The second storage bag contained rewards from the Demon Suppression Division: thirty thousand low-grade spirit stones, a purple clay jade brush, fifty portions each of five-hundred-year cinnabar and five-hundred-year black dog blood, one hundred and eight array-building foundation stones refined from Foundation Establishment stage demon cores, and a purple-quality cultivation method, 《Spirit Turtle Manual》.
“Now that you have achieved such a miraculous feat, we should have held a grand celebration for you. However, Huiyuan is still at large, and there are still people coveting the location of that wicked treasure. We have no choice but to wrong you for now.”
Empress Cao patted her hand. Her palm was warm, carrying a faint scent of soapberry.
“You were originally a fourth-class demon suppressor under the Arrest Division of the Northwest Circuit Demon Suppression Division. Now that the Qingjing Sect's Ningxue Ancestor is overseeing the Northwest, it would be somewhat inappropriate to promote you to Arrest Commissioner there.
I have discussed it with my senior sister. How about promoting you to a Second-class Demon Suppression Inspector? The rank is equivalent to a Commissioner, but you won't have to follow the orders of the Northwest Circuit...”
“Thank you for your kindness, Your Majesty, but I wish to seek the path to heaven. Although staying in the Demon Suppression Division would allow me to receive the protection of my seniors, I would be like a rootless tree or a caged beast. Over time, I fear that the state of mind I had when I questioned Qinglong that day would be completely erased.”
Nan Zhi rejected Empress Cao's proposal neither humbly nor arrogantly.
“Although the Demon Suppression Division has cleared my name, Qinglong was, after all, killed by... The Qingjing Sect is currently in the wrong, but if someone with ulterior motives tries to investigate evil methods like the Mayfly Wood in the future, it will inevitably bring trouble to the Demon Suppression Division.
Now that I have obtained this token to enter the secret realm, I plan to travel all the way north to find the Northern Seven Islands. Once my cultivation has progressed and I shatter my core to form a Nascent Soul, becoming a Nascent Soul cultivator, I will surely capture Huiyuan alive to avenge what happened on the Yin Yang Road.”
Hearing this, the wisteria in the flowerpot swayed its branches and curled into the shape of a fist, as if cheering her on.
“You child, you look so quiet and soft-spoken, yet who would have thought you had such grand ambitions.”
Hearing this, Empress Cao couldn't help but look at Nan Zhi with even greater respect.
“Then it is not my place to force you. It is a pity that Senior Sister Miaoyun left for the South Sea yesterday, so she was unable to meet you.
Before she left, she did leave some instructions for you to cultivate this 《Spirit Turtle Manual》 well. However, you are a rogue cultivator by origin, with no sect or faction. Even if you have obtained some opportunities, if you get the chance, you should still join a sect.
Traveling like this, not only will you have fellow disciples to look after you, but the master-disciple lineages and closely guarded secrets of great sects are things that many rogue cultivators cannot reach even if they spend half their lives searching.
For example, the three closely guarded secrets of the Qingjing Sect: the 《Great Dao Deduction Record》, the 《Five Elements Heaven-Mending Manual》, and the 《Immortal Grade Free-and-Easy Method》. Or those of the Wuwei Sect, like the 《Bodhi Purity Manual》 and the 《Golden Immortal Lotus Wondrous Art》...”
Empress Cao gave her earnest teachings like a well-meaning mother, but Nan Zhi's gaze shifted subtly.
Inside her system inventory, three cultivation methods lay quietly.
《Great Dao Deduction Record》.
《Five Elements Heaven-Mending Manual》.
《Mayfly Shaking the Heavens Art》.
The first two were rewards refreshed after Nan Yi's death, while the latter, the 《Mayfly Shaking the Heavens Art》, was found in Daoist Qinglong's personal storage bag.
The closely guarded secrets of the Qingjing Sect—she, an outsider, currently had two of them in her possession.
If the people of the Qingjing Sect found out about this, they would probably mobilize the strength of their entire sect to hunt her down.
By then, the one coming after her wouldn't just be a single Ningxue Ancestor.
After all, in the cultivation world, sects placed the utmost importance on disciple inheritance.
The cultivation resources in a sect were first allocated to the direct disciples of the elders and masters. As long as these people did not die, betray the sect, or cause trouble in the future, they would basically become the pillars of each lineage in the next generation, the future Sect Masters and elders.
Next were the inner sect disciples, who were the elites of the sect. They possessed remarkable talent, and occasionally, an exceptionally outstanding individual might be chosen to become a direct disciple.
Finally, there was the massive base of outer sect disciples, numerous miscellaneous servants, and the small sects that existed by relying on the main sect.
These people might never even get close to becoming true disciples before their lifespans ended, yet they willingly accepted this.
Compared to sect disciples, rogue cultivators did not have cheats like Nan Zhi, and the hardships of their cultivation were far greater.
For an immortal sect to establish itself, it had to have something to rely on.
For instance, the Qingjing Sect relied on these three closely guarded mental cultivation methods to establish itself in the Four Provinces. Anyone who could gain access to these methods had to be an extremely loyal and highly valued true disciple.
Nan Zhi guessed that Danxia must have been a direct disciple of the Qingjing Sect back then, which was why she had the opportunity to cultivate these two methods.
Disregarding the consequences, once the 《Great Huanzhen Manual》 she was currently cultivating reached great perfection, she might consider cultivating these two methods while still keeping the 《Moon-Worshiping Breathing Method》 as her primary method.
She just had to be extremely cautious to avoid being wanted by the entire cultivation world again.
—As for the 《Mayfly Shaking the Heavens Art》 created by Qinglong?
It was a flawed cultivation method to begin with, and cultivating it would only turn her into a giant bug in the future. Such a sinister method...
Forget it. Keeping it might prove useful someday.
Nan Zhi's hamster hoarding instinct kicked in again.
She then asked Empress Cao about exchanging her military merit for a mirage pearl.
The latter was very cooperative and made an exception for her, ordering someone to fetch a thousand-year mirage pearl from the treasury:
“This item can create illusions, but it is of little use against those with Golden Core cultivation. It has just been gathering dust in the treasury.
Since you are traveling north to the Northern Seven Islands this time, you can go with peace of mind. Your family will naturally be looked after.”
“Thank you, Your Majesty.”
Nan Zhi took the mirage pearl and indeed saw that it was a flawless white spiritual pearl.
Upon closer inspection, it glowed with a warm luster and felt warm to the touch, though its shape was oval, looking rather like a white-shelled duck egg.
—In the beginning, she had decided to join the Demon Suppression Division precisely because she coveted a mirage pearl.
Who would have thought that investigating cases all the way to Bianjing would drag in so many subsequent complications?
“This was exchanged using your own military merit to begin with. I will be waiting for you to shatter your core and form a Nascent Soul in the future, becoming a grand ancestor of a region, before returning to serve as a Demon Suppression Commissioner.”
Empress Cao covered her mouth with a light laugh, her gaze upon Nan Zhi incredibly gentle, as if she were looking at someone else through her:
“The mortal world and its mundane affairs must be severed cleanly when the time comes. Otherwise, over time, you will find yourself unable to break free.
I only hope that when my lifespan is nearing its end, I will be able to drink the celebratory wine at your Ascension Feast. That way, at least, I will know that such a free and unrestrained way of living truly exists in this world.”
Nan Zhi felt a stir in her heart. She looked up at the Demon Suppression Monastery and suddenly realized that this place was not far from the imperial palace. A short carriage ride would lead straight to those thick red walls and green tiles.
The imperial family does not cultivate immortality.
This was by no means a joke.
Was Empress Cao herself not trapped in this city of Bianjing by the mortal world and her family responsibilities?
Yet, this was the path she chose.
The Dao she chose to walk.
“I have a friend, Wanniang of the Qu family, who once stayed with me in the small building of the Demon Suppression Monastery. Later, her grievance was cleared, so she must have gone to reincarnate.”
Nan Zhi nodded in agreement. Before leaving, she remembered Wanniang during her farewells, and hesitated before asking:
“I wonder... did she leave any letters behind when she departed?”
Wanniang was her first friend in this game world. Back then, Nan Zhi was pursued by Huiyuan and met with sudden changes, but she had stubbornly held on until the Qu family's case was resolved before returning to the real world.
With the old case of the Qu family settled and Wanniang's wish fulfilled, she must have gone to reincarnate long ago.
Nan Zhi sighed. Farewells were always silent, especially between close friends.
It was so with Hua Xijian.
And it was the same with Wanniang.
“Wanniang of the Qu family? Are you referring to that young ghost cultivator friend?”
Empress Cao was somewhat surprised and couldn't help but ask in confusion:
“Did you not go to see her after entering the monastery? Since the Qu family's old case was settled, she has been staying in the small building of the Demon Suppression Monastery, brewing wine behind closed doors.
Originally, she never showed herself in public. It was only when she heard you were wanted and hunted that she risked possessing a demon suppressor to appear in front of the Demon Suppression Monastery, saying she was going to look for you.
Later, that ghost cultivator was sealed in the small building by Senior Sister Miaoyun, who refused to let her out.
After that, she would shout curses from inside the building every day and throw things out in all sorts of creative ways, making quite a few little demon suppressors cry!
Senior Sister Miaoyun didn't leave any instructions before she left yesterday, so she probably wanted you to make your own decision.”
Nan Zhi: “...”
Wanniang didn't go to reincarnate?
So who on earth was the one who fed her the bizarre stereotype that a soul would turn into a ray of light and happily ascend to heaven once its wish was fulfilled?!
She bid farewell to Empress Cao and turned to leave in a hurry, her footsteps growing faster and lighter.
In the end, she was running outright, a joyful smile on her face:
“Wanniang, Wanniang! Get ready, we're going on a long journey! Your wish to taste all the fine wines under heaven and write the 《Commentary on the Wine Classic》 is about to come true!”
Empress Cao leaned against a plum tree, watching the young girl run off with a smile, her eyes full of warmth:
Run.
Fly.
There is no place in this world that can trap you.
From now on, the sky is high and the sea is wide. The long road of cultivation and longevity has only just begun.
Rate on N.U.
