Yinshan Record

Chapter 497 Decisive Action is Needed When Seizing by Clever Means
Li Yizhen's corpse lay across the front of the Imperial Guard's office, with solidified yin energy flowing back and forth on his body, condensing into hideous, roaring ghost faces.

Su Che stepped forward, his fingers slightly adjusting his clothes.

The guards released from the dungeon circled Li Yizhen's body, looking at Su Che with complex expressions in their eyes.

Li Yizhen was indeed their enemy, but he was also an imperial envoy sent by the king, a dignified imperial censor in Youzhou.

According to the laws of the Great Liang Dynasty, Su Che is now a wanted criminal who murdered an imperial envoy, and the imperial guards present should arrest and imprison him.

However, they have now been stripped of their vitality and spirit.

There was a time when the imperial guards regarded themselves as the embodiment of the imperial court, and even when their actions were despicable, they felt that they represented the imperial court.

However, when this iron fist fell on their own heads, the faith of countless people was shattered.

All that remains is emptiness.

Su Che waved his hand, and a stream of Yin energy, carrying the essence of Li Yizhen's body, fell back into the Yinshan Cave Netherworld Treasure Scroll. In the radiance of the scroll, the Ruomu tree, which had already sprouted, swayed gently, swallowing up all the essence belonging to the Core Formation cultivator.

Su Che could not directly utilize Li Yizhen's magical essence.

Because these essences, in essence, do not actually belong to Young Master Su himself. These vital energies are the result of Li Yizhen's many years of arduous cultivation; they are the condensation and concentration of his entire cultivation. From a legal perspective, these vital energies bear a very deep imprint of "Li Yizhen," and if Su Che wanted to use them directly, there were ways.

That would require erasing the mark that belongs to "Li Yizhen" and transforming it into one's own.

By harnessing the extraordinary power of others, one can achieve one's own effortless success.

However, that would break the balance that Young Master Su had created by taking detours, and he would completely step into the path of the Heavenly Demon, and by some twist of fate embark on the path of self-transformation.

For example, the Demonic Sect has a method of body refinement, which allows one to directly possess these essences and vital energies through the physical body, or to assimilate them using demonic consciousness.

Once Su Che takes this step, he will be half a member of the Demonic Sect.

It's truly a forbidden zone that's hard to cross.

When he transformed the Dharma body of Śikṣānanda into his own emanation, he relied on the "Future Star Constellation Kalpa Sutra," one of the three fundamental scriptures of Buddhism, which is the source of all Buddhist teachings. He used the higher teachings to achieve the lower ones, without deviating from the scope of Buddhist doctrines.

If we want to make Li Yizhen's essence and vitality our own, we can only do so by using other methods.

That is Ruomu.

This time, Su Che specifically asked Yu Lizi to examine the Ruomu tree, which had inadvertently become one with the Yinshan Cave Netherworld Treasure Scroll, while he was within the sect.

The Yinshan Cave Netherworld Treasure Register is one of the foundations of one's own cultivation; it must never be compromised.

Moreover, this Ruomu tree is one of the seven innate spiritual roots, known as the root of life and death. This thing is connected to the Yinshan Cave Netherworld Treasure Scroll, so Su Che couldn't help but think about it more.

However, the result was a pleasant surprise for Su Che.

According to Yu Lizi's explanation, the so-called seven innate spiritual roots from ancient times are actually seven wondrous spiritual trees in this world. Each one is said to be an innate spiritual seed from before the chaos of the universe was created, but no one can say for sure what its origin is.

However, its specific function is very clear.

That is what is called an innate spiritual root possessing two completely different attributes.

On one hand, they are spiritual beings, possessing certain unique abilities and having their own unique properties.

On the other hand, they can also be seen as the embodiment and carrier of a certain law.

In other words, the so-called seven spiritual roots are the embodiment of seven laws. Ordinary plants take root in fertile soil and grow with sunlight and rain. The seven innate spiritual roots, on the other hand, are rooted in the laws and are the activation and manifestation of the laws.

The law corresponding to Ruomu is the law of life and death, containing the spiritual mechanism of mutual transformation between life and death, which is why it has become the source of all ghosts and the symbol of the underworld.

Ghosts, as beings that have died, represent, from a certain perspective, a kind of reconciliation between the two diametrically opposed concepts of "life and death."

The essence and vital energy bearing the mark of "Li Yizhen" was carefully sent into Ruomu by Su Che.

The laws of life and death slowly turned, and Ruomu swallowed the essence of Li Yizhen's vital energy in an all-encompassing and extensive manner. Its branches and leaves swayed, and this spiritual root, which was planted on the Netherworld Treasure Talisman in Su Cheyin Mountain Cave and existed between nothingness and reality, grew a new leaf.

Su Che could not directly convert Li Yizhen's essence and vital energy into his own, but he could easily return it to Ruomu and then guide it out again.

This is far more efficient than Su Che personally refining it into a ghost to command. After all, the process of refining it into a ghost is uncontrollable, and there will definitely be a drop in its grade. If a Core Formation cultivator can refine a sixth-grade ghost, they are already considered lucky.

However, if one were to invest in Ruomu, the transformed essence and vital energy could directly assist oneself, and would further enhance Su Che's understanding of the laws of life and death.

Ruomu was almost a reference and aid for Su Che in comprehending the laws of life and death.

This understanding of the laws is far more meaningful to Young Master Su than having another ghost to command.

With a wave of his hand, Su Che released the strange insects that had been captured by the Azure Emperor's Treasure Garden. However, these previously ownerless insects were now tightly embracing each other, their hard shells gradually melting and merging into a dark, fleshy tumor.

Within this tumor, a faint pulse of life naturally arose, and with each breath, a human face gradually emerged from the tumor.

Looking at his face, he resembles Li Yizhen.

Su Che looked at the tumor, flicked the Nine Netherworld Burning God Yin Fire between his fingers, and turned it into ashes.

Li Yizhen is indeed dead, but the fact that the tumor that has grown from his flesh and blood is still undergoing such changes is quite interesting. Perhaps this is the mystery of the ancient sorcery.

This was just a minor incident. Su Che strode forward and headed straight for the Censorate.

Previously, he had already planted a Moon Serpent Shadow Imprint within the old eunuch in blue robes, so he could naturally know the eunuch's current location by sensing him from afar. At this very moment, the old eunuch was standing in front of the main hall of the Cizhou Censorate.

Su Che's figure flashed, and he gathered his magnetic power around himself, carefully concealing his aura. Like an invisible shadow, he drifted past the streets and alleys of Cizhou City, and in an instant, he saw the old eunuch's thin figure.

The gates of the Imperial Censorate in Cizhou were locked, and an old eunuch stood outside with a frown.

This was not his first time visiting the Censorate in Cizhou.

The newly appointed Imperial Censor of Cizhou, General Du Ling, would invite him over for a banquet almost every two or three days.

Today, however, the Imperial Censorate, which he usually came and went at will, was locked up tight. The gatekeeper explained that important military matters were being discussed inside and that Eunuch Chen could not be allowed to enter directly. He had to report to Governor Du first.

The old eunuch didn't take offense; it was just a matter of human nature.

Having spent many years in the palace, he could not claim to have mastered the intricacies of human nature, but he certainly possessed a keen understanding of the ways of the world.

Things are different now. Su Che has returned from Huangtian, and with the powerful backing of the Duling Su Clan, the Huangtian Daoist disciples are indeed not people that ordinary people want to mess with.

Previously, the three people inside could pretend to be deaf and dumb, and even fan the flames, but now they can't.

Not only can they not show their faces, they also have to think about protecting themselves.

However, the old eunuch was willing to give the three generals inside some time.

Because Su Che wasn't doing anything else.

Killing an imperial envoy without authorization is no small matter that can be covered up.

This is treason.

Therefore, he was willing to give the three generals inside some time, believing that they would make the right choice in time.

Sooner or later, the people inside will realize they have no other choice.

They could either stand by and watch Su Che act recklessly, become a rebel, and face the wrath of the court.

Either they will suddenly realize their mistake and come out to stand with themselves.

There is never a third way.

So he was willing to wait.

In the old eunuch's view, Su Che had made an irreparable mistake.

He rashly offended the imperial court before he had fully developed his power.

Being a disciple of Huang Tiandao is indeed an impressive title, but can someone with only the cultivation level of a newly initiated fifth-grade master truly live up to that reputation?

The old eunuch did not believe it.

There are currently three fifth-rank military officers in the Cizhou Imperial Censorate, along with their subordinates. These are not the spoiled old soldiers who were previously neglected in Cizhou City; they are all veterans who have actually seen bloodshed in the north and have fought against cultivators.

If these three were to join forces, Su Che would absolutely not be able to walk out of Cizhou City upright.

Moreover, by starting with this, he could take advantage of the situation to direct the fire at Su Gong, who was standing behind him.

The imperial court has its own rules. Does the Su family of Duling want to raise a Taoist master?
Okay, then give up all the power and authority you currently hold.

The old eunuch stretched comfortably.

The young man's lack of temper and his insufficient cultivation of character gave him an unnecessary opportunity.

In the main hall of the Imperial Censorate in Cizhou, the three generals looked at each other and slowly sipped their tea.

A young clerk knelt outside and explained the whole story.

"Okay, I get it."

General Du Ling, who was leading the expedition to the east, put down his teacup and ordered, "Go out and receive fifty lashes as a lesson. Do you know why you're being beaten?"

The young clerk swallowed hard. Fifty strokes of the cane would probably cost him his life.

"Because...I am..."

“I am the General Who Conquers the East. In the imperial system, the four expeditions and four garrisons make me a high-ranking general. The Censorate also has its own military laws. You casually told outsiders about internal affairs, which is considered leaking military secrets. According to military law, this is punishable by death.”

Du Ling stretched out his palm and pressed it down gently, making a beheading gesture.

"However, considering this is your first offense, I'll give you fifty lashes to teach you a lesson."

How could the young clerk not know that Du Ling was resentful that he had put them in such a precarious position? He could have pretended to be deaf and dumb, acting as if he knew nothing, but after the clerk's announcement, the old eunuch outside naturally knew that the three generals were discussing military matters here.

In this way, no matter what, we have to give an explanation to the outside world.

He immediately kowtowed several times and retreated meekly. He was already grateful that the General Who Conquers the East had been so lenient in saving his life.

(End of this chapter)