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If there are no top-level cultivators to guard, who will maintain the sect’s protective formation, who will resist the attacks of inner demons?

Ji Yun’s answer is the Soulless Body.

Cultivation is about converting spiritual Qi for personal use, internalized spiritual Qi gradually replaces the physical body, inevitably affecting one’s mind. Every victory over inner demons is the soul regaining control over the body, but for geniuses, the body’s strengthening speed far surpasses the growth of the soul, until the body’s will overpowers the soul.

If a part of the soul is relinquished before this balance is broken, the physical body can be fixed in a stable state. A fragmented soul lacks emotions, naturally preventing the formation of new inner demons. It can also become the core of the sect, the formation’s node protecting the grotto heaven for a long time.

"So you are... Ji Yun’s Soulless Body?" Chen Xuan murmured.

"Not so, without a soul, the Soulless Body cannot move, it’s only hidden in the deepest part of the sect." The figure shook its head, "I am the manifestation of spiritual Qi controlled by it, in some sense, similar to a demon fiend."

Chen Xuan realized, at his current understanding of cultivation, he probably couldn’t clarify the relationship between these entities any time soon.

Ji Yun and Ji Lian have already advanced so far down this path?

"But I still don’t understand the significance of the Imperial Advisor Immortal Master..."

"Actually, it’s not as complex as you think." The figure walked back to him from the window, "The Immortal Master is like a lock, locking the cultivation level of all cultivators. Due to the existence of spiritual Qi, there will always be people on the path of cultivation, this cannot be prohibited, only guided. If a sect stands high above, does it mean its mountain disciples are also the most outstanding cultivators and the cultivation techniques they impart are the deepest Dharma methods of the day?"

Chen Xuan was suddenly enlightened.

So Lotus Cloud Sect had foreseen that, as long as time is extended enough, mountain disciples would eventually impart their cultivation techniques... whether out of personal interest or genuine desire to benefit the world. The uninformed later generations naturally flock to these immortal techniques, but once truly cultivating based on this, they fall into the design of Lotus Cloud Sect.

No wonder the Gemini siblings said the cultivation techniques Liu Shuyue imparted have apparent flaws, as if intentionally weakened.

Xu Xuanling even thought it was the master being secretive.

Lifespan is also key.

Living longer naturally breeds more inner demons, so sect disciples practicing Celestial Mist Skill cannot retain eternal youth like Xu Xuanling.

"But even then, it can’t prevent the birth of certain geniuses. In the realm of cultivation, a person of extraordinary talent surpasses a hundred ordinary ones." The figure added, "If this world is dominated by cultivators, then naturally gifted geniuses will inevitably stand out, such organizations and figures have appeared in Wanshan Wilderness, resulting in the summoning of inner demons within the grotto heaven."

"To avoid repeating mistakes, mountain disciples are divided into different factions, and kingdoms have border disputes. Loose cultivator sects are seen as taboo, and mortal-dominated royal power becomes the ruling force."

"And this... is the truth of Lotus Cloud Sect."

Having heard the other’s narration, Chen Xuan was at a loss for words!

He could never have imagined that Lotus Cloud Sect maintained internal stability in such a manner.

Yet this stability is essentially built upon the chaos of dynastic changes.

Letting mortals govern makes it difficult for organizations like the Immortal Alliance to emerge, let alone for the Imperial Advisor Immortal Master to suppress cultivators not from Lotus Cloud Sect... Without an environment where all people esteem cultivation, even if an occasional genius arises, it cannot form a trend.

Fortunately, Liu Shuyue is not here.

If she heard that the sect which raised her is actually committing acts indifferent to heaven and earth, that the people of the Six Kingdoms and Lotus Cloud Sect disciples are merely pawns on a chessboard, wouldn’t she be furious?

Yet Chen Xuan could not blame the other.

He never thought inner demons were a serious issue before, after all, in Liu Shuyue’s words, the sect has a mature cultivation technique to deal with inner demons, most disciples can successfully breakthrough, even if they fail, they only lose their lives and can’t blame anyone.

But actually, this is the result of Lotus Cloud Sect’s layered suppression.

If the sect lifted restrictions, disciples could defeat their first inner demon at twenty, the second at forty... but what about the ninth, the tenth? As the level of absorbing spiritual Qi increases, the power of cultivation techniques becomes increasingly astonishing, and the backlash from inner demons will turn into monstrous waves.

Now he has seen firsthand how terrifying a complete inner demon can be.

Without Lotus Cloud Sect, there probably wouldn’t be many living souls left in this world.

Chen Xuan suddenly felt that perhaps Lotus Cloud Sect is this world’s Dimensional Limit Mechanism, all Ji Yun could do exhaustedly was to maintain the stability of one grotto heaven.

"Why is the sect empty? Where have the hundreds of disciples gone? Or is it..." he paused, "there have only ever been those few mountain disciples?"

"Sect disciples are the most special existence." The figure explained, "Without a soul, the physical body will decay, and the soul will disperse without a body, even a Soulless Body needs to absorb additional souls to nourish itself—this design inspiration also comes from demon fiends."

Chen Xuan raised an eyebrow, "Shadow Demon?"

"Yes. The Shadow Demon can use dreams as a channel for absorbing soul power, its convenience is self-evident, thus Ji Yun chose to emulate it." She nodded in affirmation, "Disciples are born within the Soulless Body, learning in dreams, only those who have obtained mountain disciple qualification will truly awaken. Therefore, all disciples possess a part of this flesh, returning all their experiences and knowledge to Lotus Cloud Sect upon death."

"You’re injured..." Chen Xuan was taken aback.

He saw a blood mark suddenly appear on her pure white hand, a strand of crimson slowly trickling down, gathering into a crystal-clear drop at her fingertip.

"It’s alright, injuries like this are inevitable in battles against inner demons."

"Has the battle outside not stopped!?" He exclaimed.

"Indeed," she was unconcerned, "battles will persist until one side perishes."

An endless battle aiming at an unattainable goal, anyone else would have gone mad long ago, no wonder Ji Yun created such a Soulless Body.

As they spoke, the wound began to heal visibly.

But it only recovered halfway before stopping.

The figure slightly furrowed her brows and pulled her sleeve down a bit.

"It’s not fully healed." Chen Xuan said in a somber tone.

"Yes, it didn’t used to be like this." She nodded, no longer covering with her sleeve.

"Why?"

"Due to a design flaw. Ji Yun hoped this cycle could keep running, but she didn’t foresee one situation, that the awakening of sect disciples. They are born from Lotus Cloud Sect yet doubt the sect, preferring to scatter their souls rather than return. This causes wear and tear to the Soulless Body, which will eventually drag it down over time."

The figure spoke in a calm tone, as if discussing something unrelated to herself.

But Chen Xuan knew, according to her previous statements, once the Soulless Body crashes, the sect, the grotto heaven, and she herself, all would be destroyed.

"This..." He recalled Liu Zhidong’s memories, the latter preferred to merge with demon fiends rather than be manipulated by the sect, "Is there no way to mend it?"

"It’s useless, eternity is unreachable, Ji Yun naturally realizes this. The Immortal Master’s experiences will promote their growth, even if lagging behind predecessors in spiritual Qi intensity, thoughts won’t cease their progress. Given enough time, their souls will eventually lean towards independence."

Speaking until this point, she looked at Chen Xuan, "Moreover, many worlds inherently interfere with each other, how can a closed-loop space easily resist all external influences? You should understand this even more thoroughly than Ji Yun. Even if sect disciples don’t face issues, Lotus Cloud Sect cannot achieve true eternity."

"Even the strongest fortress eventually collapses."

"In this regard, we are all clearly aware."