“Greetings, Elder Song. Lin Yuan of the Servant Quarters has advanced to the 3rd stage Qi Refining Realm and has come to receive a martial technique.”
As he stepped into the Martial Hall, Lin Yuan saw a middle-aged man hunched over a low desk writing. He quickly stepped forward and greeted him.
Elder Song paused his writing and looked up, giving him a slight nod. “4th stage Qi Refining Realm. Your cultivation is decent. Go inside and choose one martial technique. Remember, you only have fifteen minutes. Once you’ve made your choice, come back here and copy it.”
“Yes, thank you for the guidance, Elder Song.”
Lin Yuan bowed again and then ascended the stairs to the second floor of the Martial Hall.
This floor was filled with martial techniques for Qi Refining cultivators, all arranged on bookshelves. Roughly estimated, there were over a hundred volumes.
Thunderbolt Fist, Flowing Cloud Sword, Fire Cloud Technique, Soaring Glow Blade…
Each technique had a brief description below it for selection.
Lin Yuan flipped through the books one by one and nearly got overwhelmed.
“Junior Brother, this must be your first time here, right? The techniques may seem abundant, but very few are actually suitable.” A handsome young man in a blue robe walked over and chuckled.
“What advice does Senior Brother have?” Lin Yuan clasped his hands sincerely.
“Qi Refining cultivators have limited spiritual power. Something like Fire Cloud Technique isn’t suitable. Though it’s powerful, it consumes a lot of spiritual Qi. If you run out during a fight, you’ll be like a lamb to the slaughter. Then there’s the matter of technique grades. Techniques have nine tiers, each divided into upper, middle, and lower grades. The higher the grade, the stronger the technique. The best on this floor is the 1st-tier middle-grade Flowing Cloud Sword. Many choose that as their first martial technique. Still, a technique should match your condition, not just raw power. Take the Seven-Slaughter Demon Blade for example. Its power is terrifying—far beyond even the Flowing Cloud Sword—but cultivating it causes unbearable pain throughout the body, and constant nightmares. Anyone with sense would avoid it.”
The blue-robed young man spoke smoothly, unaware that Lin Yuan’s eyes were growing brighter.
Seven-Slaughter Demon Blade, terrifying power, side effects?
That’s exactly what he needed!
“May I ask, Senior Brother, where is the Seven-Slaughter Demon Blade located?”
“Over there… huh? You actually want to cultivate the Seven-Slaughter Demon Blade?” The young man was stunned. No way someone was really going to try that demonic technique, right?
He had tried cultivating it years ago, tempted by its immense power. But not even half a month in, the pain and the nightmares nearly drove him into Qi deviation.
Since then, the Seven-Slaughter Demon Blade had sat on the shelf, untouched.
“You’d better be sure. That technique is extremely difficult to cultivate. Once you choose it, you can’t select another!”
“I’m sure.” Lin Yuan’s eyes were resolute, showing no hesitation.
Following the young man’s directions, he soon found the long-sealed copy of the Seven-Slaughter Demon Blade.
Seven-Slaughter Demon Blade: A demonic technique that slaughters life. It draws from the seven killing stars, severs the three souls, destroys the seven emotions. Its blade flows like the underworld’s river, and wherever it passes, seas of blood rise and towers of corpses fall.
Reading the description stirred Lin Yuan’s excitement.
With a technique like this, he was bound to become powerful.
“Thank you for the advice, Senior Brother. Since I’ve found it, I’ll go copy it now!”
He bid farewell cheerfully and returned to the first floor.
Watching him descend, the young man’s gaze turned strange as he muttered, “I lasted half a month before I gave up. Let’s see how many days you last.”
Back on the first floor, Lin Yuan handed the Seven-Slaughter Demon Blade to Elder Song.
“Please register this for me!”
Elder Song hadn’t cared at first, but the moment he saw the title, his brow furrowed deeply.
“This technique is too sinister. You’d better pick another. I’ll give you an extra seven minutes.”
“Thank you, Elder Song, but my decision is made. Please register it.”
“The last one to try this technique was Inner Sect disciple Yi Zimo. He’s now a core disciple. Even he failed. Are you sure you’ll succeed?”
“How would I know if I don’t try?”
Seeing Lin Yuan’s unwavering face, Elder Song said no more and recorded the technique.
The technique only had about 2,000 characters. Lin Yuan finished copying it in no time.
After returning the original to the bookshelf, he opened the light screen.
Lai Ren’s health bar had recovered to eighty percent. Not bad.
“Good. If you hadn’t recovered, I wouldn’t be able to train the technique.”
Lin Yuan considered himself very kind. Not many protagonists would wish their enemies well. Most would just kill them outright.
With the Seven-Slaughter Demon Blade in hand, he spent 20 taels of silver on a standard iron blade.
Though Immortal Gate Sect was a cultivation sect, lower-level disciples still used mundane silver and gold for exchange. Those who didn’t want to cultivate—or were expelled—could take their savings back to the mortal world and live comfortably.
Once everything was ready, Lin Yuan headed to the back mountain of Immortal Gate Sect, where countless cultivation caves were left behind by past disciples.
Some were still in use, but many were long abandoned.
He found an empty cave, gathered all the weeds into a pile, and set them ablaze. This not only destroyed leftover seeds but also expelled poisonous insects from the crevices.
Half an hour later, the cave was spotless. Lin Yuan sat cross-legged and opened the Seven-Slaughter Demon Blade.
As its name implied, aside from the general principles, it contained seven forms:
Shadow Pursuit, Soul Sever, Wave Overlap, Abyss Fall, Heart Burn, Instant Silence, and Final Slaughter.
“With my current spiritual Qi, I can only learn the first three forms. But that should be enough!”
He memorized the technique’s core and silently circulated his spiritual Qi.
Soon, his originally gentle spiritual Qi took on a fierce and murderous edge.
“Shadow Pursuit!”
Lin Yuan leapt up, charged forward, and slashed with his iron blade. His movements were swift and tight, the blade flashing like a venomous snake across the stone wall.
In the blink of an eye, three shallow cuts appeared on the smooth rock surface.
“The speed is fine, but the power is too weak. I need more practice.”
Two lines of small text flashed in his eyes. Opening them, he saw the side effects now transferred to Lai Ren.
[Practiced Seven-Slaughter Demon Blade, acquired side effects: Muscle Strain, Nightmares]
[Side effects have been transferred to Lai Ren]
“Looks like that Senior Brother was right. The nightmares are real. Well, let Elder Lai enjoy them for me.”
Lin Yuan refocused and continued practicing the first form, Shadow Pursuit.
Elsewhere, Lai Ren’s eyes twitched. He found himself standing outside the sect, facing a strange figure shrouded in a black robe.
“Who are you to block my path? Do you know I’m an elder of Immortal Gate Sect?” he shouted arrogantly.
Immortal Gate Sect was one of the largest sects within a 500-kilometer radius. As a Foundation Establishment Realm elder, he had every reason to be bold.
“Hehehe… Immortal Gate Sect? Your Yang Qi may be depleted, but it’s still quite pure. After I drain you, I’ll refine you into my Hundred-Soul Banner.”
A breeze lifted the black robe, revealing a hideous, obese woman with upturned nostrils and nose hair sticking out.