Eighty-Eight: Cultivator of the Demonic Sect, Part Two

A woman in splendid robes slowly shook her head and said that, from the signs in the heavens, this should be the legendary art of demon heavenly seizure and that they ought to wait and watch a while longer.

The crowd of cultivators took their cues from her alone and naturally did not dare defy the intent of the direct heir of the Wang clan.

Yet after much persuasion, she finally agreed and withdrew several miles, where they watched from afar.

Before long, dozens of streaks of sinister light descended from the dark mist overhead and vanished into the island.

From within came bursts of chanting, with a faint shimmer of sacred radiance flickering into view before all fell silent again.

Soon after, another wave of demonic light descended.

Each streak carried an aura no weaker than that of an ordinary foundation-stage cultivator.

Some were even comparable to late-stage foundation cultivators like her.

But once those streaks of light fell upon the island, there was not the slightest further movement.

It was eerie to the extreme.

The crowd watched from a distance, tense and wary, ready to respond to some sudden calamity at any moment, yet the unnatural silence weighed on them so heavily they could hardly breathe.

Wasn't that man supposed to be a cultivator of the Black Talisman Sect? Why were sacred light and chanting suddenly appearing as well?

More demonic light kept falling from the sky.

A violent ape demon, a wolf centipede heavenly demon, a void stillness demon, a bloodshadow insect demon...

All who saw it were shaken to the core. If so many savage heavenly demons were to spill out and scatter, the consequences would be unthinkable.

Heavenly demons are born from chaos, slaughter, devouring, and madness. Their demonic qi is best at tainting the vitality of heaven and earth and fouling elemental energy.

For ordinary cultivators, even after killing a heavenly demon, dealing with its corpse would still be a troublesome matter.

The strange phenomena in the sky continued for a full hour.

Several thousand heavenly demons descended into the mortal realm, and in the end vanished without a trace, beyond all sense and perception.

Not long after, a figure emerged from Bright Cloud Island, stepping upon auspicious clouds as he approached the crowd.

The woman in splendid robes immediately went to meet him and took out a bulging storage pouch, saying softly, "Fellow Daoist Pang, these are the belongings of the cultivators from Devouring Spirit Island. I have already gathered and sorted them for you."

Pang Yue smiled as he accepted the pouch, thanked her, and casually put it away.

The greatest gain from this expedition was the Myriad Beasts Ointment. As for the little the Devouring Spirit Island cultivators carried on them, he could examine it slowly when he returned.

The cultivators regarded Pang Yue with complicated expressions, secretly guessing where the several thousand heavenly demons had gone.

The more they looked at him, the more they felt that this Black Talisman Sect cultivator was unfathomable, with demonic might that blotted out the sky.

Then Pang Yue said, "Fellow Daoist Wang, why don't we go together to the next island? I hear there are thirty-six islands beneath Devouring Spirit Island, and this is only one of them."

That was precisely the line the woman had been waiting for. At once she smiled and said, "That would be ideal. I shall lead the way for you, Fellow Daoist."

The two of them immediately flew off.

The cultivators all followed after them.

"To slaughter one island and still not be satisfied... it seems his spiritual pet is truly extraordinary."

All sorts of thoughts churned through their minds, yet they firmly remembered the name Pang Yue of the Black Talisman Sect.

...

Lu Yu Island.

With the protective grand formation broken through, the Wang clan cultivators, leading a host of loose cultivators, surged madly in and slaughtered the island cultivators on all sides.

The woman in splendid robes and a lean man stood in the air, watching in silence.

"Thirteenth Sister, where did that demonic sect cultivator come from earlier?"

The lean man asked curiously.

Not long before, the woman had brought people to Lu Yu Island and helped him break the island's defensive formation, earning a great merit.

When they returned, the clan would surely reward them handsomely.

What surprised the lean man was that the one who had breached the island was not a loose cultivator recruited by the Wang clan.

With nothing but his own cultivation, he had broken the protective formation of the island, and that made the lean man deeply wary.

The woman looked at the black mist slowly gathering on the horizon and said, "That man is a direct disciple of the Black Talisman Sect. His name is Pang Yue. Coming to Devouring Spirit Island, he must have had some other scheme in mind."

The lean man said gravely, "I heard someone say that the cultivators of Devouring Spirit Island harmed his spiritual pet, and that is why he came seeking vengeance..."

"Hm? Demon heavenly seizure?"

The lean man also noticed the strange sight in the sky and exclaimed in surprise.

"Exactly. His true aim is the art of demon heavenly seizure," the woman said in a low voice.

The lean man immediately understood and said in realization, "He is after the Myriad Beasts Ointment of Devouring Spirit Island!"

"That man must be one of the few outstanding figures among the direct disciples of the Black Talisman Sect, or else he would not dare, at the foundation stage, to cultivate such an art."

As they spoke, dozens of streaks of demonic light were already falling one after another from the sky.

...

Within the subterranean cavern, Pang Yue stood behind the Boundless Light Buddha, quietly watching as one heavenly demon after another was baptized by sacred radiance, transformed into followers of the Buddha, and entered the Boundless Realm of Light, where they chanted the sutras devoutly, their Buddhist power merging wholly with the towering golden Buddha.

"Since the golden core elder of Devouring Spirit Island is being tied down by the Wang clan, I can act without restraint and fully raise the strength of the Boundless Light Buddha..."

His gaze flickered, and his divine sense enveloped the grand formation of demon heavenly seizure, guarding against any heavenly demon not yet intoxicated by the Myriad Beasts Ointment, lest they launch a surprise attack or escape.

The amount of Myriad Beasts Ointment stored on each island varied.

The quantity on Lu Yu Island was twice that of Bright Cloud Island, enough for him to convert ten thousand heavenly demons.

The Boundless Light Buddha's strength rose in steady leaps, and vast quantities of sacred radiance condensed as it transformed toward the golden core stage.

Several hours later, Pang Yue emerged from the subterranean cavern, reunited with Wang Shaorong and the others, and continued flying toward the next island.

...

Salt Deer Island.

Two broad, stout men stood atop a mountain peak, their faces heavy with worry.

One wore white robes, the other black, and their features were seven parts alike.

"In just three days, we have lost seven islands in succession."

"I fear Salt Deer Island may no longer be defendable..."

The man in white sighed and turned his head. "Junior Brother, I have already asked Master to request reinforcements from the main island as soon as possible, but over there... alas."

The man in black sneered. "Senior Brother, the main island is using the tactic of sacrificing the pawns to save the chariot. You need not hold out hope."

"Yes..."

The man in white seemed to recall something and asked, "Has that guest left yet?"

The man in black's expression shifted slightly, his eyes glinting. "Not yet. Senior Brother, do you mean..."

The man in white said calmly, "We must keep him here. That man's strength far exceeds ours. If the Wang clan attacks and he remains with us, we may still have a sliver of hope."

The man in black nodded and promised, "Rest assured, Senior Brother. Since that man arrived on our island, he has been in seclusion cultivating and knows nothing of what is happening outside."

"Who would have thought that our little act of abusing our position for private gain would become our final trump card."

The man in white gave a self-mocking laugh.

Half a year earlier, a mysterious cultivator had come to the island and asked to borrow Myriad Beasts Ointment from the two of them, offering an astonishing price.

Unable to resist temptation, the two had secretly led the mysterious cultivator into the oil cavern and allowed him to cultivate within.

The man in black said, "The Black Talisman Sect is, after all, a great sect with a legacy of tens of thousands of years, and its foundation is far above that of our Devouring Spirit Island and the Wang clan. Since that man is a direct disciple of the Black Talisman Sect, he should be able to help us hold the Wang clan at bay."

"If our Myriad Beasts Ointment is to be used, there must be a price."

"When the time comes, the two of us will detonate the Heavenly Thunder Orbs and flee in the ensuing chaos. The outer sea is vast beyond measure; there will always be somewhere to hide."