Chapter 117 The People of Extreme Yin Island? A Small Fortune!
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As the dust settled, on the deserted island, only the howling sea breeze swept away the lingering eerie atmosphere, bloodshed, and scorched earth scent from the rocky beach.
Zhou Ding's figure, like a ghost, silently emerged from the hidden array eye and walked calmly towards the center of the battlefield.
His gaze swept calmly across the ravaged rocky beach.
The two corpses of Core Formation cultivators, one with its heart ripped out and the other with its head severed, their deaths gruesome, and Li Yun lying not far away, his magic power sealed, his face filled with fear and despair.
He had witnessed the entire process of Xiao Jin single-handedly defeating two Core Formation cultivators and one Pseudo-Core Formation cultivator.
From the initial probing attack, to the shocking sight of Xiao Jin withstanding the combined attack of three people unscathed, to the swift and deadly use of the clone technique to confuse the enemy and the Black Light Claw to break through defenses and deliver a fatal blow, and finally the unpredictable and mysterious "Spirit Sealing Light" to settle the score.
The entire process was smooth and efficient, showcasing Xiao Jin's terrifying physique, absolute defense, unpredictable supernatural abilities, and combat skills to the fullest extent.
"Early-stage Core Formation cultivators are indeed powerless against Little Gold."
Zhou Ding silently assessed the situation, a hint of satisfaction and pride flashing in his eyes.
Given Xiao Jin's current strength, let alone early-stage Core Formation cultivators, even ordinary mid-stage Core Formation cultivators would likely struggle to gain an advantage against him without exceptionally powerful magic weapons or secret techniques, and would ultimately be crushed.
After all, a typical mid-stage Core Formation cultivator couldn't suppress and kill two early-stage Core Formation cultivators with such overwhelming force as Xiao Jin.
Perhaps only those late-stage Core Formation cultivators with profound magical power, shrewd methods, and powerful ancient treasures or secret techniques are qualified to confront Little Jin head-on, but the outcome is still uncertain.
With Xiao Jin's strength, he could easily defeat most late-stage Core Formation cultivators, if not completely crush them.
Such formidable combat power is undoubtedly a very important trump card in Zhou Ding's hands.
He slowly walked up to Li Yun, looking down at this man who had not long ago been full of vigor and dreaming of getting rich.
Li Yun was originally disoriented from the loss of his magic power and the fall to the ground. When he saw Zhou Ding appear, especially when he felt the unfathomable spiritual pressure emanating from the other party, he was completely overwhelmed.
Zhou Ding had not completely concealed his mid-stage Core Formation aura, and he instantly understood everything!
This terrifying monster actually has an owner!
The young-looking, composed cultivator in the green robe before them was their master!
Driven by an intense will to survive, Li Yun disregarded the excruciating pain and the fear of his magic being sealed. He struggled to get up and kowtow, but due to the complete loss of his magic and his weak muscles, he could only lie prostrate on the ground in a sorry state, banging his head against the ground, his voice hoarse and trembling as he pleaded incoherently:
"Senior, spare my life! Senior, spare my life! I was blind and foolish, I offended your might! I deserve to die! I deserve to die! I beg you, senior, to have mercy and spare my life! I am willing to offer up all my possessions and serve you like a slave from now on, without hesitation! I only beg you for mercy!"
Tears streamed down his face; all traces of the composure and shrewdness of his former "elder brother" were gone, replaced only by the most primal fear of death.
Zhou Ding remained expressionless, simply watching his performance quietly.
He had seen this kind of ugly behavior before death many times before.
Seeing that Zhou Ding remained unmoved, Li Yun's heart sank, knowing that empty pleas for mercy would be useless.
A flicker of struggle and desperation flashed in his eyes, as if he had grasped at the last straw. He hurriedly said, "Senior! Senior, please understand! I am not an ordinary rogue cultivator, but the leader of the Flowing Sand Gang on 'Flowing Sand Island'! We...we secretly work for 'Extreme Yin Island'! Most of the loot we plunder must be handed over!"
If I die here, and the Extreme Yin Island investigates, it might be detrimental to you, senior!
If you spare me today, I swear to God I will never mention this incident again, and it will be as if it never happened!
The senior and the island of Jiyin keep to themselves!
"I will repay you handsomely when I return!"
In order to survive, he did not hesitate to bring out his biggest backer, even at the cost of exposing his secret relationship with the Extreme Yin Island, hoping to make the other party hesitate to act against him.
"Extreme Yin Island?"
Zhou Ding raised an eyebrow almost imperceptibly. He was naturally familiar with this name.
Having been in the Chaotic Star Sea for many years, especially after becoming an elder of the Six Halls, he has long been familiar with the distribution of power in this sea area.
Extreme Yin Island is a sinister place in the outer sea of the Chaotic Stars, a place that people fear to even mention. Its island master, "Ancestor Extreme Yin," is a Nascent Soul stage old demon who has been famous for hundreds of years and is notorious for his evil deeds!
His cultivation level is unfathomable; it is said that he has already reached the early stage of the Nascent Soul realm. Moreover, his cultivation methods are strange, he acts ruthlessly, and he is vengeful.
With numerous disciples and followers, including over a dozen Core Formation stage elders and countless Foundation Establishment disciples, its influence is deeply entrenched and it is recognized as one of the most formidable forces in the Chaotic Star Overseas Regions.
Many powerful sects of the demonic path secretly support or control certain plundering forces, plundering resources for them and handling their shady dealings.
Seeing that Zhou Ding raised his eyebrows and remained silent after hearing the name "Extreme Yin Island," Li Yun assumed that the other party was intimidated and couldn't help but feel a sense of relief. He quickly pressed his advantage.
"Yes, it is Jiyin Island! This junior dares not deceive senior! Senior's cultivation is profound, so I am not afraid, but it is better to avoid trouble."
If you, senior, will show mercy today, I... no, I, this humble one, am willing to swear a great oath to my heart's demons and never reveal a single word of what happened today!
Furthermore, I am willing to disclose all the valuables I brought on this trip, as well as the location of the Quicksand Gang's treasury, in exchange for a sliver of hope for my survival!
His tone became increasingly humble, even willing to sell his family business just to survive.
Zhou Ding looked at the calculation and a hint of luck that were being tried to be hidden but still revealed in his eyes, and sneered inwardly.
Let him go?
This is tantamount to letting a tiger return to the mountains.
Leaving aside how strong the Great Oath of the Heart Demon is in restraining such a ruthless and plunder-oriented demonic cultivator, the mere name of "Extreme Yin Island" is enough for Zhou Ding to make up his mind that he must not let this person leave alive.
If he lets him go, the events of today will surely be known to Jiyin Island. At that time, regardless of whether he killed Li Yun or not, he will have a grudge against Jiyin Island.
The fact that a Nascent Soul stage demon had designs on him was something he was definitely not willing to face right now.
"Let you go?" Zhou Ding finally spoke, his voice flat, revealing neither joy nor anger, yet carrying a chilling insight.
"You're really naive. Putting aside how credible your oath to your inner demons is, the mere mention of 'Extreme Yin Island' is enough to kill you a hundred times over. If you know something you shouldn't know, you should be prepared to take the secret to your grave."
Upon hearing this, Li Yun's face instantly turned deathly pale, and the last glimmer of hope in his eyes vanished, replaced by endless despair and madness: "No! You can't kill me! The Extreme Yin Ancestor won't let you go! You…"
"Noisy."
Zhou Ding was too lazy to listen to his nonsense anymore. A cold glint flashed in his eyes, and he pointed his fingers like a sword, gently tapping Li Yun's brow from a distance.
"puff."
It was a soft sound, not a burst of flesh and blood.
A "Soul-Destroying Thorn," condensed to its extreme, formless and intangible yet containing a terrifying spiritual impact at the late Nascent Soul stage, silently pierced Li Yun's brow, instantly shattering his sea of consciousness and annihilating his soul!
Li Yun's eyes suddenly widened, his pupils dilated, and he made two strange "hoarse" sounds in his throat. Then his body stiffened, his face showing extreme fear and resentment. He stopped breathing completely and collapsed to the ground.
A cultivator at the early stage of Core Formation was unable to put up any decent resistance against Zhou Ding's current divine sense killing move before his soul was scattered.
Zhou Ding remained expressionless, as if he had merely crushed an ant.
He first put Little Gold and the Golden-backed Demon Mantis, whose realm had just been stabilized but whose aura was still somewhat unstable, into his spirit beast bag.
He then began to carefully handle the scene.
He first gathered the corpses of Li Yun, Yuan Jin, and Chen An together, then flicked out a wisp of true fire, instantly burning the three corpses and their remaining spiritual energy to ashes.
Then, he opened his divine sense to the fullest extent, enveloping the entire deserted island, and forcibly dispelled and soothed the residual magical fluctuations, demonic energy, and bloody stench from the battle with his own pure magical power.
They then used earth magic to slightly conceal the traces of the battle on the rocky beach.
Finally, he removed the Inverted Five Elements Array, retrieved the spirit stones and array flags used to set it up, and confirmed that no traces related to himself had been left behind.
After doing all this, he used his powerful divine sense to carefully explore the sea and sky within a radius of two hundred miles, and only after confirming that no other cultivators were spying or passing by did he feel a little relieved.
"This place is not safe to stay for long."
Without further delay, Zhou Ding steered the Divine Wind Boat, concealed his aura, and quietly returned towards Kui Xing Island.
On the way back, he remained cautious, taking a detour to make sure no one was following him before quietly returning to his cave on Lingmu Peak.
……
Inside the quiet room, all restrictions were lifted.
Zhou Ding placed the three storage bags he had obtained that day, which came from the Tribulation Cultivator, in front of him.
He first wiped away the remaining divine imprint on the storage bag and then dumped out all the contents.
With a clattering sound, various items were piled up into a small mountain.
The first thing that catches the eye are three magical treasures that radiate spiritual light.
Li Yun's earthen-yellow tortoise-shell shield was covered in cracks and its spiritual power was greatly diminished, but the material was good and it could still be used after being reforged or disassembled.
Yuan Jin's crimson flame longsword is in decent condition and is a good fire-attribute attack magic weapon. Chen An's cyan wind shield is also damaged and has the lowest value.
Besides these three main magical treasures, there are seven or eight top-tier magical artifacts of varying quality, as well as some talismans, array plates, and other miscellaneous items.
Secondly, there are spirit stones.
The three storage bags contained a total of nearly 40,000 spirit stones!
The majority of them were low-grade spirit stones, but there were also several hundred mid-grade spirit stones.
For three thieves who specialize in robbing and pillaging, this fortune wasn't particularly abundant, but it was certainly not meager either. It was clear that most of their daily earnings were handed over to "Extreme Yin Island," with only a small portion left for themselves.
For three thieves who specialize in robbing and pillaging, this fortune wasn't particularly abundant, but it was certainly not meager either. It was clear that most of their daily earnings were handed over to "Extreme Yin Island," with only a small portion left for themselves.
Besides that, there were some miscellaneous materials, pills, and jade slips.
The materials were mostly parts from demonic beasts and ores, varying greatly in quality. The pills were also mainly ordinary pills for restoring mana and healing injuries, with nothing particularly extraordinary.
The jade slip did contain a few cultivation techniques, but most of them were rudimentary demonic techniques or unorthodox spells, which were useless to Zhou Ding.
The only thing of value was a jade slip containing a map of the waters surrounding Liusha Island and the locations of several of their secret outposts, but that was all.
After the inventory was completed, Zhou Ding showed a faint smile.
"I did manage to make a small fortune."
He secretly thought.
Forty thousand spirit stones, three magic treasures, plus some miscellaneous materials, the total value is fifty to sixty thousand spirit stones.
For someone as wealthy as he is now, it's not a huge sum, but it's still a decent amount of extra income.
More importantly, this also tested Xiao Jin's combat capabilities, achieving multiple benefits in one fell swoop.
He sorted and stored away the useful items, while gathering the useless junk into a storage bag, intending to get rid of it later.
After doing all this, the relaxed look on Zhou Ding's face gradually faded, replaced by a hint of seriousness.
He leaned back in his chair, his fingers tapping unconsciously on the table, the words "Extreme Yin Island" resurfacing in his mind.
"The Quicksand Gang has been destroyed, and Li Yun and his two companions have disappeared... Although I handled it very cleanly, given enough time, the people on Extreme Yin Island might find out. Especially considering their clandestine relationship with the Quicksand Gang, they must have been in regular contact or making offerings..."
Zhou Ding frowned slightly, quickly weighing the options in his mind.
With his current strength—mid-stage Core Formation cultivation, late-stage Nascent Soul divine sense, plus the support of Little Gold, the Golden-backed Demon Mantis, and others—he can practically do whatever he wants in the Core Formation stage, and even has the power to fight against late-stage Core Formation opponents.
But... this by no means means that he is qualified to confront a behemoth like "Extreme Yin Island," especially the "Extreme Yin Ancestor" who is at the early stage of the Nascent Soul realm behind it.
In the Nascent Soul stage, the difference between each minor realm is like an insurmountable chasm.
The magical power, divine sense, understanding of the rules of heaven and earth, and supernatural abilities and secret techniques mastered by mid-Nascent Soul cultivators are far beyond the imagination of Core Formation cultivators.
Even though his spiritual strength had reached the threshold of the late Nascent Soul stage, his magical power, physical strength, and ability to use higher-level powers were still at the Core Formation stage level.
If they were to truly face the Extreme Yin Ancestor, even escaping would be a problem, let alone resisting him.
"It seems I need to be more careful in the future and try to avoid direct conflict with Extreme Yin Island. At least before I condense my Nascent Soul, it's not advisable to confront such beings head-on," Zhou Ding decided.
In the cultivation world, the strong prey on the weak. Before you have enough strength, it is wise to keep a low profile and avoid confrontation.
Fortunately, he handled the situation fairly well this time, and he shouldn't get into trouble in the short term.
We should pay close attention to the movements of Jiyin Island in the future.
"Strength... I'm still not strong enough." Zhou Ding sighed softly, but his eyes blazed with an even more intense light. Pressure is the source of greater motivation.
The road ahead is long, and only by constantly becoming stronger can we truly take control of our own destiny and face any storms without fear.
He put the matter aside for the time being, adjusted his mindset, and prepared to begin a new round of cultivation.