The First to Fall

The Xiezhi Dark Prison is one of the few cave abode within the Immortal Dynasty. Although the Bing Six Prison Chamber that Fei Dongwen borrowed only occupies a small part, it is still comparable to the land of an entire county outside.

Therefore, even though there are hundreds of Foundation Establishment Stars scattered throughout, they are not so easy to find.

Kang Dabao originally entered the cave abode with the three members of the Fei Household. After passing through the Great Void Corridor and seeing a flash of white light, he was left alone in the cave abode.

Unlike the three ignorant and unruly guests, Sect Leader Kang Da and his companions had already heard the stories of this place from the senior cultivators before entering the cell:

In the past, there were several rich Third Tier mines scattered around the Bing Six Prison Chamber, which could be considered a prosperous area.

However, after several hundred years, once the mining supervisors sent by the Privy Treasury had finished mining all the spiritual mines, the land had become barren wastelands devoid of Spiritual Qi.

Then, several senior cultivators from the Privy Treasury sect spent over ten years forging it into the Xiezhi Dark Prison, making it part of this cave abode.

Now, cultivators living in this place find it extremely difficult not only to cultivate but also to recover their spiritual power.

Therefore, in the eyes of the Fei Household members who were in charge of this matter, the prisoners had already been tortured and almost none of them were unharmed.

Having spent twenty years in this godforsaken place with such a lack of medical care, even if the injuries hadn't worsened, seventy percent of the original strength in one's body should have been lost. Therefore, for the various True Cultivator who entered, it wasn't considered extremely dangerous.

Otherwise, the Fei Household would not have sent officials from the Demon Correction Office Division inside beforehand to scatter the Spirit Artifact they had seized that year.

Kang Dabao extended his Divine Sense and scanned the surroundings briefly, which put his mind at ease.

He has perfected the practice of the "Bright Moon Visualization Method," and his spiritual consciousness is far superior to that of his peers. Those fake alchemists who have not specifically practiced spiritual consciousness are probably no match for him, and he can rely on this as his foundation.

The distribution of the convicts' locations had been mapped out by Fei Dongwen beforehand, with a seasoned clerk from the Demon Correction Office Division drawing up a map and explaining it in detail to the Fei Household members.

The document not only contains information about the mountains and rivers of the Bing Six Prison Chamber, but also the approximate distribution of convicts in various locations back then. Although times have changed, it can still serve as a reference.

To avoid giving others cause for criticism, the cultivators were not allowed to bring the map in, but Sect Leader Kang Da remembered it very clearly.

He took out a Spirit Artifact compass, measured the twenty-four directions, and then calculated his approximate location by pinching his fingers.

"If my calculations are correct, two hundred miles to the north, there is a rogue cultivator at the Foundation Establishment stage whose cultivation level is unknown; and seventy miles to the west, there should be a fake Core Formation Master from the Ghost King Sect."

Choosing Sect Leader Kang Da was not difficult for him. Without a second thought, he rode the Kui Star Shuttle to the destination.

Seeing the scattered black slag he could make, each the size of a human figure, on the barren mountain before him, Sect Leader Kang Da knew he had come to the right place.

In the middle of this desolate mountain, a cave has been carved out using Spirit Artifact. The illusion array outside the cave is quite crude in terms of both materials and techniques, perhaps not even reaching the threshold of the Second Tier.

Kang Dabao merely flickered Golden Light in his eyes, and without needing to examine it for long, he easily discerned the flaws in the illusion array.

It was good that they could avoid disturbing the owner of this place, so Sect Leader Kang Da didn't stand on ceremony and quickly rushed into the cave, stepping over several gaps. The cave owner had cleverly used black ore slag to make some lamps and hung them on the walls.

However, Kang Dabao had no time to appreciate it at this moment. He extended his Divine Sense and easily found the person in question.

Who goes there?!

The answer to the host's question was a brilliant beam of light, illuminating the originally dim cave several degrees brighter.

A white bone spear, shrouded in black aura, came forward. After a resounding clang, the menacing Slaughter and Extermination fell back into the hands of Sect Leader Kang Da.

"Huh? This guy's luck is really that good; he actually got his own Spirit Artifact back then?!"

Kang Dabao's surprise and doubt did not last long, after all, for such Evil Cultivator, the resources here were not particularly scarce.

"Is this an official from the Demon Correction Office?! I, Xu, am innocent! Please hear me out!"

The Pill Master's plea for mercy was interrupted by the black flames that Slaughter and Extermination unleashed. As the rolling waves of flames swept over, Sect Leader Kang Da finally saw his opponent's true face.

In his nearly one hundred years of cultivation, this was the first time he had ever seen Pill Master in such a sorry state. This Pill Master surnamed Wu didn't even have a decent robe, and his body was covered with horrific wounds that couldn't be concealed at all.

While battling Kang Dabao, the Pill Master Wu could no longer focus on suppressing his injuries. His wounds began to fester visibly, and in some severe areas, they even cracked open with black scabs and oozed yellow pus.

"My lord of the Demon Correction Office, please release me. Once I'm out, I'm willing to be your slave, your servant, your beast of burden."

The Pill Master had to exert almost all his strength to escape from the raging black flames. The price he paid was that his only useful Spirit Artifact vanished into the sea of fire along with the two Hundred Ghost Boy.

Kang Dabao felt no pity. Once the heat had burned away the surrounding stench, the Slaughter and Extermination's blade regained its spiritual light. The Wu Pill Master, who was filled with sorrow, had lost all his spiritual power and abilities, and could only use his withered chest and a sliver of hope to defend himself.

The azure halberd light showed no mercy, easily pulverizing the Pill Master's physical body.

The discolored Slaughter and Extermination body plunged into the black flames before it and was roasted. In just a moment, the bone and flesh fragments stuck to it were burned into a few specks of ash.

With a simple hand gesture and a slight shake, Sect Leader Kang Da could restore the murder weapon to its original state.

"Judging by his methods, he must be a truly wicked and evil person. It's unexpected that the Demon Correction Office is actually quite capable in the capital region. If all the False Core in the Bing Six Prison Chamber are like this guy, they wouldn't even be as strong as the third-tier cultivators of the same level outside. So there's not much danger."

Thinking of this, Kang Dabao uttered a profound and obscure syllable, and with a flick of his finger, he captured the False Core- born soul in front of him and put it into the specially prepared purple jade bowl.

This time, killing a fake alchemist master didn't require much effort, which is quite rare. Kang Dabao didn't stop, took out a compass to calculate for a while, and then stepped on the Kui Xing Shuttle and fled to another place.

At the same time, nine water-moon mirrors stood outside the cave abode, each reflecting a different image.

At this moment, the focus of all the cultivators was naturally on the lively scene involving Sect Leader Kang Da. Seeing that the Pill Master surnamed Wu had his soul taken so easily, the reactions from all sides were different.

Ma Mangqin, the Original Response Temple's head monk, spoke first, his words carrying a pointed meaning as he faced Fei Ye Shui: "Fellow Daoist Fei's junior is quite lucky, managing to take the lead so easily."

Fei Ye Shui smiled faintly and remained silent. Ma Mangqin was about to say something when Fei Tianqin glared at him fiercely. Although the old monk did not show any fear upon seeing this, he hesitated for a moment before swallowing back what he was about to say.

Neither the old man from Wen Mountain Cult nor the beautiful woman from the Su Household spoke. Given the Fei Household's current advantageous position as landlords, it was perfectly normal for them to resort to underhanded tactics; why bother saying anything more?

Furthermore, these three Nascent Soul factions had no face to speak up in the first place.

After all, if they still had any regard for their reputation, they wouldn't have gone so far as to send disciples together to seize treasures from the home of Golden Core cultivator.

The old man from Wen Mountain Cult and the beautiful woman from the Su Household glanced at Ma Mangqin simultaneously, thinking to themselves, "What's the rush? This show has only just begun."

Five days passed quickly. The Sect Leader Kang Da, had gained a great deal these past few days, acquiring another twenty or so Foundation Establishment souls.

As Fei Nanxi had said before, these poor convicts, after twenty years, few of them were even fully recovered from their injuries. Kang Dabao often only needed to swipe his halberd to take their lives.

These True Cultivator could hardly even control the Daoist techniques they had painstakingly cultivated for many years. They immediately went black, their heads lightened, and they entered the purple jade alms bowl.

It makes sense, after all, they are all promising recruits who can fight and kill. If their injuries were easy to heal, they wouldn't have been left to die in the Bing Six Prison Chamber by the high-ranking officials of the Demon Correction Office Suppression Division.

However, as time went on, it became increasingly difficult for Kang Dabao to find these convicts. A few days ago, he managed to catch a glimpse of one of the three scoundrels from afar.

That person also possessed a knack for Divine Sense, and similarly discovered the whereabouts of Sect Leader Kang Da. However, the two sides tacitly avoided meeting each other, and each went their own way.

That day, Kang Dabao searched until evening before finding another mid-stage True Cultivator dressed as a Confucian scholar. His spiritual essence was pure, without any Blood Qi or impurities, yet he too was imprisoned here, unlikely to be reborn, which was quite lamentable.

When Sect Leader Kang Da saw the scholar, the latter's eyes were already indifferent, showing no sign of life. Kang Dabao's face remained devoid of any pity or compassion. With a flick of his short halberd, he once again brought forth a salty, fishy smell.

Another soul entered the bowl, Sect Leader Kang Da was somewhat satisfied. He changed his hand gestures, summoned a burst of water vapor to cleanse his hands, and then swallowed a few Restore Spirit Pill.

Since the elders of the Fei Household had decided to send them into the Xiezhi Dark Prison long ago, they had naturally prepared ample supplies of Restore Spirit items. If those three unruly guests had not carried enough pills on a normal day, they would have suffered a minor loss at this time.

Once his meridians, which had felt slightly parched, were replenished by spiritual energy, Kang Dabao stopped meditating and began to sit in meditation. However, as soon as he extended his Divine Sense, he noticed something unusual.

"They're from the Fei Household?!"

Without a second thought, Kang Dabao hurried over. After all, compared to the others, the Fei Household members, who were related by marriage, were somewhat more trustworthy to him.

When Sect Leader Kang Da arrived near the battle, he saw a fat Pill Master, over ten feet tall, wielding a one-horned golden figure like a madman. Struggling beneath that one-horned golden figure was Fei Wanqing, Kang Dabao.

As soon as Kang Dabao saw the fat-eared Pill Master's face, he knew who he was.

Before their departure, the old official of the Demon Correction Office emphasized the several fierce Pill Master imprisoned in the Xiezhi Dark Prison, claiming that each of these Pill Master was extremely ruthless and that all cultivators should be extra careful.

And the fat-eared Pill Master in front of them, named Tong He, was one of them.

According to the old official, he had become a demon by cultivating the Zhou Grade Middle-Grade Devil Cultivator Cultivation Method "Life-Slaughtering Soul-Chewing Art," and had slaughtered most of the nearly one thousand cultivators of the Heyuan Tong Household, including a Pill Master, which led to his Demon Correction Office Suppression Division.

However, even the Demon-Slaying Division paid the price of losing two fake Pill Masters in their attempt to capture this man, demonstrating their extreme ruthlessness. In terms of strength, Tong He at his peak was probably comparable to the two top Pill Masters who were quite familiar with Sect Leader Kang.

Despite his still-healing injuries, he wielded a golden unicorn sword he had somehow acquired, which was enough to overwhelm Fei Wanqing, making it difficult for her to unleash her full magical powers. She could only barely hold on with a plain gauze curtain of excellent quality.

It's not hard to guess that this Tong He is indeed different from the False Core cultivator from the Ghost King Sect that Sect Leader Kang Da just killed.

It's likely that no one can explain why this fat-eared Pill Master was able to regain most of his abilities while still in prison.

Under such circumstances, there's not much to say about the battle in front of her. If Fei Wanqing didn't have any trump cards up her sleeve, she might even be in mortal danger.

Just as Kang Dabao was about to make a move, he extended his Divine Sense and discovered that there was another person hiding nearby. This person had obviously been there for quite some time, occupying an excellent position from which he could have a complete view of the battle.

They were clearly enemies, not friends; otherwise, seeing Fei Wanqing in such a weakened state, they should have stepped forward to help her long ago.

However, Sect Leader Kang Da had indeed gained a lot from Boyue and the Fei Household. Even though he was afraid that they would benefit from his actions, he could not stand by and watch Fei Wanqing suffer a loss.

Just as he made up his mind, Fei Wanqing on the other end seemed to have also keenly sensed the person who was lurking in the shadows. Suddenly, the Spirit Artifact in the female cultivator's hand emitted a bright light, leading Tong He to mistakenly believe that the female cultivator was about to self-destruct her Spirit Artifact and cut off her tail to survive.

He had only just taken the one-horned golden man and temporarily retreated when Fei Wanqing suddenly appeared, gracefully moving away to another place.

Having been tricked and enraged, Tong He was easily lured by Fei Wanqing to a secluded hiding place.

This fat-eared Pill Master was once a top-tier False Core. How could he not detect the hidden enemy at such close range? He had not yet fallen into demonic possession, so his mind was not clouded. He mistakenly believed that the hidden person was Fei Wanqing's helper, who wanted to launch a surprise attack on him!

The newcomer suddenly saw that Tong He's anger intensified, his face contorted into a grimace, and his features sunken deep into his flesh.

Tong He pushed the "Life-Slaughtering Soul-Chewing Art" to its limit, and with a sudden slam of the golden unicorn in his hand, he easily unleashed a violent spiritual storm with this unfamiliar Spirit Artifact.

The person directly in front of him was almost knocked unconscious by the spiritual storm. A bright talisman transformed into a black shield, blocking Tong He's powerful attack.

Fu Bao bought him a chance to counterattack. He uttered a soft shout, and a ball of cinnabar landed in his fair palm, forming a talisman. As soon as the talisman was formed, there seemed to be the sound of wind and thunder in the air, making the surrounding air smell of fire and thunder.

Tong He still retained the insights he had before being imprisoned. The moment he saw the talisman materialize in his opponent's hand, he roared, "The 'Secret Teachings of the Three Caverns Talismans,' you, young man, are a member of the Su Household!!"

Su Changqiu's face darkened, and he remained silent. He used a talisman to block the one-horned golden man in Tong He's hand, while simultaneously channeling spiritual energy into his palm, making the talisman in his hand even more vibrant.

Finally, after a few more breaths, bolts of lightning descended from above.

The Yuezhu Su Household and Dragon Tiger Mountain share the same lineage. Their direct lineage cultivates the "Secret Teachings of the Three Caverns Talismans," a righteous Daoist method whose power should not be underestimated. The violent fiery thunder energy nearly dried up half of the oil on Tong He. The latter's expression turned solemn, and he also put away his Spirit Artifact, Hand Seals.

With a single breath, the fat-eared Pill Master unleashed countless fragments of remnant souls and spirits, which wove together into Wufeng that completely enveloped his large, fat body.

The flames and soul energy continued to evaporate, creating a beautiful interplay of light and shadow. As the lightning gradually subsided, only a thin layer of remnant soul Wufeng remained above Tong He's head, indicating that the two were evenly matched.

Su Changqiu, as expected of Nascent Soul cultivator, was far more capable than Fei Wanqing, who came from the She Mountain Hall. Tong He fought for a while and found himself exhausted, his physical and spiritual strength almost depleted, so he had the idea of fleeing.

Su Changqiu, however, was unwilling to let go of this False Core -born soul. He still had a sufficient supply of Restore Spirit Pill pills and believed that he could wear down this powerful opponent.

After seeing Fei Wanqing slip away during the break, Sect Leader Kang Da settled down to watch the show. His Divine Sense was far superior to the two of them, allowing him to see their movements clearly without being discovered. It was the perfect time to sit back and watch the tigers fight.

As Su Changqiu, after about half an hour, Tong He's spiritual power was almost exhausted, and even the remnants of his soul that he had treasured for many years were almost gone.

On the other hand, although Su Changqiu's spiritual power was slightly insufficient, he did not stop using any of his methods and was confident of victory.

Finally, Su Changqiu's Xuan Lei shattered the physical body of Tong He, a veteran Pill Master, and the fatigue on his body seemed to be instantly relieved by the False Core alchemy soul he was about to obtain.

Just as he was about to Hand Seals to summon the soul, he heard the sound of wind beside his ear.

"Who?!!"

Su Changqiu's talismanic power was already low, and now it was directly destroyed by the two Golden Light that flew towards him. He was so frightened that his expression changed drastically. The Taiyi Body-Protection Talisman at his waist, which was personally bestowed by the True Person, was activated to block this fatal blow for him.

"What a pity!!"

If it were an ordinary False Core, they would likely be dead from this sudden attack! The Sect Leader Kang Da suddenly felt a pang of jealousy towards these scions of powerful families, inwardly cursing, "So difficult to kill!!"

Jealousy was nothing he could do; he simply extended his short, stubby finger and gently hooked Tong He's soul into Kang Dabao 'Tong He purple jade alms bowl.

Su Changqiu's face was terribly ugly, but he was not a fool. He knew that Kang Dabao had defeated Funeng, and he also knew that this yellow-eyed boy from this remote place was no easy opponent.

Having fought for a long time and unlikely to regain his former glory, he could not afford to lose his temper because of the arrogance of the Aristocratic Clan's son, or he might suffer a great loss! It was time to leave!

So the young master of the Su Household decided to abandon all this hardship and leave without a second thought.

Just then, Su Changqiu sensed someone approaching from afar, unsure whether they were friend or foe.

However, it quickly became clear when a sharp shout rang out with the sound of wind, causing both of them to tense up. "Fellow Daoist Kang, quickly stop this child with me! Fellow Daoist Shu has been murdered! He's dead!"