Chapter 172: Demonic Qilin Blood Poison: Madam Demonic Vine!
Shi Hao and Du Yuejiao fell through the chasm.
As they disappeared, the Black Blood Crimson Serpent above renewed its attack, its roars echoing through the cavern, mingled with the screams of the metal-winged ape and the panicked shouts of the barbarian soldiers.
Invisible hands reached out from the darkness, grasping at them, pulling them down.
Shi Hao held out the Sui Marquis Pearl, which radiated a brilliant white light, repelling the unseen hands.
They landed softly on the ground and looked up. The chasm above was closing, the rumbling sounds fading.
They were plunged into darkness, the only light coming from the Sui Marquis Pearl.
The ground beneath their feet was scorched black, as if burned by fire.
Rustling sounds came from the depths, as if countless creatures were crawling beneath the surface.
Occasionally, something would tug at their feet, then quickly retreat from the pearl’s light.
Du Yuejiao clung to Shi Hao, her arms around his neck. Although a martial artist, this dark, sinister place filled her with dread.
Shi Hao, holding her close, led her through the darkness.
A low, raspy chuckle, like an old woman’s, echoed through the cavern, making Du Yuejiao’s hair stand on end.
Shi Hao shone the pearl’s light towards the sound and saw a withered old woman sitting in a pit.
She was incredibly thin, her wrinkled skin stretched taut over her bones, her body like a stick of kindling.
“Who are you?” Du Yuejiao asked, her voice trembling.
The old woman snorted, “You trespass on my property, and you ask me who I am?”
Shi Hao and Du Yuejiao suddenly remembered Xiang Gu mentioning an old woman living here.
The old woman’s gaze shifted to Shi Hao, her eyes, deep-set and sunken, like dark holes in her skull, seemed to bore into him, “Boy, what’s your connection to the Taisu Immortal Pavilion?”
Du Yuejiao looked at Shi Hao, surprised… She hadn’t known he had any connection to the Taisu Immortal Pavilion.
Shi Hao, however, said, without missing a beat, “Taisu Immortal Pavilion? I’m a man. What would I have to do with them?” He lied without a flicker of hesitation.
His denial made the old woman hesitate. She muttered, “If you have no connection to them, why did the Sui Marquis Pearl, sealed by the Holy Jade Immortal herself, fly to you? It only responds to the Taisu Immortal Pavilion’s secret techniques.”
Shi Hao realized it was because he had used the Sacred Heart Clear Mirror Technique.
Although this old woman was small, frail, and wizened, like a dried corpse, she was still human.
Du Yuejiao, slightly relieved, asked, “Are you alone here?”
The old woman chuckled, a creepy, unsettling sound, “Oh, I’m not alone. There are many, many others here. Listen… can you hear them?”
The rustling sounds from below, like the movement of countless insects, returned, making Du Yuejiao’s skin crawl.
Shi Hao bowed to the old woman, “May I ask what this place is, Madam? And why is it like this?”
The old woman chuckled again, “You trespass on my property and ask me questions?”
Shi Hao said, “We didn’t know this place existed. We were visiting Lifting Heaven Peak with a friend, and then we were… brought here.”
The old woman snorted, “Such a blatant lie, young man. That girl with the Gu insects has been here before, trying to steal my immortal ingredients. You’re clearly working with her.”
Shi Hao said, surprised, “She’s been here before? Did she bring us here for some other reason?”
The old woman snorted again, staring at him, “Long ago, this place was called the Immortal Qilin’s Blessed Land, a place where Daoist cultivators grew immortal ingredients. Legend says that in ancient times, an immortal of the Taisu Immortal Pavilion brought a Qilin spirit from the Celestial Realm, imbuing this place with a unique energy, hence the name.
“Because of this unique energy, rare ingredients like the Azure Sky Vermilion Fruit, which requires celestial energy to grow, flourished here.”
“The people who lived here, the ‘immortal folk,’ because of this unique environment, lived for centuries.
“Ordinary people couldn’t enter this Blessed Land. Only skilled Daoist cultivators could reach it through a hidden ‘heavenly staircase.’ Although the demonic sects knew of its existence, they didn’t know its location. Then, three hundred years ago, the Demon Empress, having united the demonic sects, changed everything.”
Shi Hao lowered his voice, “What did she do?”
The old woman said, “At that time, the demonic sects, including the Ghost Extreme Sect and the Poisonous Sunflower Sect, were under her control, but the Daoist sects were unaware.
“The Daoist sects were at their peak then. Having helped the Li family establish the Sheng Dynasty, Daoism became the state religion, and the demonic sects were forced into hiding, becoming insignificant in the eyes of the Daoists. No one expected such a powerful figure to emerge from the demonic sects, uniting them under her rule.”
Shi Hao thought, Su Mei truly was remarkable.
The old woman continued, “Under the Demon Empress’s command, the Ghost Extreme Sect and the Poisonous Sunflower Sect sent their experts to attack the Immortal Qilin’s Blessed Land, destroying the heavenly staircase. The Daoist sects, unable to access it, assumed it was some natural disaster, unaware that it had fallen into the hands of the demonic sects.
“They slaughtered the immortal folk, and the Ghost Extreme Sect, using their secret techniques, transformed the bodies into corpse soldiers, binding their souls within, then further refining them with the Poisonous Sunflower Sect’s poisonous concoctions. These corpse soldiers, if unleashed, would spread like a plague.”
“And the Poisonous Sunflower Sect used the unique energy here and the immortal ingredients to cultivate the Black Blood Crimson Serpent, a terrifying creature, a weapon against the Daoist sects.
“Although the Daoist sects have historically held the upper hand, that’s mainly because of the demonic sects’ constant infighting. A united demonic path is a powerful force.”
Shi Hao said, “But the Holy Jade Immortal slew the Black Blood Crimson Serpent.” He remembered the stone tablet outside.
The old woman said, “Indeed. At that time, the Holy Jade Immortal hadn’t even made her debut in the martial world, her name unknown, but the demonic sects’ destruction of the heavenly staircase had alerted the Taisu Immortal Pavilion.
“So, she came to Lifting Heaven Peak. She was a remarkable woman. Even without the heavenly staircase, she was able to reach this place, her swordsmanship defying all limitations. The demonic cultivators here, believing this place to be inaccessible to outsiders, were caught off guard by the legendary descendant of the Taisu Immortal Pavilion, who effortlessly entered their domain.”
Du Yuejiao said, her voice filled with admiration, “The Holy Jade Immortal truly is powerful.”
The old woman continued, “When she arrived, this place, corrupted by the Ghost Extreme Sect and the Poisonous Sunflower Sect, was filled with demonic energy, no longer a blessed land. The demonic cultivators had renamed it the Demonic Qilin’s Lair.
“She fought the demonic cultivators here, and they unleashed their carefully cultivated Black Blood Crimson Serpent, but it was no match for her.
“She slew both the demonic cultivators and the serpent, and destroyed the corpse soldiers. But the energy here had been corrupted, and the spirits of the immortal folk, now vengeful ghosts, couldn’t be dispelled.
“So, she took the Sui Marquis Pearl and, using it as the focal point, created a barrier, sealing the demonic energy here. If left undisturbed, the demonic energy would dissipate naturally within a few decades, and the spirits of the immortal folk would finally find peace.”
Shi Hao said, “But it seems the demonic energy hasn’t completely dissipated.”
The old woman chuckled, “That’s because, after she left, the Demon Empress came here, investigated, and created another barrier beneath the first, leaving behind a Black Blood Crimson Serpent egg. Yes, that serpent you saw earlier was placed here by the Demon Empress.”
“The demonic sects destroyed the heavenly staircase, and the Holy Jade Immortal created a barrier. But the Demon Empress was unaffected. However, no other demonic cultivator could enter, and she, busy unifying the dark path, didn’t have time to stay here. So she made some… arrangements, hoping they might be useful in the future, and then left.”
Du Yuejiao asked, “If that’s true, besides the Holy Jade Immortal and the Demon Empress, no one else should be able to enter. Then how did you get here?”
The old woman chuckled, “Even the most powerful barriers weaken over time. And with the Holy Jade Immortal and the Demon Empress supposedly dead, no one maintained the barrier. Eventually, the energy here, both Daoist and demonic, became unstable and began to leak out, creating a new, hidden passage.”
“I, Madam Demonic Vine, was originally a Daoist cultivator. I sacrificed my Daoist body in a… mishap and turned to the demonic path. Later, I fled to Changbai Mountain and stumbled upon this place.
“The Holy Jade Immortal’s barrier, using the Sui Marquis Pearl as its focal point, was that white qilin. And the Demon Empress’s formation below continued gathering demonic energy. The two forces, Daoist and demonic, locked in a stalemate, preventing the energy here from dissipating.
“And the serpent egg, suppressed by the barrier, couldn’t hatch. So, I cultivated immortal ingredients in the upper levels, while nurturing the Black Blood Crimson Serpent below. And occasionally, some unsuspecting fools stumbled upon this place, most of whom I killed.”
“That disheveled girl with the messy hair who was with you earlier… she was probably looking for Daoist ingredients for her advancement. She must have read about this place in some ancient text and came here.
“She’s quite resourceful and managed to infiltrate. I tried to kill her, but she escaped.”
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