"Tuan Tuan, disperse the surrounding gray mist."

"Chirp!"

As Li Sheng finished speaking, he rushed into the sect, a rapid "tap tap" sound following closely behind.

"Senior brother..."Bai Ye murmured, wanting to pursue him.

"Trust your junior brother; he must have a plan to lure away the strange demon. Let's not cause any more chaos,"Liu Hongfeng advised, holding Bai Ye back.

"Elder Chen, has the demon been dealt with?"Old Chen approached, inquiring as he saw Li Sheng leave.

Bai Ye sighed and said, "It was a strange demon that infiltrated, but senior brother has lured it away. Thankfully, we discovered it early; otherwise... you all should keep your distance for now."

"Strange demon?"Old Chen was taken aback, about to speak when Liu Hongfeng interrupted.

"Elder Chen, there's no need to panic. The strange demon has already been drawn away by senior brother."

"A strange demon... it's really a strange demon..."Elder Chen stood frozen, dazed, and by the time he snapped back to reality, the two had already gone far.

"I hope the sect master has a way to deal with this. How could it be a strange demon... it's going to be catastrophic..."

Old Chen muttered to himself as he returned to the village, ignoring the inquiries around him.

In the Spirit Gathering Room, Li Sheng sat cross-legged, his aura spreading outward.

A rapid "tap tap"sound whirled around him.

"The influence of this spirit energy is minimal,"Li Sheng concluded after some observation. "I need to advance to the fourth rank quickly; otherwise, I can't deal with this thing…"

He began to circulate his cultivation technique, and a loud phoenix cry resonated in his mind, his blood energy surged, and true energy flowed in a unique pattern.

Just as he was getting into a good state, a wave of agitation surged within him, abruptly disrupting his cultivation.

"What's going on?"

Li Sheng examined himself but found nothing wrong, so he continued cultivating. The surrounding "tap tap"sounds grew increasingly frantic, and at one moment, he opened his eyes again.

After struggling to suppress his restless emotions, he exhaled a breath of foul air.

"Failed again... is this thing causing trouble?"

"What a hassle!"

He had eight spiritual forms, and while their aura couldn't match that of the martial domain, it wasn't far off. If a normal fifth-rank warrior faced this, they would be driven to death within a day.

This strange thing could not harm him directly, but it could affect his mind, preventing him from fully focusing on cultivation.

Under normal circumstances, this wouldn't be an issue, but now, with dangers lurking everywhere, every day was precious and couldn't be wasted.

"It can actually influence the mind... if this continues, I'll eventually be dragged down... I need to think of a way..."

Li Sheng pondered, and suddenly his expression brightened as he thought of the low mountain stone steps.

That place could hone one's will, specifically targeting the spirit, soul, and will.

Now that his mental energy had mostly recovered, he could go and give it a try.

Li Sheng stood up and walked toward the training grounds. As he approached, his voice spread out.

"Everyone, leave this area for now; do not approach!"

Bai Ye and Liu Hongfeng were teaching the disciples at the training grounds and hurriedly called for everyone to leave.

Reaching the steps, he glanced back at the empty area behind him.

The crisp "tap tap"sound, accompanied by a dense stench of decay, gradually approached. Li Sheng curled his lips into a cold smile.

"Let's see how you can still confuse the mind here!"

He then stepped upward, a tremendous force suddenly pressing down.

After a brief adjustment, Li Sheng climbed nine steps in a row, turning to listen.

"Tap."

"Tap."

"Indeed!"

The frantic "tap tap"sound became intermittent and slowed down.

After a few breaths, it only moved a bit, similarly suppressed by the low mountain.

Seeing the good effect, he turned back and continued climbing.

Li Sheng finally stopped at the seventeenth step, drenched in sweat.

His consciousness remained clear; this step was his limit.

Turning back, Li Sheng listened quietly until, after a quarter of an hour, the strange knocking sound finally rang out again.

"A quarter of an hour... let's try again."

On the low mountain, Li Sheng stayed for two hours before he finally got the answer he wanted and descended the steps.

"Moving only once every half hour... I wonder how long it can be suppressed..."

Taking this opportunity, he went to the alchemy room to refine two top-quality body-refining pills, handing them to his senior sister with instructions to break through first.

Then he returned to the Spirit Gathering Room to continue cultivating. By evening, the frantic "tap tap"sound rang out again.

Due to the constant release of his aura, the strange knocking sound could only spin in place, repelled every time it came close.

Opening his eyes, Li Sheng left the Spirit Gathering Room and quickly deduced.

"The suppression of the low mountain can last three hours... no, it should be said that the seventeenth step can only suppress for three hours. If it were the forty-ninth step…"

He shook his head and headed toward the low mountain.

The forty-ninth step was just wishful thinking; with his current willpower, he could manage at most the twentieth step.

An hour later, he came down from the low mountain and returned to his residence to satisfy his basic needs before heading back to the Spirit Gathering Room.

On the way, Tuan Tuan flashed out; judging by its sheen, it seemed to have fully recovered.

"Chirp chirp!"

"Another demon?"Li Sheng's expression changed, and he focused his mind.

He saw a wave of black tide surging toward the large array outside. Looking closely, it was a swarm of fist-sized bugs, looking hideous and exuding demonic energy.

The moment the bug tide touched the array, it was crushed by the overwhelming spirit energy.

Thick black liquid splattered everywhere, and the bug tide became even more frenzied.

"Where did all these demonic bugs come from?"Looking around with his mind, he found the entire array surrounded by the bug tide, stretching endlessly.

"Tuan Tuan, how long can you hold on?"Li Sheng asked solemnly.

"Chirp chirp…"

"As long as there's spirit energy, you can hold on indefinitely?"

"Chirp!"

Tuan Tuan proudly wiggled its body.

The people of Qingling Village gathered together, looking at the dark tide of bugs in the distance and whispering.

"Elder Chen, you've traveled far and wide; do you recognize these bugs?"

Elder Chen stroked his beard, "These bugs are called Abyssal Demonic Bugs. They are among the lowest forms of life during demonic calamities. A single one can be dealt with by an ordinary person. But when they appear, they often come in swarms of thousands; even a fifth-rank warrior would struggle against them."

This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

"From the looks of this, there must be at least a hundred thousand of these bugs. Even a casual sixth-rank warrior wouldn't dare to confront them."

Li Sheng's consciousness enveloped the entire Qingling Sect, naturally hearing Elder Chen's words.

"A hundred thousand?"

Li Sheng couldn't help but laugh bitterly; the number of demonic bugs outside the entire Qingling Sect likely reached a million. If it weren't for the protection of the third-rank array, even he would have to run. The individual bugs were not strong, but their bodily fluids contained extremely strong corrosive properties, which was what mid to high-rank warriors feared.

"Though these demons lack intelligence, they still possess instincts. If casualties become too great, they will retreat; I just don't know what that threshold is…"

Watching the bugs continually charging to their deaths, Li Sheng mused.

An hour later, the endless tide of bugs slowly receded.

A thick layer of black liquid covered the area outside the array, and it was unclear how many demonic bugs had perished.

Before he could relax, strange things surged in from all directions.

They looked like mudslides, but their occasional revealing of hideous maws sent chills down his spine.

The mudslide-like demons did not attack the array but instead consumed the black sludge on the ground.

After a stick of incense had burned, the remnants left behind by the Abyssal Demonic Bugs were entirely devoured.

A few strange blobs of sludge began to surge toward the array, and Tuan Tuan unceremoniously activated the array's power, smashing them to pieces.

The surrounding mudflows surged, devouring their fallen companions before gradually retreating.

Seeing the demons retreat, cheers erupted in Qingling Village.

"Those damned demons are just bullies who fear strength. We scared them off this time; they probably won't dare come again!"

Elder Chen shook his head, denying it. "Demons are not like humans; they lack intelligence and only possess instinctual tendencies to seek fortune and avoid harm. If there were still remnants of the demonic bugs, these things would not hesitate."

"What if they developed intelligence among them?"

"Develop intelligence?"Elder Chen's expression changed. "That's impossible! Even in forbidden areas, there are no demons with intelligence!"

"But what if they really do develop it?"

Someone in the crowd asked, displaying a spirit of inquiry.

"If they truly develop it, this continent might be doomed, swallowed by the endless abyss…"

Elder Chen's words sent chills down the spines of everyone present, and they didn't dare to ask any further.

"Elder Chen truly is well-informed; this secret is something he has never heard of before—The Endless Abyss..."

Withdrawing his thoughts, Li Sheng returned to the gathering room to continue his cultivation.

......

......

Two days later, in the alchemy room, Li Sheng put away two top-tier Body Refining Pills.

After leaving the main hall, he handed them to Liu Hongying, who was waiting outside, instructing her to distribute them to Liu Xixi and Wang Tiezhu.

The pills for Bai Ye and Liu Hongfeng had not yet been consumed, so the shares for these two days were given to the four outer disciples.

Since the Mud Demon left that night, there had been an unusual lack of demonic creatures appearing in the past two days, but this eerie calm made him feel uneasy.

Demonic creatures are extremely sensitive to life energy. Previously, Qing Shan City was overrun because of the large number of people, attracting many demons.

Qing Ling Sect was only twenty miles from Qing Shan City; the fact that these demons had not rushed toward Qing Ling Sect could only mean one thing.

There were greater and larger life energies elsewhere, drawing these demons away.

As Li Sheng pondered, he soon arrived at the gathering room.

The discussion in the palace summoned by the Black Xuan Stone was about to commence.

This was his only link to the outside world, so he naturally could not delay; before refining pills, he had already suppressed the other demons.

"Senior sister, junior sister, the Xuan Stone discussion is about to begin; you should prepare early."

"Junior brother, my cultivation has reached a critical point; I won't attend!"

"Senior brother, I won't go either; just let us know what happens when you come out."

"Alright!" Li Sheng replied and turned to leave.

Once his consciousness entered the Black Xuan Stone, his perception of the outside world would be reduced.

To avoid any sudden changes that might cause the other demons to act recklessly, Li Sheng planned to participate in the discussion from the stone steps of a low hill.

On the low hill, Li Sheng stood on the ninth step and felt that the influence was minimal, so he took out the black Xuan Stone, pouring his consciousness into it.

Suddenly, darkness enveloped him, and his consciousness arrived in the same room as last time.

The three messages on the walls remained unchanged.

Li Sheng tried to push the door but found it unyielding, so he sat quietly beside it to wait.

About a stick of incense later, the door in front suddenly opened.

Li Sheng stood up and walked out of the room into a dark passage extending forward.

Inside the passage, there were many spiritual forms similar to Li Sheng's; a rough scan revealed no less than fifty people.

Following the passage for about a cup of tea's worth of time, a palace suddenly appeared before him.

The crowd seemed accustomed to it and did not speak.

Li Sheng looked around; as he flowed with the crowd inside, the space appeared very spacious.

In the center were four huge chairs occupying each corner, surrounded by tables and chairs, totaling over a thousand seats.

He casually selected a seat and waited quietly.

In the vast hall, figures occasionally appeared.

Li Sheng observed everything around him, secretly amazed.

A treasure capable of gathering everyone together made him envious.

It also gave him a glimpse into the top powers of this world.

He sighed inwardly.

"Survival is key; one should never be arrogant or complacent before reaching the first tier..."

"Fellow cultivators, I am the convener of this discussion—Spirit Sovereign."

The voice, filled with authority, swept across the hall, invoking a sense of solemnity in everyone.

Following the sound, a golden giant appeared, sitting high on the enormous chair in the center.

Its expression was compassionate yet dignified, and upon closer inspection, it revealed an air of menace, shrouded in mystery.