Chu Yang ignored him completely and turned to Xu Changqing. "That serpent demon has kidnapped many young girls. Our top priority is rescuing them, with demon-slaying as secondary. We need to be careful—senior brother, please talk some sense into him."
Xu Changqing nodded and immediately pulled Li Xiaoyao aside for a lecture on moral discipline.
Li Xiaoyao's face fell instantly.
Taking this opportunity, Chu Yang stepped away to enter his Soul Palace.
Inside the empty palace, Magic Chu Yang was still hard at work.
Since last night, he had been trying to create a Devour-Demon Gu.
What seemed like a simple task turned out to be tricky—Devour-Demon Gu contained spiritual energy, and without it, it was just an ordinary insect.
Thus, the key problem became converting chakra into spiritual energy.
After working tirelessly all night, Magic Chu Yang and Naruto Chu Yang finally produced a functional prototype, but its effectiveness was uncertain.
Xianxia world—Chu Yang had no choice but to return with a replica of the Devouring Demon Gu.
After a short while, Li Xiaoyao's moral education class was nearly finished. He followed Xu Changqing dejectedly, his head hanging low.
The three of them entered the cave together. Chu Yang used his Observation Haki to locate the trapped girls. Although the Hidden Dragon Cavern had many winding paths, it was still within the range of his detection.
"Senior Brother, I can protect myself, but I can't guard Xiaoyao. It's best if you stay with him while I go to the other side to save people. We should split up."
Before Xu Changqing could react, Chu Yang had already darted into a cave entrance.
"Junior Brother!"
Xu Changqing understood that Chu Yang's decision was the right one. Speed was of the essence—if they alerted the serpent demon, the rescue would become much harder.
Without hesitation, he quickly led Li Xiaoyao into the depths of the cave.
Following the sounds, Chu Yang soon found the serpent demon.
It was about five or six meters tall, with a humanoid upper body and a massive snake tail. Its entire body was muscular, exuding a sense of raw power even from a distance.
Beside it stood a fox demon in human form—her figure was curvy and alluring, with a brown tail peeking out from her back. She already had three tails.
A Three-Tailed Fox Demon!
The serpent and fox demons were entangled in intimacy.
Both of them had cultivated for at least several hundred years—excellent test subjects in Chu Yang's eyes!
The fox demon, with her keen sense of smell, caught the scent of a human the moment Chu Yang appeared.
Being naturally cautious, she immediately spat out a greenish poison mist in his direction.
"If no one's around, I won't bother holding back!"
Chu Yang stepped forward, his entire body glowing with a faint golden light. Behind him, an anomaly of the sun and moon appearing together emerged, his every movement radiating a starry brilliance.
True Origin Martial Form!
The two demons hiding in the ravine had never seen such a terrifying spectacle.
They were absolutely horrified!
Without a word, they turned and fled!
Chu Yang reached out his hand—Universal Pull!
The two demons were instantly sucked back, suspended midair by the radiance of the sun and moon behind him, unable to move.
Origin Breathing—Second Form!
A sharp gleam flashed in Chu Yang's eyes. The sun and moon phenomenon behind him began to shift, transforming into a massive millstone.
The two lights merged, shining onto the demons, making them wail in agony as their bodies seemed to be ground away.
Chu Yang quickly dissipated the illusion, allowing them to catch their breath.
"Great Immortal, spare us! We did not mean to offend you—please forgive us!"
The fox demon was quick-witted. Seeing Chu Yang dressed in a Daoist robe, she immediately sensed the danger and pleaded earnestly.
"Great Immortal, spare us! Spare us!"
The serpent demon, not very bright, simply echoed her cries.
"I spare you? Did you ever spare those innocent villagers and young girls?"
Chu Yang sneered and tossed the Devouring Demon Gu onto the serpent demon. The previously lifeless parasite suddenly came alive, wriggling excitedly.
"What the hell is this—"
"AAAAHHHHH!!"
As the Gu worm burrowed into the serpent demon's body, a gut-wrenching scream filled the cave. Fortunately, the Hidden Dragon Cavern was deep enough that no one else could hear its cries.
Just like the innocent villagers before.
The Devouring Demon Gu first consumed the demon's essence, then its flesh and blood. Thanks to its formidable vitality, the serpent demon wouldn't die quickly, making the process excruciatingly painful.
Seeing her husband suffer so terribly, the fox demon dropped her facade and began cursing Chu Yang.
The angrier they were, the more satisfied he felt.
On his way here, the sight of all those white bones had been a shocking reminder of their cruelty.
"This is what you deserve. No need to thank me!"
"Take your time—it's your turn next!"
Chu Yang smiled gleefully at the fox demon's curses.
This was the first time she had encountered such a heartless human. The venomous words on her lips got stuck—she didn't dare to speak them.
The serpent demon's aura weakened until its screams could no longer be heard.
The fox demon sobbed, knowing exactly what that meant. She begged once more, "Great Immortal, please kill me instead! Take my life and spare my husband!"
Chu Yang shook his head with a smirk. "You don't deserve it! Savor your suffering—like I said, this is what you deserve."
The fox demon finally fell into utter despair.
A moment later, the serpent demon's massive body was reduced to a thin layer of skin.
Seeing that the Devouring Demon Gu had eaten its fill, Chu Yang retrieved it.
Its formerly white body was now blood-red, and it had grown significantly larger.
Chu Yang's face lit up with joy—his experiment had succeeded!
"Looking at your miserable state, I'll be generous and send you to reunite with your husband."
With that, he tossed the Gu onto the fox demon. She closed her eyes and accepted her fate.
Throughout the entire process, she didn't scream once.
A testament to the saying—true despair is silent.
Once the Devouring Demon Gu was full, it fell into hibernation. Chu Yang stored it away, planning to consult Zhao Ling'er on how to use it later.
The Gu's instinct was to devour demons, but its ability to transfer cultivation required manual control.
From a corner of the cave, a small fox glared at Chu Yang with burning hatred.
Chu Yang reached out, pulling it toward him. He erased its memories with a Forgetfulness Charm.
"Since you're still young and haven't harmed anyone, I'll spare you. But who knows if you'll become a menace in the future?"
"I'll take you away and release you in Shu Mountain, where the other demon clans reside."
The little fox vanished into a undetectable extension charm space—a storage dimension capable of holding living creatures, including some magical beasts.
After finishing up, Chu Yang wandered around and found some Flowers and a serpent gallbladder—both valuable alchemy ingredients.
He could bring them back to Shu Mountain and ask his fellow disciples skilled in pill refining for help.
"The Xianxia world is amazing—fighting monsters to level up, dungeon runs for treasure. What a life!"
Satisfied, Chu Yang left the Hidden Dragon Cavern.
Xu Changqing and Li Xiaoyao were waiting outside with the rescued girls. They were just about to go back for Chu Yang when they saw him stride out confidently.
"Junior Brother, did you encounter the serpent demon?"
"Don't worry, I've already slain both demons."
"Both?!"
"A serpent demon and a fox demon. But the fox demon's cultivation was much weaker—it only took a single strike."
Xu Changqing nodded in relief. "Junior Brother, your cultivation has advanced again."
Chu Yang laughed. "Thanks to the teachings of Senior Mo and Senior Lin, and the insights I gained during battle, I had a breakthrough—I've reached the Refining Essence into Qi realm."
This was a major milestone!
The realm divisions in The Legend of Sword and Fairy are ancient and broad, consisting of only four levels:
1. Refining Essence into Qi
2. Refining Qi into Spirit
3. Refining Spirit to Return to the Void
4. Refining the Void to Merge with the Dao
Among these, the Refining Spirit to Return to the Void stage is known as the Half-Immortal Realm, while Refining the Void to Merge with the Dao is the Terrestrial True Immortal Realm.
Beyond this point lies ascension to the Immortal Realm.
In the mortal world, the peak combat power generally consists of cultivators at the Half-Immortal Realm (Refining Spirit to Return to the Void).
However, 99% of cultivators become stuck at the first major bottleneck—Refining Essence into Qi. This is the stage Xu Changqing frequently laments as: "My junior brother has yet to succeed in refining Qi."
Upon successfully Refining Essence into Qi, a cultivator will generate spiritual energy within their body. If a martial artist follows the path of cultivation through martial arts, this spiritual energy will merge with their internal energy, forming true essence, which is essentially a variant of spiritual energy.
It is worth noting that since the realm system is broad, consisting of only four tiers, there can be vast differences in strength between cultivators of the same level.
---
Xu Changqing was both astonished and overjoyed. He darted forward, placed a hand on Chu Yang's shoulder, and after a brief moment, whispered in a trembling voice:
"You truly possess true essence now."
"Junior Brother, you have officially stepped onto the path of cultivation! From now on, your future will be boundless! The Sect Master and the elders will be delighted to hear of this!"
Xu Changqing was so excited that he clenched Chu Yang's shoulders, unable to contain his joy. His eyes sparkled with exhilaration.
Li Xiaoyao was also genuinely happy for Chu Yang. In truth, he himself had already condensed true essence, but he wasn't sure whether he should mention it—he was afraid it might affect Chu Yang's mindset.
---
The three of them led the rescued girls down the mountain. Before long, the news spread like wildfire.
Villagers arrived in droves to claim their daughters.
For a time, the air was filled with the sounds of joyous reunions and tearful sobbing.
However, some villagers were not so fortunate. Those who could not find their loved ones repeatedly approached Xu Changqing to inquire about them, only to end up staring blankly in the direction of the Hidden Dragon Cavern.
Seeing this, Li Xiaoyao clenched his fists, his heart heavy with sorrow. He muttered bitterly, "I should have gone with Brother Chu! Only by slaying those two demons myself could I have eased the hatred in my heart!"
Xu Changqing patted his shoulder and sighed.
As time passed, most of the villagers had already left. Only one lonely girl remained.
Xu Changqing suggested, "Her family hasn't come for her. They probably think she perished in the demon's lair. Why don't we escort her home ourselves?"
Chu Yang glanced at the girl, a playful smirk appearing on his lips. "No rush. Let's wait a little longer."
Xu Changqing was a bit surprised but nodded in agreement.
If Junior Brother says so, he must have his reasons!
---
Not long after, an elderly man with a walking cane slowly approached from the distance, his frail body trembling with each step.
"Grandfather!"
The girl threw herself into the old man's arms and broke down in sobs.
Xu Changqing smiled warmly. Just as he was about to speak—
A sword flash suddenly erupted into the sky!
The heads of the old man and the girl were swept up by the sword light, soaring high into the air.
Their deathly pale faces were frozen in expressions of utter shock.
Li Xiaoyao's eyes widened in horror.
Xu Changqing turned to Chu Yang, his face filled with absolute terror!
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