As soon as Shen Mo arrived at the Alliance Hall, he used "Insight into All Beings" on Shen Lei.

This time, it cost him ten middle-grade Spirit Stones.

There were no anomalies in the feedback from the Destiny Panel, indicating that it was Shen Lei's real body present. Even the potency of his attack, when he struck at Shen Mo, was genuine.

After Spirit Turtle Mo intervened, Shen Lei, seeing the situation turn against him, used "Illusionary Realm" to confuse the five senses of the many powerhouses present and escaped with ease.

Now, apprehending and killing him had become very difficult.

What further unsettled the many powerhouses present were the words Shen Lei uttered before his Standing dissipated.

Very soon, they understood the implications of what Shen Lei had said.

Just a few dozen breaths later, the seawater that covered half the hall floor began to ripple continuously.

Everyone, including Shen Mo, noticed the disturbance. One by one, they left the Alliance Hall to gaze into the distance.

They saw colossal waves rising in the sea, about eighty or ninety miles away!

Atop these waves stood numerous imposing human figures, while many Marine Race exotic beasts swam and darted through the water.

"How can so many Class III demon heads appear here? Why didn't any of us, or the Marine Race big demons responsible for sentry duty, detect them?" an Elder from the Seven Stars Altar roared furiously.

Shen Mo's expression wasn't very pleasant either.

All the figures riding the waves were Class III mutated Heavenly Demons.

Among them, the Demon-corrupted cultivators standing on the waves numbered over twenty, and none were weak.

Shen Mo even spotted his "old friends," the Pei Yu Heavenly Demon and the Guidao Heavenly Demon, whom he had driven from Wolf Howling Ridge back to the Heavenly Demon Realm.

In just a few months, they had unexpectedly advanced to the middle-stage of Class III!

Evidently, they had capitalized on the surging demonic calamity in the coastal waters, devouring countless low-class Marine Race members to greatly enhance their strength.

If it were only these Demon-corrupted cultivators, they wouldn't pose a significant threat to the Spirit Sea Realm cultivators and Marine Race big demons on Golden Turtle Island, as their own numbers were close to thirty.

What truly made their scalps tingle were the demonic figures flickering in and out of existence within the waves—numbering no less than a hundred.

A moment's reflection revealed that these Demon-corrupted Marine Race members had only recently reached this level of power.

Native Heaven Demons had Demon-corrupted Class I and Class II marine demonic beasts, transforming them into mutated Heavenly Demons. These, in turn, had continuously devoured vast quantities of "blood food," thereby advancing to the Class III Realm.

Most of them were at the early-stage of Class III.

It was important to remember that the Human Cultivators and Marine Race members forming an alliance on Golden Turtle Island were mostly at this same realm.

Only a select few—the envoys from the Five Great Sects, and Spirit Turtle, Human-faced Fish, and Clam Girl from the Marine Race—possessed middle-stage or late-stage Class III strength.

Given the current number of Third-order Heavenly Demons, they were numerous enough to crush them!

Faced with this crisis, rapid exchanges via Divine Sense commenced.

"What Shen Lei mentioned likely refers to this. Over a hundred formidable demon heads are attacking! If we fight them head-on, even if we manage to kill the majority, very few of us will survive!"

"These Heavenly Demons must have been plotting something!"

"Indeed! To have bypassed our senses and infiltrated this far, they must have used that little loach Shen Lei's 'Illusionary Realm' Skill."

"The powerhouses of my clan who were patrolling the perimeter have all been Demon-corrupted. I saw them among the waves!"

The Heavenly Demon Realm had first colluded with Shen Lei, a big demon of the Marine Race. Then, they unscrupulously mobilized over a hundred Class III powerhouses to launch this meticulously planned surprise attack on Golden Turtle Island, their objectives clear.

Firstly, to sabotage the alliance between Human Cultivators and the Marine Race.

If the two sides successfully allied, combining the cultivators' extensive experience with the Marine Race's home-field advantage, the Heavenly Demon side would no longer be able to ravage nearly a billion acres of sea and devour tens of millions of marine creatures with the same ease as in previous months. Their momentum of sweeping across the Immortal Burial Sea would undoubtedly be significantly curbed!

Secondly, and obviously, to annihilate the Class III powerhouses from both sides.

Once the Heavenly Demons established themselves, creating a Class III powerhouse was exceedingly simple for them—it merely required devouring massive amounts of "blood food."

Conversely, for the creatures of this world, be they Human Cultivators or marine demonic beasts, nurturing a Class III powerhouse demanded vast cultivation resources and a great deal of time.

Shen Mo's rapid cultivation progress was an exception, a result of his Destiny Panel, abundant resources, diligent practice, and numerous other factors working in concert! All these conditions were indispensable. The Destiny Panel alone was a unique existence, impossible for other creatures to replicate.

Besides, no matter how swiftly his cultivation advanced, it couldn't compare to the mutated Heavenly Demons who had access to limitless "blood food." The only true constraint on them was the availability of "blood food"!

Therefore, provided the Heavenly Demon passage remained intact and "blood food" was plentiful, even sacrificing three, five, or even ten Heavenly Demons to eliminate a single Class III powerhouse of this world was an incredibly worthwhile trade for them!

"The enemy is strong, and we are weak. Engaging them now would be utterly unwise! We should temporarily avoid their spearhead," someone proposed during the Divine Sense exchange.

"I agree with this proposal!"

"Hmm..."

After some communication, the Human Cultivators and Marine Race big demons present all leaned towards retreating.

Never mind that the Third-order Heavenly Demons outnumbered them severalfold. The enemy had gone to great lengths to ambush Golden Turtle Island; they were clearly thoroughly prepared. To fight them at a time and place of the Heavenly Demons' choosing would play right into their hands—no different from knowingly walking into a trap.

With their decision made, and the attacking Heavenly Demons still tens of miles distant, the group wasted no time, each employing their own methods to escape.

Powerhouses from the Heaven Sword Sect transformed into brilliant Sword Lights. Cultivators from the Ghost Corpse School released their Ghouls. The figures of Profound Moon School cultivators vanished into the moonlit haze. Three cultivators from the Seven Stars Altar collaboratively summoned a magic altar.

Yuan Chengshan, Hall Master of the Immortal Welcoming Hall, gave Shen Mo and Yu Yan a few brief instructions before crushing a Grade IV talisman, leaving only an afterimage behind.

As for Yu Yan, colorless, transparent, scorching flames erupted from his body, transforming him into a streak of fire that shot towards Sea State.

The Marine Race big demons, likewise, employed various techniques.

Spirit Turtle Mo paddled his four limbs, dove into the sea, and vanished in an instant.

Clam Girl Ming Zhu's shell opened and closed, propelling her at a speed no less than the escaping light of a late-stage Spirit Sea Realm cultivator.

The Human-faced Fish spat out a large bubble that enveloped her, allowing her to travel unimpeded through the sea.

The other Class III Marine Race members also used their respective abilities to flee the area swiftly.

As for the Class II Marine Race members in the waters near Golden Turtle Island, their fate was left to the heavens.

Shen Mo dared not linger. He immediately activated the "Soar Cloud Immortal Method." A fine mist enveloped him, and then he transformed into a pale gold light rainbow, streaking away into the distance.

However, having gone to such lengths to ambush the alliance meeting place, how could the Heavenly Demons possibly let them escape so easily?

In the next instant, the colossal waves split apart.

They broke into nearly thirty smaller sets of waves, each carrying three to five mutated Heavenly Demons, all in pursuit of their designated targets.

Before long, Shen Mo detected the demon heads pursuing him.

It was his old acquaintance, the Guidao Heavenly Demon, personally leading the pursuit, accompanied by four Class III Demon-corrupted Marine Race members. They latched onto him tenaciously.

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