoyao was rather astonished — clearly, he hadn't expected an existence this powerful to be out there.
Tianyang Immortal Venerable waved a hand. "The so-called Heavenly Demon Beyond the Dao is merely the name I gave it myself. As for its true name, that you'll have to find out for yourself."
"Now this old one asks you: are you willing to accept my inheritance and avenge me?"
Though he now knew he was to slay the Heavenly Demon Beyond the Dao, Lu Xiaoyao showed not the slightest fear, and resolutely agreed.
"Senior, leave it all to me. I'll avenge you."
A trivial errand, that was all — once his cultivation came along, he'd simply wipe out the Heavenly Demon Beyond the Dao.
Hearing this, a satisfied look came over the Tianyang Immortal Venerable's face. He nodded, raised a hand, and sent the orb of light containing his inheritance into Lu Xiaoyao's body, while his own form slowly began to dissipate.
"Young one, cultivate hard. This old one takes his leave."
As the words faded, the Tianyang Immortal Venerable's form vanished entirely, and the surroundings sank into a deathly silence.
As for Lu Xiaoyao, he began refining this inheritance right there inside the inheritance ground.
To have obtained an Immortal Venerable Inheritance within this Azure Heaven Secret Realm — this trip had already been an enormous windfall for him.
Meanwhile, outside the inheritance ground, once everyone had been teleported out, they each went their separate ways.
After all, the Immortal Venerable Inheritance had already been claimed; there was no point in them staying any longer.
"I really didn't expect Fellow Daoist Li to back down of his own accord."
Tang Lumo sauntered up before Li Daoyi, her tone playful.
But by now Li Daoyi had reverted to his usual aloof, cold demeanor.
"What business is it of yours whether I back down? If you don't accept it, then come duel me one-on-one."
"You — Fellow Daoist Li, you really are a steel-hard blockhead."
Tang Lumo stamped her feet in anger, but in the end she didn't leave; she too began waiting outside the inheritance ground.
She was waiting for Lu Xiaoyao to come out, so that she could make his acquaintance.
As a prodigy ranked second on the Prodigy Rankings, and moreover the demoness of the Heavenly Demon Sect, she naturally understood that knowing more prodigies and building more connections could prove crucial at a critical moment.
She looked next toward the other prodigies.
Once they'd emerged from the inheritance ground, they had each gone their own way.
Lu Xiaoyao, having obtained the Immortal Venerable Inheritance, likely wouldn't be coming out anytime soon, and the Azure Heaven Secret Realm still had a long while before it closed.
So rather than wait here, they were better off seeking out more opportunities.
She looked next toward Ye Wushuang and the other four.
"Fellow Daoist Ye, since we've all come out of the inheritance ground, let's part ways and act separately from here."
Chen Wangu cupped his hands toward the four of them in a bow, then promptly left.
Gu Feng, Xu Ruoshan, and Luo Qianxue each went their own way as well, and seeing this, Ye Wushuang had no choice but to depart too.
By this point, only a year had passed within the Azure Heaven Secret Realm.
Outside the Immortal Realm, Lu Xuanyuan was still searching for Lu Xunxian in utter anguish.
"Damn it, I've all but combed through the entire Immortal Realm — why can't I find him?!"
Lu Xuanyuan glared at the utterly still compass in his hand and roared in fury, his voice echoing across the whole Heaven.
It couldn't help but make him start to wonder.
Could the Bloodline Stone have malfunctioned? Or was his kinsman not in the Immortal Realm at all, but in one of the other four realms?
But just as he was speculating, he noticed something, and his expression changed.
The needle within the compass had begun to tremble faintly, and then it pointed northward.
Seeing the needle move, Lu Xuanyuan grew excited at once. He looked off in the direction it indicated — only to be somewhat taken aback.
"That direction... that's the Vermilion Bird Race."
"Could it be that my kinsman is among the Vermilion Bird Race?"
Lu Xuanyuan had no time to think it through carefully; he could only hurry off in the direction the needle pointed.
After all, his kinsman was, when all was said and done, an Immortal Emperor; if he reacted too slowly, who knew when the needle would move again?
Meanwhile, within the territory of the Vermilion Bird Race.
After staying within the Vermilion Bird Race's territory for a time, Lu Xunxian finally couldn't bear the boredom any longer — after all, there was nothing fun to do in the Vermilion Bird Race's territory.
"Senior Lu, won't you stay a while longer?"
The Vermilion Bird Patriarchs wore looks of disappointment.
But Lu Xunxian only waved a hand. "Next time. I'll come again when I have the chance."
Zhu Qingyan, meanwhile, stood at Lu Xunxian's side, looking every bit the doting young wife.
Though she and Lu Xunxian hadn't yet reached that point, the present Zhu Qingyan had already set her heart on Lu Xunxian — it would be him and no one else.
"All right, you needn't say any more. We'll be off now."
Zhu Qingyan waved a hand and made to leave together with Lu Xunxian.
But just then, a voice rang out.
"Stop right there!"
Lu Xunxian knit his brows. "And here comes the troublesome one."
Before Lu Xuanyuan could even appear in front of them, Lu Xunxian took Zhu Qingyan and bolted off in a flash.
Seeing his kinsman slip away, Lu Xuanyuan was instantly so furious his teeth itched.
"Damn it, he got away again."
Once he'd calmed down, Lu Xuanyuan looked at the several Vermilion Bird Race Immortal Emperors before him and hurriedly pressed them.
"Who was that just now? Do you have any information on him?"
The Vermilion Bird Race Immortal Emperors exchanged glances, and after a good while one of them finally stepped forward and spoke shakily.
"Senior Lu, we don't know his origins either. We only know that his surname is Lu."
Hearing this, Lu Xuanyuan's brows knit even deeper.
Because Lu Xunxian had deliberately concealed himself, he hadn't realized that fellow was the very one who had defeated him last time.
But Lu Xunxian had overlooked one thing — namely, that he hadn't altered the memories of the Vermilion Bird Race Immortal Emperors.
So the next moment, Lu Xuanyuan began threatening them.
"Draw me a portrait of him, or else don't blame me for showing no mercy."
"You should be well aware of the strength of my Lu Family."
"Got careless there. Didn't think of that."
Lu Xunxian, who had already left the Vermilion Bird Race's territory, was rather vexed with himself for overlooking the point.
But after thinking it over, Lu Xunxian sent a voice transmission to those few Immortal Emperors.
"Just fob him off — give him this face here."
With Lu Xunxian's present strength, even if Lu Xuanyuan were standing right in front of them, he wouldn't be able to detect Lu Xunxian transmitting to them.
And the Vermilion Bird Race Immortal Emperors, upon hearing Lu Xunxian's transmission, finally gritted their teeth and agreed.
After all, Lu Xunxian had, when all was said and done, saved the lives of their Vermilion Bird Race; a grace like that was worth repaying in full and then some.