QT Cannon Fodder's Record: Dekachapter 238

Chp 2371: Politeness First, Then Violence

The Yi family’s ancestral home was a very large residence.

Yi Liang was really hoping that his sister Yi Rou could actually be here.

Yi Liang knocked on the door. A servant of the ancestral house answered and impatiently asked, “Who are you looking for?”

“I’m here to see Yi Shengjie,” Yi Liang said.

The young servant incredulously scratched his ear. “Who do you think you are, to address the ancestor by his name?”

Yi Shengjie was the name of Yi Xue’s great-grandfather, who was a foundation stage cultivator.

"Scram!" The young servant slammed the door shut.

Being servants of a so-called immortal, this residence’s servants were rather arrogant.

Yi Liang was immediately turned away.

Ning Shu indifferently said, “Politeness first, then violence. Knock again.”

Yi Liang knocked on the door again. The same servant opened the door, and seeing that it was Yi Liang again, closed the door shut without even thinking.

Yi Liang stretched out his hand and kept the door open with it. Despite trying so hard that his face turned red, the young servant still couldn’t close the door.

“You sure have some guts. You dare to break into the old ancestor’s house! Do you have a death wish?” When he saw that he couldn’t outmuscle Yi Liang, the servant immediately started using Yi Shengjie’s name.

Yi Liang was rendered speechless by it. Everyone who had anything to do with Yi Shengjie sure loved to constantly bring him up.

One person attained the Dao and even his chicken and dogs felt like they had made it to heaven with him.

One example was Yi Xue, who, just because he had a great-grandfather who was a foundation stage cultivator, felt like he could do whatever he wanted.

“You’d better go and tell him that I’m here to find Yi Rou.”

“Who’s Yi Rou!? The old ancestor is currently cultivating in seclusion. Can you afford the consequences of disturbing his seclusion?”

“There’s a ten-year-old girl here. Do you know her?” Yi Liang expectantly asked.

“No.” The servant was impatient.

Yi Liang didn’t want to waste his time with the servant, who kept blocking him.

Yi Liang just directly kicked the door open. They had secretly taken his sister away. It was clear that they weren’t good-intentioned people anyway.

Yi Liang shifted energy into his dantian and loudly shouted, “Yi Shengjie, get out here!”

“Get out here!”

“Get out here!”

The little fox raised his head and howled as well.

“Who dares to make a ruckus here?” The ancestral house’s security was much better than the security of Yi Liang’s smaller house.

In just a few moments, Yi Liang, Ning Shu, and the little fox were completely surrounded by people, who were all glaring at Yi Liang.

Some of them were Yi Shengjie’s disciples, while the rest were guards.

“I’m here to find Yi Shengjie,” Yi Liang said.

“Presumptuous! You think you’re worthy of calling the ancestor by his name?”

Yi Liang lightly responded, “Aren’t all names given so they’d be used? Anyways, he’s your ancestor, not mine.”

As Yi Liang spoke, his eyes roamed around to look for Yi Rou.

If Yi Rou was really here, why hadn’t he heard from her for so many years? Wouldn’t she have had someone deliver news no matter what?

Yet his sister seemed to have suddenly dropped off the face of the earth. There was no news of her at all.

Yi Liang pressed his lips together tightly into a straight line. He then shouted loudly, “Yi Shengjie! Get out here!!”

“Audacious! Arrest him!” The people surrounding them rushed forward.

Yi Liang was extremely calm and agile. He knocked them down without much effort.

MTL Editor: Ran

Translator: Kaho

Chp 2372: Yi Shengjie

Yi Liang completely crushed the people who attacked him.

“Since you won’t come out, I’ll look through the rooms one by one.” Yi Liang stepped over the people who were lying on the ground and started searching each room in the residence to find Yi Shengjie.

“Presumptuous thing!” A thunderous voice exploded in his ears.

Immediately, a man, who looked like he was in his fifties, but with a strong body, came out.

After he came out, he first glanced at the people lying on the ground, then at Yi Liang. His eyes then swept over Ning Shu, before they became fixed on the little fox.

“What are you doing!?” Yi Shengjie glared at Yi Liang. A powerful, crushing pressure pressed on Yi Liang.

The pressure made Yi Liang feel like he had a mountain pressing him down, and he struggled to keep that mountain from flattening him to the ground. The veins on Yi Liang’s forehead began to bulge because of it.

Yi Liang gritted his teeth. He endured the pressure by mobilizing the spiritual energy in his body.

Yi Shengjie, seeing that Yi Liang was actually able to withstand his pressure, couldn’t help but frown. He took back his pressure and lightly asked, “Don’t you find it rude to break in like this?”

Yi Shengjie said this to probe into Yi Liang’s identity.

Since he was able to resist his pressure, this boy was surely not weak.

Yi Shengjie had no idea who Yi Liang was, though.

“I’m here to find my sister. Her name is Yi Rou.” Yi Liang stared at Yi Shengjie.

Yi Shengjie was stunned for a moment. He then narrowed his eyes and looked Yi Liang up and down. “I have no idea of this Yi Rou who you’re talking about.”

“Yi Xue said that Yi Rou is here,” Yi Liang quickly said. He now looked panicked.

“Why would your sister be here with me?” Yi Shengjie lightly replied. He stood with his hands behind his back, looking like a skilled martial artist.

Yi Liang was obviously panicking. He had learned about his sister’s whereabouts from Yi Xue’s mouth, but now Yi Shengjie told him that Yi Rou wasn’t here.

So, then, where did Yi Rou go?

Yi Shengjie looked at Yi Liang’s tender face. He was obviously still a child. Yi Shengjie said generously, “Since you’re young, I won’t blame you for breaking into the ancestral house.”

Yi Liang took a deep breath and calmed himself down. He then asked Yi Shengjie, “Has it really got nothing to do with you?”

“No.”

“Old Ancestor!” a sharp and panicked voice sounded. One of Yi Xue’s servants stumbled over, saw Yi Shengjie, and hurriedly told him, “Old Ancestor, Young Master Yi was killed.”

“Who?” Yi Shengjie lifted his eyebrows. “Who dared to touch Yi Xue?”

Yi Xue was his great-grandson. For his great-grandson to be killed on his own turf… What a joke!

“It’s that jinx, that little bastard, Yi Liang! He killed the young master.”

The young servant spotted Yi Liang out of the corner of his eye and immediately pointed at him in horror. “He killed Young Master Yi.”

Yi Shengjie glared at Yi Liang. “Why did you kill Yi Xue?”

“He kidnapped my sister, occupied my house, and even tried to kill me. Why couldn’t I kill him?” Yi Liang calmly responded.

“My sister’s disappearance must’ve got something to do with you. She had spiritual roots. You must’ve taken my sister away.”

“You little bastard! You killed someone from my family, and even dare to put fake charges on me. It seems that I’ve been away for too long. Now even an upstart like you dares to step all over me!” Yi Shengjie was so furious that he took out his magic artifact.

His magic artifact was a banner. When he waved the banner, black smoke billowed out of it.

There were shrill voices coming out of the banner, mixed in the black smoke. There were cries of children and resentful women, as well as sinister roars of men.

Ning Shu frowned. Were these the souls of people?

If so, then, people’s souls must’ve been collected into the small banner. The souls and the banner must’ve been refined together.

These black smoke and vengeful souls would attack its target’s soul and mind.

With such a magic artifact, made with human sacrifices, Yi Shengjie was clearly a demonic cultivator.

These souls, who had been ingested by the banner, would never be able to reincarnate. As long as the magic artifact remained in existence, they’d be trapped in it indefinitely.

What an extraordinarily painful fate.

Yi Shengjie was actually a demonic cultivator. Who knew how many souls had been gathered into this billowing black smoke?

There were even kids among them.

MTL Editor: Ran

Translator: Kaho

Chp 2373: A Demonic Cultivator

How could the imperial court send a demonic cultivator to supervise a town?

Perhaps no one knew that he was a demonic cultivator.

There were very few cultivators in this town. Everyone knew that Yi Shengjie was an immortal, but they probably didn’t know that he was a demonic cultivator.

The billowing black smoke and the mournful voices rushed toward Yi Liang.

Yi Liang dodged away from the black smoke. There were faces of men and women, all twisted, in the black smoke. They looked like they were suffering some great pain.

Although Yi Liang managed to avoid the black smoke, it kept chasing after him.

When the black smoke finally began to cling to his body, it felt as if someone was biting him and eating his soul bit by bit.

“Xiao Hei, what do I do?” Yi Liang asked Ning Shu.

Ning Shu just replied, “It’s okay. You can withstand it with your righteous aura of integrity.”

Yi Liang: …

“Are you an idiot? Just destroy his banner,” the little fox angrily said. “Why are you so stupid!?”

Yi Shengjie’s eyes, seeing that the two foxes could actually speak, lit up. His blood soul banner had never consumed the soul of a monster yet.

If it got two souls of monsters, the banner would definitely become stronger.

Yi Liang looked at the banner in Yi Shengjie’s hand, which had complicated patterns painted on it.

Yi Liang released his energy and a qilin flew toward Yi Shengjie.

Yi Shengjie, seeing an almost transparent animal rushing towards him, hurriedly dodged. More black smoke was released from the blood soul banner.

The entire ancestral house turned gloomy. There were shrill voices in everyone’s ears.

Ning Shu looked at the struggling and pained souls. Some of them were staring into space blankly as if they were at a loss, while others were extremely vicious and biting on Yi Liang’s body.

Except they weren’t actually biting his body, but tearing his soul.

Ning Shu lay on the ground and started to recite the Daoist incantation to transcend souls.

One word after another silently came out from Ning Shu’s mouth, hitting the black smoke. It immediately dissipated slightly.

The blood soul banner was Yi Shengjie’s natal artifact, which was linked to his life force. He thus immediately sensed that something was off.

He was already entangled with something that he didn’t recognize. It was something that couldn’t be killed and was stubbornly fighting with him nonstop.

Now it had become obvious that the power of his blood soul banner was weakening.

“Who is it?” Yi Shengjie shouted loudly. He looked around to see if there were any skilled cultivators in hiding, waiting to ambush him.

Yi Shengjie’s face was trembling. He was worried that there were people hiding in the dark.

Ning Shu, meanwhile, kept chanting incantations. These incantations continued hitting the black smoke, which started to slowly dissipate. The souls inside roared sharply.

They sounded vicious and hideous.

Some of the souls had already completely lost their sense of self.

“Father, Mother…!” Yi Liang cried mournfully as two faces appeared in front of him. They were his parents.

His parents’ souls were also in the midst of the black smoke, trapped with no consciousness. No matter how much he called out to them, they wouldn’t respond.

They only continued tearing at his soul.

Ning Shu turned to look at the little fox, who was munching on candied fruits, and asked, “Did you cast illusions on him?”

“Nah. If I did I would’ve cast it on the old man. Why would I cast it on Yi Liang?” The little fox rolled his eyes.

Ning Shu saw that Yi Liang was in great anguish. He looked completely at a loss as to what he needed to do. Ning Shu said, “Yi Liang, keep your soul and consciousness clear!”

“Father, mother…” Yi Liang just stared blankly at the souls that were biting him.

“It’s your turn to act now,” Ning Shu told the little fox. “Yi Liang’s like this again.”

When it came to his family, Yi Liang wouldn’t be able to calm down or control his emotions.

MTL Editor: Ran

Translator: Kaho

Chp 2374: That Was a Golden Core…

What happened to Yi Liang’s parents and younger sister weighed heavily on his heart. It was already his inner demon.

It seemed now that Yi Liang’s parents were among these souls.

Could it be that the demonic cultivator who captured Yi Liang's parents was Yi Shengjie?

The little fox swallowed a candied fruit and then started to cast his illusion.

Yi Shengjie, who was fighting with the qilin made of spiritual energy, saw that there was a golden core in the belly of the qilin.

Yi Shengjie's heartbeat quickened, and his throat tightened.

Golden core… That was a golden core…

Yi Shengjie thought that he’d never have the opportunity to become a golden core stage cultivator in his lifetime, but there was actually a golden core in front of him right now!

Yi Shengjie stretched out his hand, stabbed one hand into the qilin’s stomach, and grabbed the golden core.

Without the support of the golden core, the qilin dissipated. Yi Liang thus became trapped by the black smoke.

Feeling the cool and powerful golden core in his grasp, Yi Shengjie’s breathing became rapid.

Without even thinking about it, he swallowed the golden core. He wanted to merge with the golden core.

Consuming other people’s golden core didn’t really make him a golden core stage cultivator, only a pseudo one at best.

But Yi Shengjie couldn’t care less about that. His chance of becoming a golden core stage cultivator was very slim. Becoming a pseudo-golden core stage cultivator was already a qualitative breakthrough for him.

There was little hope for human cultivators to attain a golden core and enter the golden core stage of cultivation.

Some would naturally feel hopeless and choose this way.

Yi Shengjie swallowed the golden core, then sat cross-legged on the ground. He started to refine the golden core.

From others’ point of view, his actions were inexplicable. He was still in a fight, so why would he suddenly sit cross-legged on the ground?

Ning Shu glanced at Yi Shengjie and recited the soul-transcending incantation quickly. The billowing black smoke was full of baleful energies. They were what eroded the souls in the banner.

Not only had their consciousness been erased, but they were also turned into killing tools.

Some had even evolved into malevolent ghosts that devoured the other souls in the blood soul banner.

Yi Liang was still tugging at his hair in anguish. The little fox said angrily, “Why does he behave like this every time!? He knows it’s fake, so why does he keep crying like a dog?”

“You’ve never experienced this kind of pain. How do you know what he’s feeling? Quick, get rid of Yi Shengjie, don’t you want to get your freedom?” Ning Shu said to the little fox.

The little fox snorted.

"Hahaha..." Incomparably joyful laughter sounded. Yi Shengjie stood up. "I swallowed a golden core! From now on, my fate is completely up to me."

Ning Shu: So stupid.

What was the little fox doing?

Ning Shu shouted to Yi Liang, "Yi Liang, Yi Shengjie is the one who murdered your parents, and now he was right in front of you."

Yi Liang's eyes were red as he stared at Yi Shengjie. "You killed my parents."

"You're talking about a doctor and a disciple of the Huajian School? Yes, I killed them.” Yi Shengjie actually said it.

Yi Shengjie’s heart was full of delight. He was now a golden core stage cultivator!

Yi Liang’s mother was actually a disciple of a cultivation school, but she mingled with ordinary people.

"Why, why..." Yi Liang clenched his fists tightly. His whole body was trembling.

Yi Shengjie frowned. “She was a woman who was willing to degrade herself by marrying an ordinary person instead of finding a cultivation companion. What she saw in him, I have no idea. He would turn into a handful of dirt in a few decades, anyway.”

Ning Shu: …

Although she was still chanting the spell, as she heard Yi Shengjie’s resentful rant, Ning Shu couldn’t help but make up a love triangle drama in her head.

So what if Yi Liang’s father turned into dirt in a few decades? Should Yi Liang’s mother have become his Daoist partner, then? Why should she, when Yi Shengjie already had great-grandchildren?

Did he ruin Yi Liang’s family because of this?

Ning Shu felt that it wasn’t as simple as it seemed. Yi Shengjie probably didn’t like the existence of a threat to him on his turf.

MTL Editor: Ran

Translator: Kaho

Chp 2375: She’s Currently Living Very Well

Yi Liang could have never imagined that his parents’ affairs had something to do with this ancestor of the Yi family.

When he saw Yi Shengjie’s indifference, Yi Liang’s heart only became full of anger and fury. Did Yi Shengjie realize that he had destroyed his family?

He’d torn Yi Liang’s family apart and left it as ruins of what it once was.

He’d killed his parents. His sister also disappeared. How could he take it so lightly?

“Then what about my sister? Where did you take my sister?” Yi Liang asked with red eyes.

Yi Liang already had a bad feeling inwards. Since Yi Shengjie hated his parents so deeply, Yi Rou, his sister, could be in a dire situation!

Who knew if she was even still alive?

“Your sister? No need to worry about her. I took good care of her. She’s currently living very well in the Yinyang Sect.” Yi Shengjie's expression was strange. He wore a smile that wasn't quite a smile.

Ning Shu narrowed her eyes at Yi Shengjie. There was something fishy about this Yinyang Sect. She was afraid that the yin yang it referred to wasn’t the black and white forces of the universe, but the yin and yang of men and women.

“Don’t worry! Your sister’s roots are very good. The Yinyang Sect will definitely cultivate her well and make her the most perfect disciple,” Yi Shengjie said with a smile.

Yi Liang looked confused. It was clear that he had never heard of this Yinyang Sect. As he was a young man who lived in a small town, this was normal.

After all, this was a town in which everyone respected Yi Shengjie, who was only a foundation stage cultivator, as if he were an immortal.

“Yi Liang, just beat him up first!” Ning Shu shouted to Yi Liang. The enemy was right in front of him. Beat him first! Otherwise, what was the point of his cultivating so hard until now?

Yi Liang came back to his senses and wiped the tears from his face, ignoring the faces that looked like his parents and were biting him.

Yi Liang roared. A qilin jumped out from his back and dashed majestically toward Yi Shengjie.

A trace of contempt flashed in Yi Shengjie's eyes. These same old tricks… He was now a golden core cultivator.

This kind of minor trickery was simply nothing to him.

Feeling the powerful force of the riot in his body, Yi Shengjie just flicked his fingers.

But right afterward, Yi Shengjie's expression froze. He realized that his attack was completely useless??

A translucent qilin rushed towards him.

Yi Shengjie was very puzzled as to what was going on. He was already a golden core stage cultivator, yet he couldn't even stop this.

There was clearly a riotous and powerful force in his body. Could it be that he hadn't completely absorbed the golden core yet?

Yi Shengjie avoided the qilin-shaped spiritual energy. He then tried to mobilize the power in his body to attack the qilin.

Suddenly, he felt a pain in his back. A huge force had made his internal organs move. A heart-piercing pain caused him to spit out a mouthful of blood.

Yi Shengjie looked back and saw a young man slamming his tightly squeezed fist on his back. The white and still tender fist, which wasn't too big, had such a strong force that Yi Shengjie felt like he had been hit by a moving mountain.

There was a qilin roaring in front of him and Yi Liang behind him. He was stuck between a rock and a hard place.

Yi Shengjie used all his strength and jumped out of that spot while covering his heart. Blood was dripping out from the corner of his mouth.

How could he, as a golden core stage cultivator, be defeated by an inexperienced boy?

How could he have been caught off guard and injured by a boy whose cultivation was so much below his?

“You little beast, I’ll send you off to see your parents today!” Yi Shengjie roared. He quickly shook the blood soul banner in his hand. Billowing black smoke appeared, obscuring the sky and the sun above. The sun could no longer be seen.

The entire ancestral home was shrouded in a terrifying atmosphere.

MTL Editor: Ran

Translator: Kaho

Chp 2376: Indiscriminate Attack

Ning Shu frowned. There were so many souls, all with strong, baleful yin energy.

Despair, hatred, and pain, made these souls more miserable and murderous.

The others in the yard were stunned by the sight. They were holding their heads as they wailed.

Some people were tightly wrapped in the black smoke, and souls were on top of their bodies, biting them and tearing apart their souls.

Screams and roars of pain filled the yard.

It had become instinctual for these souls to attack any living creature that they saw.

Was this kind of indiscriminate attack really good?

Yi Liang was also wrapped in black smoke. His face was pale. Most importantly for him, his parents were among those souls. Their faces were hideous, and their eyes malicious and ruthless. The sight made Yi Liang’s heart ache.

“Yi Liang, only by defeating Yi Shengjie could you free your parents. Otherwise, they’d only suffer endless pain, and they’d never be able to reincarnate,” Ning Shu shouted to Yi Liang in a low voice. "The longer you delay, the more pain they’d have to suffer."

The knuckles of Yi Liang’s clenched fist turned white. He roared, ignoring the black smoke swathing him, and pounced toward Yi Shengjie.

Ning Shu quickly recited the incantations inwardly. Every time these incantations hit the black smoke, some souls would roar in pain.

When Yi Shengjie saw Yi Liang rushing towards him, he snorted coldly. "I’ll allow you to witness the power of a golden core stage cultivator."

Yi Shengjie’s hands rapidly formed signs, and a powerful attack hit Yi Liang. It mercilessly collided with the qilin energy, making a loud noise. Even the air was becoming distorted.

Yi Liang kept pushing on. He clenched his fists, then abruptly hit Yi Shengjie's chest with lightning speed.

Time seemed to stand still, and after a while, Yi Shengjie vomited blood and flew away.

"Cough, cough, cough..." Yi Shengjie was on the ground, coughing blood uncontrollably, with a disbelieving look on his face. He was a golden core stage cultivator, so how could he be beaten up by a kid, and so badly as well!?

Yi Liang allowed him no break and slammed another fist into Yi Shengjie's chest.

"Pfft..." Yi Shengjie spat out another mouthful of blood. The blood splattered onto Yi Liang's face.

Yi Liang didn't care. He didn't even wipe the blood off his face. He smashed another fist into Yi Shengjie's heart.

As a cultivator, Yi Shengjie had a stronger body compared to ordinary people’s bodies. If it wasn’t for that, he would’ve already been beaten to death by Yi Liang.

"Ah, my golden core!?" Yi Shengjie suddenly found that the golden core in his dantian was gone!

It was as if he had fallen from heaven to hell in an instant.

He had only become a golden core stage cultivator for less than an hour. Where had his golden core gone?

Yi Liang indifferently looked at Yi Shengjie, who was on the verge of falling apart, and stretched out his fist. A qilin roared out from his fist and passed through Yi Shengjie's body heavily.

Yi Shengjie spat out blood in a puff that reached more than a foot away, forming a blood mist.

Yi Shengjie was so angry that he stared at Yi Liang with bulging eyes.

"Don't kill me. I'll tell you where your sister is. I can bring her back." Yi Shengjie's face was extremely pale, like the next breath he’d take could just be his last.

Indeed, even if he took just one more hit, he’d definitely die.

Seeing this sight, Ning Shu stayed silent. It was all up to how Yi Liang wanted to deal with it.

Ning Shu asked the little fox for a spirit stone. The little fox was very reluctant but gave Ning Shu a spirit stone of quite good quality in the end.

"Remember to pay me back later."

Ning Shu used the spirit stone to arrange a simple yang gathering formation. With this formation, it could gather the surrounding yang energy to disperse the abundance of malevolent yin energy.

MTL Editor: Ran

Translator: Kaho

Chp 2377: Where Is My Sister?

Ning Shu finished setting up the yang gathering formation. The surrounding yang energy slowly gathered towards the Yi family’s ancestral house, but the surrounding yin energy was simply too strong.

The bit of yang energy was like a drop in a bucket of yin energy.

Ning Shu closed her eyes and started to chant a spell. As for the matter between Yi Liang and Yi Shengjie, Ning Shu didn’t mind it and just let Yi Liang handle it himself.

If Yi Liang was really deceived by Yi Shengjie… Well, it’d be good for him to suffer a loss as a lesson.

Yi Shengjie felt that the breath in his inner abdomen was in complete disorder. Moreover, he still didn't understand why his golden core disappeared.

Yi Shengjie's face became paler and paler, and he vomited blood whenever he moved his body.

He strained himself to take out a medicinal pill to heal his wound, but Yi Liang kicked the pill away.

“You…” Yi Shengjie would have never imagined that he’d be bullied and beaten to near death by this little beast!

“It won’t do you any good if I die. I’m the only one who knows where your sister is. If I die, you’d never be able to find her.” For now, the only way for him to survive was to play weak.

He had literally killed Yi Liang’s father. It was surely not easy for Yi Liang to restrain the urge to bite him to death and drink his blood afterward.

"Where is my sister?" Yi Liang asked.

"I know where she is. I'll take you there, provided you don’t kill me." Yi Shengjie covered his chest as he tried to negotiate with Yi Liang.

“Then answer this, first. Is my sister in the Yinyang Sect?”

An inexplicable smile appeared on Yi Shengjie's face. "Of course she is in the Yinyang Sect."

"Then you can go to hell now!" Yi Liang’s passed through Yi Shengjie's body. He held a heart in his bloody hands, and the heart even continued to beat a couple more times.

"Uh..." Yi Shengjie's expression froze. The strange smile on his face hadn't dissipated, but it had become mixed with disbelief and confusion. He obviously couldn't figure out why Yi Liang attacked.

Yi Liang took advantage of his weakness to take his life. If Yi Shengjie recovered, he’d become too dangerous. Moreover, since Yi Shengjie had killed his parents, there was no way Yi Liang would let Yi Shengjie off.

Ning Shu was a little relieved to see that Yi Liang had killed Yi Shengjie so decisively.

Indecision during critical moments would only result in harm.

They already had a bloody feud between them, which would not end until one of the parties died. It was best to kill decisively.

At this point, Yi Shengjie didn’t kill Yi Liang because he was injured, but what would happen once he got better?

The blood soul banner was Yi Shengjie's natal artifact. When Yi Shengjie died, the black smoke in the blood soul banner could no longer be controlled and scattered in all directions.

Under the erosion of the baleful energy, these souls were reduced until they had only murderous intent in their hearts, and they’d attack any strangers they see. If they were allowed to scatter, they might cause a catastrophe.

They’d also only get stronger.

The role of the blood soul banner was to control and accommodate the souls it housed.

Ning Shu hurriedly told Yi Liang, "Hurry up and refine the blood soul banner."

Yi Liang heard Ning Shu's voice and took the banner from Yi Shengjie, "What should I do?"

“Use your heart’s blood,” the little fox interjected. “My grandmother told me that it’s what humans use to refine magic artifacts.”

Yi Liang looked at Ning Shu, and Ning Shu said, "No need for heart’s blood. Ordinary blood would do."

To refine with heart’s blood was to make the blood soul banner his natal artifact.

The heart’s blood and the spiritual imprint were combined to refine one’s natal artifact.

Ning Shu didn’t want Yi Liang’s natal magic artifact to be the blood soul banner. He’d have to keep gathering souls to strengthen the blood soul banner and to do that, he’d have to keep murdering people.

Yi Liang obviously believed in Ning Shu more. Hearing Ning Shu’s words, he slashed his palm and let his blood drip onto the blood soul banner.

When he saw this, the little fox snorted. He was very dissatisfied.

The blood soul banner slowly absorbed Yi Liang's blood.

MTL Editor: Ran

Translator: Kaho

Chp 2378: What Were You Closing Your Eyes For???

Yi Liang suddenly felt that he was connected with the blood soul banner. He was amazed by this.

"Quickly take back these souls," Ning Shu said to Yi Liang. "Guard your consciousness, then set your intention."

When Yi Liang heard what Ning Shu said, he quickly closed his eyes.

Ning Shu: …

What were you closing your eyes for???

Yi Liang had just refined the blood soul banner. He hadn’t quite mastered it yet. Thus there was no movement for a long time.

When Yi Liang opened his eyes, there were souls on his shoulders and legs, biting him. Yi Liang frowned and said, "The blood soul banner won’t listen to me."

"It’s probably because Yi Shengjie’s spiritual imprint hasn't been erased." Ning Shu saw that the black smoke and baleful energies around had dispersed, and directly released her own spiritual consciousness to invade the blood soul banner.

In one area of the banner, she discovered a nearly transparent soul. It should be the spiritual imprint of Yi Shengjie.

This trace of consciousness saw Ning Shu and immediately rushed over, trying to swallow Ning Shu's consciousness.

Ning Shu sent out a powerful spiritual force, directly erasing Yi Shengjie's imprint.

Ning Shu withdrew her spiritual consciousness and said to Yi Liang, "Try again."

Yi Liang closed his eyes and started to try to control the blood soul banner.

Ning Shu expressed that this habit of closing his eyes was unacceptable. What if someone came to attack??

Soon, the blood soul banner started to absorb the black smoke in the surroundings. The souls in the black smoke began to roar in unwillingness and fear.

Yi Liang listened to these voices and tried hard to find his parents, but there were so many souls in the black smoke that he couldn't find them at all.

It took about half an hour for the blood soul banner to take back all the black smoke.

The originally dark ancestral house suddenly became bright. The sun was shining upon them.

There were still people lying about the yard. Some of them had hideous faces, frozen in distorted expressions as if they had seen something extremely terrifying.

Their souls had obviously been swallowed up by the souls in the black smoke.

Some people were delirious. Their eyes were messy and dazed, and they looked crazy. It was clear their souls were now incomplete, or they had been too shaken by what they saw.

"Xiao Hei, let's go," Yi Liang said to Ning Shu. His face was pale. It was obviously still a little difficult for him to control the blood soul banner.

Yi Liang took some money he found from the ancestral house. Ning Shu saw some jade slips and told Yi Liang to take them. All cultivators used jade slips to store information. Yi Liang put the jade slips away and then left with Ning Shu and the little fox.

The child and the two foxes left the ancestral house. Yi Liang, regardless of his exhaustion, bought some basic necessities in the town.

Yi Liang bought several flame sticks and wrapped them in oil paper.

Because there was no flame stick before, they had suffered a lot. They couldn't start a fire or roast meat. Now that he thought about it, it had been so hard for them to survive the winter.

He bought a water bottle and dry rations, as well as some medicinal powder to heal wounds and stop bleeding.

"Buy some candied fruit. I like to eat candied fruit," the little fox said immediately.

Yi Liang bought some more candied fruit.

Candied fruit was a snack that only well-off families would have. Yi Liang expressed that normally he wouldn’t even buy it for himself.

"Where are we going now? I have already defeated a cultivator in the foundation stage. I’m free now,” the little fox asked indistinctly with a full mouth while eating the candied fruit.

Ning Shu: Haha…

"I want to go to the Yinyang Sect and find Yi Rou." Yi Liang sorted out the package. "We’ll leave right away."

Ning Shu wasn't surprised,.Yi Liang would definitely want to hurry after hearing about his sister.

"Okay, I'll follow you," Ning Shu said.

"Thank you, Xiao Hei." Yi Liang's eyes looked bright.

MTL Editor: Ran

Translator: Kaho

Chp 2379: Extremely Strong Ability to Attract Trouble

Wherever Yi Liang was going, Ning Shu naturally had to follow. Her task in this world was to repay him, after all.

When Yi Liang truly became strong, it should also mean that she’d paid off his life-saving grace. She’d then be able to leave this world.

"And me! I'll follow you too." The little fox was eager to try everything he could. He was too curious about the human world.

Ning Shu glanced at the excited little fox. This little thing had no particular skills except his extremely strong ability to attract trouble.

Moreover, there was surely someone out there who knew about the red foxes’ innate skills. The little fox was a walking magnet of trouble for Yi Liang. He really didn’t have it easy.

This thing was even acting like a little ancestor, always wanting to eat this and that.

The little fox didn’t think of himself as an outsider at all. It was lucky for him that Yi Liang’s mind was still pure and he never even thought of using the little fox.

The little fox was probably innocent enough to be tricked with candy.

After they left the town, Ning Shu said, “Take out the jade slips from before and check if any of them got any useful information.”

They were currently aimlessly looking for the Yinyang Sect. This was too ineffective.

“How do I use a jade slip?” Yi Liang asked.

He’d never come in contact with anything like this before.

Ning Shu gently answered him. “Put your consciousness into the jade slip. If you can’t bear it, just get out quickly.”

Ning Shu put her own consciousness into a different jade slip, which contained a record of a cultivation method.

Ning Shu memorized the method. The more methods she knew, the better. It might come in useful someday.

She’d been cultivating the Unsurpassable Martial Arts for some time. By now, it had even become her hope to construct a world.

After she memorized the method, Ning Shu withdrew her spiritual consciousness and looked toward Yi Liang. Yi Liang’s expression was a little strained. He had to focus intensely to read the things in the jade slip, especially since there was a lot of complex information contained inside.

It seemed like he was facing some difficulties due to his current level of mental strength.

“This one holds information about various cultivation sects and the imperial family,” Yi Liang said, forcing out his words between gritted teeth.

Ning Shu entered the jade slip, which indeed, contained detailed information about the founders and ancestors of various sects, as well as some meritorious deeds and notable men from those sects.

Among these was information about the Yinyang Sect, which confirmed what she’d been guessing all along.

The Yinyang Sect was indeed a sect that harvested yin energy to replenish yang. This sect used special means to turn women into the most suitable cultivation furnaces.

These women were basically made into having no thoughts of their own. Whenever they saw a man, they’d open their legs and let the disciples of the Yinyang Sect cultivate with them.

Although the Yinyang Sect was looked down upon by various factions, it was still one that was chosen by many men.

Not only could they enjoy sexual intercourse, but they’d also be able to improve their cultivation.

As soon as Yi Liang saw the information on Yinyang Sect, he felt blood rush to his head. Everything went silent and all that he could hear was the buzzing in his ears.

He couldn’t believe that his sister was in that kind of place.

The Yinyang Sect must have given Yi Shengjie quite a lot of benefits, for Yi Shengjie to offer Yi Rou to that sect.

Yi Liang’s eyes were bloodshot. His entire body was shaking as he punched the ground with his hands.

Ning Shu tried to comfort him. “Don’t be too pessimistic. Your sister is still only ten years old. She’s so young, and surely that sect wouldn’t have gone as far as to not even spare such a young child. Moreover, it takes a lot of time to create a perfect furnace. Perhaps your sister’s situation isn’t as bad as you think.

“You have to be strong. How can you save your younger sister like this?” Ning Shu said, bitterly feeling like she had really turned into a nagging old mother.

Yi Liang quickly adjusted his emotions. Fortunately, his heart had been toughened up by so many years of hardships.

The gate of the Yinyang Sect was in Heaven’s Gorge.

Their next destination was Heaven’s Gorge.

MTL Editor: Ran

Translator: Kaho

Chp 2380: You’re So Ugly

Ning Shu rolled around in the mud, and her white fur immediately became dirty.

Her white fur was too eye-catching. It’d be best for her to be dirty.

She was just afraid of getting lice!

“Bah. You’re so ugly.” The little fox looked at Ning Shu, who was covered in dirt, disdainfully.

“Roll him around too,” Ning Shu calmly said. His red fur was just as eye-catching.

“No way!” The little fox, who was caught by Yi Liang, struggled hard, but couldn’t escape the fate of being dirtied with mud.

The little fox felt like he had nothing left to live for.

Ning Shu suddenly asked the little fox, “Are the red foxes the only ones that can learn how to cast illusions?”

“No, we’re not. We’re just uniquely good at it. It’s an innate talent that others don’t have,” the little fox answered sternly.

“Others can learn too?”

“That’s not it. Do you want to learn how I do it? No way. The secret method of my clan cannot be disclosed.” The little fox crushed Ning Shu's hopes.

“The ability to cast illusions is the foundation of our red fox clan. If you know how to cast illusions, you’d understand how it works and you’d be able to undo them. There is no way I’ll teach you. My grandma would kill me.” The little fox looked dead serious.

Ning Shu inwardly sighed. The ability to cast illusions practically made Ning Shu drool.

Ordinary formations could create something similar, but only in appearance. The red foxes’ illusions, however, could evoke a person’s deepest desire. It could evoke beautiful fantasies that people would want to indulge themselves forever in, but also past suffering and torment that they couldn’t bear to look back at.

It could amplify the seven emotions and six desires infinitely.

However, it seemed like it was near impossible to learn it.

She and the little fox weren’t close enough to share family secrets with each other.

Ning Shu had no choice but to put that thought on the back-burner.

The child and the two foxes went in the direction of Heaven’s Gorge, but the journey from the town to there was long. Even though Yi Liang bought a carriage, they still had to stop often.

They also had to keep asking for directions so they wouldn’t go in the wrong direction.

Along the way, they encountered robbers and scammers, and sometimes, they’d even have to deal with some not-so-powerful cultivators’ schemes.

With each encounter, Yi Liang only became more calculative and determined. He learned to always keep a card up his sleeves and pretend to be weak in order to defeat those that were stronger than him.

Walking in the Jianghu required a lot of carefulness. It wasn’t good to have the intention to harm others, but at the same time, it was still very important to always be on guard against others.

The closer they got to Heaven’s Gorge, the more powerful the people they met became. Many foundation stage cultivators were wandering outside it.

During their several months of arduous journeys, since they had no artifacts to fly with, they had to rely on horses. However, there were places where carriages couldn’t traverse, so they had no choice but to walk.

Only they would know the hardships they endured.

They finally arrived at the nearest town in Heaven’s Gorge. As soon as they entered the town, they immediately felt strong spiritual energy, which made people feel refreshed.

This was possible either because there were spiritual veins nearby, or there were people forming formations and gathering spiritual energy here.

Either way, it must’ve been costly.

Yi Liang took Ning Shu and the little fox to an inn, but they were kicked out because they were too dirty.

But how could anyone that had gone on such a long journey possibly be clean?

Ning Shu and the little fox’s fur was lumpy, and it was sticking together.

They could raise a burst of dust just by shaking their body.

Yi Liang told the innkeeper that he had money, but they wouldn’t let him stay.

The other guests of the inn were cultivators. If this dirty boy made those immortals angry, they wouldn’t be able to continue operating their businesses.

Besides, they only accepted spirit stones as payment. Who’d accept something like silver?

MTL Editor: Ran

Translator: Kaho