Instant-Death Cultivation: Surviving in an Immortal World with Instant Kill - Chapter 29
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 29: Demonic Path (2)
“Filthy demonic bastards!”
Suddenly, a shout came from beside him.
A man with a bandit-like beard was glaring at the Mad World Yin Spirit Sect cultivators with fierce eyes.
It was Jin Cheol-wook, a cultivator from the Dragon Domination Society who had been standing with his arms crossed and a displeased expression.
[Jin Cheol-wook ]
* Race: Human Race
* Age: 48 years old
* Realm: Qi Refining Great Perfection
* Constitution: Metal-Water Spirit Root
* Faction: Dark Gate
* Affiliation: Dragon Domination Society
* Destiny: Strong and Fierce
The cultivators from the Dragon Domination Society were gathered around Jin Cheol-wook.
From the looks of it, this Jin Cheol-wook seemed to be the most skilled cultivator on the Dragon Domination Society’s side.
“To brainwash the Demon Slaying Gate and steal their position, have you no shame!”
“Brainwashing seems like too harsh a word, fellow cultivator.”
“Who’s your fellow cultivator! You filthy demonic scum!”
Even the Dark Gate, which pursued the strong ruling over the weak, despised demonic forces.
Moreover, the Dragon Domination Society had regarded the Demon Slaying Gate as brothers.
They couldn’t help but feel great anger toward the Mad World Yin Spirit Sect that had devoured the Demon Slaying Gate.
“Don’t cause a disturbance.”
“Doyomun Sect Master…!”
At that moment, three Taoists who had been conversing in the corner approached them.
They were Foundation Establishment cultivators from the Yuk Family Manor, Dragon Domination Society, and Demon Slaying Gate respectively.
Particularly from the Demon Slaying Gate, the Doyomun Sect Master had come personally.
He looked at Jin Cheol-wook and spoke in a solemn voice.
“Taking refuge with the Mad World Yin Spirit Sect was our Demon Slaying Gate’s collective decision. I’d appreciate it if outsiders wouldn’t raise objections.”
“Grr…”
Jin Cheol-wook closed his mouth.
No matter how rough his personality, he had no choice but to quiet down before a Foundation Establishment cultivator.
“Then let’s open the gate now.”
“Mm, understood.”
“If we don’t open it today, we’ll have to wait another 20 years.”
At the Doyomun Sect Master’s words, the Yuk Family Head and the Dragon Domination Society’s representative also nodded.
In their hands were Gate Opening Tokens needed to open the secret realm’s entrance.
Since it was a secret realm jointly managed by three sects, all three sects had to gather together when opening the gate and entering.
“Listen well.”
The Yuk Family Manor’s representative spoke to the fifteen cultivators gathered around.
“The Dark Soul Secret Realm here is a mysterious place left behind in Ghost Head City by the ancient Yin Soul Ghost Bone Palace. Due to the restrictions placed on it, the gate only opens once every 20 years, and only Qi Refining cultivators can enter. This probably means that Qi Refining cultivators should obtain cultivation resources through their own power. The 20-year period is likely the time needed for cultivation resources to accumulate inside the secret realm.”
“…”
“Unlike the Outside World, the interior of the secret realm is rich with spiritual energy. Just sitting and practicing Qi Circulation Cultivation will bring great achievements. However, obtaining the various resources that have absorbed spiritual energy for 20 years in the secret realm is the most important task for you all.”
Cheon Woo-jin only needed to secure a Foundation Spirit Beast, but the other cultivators still lacked spiritual power.
Therefore, even obtaining good spirit herbs would be a sufficiently great harvest.
“There are also points to be cautious about. It’s not only various spirit herbs that have absorbed spiritual energy for 20 years. Monsters that naturally occurred and grew in the dense spiritual energy will be waiting for you. Surviving among such dangers can also be considered a task given to you all.”
“…”
“The Dark Soul Secret Realm exploration will proceed over 5 days. You can only exit the Dark Soul Secret Realm on the fifth day, so you must survive until then.”
After finishing the explanation, the Yuk Family Manor’s representative exchanged glances with the other two.
They formed a triangle centered on the rift in the ground, then held out their Gate Opening Tokens and began chanting incantations.
“Ooh…!”
The Qi Refining cultivators exclaimed in admiration at the sight of massive spiritual energy swirling.
The beings who created this secret realm and set the restrictions were transcendent existences that even surpassed Foundation Establishment.
Just looking at the spiritual energy swirling now, they could feel that reality.
“Now!”
Rumble!
A gate of space-time opened from the rift in the ground.
The moment they confirmed that sight, the Dragon Domination Society cultivators were the first to leap into the rift all at once.
Following them, the Mad World Yin Spirit Sect’s demonic cultivators including Yu Gi-ryeong also flew in one after another.
“H-hyung-nim, let’s go too!”
“Mm, alright!”
When Yuk Baek-dal, the eldest son of the Yuk Family Head, jumped in with a tense expression, the remaining younger brothers followed behind him.
Cheon Woo-jin, who remained last, glanced toward the Doyomun Sect Master.
Unlike the Yuk Family Head and Dragon Domination Society’s representative who were sweating profusely, he was smiling with a calm expression.
‘Earlier Jin Cheol-wook said he must have been brainwashed, but… that’s not it.’
The Doyomun Sect Master must have made his own judgment to take refuge with the demonic side.
He would have been enticed with promises of being led to a realm he could never reach as the leader of a small Dark Gate force.
In fact, the Doyomun Sect Master probably thought he had made the best choice.
No matter how diligently you operate a small to medium-sized force like Demon Slaying Gate, Foundation Establishment would be the limit.
He must have judged that offering tribute to Demon Slaying Gate while converting to the Demonic Path would be most beneficial for his future.
Suddenly, Cheon Woo-jin recalled Jo Hyu’s words.
While the path of cultivation inevitably requires stepping over the corpses of countless competitors, if you climb while covered in blood, you’re bound to slip somewhere.
The Doyomun Sect Master might think he made the best choice, but eventually the moment when he slips will come.
And that moment might not be far off.
With those thoughts, Cheon Woo-jin leaped into the rift.
* * *
A sky where pitch-black clouds stretched endlessly.
Muddy ground thickly covered with dark-colored moss.
Trees of various shapes rising in defiance of natural laws.
The Dark Soul Secret Realm was a gloomy and turbid world befitting its name.
It was worlds apart from the small Secret Realm he had entered last time.
‘First, I need to find the Six Merchant House Four Brothers.’
This Dark Soul Secret Realm drops people in different locations even if they enter together.
Cheon Woo-jin had landed on an open plain, but the Six Merchant House Four Brothers who entered before him were nowhere to be seen.
They must be scattered somewhere else.
As Cheon Woo-jin was looking around with these thoughts.
Suddenly, with a bang, flames shot up.
‘Did they send a signal?’
Gather here.
They had fired a signal flare with that meaning.
The Yuk Family Manor hadn’t mentioned such a thing, and it didn’t seem like the Mad World Yin Spirit Sect would gather using such means.
So that must be the Dragon Domination Society’s gathering signal.
‘Are they planning to band together to oppose the Mad World Yin Spirit Sect?’
According to what he heard from Seo Seol-ryeong… the Yuk Family Manor had proposed to the Dragon Domination Society that they join hands to oppose the Demonic Path.
But the Dragon Domination Society seemed to find such a proposal itself unpleasant.
Anyway, the numbers were the same at five each, and due to restrictions, they were all Qi Condensation cultivators.
Then there was no need to be afraid. If those Demonic Path bastards attacked, they could repel them with the Dragon Domination Society’s power.
That was the Dragon Domination Society’s thinking.
But…
‘Foolish.’
Both thinking they could repel the Mad World Yin Spirit Sect with their own power.
And firing a signal to expose their location.
It was utterly foolish.
‘The Dragon Domination Society will be annihilated soon.’
Cheon Woo-jin moved swiftly.
He had to secure the safety of the Six Merchant House Four Brothers before they met the same fate as the Dragon Domination Society.
* * *
Bang!
The head of a fellow disciple who had cultivated together for decades exploded.
Watching his fellow disciple collapse as a headless corpse, Jin Cheol-wook of the Dragon Domination Society trembled.
“H-how could this happen…”
Right now, Seol Jin-hu of the Mad World Yin Spirit Sect stood before his eyes.
Seeing that he entered this Secret Realm, he must be a Qi Condensation cultivator, yet he instantly killed a fellow Qi Condensation cultivator with just a flick of his finger.
Among the five cultivators of the Dragon Domination Society, only Jin Cheol-wook remained alive.
“You bastard, what kind of demonic art did you learn!”
Jin Cheol-wook screamed, but Seol Jin-hu didn’t even respond.
He was just taking out a red pill, putting it in his mouth, and chewing.
“You should be the same Qi Condensation level as me, so why do you have Foundation Establishment level power…”
Bang!
A hole was punched through Jin Cheol-wook’s chest.
He looked down at his chest with an expression of disbelief, then collapsed backward on the spot.
With Jin Cheol-wook’s death, all five Qi Condensation cultivators of the Dragon Domination Society met their end.
As he continued putting pills in his mouth while looking at those corpses, the Mad World Yin Spirit Sect subordinates who entered with him approached.
“Senior Yu, has your spiritual power fully recovered?”
“About 60 percent has recovered.”
Responding thus, he touched his face and the balance of his features changed.
It wasn’t the face created for the false identity of Seol Jin-hu, but had returned to the face of Yu Gi-ryeong, the Foundation Establishment cultivator of the Mad World Yin Spirit Sect.
“It’s truly amazing. To think someone who reached the Foundation Establishment stage could reduce their spiritual power to Qi Condensation level…”
“It’s the power of the Scatter Retreat Secret Submersion Technique.”
Yu Gi-ryeong muttered in a cold voice.
“We’ve finished off the Dragon Domination Society with this, and now we need to find the Yuk Family Manor bastards… but that won’t be easy.”
The Dragon Domination Society foolishly fired their own signal flare.
Thanks to that, he could wipe out all the bastards gathered in one place at once.
However, catching those Yuk Family Manor bastards won’t be that simple.
This Secret Realm is quite a vast place. Even going around using Search Magic Techniques will take quite a while.
“Still, we must eliminate them all within today.”
“I understand.”
The given time is limited.
We need to quickly deal with the small fry and move on to acquiring cultivation resources.
According to the materials handed over by the Demon Slaying Gate, there are also monsters with considerably strong demonic power here.
If we subjugate those creatures, we should be able to obtain spoils more valuable than Spirit Herbs.
“If we acquire massive resources here, it will become easier for us to build our strength in Ghost Head City.”
We’ll be able to win over not only mid-sized forces like the Demon Slaying Gate, but also the Scattered Cultivators swarming in Ghost Head City.
Then we can seize control of the Ghost Beast Fortress Lower Levels in an instant.
“We must not disappoint Lord Jeok Ya-wol. Give your all with complete dedication to achieve the best results.”
“Yes…!”
After watching his subordinates scatter in all directions, Yu Gi-ryeong sat down and began Qi Circulation Cultivation.
He had recovered his Spiritual Power to 60% by taking elixirs made through the evil methods of the Demonic Path, but it still wasn’t enough.
To eliminate even the powerful monsters existing in this Secret Realm, he needed to recover 100% of his strength.
Young masters of the Yuk Family Manor level could probably all be eliminated just by leaving them to his subordinates.
Thinking this, Yu Gi-ryeong closed both eyes and concentrated on Qi Circulation Cultivation.
* * *
“I say, what do you mean by hiding in this place!”
Yuk Baek-dal, the eldest of the Six Merchant House Four Brothers, expressed his dissatisfaction.
This was because Cheon Woo-jin, who had quickly found the four brothers using his Status Window Ability, had suddenly dragged them to a secluded cave.
“We didn’t enter the Secret Realm to do this!”
“We came in to gain the power to reach higher realms!”
“If we hide in a place like this, we won’t gain anything!”
“If you’re doing this because you’re afraid of the Demonic Path, then just step aside! We’ll handle it ourselves!”
The four brothers rebelled fiercely.
However, Cheon Woo-jin maintained a calm attitude.
“If you don’t hide in this cave, you’ll die.”
“What on earth are you saying…!”
“The Demonic Path side has a Foundation Establishment Cultivator.”
At Cheon Woo-jin’s statement, all four people’s eyes widened.
“Wh-what do you mean by that?”
“The Blood World Demon Sect has an Evil Art called the Scatter Retreat Secret Submersion Technique. It’s a method that temporarily lowers one’s realm by scattering away their Spiritual Power.”
“…!”
“Using the Scatter Retreat Secret Submersion Technique, a Foundation Establishment Cultivator can sneak into a Secret Realm that only allows Qi Condensation entry.”
Saying this, Cheon Woo-jin looked toward the direction where the signal had risen earlier.
“The Dragon Domination Society has probably already been annihilated. You’re next.”
“…!”
“There’s only one way for you to save your lives – hiding in this Shadow Hiding Cave.”
Shadow Hiding Cave.
A place that was set as a safe zone in the game.
Not only is it hard to see from the outside because it’s hidden by other terrain features, but Detection Techniques and such are nullified because the Spiritual Energy is disrupted by the influence of the ley lines flowing in front of the cave.
If you hole up inside the cave and stay quiet, you can reach the fifth day without being attacked by anyone.
“B-but is there any evidence?”
However, Yuk Baek-dal still didn’t trust Cheon Woo-jin.
“For us to believe your words, we need appropriate evidence…”
“Wait a moment.”
Cheon Woo-jin cut off Yuk Baek-dal’s words midway.
Then he took out a 4th Grade Tendon Strengthening Bone Pill, swallowed it, and moved using only pure physical abilities.
There was a risk of being detected if he moved while using Magic Arts.
He launched his body utilizing his enhanced physical abilities.
Then he was able to spot a Qi Condensation Cultivator from the Mad World Yin Spirit Sect who was looking around the surroundings with Detection Magic.
Cheon Woo-jin hid his body behind a bizarrely twisted tree and stretched his shadow long.
Sensing the flow of Spiritual Power, the Demonic Cultivator was startled and looked toward Cheon Woo-jin’s direction.
However, he only noticed that someone was hiding behind the tree.
The ground was already covered with dark-colored moss making it muddy, so he didn’t notice that a pitch-black shadow was extending toward his feet.
“Kuk…!”
Swoosh!
A shadow blade that shot up at ultra-high speed pierced through the Demonic Cultivator’s torso.
He tried to open his mouth to alert his comrades to the situation, but the second blade penetrating the Demonic Cultivator’s throat was faster than his attempt to scream.
Thud.
The Demonic Cultivator, now a corpse, rolled on the ground.
The Six Merchant House Four Brothers who followed belatedly saw this scene and all swallowed their breath in unison.
Though they hadn’t properly seen Cheon Woo-jin’s technique, he had nonetheless instantly eliminated a Qi Condensation level Demonic Cultivator.
That meant he could do the same thing to the Six Merchant House Four Brothers.
“Into the cave.”
“…!”
When Cheon Woo-jin spoke briefly, the Six Merchant House Four Brothers hurriedly crawled into the cave.
At this very moment, the most fearsome existence to them wasn’t the faceless Qi Accumulation stage Demonic Cultivator, but Cheon Woo-jin.
Cheon Woo-jin had attached additional talismans to the entrance of Shadow Hiding Cave, completely sealing it off.
If they tried to force their way out of the cave, they wouldn’t see a pretty sight.
‘The Dragon Domination Society must have been wiped out, and I’ve trapped the Six Merchant House Four Brothers inside the cave.’
Only the Mad World Yin Spirit Sect remained.
Now this Dark Soul Secret Realm had become a battlefield where only Cheon Woo-jin and the Demonic Cultivators existed.
‘I can use my power without worrying about anyone’s watchful eyes.’
Crack!
Generating black lightning, Cheon Woo-jin shot up into the sky.
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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