Staring at himself in the mirror, Luo Zhou wanted to say something!
But in the end, he let out a long sigh.
When all was said and done, he had killed people—seven in a row. No matter the reason, killing was killing.
He was the greatest Woodworm Devil in Green Ridge City!
And at the hour when demons held sway, it had been him!
Wasn't this actually the best possible ending?
The hundred-day calamity had passed. Now he could live happily!
The Luo Zhou in the mirror smiled too, though only faintly.
"Luo Zhou, do you acknowledge that you are a demonic cultivator, a Woodworm Devil?"
The other Luo Zhou had actually spoken, asking him.
Luo Zhou closed his eyes and thought it over.
He said slowly, "I killed people one after another. Whatever the reason, I am a demonic cultivator, a Woodworm Devil!"
If he refused to admit it, would the other one fly into a rage and slap him to death?
When you were under someone else's roof, you had to bow your head!
So he'd better own up. He had no choice!
The Luo Zhou in the mirror smiled.
"Luo Zhou, the foremost Woodworm Devil of Green Ridge, used a Body Tempering physique to kill nine Qi Refining Woodworm Devils, achieving the impossible!
"Every kill was an utterly impossible victory over a higher level!
"Golden Core cultivators have seized the Dragon's fate, saving the people and guiding the ancient city through its peril!
"The ritual is complete. A great reward is assured!
"Luo Zhou, Woodworm Devil, is hereby named the Devilish Son and granted the Primal Golden Chapter!"
In a daze, Luo Zhou saw everything he had done over the past hundred days pass before his eyes.
But he discovered that killing the crocodile at the crossroads—an unintentional act that had changed the future of millions—had surpassed killing the old Crocodile Dragon and earned the greatest reward of all...
A golden light appeared before Luo Zhou, silently transforming.
It was as though a seal had descended from the void, branding a golden mark onto his chest!
Two golden seal-script characters appeared faintly in the mark:
Primal!
Luo Zhou looked at the golden mark and couldn't help asking, "What is this?"
"People call it the Primal Golden Chapter, one of the nine paths of immortal cultivation, part of the Golden Chapter Seal Scripture!
"Though the so-called nine paths of immortal cultivation are a garbled jumble made up by people and cannot be trusted.
"The other paths don't deserve to be mentioned alongside the Primal Golden Chapter, Supreme Golden Seal, and Tathagata Golden Scripture.
"But they do have a grain of truth to them."
Why was it the nine paths of immortal cultivation again?
Luo Zhou hesitated.
The Luo Zhou in the mirror continued, "The Primal Golden Chapter grants you the first Heavenly Might: undying and indestructible!
"The master of this Golden Chapter accumulates a force called Fate Points. Once enough have been accumulated, they can become a life.
"With that life, whoever possesses the Golden Chapter can die without perishing.
"Whether you use Liberation by Violence, are reduced to ashes by heavenly tribulation, are killed by another, or are suppressed by a mighty being until both body and spirit are destroyed, you can still revive and reincarnate!
"Upon revival and reincarnation, every spell and supernatural ability from your previous life will be yours again. Once you master one, you master them all; none will be lost!
"By completing the impossible Woodworm Devil ritual, Luo Zhou has gained one Fate Point!"
Luo Zhou was dumbfounded. In other words, as long as he accumulated enough Fate Points, he would basically be undying and indestructible.
And he wouldn't even have to cultivate all over again. No matter how he died, he would keep every spell and supernatural ability. Once he mastered one, he mastered them all, without losing any of his cultivation?
Wasn't that ridiculously powerful?
"If you do not have enough Fate Points to make a life, then when you die, you are dead. The Golden Chapter will vanish and return to the Primal.
"If you encounter another Primal Golden Chapter, Supreme Golden Seal, or Tathagata Golden Scripture, and its owner identifies you as a bearer of the Primal Golden Chapter, you can only fight to the death. Your Fate Points cannot activate revival and reincarnation; the loser will be devoured by the victor.
"Devouring another Primal Golden Chapter, Supreme Golden Seal, or Tathagata Golden Scripture brings boundless benefits, leading straight to the sacred origin of the Great Luo Golden Immortal of the Origin!"
First Woodworm Devils, now raising Gu...
"Great Luo Golden Immortal of the Origin? Can demonic cultivators cultivate that too?"
"An immortal is an immortal. What does that have to do with the Dao or demons?
"Among the immortals from your past lives in your Innate Wisdom Life Evolution memories, do you know whether any were demonic cultivators?
"You killed Woodworm Devils for the people and stood up for all living beings. You acted justly, and in the end, didn't you still become a demonic cultivator?"
Luo Zhou didn't know what to say. It did seem to make sense.
"Remember: for a Devilish Son who possesses the Primal Golden Chapter, the most terrifying foes aren't the Dao's Divine Sons with their Supreme Golden Seals or the Buddhist disciples with their Tathagata Golden Scriptures. They're other Devilish Sons who also possess the Primal Golden Chapter!
"When Devilish Sons meet, once they identify each other, they fight until one is dead—and the pursuit lasts forever!"
What did that really mean? They had to identify each other? Then if they didn't, there wouldn't be a problem?
"The Primal Golden Chapter grants the second Heavenly Might: the Truth of Miracles!"
In an instant, countless golden sigils appeared before Luo Zhou!
Some of these sigils were blood-red, some black as ink, some entirely gold, and some made of endless flesh and blood...
As soon as he looked at them, Luo Zhou understood what they meant!
Primal, Boundless, Transcendence, Disintegration, Essence, Defy Fate, Impermanence, Shattering, Annihilation, Sharpness, Rakshasa, Nether Shadow, Soul Slave, Evolution, Slaughter, Void, Flesh and Blood, the Uncanny, Hunting Ground, Divine Speed, Life and Death, Brutality, Cosmic Rotation, Collapse of the Universe, Omniscience, Withering, Suppression, Ten Thousand Victories...
There were ninety-nine in all!
Luo Zhou immediately understood that these were the Truths of Miracles contained in the ninety-nine Primal Golden Chapters, each with its own mysteries.
He could choose one.
If he took someone else's Primal Golden Chapter, Supreme Golden Seal, or Tathagata Golden Scripture, he could gain another Primal Golden Chapter.
Which should he choose?
The moment the thought arose, most of the ninety-nine golden sigils vanished, then quickly went dark.
Some already had masters, some were incompatible with Luo Zhou, and some disdained him...
In the blink of an eye, only Transcendence, Omniscience, Hunting Ground, Divine Speed, the Uncanny, Life and Death, and Brutality remained!
In a daze, Luo Zhou understood why.
Transcendence, because Luo Zhou possessed half of one of the nine paths of immortal cultivation: Heavenly Might.
Heavenly Might was Luo Zhou's supernatural ability, Rewarding Good and Punishing Evil, inherited through his bloodline. Though it was only a supernatural ability, it was actually one of the greatest Heavenly Mights!
Omniscience, because Luo Zhou possessed Innate Wisdom Life Evolution, one of the nine paths of immortal cultivation.
Innate wisdom meant memories of past lives; life evolution was the ability to foresee the future, Flash of Inspiration.
This was one of the nine paths of immortal cultivation that Luo Zhou possessed in full!
Hunting Ground, because Luo Zhou possessed one half of a path among the nine: spirit patterns.
The Eternal Fire Sea was the Hunting Ground.
Divine Speed, because Luo Zhou possessed the supernatural abilities Consecutive Swift Steps and Flying Pounce.
The Uncanny, because Luo Zhou possessed the trait Evil Suppression. Evil Suppression also fell within the domain of the Uncanny.
Life and Death, because Luo Zhou held the immortal office of Curse Master, had awakened the Dead Spirit, and had bitten the old Crocodile Dragon to death.
Brutality, because Luo Zhou possessed the supernatural ability Nine Bulls' Strength.
Seven to choose from!
Luo Zhou didn't even look at Divine Speed, the Uncanny, Life and Death, or Brutality. He dismissed them outright.
Only Transcendence, Omniscience, and Hunting Ground mattered.
Luo Zhou chose Omniscience!
All along, he had been able to kill so many Woodworm Devils thanks to the intelligence passed to him by the Dead Spirit.
Without Flash of Inspiration, he wouldn't have known about the hundred-day ritual or how to kill the old Woodworm Dragon!
Without Li Haitian's memories, he wouldn't have known about the Blood Parrot, either.
So intelligence was the most crucial thing. That was why he chose Omniscience.
At once, the Primal Golden Chapter descended and pressed against his chest.
It blazed with light!
Luo Zhou immediately felt heat throughout his body, as if something were burning him.
Devilish Son!
That wasn't just an empty title. He had to possess the Devil Lord Saint Body.
Luo Zhou felt his body being pulverized, reassembled, then pulverized and reassembled again...
He was reborn again and again!
His cultivation plunged, starting over from the first level: Body Tempering; second, Skull Fortification; third, Ice Skin; fourth, Flesh Refining; fifth, Sinew Tempering; sixth, Bone Refining; seventh, Blood Ignition; eighth, Viscera Forging; ninth, Marrow Strengthening; tenth, Body Unity!
He reached the great perfection of Body Tempering in a single bound!
Then his body was pulverized and reassembled once more. He returned to the first level, Body Tempering, and began again.
This happened a full nine times!
On the ninth time, his cultivation reached the seventh level, Blood Ignition, and then it stopped.
At last, Luo Zhou possessed the Devil Lord Saint Body, one of the five most precious, greatest, and most legendary Saint Bodies among the sixty Dao Bodies of innate spirituality!
This was the standard for a Devilish Son. Every one of them had to possess the Devil Lord Saint Body.
In that instant, Luo Zhou's presence blazed forth. Boundless divine light filled the entire room, his spiritual radiance spilling out.
Normally, this light would have shone across three thousand li around Green Ridge City.
Demonic energy would have soared to the heavens, visible even beyond the Nine Heavens!
But the Luo Zhou in the mirror suppressed it all. Only a faint glow showed in the room.
Gradually, the light faded. When Luo Zhou looked again, he no longer seemed imposing in the slightest.
Everything about him was fading, turning him utterly ordinary—the most ordinary person imaginable.
Even his original handsome, distinguished appearance had disappeared.
Luo Zhou shook his head. "This won't do. I'm too ordinary. That makes me stand out even more!"
At once, his handsome, refined looks returned!
Being handsome was a lifelong affair!
Luo Zhou drew a deep breath and bowed to himself in the mirror.
"Thank you, senior, for bestowing this treasure and this art!"
The Luo Zhou in the mirror smiled and said, "Demonic son of the great thousand world, live well. Devour them and grow stronger.
"Cultivate diligently, travel the world, attain sudden enlightenment, keep your thoughts steadfast, fight ten thousand battles, overcome tribulations, win forever, and attain the sacred origin of the Great Luo Golden Immortal of the Origin!
"Lastly, let me give you one piece of advice. If no one in the demonic sect has the connections to protect your growth, go join the Dao sect!
"Your righteous spirit suits you for a disciple of the orthodox path.
"The conflict between the Dao and demons is, on the contrary, your safest cover.
"Pay no heed to what people say about the divide between the Dao and demons. Remember, you live for yourself!
"Let no one bind you, let no heavenly law weigh you down, let your freedom never die, and let life and death never claim you!"
"Thank you for your guidance, senior!"
When he looked again, his reflection had returned to normal.
Everything had been like a dream.
But Luo Zhou could feel the changes within himself, as well as the golden mark on his chest!
He didn't dwell on it. Instead, he picked up the rag beside him and started cleaning the room.
He scrubbed it carefully, leaving not the slightest bit untouched, wiping away every speck of dust.
He remained utterly calm, not caring about the Primal Golden Chapter or the Devil Lord Saint Body. He simply focused on the task before him!
Thanks to reader 20200202001842400 for the tip, with special thanks to Nanhai Daoke, Cheng Gongtai, Xiantian Duanduan Yuangu Piping Dadi, Jiuzhou Yigan, Long Qijun, and Yuxingyi for their tips. Thank you, everyone!
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