"So quickly… you actually defeated the Water-Gu Demon King?"
The moment Fang Han shot out of the cauldron and a surge of azure qi wrapped around the Demon King before dispersing into nothing, Long Xuan understood—he'd succeeded. The Demon King had vanished without a trace. Though she knew this Demon King had been sealed and weakened long ago, she still couldn't help being shocked at Fang Han's capabilities.
The Water-Gu Demon King had once refined the fabled Demonic Golden Core. Centuries ago, many immortals knew of his power.
And Long Xuan knew better than most what a demonic Golden Core meant.
Among all the elite disciples of Yuhua Sect, only five had ever reached the seventh level of Divine Ability and cultivated a nascent Golden Core seed: Dong Lingxiao, Xi Jialan, Bei Yaoguang, Nan Wanluo, and the center—Hua Tiandu. That was why they were revered above all others. There were many deep and unfathomable true disciples, but most still fell short of forming a Golden Core.
A true Golden Core master could roam the world without fear. Even a hundred Long Xuans combined would be crushed like insects.
Even stripped of his core, the Water-Gu Demon King retained his foundation, instinct, and origin power. A centipede remains hard to kill even when dead—ordinary Heavenly Being Realm masters were no match for him. And yet Fang Han had subdued him.
Long Xuan's heart tightened with awe.
Perhaps… in ten years, this man truly might challenge Hua Tiandu…
The thought rose unbidden.
"Long Xuan, activate the Devouring Formation inside the cauldron. Pull in all the lesser demons—later, we'll use them as ingredients for pill refinement."
She was pulled from her contemplation by Fang Han's voice, echoing within the cauldron.
"You're right," she replied. "Sky Demons make the best alchemical catalysts. The problem is most cultivators can't control Daoist fire precisely enough, so their attempts fail. But my Ten-Thousand-Waters True Qi excels at regulating flame—water and fire balancing perfectly. With the Five-Prison King Cauldron, we can try refining Yuhua Sect's top-tier medicinal pill—equal in rank to Taiyi Sect's Infant-Spirit Pill: the Foundation-Building Pill."
"The Foundation-Building Pill?" Fang Han asked.
"This method is only taught to Heavenly Being–level disciples since it's difficult and time-consuming. Ordinary disciples are forbidden—so they don't waste time tinkering with pills instead of cultivating. I heard about it from Senior Sister Jialan."
"So it's a top human-grade pill," Fang Han mused. Yuhua Sect was one of the Ten Great Immortal Sects—having such a pill made sense.
"Human-grade? What do you mean?" Long Xuan blinked.
Fang Han briefly explained the pill hierarchy—Human, Spirit, Earth, Heaven, Immortal.
"Pills have so many levels… what an enormous field of study." Long Xuan nodded thoughtfully. "No wonder the Yin-Yang Longevity Pill is a Heaven-grade pill—the Emperor of Pills. It didn't just help me break into the Divine Ability realm, it's letting me condense qi at an incredible pace."
As they talked, they activated the Devouring Formation. The cauldron spun fiercely, sending out a massive tornado that swept the battlefield. Wherever the whirlwind passed, demons were ripped from the sky and sucked into a giant mural inside the cauldron.
That mural—once depicting "Night Parade of a Hundred Ghosts"—now teemed with life, every demon painted on it writhing as real power poured into it.
Fang Han could feel it clearly: as the cauldron absorbed thousands of Sky Demons, the Five-Prison King Cauldron surged with vitality. Formations previously too heavy to move groaned awake.
Before, even with Fang Han, Long Xuan, and the witch combined, they could barely activate a few formations: Spatial-Shift, Five-Fire Thunder, Shattering, Devouring. And never simultaneously.
But now—using the demons as fuel—the formations lit up like a great engine roaring alive.
"So that's it!" Fang Han realized instantly.
"The Five-Prison Demon King crafted this cauldron specifically to control his demonic army. The more demons inside, the greater its power. Their essence fuels the formations!"
Yan's voice echoed with smug satisfaction.
"Exactly. To fully activate its nine hundred and ninety-nine formations, you'd need Golden Core cultivation at minimum—ideally mastery of Heaven-and-Earth Dharma Form, the ninth level of Divine Ability. Millions of horses' worth of strength, mountain-moving power. But if you gather eight million Sky Demons, they can serve as your workforce. Then every formation can be unleashed. Under such power, even a Demon Marshal would struggle to kill you—you'd be equals!"
"Eight… million?" Fang Han's jaw dropped. "Where am I supposed to find eight million demons? This Water-Gu King only had a hundred thousand!"
"In the Void Realm," Yan said, "there are pathways leading to the Outer Sky Demon Worlds. Since we've subdued the Water-Gu King, this is our chance to explore."
"Then this might be the opportunity of a lifetime." Fang Han's blood heated. He understood the truth: the stronger the treasure, the higher the cultivation needed to fully wield it. The Yellow Springs Diagram was an imperial decree from the Yellow Springs Emperor himself—its true power wouldn't manifest until Fang Han reached the Longevity Realm.
And the Five-Prison King Cauldron was the same. Using even one percent was already impressive.
But eight million demons would change everything.
"One more thing," Fang Han suddenly asked. "Earlier you mentioned refining the Water-Gu Demon King into a Dharma Saint Relic. What kind of pill is that?"
Yan's tone grew proud.
"It's one of the Yellow Springs Sect's finest pills—Earth-grade supreme. One step below the Nine-Aperture Golden Core. Consuming a Dharma Saint Relic grants ten thousand horses of pure strength. True, unstoppable power."
"What? Ten thousand? That's an entire Heavenly Being Realm's worth of strength!" Fang Han nearly shouted. "When I used the Transference Art to steal the Blackwater Serpent King's power, I only got around two thousand! How can one pill give ten thousand?"
"Hmph. The Blackwater Serpent is nothing compared to a Golden Core master. Refining a Dharma Saint Relic requires the essence of a Golden Core expert! Who can kill someone like that and take their origin? Getting their Golden Core is even rarer—they can self-detonate at will. Not even Forget-Love Water can stop that. A Golden Core explosion can injure even Longevity Realm masters."
"But this time," Yan continued gleefully, "we hit the cosmic jackpot. A Demon King who lost his core, perfectly countered by Forget-Love Water. Even Hua Tiandu and Fang Qingxue sealed him instead of killing him—they wanted his origin!"
"So we really struck big this time?" Fang Han asked carefully.
"Bigger than big." Yan slapped its own head with its claws—its favorite gesture when excited. "Without luck like this, you could train for ten thousand years and still lag behind Hua Tiandu!"
"And we must extract the Great Severing Art. That thing almost killed you."
"Of course. I don't even know that technique—learning it would be a waste not to."
While conversing mentally, Fang Han maneuvered the cauldron through the sky, Spatial-Shift teleporting it across clouds while the Devouring Formation sucked in fleeing demons by the thousands.
Once the Demon King vanished, the hundred-thousand-strong army fell into chaos. Fang Han's earlier attacks had only killed a few thousand—he had just over 3,700 Biluo Pills to show for it.
But now, freed to act, his efficiency skyrocketed.
The cauldron appeared in the east—whoosh—thousands devoured. Then in the west—whoosh—another mass vanished.
Below, the cultivators of Thunder Emperor's Island, including the six thunder envoys, stared in shock. Moments ago they feared Fang Han was doomed. Now he soared above with an unbelievable treasure that bent the battlefield to his will.
Soon, over fifty thousand demons had been captured. The remaining few tens of thousands escaped too quickly for pursuit, leaving Fang Han frustrated.
He finally understood the gap between himself and Hua Tiandu.
Hua Tiandu needed no treasure. One technique—Snow Burying Heaven and Earth—and eight thousand miles froze solid. A million demons would be immobilized like insects in amber.
Meanwhile, Fang Han—with a top-tier treasure—still let many escape.
Gathering the tens of thousands he had captured, Fang Han landed before Thunder Emperor's Island. The six thunder envoys rushed to greet him, relief flooding their faces.
Far away, however, a group of mysterious black-robed figures observed.
"Fang Qingxue's subordinate is truly formidable," one whispered. "We're too late—the Water-Gu Demon King has been subdued again."
"We planned to retrieve his origin essence for the Master," another murmured, "but miscalculated. Since the Demon Marshal was chased by Taiyi Sect, this island went undefended. Yet we still failed."
"A Demon King who once held a Golden Core—it's a thousand-year opportunity. Should we attack and seize it?"
"No. Don't alert them. Fang Han is unpredictable, and he holds the Five-Prison King Cauldron. And we mustn't expose ourselves—not yet. If the three paths of Immortal, Demon, and Monster discover us, they'll hunt us relentlessly. We must remain hidden and stir chaos until the Immortal and Demon realms bleed each other dry. That is the Master's decree."
"Then how do we report this failure?"
"Truthfully. Fang Qingxue is rumored to be the reincarnation of the Lightning Empress—no one expected easy success. The envoys will understand."
After their quiet exchange, one black-robed figure released a black talisman that rippled through the air and vanished. Then all of them disappeared into the wind.
They were not strong—barely at the Divine Ability Realm, recently broken through using pills. But the artifacts they carried were foreign and uncanny. This secret organization, unknown to any sect, clearly harbored enormous ambitions.
But Fang Han knew none of this.
He was now surrounded by the six thunder envoys, Long Xuan, and the witch, being ushered into Thunder Emperor's Palace to enjoy the "Dan Yuan Banquet."
"Fang Han, without you, we'd all be dead—our islands overrun. Please put in a good word for us before Lady Qingxue. We failed to maintain the seal and caused disaster—she will punish us harshly."
The six envoys—Spring, Summer, Autumn, Winter, Sun, and Moon—offered wine with nervous smiles.
"That won't be a problem," Fang Han replied with an easy smile.
"Also," one envoy added, "we've already sent a lightning-fast message to Fang Qiang of Purple Lightning Peak. She'll relay your achievements to the young lady."