A talisman meant to lure out demons, at this moment, became a genuine harbinger of death.
The potent essence blood ignited within the catfish demon's body, not only damaging its physique but also burning its very foundation.
As the red light in its belly intensified, the demon's aura began to wane. No matter how much it struggled, it could not alter the fate of its vital energy being consumed.
For beings who had not yet cultivated magical power, this vital energy was their very essence, embodying their life force and serving as the source of their strength.
Yet, at this very instant, within a radius of several yards centered on the demon, a dense mist of water vapor suddenly converged. To the ears of those present, it sounded as if a stream was flowing nearby.
The catfish demon seemed to have returned to water, swimming amidst the pervasive mist. With a single gulp, it inhaled a vast amount of water essence. As blue radiance flickered across its body, the red light in its belly gradually subsided.
It abruptly raised its head, its eyes filled with malevolence. Rich water vapor swirled around it, allowing it to move back and forth in mid-air as if it were underwater.
"Amitabha."
A Buddhist chant echoed, and instantly, a golden light, like the midday sun, slowly ascended.
A string of one hundred and eight prayer beads, linked together, ascended into the air and then descended, heavy as a mountain, carrying magnificent Buddhist radiance to suppress the demon.
The demon dared not gaze directly at the Buddhist light. Its body swayed, stirring up heavy water vapor that surged upwards like a tidal wave, crashing against the descending prayer beads.
Rumble!!!
Deafening roars erupted like thunder. The water-locking formation, set up with eighteen small flags, began to shake violently. The river surface below churned incessantly.
The villagers who had previously dismissed the warnings and disregarded the advice now showed drastic changes in their expressions. They quickly fled afar, seeking to distance themselves from the Jade Washing River, a waterway that had sustained their families for generations, as quickly as possible.
"This demon actually possesses a magical artifact!"
Ji Yuan suddenly let out a low shout.
From the center of the river, a round bead flew from the catfish demon's mouth. It spun in mid-air, then abruptly spewed forth surging water essence.
Within the span of a flick of the finger, the entire area covered by the formation was filled with dense water essence. The blue radiance was so thick that the scene within was almost indistinguishable.
At the same time, this round bead shot skyward, carrying the heavy, potent water essence, and collided with the Buddhist prayer beads descending from above!
Boom!
With a resounding crash, the one hundred and eight prayer beads were instantly pushed upward by a yard. Even the pervasive Buddhist light seemed to be repelled by the endless water essence!
Witnessing this, Ji Yuan, holding a bronze oil lamp, placed it before him. With a thought, the wick within the lamp ignited without fire.
He gathered a small portion of his vital energy and blew a forceful breath onto the flame on the wick.
Instantly, a raging inferno erupted. A single breath transformed into a colossal fire serpent that, in the blink of an eye, slithered before the catfish demon.
Water essence and blazing flames met, causing a sizzling sound. Countless wisps of white mist rose, obscuring the vision of all present.
However, within the white mist, one could discern a fire serpent entwining the massive catfish demon. Amidst the surging flames, streaks of blue light flashed fiercely.
With Ji Yuan's intervention and the attack launched by the bronze oil lamp, the pressure on the Buddhist prayer beads in mid-air greatly reduced. They once again descended with boundless Buddhist radiance, almost striking the demon.
Between them, only the round bead remained, struggling valiantly. It continued to spew forth thick water essence as if it spared no expense.
This sight made Ji Yuan's teeth ache. Such an abundance of pure water essence was likely the catfish demon's accumulation over nearly a hundred years. If used for alchemy or even cultivation, it would be considered a rare spiritual treasure.
However, no matter how regrettable it was now, the force of the attack could not be lessened in the slightest.
With this thought, he vigorously mobilized his remaining vital energy, combined with the spiritual energy contained within the bronze oil lamp, and conjured another fire serpent. In an instant, it coiled around the demon within the water mist.
"Not good!"
Suddenly, Ji Yuan's expression shifted, and he let out a loud shout: "Quick, retreat!"
He retreated backward at the first opportunity, simultaneously severing the connection between the two fire serpents and the bronze oil lamp. He was willing to abandon the spiritual energy within it to distance himself from the riverbank as quickly as possible.
The others nearby, seeing this, quickly retreated with him!
Among them, the two young men and women were the most agile. Already at the edge of the formation, they were far from the area after just a few evasive movements.
In contrast, Huixin, a monastic, now showed hesitation, gazing at the prayer beads in mid-air with reluctance.
It was Zhao Yuansong, standing beside him, who grabbed his shoulder and swiftly pulled him backward.
Within a few blinks of an eye, dense water essence poured out with a tremendous roar. The river surface, a confluence of Buddhist light, water vapor, and blazing flames, immediately erupted in a violent explosion.
Boom!!!
Violent power surged across the river, creating dozens of towering water spouts. The eighteen small flags used to set up the formation were instantly shattered in this explosion.
Fortunately, the Buddhist prayer beads were inherently high-quality artifacts. Despite their spiritual light dimming under the impact of the explosion, they were not destroyed. After expending their spiritual energy, they fell powerlessly onto the riverbank.
It took a full fifteen minutes for all the commotion to gradually subside. The countless river waters that had surged skyward fell back down like a fine rain.
When they returned to the bank and looked at the scene of devastation before them, they were momentarily speechless.
After the explosion, houses on both banks of the Jade Washing River collapsed. Amidst the ruins, a few individuals who had been unwilling to abandon their belongings or had held onto a sliver of hope were crushed by fallen beams and bricks.
"This demon is truly ruthless. To save its own life, it sacrificed nearly a century of accumulated water essence and a spiritual object."
Xu Qiqi stamped her foot and then exclaimed, gritting her teeth.
During the earlier explosion, the catfish demon, utilizing its affinity for water and the breakdown of the formation, had silently retreated to the bottom of the Jade Washing River. It had likely already fled the area rapidly.
However, even if it escaped with its life, it was undoubtedly severely injured. Without any unforeseen circumstances, it would likely be several years, perhaps even over a decade, before it could muster the strength to cause trouble again and harm those who fell into the water.
But this also meant that in the future, it would take them more effort to slay this demon. Having suffered a setback, it would certainly become more cautious.
"Amitabha, I shall bear all responsibility for this matter."
Huixin held the retrieved prayer beads, his face filled with guilt and self-reproach.
If he had been willing to expend the spiritual energy within the prayer beads, even at the risk of some damage to them, the catfish demon would not have had the opportunity to escape from a near-certain death situation by sacrificing a spiritual object.
Upon hearing this, those present fell silent. Even the young Taoist who was closest to him offered no words of comfort.
As cultivators, even setting aside the matter of demon subjugation, when engaging in conflict with others, one should strive with all one's might.
To be so concerned about the depletion of spiritual energy, or even the condition of magical artifacts, was hardly a wise course of action.
If it were merely a conflict between cultivators, the worst outcome would be death. However, in the act of demon subjugation, making such a mistake and allowing a malevolent demon to escape…
Ji Yuan sighed silently. He could see that the Buddhist light emanating from Huixin had subtly diminished.
This was the karmic retribution from heaven for letting a demon escape. Sin had silently accumulated upon him, counteracting his merits and offsetting the Buddhist light he had accumulated over several years.
"What do we do now?"
The young Taoist sighed and turned to look at Zhao Yuansong.
This man, indeed worthy of being the senior disciple of the Outer Sect of the Nine Mysteries Sect, did not show much distress despite the destruction of a valuable set of formation flags. Instead, a deep worry filled his eyes.
After a moment, Zhao Yuansong exhaled and gave a wry smile. "Let's inform the county yamen first and then see how to remedy the situation."
It was fortunate that they had not notified the county yamen to come and subjugate the demon earlier. Otherwise, the loss at this moment would not have been limited to just a set of formation flags and the depletion of spiritual energy from two magical artifacts.
It was likely that at least twenty to thirty soldiers and constables would have perished in that explosion just now!
Ji Yuan nodded, having no objection. Given the current situation, this was indeed the appropriate course of action.
However, he suddenly frowned, looking around with a hint of suspicion. He vaguely felt as if he had overlooked something.
"What is it?"
Zhao Yuansong, seeing his slight change in expression, immediately asked.
Ji Yuan shook his head, his gaze sweeping across the surroundings. At this moment, the people trapped in the ruins on both banks had been rescued by Zhao Yuansong's junior disciples. Although they were disheveled, they were fortunately not seriously injured.
"Wait! Where is my fifth senior brother?"
He suddenly realized, finding that his senior brother was not within his line of sight.
Upon hearing this, the people present were stunned and then realized that the tall, burly man was indeed nowhere to be seen.
Could it be that during the previous explosion...
Ji Yuan's heart sank. The casual expression on his face vanished instantly, replaced by anxious eyes searching everywhere.
Just then, the now-calm river surface suddenly rippled, followed by the emergence of water splashes. Under the watchful eyes of several people, a tall figure broke through the water and quickly swam to the shore.
"Senior Brother!"
Ji Yuan's eyes lit up, and he rushed forward. After carefully examining him, he breathed a sigh of relief, confirming that his fifth senior brother had no injuries.
"Why did you jump into the water for no reason!"
"Do you know how dangerous that is!"
"That demon might come back!"
The young man shouted angrily, directing his roar at his senior brother.
Guo Tao scratched the back of his head, wearing a simple, honest smile. Ever since his junior brother had embarked on the path of cultivation over a year ago, he hadn't seen him display such a loss of composure.
It was as if, after becoming a cultivator, his junior brother had suddenly grown up. Although he occasionally exhibited his mischievous nature with their master and his senior brothers, he had truly become a young man.
With this thought, he extended his hand to his junior brother, opening his palm to reveal a round bead nestled in his broad hand.
This object was the spiritual item containing abundant water essence that the catfish demon had used earlier. However, to escape, it had consumed nearly half of its water essence in one go.
"I see you seem to want it quite a bit, so I went to see if I could find it in the water."
Guo Tao chuckled foolishly and placed the round bead into his dumbfounded junior brother's arms.
After a long while, Ji Yuan finally came to his senses. He glared at his senior brother with a hint of annoyance, unsure of what to say.
But a warmth silently spread throughout his entire body.