Chapter 363: Big Fish
"Whoosh!"
Alkaid blinked.
He appeared directly above a small city that spanned no more than three thousand miles.
At that moment, the entire city seemed to have fallen into a deep slumber.
Everyone's face was pale, suffering from terrible nightmares.
Countless terrifying thoughts born from these nightmares rose steadily and converged in the sky above the city into a Cave Heaven.
This Cave Heaven appeared like a mirage or a light screen, incessantly devouring the thoughts born from the horrific dreams, and similarly draining the essence, energy, and spirit of the city's inhabitants.
Following this trend, within at most ten days, all cultivators in the city would die from being drained of their essence, energy, and spirit due to intense emotional changes.
As for nearly a million ordinary people living in this city...
Demon Cultivators had arrived in this small city about a day or two ago, and ordinary people simply couldn't last that long; they had already died from exhaustion of their essence, energy, and spirit.
Upon reaching the airspace above the city, Alkaid waved his hand, and the Cave Heaven enveloping the city's sky was torn open as if it had been struck by a blade of divine retribution.
The sudden attack startled the heart of this Hollow Void Demon Cultivator.
"Vice Sect Leader of the Heavenly Dao Sect, Alkaid!?"
At the moment he recognized Alkaid, the Hollow Void did not dare to continue the fierce confrontation.
The moment the Cave Heaven was torn apart, he seemed to have used a certain life-saving secret technique; the Void appeared like boiling steam, rapidly dispersing into nothingness, turning into two misty forms about to fly away into the distance.
The Demonic Path is formless.
Almost every Demon Cultivator lacks a fixed form, which is why they can immediately alter their shape when attacked.
However...
While such techniques afford them a considerable advantage over lower-level cultivators, they are of little use against those who command the power of the Void, like the Hollow Void.
Especially for someone like Alkaid, who had planted a Void Dao Seed and attained Void Refinement.
As the Hollow Void Demon Cultivator turned into two clouds of demonic mist trying to escape and flee, Alkaid's Cave Heaven manifested.
With a motion of his hand, the power of the Cave Heaven was projected, planting a black hole node in the two clouds of demonic mist, beginning to crazily devour them.
Although the demonic mist also contained the characteristics of the Void, and could even warp space, it was quickly refined in the presence of Alkaid's power from the Cave Heaven.
The entire scene resembled a black hole swallowing two stars, except these were stars made of demonic mist.
No matter how the Hollow Void Demon Cultivator struggled, he could only watch as his true form rapidly fell into Alkaid's "Cave Heaven."
"Damn it!"
Facing a life-and-death crisis, the Demon Cultivator made a decisive choice on the spot.
The demonic mist seemed to turn into sheer darkness, shielding everything around it, such that even the power of Alkaid's Cave Heaven seemed masked by this darkness, making it difficult to pinpoint his true form.
"A Lifebound Daoist Art born from the Darkness Dao?"
Alkaid's expression remained unchanged.
The light of the True Spirit shone forth.
Under the illumination of the True Spirit's Light, the Cave Heaven shrouded by the Darkness Dao's concealment clearly captured the location of this demon cultivator's true body.
The next moment, he took a step into the void, and amidst the blinking of the void, he appeared directly above the demon cultivator's true body. The Cave Heaven materialized, pulling him and even the space surrounding him into it.
"How is that possible? Even those in the Void Refinement Realm can hardly detect my Darkness without form. It's for this reason that the sect allowed me to infiltrate the Southern Region... you actually..."
This demon cultivator of the Hollow Void was both shocked and furious, his body, formed from demonic mist, constantly shifting, trying every possible way to escape from the refinement of the Cave Heaven.
But...
As the operation of Alkaid's Cave Heaven became more vigorous, the demon cultivator could only watch helplessly as more and more of his true body was refined, becoming a part of Alkaid's Cave Heaven.
"Stop! Alkaid, if you kill me, you will completely offend our Yin Moon Sect! Your Heavenly Dao Sect leader has always had a tradition of suppressing prominent vice sect leaders. With the sect leader watching intently, and offending our Yin Moon Sect both internally and externally, your position as the master of the Southern Region will soon come to an end!"
This demon cultivator's Divine Sense continuously struck through the demonic mist, "Spare me, and I can ask my sect not to make a move against your Southern Region anymore. We could even join forces to jointly confront Zong Wenxian!"
Each assault of Divine Sense seemed to contain an inexplicable fluctuation that could make one involuntarily trust the information he conveyed.
This was another Dao Technique of his—Bewildering Heart Mantra.
Unfortunately...
Alkaid did not even need to use soul-type defensive Dao Techniques—Supreme Selflessness; just by maintaining the state of True Spirit's Light, with its intrinsic properties, he easily dispelled the confusing power of this barely entry-level Bewildering Heart Mantra.
"Knowing that the Southern Region is my territory and still daring to wreak havoc here... let me use your lives as a warning to the Yin Moon Sect, making them understand the cost of stepping into the Southern Region."
Alkaid said calmly, as the operation of the Cave Heaven accelerated.
Under the dominance of the Void Force, the demonic flames transformed from the demon cultivator's true form were evenly ground, shattered, and turned into precise Void Force, entering the Cave Heaven.
No matter how much he struggled or resisted, it was of no avail.
In just half an hour, this demon cultivator was completely refined by him, turning into part of the nourishment that strengthened the Cave Heaven.
Finally, he casually clenched his hand, and three clumps of demonic mist formed in his hand, turning into three Spirit Treasures.
"Miser."
He murmured a word.
"This Hollow Void demon cultivator does not specialize in Dao Techniques of slaughter, sacrifices, or bloodshed... Mengzhou must have at least a second Hollow Void."
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Alkaid understood in his heart.
After recalling the recent visits to cities, the next moment, he deployed Void Blink and vanished from this small town.
The invasion by demon cultivators in Mengzhou was so severe that the local ruling families there had very likely turned traitor; therefore, he naturally would not go to the local families of Mengzhou to inquire about the situation.
After all, with his consummate expertise in the Dao Technique of Void Blink, inspecting Mengzhou wouldn't take much time.
...
It seemed that because he eradicated the demon cultivators in every city he appeared in, or perhaps because the killing of a Hollow Void demon cultivator made the Yin Moon Sect cautious, when Alkaid cleansed the nineteenth city, he surprisingly didn't find any demon cultivators.
However, from the remnants of destruction in this city, it was clear that it had been ravaged by demon cultivators.
Even those Demon Cultivators must have left just a short while ago.
"Sensing the crisis, huh? That's right, the fall of a Hollow Void would alert any power to the danger and prompt them to withdraw cautiously."
Alkaid, following traces the Demon Cultivators had not managed to erase in time, blinked and pursued them at once.
He chased for barely 40,000 li before encountering over a dozen Demon Cultivators in his Perception.
"Swoosh!"
Upon revealing himself, he and these Demon Cultivators, none stronger than Ninth Rank, exchanged no idle talk. He deployed his Cave Heaven, immediately capturing them inside, and then proceeded to refine them one by one with the power of the Cave Heaven.
Demon Cultivators often lack a physical form and can be considered as energy forms.
In such a form, refining Demon Cultivators is no less valuable than precious cultivation materials.
Of course, only a Refining Void cultivator possesses the capacity to refine Demon Cultivators as cultivation resources.
Refining Void, Refining Void!
This process itself drew nourishment from all things between heaven and earth to replenish oneself and enhance one's Cave Heaven.
All living beings could be refined, so too the sun, moon, and stars, and even the years and the Void.
It was simply a matter of some things being quicker to refine, while others took longer.
While refining these Demon Cultivators, Alkaid seemed to notice something. With a virtual hand, he retrieved a Jade Talisman from a Demon Cultivator being refined.
With a sweep of his Divine Sense, he quickly deciphered the information within.
"An unknown powerful entity has arrived! Hurry to Mengzhou City to regroup and retreat first!"
"Mengzhou City?"
Alkaid crushed the Jade Talisman, recalled the location of Mengzhou City in his mind, and without caring if there might be any trap there, immediately summoned the Void Disk and headed straight to this city.
With his current strength...
Throughout the world, unless he encountered a Dao Lord or a Demon Cultivator completely counteracting his Void Blink, everywhere under heaven was accessible to him.
...
In less than half an hour, the Void Disk bearing Alkaid had already appeared outside Mengzhou City.
"Hm?"
Upon reaching Mengzhou City, Alkaid sensed something.
Danger.
There was danger lurking inside this city.
However...
"The danger is not strong! If I'm not mistaken, could there be a Refining Void Demon Cultivator hidden within?"
Alkaid pondered slightly.
These Demon Cultivators had clearly investigated the martial forces around him.
Apart from him, the strongest was Qi Sha.
If a Hollow Void Demon Cultivator wreaked havoc at the border, he would have sent Qi Sha, a pinnacle Hollow Void who mastered the Great Path of Destruction.
Thus, should Qi Sha receive this message and come to Mengzhou City, a hidden Refining Void would be enough to bury this peak Hollow Void within.
Even...
Even if a Refining Void realm comes here, it doesn't matter.
Within the Yin Moon Sect, there are Refining Voids as well.
Add to that the support of Hollow Void Demon Cultivators on the side...
Whose deer to catch is yet unknown.
"Refining Void... the timing of your arrival is just perfect."
Alkaid tucked away the Void Disk and brought out the Two Realms Ruler.
"The Dao Artifact auction hasn't started yet, and not many Refining Voids have arrived, but already many are stirring up trouble in the Southern Capital, disrupting the order... Ultimately, my deterrent power isn't strong enough. And what better way to boost it than by slaughtering a Refining Void realm Demon Cultivator?"
The next moment, his figure blinked, appearing directly above Mengzhou City.
This city was originally a major city in Mengzhou with a population of several hundred thousand.
If you include mortals, it was home to tens of millions of beings.
But now...
It had already become a city of death.
Countless strands of weaker and stronger Demonic Qi filled every corner of the city like a massive net, or like a gaping maw, seemingly capable of devouring any creature that fell within.
Even Alkaid...
In their view, was no exception.
"Buzz buzz!"
The moment Alkaid appeared above Mengzhou City, several Divine Senses vibrated simultaneously.
"Void Shuttle technique!? A big fish is hooked!"
"Wait, let me see who this is! Vice Sect Leader of the Heavenly Dao Sect, and Lord of the Southern Region, Alkaid!? Hahahaha! A big fish! This is truly a big fish!"
"Lord of the Evil Eye, your fishing method, though simple, has directly drawn out the hidden gem of the Heavenly Dao Sect in the Southern Region."
When these Divine Senses "saw" the identity of the newcomer, they all displayed irrepressible excitement.
Soon, a creature resembling a human, but with six arms and three pairs of eyes, appeared above the city.
The energy fluctuations emanating from his body caused ripples in the Void, clearly indicating he was a Refining Void!
A Refining Void Demon Cultivator!