299 The World 8

"Squelch!"

The Snake of Jealousy had already dived into the fat creature's stomach. This creature was completely white; its head was tiny, and it had a huge mouth full of sharp teeth on its bald head.

It had no eyes, no nose, no ears... nothing.

After obtaining a gaping hole in its stomach, it wobbled backwards and exploded into numerous black pieces with a bang, then slowly disappeared.

The Snake of Jealousy had a moving, black ball in its mouth. Lu Sheng didn't know what it was, but the snake was eating it up greedily.

Lu Sheng left it be. Yin Devils weren't completely dependent on him; they were born of him, but could grow and change by themselves.

The limit of a Yin Devil's growth depended on how strong their master was. Under normal conditions, the highest level they could reach would be the same as their master's—for instance, someone like Liu Shanzi.

Of course, they also had their own ways of cultivating. Power never came without a price. As Yin Devils, they just had a much better start than ordinary people.

Lu Sheng walked towards the largest building in the middle.

He made his way up the stairs slowly with his head down, looking at the ground. There were many deep scratches on the dark-red steps, as if made by swords and knives.

"It's here." He didn't walk forward anymore. This place had completely become the playground of devils. All the humans around had died, and no matter what he did, the earth here was already corrupted, and he wouldn't be able to change anything.

The only reason he came here was to check for himself whether his master Liu Shanzi really died.

But just as he walked through the door, his extreme senses found something odd.

"Shadow, go down and check," he ordered quietly.

"Yes…" The Shadow of Insanity slowly detached itself from Lu Sheng's shadow, and condensed into a dark shadow with only a pair of blood-red eyes, then dived into the cracks on the stone steps.

"Hiss…"

The Shadow of Insanity was instantly gone.

Lu Sheng waited on the stairs with his eyes slightly closed.

He Xiangzi and the others didn't dare disturb him, and could only wait quietly behind.

"Whoosh!"

Suddenly, Lu Sheng opened his eyes with evident joy in them.

"I found him! He's still alive!!"

The ground was quickly corroded, and the Shadow of Insanity floated out slowly with two bodies. He hissed at Lu Sheng in respect.

"Finally… I wasn't late…" Lu Sheng let out a long sigh of relief as he looked at Liu Shanzi and Grandmother Qin Kong, both just barely breathing.

They were hugging each other, or more specifically, Qin Kong was holding onto Liu Shanzi tightly with a faint sea-blue light glowing over her.

A faint triangle mark glowed in the light. That symbol represented a Holy Weapon.

Lu Sheng expression became serious again as he shouted, "Retreat!"

He had got what he wanted.

*********************

Song Dynasty, the Tang Family, the twelfth year.

The Nine Cities in the Central Plains were in chaos: two Gates of Flesh and Blood had already opened, six great Devil Spirits were reborn, and millions of devils were rushing out from everywhere. The Shangyang Family from the Nine Great Families of the Central Plains suffered a huge loss. Their leader, Shangyang Jun, was critically injured, and back in solitude at the family's headquarters to rest and heal.

The rest of the Noble Families formed armies against the devils. The royal family also dispatched a hundred thousand Tiger Warriors and three hundred thousand Flying Cloud Troops to help the Noble Families, trying to take back what they'd lost.

Every city in the Central Plains was on high alert. The news of the Devil Disaster spread, and for a time, every man was out for himself.

Out of the nine cities that got wrecked by the Devil Disaster, three were still stubbornly holding up against the Devil Army.

The first was Eagle Hunting City. Most of the Shangyang Family's troops and weapons were here, and they managed to block the joint attack of multiple Devil Spirits. The Divine Weapon Master Shangyang Jun came out to lead the people, and along with the Divine Weapon Master Lei Heng from the Lei Family, the two of them prevented the fall of the Nine Cities.

The second spot was Happy Clouds City. The remaining forces of the Hundred Sects had gathered there at the headquarters of Scarlet Boiling Palace, using the defense formation of the place to contend with the Devil Army, but were not performing as well as Hunting Eagle City's defenders.

The third city was Changing Stars City, the gathering spot for reinforcements from the Noble Families, and also the frontmost battlefront. All the best weapons and strongest people were here.

These three cities were like three unmoving rocks against an oncoming tide, becoming the last safe havens among the Nine Cities since the outbreak of the Devil Disaster. They were the only ones keeping this area from being completely corrupted by Devil Aura.

***

"Clop, clop, clop, clop…"

On the elaborate and fancy road, a pure black stallion was trotting forward slowly; the knight on its back was surveying the fields to his left and right.

"It's the planting season, but the Devil Disaster has caused all these rich lands to go to waste… what evil."

The knight was wearing a tight and heavy suit of black and gold armor, with a shiny black triangular cape flowing out behind him. There was a clear symbol of a silver longsword on the cape.

The knight sighed. His brown hair was ruffled by the wind, showing his strong forehead, straight nose, and a pair of sharp, deep green eyes. There was much resignation and pity in those eyes.

The black warhorse increased its speed, and sped past the wasted fields, flying over the road dotted with blood.

Soon, the horse made a turn, and a small, solitary pavilion appeared in front of them.

The pavilion had a red roof and white pillars; it was designed to give both passersby and travelers a short break from their journey. The Song Dynasty did a lot a good things at its peak, but now, it had aged and weakened.

Jumping off his horse, the knight walked towards the pavilion, looking at the stone slab on the side.

Carved into the stone slab was one word: Inn.

A few grayish-white stone benches were broken into halves, scattered on the floor. The fence around also had multiple holes in it, and dried blood was still visible on the edges.

The knight sighed, and again walked into the pavilion. He touched the blood, brought his finger to his nose and sniffed at it, then found a clean stone bench and sat down. He didn't even bother tying up the horse, and instead just let it graze by itself nearby.

After some time, a green figure walked into the pavilion.

"Sorry to keep you waiting, Long Fo." The speaker was a woman, her voice calm, collected, and clear, letting everyone who could hear her feel her strong and unwavering determination.

The knight, Long Fo, turned around.

Behind him was a beautiful woman in a long green dress. It was hard to tell her age, but she was definitely under thirty. Her skin was pale and perfect, and her long green dress was more like three ribbons covering her legs and body.

Her long legs showed through the fitted dress, wrapped in a pale green silk and appearing like stockings.

The woman's legs were wrapped in this type of thin silk in their entirety. When she came in, she had floated down gently, so with her dress flapping in the air, one could almost see the attractive spot between her legs.

But the knight didn't dare look at all. He first lowered his head, then lifted his chin to look up at the woman's perfect and icy features.

"Master Juan Heng, how are… your injuries?" Worry showed on his face.

The woman let out a long sigh, and walked towards another unbroken stone bench to sit down. She didn't care at all that her dress was hitched up; perhaps she was sure that the knight didn't dare look.

"I'm good. I summoned you this time for a mission."

The knight lowered his head. "Please give me your orders."

The woman smiled, her icy features slightly as rigid as if she hadn't laughed or smiled in a long time.

"Long Ho, you're still so gentle."

"Master… after so many years, you finally summoned me. No matter what happens, I, Long Ho, will stand behind you," the knight replied solemnly.

The woman, Juan Heng, nodded slightly. "Okay. It's about this Devil Disaster. I just got out of cultivating in solitude, and sensed that three bloodlines over here have awakened, so… I want you to find these three people."

"Are there any guides?"

"No guides." The woman shook her head. "Back then, I brought three of my children here, and now… Calculating the years, they should be adults by now… you…"

"Master…" Long Ho sighed too. "In this generation, there were 365 contenders, and you were only one of them. To be able to go back to our family, you couldn't afford any burden. I'm sure the misters and misses will understand."

"I hope so…" The woman Juan Heng shook her head again, resignation flashing through her eyes. "The reason I came this time was to find my children and bring them back. Bloodline of the Yuanguang Family can't just wander the world like this. That year, I was tricked by that guy…"

"It's not Master's fault. Things like that happen; we were too weak back then," Long Ho said resignedly. "I understand your orders."

"Thank you." The woman seemed slightly apologetic.

"This what your servant should do."

***

The Prime Devil Sect.

Lu Sheng stood at the top of the rebuilt stone attic, surveying the Prime Devil Sect disciples as they cultivated below.

It had already been five days since the Devil Disaster. In these five days, he'd first fought the huge hand of the Devil Lord from the Gate of Flesh and Blood, then rescued his master Liu Shanzi, and organized everyone back at the Prime Devil Sect, using the topography and land to obstruct the incoming Devil Army.

With Lu Sheng present, the Prime Devil Sect finally blocked the Devil Army's attacks. The entrance to their cave was only so big, and was surrounded on all sides by cliffs and drops as well, so one careless mistake could result in someone falling. So, it was even harder for the Devil Army to attack.

The people they rescued from the Devil Disaster all joined in voluntarily to help create a defense against the Devil Army—no matter if they were ordinary people, skilled sect disciples, or members of the noble families.

All the destroyed attics, towers, and living quarters were being rebuilt. After only two days, the Prime Devil Sect finished rebuilding most of their buildings.

Lu Sheng watched the cultivating disciples calmly.

In front of him was Liu Shanzi, who had just recovered from his ordeal.

Out of everyone, he was under the most pressure regarding Lu Sheng's transformation.

From being extremely talented, and trying to hide his skills, to now revealing everything, Liu Shanzi's whole mind had blanked after hearing this.

He was also watching the disciples below, but all his thoughts were on Lu Sheng.

"You… when did you… break through the barrier…?"

"Very early," Lu Sheng responded calmly. "It was a long time ago, and I thought there was something wrong with me, so I didn't dare tell master about it. But as time passed, I found that it fit perfectly with the rest of the cultivation and sped everything up and made me stronger, so I decided to keep it from the outside world."

"...You worked hard." Liu Shanzi sighed. "You said you got the seven other Great Devil Spirits?"

"I already copied them down, and can give them to you at any time," Lu Sheng responded.