Training Life Professions

"A thousand years!?" Zhuge Xiang shook his head at the Golden-Winged Man's words and said, "A thousand years is too long. I can't wait that long. Rather than spending a thousand years helping you become a Buddha, why not cultivate myself and become a demon myself!?"

"You!? A demon after a thousand years?" The golden- Golden-Winged Man stared intently into Zhuge Xiang's eyes, trying to see if he was joking. However, he was disappointed. He didn't see any pretense or guilt in Zhuge Xiang's eyes. Zhuge Xiang's words came from the heart. He truly had confidence in himself.

"The path of cultivation is long and uncertain, each step more difficult than the last. Compared to true masters, a thousand years is but a blink of an eye. A thousand years to become a demon? What makes you so confident?" The Golden-Winged Man asked, staring intently into Zhuge Xiang's eyes.

"Where there is a will, there is a way," Zhuge Xiang replied, looking at the Golden-Winged Man. Zhuge Xiang paused slightly before continuing, "I see that even without the Buddhist Power the living Buddha, you are not incapable of becoming a Buddha. Don't you know that one can remain untainted by the mud? There is also a saying in the Buddhist Sect: 'Lay down the butcher's knife and become a Buddha on the spot.' Your inability to become a Buddha has nothing to do with the wishes of these Zombie, nor with your own identity."

"Put down the butcher's knife? Become a Buddha on the spot? Is it that easy? How many loyal and virtuous people cannot become Buddhas in their entire lives, so why can evil people become Buddhas just by putting down the butcher's knife?" Shaking his head, the Golden-Winged Man's tone carried a hint of helplessness. Judging from his appearance, he had obviously reached the peak of human Cultivator and was only waiting for the final key to becoming a Buddha.

"Anything is possible in this world. If you don't have confidence in yourself, what's the point of cultivating?" As he said this, a flash of Demonic Qi appeared on Zhuge Xiang's body, revealing his Demonic True Body. The surging Demonic Qi was incomparably pure.

However, Zhuge Xiang's face was solemn and dignified, and a clear Zen Sound resounded, penetrating to the heart. It was the Heavenly Demon Zen Sound. When the Zen Sound was released, the stronger and more deeply rooted the demonic nature, the greater the impact and the stronger the power felt.

In the plaza, the chanting of thousands of Zombie ceased. Pain was evident on their Zombie; even the Hairy Zombie opened their eyes and stared in this direction, their pupils bloodshot...

The Heavenly Demon Zen Sound was released and then withdrawn in an instant, a fleeting moment. However, the Golden-Winged Man's eyes flashed with a sharp light as he stared intently at Zhuge Xiang. Zhuge Xiang was very weak, like an ant to him. Yet, he saw something completely illogical in this ant.

The Golden-Winged Man clearly understood what the Demonic True Body meant, but while unleashing Demonic True Body, Zhuge Xiang also used Buddhist Sect Cultivation Technique with immense power, clearly indicating that he had also ventured far into the Buddhist Sect.

"Hahaha..." The Golden-Winged Man stared intently at Zhuge Xiang for a moment, then burst into laughter. "I wondered why you didn't switch to the Buddhist Sect Cultivation Technique. It turns out you are a Buddhist Path genius who cultivates both Buddhist Sect and Demonic True Body arts? I'm getting more and more excited about you."

"No living being can survive in this Land of Death. At most, you will all die here in a few years. At that time, you will naturally be nurtured into Zombie by this Land of Death and join my ranks. Even so, are you still unwilling to submit to me now?" The Golden-Winged Man continued to ask, looking at Zhuge Xiang.

"To worry about what happens after death while still alive, isn't that too tiring?" Zhuge Xiang laughed wildly, completely unconcerned.

"Haha, as expected of a genius in Buddhist Path and Daoism! Although your words are simple, they contain Buddhist Sect truths."

Although the Golden-Winged Man had high hopes for Zhuge Xiang, he did not force Zhuge Xiang. He laughed loudly, waved his hand lightly, indicating that Zhuge Xiang and the others could leave. Then, he flapped his golden wings and returned to the Nine-Leaf Lotus Platform in the center of the square, sitting down and reverting to his dignified appearance.

"Let's go," Zhuge Xiang said, patting Mo Wuyan, who was stiff all over and unable to move even a finger.

With his body stiff and his expression somewhat dazed, Mo Wuyan nodded with difficulty, took stiff steps, and walked with Zhuge Xiang towards the outside of the Myriad Buddha Temple ruins.

"Remember, my door is always open for you. I certainly don't want to see you turn into Zombie," the Golden-Winged Man's voice rang out again from behind Zhuge Xiang, showing how much he valued him.

"Don't worry, that day will never come," Zhuge Xiang said without turning back. He paused slightly, his tone unchanged, before walking side by side with Mo Wuyan away from the Myriad Buddha Temple ruins.

In the center of the plaza, the Golden-Winged Man slightly opened his eyes, looking at Zhuge Xiang's back with curiosity and anticipation. He murmured to himself, "A disciple of the demonic path? Demonic True Body? Sacred Buddhist Art? And Dharma's Evil Suppressing Pagoda? Only sixteen or seventeen years old, what an interesting boy. If it weren't for the fact that Living Beings' Willpower cannot be forced, I would keep him here no matter what."

The two remained silent until they walked ten miles around Myriad Buddha Temple. Only then did Mo Wuyan regain his composure, letting out a long breath and giving Zhuge Xiang a thumbs-up. "Junior Brother Zhuge, I, Mo Wuyan, am truly impressed by you today. To be able to speak so eloquently in the face of such a being, while I was practically suffocating in his presence."

"Putting aside cultivation level, we're all just human beings. Since life and death are no longer in our hands, why not face it with equanimity?" Zhuge Xiang smiled, still as carefree and heroic as ever.

Mo Wuyan was greatly impressed by Zhuge Xiang's mentality and mindset, and shook his head with a wry smile, "I don't have your boldness. If this happened a few more times, I think I would be scared to death. Junior brother, you are truly outstanding. Even those who have reached the edge of becoming Buddhas are favored by you. Why do you have so many concerns? With such a great mountain to rely on, why don't you agree?"

"On the verge of Buddhahood? I think he's far from it," Zhuge Xiang shook his head and replied, "Although I don't know what the Myriad Buddha Temple's Willpower Cultivation is all about, I can imagine that since it's Vow Power, it naturally requires genuine faith from the bottom of one's heart. But those Zombie were just forcibly dragged to the square after they died and assimilated by his chanting. Even if it's Vow Power, it's under a state of deception. How can such methods lead to Buddhahood?"

At this point, Zhuge Xiang paused slightly, then replied with a smile, "Qinglai? No matter how strong he is, he's just a rat hiding in Treasure Artifact, rarely seeing the light of day. Back then, when my Sect's Void Realm elder offered to take me as a disciple, I didn't even agree."

"Elder Void Realm, will you take me as your disciple?" Mo Wuyan looked at Zhuge Xiang and said with a smile, "I didn't expect you to be so humorous, Junior Brother Zhuge Xiang."

With a smile and no words, Zhuge Xiang, having learned that Mo Wuyan did not believe him, naturally said no more.

Judging from Zhuge Xiang's expression, he wasn't joking. Besides, if that Golden-Winged Man could take a liking to Zhuge Xiang, why couldn't the Void Realm elder? Startled, Mo Wuyan asked, "Junior Brother Zhuge, are you serious? Which elder is it? Can you tell me?"

"If you believe, it exists; if you don't believe, it doesn't," Zhuge Xiang said, shaking his head with an air of profound mystery.

Days passed, and many Asura Sect Disciple the Puppet Cult and the Asura Sect were still rushing towards the Myriad Buddha Temple. Upon seeing the endless Zombie, those who had finally made it to the Myriad Buddha Temple were horrified and fled as fast as they could.

The Golden-Winged Man ignored these people; they would eventually turn into Zombie and join his ranks. There was no rush to take action. Of course, if any fools tried to cause trouble in the square, the Golden-Winged Man would not be so lenient.

Trapped in this Land of Death, with no one able to escape, Food scarce, and no hope of survival in sight, the trapped disciples of the Asura Sect Disciples and the Puppet Cult became even more ferocious. In moments of despair, people often unleash terrifying power and reveal their ugly true colors. For Food, these people are capable of committing heinous acts.

The Asura Sect Disciples were relatively better off, still holding onto hope that the Sect would discover the situation and send someone to rescue them. The disciples of the Puppet Cult, however, were utterly despondent. It was common for fellow disciples to kill each other for Food, and it was not surprising that female disciples would even sell their bodies for Food.

Intrigue, scheming, and poisoning unfold daily in this Land of Death. Amidst this despair, certain attractive female disciples become even more targets for others to violate.

Driven by the sustenance of their remaining Food, these people fought each other in a frenzy. The number of disciples from the Asura Sect and the Puppet Cult dwindled day by day. Eventually, they even learned to preserve corpses, and in their madness from hunger, the act of cannibalism finally came to the fore.

Soon, half a year passed. These past six months have been Human Dao. The number of people has dwindled sharply. Now, it's difficult to even encounter a few other people, let alone kill or rob them of their Food. Those who were meant to die are mostly dead, and those who are still alive are hiding in corners, barely clinging to life.

For Zhuge Xiang, these past six months have also been Human Dao period. It wasn't because of Food; Gao Zhanzhan had realized the severity of the Food Food as soon as he arrived in this Land of Death. Zhuge Xiang and Mo Wuyan had slaughtered countless disciples of the Puppet Cult, seizing all their resources. Even many Asura Sect Disciples with ulterior motives had perished at the hands of Zhuge Xiang and his companions.

A small cave was filled with all sorts of Magic Artifact, piled up like a mountain, at least five or six hundred pieces. These were all Zhuge Xiang's spoils of Storage Artifact. Zhuge Xiang also obtained about two hundred storage artifacts, Spirit Stone Coin, Pill, all sorts of materials, and of course, a lot of Food. This Food was enough to sustain Zhuge Xiang for a year and a half.

In half a year, Zhuge Xiang had only killed two or three hundred people, and gained very little experience. During this period, because he had no targets to kill, Zhuge Xiang could only rely on his Life Profession to gain a small amount of experience. His cultivation level barely broke through to the Second Layer the Void Splitting Realm. This was the slowest half-year of growth Zhuge Xiang had ever experienced since he began cultivating.

Fortunately, Zhuge Xiang had acquired a sufficient number of Magic Artifact, especially since the disciples of the Puppet Cult all had a habit of collecting materials for casting Puppet.

After placing the supplies aside, Zhuge Xiang took out his Magic Artifact, Appraisal Magic Artifact one by one, then disassembled and reforged them, along with the medicinal herbs, into Healing Pill and Qi Recovery Pill.

In the past six months, although Zhuge Xiang's experience gained from his Life Profession was far less than that gained from killing monsters, his Artifact Forger and Appraisal Life Profession had improved significantly. He was able to forge and Appraisal Six-Star Magic Artifact, and even as Zhuge Xiang Pill Alchemist, he could produce Pill of decent quality.

That day, Zhuge Xiang was dismantling several Magic Artifacts and using the materials to continue forging when suddenly, footsteps sounded from outside the cave. A male voice rang out, "Senior brother, the ashes at the entrance are still warm. I can see someone inside the cave." (To be continued...)