Chapter 0201: Demon Beast

Chapter 0201: Demon Beast

Suddenly, a thunderclap sounded from the sky, and the massive rumble of thunder shook the earth, alarming Qin Yun and Du Gui, their expressions changing.

Roaring…

The night was battered by a torrential downpour, with lightning flashing across the sky, an ominous sight.

Qin Yun and Du Gui had to climb the stairs from the tree hollow to reach a higher place. The rain poured heavily, accompanied by massive hailstones.

Standing in the tree hollow ten meters high, Qin Yun looked towards the Treasure Woods, feeling a deep sense of alarm. The hailstones were unusually large, some even as big as small hills, smashing numerous large trees when they hit the ground.

The massive Star Yang Treasure Tree in the center had many large leaves knocked off, and there were numerous giant ice blocks several meters high in the open space around the tree.

Many buildings in Star Profound Martial Academy were destroyed by these massive ice blocks.

Du Gui, frowning, looked at the lightning-filled sky with a heavy expression. "This is bad; this phenomenon is very abnormal. It seems something is in the cloud layer. Let me use my spirit to investigate!"

"Teacher, shouldn't we activate the barrier now?" Qin Yun asked. So many giant ice blocks were falling into Star Profound Martial Academy, indicating the barrier was not yet active.

With the beast horde approaching, if the barrier wasn't activated, powerful flying beasts would devastate the entire Martial Courtyard.

As Du Gui investigated the upper cloud layer, he suddenly exclaimed in a low voice, his old face filled with alarm. "Sure enough, there's something on the cloud layer!"

At that moment, the barrier suddenly activated, preventing the rain and hail from entering the academy.

However, outside, the heavy rain continued, and the water from Wanxing Lake overflowed, gradually submerging the central island.

Qin Yun hurriedly asked, "What is it? Are they causing the heavy rain and ice?"

"Probably! I don't know what it is! It should be some kind of beast, seemingly possessing the Ice Soul and Water Soul, and also the Thunder Soul! The flying beasts have started attacking us." Although Du Gui's face was filled with surprise, he wasn't afraid.

Qin Yun, on the other hand, felt a secret terror. There were actually beasts powerful enough to control the wind and rain, and they had some intelligence, knowing to attack human fortresses in this manner.

Du Gui looked up at the sky and suddenly shouted, "It's appearing!"

Qin Yun had been watching the lightning-filled dark clouds. After Du Gui's shout, the clouds churned even more fiercely. A flying giant lizard emerged from the storm clouds.

The black lizard had a pair of wings, its body covered with black scales, and its eyes glowed a deep purple, its forelimbs smaller, while its hind legs were massive and muscular, equipped with sharp claws.

"What is this?" Qin Yun's voice was filled with terror.

"I don't know!" Du Gui shook his head, his expression also very solemn.

The black lizard's wings spanned twenty to thirty meters, flapping like those of a bat, lifting its massive body and hovering over Star Profound Martial Academy. It exhaled icy white breath, condensing a large amount of rainwater into giant ice blocks.

The ice blocks fell outside the barrier of Star Profound Martial Academy and were shattered and deflected.

"Beast, be gone!" a fierce shout came out. From the center of Star Profound Martial Academy, a golden figure emerged. An elderly white-haired woman, holding a golden long whip, soared into the sky, and through the barrier, she lashed viciously at the strange beast.

Crack!

The sound of the whip was like thunder, a massive noise that shook the ground and flashed a golden light, illuminating the entire academy.

The flying beast in the sky roared, was whipped over a thousand meters away, and then flapped its wings, fleeing in terror.

"This old lady is amazing!" Qin Yun's eyes widened as he watched the golden figure slowly descend.

"She is our principal, indeed very powerful, and also very strict! Even we teachers often get scolded by her." Du Gui chuckled, now feeling much more relieved.

The rain gradually subsided, and the dark clouds dispersed. The starry sky appeared again, illuminating Wanxing Lake.

The fear that had enveloped the Black Tortoise Academy also dissipated.

At the center of the Black Tortoise Academy stood a tower several dozen stories high, its top glowing. Seeing this, Du Gui said to Qin Yun, "The principal is summoning all the teachers for a meeting. I need to attend! For now, don't go into seclusion for training. Wait for me to return."

Qin Yun nodded, then left the treasure forest and made his way to the central area of the Black Tortoise Academy.

The central area was home to many public facilities, such as the combat arena, the academy, the Profound Point Store, the crystal coin shop, and various other shops, making it a lively place.

Despite the earlier hailstorm, this area remained undamaged thanks to the highly skilled cultivators who managed the shops, easily shattering the falling ice blocks.

Buildings in other areas, mostly student residences, were destroyed, so the students had all fled to the hotels and inns in this area.

Qin Yun arrived at the central 'district' of the Black Tortoise Academy and approached the entrance of the Star Profound Academy. It was a nine-story square stone tower that looked extremely sturdy.

The academy housed numerous books, and near each bookshelf was a special crystal that recorded the surroundings. Anyone caught damaging or stealing books would be immediately discovered and face severe punishment, with serious offenders being expelled.

The academy was vast, spanning nine floors, each filled with hundreds of long bookshelves. Qin Yun felt overwhelmed upon arrival.

The staff, mostly elderly, were well-versed in the locations of various books.

Qin Yun inquired and learned the location of the books on Martial Soul knowledge, then hurried to the third floor. Upon reaching the area, he found a bookshelf filled with books on Martial Soul knowledge.

Qin Yun quickly flipped through the books. With his powerful spiritual sense, he could read a page at a glance, memorizing the knowledge and searching for what he needed.

To master the art of soul refinement, he needed to acquire a large amount of Martial Soul knowledge.

The books here documented various types of Martial Souls and provided detailed descriptions.

Qin Yun spent several days in this area, reading books day and night, oblivious to the passage of time.

After finishing over a hundred books on Martial Soul knowledge, he took a deep breath.

"My mysterious Martial Soul is called the Yin-Yang Martial Soul. It can release a mysterious dark inner energy used to decompose and rapidly absorb energy. The dark inner energy also allows one to hide in the darkness. Most importantly, it can release a powerful Yin-Yang flame, which is said to be capable of rapidly dissolving anything!"

With a better understanding of his Martial Soul, Qin Yun felt more at ease. This Martial Soul would greatly aid him in refining artifacts.

"The Martial Soul knowledge within the Black Tortoise Academy is truly extensive. I also found information related to Yue Mei's mirror Martial Soul! If she strengthens her mirror Martial Soul, she might be able to possess the abilities of multiple Martial Souls in the future and even extract Martial Souls from the mirror. What a formidable ability."

As Qin Yun left the academy, he continued to reflect on these thoughts.

Returning to the Star Yang Treasure Tree, he found Du Gui waiting for him in his tree hollow.

"Where did you go, kid? I told you to wait for me. Were you off flirting with the girls?" Du Gui said with a teasing smile when he saw Qin Yun return.

"No, I went to the academy to gain some knowledge. Teacher, how did your meeting go?" Qin Yun replied with a wry smile.

"The beast horde has appeared. Thanks to the protection of Wanxing Lake, the land-based beasts cannot reach us. The flying ones also take detours and avoid passing by."

Qin Yun was somewhat surprised. He hadn't expected the beast horde to appear while he was reading in the academy.

"Our principal, who has seen much, informed us that the beasts emerging from the Cloud Dragon Mountains are called Demon Beasts, which include ghost beasts and vicious beasts. Not all normal beasts are ferocious; some are quite humane and won't attack humans unprovoked."

"However, Demon Beasts are extremely ferocious and crave human flesh, especially that of strong humans, which enhances their strength when consumed."

"Some beasts, through cultivation, can transform into humans. Some of these beasts long to become human, fearing that killing would invoke divine punishment and that during the human transformation tribulation, if they have committed too many killings, the tribulation force would be even stronger." These were things Ding Tianchun had told him.

"Du Gui looked somewhat surprised and said, 'It seems you're quite knowledgeable about demon beasts! This kind of knowledge isn't described in great detail in the texts, because most people are averse to demon beasts.'

"The beast horde that has appeared now is almost entirely made up of demon beasts! They originated from the Demon Wasteland. Originally, these demon beasts planned to enter the Wu Region from the Demon Wasteland, but there are too many powerful figures in the Wu Region. They had to hide in the Cloud Dragon Range. However, there are many powerful demon beasts in the Cloud Dragon Range, so there was no room for them to survive. As they hadn't consumed human flesh, they came to this frontier.

"Since they traveled a long way from the Demon Wasteland to get here, it's likely they haven't eaten for many days and will be even more aggressive.

"It's not just about eating human flesh. This large group of demon beasts has a degree of intelligence. Something in the Cloud Dragon Range might be attracting them." Qin Yun thought it might have something to do with the Burial Ground of Immortals.

Du Gui said, 'That's a possibility! In any case, we need to be extra cautious if we venture out now.'

He took out a card made of crystal and handed it to Qin Yun, saying, 'This is your Profound Crystal Card. Just drip some of your blood on it! A beast-hunting trial will follow. Some senior members of the Star Profound Martial Academy need powerful demon beasts for research. You should find a suitable partner and go out to hunt beasts; you can earn Profound Points.'

Qin Yun took the crystal card and dripped blood on it.

Du Gui added, 'The external environment will undoubtedly become very harsh, so the Martial Academy won't allow you to venture out lightly. You must pass a test and obtain a pass token to enter and leave freely.'"