Chapter 176: The Yin Qilin Borrows a Body: Transference!
Madam Demonic Vine reached into her robe and pulled out four small flags.
The triangular flags were black, embroidered with strange symbols.
She tossed the flags into the air, and a black mist enveloped them, surrounding both her and Du Yuejiao.
Then, within the mist, four points of ghostly, flickering flames appeared, like candles in the wind, yet unyielding.
Madam Demonic Vine’s voice was cold and menacing, “Don’t blame me, girl. You walked right into this. But don’t worry, after you’re gone, I’ll take your place, your identity. I’ll make sure your name is remembered.”
She sat down, grabbed Du Yuejiao, and began chanting.
A strong wind blew, black sand swirled around them, and a thick demonic aura filled the air.
She was preparing to perform the Yin Qilin Possession.
But the Demonic Qilin Blood Poison was now within that young man, who was running wild, driven mad by its power.
Madam Demonic Vine had been a member of the Poisonous Sunflower Sect, but for some reason, she had fallen out with them. They, coveting the Demonic Qilin Blood Poison she had painstakingly cultivated within the Black Blood Crimson Serpent, had used the Sui Marquis Pearl to lure the Ghost Extreme Sect and the barbarian soldiers here.
Now, with the Poisonous Sunflower Sect pursuing the young man, she knew she couldn’t retrieve the Blood Poison herself. She was too old, too frail, her crippled body barely sustained by the demonic energy of this place.
And leaving the Demonic Qilin’s Lair, she knew she wouldn’t survive for long.
She had to transfer her soul into a new body, and quickly.
She had originally intended to use the Blood Poison to “freeze” the girl’s body, making it a suitable vessel.
But now, without the Blood Poison, she was both angry and frustrated. Decades of careful cultivation, wasted.
However, discovering that this girl was a dual cultivator, a rare and unique phenomenon, gave her a new idea.
She herself had been a Daoist cultivator, practicing internal alchemy.
Later, after a traumatic experience, consumed by rage and despair, she had performed a demonic ritual, sacrificing her Daoist internal elixir in exchange for demonic essence.
Although it was possible to sacrifice one’s own internal elixir for demonic power, there was no ritual for sacrificing someone else’s for personal gain.
However, she knew of a ritual that used the sacrifice of a Daoist internal elixir for “soul transference,” a way to temporarily possess another’s body. After killing someone, by sacrificing another Daoist’s internal elixir, she could transfer her soul into the corpse, controlling it like a puppet.
This possession was temporary, useful only in specific situations.
But now, desperate, Madam Demonic Vine decided to combine this “soul transference” with the “Yin Qilin Possession.”
She would infuse the girl with demonic energy, using it to sustain her life force, then sacrifice her Daoist internal elixir.
By sacrificing the elixir, she would transfer her soul into the girl’s body, completing the possession.
Combining two different demonic rituals was dangerous… altering rituals was risky, often leading to demonic affliction, the soul corrupted by Yin Demons.
But she had no other choice. Even if it meant being corrupted, she had to survive.
Madam Demonic Vine, having been an elder of the Poisonous Sunflower Sect, her energy carried a poisonous aura. Du Yuejiao felt a chilling cold spreading through her, followed by a burning heat.
The world around her spun, the only light coming from the four flickering flames, the wind howling, ghostly figures swirling in the mist.
Madam Demonic Vine knew she was unprepared, the ritual already being disrupted by stray Yin Demons, drawn by its power.
But even demonic affliction was better than death.
She didn’t hesitate, continuing her chant.
Du Yuejiao felt herself sinking into darkness, falling into an abyss.
She saw the old woman’s face, grotesque and massive, filling the sky.
She tried to struggle, to scream, but she couldn’t move, couldn’t speak.
Her thoughts slowed, her mind freezing.
The old woman’s face, trailing streaks of blood-red light, approached her eyes.
She tried to close her eyes, but her eyelids wouldn’t move.
The face drew closer and closer, then split apart, its two halves merging with her eyes.
Although unable to scream, her soul cried out in agony.
Her internal elixir, ripped from her middle dantian, left a gaping void.
She felt as if her insides had been torn out, her vision turning red.
Madam Demonic Vine’s soul, carrying her demonic essence, surged into the girl’s body.
Although the transference was successful, the girl’s own soul remained, and she felt a cold, menacing presence approaching – a formless Yin Demon.
Every demonic ritual opened a passage between the mortal world and the Demonic Realm. If unprepared, Yin Demons would seize the opportunity to invade, seeking bodies to possess.
For demonic cultivators, every advancement ritual was a gamble.
Careful preparation and flawless execution were essential.
Madam Demonic Vine, however, was far from prepared. She had even combined two different rituals, a desperate and dangerous improvisation.
Knowing her own soul was vulnerable, she lunged at the girl’s soul, tearing at it, trying to devour it.
If she could destroy the girl’s soul, she could claim her body completely. But her own soul, exposed to the Yin Demon’s influence, would also be damaged, losing a portion of its essence.
She had to complete the possession quickly. The faster the ritual ended, the less damage she would suffer.
She ripped the girl’s soul apart, a portion of it dissipating into nothingness.
Just as the girl’s soul was about to be completely destroyed, leaving her body an empty vessel, something changed.
One of the four black flags at the corners of the ritual circle was pulled from the ground.
These flags, meticulously prepared by Madam Demonic Vine, soaked in the blood of countless victims, infused with their souls, and inscribed with powerful runes, had taken her almost ten years to create.
She should have chosen a more secure location for the ritual, but the Demonic Qilin’s Lair, having been discovered, was no longer safe, and she had nowhere else to go.
So she had tricked Du Yuejiao into coming here, performing the ritual in this hidden cavern.
She hadn’t expected to be interrupted.
The removal of the flag disrupted the ritual.
Soul transference wasn’t easy. Madam Demonic Vine had relied on the surge of demonic energy generated by the ritual to enter Du Yuejiao’s body and attack her soul.
Now, with the ritual disrupted, the demonic energy dissipated, and she was vulnerable.
Du Yuejiao, her stubborn will reasserting itself, her soul, freed from the ritual’s suppression, fought back.
Now it was Madam Demonic Vine who screamed, her soul in agony.
The one who had removed the flag, interrupting the ritual, was Xiang Gu.
The Ghost Extreme Sect and Chi Mu Juncheng, pursuing the Sui Marquis Pearl, had left the Demonic Qilin’s Lair.
Xiang Gu and Hou Bomin, however, had remained, searching the cavern.
They found the tunnel and the remains of the Black Blood Crimson Serpent.
Following the serpent’s mangled body, they reached the cavern where the ritual was taking place.
They were horrified by the sight of the serpent’s skeleton, its flesh and skin discarded, its skull a ghastly white.
Xiang Gu found the Azure Sky Vermilion Fruit, the Soul Severing Dew, and several other rare ingredients.
Then they left, sensing the cavern’s instability.
They emerged from the collapsing Demonic Qilin’s Lair and reached Lifting Heaven Peak.
They descended the mountain, passing Heavenly White Pond.
And from above, they had seen Du Yuejiao, carrying the old woman on her back, hurrying through the forest.
Unsure of what was happening, they had followed, losing sight of them near the chasm.
They continued searching and, entering the chasm, reached the waterfall. They saw several small flags planted in the ground, the air around them swirling with dust and mist, a dark, ominous aura emanating from them, and the faint sound of screams… Du Yuejiao’s screams.
Xiang Gu approached cautiously. Not daring to touch the flags directly, she used her Parting Hook to pull one of them from the ground.
The swirling dust and mist dissipated instantly.
Du Yuejiao, lying on the ground, sat up abruptly, clutching her head, screaming.
At the same time, an old woman’s scream echoed from within her.
Beside her, Madam Demonic Vine’s body, still in the lotus position, its flesh dissolving like mud… a side effect of the failed Yin Qilin Possession.
In her attempt to transfer her soul, she had destroyed her own physical body.
“What’s wrong?” Xiang Gu asked, looking at the screaming girl.
Leave a Reply