Unbridled Lust

The demonic race's riot in the Sword Gate Demonic Ruins, where they sacrificed thousands of Upper Court disciples like livestock, awakened the Spirit of the Heavenly Phenomenon Mother. Many disciples under Qi Refiners were killed, effectively wiping out entire sects. The commotion this caused within Sword Gate can only be imagined.

Sword Gate's higher-ups were furious. It was a humiliation unprecedented since Sword Gate's founding. Among the deceased Upper Court disciples were many from the Great Wilderness's ten Great Clans, including children of clan leaders!

Elders emerged from the palaces and halls high on Sword Gate Mountain, entering the Demon Ruins to search for Demonic Race Qi Refiners and the Spirit of the Heavenly Phenomenon Mother.

The incident caused a huge stir, but whispers also emerged that there was a traitor within Sword Gate, someone colluding with the demons in the Demon Ruins for nefarious purposes.

After more than ten days, the situation calmed down. Sword Gate's Elders sealed the Demon Ruins, strictly forbidding anyone from entering.

However, these events no longer concerned Zhong Yue.

Elder Pu rushed over immediately. Upon seeing Ting Lanyue and the others, he felt both joy and sorrow. Out of his hundred-plus disciples, only a dozen or so remained—a devastating loss.

Ting Lanyue, He Chengchuan, and the others stepped forward and bowed. "Elder Pu, it's thanks to Junior Brother Zhong that we were able to escape the Demon Ruins."

The group spoke quickly, recounting their experiences in the Demon Ruins.

Elder Pu was moved. He looked Zhong Yue up and down and slowly nodded. "Zhongshan Clan's Zhong Yue? You are indeed a capable young man. You saved my disciples and possess extraordinary talent. I wish to impart the true teachings of my Thunderclap Sword Art to you and take you as my disciple..."

Ting Lanyue repeatedly nudged Zhong Yue, signaling him to accept.

Zhong Yue pondered for a moment, then shook his head. "Thank you, Elder Pu. However, if you were to accept me as your disciple, it might displease the Tian Feng Clan. If you don't mind, I would like to visit often to listen to your lectures. As long as I am not your disciple, I believe you won't fall out with the Tian Feng Clan."

He had originally been eager to be taken in by a Qi Refiner, but now he wasn't as hopeful. He even wished he didn't have a master.

The Fire Epoch Palace Suihuang Visualization taught to me by Xin Huo is too powerful. My cultivation speed is too fast. In just a few days, I've already crossed the Soul Egress and Soul Sacrifice realms! If I were to become a disciple of a Qi Refiner, this technique would surely be exposed!

Zhong Yue thought to himself, If the technique is exposed, Sword Gate's pursuit of origins will discover Xin Huo. If Xin Huo gets angry...

"Very well."

Elder Pu smiled. "You saved my disciples, so I naturally owe you a reward. You are still lacking a Soul Weapon, aren't you?"

He observed Zhong Yue, noticing the two mutated abyssal demon arm bones strapped to his back, resembling scythes as long as a man's height. The corpse of the Heavenly Elephant Demon Race Qi Refiner was also nearby. "You excel in strength, and your Spiritual Power is among the best of your peers. You can wield two Soul Weapons. I will forge two Black Gold Soul Weapons for you by mixing Mysterious Iron and Mysterious Gold. Come to the Scripture Hall to see me in twenty days, and you will receive your Soul Weapons!"

Ting Lanyue, He Chengchuan, and the others couldn't help but look envious. For a Qi Refiner like Elder Pu, forging a Soul Weapon wasn't difficult; it would take at most two or three days to craft one. The fact that Elder Pu asked Zhong Yue to wait twenty days indicated that the two Soul Weapons he was forging would be extraordinary!

Mysterious Iron and Mysterious Gold alone could be used to forge high-grade Soul Weapons. Coupled with Elder Pu's craftsmanship, these two Soul Weapons would be rare in the Upper Court. Even core disciples of Great Clans might not possess such treasures!

Zhong Yue was overjoyed and thanked him repeatedly. He smiled at Ting Lanyue. "Senior Sister, since Elder Pu is using the Mysterious Gold from this Demonic Race Qi Refiner's body to forge two Soul Weapons for me, I won't take the remaining Mysterious Gold. Senior Sister and the other Senior Brothers can split it."

Ting Lanyue quickly replied, "How can that be? This Demonic Race Qi Refiner was brought back by you, Junior Brother. By rights, you should get the lion's share. Junior Brother Zhong should at least get another portion. To be frank, if the remaining Mysterious Gold were sold through my Dating Clan, each of us would receive at least eight hundred Feather Spirit Pills!"

Zhong Yue was startled. Eight hundred Feather Spirit Pills!

Sword Gate gave Upper Court disciples ten Feather Spirit Pills per month. Eight hundred pills would take six to seven years to accumulate!

Ting Lanyue chuckled. "Junior Brother is tempted after all. I'll come find you after I sell this Mysterious Gold."

Everyone parted ways. Zhong Yue headed towards his courtyard and contacted Xin Huo in his Sea of Consciousness. "Xin Huo, Sword Gate has likely existed for tens of thousands of years. How could the Heavenly Phenomenon Mother possibly live until now?"

"You don't know this, but gods and demons are different from you humans. Both the human race and the demonic race only have souls, not spirits. Spirit and soul are actually two different things. Only by becoming a Qi Refiner is it possible to unify the soul and spirit."

Xin Huo explained, "For example, that little brat named Elder Pu has cultivated to the point of unifying his soul and spirit. The mountain god is his soul. He can refine his soul into a totem for his clan to worship. If this brat dies in the future, his soul and spirit are closely integrated. As long as the spirit exists, the soul will remain! The way to preserve the spirit is through worship. He might then avoid his soul scattering and his soul and spirit remain, enjoying the sacrifices. At that point, he will be a god, a mountain god! If the worship is strong enough, his soul can even be given a golden body, resurrecting him from death with vast divine powers!"

Zhong Yue suddenly understood. The ancestor of the demonic race, the Heavenly Phenomenon Mother, was a demon god. Although she was dead, her spirit was likely not killed by Sword Gate's ancestors. It must have hidden away. If the demons in the Demon Ruins had been secretly sacrificing to her all along, her soul might have survived.

The spirit has this function? Qi Refiners unify their spirit and soul to preserve their souls after death, preventing them from scattering?

Zhong Yue's understanding of the spirit deepened. "I wonder if Fang Jiange killed the Spirit of the Heavenly Phenomenon Mother..."

"No!"

Xin Huo replied readily. "Shortly after you left the Demon Ruins, I sensed an evil aura also leaving. It should be the Spirit of the Heavenly Phenomenon Mother."

Zhong Yue was startled and exclaimed, "The Heavenly Phenomenon Mother left the Demon Ruins? But some Elders just entered the Demon Ruins to search. How could she have left?"

"Naturally, she was brought out of the Demon Ruins by one of those Elders."

Xin Huo said nonchalantly, "Without the demonic race's worship outside the Demon Ruins, the Spirit of the Heavenly Phenomenon Mother would die soon after. Unless she could find a body to possess. In my opinion, the person who took her likely already found a body for her. The current Heavenly Phenomenon Mother has definitely become one of Sword Gate's people, and no one would recognize her."

"The Heavenly Phenomenon Mother has become one of Sword Gate's people?"

Zhong Yue suppressed the shock in his heart and muttered, "This is bad... Xin Huo, can you sense who the Heavenly Phenomenon Mother is possessing?"

"She is currently hidden within someone else's body, and the body is blocking my senses."

Xin Huo chuckled. "If I were to meet the person, I could sense her, but I can't sense her now. This is interesting. The traitor within Sword Gate went to such great lengths to get the Heavenly Phenomenon Mother out of the Demon Ruins. They must have some ulterior motive. Hehe, this is going to be fun..."

Meanwhile, in a hall resembling a Lingzhi mushroom on the mountainside of Sword Gate, a girl of thirteen or fourteen was curiously examining her body, looking left and right. Suddenly, she let out a giggle. "I never thought I'd hide inside livestock. Hehehe, how ironic! Don't you think?"

A figure stood in the shadows and chuckled. "Heavenly Phenomenon Mother, humans are livestock raised by our Divine Race, yet you were suppressed by livestock for so many years. That's the real irony. If I hadn't enlightened your descendants and helped them become Qi Refiners, you wouldn't have known how long it would take to break free."

The Heavenly Phenomenon Mother giggled. "I never expected that I, a demon god of the demonic race, would be saved by a member of the Divine Race, the sworn enemy of the demonic race! You went to so much trouble and scheming to save me. What exactly do you want?"

The voice from the shadows replied, "I want what lies beneath Sword Gate Mountain."

The Heavenly Phenomenon Mother's expression changed drastically, her pretty face shifting between emotions. "What lies beneath? Who are you, and how do you know..."

"Since I am of the Divine Race, I naturally know some secrets."

"Since you know, do you know how terrifying it would be if what lies beneath were to emerge!"

"Of course, I know."

The person in the shadows said leisurely, "I am fully confident I can control that thing. Heavenly Phenomenon Mother, I saved you only to enlist your help. Even without your help, Sword Gate will eventually be mine, and what lies beneath Sword Gate will also eventually be mine!"

The Heavenly Phenomenon Mother snorted coldly. After a moment, she said, "My strength has not yet recovered. How can I help you?"

"I can wait for you to recover your strength. Heavenly Phenomenon Mother, this body you possess belongs to an Outer Disciple of the Sword Gate. Cultivate in the Outer Sect first, then become a Qi Refiner. Once you've regained some strength, I will still have use for you! You are the Spirit of a Demon God, do not disappoint me."

Heavenly Phenomenon Mother snorted coldly and went down the mountain, heading straight for the Sword Gate Upper Court.

In the courtyard, Zhong Yue did not have a Feather Spirit Pill, so he dared not practice the Fire Epoch Palace Suihuang Visualization. These past few days, he had only been practicing the Thunderclap Sword Art and the Dragon Totem Body Coiling Art.

"The Thunderclap Sword Art and the Dragon Totem Body Coiling Art, there are even more subtleties!"

Each time he visualized these two techniques, he gained different insights. The Thunderclap Sword Art was an offensive method, while the Dragon Coiling Technique was a body refining method. Now, he combined the two, transforming the Thunder Pattern Totem into a Flood Dragon and cultivating them together. He discovered more profound aspects, causing Zhong Yue to become immersed in the joy of cultivation.

He found that combining these two techniques accelerated his physical improvement more than before. The Thunder Pattern Totem transformed into a Flood Dragon coiling around him, tempering his body with lightning, making him tougher. With a single thought, his strength erupted, swift as thunder!

This brand-new body refining method was stronger than the simple Dragon Coiling Technique, and its effects on his physique were faster!

Other Upper Court disciples did not value body refining methods much, but he did not slacken; instead, he grew stronger with every practice!

Crackle!

Lightning flashed within his body. The body of the lightning flood dragon vaguely traversed his skin, muscles, bones, and even blood, filling him with an abnormally powerful electric current that refined impurities from his body. The energy within the lightning even seeped into his body, hiding within!

After cultivating for six or seven days, Zhong Yue felt that this body refining method had reached a bottleneck, and its effects on his physique were no longer as potent. He thought, "It must be that my Dragon Totem Body Coiling Art is not a true transmission, and I cannot improve further... It's still over ten days until Elder Pu finishes forging the Soul Weapon. Why don't I go see Shui Qingyan? I promised her I'd visit her at the Women's Court. And I don't know if she's been to the Demon Ruins..."

Zhong Yue walked out of the courtyard and headed straight for the Women's Court. Outside the Women's Court, several male disciples from the Upper Court were lurking suspiciously, watching from afar.

Zhong Yue felt puzzled, shook his head, and walked directly into the Women's Court.

"Pfft! Someone just broke into the Women's Court!"

Those suspicious male disciples' eyes nearly popped out. They exclaimed, "He's incredibly bold, incredibly bold! This person dares to trespass even into the Women's Court!"

"Will he be beaten to death by those girls?"

At the corner in front of the Women's Court, a stone tablet stood, inscribed with: "Male disciples who trespass into the Women's Court will be killed without mercy!"