Make the Immortal Sect Great Again

Inside the quiet room, flames of intertwined black and gold flickered incessantly. The surging brilliance had already engulfed Wang Ping, layering so heavily that his silhouette was no longer visible.

Watching this, Daoist Nun You shifted her hand seals in a constant blur.

The surrounding seal scripts and secret talismans seemed to spring to life. Illuminated by the blazing light, they twisted and danced, resembling dragons and snakes baring their fangs and brandishing their claws.

Within that boundless radiance, Wang Ping was left with only a single sensation: agony. The torment of the flames consuming his body took deep root inside him, almost pushing him into numbness. Behind him, the Six Desires Primordial Heavenly Demon had fallen to one knee, its charred skin no longer able to slough off.

Armor Shedding had its limits.

After all, this was merely an innate miraculous trait of the Six Desires Primordial Heavenly Demon, not a true spell. How could it withstand the spiritual fire Daoist Nun You had so painstakingly prepared?

I have to hold on.

Despite the excruciating pain, Wang Ping's mind remained clear. If he used Qi Restriction right now, he was confident he could hold out for a few more hours.

But he couldn't use it.

It seemed this life ended here.

Wang Ping was beginning to accept his fate. Right at that moment, however, Daoist Nun You suddenly opened her eyes outside the formation, frowning as she looked his way.

"Where is the resentment?"

"You finally stepped onto the path of immortality, only for me to refine you into a magical artifact. Your hope turned to despair, yet after falling this low, you bear no resentment?"

Daoist Nun You was somewhat baffled.

But more than that, she was worried. "This won't do. Without resentment, the chances of this Six Desires Heavenly Demon Flag advancing to high-grade will likely plummet."

At that thought, Daoist Nun You instantly shifted her hand seals. Almost simultaneously, Wang Ping sensed a change in the formation. From the black and gold brilliance surrounding him, grotesque, bizarrely shaped phantom entities crawled out. They then surged wildly into the space between his eyebrows.

"Ugh!"

Wang Ping let out a muffled groan. Layer upon layer of illusions surfaced before his eyes as he recognized the phantoms. "Demons... This is bad. What is she trying to do?"

Demons were also known as wandering souls, or Yin ghosts.

As the name implied, they were born from the foul Yin Qi of the earth. Formless and intangible, they hungered for the living. They possessed the ability to invade the sea of consciousness and devour a cultivator's seven emotions and six desires.

Ordinary cultivators dreaded them greatly.

These demons were fierce yet utterly formless, meaning they had very few natural predators. Because they exclusively attacked the sea of consciousness, they were virtually impossible to guard against; the slightest carelessness would lead to contamination.

Once tainted, a mild case would drastically alter a person's temperament, while a severe case would drive them mad until they died.

Just like right now. As a horde of demons flooded his sea of consciousness, countless scenes from the past uncontrollably surfaced in Wang Ping's mind.

His impoverished childhood in Northern Liao. His youthful vow to surpass everyone and become a member of the Royal Court. His young adulthood, galloping freely across the grasslands on horseback. His middle age, when he learned of cultivation and sought the Immortal Dao for immortality, all the way to the despair of discovering he had no spiritual root...

"...Huh?"

Wait, this wasn't him.

Looking at the completely unfamiliar parents, children, lovers, and teachers before him, Wang Ping abruptly jolted awake. This is... the original body's life flashing before my eyes!

Right, that venomous woman wants my resentment!

That resentment naturally stemmed from the original body's bitter memories of failing to attain the Immortal Dao. But that was the original body's problem. What did it have to do with him, Wang Ping?

Sever it! He had to cut ties with it!

At that thought, Wang Ping immediately gathered his mind and pushed the original body's memories to the forefront, allowing the demons to weave through them and stir up the embedded hatred. Before long, the original body's memories grew tattered, and that portion of the sea of consciousness shattered. A thick, heavy resentment slowly began to drift upward.

"I hate this!"

"The heavens and earth are unfair! Why can't I cultivate? I refuse to accept this..."

"Venomous woman, I won't let you off even if I die!"

"I will not submit!"

The original body's memories shattered one after another. The resentment grew heavier and heavier, eventually transforming into an echoing howl like the wailing of ghosts and wolves. This was the very last remnant of the original body.

"It's done!"

Outside the formation, Daoist Nun You finally revealed a satisfied smile upon seeing this. Forming hand seals, she chanted, "With resentment as flesh and skin, hatred as bones and sinews, and the six desires as lungs and organs..."

"Let the Heavenly Demon emerge!"

As her voice fell, the resentment surged backward, sucking out every last demon that had rushed into Wang Ping's body. The energy then wove together, transforming into a fluttering flag.

Under Daoist Nun You's nervous gaze, the black and gold brilliance on the flag alternated and flashed several times before finally coalescing into a figure.

A green face, vicious fangs, crimson hair, and golden eyes.

At a glance, its appearance was seventy or eighty percent similar to Wang Ping's, yet fused with the traits of the Six Desires Primordial Heavenly Demon. Only its eyes were dull, entirely devoid of sapience.

This, however, was exactly what Daoist Nun You intended. Squeezing out all of his memories and converting them into resentment was partly to elevate the artifact's grade, but it was also to prevent the finally forged Six Desires Heavenly Demon King from retaining its consciousness. Otherwise, what if it turned on its master at a crucial moment?

"This is just right."

Daoist Nun You nodded. Reaching out, she summoned the Six Desires Heavenly Demon Flag, which crackled with black and gold light, into her hand and gave it a forceful wave.

Instantly, mournful winds whipped up.

"Whoosh! Whoosh!"

Six hundred and sixty demons shrieked in unison, swarming like battalions of soldiers. Wang Ping acted as their commanding general; with his every movement, the demons followed closely in tow.

A second later, all the phenomena dissipated.

Like birds returning to the nest, the demons poured into the flag. Wang Ping's figure rapidly faded, ultimately turning into a hideous ghost face right in the center of the fabric.

"A high-grade artifact... It actually succeeded!"

Daoist Nun You held the flag, studying it for a moment before a look of wonder crossed her face. "What a treasure. The resentment is drawn taut but unreleased. The moment it is used, it will strike with the force of a thunderbolt!"

"It seems I can't use it lightly."

Daoist Nun You carefully put the flag away, calculating in her mind. "Every bit of resentment used is a bit permanently gone, and its power will undoubtedly be greatest on its first use."

"Used well, it can turn defeat into victory."

With that thought, Daoist Nun You made up her mind to treat this Six Desires Heavenly Demon Flag as her trump card, deploying it only at the most critical moment.

She could already picture the scene.

Just as she and an enemy fought to the point of mutual exhaustion, she would suddenly pull out the Six Desires Heavenly Demon Flag and release the countless Yin soldiers and ghost generals inside.

Among them would even be a deeply resentful Six Desires Heavenly Demon King.

Who could resist that?

When that time came, the opponent's expression would surely be a sight to see.

...

Inside the Six Desires Heavenly Demon Flag.

The Six Desires Heavenly Demon King snapped its eyes open. The memories and consciousness belonging to Wang Ping's true self rapidly surfaced, restoring the spark of life to its previously dull eyes.

I really survived...

Wang Ping blinked, his heart filled with unexpected joy. To be honest, he had thought he was going to die suddenly just like last time, and had been fully prepared to head back to Great Shun to show off.

But to his surprise, he didn't die.

Not only had he survived, he had become the artifact spirit of the Six Desires Heavenly Demon Flag. Wang Ping could clearly feel his current degree of control over the magical artifact.

That being said, when Wang Ping tried to move the Six Desires Heavenly Demon Flag even slightly, he sharply detected another presence of power within the artifact. It was Daoist Nun You's magical power and spiritual sense. If he actually made a move, she would immediately notice something was wrong.

I still need to be patient.

I must wait until Daoist Nun You is at the end of her rope and no longer has enough strength to suppress me. Only then will I have the chance to turn on her and settle the score.

With that thought, Wang Ping concealed his consciousness once again.

A second later, his vision spun wildly. He found that he had broken away from the Six Desires Heavenly Demon King's body and returned to the Great Peace Mortuary.

"This is..."

Wang Ping looked around blankly, only to see the towering tome before him suddenly flip through its pages with a rustle, finally coming to a stop on the first scripture scroll, the Outer Heavenly Demon.

An extra line of text had impressively appeared on this scripture scroll.

[Detected that the Master of the Book has actively anchored an identity in the Immortal Gate. Upon entering this world in the future, the Master of the Book may choose to anchor to this identity.]

[Anchored Identity: Six Desires Heavenly Demon King]

In short, the next time he headed to the Immortal Gate, he wouldn't have to worry about randomly spawning as a strongman or a human resource; he could start right off as an artifact spirit.

Of course, this wouldn't restrict him from choosing a random identity start, either.

"But... what's the difference?"

Wang Ping frowned deeply. After pondering for a moment, his eyes suddenly lit up. "Come to think of it, if I become an artifact spirit, will I still be restricted by a spiritual root?"

Theoretically speaking, he shouldn't be.

Looking at it from this angle, as long as he picked a good master, clung to their coattails, and allowed the Six Desires Heavenly Demon Flag to continuously grow...

Didn't that mean the Great Dao was within reach?

At that thought, Wang Ping's brow immediately relaxed. Sure enough, human capability had its limits after all. If he wanted to cultivate, he just couldn't be human!

Moreover, anchoring this identity had another benefit.

"As long as I want to, I can activate the Outer Heavenly Demon right now and choose to resurrect and start over. Strictly speaking, I'm already a dead man at this point."

This was a very important function.

"True, I successfully hid from Daoist Nun You this time, but that was mainly because her own capabilities are lacking, which is why she failed to detect my consciousness."

"But in the future, if I really cling to a powerful backer, the higher their cultivation, the more brilliant their methods of refining the Six Desires Heavenly Demon Flag will be. I might not have this kind of luck then. With this function, however, I can just choose to pull out and leave while they are refining it."

"That way, the Six Desires Heavenly Demon King will suffer all the pain."

"Once they finish refining it, I can come back and reap the rewards. I'll let the Six Desires Heavenly Demon King carry the heavy burden for me, and I won't have to endure the agony of being refined."

Not bad. Very nice!

Wang Ping nodded in satisfaction, then proactively exited the Great Peace Mortuary. He had miraculously managed to survive; he didn't plan on resurrecting and leaving just yet.

"First, let's set a small goal."

"You Xuexin. I'll kill that damn venomous woman first, then extract her soul, refine her into my banner slave, and ruthlessly torture her a thousand times over!"

Wang Ping gnashed his teeth.

Even so, he hadn't lost his reason. He knew full well that recklessly lashing out would be courting death. The reason he chose to stay was because he saw an opportunity.

That venomous woman still has to escort the Five Thieves Stealing Heaven Myriad Transformations Divine Talisman. This journey will definitely be dangerous. The reason she didn't hesitate to take out a loan to refine me into an artifact ahead of time was surely to prepare for this escort mission. In other words, there's a very high chance she will fall into peril.

This was his chance.

"I'll let you act smug for a few days..."

Hiding inside the Six Desires Heavenly Demon Flag, Wang Ping peered through the hideous ghost face on the fabric, staring maliciously at Daoist Nun You as she attempted to further refine him.

...

"Strange."

Weighing the Six Desires Heavenly Demon Flag in her hand, You Xuexin was slightly puzzled. Why did her refining of this magical artifact feel somewhat obscure and obstructed?

Could it be because its grade was too high?

It wasn't impossible. After all, she hadn't yet crossed the heavenly tribulation to forge Divine Powers. Although she had mastered quite a few spells, the quality of her magical power was still a bit lacking.

"Oh well, it's just a transitional item anyway."

You Xuexin shook her head. The power of this artifact wasn't bad, but once she forged her Divine Powers, it wouldn't be able to keep up. It was something that would be discarded sooner or later.

Using it as a one-time trump card was just right.

It wasn't worth wasting any more thought on it.

At that thought, You Xuexin shifted her gaze toward the Five Thieves Stealing Heaven Myriad Transformations Divine Talisman in the center of the quiet room, a trace of dazed fascination suddenly flashing through her eyes.

"An immortal technique..."

When she had recounted the story to Wang Ping earlier, she had just been speaking casually, brushing over many details. What she had presented as fact was actually quite different from the truth.

The simplest point was that the bandit cultivators who cultivated the Five Thieves Stealing Heaven Myriad Transformations Divine Talisman were not all Immortal Gate disciples who had failed to obtain True Transmission. There were also some who, like her, had obtained True Transmission but had eventually become bandit cultivators anyway—all because they coveted this supreme cultivation method that reigned unparalleled over the Immortal Gate.

It had to be known, that Heaven-Stealing Thief hadn't even reached Qi Refining!

Yet even so, within the massive Immortal Gate, with so many Qi Refining practitioners, cultivators, and even immortals, they had surprisingly failed to kill this apostate.

With such abilities, how could he be ordinary?

If one really broke it down, the Heaven-Stealing Thief's personal talent and brilliance were certainly part of the reason, but an even greater factor lay in the cultivation method he practiced.

This cultivation method was the fundamental reason why bandit cultivators were so obsessed with it.

"...Why don't I take a look too?"

Unknowingly, You Xuexin's thoughts grew increasingly entranced. Her eyes glazed over, and she stepped toward the jade slip step by step, slowly injecting her spiritual sense and magical power into it.

Instantly, light blossomed.

Unlike other jade slips, this Five Thieves Stealing Heaven Myriad Transformations Divine Talisman seemed desperate for everyone to see it. It actually projected its contents directly into the outside world.

Thanks to this, however, Wang Ping saw it too.

"I impart this technique today, named thus: Heaven possesses five thieves, spreading a myriad of transformations. He who witnesses them prospers, and he who steals them rules as king... The five thieves are Life, Possessions, Time, Merit, and Mind!"

"The thief of Life can steal vitality and life force."

"The thief of Possessions can seize worldly objects."

"The thief of Time can snatch fragments of time."

"The thief of Merit can usurp identities and achievements."

"The thief of Mind can alter knowledge and memory."

"With all five thieves complete, one steals the secrets of heaven and earth, and seizes the Qi of the cosmos. Thus it is the Five Thieves Stealing Heaven Method. Even without a true spiritual root, one can still achieve the fruit of Qi Refining and enter the Dao!"

Reading the final sentence, Wang Ping's eyes lit up brightly.

Right at that moment, however, You Xuexin snapped out of her daze. She staggered back a step, her face a mix of shock and fury, as she sharply rebuked, "Vile fiend!"

Before her voice even faded, a sword's hum suddenly rose.

In an instant, the jade slip that had been radiating brilliant light to project the cultivation method's contents went dim. As if having suffered a heavy blow, it fell into complete silence.

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