Chapter 213: Demon Nurturing River – Human-Legged Spider

As they set off for the Shifang Nether Soil, the presence of the sect masters from the three major sects kept the usually rowdy disciples in check. They sat quietly and obediently on their silver kites, not daring to move.

The Returning Immortal Sect lacked a sect master to accompany them, so they sent several powerful elders to oversee the journey. The Crimson Sky Sect’s sect master suggested that, to demonstrate friendly relations among the sects, each of the other three sects should send an elder to assist.

It was clear that his intention was to keep an eye on the Returning Immortal Sect, but the leading elder of the Returning Immortal Sect did not refuse and instead agreed to it.

After all, with the other two sect masters present, the Crimson Sky Sect’s sect master couldn’t cause trouble openly. At most, he could keep watch for a while. The accompanying elders needed to form a protective formation in front of the disciples to ensure their safety. Since they could get a few “human shields” for free, why not take advantage?

The chief team had no elder protection because they were meant to be sent out for training.

As the group passed through the high-altitude demonic beast territory of Vermilion Bird Ridge, a swarm of flying demonic beasts darted through the sky. Upon spotting the humans, they flapped their wings and charged at them.

The demonic beasts crashed into the barrier and were immediately knocked unconscious, falling like raindrops. The Second Seat and the ordinary disciples, protected by the barrier, remained unharmed.

Lian Mu was also on a silver kite. Not wanting to fly on her own, she “sacrificed” her dignity as a sword cultivator and hitched a ride on another Second Seat’s silver kite, belonging to talisman cultivator Qu Ruotian.

Seeing this, Guan Shize also abandoned his dignity and squeezed in for a ride.

The two of them watched the chief team ahead, struggling to fend off the demonic beasts, and found it amusing. Without a barrier, the chief team had to clear threats themselves, but the sheer number of flying demonic beasts and their erratic movements made it difficult. They rarely dealt with flying demonic beasts, so they appeared quite flustered.

Xu Xianxing, as the Chief Disciple and artifact refiner, was protected in the middle. However, the other artifact refiners were not as delicate as he was and took out several lethal weapons to help kill the demonic beasts.

“Strange, why are there so many flying demonic beasts? Don’t the elders clear the path in advance?” Guan Shize asked.

“Because we’re getting close to the Shifang Nether Soil, where demonic beasts are rampant. Countless demonic beasts are born there daily. The closer we get, the more demonic beasts there are. It’s impossible to clear them all,” Qu Ruotian explained. “So, it’s simply treated as a trial before entering.”

Lian Mu watched as a bat-like golden beast crashed into the barrier in front of her, its head smashing gruesomely.

Lian Mu: “…”

This was just the edge, and it was already like this. She couldn’t imagine how many demonic beasts surrounded Xuan Che’s home.

“I’ve never been to the Shifang Nether Soil,” Lian Mu tentatively asked. “Is there anything interesting there?”

Qu Ruotian replied with a meaningful tone, “What are you expecting? This is a place where people are devoured without leaving bones. If there’s anything interesting, it might be the Demon Nurturing River, which originates from the center of the Shifang Nether Soil.”

“What is the Demon Nurturing River?”

Just as she finished speaking, the voice of the Azure Profound Sect’s sect master came through the barrier, reaching everyone’s ears: “Everyone, we are about to enter the outer perimeter of the Shifang Nether Soil. Low-level demon races appear here. Please do not leave the group to avoid being attacked by demon races.”

Demon race!

The disciples couldn’t help but feel a thrill of excitement. Were they finally going to see the legendary demon race?

Some disciples were quite eager. Since joining the sect, they had only seen demonic beasts, never a real demon race.

Hua Qiuxin guessed what these young ones were thinking and smiled faintly, “To ensure you have good dreams tonight, I advise you not to look down.”

Her words only fueled their curiosity.

Initially, out of respect for the sect master’s authority, the disciples refrained from looking down. But as Hua Qiuxin turned away and flew faster, distancing herself from the group, someone couldn’t resist any longer.

Lian Mu: “…”

Sect Master Hua was clearly trying to pique their curiosity, waiting to see their reactions upon seeing the demon race.

But… what do demon races look like?

Lian Mu was curious too. She felt she had a strong tolerance, so she bravely glanced down.

Once the first person looked, others followed.

A group of disciples looked down together, seeing a chaotic landscape below. Some areas were engulfed in flames, barren and lifeless, while others were lush and green, like a patchwork quilt.

A pitch-black river cut through the land, flowing towards the horizon.

“Is this… black water, like the Profound Water of Penglai Island?”

Just as someone speculated, ripples appeared on the river’s surface, and waves churned.

A massive spider, several meters tall, crawled ashore from the river. Unlike ordinary demonic beasts, its legs were eight pale human legs, twisted into a bizarre shape. The bones bent into two segments like spider legs, and its toenails were white and blue eyes.

Its back was covered in countless eyes, and a lump of flesh pulsed beneath its abdomen. Once ashore, the human-legged spider quickly targeted a nearby small demonic beast, lunging at it with incredible speed. It bit the beast in half and chewed it, blood and flesh splattering.

The ground beneath the spider twisted, revealing several smiling faces in the dirt, their stone-like eyes rolling around before locking onto the group of Immortal Sect disciples in the sky, emitting a piercing laugh.

“Ugh—!”

Someone vomited on the spot at the sight.

The other disciples looked pale, severely shocked by the scene.

Lian Mu glanced at the human-legged spider and then thought of Xuan Che, remaining silent for a moment: “…”

Not all demon races are as good-looking as Xuan Che.

Xu Xianxing swallowed hard, suppressing the urge to vomit, and asked, “Do all demon races look this strange?”

They finally understood that Sect Master Hua’s advice was for their own good. When they looked back at her, they found her watching them with a satisfied smile, as if her plan had succeeded.

The disciples: “…”

Sect Master, you did this on purpose!

Hua Qiuxin reminded them again, “The ‘demon race’ is just one type of demon. Most demon races don’t look like normal humans, but they have some human-like features. What you saw was just a low-level Demonic Creature.”

More bizarre creatures emerged from the black river: a toad with a human face on its back, a four-legged fish with a mouth larger than its head on its chest, and even black birds flying out of the water, all with strange appearances.

“No wonder the Azure Profound Sect didn’t let Ying You participate in this. This must be Sect Master Hua’s special consideration for Ying You,” said Changsun Li from the Crimson Sky Sect.

No one wanted to see such things for long, feeling as if their eyes were being polluted.

“Rest assured, everyone. Our destination isn’t here; we need to venture further. Low-level demon races often emerge from this Demon Nurturing River. The deeper we go, the higher the level of the demon races. This is just a mere appetizer.”

Hua Qiuxin said, “I hope you all have a pleasant experience with the demon races in this Shifang Nether Soil Illusion Realm.”

Surprise flashed in everyone’s eyes: Did she mean that this Illusion Realm’s connection site requires us to delve into the inner circle?