Chapter 431: The Heart of the Demon

So-called minor worlds are actually just informal terms passed down by Primordial Qi Refiners.

The great war led by the Dragon, Phoenix, and Qilin tribes back then, understood through Li Changshou's knowledge from his previous life, can be seen as ancient reptiles, birds, and mammals possessing immense power contending for supremacy over the world, ultimately shattering the realm that Pangu had painstakingly opened.

The region centered around Buzhou Mountain was protected by the Dao Ancestor, forming the Five Continents of today.

The fragments of the Primordial World that scattered into the void transformed into the Three Thousand Worlds. Among them, those with complete Five Elements were called major worlds, officially known as "Complete Five-Element Worlds."

Worlds with imbalanced Five Elements were called minor worlds, primarily to distinguish them from Complete Five-Element Worlds.

Gradually, the definitions of major worlds and minor worlds diverged, evolving into a classification purely based on the size of the world.

The minor world Li Changshou and his companions were approaching was intrinsically balanced in Yin-Yang, complete in Five Elements, and had an intact Great Dao. Though its spiritual energy density was lower than that of the Five Continents, it was still an excellent place for cultivation.

Having just passed through the magnificent thunderous waterfall on the periphery, Perfected Taiyi sighed, "The human race is truly formidable! Even at the true edge of the world, there are so many human footprints."

Zhao Gongming laughed, "During ancient times, when Xuandu City faced fierce battles, many soldiers who followed the Human Emperor came here to provide support after the demon race retreated. Their descendants settled in this small world nearby."

"Senior Brother, where should we begin?"

Daoist Duobao looked at Ksitigarbha and Di Ting, who were standing nearby. Di Ting, full of vigor, stepped forward.

Ksitigarbha spoke solemnly, "This humble Daoist and Di Ting will monitor from the center. I ask all fellow Daoists to move around, at least causing some disturbance in the minds of those beings whose Dao hearts have been encroached upon by Outer-Heavenly Demons. When that happens, this humble Daoist will send a message to notify everyone."

"Then I'll go south," Daoist Duobao said with a smile, flying on his own towards the south.

Li Changshou chuckled, "Let's go north."

Zhao Gongming instinctively replied, "Good!"

But as soon as Elder Zhao looked up, he saw Li Changshou and his second sister looking at him with some awkwardness. He quickly changed his words, "This elder brother will go west, this elder brother will go west!"

After speaking, he sped off on his cloud, chuckling softly halfway through.

Li Changshou then decisively stepped forward, showing the courage a man should have. He made a gesture for Yunxiao to follow, and they stood shoulder to shoulder, about two feet apart, flying towards the north.

Perfected Taiyi clicked his tongue with a smile, "Look at the Water God! His situation is completely different from ours. Yuding, let's go east."

Perfected Yuding swept his sleeve, moving forward alone. He calmly said, "Let's fly separately."

"No, no," Perfected Taiyi chuckled as he approached him. "Junior Brother, your cultivation is profound. I feel safer if I stay closer to you!"

On Di Ting's back, Ksitigarbha seemed to hesitate to speak.

The Outer-Heavenly Demons varied in strength. He actually wished someone could be by his side to protect him...

Nevertheless, it was fortunate that he hadn't been schemed against by the Water God today, allowing him and Di Ting to face the demons alone.

On the distant cloud, Li Changshou's immortal consciousness focused on the tribe ahead, and he frowned in thought.

Yunxiao softly asked, "Are you perhaps thinking about how to scheme against Ksitigarbha?"

Li Changshou replied, "We came today to resolve the threat of the Outer-Heavenly Demons, and we must prioritize the greater good. If Ksitigarbha naturally perishes in a fierce battle, that's unrelated to you or me, and the Western Sect might gain some fortune from it. But we must not trip Ksitigarbha from behind. Let's spare him this time."

A hint of a smile appeared in Yunxiao's eyes. "You've had murderous intentions towards Ksitigarbha several times before, but today you've restrained yourself. That's truly not easy."

"There's no need to rush things. One can always achieve victory steadily."

Li Changshou said, "I've detected a few individuals acting strangely. Later, I'll mark them, and you should immediately take them into the Primordial Golden Dou, so they don't accidentally harm others. According to Mr. Bai, Outer-Heavenly Demons are skilled at bewitching and controlling Dao hearts, so it's better to be cautious. We don't know the exact number of Outer-Heavenly Demons that have infiltrated this time."

Yunxiao extended her snow-white left palm, and the Primordial Golden Dou in her palm gently shimmered, slowly rotating.

"Just let me handle it today. I've fought these extraterrestrial beings dozens of times and have some understanding of them. In ancient times, before the Heavenly Dao appeared, these extraterrestrial beings often caused trouble at the edges of the Primordial World."

Li Changshou: ...

Experience-wise, he was utterly defeated.

At this moment, Yunxiao, preparing for a magical duel, wore a serious and solemn expression, exuding a demeanor rarely seen before.

It was not mere majesty, nor the oppressive aura of a master, but rather a sense of composure and efficiency.

Fairy Yunxiao typically dressed in plain colors, and today was no exception.

A simple white long dress enveloped her slender figure, with a light blue sash adorned with a few ice-colored gems. Behind her two layers of thin cloud-like sleeves, a jade bangle hung on her unadorned wrist.

Under the illumination of the distant thunder screen, Fairy Yunxiao's skin appeared even fairer. Even with her serious expression, her gentle aura remained undiminished.

Yunxiao averted her gaze, softly saying, "Why do you keep looking at me..."

"Let's do the proper business first."

The situation was inappropriate, so Li Changshou didn't seize the chance to say anything provocative. He and Yunxiao flew on their clouds to hover over the tribe.

At this time, all the men, women, and children of the tribe had gathered, watching Li Changshou with some unease.

They each possessed cultivation, ranging from nascent Qi Refiners to the Heavenly Immortal realm.

Li Changshou spoke in a clear voice, "Please rest assured, fellow Daoist disciples like us will never harm the innocent. We are here only to eliminate evil demons!"

After speaking, Li Changshou secretly pointed out five streams of aura, discreetly attaching them to five individuals.

This was his first encounter with Outer-Heavenly Demons, so Li Changshou dared not be careless.

When the Daoist experts arrived in this minor world, the Outer-Heavenly Demons in the area had entered a state of dormancy.

Trapped by the divine thunder and unable to leave, these demons were hiding in the shadows of the living beings.

Based on Bai Ze's and Daoist Duobao's descriptions, Li Changshou carefully identified with his immortal consciousness that these five individuals were possessed by demons.

Upon being enveloped by the auras Li Changshou marked, these five individuals immediately became somewhat bewildered, tense, and panicked, their reactions identical to those of the humans around them.

Yunxiao summoned the Golden Dou in her hand. The Golden Dou shot out five beams of golden light, directly sweeping these five individuals into the Primordial Golden Dou.

Subsequently, the palm-sized Primordial Golden Dou spun rapidly before Yunxiao. Fairy Yunxiao formed hand seals, and the Golden Dou emitted a brilliant light, illuminating her with a sense of divinity.

After nine consecutive seals, Yunxiao gently pushed her hands forward, and five more beams of golden light shot out from the Golden Dou, returning the five individuals to their original places.

These five people twitched all over, foamed at the mouth, and their faces were incredibly pale. Although their breaths were weak, they had not ceased, having lost most of their vital energy.

Li Changshou enveloped five spiritual pills with his immortal power and pushed them into the mouths of these five individuals, who quickly calmed down.

An old woman bowed to Li Changshou and Yunxiao, saying, "Thank you, Immortal Master."

Only then did all the humans present bow in unison, as if acknowledging Li Changshou and Yunxiao.

Li Changshou's immortal consciousness continued to lock onto the area, observing dozens of people with dark circles under their eyes or subtle abnormalities in their Dao aura. He closed his eyes, concentrated, and carefully sensed.

The Primordial Golden Dou in Yunxiao's hand scattered golden light, forming a light barrier that completely enveloped the area.

Yunxiao spoke, "There are still evil demons hiding here. Please remain calm, everyone, and allow us to identify them carefully."

The old woman in the Heavenly Immortal realm called out, "Everyone, no noise! Sit quietly in meditation and wait for the Immortal Masters to investigate!"

The group of men, women, and children all sat down cross-legged. Except for the children, who nestled in their parents' arms and were slightly nervous at the moment, most others were quite calm.

Compared to the Outer-Heavenly Demons, they were more afraid of being mistakenly killed rather than let go.

Just then, a faint message from Ksitigarbha entered his ear. Li Changshou took action again, and three streams of aura fell onto three individuals there.

The old woman who had just spoken was among them!

The old woman was startled at first, still saying, "Is there some misunderstanding, sirs..."

But behind her, a terrifying dark shadow had already appeared!

The dark shadow shrieked at Li Changshou and Yunxiao, seemingly about to spread its wings and charge!

This monster had only a rough human outline, its body more like a fluid mass, with four crimson eyes from which ripples constantly emerged!

But what kind of immortal was Yunxiao?

She acted almost the instant the demon appeared. Before the golden light of the Primordial Golden Dou could erupt, she pointed her slender finger forward, and a circle of ice prisms appeared around the demon, instantly freezing it.

As the golden light struck, the demon dissolved in an instant, and the old woman, along with the other two human individuals, were directly drawn into the Primordial Golden Dou.

Beside them, Li Changshou, who had just pulled out his Qiankun Ruler, smiled faintly.

There was no chance for him to even act.

In his mind, Pagoda Grandfather was constantly sighing...

"Little disciple, are you capable? If you ever argue with Yunxiao in the future, I won't help you block Sister Golden Dou."

"Hehe, Sister Golden Dou has grown again! Can't you summon this old Pagoda Grandfather and let me say hello to her!"

Li Changshou did as instructed, holding the Profound Yellow Pagoda in his palm, acting as 'Pagoda-Bearing Water God Li'.

Li Changshou and Yunxiao meticulously searched the area again, and after a while, they moved to another spot, continuously expanding their immortal consciousness in that direction.

Fortunately, this small world was not large. The several Immortal Masters from the Three Sects spent half a day thoroughly investigating it.

With Di Ting's assistance, they saved a lot of effort, uncovering sixty-seven Outer-Heavenly Demons in the first wave of searches.

The strength of these Outer-Heavenly Demons could not be measured by Primordial standards, but for experts of Daoist Duobao's and Zhao Gongming's caliber, they were merely fragile.

Li Changshou and the others discussed it briefly via telepathy, then conducted another careful search, bringing suspicious individuals to a small island in the center of a large marsh, totaling twenty-six people.

Daoist Duobao said solemnly, "The thunder screen hasn't dissipated yet, which means there are still Outer-Heavenly Demons locked down by the Heavenly Dao that we haven't found."

Perfected Taiyi asked curiously, "What exactly are these Outer-Heavenly Demons? They feel like primordial spirits, yet also seem to have physical bodies."

Zhao Gongming laughed, "So-called Outer-Heavenly Demons are, in essence, living beings. Living beings are born from the resonation of true spirits with the Great Dao. The Dao originates from chaos, but the Dao in the Chaos Sea intertwines without order, thus giving rise to oddly shaped creatures."

From this perspective...

Li Changshou frowned as he looked at the twenty-six suspects. These Outer-Heavenly Demons were also chaotic beings, essentially similar to Primordial beings?

He, who had transmigrated from an unknown time and space, actually fit the definition of an Outer-Heavenly Demon more closely.

Just kidding, just kidding.

He was a true-blooded Daoist disciple, and even Mother Nuwa had said that Saints didn't care about such things.

Besides, Heavenly Dao acknowledged his identity; those repeated heavenly punishments were his Primordial household registration, after all.

Yunxiao softly said, "There are still two Outer-Heavenly Demons in the Golden Dou that haven't been completely dissolved."

Li Changshou's heart stirred. "Senior Brother Duobao, do you have any treasures that can trap these Outer-Heavenly Demons? Perhaps we could interrogate them."

Interro—

From Ksitigarbha and Di Ting, to Taiyi and Yuding, and then to Duobao, Gongming, and even Fairy Yunxiao, all looked at Li Changshou with astonished expressions.

Elder Zhao stroked his beard thoughtfully, fearing his future brother-in-law would be embarrassed, and interjected, "Though this idea is incredible and has never been attempted, it's not impossible."

Perfected Taiyi couldn't help but mutter, "Interrogate Outer-Heavenly Demons? That's truly unheard of."

Li Changshou slightly frowned, realizing he had spoken carelessly. This time, he suffered from a lack of information. After returning, he would punish himself by copying the Stability Scripture a thousand times.

Hmm, he'd wait until Ling'e returned to the mountain before starting.

But at this moment, Li Changshou could only smile and say, "It won't hurt to try."

"Indeed, we can try," Yunxiao nodded slightly, summoning the Primordial Golden Dou. Two beams of golden light completely enveloped two black mists, placing them before the immortals.

Perfected Taiyi summoned his Nine Dragon Divine Fire Cover, encasing the two demons.

Li Changshou, still cautious, also summoned the Profound Yellow Pagoda, scattering streams of profound yellow aura to shield the immortals and the twenty-six individuals.

Under the Nine Dragon Divine Fire Cover, the two black shadows trembled continuously. By now, they were incredibly weak, gradually revealing their original forms.

They looked like two water balloons filled with 'black oil,' with tentacles constantly reaching out from them, containing some obscure Dao charm.

Li Changshou murmured, "They're a bit like octopuses. Let's try burning them with a little true fire first."

"Alright," Perfected Taiyi cautiously released a tiny bit of true fire. The two weakened Outer-Heavenly Demons immediately shrieked fiercely, their black essence burning away, and holes appearing in their bodies.

Perfected Taiyi asked, "Some lightning?"

Li Changshou activated his Five Thunders in Palm technique. Several tiny electrical arcs struck inside the Divine Fire Cover, causing the two demons to convulse all over.

"Heh, that's interesting!"

Daoist Duobao rolled up his sleeves, approached the Divine Fire Cover, and pulled out a pile of magical treasures beside him, beginning to experiment with each one.

Things like heavenly thunder, earthly fire, fierce winds, and swirling dust were basic operations.

Li Changshou took out a few poisonous pills, Perfected Taiyi produced some alchemy residue, Perfected Yuding chanted several purification scriptures, and Ksitigarbha performed some Western spells...

Until Perfected Taiyi used a weapon to cut off a tentacle and threw it before Di Ting, saying, "Taste this."

Di Ting's eyes instantly turned light white. He trembled all over, looking at this cold, small world with a bewildered, lost, and helpless expression.

Living was too hard!

Just then, several shrill shrieks sounded from the side. Several Outer-Heavenly Demons shot into the sky, attempting to flee in all directions.

But Fairy Yunxiao, who had been waiting, slammed her right hand onto the Primordial Golden Dou. Several golden lights shot out, directly sweeping the four Outer-Heavenly Demons back, where they melted into chaotic mists within the Golden Dou.

In the sky, the thunder screen enveloping this small world immediately dissipated...

Daoist Duobao laughed, "I didn't expect this matter to be completed so smoothly."

"It's still largely thanks to Di Ting's help," Li Changshou said with a narrowing smile, glancing at Di Ting.

Di Ting let out a sharp whimper from his throat. He lowered his head, intending to swallow the tentacle, but found that the tentacle had already dissipated into black smoke on its own...

Li Changshou said, "Let's go."

All the immortals nodded. Daoist Duobao opened an earth tunnel, and the group instantly disappeared.

And so, a moment later.

"Hmph!"

In a certain tribe, a young couple exchanged a cold glance, communicating telepathically:

'The experts of the Primordial Qi Refiners are nothing special.'

'We'll lie low and wait until we're strong enough, then control more Qi Refiners for our use and crush Xuandu City.'

Suddenly...

"My dear two, feel free to laugh if you want to."

The young couple were startled and immediately tried to stand up, but before they could make any move, they were already inverted by the Primordial Golden Dou.

Fairy Yunxiao and Li Changshou exchanged smiles. After dealing with the Outer-Heavenly Demons, they returned the couple to their original places, gave them spiritual pills, and then jumped back into the earth tunnel.

Zhao Gongming praised, "Chang Geng's foresight is truly incredible!"

Ksitigarbha, standing by, subtly pursed his lips. It was simply that the Water God had spoken faster, telling them to circle around and return, then allowing Di Ting to monitor the entire minor world, thus discovering three stragglers.

Ksitigarbha himself had also thought of this.

Daoist Duobao wondered, "Why did the Heavenly Dao directly withdraw the divine thunder?"

"The Heavenly Dao's power here is relatively weak, making it easy for the demons to slip through," Li Changshou explained.

Ksitigarbha said calmly, "It would be best to wait another half day or a few days."

Li Changshou, however, said, "No, if there are any stragglers left, they will surely be alerted. This would just be a waste of time."

He still had to teach the Jade Emperor and Queen Mother their tribulation lessons.

Li Changshou continued, "Among the scriptures that Senior Brother Yuding chanted just now, there was a passage that elicited a strong reaction from these demons. Let's still divide our forces as before and go through this world again. This time, chant the exorcism incantations with full power, search house by house with your immortal consciousness, and Di Ting, please bear the burden of monitoring everywhere. If there are any oversights, you alone will be held accountable."

Di Ting shivered all over, nearly throwing Ksitigarbha off his back. He growled, "Rest assured, Water God! I'll definitely use ten times the skill my master has never even seen!"

Ksitigarbha's face turned as black as a pot. He casually grabbed an iron pot and pressed it onto Di Ting.

Half an hour later...

Amidst the chanting filling the sky, a somewhat terrifying giant black shadow soared into the heavens, attempting to escape back into the Chaos Sea.

And through the mouth of the young boy it enveloped, the black shadow hurled abuses at the group of Primordial experts:

"Who dares to say we Outer-Heavenly Demons are cunning?! You are the cunning ones! You are the demons! Daoist demons!"

When the golden light shone and several streaks of light shattered the hundreds-of-zhang-wide black shadow, the young boy silently shed two drops of black tears:

The Primordial World is too terrifying... What did we come here to die for... Lord...