Xu Xiaoxiao's Immortal Cultivation Life (Transmigration)

Chapter 190 The Vanished Child

During their time in the demon realm, Jiang Jingzhi, Xu Xiaoxiao, and Mu Zhusheng devoted themselves to cultivation. Every morning, as soon as the first rays of sunlight shone down, they would begin their cultivation in the mountains and forests.

Jiang Jingzhi sat cross-legged, surrounded by spiritual energy, trying to refine the magic within his body. However, the malevolent energy that had been temporarily suppressed while repairing the barrier had recently shown signs of loosening again. Every time he cultivated, that malevolent energy was like a demon hiding in the shadows, interfering with him from time to time, whispering in the depths of his consciousness, trying to make him abandon the righteous path and throw himself into the embrace of darkness.

Jiang Jingzhi was well aware of the dangers of this malevolent energy. He didn't want his junior brother Mu Zhusheng and junior sister Xu Xiaoxiao to worry, so he always tried his best to hide this situation well, which just took him a little more time than usual to cultivate.

On this day, the three were cultivating when suddenly a demon soldier rushed over with shocking news: many children in the demon barbarian lands had disappeared without a trace overnight. This news was like a boulder thrown into a calm lake, stirring up huge waves.

Inside the palace hall, the atmosphere was so tense and oppressive that it was hard to breathe. The Demon King sat in the main seat, clutching the memorial tightly in his hand, his brows furrowed into a deep frown.

His face was terribly grim, and he sternly rebuked, "This matter has been going on for so long, and you're only reporting it now? How do you usually do your jobs? Those children are crucial to the future of the demon race, and now that they've gone missing, you haven't noticed anything at all. How are you handling things?"

His Highness's ministers all bowed their heads, not daring to utter a sound. The hall was silent, except for the Demon King's angry voice echoing through it.

Upon hearing this, Jiang Jingzhi and the others were deeply shocked and worried. They understood that this matter was by no means simple and that a huge conspiracy might be hidden behind it.

Jiang Jingzhi thought to himself, "At this critical moment, we cannot stand idly by. The cultivation world and the demon world are now interdependent, and we should share the burden for the demon world."

So, he exchanged glances with Xu Xiaoxiao and Mu Zhusheng, and the three of them nodded in tacit agreement, all of them determined to help the Demon King find out the truth and find the missing children.

Xu Xiaoxiao clenched her fists and said with a determined look in her eyes, "These children are so pitiful. We must find them and not let the conspiracy of those behind the scenes succeed!"

Mu Zhusheng echoed with a grave expression, "We must plan carefully and not overlook any clues. The demons used children to sacrifice in the formation before, Senior Brother, do you think they might be behind this as well?"

"Junior Brother's guess is not impossible," Jiang Jingzhi nodded after hearing this.

The three arrived at the palace. After a moment of contemplation, Jiang Jingzhi raised his head and looked at the Demon King with a firm gaze, saying, "Your Majesty, this matter is of great importance. We are willing to do our utmost to assist Your Majesty in investigating this matter and to restore peace to the demon race."

The Demon King looked at Jiang Jingzhi and his two fellow disciples with a hint of relief in his eyes. He nodded and said, "It's good that you're here to help. This matter is quite troublesome, so I hope you will be extra careful."

Thus, Jiang Jingzhi and the others began an intense investigation. They first went to the village in the barbarian lands to carefully examine the scene, trying to find some clues.

The village was silent; the children's laughter and joy were gone, leaving only empty houses and the villagers' sorrowful faces.

Jiang Jingzhi crouched down and carefully examined the ground, hoping to find some unusual traces. Xu Xiaoxiao asked the villagers around, hoping to get some useful information from them. Mu Zhusheng watched her surroundings warily, in case anything unexpected happened.

However, the investigation did not go smoothly. No obvious clues were left at the scene, and the villagers did not see anything unusual.

Just as they were feeling somewhat frustrated, Jiang Jingzhi suddenly discovered a faint trace of demonic energy. He followed the trail of the demonic energy and found that it seemed to come from a mysterious forest behind the village.

Jiang Jingzhi had a sudden thought. He felt that this forest might be related to the children's disappearance, so he called his companions and prepared to enter the forest together to find out.

As they reached the edge of the forest, a sinister atmosphere enveloped them. The forest was dense with trees, making it difficult for sunlight to penetrate the layers of leaves, which made it exceptionally dark inside.

Jiang Jingzhi, Xu Xiaoxiao, and Mu Zhusheng cautiously made their way through the mysterious forest, taking each step with extreme care and scanning their surroundings warily, not missing any corner that might be hiding danger.

This forest is like a giant labyrinth, filled with an eerie atmosphere. The surroundings are eerily silent, and the occasional call of an unknown bird can send chills down your spine.

As they ventured deeper, the demonic energy guiding them grew stronger, and the three of them became increasingly tense.

Jiang Jingzhi's eyes were as sharp as a hawk's, fixed on the direction from which the demonic energy was coming from. The magical artifact in his hand trembled slightly, ready to deal with any possible changes at any time.

Xu Xiaoxiao and Mu Zhusheng followed behind him, one on each side, gripping their weapons tightly and circulating spiritual energy around them, maintaining a high level of vigilance.

When they finally reached the heart of the forest, the wisp of demonic energy that had been guiding them vanished without a trace, as if it had never existed.

Jiang Jingzhi paused slightly, his gaze sweeping quickly around him, trying to recapture the trace of that demonic energy. However, everything around him seemed calm and eerie, without any unusual signs.

"Strange, why did this demonic energy suddenly disappear?" Mu Zhusheng frowned and asked in confusion.

Xu Xiaoxiao also looked puzzled. She twirled the spirit sword in her hand and looked around warily: "Could we have been misled? But how do we explain the demonic energy along the way?"

Jiang Jingzhi didn't speak. He closed his eyes, concentrated, and tried to use his keen senses to detect subtle changes in the surrounding environment. After a moment, his brows furrowed slightly, and a thoughtful expression appeared on his face.

“No, there’s definitely something wrong here,” Jiang Jingzhi said slowly, opening his eyes with a determined look. “Although the demonic energy has disappeared, I just sensed a fluctuation of spiritual energy, which means there’s some kind of secret hidden here.”

As he spoke, Jiang Jingzhi began to carefully observe the surrounding environment. He squatted down to examine the marks on the ground and then looked up to observe the arrangement of the trees and the direction of their growth.

Suddenly, he noticed something unusual—the arrangement of the surrounding trees seemed to form a specific pattern, and this pattern vaguely resembled some kind of ancient formation.

Jiang Jingzhi's heart stirred. He realized that this forest might be hiding a powerful formation. To verify his guess, he stood up, quickly formed hand seals, and chanted incantations. As he moved, a powerful spiritual energy surged from his body and spread outwards.

Under the impact of spiritual energy, the surrounding air began to fluctuate slightly. In the seemingly calm forest, some faint patterns gradually emerged. These patterns shimmered with a faint light, intertwined with each other, and formed the outline of a huge array.

"It really is an array!" Jiang Jingzhi exclaimed inwardly. He hadn't expected that the array hidden in the forest would be so complex and powerful. If he hadn't studied arrays before, he probably wouldn't have been able to discover its secrets.

Xu Xiaoxiao and Mu Zhusheng were also surprised when they saw this scene. They did not expect that such a powerful formation was hidden in this seemingly ordinary forest.

"Senior Brother, what kind of formation is this?" Mu Zhusheng asked curiously.

Jiang Jingzhi shook his head: "I'm not sure either. This formation is extremely complex. I've never seen it before, but judging from its scale and power, it's probably not an ordinary formation."

As he spoke, Jiang Jingzhi focused his mind again and began to study the formation carefully. He discovered that the formation contained a powerful force that was both familiar and unfamiliar, as if it were related to some ancient and mysterious power.

After careful study, Jiang Jingzhi finally discovered the flaw in the formation. He took a deep breath, quickly formed hand seals, and shouted, "Break!"

With a loud shout, a powerful surge of spiritual energy erupted from his hand and rushed toward the flaw in the formation. Under the impact of the spiritual energy, the formation began to fluctuate violently, and the originally shimmering patterns became dim and lifeless.

With a loud "boom," the formation was finally broken by Jiang Jingzhi. As the formation was broken, the surrounding environment underwent tremendous changes.

The once dense forest began to gradually disappear, replaced by a huge open space. In the very center of this space stood a huge stone gate, covered with various mysterious runes, exuding an ancient and mysterious aura.

Xu Xiaoxiao stared at the stone door that had suddenly appeared before her, her mouth agape in surprise and admiration: "Senior Brother is amazing! He found the clue so quickly!"

Mu Zhusheng looked at Jiang Jingzhi with admiration: "Yes, Senior Brother's research on formations is indeed profound. If it weren't for Senior Brother, we would probably still be in the dark."

Jiang Jingzhi smiled slightly and said modestly, "This is not my achievement alone. Without your help, it would have been difficult for me to break this formation so quickly."

As he spoke, Jiang Jingzhi walked to the stone gate and carefully observed the runes on it. These runes shimmered with a faint light, as if telling an ancient story. With his knowledge of runes, Jiang Jingzhi gradually deciphered some of the information within them.

“I think I know the secret behind this stone gate,” Jiang Jingzhi turned around and said to Xu Xiaoxiao and Mu Zhusheng. “These runes record an ancient legend. It is said that a long time ago, the demon race had a great war with a mysterious force. In order to protect the future of the demon race, a powerful demon ancestor sealed some important things behind this stone gate, and this stone gate was also protected by a powerful formation.”

"Could the missing children be the work of something inside?" Xu Xiaoxiao asked nervously.

Jiang Jingzhi frowned slightly, pondered for a moment, and then said, "It's possible that the secret behind this stone gate is related to the past of the demon race, and the children's disappearance is so strange that there may be some connection between the two."

"Then what are we waiting for? Let's go in and take a look!" Xu Xiaoxiao said anxiously.

Jiang Jingzhi nodded. He carefully examined the runes on the stone door again, and after confirming that there was no danger, he reached out and gently pushed the stone door.

With a muffled sound, the stone door slowly opened, and an ancient aura wafted out.

The three cautiously entered the stone gate, only to find a huge cave inside. A light mist filled the cave, obscuring the view. Jiang Jingzhi and the others gripped their weapons tightly and moved forward warily.

As they ventured deeper into the cave, their surroundings gradually became clearer. They discovered that the cave contained many enormous stone pillars, covered with various strange patterns and runes.

In the very center of the cave, there is a huge stone platform, on which sits a radiant crystal ball.

Jiang Jingzhi and the others walked to the stone platform and carefully observed the crystal ball. The crystal ball shimmered with various lights, as if it contained endless mysteries. Jiang Jingzhi reached out and gently touched the crystal ball. Suddenly, a strong light burst out from the crystal ball, enveloping the three of them.

A blinding light completely enveloped Jiang Jingzhi, Xu Xiaoxiao, and Mu Zhusheng. As the light subsided, the scene before them was completely transformed. They found themselves in a desolate battlefield, with howling winds, flying sand and stones, and a strong stench of blood and acrid demonic energy permeating the air.

In the center of the battlefield, a burly demon elder, radiating powerful demonic energy, confronted a demon shrouded in black mist. This demon was Xu Xin, whose body was twisted and whose head resembled an elongated snake. His blood-red vertical pupils flashed with madness and greed. He opened his maw, filled with fangs, and let out a series of chilling roars. His hands moved constantly, and black demonic energy transformed into sharp blades, raining down on the demon elder.

The senior demon looked solemn, holding a longsword that radiated golden light. The blade was engraved with mysterious runes. He swung the sword, and golden sword energy crisscrossed, cutting down the incoming demonic blades. Each sword energy left a scorching mark in the air and emitted a sharp whistling sound.

"Hmph, you think you can stop me?" Xu Xin let out a sharp, eerie laugh, the sound like countless steel needles scraping against glass, making one feel uncomfortable all over. He suddenly turned around, and the black mist instantly expanded several times, rushing towards the demon senior like a surging black tide.

The demon elder snorted coldly, and his demonic power erupted instantly, forming a golden shield that blocked all the incoming demonic energy. He shouted and stomped his foot, causing the ground to crack instantly. Golden rays of light surged from the cracks and swept towards Xu Xin.

Upon seeing this, a hint of panic flashed in Xu Xin's eyes, but he quickly regained his madness. He spread his arms and chanted incantations. Black demonic energy condensed into a huge black vortex in front of him, swallowing up the incoming golden light one by one.

"Oh no, he's gathering his strength!" Jiang Jingzhi's expression changed drastically, and he couldn't help but shout. Although he knew that this was a past video and they couldn't interfere, his inner tension did not diminish at all.

The demon elder seemed to sense the danger as well. He gripped his longsword tightly with both hands, raised it above his head, and chanted incantations. As he chanted, the runes on the longsword shone brightly, and a powerful force gathered on the sword.

"Break!" The demon elder slashed down with his longsword, and a huge golden sword aura with the momentum of destroying the world slashed towards Xu Xin. Wherever the sword aura passed, space seemed to be torn apart, and a "sizzling" sound was heard.

Xu Xin stared wide-eyed in horror. He desperately tried to mobilize his black demonic energy to resist, but the power of the golden sword energy was too strong. It instantly broke through his defenses and enveloped him.

"Ah!" Shu Xin let out a shrill scream as his body gradually dissipated under the impact of the golden sword energy. But just as he was about to disappear completely, he suddenly let out a strange laugh: "You think you can completely destroy me? I will come back..."

As the sound of the bell faded, the scene of the battlefield gradually blurred, and the three returned to the mysterious cave. The light of the crystal ball gradually dimmed, as if nothing had ever happened.

"So that's why our ancestors paid such a high price to suppress this demon," Xu Xiaoxiao murmured to herself, her face filled with shock.

Mu Zhusheng frowned, her expression grave: "But before he died, Shuxin said he would come back. Could it be that the child's disappearance is really related to him?"

Jiang Jingzhi pondered for a moment, then slowly said, "Regardless of whether it's him or not, the secret behind this is probably far more complex than we imagine. We must find clues as soon as possible and rescue those children."

The three exchanged a glance, their eyes filled with determination, and gripped their weapons tightly once more, ready to face the unknown challenges ahead.