While Han Li was pondering, the dark-faced old man continued without pause, “…We have no way of knowing the true cultivation level of the Black Fiend Cult’s leader. He is guarded by close protectors like the four Blood Servants we encountered today. With our current strength, we are certainly no match for them. So I suggest, Senior, that it’s best not to provoke them further. We should wait for reinforcements…”
“Don’t worry. The leader of the Black Fiend Cult is at most at the late Foundation Establishment stage. He definitely isn’t a Core Formation cultivator,” Han Li, who had been listening quietly, suddenly interrupted the old man with absolute certainty.
Hearing this, the dark-faced old man was first stunned, then overjoyed. The others also showed expressions of great relief.
Although they didn’t know how Han Li could be so sure, since he had spoken with such conviction, it was almost certainly true! Just moments ago, they had been discussing the terrifying possibility that their enemy might be a Core Formation cultivator—in that case, their only option would have been to flee for their lives. Even if reinforcements from the seven major sects arrived, they might not have been able to do much against the Black Fiend Cult leader.
Now, with Han Li’s assurance, the Four Friends of Meng Mountain felt much more at ease.
“Senior, could you share some details? The Steward Wang we interrogated knew nothing about the Black Fiend Cult leader’s cultivation level!” The young man, who had mostly recovered from the shock caused by his fifth sister, spoke up, hoping for a clearer explanation.
“Fourth Brother, what kind of question is that? Since Senior Han says so, he must be completely certain,” the dark-faced old man scolded the young man sternly.
Hearing this, Han Li smiled faintly and calmly said, “There’s no need to keep it secret. This conclusion is based on the fact that this leader still requires Foundation Establishment cultivators for blood sacrifice.”
Han Li’s voice was unhurried as he slowly explained.
“Although our Yellow Maple Valley doesn’t delve deeply into demonic techniques, we do have some understanding of evil methods like blood sacrifice, which force rapid advancement. Demonic arts that absorb the essence and cultivation of other cultivators to boost one’s own power were once quite common among demonic sects. They allow a cultivator to greatly increase their power in a very short time, bypassing much of the arduous meditation typically required. There was even a period in the cultivation world when not only demonic cultivators but also many righteous ones secretly practiced such techniques.”
Here, Han Li let out a cold laugh, a trace of mockery curling his lips before he continued, “However, this frenzied method of cultivation not only requires ruthlessly killing large numbers of other cultivators but also has fatal flaws. It only works for those below the Foundation Establishment stage, and once blood sacrifice is used, it dooms one to never form a golden core, trapping the practitioner forever at the Foundation Establishment level. In the past, none of the many cultivators who secretly practiced blood sacrifice demonic arts ever succeeded in achieving Core Formation.”
“Even worse, forcibly devouring others’ spiritual power often leads to backlash, with practitioners frequently dying from qi deviation. Of course, the main reason this technique faded into obscurity was that the act of devouring others’ essence was too abhorrent to other cultivators. Everyone who knew this demonic art was gradually hunted down and eradicated by both righteous and demonic paths.”
“However, I’ve heard that later, demonic practitioners, reluctant to give up such a rapid means of increasing power, developed another cultivation method also called blood sacrifice. But this method no longer directly devours others’ essence blood; instead, it targets the souls and primordial spirits of cultivators. Although the increase in cultivation isn’t as rapid as the original blood sacrifice, it avoids the risks of being unable to form a core and suffering backlash. It’s also called soul sacrifice. Our sect’s records don’t mention much about soul sacrifice, only that since its creation, it has been controlled by a small number of high-ranking demonic cultivators and hasn’t been widely spread, thus avoiding being outlawed by the cultivation world. It’s said to have many other limitations as well.”
Han Li’s detailed explanation of the secrets of blood sacrifice greatly broadened the horizons of the Four Friends of Meng Mountain, who were rogue cultivators. They also understood why Han Li was so certain that the Black Fiend Cult leader was only at the Foundation Establishment level. Clearly, the blood sacrifice method used by the Black Fiend Cult was the first type.
“We’ve already grasped the general situation of the Black Fiend Cult, but that bald man escaped back to them. The cult should now be aware of us. Would they abandon their base and flee? If they go into hiding, it would be very disadvantageous for us,” the second brother among them said worriedly, suddenly thinking of this possibility.
“They won’t. The Black Fiend Cult won’t flee immediately. From what I learned from the young prince, their leader is currently in a critical period of closed-door cultivation and must rely on a site of yin energy confluence within the imperial palace to complete it. I heard he has been preparing for this cultivation session for several years and definitely won’t abandon it halfway. Most likely, they are gathering their strength and strengthening their defenses against us,” Han Li said, a tone of mockery towards the Black Fiend Cult in his voice.
Hearing this, the Four Friends of Meng Mountain felt a surge of excitement, their spirits lifting.
“Senior, what should we do next…” the dark-faced old man asked tentatively after calming down.
Next, we do nothing. We quietly wait for reinforcements! Although the enemy knows what we look like, they don’t know where we are hiding. Moreover, the ones handling affairs in Yuejing are the two captives we hold. Even if the Black Fiend Cult wants to find us now, they can’t send any competent personnel. But everyone must still remain cautious. Lately, don’t go out; rest well inside the residence. Once reinforcements arrive, we can make further plans. Han Li rubbed his nose with one hand, the corners of his mouth quirking slightly, his eyes narrowing into slits.
The faint, seemingly amused smile on Han Li’s face left the others in the room bewildered and confused.
…
The imperial city of Yue State occupied one-fifth of Yuejing’s total area, with one-third of that taken up by the magnificent imperial palace.
The layers of exquisitely carved jade towers, countless elegantly designed corridors of various sizes, and gardens adorned with rare and exotic flowers often caused even the eunuchs and palace maids who had lived there for years to get lost—a testament to the vastness of the Yue State imperial palace!
It was now the third watch of the night (around 11 PM–1 AM). The huge palace, which should have been bustling with eunuchs and maids coming and going, was now heavily guarded, with sentries every five steps and posts every ten.
Yet, under these circumstances, a figure thoroughly wrapped from head to toe in a large cloak, holding a gold token, swaggered through the layers of palace guards and arrived in front of a cold, deserted hall deep within the palace.
This person was extremely tall and burly!
Staring at the gloomy hall door, the mysterious figure suddenly threw off his cloak, revealing a large, shiny bald head—it was the bald man who had escaped from Han Li!
He no longer had his demonic appearance and had returned to his original form, but his face was pale and bloodless, as if greatly weakened.
“Who is it?” A voice as cold as ice came from inside the hall, through the door.
“Ice Demon, it’s me,” the bald man replied without courtesy, not stopping as he walked up to the large door.
“So it’s Iron Rhino, back from the mission! But why do your steps seem unsteady and your voice weak? Could it be that you, who claims to be impervious to magic tools, water, and fire, have suffered a great loss?” The icy voice sounded surprised at first, then took on a tone of schadenfreude.
“Hmph, what do you know, you frozen block! The guy I ran into this time was tough. Not just me—even if both of us went at him, we probably wouldn’t have gained any advantage! If I hadn’t been quick to transform into a sha demon, I might have left my life there,” the bald man retorted coldly.
“You used the Sha Demon Transformation? No wonder you’ve damaged your vitality like this. It looks like you won’t recover without two weeks of hard cultivation! But to force you to that extent, this opponent must be really something. Can you tell me about it first?” The Ice Demon’s voice now held curiosity.
“Let me report to the cult leader and ask for punishment first! I’ll tell you the details later. This time, even the cult leader’s nominal disciple was captured by the enemy. I don’t know what punishment I’ll face!” the bald man said impatiently.
“Old Iron, you know as well as I do that we’re different from the others. We’re practically of one mind and body with the cult leader. How would he severely punish us? At most, a reprimand!” the voice inside said dismissively.
As the words fell, the tightly shut hall door creaked open on its own, revealing a pitch-black entrance like the maw of a man-eating demon beast.
But the bald man showed no hesitation and walked straight in.
“Where are Green Pattern and Leaf Snake?” the bald man asked casually as soon as he entered, addressing a white figure to one side of the door.
“They’ve gone to the Blood Prison to cultivate! For now, I’m the only one guarding this place,” the white figure replied. It flickered uncertainly in the shadows, shrouded in a faint white mist that made its form and features indistinguishable.
“Hmph, that Green Pattern is already at mid-Foundation Establishment, yet he still cultivates so diligently. Isn’t he afraid of his true essence rebelling? As for that Leaf Snake kid, since when did he become so hardworking?” the bald man asked, looking surprised and puzzled.
“Don’t be jealous when you hear this! Leaf Snake says he feels signs of breaking through to mid-Foundation Establishment. What can we do? He’s naturally gifted—he doesn’t even need to cultivate to catch up to us,” the Ice Demon said. Although his words advised against jealousy, his tone was dripping with sourness.
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