The three giant demons' fury and mental storms turned that mountain forest upside down, but after several days, it was still in vain.
The Nine-Tailed Snow Fox's Aura seemed to have been completely erased by Heaven and Earth, leaving no trace.
The initial frenzy was gradually replaced by a deeper unease—such a precious treasure had escaped right under their noses; once the Demon Saint knew...
Deep within the dense forest, the giant tree demon retracted his massive body, transforming into a withered old man clad in dark green bark armor, his face gaunt, though three tightly shut vertical lines on his forehead hinted at his ferocity.
In the dark green river, the thick carapace sank to the bottom, and a brawny man with a huge carapace on his back and pincer-like arms emerged from the water, his face ashen.
The sky-obscuring insect cloud dispersed, and the core purple-black giant bee transformed into a gaunt, sinister man whose pupils were composed of countless tiny compound eyes, his Aura still carrying an unsettling hum.
The three gathered in one place, the atmosphere as heavy as lead.
"It can't be hidden!" the bark-skinned old man's voice was hoarse and dry, the vertical lines on his forehead twitching uneasily: "Demon Saint Lord perceives all Realms; this matter... will reach Demon Saint Lord's ears sooner or later."
The carapace-clad brawny man impatiently waved his huge pincer-like claw, raising a whistling wind: "That Nine-Tailed Fox Demon's Aura is so pure, she must be a royal Bloodline scattered in the outside world! This... this was originally a great merit! It's hateful that Human cultivator..."
"What's the use of saying this!" the compound-eyed man interrupted coldly, countless compound eyes flickering with calculating light: "Instead of waiting for Demon Saint Lord to discover and blame us, why not... proactively confess and state that the Human cultivator possessed a Heaven-Defying secret treasure and escaped with it, and we were caught off guard, which might... lessen the punishment."
The other two were silent for a moment; though their eyes held immense reluctance and fear, they could only nod with difficulty in the end.
This was the only possible way to preserve their lives.
The three no longer hesitated, each performing a secret technique, and a Divine Thought, mixed with fear and reverence, penetrated through layers of space, transmitting towards the core and most revered place in the Demon Spirit Realm—the Ten Thousand Demon Holy Mountain.
The Ten Thousand Demon Holy Mountain was not a single peak, but a magnificent mountain range floating above the Nine Heavens, enveloped in eternal light.
At the core of the mountain range, a palace seemingly carved entirely from dark red crystal stood quietly, deep within the palace.
Upon the throne, a figure leaned back languidly.
His features were extraordinarily handsome, his long hair like flowing dark jade, casually draped, with a few strands falling onto his profound black brocade robe inlaid with star fragments.
Behind him—nine slender fox tails, displaying a deep dark gold intertwined with profound red, like solidified lava and flowing dark gold.
At the tip of each fox tail, a wisp of dark red flame, as if capable of scorching the Divine Soul, silently flickered.
He closed his eyes, as if dozing, his fingertips unconsciously intertwining a strand of dark gold hair.
The entire hall was so quiet that a pin drop could be heard, with only the flames at the tips of the nine fox tails silently burning in the stillness.
Suddenly, a wave of Divine Thought, mixed with trembling, reverence, and urgency, cautiously penetrated the palace's barrier and entered the one on the throne.
The content of the Divine Thought clearly reflected in the Demon Saint's heart—about the fleeting, incredibly pure Nine-Tailed Snow Fox's Aura, about the mysterious Human cultivator, about that Heaven-Defying spatial Magic Treasure capable of instantly devouring everything without leaving a trace...
Upon the throne, the Demon Saint's tightly closed eyes suddenly opened.
There was no earth-shattering Aura explosion, no furious roar.
He merely opened his eyes.
Buzz—!
In the entire core area of the Ten Thousand Demon Holy Mountain, the hearts of all great demons who had reached a certain Realm felt as if they were tightly clutched by an invisible hand!
Time seemed to pause for an instant, the omnipresent Demon Spirit Qi suddenly solidified, and then, as if in submission, it bowed deeply towards the direction of the dark red crystal palace!
The space within the palace violently rippled and folded like water!
Light was frantically stretched and twisted, intertwining behind the Demon Saint into a chaotic, bizarre scene.
The flames at the tips of the nine dark gold and profound red fox tails suddenly flared up several feet, their color shifting from dark red to dazzling white!
Before the terrifying high temperature could dissipate, the space emitted faint, overburdened wails, and hair-thin, pitch-black cracks appeared.
His eyes were pure golden vertical pupils, as cold as ten thousand years of profound ice, yet as deep as if capable of devouring stars.
Wherever his gaze fell, the three Rank Nine Demon Kings who had transmitted the Divine Thought, even from hundreds of millions of miles away, felt as if their Demon Souls had been cast into a demon-burning furnace, instantly frozen and scorched by that supreme majesty!
"Nine-Tailed... Snow Fox?" A low, calm voice, yet one that made the Heaven and Earth Law tremble, slowly echoed in the great hall, like muffled thunder rolling through every corner.
His gaze seemed to penetrate endless Void Realm, accurately "landing" above the devastated forest that had been plowed countless times by the three demons.
At the very same moment, at the edge of that devastated forest, deep within a nearly imperceptible speck of dust merged with demonic Qi.
The Chaos Treasure Mansion, forming its own Heaven and Earth, isolated all Laws.
Li Mu's tightly closed eyes suddenly opened, and an unprecedented sharpness burst forth from the depths of his pupils.
Beside him, Xue'er, who was cultivating cross-legged, suddenly shivered.
An indescribable, chilling, special spiritual sensation, originating from the deepest part of her Bloodline, swept through her body without warning, instantly startling her awake, and her nine snow-white fox tails flared out in reaction, every hair standing on end!
She looked around blankly: "Li Dage, what happened? It feels like, it feels like..."
Li Mu frowned, sensing the chilling pressure that reached the depths of his Soul; it was no illusion.
An absolute will, overlooking all beings and indifferent to life and death, possessed terrifying insight that could pierce through illusion.
The Treasure Mansion's spatial barrier remained firm, isolating it from external Law probes, but this gaze, originating from the source of the Bloodline, pierced the tranquility within the Treasure Mansion like an invisible cold needle.
"Xue'er, don't panic, it's nothing!" Li Mu smiled slightly, waved his hand, and Chaos Dao power surged out, instantly suppressing Xue'er's almost out-of-control Bloodline palpitations.
With his other hand, he spread his five fingers, palm facing down, and silently pressed it onto the ground at the core of the Chaos Treasure Mansion.
Buzz—
The stable Chaos Sea within the entire dust-sized Chaos space suddenly lit up, rapidly spreading to every corner of the spatial barrier.
The already profound Chaos halo on the outer wall of the Treasure Mansion became more restrained and heavy, like a stubborn stone thrown into the deep sea, tightly locking the last trace of spiritual essence that might have leaked, isolating the cold scrutiny that seemed to come from above the Nine Heavens.
Under Li Mu's soothing, Xue'er's flared fox tails slowly retracted, and her body gradually returned to its original state.
"Li Dage..., what was that just now? Such a terrifying feeling..., it feels like... it feels like my entire bone marrow is going to freeze..." Xue'er asked, still shaken and astonished.
That was fear originating from life's instinct, imprinted deep within the Bloodline, irresistible.
"It's nothing, it's an ancient demon whose Realm is above that of a Demon Emperor, and he's even related to you!" Li Mu smiled slightly and quickly comforted her.
"How is he related to me?" Xue'er paused slightly, asking in confusion.
"Like you, he's a Nine-Tailed Sky Fox, but his Realm is several Ranks higher than yours!" Li Mu asked with a teasing smile: "How about it, do you want to meet this fellow clansman of yours?"
"No! That thought is too terrifying, I don't want to see him at all.
Cultivating in this Realm, Xue'er's Realm will soon surpass his!" Xue'er refused without thinking, saying firmly.
"Mm! If you don't want to see him, then don't.
You should Cultivate well! Strive to advance soon!" Li Mu laughed heartily, waved his hand to strengthen the Chaos Treasure Mansion's concealment effect, turning it into an invisible speck of dust.
Then, he calmed his mind and continued to immerse himself in the Chaotic Great Dao, adapting to the changes in power after breaking through his Realm.
Ten Thousand Demon Holy Mountain, within the dark red crystal palace.
Those pure golden vertical pupils slowly swept across hundreds of millions of miles of Void Realm; wherever his gaze fell, space silently twisted and folded.
A rampant Divine Sense, like invisible tentacles, instantly covered the devastated forest, penetrating every inch of soil, sweeping over every fallen leaf, and even tracing the ripples in the river of time to capture energy remnants from several days ago.
However, all clues about the Nine-Tailed Snow Fox were cut off abruptly at the edge of the forest, as if by the sharpest blade.
That incredibly pure Aura, which even stirred his Bloodline, along with the traces of the Human cultivator and the mysterious spatial Magic Treasure, vanished without a trace.
It was as if they had never appeared, or as if they had been completely erased from the records of this Heaven and Earth by an invisible hand.
Only the Divine Thought fluctuations transmitted by the three Rank Nine Demon Kings, carrying extreme fear, still retained the lingering warmth of the true event.
The Nine-Tailed Demon Saint's brow furrowed almost imperceptibly.
Nine-Tailed Snow Fox... a royal Bloodline scattered in the outside world?
At the tips of the Nine-Tailed Demon Saint's nine dark gold and profound red fox tails, the dazzling white flames silently flickered, scorching more fine black cracks into the surrounding space.
These cracks twisted and spread like living things, then were quickly repaired by the circulating light within the palace, repeating endlessly.
A low voice sounded again, like ice rubbing, each word carrying the weight of freezing the Divine Soul: "Search."
There was no target, no direction, only a cold command, piercing through endless space, imprinted deep within the Sea of Consciousness of the three Demon Kings: "Thoroughly search this Realm, scour every inch of the Void Realm to find her, or... find traces of that treasure."
The Nine-Tailed Demon Saint's gaze penetrated the thick barrier of the Chaos Treasure Mansion, falling upon a void.
In his deep golden vertical pupils, the coldness remained, but a hint of... pure, undeniable possessiveness was added.
The next moment, the Nine-Tailed Demon Saint stood up and stepped out, then with a slight movement of his nine tails, he vanished from his original spot.
His profound black brocade robe, inlaid with star fragments, and his dark jade-like long hair moved without wind.
The nine dark gold and profound red fox tails, like solidified lava and flowing dark gold, swayed gently behind him, their dazzling white tips burning silently.
Wherever he passed, scorched black marks were left in space, which then slowly mended.
The Nine-Tailed Demon Saint had personally descended.
He stepped into the Void Realm; beneath his feet, shattered rocks, fallen giant trees, dried dark green poisonous water... all the wreckage, at the moment he landed, seemed to be smoothed and solidified by an invisible force, losing all vitality and vigor, turning into a stain on a desolate backdrop.
Those pure golden vertical pupils coldly swept across this repeatedly plowed land.
The rampant Divine Thought storm ceased, replaced by a more refined, more terrifying "observation."
The Nine-Tailed Demon Saint's gaze initiated "micro-penetration," his vision transforming into billions of invisible probes, piercing into every speck of dust, analyzing every lingering wisp of energy, and even capturing the flow trajectory of the Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi in this area and the faint ripples remaining in the river of time.
The wind stopped; the chirping of insects and birds fell completely silent, even the floating dust solidified in the air.
Time and space in the entire area seemed to have been paused, leaving only the descending figure "reading" the records left by this Heaven and Earth.
The Nine-Tailed Demon Saint's gaze slowly shifted towards the Void Realm where the Chaos Treasure Mansion's speck of dust was located.
He did not directly "see" the Chaos Treasure Mansion, but a cold golden light subtly flowed within his golden vertical pupils.
He raised a slender hand, fingers splayed, and gently swept it across that area.
There was no Spiritual Qi explosion, no roaring of Laws; along the path his fingertips swept, space rippled with layers of incredibly subtle, transparent waves.
These ripples were not destructive, but rather a "Combing "—combing the "flow" of all energy, matter, and even Law lines within that area.
The originally formless, intangible, naturally flowing Heaven and Earth Spiritual Flow, under the combing of this power, actually manifested clear Context as if it were a frozen stream.
The vast majority of these channels were chaotic, filled with the rampant demonic power, shattered wood spirit Qi, and polluted water poison traces left after the three giant demons' rampage... like a painting wantonly smeared by a mischievous child.
However, at a single core point in that area—corresponding to the location of the Chaos Treasure Mansion's speck of dust—all the manifested spiritual flow channels strangely exhibited an absolute "breakpoint"!
It was as if a surging river, upon reaching this spot, all its water, sediment, and even the riverbed itself, had vanished into thin air.
It wasn't cut off, nor was it blocked, but rather a complete and utter "nothingness"!
The edge of that breakpoint was incredibly smooth, forming a striking contrast with the chaotic and rampant spiritual flow traces around it.
It was like a complete painting from which a circle had been forcibly dug out, leaving an absolutely void, absolutely smooth hole.
The Nine-Tailed Demon Saint's gaze was firmly fixed on that tiny "breakpoint."
In his pure golden vertical pupils, the cold indifference was for the first time replaced by an extremely subtle "focus."
"So... that's how it is."
The Nine-Tailed Demon Saint's low voice, like ice beads rolling on a jade plate, resonated in this silent space, carrying understanding, and even more... pure interest.
The Nine-Tailed Demon Saint's fingertips moved slightly again, and a more exquisite, more concentrated probing force, like an invisible probe, precisely pierced towards the spatial coordinates of that "breakpoint."
The Nine-Tailed Demon Saint's fingertips hovered in the Void Realm, his golden vertical pupils slightly narrowed.
He could clearly feel his probing force colliding with an invisible wall that constantly twisted, devoured, and yet was indestructible.
The nature of that wall was extremely peculiar; it wasn't mere defense, but more like a negation of "non-existence."
The deeper his power penetrated, the purer the sense of "nothingness" feedback from that "breakpoint" became, as if that place itself was a vacuum of Laws, a graveyard of all things.
"Interesting..." The Nine-Tailed Demon Saint's thin lips parted, uttering two words.
The Nine-Tailed Demon Saint reached out and flicked, and a vast Divine Thought directly poured into the speck of sand into which the spiritual flow continuously surged.
It was precisely the speck of sand disguised as the Chaos Treasure Mansion, and he signaled: "I've got you, you're hidden so deep, come out!" (End of Chapter)
