Fellow Daoist Entrusts His Child: Immortality Begins with Nurturing a Demoness

Chapter 124 The Heart-Rending Curse, Ascension Begins

The night is deep, and the bright moon hangs high in the sky.

Biyunfang, brightly lit, ranks third among the Twelve Immortal Fang and is directly managed by Luoshen Pavilion. It is exceptionally prosperous.

In the heart of the neighborhood, rows of elegant buildings connect one after another. In one of the most charming and secluded courtyards, a young woman with snow-white hair closes her eyes and breathes in the air, her full lips as red as blood.

She had exquisite features, a high nose bridge, full and moist lips, and a delicate oval face that was enviable. She wore a light blue robe with ice crystal snow lotus patterns, and her cultivation was as deep and unfathomable as an abyss. She was ethereal and otherworldly, like a banished immortal.

"The Heavenly Demon Decree, interesting. Is this a greeting to me?"

The girl's eyelashes trembled slightly as she slowly raised her eyes, her golden pupils vast as the sea, holy and pure.

With a light tap of her slender hand, countless starlight gathered at her fingertips to form a pale golden compass, covered with hundreds of starlight points. Each point of light corresponded precisely to a spiritual vein, and more than ten of them had already been tinged with pale gold.

Her gaze focused on the very edge, where the pale golden starlight was gradually swallowed by the black light until it went out.

"Lord Gong Qian, the spiritual vein array near Haihefang has been breached by a sneak attack. I'm afraid the array's patterns are in danger."

With urgent and anxious voices, just moments after the starlight faded, three vibrant streaks of light appeared outside the courtyard in an instant.

They wore Daoist robes with azure cloud patterns, symbolizing the elders of the Qingyuan Sect. Their blood and qi surged like a boiling cauldron, and their cultivation level was at least at the early stage of the Blood Burning Realm, similar to the Foundation Establishment Realm of Dharma Cultivators. In close combat, they were even slightly superior.

"How can you behave in such a panic?"

Gong Qianliu narrowed his eyes, his golden pupils exuding an imposing aura without anger. The elders bowed their heads in fear. Beneath his powerful muscles, faint golden snakes seemed to slither, and his resolute features were slightly pale from the pain.

"My lord, if the secret of the formation is exposed, it is a crime punishable by the extermination of nine generations of one's family!"

"While this person hasn't escaped far, recall the ambushes at the Immortal River Sect's spiritual veins and block him; we cannot let him leave alive."

The elders were covered in cold sweat, filled with fear and unease.

They were all powerful figures in the Qingyuan Sect, usually revered body cultivators, but now they were kneeling before Gong Qian, kowtowing incessantly, tears streaming down their faces, which was quite disgusting.

"Transfer him back? Ha, who will capture Luo Fanchen?"

"After this monstrous creature appeared, it vanished without a trace, and its aura could no longer be sensed. The elders we sent out could only suppress their cultivation, lie in wait in the shadows, and wait for this monstrous creature to appear so that they could kill it with one blow."

"Then let's keep waiting until he shows up and Luo Changhe names him and asks for his life."

Gong Qian's voice was flat. She lightly touched the dim starlight with her fingertips, feeling the pure killing intent within it that was no weaker than her own. A charming smile appeared on her lips, alluring and captivating.

“He harbors resentment towards the Luo family, so it won’t be easy for him to cooperate. Luo Fanchen is related to his sword-refining and pill-making, so of course we have to show some sincerity.”

"Remember, the body must remain intact."

After Gong Qian finished speaking, his starry eyes approached again, sensing the rapidly dissipating murderous aura on the starlight and memorizing it.

Ling Leng is indeed quick-witted, managing to come up with such a method to contact me. This spiritual vein array is extremely well-hidden, able to obtain such secret information and leave behind my aura. No wonder it is the main branch of the Heavenly Demon Sect.

She's meticulous and thoughtful; no wonder she won Luo Qianqiu's favor. Not bad.

"But... if we let this beast escape, our entire family will be wiped out."

"Ridiculous! You think you can keep your entire family alive by disobeying me?"

Gong Qian sneered, her delicate hand lightly forming a hand seal. Several body cultivator elders felt as if a thousand ants were gnawing at their hearts, their faces sometimes flushed red, sometimes deathly pale, writhing on the ground in pain, groaning and begging for mercy.

"If you were truly from the Luoshen Pavilion, you would have been reduced to ashes long ago. Why would you still be alive to chatter in my ear?"

"Please spare us, sir! We will never dare to do it again!"

"You filthy ants, how dare you teach me how to do things? Trash is trash. Now that you've become my loyal hounds, forget your identity as a righteous sect. Otherwise, my Heart-Piercing Curse is not to be trifled with."

"Yes, yes, sir, please spare us! We did not mean to offend you."

The elders kowtowed repeatedly, their internal organs wracked with excruciating pain. Every inch of their flesh felt like it was being pierced by needles and cut by knives, and even their souls felt like they were being crushed. They couldn't even faint; they could only groan in agony under the immense fear of being corrupted by the curse.

The Heart-Piercing Curse is a secret technique kept hidden in Bodhi Temple. It is a Taoist secret method that is applied to the spiritual root. Those who are affected by the spell will have special demonic patterns formed from true essence injected into their spiritual root. These patterns subtly stimulate desires and actively drive the spirit. Furthermore, the demonic patterns will erode the spiritual root, making life worse than death.

Spiritual roots are the foundation of a cultivator's life, affecting both the physical body and the soul, making them difficult to guard against using ordinary methods.

Once afflicted, almost no one can undo the spell except the caster. They were careless and fell victim to this method, helplessly succumbing to the demonic path.

"You're more trouble than you're worth. Get out of here. Send a few people to clean up the mess."

"Yes Yes."

The elders trembled and kowtowed, their backs soaked with cold sweat, panting heavily, as they retreated on their knees.

Their spiritual energy flowed backward, their consciousness was disordered, and while they felt dizzy and angry, they were also afraid. However, they breathed a slight sigh of relief and were quite apprehensive.

Although she had suffered a lot, judging from Gong Qian's tone, she had already handled the matter of the spiritual vein properly.

"What a disgrace! This witch is utterly hateful! She treats us like cattle and horses, and this Heart-Rending Curse is truly vicious!"

After a while, once the elders had gone their separate ways, the Qingyuan Sect elder who was at the back of the group looked grief-stricken and gritted his teeth in resentment.

His name was Dou Yuan, and his cultivation had reached the late stage of the Blood Burning Realm. He was the person with the highest cultivation level present and served as the Fifth Elder of the Qingyuan Sect. He was the fourth most important person in Haihefang. If he hadn't been careless and fooled by Gong Qian's identity as an inner disciple, he wouldn't have ended up in such a state.

"Fellow Daoist Dou Yuan, please be careful with your words."

"Be careful what you say! First it was the Immortal River Sect, then the Reverse Water Sect, and now it's my Azure Origin Sect!"

Dou Yuan covered his face in anguish. Only after being controlled did he learn that the so-called second-ranked inner disciple, the eldest daughter of the Gong family, had long been possessed or replaced, and that her true identity was actually a demonic cultivator from the Bodhi Academy.

Only after he was subdued did he realize that this scoundrel had secretly infiltrated and controlled 20% of the senior members of the Immortal River Sect and 10% of the senior members of the Reverse Water Sect by virtue of his status. Now, including him in the Azure Origin Sect, all three sects had his hidden agents and backup plans.

The formations they set up were exquisite and complex, with grand ambitions. If this continued, their entire clan would be doomed.

"Ha, we're both barely able to protect ourselves, fellow prisoners. Let's just take it one step at a time."

Several elders of the Immortal River Sect smiled bitterly. They were originally Gong Qian's confidants and were the first to be cursed. Most of their spiritual roots were corroded, and they needed human sacrifices every day to refine demonic treasures to alleviate the backlash. The sins they committed were enough to qualify them as demons, and there was no way for them to turn back.

"Lord Gong Qian... I'm afraid he has already perished at the hands of this demon. A true prodigy of the inner sect!"

On the other side, at the Qingyuan Sect's spiritual vein, Luo Fanchen successfully extricated himself.

The withdrawal went surprisingly smoothly. The two Foundation Establishment cultivators on duty seemed to have no intention of lingering. They watched him and the three pavilion masters leave for a long time without sensing any support cultivators from the three sects.

"It's really weird."

Luo Fanchen murmured as he and the three pavilion masters stopped at an underground cave that had been prepared in advance, and activated an array to conceal their presence.

The array patterns hummed, and a massive amount of mist filled the underground space, enveloping the figures of the group. Luo Fanchen was still not at ease, so he activated the Soul Banner and used the Illusionary Array of Fireflies to ensure that the surrounding environment was completely covered before he finally breathed a sigh of relief.

"My lord, something seems amiss with the two Foundation Establishment cultivators from the Qingyuan Sect."

Yuan Qing and the other two were panting heavily, their faces grave, as if they were still somewhat shaken.

"Their divine sense, spiritual energy, and fighting techniques are unlike those of the cultivators from the Qingyuan Domain. Although they are intentionally restrained, they are ruthless and insidious, and they completely disregard their injuries, attempting to seriously injure us several times with their lives."

"Furthermore, the two people cultivated different spiritual root attributes, but their use of spiritual energy was surprisingly similar."

After Yuan Qing finished speaking, Hai Yuan and Tu He nodded in agreement, adding, "Furthermore, these two have stronger spiritual senses than others of the same level. Their souls appear perfect, but they seem outwardly strong but inwardly weak. They are indeed alive, but they resemble..."

"Like a spirit puppet, right?"

Luo Fanchen stroked his chin, paced back and finished speaking for Hai Yuan, and affirmed.

"That's right. This spiritual vein of Qingyuan Sect has been infiltrated by demonic cultivators. The disciples I killed also had no souls left behind. I guess they used the same puppet technique. I just didn't expect that even Foundation Establishment cultivators would fall victim to their poison."

"The demonic cultivator's puppetry is incredibly sophisticated. If we hadn't fought him personally, we wouldn't have been able to see through it at all."

Yuan Qing frowned, feeling a lingering fear in his heart.

Foundation Establishment cultivators are considered high-ranking members of affiliated sects, and they have divine sense protecting them. If someone wants to control another without being noticed, their cultivation and methods must far surpass the other party's. Not to mention, directly turning someone into a human puppet, it is highly likely that the cultivator is a Core Formation demonic cultivator.

"The spiritual vein of Qingyuan Sect is too close to Haihefang. The Twelve Immortal Workshops are located in the heart of Qingyuan Domain. My lord, should we report this to Luoshen Pavilion?"

Yuan Qing and the other two looked worried and were filled with apprehension.

When an ant appears in a house, its nest is actually everywhere. In the worst case, the Qingyuan Sect and even the Immortal Pavilion may be infiltrated by demonic cultivators. No matter what their intentions are, it is a bad thing for them.

A true demonic cultivator is one who commits all kinds of evil and regards all things as worthless.

Furthermore, their accidental disruption of the demonic cultivator's plans likely means they've been targeted. Since the other side can refine a Foundation Establishment cultivator from the Qingyuan Sect into a human puppet, they naturally have ways to deal with them.

"It's all our fault for failing to investigate properly and causing trouble for you, sir."

Yuan Qing and the other two sighed deeply, feeling quite guilty. They were responsible for collecting information on the spiritual veins, but they hadn't even noticed the demon's lair right under their noses. Now, the adults would probably start to question their abilities. "It's not your fault. The spiritual veins were the work of the Bodhi Academy."

"As expected, they are those wicked monks."

Yuan Qing and the other two exchanged glances, already having their own guesses.

Of the three surrounding major regions, only Bodhi Temple has the capability and means to infiltrate the heart of Qingyuan Region.

They exchanged glances and tentatively asked, "Sir, you traveled all the way to Qingyuan Domain just for the demonic cultivators behind this spiritual vein?"

When they first met Luo Fanchen at Feiyunfang, they found it unbelievable. Later, the master impersonated Ling Leng and wiped out the demonic monks of Xinmo Temple. Now it seems that the master has his eye on more than just those few fish in Xinmo Temple.

Perhaps the adults were initially hunting down this demonic cultivator from the Bodhi Academy.

To travel to another realm with only Qi Refining cultivation to capture a Core Formation demonic cultivator—truly worthy of being a member of the orthodox Xuanmen sect. No wonder you carry a soul tablet with you at all times.

"Hehe, don't worry, the demonic cultivators of Bodhi Academy won't retaliate against us. As for the infiltration, I'll tell Ming Ruoxue depending on the situation."

Luo Fanchen's smile was slightly stiff.

The array patterns engraved within the spiritual vein clearly carried some power of law. Although it was far inferior to Luo Qianqiu, it was at least a Foundation Establishment Perfection cultivator. How could he afford to provoke it? However, he revealed the Heavenly Demon Token and used Ling Leng's identity.

Even if it's a demonic cultivator behind him, he'll still give him face and won't keep pestering him.

"I will continue to trouble the three of you before the wedding."

Luo Fanchen clasped his hands in a gesture of respect, and Yuan Qing and the other two were flattered and immediately bowed respectfully in return.

The four agreed on a time to meet again, and the three of them tactfully took their leave. Luo Fanchen asked them to look after Li Miaoyun, and the three of them patted their chests in agreement before bowing and departing.

After watching the three leave and until he could no longer sense their presence, Luo Fanchen put away the Soul Banner, summoned Qiuyun, and used the Human Face Technique to change his appearance again. He then concealed his aura and traveled all night until dawn, when he finally stopped in a crevice in a valley.

"Phew, we can begin."

Luo Fanchen used the Hai Water Seal to perform the technique of controlling evil spirits, ordering the hundred ghosts to quickly open up the underground space. At the same time, he handed over all control of the Soul Banner to Qiu Yun, then swallowed a Luohe Pill and sat down to practice breathing exercises to refine it.

The side effects of his overflowing true energy struck, leaving him feeling extremely fatigued and listless, unable to muster any strength.

Fortunately, this place was personally surveyed by him. It was built on the ruins left after the battle between the three sects. The spiritual energy here is yin and turbid, so few cultivators approach it. Moreover, it can naturally shield one's aura.

The Ascension Banner is of paramount importance and cannot be taken lightly. Apart from Qiu Yun, no one knows its location.

"Autumn Charm, protect me."

"it is good!"

Qiu Yun's soul manifested. She had been asleep for several hours and had recovered some of her energy, but her pretty face was still as pale as paper, and her soul was weak.

She formed the Noon Fire Seal and the Pig Water Seal with her hands, simultaneously casting the Illusionary Array of Mars and the Art of Exorcising Evil. The ghostly patterns on the Soul Banner danced gracefully, and a rolling gust of yin wind swept over her face, quickly enveloping the entire rift valley, completely concealing her aura and confusing her vision.

All the demons emerged, digging deep into the underground cavern and beginning to construct the array patterns needed to forge the magical treasure.

"Uncle Luo, thank you for your hard work."

Qiu Yun gazed at Uncle Luo's tired face, a hint of heartache flashing in her watery eyes.

Each ascension was a minor ordeal for her, causing unbearable pain, especially the advancement from the first to the second level of life. The pain was so intense that she felt timid, but for Uncle Luo and Sister Mo Xue, she had to overcome it.

After advancing to the second tier, she possessed strength comparable to that of a Foundation Establishment cultivator, enabling her to closely protect Uncle Luo and Sister Mo Xue!

At the same time, the improvement of her soul power level is crucial for her future resurrection and resistance to the erosion of the soul banner.

Several hours later, the Hundred Ghosts had completed the construction of the underground mansion and laid out most of the array patterns on the altar for refining auxiliary materials. It wasn't until late at night, after Luo Fanchen refined two Luohe Pills, that he recovered from his weakened state.

"We can begin, Qiuyun, shall we start with you?"

Luo Fanchen exhaled a breath of turbid air, and without wasting any time, took out the massive amount of demonic materials he had prepared beforehand, placed them one by one on the altar, and used the soul banner as a pen to control his true essence to complete the core carving of the array eye.

Time is running out; he needs to complete the sublimation of Autumn Charm and, through the sublimated Autumn Charm, try to awaken Cloud Ink.

“I’m ready, Uncle Luo.”

Qiu Yun's oval face was tense, and her willow-leaf eyebrows were furrowed into a deep frown, clearly indicating that she was somewhat frightened.

Luo Fanchen stepped forward, took the beauty's hand, and pulled her into his arms, gently comforting her, "Don't worry, I'm here."

After reaching the second tier, Qiuyun can officially enter the Night Travel level. At night, she can condense a physical body that is no weaker than a Foundation Establishment cultivator and temporarily break free from the Soul Banner's restraints, allowing her to travel hundreds of miles.

Once the sublimation is successful, Qiuyun will be able to breathe in the moonlight to maintain her soul body, gradually reducing her dependence on the soul banner until she is free from it.

The sooner he prepares for the return to life, the higher the success rate and the better the results will be. That's why, under the protection of Miaoyun and Mingruoxue, he is so eager to elevate the soul banner, because he wants Qiuyun to return to life safely.

"Uncle Luo, I just..."

Qiu Yun pressed her pretty face against Luo Shu's chest, her beautiful eyes lowered. Luo Fanchen looked at her with pity and gently kissed her fair forehead.

“Qiuyun, my dear, when you ascended, you were attached to me.”

"Uncle Luo, it hurts a lot."

Qiu Yun blinked her beautiful eyes. After she bent down, Uncle Luo would suffer the same pain for her and suffer a strong backlash.

Similarly, the pain she experiences will be reduced by about 10% to 20%.

"Let's begin. I will protect Qiuyun."

Luo Fanchen embraced Qiu Yun's waist, savoring her soft and tender embrace for a moment until his nostrils were filled with the sweet scent of lavender from the girl. Only then did he release her, arrange the magical treasures in order, and concentrate on refining them.

The second-tier Soul Banner Ascension Ceremony requires three main materials and thirty-six auxiliary materials.

Furthermore, the physical body, heart, and soul of a Foundation Establishment cultivator are fundamental and indispensable, and are not included in the list of primary or secondary materials.

"The Heart of a Thousand Mantras, the Weeping Child, the Lotus of Great Compassion"

Luo Fanchen pursed his lips, glancing at the three main ingredients and materials out of the corner of his eye, and sighed inwardly at the cruelty of the demonic cultivators.

The former requires the hearts of nine hundred women as supplementary ingredients, and the hearts of fifty female cultivators in the early stage of Qi Refining, forty male cultivators in the middle stage of Qi Refining, and ten body cultivators in the late stage of Body Tempering as the main ingredients.

The Crying Child is a derivative of the Heavenly Demon Puppet. The Heavenly Demon Puppet can only be used when one is eighteen years old, while the Crying Child is a spirit puppet under the age of eighteen. Its hands and feet are cut off, and it is sealed in a jade bottle and tempered with evil magic.

As for the Great Compassion Lotus, it was created by combining the palace of a Foundation Establishment female cultivator with the essence of nine late-stage Body Tempering female cultivators.

"I'll be a demonic cultivator soon too."

Luo Fanchen chuckled self-deprecatingly. There was a time when, let alone personally refining magical treasures, just hearing about them would terrify him to the point of turning pale.

Now, I can calmly sigh and feel sentimental.

He suppressed his agitation and began refining the main materials. Most of these materials were readily available items collected by the demonic monks of the Heart Demon Temple, and many of them still contained the remnants or resentments of their original owners, making them difficult to remove.

Luo Fanchen activated the Soul Banner, casually extracting these remnant souls and releasing them. At the same time, he used the Demon Control Technique to command the hundred ghosts to drag out several demon monks' souls, dismembering them in public and sealing them into demonic materials to replace these remnant souls.

The effect was quite good. As expected of a demonic cultivator, his malevolent aura far surpassed that of these innocent remnant souls by a hundred times.

"Ah, have mercy!"

"My lord, we are all members of the Demonic Sect, why should we..."

The screams of agony were incessant as several demonic monks were torn apart by the hundred ghosts, writhing in agony and begging for mercy.

Luo Fanchen remained unmoved, activating the formation to make the demon monk's soul boil, and finally, the demonic treasure slowly took shape as the demonic essence was absorbed into it.

"It's done."

As dawn broke, Luo Fanchen, having spent the entire night refining his materials, finally completed the forging of the three main materials by daybreak.

The remaining thirty-six auxiliary materials were not benevolent either. For example, they included the skin of live cultivators, spines, skulls, and so on. The amount used was quite large, and even a single item leaked out would be enough to scare ordinary disciples of vassal sects to death.

Fortunately, the auxiliary materials only required simple refining, and he successfully completed the refining of all the auxiliary materials in two days.

"call--"

Luo Fanchen wiped the sweat from his forehead, his mental energy completely depleted, and had no choice but to close his eyes and breathe to calm his mind.

Five days left, we need to speed things up.

(End of this chapter)