Black Prison's Legacy

Shen Fei tightened his grip on his sword and slowly walked over.

He did not know what grade of cultivation art the Dark Prison Reincarnation Art was, nor how powerful the Shadow Mantis might be. But he knew that from this day forward, his path of cultivation would be different.

Two objects rested on the stone pedestal. One was a yellowed ancient book, its cover bearing the five ancient characters for Dark Prison Reincarnation Art. Beside it was a black wooden box, its lid carved with the same inscriptions as the stone door. Sealed inside was presumably the Shadow Mantis's demon spirit egg.

Shen Fei picked up the ancient book first. As his fingertips brushed its yellowed cover, he could feel the dense spiritual energy contained within.

He did not rush to open it. First, he sat down before the stone pedestal and calmed the surging blood and energy within him.

Winning the trial was only the first step. The real test was cultivating this art and subduing this demon spirit. Old Man Black Prison's legacy followed a path of darkness, entirely different from Glory City's mainstream cultivation system.

Mastering it required more than talent. It also demanded an unwavering will.

Shen Fei raised his head toward the ghostly blue glow in the Underground Palace's vaulted ceiling, his gaze steady.

Willpower was something he had never lacked.

The instant the shadow completely dissipated, the inscriptions at the center of the Trial Platform lit up again.

Pale black light slowly rose from the patterns on the floor, gathering in midair into a stone pedestal half a person's height. Its surface was smooth as a mirror, and two objects rested quietly upon it: a yellowed ancient beast-hide scroll and a black demon spirit egg the size of a fist.

Shen Fei stepped forward and picked up the beast-hide scroll first.

It felt slightly cool to the touch, its leather tough and resilient. He did not know what Demon Beast's hide it was made from, but centuries had passed without the slightest decay. He slowly unrolled it, and the five ancient characters for Dark Prison Reincarnation Art came into view, their sharp strokes carrying an air of deadly menace.

The cultivation method's contents unfolded along the patterns, utterly unlike Glory City's mainstream cultivation methods. Ordinary arts followed the yang meridians, absorbing pure spiritual energy from heaven and earth to steadily temper the dantian.

This art did the opposite. It followed the yin meridians and drew in turbid energy, channeling the world's dark spiritual energy into the meridians before refining it through a special method for the practitioner's own use.

A line of tiny characters was inscribed at the very top of the opening page. Light and darkness are not separate paths, but the outer and inner faces of one whole. If you can face the gloom, the gloom will serve you.

Shen Fei stared at those words for a long time. Every cultivation philosophy he had encountered before classified dark-attribute arts as evil paths, claiming that prolonged practice would make one lose one's mind. Yet Old Man Black Prison's view was entirely different. Darkness itself was neither right nor wrong. What mattered was whether the person wielding it could stay true to their heart.

He scanned the method from beginning to end, roughly memorizing the introductory circulation route. This art was of an exceedingly high caliber, far surpassing the advanced cultivation method passed down by the Sacred Family.

The introductory section alone offered more than twice the cultivation efficiency of ordinary arts. But the further one progressed, the greater the strain on the mind. The slightest carelessness could bring a backlash from the dark power.

Setting down the ancient scroll, he turned his gaze to the black demon spirit egg.

The shell was icy cold, its surface shimmering with a faint, eerie light. Something seemed to writhe inside. The moment Shen Fei pressed his fingertips against it, the shell shattered, scattering into motes of black light.

A slender phantom slowly emerged from the glow and hovered before him.

It was the Shadow Mantis. Pitch-black from head to toe, it was small, only half a person's height, with blade-like forelimbs folded against its chest. Their edges gleamed with a cold, cutting light. Its compound eyes were a deep, bottomless green, and a barely perceptible dark aura emanated from its body. Black Gold Rank.

Shen Fei's breath caught slightly. A Black Gold Rank demon spirit counted among the highest levels of combat strength in all of Glory City. Even the heads of the Three Great Peak Families mostly had Life-Bound Demon Spirits at only the Black Gold Initial Rank.

He had never imagined that the introductory legacy left by Old Man Black Prison would include a Black Gold Rank demon spirit.

He was given little time to marvel before the fusion process abruptly began.

The Shadow Mantis's phantom turned into a streak of black light and plunged straight into the space between his brows.

Agonizing pain instantly swept through his entire body. Dark-type demon spirits naturally corroded their hosts' soul force. That cold, overbearing power surged into his meridians like countless fine needles stabbing him. Every inch of his meridians was being torn apart, and even his dantian throbbed with pain.

Shen Fei grunted and clenched his teeth. He did not panic. Forcing his mind to remain steady, he followed the introductory method of the Dark Prison Reincarnation Art and slowly guided the dark power along its prescribed route.

The process was extremely difficult. The dark power was wild and unruly, repeatedly battering the walls of his meridians, trying to break free of his will's control.

Every cycle felt like grinding his bones with sandpaper. Cold sweat poured down his forehead, and the back of his clothes was soon soaked through.

He held on with everything he had. In his previous life, he had endured on the city wall until the civilians evacuated even with his intestines spilled across the ground. This little pain from his meridians being torn could not bring him down. Time passed, moment by moment.

Under his repeated guidance, the violent dark power gradually grew docile. It cycled along the cultivation route, slowly merging with his soul force.

The bond between a demon spirit and its host was a fusion of souls. Those who could not withstand the corrosion would have their minds controlled by the demon spirit instead. Those who endured would gain the sharpest of blades.

After an unknown amount of time, the final trace of dark power sank into his dantian. Shen Fei abruptly opened his eyes. A faint green glimmer flashed in their depths and vanished in an instant. The fusion was complete.

Just then, the inscriptions on the Trial Platform flared brilliantly once more. They shone brighter than on either of the previous two occasions, shrouding the entire Underground Palace in a black halo.

An aged figure slowly coalesced at the center of the formation. His hair and beard were white, and he wore an archaic robe. His eyes were black as an abyss, without a trace of white.

It was Old Man Black Prison's remnant soul.

The remnant soul's figure was somewhat illusory; clearly, little of his power remained. Standing at the formation's center, he looked Shen Fei up and down for a moment before speaking in an indifferent tone.

"Your soul force has no dark attribute. You are not the most suitable successor." "Still, you passed the Trial of Shadows and endured the Shadow Mantis's corrosion without breaking down. Your willpower is not bad."

Shen Fei said nothing, merely bowing slightly in respect. The remnant soul's gaze suddenly sharpened, as though he could see into the depths of Shen Fei's soul.

He stared at Shen Fei for quite a while before speaking slowly. "And you carry the aura of someone who has died once. This is not your first life."

Shen Fei's heart jolted. Even Nie Li only suspected the secret of his rebirth and had no concrete proof. Yet this remnant soul had seen through it at a glance. He neither admitted nor denied it, simply maintaining his silence.

Old Man Black Prison had no intention of pressing him either. The remnant soul was only a wisp of intent, preserved until now solely to pass on his legacy. There was no need to delve into his successor's past. His tone remained indifferent as he continued.

"My true legacy still lies deep within the Holy Spirit Continent. What I left here is merely a surface scratching: an introductory cultivation art and a Black Gold Rank demon spirit." "If you want more, seek it on the Holy Spirit Continent."

He paused, his tone growing more solemn. "Each level of the Dark Prison Reincarnation Art requires you to devour a Demon Beast's demon spirit to break through. The stronger the spirit you devour, the greater your breakthrough.

"There are no bottlenecks in advancing this art. The only threshold is whether you can withstand the demon spirit's instinctive backlash." "Remember this. Devouring demon spirits will bring a backlash against your mind. If you endure, you are the hunter. If you fail, you are the Demon Beast."

After saying this, the remnant soul's figure became even more insubstantial.

He gave Shen Fei one final look, said nothing more, and dissolved into motes of black light that scattered back into the formation. Silence returned to the Underground Palace. Only the ghostly blue ore in the vaulted ceiling still gave off a faint glow.

Shen Fei stood where he was, absorbing the remnant soul's words.

The Holy Spirit Continent, the true legacy, devouring demon spirits to break through-all of that was still too distant for him. What mattered most right now was the introductory art in his hands and this Shadow Mantis.

He closed his eyes and examined his body from within. The dark power brought by the demon spirit fusion still flowed through his meridians, continually washing through and widening them.

The barrier he had only just broken through to reach Silver Mid-Rank crumbled steadily beneath the force's assault.

His soul force grew rapidly, surging upward from Silver Rank 4-Star until it neared the threshold of Silver Rank 5-Star before slowing. Ultimately, his cultivation settled at Silver Rank 4-Star.

It was the same as his starting cultivation when he had transmigrated in his previous life. But its significance was entirely different. In that life, he had only reached Gold Rank 1-Star, relying on methodical cultivation and grueling battles. His cultivation art had been ordinary, and he had possessed no decent demon spirit.

Even giving everything he had on the city wall, he had only managed to kill eleven Silver Demon Beasts and hold off one Gold Demon Beast for half an incense stick's burning time before finally dying beneath its sharp horn.

Things were different now. A Black Gold Rank Shadow Mantis lay dormant within him, and he held a cultivation art far beyond the standards of this age.

Although his cultivation was still only Silver Rank 4-Star, he might well be able to fight an ordinary Gold Initial Rank cultivator. If he had possessed the Shadow Mantis and the Dark Prison Reincarnation Art when the city fell in his previous life, the outcome might have been different.

At the very least, he could have held off a few more Gold Demon Beasts and saved more people.

Shen Fei clenched his fists, clearly feeling the abundant power within him, as well as the faint connection to the Shadow Mantis deep in his soul. This was power that truly belonged to him, a trump card he had sought in vain in his previous life.

He did not rush to leave the Underground Palace. He spent the next three days in its main hall.

During the day, he practiced the introductory method of the Dark Prison Reincarnation Art, familiarizing himself with the circulation of dark power, tempering his meridians again and again, and consolidating his Silver Rank 4-Star cultivation. At night, he attempted to summon the Shadow Mantis and improve their coordination.

The first time he summoned it, the Shadow Mantis emerged from the shadows, its blade-like forelimbs slicing through the air without a sound. Shen Fei tried ordering it to attack a nearby stone pillar. It instantly became a black streak, its forelimbs slashing fiercely into the pillar.

A piece of the hard black stone was cleanly sliced away, leaving a cut smooth as a mirror. Its speed was astonishing, and its concealment abilities were exceptional. It was an ideal weapon for ambushes, reconnaissance, and drawn-out skirmishes.

After several repeated tests, Shen Fei figured out a few of the Shadow Mantis's basic abilities. Shadow Stealth allowed it to merge into the shadows. As long as it did not attack, Silver Rank cultivators could not detect it at all.

With Blade Slash, its forelimbs were as hard as adamantine and could cut through most defenses. It also possessed a short-range Shadow Teleportation ability that could save his life at a critical moment.

The only problem was that, with his current Silver Rank 4-Star cultivation, he could not keep the Shadow Mantis summoned for too long. In an all-out fight, he could sustain it for at most one incense stick's burning time. Beyond that, his soul force would not keep up.

But that was already enough. One incense stick's burning time was enough to decide the outcome of many battles.

Three days later, only after confirming that his cultivation was completely stable and his coordination with the demon spirit had improved considerably did Shen Fei prepare to leave. He carefully stowed the Dark Prison Reincarnation Art's beast-hide scroll close to his body.

He checked the Underground Palace once more to make sure he had overlooked nothing, then headed out through the passage he had entered.

The stone door slowly closed behind him and was sealed by the inscriptions once again. The valley returned to its former stillness, as though no one had ever come. Shen Fei glanced back at the cliff face, now covered by vines once more, then turned and walked into the forest.

The return journey was much faster. For one thing, his cultivation had improved, allowing him to travel faster.

For another, the Shadow Mantis scouted ahead, letting him avoid Demon Beast lairs in advance without taking detours.

They encountered a few Silver Demon Beasts foolish enough to get in their way. Before Shen Fei could act, the Shadow Mantis darted from the shadows and dispatched them in a few strikes. It was more than twice as efficient as fighting them himself.

After two days of walking, he finally emerged from the Dark Forest. That morning, the mist had yet to disperse. Shen Fei walked through the woodland dew and stepped beyond the trees, spotting Glory City's outline in the distance.

The towering city walls shone blue-gray through the morning mist, exactly as they had when he left. Sentries still patrolled back and forth along the battlements, and banners hung quietly from their poles.