Chapter 741

Three days later, Ding Huan stopped before a strangely shaped divine city.

The divine city was not large; its entire form resembled the character for "heart."

Five clear large characters floated outside the city: Ancient Wasteland Divine Maiden City.

Ding Huan extended his divine sense further and found that, just over ten li from the Ancient Wasteland Divine Maiden City, lay the Ancient Wasteland Divine Maiden Gate.

From the lingering aura of the Bone-Clinging Poison law he sensed, Wuliang should have entered the Ancient Wasteland Divine Maiden Gate.

Ding Huan could not enter the Divine Maiden Gate, so he chose to enter the Divine Maiden City.

"Are you a permanent resident of the Divine Maiden City, passing through, or here on business?" Ding Huan was stopped at the city gate by the guards.

Ding Huan found nothing strange about it.

All cultivators entering or leaving the Divine Maiden City seemed to wear a Divine Maiden City identity plaque; he did not.

Ding Huan bowed his fist: "I've never been to the Divine Maiden City before—I don't know the rules yet…"

"One lower-grade divine crystal." As the guard spoke, a jade slip was tossed into Ding Huan's hand.

Ding Huan took the jade slip and paid one divine crystal.

When he scanned the jade slip with his divine sense, he immediately understood.

Put bluntly, the Divine Maiden City was essentially a lickspittle city.

The female cultivators of the Divine Maiden Gate were either exceptionally beautiful, possessed unique aura, or were ideal as cultivation partners…

This was likely tied to the Ancient Wasteland Divine Maiden Gate's cultivation art.

Their cultivation art did not inherently carry seduction, yet it made them intensely attractive to men.

It was precisely this unforced, non-manipulative feminine charm that made people feel it was genuine, not artificial.

Because the Divine Maidens were so outstanding, many cultivators glanced at them and became hopelessly infatuated, falling in without realizing it.

Yet they had neither opportunity nor qualification to approach these Divine Maidens.

So they came to the Divine Maiden City, hoping only to frequently catch sight of their beloved Divine Maidens.

Within the Divine Maiden City, there was a designated district for such lickspittles, called the Heart-Spirit Cultivator District.

The cultivators living in the Heart-Spirit Cultivator District were almost all lickspittles.

They paid between one hundred and one thousand upper-grade divine crystals per month, and declared which Divine Maiden they admired.

Of course, they did not give without receiving.

Those residing in the Heart-Spirit Cultivator District—no, correction, those residing in the Heart-Spirit Cultivator District—could enjoy a denser concentration of divine spiritual energy for cultivation.

Moreover, at regular intervals, the Divine Maiden they admired would visit them, exchange cultivation insights, chat casually, and so on.

Within the Divine Maiden Gate, a Divine Maiden's popularity was measured by the number of her admirers.

Ding Huan found this utterly bizarre—how could such an odd rule exist?

Yet aside from the Heart-Spirit Cultivator District, the Divine Maiden City had normal areas too.

Those merely here on business or for trade could reside in the other half of the city.

They could simply check into the Resting Lodges or Resting Inns.

Ding Huan studied the jade slip and unhesitatingly chose the Heart-Spirit Cultivator District.

Since he had come here, he must accept the role of a lickspittle.

He now understood why some had said, "When you come to the Divine Maiden Gate, you'll know what it means."

"I admire Lu Ye Divine Maiden—I adore her from the depths of my soul—so I wish to pay one thousand upper-grade divine crystals per month."

Ding Huan walked up to the guard, his tone sincere.

Hearing that Ding Huan admired Lu Ye Divine Maiden, the guard smiled warmly: "You have good taste. Though not the most numerous, those who admire Lu Ye Divine Maiden still rank among the top five."

"You're lucky—this month's end, Lu Ye Divine Maiden will visit the Heart-Spirit Cultivator District to meet her admirers."

Though his tone was warm and he efficiently processed Ding Huan's Heart-Spirit Cultivator District residence jade token, the guard's sneer could not be hidden.

In his eyes, Ding Huan's appearance dared to covet Lu Ye Divine Maiden of the Divine Maiden Gate—he had absolutely no self-awareness.

An hour later, Ding Huan was led to his assigned dwelling cave in the Heart-Spirit Cultivator District of the Divine Maiden City.

This delighted Ding Huan immensely.

He had assumed paying a year's fee—over ten thousand upper-grade divine crystals—bought him nothing more than a lickspittle permit.

He expected that after being dumped into the Heart-Spirit Cultivator District, everything else would be up to him.

He had not expected he would receive a decent dwelling cave.

Beyond surprise, Ding Huan could not quite fathom why the Divine Maiden Gate treated admirers of their Divine Maidens so generously.

A thousand divine crystals per month was worth every bit.

"Ding Xiaotu, although we've assigned you a dwelling cave, if your cultivation time is insufficient, the cave will be reclaimed."

The guard who brought Ding Huan gave him further instructions before leaving.

Ding Huan carefully examined his dwelling cave—it was still somewhat distant from the bustling commercial district of the Divine Maiden City.

The area was separated by various divine arrays, ensuring no disturbances during cultivation.

His cave had a small courtyard, with a pond in the center and strange wooden plaques standing along its edges.

The divine spiritual energy was quite good.

Even if one disliked the Divine Maiden Gate's Divine Maidens, pretending to be a fan to secure a cave here for cultivation was still highly worthwhile.

Ding Huan immediately constructed a Great Universe Technique Zhou Tian within his divine sense.

Soon he sensed something amiss.

With so many caves here, some of the cultivators' spiritual energy seemed to be siphoned away through a certain ritual array.

Ding Huan understood what was happening. In the Cultivation World, forces beyond direct touch were not rare.

The most famous was merit force.

And what he felt was clearly not merit power; it was somewhat similar to vow power.

This vow power does not manifest through incense offerings, but is collected through a vow altar array.

For instance, if one likes Lu Ye, that affection during cultivation is transformed into vow power and carried away by the altar.

The only one who can absorb this kind of vow power is Lu Ye.

This sect is disgusting.

Using a unique cultivation method, they enhance the charm of their female cultivators, then encourage male cultivators to fall for them—yet refuse to let the female cultivators marry.

In the end, they created a vow altar array.

Anyone who resides in the Mind-Attuned Cultivator Zone of the Divine Woman City, while cultivating, sends vow power to the woman they love.

As time grows longer, these cultivators will become complete devotees.

Not a single mistake in content at all!

Even if one has no favorite Divine Woman, prolonged exposure to the altar will gradually alter one's thoughts.

"Hah, do you love Lu Ye, the Divine Woman?" A slightly hoarse laugh came.

Ding Huan saw it was a male cultivator from the neighboring cave; the man was thin and frail, like a bamboo stalk.

His entire being lacked vitality and spirit—he was clearly drained.

Ding Huan shuddered.

Cultivating here doesn't just demand vow power—it likely also demands one's vital essence.

What kind of trash sect is this?

It's an insult to the very words "Divine Woman."

"Yes, I love Lu Ye, the Divine Woman. After one glance at her, I was hopelessly hooked," Ding Huan chuckled, his eyes filled with longing.

"I'll tell you, Lu Ye, the Divine Woman, will come to visit us in five days."

"Listen, as long as you're in the Mind-Attuned Cultivator Zone, you have a chance to become a cultivation partner with your beloved Divine Woman."

"Did you know? Over a hundred years ago, a lone cultivator from this zone became the cultivation partner of the third-ranked Divine Woman of the Divine Woman Sect—it became a legendary tale."

Seeing the longing and anticipation in the thin man's eyes, Ding Huan sighed.

This guy probably has no idea how worthless he is.

Even if a Divine Woman were to choose a cultivation partner here, she wouldn't pick someone like him.

Fortunately, only five days remain—he doesn't need to worry about cultivation.

Though he doesn't truly admire any Divine Woman, the external vow altar array is still terrifying.

Prolonged exposure might trap him, turning him into a Divine Woman devotee.

Ding Huan went to the Divine Woman City's merchant tower and bought several jade slips, briefly learning about Dunyi Divine Realm, then returned to his cave.

He did not cultivate.

In this place that demands vow power, even if he could resist, he wouldn't risk it.

For several days, Ding Huan studied the vow altar array.

He discovered many entirely new laws, all of which he integrated into his sea of myriads of laws.

Five days passed in a flash.

Ding Huan knew today was when Lu Ye, the Divine Woman, visited her fanatics—he waited at his cave entrance from early morning.

When Ding Huan stepped out, he realized others had arrived even earlier than him.

They stood eagerly at every cave entrance, yearning for Lu Ye's appearance.

After waiting nearly the whole day, Lu Ye finally arrived near dusk.

Beside Lu Ye walked Wu Liang.

In just a few days, the Bone-Devouring Dao Poison on Wu Liang's body had greatly weakened.

Ding Huan silently thought: these old bastards really are formidable—given more time, they might completely purge the Bone-Devouring Poison.

Thinking of this, Ding Huan's spiritual sense stirred, and the Reincarnation Stone on his person was sent to the meditation cushion inside his cave.

He had obtained it in the Dao Ruins Reincarnation Swamp; at first he didn't know what it was, later learning it was the Reincarnation Stone. (646)

Though this woman showed no care for her fans and devotees, none of them showed the slightest impatience or dissatisfaction.

In their eyes, merely seeing Lu Ye was enough.

Ding Huan's spiritual sense swept over them, and he understood exactly how it worked.

Just as he had suspected.

Of these hundreds of people, not everyone was a fanatic devotee of Lu Ye.

Many originally came just to pay a few hundred Divine Crystals monthly, securing a cave with dense Divine Spirit Qi—cheaper than renting one outright.

But they never expected that, after arriving, prolonged exposure to the altar would change them.

Unconsciously, they truly became Lu Ye's devotees—with no chance to turn back.

Lu Ye walked from cave to cave, nodding to each person, even speaking a few words.

When she reached Ding Huan, her eyes showed surprise: "You're the one from a few days ago…"

Clearly, she had seen Ding Huan in the Void Plaza of Dunyi Divine Realm a few days prior.

Ding Huan's voice trembled with excitement and reverence: "The day I saw Immortal Lu Ye, I was hopelessly captivated—I came voluntarily to Divine Woman City, just hoping to speak one word to the Immortal."

Wu Liang's eyes lit up—he sensed the Reincarnation Stone's aura.

(End of Chapter)