Chapter 9

Panshi has written two books now. Without commenting on their content, he has been diligent, never delayed updates, and always finished his works. He has never formally asked for votes or donations. Now, with his third book, he humbly requests that everyone cast their valuable recommendation votes for the new book, *Chronicles of the Demon King*. For a new book, this is incredibly important! He also asks that all readers, regardless of how they access the book, support him on Qidian, as it is the best encouragement an author can receive.

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Zhaoming's heart immediately panicked as Acao disappeared, leaving only Sun Jiuyang in front of him. He stood up and shouted loudly, "What's going on? What's happening? Where's Acao? Why is Acao gone!"

Xiu Luo was also in a panic, searching everywhere, but there was no sign of Acao. The pendant on his chest showed no different reaction, looking just like it always did.

Sun Jiuyang ignored the two, frowning and muttering to himself, "The cultivation technique inside the last Pangu statue was the world-renowned Lingxi Sword Technique. This Pangu statue's cultivation technique is actually a suicide technique. Something's not right!"

"But this guy was under my illusion, he didn't notice at all. He wouldn't lie to his closest person, right? And he repeated it twice, with no difference at all!"

He glanced at Zhaoming a few more times, suddenly paused, and then suddenly stepped forward, grabbing Zhaoming.

"Let me go, let me go! What did you do to Acao? Give me back Acao!" Zhaoming struggled hard, and Xiu Luo also rushed over, grabbing and hitting Sun Jiuyang, spitting out a blood sword.

Unfortunately, Sun Jiuyang's strength far exceeded theirs. The blood sword on Sun Jiuyang's body dissipated like a spring breeze, having no effect at all.

"Are you annoying me? Stay still!" Sun Jiuyang pointed at Xiu Luo, and as soon as he spoke, Xiu Luo indeed froze, like a wooden dummy.

"Xiu Luo, Xiu Luo! You... I'll fight you to the death!" Zhaoming was furious, thinking Acao had been found and then disappeared again. Now, Xiu Luo was also under some unknown spell, making him feel like he had just escaped from a tiger's den only to fall into a wolf's lair.

Sun Jiuyang sneered, "You're only at the Core Formation stage. What are you going to fight? Even if I stand still and let you hit me, you can't hurt me at all. Stop making noise, let me see!"

He then poked Zhaoming in various places and said with a look of surprise, "Strange things happen every year, but this year is particularly strange. Two Core Formation demons, I've never seen this before!"

He suddenly remembered something, "Two Core Formation, one broken, one left. Damn, this cultivation technique is clearly meant for you alone!"

"Let me go, let me go, I'll fight you to the death!" Zhaoming shouted loudly.

"Shut up!" Sun Jiuyang roared at him, making him jump.

"This is the territory of the Witch Clan. If we attract them, I'll ride my gray crane and run away. What will you two do then?" Sun Jiuyang said with a cold snort.

Scared by this, Zhaoming really didn't dare to shout anymore, only looking at Sun Jiuyang with a hateful gaze.

"Alright, stop making noise. I'm not going to kill you. It's just a little illusion, is it worth dying over?" Sun Jiuyang put Zhaoming down and released Xiu Luo from the spell.

He was shrewd and wouldn't easily trust others. Even though Zhaoming said he would tell him, he still felt it was unreliable. So, under the pretext of looking at a map, he lowered their guard and said some things that resonated with them, gradually leading them into his trap. In this situation, the information obtained was more likely to be true.

Zhaoming immediately went to Xiu Luo, looking him over anxiously, "Xiu Luo, how do you feel?"

"I'm fine!" Xiu Luo shook his head but then burst into tears, "Acao is gone, Acao is gone again!"

Zhaoming also felt a deep sorrow, holding back his tears and looking at Sun Jiuyang with hatred.

Although Acao wasn't killed by Sun Jiuyang, the illusion he cast made them feel like Acao had died again. Finding and losing someone again is more heart-wrenching than losing them for the first time.

"Really... I didn't gain anything. This suicide technique, you two Core Formation demons might not even be able to learn it, and it's useless to me!" Sun Jiuyang shook his head, preparing to ride his crane and leave, but then paused, "But the Ling Shen Technique, I can learn that!"

He glanced at the two again and muttered, "This Fire-Swallowing Demon might really be related to that person. If so, this cause and effect might be significant."

After some thought, he cursed and walked over, "You two are lucky. I'm afraid of heavenly tribulations, so I'll do a good deed."

He took out a book, "This is the Divine Wind Speed Technique. It allows you to ride the wind, extremely fast, perfect for fighting or escaping. I'll give it to you, and we'll call it even, okay?"

Zhaoming looked at him with hatred, neither shaking his head nor nodding.

Sun Jiuyang stared at him for a while, then took out another book, "This is the Divine Lightning Technique. It allows you to control lightning, with great power, and you can release it from a distance, safe and effective. If you see a Witch Clan member you don't like, you can secretly strike them. I'll give it to you, and we'll call it even, okay?"

Zhaoming bit his lip, still not responding.

Sun Jiuyang looked at him for a while, then suddenly remembered something, "Oh, I forgot, you're a Fire-Swallowing Demon, you can't learn wind or lightning techniques!"

He quickly took out another book, "You're lucky. This is a new Fire-Lightning Technique I recently created. It turns fire into lightning, as powerful as a heavenly tribulation! I'll give it to you, and we'll call it even, okay?"

Zhaoming still didn't speak, angry at Sun Jiuyang, thinking he was lying and had some ulterior motive. He decided not to respond to avoid being tricked.

This stubborn attitude infuriated Sun Jiuyang. He put the items away and turned to leave, but stopped in front of the gray crane, gritting his teeth, "Fine, this pill is useless to me anyway! If this little demon is really related to that person, and he has a good future, I'll have accumulated merit, and the heavenly tribulation might be more lenient."

He took out a medicine gourd and said to Zhaoming, "This time, you're really getting a good deal! This is the Nine Yang Golden Pill, refined from the Sun Fire Spirit Fruit. There's only one gourd in the world. It greatly helps in cultivating fire-based techniques, and I'm giving it to you today!"

"Don't blame me if I didn't warn you. When your cultivation isn't high enough, just lick it, don't swallow it, or you'll be burned to death. From here, it's only a month to your demon territory. Be careful!"

Seeing that Zhaoming still didn't respond, he didn't ask for his opinion, just shoved the medicine gourd and the Fire-Lightning Technique book into his hands and rode the gray crane away.

This time, Sun Jiuyang seemed to have really left, with no more strange occurrences, and no sign of Acao.

Suddenly, Zhaoming felt a strange desire for Sun Jiuyang to cast the illusion again, just to see Acao again. Even knowing it was fake, it would give him a sense of satisfaction.

Looking at the medicine gourd and the Fire-Lightning Technique book in his arms, Zhaoming was furious and almost threw them away. But after a moment's thought, he put them back.

He had already been tricked, and Sun Jiuyang was long gone. His actions now were meaningless.

Moreover, if these items were as useful as Sun Jiuyang said, they could indeed be helpful.

To avenge Acao, he needed to become strong, very strong. But becoming strong wasn't just about talking; he needed good cultivation techniques and methods to improve his cultivation.

Zhu Hong, I will live well and kill you.

Zhaoming took a deep breath and stood up. Cultivators of all races have the ability to store things in a small space, called "chest with ravines." Acao had taught him this, but he needed to reach the Core Formation stage to learn it.

Seeing the red string on the medicine gourd, he tied it and hung it around his neck.

It was dark, but after Sun Jiuyang's mad dash, it was already afternoon. Zhaoming didn't dare to move easily and could only stay in the tree with Xiu Luo until the sun set. Although he craved sunlight, he felt safer traveling at night.

With nothing to do, he flipped through the Fire-Lightning Technique book. Although he recognized the characters, the content was too profound for his current level, making it impossible to cultivate. He read it over and over, memorizing the content.

Finally, when the moon was bright and the stars were sparse, the two climbed down the tree and headed northeast.

Unable to fly, they had to walk. The muddy swamp made Zhaoming very uncomfortable. As a Fire-Swallowing Demon, he had an instinctive aversion to water. After a night of walking, he felt like vomiting, feeling extremely uncomfortable.

Fortunately, Xiu Luo was fine. Whenever Zhaoming couldn't continue, Xiu Luo would carry him on his back until he felt better.

Perhaps the Witch Clan also disliked the swamp, or it was too close to the demon territory. Although this was Witch Clan territory, they didn't see many Witches on the way.

Both at the Core Formation stage, they couldn't yet achieve the辟谷 (abstinence from food) of the Immortal stage. Although they didn't need to eat every day, they still needed to supplement their diet.

Fortunately, Zhaoming was a Fire-Swallowing Demon. Although he didn't dare to start a fire, just basking in the sun every day not only kept him from weakening but also increased his cultivation. For him, the heat from the sun was more direct than swallowing fire.

Xiu Luo was more troublesome, needing to catch live prey to drink blood, which sometimes took a lot of effort.

Traveling by night and resting by day, they had no issues for over twenty days. Suddenly, they saw a small forest ahead, on higher ground, not a swamp.

This made Zhaoming happy. The change in terrain suggested they were about to leave the swamp, and perhaps the demon territory was ahead.

Enduring the discomfort of the swamp, he and Xiu Luo ran toward the forest.

Stepping on solid ground again, Zhaoming felt like he had breathed air after drowning, a sense of indescribable joy.

"Brother, are we there yet?" Xiu Luo asked, feeling tired from the long journey.

Zhaoming shook his head, "I don't know, we'll find out when we go in."

As soon as he said this, he felt the sky above darken. Looking up, he was startled. The leaves were growing rapidly, getting bigger and more numerous, quickly covering the sky.

"Quick, climb!"

Zhaoming pulled Xiu Luo to run out of the forest, but it was too late. Vines twisted like snakes, and in a breath, they were tightly bound, unable to move.