Chapter 39 (Part 1)

Song Yuanruo was in no hurry to speak. Instead, he asked in return, “You don’t suspect I’m someone pretending to be a member of the Song family?”

Song Dongyou froze for a moment, then laughed and said, “Anyone who dares pretend to be a Song family prodigy and comes onto my Song family’s territory to make trouble—I’ll chop that bastard to pieces with one swing!”

Though the words were spoken as a joke, they were a warning. Even if Song Dongyou knew there was no way Song Yuanruo could be fake, if she really did encounter that one-in-ten-thousand possibility, she would do exactly what she said.

Only then did Song Yuanruo feel reassured. This was the bearing the head of the Song family of Jin City ought to have.

So he said, “I left the sect to temper myself through travel and wandered through mountains and rivers in many places. Around half a year ago, near a volcano crater in the Southern Sea, I discovered a half-destroyed array. The array had been forcibly broken open. It was a hunting array, used to imprison prey. I do not know who set up that array there, but traces of aura still remained inside it. I caught the scent of a wisp of demonic qi. Uneasy, I followed the trail…”

Over the past half year, Song Yuanruo had passed through many places, but all of it had revolved around tracking that demonic qi. From south to north, every time he was about to catch up, that demon seemed to have grown eyes and fled at high speed once again.

“A few days ago, my attainments in arrays broke through, and I finally tracked the dense source of the demonic qi again. I searched carefully, and in the end, I followed it to Jin City.”

“That demon discovered me and transformed into a human cultivator, hiding and fleeing within the city. While pursuing it, I was careless for a moment and accidentally intruded onto the competition platform…”

Song Dongyou pondered for a moment, then asked again, “According to you, that demon is still in Jin City? Since it can already transform, it must have at least a Golden Core cultivation. Why was it chased by you, a Foundation Establishment cultivator, until it had no strength to fight back?”

Song Yuanruo said, “I am puzzled as well, but that demon truly could transform. I saw it with my own eyes.”

The conversation between the two of them took place entirely through divine sense transmission. On the surface, it looked as if they were merely exchanging a silent battle of glances. At least from Song Yuanxi’s point of view, he completely could not understand it.

But no matter how curious he was, Song Yuanxi did not make a sound on the spot. Instead, he sat even more obediently.

No rush. If there really was some secret, he could just ask Yuanruo privately afterward. His younger brother never hid anything from him.

Song Dongyou repeatedly confirmed the demon’s existence with Song Yuanruo. After receiving his definite answer, she hurriedly left and went straight to her old rival, the Xu family.

During the fights on the competition platform, the heads of the Xu and Song families would not appear. This was the confidence of great clans. Therefore, Song Dongyou caught her target as soon as she went. After entering the Xu family, she quickly found the Xu family head.

The Xu family head, Xu Tianwang, was taking a short rest. In his heart, he was happily thinking that after the clan competition ended, most of Jin City’s resources would once again fall into his hands for the next ten years. At that time, how should he distribute them in order to continuously strengthen the Xu family of Jin City? His only child had astonishing talent and was actually a single earth spiritual root. Ever since his son took the City Lord of Sifang City as his master, the ambition Xu Tianwang had suppressed for many years had flared up again. The Xu family’s main branch had declined. Their Jin City Xu family might not necessarily be unable to replace them…

Just as his calculations were clacking away, a fierce gust of wind came howling straight at his face. Xu Tianwang instinctively dodged aside.

When he opened his eyes and looked, it was actually the Song family, his sworn enemy!

“Song Dongyou, what madness has gotten into you? You actually barged into my Xu family without permission. Are you here to provoke me?”

Xu Tianwang had never dared look down on the Song family head. Song Dongyou, that woman, wielded a fine saber and was an unreasonable, overbearing saber cultivator. Back then, the souls who died beneath that blade numbered in the thousands, if not ten thousand.

As a collateral branch member of the Song family, Song Dongyou’s strength was comparable to that of the Song family’s direct line.

“Xu Tianwang, I have an important matter to discuss with you.” Song Dongyou got straight to the point and said bluntly, “A demon has invaded Jin City. Its cultivation is estimated to be no lower than Golden Core. We must take precautions as early as possible.”

“Oh? Then according to you, how should we guard against it?”

“Immediately stop the clan competitions in Jin City and gather all fighting strength. On one hand, launch a blanket search to find the hidden demon. On the other, draw out manpower to escort the common people of Jin City away as quickly as possible, and at the same time activate Jin City’s city-protecting grand array…”

Song Dongyou listed point after point, speaking in a clear and orderly manner. The person opposite her also listened carefully, but his expression was leisurely, without the slightest hint of tension.

After a while, she reacted. “Xu Tianwang, you’re playing me for a fool?!”

Xu Tianwang let out a cold laugh, his eyes filled with disapproval. “Song Dongyou, we can be considered old opponents. To put it unpleasantly, the moment you stick your ass out, I know what kind of shit you’re trying to take. The clan competition has already entered its white-hot stage. In another half month, victory and defeat will be decided. Stop now? Then how should Jin City’s resources be divided? According to the current wins and losses? Then it’s obviously your Song family that holds the advantage!

“You…”

“The Song family lacks endurance, while my Xu family can accumulate strength and burst forth later. The further this goes, the greater our chance of winning. Family Head Song, I advise you not to play these little tricks. Jin City’s city-protecting grand array shows nothing unusual. How could a demon have invaded? Utter nonsense!”

Song Dongyou was furious, but she still endured it and continued patiently, “A child of my Song family tracked the source of demonic qi to Jin City and personally saw the demon transform. Moreover, the moment it entered Jin City, it vanished… right near the competition platform. Family Head Xu, don’t forget what is connected beneath the competition platform—the Heavenly Chasm.”

The other clans of Jin City did not know what was imprisoned within the Heavenly Chasm, but as old-established clans, the Song and Xu families knew perfectly well.

The Canglan Realm’s Heavenly Chasms were space-time fragments left behind from the war between humans and demons ten thousand years ago. To prevent the demons from making repeated comebacks, the highest-cultivation members of the major powers of that era joined forces to seal them. After that, in order to reinforce the seals, every thousand years formed one cycle, and every major power would send people there.

Later, the various major powers scattered and gradually evolved into the Three Great Sects and the Four Great Powers. The Heavenly Chasms in each location were also divided according to region, each guarded by its respective side.

Jin City fell under the jurisdiction of Sifang City. Logically speaking, the Song family should not be worrying about the Heavenly Chasm. But a thousand years ago, the Song family had obtained an opportunity from this Heavenly Chasm. In order to repay that karma, they sent members of the Song family to guard this place.

“Xu Tianwang, your Jin City Xu family can now be considered attached to Sifang City. If this Heavenly Chasm becomes unstable and lets a demon enter, can your Xu family bear the consequences?” Song Dongyou directly questioned him.

The Xu family head’s expression sharpened, but his face remained indifferent. “If this truly is a demonic invasion, my Xu family will naturally be duty-bound to defend against it. But as you also said, Jin City is under Sifang City’s jurisdiction. If there were anything unusual, they would certainly send people over. Right now, this is merely your baseless speculation. I will not halt the clan competition because of it.”

“Xu Tianwang!”

“If your Song family is cowardly, you may withdraw from the competition voluntarily, activate your protective array, and have your whole big family huddle up to stay safe.”

“Family Head Xu, very good!”

Song Dongyou stared coldly at him for a long time, then turned and flung her sleeve as she left.

“Family Head! Family Head! This is bad! The Song family broke in…”

As soon as Song Dongyou left, a Xu family servant ran toward Xu Tianwang in panic, shouting loudly. Xu Tianwang merely waved his hand to dismiss him, then turned and went to the secret grounds.

On the other side, Song Yuanxi also learned from his younger brother about the demon invasion. His first reaction was fear. He hurried forward to check Song Yuanruo’s physical condition.

“Once that stuff called demonic qi invades a cultivator, you’ll either die or be crippled. If your divine sense gets bewitched, it’s even possible to fall into demonhood. Yuanruo, you’re only at Foundation Establishment and you dared to track a demon all the way here? Do you not want your life anymore?”

Song Yuanxi was extremely resistant toward things like demons. Whether it was the lust demon’s control over the vicious supporting female character in the original book, or the later chaos the demons wreaked throughout the Canglan Realm, those things had no rationality. Everything they did came from instinct. And a demon’s instinct was bloodlust!

The historical records of the Canglan Realm also contained accounts of the human-demon war ten thousand years ago. On the human side, millions upon millions of cultivators had fallen, nearly causing the transmission of the Dao to be severed. From this, one could see just how terrifying and arrogant the demons were.

Song Yuanruo had established his foundation many years ago, and his cultivation was far higher than his elder brother’s by a large margin. But the other party did not care about that at all. He wholeheartedly cared only about Song Yuanruo’s safety. That naturally revealed anxious expression made warmth flare in one’s heart.

“Elder Brother, I’m fine. That demon seems to be very afraid of me and does not dare come near me easily,” Song Yuanruo said softly, calmly letting his elder brother inspect him.

Only after Song Yuanxi learned that the demon did not dare attack his younger brother did his heart settle.

Then he thought of something and hurriedly asked, “Then does the Song family head know? She went out in such a rush to think of a way to respond?”

“She should. I tracked that demon to the area near the competition platform, and then that thing vanished without a trace. I could not even catch any residual aura. In that case, we can only rely on the major clans of Jin City to help.”

There were only two major clans in Jin City: besides the Song family, there was the Xu family.

The Song Yuanxi brothers both guessed that Song Dongyou’s hurried departure was to find the Xu family head and discuss the demonic invasion. Song Yuanxi even joked that the clan competition would probably be suspended.

However, they had only guessed half of it correctly. Song family head Song Dongyou immediately gave an order: the Song family would voluntarily withdraw from the clan competition. All Song family children were to return, and unless necessary, no one was allowed to go out. Those who violated the order would be expelled from the family!

After that, Song Dongyou held a secret discussion with the various Song family elders to discuss how to respond to the demonic invasion.

The Song family elders had some complaints about voluntarily withdrawing from the competition, but once they heard Song Dongyou speak of the demonic invasion, they could no longer care about such trivial matters.

“Family Head, is this absolutely certain?” one Song family elder asked urgently.

Song Dongyou’s expression was solemn. She slowly nodded. “I have already carefully inspected the competition platform. There are indeed remnants of demonic qi. The protective array over at the Heavenly Chasm is currently guarded by the Xu family, so I do not know the specific details, but I suspect abnormalities have already appeared.”

She had carried out a blanket search of Jin City, yet she still could not find any trace of that demon. Jin City’s city-protecting grand array had shown no abnormalities, which meant the demon had not left. Then there was one and only one truth: that demon had used some unknown method to slip into the Heavenly Chasm.

“The other side of the Heavenly Chasm is already demon territory. Space-time fragments continuously leak demonic qi. If that demon absorbs enough demonic qi within the Heavenly Chasm, I fear the consequences will be unimaginable.”

The moment Song Dongyou said this, everyone sucked in a cold breath.

“Family Head, this matter is of great importance. We must join with the major clans of Jin City and discuss it together, especially the Xu family. That Heavenly Chasm protective array…”

Before that elder could finish speaking, Song Dongyou directly let out a cold snort. “That old thing Xu Tianwang is still dreaming his sweet dream! He insists on continuing the clan competition. For that little bit of resources, he’s actually being stubborn and refusing to see reason!”

“Then what should we do? We have no way to inspect the Heavenly Chasm’s situation, so it will be very difficult to control the demon’s movements.”

“I have already contacted the main family, but distant water cannot quench an immediate thirst. Right now, we must guard ourselves.” Song Dongyou paused as she spoke. Thinking of something, she gave another order. “Draw out two Song family squads to escort the common people of Jin City away in batches.”

Aside from cultivators, the vast majority of those living in Jin City were ordinary mortals. They had no strength to truss a chicken. If the demon stirred up trouble, they would bear the brunt of it first.

Song Dongyou issued one order after another. From the elders downward, everyone in the Song family began working nonstop. Even Song Yuanxi had no free time and was assigned corresponding work.

The matter he was responsible for was still relatively easy: he had to go to the major Song family shops in the city to collect account books, verify them, and then temporarily close the shops.

Song Yuanruo wanted to accompany him, but in the end, Song Dongyou grabbed him as labor and took him away to study the Heavenly Chasm array.

“Elder Brother, be careful on your own. If anything feels wrong, use the Ten-Thousand-Li Teleportation Talisman directly.” Before leaving, Song Yuanruo did not forget to remind him repeatedly. He could not spare attention for the other Song family children, but his own elder brother’s safety had to be confirmed.

Fortunately, their mother had prepared a Ten-Thousand-Li Teleportation Talisman for each of the brothers. With this talisman, preserving their lives would not be a problem.

This was also one of Song Yuanxi’s trump cards, so when he left the Song family and went to the various shops to check accounts, there was not too much fear in his heart.

After making his way through five shops and just as he was about to head to the sixth, Song Yuanxi ran into an old acquaintance, a fellow disciple of Xuantian Sect.

“Senior Sister Xu? Why are you here?” Song Yuanxi was a little surprised to see Xu Yayin. Because of their bond as fellow sect members, he could not help stepping forward and quietly saying, “Senior Sister Xu, if you have no important business, it would be best to leave Jin City as quickly as possible.”

“Why?”

“A demon has invaded Jin City. This place is unsafe.”

Xu Yayin still wanted to ask more, but the other party refused to say anything else. Song Yuanxi only smiled and shook his head. “Senior Sister Xu, saying too much would spoil the point. Take care of yourself.”

Once the words fell, he had already darted into the shop.

Xu Yayin had gone out for a casual stroll. She had not expected to run into a fellow sect member, and even less had she expected to hear about a demon.

Ever since cultivators of the Canglan Realm began cultivating, they and demons had been irreconcilable. The two sides were enemies to the point where, once they met, it was a matter of “either you die or I perish.”

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