Chapter 28

Normally, cultivators cannot directly utilize the spiritual power contained within magical artifacts. Even if the attributes are identical, the difference between a human’s primordial spirit and physical form and the medium of the artifact makes it difficult for a cultivator to absorb that power, even if it could be extracted. Furthermore, the power within an artifact is tightly bound to the object itself, making extraction a formidable task.

However, these were not problems here. In the secret vaults of the Thousand-Vehicle Sect, there are altars belonging to several Great Demon Lords. They possess different personalities and preferences, and thus, what they demand from people varies. Their areas of expertise differ, and the rewards they can bestow are not entirely the same.

For instance, the one before her. Among the many Great Demons, Ghost Gold was known to be somewhat fastidious. It might be two or three thousand years old, possessing profound knowledge, mastery of various arts, and a persistent, obsessive craving for the unknown—such as individuals with knowledge of obscure spells or those who have undergone extraordinary experiences; their memories could be offered to Ghost Gold as sacrifices. Some people sacrifice themselves, while others bring sacrificial offerings.

For example, the two demon cultivators who had just left clearly failed to present captives with any special memories, thus failing to pique the interest of the altar's master. Of course, the sacrifice does not necessarily have to be "human." Anything with sentience would suffice.

This altar was covered in secret incantations and inlaid with numerous magical arrays, all related to the control, conversion, and extraction of spiritual power. Extracting power from a celestial sword was not a difficult task at all. Moreover, the Great Demons possessed many mysterious and arcane powers. While righteous cultivators would label them as insidious and evil, Su Zhen had long ago realized that both sides simply had their own strengths. She only took what she needed; what did it matter how others judged her?

"You conscienceless beast!" the sword spirit shrieked, cursing. "I am your master's sword. You are ungrateful—"

As an artifact spirit, its intellect was not exactly mature, and it had no gender; its voice, neither male nor female, sounded somewhat coarse. Su Zhen had never liked it. During their first interaction, it had made no secret of its repulsion toward her, and she had merely assumed it was because she could not measure up to her master, causing the spirit to look down on her.

"The creator of Cold Fragrance buried the celestial sword in the Flower Language Plains, intending to use the subterranean spiritual veins to nurture a sword spirit. Centuries passed, and the spirit was indeed born, only to be devoured by you," she said unhurriedly. "If I were to ask you why you engage in cannibalism, you would likely claim it is the law of the jungle. Since that is the case—" Su Zhen curved her lips into a smile of grim satisfaction, "why do you accuse me? It cannot be that you are allowed to do it, but others are not."

The sword spirit was rendered speechless, yet unwilling to concede, it continued to curse, "You are, after all, practicing human cultivation techniques, walking the path of the orthodox schools. You simply cannot absorb my pow—"

Its voice came to an abrupt halt. Su Zhen looked up at it, her jade-green eyes brimming with light. That brilliant radiance filled her eyes and overflowed, spilling down her cheeks to weave patterns of emerald light, shaped like vines, across her delicate face. She slowly and deliberately raised her hand to remove the jade hairpin from behind her head, allowing her raven-black hair to cascade down like a waterfall. "Then let us try."

Before the words had faded, the red light enveloping the sword flared violently. The sword spirit's curses grew faint and weak as the light-locks binding the celestial sword filled with green light.

The core power within the celestial sword—the sap of the ten-thousand-year-old Fuyao Divine Tree and the essence of flora nurtured by spiritual veins over centuries—was being torn away. Part of it was taken from the blade, while part was forcibly extracted from the body of the sword spirit itself. These were the powers that allowed the remnant soul of the holy sword to linger and that enabled Cold Fragrance to be ranked among celestial artifacts.

Accumulated over a millennium, the spiritual energy was simply too much for the physical body and primordial spirit of a Spirit Transformation stage cultivator. But Ghost Gold did not care; that was how the Great Demons were. Once they gave their word, they fulfilled it. If you couldn't handle it and died, that was your own affair.

At this moment, like a massive tidal wave surging into a narrow stream, her body and spirit felt as though they were in pain, overflowing, and expanding to the point of near-rupture. The sensation was akin to being scorched by raging flames. She sank into an endless sea of fire, feeling the destructive heat engulf her, devouring and breaking down every inch of her flesh and bone.

For a cultivator at the Spirit Transformation stage, this action was effectively suicide. The physical body was one thing—it could be reshaped if destroyed—but if the primordial spirit were ruined, it would be the end. The lower the realm, the shorter the time one has had to cultivate a primordial spirit, making it all the more difficult to control the absorption of such vast external power. Higher-level cultivators could manage it, but for those above the Heavenly Immortal stage, the benefits of absorbing such power were already minimal.

Su Zhen knelt in the filthy altar.

Pain.

—This was her advantage.

Su Zhen thought in a daze. Any Golden Immortal stage cultivator could easily control their spirit to absorb such power, even if that spirit was currently only at the strength of the Spirit Transformation stage. She had to hold on. The information given to her by that book was fragmented and intermittent, with little of use. Her greatest advantage in this rebirth was, in fact, her experience as a Golden Immortal. If she were to follow the same old path as in her previous life, she would be nothing but a waste.

Su Zhen's resolve was firm. Even as she was tortured by the burning agony, she did not waver. Furthermore, that pain meant her primordial spirit was being tempered. After the Nascent Soul stage, almost all cultivation revolves around the spirit, and the process of tempering the spirit with spiritual power is normally a slow, accumulative one. Now that this process was compressed a thousandfold, it was naturally impossible for it to be comfortable.

On the inner wall of the altar, smeared with blood, a hideous face and a distorted, non-human silhouette were vaguely reflected. Su Zhen glanced at it once and dismissed it from her mind. She cast aside all distractions, focusing entirely on controlling her primordial spirit, ensuring it did not resist the spiritual energy while simultaneously preventing it from absorbing too much too quickly, maintaining a stable limit. She controlled the rate of absorption with precision; no matter the pain, she did not falter.

"..."

A long time later.

Su Zhen opened her hand, watching the green light pulse through her veins, then slowly curled her fingers shut. "My thanks to you. I wonder if the memories of this thing were to your taste?"

The sword spirit was silent. The massive black shadow suspended in mid-air remained motionless, its pair of eerie golden eyes fixed upon her. "Since there remains a wish, all that you seek is granted."

"Good," Su Zhen whispered.

This meant it was satisfied. It was not the first time Su Zhen had communicated with it, so she understood the implication. "Secondly... would you be willing to share its memories?"

"I will," it replied.

A series of chaotic, disordered images flooded her mind. Su Zhen could not help but press a hand to her forehead. The memories were fragmented, but she could discern a few glimpses of where the sword spirit had been. There were ancient battlefields filled with smoke and trembling spiritual pressure, the sound of roaring echoing across the horizon.

On the vast plains, corpses lay everywhere. Several figures flashed past, their faces blurred and unfamiliar. Those people stood on high ground, but the perspective of the memory kept falling—the two sides moving further and further apart. The people spoke to each other, their words dissipating in the wind; after a few sentences, they gradually dispersed. One of them transformed into an Azure Dragon soaring through the sky, its body as towering as a mountain, while another turned into a Phoenix rising to the nine heavens, its feathers as magnificent as flowing fire.

The others also departed one by one, leaving only a few scattered figures. The person in the center looked down from above, their expression as cold as if watching ants.

"..."

Su Zhen snapped back to reality. The dust around the altar had settled, the suspended skeletons had returned to their places, and the phantom of the Great Demon had vanished. The vast hall was deathly silent. She stood up from the altar, picked up the embroidered pouch at her feet, retrieved a new outer robe from her cosmos bag, and raised a hand to destroy the tattered remains of her previous clothing. She turned to walk down the steps, but suddenly paused.

A beam of green light descended from the sky.

Clang!

A sword fell to the ground. Su Zhen looked down at the discarded celestial sword. It still bore that delicate, exquisite appearance, though the luster surrounding the blade had faded significantly. Su Zhen blinked. "It seems you have had your fill."

After a brief, dead silence, a voice suddenly echoed through the quiet hall. "I have never seen a Spirit Transformation cultivator control their primordial spirit as you do. Do you possess the memories of another?"

Su Zhen gave a vague nod. "More or less."

The phantom on the altar earlier had been merely a manifestation of Ghost Gold’s thought-power. But the entity speaking to her now was its true self.

"...This is certainly no ordinary memory inheritance. How did you do it? If you are willing to offer up the process, I can personally guide your cultivation."

"I appreciate your kindness, but no."

"Why?" it asked, curious.

Su Zhen: "..."

Of course, because in her previous life, it had already guided her.

"You have yet to commune with the Holy Lord, so your knowledge is limited," it continued. "As far as I know, cultivators like you often find it difficult to advance once past the Golden Immortal stage."

Su Zhen: "That is not a concern for me at the moment."

"Is that so?" it countered. "No cultivator in the human realm has ever advanced two major realms in such a short time. Perhaps the Golden Immortal stage will not be too far off for you either."

Su Zhen was momentarily struck dumb. When she was a Heavenly Immortal, she had received the exact same remark from it. Now, having lived through it all again, everything was different, yet it had spoken the same words.

Su Zhen sighed and leaned down to pick up the celestial sword. "If I truly have need, I will return to ask for your assistance."

It seemed to accept this. "Then come to Mount Yusu to find me."

Su Zhen nodded. "Until we meet again."

With that, she hurried out of the hall. According to the few regulations within the sect, in theory, those seeking knowledge in the secret vault were under the protection of the Law Gods, and the Great Demons would not coerce them. However, they were Demons, after all; one could not rely too heavily on them following the rules. If Ghost Gold had forcibly examined her memories, it would have been categorized as an act of "seeking knowledge," making it a murky affair indeed. She had seen similar things in her previous life and knew not to expect logic from Demons—humans were the same, after all; they followed rules when it was advantageous and looked for loopholes when it was not.

"What is going on?" Several demon cultivators stood at the entrance, clearly having waited for a long time, their faces full of impatience. One of them complained, "I’ve come three times, and you’ve been inside every time."

Su Zhen calmly offered an apology. The man stared at her, too lazy to say more, and entered the hall with his companions. With a wave of his hand, he stirred up a gust of dark wind, and the hall doors slammed shut with a thunderous bang.

Su Zhen did not care in the slightest. At this moment, she felt happy and refreshed; even though she was surrounded by miasma, it did not affect her mood at all. Her cultivation was still far behind her previous life, but she had advanced a century faster! She had other plans in the works, and if they could all be carried out smoothly, perhaps it wouldn't be long before she regained her former strength.

And then—she could try to take things a step further. If there was one thing she regretted about her inexplicable death in her previous life, it was that she had never had the chance to explore the path of ascension and reach the boundaries of the Quasi-Saint stage. As for the "heroine" or the "celestial sword," they were of little importance by comparison.

Su Zhen was immersed in her joy when, after a while, she spotted a familiar figure. Beyond the hall lay an open-air corridor bridge, where purple-red miasma churned like a sea. Clouds of fog swirled on either side of the bridge but did not gather in the center. She saw a figure sitting on the railing, facing the vast void. Sickle-winged demons circled overhead, but none dared to ambush him.

Su Zhen watched for a moment, then appeared beside him. "Senior, why are you here?"

Xiao Yu sat with a leisurely posture, though his expression was slightly tense. "I figured you’d be enjoying the joy of leveling up when you came out and wouldn't want to see me, so I just sat further away."

Su Zhen: "?"

He turned his head, looking at her with those captivating blue eyes. "So, should I congratulate you on your advancement now?"

Su Zhen: "...Thank you." Although the phrasing was a bit strange.

Su Zhen pressed her elbows against the railing. "Senior, do you know how long I’ve been inside?"

"The Demon Realm is unstable..." Xiao Yu pulled out a sundial inlaid with a magical array. "Two hundred and thirty-one days have passed in the human realm. Do you need it to the exact hour?"

Su Zhen pressed her hand to her forehead. It hadn't exceeded her expectations.

"Senior, have you been waiting for me here the whole time?"

Xiao Yu was noncommittal. "I wouldn't say that. I wandered around within a ten-mile radius—"

Su Zhen: "?" That meant he had been waiting!

Xiao Yu pulled a book from his sleeve. "I brought many storybooks to pass the time. It’s no big deal, just over half a year. I’ve endured two thousand years before."

Su Zhen: "???" Was that even the same thing?

Su Zhen felt quite complicated. In her centuries of memory, whether she was in seclusion or out adventuring, she had never been waited for like this. Sometimes, when she emerged from seclusion, she would be summoned by her master, but that was always for instructions, and even Immortal Venerable Yuchen would not have waited at her door. Even friends and family would not wait outside; after all, everyone had their own affairs. Thus, looking back on her life, she had never once seen someone waiting expectantly to meet her upon emerging from seclusion... unless they needed her help.

Su Zhen blinked. "Senior, do you need something from me?"

Xiao Yu actually nodded. Su Zhen’s heart sank. "What is it?"

"In less than a year, you’ve skipped two levels and entered the Upper Seven Realms. It’s safe to say that’s unprecedented," Xiao Yu leaped nimbly off the railing and stood before her, speaking with great enthusiasm. "Now that you are truly an Immortal, shall we go out and celebrate with a meal?"

Su Zhen: "..." She had been a fool. What else could this guy want?

"Don't look so serious," the man beside her sighed. "If you don't want to eat, we won't. I was just suggesting it."

Su Zhen shook her head. "Not now. I have other things to do. When I’m finished, I’ll treat you, Senior. But for now, I need to go get a replacement gift for my uncle."

Xiao Yu didn't ask further. "Shall I take you back to Qiongdu?"

Before Su Zhen could answer, two figures flew in from the distance and landed at the other end of the corridor bridge. They were neatly dressed in luxurious fabrics, wearing sachets and pendants at their waists, sporting several rings on their fingers, and the spiritual pressure around them hinted at extraordinary cultivation. The Thousand-Vehicle Sect’s secret vault was not a safe place, so Su Zhen had not relaxed for a moment and had noticed them early on. She could see they were both at the Profound Immortal stage. Normally, cultivators of this level would not be so careless in the secret vault, as their abilities were neither here nor there, and they had to be on guard everywhere.

But there were too many abnormal people here.

Su Zhen paused. She sensed a fluctuation in one of their spiritual pressures—a likely sign of an impending attack. Su Zhen turned her head. Xiao Yu looked at her, unsure. Su Zhen gave a helpless nod.

The two demon cultivators suddenly began to convulse! In an instant, their physical bodies were pulverized by a massive burst of spiritual power, not even leaving behind scraps of flesh or bone; they vanished into thin air in a heartbeat. Two golden orbs of primordial spirit appeared in mid-air, seemingly attempting to flee, but they were snatched by an invisible force and tossed directly before Su Zhen.

Su Zhen relaxed. "Senior, you are quite experienced." He knew their physical bodies had to be completely destroyed; otherwise, they could quickly recover using even a fraction of their remains.

Xiao Yu glanced at the primordial spirits on the ground. "The one on the left wanted to test your cultivation. If he could capture you, he intended to take you back as food for a demon he owes a large debt to. The one on the right was curious about the sword in your hand and wanted to snatch it for fun."

The two struggling, twisting orbs of golden light went completely rigid.

"So, are these two of any use?"

"Hm?" Su Zhen didn't recognize them and figured they should be dead three or four hundred years later. "No..."

The two orbs of golden light exploded, turning into dots of light that drifted across the sky and soon vanished into the miasma outside the corridor bridge. Xiao Yu stood motionless, his spiritual pressure unchanged. "Continue what you were saying."

Su Zhen watched the points of light annihilate in the sky. "You are quite impatient, Senior."

"It’s not that I’m impatient," Xiao Yu blurted out. "It’s just rare that I get to do something for you, even if you could have handled them easily yourself."

"Hmm, but it would have taken time. Besides, you’ve helped me several times already, Senior." Su Zhen smiled. "Did that man want this sword? Couldn't he see it was already broken?"

She was still holding Cold Fragrance. The light-green blade, which had once been veiled in a hazy mist of light, now had all its luster faded, appearing incredibly dim. Anything above the level of a spiritual weapon—even without spiritual power injected and even in an unowned state—would naturally radiate light. This signified the presence of at least one attribute of essence power and an artifact spirit. Anyone with a discerning eye seeing such a lightless artifact would know it was either not even a spiritual weapon or that it had been destroyed.

"She thought you were deliberately masking the sword's light for some reason, fearing it would attract attention," Xiao Yu said, looking down. "However..."

Su Zhen nodded slightly. "It can still be saved." The portion that had belonged to the holy sword was completely devoured, but the original sword spirit had been stripped away and remained within the blade, though it was now very weak. If she found some heavenly treasures to nourish it for a while, it would certainly recover the power befitting a celestial artifact. However, even if this sword fell back into Liu Yunyao's hands, she would no longer be able to use it to sense the locations of the other sword spirits.

Su Zhen moved her hand on the hilt and tucked Cold Fragrance away. "Have you ever been to Huanhua Prefecture, Senior?"

Xiao Yu replied without hesitation, "Of course, that is—"

Su Zhen: "?"

Xiao Yu coughed lightly. "That is a very famous place."

Su Zhen looked at him, half-believing. People often said the human realm had five regions and fourteen prefectures. Although mentioned together, the five regions were far more vast than the fourteen prefectures. The fourteen prefectures combined might not even be larger than the Central Region, not to mention the density of spiritual energy, the distribution of ley lines, and the number of treasure caves and blessed lands. While each had spiritual veins and specialties, they could not compare to the five regions. The most spiritual immortal mountains in the fourteen prefectures would, at best, be considered second-rate sects if placed in the Central, Eastern, or Southern regions. In terms of resources, Huanhua Prefecture barely ranked in the middle of the fourteen, but that was all. If one were an alchemist, they might need to go to Huanhua to purchase spiritual herbs, but other cultivators would likely only go there to find the boundary gate to the Demon Realm.

Su Zhen: "What were you doing there, Senior?"

Xiao Yu: "Sightseeing?"

Su Zhen was puzzled. "In your era, did Huanhua Prefecture have any famous scenic spots?"

Xiao Yu raised a hand to his chest. "Could you stop saying things that cut so deep? What do you mean, 'my era'? I’m only... one thousand... one or two thousand years older than you."

Su Zhen looked at him helplessly. Xiao Yu sighed. "Fine, it’s just that I had some free time and was wandering around."

Su Zhen reluctantly accepted this answer. "Then you must have been to Qiongdu, Senior?"

Xiao Yu nodded decisively. Then, as he reached out, he hesitated for a moment before his fingertips lightly brushed her shoulder. The movement appeared casual but was extremely precise, touching only the thin fabric of her outer robe without even grazing her skin. He withdrew immediately.

The towering palaces, corridor bridges, and churning purple-red miasma of the Thousand-Vehicle Sect’s secret vault—as well as the suddenly blood-red sky—vanished in an instant. Xiao Yu raised his hand.

The two stood in a dimly lit alley, with a bustling street not far away. The street was lined with shops, signs of various lengths hanging out, and buildings of varying heights. Bamboo blinds rolled, and the scents of medicine, wine, and food drifted out, floating away on the breeze amidst the faint sounds of hawking—a scene full of the flavor of life.

The Central Region held the human realm's greatest immortal city, Tiandu, but it was not the only one. The immortal city in Huanhua Prefecture was named Qiongdu, and its scale was much smaller. But as a city, it had its streets and markets and thousands of households. Unlike mortal towns, there were basically no mortals here; even those with the lowest cultivation were at the Body Tempering stage of absorbing energy. Thus, the population was not large; many rogue cultivators had property here, and the prominent sects within the prefecture all had their own residences here, keeping people stationed to guard them.

This city had originally been built with the efforts of Su Zhen's ancestors. As a child, Su Zhen had often played in Qiongdu. Later, after becoming an apprentice and returning to Huanhua, she would always stop by. Later, when her cultivation grew higher and the Su family declined, she stopped returning to Huanhua and often ran to the Demon Realm instead—though it was just a thought away, she couldn't be bothered to return.

"Thank you, Senior. If I had come myself, it would have taken much—" Su Zhen said as she turned back.

Xiao Yu was staring at his hand in a daze.

Su Zhen: "??" What was wrong with this person again?

"Oh, it was a small matter, no need to thank me." Xiao Yu quickly regained his composure. "It’s just that coming from over there, one array isn't enough, because here—"

"There is a barrier here. Normal cultivators must enter through the city gate and sometimes even register their identities."

Su Zhen nodded. "I know. You don't need to explain, Senior. I don't mind you touching me."

"Before, your senior brother and junior sister—"

"Because I despise them deeply, I don't want to be touched by them."

"Oh."

"Fortunately, you aren't foolish enough to ask if I despise you, Senior."

"Ahem. While I may not be particularly clever, I'm not that foolish."

Su Zhen gave him a sidelong glance. Xiao Yu blinked. "I really have done many foolish things and said many foolish words, haven't I?"

Su Zhen was silent for a moment. "How should I say this without hurting your feelings, Senior?"

Xiao Yu held his chest again, his voice melancholy. "You’ve already hurt me."

Su Zhen rolled her eyes at him.