Wielding the Thunders Across Two Worlds

After listening to the Dragon King of Ten Thousand Spirits, Bai Fei nodded in understanding. "The Yongzhou Netherfire Sect Leader, the Mo Lake Ink Flood Dragon of Jiangzhou, the Mountain State Cloud Heaven Divine Palace..."

"Cloud Celestial Divine Palace? Yun Fei’ang?" the Dragon King of Ten Thousand Spirits asked. "He became a Fallen Demon, too?"

Bai Fei covered her mouth with a light laugh. "He did, but Gu Zhao killed him."

"Hmm?" The Dragon King of Ten Thousand Spirits looked toward Gu Zhao. "Even though Yun Fei’ang was of a younger generation, his Dao Practice was far from weak. How did you manage to kill him?"

Gu Zhao spread his hands. "He stepped into Daluo Palace on his own and fell into the Mountain Protection Array. What was I supposed to do?"

The Dragon King of Ten Thousand Spirits: ???

Ye Yunsheng had already inquired about the matter with the Daluo Palace disciples that morning. Recalling Yun Fei’ang’s behavior at Rainbow Mountain and Daluo Palace’s attitude toward Demon Cultivators, he had long understood Yun Fei’ang’s intentions.

"That Yun Fei’ang tried to be clever, but he ended up outsmarting himself," Ye Yunsheng said, briefly recounting the incident.

Bai Fei added, "The Cloud Celestial Divine Palace has been destroyed. Daluo Palace built a new branch temple on Cloud Heaven Cliff, eliminating the Demon Realm and accumulating boundless merit."

"So you’re saying the Demon Ancestor has been using his Divine Thought to place his Demon pawns everywhere?" Xue Feishuang suddenly realized, asking in a grave tone. "They’re in Yongzhou, Jiangzhou, and Shanzhou. There’s no reason Yazhou shouldn’t have one!"

Everyone else came to the same realization. It was true; no one Cultivating Demons had been found in Yazhou.

Were there truly none? Or had they simply not been discovered yet?

It was then that Xue Feishuang realized the drawback of Snow God Mountain standing guard over Jing’an Prefecture in isolation. They couldn’t venture deep into the various parts of Yazhou to investigate the possible existence of anyone practicing the Demon Technique.

"Don’t worry," Bai Fei consoled. "Anyone chosen by the Demon Ancestor to practice the Demon Technique and open a Demon Realm would need at least two or three thousand years of Dao Practice. There aren’t many masters of that caliber in Yazhou."

Xue Feishuang thought for a moment, then let out a small sigh of relief and nodded. "That’s true."

Ye Yunsheng thought about it as well, grimacing slightly. "So, Wangzhou probably has one, too?"

"If there are no surprises, it won’t be limited to the Twenty-Three States of Central Plains. It’s possible the Southern Border Mountains, the Western Divine Country, and the Northern Wilderness have them as well," the Dragon King of Ten Thousand Spirits said calmly. "The descent of the Celestial Demon signifies a world-ending calamity."

Everyone was silent.

Gu Zhao looked to Bai Fei. "Back when the Netherfire Sect Leader was practicing the Demon Technique and manifesting a Demon Realm at the foot of Black Rock Mountain, why was there no reaction from Silent God Mountain or Chaoyang Island?"

"Because they thought the Netherfire Sect Leader was simply practicing the Demon Technique. They had no idea the Demon Ancestor had already awakened and returned," Bai Fei sighed.

"After the calamity of the Celestial Demon back then, although the Demon Ancestor was... suppressed," Xue Feishuang began. She had originally intended to say "slain," since the inherited texts of Snow God Mountain clearly stated that the Celestial Demon had been killed by the great masters of that age.

’I can’t believe he’s not actually dead!’

"But the Demon Technique he spread was never truly wiped out," Xue Feishuang continued. "For the past ten thousand years, there have always been people in the world who practice it. It allows for rapid cultivation and a quick boost to one’s Magical Power.

However, after practicing the Demon Technique, not only does one gradually transform into a demonic creature, dooming any hope of Ascension, but one can also never reach the highest levels of cultivation.

Therefore, while those who practice the Demon Technique might run rampant for a time, they are ultimately no threat to supreme masters like Celestial True Monarch or Ancestor Mie Yang."

’I see,’ Gu Zhao realized. ’Everyone thought the Celestial Demon was dead, so they assumed anyone left practicing his techniques were just small-fry, completely incapable of affecting the bigger picture.’

But now, the situation had changed.

’Not only was the Celestial Demon not dead, but he had awakened. He could even communicate via Divine Thought with those who practiced his technique, and he had already placed his pawns across the world.’

’Judging by his progress, the Celestial Demon could re-emerge in the world in as little as a decade, or a century or two at the most!’

’Even those who thought they could ignore it all until after their own death or Ascension couldn’t remain detached. The Celestial Demon could show up and kill them before they ever got that far.’

"Take Brother Ye, for example," Bai Fei teased.

Ye Yunsheng shot her a look. "Well, thanks a lot for using me as an example!"

Bai Fei smiled faintly. "You’d better be careful. You wouldn’t want to be captured by a Demon Cultivator and used as fuel for their Demon Realm."

Ye Yunsheng grimaced at her words. ’Even the Dragon King of Ten Thousand Spirits was ambushed and almost sacrificed by the Ink Flood Dragon. If I were targeted, it would be extremely dangerous.’

"When I return to Jiangbei, I will inform Dean Shui of the Jiangzhou Spirit Court," Bai Fei said.

Xue Feishuang nodded. "I’ll go speak with my contacts in the Southern Border."

Snow God Mountain was situated in the far south of Yazhou, directly facing the Southern Border Mountains. While they were enemies with certain malevolent Demon Fiends, they also maintained contact with some of the more good-natured Demons, Spirits, and Gods of the Southern Border.

The Dragon King of Ten Thousand Spirits nodded, then chuckled. "But there’s no need to be overly concerned. When the Celestial Demon descended ten thousand years ago, didn’t we beat him so badly he was nearly dead? He’s been in hiding for ten thousand years since.

This time, we’ve discovered his plot ahead of schedule. If we force him out now, his injuries won’t be fully healed. If he chooses to lie low, we can eliminate his pawns, and he will still have no chance of victory."

After a moment of thought, the others agreed. "That’s right."

...

「By noon,」

Gu Zhao invited everyone to the rear courtyard for a banquet.

During the banquet, Xue Feishuang once again brought up the matter of Fang Zhanqing and Xue Bingbing’s marriage with Gu Zhao.

Zhan Qing himself had already agreed, and Gu Zhao had no objections. Naturally, Taoist Shen Hao and Zhan Qing’s master, Taoist Han Xuan, also gave their approval.

And so, the wedding was set for thirty days from then. Zhan Qing would travel to retrieve Xue Bingbing, hold one ceremony at Snow God Mountain, and then return to Daluo Palace for a second.

Satisfied, Xue Feishuang departed, taking a reluctant Xue Bingbing with her.

Due to the news from the Dragon King of Ten Thousand Spirits, Bai Fei and Ye Yunsheng also departed soon after.

Li Qingshuang, however, remained behind and went to chat with Zhuo Qingyan.

The Dragon King of Ten Thousand Spirits, of course, had not yet left. Though he hailed from the East Sea, he had long ago made his home on the Wanling River, even taking its name as his own.

Strictly speaking, he was the foremost expert in Jiangzhou, not the Ink Flood Dragon or Bai Fei.

"The Three Pristine and the Four Imperial Lords, the Jade Emperor..."

As the Dragon King of Ten Thousand Spirits toured Daluo Palace, accompanied by Gu Zhao and several senior Daoists, he listened to them introduce the gods worshiped there. His expression remained impassive, but his heart skipped a beat.

He was a True Dragon with a relatively pure bloodline. When immersed in his cultivation, he could comprehend the orthodox Dharma Gates of the Dragon Race through his inherited memories, and even vaguely perceive images engraved in his bloodline by his primordial ancestors.

In these hazy visions, he saw a Phoenix that could set the sky ablaze for thousands of miles with a single flap of its wings, a Qilin that could shatter mountains with a single step, and a colossal turtle that was the size of a continent when it surfaced from the ocean.

At the same time, these visions also contained human figures: some rode chariots pulled by nine dragons, some sat high upon lotus thrones, some crossed golden bridges, and others resided in a Celestial Palace.

Sometimes, the Dragon King of Ten Thousand Spirits would be startled awake from his meditation. As for why...

It was either because a youth riding twin wheels of flame appeared in the vision, or because an innumerable army of Celestial Soldiers would materialize, their battle standards fluttering.

The Dragon King of Ten Thousand Spirits knew with certainty in his heart that even though only the Demon Race could achieve Ascension in this world, the Upper Realm was not inhabited solely by powerful beings of their kind.

Now, seeing the deities in the hall, the Dragon King of Ten Thousand Spirits was finally certain. ’The Demon Race passes down its techniques through bloodlines, while humanity uses Dream Transmission. The Dharma Gate for the people of this world to cultivate and achieve Ascension... has appeared.’