Chapter 894: The End of the Penglai Supreme Sect? (I)

The White King Xiao left the world peacefully.

...

As Daoist Cangsheng's breathing became extremely weak, he went completely unnoticed by the three Chu Liangs speeding past overhead.

The White King Xiao could feel Chu Liang closing in on him, yet he had no way of widening the gap between them.

Nevertheless, being a greater demon at the pinnacle of the seventh realm, the White King Xiao could muster an impressive speed even while fleeing for his life. Chu Liang couldn't catch him immediately.

In fact, if the White King Xiao had not been severely wounded, it might not even be possible to catch him. After all, back when Chu Liang encountered his first Human-Faced Xiao, he'd only managed to catch up by using the Spirit Cat Leaping Talisman.

Whooosh! Whooosh! Whooosh!

The light and shadows streaked over the land. When Xiao Wuyin could no longer keep up, the White King Xiao finally spotted a place to hide and dove straight into it.

Seeing the beam of white light shoot down to the ground ahead, Chu Liang followed suit.

Boom!

A blast thundered through the air as a cloud of dust billowed skyward.

When Chu Liang emerged from the settling dust, there was no sign of the White King Xiao anywhere. All he saw was a thicket full of frightened little eyes.

It turned out that he was in the woods where young fox demons of the Fox Clan gathered—a nursery for fox pups that had been born with a spiritual nature.

The fluffy little furballs had been either curled up or scampering through the woods, looking adorably innocent and silly. However, the moment Chu Liang landed, their bright little eyes locked onto him. In the next instant, the fox pups were about to bolt in terror.

"Nobody move!" Chu Liang yelled.

In the same breath, he took out the Azure Wave Lamp and punched it toward the nursery.

Whoosh.

A wave of blue ripples swept out, instantly shrouding the woods. The fox pups floated as if suspended in the sea. They paddled furiously with their little legs, trying to escape the Azure Wave Lamp's seal, but it was all in vain.

Chu Liang's eyes glowed with divine light as he swept his gaze across the fox pups. He couldn't tell which of them were real or fake.

The White King Xiao's shapeshifting skills were far too good. It was impossible to distinguish him from the real thing with the naked eye or even divine sense.

Chu Liang considered using the Demon-Revealing Brick to knock each fox pup out one by one, but it would be pretty tedious.

Then a flash of inspiration struck Chu Liang. He summoned the Dragon God's Orb and shouted, "If I can't tell who's real, I'll just destroy the woods!"

Crackling bolts of divine lightning surged within the orb, ready to turn the Azure Wave Lamp's expanse of water into a sea of divine lightning!

"You're so vicious! And you call yourself a righteous cultivator!" a voice suddenly yelled.

An ancient tree in the distance abruptly made its presence known, morphing into White King Xiao.

It turned out that the White King Xiao hadn't disguised himself as a scampering fox pup and had instead chosen to become a stationary tree. If Chu Liang had bashed the fox pups with the Demon-Revealing Brick, he would have likely angered the Fox Clan, allowing the White King Xiao to slip away in the chaos.

Of course, Chu Liang never intended to use the Dragon God's Orb to destroy the woods in the first place. It had simply been a trick to flush out the White King Xiao.

These little fox pups had no idea what the Dragon God's Orb was for, so they wouldn't be particularly frightened of it. However, the White King Xiao knew all too well the might of the Dragon God's Orb. After all, the enchanted artifact had belonged to him for a long time, and he had used it with his twin in their pursuit to master the Great Dao of Divine Clouds.

Just as Chu Liang had anticipated, the White King Xiao fell for his trick. The White King Xiao was, after all, a vicious and malicious demon. He judged others based on his own ruthlessness, so he genuinely believed Chu Liang was capable of indiscriminately slaughtering the innocent. That frightened the White King Xiao and made him want to flee.

Nevertheless, when the White King Xiao revealed himself, it just made it easier for Chu Liang to target him.

Chu Liang unleashed a bolt of dragon-like divine lightning. It shot forth, chasing after the White King Xiao. In his injured state, there was no way he could outrun the Divine Dragon Lightning Art.

Crack!

One strike from the Dragon God's Orb sent a paralyzing jolt through the White King Xiao, slamming him to the ground.

Lying battered on the ground, the White King Xiao glared up in fury.

The techniques he's using... they're all mine!

The White King Xiao was so heavily wounded that all he could do was seethe in anger. That one blow had completely shattered his fighting spirit, and now, the Demon-Slaying Sword gleamed before his eyes.

"

Hah!

" Chu Liang drew his sword in midair, his voice stern and righteous. "White King Xiao! You and your twin murdered countless innocents and brought calamities upon the world. Last time, you escaped by a fluke. But the heavens see all, and retribution never fails to be served. Today, as a representative of the righteous path and of the Mount Shu Sect, I will slay you!"

Whoosh.

He unleashed a tri-beam of sword qi that shook the world.

It seemed like overkill to use such force against a helpless Human-Faced Xiao though.

A thunderous rumble rang out as the sword strike split the ground open, carving a small canyon through the woods.

One fox pup was caught off guard and shrieked as it tumbled toward the canyon.

Chu Liang swooped down and grabbed it by the scruff of its neck.

Holding the fox pup up, he raised his voice to the others. "See this? This is the fate that awaits evil demons who commit wicked deeds!"

...

As the saying went, children had to be taught starting from a young age. Surely today's lesson would leave a vivid impression on these fox pups.

Leaving the fox pups behind, Chu Liang returned to the Mountain Range of the Seven Kings and encountered Yang Shenlong.

Yang Shenlong was there to retrieve Daoist Cangsheng's remains, but he had arrived a little too late. The mountain demons hadn't managed to tear the corpse apart, but they had tainted it with their qi.

Casting a glance at Chu Liang, Yang Shenlong carefully placed Daoist Cangsheng's corpse into a coffin and stored it in a jade slip.

"He was, after all, the sect leader of my sect," Yang Shenlong said calmly. "He committed many grave mistakes, but he did dedicate his life to the sect. I still hope he can be laid to rest in peace."

"Agreed," Chu Liang replied. He had no intentions of arguing about a dead person. "But I have a better suggestion."

"The rift between the Mount Shu Sect and the Penglai Supreme Sect stems largely from his decisions. Why not bury him at Mount Shu to symbolize a future of reconciliation between our sects?" Chu Liang asked, full of sincerity.

"I'm afraid you'll use him as fertilizer," Yang Shenlong stated bluntly.

"How could you view us Mount Shu disciples like that? We are paragons of righteousness..."

Flushed with indignation, Chu Liang rattled on about how the Mount Shu Sect was a model sect filled with righteous qi and a leader of the righteous path.

"The others, maybe. But you and your teacher..." Yang Shenlong shook his head. "Frankly, you two don't inspire much confidence."

"My teacher is my teacher. I am me," Chu Liang protested. "Haven't you heard of the lotus rising unstained from the mud?"

"I've only heard that when the upper beam is crooked, the lower beams are bound to be slanted."

"Then why did you warn me? If not for your message, I might really have returned to the envoys' encampment, and Daoist Cangsheng might have succeeded."

"You mustn't die," Yang Shenlong said plainly, without the slightest hint of regret. "You are the hope of the human race. Without you, no one will be able to restrain the Demon God, and sooner or later, the nine provinces will fall to the demon race. Our sect leader was blinded by his obsession. Even if it meant the destruction of the human race, he would have gambled everything on reviving the Penglai Supreme Sect. But that's just a road leading to self-destruction. No one in the sect could oppose him, so warning you was the only thing I could do."

"In any case, I owe you my thanks. In truth, your actions have also saved the Penglai Supreme Sect. If I had died, the Penglai Supreme Sect would definitely have been destroyed."

"The sect leader wasn't like this before." Yang Shenlong gazed toward the northwest. "Ever since someone from the Divine Ruins came, he's been obsessed with killing you. Perhaps... he learned something from that person."

"The Divine Ruins?" Chu Liang uttered. He turned his gaze that way too, puzzled as to how he could be involved with that place.

After a brief silence, Yang Shenlong said, "Then let's consider the grudges between Mount Shu and Penglai settled from now on."

"I have no objections to that," Chu Liang replied with a nod. Then he asked, "What are your plans for the future?"

"We'll see how many wish to stay, then we'll let them stay. If they want to leave, we'll let them leave. It would be best if we could cultivate peacefully on the Three Islands of Penglai, far from worldly strife."

"Mm..." Chu Liang murmured. He hesitated briefly before saying, "I'm afraid that won't be possible."

...