Chapter 838: Chapter 76: The Dragon Turtle Monster

Speaking of Xuanwu, one has to trace back to the ancient times.

In that era, there were no such distinctions as furry, scaly, horned, or feathered races among the Demon Race. Many demons gathered together not because of blood ties but for better survival.

The Jiaolong was adept at attack, while Xuan Gui excelled in defense; thus, the two species grew close and even lived together, forming the same clan and taking the name “Xuanwu”.

As for when the Xuanwu disintegrated, that’s another story altogether.

“Xuanwu Temple?” Among the Shushan elders, there were several who were well-versed in the history of the Demon Race, and couldn’t help being astonished.

“What’s the story behind this Xuanwu Temple?” Su Jian immediately asked.

“Xuanwu was once one of the four strongest clans of the ancient Demon Race,” replied an elder from Shushan, “Though referred to as one clan, it actually consisted of the Jiaolong and Xuan Gui.”

“After the defeat of the Demon Race, they collectively withdrew to the Eastern Emperor’s Realm. Some of the Demon Race still remained in the remote corners of the Divine Land, continuing their lineage. It seems that this Xuanwu Temple must have been built by the remnants of the Xuanwu Clan.”

No, Ling Yunpo frowned in thought.

The reliefs on the outer walls of this temple were all wrong: the pattern on the Xuan Gui’s shell was completely incorrect, the Jiaolong’s body wasn’t that long, and its horns bore the style of a Qilin’s… The builders of this temple clearly had never seen the Xuanwu Clan and merely carved based on some vague conjectures.

Perhaps this Marsh Country was indeed established by the Xuanwu Clan at the beginning, but a certain cataclysm must have happened later that caused a complete discontinuation of Xuanwu’s cultural heritage, otherwise the temple wouldn’t have been built this way.

You must understand, in the Demon Race where clan culture is prevalent, temples are equivalent to the ancestral halls of humans – representing the face of ancestors!

Constructing the outer walls with such glaring errors could almost be considered a scandal. If the Xuanwu Clan were still around, how could they have allowed it to stand until today?

The group chose not to use Sword Control to vault over the walls because, after all, as the elder had said, Xuanwu was once one of the strongest clans of the Demon Race. Who knew what kind of Restrictions were inside the temple that might attack those who trespassed?

After walking a short distance, they quickly found the temple’s main entrance.

Su Jian led the way in, quickly scanning the surroundings.

“There’s a smell of blood, and it’s recent,” he said gravely.

Which meant that not long ago there had been a slaughter here, and that’s why the temple courtyard was now empty.

Seeing this, the faces of the Shushan Sword Immortals darkened concurrently.

Thinking optimistically, it could be that there was infighting among the natives of the secret realm, leading to them slaughtering each other.

But on the pessimistic side, perhaps someone had gotten here first and ransacked the place…

With this thought, everyone couldn’t help feeling disturbed.

Su Jian’s expression turned grim as he entered the main hall. Suddenly, his eyes lit up, and the Harsh Cold Sword was already unsheathed.

As if on cue, the Magic Swords of the True Elders behind him were drawn in unison, and they saw a group of Demon Cult followers standing in the hall, led by Wei Dongliu, the infamous Demon Head who had once besieged Kunlun.

“I’d advise you not to start a fight here,” Jiang Lian, standing beside Wei Dongliu, said with a grin, “lest you say we bullied you for being few in number.”

Indeed, the number of people on the Demon Cult’s side seemed to be more than those from Shushan… As Ling Yunpo quickly surveyed his opponents, he heard Su Jian sneer:

“What a Demon Head!”

The words had barely faded when the Harsh Cold Sword shot out like an arrow, aiming straight for Jiang Lian’s head.

Wei Dongliu remained expressionless, Jiang Lian’s face was full of smiles, and the Six Paths followers behind him did not intervene, only showing a look of ridicule and mockery.

Suddenly, Su Jian’s face changed, as a blue light emerged from the void and slashed viciously towards his head.

In the blink of an eye, he swiftly executed his Sword technique, transforming the Harsh Cold Sword from thrust to pick, and quickly met the blue light shadow.

The light shadow immediately split in two, cleanly severed by the Harsh Cold Sword, which caused Su Jian’s face to pale suddenly–it must have been due to the Harsh Cold Sword being damaged, a sympathetic response from its connection to him.

The blue light shadow seemed swift and silent, unexpectedly powerful enough to shake the essence of the Harsh Cold Sword?

Ling Yunpo suddenly realized, and hurriedly said to everyone:

“Do not act rashly, there are Restrictions in the hall!”

The members of Shushan already had their swords drawn, but upon hearing Qing Heng True Person’s warning, they all restrained their movements, ceasing their advance.

Consequently, the faces of the Demon Cult members opposite them showed disappointment, and Jiang Lian narrowed his eyes with ill intent towards Ling Yunpo.

An Zhisu quietly stepped forward, shielding from the malevolent gaze of the Great Unrestrained Heavenly Demon.

Seeing that the Demon Cult members didn’t launch a counterattack, the Shushan sect members also understood:

In this hall, there must be some mechanism that forbids combat, otherwise the powerful blue light shadow would strike directly.

It was only because Su Jian’s swordsmanship was so formidable, able to switch from offense to defense at the crucial moment. Had an ordinary Cultivator been hit, they would likely have been split asunder on the spot.

Ling Yunpo, however, was secretly astonished, replaying the blue light shadow in his mind.

The shape and outline of that light shadow, why did it so resemble the tail of a Jiaolong? Oh, a lashing tail?

Both sides occupied the left and right sides of the main hall, neither making a sound.

However, while Shushan’s side was bewildered, unclear about what to expect here; Six Paths’ side seemed confident, though it was unclear if they truly understood the secrets within or were merely feigning knowledge.

Soon, a sinister voice came from inside:

“Another wave of enemies? It doesn’t matter. Once I’ve fully cultivated my Divine Cultivation, not a single one of you will leave alive; you’ll all die! All of you will die!”

The Shushan side remained silent, still clueless in their hearts.

The Demon Cult, on the other hand, suddenly tensed up, seemingly brewing a preemptive strike… which made Shushan’s side feel as if facing a formidable foe.

“Now is the moment!” Wei Dongliu suddenly shouted.

At his command, the Demon Cult members all took action. The brilliances of various Spells, Magical Treasures, and Magic Swords simultaneously bombarded the Xuanwu statue deep within the hall.

The Shushan side had their counterattack Sword techniques ready, but when they realized the attack was not aimed at them, they quickly redirected their efforts towards the statue as well.

The statue, hit by everyone’s assault, immediately exploded violently, revealing the grotesque True Body inside.

Ling Yunpo took a hard look and almost spat out the wine he drank earlier.

What kind of monstrous creature was this? It appeared to have a carapace like that of the Xuan Gui, but with six legs that extended from beneath the shell, and a neck as slender as a snake, as if it was spliced together from the flesh of Jiaolong and Xuan Gui.

The creature roared furiously, with the oppressive might of Mount Tai, rolling towards the crowd.

It was clear that Six Paths was well-prepared, quickly splitting into two groups. One group ignored the monster, taking advantage of the shattered doorway statue to rush through the passage that had appeared behind it.

The other group hurriedly attracted and intercepted the monster’s assault to prevent it from attacking the first group, also deliberately drawing the attacks towards the Shushan side.

Caught off guard due to lack of preparation, Shushan could only pour their attacks onto the massive creature.

The more pain the creature felt, the angrier it became, and it powerfully swung its tail from under the shell, subsequently lashing heavily at the members of Shushan.