Chapter 299: The World’s Demons Stir

After much deliberation, Li Qingqiu still decided not to pursue Yuan Li.

Unlike Zhao Zhen’s situation before, Zhao Zhen needed to endure his tribulation to undergo a transformation; he could have died during it.

But Yuan Li had already awakened. Rashly interfering might affect the Awakening process.

Li Qingqiu felt the 【Indestructible Hegemon Body】 might be even more formidable than he had anticipated. As long as Yuan Li’s erupting Aura was strong enough, he could sense it.

Regarding Li Qingqiu’s decision not to search for Yuan Li, the high-ranking members did not understand, but based on their trust in him, no one continued to persuade him.

Ji Ya’s mood was heavy. He had just returned and only now learned that Yuan Qi had died.

Although he and Yuan Li weren’t particularly close, they were after all fellow disciples, having spent so many years together. He also felt sorrow for Yuan Li.

He wanted to go and assist Yuan Li, but Li Qingqiu stopped him.

“You should focus on recovering from your injuries first,” Li Qingqiu said in a tone that brooked no argument, and Ji Ya had no choice but to relent.

Immediately after, Li Qingqiu ordered Xiao Wuqing to go look after Invincible Xiao and bring him over once he awoke.

The fact that Invincible Xiao could be knocked unconscious gave Li Qingqiu reason to suspect that fellow did it on purpose.

Other Ninth Layer of the Nourishing Origin Realm cultivators might truly have been knocked out by a sneak attack from Yuan Li, but Invincible Xiao was different. He was also a Body Cultivator, with a Physical Body stronger than Yuan Li’s. How could he be knocked unconscious?

Li Qingqiu had Ji Ya continue recounting the events of that night, hoping to analyze useful information.

Everyone’s thoughts were thus pulled back, and they continued discussing the palace battle… The snow fell relentlessly, covering the earth and mountains. A solitary figure walked across the vast, white mountainous terrain.

It was Yuan Li.

Yuan Li wore white robes, his hair loosely flowing and fluttering in the cold wind. His face was exceptionally stern; since his brother’s death, he had lost his smile.

Upon closer inspection, faint blood-red lines could be seen between his eyebrows, making him appear as if he were frowning.

At this moment, he seemed to wander aimlessly, but in reality, his heart was resolute.

There was no anger or hatred in his heart; his mental state had entered an unprecedented state of tranquility.

From the moment he learned of Yuan Qi’s death to his descent from the mountain, although only ten short days had passed, in those ten days he felt as if he had experienced several cycles of Reincarnation.

He constantly replayed the first half of his life in his memory, repeatedly deducing and refining his cultivation in his mind.

From pain to numbness, from regret to despair.

Many years ago, he had sensed his own limits and foreseen that he needed to experience some kind of extreme predicament to undergo a transformation.

He thought he needed to face death himself, but he never expected his elder brother’s death would come first.

He would rather have died himself than have Yuan Qi die.

In this state of near-collapse, Yuan Li entered an unprecedented condition.

He gazed ahead, his pace neither hurried nor slow. Between heaven and earth, vast and boundless, the falling snow landed on him, instantly turning into mist and dispersing.

A trail of bloody tears flowed from his right eye, followed soon after by his left eye also seeping bloody tears.

He seemed unaware of the bleeding and continued forward, but strands of white hair began to appear among his locks.

Before long, blood started flowing from his mouth and nose, and one-third of his hair had turned white. His entire person became weathered and aged.

As blood continuously flowed from his seven orifices, he left a trail of blood behind him.

“Life born from death… What is tribulation? What is a limit? Shattering all obstacles, that is the path I must walk…”

Yuan Li suddenly spoke, murmuring softly to himself.

Even with blood seeping from his eyes, his gaze remained calm.

The Aura within his body began to boil, impacting his muscles, bones, and entire frame. Every acupoint in his body endured the impact of the Aura, yet at this moment, he felt no pain.

The sensation of his flesh tearing apart actually brought him a kind of perverse pleasure.

He wanted to experience pain more excruciating than what Yuan Qi endured before death. He wasn’t trying to torture himself; he wanted to tell his brother that he was strong enough to withstand all the world’s dangers alone.

Boom—

Yuan Li suddenly erupted with a sharp, fierce Aura, forming a visible whirlwind of energy that wantonly swirled around him. Gradually, blood-red flowers bloomed on his white robes, rapidly expanding and merging together.

Threads of bloody Qi seeped from his robe, drifting upwards like burning crimson flames.

Soon, his clothes were completely dyed blood-red. His skin and flesh began to melt, transforming into bloody Qi that rose into the air.

The wind and snow between heaven and earth grew fiercer. From a distance, a long trail of bloody Qi could be seen coiling around him.

Thump! Thump! Thump… A strange sound echoed between heaven and earth, like war drums. In reality, it was the sound of Yuan Li’s heartbeat.

Half of Yuan Li’s face had lost its flesh, revealing white bone, yet he did not frown from the pain.

“Whether demon, fiend, or ghost… come, feast on my flesh and blood…”

Yuan Li muttered to himself. He didn’t know where to find the demon that killed Yuan Qi, so he chose to attract Demonic Beasts to find him.

Boom—

A soaring Aura erupted from within Yuan Li, startling the clouds. The Heavy snow was pushed aside, forming a spectacular vortex… In a dim temple, the Centipede Spirit lying atop a Buddha statue suddenly raised its head. Demons lurking in the shadows on both sides also opened their eyes, all looking towards the door.

“This is…”

“Such powerful lifeblood Qi…”

“What kind of Physical Body could produce such lifeblood Qi? So the words of the Demon Master were true? Does the Nine Provinces Land truly conceal a supreme physique?”

“Great King, we have finally waited. Let us seize this body first, then annihilate the Qingxiao Sect!”

“Such delicious lifeblood Qi… I feel my demon blood boiling.”

Excited, greedy voices came from the shadows.

The Centipede Spirit gazed outside the door and said faintly, “With such lifeblood Qi, Demonic Beasts across the world will surely go mad. The gathered momentum of our Yao Race might ironically become an obstacle for us.”

Its words did not worry the demons on either side. Instead, they urged it to give the order to move out immediately.

The Centipede Spirit fell silent for a moment, then said gravely, “Then we move. Prepare to face the Qingxiao Sect!”

As the words fell, the demons lurking in the shadows of the hall grew excited, surging out of the temple hall. There were snakes, rats, giant spiders, and indescribably strange demonic creatures… Inside the Immortal Cave.

Li Qingqiu suddenly opened his eyes, frowning.

He sensed a powerful lifeblood Qi, wantonly released in the form of an Aura.

It was the first time he had felt such an Aura, one filled with the scent of blood.

Most crucially, this bloody Aura was still intensifying, rapidly reaching a level that made his heart tremble.

What kind of demon was responsible for this?

Li Qingqiu hesitated whether to go investigate, fearing it might be a diversionary tactic.

That bloody Aura continued to strengthen, making it impossible for Li Qingqiu to continue his cultivation.

He stood up and walked towards the stone door of the Immortal Cave.

Lin Chuan leaped onto Li Qingqiu’s shoulder and said, “Great Master, I sense an Aura that makes me very uneasy. My ghost body is trembling…”

Li Qingqiu comforted him, “Don’t be afraid. I can feel it too.”

Together, they walked out of the Immortal Cave, making their way to the edge of a cliff.

Li Qingqiu looked up. The falling snow was thick, the world ahead a vast white expanse where nothing could be seen. He could feel the bloody Aura in the distance still rising madly.

It had the momentum to pierce the very heavens.

“What on earth is that?”

Li Qingqiu frowned, his heart filled with bewilderment.