Chapter 92: Chapter 75: A Daoist Walks Alone at Night with a Sword, Gathering 1 Wisp of Mingtang’s Secret

In the main hall of the tavern, Jiang Yi stood on the blood-soaked ground and smiled faintly.

“My main concern is that since I cultivate Ding Fire, sacrificially refining magical artifacts of the Blood Evil attribute might cause some kind of conflict.”

He was not an ungrateful person. He could hardly despise these magical artifacts that Yang Xun had spent so much talisman money to acquire for him.

“That’s no problem.”

Yang Xun stroked his beard and chuckled.

“Since the Blood Evil Yin Demon has been demoted to a Lower Grade Mixed Qi while the Five Elements hold a superior position, our refining is simply a case of the higher controlling the lower. This will only make the process more effortless. There is absolutely no reason for any conflict.”

Only then did Jiang Yi feel relieved.

Thanks to the “selfless contribution” of the tavern’s nest of “True Demon Cultivators,” the magical artifacts had indeed grown fuller. A slight tug of his Divine Thought was all it took to control them as extensions of his own limbs, moving with perfect freedom.

Immediately, he thought of another question and asked it directly.

“Grandpa, I’ve heard that with the manifestation of the Immortal Dao, all cultivators on the Nanzhan Continent are forbidden from casually disturbing the natural order and harming living beings. By killing people for Artifact Refining like this, aren’t we violating that prohibition?”

Yang Xun narrowed his eyes, tapped his finger lightly, and said with a smile:

“You’re quite cautious. In this, you’re much like I was in my youth. You always have to get to the bottom of things, afraid of taking even half a wrong step.”

Jiang Yi gave a bashful smile. Through the incident with Zheng Qing, he had once again come to realize that the Demon Dao Dharma Lineage was truly fraught with hidden dangers at every turn.

Once you fell into one of the traps hidden beneath its many layers, escape was nearly impossible, let alone making any progress in your cultivation.

Yang Xun shook his head and sighed softly.

“To be honest, I don’t know the full details myself. Any information involving Upper Cultivators or even Great Powers tends to be vague and unclear. Only when your own Cultivation is profound enough and you’ve walked far enough down the path can you see the true state of things.”

In his early years, he had gained a great deal of knowledge by working for Elder Sui of the Inner Peak. This led him to believe his perspective was no longer narrow, surpassing that of many of his peers from the Village Clan Direct Lineages and fellow Servants.

But a Lower Cultivator was still a Lower Cultivator. No matter how much you stretched your neck or stood on your toes to gaze into the distance, it was impossible to glimpse the world seen by an Upper Cultivator.

“In any case, killing Tribulation Cultivators does not violate the fundamental rules set by the Immortal Dao. There are many different explanations, but there is one I find most plausible.

Because Tribulation Cultivators are tainted by Blood Evil and draw close to the Yin Demon, they are no longer considered part of the Five Elements or the category of ’mortals.’ Therefore, you can slaughter them to the last man. Even if you wipe out millions in one go, the Thunder Core will remain indifferent.”

Jiang Yi savored these words. ’The general meaning is that once you become a Tribulation Cultivator, you’re no longer considered a “person.”’

He subconsciously thought a little deeper. ’The Yin Puppet Sect is deliberately spreading these types of techniques for cultivating Blood Evil… It’s probably not as simple as just raising “Magic Slaves.”’

’Whether it’s sacrificial refining magical artifacts or cultivating techniques, you can never get away from needing living souls and blood essence. When you’re short on Spiritual Materials and Resources, the best method is to “source your materials locally.”’

’But killing without reason creates a karmic debt that will certainly affect my future cultivation.’

’And if the tribulations pile up and attract the punishment of the Thunder Core, it’ll be a disaster.’

Jiang Yi’s thoughts raced, his mind clear.

The Yin Puppet Sect’s so-called “rearing of Magic Slaves” was actually a way to circumvent the “rules” that suffocated all cultivators, but which they could not ignore.

’All to make it easier for them to use living beings as materials!’

’When I first came into contact with the Demon Dao Dharma Lineage, I even marveled at how humane it seemed. They even paid you talisman money for your work.’

’Looking at it now, it’s just endlessly dark. It seems to offer a path to survival, but in reality, it’s a dead end. They just treat Lower Cultivators as objects to be used!’

Jiang Yi suppressed his distracting thoughts, helped He the Venerable up, and offered a few words of gentle comfort.

Anyone whose conscience wasn’t completely dead would be unwilling to “eat human flesh and drink blood” just to show off how cold and ruthless they were, or how firm their Dao heart was.

It was just a crude imitation of the lowest of the low, just like how Zheng Qing thought he possessed the style of an “Ancient Demon Cultivator.”

He the Venerable had suddenly fallen for the trick. The thought of the process of making Hundred Infant Red and Spirit and Body was inevitably nauseating.

After he felt a little better, Jiang Yi walked over to where Yang Xun was sitting in meditation to rest.

“Grandpa, the Five Yin Pouch and Blood Soul Mirror have been sacrificially refined to one hundred percent, and the Black Slaughter Lock is almost there as well.

With these three magical artifacts in hand, and with my Fifth Layer Cultivation, how would I fare against a Tribulation Cultivator?”

Yang Xun mused:

“Unless you encounter someone at the Qi Cultivation Eighth Layer who has also cultivated a Five Elements technique, no one should be able to stop you.”

Before his words had even faded, Yang Xun suddenly looked up again, closely observing the boy’s face, which was as calm as still water.

“Ah Yi, the killing intent in your heart… it hasn’t faded.”

…

…

Eighty li away lay a deep and secluded mountain valley, perennially shrouded in miasma and a thick, fetid wind.

The woodcutters and hunters from the nearby villages all considered this place to be one of great evil and never dared to approach too closely.

Rumors about Demons kidnapping people to eat them circulated from time to time, adding to the terror.

Jiang Yi’s Daoist Robe was soaked through by the wind and snow, showing faint wet patches. As a Qi Cultivation Fifth Layer Cultivation Furnace, his physique was naturally sturdy and his stamina abundant; he was not tired after the rapid journey.

Before long, he rounded a mountain pass and saw the valley entrance.

He saw torches stuck into the hillsides, and further in, a few lanterns hung, their light dim and yellow, barely illuminating the few feet around them.

Once he went deeper, he finally saw the Two-legged Market.

Dozens of “butcher shops” had been carved into the mountain walls, all of them open for business.

Hanging from the iron hooks above were not livestock, but naked human bodies.

Old men hung like dried firewood, and young children were strung up upside down like lambs. There were also able-bodied men who had been stripped of their flesh, their skeletons still twitching faintly. Below, on the butcher’s blocks, were various assorted pieces.

In front of a shop in the center, three to five figures sat around a meat-covered block, with tables and chairs set up, drinking wine and eating meat, having a grand old time!

“Greetings, gentlemen.”

Jiang Yi performed a Daoist salute and said in a clear voice:

“I have braved the wind and snow, traveling eighty li, hoping to ask for some good meat to satisfy my hungry stomach.”

The men all turned their heads at once. Most of them had sparse eyebrows and gapped teeth, and their eyes were bloodshot, making them look particularly frightening in the dim night.

“What kind of meat do you want? The tender meat is sold out, the muscular meat is already in the pot. All that’s left is a few pounds of stringy meat and the unappetizing bitter meat.”

Jiang Yi feigned curiosity.

“May I ask, what is ’bitter meat’?”

The man grinned, revealing yellow teeth.

“Little Daoist, you don’t even know this? Those who face the yellow earth with their backs to the sky, who are driven to labor for others all day, whose blood and sweat are exploited—their meat turns bitter. It’s terrible to eat, not nearly as rich and fatty as that of the wealthy.”

Jiang Yi feigned surprise.

“This is the first I’m hearing of it. I have a picky appetite. I don’t care for human flesh, and I find common birds and beasts bland and tasteless. What do you all suggest I do?”

A commotion instantly broke out in the shop, and a dozen or so burly men swarmed out.

The burly figure sitting before the meat block, who had been heartily devouring a leg, slowly rose to his feet. “Are you trying to mess with us…”

Jiang Yi smiled faintly, his eyebrows twitching slightly, as a chilling killing intent finally erupted from him.

“I see that you all have the faces of men but the hearts of beasts—animals in human clothing. You are neither human nor common creatures. You’ll be just right to eat!”

As his words fell, a crimson glow pierced through the layers of miasma.

The youth had cast the Flame Blade Skill, and roiling flames engulfed his longsword.

And so the slaughter began again!

Above the secluded valley, Yang Xun stood watch.

He quietly watched as Jiang Yi struck with clean efficiency. The boy blocked the narrow passage alone, and no matter who came forward, he cut them down with his sword.

Heads flew into the air and rolled across the ground!

After killing everyone in this shop, he charged straight for the next one!

Jiang Yi did not stop. A feeling of exhilaration, more intense than anything he had ever felt, washed through his chest.

Memories flashed through his mind like a flowing stream: joining the Qianji Sect, being classified with a Mortal Body, going down the mountain to Sanhe District, obtaining the secret Dao Inheritance…

’To follow the Demon Cultivation Dao, does that mean you have to be utterly debased and despised?’

Jiang Yi’s thoughts couldn’t help but turn to Xuan Chanzi, to the Taifu Sect, and even to the foremost manifest Daoist Lineage that held sway over the Five Domains.

’One day, I will be like that too! An Upper Cultivator, a Dao Material, a… True Monarch! What does it matter if it’s Demon or Dao? I’ll slaughter them all first and worry about it later!’

For a time, endless screams echoed through the valley.

When Jiang Yi reappeared at the valley entrance, the morning sun was rising outside, its rays painting the sky in thousands of colors.

His Daoist Robe was soaked through with blood, yet his face and eyes remained clean, his expression as calm as ever.

’Mingtang: a term for vastness, gentle and abundant. It is often nurtured in places that shelter wind and gather qi, but it can also be born from narrow, wicked points.’

As if struck by a sudden inspiration, Jiang Yi spontaneously began to circulate the Little Refining Yuan Fire Control Technique.

Suddenly, a sliver of extremely bright fiery light was drawn in by the “Mixed Refining Origin, Commander of Ten Thousand Truths.”

It gently surged into his Primordial Gate, fell into his Inner Mansion, and transformed into a mouthful of gurgling, supremely pure Spiritual Liquid.

’My Qi Cultivation Fifth Layer… is now at Perfection.’

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep