Inner Demons

Chapter 175: Extremely Arrogant Share Comments

These two were fellow cultivators of the Circumference Heaven Numinous Treasure Sect who had come to the secular world together to undergo their Tribulation. It is said that the sect leader of the Circumference Heaven Numinous Treasure Sect, the Great Achievement Master Realm cultivator Tong Zhouzi, was one of the five cultivators who went to the Li Kingdom last month to pursue the Ghost Emperor.

Unfortunately, while this Human Cultivator's cultivation was high, he had a vice that was extremely rare among high-level cultivators: he was stingy.

The Circumference Heaven Numinous Treasure Sect was also one of the Thirty-Six Schools of the Daoist Lineage. Although it was not as wealthy as the Grotto-heaven, it was not a poor sect. Even the most low-level school's treasured items were enough to buy half of the Great Qing Dynasty.

But this sect leader Tong Zhouzi never took out the sect's Famed Scroll or Treasure Scroll for his cultivators to undergo their Transcending Tribulation. As soon as his disciples reached the peak of the Intent Realm, he would drive them down the mountain, saying that only by experiencing it in person and Transcending Tribulation would their cultivation be solid.

This wasn't wrong, but the problem was... he was even reluctant to give them protective magical treasures or high-level Talismans. He would just drive his disciples out of the sect and tell them, "The world is full of spiritual treasures. Just look for them carefully."

This truly lived up to the name "Circumference Heaven Numinous Treasure Sect."

Among this pair of troubled brothers, the Intent Realm cultivator's Daoist name was Ziguzi, and the Illusory Realm cultivator's Daoist name was Zhi Youzi. They had met Yue Yunzi once and were given some pointers on cultivation, so they owed him a favor. When they received the news this time, they rushed here day and night, not because they were grateful for the old favor, but because a True Realm cultivator like Yue Yunzi would never be as stingy as their sect leader.

Even if he just gave them a Talisman after sending them on an errand, it would be a Talisman written by a True Realm cultivator, something they had never seen before.

It was truly heartbreaking.

Therefore, these two were the most dedicated to this task. While the other low-level cultivators were still pondering how to present their immortal Daoist Arts to the common people in a reserved yet friendly manner, these two had already gathered a crowd in a corner of a construction site in the Taoxi Road ruins.They originally planned to not say much and just use their techniques to subdue the people.

So Zhi Youzi started with the Illusory Realm initial-stage incantation, the Demon-Subduing Town Character Formula.

It was noon, and the sun was scorching, with only a few cool breezes. A group of people who had been working all morning surrounded the two of them, and the smell was truly unpleasant. They were frowning and looking at them with wary and confused eyes, which made the two cultivators feel that they should finish this task as soon as possible and subdue these people.

So Zhi Youzi wrote in the air. Although it was difficult and slow to write, he did indeed force out Spiritual Power from his fingertips and, without a magical brush, wrote a real "Town" character Talisman.

As soon as this was done, within a few feet of Zhi Youzi as the center, everything immediately became quiet.

The sound of cicadas had been subdued.

The background noise of people working in the distance also disappeared.

Even the breeze had been subdued!

These two cultivators, along with the thirty or forty people around them, were, in that instant, temporarily cut off from the karma of this world!

However, after Zhi Youzi had finished writing the Town Character Formula in the air and had recovered, the people surrounding the two of them finally became impatient. The person who had just called himself a Taoist priest had a solemn face, and it seemed he was using a lot of effort to show off his abilities, and people had even temporarily lowered their voices in conversation because of it.

But now...

Nothing had happened.

There was no light, no sound, no flames, and no little person.

The two Taoist priests just stood there blankly, not speaking, just looking at these people with a rather proud look.

What was there to be proud of?

They had come in the middle of the day to listen to their nonsense. There had been some wind before, but now there was not a single breeze, and the stuffiness made people's hearts feel flustered. The smell on each other's bodies was already unpleasant, and now it was even worse. Someone asked, "What about the magic trick you promised?"

The two Taoist priests looked as if they had been offended, their faces full of disbelief. "You fools, you didn't even—"

Who had the patience to listen to them? They were even calling them fools! They had been holding it in for so long, and nothing came out. They were wearing ordinary clothes but were pretending to be high and mighty. It was clearly a pretense to get some money.

So people started to mock the two of them again.

The noise in the distance had been subdued, but the voices of thirty or forty people were already quite loud. No one would notice such an insignificant detail. After they had had their fill of mocking and ridiculing the two of them, the crowd dispersed.

Zhi Youzi's "didn't you even realize the subtlety of Daoist Arts" was still on his lips.

This group of... unruly people!

Fools!

They even said that the deity in the temple could make incense and candles burn on their own and that was what a true immortal did!

However, even a young boy in his sect could do that!

The two of them became angrier the more they thought about it. They almost wanted to start a massacre, but then they remembered Yue Yunzi's warning. So they decided not to deal with these fools before tomorrow.

They had originally been cultivating in the Grotto-heaven and blessed lands, and the people around them were all fellow practitioners with "lofty ambitions." Even those who were greedy and stingy had a veil of courtesy and politeness. Although under this veil, the greed and stinginess of the high-and-mighty were no different from that of the common people, just as a courtesan prefers a smooth-talking, pleasing client, not many people truly appreciate so-called "true character" and "simplicity."

The two cultivators felt that dealing with secular people was terrible. They were supposed to be high and mighty, looking down on these mortals and not supposed to be in contact with them. But now they had to blend in; it was like they were digging themselves into the mud.

So they left.

They didn't want to go back to the Shangqing Elixir Cauldron Sect's station. It would not be good for Yue Yunzi to know they had done nothing all day. But they also didn't want to go and enjoy themselves. Their hearts were indeed filled with an impatient matter.

So they wandered around the city for a while. When their mood had calmed down a bit, they finally felt that something was not quite right.

Why go to all this trouble?

Wouldn't it be easier to just kill the "cult leader" and "commanding elder"?

Although they couldn't clearly judge how strong others were, they did know some details.

These cultivators, being from an orthodox sect, were very arrogant. At first, when Yue Yunzi told them to blend in with the crowd, some of them had already used what they considered to be clever Orthodox Xuanmen Teachings to test Old Daoist Liu just to see his cultivation level.

And the result was very close to the truth.

Although Liu Gongzan had Illusory Realm cultivation, he cultivated the Dao of Painting. In terms of combat, he was far from being able to compare with Daoist Orthodoxy or Sword Sect cultivators. And he had been self-taught before, so there were many small details that Li Yunxin himself might not have been clear about, let alone him.

Therefore, the cultivators' conclusion was that this was a Taoist priest at the peak of the Intent Realm, at least in terms of combat strength.

Some cautious people had gone to ask Yue Yunzi if this was indeed the case, but the True Realm cultivator who had gathered them just smiled without saying a word. In the end, Yue Yunzi Master wouldn't harm his juniors and fellow practitioners, so the cultivators became even more certain.

Therefore, when the sun was setting in the west, the two of them thought of this method.

At that time, they were walking in a small alley with Bluestone slabs and thought that this method was indeed feasible. They planned to do it tomorrow. Why not tonight?

Because tomorrow, the people on Taoxi Road would be working.

They planned to kill the commanding elder and the Divine Dragon Cult leader in front of the common people tomorrow when they were working, so that those fools could see... what real immortal Daoist Arts were!

Having decided on this, the two of them were about to head back to the station.

But at night, a dark alley was always a place where accidents frequently occurred. After walking a dozen steps, they found that the other end of the alley was blocked.

A black horse was blocking the exit.

In front of the black horse stood a swordsman.

He was wearing a black outfit, with leather padding on the shoulders, elbows, and other easily worn areas, which not only prevented wear but also provided protection.

He wore a bamboo hat. He had used some method to make the hat black as well. It was pulled down very low, only revealing a strong-lined mouth and a powerful, wide chin.

He was holding a Black Saber and standing in the middle of the road. The moonlight cast a clear glow on the blade.

Ziguzi and Zhi Youzi looked at each other, stopped, and stared in surprise at the person in front of them.

Cultivators might not be able to accurately judge the cultivation of other cultivators, but it was not difficult to see through mortals.

Right now... this man holding a Black Saber was planning to block their path.

Was he looking for death?

Perhaps because they had nowhere to vent the anger they had accumulated from the common people during the day, the two cultivators stood still with a tacit understanding. They did not just wave their hands and send him flying. Instead, with a complex and subtle psychology, they decided to listen to what he had to say.

The black-clad swordsman saw the two people's actions through the gap in his bamboo hat. He squinted his eyes, but still couldn't see clearly, so he used the handle of the saber he was holding to push his hat up. He finally saw that their faces were filled with surprise.

This was a result that made him feel satisfied.

He smiled slightly, revealing a row of snow-white teeth. In the moonlight, against the black night and his black clothes, he looked dangerous and cruel. "I am Black Saber Ying Jueran. I have some things to ask you two."

When the other party heard his name...

Their faces were still surprised, but they had started to calm down and just stared straight at him.

This was a normal reaction. People in the martial arts world would probably have one of two reactions when they heard the name "Black Saber Ying Jueran."

Those who were important enough and had a high enough status would either admire, despise, or grit their teeth, but they would always know him.

As for the small-time characters and newcomers to the martial arts world, they would probably be like this now, not knowing who was standing in front of them.

He then showed a faint smile on his lips. "I saw the two of you doing things during the day, hehe... Your methods were not very clever. Did you not use the right approach?"

"Looking at the two of you, you're clean-cut and your words sound like you've read some books. Are you a Temple Keeper who lost your livelihood and are trying to make a living in a crooked way?"

"I guess you are planning to get a share from the Divine Dragon Cult. Since those people can believe in some Dragon Crown Prince, they are also a bunch of fools. They have become a good target for you. But you two, I advise you, you cannot and cannot afford to get a share of the Divine Dragon Cult's livelihood. I'm afraid you'll lose your lives if you do."

After he said this, the two people across from him seemed to want to laugh. They didn't take his advice seriously at all.

But Black Saber Ying Jueran was not angry. He shook his head. "Alas. Do you know who is behind the Divine Dragon Cult? You know that the Yu Family in Weicheng is behind this. He is a businessman and deals with the government. He is not a person of the martial arts world, so he can't really control our affairs."

"But... what about the Eagle King Fort? You wouldn't not know about it, would you? Twenty years ago, the Eagle King Sun Dingheng wiped out the entire Qian Family Fort. Since then, the Eagle King Fort has dominated the martial arts world. I'm telling you today, that Yu Family is even related to the Eagle King Fort!"

After he finished speaking, Ying Jueran stared straight at the two of them. "Now that you know these things, I will ask you one more question: do you want to get a big fortune?"

Zhi Youzi let out a light breath. "Oh? A big fortune? What kind of... big fortune?"

Ying Jueran snorted. "The cult members and believers of the Divine Dragon Cult are actually all suffering people. They were temporarily deceived by the evil cult and didn't even know how much of their family's wealth they had dedicated. How could I not have seen this kind of thing in other prefectures? Evil cults gather wealth and then flee, leaving the people to suffer."

"They are all pitiable people. Why do you have to target them?"

"In my opinion, people of the martial arts world should act with integrity and dignity. The two of you have been mingling with that group of cult members these days, so you should know that the Divine Dragon Cult has a golden statue. It weighs sixteen catties, seven taels, and three qian. If you were to rob that golden statue... hehe."

"For one, you can rob the rich to help the poor. Secondly, if the Divine Dragon Cult can't even protect its golden statue, how can believers still believe in it? In just a few days, those people who were deceived will scatter like birds!"

But Zhi Youzi suddenly interrupted him. "Why are you targeting my two brothers? How long have you been watching?"

Ying Jueran tilted his head slightly and said arrogantly, "If I, Ying Jueran, want to watch someone, they will not be able to detect it. As for why I'm watching you... hehe. Just consider it a fortune given to you by God, who sees your struggles."

"So, you didn't find anything special about us, it was just a coincidence," Ziguzi added.

"Hehe. Yes."

"Then since you said that my two brothers cannot get a share of the Divine Dragon Cult's livelihood and even mentioned the Eagle King Fort... then why are you doing this and provoking them now?"

Ying Jueran frowned slightly. The keenness of a martial arts practitioner made him realize that these two people...

Were not right.

The two people's tone right now was calm and unhurried. After hearing about the golden statue weighing sixteen catties, seven taels, and three qian, they showed not a single trace of greed.

"So you two are the lackeys of the Eagle King Fort!" Ying Jueran suddenly lifted his bamboo hat, clenched his Black Saber, and roared.

Along with the roar, the Black Saber hummed and tore through the air, heading straight for the place where the two of them stood!

But the two cultivators just took a slight step back, and the strike was avoided.

Black Saber Ying Jueran realized the situation in a single blink. The two of them were not at all afraid after hearing his name. They had deliberately put on a show during the day to bait him.

And now they easily dodged his strike...

These two people were terrifyingly skilled in martial arts and terrifyingly cunning!

He roared again, "Charge together! Let's fight them to the death!"

As soon as he finished speaking, an old man walked out from behind the black horse. He was also wearing black clothes and holding a Black Saber. However, he hesitated for a while and then said, "Great Hero Ying, I remember you told me that the path of the Seven Kills is a path of moving forward without hesitation and fighting alone..."

Ying Jueran frowned and said in a low voice, "Humph, these Eagle King Fort lackeys—we don't need to talk about martial arts ethics with them! We must charge together!"

"Move forward without hesitation. The path of fighting alone—this 'alone' means you and I, both of us are from the righteous martial arts path. So we are also fighting alone! There is no one else from the righteous martial arts path!"