The Vajra Scepter floated out, smashing down on the head of a Single-Horned Kui Ox. Its skull split open, spilling a mixture of red and white.

It looked weightless, but its strike was incredibly heavy. Not a single Single-Horned Kui Ox could withstand its blow.

After nearly twenty Single-Horned Kui Oxen had fallen in succession, the Vajra Scepter finally dimmed, turning into motes of Venus that dissipated in the air.

Luoo Qiuzhen’s face was deathly pale. Every Talisman on his Daoist Robe seemed to have been drained of Spiritual Qi, and his body appeared to have shrunk into itself.

Su Li hurried forward to support her master, feeding him an Elixir and channeling her Magical Power to help him absorb its effects.

"Well done, Brother Luoo!"

Gu Xisheng was in high spirits. With a point of his Jade Flute, the Battle Array advanced.

"Everyone, today is the day we take Cyan Bull Valley and end this war of expansion!"

The last war of expansion had allowed Gu Xisheng, an Elder who had been in charge of the Miscellaneous Affairs Hall, to prove his skills in logistics and general affairs. He won the approval of the Sect’s upper echelons and, in a surprise move, rose to the position of Deputy Sect Leader.

After decades of tireless work, never daring to slack off for a single day or neglect a single matter, he finally managed to have the "Deputy" removed from his title.

He handled this new war of expansion with practiced ease, his arrangements meticulously organized. He even seized the opportunity to reorganize the Five Halls and Eight Chambers.

He installed many of his own people, transforming himself from a puppet into a true leader who could issue orders with the authority befitting a Sect Leader.

Of course, he was still very careful.

Master Ge Cang, who had only one disciple, Qi Yue, and no junior relatives, was not a concern.

As for anyone connected to the other two Core Formation Ancestors, Gu Xisheng wouldn’t dare touch them; instead, he put them all on a pedestal.

Charging through the long, narrow entrance, the cultivators finally saw the true landscape of Cyan Bull Valley. Surprisingly, over half of it was fertile land covered in black mud and overgrown with waist-high weeds.

The valley walls on both sides were lined with earthy-yellow crystals that emitted a pungent odor. From time to time, loose fragments would break off and tumble down.

This was Tier Two Ore Sulfur Smoke Crystal, the favorite food of the Single-Horned Kui Ox. It was not known to have any other uses, as it seemed to be ineffective for Artifact Refining.

"So much arable Spirit Field!"

Gu Xisheng’s eyes lit up. It looked like Cyan Bull Valley held at least a few thousand acres of Tier Two Spirit Field ready for cultivation.

Even if there were no other spoils, acquiring this much Spirit Field was a huge boon for him, especially since he controlled the Spirit Field Hall.

"MOO!"

A bellow like muffled thunder rang out as a colossal cyan ox emerged from a cave. Its four hooves stomped, shaking the earth so violently that some of the Battle Arrays broke formation.

The single horn on its head glowed with an eerie yellow light. Within a hundred-foot radius of the beast, grass was flattened and the ground sank, as if crushed by an invisible, immense gravity.

The remaining Single-Horned Kui Oxen seemed to be emboldened. A red glow appeared on their bodies as they recklessly charged the Battle Arrays.

Two streaks of light flashed, and Bai Zichen and Wei Dao appeared in the air almost simultaneously.

"Junior Brother Bai, how about you stand guard while I take care of this dumb ox?"

Wei Dao suggested, holding a Treasure Bead in his hands.

"Alright. Be careful, Senior Brother Wei. That cyan ox seems to possess Divine Techniques that alter gravity and command Earth Power."

With that warning, Bai Zichen retreated several hundred feet.

’Looks like I’ll have to wait to test the edge of the Moon Xuan Sword from my new Supreme Qingwei Sword Box,’ he thought.

The Kui Ox Demon King was merely a Tier Three Low-Grade Demon Beast. It might have an advantage against an ordinary Core Formation True Man, but the two men present were anything but ordinary.

Bai Zichen aside, Wei Dao himself possessed a Wind Element Anomalous Spiritual Root and was a Cultivator who had achieved a Pill Discussion Perfect Core Formation. Such individuals were rare even in the Holy Lotus Sect and would be groomed as potential successors.

Although he didn’t possess any top-tier treasures, a Loose Cultivator without some special fortune would have to spend decades refining the two Mid-Grade Magical Treasures he carried.

Dealing with a Kui Ox Demon King—arguably the weakest of all Tier Three Demon Beasts—would not be difficult.

Wei Dao tossed his Treasure Bead into the air. A howling gale converged, and countless wind blades swirled around the Kui Ox Demon King, hacking at its body.

The Kui Ox Demon King bellowed again and again. As the wind blades approached its Demon Body, they slowed and fell to the ground with a CLATTER.

The beast’s mouth opened, and a shimmering yellow object shot out. Moving like a Thunderbolt, it pierced through the layers of wind blades and shot toward Wei Dao.

It was a Bezoar that the Kui Ox Demon King had refined within its body. Imbued with Earth Power, it was nigh indestructible, shattering several layers of Wei Dao’s Protective Treasure Light in an instant.

Unflustered, Wei Dao produced a flower basket and softly cried, "Freeze!"

In that space, the wind stopped and the air fell still. Even the unstoppable Bezoar paused for an instant, allowing the flower basket to envelop it.

"I thought the only useful part on you, you dumb ox, was that horn. I never expected you’d have a Bezoar. What an unexpected treasure."

Wei Dao channeled several streams of True Essence into the Treasure Bead, more than doubling the density of the wind blades. The surrounding rock walls crumbled like tofu where the blades grazed them, sending huge chunks tumbling down—let alone what was happening at the center of the storm.

The yellow light above the Kui Ox Demon King’s head flickered, weakening significantly. Its defense was no longer impregnable.

A Bezoar was an extremely rare Tier Three Spiritual Object and a necessary ingredient for refining many Tier Three Spirit Pills. Even if the Alchemists of the Qingfeng Sect couldn’t use it, a piece this large could be traded with an Alchemy Grandmaster from the Danxia Sect for several bottles of Tier Three Elixirs.

’As expected. No challenge at all. The weakest of the Tier Three Demon Beasts...’

Bai Zichen lost interest after a brief glance, knowing the beast could no longer turn the tide.

Just in case, Wei Dao had brought the Earth God Sand from that Purple Gourd and was prepared to use a grain or two at a critical moment.

With this Exotic Treasure on hand, even if the Kui Ox Demon King tried to detonate its Demon Pill in a final, suicidal gambit, it would not be given the chance.

However, Wei Dao didn’t possess any particularly powerful Magical Treasures, and the Earth God Sand was a finite resource. Each grain used was one less, so it was best to be frugal.

Tier Three Demon Beasts had thick hides and tenacious vitality; it would be normal for this battle of attrition to drag on for several more hours.

Moonlight Sword Light shot into the sky, casting a faint lunar glow over the whole of Cyan Bull Valley.

’It’s easy to sound relaxed, but one can’t afford to be careless, especially toward the end.’

Deep within Black Mountain, Tier Three Demon Beasts were not uncommon. Human Cultivators had no idea which of them were allies and who might come to another’s aid.

It was precisely because Bai Zichen stood guard that Wei Dao could fight without holding back, free from the worry of being ambushed by some other hidden Tier Three Demon Beast.

Thanks to his As Clear as Daylight and Sword Heart Clarity abilities, combined with his Tier Four Moon Xuan Sword, Bai Zichen could perceive everything within a radius of dozens of miles. For him, there were no secrets.

This feeling was completely different from a normal scan with one’s Divine Sense; it was far more subtle, far more profound.

Its only drawback was that it was far too conspicuous, unlike the stealth of a Divine Sense probe.

The effect was especially pronounced when it came to living beings.

He saw pangolins frantically digging to escape, a flock of white crows flapping their wings and fleeing Cyan Bull Valley, and even, at the very edge of the moonlight, the aura of another Tier Three Demon Beast.

It was an upright White Ape, its fur immaculately white without a single fleck of color. The aura of its Demon Power far surpassed that of the Kui Ox Demon King.

It was even on par with, if not superior to, the Flood Dragon he had encountered at Feiyue Lake.

As if sensing the moonlight prying into its location, the White Ape snarled, then vanished in a couple of quick movements.

’A Tier Three Peak Demon Beast...’

Bai Zichen’s heart tightened. He never expected that this assault on Cyan Bull Valley would attract such a formidable Demon Beast.

Fortunately, the White Ape seemed to be merely observing the battle and showed no intention of helping the Kui Ox Demon King.

Otherwise, the outcome of this battle would have been far from certain.

’Based on my own assessment, I’m confident I can handle a Tier Three Top-Grade Demon Beast with the power of my Moon Xuan Sword, especially since I’ve witnessed the might of a Flood Dragon firsthand.’

’But a Tier Three Peak Demon Beast is another matter entirely. They’re like Cultivators at Core Formation Perfection, already contemplating the path to Transformation.’

’Once it passes its Transformed Celestial Tribulation and becomes a Tier Four Demon Beast, the Qingfeng Sect will face another terrifying foe in the Black Mountain Range.’

’When I get back, I’ll need to increase our intelligence gathering on that White Ape. It’s not like the slumbering Cyan Simurgh; this is an active Great Demon. While it’s true that Demon Beasts have long lifespans and their cultivation breakthroughs can take centuries, if that White Ape reaches the next tier before Brother Ge does, the Sect could face annihilation!’

The Spiritual Wisdom of a Tier Four Shapeshifting Great Demon is vastly increased, making it no different from an adult human. The gap between it and a Tier Three Demon Beast is as vast as that between the heavens and the earth.

It was a pipe dream to expect a Shapeshifting Great Demon to coexist peacefully with human Cultivators. When it came to territory, there could only be a struggle to the death.

Which of the Super Sects in the Central Domain, those that controlled all the Spirit Veins in their territory, had not fought bloody wars for them? Countless disciples had sacrificed themselves to seize one Spirit Vein after another from the claws of Demon Beasts.

Those Shapeshifting Great Demons were either forced to abandon their Spirit Veins and flee, or they were surrounded by multiple Nascent Soul True Monarchs and brutally killed on the spot.

Bai Zichen wasn’t certain that the Sect’s Duality Illusion Moon Array at the Mountain Gate could withstand an attack from a Shapeshifting Great Demon.

Feiyue Lake and Cyan Bull Valley, at the very least, would be completely indefensible.

They would also lose their hold on every single resource point in Black Mountain.

Once he was sure the White Ape had left with no sign of returning, Bai Zichen brought his attention back to the battlefield. It was then that he noticed a faint ripple in the air somewhere above Cyan Bull Valley.

’No fluctuation of Magical Power, and I can’t sense it with my Divine Sense... But within my Sword Heart, viewed through the lens of As Clear as Daylight, it sticks out like a sore thumb. There’s definitely something wrong here!’

Bai Zichen remained outwardly calm. If not for his dual gifts of Sword Heart Clarity and As Clear as Daylight, he never would have noticed such a subtle anomaly from several miles away.

’Could it be a Nascent Soul True Monarch? Unlikely. Someone skulking around like this must be limited to the Core Formation realm. They must be using some wondrous Cultivation Technique or a unique Magical Treasure to hide so effectively.’

Hiding their tracks to spy on the Qingfeng Sect’s war of expansion at its most critical juncture... whoever this was, they certainly didn’t have good intentions.

But now that he had been spotted, it would be impossible for him to cause any trouble.

As moonlight bathed the entire scene, Bai Zichen’s right hand closed around the hilt of his Moon Xuan Sword.

His eyes were slightly closed, and he continued to face the Kui Ox Demon King, revealing nothing out of the ordinary.

In truth, his Sword Heart was like a mirror, using the ambient moonlight to reflect the entire scene onto its polished surface.

Even when he was looking for it, the faint ripple was incredibly easy to miss. Several times, he almost thought the hidden person had fled.

It wasn’t until a triumphant cheer erupted from the valley below. The Kui Ox Demon King collapsed with a great THUD, its head blasted to pulp by a single grain of Earth God Sand, and a massive wind blade cleanly severed its horn.

Wei Dao brandished a Banner Flag, unfurling it in the wind. A miniature cyan ox was sucked onto the flag’s surface, where it began to charge about wildly.

Now!

Bai Zichen slashed down with his sword. Immense Taiyin Star Power exploded outward, seeming to freeze the very space around him.