Chapter 189

Ruined, oppressive.

On this mountainside that seemed to have been ravaged by a storm, the yellow-clad 'immortal' who had just barely recovered from his grave injuries was now scared witless!

Just moments ago, several fellow disciples who had been chatting animatedly with him now lay in gruesome heaps to one side; in the recent devastating attack, their formerly proud cultivation amounted to nothing, and their magic treasures and techniques were utterly useless.

If the other party hadn't stepped forward himself, I probably wouldn't even know how I died!

Even if he were utterly stupid, he should have realized this by now—and he isn't stupid at all—so he decisively dropped to his knees in a sliding kneel, his humble attitude maxed out……

The other party was unexpectedly young, so much so that one could say…… they looked like a young, underage child, which is truly bewildering:

Whose child is this, possessing such cultivation at such a tender age?

Or perhaps the other party is actually an old monster deliberately pretending to be young?

The yellow-clad 'immortal's thoughts raced……

Meanwhile, the other party seemed a bit dazed; after saving his life, they stood there silently for a while before finally speaking up in a dreamy voice:

"I ask, you answer."

"Yes, yes!"

Upon hearing this, the yellow-clad person nodded and bowed repeatedly, indicating that he would hold nothing back, speak his mind fully, and cooperate to whatever extent needed!

After all, this was the sole hope……

【You asked about their cultivation matters; you were curious why they were so weak—they couldn't even reach True Immortal, and couldn't even withstand a casual slap of yours.】

【The yellow-clad person groaned inwardly: to be able to ask such a question lacking common sense only shows that you are an unparalleled old monster, just emerged from seclusion, so you desperately need to grab a tongue to clarify the current situation… such a legendary mess could even befall me?!】

【Bad luck's mother opens the door for bad luck; bad luck has reached home!】

【But the more this was the case, the less he dared to conceal; in his brief description, you gained for the first time a rough understanding of the affairs of contemporary cultivators……】

【"…Since the spiritual energy of heaven and earth was exhausted, the world entered the Age of Dharma Decline, with various sects hiding in the myriad blessed lands… Apart from recruiting disciples abroad, cultivators no longer dwell in the mortal realm…"】

【In his description, once the spiritual energy of the Primordial heaven and earth had been completely exhausted, the mortal world returned to mortals, while cultivators withdrew to scattered blessed lands, after which mortals and immortals no longer interacted.】

【The yellow-clad person himself is a cultivator from a blessed land, usually recruiting ordinary people interested in immortality with a few fellow Daoists; if they truly have immortal roots, he accepts them into the blessed land, addressing them as fellow Daoists……】

【"So, you are actually the orthodox path?"】

【Seeing you frown and ask, the yellow-clad person nodded repeatedly and answered solemnly: "Of course we are the orthodox path! Unlike those demonic path practitioners who slaughter indiscriminately in the mortal realm, our blessed land even actively protects mortals, which is how this corner remains peaceful!"】

【Upper Immortal! Our household is truly and genuinely the orthodox path!】

【After hearing the yellow-clad person's careful explanation, you felt somewhat puzzled: if these people aren't villains but genuine cultivators… why did that immortal earlier try to harm me with a poisoned pastry?】

【Your puzzled self pointed at the corpse of the "Poison Cake Immortal" on the ground: "If you are the orthodox path, then why… why did I see him give a poisoned pastry to a child? Such wickedness…"】

【Ah?!】

【The yellow-clad person was startled at that moment, silently cursing: "You trouble‑maker!", then decisively reduced that fellow disciple's corpse to ashes with a bone‑crushing scatter!】

【As he scattered the ashes, he cursed: "It turns out this scoundrel offended the Upper Immortal! He deserves death, death! If the Upper Immortal hadn't acted first, I would have made him wish for life but unable to die…"】

【This is the scoundrel's personal act, unrelated to us fellow cultivators; Upper Immortal, please do not be angered!】

【Sliding kneel, severing, all in one smooth motion!】

【You were amazed at his decisive severing; at your young age, where have you ever seen such a scene? Seeing this, you couldn't help but feel a sense of wonder at opening a new world……】

【However, you still tentatively accepted his severing, and besides, he had said earlier that those taken away were ordinary people going to the blessed land to become disciples, so their lives should be unharmed.】

【Moreover, the poisoned pastry incident was also that immortal's personal act; although your mindset is rather extreme, now that the culprit is dead, you really need not implicate the innocent.】

【As for this decisive sliding‑kneel cultivator before you, you still wish to get along as peacefully as possible; fortunately, you know nothing of worldly affairs, so having someone to guide you is naturally good……】

【Then you asked him again: Are all cultivators nowadays as weak as you?】

【Yellow-clad person: ……】

【Although the yellow-clad person wanted to say he wasn't weak, circumstances were stronger than him; facing this unintended slight, he replied resentfully: "The Upper Immortal thinks we're weak only because we were never truly strong to begin with……"】

【In his description, you once again refined your understanding of the current Primordial cultivator circle: the Primordial realm is the mortal realm, while each blessed land is a cultivation realm, so those in the cultivation realm are cultivators who have not yet become immortals.】

【But if they diligently cultivate in the blessed land to achieve True Immortality, they then gain the qualification to enter the true Immortal Realm!】

【"The Immortal Realm, also known as the Thirty-Three Heavens, is the capital of the Heavenly Court in the mythic era; one can enter it via the Middle Heaven Gate on Mount Buzhou!"】

【Upon mentioning the Immortal Realm, the yellow‑clad person showed clear longing, yet the more he spoke the more regretful he became: alas, the Middle Heaven Gate lies on Mount Buzhou, and since Mount Buzhou is Pangu's spine, even after countless ages it still bears Pangu's formidable residual might.】

【Those below True Immortal cannot move at all on Mount Buzhou; only a True Immortal can withstand that might and enter the Thirty-Three Heavens!】

【"It is said that in the Immortal Realm, heavenly and earthly spiritual energy remains abundant, all sorts of resources are plentiful, with no sign of the Dharma Decline; a True Immortal is but an ant, while Heavenly and Mysterious Immortals are commonplace… that is truly the quintessence of heaven and earth!"】

【His description left me greatly astonished: turns out there are still masters out there?!】

【For a moment, I involuntarily restrained my inflated mindset……】

【And my attention was also caught by his remark: the mythic Heavenly Court?】

【You recalled the strategy your "other self" had given you earlier, urging you to gather as much information as possible about the Heavenly Court; now that you've happened upon an informed person, of course you should ask thoroughly.】

【"I want to know how the Heavenly Court fell."】

【Faced with your question, the yellow‑clad person stared, then gave an embarrassed smile: "Upper Immortal, your question is beyond my knowledge—I have no idea about that……"】

【"All I know is that the Heavenly Court vanished suddenly; the Thirty-Three Heavens are the city left behind by the Heavenly Court, and I know nothing else……"】

【You felt a bit disappointed; it seems this question will have to be answered by you gradually in the future.】

【After some thought, you decided to ask him one final question.】

【"I want to find a few ordinary people; do you think you can help?"】

【Upon hearing this, the yellow‑clad person patted his chest and laughed confidently: "Upper Immortal, speak freely; I protect and manage this side of the mortal world, so if you want to find someone, I'll surely be able to locate them!"】

【A wave of relief welled up in my heart; it seems I'll soon be able to find my parents and younger brother…… this person said his blessed land is the orthodox path, and recruiting ordinary people is merely to accept them as disciples.】

Now that I have become a powerful true immortal, as long as I give an order in this cave heaven blessed land, my family will naturally receive better treatment.

You have already thought it through; as the protagonist, you must inevitably travel south and north, ascend to heaven and descend into earth, in order to solve one ancient mystery after another for 'another self'. Thus, in the future you truly won't have the energy to care for your family.

Since that's the case, it would be better to go with the flow and entrust them to this orthodox sect, so you can rest easy and solve the mysteries...

After all, you are not Chaos evil; your thoughts may be extreme, but they remain extreme; yet you still have a basic sense of good and evil.

Then you gently said to the yellow-robed person, "I'm looking for three mortals who joined your cave heaven and blessed land a few days ago…"

Deng! Deng! Dong!

The yellow-robed person's heart gave a gudun, and his formerly confident face suddenly stiffened…

But he still held a sliver of hope, and he cautiously asked, "Exalted Immortal, could you reveal the three names? I'd like to examine them closely…"

You felt nothing wrong, and earnestly gave him the names of your parents and younger brother; he immediately began to recall, and the result of his recollection was…

"Exalted Immortal… those three might not be findable…"

He said, sweat pouring down his face, "Our Orthodox Path may shelter mortals, but we only accept those with spiritual roots suitable for cultivation; whereas the ordinary mortals we admit…"

Your heart suddenly panicked, and you hurriedly asked, "What will happen to them?"

The yellow-robed person was drenched in sweat, yet still tried to struggle: "Forgive my boldness… I don't know if those three have any prior connection with you?"

"They are my parents and younger brother."

Yellow-robed person: …

He looked at you in disbelief, finding it hard to believe that this True Immortal of yours could have three mortal relatives… but the facts were laid bare, and he had no choice but to believe this ridiculous claim.

Then he sighed, "Exalted Immortal, these three lack spiritual roots, so they don't meet our admission standards; for such mortals we have long arranged for them to be resettled elsewhere in better years!"

Moreover, this year's natural disasters have affected too large an area, too many people have come, and we didn't keep detailed records of where those three ordinary mortals went, so it's really hard to find them…

His words were full of self-reproach, his spirits low, and he couldn't help you, which made him feel terrible.

But your expression gradually turned cold…

"I ask, you answer."

You clenched your fists tightly and coldly asked the increasingly pallid yellow-robed person again, "Exactly what will happen to ordinary mortals?"

Seeing that his clumsy deceit hadn't fooled this True Immortal of yours, the yellow-robed person had wanted to say a few more words, but under your ever‑colder threats his mental defenses finally collapsed…

"They… they will have their bodies stripped away, their souls… their souls will be refined into spiritual energy to fill… to supply what the cave heaven needs…"

The yellow-robed person kowtowed repeatedly, wailing for mercy: "Exalted Immortal! This isn't my doing! It's the rule set by the Elders and Administrators of the cave heaven and blessed land, and they're the ones who enforce it… the grudge has a source, the debt a creditor—please spare my life!"

However, his Justice Severing this time had no effect…

Your face turned ashen, your eyes revealing grief, confusion, anger, and regret…

You opened your mouth, and only after a long while did a sound emerge—your voice was extremely dry and hoarse.

"Take me… to your cave heaven and blessed land."

…

(End of chapter)