Chapter 89: None of the Demon Cultivators are Good Things

As time passed, Ruan Xing felt as if she had been poisoned by mushrooms; the strange, brilliant colors grew increasingly intense, and everything she saw became as abstract and blurred as a medieval oil painting.

She had a mind to ask the two big shots what the situation was next, but the Demon Cultivator only kept urging her to finish the Puppet quickly.

Ruan Xing dared not delay, speeding up her hands; she finally finished drawing all the Talismans on the surface of the skin, then used a special technique to refine two Mysterious Grade materials to connect the Puppet essence to the corpses. She balled up the Heart-Hook Vine and stuffed it into the hole in one corpse's chest as filler, while placing the Spirit Jade into the mouth of the other—it would have to be sealed shut in the end anyway.

"I ask the two seniors to enter into a contract."

Ruan Xing said respectfully.

This was the final step; after the contract was established, the soul could enter the Puppet essence, and once Ruan Xing dripped her own blood, the Puppet refinement would be complete.

Only, in this way, they would have to be under her control.

Actually, it was possible not to drip blood; like Cai Jiao, after losing her previous master, Cai Jiao's Puppet essence had never been dripped with blood by anyone to acknowledge a master, yet she was still fine, and could even move.

But Ruan Xing did not mention this method; if they did not drip blood to establish a contract, she could not trust these two people.

The Fairy walked to the side of the corpse with a stiff expression, and after dripping blood to establish the contract, her Residual Soul entered the Puppet essence.

The corpse with the hole in its chest moved slightly, opened its eyes, and stood up. Its mouth was sewn shut and it could not speak; this was the fundamental condition for Puppet cultivation: a breath of Yin Qi held in the throat, gathered and not dispersed.

He moved his arms and legs, and it looked like there were no problems; everything was very smooth.

"It is just a pity that the grade of the materials limited you, Senior; this Puppet only has the strength of the early Golden Core stage," Ruan Xing said with some regret.

She looked toward the Demon Cultivator, preparing to operate on the next Puppet, but suddenly a wild wind rose behind her. A sense of crisis surged in her heart, and she hurriedly dodged.

Yet she did not escape; the attack that had been aimed at her heart shattered half of her shoulder. Her body slammed heavily against the stone wall of the Cave Abode due to inertia, the uneven stone wall nearly breaking her waist. Flesh, blood, and bone fragments mixed together and flowed down, forming a long trail on the ground.

She was extremely horrified, spitting blood as she said, "Are you crazy? If you kill me, you will die too!"

"Die then, I should have died long ago!" The corpse's mouth was tightly shut, yet black-brown blood flowed from the corners of its mouth. A sharp voice came from the Fairy's Residual Soul, "But I will never allow this demon to leave here with you!"

The Puppet's body was disintegrating; it would only take one light strike to destroy her.

Ruan Xing tried to control her through their mental link, but the 'Fairy' had already harbored the intention of mutual destruction; how could she still be under her control? The Residual Soul fought desperately against her will, walking toward her step by step.

Ruan Xing summoned her Flying Sword to counterattack, but Ruan Xing's injuries were severe, and even moving was difficult. She looked at the Demon Cultivator with pleading eyes, "Senior, you don't want to continue being trapped here either, right? Outside, the mountains are high and the seas are vast, and a great world is waiting for you. If you save me, I will take you out of the Secret Realm!"

"I am very sorry. Although you helped me, Demon Cultivators are all like this: cold, selfish, and ungrateful. Compared to you two, the Fairy and I are more familiar with each other. Although she wants to leave me, which makes me feel very sad, this is her dying wish, and I must respect it." The Demon Cultivator shrugged, appearing helpless, with a smile that was not quite a smile on his face. "Moreover, you have prepared all the materials for me, and the Talismans are finished. I also memorized the hand seals and Magic Art you used when you established the contract. Don't worry, with my intelligence, I will definitely be able to refine it successfully myself after you die, without wasting your good intentions."

The 'Fairy' had already dragged her disintegrating body to her side, and the moment she gouged out her heart, both of them lost their lives.

Ruan Xing only had time to leave behind one indignant curse, "Bastards, none of you Demon Cultivators are good things!"

The Simulation ended; Ruan Xing chose to view the memories while rubbing her temples.

Ugh, what a headache.

Why is this Fairy so stubborn? Over a thousand years have passed, and the two of them lived in the same Cave Abode, seeing each other every day; what kind of grudge could not be resolved?

And Demon Cultivators are all a bunch of profit-first guys; she should have finished the refining before going back, letting the Demon Cultivator watch and steal her techniques for nothing.

Ruan Xing thought for a moment; if she hadn't let the Demon Cultivator steal her techniques, and had made the Demon Cultivator establish the contract first, perhaps it would have been better.

For this attempt, she decided to use a Real-scene Simulation. Anyway, problems arise in the Secret Realm on the eighth day, and adding tomorrow, that's nine days. She could tell the difference between ninety points and one hundred points in terms of which was cheaper.

……

"Senior, you go first," Ruan Xing said to the Demon Cultivator.

"Alright." The Demon Cultivator readily agreed. Seeing the Fairy's somewhat unfriendly gaze, he smiled and said, "But after you finish refining these Puppets, wouldn't the Fairy and I both be at your beck and call? This is not the attitude of someone helping others."

Ruan Xing said shamefully, "This junior's skills are not refined; I only memorized this method and have never used it, and I do not understand its deeper meaning. However, this junior has absolutely no intention of enslaving the two seniors. If you do not believe me, this junior can swear an oath."

Not waiting for the Demon Cultivator to answer, Ruan Xing continued, "I, Ruan Xing, swear that in this life I will never go against the wishes of the two seniors to force or order you to do anything. If I violate this oath, may I be plagued by inner demons and suffer eternal damnation!"

She had never thought about being able to make the two of them her subordinates; after all, they were Spirit Severing big shots a thousand years ago, how could they, with their pride, bow down to others?

However, she still profited, because first, their inheritance was her reward. She would take the two of them and obtain this inheritance, so that she would have her own subordinates and a power base in the world of Cultivation. Second, although she could not order the two, they would likely protect her spontaneously when she was in danger, because they did not know that her death would have no effect on them; only in the case of a master-killing would a Puppet die along with its master.

In this way, the gray-robed old man guarding the entrance of the Secret Realm would be the first step to testing the strength of the two Puppets.

In this simulation, because she went straight to the destination, only four days had passed after refining the Puppets. If it weren't for the day and more she wasted looking for corpses, she could have been even faster.

However, she could go out later. She would wait until the eighth day, after the gray-robed old man had killed all the other Cultivators, and then go out and let the two big shots clash with him.

"Truly decisive," the Demon Cultivator praised. He did not hesitate anymore and let Ruan Xing drip blood to establish the contract.

After finishing with the Demon Cultivator's body, she performed the operation on the Fairy's Puppet as well. During the process, she was fully alert, but this time, the Fairy did not suddenly attack.

Was it because the body she found for her this time was that of a female Cultivator? Or was it because she had already finished refining the Puppet for the Demon Cultivator, and even if she destroyed herself along with her, she couldn't stop the Demon Cultivator, so she gave up?

She didn't figure it out, but it was a good thing the Fairy didn't make a move.

"You two adapt first and see if you can shake off the influence of this Cave Abode. I will return in four days to take you two away."

Ruan Xing gave notice, and the Demon Cultivator waved his hand indifferently, "Go, go."

She wanted to take advantage of these four days to explore other places.

She was quite curious about what had happened to the two injured Cultivators she had encountered last time.

Just as she stepped out of the Cave Abode, she saw several Cultivators walking toward this side from afar.

After confirming their identities, they were the people she had followed. Taking advantage of the fact that they hadn't discovered her yet, she hurried back into the Cave Abode. "Why are you back again? Did you forget to take something?" the Demon Cultivator asked.

Ruan Xing deliberated and said, "Some people have come outside..."

The Demon Cultivator released his Divine Sense to take a look, "Oh, two of them came the day before yesterday, but they didn't come in; they just looked at the entrance and left."

They probably came while she was out looking for corpses.

If she had known people would deliver themselves to her door, why would she have gone to the trouble of finding corpses? She could have just waited outside the Cave Abode the day before yesterday.

"I'll hide for a bit." She didn't want to run into these people. If a conflict broke out, there were many of them, and she couldn't win.

Although the two big shots might help her, looking at the Fairy's attitude toward her and the Demon Cultivator's wicked sense of humor, she guessed they wouldn't make a move until she was about to die. She didn't want to get seriously injured here and waste her time.

Time is points.

But the Cave Abode was bare, empty, and had no cover. Ruan Xing looked around and couldn't find a place to hide.

The Demon Cultivator coughed lightly and pointed to a corner. Ruan Xing stood there, and the Demon Cultivator cast a small Magic Art; to others, that corner looked like a stone wall.

Although their mouths were sewn shut, both big shots seemed to speak using their Residual Souls, which was quite convenient. She wondered if she could get them to teach her the Sword after they got out.

Before long, several Cultivators entered and were filled with surprise upon seeing the two big shots.

"Senior Brother? Senior Sister?"

"Why are you here? I thought this was a Cave Abode left behind from ancient times and wanted to come in to explore."

The fairy's face was as cold as frost, and the Demon Cultivator couldn't be bothered to pay her any mind; he simply inhaled with a gust of wind, let out a satisfied burp after finishing his consumption, and said lazily, "Alright, let's go."

Ruan Xing emerged once more and smiled ingratiatingly at the Demon Cultivator: "Senior, next time could you not eat so cleanly? Could you leave a few Storage Bags for me?"

"Are you trying to manage me?"

"I wouldn't dare, I wouldn't dare."

Ruan Xing rubbed her nose in embarrassment and hurriedly left the Cave Abode.

She headed in the direction where she had previously encountered the two injured Cultivators, flying for nearly two days before seeing a massive ancient tree; although the tree was enormous, its branches were bare and its trunk was withered, making it a dead tree. Ruan Xing found it somewhat suspicious and landed to inspect the situation; just as she walked to the base of the tree, she saw the two Cultivators sitting there in meditation to heal their injuries.

Yo, it really was the two of them.

Seeing Ruan Xing, the two revealed wary gazes.

"What's wrong? Do you need help?"

"No need, please leave." The Foundation Establishment Late Stage Cultivator spoke quite sternly.

Ruan Xing met with a rebuff; after thinking for a moment, she moved further away and used the Illusion Technique to transform into the appearance of the female Cultivator she had killed.

The female Cultivator's Dharma Artifact was a jade hairpin, which happened to be undamaged, and pinning it in her hair made her look quite convincing.

She walked back to the base of the tree, her face showing sorrow, "Senior Brother, why are you injured?"

"I was careless and accidentally triggered a mechanism," the Cultivator sighed. "Where is Junior Brother Jia? Why isn't he with you?"

"We were just pitted by a Nanzhou Cultivator while hunting a Monster Beast; he was injured, so I hurriedly came out to find someone to help. I didn't expect you, Senior Brother, to be injured as well. Then you two continue healing, and I will go find someone else to take a look." Ruan Xing made up a random excuse and feigned an intention to leave.

"That detestable Nanzhou Cultivator! Such a backwater place cannot breed any Cultivators with high moral character; to actually openly attack a fellow sect member!" The Cultivator cursed a few times and said indignantly, "Why didn't Junior Sister send me a message earlier? If it had been sooner, the two of us could have gone to help you, and we wouldn't have been injured by this mechanism. Sigh!"

"Were you also injured by a Nanzhou Cultivator?"

"I assume so. Among the fellow sect members who came this time, no one knows how to set such sinister mechanism arrays, right? It's one thing to explore and take treasures for oneself, but to set up mechanisms at the entrance to harm others is truly hateful. Regardless of anything else, we are all fellow sect members; even if they look down on us, they shouldn't resort to robbing us." The Cultivator spoke with disdain, then paused for a moment, suddenly thinking of something. "We just sent a message to Junior Brother Ren earlier; they are not far from here and will arrive in about a day or so. Shall we go find him?"

Ruan Xing estimated that the Cultivators they were in contact with were the very ones who had entered the Demon Cultivator's stomach, so she nodded. "Good, then you go ahead, Senior Brother. Junior Brother Jia is still over there healing; I will go find him to join up, and once we gather, we will go find those Nanzhou Cultivators to avenge Junior Brother Jia!"

"Mm, I will send a message to Junior Brother Ren to ask for his current specific location. You go quickly to bring Junior Brother Jia over."

What a pity, your Junior Brother Ren will no longer reply to your messages in seconds.

Her current Illusion Technique could only last for one or two hours; after leaving and changing back to her own appearance, she waited until the two Cultivators were far away and out of sight before returning to the base of the tree.

After searching for a long time, she found a hidden passage at the base of the giant tree.

Considering what the Cultivator had said about being injured by the mechanism array at the entrance, Ruan Xing did not rashly go down, but instead used several water dragons to violently scour the area around the passage.

In any case, this was a Real-scene Simulation; even if there were treasures, she couldn't obtain them, so she wasn't worried at all about destroying this place.

Moreover, it was highly likely that Xie Huai was below the passage; when facing an insidious and cunning Demon Cultivator, one could never be too careful.

After scouring it several times, Ruan Xing used her Short Sword to clear away the tree roots and withered leaves at the entrance of the passage before going down.

After walking only a few steps, she indeed saw traces of an Array Disk, but because those two Cultivators didn't know what they had encountered within the array and had caused a mess of destruction, combined with Ruan Xing's careful clearing earlier, this Array Disk had already lost its effectiveness.

However, she still dared not be careless and cautiously continued walking into the passage.

After the initial downward slope, the path ahead became a gentle upward slope; the passage did not look like it had been made by human hands, but was a naturally formed tree hollow. Estimating by this direction, she should currently be walking toward the heart of the tree.

For a tree this large, who knows how many years it has lived; the heart of the tree must be a high-grade material.

It's just that this tree seems to have been dead for a long time; I wonder if the heart of the tree is still there, and what Xie Huai wants to do by coming to this place? Thanks to MidoriQ for the monthly ticket~ Thanks to Coppelia for the monthly ticket~(End of chapter)