novelraw Chapter 383 - 378 Corpse Collector! Entwining Fingers Silken Love!_1
Chapter 383 - 378 Corpse Collector! Entwining Fingers Silken Love!_1
The matter turned out to be much smoother than imagined.
Walking westward, Jia Ren encountered Yan Er halfway.
Excitement was written all over Yan Er’s face as he eagerly conveyed the good news to Jia Ren.
Unexpectedly, things went so smoothly—or to be precise, too smoothly.
Immediately after Yan Er explained the situation, the Corpse Guardian, his eyes brimming with tears of excitement, agreed without hesitation.
"Here are the Spirit Stones for you, Daoist Friend!"
Jia Ren delivered the agreed-upon ten thousand Spirit Stones.
One leading and the other following, they made their way towards Xi Mang Mountain.
This place was desolate and silent, without a trace of human presence, with only a solitary hut sitting here, remarkably ’cold’.
A thin, long-faced cultivator stood outside the door, his eyes dull. Upon seeing Yan Er bring someone, those eyes seemed to come alive.
"Daoist Friend, your business is my business; I will do my utmost to accomplish it!"
He hurriedly agreed, fearing that if he delayed, the other party might refuse.
Why did it feel like he was in a rush to unload a burden?
Jia Ren was unconcerned; what others saw as a challenging duty was a fine assignment for him.
A short and stout Nascent Soul Cultivator approached, his gaze towards Jia Ren somewhat strange.
"Much appreciated, Deacon Zhou," the long-faced cultivator quickly handed over a Storage Bag.
"Don’t worry, this matter is not a big deal," Deacon Zhou said.
"You stay here for seven days first to teach him the rules."
"From today onwards, you are no longer a candidate for Protector, but the Steward of Xi Mang Mountain. The heavy responsibility here is now yours."
The stout Steward looked at Jia Ren with a strange expression, patted his shoulder as a gesture of encouragement, and then strode away.
Steward? Am I to play the role of an ’official’ just after taking this position?
"How many people are here?" Jia Ren asked, looking at the lonely stone cottage, seeing no other cultivators.
"Just the two of us. To be accurate, after seven days, only you will be here..."
So, who exactly am I overseeing?! It’s no wonder there’s a catch! Otherwise, the long-faced cultivator wouldn’t have been so eager to leave.
"Is there a problem with this place? Please enlighten me."
Knowing about potential trouble in advance can help avoid pitfalls.
If it had been earlier, the long-faced cultivator would have harbored reservations, fearing he would frighten someone away.
Now that the situation was settled, he did not hide anything from Jia Ren, who had saved him from an abyss of misery.
"Although this place is desolate, the advantage is that no one will disturb you, allowing you to cultivate in peace," the long-faced cultivator explained.
"The biggest issue is... there is no monthly salary."
"No one has sent corpses to Xi Mang Mountain for a long time, and the original monthly salary has been consequently deducted."
No work done, and they still expect a monthly salary in Spirit Stones?!
The monthly salary for Lingbao Sect Handymen wasn’t low; depending on one’s rank, it was at least a hundred Low-grade Spirit Stones per month, along with Elixirs suitable for one’s Realm.
Many cultivators came to the Lingbao Sect for the arduous tasks precisely because the benefits were indeed considerable.
Without the monthly salary in Spirit Stones, what was the use of being at leisure?
Handymen with low Spiritual Root Aptitude did not absorb nature’s spiritual energy quickly and were unwilling to stay in Xi Mang Mountain for long.
They spent Spirit Stones to curry favor and left this place.
Not long after, the area became even more deserted.
The long-faced cultivator, coveting the status of Steward, had been the slowest to react; it was already too late to spend money and curry favor.
Someone had to stay, and with no one to take over, he could only remain.
Jia Ren had thought there would be a big catch, but it turned out to be just the absence of a monthly salary.
The monthly salary for a Lingbao Sect Handyman was something Jia Ren didn’t even consider. He casually dismissed it.
The long-faced cultivator dared not deceive Jia Ren; after all, one could not afford to offend a Nascent Soul Cultivator.
He honestly outlined the taboos of this place and handed over the manual for burying corpses and appeasing souls.
As soon as the seven days were up, he hurriedly fled.
From that point on, only Jia Ren remained at Xi Mang Mountain.
He demolished the stone cottage and rebuilt it into a cave dwelling, setting up Formation restrictions in the process.
Apart from spending the initial few days gathering information, Jia Ren subsequently remained in tranquil cultivation retreat.
「Half a year passed in the blink of an eye.」
Not a single corpse arrived, and the tranquility was exceptional.
A cauldron of Nascent Soul Level Golden Jade Elixirs, with eighteen striking Dao Elixir Patterns.
In Lingyuan City, Jia Ren had already deduced the Alchemy Recipe for the early Nascent Soul Stage, improving his Proficiency Level. As time went on, his Proficiency Level grew higher and higher.
He was about to consume a Golden Jade Elixir when he felt a slight stirring of intuition and paused his cultivation.
"Daoist Ma?"
The voice came with a hint of uncertainty as a slender man in a grey robe looked at the distant cave dwelling with a curious expression.
Is this Xiao Mang Mountain? Something feels off...
"Daoist Ma has already left this place. I have taken over," Jia Ren stated.
The slim, gray-robed man, seeing that Jia Ren was a Nascent Soul Cultivator, looked incredulous.
Why would a Nascent Soul Cultivator come here? Had he offended someone and been banished to this place?
"Ahem, I thought Daoist Ma was still here," the man said.
"Since you don’t have a monthly salary, are you interested in earning some extra income?"
"You could do subcontracted work for other cultivators and Handymen to earn Spirit Stones."
Xiao Mang Mountain was too idle; without Spirit Stones and resources incoming, how long could one last? One could only find some odd jobs to supplement their income.
With fewer task choices for the Foundation Establishment Stage, yet higher limits for the Nascent Soul Stage, the commission earned from tasks was more plentiful for the latter.
Profit is the true motivator, which is why Hu San was exceptionally enthusiastic.
"Subcontracted work?!" Jia Ren couldn’t help but furrow his brow, ready to reject the offer.
I’m not lacking in resources; why waste time on meaningless tasks? No, this is an opportunity!
Jia Ren pondered learning Spirit Treasure Inscription, the Demon Soul Refining Art, and other powerful techniques from the Lingbao Sect.
With no corpses in Xi Mang Mountain for the time being, the Corpse-Eating Bizarre Pill wasn’t useful; he needed to find another solution.
It was impossible for him to spend Spirit Stones to learn; helping with Refining Demon Souls and Artifact Refining would also be a good choice.
"I’m only interested in subcontracting Artifact Refining. If you have any news, you can contact me," Jia Ren said.
"Leave it to me, Hu San!" Hu San cracked a wide grin, quickly agreeing. The two exchanged Sound Transmission Talismans, and the other party left, satisfied.
This could be a pathway!
Just as Jia Ren was preparing to enter seclusion for cultivation, hasty footsteps approached from afar.
"Where’s the Steward of Xi Mang Mountain?"
"Eh, why are you building a cave here? Do you really take this place for your home?!"
The newcomer was Deacon Zhou, the one who had made him the Steward here, and he wore a commanding expression.
"Cut the chatter! Hurry up and collect the corpse!"
Though it was called corpse collecting, two grey-robed Daoists came in carrying a stretcher stained red with fresh blood.
The blood-soaked white cloth was lifted, revealing a body dismembered into various sized chunks of flesh, no longer resembling a human form.
"Burials should be conducted with a complete body; you need to piece the person back together properly," Deacon Zhou instructed.
"Have you learned the Corpse Sewing Technique?"
Jia Ren learned spells with lightning speed. Having nothing better to do, he had also experimented with the corpses of magical beasts, so the Corpse Sewing Technique wasn’t difficult.
"Gather the original form!"
A spell was cast, and Spiritual Power touched the scattered pieces of flesh, reassembling them into their original shape.
"Corpse Sewing Technique!"
Invisible needles with transparent spiritual silk threads swiftly sewed the scattered chunks of flesh back together.
Two spells were cast, and the chunks of flesh reconstituted into the original human form.
This was a female cultivator, her belly swollen as if she were pregnant.
A crime of passion? Or perhaps a Lingbao Sect Cultivator? An opportunity has finally come!
Stealthily, he kept a small piece of bloodied flesh to feed to his Insect External Incarnation to acquire the Cultivation Techniques and Divine Skills the woman had learned.
"Qian’er, your death is so tragic!"
A white-robed cultivator hurried over, his eyes reddening at the sight of the female cultivator’s swollen belly.
Undoubtedly, the deceased had an extraordinary relationship with this person.
"Don’t delay the burial," Jia Ren said.
He sent out the Golden Armor King Worm, which dug a grave on the back mountain and properly buried the body.
"Thank you, Daoist brother, for keeping Qian’er’s body intact..."
A dozen Medium-grade Spirit Stones were handed over. Jia Ren hesitated for a moment but did not refuse.
「A short while later」
Several fellow Lingbao Sect Cultivators came to pay their condolences.
Jia Ren saw Li Ruhua, who weighed three hundred pounds, with Ma Zhongyuan accompanying her, offering consolation.
The demeanor of the two revealed the subterfuge at a glance.
This one’s a real piece of work, a Protector who protected his way right into her bed.
Ma Zhongyuan looked at Jia Ren in surprise, but they did not converse.
This incident was just an interlude. The cultivators gathered at Xiao Mang Mountain gradually dispersed, and quiet returned.
Jia Ren returned to his newly constructed cave and casually fed the retained chunk of flesh into the Mountain and Sea Pearl.
The Insect External Incarnation, as usual, consumed the Corpse-Eating Bizarre Pill and devoured the flesh.
In just a moment, new Cultivation Techniques and Secret Techniques had been learned through the Corpse-Eating Bizarre Pill.
Communication Treasure Art, Golden Jade Power, Very Heavenly Fragrance, Entwining Fingers Silken Love... What kind of nonsensical stuff is this?
This was the first time he had used the Corpse-Eating Bizarre Pill to consume the flesh of a female cultivator. The first few abilities obtained were fairly normal, but the Secret Techniques and Divine Skills that followed grew increasingly absurd.
He was familiar with the Communication Treasure Art, as Wang Fugui had once passed it to him.
Wang Fugui had only provided him with the first part of the Communication Treasure Art, which was incomplete. This, however, was the true and complete version.
This Secret Technique was the foundation of the Lingbao Sect, enhancing the Spiritual Nature of Magical Treasures and Spiritual Treasures, achieving unity between the cultivator and the treasure.
Golden Jade Power was a special Cultivation Technique. It produced uniquely potent Spiritual Power that, when utilized, greatly increased the power of gold- and jade-type Magical Treasures and Spiritual Treasures.
The other Secret Techniques and Divine Skills started to become more outrageous. Very Heavenly Fragrance enhanced one’s personal scent, making it attractive to male cultivators, and could even be used to cultivate ten different types of fragrances.
Scents designed to attract the opposite sex, arousing passion and desire, were all included...
Entwining Fingers Silken Love was a method for ensnaring lovers, transforming continuous tender emotions into threads. Once this Divine Skill was refined, its power was not to be underestimated.
It could be used to form silken threads for killing or to make male cultivators one’s loyal servants.
The Divine Skills of Entwining Fingers Silken Love and Very Heavenly Fragrance could be paired together.
If these can only be used on male cultivators, their usefulness is too limited!
Jia Ren had no intention of ’charming’ men. Perhaps Ma Zhongyuan would be interested.
Golden Jade Power, Very Heavenly Fragrance, and Entwining Fingers Silken Love are all pointless to me. I didn’t find any Cultivation Technique that leverages Spiritual Treasures or Magical Treasures to improve my Cultivation Level. Was her cultivation level too low?
I should try to find higher-level Lingbao Sect Cultivators in the future.
「Speak of the devil...」
Setting aside the other Divine Skills and Secret Techniques, Jia Ren focused only on the Communication Treasure Art. Just then, Ma Zhongyuan arrived at his door with a smile.
"Daoist Jia, it’s been more than half a year since we last met. I thought you had been eliminated."
Ma Zhongyuan had not seen Jia Ren for a long time, ever since the selection period for Protectors had ended, and assumed he had been eliminated or had left.
"I didn’t expect you to find another path and end up here."
Ma Zhongyuan’s gaze was complex. Nascent Soul Cultivators typically entered the Lingbao Sect aspiring to become Protectors, with the hope of later becoming true disciples of the Lingbao Sect.
Their future was usually promising! But Jia Ren, by choosing this path, had a slim chance of ever making a name for himself.
"This place is not bad," Jia Ren said. "It allows me to focus on cultivation."
"Indeed, it’s not bad!" Ma Zhongyuan exclaimed, looking at the spacious cave. Even Inner Sect Disciples don’t have it this good!
"Li Ruhua has a few good friends who are like sisters to her. Are you interested?" Ma Zhongyuan asked. "Since we’re acquainted, I thought I’d help you out."