Chapter 568: The Gods' Pasture

Send me... a stroke of fortune?!

Crash!

Outside the gunwale, waves kept striking the hull, producing crisp reports one after another.

Everything was as before, not the slightest oddity.

But on the deck, whether the cultivators of the Thousand Sun Sect or the passengers they had dragged out of the cabin, none of them could move.

Their minds were perfectly lucid, yet they could not sense their bodies in the slightest.

The bizarre situation filled every one of them with terror.

And the mood of the Thousand Sun Sect's true disciple, Zhengyang, sank to the very bottom.

How could he possibly believe that the person before him truly intended to grant him a stroke of fortune?

Yet he could not even manage an explanation; the moment Huo's voice reached his ears, his perception uncontrollably shifted toward the jar in Huo's hand.

Boom!

His skull seemed to explode at that instant, as if a terrifying creature—fierce, savage, yet steeped in the heavy aura of the Divine Dao—had abruptly barged into his divine soul.

A lithe, elongated body coiled in the air, its jet-black scales gleaming with a ghostly light.

Two vicious claws jutted from its fore-belly, and a single jet-black horn on its brow was wreathed in wisps of fine golden threads.

Within its enormous blood-red vertical pupils, golden Divine Dao talisman-characters flowed in an endless stream.

Faintly, one could even glimpse within them the countless water veins across Thousand Sun Prefecture, and common folk prostrating before altars to pray for rain.

Savage, yet sacred.

Bearing both the feral bestial instinct of a wicked flood-dragon and the sacred majesty of a Divine Dao deity wielding dominion over a region.

The Water God of Thousand Sun Prefecture—Hidden Dragon Lord!

Zhengyang came to himself with a start, only to discover that at some unknown moment his consciousness had become trapped within a boundless pale-blue space.

Right before him was the Hidden Dragon Lord, restless and uneasy.

What was terrifying was that, despite being at the late Jin Dan realm, the creature could only swim back and forth endlessly, as though it had completely lost all sense of direction.

Late Jin Dan!

Even a Hidden Dragon Lord at late Jin Dan had been captured!

A Nascent Soul Hehuan Hehuan Laozu!

This person was absolutely a Nascent Soul Hehuan Hehuan Laozu!

The instant he realized this, the dread in his heart began to spread uncontrollably, and along with it came boundless regret.

He had merely noticed that sword seemed unusual, and under the pretext of serving his sect, tried to take it.

But why...

The intelligence his sect had given clearly stated that after killing the Wushan Mountain God, that man had fled in fear of punishment.

But a堂堂 Nascent Soul Hehuan Hehuan Laozu—would even the Yongyao Sect have to treat with utmost seriousness—would he need to fear the Thousand Sun Sect?!

My sect has ruined me!

Zhengyang wailed within his heart; he wanted to beg for mercy, only to find he could not utter a single sound.

He could not even form a complete plea for mercy within his own mind.

Just then, a gentle voice came from all directions.

"The art you cultivate is a Yang-attribute orthodox method; it takes a single thread of Supreme Yang divinity as its guide to forge a Pure Yang Dao foundation."

"This method requires one to uphold righteousness, to harbor no greed, delusion, or wild thoughts, and to act with open and honorable conduct—only then can the mind be clarified and the realm broken through."

"Your mind is impure, and evil thoughts often arise; that is why your progress after Foundation Establishment has been slow."

Huo did not make things difficult for him, but began directly instructing him in his cultivation.

Those words seemed to touch the very depths of his soul, causing Zhengyang to involuntarily recall all manner of events from his past cultivation.

Yet the more he thought, the more sense it made; his consciousness even regained perception of his physical body, and his true essence, which had not grown for the longest time, now showed signs of strengthening.

Zhengyang's heart trembled, and he could not help but begin to doubt.

Could it be that this person... this senior truly intends to grant him a stroke of fortune?

Immediately, he heard that gentle voice continue:

"Still, among all living beings in the world, who can be without confusion, and who can avoid giving rise to wild thoughts?"

"Therefore, from the very moment this method was conceived, it was never suited for the beings of the world to cultivate."

"Today I shall impart to you a method: use the extreme Yin cold-nature of this wicked flood-dragon to harmonize a single thread of Supreme Yang divinity, and then use its beastly nature to neutralize the restrictions of the Yang-attribute orthodox method."

"I only hope you will not forget your original heart, restrain pride and impatience, and cultivate diligently."

At the very end, the voice even carried a touch of emotion and expectation, moving Zhengyang's heart deeply.

Could this senior truly be...

Rumble!

Before he could think it through, Zhengyang felt as though a streak of startling thunder had torn across his mind.

Everything in his perception swiftly peeled away and receded...

His consciousness returned to his body.

In the distance was the surging river surface.

On the deck, Huo still held the jar in his hands; only its lid had somehow been opened at some point.

Roar!

Zhengyang heard only a howl brimming with grievance and fury, carrying an extreme Yin-malevolence.

A sky-obscuring shadow appeared for only an instant before transforming into a streak of jet-black sharp light that plunged downward and vanished into his brow.

A bone-chilling cold, as if it could freeze all things in the world, spread outward from the depths of his divine soul.

"Combined Yang Refining Yin Art"

A cultivation method appeared quite abruptly, every character as if branded deep within the divine soul.

……

……

"This will do."

Seeing the evil flood dragon plunge into Zhengyang's brow, Huo quite satisfiedly tucked the jar into his palm.

After all, his own乖徒兒 still needed to temper himself in this world; the smaller the commotion, the better.

Then, Huo looked toward Xu Xing:

"Fellow Daoist, do you think this little fellow can endure it?"

Xu Xing glanced at Zhengyang.

Deep within his divine soul, the form of that flood dragon had already melted, together with the divine soul's magic power, transforming into a supremely yin existence that could enhance cultivation and harmonize the utmost yang.

Vast power continuously surged forth from the divine soul, seeping into Zhengyang's flesh, true essence, dao foundation…

Under the erosion of that supremely yin cold qi, the scorching qi and blood grew so sluggish that even its flow slowed.

The golden, radiant pure-yang dao foundation was stained with a layer of ghostly blue, and the true essence too took on a strange state of interwoven gold and blue.

Compared to Zhengyang, who was merely at early Foundation Establishment, the hidden reserves of Jin Dan late-stage Hidden Dragon Lord were immensely vast.

Therefore, in less than a single breath, Zhengyang's body began to collapse under the scouring of this vast power.

Yet it was swiftly rebuilt again and again under the restorative power of Hidden Dragon Lord's reserves.

The pain he felt was, at every moment, nearly equivalent to being sliced into a thousand pieces!

But what was even more severe was the lingering resentment within Hidden Dragon Lord himself; that resentment took root upon Zhengyang's divine soul.

The pain of the divine soul was a hundred, a thousand times worse than that of the flesh.

Xu Xing withdrew his gaze and gave a slight shake of his head:

"Very difficult."

"I rather think it'll be fine." Huo watched Zhengyang with keen interest. "The fortune I've designed for this little fellow is tailored entirely to his own circumstances."

The full reserves of a Jin Dan late-stage lesser flood dragon, plus that method I gave him.

So long as he can endure it and completely refine it, successfully harmonizing utmost yin and utmost yang, there will be virtually no bottleneck before Nascent Soul.

If not for this world's upper energy limit capping at Nascent Soul, Soul Transformation would be effortless, and even Return to Void would not be a small possibility.

This little fellow is brazen beyond measure—he actually tried to forcibly pin a罪名 upon Fellow Daoist, then seize that sliver of Moon Shadow sword qi transformed into sword-form…

Moreover, such deeds were hardly few in the past.

Taken one by one, in today's Tai Xuan Realm, they would already meet the threshold of being called a 'demonic cultivator.'

As the progenitor of the demonic path, granting such a fortune to this one is, one might say, fitting.

"Right."

Huo recalled the information he had seen within Zhengyang's consciousness.

"The Ming Sheng Dao is taking disciples in three days—shall we go try our luck as well?"

Ming Sheng Dao!

Much like the Yongyao Sect, it is one of this world's top-tier powers.

Within it are preserved one Heavenly Sovereign-tier and several Emperor-tier deities of the nether-god pantheon.

If this world is the 'deities' pasture,' then Ming Sheng Dao is one of its greatest pasture-keepers.

"Didn't Fellow Daoist say earlier that you planned to take things slowly in getting to know this world?"

"Indeed." Huo smiled. "Isn't Ming Sheng Dao a wonderful way to get to know it?" A land belonging to the nether-gods, where ghostly realms flourish everywhere…

He was far too 'fond' of it.

Xu Xing was somewhat speechless.

Not long after.

Xu Xing and Huo departed, crossing the river to enter Qianyang Prefecture's Fucheng.

Everything on the ship returned to normal.

A shrill, agonized scream rose from the deck, carrying far into the distance.

……

……

Time came to nightfall.

A small hill some twenty li outside Qianyang Sect.

A clearing in the woods.

Several small earthen huts, erected with magic, stood in a row.

In the center blazed a roaring bonfire; burning branches gave off faint 'crackle, pop' sounds.

Beside the fire were several skewers of meat, threaded onto iron rods; under the high heat, fat continuously dripped from the meat.

There, Xiao Fan sat cross-legged atop a large, flattened stone, eyes closed, regulating his breath.

Across from him, several fox-eared girls huddled together, ears drooping, looking somewhat uneasy.

At their head, Qian Liu'er wore an even more worried expression; gazing at the quietly seated Xiao Fan, her heart was in utter turmoil.

Gulp~!

No one knew who had swallowed, but in that silent night it rang out with crystalline clarity.

"……"

An instant later, everyone turned in unison to look at the youngest of the fox-eared girls.

Yet he saw her face flushed, head bowed, looking uneasy.

"Almost done."

A calm voice broke the silence of night, sending a shiver through the hearts of the many fox-eared girls.

Looking ahead, Xiao Fan, seated on a large rock with eyes closed in meditation, had opened his eyes; his black-and-white pupils glinted in the firelight.

Qian Liuer felt nervous but gathered her courage to ask:

"May I ask, Elder, what are your orders?"

Her delicate features, graceful figure, and darting gaze formed an air of pitiable fragility.

Yet Xiao Fan remained unmoved.

Having endured the influence of the Cang bloodline and the many grueling trials arranged by Huo, he was no longer normal.

To him now, beauty was like distant drifting clouds…

And he knew it well.

He pointed at the meat skewers roasting by the fire: "You can eat."

Qian Liuer froze.

"Does the Elder mean for us to eat?"

"Mm."

No sooner had he answered than Xiao Fan suddenly seemed to remember something.

"You don't refuse meat, do you?"

"No no!" Qian Liuer waved her hands rapidly, "It's just that this meat comes from a Foundation Establishment great demon—we're low in cultivation…"

After spending the day with him, she realized this mysterious Elder's realm was unimaginably high, and he showed no mercy toward demonkind.

Earlier that day, they had personally witnessed this mysterious Elder kill the Foundation Establishment guardian demon of Zong Sect in a single strike.

He then skillfully extracted its soul for questioning.

The scene was terrifying!

The meat roasting now came from Zong Sect's Foundation Establishment guardian demon…

This was a big problem!

"It's fine—I've already purified it. You can eat," Xiao Fan said calmly.

He had roasted it for them in the first place.

As a Nascent Soul cultivator, he had already gained the ability to abstain from food.

Under the current uncertain conditions of this world, he would not eat a single morsel of its food.

After all, during a previous trial arranged by his master, he had nearly died and lost his Dao simply because he carelessly ate food from that planet…

"But…"

Seeing their hesitation, Xiao Fan grew tired of talking; he waved his hand, sending the roasted meat flying to their feet.

The fox-eared girls startled, scrambling to catch it.

"I have water here—help yourselves."

Xiao Fan took out several bottles of pure water with no labels and placed them neatly beside him.

"Tomorrow, I will visit your Sect Master. Eat and rest early."

With that, he closed his eyes without waiting for their reply.

The fox-eared girls held the meat, exchanging glances.

Were they really supposed to eat the meat of their own Sect's Foundation Establishment guardian demon…?

After a long while, the youngest fox-eared girl couldn't resist and bit into the meat; the spiritual energy within spread through her mouth, causing her to involuntarily show a trace of rapture.

Seeing this, Qian Liuer sighed softly.

"Eat quickly, then rest."

They were already on the boat…

One more bite wouldn't matter!

…

…

Meanwhile, outside Zong Sect.

A shadow appeared soundlessly beneath the night sky, silently gazing down upon the entire Zong Sect.

It was Xiao Fan.

What the fox-eared girls had seen was merely an illusion created by his spiritual art, manipulating their perceptions.

After completing so many missions, he wouldn't be so foolish as to wait until tomorrow for a formal visit.

He had to gather intelligence first!

After all, he had just ascended to Nascent Soul, and this world was one where Nascent Soul was the baseline power level.

Although when he was at Golden Core peak, ordinary Nascent Soul cultivators weren't his match, who knew if this world had exceptionally powerful Nascent Soul cultivators?

In previous trials arranged by his master, he had suffered many setbacks due to carelessness and underestimating his opponents.

For this reason, he had bought a set of the "Cautious Survival Guide" from Taishang Dao Sect.

But his master called it "heretical" and forbade him from studying it…

Yet as a demonic cultivator, wouldn't studying "heretical" methods be perfectly reasonable?

Thoughts flashed through his mind; Xiao Fan suppressed his distractions and began recalling the information he had extracted from the Foundation Establishment demon's soul.

"Divine Path…"

As a pure Immortal Path cultivator, he had never previously understood the Divine Path.

According to the information gleaned from the Foundation Establishment spirit's soul, the divine spirits of this world's Divine Path and cultivators share a relationship akin to "symbiosis."

The so-called "Immortal Selection" is when divine spirits choose living beings whose nature aligns with their divine authority and bestow upon them "divine nature."

With "divine nature" as a catalyst, living beings in the world may enter the Dao and cultivate.

After cultivators achieve success in their cultivation, they must assist divine spirits in building temples and shrines to collect incense and devotional power.

During this time, cultivators also receive a portion of the incense and devotional power.

Once accumulated to a certain degree, they may ascend to divine rank, becoming divine spirits who govern a domain and share the same lifespan as heaven and earth.

Divine spirits of the Divine Path can be divided into orthodox gods and demonic gods.

Orthodox gods are those belonging to a complete Divine Path system that includes Celestial Sovereign-level divine spirits.

Demonic gods are a general term for all divine spirits outside the orthodox ones! (End of chapter)