Chapter 369: 370. Chapter 369: Hui Zeng Turns Demonic

370. Chapter 369: Hui Zeng Turns Demonic

His legend was not yet over; at the age of thirty-seven, he passed the Fourth Grade Alchemist assessment, becoming the only alchemical prodigy in ten thousand years to achieve the rank of Fourth Grade Alchemist before the age of fifty, shocking the entire world.

In that same year, an Alchemy Competition that stirred the entire Western Regions happened to be held; as the only Fourth Grade Alchemist present, he swept away all contestants and easily claimed the championship.

After the competition ended, a stunning young girl walked up to him; her features were exquisite, her skin fair as snow, and her eyes were lively, as if they could speak.

Hui Zeng immediately recognized her as a contestant in this Alchemy Competition, someone quite talented in alchemy, though her time studying it seemed short, causing her to stop at the Finals.

"I am Princess Xi Yue of the Yan Ting Empire, Qin Yuyou; we are from the same nation, and I often visit the Great Buddha Temple to offer incense; may I frequently consult you on matters of alchemy?"

The girl blinked her eyes, revealing a playful smile toward him.

Hui Zeng pressed his palms together and smiled, saying, "Naturally it is allowed; if this benefactor does not mind, this poor monk can take you as a disciple."

"Hmph! I do not wish to be your disciple," the girl said with a coquettish glare, then laughed and ran away.

Their acquaintance began with an Alchemy Competition; this was their first meeting, and from then on, someone entered his life.

The girl would occasionally rush into the Great Buddha Temple to consult him on alchemical matters, and their contact became increasingly frequent.

They refined pills together and went up the mountain to gather herbs; perhaps due to affection growing over time, romantic feelings secretly blossomed between them.

When he was meditating, the girl would cover his eyes from behind with her slender little hands, emitting giggles of laughter.

When he fell asleep, the girl would also tickle his nose with a foxtail grass, then laugh and run away.

But paper cannot forever wrap fire; as time passed, unpleasant rumors about the two gradually began to circulate within the Buddhist temple.

One day, the Abbot called him before the Buddha statue and, turning his back to him, said, "You should know the prohibitions of the Buddhist Sect; you have broken the precepts."

He clenched his fists tightly, said not a word, remained silent for a long time, and finally departed.

But from then on, he no longer paid attention to this girl.

When he was meditating and the girl covered his eyes, he remained silent without uttering a word.

When he was sleeping and his nose was teased by foxtail grass, he also remained unmoved.

The girl came happily every day but left in disappointment.

For a long time, the two did not speak a single word to each other.

Finally, one day, the girl ran to him weeping.

"Monk, war has broken out between the Yan Ting Empire and the Huiyue Empire; so many people have died, and my brother has also died in battle, wuwu..."

"Monk, our nation has been defeated in the war; the Emperor intends to send me away for a political marriage, wuwu..."

"Monk, there are only ten days left until the day of the political marriage; let us elope, shall we? I only love you!"

"Monk, in five days I will be marrying another; will you not even open your eyes to look at me one last time? You are so cruel; I hate you! I will never come again."

On this day, the Buddhist beads he held shattered across the ground, and he simultaneously vomited a mouthful of blood; he opened his eyes from his meditative state, his heart in chaos.

That same day, all the senior monks of the Buddhist temple came to find him together.

"Hui Zeng! When your master went out, he was ambushed by a discarded disciple he had expelled from the sect many years ago; by the time we arrived, it was already too late."

"Your master has now passed into nirvana; knowing your nature is biased and extreme, with many radical thoughts, his dying wish is for you to cultivate the 'Two Pure Corpse Slashing Technique,' discard all distracting thoughts, and devote yourself solely to subduing demons."

As an old senior monk finished speaking, he held a book with both hands and presented it before him.

Hui Zeng clenched his fists tightly, his expression slowly beginning to turn ferocious.

"When eliminating evil, one must be thorough! When eliminating evil, one must be thorough! This is the price of failing to pull up weeds by the roots! The Buddhist Sect's concept of not killing is wrong!"

Hui Zeng let out a mad roar, snatched the 'Two Pure Corpse Slashing Technique,' turned, and walked far away.

"Rest assured! I will fulfill my master's dying wish and successfully cultivate the 'Two Pure Corpse Slashing Technique'; I will let you see a different me."

Hui Zeng's voice came from afar as his figure gradually vanished from everyone's sight.

Walking to a deserted cliff where no one was present, recalling his master's dying words, he looked up to the sky and let out a long howl:

"If I am to subdue demons, then who will subdue me?"

"If the Buddha does not subdue me, I shall become a demon myself!"

"If becoming a Buddha cannot slaughter demons, then there is no point in being a Buddha!"

His master died because of a kind act from years past; at this moment, he seemed to achieve great enlightenment, gazing in the direction of the Capital City, his eyes filled with tenderness as he clenched his fists and said, "Yuyou, wait for me..."

At this moment, he finally recognized his true heart; he no longer wished to be bound by the Buddhist Sect's pedantic precepts, wanting only to be himself and leave this place with the person he loved most.

On this day, he cultivated the 'Two Pure Corpse Slashing Technique,' but instead of forcing his evil thoughts out of his body, he broke convention and forced all his good thoughts out; on this day, he completely turned demonic...

On the day of the empire's political marriage, he stood before the bridal procession and, under the gaze of countless eyes, carried away the bride who was streaming with tears; the emperors of both empires flew into a rage, dispatching countless experts to pursue and kill him.

Under the relentless pursuit of endless experts, he finally stopped hiding his trump card; under the gaze of countless eyes, he unleashed the power of the Devouring Demon Gu, and with not a shred of good thought in his heart, he began to slaughter the pursuers indiscriminately.

Blood flowed for a thousand li along the path of pursuit; in this battle, countless Gu Kings from both emperors' domains perished, and both sides suffered heavy injuries.

However, although he escaped the pursuit of the two great empires, the beauty passed away in his arms.

He knelt before a desolate mountain, overwhelmed by grief...

Recalling these memories, he unknowingly let tears stream down his face in two lines.

It was unclear whether the tears were shed by the Little Medicine Boy or by Duan Tianwu.

"How have you considered my proposal?"

At this moment, Qin Manyuan walked into the Shandong, looked at his back, and spoke.

"I want that female cultivator who resembles Yuyou; this is my only condition," Duan Tianwu said.

Qin Manyuan pondered for not long before saying, "No problem; I will persuade her; even if she disagrees, she will have no choice; you rest here and recover from your injuries for now, but when you go to participate in the Alchemy Competition, do not expose your identity."

Duan Tianwu revealed a disdainful smile: "No one can see through my disguise, and no one can snatch the championship from my hands."

"Is there anything else? If not, you may leave now."

Qin Manyuan spoke no further, slowly walking out of the Shandong, which once again fell into silence.

……

Meanwhile, fearing another major incident might occur in this place, Long Xuan headed north, rapidly making his way toward the Heavenly Phoenix Empire.

At this moment, within the Swallowing Heaven World Toad Space, Long Xuan looked at the Evil-Repelling Divine Bamboo that had already sprouted tender shoots from the soil, nodding with satisfaction.

Under normal circumstances, it would have been difficult for him to make the Evil-Repelling Divine Bamboo seed take root and sprout.

But under the influence of the Medicine Gu's Heaven-Soaring Creation Liquid, the seed was forcibly induced to sprout; once a seed sprouts, its survival rate increases significantly.

The Medicine Gu excels at cultivating Spirit Medicine; with its careful tending, he believed this Evil-Repelling Divine Bamboo would encounter no mishaps and would surely thrive under its care.

However, occasionally the Calamity Gu would still need to provide some nutrients for the Evil-Repelling Divine Bamboo, as it requires Thunder as sustenance, a nutrient the Medicine Gu cannot provide.

For this matter, he could only trouble the Calamity Gu; only when the World Tree bore Thunder Fruit could he release the Calamity Gu.

After successfully planting the Evil-Repelling Divine Bamboo on Wood Island, he walked back across the suspension bridge to the Main Island and located the Blade Gu.

At this moment, it was feasting heartily on the corpse of a Gu Worm.

A Mantis's diet consists of various insects, and the Blade Gu's Armor Piercing ability requires it to consume all kinds of insects, necessitating its master to collect the corpses of every Gu Worm and Spirit Insect under heaven.

Just thinking about the method to strengthen the Blade Gu's abilities gave Long Xuan a massive headache.

How difficult is it to collect every Insect Species and Gu Species under heaven? Many powerful Extreme Grade Gu Worms are created via Unique Gu Formulas; how could he collect them simply because he wished to?

During the years he had operated his shop in the City of Sin, he had been frantically collecting various Poisons and the corpses of various Gu Worms; although he had gathered quite a few Gu Worm corpses, not many powerful ones had been acquired.

There is no shortcut to collecting the corpses of Extreme Grade Gu Worms; one can only grind away bit by bit over a long period, destined to be a lengthy task.

"Have you finished eating? If so, come over and undergo Transformation."

Long Xuan took out the Spirit Sealing Bead from his Storage Ring, and under the communication of his Soul Power, a powerful Sword Intent soon floated out from within the bead.

Upon seeing this Carefree Sword Intent, the Blade Gu's eyes immediately lit up; disregarding the insect corpse it was eating, it tossed aside the half-eaten remains and swiftly flew toward that Sword Intent.

Long Xuan only felt a silver shadow dart before his eyes, and the Carefree Sword Intent vanished.

Having swallowed the Carefree Sword Intent in one gulp, the Blade Gu flew to the World Tree and fell into slumber on a thick branch.

For some reason, many of his Gu Worms liked to make their homes on the World Tree.

Long Xuan smiled, finally turning to leave... (End of Chapter)