Chapter 143: Ghost Power Enters the Body, the Body of a Yin Demon

Even if burdened by five ghosts, and the Great Method in my hands is slightly incomplete, I, Chen Ci, still have longevity to look forward to!

Chen Ci rested for two days to properly adjust his state, and even took the time to temporarily resign from his job cooking Spirit Rice at the eatery, which made Old Daoist Zhuang sigh repeatedly, wishing he could add some salary to make Chen Ci work for a few more days.

But that was just talk; in reality, he didn't give even half a grain of extra Spirit Rice, bah.

However, in the end, Old Daoist Zhuang used the price of four Spirit Pearls to wheedle and pester Chen Ci into selling him five jars of Peiyuan Yangshen Wine, taking a huge advantage that made Chen Ci's heart ache, his face wrinkling as he nearly laughed out loud.

After this trip out, wasn't the silver for renting the cultivation cave dwelling already covered?

Old Daoist Zhuang really is a good man; I wish him an early second child, eight in one litter.

Returning to his residence in Qingyun Workshop, Chen Ci had just sat down when the five ghosts jumped off his back, very obediently and consciously boiling water for tea and cleaning the room, not daring to touch their master's bad side at all, which made Chen Ci wonder if he was being a bit too strict, seeing what he had forced the children into.

But since the Five Ghosts Transportation Method was practiced into this state, if he didn't let the five little ones take the blame, was he, Master Chen, supposed to reflect on himself?

Heh.

Chen Ci stuffed a Nourishing Pill into his mouth, circulated his blood and Qi to dispel the chill, and clicked open his Gold Finger panel to scan it for a few moments.

Five Ghosts Transportation Method: Perfected/2/100

After this method broke through to the Perfected realm, Chen Ci slowly figured out the changes in the five little ones; besides breaking free from the shackles of the bronze ancient lamp and transforming into five ghost tattoos, and having a powerful cooling effect, the maximum distance the five ghosts could leave his body in their yin soul form reached as much as three hundred zhang, and they still had energy to spare, returning from the void quickly at a single thought.

It was just that Chen Ci currently didn't dare let the five ghosts get too far from him; this Liangjiang Sea Market was a mix of fish and dragons, and if he accidentally offended an expert and had the five little ones captured or slain, his foundation would be half-destroyed and his path of the Dao would be hard to walk.

Although Liangjiang Sea Market was a trading market, if a passing cultivator suddenly had a whim or a palpitation of their Qi, no one could say for sure, so naturally, there was a demand for seclusion.

Twenty-four Refined Soul-Fixing Talismans, one set each of talisman paper, cinnabar ink, and gold brush.

He still had one hundred and sixty-four Spirit Pearls on him.

Didi Food Delivery?

Moreover, the affinity for Longevity in the He Mountain Sect likely really lay with True Person Jiao Fei; if he truly wanted to borrow the wind to rise, proving his own value was the only way.

Looking up at the sky, Chen Ci stood up with a smile, summoned the five ghosts back onto his back, closed the doors and windows, and headed out; it was just the beginning of the year, the perfect time for his immortal gate to open wide!

Although the five little ones had been raised by him to be unusually nimble, a cultivator's meridians and Spirit Platform were fragile, and when practicing a technique like drawing yin souls into the body, no amount of preparation was too much; he just hoped he wouldn't need it.

Shaking his head, Chen Ci closed the panel and began to take stock of the preparations he needed to make.

Three hundred drops of Essence Refining; he planned to go into seclusion for over a month this time, and wouldn't come out until he had practiced the Five Ghosts Possession Method to the entry level.

But since he had already switched to practicing the Five Accumulations Yin Demon Art, if he wanted to peek at the secret of Longevity as a side-door practitioner, this trial was unavoidable.

It was called a workshop, but it was actually just a series of mountain caves opened along the edge of the spirit vein in Changsheng Fang; the spirit energy could only be described as passable, slightly better than Sanyin Temple, and the living conditions were so-so; every Dong Bi Yan Fu was built to be sturdy and safe, specifically for passing high-level cultivators to break through or study secret methods.

One bottle of Five-Vehicle Nourishing Spirit Pill; he hadn't been willing to eat it yet, planning to save it for a few days.

Plenty of Nourishing Pills; ever since the five ghosts possessed him, Master Chen inexplicably felt a bit physically weak, and although his waist didn't ache and his legs didn't hurt, at his age, it was time to maintain himself and nourish his life.

Chen Ci pondered; although He Mountain Sect cultivators practicing this method either found it not profound enough to assist in practicing the Five Accumulations Yin Demon Art, or suffered backlash from the five ghosts and died miserably, and Lin Laohu could succeed only because of his own fortuitous encounter, it was hard for others to learn.

Secondly, besides each ability being slightly enhanced, the five ghosts also gained an exotic technique of devouring flesh and Essence Yuan to feed back into his own body; how to put it, it was somewhat similar to the five tiger ghosts Lin Laohu had that devoured cultivators' corpses, just not as bloody.

Two jars of Blood Wood Treasure Wine.

Chen Ci's five ghosts could swallow some essence from living creatures, swallow some Blood Qi from flesh and blood, or swallow Essence Refining, and could even slowly digest a small amount of Spirit Pills and spirit items, then about half of the blood and Qi spirit energy could slowly feed back into his physical body.

This feeling was very magical, but to say it had great use... Chen Ci found it hard to say for now.

"This much should be enough."

A small amount of Bigu Pills.

Qiuzhen Workshop.

The monthly rent was four Spirit Pearls, with a one-month deposit; if he didn't come out after two months, Longhu Mountain cultivators would naturally come to open the cave and handle the aftermath.

Chen Ci looked at the simple environment, a stone room three zhang in circumference; besides a stone bed, there was nothing else, and apart from some ventilation holes, there wasn't even a window, with lighting provided entirely by the bright pearls placed in the four corners of the room.

In some corners, there were even inscriptions like 'On such-and-such year, month, and day, so-and-so increased their cultivation here.'

With a dumbfounded smile, Chen Ci went through the scriptures of the Five Ghosts Possession Method in his heart, his mind stirred slightly, and five clusters of pale black-gray smoke swirled on his right fingertips.

Different from the five ghost tattoos that only floated on the surface, the Five Ghosts Possession Method involved drawing the five ghosts into the body, using the yin soul ghost power to stimulate the meridians and acupoints in the body, enhancing the cultivator's physical body and Dharma Power.

Yin souls and living people were separated by yin and yang, and with the style of He Mountain Sect cultivators and their means of concocting yin souls, heh, at such times, grievances were truly repaid with grievances, and hatred with hatred.

Chen Ci adjusted his True Qi while silently reciting the incantation; the five clusters of pale black-gray smoke on his right fingertips drilled in along his five fingers, and in an instant, his small right hand suddenly swelled by a circle, the muscles on his arm surging and bulging, emitting the sound of tendons and bones cracking, the yin energy flourishing as if it had been stained by billions of dead souls.

"Hmph!"

Chen Ci let out a muffled groan; the bone-piercing cold and the feeling of his tendons and bones wanting to shatter were fine, but he couldn't tolerate his small right hand becoming ferocious and dark green, his fingernails growing wildly like a demon ghost.

With a low shout, Chen Ci dispersed the secret method, the five ghosts reappeared between his fingers, and his small right hand quickly returned to its original state, with nothing unusual except for being two shades paler, but he clearly felt that his overall Essence Yuan had inexplicably decreased by ten percent, leaving him somewhat physically weak.

"Magical."

Chen Ci raised his right hand and examined it carefully; even the grown-out demonic fingernails could retract, it truly had some supernatural qualities.

Tossing a Nourishing Pill into his mouth and sipping some Blood Wood Treasure Wine, Chen Ci adjusted his breath while savoring the feeling just now; with the strength that his small right hand had gained out of thin air, he feared he could even rub a steel bar into sparks with his bare hands, it was truly extraordinary.

This Five Ghosts Possession Great Method, being able to rank among the top of the He Mountain Scripture when few He Mountain apprentices could master it, naturally had some capability.

"Again."

After his body recovered, Chen Ci slowly exhaled a breath of cold air; he didn't know if it was because his Five Ghosts Transportation Method had reached the Perfected realm, or if he already had some foundation in the Five Accumulations Yin Demon Art, but at least for now, he was practicing this Five Ghosts Possession Great Method quite smoothly, without any sense of difficulty; if it were only the entry level, he would likely achieve his wish very soon.

"Hope it goes smoothly, the Great Dao is within reach!"

Six days later.

Inside the Dong Bi Yan Fu, Chen Ci was shirtless, wearing only shorts, his hands forming a Dharma seal, and he gave a low shout: "Five Ghosts Possession!"

The next second, the five ghosts on the playful tattoo on his back suddenly came to life, lunging into his body; Chen Ci only felt gusts of yin wind, a series of clicking sounds of bones rubbing together, his muscles crazily bulging and turning dark blue, and his vision instantly rose a notch, as if he had become a small giant.

In his mind, countless thoughts inexplicably surged in: devouring, destruction, slaughter, tyranny, the seven emotions and six desires, and so on.

"Roar!"

But before Chen Ci could vent his inner desires, his body felt as if it were being slashed by knives, his skin cracking in five or six places, blood splattering everywhere; as soon as his aura dissipated, he shrank like a deflating balloon, instantly recovering from the ferocious, dark-faced, half-human half-ghost state to a human body, collapsing to the ground, empty and exhausted.

"Phew... the hardest part of this method lies in the Spirit Platform; if the soul is tainted by the five ghosts, I fear I would immediately suffer a cultivation deviation, but if the body's expansion isn't controlled well, one will also be injured."

"Fortunately, it is finally done!"

Commanding the five little ones to take a Five-Vehicle Nourishing Spirit Pill and washing it down with Blood Wood Treasure Wine, Chen Ci panted while refining the medicinal power, clicking open his own panel to check it carefully.

Five Ghosts Transportation Method: Perfected/4/100

Five Ghosts Possession Method: Entry/1/100 (Ghost power enters the body, physical body doubles, current duration two breaths, every ten breaths, can progress by one)

The Five Ghosts Possession Method has indeed reached the entry level, and this method of cultivation seems slightly different from other wondrous arts.

Duration two breaths, every ten breaths, can progress by one?

Progressive cultivation?

No external objects needed, just pure grinding, this is great; Chen Ci originally thought this method would also be a heavy consumer of Essence Refining, but looking at it now, it has become heaven rewards the diligent, excellent!

Following the panel to continue looking, Chen Ci's gaze paused slightly, pondering in silence.

Five Skandhas Yin Demon Art (Fragmented): 43/100 (Five practices a day, six hundred days to progress by one)

This Five Skandhas Yin Demon Art, however, has not changed at all.

Could it be that one must practice the Five Ghosts Possession Method to a profound level before it has the function of assisting cultivation?

Chen Ci's brows furrowed slightly, and after thinking for a while, he still felt something was wrong.

Theoretically, on his Gold Finger panel, as long as there is a slight improvement, the entry behind the technique will change; just like this Five Ghosts Possession Method, whether it is practiced deeply or not should affect the magnitude of the auxiliary cultivation boost to the Five Skandhas Yin Demon Art.

Practiced shallowly, little assistance; practiced deeply, fast cultivation, that would be more reasonable.

Could there be some profound changes within it that Chen Ci has not yet discovered?

Or perhaps because the Five Ghosts Possession Method has only just reached the entry level, its function of assisting the cultivation of the Five Skandhas Yin Demon Art is too weak, better than nothing, so it is not reflected on the Gold Finger panel?

"Forget it, let's get the body recovered first, then grind the Five Ghosts Possession Method again to see what the situation is."

Chen Ci bared his teeth; this feeling of weakness where True Qi still remains but the body's essence and energy have been hollowed out is truly uncomfortable, as if his Yang energy had been siphoned away, feeling incredibly frail, not to mention he just spurted out quite a bit of blood; if he doesn't recover well and leaves behind any sequelae, that would be bad.

Eight days later.

Chen Ci sat cross-legged on the stone bed, his complexion somewhat unsightly.

The Five Ghosts Possession Great Method has reached the entry level, and he currently has no signs of Qi deviation, which is gratifying, but this cultivation progress is somewhat unsatisfactory.

Five Ghosts Possession Method: Entry/2/100 (Ghost power enters the body, physical body doubles, current duration two breaths, every ten breaths, can progress by one)

Since reaching the entry level, Chen Ci spent four days of effort to recover his body, and then discovered during the cultivation process that every time he practices the Five Ghosts Possession Method for two breaths, he must recuperate for a full day to restore his body's essence and energy.

To put it bluntly, it's not even three seconds!

If he continues to cultivate like this, just to bring this method to minor success would take nearly two years, and that is assuming he casts aside worldly chores and focuses on brave advancement in the cultivation secret chamber; if he were outside, Chen Ci would not dare to expose this weak state after practicing this method.

And most importantly, the detailed explanation of the Dao technique for the Five Skandhas Yin Demon Art on the Gold Finger panel still has no changes, causing a sense of worry to inexplicably arise in Chen Ci's heart.

Even if he cultivates the Five Ghosts Possession Method to great success, how much time will be left for him to strive for the Upper Grade Dao Foundation, or even the Perfected Dao Foundation?

That is a full three hundred and sixty apertures!

"Could it be that this method really can only rely on opportunity, like Lin Laohu, given by heaven?"

Chen Ci stood up abruptly and shook his head, casting such dispirited thoughts to the back of his mind; we cultivators are inherently stealing longevity from heaven, if one truly has to rely on heaven to give it, then what is the point of cultivating the Dao, from the moment of birth, it is destined whether one achieves Longevity or not, what meaning would it have.

He does not believe that he, this He Mountain Light, cannot practice the He Mountain Great Method!

"Five Ghosts Possession!"

With a deep shout, Chen Ci's original handsome appearance and tall physique instantly expanded and swelled, his height abruptly increasing to eight feet, ferocious and terrifying, half-human and half-ghost, his face cyan-black, even his hair became coarse and dark like hemp rope, his whole body indigo, and inhuman power surged throughout his entire body.

Don't be envious, it was all exchanged for by his looks.

But this time, Chen Ci opened the Gold Finger panel early, forcibly suppressing those chaotic thoughts in his mind, and stared fixedly at the cultivation information on it.

One breath.

Five Skandhas Yin Demon Art (Fragmented): 43/100 (Five practices a day, six hundred days to progress by one)

Chen Ci suppressed the urge to kill, roared in a low voice, and smashed the stone bed beside him into powder with one punch.

Two breaths.

On the Gold Finger panel, the line for the Five Skandhas Yin Demon Art suddenly flickered, as if a touch of cyan-black color instantly swept across the detailed explanation of the Dao technique behind it.

"Release!"

A trace of disbelief and astonishment flashed in Chen Ci's eyes, and he finally managed to dispel this possession method before his origin was damaged.

"Hoo, hoo, so that's how it is?"

Chen Ci lowered his head, his eyes narrowed slightly, looking at the line for the Five Skandhas Yin Demon Art on the Gold Finger panel, even having a trace of doubt whether he had misread it.

But with the Great Dao before him, how could he have misread it!

The information that flashed on his own Gold Finger panel just a moment ago was clearly!

Five Skandhas Yin Demon Art (Fragmented): 43/100 (Five Skandhas Yin Demon, nether yin Qi, practicing this method with the body of a Yin Demon, three thousand six hundred breaths can open one aperture)

!!!

(End of chapter)