"Roar!" A suppressed roar echoed through the Daoist temple. In its final death throes, a strongman unleashed everything it had.
The sound lasted for a moment.
Only when the storm subsided and the strongman's outburst ended did the doors to the temple's main room quietly open. Daoist Nun You strolled out, her robes perfectly neat.
In her hand, she held a strongman riddled with holes. As a tool, it was completely scrapped. Its supposedly invulnerable body was utterly ruined, stripped of even the lingering traces of restorative spells. Yet despite this, the expression on the strongman's face remained incredibly serene.
It even looked a little joyful.
Reaching this point proved that Daoist Nun You favored it greatly. As a strongman, its value as human livestock had received the ultimate recognition.
Not far away, Wang Ping watched with a tingling scalp.
He had witnessed the entire intense battle just now. The ruined fellow was undoubtedly the highest-quality specimen among the ten strongmen.
Especially its grand completion in Qi Restriction.
Wang Ping was absolutely certain that even that old geezer Shouchong's flying knives, powerful enough to blow up a rockery, could not have left a single scratch on its body.
What did this mean?
'A strongman, which is nothing but a menial tool for disciples in the Immortal Gate, could easily dominate the entire world if placed in Great Shun?'
This was no longer just a gap.
It was an absolute chasm.
It was like heaven and earth, two things that would never intersect. Just knowing about it was enough to breed despair, making Wang Ping feel increasingly anxious and restless.
'If this continues, I will only follow in its footsteps.'
Six days had passed since he became a strongman. Every day, Daoist Nun You would randomly select one strongman to spar with her.
Naturally, Wang Ping had been chosen once. However, his quality as a strongman was strictly mediocre. While not the absolute worst, he was far inferior to the one that had just been scrapped. Even giving his all, he failed to satisfy Daoist Nun You's needs, so he had only sparred with her that one time.
But it was just that single time.
The resulting wear and tear had forced his tool-body to shut down for three days. He had only barely recovered yesterday, and his physical condition remained sluggish.
'Look on the bright side.'
'At least by lying in bed for three days and desperately circulating Qi Restriction to repair the damage, my mastery of this spell has improved drastically. It's a blessing in disguise.'
Finding a silver lining, Wang Ping pondered:
'The art of Qi Restriction can convert essence, energy, and spirit into True Qi. Its effects range from lowest to highest: stopping bleeding and regenerating flesh, knitting bones and mending sinews, and finally, invulnerability to ordinary weapons.'
'Since this body of mine is a strongman, the knowledge of Qi Restriction was branded directly into its instincts during the refining process. Ordinary people learning this spell have to start from stopping bleeding and work their way up step by step. But I don't need to consciously study it at all; right out of the gate, I can reach the highest level of invulnerability.'
This was both a good and a bad thing.
The advantage was naturally that learning the spell cost him nothing. The downside was that it entirely relied on this strongman body—without it, he was nothing.
'Fortunately, things are different now.'
'I've fully grasped the core secrets of casting Qi Restriction. Even if I lose the physical enhancements of this strongman body, I'm confident I can still use it.'
Of course, the effects would be vastly reduced.
At the very least, reaching the Realm of True Qi protection and invulnerability to ordinary weapons would be impossible. However, stopping bleeding and regenerating flesh shouldn't be an issue. It was still a useful trick.
'That works. Once I return to Great Shun, I can use this healing trick to at least earn the title of a divine physician. I'll never have to worry about food and drink for the rest of my life...'
Right at that moment.
"Thud!"
Inside the storehouse, Daoist Nun You casually tossed aside the battered strongman. It landed on the ground, the light in its eyes slowly fading away amidst its joy.
Daoist Nun You paid it no mind. Instead, she swept an unsatisfied gaze over the remaining strongmen, eventually picking out another one.
Seeing this, Wang Ping discarded all hesitation.
'...Time does not wait for me.'
He had survived the past six days because the highest-quality strongman had borne the brunt of it, taking on most of Daoist Nun You's abuse and the risk of death.
But now, it was scrapped.
'The remaining strongmen are far inferior to it. They probably won't last a single day. If this continues, whether I live or die will depend entirely on my luck.'
Daoist Nun You might pick him tomorrow and work him to death. Or perhaps the day after, or the day after that. No matter which day it was, death was ultimately inevitable. The countdown until then was merely cruel torture. Realizing this, Wang Ping fought with everything he had to overcome his fear.
Time ticked away.
The sun sank behind the western hills, and night fell. The cries echoing through the Daoist temple ceased once more. Clearly, the strongman she had just taken away was already broken.
'Now is the time!'
Wang Ping's heart pounded with excitement. According to his observations over the last six days, Daoist Nun You would enter a relatively long period of silence after every sparring session.
More importantly—
'Midnight has passed; the seventh day is finally over!'
His consciousness dove into the Great Peace Mortuary. Seeing the Outer Heavenly Demon entry on the towering book finally glow with light again, Wang Ping almost couldn't hold back his tears.
'I have everything I need now!'
Without a doubt, this was the perfect opportunity to escape.
If he succeeded, he could explore the Immortal Gate World from a new angle. If he failed, he could just take the Qi Restriction spell back to the Great Shun Dynasty and easily crush the weaklings there.
'Do or die, I'm leaving tonight!'
With his mind made up, Wang Ping immediately focused his attention on his physical body. He commanded his arms and legs, the entire process feeling like he was trying to shake off a severe numbness.
"Move...!"
His consciousness drove his limbs and bones, bypassing the strongman talisman seal in his body... Finally, Wang Ping forced his eyes open and laboriously stretched his arms and legs.
'It worked!'
Despite the immense pressure weighing down his entire body, he had successfully regained his mobility without triggering the strongman talisman seal.
What he needed to do next was simple.
'Run!'
First, leave this damned Daoist temple. Then, find a nearby spot to dig a hole and bury himself, shut down for hibernation, and lay low for a year or so before coming out.
This was Wang Ping's entire plan. It was crude, direct, and relied heavily on luck, but it was the only way he could think of. Staying in the temple meant certain death anyway, so he might as well try to escape... Filled with hope, Wang Ping took a step toward the storehouse exit.
But right at that moment—
"Interesting."
The tone was familiar, soft and charming. The voice sounded as if she had been standing right behind him the entire time, whispering like a lover murmuring into his ear:
"The Heaven and Earth Pavilion's products really do fail quality inspections."
"Just how much have those parasites embezzled?"
"To think they couldn't even wipe the raw materials' memories clean while refining a mere strongman... Very well. I'll demand a massive sum in compensation from them later."
"..."
Wang Ping's body abruptly stiffened. He slowly turned his head. Under the hazy moonlight, Daoist Nun You, exuding an icy aura, was staring straight at him.
'I'm doomed!'
Wang Ping didn't cry out his despair, but Daoist Nun You seemed to catch his drift, gently patting his shoulder.
"I can't really blame you. You don't have many options, and running away is the only viable one. However, whatever you can think of, I naturally can as well. So, I set a trap for this right from the start. If I still couldn't catch you under these circumstances, it would just mean I'm incompetent."
Hearing this, Wang Ping instantly understood.
'So that's how it is. The period of silence after sparring was just a smokescreen. In reality, after every session, this venomous woman was secretly staking out the storehouse...'
She had just been lying in wait!
Wang Ping felt a surge of exasperation. A dignified disciple of the Immortal Gate was actually targeting and scheming against a mere tool of a strongman? Was there any justice in this world?
Who the hell battles wits with a tool?
Realizing his utter defeat, Wang Ping's hopes turned to ash. Oddly enough, he no longer felt afraid. He simply closed his eyes, accepting his fate, which left a hint of curiosity in Daoist Nun You's eyes.
"Do you... have anything else to say?"
Wang Ping shook his head, his face resolute. "I have nothing left to say. Just do it."
"Very well."
As soon as she spoke, Daoist Nun You formed a spell sign, activating the strongman talisman seal inside Wang Ping and instantly cutting off his control over his body.
However, she wasn't in a hurry to destroy this defective strongman. After all, she still needed to claim compensation from the Heaven and Earth Pavilion later. Knowing those parasites, they would absolutely refuse to pay up without concrete evidence shoved in their faces. Thus, Wang Ping was still of some use to her.
'What should I do next?'
Having settled a nagging concern, Daoist Nun You felt delighted. She began considering how to maximize her profits; it wasn't every day she caught the Heaven and Earth Pavilion slipping up.
'I need to blow this out of proportion!'
'Even if the Heaven and Earth Pavilion admits to a mere error in refining a strongman, it's just a trivial matter. They could easily brush it off with a small payout of dharma currency.'
How could she accept that?
Very quickly, Daoist Nun You finalized her mental script:
'Shocking news! You Xuexin, a disciple of Bliss Immortal Peak, recently thwarted a premeditated undercover conspiracy launched by the Brahma Nation against the Immortal Gate!'
'Under the guidance of her esteemed master Mingyou, You Xuexin fully demonstrated the exemplary role of a true transmission disciple. With immense conviction, absolute loyalty, and keen intuition, she exposed a Brahma Cultivator who had hijacked a Mortal's body, disguised themselves as a strongman, and infiltrated the Immortal Gate to steal critical secrets.'
'Investigations confirm that this Brahma Cultivator's methods were extremely brutal.'
'The primary method of infiltration involved seizing a Mortal's body. However, the Heaven and Earth Pavilion, who refined them into a strongman, was negligent in their quality control and failed to detect their presence...'
A moment later, Daoist Nun You nodded in satisfaction.
'This sounds much better.'
Substandard strongman quality would only result in a slap on the wrist, but allowing a Brahma Cultivator to infiltrate the Immortal Gate was a massive incident. At the very least, it would be considered severe dereliction of duty.
When the time came, she would fan the flames of public opinion to make the situation look as dire as possible. The strongman was genuinely defective anyway. With just a little guidance, public sentiment would naturally tilt in her favor, pressuring the Heaven and Earth Pavilion and forcing them to cave.
Next up was fabricating the evidence.
At this thought, You Xuexin glanced at the immobilized Wang Ping. 'Hmm. Baselessly accusing him of being a Brahma Cultivator lacks persuasive power.'
She needed to add some spice.
After all, the Immortal Gate would definitely send people to investigate something like this. She had to leave behind evidence tying him to the Brahma Cultivators; otherwise, framing him would be too inconvenient.
After a moment of thought, You Xuexin reached into her sleeve.
She pulled out a resplendent, golden scripture. Three flamboyant characters danced across its cover, faintly shimmering with iridescent colors.
The Other-Transformation Freedom Control Desire Realm Celestial Manual!
You Xuexin had acquired this scripture after slaying a Brahma Cultivator during a past Immortal-Brahma Sword Battle. It was merely a fragmented volume, yet it perfectly targeted her Bliss Immortal Physique.
"Claiming that indulging in lust and pleasure equates to the Void? What a crooked path!"
As a loyal true transmission disciple of the Immortal Gate, You Xuexin naturally harbored an extreme disgust for the Brahma Nation, the Immortal Gate's ancient rival. She completely rejected their ideology.
She had only kept this cultivation method because it involved a portion of the Dao of Blissful Dual Cultivation, which could serve as a helpful reference for her own practice. Moreover, the material of the scripture itself was quite high quality. She planned to melt it down and reforge it when she crafted magical treasures in the future.
'I'll use this.'
You Xuexin chanted and formed spell signs, slowly drawing the profound essence out of the scripture. For a moment, serene and distant Buddhist chants seemed to echo through the surroundings.
"Imprint!"
Immediately after, You Xuexin forcefully poured the entire text of this Brahma Nation cultivation method into Wang Ping's mind, forcing him to memorize its contents.
With this, his identity as an undercover Brahma Cultivator was undeniable.
Just as You Xuexin was feeling smug and had already begun thinking about how to extort the Heaven and Earth Pavilion, Wang Ping suddenly started convulsing in her grip.
"Hm?" You Xuexin lowered her gaze.
What was going on?
Right before her eyes, Wang Ping's body erupted with dazzling light. Dense cracks began spreading across his face, and his expression grew increasingly agonized.
"Is this... rejection? Impossible. Even if the raw materials used for the strongman retained some memories, it should only be fragmented shards of a personality. For rejection to occur, the personality must be entirely intact and highly independent... Are you kidding me? Did the Heaven and Earth Pavilion skip the material processing completely...?"
In a flash, the dazzling light grew even more intense.
"...Not good!"
Only then did You Xuexin realize what was happening. Her expression shifted slightly, and she immediately changed her spell signs, attempting to extract the freshly injected scripture.
But it was too late.
The next second—
"Boom!"
Accompanied by a massive explosion, Wang Ping's body detonated in a burst of light. His flesh and blood disintegrated, melting away without a trace, as if he had never existed at all.
You Xuexin was left standing alone in the empty space.
This unexpected turn of events left her beautiful face completely dumbstruck. It took her a moment to process it, and then her features contorted at a visible speed.
"He committed suicide?"
"Not only was his personality intact, but he actually wanted to die?"
Her leverage was dead, and her extortion plan went up in smoke. The dream of becoming rich overnight shattered in an instant. The sheer contrast was too much; You Xuexin finally snapped.
Furthermore, she discovered that with Wang Ping's sudden death, the text of the Other-Transformation Freedom Control Desire Realm Celestial Manual she had just injected into his mind didn't return. Instead, it vanished with him. The scripture book itself lost its profound essence and was now crumbling into pieces.
In other words.
After all that scheming, not only did she gain nothing, but she also lost a strongman and an incredibly valuable cultivation method?
"Clang!"
A clear, ringing sword cry echoed through the Daoist temple. A brilliant beam of light shot into the sky, dividing yin and yang, slicing through dusk and dawn, and lingering between heaven and earth for a long, long time.
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