“After my wife passed away, I was utterly devastated. I only hated the injustice of the Heavenly Dao. Despondent and disheartened, I intended to be buried with her in the land of extreme cold.”
Without waiting for Nan Zhi to respond, Daoist Qinglong continued on his own:
“The Heavenly Dao is unpredictable. When a person dies, their soul returns to the Underworld, where they must cross the Sansheng Stone and pass through the Six Paths of Reincarnation to be reborn.
“But who would have thought that all things in this world generate and overcome one another, and while the grand path of cultivation is vast and misty, every road actually leads to heaven.
“To think that I actually found the legendary Mayfly Wood.
“One must know that mayflies are born at dawn and die at dusk, their lifespans extremely brief. However, if one plants the Mayfly Wood within a human pillar and nourishes it with the essence of flesh and blood, supplemented by supreme wondrous techniques, one can escape the Six Paths of Reincarnation, enjoying a lifespan equal to heaven and earth, shining forever alongside the sun and moon!”
“I painstakingly researched for three hundred years and finally created a profound cultivation technique called the 《Mayfly Shaking the Heavens Art》. This technique aims to use a human pillar as nourishment, placing the soul into the Mayfly Wood to be meticulously nurtured, undergoing reincarnation generation after generation, being reborn for a hundred lifetimes.
“This cultivation technique was indeed effective. Since the Tang Dynasty, my wife has reincarnated for dozens of lifetimes, constantly remaining by my side. Unfortunately, the human pillars were too weak to withstand the technique. Their nourishment would be depleted in twenty to thirty years, forcing me to use extremely evil and yin items to extend her life.”
Daoist Qinglong grew more and more excited as he spoke, his lips curling into a bizarre angle from his extreme self-satisfaction:
“But you are different! You were born with an incomplete soul. After eighteen years, your soul returned to its place, and by a stroke of luck, you embarked on the grand path of cultivation. It is simply perfect for you to be my wife's human pillar!
“As long as you agree, I will grant you a colossal opportunity and fortune!
“Whether you want to be the General of this Demon Suppression Monastery, join a major cultivation sect to practice, or desire wealth and glory, precious treasures, to become the sovereign of a nation and rule the world, or to be a sect master with a direct path to the grand Dao of heaven and earth...
“As long as you speak, I can grant it all to you!”
“Temple Master, wouldn't becoming the human pillar for this Mayfly Wood be just like having one's soul snatched, leaving me no different from a walking corpse?
“In that case, what use would these external possessions be to me?”
Nan Zhi secretly detected something amiss.
The other party was offering so many enticing conditions instead of forcefully seizing her body. It seemed the 《Mayfly Shaking the Heavens Art》 had some flaw, requiring the human pillar to be completely willing.
So that was why Qinglong had been so cooperative, agreeing to clear her name after just a single meeting.
“Hehehe.”
Daoist Qinglong stroked the Mayfly Wood in his palm with incomparable affection, saying coldly:
“You have repeatedly ruined my plans, and you have long deserved to die. Now that I am letting you become the human pillar for the Mayfly Wood, could it be that you feel wronged?
“That evil monk Huiyuan is currently a hundred li outside the monastery, waiting for me to hand you over.
“Choose for yourself: do you want a smooth immortal path ahead and an early ascension to the immortal realm, or do you want to become food for hungry ghosts and turn into filth?”
“There is no need for the Temple Master to threaten me. If I am not mistaken, after reincarnating for several lifetimes, your wife's soul must currently be weak to the absolute limit.
“The Temple Master has waited for me for so long, even having your beloved disciple use my family to trick me into coming here, and now you are promising wealth and glory while using both threats and enticements. There must be a reason why it has to be me.”
Nan Zhi set down the teacup, which had already gone completely cold. She raised her eyes and slowly spread her palm open in front of Daoist Qinglong.
Qinglong was somewhat baffled and frowned slightly as he looked at her.
“I am a butcher's daughter, so I am as pragmatic as they come. If you want me to be your wife's living human pillar, I can't just foolishly believe you based on your grand words alone.”
Nan Zhi calmly rubbed her hands together:
“Shouldn't you give me some sweet benefits first, so I can see the advantages of being a living human pillar?”
A Foundation Establishment cultivator actually dared to demand benefits from him?!
Daoist Qinglong was stunned, his eyebrows arching slightly in sheer shock.
If it weren't for the fact that Danxia's current body could not hold out much longer, he would absolutely never speak so amiably to a mere Foundation Establishment cultivator.
Although he had conspired with the monk Huiyuan and promised to hand over Nan Zhi, Daoist Qinglong had absolutely no interest in some evil treasure that could massacre a city.
He had imagined how Nan Zhi would react upon learning the truth.
It would be nothing more than two possibilities: either she would be intimidated by the pressure, groveling and obsequiously agreeing to become the living human pillar to let the Mayfly Wood absorb her nourishment just to stay alive...
...or she would be fierce and unyielding, possessing an iron spine, preferring to die rather than bow her head.
But what about the person before him?
First, she heard so many old secrets without showing the slightest ripple of emotion, and then she was actually shameless enough to directly demand “benefits”?!
In the cultivation world, if anyone dared to speak to a high-level cultivator like this, they would have been taught a harsh lesson long ago.
Yet, this fourth-class arrest officer actually dared to do so.
“How bold of you. Are you planning to stall for time and have your mortal sister go to Bianjing to seek help from Miaoyun?”
Daoist Qinglong prided himself on having seen thousands of faces in the world, yet he could not see through a mere Foundation Establishment cultivator. He sneered, “The current Demon Suppression Division is no longer as glorious as it was during the reign of Empress Shenlong. It is filled with nothing but useless rabble. Do you expect the Cao siblings to save you, or are you relying on that purple wisteria at your waist?”
“Since the Temple Master has chosen me to be the living human pillar, you should trust the one you employ. I am a mere minor Foundation Establishment cultivator with low cultivation, and I have no powerful sect or master backing me.
“There is an evil monk outside the monastery who wants my life. Even if I were to flee, how could I possibly escape right under your nose, Temple Master?”
Nan Zhi touched the lifeless wisteria and replied in a deep voice:
“It is just that I have never practiced any powerful cultivation techniques, and my cultivation is low. I am afraid that even if I willingly become the living human pillar for this Mayfly Wood, I won't be able to nourish your wife's soul for more than a few days.
“Please allow me to bathe, change my clothes, and nurse my body. It won't be too late to agree after some time has passed.”
Although she had fallen into a desperate situation, there would surely be a way out.
She had to stall for at least a few days to ensure Nan Ye and the others safely reached Bianjing.
“You can't escape anyway.”
Daoist Qinglong hesitated for a moment, seemingly considering the credibility of her words.
Then, he put away the Mayfly Wood and casually tossed over a dusty storage bag:
“Inside are body-nourishing pills, as well as some heavenly treasures for cleansing the marrow, washing the essence, and nourishing the soul. You may use them as you wish.
“If you agree, you can also choose whatever you want from my personal storage bag, and I will even give you a late-stage Golden Core demon cultivator's core.
“If you dedicate yourself to cultivation, I can certainly assist you during next year's sect selection, allowing you to enter the Qingjing Sect to practice.
“I will only give you seven days. But if you still refuse to agree after seven days—having ruined my plans repeatedly is already enough for you to atone with your life over a hundred times.”
No, if there was a first and second time, there would be a third and fourth time. And looking at the current situation, she would very likely ruin his plans for a fifth time.
“Of course, of course.”
Nan Zhi caught the storage bag and accepted with a smile.
Never mind any living human pillars or Mayfly Wood.
This was clearly a trap, turning her into a mobile blood bag parasitized by the Mayfly Wood.
Like an insect larva parasitized by fungi, unable to move, only serving as a bag of nutrients.
The big promise the old Taoist was painting looked delicious, but in reality, it was covered in poisoned barbs.
The benefits already in hand were the most real.
What? Return them?
Why should she return benefits that were delivered right to her door?
Qinglong only dared to be so presumptuous because he was certain her cultivation was inferior to his, and was confident she could not escape this Demon Suppression Monastery, right?
Did he not know the sheer weight of the gold-glowing title “Savior” floating above her head?
Nan Zhi smiled exceptionally sincerely.
...
...
Perhaps he really believed Nan Zhi's words, or perhaps he was confident she could not escape the Demon Suppression Monastery, but Qinglong actually let her leave just like that.
Nan Zhi returned to the small courtyard, which still bore traces of the Nan family's life.
Nan Yi leaned against the window, his lower body covered with a thick quilt. Seeing her appear, he hid a hint of worry and returned to his gentle, harmless expression.
“‘Mayflies shaking the heavens, born at dawn and dying at dusk.’ No wonder you knew about these things, and no wonder Zhang Long took such good care of you.”
Nan Zhi stood at the doorway but did not approach, only letting out a cold sneer:
“Should I call you Nan Yi, or should I respectfully address you as the son of Temple Master Qinglong?”
“You know everything?”
Nan Yi's eyes dimmed, and then he gave a bitter smile:
“Eldest Sister, things are not as you think.”
“Is it not good to escape the Six Paths of Reincarnation and reincarnate with your memories intact?”
Nan Zhi crossed her arms and sneered:
“No wonder you refused to speak plainly. It turns out you knew about Qinglong's dirty deeds all along.”
“I wish he would drop dead this instant. I wish I could gouge out his heart, liver, spleen, lungs, and kidneys every single day and soak them in brine. I wish his soul would fall into the boundless hell, suffering from being fried in oil and burned by fire night after night...”
Nan Yi remained silent for a long moment, then suddenly whipped off the quilt covering his legs, revealing a miserable smile:
“In my first life, people called me ‘Danxia’.”
Beneath the soft quilt, there was not a pair of human legs, but a plump, earthy-yellow, constantly writhing insect body. Countless rootlets clung to the skin of the insect body, plunging deep through the bedboard into the ground.
Nan Yi was actually Immortal Danxia, who had reincarnated for ten lifetimes?
Daoist Qinglong's wife?!
What kind of shocking plot twist was this?!
Nan Zhi's pupils dilated in absolute shock.
Rate on N.U.
