The Demonic Cultivator In Zombie World

Shang Xuanhe let out a soft sigh. "Living in the Heavenly Metal Battlefield has become increasingly difficult. It's hard to find any other strongholds around here. The medium spiritual stone mine I'm staying at is still holding up, but it's barely manageable. If fellow daoist Xiao doesn't mind, you can bring your junior brother here to stay for a while. Or, you can stay with fellow daoist Qiu here. Once we find another stronghold or discover a new spiritual stone vein, we can move again."

Qiu Wanhong nodded. "My Cold Ironwood Forest is vast. I can accommodate two more people. But, over time, the Spiritual Qi will gradually deplete."

Xiao Xian looked touched. "Thank you, fellow daoist Shang, and thank you, fellow daoist Qiu!" He understood that Qiu Wanhong's words hinted that the forest was becoming crowded and the Spiritual Qi was running low.

Qiu Wanhong's eyes glinted as she spoke again. "Fellow daoist Xiao, I do know of a good place."

Xiao Xian nodded, "Please, fellow daoist Qiu, do tell."

Qiu Wanhong gestured to the south. "Outside Heaven-Three City, there is a great spiritual stone mine, but it is now occupied by the Heavenly Infinite Sect's demonic cultivator, Chu Xuan. This person killed Song Lingfeng, fellow daoist Song of Red Flame Pavilion, and then took control of the great spiritual stone mine. We have the heart to remove the enemy, but lack the strength to do so. If fellow daoist Xiao is willing to join us and eliminate this demonic cultivator, we can take control of the mine together. The spiritual stones will be divided evenly among us."

Xiao Xian suddenly stood up, his face full of fury. "What?! Senior Brother Song was killed by that demonic cultivator?! This grudge cannot go unpunished! I, Xiao Xian, swear that if I do not kill Chu Xuan, I will not be human!" He clenched his fists, his eyes bloodshot, as if he could tear Chu Xuan apart with his bare hands.

Shang Xuanhe coughed lightly, drawing their attention. "Fellow Daoist Qiu, I never said anything about attacking the great spiritual stone mine."

Qiu Wanhong immediately furrowed her brows. "Why? This is a demonic cultivator, and such people must be eradicated! Moreover, I have gathered information that Chu Xuan is the only one there. The other two members of the Heavenly Infinite Sect, Shang Xingchen and Wei Ji, have taken control of another medium spiritual stone mine. There must be some discord among these three, which is why they are not working together. If we attack Chu Xuan, Shang Xingchen and Wei Ji are highly unlikely to come to his aid."

Shang Xuanhe shook his head. "Right now, we should focus on addressing the issue of the declining Spiritual Qi in the Heavenly Metal Battlefield, and find a way to reverse it. Though orthodox and demonic cultivators stand opposed, we must still make use of their strength. Endless fighting—what good does it do?"

Qiu Wanhong sneered. "If you don't kill him, he will kill you!"

Shang Xuanhe sighed deeply. "Fellow Daoist Qiu, fellow daoist Xiao, I shall take my leave." He slowly rose and flicked his sleeves as he turned to leave, clearly feeling that there was no point in continuing the conversation.

Qiu Wanhong watched his retreating figure, then snorted coldly. Turning back to Xiao Xian, her expression softened again, becoming friendly and warm.

Qiu Wanhong smiled faintly. "I can provide fellow daoist Xiao with an early-stage Nascent Soul puppet beast. You can go and probe Chu Xuan's strength first. Once we know more, we can decide on our next move."

Xiao Xian subtly glanced at the departing Shang Xuanhe, seemingly deep in thought. "Alright, then I and my junior brother will stay with fellow daoist Qiu for a few days to rest and recover. Once our injuries are healed, we will go and test Chu Xuan's strength."

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Qiu Wanhong nodded with a smile. "Good!"

Meanwhile, Shang Xuanhe stepped out of the Cold Ironwood Forest. Kang Jia was waiting for him outside. He asked, "Senior Brother, how did it go?"

Shang Xuanhe shook his head. "Qiu Wanhong plans to join forces with us to attack the great spirit stone mine and eliminate Chu Xuan of the Heavenly Infinite Sect. You've met Dong Qi that day, right? He's extremely powerful. Chu Xuan was able to kill Song Lingfeng, drive back Dong Qi of the Falling Sun Demon Fortress, and Su Jue of the Corpse God Palace. He is no ordinary opponent. We should not get involved in this mess. Our priority is to find the source of the disappearing Spiritual Qi."

Kang Jia nodded repeatedly. That day, he had spoken with Dong Qi from the Falling Sun Demon Fortress for only a few moments, but he could already sense that the man was unfathomable. It was better to have him as a friend than an enemy. With Shang Xuanhe now deciding against getting involved, Kang Jia's mind, which had been hanging by a thread, finally relaxed. Suddenly, he thought of another possibility and couldn't help but ask, "But what if Chu Xuan is not a match for fellow daoist Qiu and fellow daoist Xiao?"

Shang Xuanhe stroked his beard and spoke with righteous conviction. "Then we shall eliminate the demon and defend the way! How can the great spirit stone mine be occupied by demonic cultivators? That is a wanton waste!"

Kang Jia clicked his tongue.

'Senior Brother is so pragmatic. Truly, he is an old monster who has lived for over 800 years. I still have much to learn before I can master the art of seamless face-changing like Senior Brother.'

Chu Xuan gazed at the roots of the trees that nearly enveloped the entire small hill, shaking his head in frustration. This place was the location of an array set up by the Reincarnation Divine Sect. The specific coordinates were information Chu Xuan had received from Shang Xingchen. After all, the Heavenly Metal Battlefield was vast, and it was impossible to search for such a place like looking for a needle in a haystack.

Chu Xuan's approach was direct. Since it was the arrays scattered across the Heavenly Metal Battlefield that had caused the Spiritual Qi here to dissipate, wouldn't destroying these arrays change the situation? He had previously tried to approach the array location outside Heaven-Six City, but there were more than a dozen Nascent Soul-level puppet beasts guarding the area.

Moreover, it seemed that numerous Nascent Soul-level killing and illusionary arrays had been set up around the place. It was simply impossible to approach. He had no choice but to retreat. This seemed entirely reasonable. The Reincarnation Divine Sect had gone to great lengths to set up these arrays—how could they allow anyone to easily destroy them?

Chu Xuan had only reappeared now, estimating that the strength of others had likely decreased to some extent by this point. Yet, he still maintained the strength of the eighth level of Nascent Soul, allowing him to strike with a crushing force. This was why he had come to take a look.

However, now it seemed there was no way forward. The array here had already been completely enveloped by roots. There wasn't even a tiny gap left. He had tried earlier, but it was impossibly hard.

Nascent Soul-level spells couldn't leave a single trace on the surface. It was likely that only someone with the power of Deity Transformation could damage the outer layer of the tree roots. But that would consume a huge amount of Spiritual Qi.

Within the Heavenly Metal Battlefield, there were only two Deity Transformation cultivators: Heavenly River True Master and Tian Mozi Daoist. Convincing them to take such a self-sacrificial action would likely be almost impossible.

Chu Xuan shook his head and turned to return to the great spirit stone mine. Since this array was like this, others must be the same. If destroying the arrays was impossible, he could only temporarily maintain the status quo.

"Hm? Something's happening?"

Chu Xuan picked up the Heart-Linking Stone hanging from his waist and noticed a new mark had appeared on it. He immediately headed to the agreed-upon location. Soon, he spotted Shang Xingchen standing at the designated spot from a distance. However, he didn't approach immediately. Instead, he waited for quite some time.

It wasn't until he used the spiritual sense secret method and confirmed there were no possible ambushes in the area that he finally made his appearance.

The Heart-Linking Stone was his communication method with Shang Xingchen, but it could also be used by Shang Xingchen to set a trap for him. Their cooperation was entirely based on an equal footing of strength.

Though Chu Xuan felt that Shang Xingchen wouldn't turn on him so quickly, it was always wise to remain vigilant.