I have Immortality In The Cultivation World

"Brother Jiang, has the factional strife within the Sect already involved life and death?"

Zhou Yi pondered for a moment before asking this question.

"It's not that serious. It's just that the old Daoist's lifespan is coming to an end, and I can't stand to see Yang Hua so gleeful. That guy has been treating the disciples and loose cultivators differently for a long time. When I previously had hopes for the Golden Core, it would have merely resulted in some scolding."

Jiang Kang shook his head and said, "The Nascent Soul ancestors of our sect don't take sides in the factions, it's just a rivalry of pride among the junior disciples."

Zhou Yi gave a slight nod, somewhat reassured, and then asked,

"What are the requirements to duel on the Platform of Magical Duel? Is it a challenge by one party, or can you go up as long as both parties agree?"

If it was a challenge by one party, it would naturally breed bullying of the weak by the strong. Zhou Yi had to consider making a clean escape. Even if it required both parties' consent, it was actually unfair, as the more powerful side had plenty of ways to force the weaker side onto the stage for a magical duel.

"The Platform of Magical Duel is a place for Sect competition, how could it allow disciples to fight each other at will?"

Jiang Kang took a drink and said, "I challenged Yang Hua to a magical duel. Once he agreed, I spent ten thousand merit points to apply. The Law Enforcement Hall, seeing that we had a long-standing grudge and our cultivation levels were not much different, agreed to it."

The Law Enforcement Hall probably hadn't expected Jiang Kang to dare to make a lethal move, nor had they foreseen Yang Hua being so weak, as the onlookers at the duel were not quick enough to intervene.

Only then did Zhou Yi truly relax. A full ten-thousand merit points, with no refunds if the application was rejected, meant that the cost of dueling was too high for ordinary people to afford.

After all, as a righteous Sect, if the disciples within the Dan Ding Sect were to kill each other easily, what difference would there be from the demonic and heretical paths?

Zhou Yi flattered, "Brother, your magical arts are profound and powerful, unmatched among equals. A true man at the same level is no match for you in a single round!"

"Humph! You kill a few more Demon Heads, and you'll have my kind of strength, too," Jiang Kang replied with a wistful tone. "It's a pity, in the end, I was unable to achieve Core Formation, otherwise I would definitely find an opportunity to kill a Golden Core old demon!"

The way he spoke was plain and indifferent as if he were muttering to himself, yet the intense killing intent was palpable.

Zhou Yi silently thought Yang Hua's death was not unjust; the path of demonic cultivation was far crueller than the righteous path. Jiang Kang killed him as easily as slaughtering a chicken, which was enough to show that his talent in dueling had reached the pinnacle.

"Brother, you often deal with dealings between the righteous and demonic realms for outside duties; tell me about the demonic cultivators. That way, when the younger brother takes on external duties in the future, I can be on guard to avoid being ambushed on my first assignment."

"Once you take on external duties, the Sect will provide detailed jade slips, which contain the experiences and conclusions of eliminating demons by previous generations of our Sect. If you learn and comprehend them well, it's not that difficult!" Jiang Kang said.

Jiang Kang continued, "As for the demonic territories... I've been to the Ji Continent eight times in just over a hundred years, and the dynasties have changed three times. Those Demon Heads don't care about the mortals or immortals; for the sake of their demonic cultivation and refinement of demonic treasures, they would even wish to blood sacrifice all creatures!"

Zhou Yi questioned, "The souls and Qi-Blood of mortals are weak and frail, somewhat useful in the Qi Refinement Realm but not very useful once reaching the Foundation Establishment Stage."

"You've stayed in the Cloud Continent for too long, probably only encountering a few petty thieves on the road, thus you think that evil cultivators are nothing much. But you have no idea how brutal the real Demon Heads can be," Jiang Kang said with a sigh.

"To make mortals useful, those Demon Heads have specially created a demonic art called the Soldier Refining Art. They force mortals to absorb all kinds of Yin Sha and evil energies, turning living people into half-corpses teeming with yin energy. Once they've absorbed enough yin energy, they can break into the first level of Qi Refinement!"

"Such vicious and cruel methods are just to refine batches of cultivation materials!"

Zhou Yi posed another question, "With such depletion, wouldn't the demonic territories run out of mortals? And without younger disciples, wouldn't that sever the Sect's lineage?"

"The Soldier Refining Art goes against Heaven's will, so demonic Sects also establish rules to forbid large-scale sacrifices within their domain," Jiang Kang replied.

Zhou Yi grasped the important information, "Within their domain? Large-scale?"

"In the end, the demonic way is still the demonic way. If they couldn't rapidly increase their mana by slaughtering creatures, wouldn't all the disciples turn to the righteous path?"

Jiang Kang explained, "Those Sect rules are worthless like dog farts. As long as the Demon Heads kill off everyone and no one reports it, it's as if no one died. Moreover, the demonic way encourages its disciples and sets up Sect rewards for going to other continents and using mortals for cultivation training!"

"Demon Heads should be killed!"

Zhou Yi spoke from the heart, feeling fortunate to be living under the governance of the Dan Ding Sect. Otherwise, no matter how cautious he was, he wouldn't be able to fend off the Demon Heads who abducted mortals in large numbers for their cultivation.

The prerequisite for escaping was a small power gap. As an Innate Grandmaster facing a Foundation Establishment demonic cultivator, no matter how much one resisted, it was only for the amusement of the Demon Head.

"Indeed, they must be executed, especially those old demons, who deserve to have their souls scattered by the Heavenly Tribulation!"

Jiang Kang said, "The old Taoist knows of an evil technique named Jade Dew Art, created by a Demon Lord whose lifespan was reaching its end. The Jade Dew Art can extract cultivators' lifespans and hasten the maturation of life-extending spiritual medicines, though it only converts medicines with a low age."

"Consequently, that Demon Lord used the Soldier Refining Art to mass-produce cultivators and then exhaust their vitality, ultimately extending his life by only three to five years."

"Such behavior isn't just harmful to the heavens and beyond description, it's utterly insane!"

Zhou Yi felt quite awkward upon hearing this, as life-extending spiritual medicines are mostly of the wood attribute, containing the essence of vitality and creation. However, upon reflection, he felt justified again.

Taking the lifespan of others is indeed a sin, but who says one can't take their own?

"Elder Brother, the cruelty of demon heads is terrifying. What should I do if I encounter one in the future?"

"While your mana is pure, it is far too weak and mild, and you lack the aura of evil, which surely means you have rarely experienced battles."

Jiang Kang took a glance at Zhou Yi, and, considering the hundred-year spiritual wine, offered some advice, "The only way to survive the task of demon elimination in the External Affairs is to spend spirit stones to hire people. If three or four sect members gang up on one, there are few demon heads that can withstand it."

Zhou Yi said helplessly, "Doesn't that just invite scorn?"

"Staying alive isn't shameful at all!"

Jiang Kang said, "However, hiring fellow sect members is costly, and the merit you earn and convert to spirit stones will end up costing you more in the end."

"Thank you for the guidance, Elder Brother."

Zhou Yi had inquired with disciples of the External Affairs Hall; the sect maintained a stable ratio of spirit stone to merit value at ten to one.

It could only be exchanged one way, meaning merits could be exchanged for spirit stones, but spirit stones could not be exchanged for merits.

For example, if you submitted a Foundation Establishment Pill, you would get a thousand merits, which is equivalent to selling it for ten thousand spirit stones. The reason the sect's exchange price is fivefold is that barrier-breaking pills are rare and indispensable, unlike ordinary pills such as Root Consolidation Pills or Green Sun Pills.

In the external marketplaces, the auction price for a Foundation Establishment Pill is around ten thousand spirit stones, making it seem like the sect disciples are at a loss.

But that's not the case when you consider the hidden costs.

Firstly, outside, you must wait for a Foundation Establishment Pill—once every decade or even longer. Secondly, you have to fight for it; every auction of a Foundation Establishment Pill causes a bloodbath, with countless people dying both openly and secretly.

Furthermore, the purpose of a Foundation Establishment Pill from the outside world is not just for Foundation Establishment.

Moreover, the Dan Ding Sect forbids True Ones from meddling in such affairs, but it does not prohibit Qi Refinement Realm disciples from competing for them, as long as you dare to risk your life against loose cultivators blinded by greed.

Therefore, the word 'safety' is worth the quintuple price!

Zhou Yi had checked the merit ratios for common pills, which were nearly equal to the market prices, meaning the exchange for merits was close to purchasing with spirit stones.

"Elder Brother, why doesn't the sect allow two-way exchanges?"

"When the merit system was first implemented, one could pay spirit stones to increase merits, as the sect has many uses for spirit stones," Jiang Kang said. "However, the Nascent Soul ancestors later realized that this approach only favored the direct disciples and indirectly suppressed loose cultivators. Therefore, they prohibited the exchange channels.

Now one must serve the sect, slay demons, and eliminate evil to obtain Sect-Defending inheritances!"

"The ancestors are far-sighted and strategic!"

Only then did Zhou Yi fully believe that the Nascent Soul ancestors made no distinction between factions.

After the exchange of spirit stones for merits was stopped, the merits earned from demon elimination in the External Affairs were the highest, ranging from a few thousand to tens of thousands, which was even more rewarding than the four arts of cultivation. This was good news for loose cultivators adept at fighting and killing.

The intention of the sect's ancestors was clear: to obtain Sect-Defending inheritances, one must undergo more trials and tribulations, or else they wouldn't gather enough merits even if they endured until death.

Though the Dan Ding Sect is of the orthodox path and known for its alchemy techniques, its ancestors were keenly aware that in the Cultivation World, might is right.

Otherwise, no matter how many miraculous pills and exotic medicines you have, you're just making wedding clothes for someone else!

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