Is There Really Such a Thing as a Good Person in This World?

Cultivating immortality was fraught with a thousand trials and ten thousand dangers. In the end, though, it all came down to seven barriers.

Qiling Realm, Qi Sea Realm, Gangsha, Tongxuan Realm, Spirit Transformation, Void Return Realm, and Dao Integration Realm. Once you passed all seven, you could ascend to immortality.

The first barrier was the Qiling Realm. It was the hardest, yet also the easiest.

Some people sat in meditation atop snowy peaks for a hundred years, spending their entire lives without even glimpsing a trace of spiritual energy. Others opened their doors one morning and suddenly saw firefly lights flowing across the mountains like a river of stars.

No rare treasures were needed, no master's guidance, and there was no rhyme or reason to it.

Perhaps the first person to cultivate immortality had simply stumbled upon the spiritual energy between heaven and earth, and so embarked on the path of cultivation.

The second barrier was the Qi Sea Realm, the level Chen Ye had reached. The hardships involved were known only to each cultivator. With good luck, a single pill could save decades of effort. With bad luck, one might languish at this stage for a lifetime.

The third barrier was Gangsha. The human body had its limits. Once the qi sea had expanded to its utmost and spiritual energy had filled every meridian and acupoint, one had to transform one's constitution and merge with heaven and earth.

This was a life-or-death barrier.

There were countless kinds of spiritual energy between heaven and earth. Most were harmless and beneficial, but a few were lethal to the touch. They were called gangsha. Some were poisonous, some violent, and some bitterly cold; each carried its own dangers. Yet only such extreme forces could refine the body and extend one's lifespan again. Otherwise, one would be buried beneath the earth after two or three hundred years.

Chen Ye had read accounts in ancient texts of the gruesome deaths suffered while refining the body with gangsha. Few even left behind an intact corpse. Mo Ci had also told him that refining his body back then had been like falling into purgatory, and he'd nearly failed to endure it.

The fourth barrier was Tongxuan Realm, the most powerful level Chen Ye had encountered so far.

Mo Ci was in Tongxuan Realm, but he had possessed too many bodies and was long since depleted in both spirit and qi. It was hard to tell how capable he really was. But someone as formidable as Su Chunyi, also in Tongxuan Realm, seemed scarcely different from an immortal.

Mo Ci had once mentioned that every Tongxuan cultivator possessed a unique ability. It wasn't a spell, but more like a personal realization. Such divine arts and secret techniques couldn't be taught; one had to comprehend them for oneself. Whether they were powerful or useless was entirely up to the cultivator. Mo Ci believed the ability he had grasped was utterly useless, which was why he had ended up in such a sorry state.

As for the later stages—Spirit Transformation, Void Return Realm, and Dao Integration Realm—Chen Ye knew little about them. Mo Ci didn't understand them either. In his entire life, he had never learned how to advance to Spirit Transformation.

According to Princess Hongyu, this Elder Tianwu intended to use three thousand boys and girls to refine his soul and break through to the next realm.

It was a classic demonic sect method.

Demonic cultivators were always blunt. What did they do when cultivation was slow and they lacked pills?

Eat people!

People were rare treasures, too.

What did they do when they lacked materials for refining magic treasures?

Kill people!

People were excellent materials for refining weapons, too.

What did they do when they hit a bottleneck and couldn't break through?

Kill people, eat people. It didn't matter whether it worked—try it first. Maybe they'd get lucky and smash through the barrier with sheer force!

That was why fiends were so harmful. Their habit of killing first and asking whether it would work later was unbearable even to their own kind. Who knew whether some other fiend might refine them next?

Even more absurdly, there really were people who ate their way to ascension.

With an example right in front of them, many cultivators couldn't resist the temptation. Elder Tianwu had gone even further: he had secretly taken control of the mortal court and was devouring the powerful and wealthy.

This sort of thing happened once or twice every few centuries.

It wasn't that orthodox cultivators were shirking their duties. After all, a single meditation session could last a hundred years, and this mortal dynasty seemed to have existed for only thirty or forty. Cultivators always put longevity first. They couldn't keep watch over everything at all times.

But ordinary fiends wouldn't dare make such a spectacle of themselves. A mortal court was bound to attract attention more easily.

Chen Ye guessed that Elder Tianwu had been driven to desperation and had no choice but to resort to this method.

With death at his door, a demonic cultivator who had already been reckless could do anything.

Though he looked down on such methods, Chen Ye knew he was no match for Elder Tianwu. All he could do was stall for time and wait for Su Chunyi to return.

Only this sword immortal had the means to deal with a fiend who had seized control of a nation.

"Princess, can you tell when Elder Tianwu will emerge from seclusion?"

Princess Hongyu shook her head. "I don't know. That fiend is like a ghost—appearing and vanishing without a trace. I have no idea when he'll return or where he's in seclusion. He only told me to gather boys and girls for him. Once that's done, Jiang Shiyue will notify the old fiend to come out."

Chen Ye pondered. "It's him again."

After all the twists and turns, this Young Master Jiang was still the key.

Chen Ye asked, "And what realm is he in?"

"The Qi Sea Realm. He also had me find gangsha to refine his body. Many lives were spent gathering it, but who would've thought he'd be afraid once it was brought back?"

Princess Hongyu's voice was full of scorn. She didn't know how painful refining one's body with gangsha was, but she remembered Jiang Shiyue reaching out to pick up a piece of jade tainted with gangsha. He had screamed the moment he touched it and hurriedly thrown it away.

After that, the chest of jade pieces—bought with countless lives—had remained locked away in a secret chamber. Jiang Shiyue had never mentioned them again.

Though she didn't know much about the details of cultivation, Princess Hongyu knew Jiang Shiyue was afraid. He simply didn't dare break through.

Chen Ye was quite surprised, too. He had assumed that a fiend who had seized control of a nation would have the whole court at his disposal and be far more powerful than himself. He'd even made preparations for that.

And that was it?

Still, it made sense. Those who chose the demonic path either had no choice or were determined to take shortcuts. The latter were usually weak-willed, so it wasn't strange for them to back down when faced with danger.

Princess Hongyu asked, "Daoist, are you going to deal with Jiang Shiyue?"

Princess Hongyu gazed at Chen Ye with hope, but wariness filled her heart.

No matter how prettily the young Daoist spoke, the thorn in her heart still pricked. He was a fiend who killed people to make zombies. How much better could he be than the others?

He seemed easygoing now, but that didn't mean he was truly a good person. Perhaps once he got everything he wanted, he would turn around and reveal his true colors.

Princess Hongyu had grown up in the inner palace. On top of living under the shadow of Elder Tianwu, the fiend, she had also endured all manner of sinister and ruthless court intrigues. To put it mildly, Princess Hongyu had met very few good people in her life.

No one could be trusted. No one could be relied upon. She had to assume the worst of others, or she wouldn't survive.

No matter how handsome the young Daoist was or how pleasant his words sounded, he had to have some other motive.

But when he showed his true colors, how could she resist him?

If she could make these fiends turn on one another, perhaps she'd have a chance to survive.

Chen Ye shook his head. "Jiang Shiyue doesn't matter. Besides, if we kill him, that old fiend will probably notice at once."

Chen Ye's answer disappointed Princess Hongyu. As expected, these fiends were all selfish cowards. Why would they risk their lives for no reason?

But Chen Ye's next words left Princess Hongyu stunned.

"Princess, I came at someone's request to save those boys and girls, but the children aren't in danger right now. You and Miss Lan, however, have been cursed. If we don't deal with it soon, your lives could be in danger at any moment."

Princess Hongyu fell silent. For the first time in her life, someone had shown concern for whether she lived or died.

She only didn't know if he meant it.

She was still full of suspicion, but seeing Chen Ye's sincere expression, Princess Hongyu gritted her teeth and said, "If Daoist truly can save my sister and me from this misery, I'm willing to—"

Chen Ye hurriedly cut her off. "Don't say anything rash. I'm not asking for anything in return. Don't ruin my good name by spreading rumors."

If word got out that he expected a reward for his kindness, how could Chen Ye hold his head up in front of Su Chunyi? He had worked so hard to cling to that thigh—he couldn't let go now.

Princess Hongyu stared at Chen Ye in confusion. Had she really misunderstood him? Did he truly want nothing in return?

Was there really such a thing as a good person in this world?