[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-devouring-evil-exterminating-demons-across-all-h":3,"chapter-devouring-evil-exterminating-demons-across-all-h-devouring-evil-exterminating-demons-across-all-h-chapter-5":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","Devouring Evil, Exterminating Demons Across All Heavens",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},2266950,4426,"Chapter 5","devouring-evil-exterminating-demons-across-all-h-chapter-5",5,"\u003Cp>One moment, he was sitting on his own sofa—not expensive, but comfortable.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The next, he suddenly landed sitting in an unfamiliar field of wild grass.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chu Tianshu looked up and saw towering trees thick with leaves, and a pale, misty sky.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This was the kind of sky only seen just before dawn.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But back at his home, it had only just turned night.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He had only ever heard of day-night discrepancies in films—now he experienced one firsthand.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Where the hell have they dumped me? Is this still within the country?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chu Tianshu focused and opened his senses, carefully sensing—there was no obvious yin-evil aura around him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Is this the great fortune promised by that pendant token?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Could it be, like in web novels, that it comes with its own blessed space, and he’s now inside the pendant’s interior realm?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Just as he thought of the token, a screen suddenly unfolded before his eyes.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A half-transparent screen, one foot square, hovered in midair, its background formed by the unknown beast-face pattern on the token.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The screen was filled with moving, reorganizing characters—initially unfamiliar script, then quickly shifting into the Hanzi he knew.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>【Profoundly Mysterious, All-World Patrol】\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>These eight large characters sat at the very top of the screen; below them were smaller ones.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"The Youdu Commander has been revived. The new lord has been confirmed.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“This token’s power: Subjugate Evil as Righteous, Devour Malice to Forge Martial Art, Absorb All Phenomena, Evolve Technique from Essence!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chu Tianshu read through the entire text—much of it was half-classical, half-colloquial.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In plain terms, he had become the new Lord of the token; when the Lord slays a yin-spirit, the token automatically collects its traits as raw material.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Once a certain quantity is reached, based on the Lord’s current martial arts and the spirit’s traits, targeted evolution and optimization can be performed to forge a new martial art better suited to the Lord.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The lower half of the screen showed two progress bars.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>One read “Raw Material,” the other “Fate.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Raw Material column showed a small stockpile, enough for one evolution.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Fate column was completely empty.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“All-World?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chu Tianshu paused, re-examining his surroundings.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The wording made it clear—he hadn’t traveled abroad; he was far more likely in another world.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The key to the transmigration must be that empty Fate bar.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Perhaps due to his grandfather’s teachings, Chu Tianshu was the type who clung to home.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Or rather, he preferred to operate in familiar places, at least among people he knew—this circle of familiarity could grow gradually, bit by bit, but never leap too far too fast.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At twenty-something, he’d never even left his province; now he’d been dumped into a world so alien, the unfamiliarity was off the charts.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>So his first thought was: This is such a hassle.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But the token’s displayed abilities surpassed even his expectations—joy and surprise swelled in his chest.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>What followed was a complex mix of anticipation and unease.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Transmigrating worlds, evolving martial arts— if this is real, can it finally cure my twenty-year nightmare of a disease?!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chu Tianshu stared at the Raw Material bar, reached out to touch it—his hand passed right through the screen.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The screen was not physical; once summoned, it followed his vision and was visible only to him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>To interact with it, no physical motion was needed—only focused attention.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chu Tianshu took a deep breath, calmed himself, and concentrated. The Raw Material column glowed faintly, then expanded into a detailed description.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>【Martial Art Raw Materials as follows.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>《Qi Family Old Backstrike》: In leaps and dodges, long arms lash like iron whips; sleeves swing with sword techniques, steps are subtle and erratic.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Note: Suitable for those naturally bold from youth; it loosens shoulders and back, nourishes tendons and bones; at peak, arms grow three inches longer, delivering a swing with a thousand-jin force.】\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>【Yin-Spirit Raw Materials as follows.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Beauty-in-Skin: Dreamed of being the center of attention; underwent thirty cosmetic surgeries, cutting and scraping her face with needles and blades, died unnamed. Trait: Upon approaching, induces facial numbness, causing victims to mindlessly cut and scrape their own flesh, unaware of blood loss.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Nightroom Spirit-Writer: Envious of roommate, poisoned her drink by accident, died with eyes open, trapped in the room, spying on secrets, corrupting juniors. Trait: Whispering continuously for seven nights renders victim’s blood unnaturally cold.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Black-Mouth Scholar: Licked ink for ten thousand days, failed exams repeatedly, tamed like a dog, died in humiliation, belly full of sour stench, serving evil as a henchman. Trait: Sour ink in belly corrodes flesh and bone.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Note: Yin-spirit traits vary. Choose one, first refine the spirit, then proceed with evolution.】\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Only one martial art material? No 《Ghost Gate Witch-Physician Notes》?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chu Tianshu pondered—this token claimed to evolve martial arts, yet only listed actual martial techniques as raw material.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Ghost Gate Witch-Physician Notes contained many health and wellness formulas—why couldn’t those count as martial knowledge?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Unfortunately, he had no idea how the token judged whether a technique qualified as “martial art,” nor could he alter its criteria.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As for the yin-spirit materials, he recognized all three—they were cases he’d handled in the past two years.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Before that, he’d handled other cases, and his grandfather and predecessors had dealt with countless spirits—apparently, the token hadn’t been active enough then to collect anything.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Beauty-in-Skin and Nightroom Spirit-Writer traits were both mediocre.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When Chu Tianshu had dealt with them, he’d judged them as weak.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Especially the Spirit-Writer.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Though the dorm residents had played the Spirit-Writer game and sometimes heard her mutterings, they all stayed up late.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>So the time they actually slept—and thus heard her—was brief.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Add to that school holidays, and the Spirit-Writer never had a chance to whisper for seven full nights.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Only one unlucky soul, who briefly maintained a regular sleep schedule, endured five straight nights of whispers and fell ill.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After Chu Tianshu exorcised her, the patient recovered fully after just one week of medicine.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Among the three spirits, the Black-Mouth Scholar stood out by default.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But how could a trait like “sour ink in belly” be fused with Backstrike Fist?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chu Tianshu couldn’t quite grasp it, but he thought it over.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yin-spirit materials required a minimum quantity to trigger an evolution—but having more wouldn’t hurt; the result would be better.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Should he evolve now, or wait, gamble for a more useful spirit he could defeat…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chu Tianshu decided within three seconds.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Evolve now!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Back home, he might have waited—but in this alien world, three seconds of hesitation was already deep deliberation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chu Tianshu first activated the “Yin-Spirit Refinement” option on the token.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The three spirit materials merged; total quantity barely changed, leaving only the Black-Mouth Scholar’s trait.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then, combined with 《Qi Family Old Backstrike》, the evolution began.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>【Evolution complete.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>《Gluttonous Backstrike Fist》: Monkey devours fruit, raging ape devours meat, hands and feet strike together to tear wolves, long arms swing palms to shatter ox skulls.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Practicing this fist opens the dantian, massively develops the intestines and stomach, stretches tendons and strengthens the body; enables swallowing flesh and bone, strength increases daily; at peak, when limbs exert force, they become as hard as wood or stone, fingers and claws sharp and firm, capable of piercing through an ox’s belly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Especially suitable for the physically weak—if one can endure the pain and itch of bones and flesh growing like steamed meat, practicing a hundred times daily, one may advance with fierce vigor.】\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After reading the screen’s text, Chu Tianshu felt something new lodged in his mind.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A moment’s recollection brought forth entire scrolls of fist manuals and human figures—the very fist form just evolved.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Every detail was vivid, as if he’d read and practiced it thousands of times, memorized to perfection.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A powerful urge surged in Chu Tianshu—he immediately opened his stance on the grass and began practicing the fist form from memory.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Both spirit-mediums and martial artists, upon first opening their dantian, appear similar: senses sharpen, dynamic vision improves dramatically.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But in truth, their paths diverged from the very first opening.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Spirit-mediums’ opening radiates energy outward—their perception is like an extreme sharpening of a sixth sense; they receive a conclusion, then their five senses break it down into forms ordinary people can understand.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Martial artists’ opening focuses inward on the body’s potential—eyes, ears, nose, and other organs are enhanced, making external perception clearer and finer, and the final synthesis far surpasses normal limits.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A person’s first opening leaves a lasting imprint; whichever direction it leans, instinct will reinforce it thereafter—no matter how hard one tries to change, instinct is unyielding.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Some liken trying to master both paths to making a born blind man understand a born deaf one.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The actual difficulty may not be that extreme.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But Chu Tianshu, a spirit-medium who opened his dantian at age five, had never once felt what a martial artist experiences during opening, despite years of rigorous fist training.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Now this 《Gluttonous Backstrike Fist》—crafted for the Lord, yet explicitly suitable for the physically weak—made him desperate to try.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Huh!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chu Tianshu adjusted his stance, planted his left foot, swept his right foot in a half-circle, sole barely lifting from the ground; tall wild grass bent and broke beneath him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His motion was slow—but the instant his right foot touched down, his entire body accelerated.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>First, a wide, sweeping strike—both arms slashed forward, body lunging ahead; palms reached waist level, right hand arriving first; as left hand reached, right arm had already turned to gather force, then thrust forward in a punch.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This punch was not a direct thrust—it was a whip-like snap; the arm was like a heavy, water-soaked towel, the fist its end, twisting forward to strike the air.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even with ordinary human strength, the punch whipped his sleeves, producing a faint whistle.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In an instant, he sank his hips, stepped back, spun, and swung his left arm into a claw, lashing backward.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lunging, charging, then retreating slightly after each stride—by the time he’d advanced twenty or thirty paces, his feet had traced a large half-circle.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His hands, however, repeated only three motions—slash, snap, claw—with far greater frequency than his footwork.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Because every hand movement, every lunge and leap, was executed with full force—Chu Tianshu’s forehead soon glistened with sweat, yet his eyes shone brightly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The more he practiced, the more he sensed—not just the manual’s text and diagrams, but also a “correct feeling.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He vaguely knew in his mind what movements were truly standard, how to generate power to perfectly match the details in the fist manual.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Words are often pale; even the most brilliant fist master struggles to convey to his disciple the exact bodily sensation of when his own technique became precise.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Moreover, even the same words may be understood differently by each disciple.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The token’s transmitted knowledge of fist techniques flowed directly into Chu Tianshu’s mind, as if he had a master who could speak perfectly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Thus, if any movement or power generation was off-standard, he immediately sensed it and corrected it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His fists and feet swung in apparent repetition, yet each strike carried subtle adjustments.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This sensation of knowing he was approaching “correctness” was profoundly fulfilling.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As he practiced, he even forgot to pursue opening his meridians—his only thought was how to make his next punch perfectly standard.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chop! Whip! Grasp! Chop! Whip! Grasp!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sweat beads multiplied; his gaze grew purer.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As he chopped his palm downward again, Chu Tianshu’s hand suddenly produced a faint crack in midair.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Whether it was the sound of his palm striking air, his sleeve, or some other factor—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It didn’t matter anymore.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Deep within Chu Tianshu’s pupils, a needle-thin light naturally ignited.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The grass beneath his feet, some stubbornly resilient, slowly rose again.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The branches on either side swayed slightly in the morning breeze, shaking loose dewdrops from their tips.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Before him, faintly yellow leaves spiraled down through the air.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This level of perception resembled that of a spirit-sensitive’s opened meridians.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But when he had opened his meridians as a spirit-sensitive in the past, he had never felt so clearly the presence of his own flesh and bones—every muscle, every layer of skin, wrapping such vivid warmth.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chu Tianshu exhaled hot breath, staring at the tip of his chopping palm, desperate to etch this first moment of entering a martial practitioner’s opened state into memory.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Ha, hahaha! Excellent! It really can be trained out!!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He couldn’t help laughing aloud, then forcibly clamped his mouth shut, eager to resume practice immediately.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Initial opening is usually a fleeting flash—he had entered the state while chopping that palm, but would soon exit it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He must strike while the iron was hot; if he could enter the state two or three more times in this phase—even if each lasted only an instant—it would be enough.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Once he could stabilize and sustain opening on the martial path, his vital energy would grow stronger.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At that point, the nightmares’ influence on his mind and brain could be resisted; for the past two years, the blade hanging ever closer above Chu Tianshu’s head had finally been pushed back again.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He made no audible laugh, but the muscles of his cheeks tensed, his lips curved upward—the bright, joyful expression never faded.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Emotion could be excited, but fist techniques must align with breath; uncontrolled laughter or vocalizations would disrupt the rhythm—he must restrain himself.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Practice fists! Practice fists! Practice fists!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He didn’t know how long he had trained.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When he came to his senses, the sun had risen; the intense hunger in his stomach jolted him awake, and he stopped.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The surrounding grass was trampled into ruin; branches had been snapped by his swinging arms.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Birds flew from their nests in the morning light, hopping lightly on branches, chirping.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chu Tianshu wiped sweat from his face, breathing hard, feeling utterly clear—but his stomach ached with hunger.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He looked at the small birds on the branches, then pulled a silver needle from his trouser pocket.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At this distance, he had full confidence he could strike one down as stored rations.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But after thinking, he held off for now.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If he could find signs of human habitation, he wouldn’t need to risk lighting a fire himself in the mountains or roasting sparrows raw.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After judging the terrain’s elevation, Chu Tianshu walked upward for a while, scanning around.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After a long while, in a patch of sparse trees, he reached a large rock and stopped.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Outside the mountain, the morning sun had just risen; in one direction below, vast fields stretched into dense clusters of houses.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Looking down from here, the orderly streets and dwellings were small but not shabby; people moved like ants—clearly a bustling town.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>(End of Chapter)\u003C\u002Fp>",2441,"2026-06-19T20:45:51.976Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","3f8bc70ee134f24d82cb71e534d9c266f88baea8b96b1074f24ebf193df662b8","devouring-evil-exterminating-demons-across-all-h-chapter-6","devouring-evil-exterminating-demons-across-all-h-chapter-4",155,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fdevouring-evil-exterminating-demons-across-all-h-cover.jpg"]