A Compendium of One Hundred Demons: My Path to Immortality in a World of Demons and Monsters

Half an hour later, a group of more than twenty people set off from the North Gate and headed quickly toward Cloud Mist Mountain.

Xu Yuan rode ahead on horseback, Meng Hu followed closely behind, while Zhou Yuankai led twenty demon-suppressing guards to bring up the rear.

On the way, Meng Hu leaned close to Xu Yuan and whispered, "Brother Xu, do you think Zhou Yuankai might take this opportunity to cause trouble?"

Xu Yuan smiled and said, "Trying to trip me up? He's not that stupid."

"That's not necessarily true," Meng Hu muttered. "That guy is very petty. Last time you criticized him a few times, he went back and smashed a cup in anger."

Xu Yuan did not respond.

If Zhou Yuankai really dares to cause trouble during the mission, then this is a good opportunity to make an example of him.

The group traveled north, and an hour later, the outline of Yunwu Mountain came into view.

It was a range of rolling hills, steep and densely wooded, which, from a distance, resembled a lurking giant beast.

"Stop!" Xu Yuan raised his hand, and the entire group reined in their horses.

He dismounted and unleashed his [Yin Qi Perception] at full power.

After condensing the four apertures, his perception range has expanded to more than sixty feet.

At this moment, he could clearly "see"—deep in the Cloud Mist Mountain, three dense clusters of Yin energy were slowly writhing.

Ghost General level!

And there was more than one!

"Dismount and proceed on foot into the mountains," Xu Yuan said in a deep voice. "Meng Hu, you take five men to cover the rear. Lieutenant Zhou, you take ten men to flank from the left. I will lead the remaining five men to advance from the front. If you spot anything, give the signal immediately."

Zhou Yuankai was stunned, not expecting Xu Yuan to make such an arrangement.

He thought Xu Yuan would marginalize him, but unexpectedly, he was given a team.

"What are you looking at? Hurry up and go!" Xu Yuan raised an eyebrow.

Zhou Yuankai snapped out of his daze, clasped his hands in a fist salute, and said, "Yes!"

The group quickly dispersed and disappeared into the dense forest.

Xu Yuan led the five men slowly along a hidden mountain path.

[Yin Qi Perception] is fully activated, and every step is taken in the most concealed position, the one least likely to disturb the demons.

After walking for about the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, a faint crying sound suddenly came from ahead.

The cries were shrill, like a woman's wailing or a baby's crying, sounding particularly eerie in the deep, secluded forest.

"Be careful." Xu Yuan raised his hand, signaling the five people to stop.

He quietly crept behind a large tree and peered out.

Thirty feet ahead was an open area.

In the center of the open space stood a huge dead tree, its trunk so thick that it would take four or five people to encircle it.

A woman in white was kneeling beneath a withered tree.

She was crying loudly, her hair disheveled, her back to Xu Yuan.

The cries were shrill and mournful, but they didn't sound like human voices.

And on the branches of that withered tree, there were seven or eight mummified corpses hanging there!

The corpses swayed in the wind, like strings of dried meat.

"Ghost General level..." Xu Yuan's eyes narrowed slightly.

Just as he was about to make his move, he suddenly sensed a commotion coming from the left flank.

Immediately afterwards, a signal arrow shot into the sky!

"Something's happened to Zhou Yuankai!" Meng Hu's voice came from behind.

Xu Yuan frowned.

The woman in white under the withered tree seemed to have been startled by the signal arrow, and her crying stopped abruptly.

She slowly turned her head, revealing a face as pale as paper.

The face was twisted beyond recognition, the features were out of place, and the corners of the mouth stretched to the ears, revealing two rows of gleaming white fangs.

"Hehehe..." She let out a strange laugh, her figure transforming into a white shadow as she swept towards the left wing!

"Chase!"

Xu Yuan moved like lightning, activating his [Mountain Forest Traverse] skill at full power, relentlessly pursuing his target!

The white figure moved with incredible speed, traversing the mountains and forests as if walking on flat ground.

But Xu Yuan was faster!

The true essence condensed in his four orifices surged within his body. With the combination of the [Mountain and Forest Traverse] ability and the [Yaksha Power], his speed far surpassed that of martial artists of the same level.

Thirty zhang, twenty zhang, ten zhang—

The distance is getting closer.

The woman in white seemed to sense that someone was chasing her from behind. She let out a sharp screech, and her body surged with yin energy, splitting into three identical white shadows that fled in three different directions!

"A clone technique?"

Xu Yuan's eyes narrowed, and he activated his [Yin Qi Perception] at full power.

The three white figures had almost identical auras, but one of them... seemed slightly fainter?

"You are the one!"

Xu Yuan locked onto the clone with the weakest aura, and with the Ghost Cry Bow in hand, he fired three Yin Soul Arrows in quick succession!

The Three Arts of Archery - Three Stars in a Row!

"Whoosh whoosh whoosh!"

Three arrows pierced the air, instantly catching up with the white figure.

The arrow pierced his body, and the white figure let out a shrill scream before his body suddenly disintegrated into a cloud of black smoke.

"It was fake after all!"

Xu Yuan didn't linger; he turned and chased after the other two clones.

In the [Yin Qi Perception], the two clones are rapidly moving away, but the aura of one of them is gradually weakening.

"The clone technique consumes a lot of energy; she can't last long."

Xu Yuan's eyes flashed, but he did not continue the pursuit. Instead, he sped off towards the left flank.

The most pressing issue is the situation on Zhou Yuankai's side.

In a few leaps and bounds, Xu Yuan had already reached the left wing.

The scene before him caused his pupils to shrink slightly.

On the open ground, seven or eight corpses of the Demon-Suppressing Guards lay scattered about, all with bluish-black faces and tragic deaths.

Zhou Yuankai, covered in blood, was locked in a fierce battle with two dark figures.

The two dark figures were quite different. One was three zhang tall, covered in pale white bones, resembling a skeletal giant. The other was a distorted shadow, its face obscured, with only a pair of blood-red eyes flashing in the darkness.

"Bone Demon! Shadow Demon!"

Xu Yuan instantly recognized the origin of these two ghosts—they were demons raised by the Second Elder and the First Elder of the Shadow Pavilion!

"Xu Yuan!" Zhou Yuankai's eyes flashed with joy when he saw him. "Be careful, these two demons are at least mid-stage Ghost Generals!"

Before the words were even finished, the bone demon had already slammed down with its claw, accompanied by a piercing whistling sound.

Zhou Yuankai raised his knife to block, but was thrown backward by the impact, spitting out blood.

Without hesitation, Xu Yuan moved like lightning, rushing straight at the Bone Demon!

The combined power of the [Yaksha Power] and the [Demon Transformation] traits unleash their full potential!

His right arm was instantly covered with jet-black scales, and he punched the bone demon in the chest!

"Bang--!"

The bone demon's massive body flew backward, crashing through three large trees before finally coming to a stop.

It struggled to its feet, several cracks appearing in the bones of its chest, its blood-red eyes fixed on Xu Yuan, filled with horror.

"Who...who are you?!"

Xu Yuan did not answer, but only glanced at it indifferently.

That one glance sent the bone demon plummeting into an icy abyss.

That gaze didn't seem like it was looking at an enemy; it was more like it was looking at... prey!

Upon seeing this, the shadow demon let out a sharp screech and transformed into countless black shadows, fleeing in all directions.

"Trying to run away?"

Xu Yuan's lips curled into a cold smile.

A faint light flashed between his brows.

Netherworld Guide!

A faint light burst forth, instantly enveloping an area of ​​thirty feet in radius.

The fleeing shadows, upon touching the dim light, immediately let out shrill screams, melting away as quickly as snow meeting the blazing sun.

The Shadow Demon's true form was forced to reveal itself; it was a twisted shadow three zhang tall, currently struggling painfully in the eerie light.

"A funerary object?!" it hissed in terror. "How could you have a funerary object?!"

Xu Yuan did not answer, but simply stepped forward slowly.

With each step taken, the ghostly light grew stronger.

The Shadow Fiend's struggles grew weaker and weaker, and the shadows around him rapidly dissipated.

"No...you can't kill me...my master is..."

Before he could finish speaking, Xu Yuan had already raised his hand and placed it on its forehead.

[Devour!]