I, Thanks To My Unlimited Investment, Am Admired By All Races

“Senior Brother Li— hss!”

Liu Qingshuang’s eyes lit up as she opened her mouth to respond. However, her excitement caused her wounds to flare up, and she inhaled sharply in pain.

“Don’t move, Junior Sister. I have a pill here—take it first.”

Li Xun crouched down before Liu Qingshuang, producing a crimson pill and offering it to her.

She obediently opened her small mouth and swallowed the pill.

As soon as the pill entered her stomach, a surge of potent medicinal energy spread throughout her body, starting to mend her broken bones.

[Ding! Congratulations, Host. By investing one Restorative Pill, you’ve earned one Millennial Jade Essence Ganoderma. Would you like to claim it?]

“Not now,” Li Xun replied quickly.

Nearby, Liu Qingshuang’s complexion visibly improved after taking the pill, with a hint of rosiness returning to her cheeks. Her eyes sparkled as she said, “Thank you, Senior Brother.”

“No need to thank me; it was just a small favor.”

Li Xun waved his hand dismissively and asked, “Junior Sister, do you know the current situation of the others?”

“Most of the senior brothers and sisters have likely been captured by the Otherworldly Demons.”

Liu Qingshuang’s face darkened as she replied in a somber tone, “Some have even become food for the Otherworldly Demons.”

As she spoke, her gaze shifted to a certain Senior Brother Zhou not far away.

Senior Brother Zhou, as luck would have it, encountered an Otherworldly Demon that didn’t eat corpses. Otherwise, even leaving an intact body behind would have been impossible.

“Where were they taken?” Li Xun asked.

“It seems to be that way…”

Liu Qingshuang weakly raised her arm and pointed in a certain direction.

Within the black formation, thick fog blanketed everything, making it impossible to discern directions. From the moment Li Xun entered, he had already lost his bearings.

Fortunately, this was merely a trapping formation—one could enter but not exit. If it had been a killing formation, it was likely that all the inner disciples of Profound Sun Sect would have already perished.

“By the way, Junior Sister Liu…”

Li Xun glanced in the direction she pointed and then asked again, “Do you know the strength of the strongest Otherworldly Demon among them?”

“And also, how many of these strongest Otherworldly Demons are there in total?”

Li Xun had plans to rescue the others. After all, nearly every Profound Sun Sect disciple was injured, and saving any of them would allow him to reap another investment.

But he didn’t want to court death.

The Otherworldly Demon he had just killed wasn’t weak. If the center of the formation housed many Otherworldly Demons of similar strength, it would be beyond his ability to handle. In that case, it would be better to stay here with Liu Qingshuang and wait for the sect elders to arrive.

After all, the Profound Sun Sect was only about a thousand miles away from this location. Even without using their Spirit Boats, the elders could arrive within half an hour or so.

“The one Senior Brother Li just killed was one of the strongest. Besides him, there should be two more.”

Liu Qingshuang thought for a moment before replying.

“When the formation first activated, those three surrounded Senior Brother Wang. Since they’re Otherworldly Demons, they can regenerate from any injury almost instantly.

Even though Senior Brother Wang is a Life and Death Realm expert, he couldn’t do anything to them at the time.

Later, the Otherworldly Demon you killed suddenly appeared and began chasing us. I suspect that Senior Brother Wang…”

At this point, Liu Qingshuang trailed off.

But Li Xun could already guess the rest.

The leader, Senior Brother Wang, had most likely met a grim fate.

The problem, however, was that Liu Qingshuang mentioned Senior Brother Wang was in the Life and Death Realm.

Logically speaking, even if the Otherworldly Demons had near-immortal bodies, the difference in cultivation realms should have prevented them from injuring Senior Brother Wang.

Could it be…

Li Xun considered a possibility:

The three Otherworldly Demons might have some sort of trump card.

Upon thinking this through, Li Xun let out a small sigh of relief. As long as the opponent wasn’t monstrously powerful, things were manageable. As for their trump cards…

Who doesn’t have a trump card?

If the enemy used their trump card, he’d use his own. At worst, he could retreat into the Royal Spirit Boat. He refused to believe the enemy could punch through a low-grade flying spiritual treasure like that.

Besides, in Li Xun’s estimation, there was a good chance the enemy’s trump card couldn’t be used a second time. They had likely already exhausted their options.

“Junior Sister Liu, I’ve cleared out most of the Otherworldly Demons in this area. For now, there shouldn’t be any more coming. Stay here and don’t wander off,” Li Xun instructed.

“In just a little while, I believe the sect elders will arrive.”

“Senior Brother Li, are you going to rescue the others?” Liu Qingshuang asked.

“Yes.” Li Xun nodded firmly.

“Then… please, Senior Brother, be careful.” Liu Qingshuang spoke earnestly.

She didn’t try to stop Li Xun or offer to accompany him. She understood that, in her current state, she would only be a burden if she followed him.

Watching Li Xun walk away, Liu Qingshuang gritted her teeth, forced herself to stand, and slowly made her way to a large tree. There, she suppressed her presence entirely and hid.

Meanwhile, a dozen miles away, atop a mountain peak:

Thick black fog roiled in the air, and dense demonic energy permeated the surroundings. Crimson blood flowed across the ground, forming a sinister and intricate pattern.

At the center of the pattern was a blood pool, slowly rotating. It emitted a relentless crimson glow that shot skyward, connecting to a spatial rift in the heavens above.

The blood glow was like a tether, one end anchored to the mountain peak, while the other reached toward an unfathomable and terrifying entity.

As time passed, a dreadful aura began to seep through the rift in the sky. The aura carried a strange, oppressive evil, enough to send chills down anyone’s spine.

“Master, what are they doing?”

Lying prone a short distance away, Ye Han had completely concealed his presence. He blended seamlessly with the darkness, only his sharp eyes peering out.

Three days ago, Ye Han had been fortunate enough to officially become an inner disciple of the Profound Sun Sect.

This trial was supposed to be his opportunity to slay a few beasts and earn some spiritual stones from the sect to help stabilize his master’s soul.

But he never anticipated encountering a disaster like this as soon as he arrived in the Profound Sun Mountain Range.

Thankfully, he had reacted quickly and hidden himself. That was the only reason he hadn’t been captured by the Otherworldly Demons.

Others weren’t as lucky. Many had been killed on the spot, while most of the survivors had been taken captive. Now, they were bound to black pillars like livestock.

At this moment, Ye Han was positioned perfectly to observe the scene.

He could clearly see every captured Profound Sun Sect disciple, as well as the two Otherworldly Demons standing at the edge of the formation.

The two Otherworldly Demons, also clad in black robes, were muttering strange incantations. Their hands constantly traced mysterious symbols in the air, which flew into the blood pool.

Each time a symbol was absorbed, the blood pool’s crimson glow grew stronger.

Simultaneously, the aura emanating from the spatial rift intensified, becoming more terrifying with each passing moment. It was as though an otherworldly being of supreme power was preparing to descend.

“If my guess is correct, they’re performing a ritual,” said the elderly voice in Ye Han’s mind, its tone heavy with concern.