CHAPTER 60: CHAPTER 23 CHANGE THE WORLD, TRANSCEND LIFE AND DEATH (3RD UPDATE)_1

「The next day.」

Atop Tushan, the crowd bustled, and powerful figures of both the Human and Demon Races could be spotted everywhere. The majority were from the Demon Race. Human experts did not trust Tushan; most remained at the foot of the mountain.

As the sun rose, one after another, human experts began to ascend Tushan. They had to ascertain if the power Tushan mentioned was real. If it was, they absolutely would not allow it to fall into the hands of any member of the Demon Race.

With the arrival of the human experts, the already tense atmosphere became even more strained and oppressive. However, because the power Tushan had spoken of had not yet appeared, all the experts restrained themselves and held back from fighting. It was foreseeable that once that power emerged, a great battle would inevitably erupt.

Many experts were puzzled. Why would Tushan disclose the discovery of such power and even invite them? Was it a conspiracy? But they had no other choice. It wasn’t a fear of some remote possibility, but the compelling ’what if’—what if Tushan was telling the truth? They had to come. This was an overt scheme.

Led by the Tushan Fox Demons, the experts of the Human and Demon Races arrived at a vast plain in Tushan’s rear mountains. A grand and imposing altar had already been constructed in the center of the plain.

Why bring us here? Just for an altar? Could the power the Tushan Fox Demon spoke of actually stem from this altar? All the experts immediately fixed their eyes on the altar, their gazes burning with intensity.

"Such a lively scene!"

Wang Quan Baye arrived at Tushan with the members of his Mask organization. Beside him, Li QiZhuo sensed the surrounding experts and exclaimed, "It’s hard to guess what the Tushan Fox Demon is thinking. If such power really emerges, isn’t she afraid that so many gathered experts will tear Tushan apart?"

"This is the territory of the Demon Race. Their invitation to the experts of both Human and Demon Races is definitely not simple; we must not let our guard down!" a white-haired man with three eyes, wearing a white mask, spoke. His third eye, the Heavenly Eye in the center of his forehead, flickered, vigilantly scanning all directions.

He was Number Two in the Mask organization, codenamed Three Insight God Lord, hailing from the renowned Tian Yan Yang Family, and his name was Yang Yitan. Endowed with divine eyes, he could perceive the flow of his enemies’ Qi channels and anticipate their moves. With his exceptional talent, he had assimilated the strengths of various families merely through observation. He once defeated the arrogant Eldest Young Master of the Wen Family—a family famous for its mastery of the Nine Heavens Universal Divine Thunder, the foremost thunder technique of the Daoist Sects—using that very signature skill. His reputation as Number Two of the Mask organization thus spread far and wide.

"What’s there to fear? With experts from both Human and Demon Races here, can the Tushan Fox Demon really take on all of us?" a lively and playful voice rang out. It belonged to a young girl in an orange coat over a red undergarment. The girl wore a white mask; she was codenamed Dreamy Swordsman and was Wang Quan Baye’s younger sister, Wang Quan Zui. She could hypnotize at age three and telekinesis at age six, possessing an innate gift for spiritual-type abilities.

"Sister Dreamy, we mustn’t be careless!" Qing Muyuan, wearing a veil and a light green off-shoulder long dress, walked beside Wang Quan Zui and cautioned her. Her codename was Jadeite Fairy, of whom it was said, "With one Jade Ruyi, the Dao flows as I wish." Wielding her supreme treasure, the Eight Treasures Jade Ruyi, she could block others’ magical arts and smooth her own Qi circulation. People who approached would stumble, and treasures brought near would fall; within a three-zhang radius (approximately ten meters) around her, it was practically a forbidden zone for other spiritual cultivators.

"I know, I know!" Wang Quan Zui replied with a playful smile.

"Boss, look! The people from Divine Fire Manor are here too. That must be the young mistress of Divine Fire Manor, right? What a rare sight!" Li QiZhuo suddenly exclaimed, pointing towards a group in the distance—the Dongfang Family from Divine Fire Manor.

The Dongfang Family, alongside Wang Quan’s Family, was one of the two major families within the One Qi Daoist Alliance. They were famed for their Demon-Slaying Pure Sunfire, a power that inspired awe throughout the land. Members of the Dongfang Family were born with spiritual power, hence they were also known as the Dongfang Spirit Clan. Women of the Dongfang Spirit Clan could, if they wished, pass their spiritual power to their children. If a man from an outside clan married a woman from the Dongfang Spirit Clan, he could directly pass his cultivation achievements to the next generation, effectively gaining the foundation to build a powerful family. Consequently, women of the Dongfang Spirit Clan were highly sought after wherever they went, often becoming targets of unscrupulous attempts at abduction.

Dongfang Huaizhu, the young mistress of Divine Fire Manor, naturally attracted considerable attention. However, she usually maintained a low profile, making her a rare and mysterious sight for most.

Wang Quan Baye followed Li QiZhuo’s gesture with his eyes. At the head of the group was a middle-aged man of extraordinary bearing—Dongfang Duyue, the Lord of Divine Fire Manor and head of the Dongfang Family. Two figures, a man and a woman, followed him. The man, dressed in a yellow Daoist robe with a red cape, cut a fine figure. He was Jin Renfeng, the eldest disciple of Divine Fire Manor and Dongfang Duyue’s chief disciple. He was quite famous in the martial world, considered a young prodigy within the One Qi Daoist Alliance on par with Wang Quan Baye.

Wang Quan Baye spared him a glance but paid him no particular mind. His gaze fell upon the woman beside Jin Renfeng. She appeared to be around twenty years old, with a graceful figure and captivating beauty. She wore a long skirt predominantly in goose-yellow and bamboo-green, with a white inner garment, a goose-yellow straight-front robe with the right lapel over the left, and a bamboo-green outer coat.

Her long hair flowed like a waterfall. She appeared beautiful and gentle, yet calm and intelligent, with exquisite facial features. A red Divine Fire mark adorned her forehead, and she wore a pendant bearing the same Divine Fire insignia at her waist. In her hand, she held a xiao flute, her magic treasure, exuding an air of gentle tranquility mixed with a trace of valor.

Wang Quan Baye, normally indifferent to feminine charms, felt a stir in his heart upon seeing her, a sense of being utterly captivated.

"Boss, what do you think? The young mistress of the Dongfang Family is even more beautiful than the rumors say, isn’t she?" Li QiZhuo’s leering voice chimed in, full of mirth.

"Alright, we’re here on serious business today!" Wang Quan Baye mentally noted Dongfang Huaizhu, but his voice betrayed no emotion. As for his face... well, he was wearing a comically childish mask, making his expression unreadable.

They followed the stream of people to the plain in Tushan’s rear mountains. Experts from the Human and Demon Races had each taken up positions, eyeing each other warily, like tigers stalking their prey. In the center of the plain stood a towering, majestic altar made of jade stone. Experts from the Tushan Fox Demon clan guarded the perimeter of the altar, preventing anyone from approaching.

It seems that altar is the key! Wang Quan Baye thought as he surveyed the altar, its surface covered in complex and mysterious patterns.

Number Two of the Mask organization, Three Insight God Lord Yang Yitan, opened his Heavenly Eye and peered at the altar. The other members of the Mask organization watched him with anticipation.

「A moment later.」

Yang Yitan withdrew his gaze, shaking his head with a sigh. "Those patterns appear mysterious and unfathomable, but upon closer inspection, they seem quite ordinary. I can’t discern anything. Truly strange!"

It seems we’ll have to wait for the Tushan Fox Demons to reveal themselves before we know more! Wang Quan Baye was not surprised. So many powerful experts had gathered here, including some from Yang Yitan’s own lineage, even his elders. If there was anything to be discovered so easily, they would have found it long ago.

"They’re coming!" Li Zizai suddenly said.

Everyone looked up to see Tushan Honghong, Tushan Yaya, and Tushan Rongrong leading the Tushan contingent, slowly approaching.

"That’s Tushan Honghong!"

"One of the Four Emperors, legendary figures in the Demon Race’s combat power rankings! The Queen of the Tushan Fox Demons!"

"And it’s not just Tushan Honghong!"

"It seems all Four Emperors of the Demon Race have gathered today! What a rare sight!"

The Eastern and Western Foxes, the Southern Emperor and Northern Emperor:

Tushan Honghong, ruler of the Folded Ear Foxes of Eastern Tushan.

Fan Yunfei, foremost expert of the Xixi Region, the Sand Fox Prince, also known by the moniker "Earth Dog."

Huandu Qingtian, the Poison Emperor of the Southern Kingdom.

The Northern Mountain Demon Emperor, Destruction Heavenly Monarch Shi Kuan.

"They’re here!"

With Tushan Honghong’s appearance, not only did Wang Quan Baye and the other members of the Mask organization feel a tremor in their spirits, but the eyes of all experts from both Human and Demon Races sharpened instantly, their gazes converging on the newcomers.

The air grew thick.

The atmosphere became oppressive.

Everyone’s hearts leaped to their throats.

Could a power capable of reshaping heaven and earth, of transcending the cycle of life, death, and reincarnation, truly exist? And had Tushan actually found it?