Immortality begins with meditation puppets

Chapter 448 The Five Rankings of the Heavens
As a seasoned player who frequently kills monsters and loots equipment, Su Qing, despite having a considerable haul this time and having seen it all, was not fooled.

He knew perfectly well that all the experience and equipment came from the four demons who had been corrupted by the four demons, but he had never seen the original demonic seeds of the four demons.

"The true form of that demon is still at the bottom of the Blood Lake. These four demons are just something it used to restrain me? That's quite a generous move, giving away four fifth-tier Nascent Soul level demons just like that!"

Su Qing pondered that since this demon was willing to give him four demon heads, it meant that the Xing Tian Blood Axe at the bottom of the Blood Lake was far more important to it than these four demon heads.

But it was too naive to think that these four demons could get rid of Su Qing.

What real man wouldn't want to play with an axe?
Not to mention that the Nine Li Dao Patterns are highly compatible with the Mind-Understanding Axe and the Xing Tian Blood Axe, obtaining this treasure would increase Su Qing's combat power several times over. In the future, when he encounters a fifth-level Nascent Soul cultivator, he would dare to chop him down with one axe.

The Xingtian Blood Axe is an acquired spiritual treasure, and it contains the Xingtian Dao Pattern, one of the five most powerful Dao Patterns. Su Qing absolutely cannot miss it.

He was all too aware of the value of acquired spiritual treasures. Even Liu Feng, the top rich second-generation heir of Penglai, hadn't acquired one. Furthermore, the Xing Tian Dao Runes could bring him new runes, thereby giving rise to new types of puppets.

The moment the thought arose, my heart burned even hotter.

Thinking that since the four demons were willing to sacrifice four demon heads to stop him from continuing to send the Deep Sea Tyrant into the Blood Lake, it must be that the four demons were afraid of the Deep Sea Tyrant.

Whatever the enemy fears most, that's what we'll give them!
On the island of giant corpses, thunder roared again, causing the earth to tremble, which drew frequent glances from Tong Chang, who had already taken refuge on the edge of the island.

"Wasn't it resolved? Why bother with all this? It can't be that you have too many spirit stones and just want to throw this big thing around to make a noise!"

Tong Laodao calmly crossed his arms and watched the commotion in the distance. All around him were the remains of the giant corpse of the divine monster. It was clear that Su Qing had not misjudged him. This old Taoist was just reluctant to use talismans. If he really went all out, he could have blocked the invasion of the Penglai army before. His strength was far beyond that of an ordinary fourth-level Nascent Soul cultivator.

But even though Tong Chang has some skills, after receiving the Celestial Master's true teachings, he will become even more capable in the future.

After witnessing how easily Su Qing and his puppets dealt with the four terrifying demons, they all felt that this young man's abilities were becoming increasingly unpredictable.

"To cultivate to this level in just a hundred years, even the disciples of Yuanshi Mountain, Liangjie Pass, and Snail Emperor Palace don't have such talent. I wonder if this person has an exceptionally strong destiny or is the reincarnation of some great being!"

It's also because his progress in the Heavenly Secrets Techniques couldn't keep up with Su Qing's advancement in strength. As a result, even though he used to be able to predict Su Qing's fortune and future, now he couldn't get any information about Su Qing even if he rubbed the crystal ball until it was smooth and shiny.

Frowning as he watched Su Qing throw one valuable Deepwater Tyrant after another into the Blood Lake to bombard it, he didn't understand, but it wasn't his spirit stones that were being thrown, so why should he care?
He secretly resolved that once he had mastered the true art of the Celestial Master, no matter how many spiritual materials were needed for the ritual altar to calculate Su Qing's fate, even if Su Qing refused to reimburse him, he, Old Daoist Tong, would pay for it out of his own pocket.

Another great calamity has struck, and people are filled with fear. As the only Celestial Master in the world, he is also a mortal with a wife. How can he stay out of it? Moreover, everyone knows his identity as a Celestial Master. He can't keep a low profile even if he wants to. He can either become a trendsetter of the times and take the lead like the Ancestral Celestial Master, or he can live under someone else and choose a good master to assist.

Throughout the journey, Master Tong pondered this matter. With his abilities, he neither had the capacity nor the ambition to be a pillar of strength or a leader. Therefore, he could only take the path of assisting others.

Speaking of the geniuses and outstanding talents of the Tianyuan Realm today, Master Tong has traveled all over the country and seen many of them. He has met the direct disciples of the manifest sects such as Penglai Thousand Islands, the Li brothers of the Immortal Qin Martial Kingdom in the Central Plains, Fairy Biyou of the Snail Palace in the Southern Frontier, and the slovenly Taoist of Yuanshi Mountain. Whether it is a manifest sect or a hidden sect, he has come into contact with them. In the calculation of the heavenly secrets, all of these people have the ability to stir up waves during the great calamity.

"Compared to Fellow Daoist Su, these people seem to be far inferior. At most, their fate is comparable to mine. Assisting them would be beneath me. If I were to assist someone, I would assist Fellow Daoist Su. Even Gao Erqiang has a stronger fate than them!"

What Su Qing didn't know was that in Tong Laodao's heart, Gao Erqiang's importance was always significant, even surpassing that of the true disciples of ancient Daoist lineages and hidden sects. As for himself? Su Qing had always known that he was no less than anyone else in his life, and it was only right that Tong Laodao valued him. Otherwise, he should have stepped down as the Celestial Master as soon as possible. It just so happened that Su Qing had also been eyeing the Celestial Master's Daoist mark!
······
Not to mention that Tong Chang was always fishing and watching the show on the island.

As Su Qing blasted the Giant Axe Lake with Deepwater Tyrants, the lake surface widened and the water level continued to drop. Gaps emanating from the spiritual explosions stretched from the lakebed all the way to the ground. If the blasting continued like this, in a short while, this Giant Corpse Island would probably split in two with this lake as its center.

Such a fierce attack also meant that Su Qing had invested a great deal of effort, so much so that his face, which was turned into a more ferocious and malevolent expression, made Xiong Er and Hu Dan tremble involuntarily, and they secretly prayed for the four demons at the bottom of the lake, whose fate was still unknown.

The owner has invested so much in it, he'll definitely skin it, remove the tendons, and squeeze it into jerky to recoup his costs!

It's not the master's fault for being cruel; it's just that these four demons are ignorant. They've been through so much already, they should have known better than to come out now.

The man and his two puppets were inwardly grumbling and verbally abusing the four demons.

The four demons at the bottom of the lake also have something to say.

It's so wronged!

Beneath the blood lake, a small, blood-red axe floated on the surface, radiating a powerful aura so intense that even a fifth-tier demon paled in comparison.

Above, below, left, and right of the Blood Axe are four demonic shadows. These shadows are faceless and shapeless, yet they seem to have a thousand different forms. They appear completely different to different people, but they are all the ones with the deepest bond to each person.

This is an innate divine ability of a superior demonic species, the Myriad Forms Origin Demonic Body, which can instinctively sense the weaknesses of a living being's mind and exploit them.

The fact that this original demonic body fell to the bottom of the lake proved that Su Qing's thoughts were correct. The four demons before were just appetizers given to Su Qing by the four demons. The real demons were always guarding Xing Tian's Blood Axe at the bottom of this lake.

Of course, in the original plan of the four demons, they also hoped that the four demons above could take care of Su Qing.

As an ancient demon, the four demons had countless demons under their command in ancient times. Although a large number of demons were killed by Xing Tian's Blood Axe in the final battle, they still had more than a hundred demons under their command. Among these demons, the four most powerful were the Yuanshi Disciple, the Nine Netherworld Cultist, the Hundred Charming Fairy, and the Evil Demon King.

With their abilities, dealing with a junior fourth-tier Nascent Soul cultivator should have been a piece of cake for these four demons. However, they never expected that with the combined strength of the four demons, the young puppeteer above them hadn't even exerted much effort before all four demons collapsed. The young puppeteer then completely plundered them, taking all the valuable items from their bodies! Those two Fundamental Diagrams and the Tai Chi Creation Blade were invaluable treasures to the four demons, and their loss was a source of great regret.

However, despite their anger and regret, the four demons decided to swallow their anger for now.

Once it gets its hands on the Xingtian Blood Axe, what treasure can't it take?
Of course, if Su Qing thinks that killing those four demons has already annihilated them, and thus ventures back into the Giant Axe Lake without any precautions, the four demons will not mind killing him in the lake and will not give him another chance to escape.

What angered it was...

These later generations of cultivators were utterly unscrupulous and immoral.

If you don't go into Giant Axe Lake, it will explode; it's very exciting as the iron lumps keep exploding into the lake.

The four demons corrupted a lake of blood, residing within it, attempting to use the blood lake, refined by the creatures of this island, to weaken the spirit within the Xingtian Blood Axe, so that even without the bloodline of the Witch Clan or the power of the Nine Li, it could still usurp the Xingtian Blood Axe.

Originally, it was a close contest, with it even having a slight advantage. However, as the deep-sea tyrants continued to explode, the spiritual energy in the lake became chaotic and surged wildly, making it impossible for it to control the situation as freely as before. As a result, it gradually fell into a disadvantageous position in the battle with the spirit of Xing Tian's Blood Axe.

It can still tolerate this!
That would explode. It's a very exciting lump of iron, something that never existed in ancient times. At least the four demons have never seen it before. But the terrifying damage that is comparable to a full-force attack from a fourth-level Nascent Soul cultivator is not something that can be obtained easily. Otherwise, if every human cultivator in the world had an iron lump, would they, the demons, still be able to survive in this calamity?

I bet you don't have many bombs in your storage bag!

The four demons endured one, then another, and then many more. Just as the Blood Lake was about to be blown apart by Su Qing and the spirit of Xing Tian's Blood Axe was about to awaken, the Deep Water Tyrant continued to bombard them relentlessly.

It finally couldn't take it anymore!
A giant aquatic creature, formed from the blood-red lake water, surged out of the water, its powerful aura, like that of a god, overwhelming the entire island.

The four demons residing within were about to bow their heads and exchange pleasantries with the human cultivator from the future, so that he would know what kind of being he had provoked.

Unexpectedly, the moment this aquatic giant materialized, a sinister Arhat named Xiong Er appeared behind it, wielding his vajra and delivering a solid blow to its head.

"Well done! Tiger Egg, you should learn from Xiong Er. When facing evil spirits, you can't talk about the rules of the martial world. You have to take them by surprise, outnumber them, and bully the weak. Use whatever means you have. It doesn't matter if it's a black cat or a white cat, as long as it catches mice, it's a good cat!"

The demon couldn't stand it any longer and burst out from the bottom of the lake, which was exactly what Su Qing wanted. He was not intimidated by this pretentious aquatic giant. Seeing that Xiong Er had been promoted to Arhat, Xiong Er did not forget his back-hitting skills and did not forget to give Hu Dan a word of advice.

"You wretched child, how dare you insult me ​​like this!"

The aquatic giant had just been smashed into a shower of water when the four demons, in their uncontrollable rage, unleashed their primordial demonic bodies.

"Madam? No, my madam isn't that enthusiastic towards me! You demon! How dare you disturb my Dao heart!"

As soon as the original demonic body manifested, Su Qing, Xiong Er, and Hu Dan, who were facing the demon directly, were completely unharmed. On the contrary, Tong Laodao, who was watching from the sidelines, was tricked. He felt that his wife was showing him a tenderness and care that he had never seen before, which comforted the old man's heart.

But she soon realized something was wrong. The lady had always complained that the little brother that the Celestial Master had refined for him was not powerful enough and rarely gave her a kind look. When had she ever been so gentle?
When Tong Chang realized what was happening, he saw that Su Qing, Xiong Er, and Hu Dan showed no change in expression. He was immediately filled with shame and anger. It was one thing for a dignified Celestial Master to be unable to maintain his composure in the face of a demon, but he couldn't even outmaneuver two puppets.
Wait, I'm also a puppet? Oh well!

After making peace with himself, the old Taoist priest turned his attention back to the battlefield by the lake.

High-ranking demons are no small matter. On the Heavenly Talisman Palace's Demon Extermination List, the merit of killing or suppressing a high-ranking demon is greater than that of killing or suppressing a fifth-tier great demon. One can imagine the significance of a high-ranking demon.

"We need to record this with a recording talisman as a witness. After we finish this job, Fellow Daoist Su's status within the Heavenly Talisman Hall may directly enter the core ranks!"

Old Master Tong muttered to himself. Back then, as Su Qing's guide into the Heavenly Talisman Palace, although he never intended to harm him, he never truthfully told him the true secrets of the Heavenly Talisman Palace because of Su Qing's cultivation level at the time.

This temple has been passed down from ancient times and is dedicated to exorcising evil spirits. It not only houses disciples of various reclusive Taoist lineages, but also a colossal entity whose influence extends to all the heavens and myriad realms.

Although Tong Laodao was a member of the Class A group, he was still just an outsider in this behemoth and had little access to the core of the force. Su Qing, a member of the Class C group, was even further outside, not even a contract worker, but at most a temporary worker.

According to information Tong Laodao obtained from several core members of the Tianfu Hall, becoming a core member of the Tianfu Hall might grant access to the four core lists besides the Extermination List.

The Heavenly Dao Lord Ranking does not recognize those who do not cultivate Dao patterns. Only those who master a particular Dao pattern can be included on this list. Rankings are determined by the number and completeness of the Dao patterns mastered. It is rumored that reaching a certain ranking will result in corresponding rewards.

The All-Heavens Battle Power Ranking, as the name suggests, only considers the strength of combat power. If your fist is strong, you are strong. No matter what kind of Dao patterns you have cultivated, or even if you don't cultivate Dao patterns at all, if you have the ability to crush others, you can still be listed on the list and receive rewards, and become famous throughout the myriad realms.

The Heavenly Creations Ranking, also known as the Acquired Spiritual Creatures Ranking, is a list where practitioners of various arts and crafts can shine. All acquired creations of cultivators can be included on this list, including puppets, magical artifacts, formations, talismans, and much more.

The Heavenly Spiritual Objects Ranking is unrelated to living beings; it only encompasses spiritual treasures and objects born from heaven and earth. It is also known as the Innate Spiritual Objects Ranking. There is no distinction between it and the Acquired Spiritual Objects Ranking. After all, innate spiritual objects have a fixed number of development limitations, while acquired spiritual objects are constantly being created as the cultivation world evolves over time.

These four lists, along with the Heavenly Extermination List, are all opportunities bestowed upon core members by the Heavenly Talisman Palace. As long as one is listed in any one of them, one can be considered a core member of the Palace and have access to the other opportunities offered by the Heavenly Talisman Palace besides these five lists. This is also the goal that Master Tong has been pursuing ever since he joined the Palace.

How hateful!
Tens of thousands of years of busy work are not as good as this kid's trembling today!
Thinking that Su Qing would soon be able to sign a contract with the Heavenly Talisman Palace and enjoy its benefits, Tong Laodao, a perennial contract worker, was immediately filled with envy and jealousy.

(End of this chapter)