Chapter 256: The More You Think, The More Terrifying It Becomes

After leaving the Liu family, Ji You and the others from the Si Xian Jian stayed at the same inn.

They rested until noon, after which more invitation scrolls arrived from aristocratic families of Zhongzhou.

These scrolls were clearly written in haste; some ink was still wet.

Among those delivering the scrolls was the Qiu family.

Ever since Ji You defeated Yan Hao, the head of the Qiu family had deeply regretted not insisting on marrying his daughter to him; he had even personally sought help from He Lingxiu and later tried to invite Ji You.

But that time, Ji You had returned to Fengzhou.

Now that he had heard of what happened in the mountains last night, his desire to make amends grew even stronger.

To show sincerity, the head of the Qiu family specifically summoned his daughter, Qiu Hanyue, and ordered her to deliver the invitation herself.

He had expected her to refuse—after all, she had always wanted to marry into a family better than the Qius—and had prepared a full arsenal of arguments.

But to the Qiu family head's surprise, Qiu Hanyue took the scroll without a word and turned away swiftly toward the inn.

Earlier, while sitting with other aristocratic youths drinking tea, everyone had urged her.

Especially her sisters, who said fate was often strange, and since she had never wanted to marry him anyway, there was no need to harm herself over it now.

Her close friend Sheng Xiyu also advised her, saying that even if he was powerful, it didn't change the fact that he was now alone and without family.

But for some reason, Qiu Hanyue could not be as detached as her sisters claimed; her heart seemed filled with unspoken resentment.

So on the way to the inn, the Qiu daughter rehearsed her words: she would explain that back at the Tian Dao Hui, she hadn't known him, and her resistance stemmed not from any dislike of him, but from hating others arranging her marriage.

Yet when she arrived at the inn, she froze in place.

For she discovered that many of her sisters had already gathered there—especially Sheng Xiyu.

Compared to when they had been drinking tea in the courtyard, Sheng Xiyu had even changed into a high-waisted ruqun, exposing a wide expanse of pale, fleshy cleavage, making Qiu Hanyue's face darken.

If my sisters can't have a good life, I'll live it for them.

Yet in the end, Ji You accepted only the invitation from the Yu family of Zhongzhou.

The Yu family didn't wear high-waisted ruqun, so there was no pale, round expanse—but for Ji the bandit, whose sole purpose was eating, their banquet was still quite good.

After breaking through two major barriers, Yan Shu indeed needed more sisters, but the final decision still lay with the moody ghost.

Besides, these Zhongzhou aristocratic girls didn't seem sturdy enough to withstand the pounding…

Zhongzhou was merely a temporary stop.

The next morning, sunlight spilled down; after spending one night there, Ji You boarded the Si Xian Jian's carriage, preparing to head to Shangping County in Dongliang Commandery.

There, too, lay a vast mountain range, hiding a considerable number of evil seeds.

Sitting on the bumpy carriage, Ji You saw many Immortal Sect disciples and aristocratic travelers constantly entering and exiting the remote wilderness.

These Immortal Sect disciples had not joined the extermination of the evil seeds—he and the Si Xian Jian personnel were very clear on that point.

So they weren't afraid of the evil seeds causing havoc; they were investigating something.

Sitting in the carriage, Ji You watched these Immortal Sect youths and recalled the image of the demon cultivator ascending from Qiling.

So many evil seeds appearing, their numbers unknown, must have rattled the nerves of the major Immortal Sects and aristocratic families.

They likely connected this to the Qiling incident, which was why they were so alarmed.

Ji You turned his gaze away and felt the carriage slow to a halt; he lifted the curtain and leapt down, finding himself in Shangping County of Dongliang Commandery.

Here, many Immortal Sect and aristocratic travelers moved in and out of the forests; when they saw Ji You appear on the main street, their gazes immediately gathered.

He had only just emerged from the Former Sage's Sanctum; few had seen him, so his sudden appearance on the street naturally drew attention.

"He came out of the Former Sage's Sanctum? When did that happen? I never heard."

"Must've been just these past few days—otherwise word would've spread."

"Why didn't he return to Tian Shu Academy? What's he doing here?"

"He's with the Si Xian Jian—probably here for the evil seeds."

"Those who returned from the Sanctum said he spent half a year and still hadn't reached Tong Xuan. True?"

"His aura is suppressed—can't tell for sure…"

Amid the murmurs, the small squad dispatched by the Si Xian Jian to this location hurried over and reported to Mu Jing about the evil seeds in the mountains.

The number of evil seeds here was slightly fewer than in Shang Nanshan, but the problem was their excessive dispersion—they weren't clustered in valleys and had to be eliminated one by one.

The southern slope had the most, and its dense vegetation and complex terrain made it far more dangerous than the northern slope, which had fewer evil seeds and flatter ground.

Yet hearing about it only gave a rough idea—it couldn't reveal the full picture.

So under the lead of this stationed squad, they circled the desolate mountain.

After completing the circuit, Mu Jing unconsciously turned to Ji You: "What do you think, Master Ji?"

Ji You thought for a long while: "I'll take the southern slope. You take the northern slope."

"This… wouldn't it be too dangerous? The terrain favors the evil seeds on the southern slope."

"There's a village on the south side. I won't be modest—your efficiency is too slow. I fear some evil seeds will escape. Otherwise, I'd never do such a dangerous job for free."

After hearing this, Mu Jing looked toward the southern slope: "Master Ji is truly different from other cultivators. I once thought you'd eventually change."

The Si Xian Jian knew well the history of Ji You's cultivation path.

Even Ji You himself didn't know he had a separate dossier within the Si Xian Jian.

Those familiar with his past always believed he would change.

He entered an Immortal Sect, joined the inner court, rose to fame at the Tian Dao Hui—those who had followed this path before all became lofty Immortals, indistinguishable from the aristocratic youths of their time.

Especially yesterday, those Immortal Sect maidens dressed in dazzling finery, all vying to invite him in.

Had he wished, he could have already blended into the Immortal Sects.

Yet now, what he cared about were still ordinary mortals, whom cultivators considered expendable.

Afterwards, the inspectors gathered to formulate a plan to eliminate the evil seeds, then entered the desolate mountains.

Ji You parted from them at the mountain stream and, sword in hand, headed toward the southern slope.

The southern slope's corpse-seeds were indeed numerous, hidden in every corner.

Ji You observed them from a safe distance, avoiding provocation, pinpointing their approximate hiding spots, then released his aura and began gathering his power.

Suddenly, he became a blur and charged toward the southern slope.

Sensing the presence of life, the evil seeds on the slope instantly stirred, their malevolent energy swirling upward, their faces twisting into grotesque masks as they howled toward Ji You.

Ji You didn't stop; his blood surged as he stepped backward westward, his foot striking the ground with explosive force, shattering a boulder instantly.

The evil seeds to the west immediately bared their fangs, surging toward him like a tide.

From above, the scene showed dozens of evil seeds converging from different positions—some circling in arcs, others sprinting straight—each racing toward Ji You.

Killing them one by one was too time-consuming and risky; he might miss some. He refused to risk uncertainty—he had already planned to use their aggression to gather them together.

This carried risk, for the evil seeds' bodies were incredibly tough, hard to slay with a single sword strike.

When they gathered, the danger of being overwhelmed by the corpse tide increased infinitely.

Boom!

Ji You suddenly halted, his heavy footstep crushing the mountain's surface, sending dust and soil flying.

The enraged evil seeds now rushed forward; Ji You, standing firm, drew his sword, its blade ringing sharply.

Amid this, a scorching aura began to ripple across the peak.

Then came a crisp, brilliant sword light, roaring upward and stirring a storm of waves. 【Dao Jian Liu Se Xin】

Beneath the powerful sword qi, air rippled; the searing blade slashed horizontally.

As the sword path descended, the mountains trembled; the front row of charging evil seeds never even touched the blade's edge—they were shattered by the sheer force.

The sweeping sword qi then cut through countless corpse-seeds, their limbs flying everywhere.

Mu Jing had indeed sent a team to assist Ji You, but he had stationed them on the southern slope's perimeter, only to guard against escape.

Only when Ji You charged did they realize—he had chosen to become bait, drawing all the evil seeds together to prevent any from fleeing.

Even knowing Ji You's formidable strength, seeing the dark tide of evil seeds rush toward him still sent chills through them.

Only when the fiery blade swept across, the wind cutting like knives against their faces, did they grasp what the evil seeds on the southern slope faced…

"These evil seeds really have no distinguishing features."

"No clothes, their withered corpses all look the same—it's no wonder the Si Xian Jian can't confirm their origin. They're not slacking off."

After sheathing his sword, Ji You crouched before several corpse-seeds, searching desperately for anything indicating their origin—but was bitterly disappointed.

Nothing to prove their origin—even he couldn't confirm whether this batch shared the same source as the one in Shang Nanshan…

On the northern slope, the Si Xian Jian and Zhenbei Army squad were still fighting; once they cleared all evil seeds, they would exit the mountains to meet Ji You.

The Immortal Sect and aristocratic travelers had received no orders to eliminate the evil seeds, so they waited in the county town.

Seeing the teams go in and come out within less than an hour, their expressions turned astonished.

They knew the number of evil seeds in the mountains, knew how hard those iron-skinned demons were to kill—especially on the southern slope, with its complex terrain and dense population.

Their astonishment lay in how quickly they had cleared them all…

After the evil seeds in Shangping County were eradicated, the Si Xian Jian waited one more day.

This place was close to Qingzhou, where the Si Xian Jian's Enforcement Division handled evil seed elimination; Mu Jing had arranged to return to the capital with Enforcement Division Chief Wang Mian—but waited and waited, and no one came.

So he left several men to investigate toward Qingzhou, while the rest boarded carriages to return to Shengjing.

Also returning were the Immortal Sect disciples who had come to investigate the evil seed sites.

As Ji You had suspected, neither the Immortal Sects nor the aristocratic families had much interest in the evil seeds themselves, nor did they intend to dispatch powerful cultivators to suppress them.

Their reason for sending disciples to investigate was indeed because the dark clouds behind the evil seeds had shaken their nerves.

After investigation, all locations where evil seeds appeared were now clear; the major Immortal Sects and aristocratic families compiled their reports into a single map.

The chaos gradually took order, sparking countless discussions behind closed doors.

"According to the map, all evil seeds appear in wilderness areas—some near ruins, others in places with no trace of ruins at all. At least this proves they didn't escape from ruins, just like the earlier incident."

"You mean the evil seeds can leave the ruins and move about?"

"Correct. This has only occurred in the Qiling incident. Such a coincidence likely connects to something deeper—perhaps this isn't a natural disaster, but man-made."

"But we've tried many times before—the things inside the ruins simply cannot be taken out."

"That's precisely the most puzzling and unsettling thing…"

The ruins left by the Yi Clan have always been taboo in the Qingyun Realm, especially after the Qiling incident, when all major ruins were sealed off by immortal sects and aristocratic families, ostensibly to forbid entry.

Yet in truth, though everything grew calm after the death of the Zheng family's patriarch, certain immortal sects and aristocratic families never abandoned their research into the ruins.

But after years of study, they found nothing of value.

The power within the ruins is rejected by the outside world—anything taken out turns to ash, and those who consume such things can never emerge again.

Useless things, no matter how impressive, hold no value, so naturally no one dwells on them anymore.

Yet the sudden appearance of evil seeds inevitably recalls past events, making people wonder if there might be other patriarchs still lurking.

Some things are like this: on the surface, it's merely an evil seed causing havoc, but upon closer thought, it feels far from simple.

Likewise, people in teahouses and taverns are buzzing with speculation.

They don't possess any mapped charts, yet through constant rumors, they can roughly tell where new evil seeds have appeared.

This scene of commotion differs from before—previously, the excitement was orderly, but now the clamor feels chaotic.

At this moment, a carriage from the Si Xian Jian returned from the west and entered the city through the city gate.

When it reached the sacred path before the Tian Shu Academy, Ji You lifted the curtain and leapt down from the carriage's front beam.

Though he had only stayed in the Hall of the Sages for half a year, when including his time at the Tian Dao Hui, he had been away nearly a full year.

To cultivators, this span of seasons was fleeting as a white horse passing a crevice, yet Ji You still felt as if he'd been gone a long while.

Without any unruly disciples stealing silver, Master Cao must be suffering terribly, agonizing over how to spend his monthly stipend before it runs out.

And Long Xiandi, with his bulging money pouch tucked in his chest, must be enduring unbearable discomfort.

Thinking of the two of them made Ji You's heart ache, so he stepped onto the sacred path and headed toward the mountain gate.

In recent days, rumors had begun to circulate quietly that Ji You had left the Hall of the Sages.

But because the evil seed incident was so significant, this news was drowned out by the chatter—otherwise, people would surely have gathered before the Tian Shu Academy's gate, eager to see whether he truly remained at the Foundation Establishment realm after spending half a year in the Hall of the Sages.

Ji You now walked along the path beside the Ascension White Jade Terrace toward Cao Jingsong's courtyard and reached out to push open the gate.

To his surprise, the courtyard wasn't occupied by Cao Jingsong, but by Ding Ang, the instructor from the outer courtyard.

Ding Ang was sipping tea with Ma Zhiyuan, discussing the evil seed incident; upon seeing Ji You, he froze in place.

After a full year without meeting, encountering him again naturally caused a moment of disorientation.

"Ji You…?"

"It's me. Why are both of you instructors in Master Cao's courtyard?"

Ding Ang stared at him for a long while before snapping out of it: "Ah, Cao Jingsong has done well in cultivating disciples. Following academy orders, I've swapped my former courtyard for his."

Ji You glanced at Ding Ang: "So you've been moved into this courtyard?"

"Yes…"

"Master Cao is acting outrageously—this is outright theft disguised as official order."

Ji You frowned: "Ding Instructor, give me some silver. I'll go teach him a lesson."

Ding Ang and Ma Zhiyuan exchanged glances: "Ah, better not. We know exactly how you two operate."

Seeing Ding Ang refused to pay him to play the unruly disciple, Ji You didn't insist. He asked where Cao Jingsong was now and turned to leave.

Ding Ang and Ma Zhiyuan saw him off to the gate, watched his retreating figure, and after long thought, exchanged glances: "The rumors are true—Ji You is still at Foundation Establishment."

Ma Zhiyuan swallowed hard: "Why not test him?"

"I have no personal grudge against him."

"Isn't Cao Jingsong acting so arrogantly because of his unruly disciple?"

"True enough, but as an instructor, I have no reason to pick on a junior…"

Ma Zhiyuan glanced at Ding Ang, thinking: If you're afraid, just say it—no shame in that. Truthfully, he wasn't brave enough either.

Because nearly everyone in the Tian Shu Academy knew Ji You's cultivation had always been strange.

This strangeness likely stemmed from his body refinement method, allowing him to be invincible within his own realm and even fight opponents of higher realms.

Ding Ang and Ma Zhiyuan were both at the Upper Realm of Fusion Dao. Logically, crushing a Foundation Establishment cultivator should be effortless—but when that cultivator was Ji You, they felt anything but confident.

(End of Chapter)