Infinite Professions

Chapter 174 - 85: Demon Soldiers

Two major drawbacks!

The first one doesn’t need much explanation; Shen He wants this very effect.

The second one, however...

Free Heaven Realm, Ancient Great Demon?

To be honest, it’s somewhat dangerous.

Because Shen He does not know exactly what this so-called assimilation entails.

Is it a simple Divine Soul devouring, physical possession?

Or does it fundamentally change a person from consciousness?

If it’s the latter, then cultivating this technique might be dangerous, because it might affect Shen He’s true self; after all, Zhuang Zhou’s Dream of the Butterfly involves a cross over of consciousness.

Of course, this is merely a hypothesis.

A capability like Zhuang Zhou’s Dream of the Butterfly, even in the real world, is considered beyond extraordinary, not something ordinary Immortals, Buddhas, Gods, or Demons can comprehend.

For an ancient demon in this Taiyuan Realm to cross such a barrier to affect his true self, seems even more unrealistic.

Therefore, Shen He’s theory of danger might just be baseless worries.

But for certain matters, you have to prepare for the worst.

Shen He looked again at the woman: "How exactly is this assimilation done?"

"It’s about becoming a Demon Thought Incarnation of that Great Demon."

The woman said indifferently, "The specifics are unknown, because this drawback is not explicitly manifested in the lower realms. Most who cultivate this method simply over contemplate, exhaust their life essence, and die. Almost no one has been seized by that Great Demon, clearly showing this drawback."

"Almost?"

Shen He caught the crucial point.

"After all, there are no absolutes in the world."

The woman chuckled lightly, "After ancient times, many Demon Cultivators practiced this method, eventually reaching the Divinity Transformation Realm and vanishing into the void. If they could reach the worlds where ancient Immortals and Demons used to exist, they might encounter this drawback."

Shen He narrowed his eyes: "So, it’s confirmed that almost no one has been taken in the lower realms by this method?"

The woman nodded: "At least there is no such record."

"Then I’ll take it."

Hearing this, Shen He decisively asked, "How much?"

The woman smiled: "One thousand low-grade Spirit Stones."

"So low-priced?"

Although he expected it, hearing the price, Shen He’s eyes still flickered slightly.

"After all, spreading Demon Skills is an order of death from the Netherworld Yellow Springs Sect and that Netherworld Demon Monarch."

The woman laughed lightly, "Our Tingfeng Pavilion dare not oppose such a great trend, so we only earn channel fees."

"Is that so?"

Shen He looked at her, then said: "Besides this technique, are there any other similar Demon Skills?"

The woman shook her head: "Though many are similar, their effects are generally not as good as the Self Transformed Sovereignty and Root of All Methods."

"No matter!"

Shen He was indifferent: "Give me a copy of all of them."

"Please wait, sir!"

The woman glanced at him and said no more, signaling someone via Spirit Letter to fetch the Cultivation Technique Jade Scroll.

Seizing the opportunity, Shen He continued to inquire: "Besides the cultivation techniques, there should also be releases of the Demon Dao’s Hundred Arts like Pill Talisman Array, right?"

"There are also releases."

The woman nodded: "Which one does the sir need?"

Shen He asked solemnly: "Are there any methods that aren’t so complex yet can be mastered quickly and not be inferior to others?"

"This..."

The woman looked troubled, then smiled wryly and said: "Quick mastery of Demon Skills means a cultivation body with mixed foundations. The two are characteristics of the Demon Dao and unavoidable. Demon Pills, Demon Talismans, Demon Artifacts, and Demon Arrays are the same because the essence of the Demon Dao is to plunder all things of heaven and earth, to use the merits of all beings to enrich oneself. Such plundered merits will inevitably be mixed."

Although Shen He understood this, he didn’t give up: "Then is there a relatively less mixed cultivation technique?"

"Relatively speaking, there is indeed one."

The woman pondered for a moment, then explained: "As long as the targets of plunder are unified or similar in nature, then the mixing in Demon Skills can be reduced. For example, specifically plundering cultivators with the same cultivation body. This is not limited to any cultivation technique, but is a common principle of the Demon Dao."

"Is that so?"

Shen He muttered, then spoke earnestly: "Then give me a few powerful Demon Dao’s artifact techniques, talismanic techniques, and arrays."

"Powerful Demon Dao’s artifact techniques?"

The woman meditated briefly, then had a result: "This ’Karma Fire Three Calamities’ should meet your needs."

"Karma Fire Three Calamities?"

Shen He focused his gaze: "How so?"

The woman explained solemnly: "The Three Calamities is a Buddhist technique, where the Buddhist teachings talk about the world having Four Tribulations: formation, dwelling, destruction, and emptiness. Among the Four Tribulations, there are three major cosmic calamities and three minor calamities. The major cosmic calamities are fire, water, and wind, while the minor calamities are sword conflicts, plagues, and famine."

"The Karma Fire Three Calamities method is about using the power of slaughter to refine a Demon Soldier, endowing it with the ability of the Three Calamities and Four Tribulations. It’s said that in ancient times, there was a Great Demon who refined this weapon, brought the Three Calamities to the world, and nearly triggered the Four Final Tribulations, ultimately igniting an Immortal-Demon War."

"Therefore, the Karma Fire Three Calamities method has twelve major realms, corresponding to the Three Calamities and Four Tribulations. Upon reaching the twelfth realm, one forms an earth-shaking Karma Fire Demon Soldier, capable of slaying even Immortals, Buddhas, Gods, and Demons."

After the introduction, the woman shook her head: "Unfortunately, after that Immortal-Demon War, the Great Demon along with the Karma Fire Demon Soldier was obliterated. The transmission of this method is incomplete, now only six calamities remain, and there’s no door to the Four Tribulations. This means the Demon Soldier can only be refined to a seven-class rank, or lower-grade Magical Treasure.’

"Yet even so, this method is the strongest Demon Dao’s artifact technique collected by our Tingfeng Pavilion, propagated by the Netherworld Yellow Springs Sect!"

The woman looked at Shen He: "Does this satisfy your needs, sir?"

Hearing this, Shen He frowned: "How is such a Demon Soldier to be refined?"

"The best way is to follow the method of the six calamities: crafting the body with massacres of the sword conflicts, malice of plagues, and curses of famine, then infuse it with the magical powers of Karmic Fire, Ruishui River, and Gang Wind, thus achieving the Three Calamities Demon Soldiers."

The woman chuckled softly: "If you find such requirements too stringent, you can also use the blood and flesh of creatures, refine it through slaughter, allowing it to naturally possess the power of the Three Calamities, but this requires committing endless killings. If not sufficiently suppressed, one may be entangled by karmic forces, causing the Demon Soldier to backfire."

"Then it’s decided!"

Shen He decided resolutely: "How many Spirit Stones?"

The woman smiled gently: "Five thousand low-grade Spirit Stones. The Karma Fire Three Calamities is not just an artifact technique, but also an alchemy technique, talismanic technique, and array technique, allowing for the creation of Three Calamities Pill, Three Calamities Talisman, and Three Calamities Array, hence the higher price. I beg your understanding, sir."

"No problem!"

Shen He did not hesitate, directly offering the Spirit Stones.

Soon, several Cultivation Technique Jade Scrolls were brought to Shen He.

Shen He took them and was about to leave.

"Please wait, sir!"

The woman stopped him: "In three days, the Poison Dragon Pond Marketplace will hold an auction, exhibiting many rare treasures. Should you have any demands, you may participate. As long as you have reached Qi Refining cultivation, or have tens of thousands of Spirit Stones, you can enter."

"Thanks for the information!"

Shen He replied, then strode away.

...

And so, after a short while, Shen He, having completed his purchases, left Poison Dragon Pond and headed to the next gathering place of cultivators.

Shopping around is fundamental!

Although he had already made purchases, it didn’t stop him from going to other marketplaces to find other intelligence organizations, gather information about ’Self Transformed Sovereignty and Root of All Methods’ and ’Karma Fire Three Calamities’, cross-verify, and try to avoid pitfalls.

Moreover, he needed to gather some high-tier Spiritual Objects for refining Foundation Establishment Pills and Three Calamities Demon Soldiers.

In this regard, Fish Dragon Island did not have reserves. A few Tier Four Spirit Medications were exhausted in previous alchemy, needing urgent replenishment.