"Make your selection! If there really isn't enough space, keep the more important ones and leave the rest to the nearby spirit beasts."
Jiang Daoyu accepted the order and emptied all the captured demonic cultivators from the spirit beast pouch.
The ones they had killed earlier were disciples of minor sects—those sects wouldn't dare cause trouble. But the Feng Family and Chiyan Sect were different. Those sects would never easily give up on avenging important disciples.
After a brief discussion, the three selected the ones worth keeping alive. The rest would be handled by the spirit beasts. They couldn't just release the demonic cultivators—doing so would endanger not only the secret realm but also their fellow sect disciples.
"Senior Brother! Earlier, those three junior brothers said they saw the demonic cultivators destroying the bamboo forest. Could their goal have been to sabotage the resources here and cause heavy losses to Xuanming Sect?" Chen Jinshu speculated.
"Highly likely! Xuanming Sect had a deep grudge with the demonic cultivators who once lived here. Those survivors might be here for revenge," Du Yi nodded in agreement.
"Alright! Let's find a spirit beast den and continue this discussion. I'm concerned that these demonic cultivators might be able to sense one another's presence!"
Without delay, the three of them began searching the surrounding area for a suitable hideout for the disposal. Large spirit beasts generally lived near mountainous areas where they could hide easily. So that's where they focused their search.
Soon, they found a Ghostface Spider nest behind a mountain peak. These spiders were highly venomous. If a cultivator was bitten and didn't detoxify in time, death was certain. They quickly captured one of the spiders and let it bite the necks of the selected demonic cultivators.
Within half an hour, those poisoned by the spider collapsed, lifeless. The three then set the bodies ablaze and burned everything down.
"Senior Brother, let's split the rest of their storage bags. We might find some clues!" Chen Jinshu said eagerly, holding up a few storage pouches.
They say "killing and arson lead to gold belts"—maybe it was true. The trio found a secluded cave to rest in and began dividing the demonic cultivators' belongings.
Chen Jinshu poured out the contents of all fourteen storage bags in front of them. Seeing the pile of spiritual items, the three had stars in their eyes.
"We've struck gold!" Du Yi beamed.
After sorting the items, they ended up with: 30,000 lower-grade spirit stones; 2,000 medicinal herbs, and over 1,000 types of spiritual items like ores—an impressive haul.
Most intriguingly, they found twelve small statues, grotesque and demonic in appearance—green-faced and tusked, like fiends from hell. However, they emitted no energy, lifeless as stones.
"Could these be idols of the demon lord they worship?" Chen Jinshu frowned slightly.
"Demon lord? I've never heard of that," Du Yi replied, curious. He was only familiar with terms like demon sect and demonic cultivators.
This sudden mention of a demon lord piqued everyone's interest.
"Did your master ever take you along to purge demonic cultivators in other sect territories?" Chen Jinshu asked.
"He mentioned it, but only rotates between disciples. We haven't had our turn yet," Du Yi explained.
"About three or four months ago, I followed my master to deal with a demonic infestation. Unexpectedly, we discovered a stone cave used by the demon cult."
"The demonic cultivators were trying to awaken their so-called demon lord using the blood essence of cultivators."
She couldn't say too much, so she kept it brief.
"My master said the demon lord is an ancient entity—an extraterrestrial demon that has existed since the earliest days of cultivation. It feeds on flesh and blood, its demonic aura corrupts the mind and leads cultivators astray, even mutating spiritual plants."
"That's all I know."
"So you're saying these twelve statues might represent that demon lord?" Jiang Daoyu asked, nodding slowly.
"But just worshipping this demon lord gives them demonic energy or power?" Du Yi was puzzled.
"I'm not sure either," Chen Jinshu shook her head.
Her master had only briefly mentioned it. She tried researching further in the library but found little. The knowledge might've been restricted to avoid public panic. She couldn't justify asking her master for access to restricted texts either.
"There are twelve statues, but two storage bags had no matching statues. Those must've belonged to disciples who were victims."
"We should turn these statues over to the sect leader after we leave this realm," Chen said grimly. "They're too dangerous to keep."
If the statues could be used to locate other cultists, then holding on to them was like carrying a tracking device. She carefully placed all twelve statues into a sealed wooden box and affixed several talisman seals.
Once the box was in her storage bag, she used her mind to transfer it into her spiritual plant space—an isolated pocket dimension. Only then did she feel at ease. If she'd handed them to her senior brothers, traveling together might risk exposure.
The spiritual plant space was the safest place to store dangerous items.
"Let's split the remaining loot evenly."
"Sounds good!"
Two hours later, after dividing up the spoils, the trio returned to the bamboo forest in search of the Purple Thunder Bamboo. Thanks to Du Yi's Bagua Compass, they found a clue—it pointed to the far eastern corner of the bamboo grove, a secluded area surrounded by uneven hills and hidden from view.
"This compass is amazing, Senior Brother!" Chen Jinshu said with admiration.
"It was a birthday gift from my grandfather. He was a famous vein-seeker in the cultivation world. He used this compass to locate spiritual veins. Sadly, he passed away, and his skills didn't get passed on."
"I've only learned a bit—mainly how to find spiritual objects," Du Yi explained, fiddling with the compass.
"Purple Thunder Bamboo likely grows in harmony with the spiritual veins and feng shui of this bamboo grove. As long as we find the optimal 'dragon vein' point, we'll find the most valuable materials…"
He rambled on, most of which Chen Jinshu barely understood. All she knew was that this senior brother had some innate talent for feng shui. Finally, the trio reached a small valley surrounded by hills. The spiritual energy there was dense and lingering—almost mist-like, indicating high quality.
"This must be it! The best spot in the entire grove. If the Purple Thunder Bamboo isn't here, it's probably nowhere else," Du Yi said confidently.
They had only walked a few meters when they spotted three towering stalks of Purple Thunder Bamboo, each over five meters tall and crackling with golden lightning.
Even the leaves sparked.
"Senior Brother! It really is Purple Thunder Bamboo!" Chen Jinshu exclaimed in delight.
The three stalks were thick and majestic—clearly over a thousand years old.
Mature spiritual herbs typically refer to those that have reached optimal medicinal value:
Lower-grade: 50–100+ years
Mid-grade: 100–200+ years
High-grade: 200–300+ years