Longevity Chronicles-Chapter 50 - 48: In front of the Iron Buddha Temple, skeletons fill the trees

Chengyou Bookstore, Tao Qian was sitting cross-legged in a dark room, watching through the narrow window as the evil cultivator Situ Fei escaped onto the back of the centipede.

A group of demon magicians fought and retreated, and, after suffering some casualties, they actually managed to escape Seeking Immortal County the moment the provincial town's demon suppressing soldiers entered the city, by taking advantage of the centipede demon's ability to leap into the sky.

As the giant black-backed centipede took flight, a putrid, stinking black mist swirled around it.

It seemed like a reckless dark cloud, heading straight for the "Iron Buddha Mountain" outside the town.

While still in mid-air, a crazed laughter echoed from its dark rotten mouth:

"Hahaha... Although we lost a few daoist brothers this time, we have perfectly accomplished the task set by the Bodhisattva and the masters. We will surely be rewarded upon our return."

"Though the mortal human race is aware of our existence, they have never experienced what it's like to be invaded by us. If it weren't for those cultivators from various sects obstructing us, we would have had a grand feast tonight."

"That's enough for now, tonight was quite exhilarating."

"Brothers, stop laughing for a moment. Can anyone save me? My body was burned by that Fire God Temple lass. Without some ointment, I might end up being the meal you brothers eat—my flesh is sour and not tasty."

...

Situ Fei, or rather Tao Qian, was also sitting cross-legged on the back of the centipede.

Listening to the boasting of the demon magicians, he clenched his fist inside his sleeve and thought to himself: "Forbearance in minor matters upsets grand schemes. I shall blend in and then make my move."

As Tao Qian harbored these thoughts, a deer demon approached him. The half-man, half-deer creature was covered in revolting bone tumors, and its withered human face bore a lecherous grin. The stench mixed with the scent of blood was enough to make one want to vomit.

It nudged Tao Qian and asked in a lewd tone:

"Brother Situ, how was your haul this time? Could you spare a beauty for your brother to sate my craving?"

"You know that inside the Iron Buddha Temple, nothing but smelly monks can be found. One can consume them, but to truly enjoy oneself, one must have those delicate-skinned beauties."

"I had intended to find a nice catch myself tonight, but who could have expected to encounter a wild cultivator proficient with the sword. Damn it, his sword light was so fierce I was nearly flayed alive."

With each nudge and word from the deer demon, Tao Qian was nearly sick.

However, remembering that he was now assuming the identity of the high disciple of Nongyu Immortal, "Situ Fei," he had to suppress his disgust, show a sullen face, and after matching his memories, he followed the deer demon's lead and complained:

"Brother Deer, don't remind me of my heartache."

"I had already captured eight beauties tonight, only for some wild cultivator to pop up out of nowhere. Not only was the bastard a sword cultivator, but he was also a shameless and sly old fox."

"Had it not been for my quick escape recognizing the opportunity, I wouldn't be alive right now."

After saying these three sentences, Tao Qian's eyeballs swiveled.

He then showed an ambiguous expression, saying to the deer demon: "Brother Deer, if you really can't wait, come with me later to see my master. She may not have much, but there are still hundreds of peach blossom spirits in the Five Lustful Peach Blossom Banner. I can beg my master to give you one to serve you well all night long."

Upon hearing this, the deer demon shook its head full of bone tumors energetically as if it were a rattle drum, its eyes shifting from lewdness to fear.

"Brother Situ, don't scare me. If I really were to meet with the Nongyu Immortal, all the deer blood and essence in me would be surely sucked dry."

"That exquisite body of the immortal should be left for Brother Situ to enjoy."

As the deer demon said this, it turned around with a sullen face and walked away.

Other demon magicians who had also wanted to come over and share in the beauty heard their conversation and wisely chose not to approach.

Tao Qian inwardly cursed and also took the chance to check the information related to the deer demon.

[Name: Lu Sanliu.]

[Record Type: Demon.]

[Record: This demon was originally a human, surnamed Lu, a young hunter, who found a "Deer Transformation Technique" in a cave in the mountains. Although this skill is of the heterodox path, it also leads to the Qi Refining Realm. If one could strictly adhere to the precepts during cultivation, there was a promising future. However, the hunter had a terrible nature, and as soon as he entered the path, he committed all manner of atrocities using his newfound extraordinary power, raping and pillaging widely. Within a few days, he had mutated into his current appearance. For every new bone tumor on its body, it moved closer to complete madness...]

"Heh, another demon on the brink of death."

Tao Qian sneered secretly after estimating the death date of the deer demon.

However, his heart also trembled slightly.

It seemed that there were not too few in this world who encountered the opportunity for cultivation, yet how many could not hold onto their inner truth and mutate into such a horrible and detestable demon form?

With a slight sigh, Tao Qian stopped reflecting on such matters.

Knowing that Brother Situ Fei was not in a good mood, for the time being, no demon magicians bothered him.

Tao Qian was quite content with this, as it gave him the perfect opportunity to organize his gains:

First of all, there was Situ Fei's puppet body, at the Energy-Introducing Realm, Fetus Formation Stage.

Then there was an array of treasures on him, all stored within the Peach Blossom Sachet, whose space was several times larger than Tao Qian's "Joyful Bag."

Most eye-catching was the pink rope net called the "Five Lustful Moth Net."

This treasure, given by Nongyu Immortal Pan Hongniang to her disciple, was not only known for its exceptional defense against blades and swords and immunity to water and fire.

Its true usage was to induce those caught within it to instantly enter a soul-stirring dream, their bodies secreting fragrant sweat, drawing dream moths to suck and enhance the net's power.

Over time, those trapped inside would be completely consumed.

The more beauties the net captured, the more formidable its power became.

Although there were other alien items in Situ Fei's sachet, none of them compared to this treasure net.

The "Black Jade Skin Regeneration Powder" was indeed not bad, and Tao Qian intercepted it at the bookstore.

Having examined the magical treasures, it was time to look at the cultivation manuals.

Situ Fei carried the "Five Lustful Peach Blossom Scripture" as his Cultivation Technique, but only the Energy Introduction spell was present. The Qi Refining Realm's spells were absent.

Furthermore, there was a volume of the "Jade Demon Chaos God Skill." This was not a Basic Method but a Demon Secret Technique used to disrupt people's spirit and control their minds. Its power could be considered substantial, but its limitations were immense. It could only possibly succeed if cast at a moment of mutual joy when both parties forgot themselves.

Besides these two, Situ Fei also cultivated several Magic Skills and Divine Skills such as "Peach Blossom Coating Body Escape Technique," "Peach Blossom Yin Sha," and "Confusing Heart Five Yin Qi," among others.

Clearly, he was a qualified disciple of the Peach Blossom Sect.

It was just that he harbored thoughts of rebellion because he had been harvested excessively by his own master.

"According to memory, Nongyu Immortal Pan Hongniang has reached the Foundation Establishment Realm, lived for a full 150 years, yet her appearance remains that of a teenage girl, delicate and endearing."

"And it was such a girl who laboriously established the Peach Blossom Immortal Valley, with dozens of disciples and even more servants."

"Such an existence, could she have failed to notice the resentment growing in the heart of her most beloved disciple, plotting to harm her?"

"If that Jade-faced Lady Lan Qing'er had a higher cultivation and was more ruthless, then it could be considered understandable. However, according to memory, although Lan Qing'er was also in the Foundation Establishment Stage, she was one stage behind Pan Hongniang and far behind in combat techniques. They had several fights when they first turned against each other, ending with Lan Qing'er's defeat every time."

"And for some unknown reason, the two old ladies later became close confidantes, which is rather puzzling."

Tao Qian scoured his memories and analyzed the situation from an observer's viewpoint, immediately sensing something awry with the covert operation about to be launched.

In fact, Situ Fei himself had his doubts.

As a disciple, he knew all too well how formidable his master was.

Seemingly a delicate beauty, she was in truth a ruthless and cruel old witch.

"Perhaps the plan needs more thought. Although losing this Puppet Body isn't a big deal and won't harm my actual body."

"However, it would be a shame if I didn't manage to gather any intelligence."

"Besides, wasting resources is disgraceful."

Just as Tao Qian racked his brain, the ground beneath him trembled slightly.

The voice of the Black-backed Centipede Demon came through: "Fellows, we have arrived."

Almost instantaneously, the Demon Magicians cheered.

Some of them even smacked their lips, spouting foul words.

"Old Black, descend to the temple quickly; I can already smell the delicious scent of human flesh, I'm barely containing myself."

"I've heard that the masters have invited several Pig Demon butchers to prepare a feast for us. We'll be able to eat our fill for the next few days."

"Hey hey, I've heard that these good days will become more frequent."

"From now on, we don't need to be overly cautious of the Daoist and Buddhist Sects anymore. Times are changing."

"Quick, let's go meet the Bodhisattva. Tonight she caught a child, and it smells so incredibly good. If I could just get a leg..."

...

Tao Qian listened to this demonic babble, planning to also check the details of the centipede demon below.

Updat𝒆d fr𝒐m freewebnσvel.cøm.

He looked down inadvertently and his face suddenly froze.

Beneath was a mountain called "Iron Buddha," topped with the Iron Buddha Temple, previously thriving with incense and offering a pleasant scenery.

But at that moment, what Tao Qian saw was:

On the Martial Arts Training Square before Iron Buddha Cliff, skeletons hung from pine trees. There were not only monk robes like Kasayas but also clothes of worldly pilgrims scattered on the ground, trampled by plump, big-eared Pig Demons in filthy aprons, their tusks protruding, their manes dark.

They brought large iron pots, built stone stoves, held shiny bone-cutting knives, and threw suspiciously acquired meat into the steaming pots.

They tossed in seasoning from time to time...

Tao Qian turned his head rigidly away; he did not dare to look anymore.

He feared he wouldn't be able to restrain himself and would forsake this outer puppet just to slaughter those Pig Demons.

The situation was evident without further discussion.

That group of Demons had taken over the Iron Buddha Temple before their operation had even begun, during the daytime. Besides the monks, there were likely many pilgrims in the temple who also met a tragic fate.

"The Beautiful Corpse Bodhisattva and other Demons had long ceased to be human, and committing such atrocities still had a sort of logic... The Devil God Army, though, rising up against the tyranny of the court, naturally could be justified since, in both original memories, the court was rotten to the core. Rebellion was inevitable, but colluding with Demons to slaughter the Human Race, such acts are unbearable."

"That person called Tang Xianzong, what the hell is he, and what kind of scheme does he want to pull off?"

Tao Qian's mind replaced his internal fury with surging thoughts.

If his stroke of Spiritual Resonance at the bookstore had resulted in turning Situ Fei into a puppet, now Tao Qian was earnestly engaged.

Although he didn't know what the Devil God Army and Beautiful Corpse Bodhisattva were planning to do, he instinctively guessed it would undoubtedly be disastrous for the Human Clan.

And the ones to suffer first would likely be the tens of thousands of living civilians in Seeking Immortal County, not far below the mountain.

Since he had infiltrated their ranks, how could Tao Qian miss the opportunity to investigate thoroughly?

ps: Seeking monthly tickets!