Chapter Nine: Cultivating Demonic Power is the True Orthodox Method
"Sir, we have brought the people for this month. Please take a look."
The withered old man trembled and bent over, his once clear eyes now gleaming with a chaotic light, only a hint of madness flickering within them. He grinned and said ingratiatingly, "Too few cultivators have come this month, but it's alright, we just lured a group of big fish! They should be here soon..."
A figure shrouded in thick black fog stood atop the altar, his back to the speaker, seemingly indifferent. Upon hearing this, he slightly turned his head, the upper half of his face completely obscured by a silver mask.
"Heh." He gave a cold, ambiguous laugh, his voice hoarse and unpleasant, like a broken gong. With a wave of his hand, a burst of demonic energy suddenly swept over, sending the old man flying. He shouted, "A bunch of fools!"
The villagers nearby dared not step forward to help the old man, their heads bowed in embarrassment, and a heavy atmosphere descended. The man's gaze was like that of a tyrant surveying his territory, "You let him escape, and you still have the nerve to say such things to me..."
His anger visibly flared, and the thick black mist around him stirred restlessly. Most of the villagers were mortals, unable to withstand the corrosive influence of the demonic energy. Their knees buckled, and they collapsed to the ground, their frail bodies trembling. Strange black patterns had already appeared on the limbs of most of them, with a faint tendency to spread upwards—a sign that their bodies were being assimilated by the demonic energy.
These villagers, blinded by greed, are unaware that they now face only death.
"My lord, my lord..." The old man trembled like a leaf, his hands weak and limp, unable to stop shaking even when he supported himself on the ground. "My lord, please don't be angry. It was my foolishness, my incompetence..."
"What value is there in keeping trash?"
The man in the black robe walked slowly, his heels making a clear sound on the ground that echoed through the gloomy woods.
His voice was like a venomous snake, gradually luring every person with desires toward destruction.
"Pfft—"
The sharp blade pierced through flesh and tore through fragile skin.
"Heh, heh..." The old man stared wide-eyed in vain. He looked down and saw that his heart had been pierced by thick black mist. He looked incredulously at the person he had always served, who merely curled the corners of his mouth indifferently, raised his hand, and more thick mist swirled around him, with a force so great that it seemed to crush his bones.
“It’s alright, my most loyal follower.” His voice was extremely cold, almost devoid of any emotion, even as he smiled. “I will gradually transform you into your most useful form. After you die, you will become my most useful deputy.”
"So, please..."
Demonic energy coiled around his neck.
"Die."
His neck suddenly bent to the right in an unbelievable arc, accompanied by the sound of bones breaking. The old man's final death was frozen in his terrified and ferocious face.
"Zheng—"
Just then, a fierce sword light suddenly struck.
The cold light was extremely righteous and awe-inspiring, and the demonic energy was shattered and dispersed. As if he had expected it, the man in black robes turned his head and met the gaze of the snow-white figure that gracefully landed on the altar.
"I knew it. The famous Celestial Snow Venerable would definitely come looking for me at a time like this."
As if deliberately trying to provoke him, the man paused, his words filled with malice: "Huh? Where did your little apprentice go?"
Ya Feiyu's gaze sharpened instantly, and the next second, his ghostly figure flashed and he appeared behind the man.
"So fierce?" The man chuckled softly, and demonic energy rose into the air, forming an indestructible shield that perfectly blocked the attack from the divine sword, which was imbued with spiritual power.
With a light tap of his toes, his black robe billowed in the wind, and the condensed demonic energy transformed into missiles, sweeping in from all directions. Ya Feiyu raised his sword and gathered his energy, shattering the missiles coming from all directions. Seeing that the situation was gradually turning against him, the man did not hesitate. He raised his hand high, palm down, and then swung it down. Dense black energy covered the sky and almost obscured all light.
In complete darkness, let alone deflecting missiles, even dodging them was a major problem. Ya Feiyu's vision was already poor, and this exploited his weakness even more, forcing him to abandon offense and switch to defense, but this did nothing to change his situation.
The condensed shield was constantly being impacted by demonic energy, and Ya Feiyu could feel that his golden core was also being persecuted.
Normally, he would never be so passive.
The problem is that he also has a Blood Jade Demon Pearl inside his body that resonates with demonic energy.
This means that he not only has to fight off external attacks, but also has to be distracted by the whispers of his inner demons. With both combined, even a god would probably be powerless, let alone a cultivator in the Tribulation Transcending stage.
The more powerful a cultivator is, the stronger and more difficult their inner demons are to eradicate; this is especially true for Ya Feiyu.
Having acquired memories of his past life, Ya Feiyu in this life has accumulated more joys and sorrows, which are nourishment for the growth of inner demons.
He could vaguely sense that what used to flow around his spiritual veins was no longer peaceful spiritual energy, but rather frenzied demonic energy. It seemed to want to break through the restrictions on this body, to fight, and to be bathed in blood.
Just then, cracks appeared in the shield.
"Well……!"
The backlash followed immediately, as if something was stuck in his heart. Ya Feiyu raised his hand to cover it, and the next instant, the shield suddenly shattered.
The taste of rust instantly filled his mouth and stained his clothes red. Seeing this, the missile formed from demonic energy became even more unrestrained, its attack intensifying. The divine sword fell to the ground, and he tried to forcibly summon it back, but this effort was ultimately futile.
The connection between the sword and him grew weaker and weaker, as if it had been forcibly severed.
"Cough cough..." He covered his lips, the demonic energy gradually merging into his body, and crimson crimson once again crept into his silver-white eyes. He bit his tongue, forcing himself to remain clear-headed, and even the pain and fatigue seemed to become external things for a moment, without any feeling.
His body seemed on the verge of destruction, yet his mind was clearer than ever before.
His limbs were already sore from the struggle between demonic and spiritual energy within his body, but he forced himself to hold on and gripped the sword, which was somewhat heavy for him in his current state. He plunged the tip of the sword into the ground and poured in the purest spiritual power, causing the surrounding missiles to immediately dissipate.
The man in black robes was slightly taken aback, and only then did he realize that something was wrong. He summoned a faint wisp of demonic energy to protect himself.
As it turned out, this choice was wise.
A sword light even more dazzling than before struck, and blood vessels had crept into Ya Feiyu's eyes. He was acting almost instinctively. Relying on his years of familiarity with the sword, he raised his hand, slashed down, and if he missed, he would try again, his eyes filled with killing intent.
Oh dear... things are getting a bit bad.
The man narrowed his eyes, dodging Ya Feiyu's lightning-fast attacks. The fact that he could easily evade the moves of a cultivator in the Tribulation Transcending stage meant that his skills were certainly extraordinary. While he might not be able to defeat Ya Feiyu, he could probably hold his own in a fight. However, he seemed to have no intention of making a move at all. He observed Ya Feiyu's moves while casually dodging the sword light that attacked him again and again.
On the other side, Ye Chi was healing the villagers who were less affected by the incident below the altar, and also dispersing them.
His strength would only lead to his death if he charged in; he'd be better off staying in a safe place as part of the support team, cheering on Ya Feiyu. But the current situation seems a little off…
After all, he was just an ordinary person before and had never really learned swordsmanship. Ye Chi's only basis for swordsmanship was the fighting shown in TV dramas, although most of those were not real.
Even so, Ye Chi could tell that Ya Feiyu's moves were chaotic and lacked composure. Upon closer inspection, he could see that the hand holding his sword was trembling.
He drew his sword simply for the sake of drawing it.
This appearance on him is definitely not normal.
On the contrary... it's somewhat similar to how Ya Feiyu attacked them after being influenced by the demonic orb...
Ye Chi suddenly had a flash of inspiration, and his heart sank.
Is this the absolute influence of the plot on fate? Even if he had avoided the scene of becoming possessed by a demon in the illusion, Ya Feiyu would still become possessed by a demon?
In other words, all his previous actions were meaningless and a waste of time?
—Are you kidding me!
Ye Chi has always been a firm believer in fate. He neither believed that Ya Feiyu would be affected by the Demon Pearl, nor did he believe that his presence here meant he couldn't change the plot.
In that instant, he forgot his original intention, and his mind no longer had the time to consider how much the subsequent plot would change because of his small action.
He only hoped to save this person who should least have ended up in such a tragic state.
That's all.
Ignoring his weak cultivation level, and relying on the fact that some of the cultivation that Ya Feiyu had left on him had not yet dissipated, he rushed forward with his peach wood sword. He blocked the demonic energy ball that was attacking Ya Feiyu, and also blocked Ya Feiyu's chaotic sword strike.
"Master!"
A flash of clarity appeared in Ya Feiyu's eyes.
Upon seeing this, the man in black robes smirked coldly. He flashed to another corner of the altar, his smile appearing particularly eerie, like that of a ghost.
"I thought you were planning to stay down here and watch, little disciple of Celestial Snow. I didn't expect you to have such backbone..."
"Being able to withstand his sword strike shows you're quite skilled. In that case, don't follow him anymore. Come with me, and I'll teach you how to cultivate demonic arts, how about it?"
"Compared to cultivating under those righteous but hypocritical people and following those complicated rules and regulations, you are more suited to come with me to the free Demon Realm, where you can cultivate whatever you want and kill whoever you want. This will allow you to progress much faster than you would under his tutelage."
"I once invited Celestial Venerable Tianxue in the same way, but unfortunately, he didn't appreciate it at all." He spoke sarcastically, his voice cold and indifferent. "Cultivating immortality is so painful, cultivating demonic arts is the only orthodox way."
"It's okay if you don't want to."
"Anyway, your master will soon be ahead of you and waiting for you in the Demon Realm."
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