The Demon God Who Protected the Faith

Seeing that the cult had even started using cell phones, Li Fan's mind started to wander.

Perhaps he doesn't need to worry about the matter of the Saintess.

After all, the raw silk that was robbed from the company back then, now the God's Cult's Kuri, the cruiser fired a Zhang Dali shot and then fell, all sorts of random stuff has fallen onto the God's territory, and the Legion Apostles are still recklessly using metallic hydrogen bombs, building cell phone base stations, ready to invade the Central Plains at any time, hmm...

With so many problems piled on top of them, it would be strange if the company didn't hire a cult to cause a ruckus!

Doesn't that give Li's Aquaculture Company in Ink Bamboo Mountain another chance to quietly make a fortune? Great!

"What are you thinking? Why are you smiling so wickedly?" Zhang Yanzhi squinted and glared at him.

Li Fan wiped the drool from his mouth. "Oh, I think if I carry this extraterrestrial artifact and parade around with the Saintess of the Divine Cult, there will definitely be a lot of foolish robbers coming to their deaths. Then I can justify self-defense (and have a good meal)."

Zhang Yanzhi clearly understood his meaning, and after thinking about it, surprisingly agreed that it was a good idea.

"The one who just fled in disintegration was Huang Yuanhua, the Old Demon of Shazhou. He was one of the few Nascent Soul Stage level demons in the vicinity. Even the leaders of the surrounding Xuanmen sects couldn't subdue him, yet you, Qiongqi, beat him half to death with a single punch. Since you are so powerful, I'll have the followers in the vicinity spread the word that a divine object from outer space has been delivered to Shazhou, attracting all the enemies of my sect to you so we can wipe them all out in one fell swoop. How about that?"

Li Fan asked curiously, "You were abandoned by the cult and sacrificed as a offering, yet you're still thinking of helping them devise strategies?"

Zhang Yanzhi didn't care at all. "I teach that all beings are equal. I am for everyone, and everyone is for me. If I hadn't been chosen as the Saintess, I would have died on the grasslands long ago. How can I be selfish and risk my life just because it's my turn to do something for the sect?"

"Qiongqi Demon Prince, you are a demon god born of heaven and earth. As long as you are willing to be my protector demon god, you can have hundreds of followers sacrificing themselves at a moment's notice. You have everything you need. Even if I ask you for help, it's just to kill a couple of enemies. You can do whatever you want! You don't have to hide like a rogue cultivator, nor are you locked under the Demon Suppression Tower and restrained by others. Where can you find such a good deal? Don't you really want to consider it?"

Li Fan thought for a moment, "So you want to recruit me into the cult, so that I can perform a great service for the cult and escape death?"

Zhang Yanzhi shook his head and said, "I have already performed a great service by being a sacrifice to the demon god. After my death, my primordial spirit will be protected by the altar and reincarnated. However, some of my memories will be stripped away, and I will lose the qualification to be Saintess. Actually, this is fine. Anyway, I have never received any proper inheritance, so there is nothing to regret. I only gave you this idea because I felt that you, Qiongqi Demon Prince, had kept me alive until now without eating me."

Li Fan was dumbfounded again, "Your divine religion's altar has the function of guaranteeing reincarnation and assigning offspring? And you can even separate the Saintess's primordial spirit??"

Zhang Yanzhi laughed, "My sect possesses unparalleled divine skills and countless wondrous methods, profound and boundless. Joining my sect grants eternal life. Qiongqi Demon Child, do not hesitate any longer, join the sect, join the sect!"

Zhang Yanzhi was probably bored out of his mind. Li Fan transformed into a flying tiger, grabbed the celestial object, and flew towards the Shazhou. Sarilang rode on Li Fan's back, incessantly promoting the various welfare systems of the Divine Sect. Of course, like a peddler praising his own wares, there was bound to be some exaggeration, but to be fair, for a ferocious beast like Qiongqi, and even for those rogue cultivators, the Divine Sect's treatment was definitely better than that of the Immortal Palace.

At least, the cult does not have an insurmountable privilege gap in terms of system or inherent nature. At least on the surface, it promotes the idea that everyone in the cult is equal, and that all new members are brothers and sisters, with clear rewards and punishments, and selection based solely on merit. Therefore, in recent years, it has not only rapidly integrated the Western alien Human Race and demons, but has also had a huge siphoning effect on the cultivators of the Central Plains.

Every year, various rebels, bandits, rogue cultivators, thieves, fugitives, and refugees join the ranks of the Divine Cult. Even with the Dui Country's Hexi Protectorate's heavy defenses and numerous passes, there are still instances of military households defecting from the Divine Cult. To be honest, if it weren't for the fact that Kunlun Mountain is too high for ordinary people to cross, thus limiting the defection population to low-level cultivators at the Golden Core and Foundation Establishment stages, the common people exploited and oppressed by the Immortal Palace would probably have all fled long ago.

This is not an exaggeration, because this situation has already occurred in the Kun Country.

Back then, the Immortal Palace mobilized seven armies but failed to annihilate the Divine Cult, resulting in a prolonged stalemate. However, alarmingly, no large-scale rebellion broke out in the Kun Country itself. In fact, the Kun Country had begun to recover its production to some extent, and the Divine Cult was rapidly transforming its occupied territory into its own domain. Although a large number of refugees fled from the east to the Li Country, very few were seen fleeing from the north of the Kun Country. It seems that if this continues, the Divine Cult's control of Kun will truly lead to its disintegration from the Central Plains!

Of course, on the other hand, the populations of the Western Kingdom and the Central Plains are not on the same scale. When resources are evenly distributed, the high-end combat power of the Divine Cult cannot compare with that of the Daoist disciples of the Profound Sect. So, the Divine Cult can still maintain its offensive momentum for the time being. To put it bluntly, the Divine Cult has a financial surplus and its legions are providing support behind the scenes. Once the population increases and income slows down, and the legions no longer need to use advanced technology to help their civilization break through, they will probably fall into the same predicament as the Immortal Palace, where it will be difficult to achieve fairness and justice.

After all, resources are limited, but human desires are limitless.

"Hey! You demonic cult fiends! Hand over the extraterrestrial artifact at once!"

The cult acts quickly; they haven't even reached the Shazhou yet, and three reckless individuals have already rushed up to offer themselves as food to the tiger.

Li Fan, of course, accepted all offers.

"Then!"

The other party didn't expect that the tiger would throw the big iron lump at them without saying a word. They instinctively reached out to catch it, but the tiger's superhuman strength broke both their arms and shattered their skull, killing them instantly.

"Senior brother! Aaaaaah!" The junior brother screamed in agony as a gust of wind rushed in front of him and punched him in the stomach, cutting him in two.

The last person didn't even have time to run before Li Fan casually tore him apart with a gust of wind that transformed into a tiger's claw.

By the Zhang Yanzhi manipulated the wind-controlling talisman and floated over unsteadily, the three weaklings had already been blasted into nothingness by the whirlwind.

"They must be elders from that cultivation sect. That makes ten Nascent Soul Stage killed."

Zhang Yanzhi took out a little red book and a wolf-hair brush, dipped it in saliva, and began to write.

What is this?

"The Blood Register of the Divine Cult is used to calculate merits. Demon Child, you want the God Lord Jade? And you want to become the Altar Master? Then you'll need to kill about two hundred Nascent Soul Stage."

Li Fan couldn't help but roll his eyes. "Hey! Don't try to fool me just because I'm some naive demon! Did each of you become a sect leader by killing two hundred Nascent Soul Stage? Where are you going to get so many Nascent Soul Stage to kill, Immortal Palace and Xuanmen?!"

Zhang Yanzhi explained, "The altar master is usually a leader elected by the local authorities. He is responsible for managing the assets of our sect in various places and providing resources for the sect. In other words, if he has paid enough materials for a hundred Golden Core cultivators to break through to the Nascent Soul Stage, he will have made a great contribution to the sect and will be rewarded with God Lord Jade."

Such elite altar masters, as long as they do not commit any major mistakes or violate religious rules and are impeached by the Enforcement Venerable, will usually not be replaced by local officials unless the altar master himself needs to go into seclusion or go into hiding and actively arranges an election.

"As for you, Demon Prince, you rely solely on your merits of killing and slaughtering, and you're on the path of a protector. If you insist on becoming the altar master, then of course the calculation would have to be doubled. However, if you can successfully hand over this extraterrestrial artifact, then it could be equivalent to thirty to fifty people, right? But we'll have to wait for someone from the main altar to review it before we can confirm. Researching extraterrestrial artifacts is the responsibility of other departments within the sect, so I'm not sure how to convert that."

Holy crap... why is the Cult questline also just endless grinding...?

"... Such a large piece must be worth at least a hundred or two hundred people, right? Do I have to kill another hundred or so?"

"Among celestial artifacts, this is considered small. I remember my godfather once unearthed one in Northern Court, and it took twenty oxcarts to pull it! And since you, Demon Prince, are going to be the altar master, where do you plan to set up the altar?"

"Where is it located?" Li Fan was taken aback.

Zhang Yanzhi's eyes lit up, and he began to analyze rapidly, "With the Demon Prince's abilities, I think the Divine Sect would certainly be willing to allocate a mountain peak and cave for you to use as your dojo. If you want to gather some Demon Race to dominate and become ancestors, I think the main altar would even take the initiative to cooperate and let you command a large army!"

However, choosing a faction is still very important. My Northern Court faction, as well as the former Central Continent faction, have both declined. Now, the strongest factions are those of the Heavenly Mountain Light Dharma King and the Kunlun Pure Dharma King. The next God Lord will definitely be chosen from among these two. Demon Prince, you should also consider which side you should pledge allegiance to!

The lineage of the Heavenly Mountain Light Dharma King is a veteran powerhouse, and has always been the Sect Leader. In recent years, they have been suppressing the Demon Palace in Duizhou. However, they lost a lot of manpower in the last battle of the Ten Ultimate Formation, and there are still many demonic sect experts causing trouble in their territory. We are in dire need of manpower.

Meanwhile, the Kunlun Pure Dharma King lineage is also rising in power, and has repeatedly achieved great feats in recent years. Not only did they conquer the Kun Country, but they are also said to have caused turmoil in the heart of the Immortal Palace. Moreover, they are the most enthusiastic about the research on extraterrestrial artifacts. If the Demon Prince were to join them, he would surely be given an important position!

Ugh, so annoying... I thought Qiongqi could just stroll around the streets, casually take out some raw silk, and then go back to Ink Bamboo Mountain to help. How did it become so complicated...? Will this ever be over??

Listening to the Saintess's rambling, Li Fan could almost see a whole host of missions and storylines unfolding for him from the cult!

Wow, there's so much work to do! How can he possibly manage it all by himself...?

After careful consideration, Li Fan decided to focus on completing the Divine Cult missions with Qiongqi, continuing his undercover work to collect kills, select a leader, and manage the silk industry. Meanwhile, his main body Qingyue, was already extremely busy with arithmetic, Moon Worship, and maintaining the balance of Li Family Village.

With the Saintess about to awaken, the company about to enter the market, the Demon God about to resurrect, and the Central Plains about to be engulfed in bloodshed, while the system still has countless miscellaneous matters to handle, new missions are constantly being added...

No! There's no time to hesitate any longer!

So Li Fan gritted his teeth and made up his mind.

Divine Transformation!

Yes, Divine Transformation!

This is incredibly troublesome with the cult! It's clearly a long-term, repetitive quest; they've even created a deity to do the work!

Here, I'd like to briefly mention the situation inside Qiongqi's clone's body.

In order to accumulate data, Li Fan cultivated a whole bunch of random things, such as the Guiche, Gonggong, the Five Mountain Gods, the Fuli Wolf, the Yin Mountain Goat, the Black Lotus, and even the Kun and the fish, and then spat them all onto Qiongqi.

But later, the Pisces transformed into a dragon and, after its super evolution, challenged Qiongqi. After a great battle, the demons within this body also rebelled on a large scale, devouring each other and fighting until they were bloodied and battered. Qiongqi was almost overthrown. Fortunately, this physical body was obtained from Qiongqi's weapon and had the added benefit of the 'original body,' which allowed it to hold on until the end. It was only by having the Blood Infant jump out and rampage that the demons were finally suppressed.

In other words, not only Fuling, but also Qiongqi helped Li Fan a great deal by taking on a lot of the demons' firepower, which enabled him to survive that demonic tribulation.

Thus, Daoist Qiongqi's clone is now facing the same predicament Li Fan once encountered. Within his body remain Qiongqi and the Qiankun Twin Dragons—three Nascent Soul Stage demon gods, the twin dragons and the tiger, locked in a power struggle. Meanwhile, the other mountain gods are taking advantage of the situation, going through the motions but not contributing. Therefore, although Qiongqi still controls the body, he cannot utilize its full power and can only rely on Qiongqi's innate skills to fight. So, despite accumulating so much malevolent energy through his long cultivation, Moon Worship's progress has been hampered by the severe damage to his primordial spirit, preventing him from breaking through.

So Li Fan considered it and decided to let Qiongqi break through its limits.

After all, he has now Dao Integration, and possesses the True Yang Technique, the Tai Sha Sword Embryo, the Blood Infant, and the Big Eyeball. He can completely suppress Transformation Stage and doesn't need to care about the interference they cause. Even if Qiongqi is cultivating normally, it doesn't matter if it really rebels. Dealing with it would only take one or two moves.

Moreover, Li Fan's recently cultivated Zhu Long Cruiser Dao Body has already exceeded expectations in terms of physical data alone, making those miscellaneous demon gods he used to farm data and get through the early stages seem extremely useless.

And what about some ferocious beast's power? Can its output surpass that of the Zhu Long? Can its Daoist magic be stronger than the True Yang Technique? Can its damage output be more impressive than the Tai Sha Sword Embryo?

As for the Dao bodies of the past, let's continue to upgrade them. For example, the Mountain God's limit is only the Divine Transformation, and its strength is not high anymore. Moreover, he has already cultivated the Limitless Nascent Soul Stage, and Li Fan has been cultivating Qi Refinement Stage for so long that he doesn't really need to rely on the Mountain God's external power to provide the five spiritual Qi's escape technique bonus.

As for Fuli, Gonggong, Lingyang, and Guiche, they lack Fuli cultivation Cultivation Method and pose serious hidden dangers. Keeping them around is pointless; their attributes are negligible, and they'll only cause trouble and rebellion. Using them to increase their lifespan is pointless. Frankly, with the Three Flowers technique already in place, very few people can even reach their second stage...

Moreover, after thinking about it, Li Fan felt there was no need to force the forty-nine Dao Bodies with just the forty-nine transformations, creating a bunch of garbage that would still get one-shotted by others, which would be pathetic. It would be better to strive for perfection and create some powerful Dao Bodies.

Besides, with so many missions lately, who knows when a Feather Transformation Immortal might suddenly appear from the other side of the gate? So, given the current dire situation, there's no point in trying to create any more clones for balance. What if we accidentally let Qiongqi cause a disaster, resulting in a bunch of failed missions? Wouldn't that just be asking for trouble?

Li Fan made some adjustments to Qiongqi's clone. First, the official side supported Qiongqi and arranged for Blood Infant to take action, suppressing the Qiankun Twin Dragons and preventing them from causing trouble. As for the other messy demon gods, except for leaving Qiongqi's good friends Kun and Guiche, all the others were killed, and the demon gods were given to Qiongqi for nourishment.

But looking at Qiongqi, it seemed it was still lacking even after consuming Gonggong Fuli Mountain Goat, and the Five Mountain Gods. So Li Fan returned to his original form, picked another flower, and asked Blood Infant to deliver it to Qiongqi to feed it.

'Qiongqi Dao Body the ability to Divine Transformation; should we use the Three Flowers to avert the calamity?'

Oh dear, do we need another one? Oh well, I'm not short of flowers right now. Come on! Let's get started!

'Breakthrough confirmed. Li Fan, Qiongqi Dao Body, has broken through to the Transformation Stage!'

'Li Fan's mood cap has increased by 1200 points; the current mood cap is 24.4k.'

Although within the Divine Court, the image of Qiongqi's primordial spirit, 'Daozi,' immediately transformed into a 'half-human, half-tiger' state, it remained quite obedient. Once the mask of Qingxu's primordial spirit was placed on its head, it submitted to Li Fan's control and dared not resist. As for the Qiankun Twin Dragons, held in the hands of the Blood Infant, they had no choice but to submit to the Qiongqi Demon God and supply it with magical power.

However, it's unclear whether it was because the Three Flowers blocked the calamity, but even the upgrade animation was blocked. The clone's body didn't show any obvious changes. This Divine Transformation was so subtle and uneventful that even Zhang Yanzhi didn't notice anything amiss. He was still whispering in the tiger's ear, praising the divine sect, completely unaware that his subordinate had already upgraded from a demon child to a demon god.

Li Fan carefully examined the condition of his clone and confirmed that it had indeed broken through. Or, to be more precise, if the Nascent Soul Realm was like breaking free from human shackles and connecting with heaven and earth, but there would still be some kind of unseen limitation in using the spiritual energy of heaven and earth, then breaking through to the Transformation Stage was like touching the true face of this shackle.

Yes, it wasn't a true breakthrough, just a touch. Using Qiongqi's body, Li Fan felt himself becoming one with the 'wind' and 'qi'.

To some extent, Qiongqi is now indeed a demon god who can do whatever it wants. As long as there is endless 'evil' and 'qi', it can construct a Dao body, possess inexhaustible power, and change in countless ways, following the laws of heaven and earth.

However, Qiongqi is merely a demon god, and it still relies on its core Dao body for existence. Qiongqi's primordial spirit cannot truly escape its 'body,' the anchor point of the material world.

It was different from the feeling of transcending realms, freely navigating between reality and illusion, and merging with the true yang when Li Fan ignited the Dao Fire.

Although Qiongqi could use more powerful 'law' and 'force' than Li Fan to transform this material world, it still stood on the threshold. Its primordial spirit floated out of the door, catching a glimpse of the scenery over there, but its body remained inside the door.

That fleeting glimpse of scenery inexplicably gave Li Fan a strong feeling, as if something in the distant west, among the Kunlun Mountains, was calling to him.

Okay, it shouldn't be him being called, but Qiongqi.

It's as if, in order to truly step out from this side of the door, one must first understand those things.

Perhaps it's some kind of racial inheritance from this ferocious beast?

I'll go check it out sometime when I happen to be passing by.