The Demon Venerable’s Wistful Desire - Chapter 23

From where he was hidden in the forest, Chi Muyao used a concealed weapon to block the Golden-eyed Heavenly Wolf attack for Xi Huai.

No matter if it was the He Huan Sect or Yu Chong School’s spells, none were suitable for a direct confrontation with the Golden-eyed Heavenly Wolf, due to Chi Muyao’s early stage Foundation Building cultivation. Only while concealed could he exchange a blow or two with the beast.

From his hiding place in the forest, Chi Muyao could see two Golden-eyed Heavenly Wolf bodies on the ground. There was one more wolf drawing its last breath.

The crevice they forced open in the Array had already been sealed by Xi Huai’s group. Now, the only thing left to take care of was the alpha wolf.

How fierce this battle had been was more than apparent. Xi Huai could barely hold on, and even Song Weiyue and Zong Sichen, as well as Yu Yanshu who rushed over later on, couldn’t fight any longer. They were currently using artefacts to hide.

The only one who could continue fighting right now was Chi Muyao.

Chi Muyao didn’t dare to act rashly. He had the self-awareness to know that he lacked the strength of the other four and needed to proceed with caution.

He took out the concealed weapon of the He Huan Sect from his qiankun bag and sandwiched it between his index finger and ring finger, waiting for an opportunity in the forest.

The alpha wolf also realised that someone else had come. It was very uneasy due to not being able to estimate the strength of its opponent, especially since it was injured.

Its previous mistake of underestimating the opposition led to Foundation Building stage cultivators somehow bringing them to this state. This made the alpha wolf cautious. Instead of sticking around to battle until the end, it forced itself to get up and flee in another direction.

It leapt over Chi Muyao’s head, the motion causing blood to splatter on Chi Muyao’s cheek.

Without hesitation, he threw the concealed weapon the moment the alpha wolf was right above him.

This Golden-eyed Heavenly Wolf was heavily injured, with its organs hanging out. Suddenly, someone sliced open its abdomen violently.

He knew this Golden-eyed Heavenly Wolf didn’t have long to live.

But if he let it go, who knew if the Golden-eyed Heavenly Wolf’s powerful vitality would let it heal itself?

Besides this, would the other cultivators be able to live if it survived? The Golden-eyed Heavenly Wolf had a vengeful nature. Since Xi Huai and the others heavily injured it and even killed its companions, it would definitely come to seek revenge if allowed to recover.

And with how heavily injured everyone was, they might not have it in them to put up a fight.

The only thing to do under these circumstances was to make it impossible to recover.

He hesitated a moment before throwing down a protective barrier with healing effects towards Xi Huai. Then he chased after the head wolf with the Teleportation Technique.

He couldn’t let everyone’s previous efforts be in vain.

This Golden-eyed Heavenly Wolf must die today! The Golden-eyed Heavenly Wolf’s movement speed was very fast, especially at night.

However, Chi Muyao was able to quickly lock on to its tracks by relying on the experience he gained at the Yu Chong School.

He followed after the Golden-eyed Heavenly Wolf at a certain distance, only able to track it for now. Unless the Golden-eyed Heavenly Wolf stopped to rest, he wouldn’t be able to catch up.

By the time he did, the scene before him greatly shocked him.

He heard the wailing of the Colourless Yunni Deer.

He had a bad feeling about this.

There was a Colourless Yunni Deer inside this Grand Array. In a bid for survival, it was highly likely that the Golden-eyed Heavenly Wolf went to attack it!

Even if the Colourless Yunni Deer was unwilling to heal the Wolf, it could consume the flesh of the Colourless Yunni Deer since that also had healing properties.

Every bit of the Colourless Yunni Deer’s body could be described as good medicine.

This was also one of the reasons there were so few left.

By the time Chi Muyao arrived, the Golden-eyed Heavenly Wolf had already broken through the Colourless Yunni Deer’s self-protection barrier and viciously tore into the Colourless Yunni Deer’s neck.

The Colourless Yunni Deer’s silver-white body was already drenched in fresh blood. It tried to struggle its way out of the Golden-eyed Heavenly Wolf’s fangs to no avail.

Chi Muyao didn’t dare to wait any longer. He retrieved concealed weapons from his qiankun bag and sent every one of them flying at the vital points of the Golden-eyed Heavenly Wolf.

The Golden-eyed Heavenly Wolf did show a reaction to being stuck, but it refused to let go. After all, consuming the Colourless Yunni Deer meant surviving, so how could it give up?

Chi Muyao’s reserves of spiritual energy were limited and concealed weapons alone wouldn’t do anything. In the end, he retrieved his round fan from his dantian. Transforming it into a sword, he leapt on the Golden-eyed Heavenly Wolf’s back.

Naturally, the Golden-eyed Heavenly Wolf began to struggle, causing the Colourless Yunni Deer to be jolted even more violently.

Chi Muyao knew that time was of the essence. He stabbed his sword into the Golden-eyed Heavenly Wolf’s eye.

Blood instantly spewed in all directions, drenching Chi Muyao’s face in crimson. He paid it no mind and closed his eyes. Gritting his teeth, he used all the force he could muster to drive the sword a few inches deeper.

The Golden-eyed Heavenly Wolf used its eyes to cast Metal Element spells. Destroying one of its eyes was like cutting its attack power by half. The pain would also cause it to temporarily release the Colourless Yunni Deer.

As expected, the Golden-eyed Heavenly Wolf let go. However, it also tossed Chi Muyao aside.

His body slammed into the side of the mountain before falling to the ground, the huge impact making him feel like his ribs were broken.

Yet while he struggled to get up, Chi Muyao felt that his injuries were mending and his body was suddenly lighter. He looked up at the Colourless Yunni Deer, realising that it healed his injuries as well while healing itself.

As long as the Colourless Yunni Deer was present, it would be able to save Chi Muyao, unless his body was smashed into smithereens.

No longer afraid, he stood up with sword in hand to continue the battle.

Even with one eye gone, the Golden-eyed Heavenly Wolf could still attack, just not as powerfully as at first. However, it was more than enough to deal with someone at early stage Foundation Building and lacking any real offensive force, like Chi Muyao.

Chi Muyao’s body was already littered with injuries just from approaching the Golden-eyed Heavenly Wolf, not to mention setting up any kind of formation while it attacked.

When he tried to set up a formation with one hand, his arm was literally severed from his body by the Golden-eyed Heavenly Wolf’s Golden Spikes. Blood spewed out incessantly. That bone-deep pain made him grunt subconsciously. Tears flowed wildly down his face.

His arm may have regrown by the time he looked up again, but that instant of bone-deep pain from losing an arm remained with him.

He could only continue to set up a formation with tears in his eyes.

There was no looking back since he had already made his decision.

Finally, he completed the preparations and roared, “Twenty-four Killing Divinity Formation, rise!”

In an instant, golden light shot out from beneath his feet. Violent winds from within the formation whipped at his sleeves, making them look like flags fluttering in the wind.

His long hair danced wildly with the wind. His bangs flew about his forehead, as if to hide the killing intent in his eyes.

The light shining from below cast terrifying shadows on Chi Muyao’s normally soft features, the blood splattered across his cheeks added a haunting sort of beauty.

His eyes were firm and even contained a trace of bloodlust. Sacrificing a drop of blood from between his brows to complete the formation, he launched a vicious assault on the Golden-eyed Heavenly Wolf.

Chi Muyao had an impure spiritual root, and none of the Sects he had entered were known for their fighting prowess.

That’s why in his spare time he studied formations as another way to protect himself.

When the He Huan Sect Master noticed his interest in formations, she specifically procured for him a secret manual on the subject from the elder of another sect.

This secret manual was called the 24 Killing Formations.

Among them, the ‘Killing Divinity Formation’ was the most powerful and formidable of all, requiring the most energy as well. A slight mistake while controlling it meant that even the caster might be swallowed by the formation.

Facing the onslaught from the formation, the Golden-eyed Heavenly Wolf roared, and tried to attack Chi Muyao again. All he could do was endure.

Finally catching a breather, the Colourless Yunni Deer weakly settled on the ground to one side and set up a protective barrier around Chi Muyao.

Chi Muyao was finally able to breathe a sigh of relief inside the barrier.

At the same time, he could feel his body becoming lighter and lighter. It was as if the Colourless Yunni Deer was not only healing his injuries, but also injecting spiritual energy into his body.

All beings had their own sentience.

The Colourless Yunni Deer knew from the first time it saw Chi Muyao that these two Yu Chong School disciples held it in high respect.

And right now, this little cultivator was trying his hardest to save it.

So it was also doing its best to help Chi Muyao in turn.

Sensing this turn of fortunes, the Golden-eyed Heavenly Wolf tried to leave once more.

But Chi Muyao would definitely not allow this. He used the formation to try and trap it.

This was his first time trying to use a formation to trap such a huge beast, and a heaven-grade one at that. Chi Muyao felt spiritual energy draining from his body at an extremely fast rate. It almost felt like his tendons were being ripped out.

Even with the Colourless Yunni Deer’s assistance, the pain was staggering.

He could only roar fiercely like a beast, no trace of his original gentle demeanour to be seen.

Blue veins broke out on the hand manipulating the formation, as well as on his forehead and neck, showing just how much pain he was enduring.

At this time, Qiuqiu suddenly received Chi Muyao’s summons from within the spirit pet bag. It flew out and spread its wings, turning into a firebird. Now a being of molten fire, it began its assault on the Golden-eyed Heavenly Wolf.

This was the perfect time to strike.

Bright flames suddenly lit up the night, causing the Golden-eyed Heavenly Wolf’s nerves to alight with fear.

The Golden-eyed Heavenly Wolf was already on its last breath, not to mention its battle with the Colourless Yunni Deer before. It gradually lost the ability to fight and collapsed on the ground, even letting out a frustrated growl in the end.

Chi Muyao didn’t dare to relax just yet, continuing to attack in case it was just playing dead. Spiritual beasts that could cultivate until they were heaven-grade were all sly old things. You shouldn’t underestimate them just because they were spirit beasts.

Chi Muyao only relaxed when he sensed the Golden-eyed Heavenly Wolf’s spiritual energy dissipating.

It wasn’t until he tried to move that he realised how long he had been tensed up. He was actually a little unsteady on his feet. His forehead and back were doused in cold sweat. The formation this time had almost sapped him dry of spiritual energy.

Just in case, he staggered over to the corpse and pried his sword from its eye. Slashing open the carcass, he carved out the devil core, rendering this spirit beast dead once and for all.

These were all things he had learned after entering the Yu Chong School, where he had plenty of time to practice as well.

This battle couldn’t have been won without the experience gained from two Sects as well as the assistance of the Colourless Yunni Deer. Without them, he wouldn’t have been able to even help out due to his low cultivation.

After recovering, he staggered towards the Colourless Yunni Deer, only to abruptly freeze.

The Colourless Yunni Deer hadn’t healed its own injuries. The wound on its neck was still bleeding.

Chi Muyao didn’t understand. He walked over and subconsciously used his hand to help stem the bleeding.

“Why did things turn out like this?” He was distressed to the point of tears. Of course he would be sad that the spirit beast their Yu Chong School worshiped was injured to this degree.

Qiuqiu turned back into a little bird and landed on Chi Muyao’s shoulder. It also regarded the Colourless Yunni Deer.

His hand touched the Colourless Yunni Deer’s fur, allowing him to sense its emotions. Its devil core had been fractured, meaning it had not long to live.

The Colourless Yunni Deer required very specific conditions to thrive. Their devil core would become muddled the moment it came into contact with unclean things, stripping them of their healing abilities and rendering them an ordinary deer.

This Colourless Yunni Deer’s devil core had been contaminated by the Golden-eyed Heavenly Wolf. Its antlers would soon turn black.

It was better to die before the change took place, leaving a perfect body behind.

Yet…there was something it couldn’t let go of just yet.

“What? You want me to take care of something? I’m a disciple of the Yu Chong School, taking care of you is our duty. I will definitely do my best to take care of you.” Chi Muyao spoke to it.

It struggled to its feet before heading off in one direction.

Chi Muyao followed behind with heavy feet.

They seemed to have entered a secluded realm. Chi Muyao could sense that there was a grotto heaven here.

He never would’ve thought there was another secluded realm within the Mitian Tongyin Array, one completely different from the outside world.

This secluded realm was filled with plum blossoms glowing under moonlight reflected in a lotus pond. The fresh winds brought with it the scent of incense and floral fragrance. The entire secluded realm was brimming with a sense of holiness.

He followed it into the cave residence within the secluded realm. Within, a small Colourless Yunni Deer came to sadly nuzzle the larger deer. It must’ve noticed the larger deer’s injuries as well.

Everything became clear to Chi Muyao once he saw the small Colourless Yunni Deer.

So this Colourless Yunni Deer had a fawn.

Colourless Yunni Deer fawn would stay within their mother’s bodies for many years, eventually inheriting half of her spiritual power. This fawn could be described as one of the most precious treasures in the mortal realm No wonder the Golden-eyed Heavenly Wolf broke into the Array. It was probably after this fawn.

Larger Colourless Yunni Deers could protect themselves, and their flesh had nothing but healing properties.

But fawns were different. If you could devour it before it matured, your cultivation would go up one realm.

Chi Muyao knelt and kowtowed at the entrance of the cave residence. “Disciple Chi Muyao will definitely remain within the Array and care for it until it grows up.”

He knew that he didn’t have the ability to care for it outside of the Array. In fact, he would probably be attacked as soon as he left.

So he could only remain within the Array and raise the deer to maturity.

The larger deer looked down at him before lowering its head to gesture for him to rise.

After he got up, the larger deer nudged him with its antler.

He could sense the larger deer’s emotions, and what he perceived astonished him. He immediately and frantically shook his head. “This disciple has very inadequate qualifications and a three-element spiritual root. I’m not worthy to…”

The larger deer looked like it was in pain. He noticed its antlers beginning to lose their purity.

It wanted to make a spiritual contract with Chi Muyao before it passed on, so he could use its strength to protect the little deer.

This way, it would be able to retain its pure healing power while also rewarding him.

He glanced at the little deer and knew that the time for hesitation was over. He finally clenched his fists and nodded. “This disciple is willing to make a spirit contract with you.”

Once he contracted with the Colourless Yunni Deer, Chi Muyao would inherit its healing ability as well as its enormous spiritual energy reserves.

Like the Hui and Xi Huai, he would have a strong backing.

However, the Hui was forced to make a spirit contract, which was why it always tormented Xi Huai and Xi Lin.

But the Colourless Yunni Deer wouldn’t do such a thing. It wanted to entrust its young to Chi Muyao, so it willingly offered to contract with him.

In this world, Chi Muyao was the first to contract with the Colourless Yunni Deer.

Due to this, Chi Muyao knew that there was a heavy responsibility resting on his shoulders.

Due to the urgency of the situation, the spirit contract proceeded without any fanfare.

However, in a show of respect, Chi Muyao quickly used the Simple Washing Technique to cleanse himself.

Upon resting a hand on the Colourless Yunni Deer’s head, spiritual energy converged towards Chi Muyao, enveloping his body in a fluorescent silver halo. His originally white clothes took on a saintly quality, cleansing the bloodstains on the cloth of killing intent and transforming them into marks of triumph.

His soft hair swayed gently as his sleeves slowly rose in the air.

All the fluorescence gradually converged on the top of Chi Muyao’s head, where a pair of colourless deer antlers appeared.

They were almost transparent, with streams of silver light flowing within. Astonishingly pure and clear, they shone with a rare beauty.

When Chi Muyao opened his eyes again, the silver streams of lights flowing within his eyes slowly dissipated.

As he crossed his legs on the spot in order to stabilise the spirit contract through mediation, he heard the grieving cries of the little deer, reminiscent of a poignant elegy.

He too, grieved.