Nine Transformations of the True Spirit.

The Blood Python Mountains were completely silent, with streams of rainwater flowing over the charred corpses.

The fire that had just been extinguished emitted wisps of smoke that rose upwards, obscuring the ravaged mountain peaks.

Chen Yuan looked down at the earth and said calmly, "How long are you going to hide?"

A calm yet cold voice echoed throughout the Blood Python Mountain Range. After a while, cultivators emerged one after another from the cave with its collapsed stone gate, or from the Earth Fire Palace deep within the mountain peaks.

They took to the sky, and there were about a hundred people gathered in the center of the Blood Python Mountains.

Only these high mountains, nourished by spiritual energy for so long, can withstand the thunderbolts.

Their faces turned extremely grim as they looked at Senior Chen, who had wiped out the entire Blood Spirit Sect.

These people either had extremely good luck or deliberately hid, thus avoiding being struck by lightning and surviving.

But unexpectedly, this high and mighty Nascent Soul cultivator didn't even spare them, these low-level cultivators.

Chen Yuan's gaze swept over the crowd, and he said indifferently, "If you take your own lives, I, Chen, may show leniency and allow your souls to reincarnate. Otherwise, don't blame me for annihilating your souls."

A middle-aged cultivator cried out urgently, "Senior Chen, I am not a disciple of the Blood Spirit Sect, but a cultivator of the Yin Bone Sect. I was ordered by my sect to infiltrate the Blood Spirit Sect and gather information. Please spare my life, Senior!"

The surrounding cultivators all looked over, some with disbelief exclaiming, "Senior Brother Mu, you're actually a spy for the Yinhai Sect?"

The middle-aged cultivator ignored him, ascended into the sky, and bowed deeply to Chen Yuan: "Our sect has fought many battles with the Blood Spirit Sect. I admire you greatly for destroying the Blood Spirit Sect today. I beg you to spare my life."

Chen Yuan looked him up and down and asked, "Are you really a spy for the Yinhai Sect?"

The middle-aged cultivator nodded repeatedly: "It's the real deal! Senior, please take a look. This is our sect's unique technique of using white bone corpse soldiers. Please take a look."

As he spoke, he flicked his storage bag at his waist and summoned dozens of skeletons with two fireflies in their eye sockets. They surrounded the Foundation Establishment cultivator, and a chilling wind suddenly rose, making the scene look quite sinister.

But the middle-aged cultivator's repeated bows and expectant look completely shattered the eerie atmosphere, making it appear rather comical.

The Blood Spirit Sect cultivators who survived below, upon seeing these skeletons, dared not utter a word, but their eyes revealed surprise.

Chen Yuan glanced at the skeleton and said calmly, "You may wait here."

The middle-aged cultivator breathed a sigh of relief, bowed deeply, and flew to the side.

Upon seeing this, more than a dozen cultivators immediately spoke up: "Senior, we are a spy for the Demon Origin Palace, please have mercy!"

"I am a cultivator from the Tianxuan Sect. I have come to the Blood Spirit Sect to infiltrate under the orders of my sect. As fellow cultivators of the righteous path, I humbly request that you show mercy, senior."

"I am a spy of the Hehuan Sect, and I hope you will have mercy on me, senior..."

Chen Yuan's gaze swept over the person who had begged for mercy, and he said calmly, "Since you are not cultivators of the Blood Spirit Sect, you naturally do not need to be buried with them. You can wait to the side..."

The person who spoke showed a look of joy. Chen Yuan then said, "Our sect's elders will arrive shortly to inform the four major demonic sects of this matter and request that the elders of each sect take you back."

"If any Blood Spirit Sect cultivator is impersonating you, your soul will be extracted and your spirit refined immediately, your bones crushed and your ashes scattered. You will not even have the chance to be reborn. You should think it over carefully."

As soon as the words were spoken, several people turned pale and dared not utter another word.

However, the other secret agents from various sects who had pleaded for mercy all breathed a sigh of relief, their faces full of gratitude, and they all thanked them profusely.

Their gratitude was genuine; in the eyes of high-level cultivators, low-level cultivators were nothing more than ants.

Chen Yuan didn't need to care whether they were Blood Spirit Sect cultivators or not; he could just kill them all. The sects behind them wouldn't bother Chen Yuan because of a few spies.

They begged for mercy on a whim, never expecting that Chen Yuan would actually forgive them. This greatly surprised and moved these spies who walked on the edge of a knife.

Chen Yuan waved his hand, and they quickly flew to the side of the Yinhai Sect spy. Their eyes were full of schadenfreude as they looked down at the Blood Spirit Sect cultivators.

Chen Yuan looked at these Blood Spirit Sect cultivators and said coldly, "Why don't you take your own lives? When will you?"

The faces of the crowd showed signs of struggle. Someone sighed, raised his hand and patted his chest. His life force was cut off, and a wisp of his soul left his body, turning into specks of light that dissipated and disappeared, before being reborn.

Some people were driven mad by the terror of life and death, weeping bitterly, speaking incoherently, and begging for mercy.

Some people showed no fear, shouting and cursing at the top of their lungs.

Some people, unwilling to accept defeat, used their escape techniques to flee for their lives, hoping to escape unscathed.

With just over a hundred people, a diverse array of human emotions unfolded.

Chen Yuan remained indifferent, flicked his finger, and four Kunyu short arrows flew out with lightning speed, killing all those who were cursing and trying to escape, shattering their souls.

Seeing this, some of the remaining weeping people knew they were doomed and took their own lives, while others were even more terrified and begged for mercy.

Chen Yuan shook his head slightly and then killed all the last people who begged for mercy.

The Blood Python Mountain Range fell silent again. The surviving members of various sects stared wide-eyed, barely daring to breathe, cautiously looking at Chen Yuan with expressions of awe.

Chen Yuan turned to look at the group and said calmly, "Do you know where the Blood Spirit Sect's treasure vault, spirit herb garden, scripture pavilion, alchemy pavilion, and weapon forging pavilion are located?"

The Yinhai Sect spy immediately said, "I have been infiltrating the Blood Spirit Sect for 140 years and know the inside story of this sect very well. I can show you the way."

Other spies also chimed in, some pointing out which mountain peak the Sutra Repository was on, and others indicating the distribution of the Spirit Herb Garden.

Chen Yuan then asked, "Do you know how many elders of the Blood Spirit Sect are not still in the sect?"

The crowd named several people in succession. There were four Nascent Soul cultivators guarding the area. One of them was in the mid-Nascent Soul stage, and another Nascent Soul elder was traveling outside and his whereabouts were unknown.

Chen Yuan nodded slightly: "You may all follow me."

After saying that, he descended into the light of his escape, and everyone quickly followed, arriving at the main peak of the Blood Python Mountain Range, Blood Shadow Peak.

There is a great hall here, called the Blood Shadow Hall.

Before the Nascent Soul cultivators from various sects entered the Demon Realm, they held discussions in this hall, and Chen Yuan had also visited this place before.

However, after being struck by lightning three times in succession, the Blood Shadow Palace, made of thousand-year-old spiritual wood, collapsed in large part, its beams and pillars were charred black, and all its furnishings were destroyed.

Chen Yuan sat cross-legged on a huge rock in front of the main hall, his eyes slightly closed, and began to meditate and regulate his breathing.

The crowd looked at each other, not daring to ask a question or leave. They could only stand aside, hands at their sides.

Three days passed, and everyone grew increasingly puzzled, but no one dared to disturb Chen Yuan. They could only suppress their doubts and wait patiently.

On the afternoon of the fourth day, Chen Yuan slowly opened his eyes, his escape light flashed, and he flew into the sky, saying, "You all come with me."

Everyone was shocked and many guesses arose in their hearts, but they dared not show it on their faces and all did as they were told.

They followed Chen Yuan for more than ten miles before seeing dozens of cultivators coming towards them.

Everyone's expression changed, and then they saw Chen Yuan take the initiative to go forward, clasp his hands in a salute to the young cultivator in the Tai Chi robe who was in the lead, and call him "Master".

Everyone breathed a sigh of relief. It turned out to be a cultivator from the Lingyun Sect. This person should be the sect leader of the Lingyun Sect, Jin Luoheng, the Golden Immortal.

The Lingyun Sect cultivators all bowed to Chen Yuan. The Core Formation cultivators looked at the Blood Python Mountain Range, which was in ruins and littered with corpses, and their eyes were filled with awe when they looked at Chen Yuan.

If one hadn't witnessed it with their own eyes, who could believe that the Blood Spirit Sect, a powerful sect in Donghua Continent with a history of tens of thousands of years and one of the top five demonic sects, would be destroyed in a single day?

All of this was done by the Supreme Elder in front of us alone.

From this moment forward, the cultivation world of Donghua Continent is about to undergo a dramatic change.

After exchanging greetings, Chen Yuan raised his hand and pointed to the crowd behind him: "The Blood Spirit Sect cultivators have all been killed by your disciples. These are spies planted in the Blood Spirit Sect by various sects. They have a deep understanding of the Blood Spirit Sect and can guide you in searching for its treasures."

Jin Luoheng immediately assigned tasks to the Core Formation cultivators of the Lingyun Sect. Under the guidance of the secret agents of various sects, they descended into the Blood Python Mountain Range and searched for treasures.

These spies are generally not highly skilled, mostly Foundation Establishment cultivators, with only one Core Formation cultivator among them. There's no need to worry about them interfering.

Moreover, they witnessed firsthand how Chen Yuan wiped out the entire Blood Spirit Sect, so even if they had ten times the courage, they wouldn't dare to resist.

However, the Yinhai Sect's spy stayed behind, and the Nascent Soul cultivators did not go to loot the treasures.

Chen Yuan said, "The Blood Spirit Sect still has four Nascent Soul elders and hundreds of disciples outside, guarding key locations throughout the Qin Kingdom."

"This disciple still needs to wipe them out completely. I humbly request Master to guard the Blood Python Mountain Range."

"Junior Brother Wu, Junior Brother Zhuge, you two go to the four major demonic sects and tell them about the destruction of the Blood Spirit Sect. Ask them to send a Nascent Soul elder to come here and claim their hidden spies."

Upon hearing this, Zhuge Qi quickly clasped his hands and bowed, saying, "You flatter me, Elder. We are not worthy of being addressed as such."

Wu Zexian glanced at the Yinhai Sect's spy, and Chen Yuan, seeing this, waved the man away and asked, "Junior Brother Wu, do you have something to say?"

Wu Zexian clasped his hands and bowed to Chen Yuan and Jin Luoheng: "Grand Elder, Sect Leader, these people have received a great favor from the Grand Elder, which saved their lives, and their minds are in turmoil."

"Why not take this opportunity to turn them against us? Once they return to our sect, they can be used to gather secrets and achieve twice the result with half the effort."

Jin Luoheng pondered for a moment and said, "These spies who were sent to infiltrate the Blood Spirit Sect must be extremely loyal to the sect behind them."

"Now that my identity has been exposed, I will definitely be under strict guard after returning to the sect. How can I use this?"

Wu Zexian said, “What the sect leader said is absolutely right. However, our sect can offer him spirit stones and pills, and then make him leave a confession, saying that he is willing to serve our sect. This will be used as leverage against him. If anyone refuses, he will be killed immediately.”

"It was further stated that he would be kept on the sidelines and not easily employed, in order to appease him."

"These people witnessed the destruction of the Blood Spirit Sect, were intimidated by the Supreme Elder's divine might, and were grateful for the Supreme Elder's kindness. Among them, there must be some with weak will who are willing to join our sect."

Jin Luoheng nodded slightly and looked at Chen Yuan: "What do you think?"

Chen Yuan smiled and said, "This is a trivial matter; Master can decide for me."

Jin Luoheng turned to Wu Zexian and said, "We will do as Junior Brother Wu says, but we need to separate these people and question them secretly." Wu Zexian immediately agreed, descended in his escape light, and went to turn these spies against their will.

Under the guidance of the Yinhai Sect's spies, Chen Yuan led several Core Formation cultivators away from the Blood Python Mountain Range.

In just two days, Chen Yuan led a group of men across Qin State, killing all four elders of the Blood Spirit Sect and along with hundreds of other Blood Spirit Sect disciples.

After killing all the Blood Spirit Sect cultivators, Chen Yuan would leave behind the souls of a few, use the Soul Searching Technique, and then instruct Core Formation cultivators to loot their treasures.

As for the missing Nascent Soul elder, and the other Blood Spirit Sect disciples who were either on sect missions or traveling, they could only be spared and left to be pursued later.

When Chen Yuan returned to the Blood Python Mountain Range, all the treasures stored by the Blood Spirit Sect had been looted.

Chen Yuan's attack was extremely sudden. The Blood Spirit Sect was completely unprepared, and all the treasures in the sect could not be moved in time, leaving them all to the Lingyun Sect.

Among them, the two spatial magic treasures are the most valuable, as they contain a large amount of cultivation resources and all the inheritance of the Blood Spirit Sect. If they were taken away by the Blood Spirit Sect cultivators, they would be enough to rebuild the sect instantly.

The only slight pity is that the Blood Spirit Sect's cultivation techniques mainly focus on condensing and nurturing blood spirits.

The number of spiritual materials and magical treasures has also decreased significantly, and most of them are used by demonic cultivators and are not suitable for Lingyun Sect cultivators, so they need to be refined again.

However, its flaws do not overshadow its merits. The Blood Spirit Sect has been passed down for tens of thousands of years and has an extremely profound foundation.

The treasures within the sect, especially the large number of low-grade spiritual herbs in the herb garden, are enough to greatly increase the strength of the Lingyun Sect, making it no less than the Four Great Mystic Sects.

Two days later, the four elders of the Demonic Sect, still somewhat skeptical, arrived at the Blood Python Mountain Range under the guidance of Wu Zexian and Zhuge Qi.

When they saw the corpses of Blood Spirit Sect cultivators piled up like a small mountain, and the bodies of more than a dozen Blood Spirit Sect elders laid out before them, they couldn't help but feel terrified.

Especially after seeing Yan Zhang, who looked like a skeleton and died tragically, and personally feeling the pressure of the Nascent Soul stage emanating from Chen Yuan, all their doubts were dispelled, and they no longer doubted Wu Zexian and Zhuge Qi's "boasting".

The four treated Chen Yuan with utmost respect, and were equally humble towards the other Lingyun Sect elders, showing no arrogance whatsoever despite their status as senior elders.

They claimed the spies planted by their own sect within the Blood Spirit Sect, leaving behind five spies from the four major sects.

The struggle between the nine major sects has been going on for a long time, and it is an open secret that they send spies to gather information from each other.

These dozen or so people were not all of them; the other spies either had bad luck or couldn't dodge in time and died under the thunderbolts.

Fortunately, the Lingyun Sect had only recently risen to power and its methods were still immature. It was unable to send spies to the four major demonic sects and could only gather information from the outside. Otherwise, if Chen Yuan had suddenly made a move, some damage would have been inevitable.

Before the elders of the four major demonic sects departed, they were summoned by Chen Yuan, who instructed them: "Please inform your sect leaders after you return to your sects that I, Chen, will hold a Nascent Soul Ceremony in a month to rebuild the mountain gate and discuss the ownership of the Blood Python Mountain Range and the Qin Kingdom."

"If your sect leader is willing, he must personally go to Qi State to participate in the ceremony. Those who miss the deadline will not be waited for."

“During this period, Lingyun Sect cultivators will not remain here, but if anyone steps into this place, I, Chen, will not let them off lightly if I find out in the future. Do not say I did not warn you.”

Upon hearing this, the four immediately agreed and promised to restrain their disciples so that they would never set foot in the Qin Kingdom.

After the elders of the four demonic sects left, the Lingyun Sect cultivators also embarked on their return journey, bringing back the five spies from the four major Xuan Sects.

In order to save their lives, these five spies have now all been turned to the side and have agreed to provide information to the Lingyun Sect.

After everyone returned to Lingyun Sect, Wu Zexian and Zhuge Qi set off again to the four major sects to inform them that Chen Yuan had destroyed the Blood Spirit Sect and was going to hold a Nascent Soul Ceremony to rebuild the sect. They asked the sect leaders to attend and bring back their secret agents.

Because the Blood Spirit Sect was destroyed so quickly, the news had not yet reached the righteous sects. The four great sects were all astonished when they heard about it.

However, Wu Zexian and Zhuge Qi revealed the real names and origins of the five spies, which did not seem like a fabrication.

The four major sects were filled with doubt and decided to send a Nascent Soul elder to Qi Kingdom to investigate the situation, and also ordered someone to rush to Qin Kingdom to find out the current state of the Blood Spirit Sect.

However, the elders sent to Qi by the four Xuanzong sects did not meet Chen Yuan.

On the contrary, the Nascent Soul cultivator who returned from Qin Kingdom brought news of the Blood Spirit Sect's complete annihilation, which shocked the entire sect.

The four great sects dared not be negligent in the slightest and sent another elder to the State of Qi to show that they would definitely attend Chen Yuan's Nascent Soul Ceremony on time.

They were puzzled as to what Chen Yuan meant by "re-establishing the mountain gate." Did he mean to move the entire clan to Qin State and occupy the Blood Python Mountain Range?
The four major demonic sects were filled with unease upon receiving news from their elders and hearing from their secret agents recount Chen Yuan's unparalleled divine power in summoning ten thousand thunderbolts to annihilate an entire sect single-handedly.

Among the four major demonic sects, only the Demon Origin Palace is stronger than the Blood Spirit Sect.

The other three sects are roughly equal to the Blood Spirit Sect, or even slightly inferior.

If Chen Yuan can destroy the Blood Spirit Sect, he can destroy the other three sects as well. Even the Demon Origin Palace will probably find it difficult to protect itself.

The spiritual veins of the four major demonic sects all originated from the spiritual veins of the demonic realm sealed by ancient cultivators, and they are not far from the Qin Kingdom.

If the Lingyun Sect were to relocate to the Blood Python Mountain Range, not content with the Qin Kingdom and wanting to expand, the four major demonic sects would be the first to be affected. What should be done then?
Thinking of this, the four major demonic sects immediately dispatched Nascent Soul elders to the Qi Kingdom again to investigate the true strength of the Lingyun Sect.

However, they did not see Chen Yuan, nor even Jin Luoheng, but only Zhuge Qi. They could not find out how Lingyun Sect planned to rebuild its sect, and could only return home anxiously.

……

Northwest of the State of Qi, in the middle of a desolate desert.

A fierce wind swept across the desolate Gobi Desert, pebbles rolled, and dust rose.

A barren mountain suddenly appeared on the earth, its surface made of weathered rock, with a few withered green grasses rooted in the cracks of the rocks, swaying and stubbornly resisting the gale.

Suddenly, a giant ship flew in from the horizon and landed on the top of the barren mountain.

Dozens of cultivators leaped off the giant ship, their faces filled with excitement.

Chen Yuan, Jin Luoheng, Jing Shuhan, Wu Zexian, Wei Cifeng, and Bai Yanji were the last to disembark from the giant ship. Wei Cifeng, with a very serious expression, gave the order: "Form the formation!"

The group dispersed, took out their array flags and array plates, and set up the array under Wei Cifeng's guidance.

The Lingyun Sect was well-prepared, and the formation was completed in less than a quarter of an hour.

Wei Cifeng flipped his hand and took out a three-foot-long array plate, which shimmered with spiritual light. It was clear at a glance that it was made from several rare spiritual materials and engraved with intricate seal script.

He cast several spells into the array plate, and the array plate's light gradually intensified.

Wei Cifeng suddenly stopped, turned to look at Chen Yuan, and solemnly said, "Elder, the formation has been set up and can be activated at any time."

Chen Yuan nodded slightly, and Jin Luoheng, who was standing to the side, asked, "How confident are you?"

Chen Yuan said, "Eighty or ninety percent."

Jin Luoheng laughed and said, "Good! Once this is accomplished, our sect will have established a foundation for all ages. Junior Brother Wei, now activate the formation."

Wei Cifeng said, "Please, Sect Leader, senior brothers and sisters, return to your positions and pour your true essence into the array plate."

As soon as he finished speaking, Jin Luoheng, Jing Shuhan, Wu Zexian, and Bai Yanji each took out an array plate, which was much smaller than the array plate in Wei Cifeng's hand.

The four retreated, surrounding Wei Cifeng in the middle, raising their hands to form hand seals and injecting true energy into the array plate.

The array plates in their hands also lit up. At the same time, Wei Cifeng raised his hand and made a hand seal. The array plate in his palm slowly flew up, hovered in the air, trembled gently, and shone brightly.

Suddenly, the array plate hummed, and a white beam of light shot into the sky, soaring straight into the heavens.

Ripples appeared in the void, and a five-colored spiritual gate slowly emerged, standing atop the mountain.

Wei Cifeng changed his hand seals, and the gate of spiritual light slowly opened, revealing a five-colored stream of light.

Wei Cifeng said solemnly, "The Dongxu Mountain Secret Realm has been opened, but only Qi Refining cultivators can enter."

"If the Supreme Elder wishes to enter, he will have to use other supernatural powers; I, Wei, am truly powerless to do so."

Chen Yuan smiled slightly: "Junior Brother Wei only needs to maintain the formation."

He raised his hand and formed a hand seal, his aura slowly spreading out, and the pressure of a Nascent Soul cultivator quietly descended.

The crowd's expressions changed slightly. Although the pressure was not directed at them, it still put immense pressure on their souls, as if they were carrying a huge boulder.

Chen Yuan's aura slowly rose, and a pair of jet-black wings stretched out from his back. A strange, monstrous fish-like dharma image appeared behind him.

This strange fish had a bird's head and a fish's body, and was entirely black. It had a pair of large wings and was ten feet in size. It opened its mouth and let out a long, desolate cry, as if it came from the ancient wilderness.

Chen Yuan's white robe turned pitch black, but it was covered with a layer of milky white shimmering light, as warm and smooth as jade.

He stepped out, instantly traversing ten zhang (approximately 33 meters) to arrive before the five-colored spiritual light gate, and without stopping, stepped inside.

Everyone looked tense until Chen Yuan's figure slowly disappeared into the multicolored spiritual light, only then did they breathe a sigh of relief.

Wei Cifeng was excited: "If the Supreme Elder can ignore the protective array of the Dongxu Mountain Secret Realm and enter it, such methods are truly unfathomable."

Bai Yanji exclaimed in amazement: "This is the power of the Nascent Soul stage. It's laughable that I once asked the Supreme Elder where the Jinghai Pill he gave me came from."

"The Blood Spirit Sect has been destroyed by the Supreme Elder. With the Dongxu Mountain Secret Realm under their control, our sect will have no weaknesses and will be able to dominate Donghua."

Jin Luoheng said in a deep voice, "This matter has not yet been accomplished. Let's wait until Chen Yuan breaks through the formation before we celebrate."

"Before he leaves the secret realm, we must maintain the formation and not let our guard down."

The group's expressions turned solemn, and they responded in unison. Only Jing Shuhan stared at the five-colored spiritual light gate, a hint of worry flashing in her eyes.

The others were all dreaming of taking over the Dongxu Mountain Secret Realm, but she was worried that if Chen Yuan forced his way in despite the restrictions of the secret realm's great formation, he might suffer a backlash from the formation.

Jin Luoheng noticed that Jing Shuhan's expression was unusual and guessed what she was thinking. He comforted her, saying, "Elder Jing, don't worry. Chen Yuan is a cautious person and would never take risks rashly."

"Since he said he was 80 or 90% sure, he shouldn't make a mistake."

Jing Shuhan's expression softened slightly, and she nodded gently: "What the Sect Leader says is absolutely right. I should not doubt my husband." (End of this chapter)