Day of Ascension

Zhou Qiyun’s expression softened. “I came to see if you’ve been slacking off. Very good. You’ve taken my matter to heart.”

Xu Ying bowed slightly. “When entrusted with a task, one must carry it out faithfully. How could I dare slack off?”

“It’d be even better if you’re not all talk.”

Xu Ying flushed slightly in embarrassment. Over the past few days, he had spent his time fooling around WITH Yuan Weiyang, Guo Xiaodie, and the others. He had even met Feng Xian’er in secret. Where would he find the time to decipher Granny Tuo Immortal Book?

Zhou Qiyun said that as a warning, to keep him from idling. “I’ve taught a lesson to that frowning old man. He’s unlikely to trouble you again anytime soon. I came to tell you about this.”

Xu Ying looked over in surprise. A moment later, he said, “Old Ancestor Zhou, are you still the same snake catcher from Yongzhou back then?”

Zhou Qiyun met his gaze and said indifferently, “Not at all. Don’t get the wrong idea. I don’t think of you as a kindred spirit. You’re merely useful to me.”

He turned around to leave. “Don’t keep me waiting.”

Xu Ying smiled. “With respect, I see you off, Old Ancestor Zhou.”

After Zhou Qiyun left, Xu Ying focused and picked up a brush to decipher the Granny Tuo Immortal Book word by word seriously. Soon, Yuan Weiyang arrived. Seeing what he was doing, she joined him.

A little while later, Guo Xiaodie peeked in. Seeing the two busying themselves with deciphering the immortal book, she waited by the side. Before long, she grew restless.

She came to Yuan Weiyang’s side and watched her write, praising inwardly, Brother Weiyang’s writing is truly elegant.

Then, she moved over to Xu Ying’s side and thought, What’s with this handwriting? It’s like worms crawling.

Using only two days, Xu Ying and Yuan Weiyang finished deciphering the rest of the Granny Tuo Immortal Book.

Yuan Weiyang said, “Once we hand over this book, we might breathe our last.”

Xu Ying looked at the Granny Tuo Immortal Book and pondered for a moment. “Not necessarily. Zhou Qiyun already knows that this book is incomplete. Forcibly practicing it would only turn him into a woman. Someone as proud as him, with such a strong desire for control, would never allow a cultivation technique to dictate his fate.”

Yuan Weiyang approached him. “Demon King Xu, do you mean...?”

His eyes flickering, he picked up a brush and wrote three characters on a piece of paper.

Xu Ying looked and nodded lightly.

Guo Xiaodie, Yuanqi, and Dazhong also came closer to look, only to see that Yuan Weiyang had written “Zhou Qiyun” on the paper.

They wanted to laugh, but didn’t dare. Seeing this, Uncle Xiao approached as well to take a look. He couldn’t help but smile.

“Young Master, Zhou Qiyun’s name isn’t written like that...”

Immediately, he came to a realization and burst into laughter. “Isn’t this a woman’s name—”

He came to another realization, kept a straight face, and hurriedly shut his mouth. Cold sweat broke out on his forehead. If Sister Zhou were here, I’d be annihilated.

Xu Ying said, “He intends to complete the Granny Tuo Immortal Book and break free from its constraints. He’s confident he can do it. After spending so much time with him, we all know he’s extremely proud and self-assured. So, he’ll definitely practice the method in the book!”

The crowd was shocked and horrified, finding it hard to believe.

Although the Granny Tuo Immortal Book had a top-tier Qi cultivation technique, it had a fatal flaw: it lacked an explanation for yang. It could make a female practitioner more beautiful, and turn a male practitioner into a female.

How could someone as proud as Zhou Qiyun tolerate that?

Xu Ying’s eyes flickered as he speculated, “He’s already practiced it. Moreover, he’s sensed his primordial Yang gradually fading, and his body has begun to change. However, he’s the Zhou clan’s old ancestor, after all. As an Exorcist Immortal who unlocked his Mud-Pill Secret Trove to the ninth heaven, he can control his vigor and alter his body structure at will.”

Although Yuan Weiyang had not practiced the method in Granny Tuo Immortal Book, her insight into this cultivation technique was extremely profound.

She furrowed her brow. “Even if he alters his body into that of a man, he can’t change his supreme Yin constitution. After all, the supreme Yin true primordial produced by the Granny Tuo Immortal Book remains unchanged.”

Xu Ying smiled. “That’s where our chance of survival lies.”

Yuan Weiyang immediately understood. “When he realizes he can’t solve the problem himself, he’ll come to us for help.”

Xu Ying said, “Someone as cautious as him, with schemes and calculations beyond comparison, will definitely keep us alive as insurance against future problems.”

The two exchanged a knowing smile.

Watching them discuss a life-or-death matter and finishing each other’s sentences, Guo Xiaodie felt both admiration and bitterness. They are so close that I feel like I’m an extra here. But they’re both very outstanding. Demon King Xu is not bad either; he’s quite charming.

Xu Ying and Yuan Weiyang handed over their deciphered versions of Granny Tuo Immortal Book one after another. Half a day passed. When Zhou Qiyun showed no sign of coming to kill them, they finally relaxed and breathed sighs of relief.

They headed to the Truth-Seeking Supreme Void Grotto Heaven to cultivate inside.

The group didn’t stop at that isolated cliff. They descended the mountain, sitting on Yuanqi’s forehead as he slithered, carrying them to explore the grotto heaven. Before they knew it, they arrived beneath that rosy light of ascension.

Xu Ying said, “After drinking that tea, I vaguely heard the frowning elder mention something. He said this isn’t the rosy light of ascension. A Qi Cultivator attempted to undergo a tribulation here and was blasted apart. Their physical body and Primordial Spirit were reduced to dust, forming this rosy light.”

The crowd was horrified by what they heard.

He added, “People mistook it for the rosy light of ascension, and thus many Qi Cultivators came here, competing to undergo their tribulation. They all died in this grotto heaven.”

Guo Xiaodie asked, “Demon King Xu, what tea did that frowning old man make you drink?”

Xu Ying paused briefly. “I’ve seen the Meng Po Soup on the Bridge of Oblivion before. The tea he gave me was almost the same color.”

Everyone was startled.

Uncle Xiao exclaimed in shock, “That’s impossible! If you had drunk that, you would have forgotten both your past and present lives. What you drank can’t have been Meng Po Soup!”

Xu Ying nodded in agreement. “I think so too. Still, the tea was strange. The moment I drank it, it felt like it hit me straight. The more I drank, the worse the aftereffects became. My head felt like it was splitting apart. But the taste is excellent. It left a sweet aftertaste, soothed my throat, and made my mouth water.”

Dazhong suddenly said, “Ah Ying, if that pot of tea you drank was truly Meng Po Soul, then the condition of your soul can’t be explained by a dozen Myriad-Spirit Pills.”

Xu Ying looked at him in confusion.

Dazhong explained, “Even though the Myriad Spirit Pills are powerful and nourish the soul, they cannot resist the Meng Po Soup. The fact that you retained your memories after drinking it definitely isn't because of the pills.”

Guo Xiaodie laughed. “So, what Demon King Xu drank was definitely not Meng Po Soup! I am somewhat of a tea connoisseur myself. Bring me along the next time he invites you. I would love to freeload a cup and sample it.”

Xu Ying readily agreed to her request.

While they cultivated, they continued admiring the scenery of this grotto heaven. Carrying them, Yuanqi slithered onto the back of an enormous primordial beast, weaving through the mountain peaks that rose from its back.

Though huge himself, Yuanqi was insignificant compared to the beast. It didn’t even bother with them.

Yuanqi slithered to the top of that beast’s head. There was a mountain there, along with several half-collapsed ancient houses. Fortunately, a pavilion remained intact.

They tidied it up and sat down in the pavilion.

Ancient Qi Cultivators likely built the houses thousands of years ago. With the passing of time, they have become legends, and their traces have vanished in the river of time.

Surprisingly, the enormous beasts remained. They were the true masters of the grotto heaven, still wandering leisurely within the Supreme Void Grotto Heaven.

Guo Xiaodie fetched some tea wares and brewed tea. She smiled. “Have a taste of this tribute tea I brought from the palace. It might not be any worse than the Meng Po Soup.”

Everyone took their seats. Even Yuanqi shrank into a relatively small, strange snake and coiled on a stone bench, waiting to drink tea.

While waiting, Xu Ying recounted the events of that night. He omitted the parts about Guo Xiaodie visiting his room and Feng Xian’er having seen him three thousand years ago.

“Xiao Fengxian said that she witnessed heaven and earth shifting. Everything twisted and spun before she fell into darkness and lost consciousness. When she woke up, three thousand years had already passed.”

He added, “This matter keeps nagging at me. It feels strange. Who sealed the world three thousand years ago? Who possessed such immense power? This time, the Hell River invaded, followed by the underworld. So many new lands appeared out of thin air on both banks of Hell River. Could these new lands be the world sealed back then?”

Yuan Weiyang also noticed the strangeness. “Demon King Xu, I’ve been wondering whether the great sealing of heaven and earth that Feng Xian’er mentioned caused the extinction of the Qi Cultivators.”

Her remark brought them a revelation. No matter if it was Xu Ying, Dazhong, or Yuanqi, they had all overlooked this point.

The decline of the Qi Cultivators had begun in an even more ancient era, but their extinction was most likely connected to the great sealing of heaven and earth!

Dazhong said, “After that great sealing, my master vanished without a trace. I haven’t sensed his aura once in the past three thousand years. If that’s the case, he might have been sealed away as well. We’ll surely meet again! Ah Ying, when that day comes, I’ll show you what a true genius looks like!”

Xu Ying burst out laughing and flattered him, “Master Zhong’s master must be exceptionally formidable. There’s no way I can match him.”

Dazhong, however, felt a little guilty, thinking, My master’s talent might actually be a tad worse than his. Just a tad though..

Guo Xiaodie poured tea for them and smiled. “If all the Qi Cultivators were sealed away three thousand years ago, then with the emergence of the new lands, wouldn’t these ancient Qi Cultivators return?”

Everyone froze upon hearing this.

Xu Ying rose to his feet, holding his teacup, and gazed out at the vast world of the Supreme Void Grotto Heaven. He muttered, “Are they really still alive?”

If the ancient Qi Cultivators were sealed away together with heaven and earth, would the structure of the world change along with their return?

What would happen to the noble clans, the imperial authority that ruled the world, and the divine authority that governed the underworld?

Dazhong let out a resonant toll and said solemnly, “If the Qi Cultivators were indeed sealed away, that would explain their disappearance. They were the masters of that era. What happens when the new masters encounter the return of the old?”

Holding her teacup with both hands, Yuan Weiyang took a sip and said calmly, “What’s even more terrifying is this: who sealed the ancient world, and who released it?”

Guo Xiaodie tugged at her bodice to fan herself. She drained her tea in one gulp, found it unsatisfying, then grabbed the teapot and drank directly from it.

Wiping her lips, she lifted her skirt and planted one foot on the table and shouted, “There must be a huge conspiracy behind this!”

As for what that conspiracy was, she had no idea.

Yuanqi nodded repeatedly. He sipped his tea with refined composure and said politely, “The person muddying the waters from behind the scenes is the most terrifying. I suspect that all of this is...”

He paused for a moment and whispered, “A conspiracy by humans against the ancient Qi Cultivators of our demon race! While the Qi Cultivators were sealed away, humans erased our history.

“They enslaved and discriminated against us until Demon King Xu appeared from nowhere, broke through the Qi-Gathering Stage, and boldly knocked on the gates of cultivation. He led our demon race onto the path of resisting humanity’s tyrannical rule.”

He suddenly shut his mouth at this point, only to see Guo Xiaodie, Yuan Weiyang, Uncle Xiao, and Xu Ying looking at him with strange expressions.

Yuanqi let out a dry cough, then continued sipping his tea as if nothing had happened. He muttered under his breath, “One day, the truth will come to light.”

Everyone looked at him again, baffled.

Yuanqi cleared his throat, sat upright, and focused his gaze on himself. He whispered under his breath, “Justice will never be late. It will only be absent. Sooner or later, one day...”

The crowd paid no mind to the snake demon’s mutterings. They cultivated as they leisurely enjoyed tea, talking and laughing.

Guo Xiaodie had never refined qi before, but was now practicing the Granny Tuo Immortal Book. Her cultivation progressed rapidly.

Meanwhile, Xu Ying and Yuan Weiyang worked together to see whether they could help Yuanqi unlock his Mud-Pill Secret Trove, and the two argued fiercely over whether a person could unlock only one Secret Trove.

As for Yuanqi, he was siphoning Xu Ying’s Dao seeds while being researched on.

Dazhong and Uncle Xiao were both slacking off. One hovered above Xu Ying’s Dao field, waiting for Dao seeds to fall so he could siphon them. The other leisurely sipped tea while admiring the sunset.

Before they knew it, it was evening. Two suns remained hanging over the western mountain. Only then did they make their way toward the other cliff of Mount Jiuyi.

Xu Ying suddenly recalled the elder with a walking stick who had warned them about the night before. He smiled. “Do you still remember that kind-hearted old man? He warned us to be wary of the malevolent ghost Qi Cultivators here at night!”

The crowd remembered and sighed emotionally. “Such a kind-hearted soul!”

Yuanqi said, “We’ve faced countless dangers, and while we feared ghosts, they have never harmed us. Instead, the human heart is what’s truly treacherous.”

Dazhong smiled. “Have you forgotten about the little ghosts absorbing your Yang qi and extinguishing your Yang flame?”

Xu Ying asked, “Master Zhong, how much of your injuries have healed?”

“Ten percent!” Dazhong answered happily.

***

Meanwhile, inside the Demon Suppression Hall, the elder with a walking stick sat atop a shrine. His stick was set aside. He stared at the vat, his eyes flickering.

He chuckled. “Those brats are back, as I expected.”

With a fierce gaze, he stood up. “Today, I shall eat them all by myself!”