"Gods are enfeoffed by mortals!"
Qin Sang's expression shifted slightly.
Just now, he had learned from the bei demon that under the governance of the Daoist Court, the City Gods and Mountain Gods were not only responsible for restraining the demons and ghosts within their territories; should any demons or ghosts cause trouble, they were also required to dispatch regional troops to capture them, lest the common folk be disturbed.
In addition, when mortals in this realm worshipped the gods, gathering together at local temples, the deities could cast arts during the sacrificial ceremonies to cleanse the mortals of the old qi of the six heavens that had invaded their bodies.
Beyond the domain of the Daoist Court, however, mortals enjoyed no such peace. Left to fend for themselves, they were said to look like evil ghosts and were known as the ghost folk.
Going by this, could it be that the Daoist Court brought peace and order to this realm by enfeoffing deities?
Qin Sang knew very little of the Divine Dao and could not fathom how this was achieved. However, he had no intention of becoming a god. Not only would he fall under the jurisdiction of the Daoist Court and be forbidden from casually leaving his fief, but who knew what constraints it would place on cultivation? One would be beholden to others for a lifetime.
Yet receiving a register required going through the Daoist Court's ritual altars or the ancestral altars of various sects, which clearly was not easy to obtain either.
At this thought, Qin Sang could not help giving the bei demon another look. After blowing up the altar, this demon had seized it and fled, and could still manipulate the register altar to command demon soldiers. Could there be some further subtlety at play?
When Qin Sang questioned it, the bei demon guessed his thoughts. Secretly thinking that this Daoist master was definitely no virtuous or naive soul, it immediately grew several degrees more cautious.
Thinking back on the matter, it also secretly groaned in dismay.
Many crucial secrets were things it had learned only after seizing the altar.
The bei demon's former master had been a Daoist Master of the Ascending Mystery Dharma rank.
The bei demon was not a reared soldier of Danxiao Palace; that Daoist Master had seen its uncanny innate talent and thought it might serve as a trump card, so he had recruited it under his banner—never imagining he had brought in a walking calamity.
The Daoist Master had encountered a formidable enemy, suffering severe injuries while his personal guard was slaughtered. It so happened that he had acquired a treasure extremely useful to the bei demon. Driven by ruthless malice, the bei demon spotted its chance, struck when he was vulnerable, and coerced the wolf soldiers into blowing up the altar.
After the Daoist was betrayed by his troops and the register altar was stolen, because the troops had always visualized the deities alongside the Daoist, an unseen connection had formed between them. Thus, the bei demon had still been able to utilize and seek shelter under the register altar.
However, the bei demon had merely usurped the register altar; it was not its true master.
In ordinary cultivation, deity visualization required the master of the register altar to take the lead, unifying the minds of the troops to resonate with Heaven's will above and visualize the divine beings.
Ignorant of the mysteries within, the bei demon could neither continue visualizing deities nor stir the altar-guarding divine general in the slightest. It could only passively receive protection, drastically diminishing the effect.
At the time, the bei demon possessed only late Demon Core stage cultivation. Initially, it sensed nothing amiss and thought its scheme had succeeded. But once it used that treasure to break through to the Transformation stage, it finally realized something was wrong: the altar-guarding divine general could no longer fully shield it.
Moreover, as the bei demon's cultivation rose, the protective effect would only grow weaker.
For demon cultivators like it, the chaotic qi was actually more beneficial for tempering the demonic body; what mattered most was the altar-guarding divine general.
Had it merely sought a life of leisure, it might have been fine; so long as it took care to suppress ferocious thoughts, it likely would not have reached the point of losing its sanity in its lifetime.
Unfortunately, this bei demon was ambitious. As its cultivation deepened day by day, even if no obvious abnormality surfaced in the short term, over time it would inevitably follow in the footsteps of its feral kin.
Hearing this, Qin Sang grew thoughtful.
Earlier, when he heard of the method of deity visualization, he had assumed it was a form of visualization technique. In truth, he had come into contact with such arts very early on.
At the start of practicing the *Heavenly Demon Refining Form*, one needed to visualize a great demon. He had chosen the Azure Luan. Cultivating this art in a human body, he had not only refined a pair of thunder wings, but after integrating Azure Luan essence blood, he had even given birth to the Heavenly Demon Dharma Idol. Thus, visualization arts were by no means empty illusions.
Yet from what the bei demon described, Qin Sang felt that deity visualization was not as simple as mere visualization.
If it were merely a visualization art, once the master of the register altar perished, the altar-guarding divine general would lose its foundation, and even if it could remain in the world, it would be nothing more than a lifeless object.
As a Transformation-stage grand demon whose cultivation was not much inferior to its former master's, the bei demon had nonetheless been unable to affect it in the slightest.
From this, it seemed the crux lay in the "register," which surely possessed unique powers of its own.
"Heavenly gods..."
Qin Sang frowned slightly.
If there truly were gods in the heavens looking down upon the mortal dust and governing heaven and earth, such a monumental secret would not have gone unmentioned; even if Bai did not remember, Ghost Mother would have cautioned him, yet neither of them had ever uttered a single word about it.
It was a pity the bei demon had lost the register altar, or else he could have taken it to study and comprehend.
However, Qin Sang felt no lasting regret over this. Knowing the crucial principles of cultivation in this realm was already enough; there would always be opportunities in the future to see a register altar and an altar-guarding divine general for himself.
Pondering for a moment, Qin Sang asked, "Whose orders were you following when you plotted against the celestial official of the Celestial Pivot Court?"
Having learned of the Daoist Court's might, he was unwilling to antagonize such a behemoth. The bei demon had probably not lost its mind yet, so there had to be a reason!
The bei demon did not hesitate in the least, laying bare the whole truth.
Ever since breaking through, it had felt its future path grew increasingly difficult. Not daring to prowl within the Daoist Court's territory, it wandered outside all day long. It had once considered traveling to the Demon-Ghost Realm at the eastern limits, but was deterred by the vast distance and the perils along the way.
Given its status as a wandering master, any Daoist Master it encountered would immediately move to capture it.
After wandering aimlessly for a time, fortune had actually smiled upon it, and it unexpectedly crossed paths with a Transformation-stage grand demon.
This was a snake demon that had never submitted to humans, cultivating on its own. Its cultivation was even higher than the bei demon's, yet its sanity remained untouched by the chaotic influence.
Overjoyed, the bei demon sought its guidance. The snake demon made no secret of it: what it practiced was a demon register passed down from the Demon-Ghost Realm. It could impart this register to the bei demon, but demanded as payment that the bei demon capture a Daoist Court celestial official of at least sub-altar master rank.
Murdering a Daoist Court celestial official was an unpardonable crime, let alone a sub-altar master.
Yet if the bei demon had dared to betray a Daoist Master and offend Danxiao Palace, and with its own cultivation path at stake, how could it care about such scruples? After only a momentary hesitation, it had agreed.
Deceitful by nature, the bei demon scouted and weighed its options before choosing this location, where a newly appointed altar master was still untempered by real experience. To its dismay, the opponent was a cut above, costing the bei demon both its register altar and its soldiers.
Hearing this, Qin Sang's expression shifted. "A demon register?"
So talismanic registers were not exclusive to the Daoist sects.
There was also a Demon-Ghost Realm in this world. Being able to form a realm showed that it maintained a degree of order, and since it could rival the Daoist Court, its power was easily imagined, Qin Sang pondered silently.
There were two pressing matters he needed to accomplish right now.
First, obtain a method to stabilize the origin qi so that he could continue cultivating in this realm.
Second, confirm that using the chaotic qi to temper the physical body would have no ill effects other than on the origin soul.
The Divine Dao was obscure and nebulous.
Now that he saw hope in the Daoist talismanic register system, he would not consider the Divine Dao unless left with no alternative.
To him, an altar-guarding divine general was not strictly necessary, but as he was now at the Deity Transformation stage, he would have to receive a high-rank talismanic register to protect his cultivation.
From what he understood of the Daoist Court so far, its rule was strictly hierarchical and clearly stratified, leaving virtually no loopholes to exploit.
The entire Daoist Court was interconnected such that touching a single hair moved the whole body; if he used illicit means, it would come as no surprise if an inadvertent slip drew out a Grand Master.
He might be able to bluff his way through obtaining a low-rank talismanic register, but high-rank registers would never be granted lightly by either Daoist sects or the Daoist Court. Once brought face-to-face with a Grand Master or even a True Monarch, he would have nowhere to hide.
Qin Sang had once considered approaching powers in this realm to state his origins openly, provided that the cultivators here were not exceedingly strong—if Deity Transformation cultivators held a pivotal, dominant standing, they would only try to win him over.
Yet judging by the power displayed by the Daoist Court, while Deity Transformation cultivators were not weak, the Court had no need to treat them with supreme deference.
What was more, his present strength was far below what it had once been.
Should they pry into his secrets, he would lack the strength to resist, and the Heavenly Phoenix True Feather would likely be exposed. That treasure was tied to the Vermilion Bird's revival and his own cultivation; he could under no circumstances surrender it.
Just as Qin Sang was troubled by the lack of a breakthrough, hearing the bei demon mention the demon register sparked a sudden inspiration.
If the demon register also possessed the ability to stabilize origin qi, he would need to proceed with caution. If it only held the power to protect the origin soul, he could safely channel the chaotic qi to temper his body and rapidly boost his strength.
Tempering his body first and probing forward step by step, once the *Heavenly Demon Refining Form* broke through, he would have far greater room to maneuver.
Furthermore, through the demon register, he might glimpse some of the mysteries of the Daoist talismanic registers.
Though his thoughts raced, Qin Sang did not act recklessly. Keenly catching a suspicious point, he asked, "The snake demon's cave dwelling is at the western limits of the Daoist Court, tens of thousands of li away from the Demon-Ghost Realm. Where did the snake demon obtain the method of the demon register?"
According to the bei demon, the Nine Dragons Country where they were located lay at the southwestern tip of the Zhongmao Diocese. Traveling west along the coast and crossing the territory of one capital altar would bring one to the western limits of the Zhongmao Diocese.
That place lay beyond the governance of the Daoist Court, where fiends danced wildly, yet they were entirely disjointed. The Demon-Ghost Realm was situated at the eastern limits of this world, separated by the Daoist Court's two dioceses; logically, it should not have spread here.
The snake demon was hidden deep within that region.
"That was this small demon's confusion as well. But back then I had run out of options and feared angering the snake demon, so I didn't dare pry. Perhaps... perhaps..."
The bei demon scratched its ears and cheeks, and then its eyes lit up. "Perhaps a mighty figure of my demon race passed down a lineage here to keep the Daoist Court in check!"
The more it spoke, the more reasonable it sounded to it.
Qin Sang nodded slightly, looking pensive.
Having made his decision, Qin Sang hesitated no longer. He immediately ordered the bei demon to lead the way. One man and one demon traveled west along the coast without incident. After more than a month of travel, they arrived among a vast, desolate expanse of rolling mountains.
"Immortal, the place where this small demon met that snake is not far ahead. Though I only met the snake demon twice, I could tell it is exceedingly cautious and vigilant. It normally communicated with me only through shadowed projections and voice transmission, so I know not where its true body hides. We need a foolproof plan lest we beat the grass and startle the snake, allowing it to escape."
The bei demon kicked off the ground with its hind legs and stood upright like a human, deliberately bowing low beside Qin Sang as it offered suggestions in a fawning tone.
Qin Sang stood atop the mountain peak, sweeping his gaze across the summits in silence.
Having left the Daoist Court's jurisdiction, he could sense that the old qi of the six heavens in the outside world was far more rampant. The farther they moved from the Daoist Court, the more pronounced it became; he had to deploy even more divine sense to stabilize his true essence.
Recalling that the Daoist Court established oratory altars, capital altars, and sub-altars, Qin Sang felt there had to be a reason behind it—he just did not know what role those deities played.
Just then, sharp howls and the sounds of a galloping chase drifted up from the foot of the mountain.
Qin Sang had noticed it earlier, but only now turned his gaze toward it.
Below, tree shadows swayed, accompanied by occasional cracking sounds and the rustling of foliage.
A white shadow leaped and darted between branches. Looking closely, it was a white hare, as large as a wolfhound. It glanced back over its shoulder from time to time, terror in its eyes, brimming with spiritual intelligence—clearly a rabbit demon.
Pursuing it from behind was a human figure, exceptionally tall—over a zhang high—with sinewy, knotted muscles, burly and imposing, charging like the wind.
The man's hands were larger than cattail leaf fans, and his strength was boundless; a single palm strike could snap a great tree. The rabbit demon was utterly outmatched, pursued until there was no path to heaven and no door into the earth.
"Immortal, that is a member of the ghost folk,"
the bei demon poked its head out, pointed at the figure, and took the initiative to explain to Qin Sang.
Though the figure clearly had the upper hand and slaying the rabbit demon was only a matter of time, a hint of heaviness welled up in Qin Sang's heart.
Placed in the mortal world, this ghost folk would undoubtedly be seen as a giant. His facial features and limbs resembled a mortal's, yet anyone seeing him would never believe he belonged to the human race.
Yet reality was precisely that: the ghost folk were indeed human!
The reason was simple: living year in and year out amidst the old qi of the six heavens without the Daoist Court's protection, the ghost folk had undergone earth-shattering changes.
Their flesh was as tough as iron, their strength boundless and beyond anything a mortal could match, yet this came at the cost of damaged sanity.
The beastly nature on this ghost folk was blatantly obvious.
At that moment, the rabbit demon was cornered before a cliff. Knowing death was certain, a ferocious gleam flared in its eyes. It whipped around abruptly, its snout exhaling a foul, bloody gale, its sharp teeth turning crimson red as it bit savagely toward its pursuer.
Unfazed, the ghost folk rejoiced instead, letting out an excited cry. Without dodging, he thrust out a violent punch that struck first despite being launched second, hitting the rabbit demon dead on the throat.
A crisp crunch of shattering bone rang out. The rabbit demon shrieked, the excruciating pain arousing its survival instincts, and it tried to flee once more, only for the ghost folk to grab it by the neck and crush it between his palms, instantly snuffing out its life.
Fresh blood gushed from the wound on the rabbit demon's neck. The ghost folk lifted the rabbit demon, tilted his head back to catch it in his open mouth, and drank greedily. Thoroughly satisfied, he dragged the carcass toward a concealed valley.
Inside the valley lay a cave sealed from the outside by a boulder. The ghost folk knocked a few times, and the boulder was pushed open from within to welcome him and his prey inside before shutting again with a bang.
Qin Sang took it all in. Surviving here for generations and battling countless monsters, demons, and ghosts, the ghost folk had long transformed. Even if they returned to the Daoist Court, it would take generations to gradually recover before they could return to normalcy.
In fact, the Daoist Court did not reject the ghost folk; there were even Daoist Court members who specifically ventured out to seek them and escort them back.
Qin Sang could barely protect himself and had no surplus thought to spare for others. Withdrawing his gaze, he said to the bei demon, "Go on. Pindao has his own plans."
The bei demon froze for a moment. It had thought Qin Sang would place some form of restriction upon it, never expecting he would let it go so easily to lure the snake out of its hole.
Secretly probing its entire body and detecting nothing amiss, the bei demon simply stopped overthinking. Bowing to Qin Sang, it leaped off the cliff and vanished into the jungle.
At that moment, a butterfly rested on its shoulder, its wings rising and falling with its movements, while the bei demon remained completely oblivious.
With his hands clasped behind his back, Qin Sang remained where he stood, a faint smile playing at the corners of his mouth. Concealment was an innate divine ability of the Heavenly Eye Butterfly; now, unless a Deity Transformation cultivator inspected with great care, even they might overlook it. A mere Transformation-stage Demon King would certainly not see through it.
Tapping his foot lightly, Qin Sang followed at an unhurried pace. Soon, he found a cave dwelling, stopped, brought out the Dao Manifestation Tree, and fell into quiet contemplation.
Unaware of what method Qin Sang had employed, the bei demon was still trembling in trepidation. Yet it was exceptionally skilled in disguise. Hurrying toward a secluded pool, it retrieved a sharp fang and drew three circles clockwise and three circles counterclockwise in the water.
With a splash, a stream of water rose from the pool and formed a seven-foot-long brocade snake. Its gaze surveyed the surroundings vigilantly before turning to the bei demon. Sensing the demon's cultivation, it spoke in a cold tone: "You failed!"
Chapter 1751