A Loose Cultivator's Path to Longevity

Shuini continued.

"Before the rise of the Immortal Dao, this world was home to an incredibly glorious civilization. Its cultivators followed the 'Witch Dao,' a path that dominated the old Southern Barbarian Land for hundreds of thousands of years. And according to my recent investigations, the Spiritual Energy Great Wall that now surrounds the Southern Barbarian Land is a product of that Witch Dao."

Lü Zhong was taken aback. 'Such a thing actually happened?'

'His mind couldn't help but turn to the Southern Celestial Tribes. Those in the Barbarian Race revered the Witch Dao to the utmost. A civilization that could build a miraculous creation like the Spiritual Energy Great Wall should logically be a power that could contend with cultivators, not one that had degenerated into scattered tribes.'

As if reading his mind, Shuini explained, "That's something I only recently came to understand myself. Huayi Temple possesses an ancient scroll that records fragments of this realm's history from a million years ago. If the scroll is to be believed, the current Barbarian Race were once the servants of the Witch Race. That's why the Witch Dao they inherited is incomplete, especially when it comes to its most important aspect: Servant of Ghosts and Gods. They inherited none of it."

'Servant of Ghosts and Gods?'

Lü Zhong thought for a moment. 'It probably refers to commanding Evil Spirits.'

'The power of Evil Spirits varied, and they were often bizarre and difficult to defend against. If one could master them, it would undoubtedly be a viable path to power.'

'Compared to other civilizations of that era—those that focused on Refining Corpses, catching ghosts, or manipulating Papermen—it was indeed far more powerful.'

'That would explain how the Witch Dao once completely dominated the Southern Barbarian Land.'

"But..." Lü Zhong was still puzzled.

'He recalled the history of the Human Race's expansion into the Southern Barbarian lands a million years ago. Back then, Immortal Dao Cultivators fought Demon Beasts; there was never a single mention of Witch Cultivators.'

'Did the Witch Cultivators play with fire and end up destroying themselves?'

'Evil Spirits are strange and terrifying, so that was certainly a possibility.'

'It was a pity this realm had no tradition of compiling historical records. Otherwise, Lü Zhong could just consult the annals of history to figure out what had truly happened in that ancient era.'

Gathering his scattered thoughts, he continued to listen to Shuini.

"...The Seven Sects will be joining forces to deploy the Profound City Celestial Attraction Secret Array at thirteen nodes across the Southern Barbarian lands. Their goal is to pull the Ten Thousand Witches Hall out from the Void where it is lost. That hall is the core of the Spiritual Energy Great Wall. Only by using it to draw upon the main spiritual meridian of the Southern Barbarian lands can we truly repair the wall and eliminate the scourge of Evil Spirits there!"

Shuini revealed the true intentions of the Seven Sects at the Qian Nan Grand Assembly.

"The Ten Thousand Witches Hall... it's the legendary ancestral city of the Witch Cultivators. Legend has it that in the primeval age, long before recorded history, numerous Witch Gods with power equivalent to the Divinity Transformation Realm set up Witch Arrays inside it, creating a vast number of Little Worlds. It's because of these Little Worlds that the Ten Thousand Witches Hall became the place that held the very quintessence of the Witch Dao. But later, for some unknown reason, the hall became lost in the Void."

Shuini paused, then added, "I suspect that the sudden decline of the Witch Dao is very likely related to this."

Lü Zhong agreed.

'The calamity that befell the Witch Dao was like the Immortal Cultivators suddenly losing Central Earth. The effects might not be obvious in the short term, but over a long period, all sorts of problems would inevitably arise.'

'Without access to products from Central Earth, like Spirit Contracts...'

'While the Southern Barbarian Immortal Cultivation World wouldn't necessarily face a complete civilizational collapse because of it, its society would absolutely descend into long-term chaos. It wouldn't even be surprising if one or two Nascent Soul Sects fell during that time.'

"So, the goal is the Ten Thousand Witches Hall?" Lü Zhong asked.

"Of course!" Shuini glanced at Lü Zhong with a grin and continued via voice transmission, "Otherwise, my dear disciple, why do you think those old monsters are being so proactive? The Withered Tide can't touch them, and the lives and deaths of the countless cultivators and mortals below them won't cause the slightest ripple in their hearts."

"The real motive, when you get down to it, is that they've set their sights on the primeval-era Spirit Medicines that likely still exist in the Little Worlds within the Ten Thousand Witches Hall. We're talking about treasures of the highest order, things that have been extinct for a million years. Finding just one or two stalks would be enough for my cultivation to increase dramatically!"

'Cultivators never act without a profit motive.'

'This was especially true for High-level cultivators like those at the Core Formation and Nascent Soul realms.'

'As Lü Zhong reflected on this, he realized he was the same; it was just the pot calling the kettle black. His gaze swept casually over the other cultivators. Everyone here is probably the same.'

...

After the grand assembly ended, Shuini did not return to the True Spirit Sect. Instead, she pulled Lü Zhong along, and the two of them returned to the Bihai Sect together.

Although the journey from Changchun Immortal City to Tide Cave was over ten thousand li, at the Escape Speed of a Nascent Soul True Monarch, it only took a little less than half a day.

The two of them landed, their figures materializing.

On the ground in the distance, Yu Feng'Er let out a sigh of relief.

A moment ago, she hadn't recognized Shuini's Escape Light, so she truly thought a Nascent Soul True Monarch was attacking. She had already steeled herself for a life-or-death battle, only to realize it was her master and husband returning.

Seeing the change in Yu Feng'Er's expression, Lü Zhong shot an annoyed glare at Shuini. When he saw she remained shamelessly unfazed, he swatted her hard on the backside with his left hand.

A numbing electric current surged out.

"Oh~" Shuini, caught off guard, let out a sultry yelp.

But she was a Nascent Soul True Monarch, after all. She recovered in an instant and sent him a voice transmission, "My good disciple, you shouldn't use that technique so freely. Your master can't take it... Or could it be that you want me to embarrass myself in front of my dear daughter-in-law, just to make it easier for you to have a girl on each arm in the future?"

'Good heavens!'

Lü Zhong decided to ignore her. 'This woman is even lewder than I am.'

'If he was a true lecher, then Shuini must be the Reincarnation of Yellow Essence itself.'

'No wonder she was able to teach his wife so many... techniques.'

Yu Feng'Er watched them with a peculiar expression, her thoughts unreadable. After a long moment, she finally stepped between them, took Shuini's arm, and with her back to Lü Zhong, spoke:

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