Demon Sword Sect's Undercover

The Yin Yang Umbrella, named to capture others, initially showcased abilities that astonished everyone,

With this move, Hou Niao's success would be a slap to the Daoist Sect, but failure would be a public disgrace. Few cultivators put themselves in such a difficult position from the start, but a Sword Cultivator is always a Sword Cultivator, their choice is always to face adversity head-on.

Either throwing open the Heavenly Gate or sinking into Hell, leaving themselves no room for retreat.

Stopping a hundred meters from the Yin Yang Umbrella, he casually chanted a poem, "A leaf on a fishing boat with two little children, lowers the mast and stops the oars to sit on board. Strangely, no rain but umbrellas are open, not to cover heads but to stir the wind…"

The Daoists below felt a stir in their hearts, knowing the meaning of Hou Sect Leader's words, implying that the two little ones of Taiqing Yuqing were engaging in underhanded deeds and often using demon winds.

Is it just a verbal game? What use is it? It doesn't matter what kind of wind I use; the question is whether you can withstand it.

Looking at the Yin Yang Umbrella, "Others may fear you call the name to capture them, but it also depends on who you're capturing. I am Hou Niao. This time, let's see if you dare to capture me?"

This Yin Yang Umbrella has a spirituality of its own. Usually manipulated by its master Zhi Xuan, it has captured many people, but now without its master to control it, that instinct to capture remains. Hearing this stranger cultivator speak such boasts, its pride couldn't tolerate the provocation, immediately activating its instinct to envelop and capture the mysterious force on the other side.

Zhi Xuan below squinted his eyes, realizing this Hou has real skill! Others use the Dao Realm to infiltrate, but this Sword Cultivator provokes and creates chaos, allowing the Yin Yang Umbrella to actively establish a mysterious connection. This is a brilliant tactic, placing oneself in peril to emerge victorious, but testing the cultivator's resilience, without real skill, it's possible to truly be captured.

A dignified Sect Leader being captured in front of everyone would be tremendously disgraceful; but he wasn't doing this impulsively. In his view, it may be true that the Yin Yang Umbrella couldn't capture a Sword Cultivator, but it was also correct that the Sword Cultivator couldn't control the Umbrella.

Even if the outcome was a draw, it would be the Sword Cultivator who appeared foolish.

As soon as Hou Niao spoke, he felt as if an unseen force was pushing him forward, truly giving him a sense of losing control over his body. But he did not resist, instead naturally envisioned a talisman in the depths of mystery and sent it over first!

Smack!

The spiritual sense of the Yin Yang Umbrella felt its operation falter, all its pride vanished, even its consciousness became muddled, not knowing where it was or where its thoughts were headed.

Hou Niao smiled faintly, "Keep the body and mind steady and free, always look at life's matters from above. Roam across mountains, rivers, and lands, who said rain comes without borrowing an umbrella? Since you cannot capture me, then I shall capture you!"

The Yin Yang Umbrella wobbled, floating along until someone grasped its handle, only then did it wake up with a start, yet unable to struggle at all.

Thousands of Daoists exclaimed in chorus! What skill! What insight! What courage!

It was not at all unjust that the Yin Yang Umbrella was captured, with no excessive actions the entire time, just two impromptu poems, then perhaps some collision in the mysterious unseen, and the outcome was set.

Compared to the previous effort by more than twenty people to secure the treasure, this came across as even more effortless and composed; this is the mark of a true cultivator, a Sword Cultivator who conducts himself without a whiff of worldly dust, which is most commendable.

Hou Niao made a bow towards the direction of Zhi Xuan, "Thank you, Daoist for the gift. In future storms, this sect will think of you, for everlasting memory."

Zhi Xuan Daoist's expression was wooden, then turned to a smile like a spring breeze, "Don't open it when the wind blows, it might get blown away."

The matter had reached this point, being urgent was futile; he had to admit that this Sword Cultivator's performance far exceeded his expectations. He just couldn't understand, how after just studying the sword for twenty years on Hell Star with Yue Duo, could he become someone entirely different?

Jue Mingzi stood at the side, a bit schadenfreude, feeling finally his bad mood from losing the Fire Flamingo had a companion. If doom was inevitable, naturally, it would be better if everyone shared it rather than bearing it alone, right?

"Junior Brother, you shouldn't have exhibited the response ability of the Yin Yang Umbrella; it gave him the opportunity to exploit."

Zhi Xuan shook his head with a wry smile, "The mistake wasn't there, my true blunder was not eliminating him on Hell Star."

"You had no chance on Hell Star, because Yue Duo was there."

Some things are really not to be regretted, no one has foresight, resulting in this guy growing up and becoming increasingly difficult to deal with.

After Hou Niao captured the Yin Yang Umbrella, his next target was the One-eyed Isolation Banner of the Heartless Dao, a substantial challenge. Before, a cultivator was mind-stricken by merely gazing at its eye, uncertain of recovery.

The treasure of the Heartless Dao is anything but gentle, a true killing tool, never concealed by Lao Du. To claim his treasure without paying a price, is that possible? Such are the Demon Sect's rules.

Hou Niao made a distant bow, "Thank you, Daoist Lao, for the gift. Though humble, I am willing to try."

Lao Du laughed coldly repeatedly, "Take it, then it's yours! If you can't take it, the disgrace is yours too, what's that got to do with me?"

Hou Niao smiled, saying no more, he approached a hundred meters from the One-eyed Isolation Banner, without hesitation gazing into the massive, lone eye on the banner. In an instant, his mind seemed to arrive in an unexplained space.

That's the ability of the Isolation Banner; no matter who it is, wanting to interact with it only leads to its Soul Realm space. Here dwell countless wraiths and specter souls, collected over a century, each vicious and fierce. Spotting a new soul entering, they rushed at it immediately.

Facing such risk, Hou Niao remained unfazed. What's most dreaded is losing one's composure, and acting incompetently; here, he was just an ordinary new soul with no advantages, mindless fighting would only lead to the inevitable result of being devoured completely, exiting the lone eye to end like those soul-wounded cultivators before.

Amidst the dance of demons, the most crucial thing is a calm heart.

Letting ghostly souls tear at his soul body, viewing all excruciating pain as nothing, such heart-wrenching agony was taken as enjoyment; this endurance is beyond ordinary people. A human cultivator's first reaction to soul assault would be retaliation, thereby falling into the trap of the Isolation Banner.

But unless one was seasoned through hardship, who could withstand this brain gnawing, heart biting pain?

But he endured, for since the beginning of his cultivation, there was never a single day without tests like these on his soul. Pierced by flying swords, struck by magic artifacts, beaten and kicked, devoured, nearly every method in the universe's art has been tried; how could he allow a small One-eyed Isolation Banner to make him lose himself?

He knew these were all tests, before he was utterly eradicated, something essential would emerge.

To the outsiders, their eye-to-eye contact lasted a mere flash, but within the One-eyed Soul Realm it felt like an eternity, countless cruel methods were imposed on the soul, yet couldn't shake his mind in the slightest.

Then, suddenly reaching out to grasp, seizing a seemingly insignificant single-eyed ghoul amongst countless spirit fiends, and shouted:

"Come! Or face eternal damnation!"