Inside the cave dwelling, Wang Ping sat back down on his meditation cushion. He played with his newly acquired 【Spirit-Gathering Nail】 with keen interest, continuously injecting his spiritual sense into the spiritual artifact.
On the other side, Fairy Yuerou could only watch helplessly.
Seeing the spiritual artifact that had once been absolutely obedient to her now trembling and wailing uncontrollably under the influx of Wang Ping's spiritual sense, her feelings were incredibly complicated.
"Don't push so hard..."
Finally, Fairy Yuerou couldn't help but say in a low voice, "The spiritual sense you're injecting is too much for the 【Spirit-Gathering Nail】. Give it a bit less, use a lighter touch."
"Otherwise, you'll just break it."
"Really?"
Hearing this, a curious look appeared on Wang Ping's face. He then simply waved his hand: "Then come over and lend a hand. That way, the 【Spirit-Gathering Nail】 can recover as quickly as possible."
"Ugh..."
Fairy Yuerou's pretty face flushed red with anger. However, seeing that Wang Ping had no intention of showing any pity for the spiritual artifact and kept ruthlessly pounding his massive spiritual sense into it...
She truly couldn't bear it anymore. Feeling extremely wronged, she walked forward and helped Wang Ping adjust the volume and speed of his spiritual sense injection.
Under her guidance, the wails of the 【Spirit-Gathering Nail】 gradually turned into long, joyous cries. Brilliant light surged, finally displaying the might this spiritual artifact was supposed to possess.
Seeing this, Fairy Yuerou truly couldn't bear to watch.
But the moment she withdrew her spiritual sense and stopped helping, Wang Ping would lose his grasp on the appropriate limit. The result was the 【Spirit-Gathering Nail】 emitting wailing sounds once again.
As if it were saying:
【Please, help push a little, otherwise he won't move.】
Left with no choice, Fairy Yuerou had to step forward again. After helping more than a dozen times, Wang Ping finally grasped the trick to using the 【Spirit-Gathering Nail】.
"Thank you for your guidance, Fairy."
Hearing this, Fairy Yuerou gritted her teeth and said in a low voice: "Since Daoist has decided to join us, why not accompany me to meet our Senior Brother?"
"Forget it."
Wang Ping decisively shook his head: "Senior Brother Guo, right? An outer sect disciple who has survived the Human Tribulation and condensed spiritual power. Such a cultivation level is not someone I am worthy of associating with."
Seeing this, Fairy Yuerou wasn't surprised. She could only sigh inwardly: I fell for his trick earlier and had a lot of intelligence extracted from me through his illusion art. Now that he knows Senior Brother Guo's strength, he naturally wouldn't willingly walk into a trap and hand his life over to outsiders.
At this thought, she stopped trying to persuade him.
"Very well. I have a voice transmission earring here that can communicate directly with Senior Brother Guo." Fairy Yuerou unhesitatingly took off the earring from her earlobe.
"For anything else, please ask Senior Brother Guo yourself, Daoist."
Wang Ping nodded slightly: "Very well."
With that, he took the earring. He then pulled out a piece of talisman paper, drew a few strokes, cut out a paper figure, and handed the earring to it.
Seeing this, Fairy Yuerou grew even more exasperated.
Where is the trust between people? Although they were both rogue cultivators, within the big family of the immortal sect, they could be considered fellow disciples. Why the need for such intense wariness?
Boom!
The next second, the earring exploded, instantly reducing the paper figure to flying ash.
Wang Ping cast a sidelong glance at her.
"...My apologies, I grabbed the wrong earring just now. It's actually this one." Fairy Yuerou's expression didn't change as she calmly took off the earring from her other ear.
Seeing this, Wang Ping didn't bother saying much. He repeated the process, having a paper figure take the earring, and then injected his spiritual sense. This time, the earring didn't explode. Instead, it emitted a faint glow. Then, a refined and amiable voice rang out by Wang Ping's ear: "Yuerou, how is the situation?"
"Very smooth," Wang Ping replied.
"I have already agreed to assist. Fairy Yuerou was so deeply moved that she even lent me her 【Spirit-Gathering Nail】, and then asked me to communicate with you, Senior Brother Guo."
With a single sentence, the atmosphere instantly plunged into silence.
The voice on the other end of the earring paused for a few breaths. Only after a moment did it speak again: "Then I must trouble Junior Brother Pingjiang Zi to lead the way for us."
The tone contained not a shred of anger, but was instead extremely solemn.
This attitude left Wang Ping quite satisfied: I should say, as expected of an outer sect disciple of the immortal sect. His caliber is so high that I don't even need to say much.
Actually, his very first sentence had already stated his demands very clearly: Fairy Yuerou has been captured by me, the 【Spirit-Gathering Nail】 is my spoils of war, and I also know your surname is Guo, that you're an outer sect disciple, and your cultivation is very high. So let's drop the pleasantries and get straight to the point.
This Senior Brother Guo also instantly picked up on the underlying meaning.
So he didn't waste time on idle chatter and directly stated the main objective behind expending so much effort to find Wang Ping through Fairy Yuerou—to act as a guide for the Bandit Cultivators.
"Your target is the 【Soul-Descending Abode】?"
"Exactly."
Senior Brother Guo said flatly: "As far as I know, the 【Soul-Descending Abode】 is about to transport a high-grade Dharma Treasure to the 【Divine Weapon Institute】 for reforging on behalf of a true legacy disciple."
"I intend to intercept that Dharma Treasure."
"Therefore, I need someone from the 【Soul-Descending Abode】 to act as an inside contact."
Wang Ping frowned slightly upon hearing this: "I've already been fired."
"That is unimportant," Senior Brother Guo continued. "What's important is the intelligence you possess."
"I have already ascertained that the transport convoy will pass through a secret stronghold of the 【Soul-Descending Abode】, but I am unclear of its exact location."
"That stronghold is called 【Valley of Myriad Spirits】."
"Well? Does it ring a bell?"
Upon hearing this, Wang Ping immediately began digging through Pingjiang Zi's memories and quickly found the answer: "...Yes, I do indeed know the location of this place."
From this, it was evident that this group of Bandit Cultivators hadn't just picked someone at random.
"Excellent."
Senior Brother Guo chuckled: "Tell me the location, and I will impart the 【Thief of Life】 to you. Coupled with the incantation Yuerou gave you, it will be enough for your cultivation to advance by leaps and bounds."
"However, the 【Thief of Life】 extracts life force and primal qi, which inevitably requires killing. Even if you obtain the method, without life force and primal qi, it useless... Of course, if you participate in this operation to intercept the 【Soul-Descending Abode】, there will definitely be plenty of opportunities to accumulate life force and primal qi."
"The decision is yours."
"Think about it carefully. The 【Soul-Descending Abode】 has already set off for the 【Divine Weapon Institute】. Time waits for no one, so you must give me your decision today."
"I will not wait past the deadline."
With that, the voice came to an abrupt halt, and the faint glow on the earring dispersed.
Wang Ping stood where he was, pondering inwardly: "Although Senior Brother Guo spoke bluntly, he makes sense. The 【Thief of Life】 ultimately requires killing people."
If I don't become a Bandit Cultivator and risk my life, how can I accumulate life force and primal qi?
Especially now that mastering 【Circulatory Breathing】 has depleted my stockpile of Life Force and Primal Qi Pills. It won't be as easy to improve further.
Wang Ping was currently in desperate need of restocking.
From this perspective, this operation to intercept the 【Soul-Descending Abode】 was undoubtedly a serendipity for him. It was like someone bringing him a pillow just when he was feeling sleepy.
There was only one small problem.
The cooldown time for 【Otherworldly Heavenly Demon】 hasn't ended yet!
At this thought, Wang Ping instantly hardened his resolve: So what if it's a serendipity? Serendipities appear every day, but I only have one life. I cannot wade into these muddy waters!
After all, by now, Wang Ping had some understanding of the immortal sect's style. Heaven knows what kind of unexpected disaster this so-called interception operation might trigger. Last time the Bandit Cultivators intercepted Daoist Nun You, they were on the verge of winning, only for a Qi Refiner to descend from the sky and directly reverse time...
How the hell are you supposed to play against that?
After thinking it over repeatedly, Wang Ping made his decision. Not delaying any further, he picked up the earring and activated it again: "Senior Brother Guo, I've made up my mind."
"Oh? So quickly?"
Senior Brother Guo's voice transmitted over again, carrying a hint of a smile: "Very well. I will now tell you the gathering location prior to the interception. You just need to rush there..."
"Senior Brother misunderstands."
Wang Ping said in a deep voice: "I have no intention of participating in the interception, nor do I need the 【Thief of Life】. I only hope Senior Brother can bestow a different top-tier immortal method instead."
"...What?"
Upon hearing Wang Ping's words, Senior Brother Guo's voice finally revealed a hint of astonishment: "You don't want the 【Thief of Life】, but want a different orthodox immortal method instead?"
"Senior Brother is perceptive," Wang Ping said with a serious expression, his tone resolute. "To tell the truth, what I detest most in my life is taking shortcuts in cultivation. Although the 【Thief of Life】 is incredibly profound, it is eerie and unpredictable. Moreover, what it cultivates doesn't truly belong to you. I imagine its foundation cannot compare to orthodox methods."
"Even if it allows rapid advancement in the short term, it is detrimental to the immortal Dao in the long run."
"Therefore, I reject it!"
This grand reasoning left Senior Brother Guo stunned. Cultivation gained from eating people via the 【Thief of Life】 is inferior to orthodox immortal methods? Where did this absurd, unprecedented fallacy come from?
How could a foundation painstakingly cultivated step by step through orthodox immortal methods possibly compare to the robust foundation rapidly achieved by the 【Thief of Life】, which absorbs the strengths of countless others?
Furthermore, you are a rogue cultivator.
A mere rogue cultivator, someone who might not even survive the Human Tribulation in their entire life, actually lecturing me about the 【Thief of Life】 being "detrimental to the immortal Dao in the long run."
Are you even worthy?
At this thought, Senior Brother Guo nearly burst out laughing, expending great effort to hold it in: "Good, good, good. I didn't expect you to possess such a firm Dao heart."
"No matter, I shall fulfill your wish."
"I heard that as a rogue cultivator, the method bestowed upon you was the 【Secret Record of Resolving the Three Corpses and Nine Worms】. This method was actually extracted from another immortal method."
"Since you don't want the 【Thief of Life】, I shall impart that method to you."
"How about it?"
Wang Ping naturally agreed to this immediately.
Soon, the two parties completed the transaction. Senior Brother Guo verbally dictated a complete scripture on the spot. After verifying it was correct, Wang Ping provided the location of the 【Valley of Myriad Spirits】.
"Alright, let Yuerou come back."
With his final sentence, Senior Brother Guo abruptly cut the connection. He clearly had no further interest in Wang Ping, this "rogue cultivator with eyes bigger than his stomach."
Wang Ping naturally couldn't care less about this.
"Take care, Fairy!"
A moment later, Wang Ping politely escorted Fairy Yuerou out of his cave dwelling. He then activated the grand formation without looking back, sealing the inside from the outside, and ignored her completely.
...
Inside the cave dwelling, Wang Ping unrolled a scroll.
Scanning it, the surface was densely packed with writing. This was exactly the immortal method Senior Brother Guo had dictated to him, named the 【Scripture of Supreme Yin Body Refinement and Heavenly Registers】.
The 【Secret Record of Resolving the Three Corpses and Nine Worms】 was extracted from this very immortal method. And to practice this method, one had to first cultivate the 【Secret Record of Resolving the Three Corpses and Nine Worms】 to perfection, until they survived the Human Tribulation. Only then could they attempt it; otherwise, it was courting death, because its opening sentence was:
"To practice this method, one must first commit suicide."
That's right, the first step to cultivating the 【Scripture of Supreme Yin Body Refinement and Heavenly Registers】 was to slit one's own throat and return to heaven. So if the prerequisites weren't met, committing suicide would just mean truly dying.
"After a person dies, the Hun returns to heaven, the Po enters the earth, the Three Corpses transform into ghosts, and the Nine Worms gnaw on the corpse."
"However, if one commits suicide using the secret technique within the 【Scripture of Supreme Yin Body Refinement and Heavenly Registers】, they can compel the Three Corpses to guard the soul and the Nine Worms to protect the physical body after death."
"Thus, one can die without perishing, temporarily crossing through the Supreme Yin."
"Until the mortal form is shed and the divine form is forged, one achieves the merit of ascending to heaven and receiving the celestial register—in the immortal sect's system, this achievement is the fruit of Refining Qi and entering the Dao."
In other words—
"This is a cultivation method that leads straight to Refining Qi!" Wang Ping abruptly slammed his hand on the desk and stood up, unable to hide the excitement in his heart. This was a true immortal sect legacy!
For a moment, Wang Ping felt an unbearable itch in his heart.
After all, such an immortal method was right before his eyes, yet he couldn't immediately attempt to practice it because he hadn't met the prerequisites. It was truly agonizing.
Right at that moment.
Boom!
Abruptly, a deafening thunderclap exploded from the sky above. Ignoring the multiple formations inside and outside the cave dwelling, it smashed directly inside.
Wang Ping was instantly jolted awake, snapping back to reality.
"What's happening?"
Astonished, he hurriedly rushed out of the cave dwelling, only to see that the previously clear sky was now shrouded in a dense layer of dark clouds.
Light flashed intermittently within the dark clouds, like golden snakes dancing wildly. As it illuminated the earth, it was accompanied by continuous, scalp-tingling rumbles.
After a while, a torrential downpour began. Every single drop of rain contained thick spiritual qi, landing on the ground with the force of a thousand-pound boulder.
Hiss!
Standing in the rain, Wang Ping pushed the 【Thirteen Grand Protectors Body-Tempering Art】 to its absolute limit, barely managing to withstand the crushing weight of the sky-filling rainwater falling on him.
Thanks to this, he was also able to clearly see the source of this heavy rain.
It was two people.
He was incredibly familiar with one of them. Bright eyes and white teeth, wearing a Daoist robe, an aura where cold aloofness and alluring charm coexisted—it was none other than the long-unseen Daoist Nun You.
And confronting Daoist Nun You was a woman in white carrying a sword on her back. The dark clouds blanketing the earth and the torrential rain were all generated by her. F
ar from showing any signs of weakening, they were even growing stronger as time passed, as if an entire ocean had been moved into the firmament.
"A spiritual art? Or a divine ability?"
"Who is Daoist Nun You fighting? Another true legacy disciple?"
Before Wang Ping could see clearly, his spiritual sense vision was tinged with a layer of blood-red. A splitting headache followed, forcing him to retract his gaze.
This isn't good.
How long are they going to fight?
Wang Ping spat a mouthful of blood, horror filling his heart. The torrential rain right now was undoubtedly merely the aftermath of their battle, cast casually by the two of them.
But to him, and to the countless rogue cultivators beneath their battlefield, this was an unmitigated, unexpected disaster—a major catastrophe that could threaten their lives!
I can still hold on for now. But if this massive battle lasts for a day or two, even I will be pounded into a bloody pulp by the rainwater. Not even cave dwellings protected by formations will hold; they'll collapse too. I must escape the coverage area of the battlefield before that happens...
Wang Ping's thoughts raced, and he finally covered his face with his hand.
"The 【Valley of Myriad Spirits】..."
The 【Soul-Descending Abode】's secret stronghold within the immortal sect. The formations there were complete enough, and it should be able to withstand the aftermath of this battle between true legacies.
The problem was, that place had been chosen as an ambush site by the Bandit Cultivators. It wasn't safe right now either.
"And in the end, I still have to wade into these muddy waters?"
You've got to be kidding me!
Wang Ping found it somewhat hard to accept, but the raindrops hitting his body like slicing knives forced him to recognize reality: "I can only take it one step at a time."
So be it, Bandit Cultivator it is.
"In this day and age, who the hell doesn't have a side hustle... God, damn it!"
At this thought, Wang Ping stomped his foot hard, then sprinted into the curtain of rain, speeding toward the direction of the 【Valley of Myriad Spirits】.
The sound of rain pitter-pattered; three days and three nights later, it was still falling...