Nine Transformations of the True Spirit.

Lv Gui said in a deep voice: "Don't worry, Fellow Daoist Wei. I have been away from this place for several years. I don't know if there has been any incident on the island. How about sneaking into the vicinity of the island first and investigating it before making any plans?"

Mr. Songshi smiled and said, "Brother Lu is right. Let's do it this way."

Wei Changhong also nodded and said, "I was so focused on the Golden Scale Fruit that I just wanted to kill the Golden-winged Eagle as soon as possible that I forgot to investigate first. I will do as Brother Lu said."

Chen Yuan saw that the three of them had the same intention, so he naturally would not oppose it: "Everything is up to Brother Lu Daoyou."

After the four of them reached an agreement, they found a deserted island nearby, lowered their escape lights, and waited for night to fall.

What Mr. Song Shi said was true, the golden-winged eagle had extremely strong eyesight, and those with pure blood in its clan could even detect invisible bodies.

According to Lu Gui, this golden-winged eagle is of impure bloodline, but it is still a golden-winged eagle after all. In broad daylight, it is not difficult for it to be seen a hundred miles away. It can only wait until night to get close to the island for investigation.

The four of them sat cross-legged on the deserted island and meditated to recover the energy they had consumed during the flight.

Just like before, Chen Yuan was still absorbing the spiritual energy of heaven and earth.

Lu Gui took out a high-quality water-attribute spirit stone, which was extremely luxurious.

Wei Changhong held a light green jade pendant in his hand, which flickered with spiritual light in a very regular pattern, and his whole body was wrapped in the rich spiritual energy of heaven and earth.

Only Mr. Songshi was different from before. He took out two top-grade wood-attributed spirit stones, absorbed the spiritual energy in them, and soon his true energy was restored.

He took out the yellowed book that he had not finished reading, and recited the difficult ancient Chinese texts in a low voice, occasionally making annotations with a brush, with great concentration.

As time passed, the true energy in Chen Yuan and the other two's bodies was fully restored.

At this time, it was getting dark and the sun was setting in the west. There were layers of clouds on the horizon, like endless mountains, seemingly frozen in the air, and dyed golden red by the setting sun.

The turbulent sea of ​​​​Wan Yao was now covered with a layer of fine golden scales, and the splashing waves turned into thousands of golden pieces under the setting sun.

But in the eyes of the Jindan cultivators, this magnificent scenery was just a passing cloud and they did not take it seriously at all.

Mr. Songshi was still reciting the classics left by the Confucian sages. These classics should have been passed down from Jiuxianzhou, where Confucianism and Taoism flourished. The other three had never heard of them.

Chen Yuan's words sounded somewhat familiar, and had some similarities with the Confucian classics he had read in his previous life.

But if you listen carefully, you will find that the principles contained therein are much more profound.

Confucian monks have long lifespans, and what they have experienced and seen far exceeds that of the Confucian sages in Chen Yuan’s previous life. Naturally, their understanding of the natural world, the human world, and the universe is much more thorough.

Chen Yuan still had time to listen to Mr. Song Shi reading, but Lu Gui and Wei Changhong had serious expressions, gazing into the sky, waiting for the night to fall, their minds all focused on the Golden Scale Fruit.

Finally, the sun set and a thin crescent rose. The moonlight was dim, but a galaxy stretched across the sky, sprinkling starlight all over the sky and illuminating the Sea of ​​Ten Thousand Monsters.

But before long, thick clouds floated over, covering the crescent moon and the Milky Way.

The sea was suddenly splashed with thick ink, and it was pitch black, like an endless and bottomless abyss that could swallow everything.

If a mortal were here, he would definitely be frightened out of his wits.

But this was the moment the four had been waiting for for a long time, and they all stood up.

Mr. Song Shi, who had been reading, wrote a few lines on the scroll, then put away the glowing ancient book and brush and stood up.

In the pitch-black night, only the jade pendant tied around Wei Changhong's waist flashed a light from time to time, like a faint but tenacious lamp.

Chen Yuan spread out his spiritual sense and knew everything within a radius of thirty miles.

His spiritual awareness was now comparable to that of a cultivator in the late Jindan stage, and he was constantly drawing starlight into his body, expanding in a tiny but continuous manner.

But with Lu Gui here, he quickly withdrew his spiritual consciousness and only covered the area a hundred feet around him.

Lu Gui's spiritual sense is almost the same as his. If he spreads out his spiritual sense at will, he will not be able to hide it from Lu Gui.

Lu Gui looked up at the sky, his figure slowly rising into the air, and said calmly: "The sky is very good tonight, with no stars or moon. The three Taoist friends must follow behind me, restrain their spiritual consciousness, and do not act rashly."

"Fellow Daoist Wei, please put away the jade pendant on your waist to avoid being noticed by the golden-feathered eagle."

Wei Changhong hesitated for a moment before putting away the jade pendant. Then he rode on the light of escape together with Chen Yuan and Mr. Song Shi, following Lu Gui and flying away into the distance.

Under the pitch-black night, the sea of ​​​​Ten Thousand Demons, which was raging and wild during the day, became calm, and even the ferocious monsters became quiet.

The four of them successfully escaped for hundreds of miles, but not very fast.

At this time, the clouds were floating, and a dim moonlight flowed out. With the help of this faint light, an island dozens of miles away could be vaguely seen.

"Stop!" Lu Gui shouted in a low voice, paused, and dived into the sea.

The three did not dare to delay and dived into the sea.

After a while, thick clouds covered the moon and stars again, and the sky and earth were as dark as ink. Lü Gui finally escaped from the sea and flew to the island ahead, followed by the three people. Their speed was not fast, and they were even a little cautious, but they were Jindan cultivators after all. After a while, they flew more than 30 miles away and were less than 50 miles away from the island.

Lu Gui suddenly stopped, turned around, and whispered: "Although the demon race's spiritual awareness is not as good as that of cultivators, the golden-winged eagle is a seventh-level demon beast after all, and its spiritual awareness can cover a radius of 20 miles around it."

"My three Taoist friends, please stay. Otherwise, if the golden-feathered eagle finds out, all your efforts will be in vain."

Chen Yuan and the other two looked at each other, nodded, and stopped where they were, spreading their spiritual consciousness only a hundred feet away.

Lu Gui turned around and continued to move forward, moving more slowly and more carefully than before.

The three of them waited there for about a quarter of an hour, and then Lu Guifei came back with a very gloomy expression.

Wei Changhong asked in a low voice: "Brother Lu, what's the situation?"

Chen Yuan and Mr. Song Shi looked at Lu Gui together, with inquiring eyes.

Lu Gui said with a gloomy face: "I just checked and found that there is a level 7 golden-feathered eagle on the island!"

The three people's faces changed at the same time. Wei Changhong's eyes widened: "Two golden-feathered eagles! Are you serious, Brother Lu?"

Lu Gui nodded, and Wei Changhong's face suddenly turned ugly: "Even if the four of us join forces, we are still no match for the two golden-feathered eagles. What should we do?"

Chen Yuan looked at Lu Gui with a serious expression: "Please tell me in more detail, why is there an extra golden-feathered eagle on the island?"

Wei Changhong said: "Maybe you are mistaken, Brother Lu. Why don't you let me check it out?"

Mr. Songshi frowned and said, "Friend Wei, please be patient. The situation on the island is still unclear. We must not panic."

Wei Changhong was stunned for a moment, then he let out a long sigh and bowed to Mr. Song Shi: "Thank you for your reminder, fellow Taoist. The Golden Scale Fruit was within reach, but I was shocked to hear about the incident. I was already in a state of confusion and almost lost my composure."

"You are still a Taoist friend with a calm mind. Even in such a great change, you are still not confused at all. You can be called a great scholar of the time."

Mr. Songshi smiled and said, "Fellow Daoist Wei, you are too kind. I have only read a few more volumes of ancient sage classics, walked a few more times in the mortal world, and seen a few more things. I am not worthy of the title of a great scholar."

Seeing Wei Changhong calm down, Chen Yuan said, "Fellow Daoist Lu, have you ever seen the second golden-feathered eagle before?"

Wei Changhong and Mr. Song Shi also looked over. Lu Gui shook his head and said, "Several years ago, before I left the Sea of ​​Thousand Monsters, there was only one golden-feathered eagle on this island."

"Perhaps because they saw that the golden scale fruit was about to mature, the Golden Feathered Eagle clan sent another clan member here to protect the golden scale fruit tree."

Mr. Songshi shook his head. "This is the depths of the Ten Thousand Monsters Sea. The monster king family is extremely powerful. They actually sent two level seven golden-feathered eagles to guard a golden scale fruit tree. Even if it is a thousand-year-old spiritual herb, it wouldn't be treated this way, right?"

Lu Gui sighed softly, "I underestimated the importance that the Golden Feathered Eagle Clan places on the body-hardening elixir, and caused the three of you to make a wasted trip. I will definitely compensate you when I return."

Wei Changhong said unwillingly: "Why don't we wait for a while longer? Maybe the golden-feathered eagle won't stay here for long and will leave soon?"

Mr. Songshi said, "Fellow Daoist Wei, you are joking. This sea of ​​monsters is so dangerous. We have encountered monsters many times along the way, but we have not suffered any damage so far. We are very lucky."

"If you stay in the depths of the Ten Thousand Monsters Sea for too long and unfortunately encounter a transformed great monster, you will die without a burial place."

Lu Gui nodded and said, "Fellow Daoist Songshi is right. I have been waiting here for three years because I don't have much time left, so I can put life and death aside. But I can't joke with the lives of the three fellow Daoists. I can't stay here for long."

Wei Changhong sighed: "Well, it seems that we are destined to have no chance of getting this golden scale fruit."

Mr. Songshi smiled and said, "Eight out of ten things in life are not satisfactory. Treasures are hard to come by. Fellow Daoist Wei, you must not let this mess up your mood. You should be more free and easy."

Wei Changhong nodded, and his expression became better.

The atmosphere was very heavy. Lu Gui looked up at the sky. The clouds were slowly drifting, and the crescent moon and the stars were faintly visible. He said, "Let's leave this place first, and then discuss whether to advance or retreat."

Wei Changhong and Mr. Songshi nodded, but Chen Yuan said, "My three Taoist friends, please wait a moment. I will go and investigate. It will not be too late to retreat later."

The three of them were all stunned. Lu Gui frowned and said, "Could it be that Fellow Daoist Chen doesn't trust me?"

"Those two golden-winged eagles are both level seven monsters. If you go there, you will definitely be noticed by them."

Mr. Songshi also advised: "Brother Lu is the one who wants the Golden Scale Fruit the most. He will definitely not joke about this matter. Brother Chen should stop joking."

Chen Yuan said solemnly: "We have come all the way here at great risk just for the Golden Scale Fruit. This is a matter of great importance and we must be cautious in our response."

"Since Chen dares to go and investigate, he is sure that he will not be discovered by the Golden-Winged Eagle. Don't worry, fellow Taoists. I will never joke with my life."

"This..." Wei Changhong and Mr. Song Shi looked at each other.

Lu Gui pondered for a moment and said, "Forget it. Since Fellow Daoist Chen is determined to do so, then I cannot stop him."

"But you must go with me, and you must not act on your own."

Chen Yuan nodded and said, "That's right, please, Fellow Daoist Lu!" (End of this chapter)