Chapter 63: Slaying

He sent a message to Qin Xin, fearing that even after being locked in the cave, these girls who had suffered inhuman torment might still be driven to despair.

Yet he did not reveal himself. Instead, he flew down to the foot of the cliff, coldly watching the two outer disciples whose bodies had been smashed to pulp.

He tossed out two balls of flame, quickly reducing them to ashes.

Using the Earth Escape Technique, he made his way back to Qiao Cheng’s estate, first arriving at the residence of an outer disciple who seemed to have some status.

Once inside, he casually set up a barrier and woke the man.

The outer disciple opened his eyes in confusion, barely able to make out in the darkness a figure in a cloak with a black mask, and was instantly so terrified he nearly screamed.

Qin Yue slapped him back down with a harsh blow, seized the man by his disheveled hair, and dragged him off the bed.

With a flurry of slaps, the man’s head buzzed from the blows.

“If you don’t want to die, behave yourself!” Qin Yue snapped in a low voice.

The man was stunned, unable to understand how such a terrifying fiend could appear on Elder Qiao’s territory.

For a moment, he even wondered if he was dreaming.

“I’m asking you, what cultivation level is Elder Qiao at now? What is he skilled at? Does he carry any powerful artifacts?” Qin Yue did not speak aloud, but transmitted the questions directly into the man’s mind.

The outer disciple’s eyes widened, seemingly unable to believe that someone was actually after Qiao Cheng.

The Zhaoyang Sect was so secretive—had an enemy really infiltrated?

Trembling, he stammered, “I—I don’t know what realm the elder is at. He hardly ever talks to us. Please, don’t kill me. We’re just a bunch of lowly outer disciples…”

“If you won’t talk, you can die!” Qin Yue’s mental voice was icy, his killing intent radiating.

He stepped forward, as if ready to strike at any moment.

“I—I’ll talk! Elder Qiao once got drunk and said that he originally cultivated orthodox techniques, but he was stuck at the third stage of the Realm of Severance and couldn’t break through to the fourth, so he switched… switched to a demonic path. Supposedly, he’s already broken through and said he’d take us with him in the future…”

The man, terrified by Qin Yue’s killing aura, stammered out what he knew.

“The elder always carries a treasure—a banner. He once demonstrated its power: demonic flames reaching the sky, terrifying… Also, he wears a suit of armor said to be able to withstand Dao-level divine abilities…”

“So the old bastard really is carrying some fine things. Hmph, some people truly play favorites… Since you cooperated, I won’t kill you!” Qin Yue sent a cold thought, then struck the man’s neck with the edge of his hand.

The disciple’s eyes rolled back as he fainted.

...

Qiao Cheng was cultivating inside his cave-dwelling.

His entire body exuded a chilling aura, and the temperature inside the cave was shockingly low.

Ever since his cultivation had stagnated years ago, each day bringing him closer to old age and the end of his lifespan, he had considered whether to take another path and defy fate.

Everyone at the Dao realm knew what that other path was: the way of demonic cultivation.

There were many records about it in the Zhaoyang Sect’s library, accessible to protectors and elders and above.

The purpose of these records was to study demonic cultivators and serve as a warning.

Thus, while there were many records, the actual techniques were few and sealed away, forbidden from casual study.

Only those with extraordinary will could, with the sect master’s permission, study the methods of the demonic path in depth.

Qiao Cheng had struggled with the decision for a long time.

He endured years of anxiety until, during a private drinking session with Sect Master Ling Jinsong, he finally voiced his frustration at his dwindling lifespan.

Ling Jinsong hadn’t said much, only urging him to travel, to visit the immortal isles overseas, where he might meet someone extraordinary and find a chance to resume his path.

He had listened, wandered many famous mountains and rivers, traveled overseas, but fate had not favored him.

He also asked Vice Sect Master Yue Mingxi for some Enlightenment Tea, but to no avail.

At last, in despair, he decided to take on a few disciples to pass on his knowledge. That was when Ling Jinsong came to him.

Only then did he learn that the sect had, for a very long time, secretly nurtured a group practicing demonic arts.

In Ling Jinsong’s words, there are thousands of paths in the world; if possible, upright cultivation is best, but if the road is truly blocked, other attempts are not unthinkable.

Neither of them discussed right or wrong. In the face of survival—the eternal human theme—all else was pale.

Qiao Cheng knew this was a path of no return, yet his longing for life drove him to make the choice.

At first, he maintained his principles, refusing to kill. He started by experimenting on spirit beasts and monsters, but gradually broke his vows, dabbling in many dual cultivation techniques.

He quickly reaped the benefits; the road that had once ended not only resumed but widened.

It was only then that Qiao Cheng realized that after so many years, his heart had grown cold and unfeeling. His Dao heart was firm; even practicing demonic arts was not as dangerous as he had imagined.

Like the heavens, who see all beings as nothing more than straw dogs, one’s cultivation could endlessly rise.

One day, when the gates to immortality opened and he ascended to immortality, who would know what he once did?

This time, the six women from the Ice Abyss were a brand new experiment.

People claimed those from the Ice Abyss were ill-omened, but in reality, their bloodline held an ancient power.

He had scoured many texts before devising a plan: raise the Ice Abyss women into poison bodies, and once they matured, harvest and refine them into a great medicine.

With the pills he had prepared, he could easily break through the fifth stage of the Severance Realm, and the path to the peak would be smooth.

His lifespan would be greatly extended, giving him more time to break through and become a transcendent immortal.

Even the elders who had secluded themselves for years found such a realm nearly impossible to attain.

So, holding on to so-called righteousness was pure folly.

As Ling Jinsong said, if his own cultivation were ever blocked, he too would choose another way.

Since making that choice, his path had been smooth, but today, for some reason, he felt uneasy, his heart not at peace, as if something was about to happen.

At his level, his senses for danger were keen.

Even while cultivating, he kept a wisp of spirit focused on the cave’s interior at all times.

His cave was protected by seven or eight layers of formations. Normally, even Dao-level experts at the Severance Realm would find it hard to enter.

What made him most proud was that all the formations of his estate and cave extended deep underground.

Even those adept at earth escape could not penetrate.

Yet Qiao Cheng still felt nervous—

Suddenly!

He snapped his eyes open.

A figure had appeared before him, utterly out of nowhere.

In that instant, his mind became calm.

He fixed his cold gaze on the intruder.

Cloaked, hooded, a black mask on his face, exuding a chilling aura.

“Liu Tong? It’s you?” he blurted out, then as if realizing something, his expression changed dramatically. “In the northern lands of Jin, the sect suffered heavy losses… Was that your doing? You attack fellow disciples and dare to come after me? Who gave you such gall? How did you get in here?”

Qiao Cheng didn’t actually speak; he transmitted his thoughts, hoping to distract the intruder.

At the same time, he struck!

A flying sword shot from his brow, slashing toward Qin Yue in an instant.

Though Liu Tong had once been but an outer elder, far lower in status and cultivation, the fact that he could appear unnoticed in Qiao Cheng’s cave signaled something serious.

Perhaps some demonic technique had reached fruition.

Any carelessness now could mean disaster.

He had to kill him!

Clang!

The flying sword shone dazzlingly and moved at lightning speed, but it was blocked with a crisp sound.

Qin Yue deflected it with a single sword stroke—a textbook move from the Falling Leaf Sword Classic.

By his own reckoning, he was only at the fourteenth level of Void Insight, but earlier, when he thought he was at level twelve, Mu Xingruo had said he’d already passed thirteen.

The power within him was terrifying; the pale-purple core spun rapidly, unleashing unparalleled energy.

With the Nether Escape technique paired with the Falling Leaf Sword Classic, Qin Yue was not at all outmatched by a Dao-level powerhouse like Qiao Cheng.

What’s more, he hadn’t used any demonic arts, which shocked Qiao Cheng even more.

He transmitted, “What fortuitous encounter did you have? How did your cultivation suddenly soar, your power increase? Liu Tong, what do you want? Do you mean to kill me?”

The terrifying strength Liu Tong displayed left Qiao Cheng deeply shaken. Even with his reclusive nature, he couldn’t help but want to uncover the mystery.

He tried to persuade Liu Tong to turn back—

“We are fellow disciples; what can’t be discussed?”

“What’s there to discuss with trash like you?”

Thinking of what befell Qin Xin, Qin Zi, and the others, Qin Yue longed to cut the old man to pieces.

The battle was fierce; Qin Yue also used this rare real fight to temper himself against Qiao Cheng.

Clang!

His sword pierced Qiao Cheng’s defensive barrier, stabbing into the armor.

Qiao Cheng retreated, but the blow still sent waves of pain through the spot he’d been struck.

“You want to die!”

Furious, he produced a black banner and waved it. Instantly, the cave filled with a chilling wind, and the wails of ghosts echoed faintly.

Legions of fiends, conjured from black mist, lunged for Qin Yue.

The power was terrifying; in a flash, they tore through Qin Yue’s defensive aura. At the critical moment, he used the Nether Escape again, splitting into countless afterimages. The miraculous movement left Qiao Cheng dumbstruck.

He was convinced Liu Tong must have acquired some ancient inheritance outside and, to increase his power, had turned against his own sect.

After all, only insiders were easiest to ambush.

At that moment, Qiao Cheng quietly activated a recording stone and sent a message via sound-transmission stone to the sect master, informing him that Liu Tong had secretly returned and was trying to kill him.

That moment of distraction gave Qin Yue his chance: he silently summoned a small cauldron, suspending it above Qiao Cheng’s head, and smashed it down.

Qiao Cheng, thinking it only an artifact, struck at it with his palm.

Crack!

With a crisp sound, his entire arm was shattered.

Pfft!

Qin Yue’s sword pierced the defensive barrier, stabbing straight through Qiao Cheng’s brow.

Then a heavy punch landed on his dantian.

With a twist of his sword, Qin Yue slashed Qiao Cheng’s throat, then slipped away like a falling leaf, evading the old man’s frenzied dying counterattack.

The whole process flowed smoothly, without a hitch.