Chapter 201 – Using Oneself as Bait, Entrapment Fishing, Blending Among the Fiends

Song Tianhong appeared above the Meow King, gripping his Guan Dao with both hands and slashing down heavily.

The saber encountered no resistance, easily cleaving the Meow King in two and striking the deck floor.

The terrifying impact caused the entire deck to tremble.

Yet both Song Tianhong himself and the surrounding disciples from other sects observing the battle wore expressions of astonishment.

The Meow King’s body transformed into a cloud of smoke, effortlessly evading Song Tianhong’s attack.

Then his body reformed beside Song Tianqing, curling his lips in disdain.

Facing this, Song Tianhong solemnly pulled his Guan Dao out of the deck and asked, “How… did you dodge that?”

The Meow King looked at him calmly and said, “You have secret techniques, but do you think I, as a True Disciple of the Azure Cloud Sect, don’t possess any?”

“Did you really think I only know Fist Intent at the Dao Entry realm?”

As he spoke, thick smoke once again billowed from the Meow King’s nostrils.

This smoke seemed substantial, quickly enveloping both him and Song Tianhong.

Most onlookers couldn’t see what was happening inside.

But Lu Chen and his companion Diting were exceptions.

Watching the Meow King within the smoke, Lu Chen’s eyes showed clear surprise.

Because from the current Meow King, he actually sensed something similar to – or perhaps exactly like – the destiny power of Classic of Mountains and Seas Mythical Beasts.

He clearly remembered that before going to Great Cool Mountain, the Meow King didn’t possess this kind of destiny power.

But after returning from Great Cool Mountain, the Meow King seemed to have activated or inherited some special power.

Granting him destiny power similar to that of Classic of Mountains and Seas Mythical Beasts.

Realizing this, Lu Chen knew the battle was over.

Even though Song Tianhong practiced the Martial God Mountain’s celestial method “Heaven-Human Martial Scripture” and had the enhancement of the mysterious secret technique “Reverse Life Nine Transformations,”

He still couldn’t bridge the power gap between himself and the Meow King.

When the smoke cleared, Song Tianhong – whose body had undergone partial atavism due to “Reverse Life Nine Transformations” – lay unconscious on the ground for unknown reasons.

His body had also returned to its original form.

The Meow King stood beside him, having also reverted to his original orange cat appearance.

But compared to his initially arrogant and domineering attitude,

The Meow King now appeared noticeably weakened.

Clearly having expended considerable energy.

Ignoring the surrounding gazes, the Meow King directly returned to Lu Chen and Yi Hanqing’s side and began devouring the delicacies on the table in large mouthfuls.

No one commented on his behavior this time.

Because the Meow King had already demonstrated his own strength and that of the Azure Cloud Sect through his combat prowess.

Actually, not just the Meow King –

Even Song Tianhong, who lost to the Meow King, was considerably stronger than most cultivators.

The “Heaven-Human Martial Scripture” granted Song Tianhong terrifying Physical Body strength.

While “Reverse Life Nine Transformations” further enhanced his physical capabilities, and through brief atavism allowed him to access powers normally exclusive to Spirit Beasts.The combination of the two is far from a simple one-plus-one equation.

This became evident when the Meow King later unleashed his Destiny Power.

Against any ordinary cultivator, the Meow King wouldn’t have needed to resort to such measures.

Yet despite Song Tianhong’s formidable strength, he only ranked in the lower half of the top ten among Martial God Mountain’s disciples—somewhere between seventh and ninth place.

There were still five or six others stronger than him.

This wasn’t just apparent to the Meow King; disciples from other sects could see it too.

Juechen, the Buddha Child from Little Thunderclap Temple, gazed at the Martial God disciples at the forefront and sighed, “Amitabha. It seems our Fellow Daoists from Martial God Mountain have encountered significant Opportunities.”

Li Xueke from Jade Void Mountain also wore a grave expression as she remarked, “If all of Martial God Mountain’s Direct Lineage Disciples possess such strength, they might truly have a chance to compete with Azure Cloud Sect in the future.”

Yi Hanqing looked at the dispirited Meow King and asked seriously, “Well? What do you think of their capabilities?”

The Meow King viciously gnawed on the chicken leg in his paw and solemnly declared, “Not much worse than my previous self.”

“Understood.”

When the Meow King said “not much worse than my previous self,” he was referring to his state before going to Great Cool Mountain.

This wasn’t meant to disparage Song Tianhong, Martial God Mountain’s Direct Lineage Disciple, but rather high praise.

One must understand that Great Cool Mountain served as a major stronghold for Spirit Beasts, surrounded by numerous immortal cultivation schools.

The fact that these schools tolerated Great Cool Mountain’s existence and didn’t disturb the Spirit Beasts living there wasn’t just because these beasts followed orthodox cultivation paths and committed no evils.

It was also due to the formidable power Great Cool Mountain itself possessed.

“Great Cool Mountain” was merely the Mortals’ name for the place.

Among cultivators, they preferred to call it… Tianshan.

While most Tianshan Spirit Beasts were ordinary—possessing awakened intelligence but little else remarkable—some powerful ones could rival cultivators at the Nascent Soul Stage, or even the Deity Transformation Stage.

However, Tianshan Spirit Beasts didn’t adhere to any Sect structure; they coexisted more like neighbors in a residential community.

Thus, their cultivation generally depended on individual effort.

Moreover, Spirit Beast cultivation inherently relied on their Bloodline Legacy.

Cultivation methods varied drastically between different species.

Due to his cultivation level, the Meow King had previously been limited to the outskirts of Great Cool Mountain.

But during his last return visit, besides catching up with old friends, he ventured into the mountain’s core region.

There, he obtained a formidable power—the smoke-manipulation ability he now wielded.

Even disregarding this new ability, the Meow King’s previous self was undoubtedly among the elite at the Foundation Establishment Stage.

After all, he not only possessed Foundation Establishment Perfection cultivation but was also a Spirit Beast, with a Physical Body far surpassing Body Cultivators of the same level.

Not to mention he had comprehended the Entering Dao Conception—the most challenging Concept for Spirit Beasts to grasp.

With so many advantages combined, ordinary Body Cultivators at his level couldn’t last long against him.

Yet Song Tianhong, despite having inferior cultivation, forced the Meow King to exert his full strength.

He even compelled the Meow King to unleash his newly acquired Destiny Power.

This demonstrated how terrifying Song Tianhong’s capabilities truly were.

The combined might of the Heaven-Human Martial Scripture and Reverse Life Nine Transformations was indeed fearsome.After obtaining the answer from Meow King, Yi Hanqing now developed a keen interest in the cultivators from Martial God Mountain.

Setting down his wine cup, he directly stepped into the arena and looked toward the Martial God Mountain cultivators.

“Fellow Daoists of Martial God Mountain, might this Yi have the honor of learning your techniques?”

Observing Yi Hanqing’s elegant demeanor, which resembled that of a noble young master, Wei Qifeng, the Senior Brother of Martial God Mountain, restrained the eager Xing Li and said, “Yi Hanqing is a potential candidate to become this generation’s Dao Child of Azure Cloud Sect. You are our Martial God Mountain’s hidden card. Since we don’t yet know the extent of his strength, Junior Brother, wait a little longer. Let other Senior Brothers and Sisters test his capabilities first.”

“Wu Xiao…”

At Wei Qifeng’s words, a tall man stood up.

Unlike the refined appearance typical of Central Province cultivators, this Martial God Mountain Disciple named Wu Xiao seemed like someone from beyond civilization, emanating the same primal aura as Xing Li.

He appeared less like a human cultivator and more like a Vicious Beast clad in human skin.

This individual was the third most prominent among Martial God Mountain’s current disciples, second only to Wei Qifeng and the Ancient Desolate Body possessor Xing Li.

He was undeniably the third strongest of Martial God Mountain’s younger generation.

His capabilities were not to be underestimated.

As Wu Xiao approached Yi Hanqing, his staggering height of 2.5 meters made the originally tall Yi Hanqing (1.8 meters) seem diminutive in comparison.

However, a cultivator’s strength isn’t measured by physical stature.

Facing the intensely imposing Wu Xiao, Yi Hanqing maintained his gentle smile.

“You’re not from Central Province, are you?”

Wu Xiao nodded calmly and said, “I come from Northern Divine Continent.”

Northern Divine Continent was a land of extreme cold, with environmental conditions far harsher than Central Province’s.

Survival there necessitated both a powerful physique and exceptional cold resistance.

Consequently, Northern Divine Continent inhabitants were generally robust.

This wasn’t solely due to environmental factors – weaker members of the Human Race in Northern Divine Continent had long perished in the frozen wilderness.

In his early years, Wu Xiao had been abandoned on the ice plains by his original tribe for appearing too frail at birth.

Fortunately, a Cloud Feather Owl discovered him.

For reasons unknown, this Cloud Feather Owl not only brought Wu Xiao back but raised him as its own child.

Perhaps due to being nourished by beast milk, Wu Xiao’s body gradually grew increasingly powerful.

So powerful that even without formal cultivation training in his youth, he could match ordinary Body Cultivators.

His exceptional talents were later discovered by Martial God Mountain disciples, who brought him to Martial God Mountain for proper training.

Before Xing Li with his Ancient Desolate Body emerged, Wu Xiao had originally been groomed by Martial God Mountain as the next ‘Celestial Being.’

Even now, Wu Xiao remained a strong contender for Martial God Mountain’s current generation Celestial Being position.

Therefore, deploying Wu Xiao against Yi Hanqing wasn’t indicative of Martial God Mountain looking down on Yi Hanqing.

On the contrary, it was precisely because they took Yi Hanqing seriously that Wei Qifeng dared not act rashly and wished to avoid prematurely revealing Xing Li as their hidden card.

After all, this gathering of elites was essentially a stage constructed by Martial God Mountain specifically for Xing Li.

They intended to use this rare century-scale event to announce Xing Li’s dramatic emergence to the entire Immortal Cultivation World.And what better way to rise to prominence than by stepping over the young disciples of the Azure Cloud Sect, the world’s number one sect?

There was just one thing Wei Qifeng hadn’t figured out yet.

Although only three people had come from the Azure Cloud Sect this time,

one of them was Yi Hanqing, the leader of the Hidden Sword Peak.

Logically speaking, Yi Hanqing should be the strongest among the three.

Yet now, Yi Hanqing was the second to make a move.

This either meant Yi Hanqing believed his own strength was inferior to that unfamiliar Azure Cloud Sect disciple beside him,

or that disciple was merely there to make up the numbers and wasn’t skilled in combat.

Seeing Lu Chen wearing the Daoist robes of a Direct Lineage Disciple from Dan Yang Peak, combined with his cultivation at only the sixth layer of the Foundation Establishment Stage,

Wei Qifeng was more inclined to believe it was the latter possibility.

Dan Yang Peak was the peak for alchemists within the Azure Cloud Sect.

It was only natural for alchemists to be weak in actual combat.

Thinking this, Wei Qifeng stopped paying attention to Lu Chen and focused his attention on Yi Hanqing.

After all, in the eyes of most people, Yi Hanqing was the strongest among the three Azure Cloud Sect representatives who had come to the gathering.

Not many truly noticed anything unusual about Lu Chen.

One was Juechen, the Buddha Child of the Little Thunderclap Temple, who gazed at Lu Chen from afar with profound eyes,

as if he could perceive something extraordinary about Lu Chen’s aura.

Another was Shangguan Yunmeng, who had fought alongside Lu Chen.

Although Lu Chen had been fighting the former emperor of the Great Yan Dynasty, Ji Yuan, underground at the time,

Shangguan Yunmeng had later gone underground and seen the traces of battle there.

She was certain that Ji Yuan had possessed strength comparable to the Golden Core Stage back then.

For Lu Chen to handle such an opponent, he must possess terrifying power.

As for the last few who discovered some hints of Lu Chen’s true capabilities, some were from the ordinary sect area in the middle section, while others were from the rogue cultivator area.

Among those in the ordinary sect area was Hong Hua, the senior brother of the Giant Spirit Gate.

Looking at Lu Chen, he shed his usual honest appearance, his eyes filled with confusion.

Because he actually sensed an Ancient Immortal Aura emanating from Lu Chen.

Although this aura was faint, it was remarkably pure.

Clearly, it wasn’t something that could be achieved through ordinary blessings.

This sparked intense curiosity about Lu Chen within him.

Other Immortal Fiends hidden within ordinary sects, similar to Hong Hua, also detected the Ancient Fiend Power radiating from Lu Chen.

This led them all to instinctively begin speculating about Lu Chen’s identity.

After all, despite their utmost efforts, they had only just managed to gain a foothold outside the Central Province and were attempting to extend their influence into it.

But Lu Chen had not only established himself within the Central Province but had also infiltrated the Azure Cloud Sect, the world’s number one sect.

If it were them, they wouldn’t dare to do such a thing.

Because let alone the Azure Cloud Sect, even approaching any of the other top ten sects

was something they wouldn’t risk.

Although they had methods to conceal their Ancient Immortal Aura,

this only worked below the Transformation Soul Stage.

Not to mention, the Azure Cloud Sect openly had a Great Vehicle Stage patriarch.

If they were spotted by him, they would undoubtedly face certain death.

Thinking this, those hidden Immortal Fiends all planned to find an opportunity to make contact with Lu Chen.

Although in the Ancient Fiend World, Immortal Fiends from different sects would gladly devour each other,

here in the Central Province, they were not enemies but rather allies.After all, as long as they could occupy this great world, they would have access to food.

What they didn’t realize was that all these thoughts of theirs were completely within Lu Chen’s expectations.

In fact, his main reason for participating in this Gathering of Heroes was largely for ‘entrapment’.

Although Lu Chen’s main mission this time was to eliminate the cultivators who entered the True Immortal Trial, he never focused solely on the immediate task.

Lu Chen felt that the mission of eliminating all Immortal Abominations in the True Immortal Trial posed no real challenge to him.

What he wanted wasn’t just to eliminate these small fries.

He aimed to follow the clues and uncover the Ancient Immortal Sects behind these Immortal Fiends.

The best way to achieve this was to make them believe he was one of their own.

After his training in the ‘Special Instance: Sword Formation Ruins’, Lu Chen could now perfectly imitate a ‘Black Lotus Sect Disciple’.

In fact, he could appear even more authentic than an actual Black Lotus Sect Disciple.

After all, ordinary Black Lotus Sect Disciples rarely had the chance to interact with Nascent Soul Stage Protectors.

But Lu Chen not only made contact with one, he even ‘poured his heart out’ to them, learning many of the Black Lotus Sect’s secrets in the process.

With this intelligence, infiltrating the Fiend Cultivator Group was as easy as pie, just like when he infiltrated the Black Lotus Sect in the Sword Formation Ruins.

After allowing his Heretical Avatar to emit a trace of Ancient Immortal Aura, Lu Chen immediately suppressed it.

Though the aura lasted only briefly, it still shook the minds of many Immortal Fiends.

Once their emotions fluctuated intensely, their own Nine Qi would leak out.

Lu Chen calmly drank the Spirit Wine before him, appearing completely focused on the sparring match between Yi Hanqing and Wu Xiao.

In reality, he was transmitting a message to the Truth Listener beside him:

‘Well? Have you found them?’

The Truth Listener replied via transmission: ‘Found them. There are thirty-seven in total.’

Thirty-seven…

Lu Chen’s eyes narrowed slightly before he downed the Spirit Wine in one gulp.

He had expected many Immortal Fiends would attempt to infiltrate the True Immortal Trial, but not this many.

However, since they dared to come, they should be prepared never to return.

After he squeezed out all their remaining value and used them to establish connections with other Ancient Immortal Sects, these people would lose their usefulness.

Thinking this, Lu Chen’s plans for the coming period became increasingly clear.

This ‘fishing’ operation at the Gathering of Heroes had yielded remarkable results.

(End of Chapter)