Day of Ascension

The Zhou clan members sank into grief. The pillar of their clan had fallen; it was like a tree that propped up the heavens had collapsed.

Xu Ying didn’t leave. He paid his respects to this pioneer in silence. He didn’t know whether he felt grief or liberation. With Zhou Qiyun dead, the shadow looming over him had disappeared.

The person who once held Xu Ying’s fate in his hand, the one he could never escape, had disappeared from the world.

Through his confrontations with Zhou Qiyun, Xu Ying had grown immensely and learned a lot. He had come a step closer to the truth of this world.

Zhou Qiyun wasn’t a good person. His clan had made the people of Yongzhou and the surrounding regions suffer. They lived in misery, and countless people had been driven to their deaths by exorbitant taxes.

The Zhou clan had tormented Xu Ying since he was a child. He hated people like them the most.

He felt no goodwill toward the entire Zhou clan.

However, Zhou Qiyun was a very charismatic figure. Their relationship resembled that of a mentor and a friend. Xu Ying had served as Zhou Qiyun’s teacher and taught him two great immortal arts of the Qi Cultivator path. Zhou Qiyun had also served as Xu Ying’s teacher, showing him how to survive in this world.

Now that this mentor and friend was gone, Xu Ying felt empty inside.

“Xu Ying, the old ancestor left a letter for you before he underwent his tribulation.” The potbellied prefect of Yongzhou, Zhou Heng, walked over with difficulty and handed a letter to Xu Ying.

“He told me to deliver this letter to Mount Wu Wang personally if he were to meet with misfortune.”

Zhou Heng’s expression darkened. “Since you’re here, I won’t be going. When the tree falls, the monkeys scatter. Heh, now that my clan’s greatest backer is gone, we’re nothing but monkeys. If we flee now, at least some of our descendants might survive. If we don’t flee, I’m afraid our entire clan will be wiped out.”

Xu Ying accepted the letter and asked in confusion, “Why do you say that, Prefect Zhou?”

Completely spiritless, Zhou Heng explained, “Our clan could abuse our powers because we served the invincible Exorcist Immortal Zhou. Precisely because of that, we’ve made countless enemies.

“Though the clan had squandered a vast amount of wealth for this tribulation, our foundations remain. We still possess immense riches. No one had ever considered what we would do if the old ancestor fell. Now, we have no choice but to think about it.”

Without the invincible Zhou Qiyun, having such vast riches was no longer a blessing. All his enemies and political rivals would come after their clan. Even those without a grudge would kick them while they were down.

Only by fleeing before news of Zhou Qiyun spread did they have any hope of preserving part of the Zhou clan’s bloodline and preventing the clan's annihilation.

Xu Ying thought momentarily. “Take care of yourself.”

Zhou Heng waved his hand and leaped off the cliff. A fat golden-winged roc appeared behind him, gripped his shoulders, and soared away.

The other descendants of the Zhou clan also used various divine abilities to flee.

Before long, Xu Ying alone remained on Mount Jiuyi.

Yuanqi slid down from Xu Ying’s shoulder and revealed his true form. “Ah Ying, what did the white-browed ancestor say in his letter?”

Xu Ying unfolded it. The first sentence was as familiar as ever: to read this letter was as good as meeting in person, followed by pleasantries, seeming both fake yet sincere.

In the letter, he had written that he had made thorough preparations to face this tribulation. However, as long as one was human, one would overlook something and make a mistake.

He had always hoped to break free from the shackles of humanity and reach a realm beyond mortals, using absolute rationality to scrutinize every judgment. Yet, he never managed to do it. Traces of humanity always remained.

There were times when he failed to think things through, times when he softened at the sight of an ant’s suffering, and times when he rejoiced over the slightest insight. He admired talented youths, yet he also felt jealous of those who were smarter than he was.

A person like that was bound to make mistakes.

On the eve of his tribulation, he picked up the brush to pen this letter. A sudden sense of unease and lingering anxiety came over him. After thinking things through, the source was likely from the Mud Pill Palace Master.

Xu Ying composed himself and continued.

Zhou Qiyun wrote that eliminating the Mud Pill Palace Master had gone far too smoothly. What if everything had merely been part of the Mud Pill Palace Master’s plan? What if the one he had killed was not the real Mud Pill Palace Master?

He was only a snake catcher who had lived for over three hundred years, while the other party might have lived for an unimaginably long time.

During the three thousand years since the rise of Exorcists, there might have been countless people like him whom the Mud Pill Palace Master had devoured.

Perhaps he had many senior brothers and sisters who had also inherited the Mud Pill Palace Master’s legacy, only to become delicacies for him.

The Mud Pill Palace Master’s status was unknown. Meanwhile, it was already too late for him to make further preparations to deal with an unseen enemy.

“If I truly died, then there is only one possibility: the Mud Pill Palace Master is still alive, like I had expected. If that is true, I would already be dead by the time you see this letter.”

“Ha, ha. But if none of that happens, this letter would never have fallen into your hands, as I would have destroyed it before ascending. That way, I would preserve my reputation for having flawless calculation. So, if you see this, I am already dead.

“Before I die, I should kill you. You’ve killed many of my clan members. They are all my descendants. But at the same time, you are extremely clever. Your wisdom surpasses mine. You’re also younger than I am, with more possibilities ahead. All of this makes me jealous of you. I should kill you.

“But I can’t.”

He wrote at great length, as though confiding in a close friend who truly understood him.

“The Mud Pill Palace Master likely ate me. No one in the Zhou clan can avenge me. After my death, the clan will fall apart. They abused their power because I protected them. From now on, they must pay for everything they have done.

“They will conceal their identities, live hiding in fear, and most of them will die. Perhaps not even one in ten, or one in a hundred, will survive. I have no descendants left, only a friend. I cannot kill him.

“I have one selfish favor to ask. I hope Mister Xu will avenge me. Yet I am a proud man. I do not wish to bow my head to you.”

On the final sheet, Zhou Qiyun wrote that he knew Xu Ying had never learned any exorcism arts and could not fully harness the power of the Mud-Pill Secret Trove. As a result, he couldn’t unify the Secret Trove, the Radiant Vestige, and the ethereal void.

So, he left the Mud Pill Palace Master’s cultivation techniques in the Truth-Seeking Supreme Void Grotto Heaven’s Demon Suppression Hall.

Aside from the Mud Pill Palace Master’s original cultivation techniques, he had also left his own insights into ascension cultivation techniques, which he had developed by combining the strengths of the Exorcist and Qi Cultivator paths.

“I know you will definitely go look at them. I also know you can’t resist the urge to flip through the Mud Pill Palace Master’s original cultivation techniques. And once you’ve seen it, you can’t resist practicing it.

“The moment you practice it, you will experience a strange sensation: a pair of eyes opening in the darkness, silently staring at your back. That was what I felt when I first practiced his original cultivation techniques.

“Doing so will put you into danger, but you must do it anyway, as all exorcism arts are traps.

“I have searched across the Radiant Vestige lands of sublimations of past Exorcist Immortals and have never met a living one; that is the proof. Every Exorcist Immortal, upon reaching old age, retreats into their lands of sublimation to await the calamity that inevitably befalls them. To the ancient Qi Cultivators, they are nothing more than supreme ascension elixirs.”

“The ancient history of cultivation is filled with tales of deep affection between master and student. Yet beneath the surface, it is a history of cannibalism.

“If you wish to harness the power of the Secret Troves and achieve unification, you must cultivate the Mud Pill Palace Master’s original cultivation technique. After reaching its pinnacle, if you cannot defeat him, then consider it my final scheme to kill you and avenge the Zhou clan. If you prevail, then I will have avenged myself through your hands.”

“Mister Xu, will you practice it? I cannot help but be torn by anxiety.

“With deep bows, Qiyun.”

Xu Ying folded the letter, put it away, and exhaled a breath of stale air.

He murmured, “As expected of you.”

Yuanqi asked cautiously, “Ah Ying, will you practice it?”

Dazhong also grew tense involuntarily. “Ah Ying, this is a trap! I’m afraid not even a single Exorcist Immortal over the past three thousand years has survived! All of them died in their own Radiant Vestige land of sublimation!”

***

Inside the Demon Suppression Hall, Truth-Seeking Supreme Void Grotto Heaven.

Xu Ying stood quietly before the shrine. A thick stack of records lay upon it. Beneath them were Zhou Qiyun’s insights into dual cultivation of Qi Cultivation and Exorcism, along with his methods for combining exorcism arts with Qi cultivation techniques. They also contained much of his experience as a pioneer.

These records were the greatest treasure of his life. Their value surpassed even his dual cultivation technique.

The scripture placed at the very top was the Mud Pill Palace Master’s original cultivation technique, the one he used for fishing.

On its cover was a line of characters. It was the name of the cultivation technique.

Mud-Pill Radiant Vestige Longevity Mantra.

It was as though the white-browed youth stood on the other side of the shrine, looking at him with a faint smile. His eyes carried wisdom that seemed to see through everything.

“Mister Xu, will you practice it? I cannot help but be torn by anxiety.” He told Xu Ying with a smile. His voice, expression, and demeanor were so clear and so real.

Thump, thump!

Thump, thump!

Xu Ying could hear his own heartbeat and breathing. He was nervous. Facing such a life-changing decision, he could not stay calm.

Yuanqi approached, declaring loudly, “I’ll destroy these harmful books! Ah Ying, practicing the way of the Qi can also grant immortality. We don’t need to unlock Secret Troves or whatever. We can simply be pure Qi Cultivators!”

Dazhong chimed in, “Right! Exactly! Though that stupid snake only knows how to read, he’s completely right. Since all exorcism arts are harmful, why even practice them? Can’t Qi Cultivation grant immortality?”

Xu Ying held his hand out to stop them. He said softly, “If one cannot live boldly according to their own convictions, then what difference is there between them and dirt?”

He reached out with his other hand and opened the first page of the Mud-Pill Radiant Vestige Longevity Mantra.

The words entered his sight.

The student asked: Can one achieve immortality upon reaching nine revolutions of the Mud-Pill Secret Trove?

The immoral master replied: Through nine revolutions of the Mud Pill, one can achieve immortality. If one consumes the qi of heaven and earth, one can plunder the sea of primordial chaos. Harvest the qi of the Mud Pill Palace and draw upon the elixir of immortality.

......

As Xu Ying read word by word, the vigor within his Mud-Pill Secret Trove’s grotto heaven circulated involuntarily, drawing upon the “elixir of immortality” within the sea of primordial chaos.

The “elixir of immortality” was the vigor of the human body!

As it flowed into him, Xu Ying felt an endless stream of vigor refining both his physique and his soul. They grew stronger at a noticeable pace.

He simultaneously felt boundless darkness sweep over him and engulf him.

Within the darkness behind him, a pair of eyes slowly opened. They stared at him silently. His hair stood on end as a chill crept through him.

Xu Ying thought, I’ve been marked.

When he circulated and practiced the Mud-Pill Radiant Vestige Longevity Mantra, a mark of prey was branded on him.

While you stare at me, I am also staring back at you.

Xu Ying smiled and said to the illusion of the non-existent Zhou Qiyun, “Please go in peace, Senior Brother Zhou. I am stronger and smarter than you. I will avenge you.”

The Zhou Qiyun before his eyes vanished from sight, leaving only the books on the shrine.