Three Saints Hall

In the Great Shang dynasty, spanning several hundred years, evil spirits wreaked havoc and demonic creatures ran rampant.

The chaos of the world had grown so dark that the high officials in the capital could not even imagine it.

Chaotian Capital, with the Demon Subduing Bureau stationed there, was relatively safe. Ordinary evil spirits dared not come here to cause trouble, and even if they did, they would be quickly discovered and eliminated by the Bureau's forces.

But for the common folk living far from the capital, in distant lands, they were not so fortunate.

Demonic creatures hunted humans for food, evil spirits plagued entire regions, and even though the Demon Subduing Bureau often sent out teams to suppress them, it was like trying to quench a distant thirst with a cup of water—far too little, far too late.

In this atmosphere of fear, many wicked men and cowards emerged, willing to obey evil spirits, bowing in submission and actively learning heretical demonic arts to greatly increase their power.

Though such people were still technically human, their hearts had long since degenerated into half-evil spirits. They slaughtered villages to refine souls, destroyed cities to forge artifacts, and committed acts as cruel and vicious as any evil spirit.

The Demon Subduing Bureau called these people who defied the human path 'Evil Spirit Cultivators.'

And the Black Heaven Gate was one of the more notorious Evil Spirit Cultivator factions. Their emblem was a three-headed evil god standing on black clouds, and it was said that the cultists within believed in this god.

Not long after the Evil Spirit Cultivator died, his belly suddenly swelled up roundly. The colorful patterns on his chest seemed to come alive, with black clouds and flames emerging in three-dimensional form, and a scorching smell filled the air.

Ning Xiu, experienced by now, simply ignored the sight. He called up his Proficiency Panel and dumped all 800 points of Universal Proficiency he had just gained into Primordial Yang Fist, raising it by another level.

Primordial Yang Fist: Sixth Layer (200/2000)

Golden Bell Shield: Fourth Layer (110/800)

Spiritual Eye Qi Observation Technique: First Layer (3/200)

Universal Proficiency: 0

Ning Xiu immediately felt warmth spreading through his body, most noticeably three inches below his navel. As Primordial Yang Fist advanced to the sixth layer, all the bizarre illusions before his eyes vanished into nothing.

This meant that his blood energy was now strong enough to counteract the Evil Qi emitted by the dead evil spirit, making future executions much easier.

"In less than five days, Primordial Yang Fist has risen two layers straight. This progress is explosive. Before, without half a year of hard training, it would have been impossible. Now, just by executing evil spirits and gaining proficiency to improve my techniques, even if I can't join the Demon Subduing Bureau later, I'll be strong enough to survive on my own." Ning Xiu thought happily.

For others, working as an executioner in the Demon Subduing Prison was a grind, a thankless chore.

But for him, it was like grinding monsters for experience—and these monsters were mostly restrained, helpless victims with no real danger.

To Ning Xiu, the Demon Subduing Prison was a treasure trove. If he could, he'd want to keep this executioner job forever.

Then, when he finally left with a full set of maxed-out martial arts, wouldn't he be invincible under heaven?

Just as Ning Xiu was about to leave the cell, the Evil Spirit Cultivator's belly caught his attention.

In the wound Ning Xiu had carved open with his Wild Goose Feather Saber, a faint golden light flickered.

If not for Ning Xiu's sharp eyes, he might have missed this detail.

"What is this..."

He poked around in the Evil Spirit Cultivator's belly with his saber a few times, and a blood-soaked golden bead rolled out, clattering loudly on the ground.

It was perfectly round, the size of a walnut, with a ring of embossed characters on its surface: "Om, Ma, Ni, Pad, Me, Hum"—the Six-Character Mantra of the Buddhist path.

Ning Xiu picked it up, wiped off the blood, and held it in his palm, examining it.

Any evil spirit or Evil Spirit Cultivator brought into the Demon Subduing Prison would have all their belongings stripped away.

This golden bead was clearly a Buddhist artifact. The Evil Spirit Cultivator must have obtained it somewhere and, before being locked up, swallowed it to hide it from the Demon Subduing Captains.

"This guy swallowed the bead to hide it. The Demon Subduing Bureau people didn't manage to get their hands on it, so now it's my lucky break." Ning Xiu smiled and tucked the bead into his robe, with no intention of handing it over.

If the Evil Spirit Cultivator had gone to such lengths to hide it, it had to be a good treasure. Why would Ning Xiu give it away?

Over three consecutive days of executing evil spirits in the Xuan Zone, Ning Xiu collected a total of 2500 points of Universal Proficiency, raising Primordial Yang Fist by another layer.

Unfortunately, he didn't manage to trick any techniques or hidden treasures out of these evil spirits, so his haul was rather dry.

But there was good news: the number of evil spirits he had executed on record had reached eleven.

According to the rules the jailers had explained, Ning Xiu could apply to leave the Demon Subduing Prison at any time and head to the Three Saints Hall in the Demon Subduing Bureau to pick a technique as a reward.

The Three Saints Hall was the Demon Subduing Bureau's collection of techniques from all paths under heaven, founded centuries ago by the three strongest humans of that era: the Martial Saint, the Dao Saint, and the Buddha Saint.

Martial arts, Daoist techniques, and Buddhist scriptures were all stored there, and later the Demon Subduing Bureau added cultivation texts from other paths.

Newer paths like the Official Path, General's Path, Puppet Path, Medical Path... anyone interested could switch to a different path instead of sticking to the traditional three of martial arts, Daoism, and Buddhism.

Ning Xiu had been curious about the Three Saints Hall for a while. That day, after finishing his executions, he applied to the jailer for leave.

He had been in the Demon Subduing Prison for seven days, living by torchlight, never seeing sun or moon.

When he stepped through the gate leading to the surface, the daylight outside gave him a strange sense of being in another life, and even the air smelled sweeter.

"Finish your business and come back quickly. Don't go wandering off." The guard at the gate reminded Ning Xiu.

"Got it." Ning Xiu nodded and strode away.

The entrance to the Demon Subduing Prison was inside the Demon Subduing Bureau headquarters, so the Three Saints Hall wasn't far.

Following the route the jailer had described, Ning Xiu soon found the Three Saints Hall.

As expected of a cultivation sanctuary built by the combined efforts of the Three Saints, six halls stood connected in grand, imposing splendor. Even the doors alone were over two zhang tall, making anyone who approached seem utterly insignificant.

When Ning Xiu reached the threshold, an elderly gatekeeper leaning on a staff blocked his way. "Stop. This place is off-limits to anyone below a Demon Subduing Captain."

"Greetings, sir. I'm an apprentice from the Champion Camp, assisting with executions in the Demon Subduing Prison. I've dispatched over ten Evil Spirits and was rewarded with permission to come to the Three Saints Hall to learn a cultivation technique," Ning Xiu explained.

"I recall something like that happening recently. Go on in, then. But remember—everything relies on memorization. No copies are allowed to be taken out. You have three hours, and once the time's up, you must leave. Violators will be punished."

Three hours meant six hours. For Ning Xiu, that was more than enough time, but he needed to spend it wisely.

After the old man finished speaking, Ning Xiu didn't immediately step into the Three Saints Hall to pick a technique. Instead, he approached the elder and asked, "Sir, you must be very familiar with the techniques here in the Three Saints Hall. Could you recommend a few worthy options? That way, I'll have a general direction to aim for."

The old man stroked his beard. "Sharp-witted, aren't you? Tell me, which path do you want to cultivate?"

In the Great Shang, the paths of martial arts, immortal arts, and Buddhism were the most prevalent, with no shortage of people reaching the First Rank. In contrast, other emerging paths had weaker followings, and far fewer achieved the First Rank.

Though Ning Xiu had a Proficiency Panel, he had no intention of blindly stepping into unfamiliar territory.

He had been practicing the Primordial Yang Fist for over a year, supplemented by the Hardening Skill Golden Bell Shield—that made him a martial artist.

So after a moment's thought, Ning Xiu replied, "Martial arts."

"The Champion Camp doesn't teach Internal Energy Cultivation. Since you have this chance to enter the Three Saints Hall, why not pick an Internal Energy Cultivation technique? Once you have Internal Energy, you'll step into the Ninth Rank Realm, and joining the Demon Subduing Bureau will be much easier. I recommend the 'Great Sun Profound Scripture.' This technique focuses on the Lower Three Ranks of martial arts and can cultivate pure yang Internal Energy, which is perfect for dealing with Evil Spirits."

Ning Xiu had only known that the three thousand paths were divided into nine ranks, but he'd never understood what exactly defined the Ninth Rank. Hearing the old man mention it now, clarity dawned in his mind.

Among the three thousand paths, each had nine ranks, further divided into upper, middle, and lower three ranks.

The Lower Three Ranks of martial arts focused on cultivating Internal Energy and physique.

His physique was already covered by Golden Bell Shield, so he was exactly in need of an Internal Energy Cultivation technique like the Great Sun Profound Scripture.

"Thank you for your guidance, sir. I'll go learn the Internal Energy Cultivation."

After taking his leave of the old man, Ning Xiu quickly found the book for the Great Sun Profound Scripture in the second connected hall. He quietly flipped through it, reading and memorizing.

In just one hour, after Ning Xiu had thoroughly absorbed the entire book, the words "Great Sun Profound Scripture" appeared on his panel, indicating he had achieved a preliminary grasp.

He stuffed the Great Sun Profound Scripture back into its place, and his gaze couldn't help but drift to the other books on the shelves.

No one was supervising this place. For others entering the Three Saints Hall, three hours was barely enough to learn a single technique—where would they find the leisure to study a second?

But Ning Xiu had no such concerns. With two hours still to spare, as long as he wasn't caught, couldn't he secretly learn two more techniques?

He glanced around and saw no one. Ning Xiu reached out, slowly grabbing for a book.

"If I were you, I wouldn't do that."

Just then, a voice suddenly rang out from above. Ning Xiu's heart jolted—he had checked his surroundings, so how had someone appeared out of nowhere?

He looked up and saw a golden-haired boy, no more than five or six years old, lying on his side at the top of a bookshelf, holding a gourd of wine. Even with several feet between them, Ning Xiu could smell a strong reek of alcohol.

"Where did this brat come from?" Ning Xiu wondered inwardly.

Smack!

An unpeeled peanut struck Ning Xiu square in the chest. The savage force sent him flying back over a zhang, and he only stopped after crashing into another bookshelf nearby.

Ning Xiu clutched his chest, his face full of shock. He hadn't even seen where the peanut came from, and the power behind it was terrifying. If the one who threw it hadn't clearly held back, he would have been pierced clean through by that tiny peanut.

"I am Immortal Duke Heshan. In the Demon Subduing Bureau, they usually call me True Man Heshan. What, you've never heard of me?" The golden-haired boy cracked open a peanut with one hand.

Among the three thousand paths, "True Man" was a title unique to the immortal path, used exclusively to honor experts at the Immortal Path Fourth Rank and above.

Ning Xiu never imagined that while browsing books in the Three Saints Hall, he'd run into an immortal path True Man. What rotten luck.

For some reason, this old-timer still looked like a child, leading to the misunderstanding. Ning Xiu could only explain helplessly, "Senior, I'm an apprentice from the Champion Camp. I'm not familiar with the experts in the Demon Subduing Bureau. Please forgive my offense."

"Ah, a child from the Champion Camp. That's understandable, then. But since you've already learned the technique you wanted, why not leave quickly? Instead, you dared to give in to greed. I can tell this is your first time here, so I'll let it slide this time. Don't let it happen again."

Ning Xiu was baffled. "Senior, how can you be so sure I've already learned the technique?"

True Man Heshan took a sip of wine and chuckled. "I watched you recite the Great Sun Profound Scripture from start to finish just now, your face full of confidence. After guarding the Three Saints Hall for ten years, I can tell at a glance whether someone has learned it or not. What, you want to argue with me?"

"I wouldn't dare. I was in the wrong." Faced with such an old monster, Ning Xiu had no intention of talking back. He would surely return to the Three Saints Hall in the future, and he couldn't afford to sour things with its guardian.

Though he hadn't managed to freeload a few extra techniques, mastering the Great Sun Profound Scripture this time was still a success. Once back at the Demon Subduing Prison, he would continue executing Evil Spirits and rely on Universal Proficiency to raise his realm.

After bidding farewell to True Man Heshan, Ning Xiu turned and left the Three Saints Hall.

Watching Ning Xiu's retreating figure, True Man Heshan squinted and muttered to himself, "Evil Spirits are making the world more chaotic by the day. The Demon Subduing Bureau is even pulling apprentices from the Champion Camp to fill the ranks. It seems the Great Shang is truly in dire straits."

Life in the Demon Subduing Prison was as dull as still water.

Aside from the daily task of executing one Evil Spirit, Ning Xiu spent most of his time on cultivation. Occasionally, acquaintances from the Champion Camp like He Yunlang would come by to hang out, and Ning Xiu would take time to entertain them.

As long as it wasn't during execution hours, the prison guards turned a blind eye to these temporarily assigned youths and didn't interfere.

Thus, though the days were uneventful, it was still far freer than life back in the Champion Camp.