Chapter 107 — The Demon Formation
The Sword Questions the Heavens · Page 3 of 6
From that time on, all the actions of the Nether King Sect began to revolve around the Four Spirits Blood Formation.
Yousi drew her gaze back from Mr. Gui's blurred silhouette and looked toward the two spirit beasts in the blood pool. Though surrounded by bloody water, the Yellow Bird—who knew how many years it had lived—was clearly unwilling, and from time to time it let out a furious, shrill cry, beating its wings and at once churning the surrounding blood into enormous waves.
Yet the bloody water in the pool seemed to have some strange restraining effect upon it; the Yellow Bird's spiritual power and strength were plainly far from what they had once been, especially with the dark red light from the Coiling Dragon Cauldron shrouding its head. The moment the Yellow Bird stirred, the dark red light blazed bright, and the bird beneath it was at once pressed down as if by Mount Tai; the body it had just raised was instantly forced back down by an irresistible weight.
After several such exchanges, the Yellow Bird's movements gradually slowed; though it still struggled, it grew weaker and weaker. And at the other end of the blood pool, the one-legged, colossal Kui Ox lay wholly submerged in the blood, utterly motionless, only its eyes occasionally glancing toward the Yellow Bird—whether because it had been trapped here so long that it had wholly given up resistance, none could say.
Gazing at these two spirit beasts, once so peerless, brought to such an end, Yousi could not help but frown slightly beneath her black gauze, a nameless revulsion rising in her heart.
The Nether King, standing beside her, seemed to sense something and looked toward her, then suddenly said, "What are you thinking?"
Yousi gave a start, then composed herself and said lightly, "Nothing, Sect Master."
The Nether King looked at her, then shifted his gaze to the blood pool, and after a long while said slowly, "The Four Spirits Blood Formation is now half complete. We need only find the other two spirit beasts as catalysts, and the day our Nether King Sect reigns supreme over the world will be within sight."
Yousi was silent a moment, then said softly, "Yes."
The Nether King stood with hands clasped behind his back, his gaze still fixed on the two spirit beasts in the blood pool, yet he suddenly changed the subject: "You reached the Death Marsh before I did. I instructed you to secretly observe Mingli. Is there anything you wish to tell me?"
The black gauze on Yousi's face stirred slightly, and after a moment she said, "In the Death Marsh, he led his men in maneuvering among the Ten Thousand Poisons Sect, the Soul-Bewildering Sect, and the orthodox factions. Amid such complex and treacherous circumstances, thick with deadly peril, he still advanced and withdrew with sound judgment, and in the end joined with others to destroy the Longevity Hall—truly the makings of a great commander. And moreover..."
She paused abruptly here, and the Nether King, somewhat surprised, said, "Moreover what?"
Yousi hesitated a moment, then said, "In the inner marsh, he launched a sudden sneak attack and gravely wounded Qin Wujiu of the Ten Thousand Poisons Sect. His mind is resolute and ruthless, not to be underestimated." As she spoke, Yousi suddenly felt a daze come over her: was this person she was discussing truly the Zhang Qingyue of those years gone by?
Was he truly the one whom Bili loved with all her heart?
The Ghost King, however, seemed rather pleased. He nodded and said, "This child is resolute and unyielding by nature—a rare talent indeed. Over the years he has cultivated the arts of our holy sect, and with peerless evil instruments upon his person day and night, it is only natural that he has grown somewhat savage and fond of killing."
Yousi raised her head and looked at the Ghost King. A faint smile lingered at the corner of his mouth, yet set against that face whose very calm was authority, it somehow radiated a chill.