The Demon with Holy Radiance Chapter 40

At this thought, Yang An glanced at the Glue Insect Child beside him. Frowning, he asked in a low voice,

"Did your True Master also take a female cultivator?"

"To answer your question, Fellow Daoist, we Children have not received any such order from the True Master. We haven’t captured any cultivators other than you."

The Glue Insect Child seemed rather wooden, answering whatever Yang An asked without hesitation.

’Looks like Mother Divination True Master isn’t involved.’

Yang An nodded and turned to the anxious and worried Pan Shi.

"Don’t worry, Fellow Daoist Pan. I’ll help you search."

’As long as she’s still on this island, we should be able to find her. People don’t just disappear for no reason.’

He turned back to the Glue Insect Child.

"Could I trouble you, Child, to help as well? We’re looking for a female cultivator named Pan Yu."

Yang An then described Pan Yu’s appearance and attire to the Glue Insect Child.

’These Glue Insect Children can see every cultivator’s true face on the island, just like I can. The search will be easier with more people.’

The Glue Insect Child agreed at once and went to inform the others.

Soon, Yang An was searching for Pan Yu’s trail alongside Pan Shi. At Yang An’s command, the Glue Insect Children also sprang into action, fanning out to search every corner of the island.

Pan Shi was quite surprised that Yang An was able to command these Children.

He had asked for their help earlier but had been flatly refused.

Although these Children were responsible for greeting the cultivators attending the Communal Feeding Assembly, they couldn’t be ordered around by them.

This elevated Pan Shi’s perception of Yang An’s status and identity by another significant notch.

’But none of that mattered right now. The urgent priority was finding his junior sister, Pan Yu.’

The search lasted a full hour. With the help of the Glue Insect Children, they scoured nearly every accessible spot on the entire island, but to no avail.

Pan Yu seemed to have vanished into thin air, disappearing without a trace.

Yang An found this result extremely strange.

’She wasn’t taken by Mother Divination True Master, and she’s not on the island... so where could she have gone?’

’Did she sprout wings and fly away?’

He couldn’t help but glance at the sky above the island. A thick layer of fog obscured the view, and he couldn’t see anything at all.

Pan Shi was growing more and more worried. If his junior sister had met with some misfortune, he, as her senior brother, would be unable to escape the blame. He would have no way to face their master or martial uncle, and he would never forgive himself.

Just then, Yang An seemed to realize something. He quickly turned to Pan Shi and asked,

"Fellow Daoist Pan, while I was away, before Fellow Daoist Pan Yu disappeared, did you two interact with anyone else?"

’People don’t just disappear. Pan Yu is only in the Resonance Stage—she’s practically a mortal, not even a true Cultivator. She wouldn’t have the ability to leave this place on her own.’

’Therefore, Pan Yu’s sudden disappearance had to be deliberate. Who they came into contact with after I left is the crucial question.’

But when he heard Yang An’s question, Pan Shi thought for a moment before shaking his head.

After Yang An had suddenly vanished, the two of them had been searching for him constantly. They hadn’t interacted with any other cultivators.

’None?’

Hearing Pan Shi’s answer, Yang An fell into deep thought.

’I know Mother Divination True Master wouldn’t waste her time on this. And Pan Shi and his sister didn’t interact with any other cultivators after I disappeared.’

’So, who did they come into contact with *before* I was gone?’

At this thought, Yang An’s head snapped up. ’There *was* someone. And I just saw him while we were searching the island!’

’That guy!’

"Fellow Daoist Pan, quickly, with me!"

The more Yang An thought about it, the more likely it seemed. He shouted to Pan Shi before quickly melting into the crowd, heading toward the spot he had glimpsed earlier.

Seeing that Yang An seemed to have discovered something, Pan Shi followed at once without a word.

Soon, Yang An had woven his way through the crowd, finally stopping in front of a market stall.

Pan Shi followed, but as it became clear that Yang An was heading for the cultivator at this specific stall, he grew confused.

He didn’t recognize the cultivator meditating behind the stall.

’What is Fellow Daoist Yang planning to do?’

Trusting Yang An, Pan Shi suppressed his doubts and watched from the side without asking questions.

But the moment Yang An saw the cultivator behind the stall, his certainty grew. ’It’s him!’

’He even changed his entire outfit. He must be afraid of being recognized, right?’

’Hei Mei!’

The cultivator meditating behind the stall was none other than the Snake Daoist whom Yang An and the others had met on the banks of the Xiyue River before coming to the island.

Not long after their arrival on the island, Daoist Hei Mei had gone on ahead, and they hadn’t seen him since.

If there was anyone else they had spent any length of time with, it was only this Daoist Hei Mei.

When he saw Yang An and Pan Shi appear, Hei Mei recognized them by their clothing, even though the fog obscured their faces.

A strange expression flickered across Daoist Hei Mei’s ferocious snake head; he clearly hadn’t expected to see them here.

But in the blink of an eye, his composure returned.

"Fellow Daoists, feel free to look around. If anything catches your eye, the price is negotiable."

What he didn’t know was that Yang An had seen that fleeting expression with perfect clarity, which only confirmed his suspicions.

’This guy didn’t just change his clothes; he’s also disguised himself. Even his voice is different. He looks just like a human cultivator.’

’If I weren’t immune to the effects of the Illusion Mimic Insect Corpse, I wouldn’t be able to see his true form. That, and the fact that his conspicuous, ferocious snake head isn’t disguised...’

’...I might not have been able to identify him as the same Daoist Hei Mei who entered this place with us.’

’He probably thinks he’s hidden himself perfectly.’

Yang An glanced at Hei Mei, then at the stall before him.

His wares were a jumble of items: two bottles of Elixirs, a few Spiritual Objects, and several black stones.

A few other cultivators were also browsing the stall.

One of the cultivators seemed curious about the black stones.

"Fellow Daoist, what are these?"

he asked, pointing to the stones.

"These are called Essence Stones. You only need to activate one with a drop of your Essence Blood, and it will continuously replenish your Mana. For a short time, you won’t have to worry about Mana consumption."

"I have four Essence Stones in total here, of A, B, C, and D class. A D-Class Essence Stone can replenish Mana for a cultivator in the Early Stage of Fake Food Realm, while the A-Class one is for those in the Early Stage Primordial Feeding Realm."

"If you’re interested, Fellow Daoist, you can trade any item of equivalent value for them. Everything is negotiable."

Hei Mei explained earnestly to the curious cultivator, showing no apparent flaws in his demeanor.

’Essence Stone?’

Although Yang An had found Hei Mei, he hadn’t yet figured out how to extract any clues about Pan Yu’s disappearance.

’Exposing him rashly might be counterproductive.’ So he pretended to be interested in the stones as well.

Just like the cultivator beside him, Yang An casually picked up one of the stones, intending to test his theory.

But in the next moment, an information box suddenly appeared before his eyes, making him freeze.

[Meat Beast Essence Stone]: Created by Snake Daoist Hei Mei using the . A living being is sealed within a Pressure Relief Stone to provide the user with a continuous stream of Mana until the sealed being’s life essence is exhausted and it perishes.

Cost of Use: When the Essence Stone is depleted and shatters, the user will also lose a portion of their lifespan, which is then transferred to the body of Snake Daoist Hei Mei.

Status: Purifiable!