Day of Ascension

The entire Zhu clan was terrified. They had seen Xu Ying walk up to the prisoner carriage and stand there, not even lifting a finger. So, why had the old immortal suddenly screamed in agony?

Someone murmured, “Is the old immortal pulling a scam right now? This happens all the time at the antique shops. They have someone carrying a porcelain bump into people, then extort compensation from them. Is he trying to scam Demon King Xu?”

A Great Exorcist nearby chided him. “Ridiculous! Only hooligans stoop to such tricks. Why would our clan’s immortal resort to something like that?”

Yet, this scene truly resembled a scam. Xu Ying hadn’t laid a finger on him, yet the immortal was screaming in agony and rolling around.

In truth, the old immortal had only himself to blame for his arrogance. He shouldn’t have used his soul to attack Xu Ying. Xu Ying’s soul had been tempered into an Eternal True Spirit that radiated eternal spiritual light.

Unfortunately, the Zhu clan had locked his physical body and ethereal void, restricting his mystical power and divine sense. All he could use was his soul.

Since he had wanted to punish Xu Ying, he could only use his soul.

The old immortal wailed for a long while before finally stopping. He cradled his hand, which still trembled from the pain.

Two fingers of his soul had shattered, and the pain had transmitted to his physical body, leaving him in agony as if his heart had been pierced.

Even more terrifying, those two fingers were still physically present, but he could no longer feel them at all. It was as if they had never existed.

Injuries to the soul were difficult to treat. There was no telling how long this pain would torment him.

An exotic treasure must be protecting his soul, one powerful enough to shatter two fingers of my soul! Such a treasure is indeed rare. I wonder what kind of treasure it is!

Enduring the excruciating pain, he fixed his gaze on Xu Ying. Since ancient times, heavenly tribulations have been difficult to overcome. Among them is a lightning tribulation that targets the Primordial Spirit and the soul. A single strike can annihilate the soul! If I obtain his exotic treasure, perhaps I’ll have a better chance of surviving it.

His heart burned with fervor. This physical body of mine is no longer useful. The immortal fire from the Other Shore had burned away almost all of its vitality. Zhu Zhongquan is about to forge his Golden Core. When the time comes, I’ll possess him, kill this brat, and seize his exotic treasure!

Then I’ll refine the immortal herbs within him, seize the displaced citizens’ immortal plant, and obtain the Heavenly Dao Divine Artifact. Then, overcoming the tribulation and ascending to immortality will be within my grasp!

Zhu Zhongquan was also looking at Xu Ying, his heart raging with fury. However, he still wore a smile. How hateful! He’s ruined my immortal affinity just like that! But he should not be underestimated.

He’s indeed much more skillful at channeling the Mud-Pill Secret Trove and unleashing Mud Pill exorcism techniques than I am. Did Zhou Qiyun teach him?

The entire Zhu clan was terrified after Xu Ying’s rampage, especially the Exorcists, whose vitality Xu Ying had stripped away. They feared him like a god.

Only the Great Exorcists and the clan elders were still eager to go for another round, wanting to seize the opportunity to eliminate Xu Ying. But since Zhu Zhongquan didn’t allow it, they couldn’t do anything.

Dazhong said, “Ah Ying, these villagers are absolutely incapable of protecting the Crimson Immortal Exotic Plant. After we leave, the Zhu clan will return to seize the immortal herb. Even if they don’t take it, the other noble clans will try to seize it once the news reaches them.”

Xu Ying nodded lightly.

Possessing a treasure brought trouble. They possessed such a rare treasure, yet lacked the strength to protect it. Sooner or later, they would face disaster because of the Crimson Immortal Exotic Plant.

Several aged villagers from inside the village came forward to meet Xu Ying. They kowtowed to him for saving their lives.

Xu Ying helped them up. “Where did the Crimson Immortal Exotic Plant come from?”

The village elder leading them replied, “Our ancestors seized this immortal herb from the Yunmeng Battlefield to protect the village.”

“Seized it from the Yunmeng Battlefield?”

Xu Ying’s heart stirred slightly. He asked for more details, but the elder wasn’t sure either. He only said that, according to ancient legends passed down by their ancestors, they were not natives of this realm. They had migrated from another heavenly domain.

Their ancestors were the strongest warriors selected from that heavenly domain, ordered to suppress a fiend. They earned tremendous battle achievements for the gods of the Heavenly Realm.

However, the Heavenly Path was broken, and they couldn’t return to their own world. So they had to remain on this land.

The villagers called this Crimson Immortal Exotic Plant the Nine-Lingzhi Immortal Herb. Their ancestors had seized it on the Yunmeng Battlefield and planted it in the village so they could settle here.

Xu Ying gained a general understanding of what happened, but several questions remained.

Which fiend had they suppressed that warriors from another heavenly domain had to be selected? What was the Heavenly Path? Why had it broken? Why couldn’t they return to their own world?

Xu Ying approached the small earthen altar in the village and examined the Crimson Immortal Exotic Plant closely. Fragrance drifted from its nine lingzhi lobes. Specks of spiritual light flickered within the plant, darting through its branches and leaves.

As he gazed at the spiritual light, waves of grand Dao sound suddenly rang in his ears. In his eyes, the Nine Revolution Lingzhi grew larger and larger. Its whole body was formed from spiritual light, as if it had turned into a spiritual root of heaven and earth, containing immense power.

This is... Dao avatar! The Nine Revolution Lingzhi has a natural Dao avatar and can be used as an artifact. Not to mention, a living artifact!

Xu Ying’s heart shook slightly. This scene before him was truly astonishing. As he observed the flow of the spiritual light inside the Nine Revolution Lingzhi, he gained profound insight and immediately felt that he could manifest an extraordinary divine ability!

Suddenly, he caught sight of a sphere of watery light within the phenomenon. It looked like a fist-sized ball of water floating in the spiritual light. It glistened and looked smooth, inexplicably tempting.

Xu Ying channeled his mystical power to seize the sphere of watery light. However, as soon as the watery light touched his palm, it seeped into him.

After he seized the watery light, the Nine-Lingzhi Immortal Herb withered slightly. A faint coolness surged through him, leaving him feeling indescribably comfortable. ℴℴ𝘮

Inside his Mud-Pill Secret Trove’s grotto heaven, the sphere of watery light stirred waves of powerful physical vigor. The power of the longevity immortal herbs in the Mud-Pill Secret Trove erupted, and the watery light refined that power throughout him.

Immediately, he felt waves of surging vital energy merge into him. His physical vigor grew stronger and stronger, and his physique grew increasingly powerful.

Blinding light shone within him. It lit up beneath his skin and enveloped his entire form.

Moreover, a strange fragrance wafted from Xu Ying, so overwhelming that he seemed like a humanoid Nine-Lingzhi Immortal Herb. Yuanqi, who stood closest to him, involuntarily salivated.

Yuanqi cried out, “Ah Ying, you smell so good. Let me have a bite!”

Xu Ying glared at him. The divine light around him gradually dimmed, but the overwhelming fragrance still lingered in the air.

The wondrous medicinal properties within the sphere catalyzed the Mud-Pill Secret Trove’s longevity immortal herb. The sphere refined the herb endlessly into Xu Ying, causing a miraculous transformation.

The divine light dimmed because the longevity immortal herb drawn from the three Mud Pill grotto heavens couldn’t keep up with the watery light’s refining speed, causing the glow to fade significantly.

Xu Ying asked Dazhong, “Master Zhong, what is the watery light contained within the Nine-Lingzhi Immortal Herb?”

Dazhong replied, “I once heard my master mention that the Heavenly Dao World and Immortal Realm had immortal herbs that contained a miraculous energy known as the Origin Dao Essence. Perhaps that watery light you obtained from the immortal herb is the Origin Dao Essence produced by it.”

The bell grew excited and circled Xu Ying’s head. “Ah Ying, you smell really good. Let me suck a bit of your vital energy. I wonder how you taste now that you have consumed the Origin Dao Essence... We’re brothers who’ve gone through hell together. What’s the big deal in letting me have a taste? Not even a taste? I’m cutting ties with you!”

Xu Ying sealed off his ethereal void, determined not to let him in.

Yuanqi said angrily, “Shameless bell, your injuries healed long ago, but you’re still clinging to Ah Ying. You have no face! Ah Ying, just ignore him. If you give him an inch, he’ll take a mile. He’ll ask for a second bite after taking one, and he’ll devour you whole before you realize it. Anyway, Ah Ying, chop off a leg and let me have a bite, will you?”

The giant snake revealed his true colors and came up to Xu Ying. “In any case, you can grow it back, so just let me have a taste of your leg. We’ve been brothers for years!”

Xu Ying flew into a rage and swung a punch, sending the giant snake tumbling out of the village.

Seeing this, Dazhong quickly flew toward Yuanqi and cried out, “Master Qi, you smell like him! Here, let me have a taste!”

“Go away! I’m having it for myself!”

Xu Ying called the village elder over and said, “I comprehended a formula while I was studying your Nine-Lingzhi Immortal Herb earlier. I’ll teach it to you. If you cultivate according to that formula, you’ll be able to control the Nine-Lingzhi Immortal Herb and protect the village.”

He imparted the refining formula he had comprehended from studying the Dao avatar and hearing the Dao sound to the villagers. It was a simple refining technique and also a qi cultivation technique. By chanting several Dao sounds, one could activate the Nine-Lingzhi Immortal Herb.

If one practiced diligently, they could also strengthen their vital energy.

This could already be considered creating a new cultivation technique. Even for the Exorcists of the Guo and Zhu clans, this cultivation technique would be a top-tier divine art. Only the high-ranking members could learn cultivation techniques that rivaled this one.

To Xu Ying, however, it was merely something he had casually created while studying the Nine-Lingzhi Immortal Herb.

After teaching a few villagers, Xu Ying let them pass it on among themselves. Then he asked more about the Yunmeng Battlefield.

The village elder told him, “Much of our village’s history has been lost to time. We have no records of this.”

Xu Ying pressed, “Are there records of it in the stone city?”

“That is an ill-fated city. It’s been empty for a long time. No one lives there anymore. The fires of war have been burning inside that city for a thousand years. Our ancestors’ ghosts dwell there.

The village elder told him that the heroic spirits of their ancestors who fell in battle continued to drill with their weapons in the city every day. The deafening sounds of combat often reached them, as if they were still fighting even after death.

“The villagers from the surrounding villages all live in their own settlements. There aren’t any living people inside the city. The city disappears in the middle of every month, when the moon is full.”

The village elder said, “Those who enter the city vanish alongside it. Many villagers have accidentally wandered into the stone city during a full moon and disappeared without a trace. None of them have ever returned alive after disappearing.”

A granny chimed in, “An idiot came back alive, but he went crazy, clamoring to kill this person or that person every day.”

The village elder recalled this matter. “He wasn’t an idiot before he entered the stone city. Oh, right, Benefactor, a strange group of people entered the stone city a few days ago.”

Xu Ying expressed his gratitude and stepped outside the village. He called over Guo Xiaodie, Zhu Hongyi, and Li Yingzhu and explained the immortal herb’s origins. “That stone city vanishes whenever a full moon night arrives. It’s extremely strange. Today is the fourteenth. After midnight, it’d be the fifteenth[1]... it tickles!”

Xu Ying quickly pushed Guo Xiaodie’s face away. The girl had been licking his ear, making him feel all tingly, as if his strength were draining away.

Guo Xiaodie said sheepishly, “You smell so good. I couldn’t hold it in and wanted to have a taste... keep talking!”

Li Yingzhu stared at him, dazed. Her eyes flickered. “Yes, continue.”

She leaned so close that her face was nearly pressed against Xu Ying’s. Guo Yue hurriedly pulled his wife away as she said, “He smells so good...”

Xu Ying composed himself and said, “This immortal herb is a treasure their ancestors obtained when they entered the Yunmeng Ancient Battlefield. I suspect that the stone city is actually a tool to reach the ancient battlefield.

“As long as we enter it on the night of the full moon, we should be able to reach the ancient battlefield, and we may find even more immortal herbs.”

Guo Xiaodie and Zhu Hongyi flanked him on either side, trapping him in the middle as they tried to take advantage of him.

Xu Ying extended both hands, pressed them against their face, and pushed them away.

Keeping a straight face, he said, “If you harvest these immortal herbs, you’ll smell even better than I do. This immortal herb can help you refine the immortal herbs of your six secrets rapidly! Also, the village elder said that someone had entered the stone city. The smoke we saw in the city previously likely came from those people cooking!”

Guo Xiaodie and Zhu Hongyi stepped back from him and instantly came to their senses.

A murderous aura flared from Guo Xiaodie as she said, “Who is bold enough to snatch our Guo clan’s immortal herbs?”

Zhu Hongyi bowed politely to thank Xu Ying, then immediately returned to the Zhu clan group to tell her clansmen about the matter.

The entire group immediately set out for the stone city.

Along the way, Xu Ying saw other villages and numerous burial mounds outside them, likely the graves of these villages’ ancestors.

Waves of unusually powerful murderous aura erupted from the mounds. They turned into weapons dozens of zhang high in the air: sabers, swords, axes, halberds, and more, all radiating overwhelming killing intent.

Blood seeped from some graves, and stretches of blood clouds floated above them, raining blood without end.

The killing intent emanating from these graves was too intense. Even Xu Ying, who had wielded a malevolent weapon like the stone ax before, felt uneasy facing these burial mounds.

Yuanqi murmured, “In life, they bathed in blood and fought across heaven and earth. In death, they refuse to lay down their weapons. They are true warriors!”

Xu Ying nodded. “Well said, Master Qi.”

They arrived outside the stone city and looked up to see that the main structure of the city wall was formed from the skeleton of a massive snake. The place where the massive snake’s head and tail met served as the city gate.

The displaced citizens used the snake skeleton as a framework to build the city walls, which stood far higher than the capital’s walls. It was likely a defensive measure against the charges of the massive beasts of the Yunmeng Marsh.

Xu Ying looked up and saw claw marks three to four chi wide and over a dozen zhang long on the city wall. He had no idea what kind of ferocious beast had left them, but traces of blood still stained the gouges.

Suddenly, arrows shot out from the city, aimed at the Guo and Zhu clans.

Each arrow was two to three zhang long and carved from bone. They produced a strange whistling sound as they shot through the air, moving at incredible speed and carrying even more power than flying swords.

When the arrows missed and struck the ground, the earth exploded. Dirt churned like waves, the impact powerful enough to send Exorcists who had opened three grotto heavens flying.

“So, it’s the Li clan’s Exorcists!”

Catching sight of the Exorcists on the city wall who had ambushed them, Li Yingzhu flew into a rage and shouted, “Which blind fool dares to attack even me?”

Born into the imperial family, she held immense status. The Exorcists on the city wall no longer dared to attack.

Just then, a young man ran up the city wall and looked down. He quickly called out, “So, it’s you, Second Aunt! This is a misunderstanding!”

That youth turned around and glared at the shooters fiercely, growling in a low voice, “If you can’t kill them, then don’t rush to attack, understand?”

They voiced their compliance.

Li Yingzhu instructed Guo Xiaodie and the others, “The one on the city wall is the heir apparent[2], Li Tingshu, the most outstanding genius among the Li clan’s younger generation. He calls me aunt so sweetly, but he’s rotten inside. Everyone, watch out. If he sees an opportunity, he’ll definitely get rid of us all!”

The crowd grew solemn and cautiously led the Exorcists under them into the city.

Xu Ying followed them into the city as well. Li Tingshu came forward and smiled. “Second Aunt, how did you find this place?”

He quickly dropped to one knee in salute and smiled. “The Jinwu Guards didn’t see clearly and failed to recognize you, Second Aunt.”

Li Yingzhu smiled. “One of these days, when your eyes play tricks on you, you might just end up killing your father.”

Li Tingshu laughed out loud. “You really know how to joke around, Second Aunt. Demon King Xu!”

His gaze fell on Xu Ying. He stepped forward and bowed. “I’ve long heard of your great reputation! I’ve heard my father and Imperial Uncle Li mention you on numerous occasions!”

Xu Ying’s aura stirred slightly, but he paid no heed to it.

Li Tingshu raised an eyebrow. I used the moment of my bow as a pretense to unleash a divine ability, yet I failed to knock him over. Demon King Xu indeed lives up to his reputation. But I didn’t use my full strength. When he helps me up, I’ll clash with him once more!

Just as he thought this, Xu Ying walked right past him without helping him up. He didn’t even spare him a glance.

Li Tingshu grew furious.

Xu Ying surveyed his surroundings. The city held the Li and the Cui clan’s Exorcists. Cui Dongli was among them.

When Cui Dongli saw Xu Ying, eagerness flashed in his eyes again. He looked ready to challenge Xu Ying once more.

Yuanqi said to Dazhong, “This person must have had another miraculous encounter recently. He looks much more confident than before.”

Suddenly, the sound of a stringed instrument drifted over, evoking profoundly artistic images of towering mountains and flowing waters. A young master clad in snow-white robes sat on a stone bridge, playing the instrument. The music sounded like a fierce warrior drilling with a dagger-ax, filled with killing intent.

Dazhong said to Xu Ying, “This person’s inner state is not calm. Ah Ying, is there a feud between you two?”

Xu Ying looked over. He didn’t recognize the white-robed young master. He shook his head. “I’ve never seen him before.”

Guo Xiaodie said, “That is Gao Xingqian from the Gao clan, a genius nurtured by the noble clan. It’s said that he intended to intercept Demon King Xu back then at the Luo River, but he didn’t make a move for some reason.”

***

Night fell, and moonlight streamed down.

Exorcists from the Chai and Zhao clans arrived together. Chai Wuyong led the Chai clan, while two young men led the Zhao clan. The Chai and Zhao clans were newly risen noble clans, and their foundations were not as deep as those of the Cui, Gao, and Pei clans. They had to join forces to explore the Yunmeng Marsh.

Xu Ying sensed a few more burning gazes. Confused, he thought, When did I offend people again?

He paid it no mind.

Just then, a young man arrived outside the stone city. A Golden Core floated before him as he walked into the city alone.

Xu Ying’s gaze fell upon him. Raising an eyebrow, he revealed a look of astonishment. This Qi Cultivator is so strong! He doesn’t practice Exorcism arts, only Qi, yet he’s reached such a level?

Dazhong was also astonished and whispered, “Ah Ying, I sensed my master’s aura on this youth! He must be practicing my master’s cultivation technique!”

He grew restless. “Could my master still be alive?”

1. Lunar calendar works in 30-day cycles. Full moon nights are always on the fifteenth. ☜

2. It refers to the designated heir of a vassal king, prince, or high-ranking noble, different from the Crown Prince. ☜