To deal with demonic beasts of this level, Li Yan could also summon thousands upon thousands of Snow Mosquitoes. Although being underwater was not an advantageous environment for them, they were still demonic beasts with Spirit Power. Even if the average level of the Snow Mosquitoes was lower than this school of strange fish, there were at least a hundred thousand of them in the Earthen Patch now. Their sheer numbers alone could temporarily suppress the opponent for a period, giving him an opportunity to escape.
Of course, Li Yan had no intention of leaving just like that. After sensing that wisp of an aura, he had to get to the bottom of the lake and see for himself, no matter what.
In the moment Li Yan's figure paused, the surrounding red dots surged towards him like a tide. And Li Yan could clearly see that as these strange fish pounced, the cracks on their bodies that resembled baby mouths truly opened up like long, horizontal "mouths."
As they opened, Li Yan saw that these "mouths" on the fish seemed to be filled with what looked like white maggots. The moment the "mouths" opened, the white things writhed chaotically within the cracks, and then their heads poked out one after another, demonic qi overflowing.
This scene sent a chill down Li Yan's spine. The thought of these strange fish getting close, pressing against him, and the writhing maggots from those baby mouths piercing his body, demonic qi rampaging within him—it was enough to make one shudder.
Li Yan took a deep breath. He didn't dodge, but instead, began to sink downwards rapidly again. But as his body moved, wisps of green qi drifted out from him, swiftly merging into the lake water in the next breath.
The green qi from Li Yan's body dissipated very quickly, dyeing the surrounding lake water a dark green in the blink of an eye. And as he descended, this green color flowed downwards like a long river of green juice.
All of this happened too quickly. The moment the lake water around Li Yan turned green, the strange fish had already reached him, plunging headfirst into the dark green water. The pair of red eyes on the heads of these strange fish glinted with excitement, like ferocious beasts choosing their prey.
The moment they got close to Li Yan's body, not only were the large mouths on their crowns already open, revealing rows of fine, sharp teeth, but the white maggots in the "mouths" on their bodies were also writhing frantically, as if in a mad dance.
Just as they were about to pass through the green water and bite Li Yan, a green smoke suddenly erupted from the bodies of these fish that had entered the dark green water. The next moment, a dense series of bubbles appeared around Li Yan, and one by one, the strange fish vanished from his side.
Despite this scene, the strange fish continued to rush forward one after another, pouncing madly. But the moment they touched the green water, their bodies would instantly dissolve, turning into a puff of green smoke, leaving not even bones behind.
To deal with this kind of swarming, low-level demonic beast attack, Li Yan, of course, knew what was most effective: poison.
With the potent poison he had released, forget about these demonic beasts that were all mouths, constantly sucking water into their bodies. Even if they had sealed their seven orifices, if they were touched by the green water, they would still melt into a pool of filth in an instant. And these strange fish were being attacked from both inside and out by the green water they had absorbed. The speed of their death was somewhat surprising even to Li Yan; it took less than half a breath for one to die.
The potent poison Li Yan released was one he had used back in the Huchen family's estate. It was called "Green Flame Incinerating Gold." This poison had an entangling, incinerating, and damaging effect on physical objects, and had helped him pass through the Peach Blossom Forest without any real danger. When "Green Flame Incinerating Gold" was used, there were actually no visible flames. The green mist would not produce flames; the poison it released would silently incinerate any object it touched in an instant.
The use of this poison had certain limitations. The main one was that it was impossible to conceal when released, especially the green mist, which was easily noticed and avoided. But it was an excellent "remedy" for group attacks. Now that Li Yan was using it against these low-level demonic beasts, there was no need to hide his intentions at all.
The red dots around Li Yan continuously swarmed over, and then disappeared one by one. Li Yan, on the other hand, gently circulated the Spirit Power in his body, ready to strike at any moment. Looking at the dense red dots, he was also a little nervous. He couldn't be entirely sure that not a single strange fish would break through the green water around him and pounce on him before dying.
But his worries were unnecessary. The red dots were annihilated one after another. Although the number of red dots around him didn't seem to decrease, it was true that not a single strange fish could break through the dark green defensive line.
If any other cultivator were to witness this scene, they would be utterly horrified. A swarm of strange fish that only a Golden Core cultivator or above could break through with brute force had been defeated by Li Yan just like that. Even for a pure poison cultivator, they couldn't have done it as easily as Li Yan. After all, they wouldn't carry so many poison pills on them, and they would quickly run out. They weren't like Li Yan, who, as long as he was alive, would have a continuous supply of poison produced from his own flesh and blood.
After another few breaths, when Li Yan had descended to about three hundred zhang, the strange fish finally gave up their suicidal attacks. After circling the long belt of green water around Li Yan several times, the red dots slowly faded and eventually disappeared.
Li Yan paid them no mind, and while continuing his rapid descent, he kept circulating the Fragmented Poison Body, continuing to release "Green Flame Incinerating Gold." It was only after another few breaths, when the strange fish had completely disappeared from his Divine Sense, that he stopped casting the spell.
"Human, why do you trespass here?"
Just as Li Yan had relaxed, a voice suddenly entered his mind. Li Yan's descending body paused, and he floated in the water.
There was no look of surprise on Li Yan's face. He had long since sensed the auras of many demonic beasts in this lake, and they were in the vicinity, just that they hadn't pounced on him. Among them was an extremely strong demonic qi lurking within. At this moment, Li Yan had roughly guessed that the closer one got to the bottom of the lake, the fewer demonic beasts there were, but the stronger they were. The few aquatic demonic beasts that hadn't moved around him basically all had the aura of the Great Perfection of Qi Condensation.
"I just felt that this lake was a little different and came over to have a look. What? Is your cave residence down below, or your territory?" Li Yan looked up towards a spot diagonally below him.
As Li Yan's gaze fell, a spot seventy zhang below him, which had been pitch black, suddenly flashed with a deep green light. Then, this green light grew brighter and brighter, dyeing the water within ten zhang a ghastly green. This green was several times more intense than the "Green Flame Incinerating Gold" Li Yan had just released. In the dark water, the green was so intense it made one's heart shudder.
Li Yan just watched quietly, letting the green light there grow stronger and the figure within clearer.
The green light was emitted by a humanoid demonic beast. It was slender, with a bare upper body and limbs. It only wore a piece of an unknown, light silver material around its waist, which at a glance looked like the smooth skin of some kind of snake. The humanoid demonic beast's entire body shone with green light, and pure demonic qi was slowly being emitted, displaying its powerful strength. It had long, pointed ears, and in one of its withered, slender hands, it held a serpent spear. It was also staring intently at Li Yan.
"Mid-stage Foundation Establishment, not weak!" Li Yan's Divine Sense swept over the other party. He was still unfamiliar with what race this demonic beast belonged to. It gave him the feeling of a water ghost from legends.
"Fellow Daoist is a stranger. I do not know why you have come here, but my cave residence is indeed below!" The humanoid demonic beast, on the other hand, was extremely shocked by Li Yan's cultivation. No matter how he probed, the other's initial-stage Foundation Establishment cultivation was indistinct, but it gave him the feeling of facing a peerless, ferocious beast that could pounce at any moment. He had always been very confident in his senses, so he did not believe the other's cultivation was as weak as it appeared on the surface. Especially after seeing the means by which the other had killed the "Blood Infant Fish" from below, he was already very wary. Otherwise, he would have attacked directly just now, instead of being so cautious.
Li Yan was not surprised that a Foundation Establishment demonic beast had appeared here. This was no ordinary lake; there was a killing intent within it, which could attract demonic beasts or cultivators, just like himself. This was within the sphere of influence of the Falling Star Valley, so it was not surprising that there were demonic beasts from the Qi Condensation to Foundation Establishment stages. They were all within the controllable range of the sect. It would be strange if there were a demonic beast above the Golden Core stage here. Everyone understood the principle that one mountain cannot accommodate two tigers. No one would want a fierce tiger that could pounce at any moment sleeping by their pillow.
"Oh, then I may have to trouble you. I only need to go to that place. I wonder if that is where your cave residence is, or if it is outside it?" After hearing this, Li Yan got straight to the point. As he spoke, he pointed to an area to his lower left.
"I wonder where Fellow Daoist comes from? What is your title? Would you be able to let me know?" The humanoid demonic beast did not answer Li Yan's question, but instead asked about his origin.
"Just a rogue cultivator. I was just passing by and sensed a killing intent emanating from this lake. This killing intent has the air of clashing golden spears and armored horses, so I wanted to come and have a look. What? Is Fellow Daoist unable to be accommodating?" Seeing the other beat around the bush, Li Yan's eyebrows twitched. He didn't care whether the other was willing or not; he had to go and see today, even if it was the other's cave residence, he would still barge in.
Seeing the displeasure already in Li Yan's tone, the humanoid demonic beast was greatly angered. But this was how the cultivation world was: the weak were prey to the strong. The other's cultivation was clearly far inferior to his, but he still acted without any scruples. If he didn't agree, the next moment, this human cultivator would probably attack. Moreover, the place Li Yan pointed to was not his cave residence, which made the humanoid demonic beast already want to back down.
"Does Fellow Daoist really only need to go there?"
"Yes, just that one area!"
"I hope Fellow Daoist keeps his word. Otherwise, I will have no choice but to ask for your guidance! Then please, go ahead. But please, Fellow Daoist, do not kill the other demonic beasts here."
"Hehehe, as long as they don't attack me again, why would I waste my time on them?"
The tone of their conversation was very flat, giving a feeling of insincerity, but they exchanged questions and answers quickly. After the humanoid demonic beast finished speaking, it gave Li Yan a deep look, and the green light around its body quickly faded. In the blink of an eye, the water once again returned to pitch blackness.
Li Yan calmly retracted his gaze and continued to sink downwards. To subdue the enemy without fighting—this was the difference in strength.
In a reef cluster at the bottom of the lake, a figure was rapidly flying back.
'Dammit, I hope he keeps his word. This is the Feng family's territory. Logically, if an outside cultivator passes through, the Feng family will definitely come out to investigate. But why haven't I seen that old ghost from the Feng family appear? This can only mean that this person either has an extremely profound concealment technique, or his cultivation is too high, which is why those two old ghosts are unaware.'
This figure was the demonic beast that looked like a water ghost. His ability to coexist peacefully with the Feng family here was the result of his constant caution. Similarly, if they fought in the water, the Feng family's ancestor wouldn't necessarily gain much of an advantage, and of course, wouldn't come over to trade injuries for injuries. In any case, neither would intrude on the other's territory.