VHSTS CH14

As Xuanlingzi’s voice fell, not a sound stirred within the stone chamber.

Pressing two fingers together, Xuanlingzi sent a streak of golden sword qi piercing straight through the stone table in front of the meditation cushion. Instantly, a wavering, translucent remnant soul emerged from within the stone table. His form was faint and ethereal, looking as though he might disperse at any moment, yet his mouth continued repeating the exact same four words without pause: “Human or demon…”

Had Luo Jianqing been awake at this moment, he would surely have recognized immediately that this was the very same voice he had battled for so long in the sixth trial. This was merely a remnant soul—one virtually devoid of higher consciousness, yet bound by the lingering obsession of its original master, refusing to dissipate even after ages.

“Human or demon, human or demon…”

Not a ripple of emotion crossed Xuanlingzi’s aloof face. The eight-petaled golden lotus between his brows suddenly flared with boundless radiance. Letting out a shriek of agony, the remnant soul trembled as he raised his head to look at Xuanlingzi. After sizing him up for a long moment, the soul screeched piercingly, “You are a demon!”

Xuanlingzi let out a light snort and sneered coldly, “How am I a demon?”

As though deaf to his words, the remnant soul bared his claws and lunged straight toward Xuanlingzi.

With a single point of Xuanlingzi’s sword qi, the remnant soul wailed in agony as clarity gradually returned to his eyes. After half a beat, he suddenly lifted his head to stare at Xuanlingzi, asking in astonishment, “A primordial spirit?!” A moment later, the remnant soul gasped in terror, “Half of a primordial spirit… You are a cultivator above the Mahayana realm!”

Ignoring the remnant soul’s words entirely, Xuanlingzi’s cool, aloof face remained as frigid as an ice lotus as he spoke indifferently, “Now that you have regained your wits, atone for falsely accusing my disciple of being a demon.”

Before Xuanlingzi could even strike, the remnant soul roared hoarsely, “He is a demon! He is a demon! He is a demon!”

Xuanlingzi chuckled coldly. “Utter nonsense!”

Trembling, the remnant soul cried out, “Rejected by the Eighty-One Grand Daos and Three Thousand Minor Daos of the azure heavens¹Eighty-One Grand Daos & Three Thousand Minor Daos (八十一大道，三千小道): Classic Daoist cosmology representing all universal laws, truths, and cultivation paths under heaven.—if he is not a demon, what else could he be?!”

“Anyone rejected by the Heavenly Dao of human cultivators is a demon?”

“Yes!”

Xuanlingzi swept his long robes, scattering specks of golden light across the stone chamber as he asked calmly, “Then what about me?”

The remnant soul was instantly struck speechless. A moment later, as if descending back into madness, he began muttering incessantly, “A Mahayana demon cultivator, a Mahayana demon cultivator… Demon Venerable, it’s the Demon Venerable… You are a demon, you are a demon, you are a demon!”

Xuanlingzi’s narrow phoenix eyes rested briefly on the crazed remnant soul, watching indifferently as the spirit clutched his head in torment before him. Driven by instinct, the remnant soul seemed to want to attack him, yet every time he raised his head to look at Xuanlingzi, he timidly averted his gaze.

Eventually, the remnant soul drifted slowly upward, slamming himself repeatedly against the walls of the stone chamber. Lacking a physical body, he cried out “Demon Venerable” and “Human or demon” while endlessly tormenting himself in self-destructive agony.

Xuanlingzi merely watched in silence. Even when the remnant soul collided with Li Xiuchen—causing the unconscious boy to shudder violently—Xuanlingzi made no move to stop him. Only when the remnant soul was about to crash into Luo Jianqing did Xuanlingzi’s eyes contract, sweeping his sleeve to pull the soul back.

The Deity Transformation powerhouse’s voice resonated like rolling thunder inside the narrow stone chamber:

“Since you are already dead, why cling to your obsession? Humans and demons have been irreconcilable since ancient times, yet in this generation, I have done everything I could for the human race, and humans and demons have lived in peace for over a century. It is time for you to depart as well—that is your true final resting place.”

“Human or demon… Demon Venerable… You are the Demon Venerable…”

“You slandered my disciple as a demon, nearly causing him to be possessed and dragging him down to such a state—it is high time you offered compensation.”

“Demon Venerable, you are the Demon Venerable, you… Aaargh!!!“

With a flick of Xuanlingzi’s long sleeve, a streak of golden light pierced straight through the remnant soul’s body, forcing an agonizing howl from his throat. After the time it takes to brew a cup of tea, the remnant soul’s shrieks ceased abruptly; he lowered his head silently toward the floor, as though stripped of consciousness.

Xuanlingzi spoke in a low voice, “Aside from that person, distribute the rewards the others are due.”

The remnant soul glanced at Li Xiuchen lying in the corner and nodded lightly. “Yes.”

Outside, the thunderclouds in the sky grew even denser, roaring with deafening booms as though condemning Xuanlingzi’s decree.

Paying the heavens no heed, Xuanlingzi continued, “And to my disciple, grant the compensation he deserves.”

The remnant soul nodded. “Yes.”

Xuanlingzi swept his wide, flowing sleeve, and out flew a streak of blood-red light.

The storm clouds overhead raged even more violently, sending bolts of tribulation lightning crashing down across the Yitian Mountain Range—one colossal, world-destroying crimson bolt aiming directly at Xuanlingzi himself.

Golden light flashed between Xuanlingzi’s brows as the Xuanling Sword materialized in his hand. Pointing his blade toward the azure heavens, boundless spiritual power surged skyward.

Lightning and golden sword collided in mid-air with an earth-shattering roar.

In that split second, the mountain peaks surrounding Beidou Zhenjun’s ruins were flattened completely. A massive shockwave rippled outward, blasting away the curious cultivators who had gathered nearby to watch the spectacle; every cultivator below the Nascent Soul realm spat out a mouthful of blood in unison, while those at the Qi Refining stage were severely injured and knocked unconscious.

The thunderclouds continued to rumble ominously, yet dared not send down another tribulation strike. Meanwhile, inside the stone chamber, the remnant soul kept his head bowed toward the floor, and Luo Jianqing remained unconscious—leaving no one to witness the strongest cultivator under heaven stagger slightly and cough up a heavy mouthful of blood.

Specks of golden light glinted within that blood. Leaning half his weight against the Xuanling Sword, Xuanlingzi lifted his head toward the remnant soul. “This belongs to my disciple.”

As his words fell, the blood-red light drifted toward the remnant soul. The soul had initially intended to catch it, yet before he could even reach out, he was cowed by its terrifying aura and stood frozen obediently as the crimson glow hovered before him.

The remnant soul bowed respectfully. “Yes.”

Gazing at that streak of blood-red light, Xuanlingzi pondered silently for a long while before finally waving a hand to wipe away a tiny trace embedded within the crimson glow. He then walked over to Luo Jianqing’s side.

Sweat covered the young man’s handsome, refined face, yet his breathing had grown steady—clearly having fallen into a deep sleep.

Xuanlingzi looked at him silently for a long time before letting out a soft sigh. Pressing a finger gently against Luo Jianqing’s forehead, he drew out a streak of white light just as he had done with Li Xiuchen earlier. His movements were exceedingly gentle; Luo Jianqing merely let out a muffled groan before showing no further reaction.

In the very next instant, Xuanlingzi vanished abruptly. A streak of golden light pierced straight through the ruins’ protective barrier, shooting toward Taihua Mountain before disappearing into the sect’s mountain-guarding grand array.

__

Taihua Mountain, Cangshuang Peak.

A magnificent, imposing grand hall stood atop the summit of Cangshuang Peak, overlooking the entire mountain and radiating noble, righteous qi. Inside the hall, an elderly man with grizzled hair sat upright on a meditation cushion.

Directly in front of him stood a four-tiered altar of natal life lamps²Natal Life Lamp / Benming Deng (本命燈): A spiritual lamp linked directly to a cultivator’s life force and soul, kept in a sect’s ancestral hall. If a cultivator is severely injured, their lamp dims; if they die, the flame extinguishes.: dozens of lamps rested on the fourth tier, six lamps on the third tier, only two remained on the second tier, and on the very top tier, a single golden life lamp flickered with flame.

Taihua Mountain’s Sect Master, Haoxingzi, kept his eyes tightly shut in meditative cultivation. At that very instant, the solitary golden life lamp on the highest tier suddenly dimmed. Haoxingzi’s eyes snapped open; staring at the lamp in shock, he gasped softly, “Xuanlingzi-shidi?!”

Barely had his words fallen when Haoxingzi transformed into a streak of white light, streaking straight toward Yuxiao Peak at the very center of Taihua Mountain.

__

Meanwhile, hundreds of li away in the Yitian Mountain Range, the disciples of Taihua Mountain and the Yitian Sect were still undergoing their brutal trial.

The demonic beasts roaming the Ten-Thousand-Zhang Wasteland were countless. Taihua Mountain’s disciples had been sent by their masters to slaughter beasts in Ten Thousand Beasts Ridge since childhood and possessed rich combat experience, whereas the Yitian Sect disciples were another matter altogether. Most lacked sufficient spiritual roots and real battle experience, so many had already crushed their jade tokens to exit the ruins early.

Thus, when they finally emerged from the Ten-Thousand-Zhang Wasteland, fifteen remained from Taihua Mountain, while only two remained from the Yitian Sect.

The group of seventeen converged inside the sixth trial. Strangely enough, they waited there for a long time, surrounded by nothing but pitch-black darkness, as though nothing existed at all, leaving them thoroughly bewildered.

Meanwhile, inside the seventh and final trial—the Tianshu Chamber—Luo Jianqing’s fingers twitched slightly as he slowly regained consciousness.

Having just endured a grueling struggle against the demon fox’s soul possession, Luo Jianqing’s spiritual power was completely exhausted. Lacking even the strength to sit up, he merely opened his eyes and saw Li Xiuchen lying in the corner of the room, covered in blood.

Narrowing his eyes, before Luo Jianqing could react, he suddenly sensed a peculiar presence. Turning his head, he saw a faint, translucent shadow floating in front of the meditation cushion with its head bowed in silence.

Luo Jianqing widened his eyes, already preparing to retrieve the Green Bamboo Umbrella from his storage ring, when the remnant soul spoke in a low voice: “The trial has ended. You have failed.”

As soon as those words fell, white light flashed across Li Xiuchen’s body, and in the blink of an eye, he vanished from the ruins.

Luo Jianqing stared blankly at the empty corner, unable to fathom what had just happened. He had simply fought a prolonged battle against the Phantom Demon Fox and passed out—how had a remnant soul suddenly appeared the moment he opened his eyes, and why did Li Xiuchen look so severely injured?

Gathering the sliver of spiritual power he had just managed to recover, Luo Jianqing remained on high alert against his surroundings.

The remnant soul’s hoarse voice rang out: “You have cleared Benjun³Benjun (本君): An arrogant or authoritative first-person pronoun (“This Lord”) used by high-ranking immortals, kings, or cultivators holding the title of Zhenjun.’s ruins. Now, Benjun bestows upon you three of my magic treasures.”

Pausing briefly, a look of bitter hatred crossed the remnant soul’s face. “Humans and demons cannot coexist—I swear to eradicate the demon clan! I, Beidou Zhenjun, galloped across battlefields for years, single-handedly slaughtering over ten thousand demonic beasts. Between the human race and the demon race, either you die, or I perish! These three magic treasures are acutely sensitive to demonic beasts and will aid you in slaying demons and eliminating evil.”

Three streaks of white light materialized in front of Luo Jianqing.

Luo Jianqing: “…”

…So what on earth is going on here?

Before he could process it, the remnant soul continued, “Here is also a secret manual of Benjun’s, entrusted to you alongside them.”

This time, the remnant soul spoke concisely without any further explanation. A streak of blood-red light flew straight toward Luo Jianqing. Having recovered about thirty percent of his spiritual power by now, Luo Jianqing raised a hand and caught the crimson light.

It was a blood-red jade slip⁴Jade Slip / Yupai or Yujian (玉牌 / 玉簡): A jade talisman or tablet imprinted with spiritual sense, used by cultivators to record and transmit secret techniques or texts directly into the reader’s mind., only the size of a palm, yet it looked as though it had been condensed from fresh blood—vivid in color and piercingly dazzling. Holding it in his hand felt almost hot enough to scorch his skin; even as it rested quietly, awaiting its master’s inspection, an overwhelming pressure radiated outward from the jade slip, freezing the surrounding air.

Furrowing his brows tightly, Luo Jianqing turned toward the remnant soul and asked, “Senior, may I ask what this…”

His voice cut off abruptly. Before Luo Jianqing’s astonished eyes, the remnant soul lifted his head blankly as his form dissolved into countless specks of white light, gradually fading away from the stone chamber. Only a deep, raspy voice lingered long in the air—

“Human… or demon?”

The voice was laced with an obsession and regret that transcended time itself.

Since the remnant soul had vanished, Luo Jianqing had no choice but to examine the four items he had received. Among the three items within the white light, one was an Earth-grade magic treasure and two were Mysterious-grade magic treasures—valuable enough, though still within what a Nascent Soul cultivator might reasonably own.

Only this blood-red jade slip left Luo Jianqing thoroughly perplexed.

The terrifying aura radiating from the jade slip seemed to pierce through ancient epochs straight toward him.

Could Beidou Zhenjun truly have possessed such monumental fortune—able not only to lay down this terrifying Big Dipper Seven-Star Array, but also to obtain such a fearsome jade slip?

After hesitating for a long while, Luo Jianqing finally extended a thread of his spiritual sense into the jade slip.

In an instant, an earth-shaking, oppressive voice boomed beside his ears—

“Plunder the endless years, plunder the boundless earth; plunder all living beings, plunder the fortune of heaven and earth. Plunder humans, plunder demons, plunder the Heavenly Dao—this scripture is named Nine…” The voice halted abruptly before continuing a moment later: “This scripture is named the Nine Plundering Heavens Record.”

Footnotes:

• 1
  Eighty-One Grand Daos & Three Thousand Minor Daos (八十一大道，三千小道): Classic Daoist cosmology representing all universal laws, truths, and cultivation paths under heaven. ↩︎
• 2
  Natal Life Lamp / Benming Deng (本命燈): A spiritual lamp linked directly to a cultivator’s life force and soul, kept in a sect’s ancestral hall. If a cultivator is severely injured, their lamp dims; if they die, the flame extinguishes. ↩︎
• 3
  Benjun (本君): An arrogant or authoritative first-person pronoun (“This Lord”) used by high-ranking immortals, kings, or cultivators holding the title of Zhenjun. ↩︎
• 4
  Jade Slip / Yupai or Yujian (玉牌 / 玉簡): A jade talisman or tablet imprinted with spiritual sense, used by cultivators to record and transmit secret techniques or texts directly into the reader’s mind. ↩︎