Immortal Venerable of the Beast Race
Chapter 371 - 282 Deserted Island Meets Enemy (Today’s Gone)_1

Chapter 371: 282 Deserted Island Meets Enemy (Today’s Gone)_1

Sun Moon Island, the main altar of the Sun Moon Palace.

In a secluded manor, Song Lianyue sat by a cyan stone table, while Wang Feng was reporting to her.

"Reverend Tianfeng had contact with the Heavenly Ghost Sect cultivators? Is the information reliable?"

Song Lianyue asked with furrowed brows.

Chu Buyu had long been overdue to return, and the Absolute Spirit Qi in the Absolute Spirit Sea Domain had yet to dissipate. The Sun Moon Palace’s Information Hall dispatched a large number of people to search for Reverend Tianfeng, yet they found no trace of him. However, they did discover that Reverend Tianfeng had had interactions with the Heavenly Ghost Sect cultivators.

Previously, Chu Buyu was nearly annihilated by a cultivator from the Three Immortals Sect, which later defected to the Heavenly Ghost Sect.

Before that incident, Sun Moon Palace lost a protector who was killed by the Heavenly Ghost Sect’s vice sect leader, making Sun Moon Palace and the Heavenly Ghost Sect old foes.

Reverend Tianfeng had provided news of a fourth-order Spirit Flame to Chu Buyu, and then Chu Buyu disappeared. Furthermore, with Reverend Tianfeng’s contact with the Heavenly Ghost Sect cultivators, Song Lianyue suspected it was their stealthy attempt to harm Chu Buyu.

"Indeed, but we cannot confirm that the Heavenly Ghost Sect is behind this. For now, Master Aunt Chu’s Life-Bound Lamp has not gone out, and she likely faces no mortal danger. It is possible she is trapped in the Absolute Spirit Sea Domain,"

Wang Feng said.

"Activate our insiders in the Heavenly Ghost Sect to investigate whether they are behind this, and secretly capture some of the Heavenly Ghost Sect’s Core Formation cultivators. I want to know if Buyu’s disappearance is related to them,"

Song Lianyue ordered, with a face full of murderous intent.

Chu Buyu was being groomed as her successor, and if she was ambushed by another power, Song Lianyue wouldn’t let the matter rest easily.

"Yes, Palace Master,"

Wang Feng complied and left to carry out the orders.

······

The Absolute Spirit Sea Domain, a piece of azure blue sea.

Shen Long and Chu Buyu stood on a bamboo raft, with Shen Long moving the oar, propelling the raft forward at a moderate speed.

They had been at sea for more than three years, taking turns to pilot the raft forward, passing by numerous deserted islands. Each time they reached an island, they would stop to rest for a while, collecting fresh water and food. Whenever possible, they avoided using Fasting Pills.

Over these three years, they deeply understood the hardships of mortals. The sea waves were often large, and sometimes they had to stay at sea for half a year. The food they collected from islands would all be consumed, fortunately, they had the Fasting Pills.

"There’s an island ahead, Taoist Friend Shen, let’s pick up the pace,"

Chu Buyu said, gliding the oar through the water.

With their combined efforts, the raft’s speed increased significantly, moving towards the island ahead.

Half an hour later, they finally reached the shore.

"We can finally rest a bit,"

Chu Buyu sighed in relief.

Shen Long and Chu Buyu dragged the raft away from the water and sat down to rest.

"Eh, there are other people on the island!"

Shen Long exclaimed softly, his expression turning grave.

Chu Buyu followed Shen Long’s gaze and saw a coconut tree snapped in half, the tree showing signs of human cutting.

Shen Long quickly approached the coconut tree and scrutinized the fracture. The break was smooth with several chop marks.

"That’s right, it was chopped down by someone, not broken by a heavy object. There may be other cultivators on the island,"

Shen Long analyzed.

"Other cultivators? The island is not small! Where could they be hiding?"

Chu Buyu said with furrowed brows.

This would make collecting food much harder for them.

"First, let’s bury the raft so they don’t find it,"

Shen Long suggested.

They covered the raft with sand and made markings nearby to facilitate finding it later.

Shen Long returned to the beach to meticulously erase their footprints.

"Fairy Chu, to be cautious, we should move together. Let’s hope they are not on the island,"

Shen Long said.

Chu Buyu nodded, and the two of them headed toward the nearby bamboo forest.

Their pace was slow, their faces full of caution, and they continuously glanced around, searching for traces left by humans.

Along the way, they found numerous trees with knife marks and some branches that had been chopped off. Judging by the breaks on the branches, it was a recent cut; if they had been cut a long time ago, the branches would have turned yellow by now.

A loud roar of a beast suddenly sounded, startling Shen Long and Chu Buyu, who looked toward the source of the noise.

A yellow leopard with an arrow sticking out of its abdomen rapidly charged toward them. Upon closer inspection, they saw its injury.

When the yellow leopard saw Shen Long and Chu Buyu, it slowed down.

"Oh, it’s you, little friend Song."

Shen Long let out a light exclamation.

Song He burst out from a bush, surprised to see Shen Long and Chu Buyu.

"Senior Shen, what brings you here as well?"

Song He asked, puzzled.

The yellow leopard leaped forward, pouncing at Shen Long.

Shen Long swung his right fist, smashing it into the leopard’s head. The leopard fell to the ground, lifeless, with its head split and bleeding profusely.

Even without mana, the leopard had no chance of survival after being struck in a vital spot by Shen Long’s punch.

"We entered the Absolute Spirit Sea Domain in search of treasure and got unintentionally trapped here. Why are you alone? Where are the others?"

Shen Long asked, puzzled.

"They went to other places to gather food and water. Right, Senior Shen, I beseech your help to assist us and get us out of this dilemma."

Song He pleaded.

"Out of this dilemma? What do you mean by that?"

Shen Long asked, full of confusion.

Song He explained sequentially the events that unfolded, detailing how the five of them had ventured into the Absolute Spirit Sea Domain in search of treasure. They encountered a surge of Absolute Spirit Qi and got stranded for nearly twenty years. They had lived on a desolate island all this time. Unexpectedly, one day, a man arrived on the island. This man was extremely strong and carried a Spiritual Treasure with him.

The man had also lost his mana, but with his immense physical strength, Song He and his companions stood no chance against him and were coerced into serving the man.

They were well aware that once their Fasting Pills ran out, the man would surely kill them.

"What is the name of this person?"

Shen Long inquired, feeling that the man Song He described seemed familiar.

"Huang Hao! He claimed to be a Nascent Soul Cultivator. He imprisoned my second sister and forced the four of us to collect food and water. If we dared to run, he would kill my second sister. He also took our Fasting Pills, so without them, even if we managed to build a raft and sail out, we wouldn’t get far."

Song He said with a bitter smile.

"Hasn’t he thought about sailing away from the desolate island?"

Chu Buyu pressed.

"He said there are fierce beasts in the sea that killed his companions; he does not wish to venture into the sea and take risks. He only wants us to gather food and wait for the Absolute Spirit Qi to dissipate. The food we could gather has been getting less and less, and every time we collect some, he forces us to eat first. If nothing happens to us, then he will eat."

Song He explained.

"Fierce beasts in the sea!"

Shen Long frowned, realizing they were lucky to have not encountered such a beast.

"Little friend Song, do you trust me?"

Shen Long asked.

"I do trust, Senior Shen, whatever strategy you have, please do tell. If we keep delaying, we will either be killed by him or starve to death."

Song He said.

"I have a kind of poison that, once ingested, will paralyze the body after an hour. Do you dare to take it?"

Shen Long asked.

From Song He’s description, Huang Hao seemed to be the Body Cultivator who had injured Shen Long decades ago.