The Reincarnation

Qin Yanyan finally understood why her father had always refused to disclose his identity. Sure, Qin Haoran had been the leader of one of the Four Great Demonic Cults, an absolute overlord of the underworld with countless demonic cultivators under his command, each ruthless and remorseless. Yet that was hardly an identity anyone could brag about in public. Otherwise, whenever Qin Yanyan ran into an opponent who started throwing their weight around—boasting about being so-and-so from some super-first-rate sect and advising her to forfeit—she would flash a wicked smirk and declare that her father was a demonic cult master, telling them to surrender obediently before she beat them to death. And after that, there would be no "after that." The opponent would simply report her to the imperial authorities, who would sweep in and steamroll the Nine Nether Cult. The Cult Master of the Nine Nether Cult was the Great Xia Dynasty's number one wanted criminal. It would literally be walking right into a trap. Even setting that aside, having her identity exposed and letting everyone know her father was a demonic cult master would ruin Qin Yanyan's political vetting and wreck her future prospects. Most importantly, he was saddled with astronomical debts, lived an utterly precarious life, and constantly risked debt collectors showing up at his doorstep to hunt him down. If Su Yiren ever found out about all this, she might decide Qin Haoran was entirely unreliable and divorce him on the spot. "Do you really not remember at all where the treasure was hidden?" Meng Jingzhou refused to give up. This was the hidden stash of a demonic cult master; its value had to be staggering. Li Haoran knitted his brows tightly, racking his brain to sift through the memories of his past life. Qin Haoran's memory fragments were not only disjointed, but parts of them were also shrouded in haze, like trying to view flowers through thick fog. "Let me think, let me think... It should have been roughly four hundred years ago... and it had something to do with locust trees..." Lu Yang fell into contemplation for a moment, then sent a voice transmission to the three female ghosts. From the main hall came the clear, resonant sounds of scholars chanting their texts, breathing a fresh, lively air into the dilapidated temple. Three scantily clad female ghosts strolled between the desks, keeping the scholars thoroughly stimulated. "Whoever performs best in this lesson will receive private instruction from this teacher afterward," the ghost in green purred softly, her tone oozing allure. The scholars' eyes lit up at her words. Fired up with unprecedented vigor, they began reciting at the top of their lungs: "To learn, and then practice in due time—is it not a pleasure...?" Upon receiving Lu Yang's transmission, the three female ghosts clapped their hands and announced, "The teachers must step away for a moment. Please use the next session for self-study." Leaving the baffled scholars behind, they made their way to the side room. "How many locust trees over four hundred years old are there in Guhuai Town?" The question caught the three ghosts off guard. In the end, Xiao Qi was the quickest-witted and replied, "There are eighty trees over four hundred years old still standing today. But not all the trees from four hundred years ago have survived to this day. Some were felled to make furniture, others were chopped up for firewood, and Guhuai Town once suffered a great fire that burned whole groves of locust trees to ash." Meng Jingzhou felt a headache coming on. He had originally thought that locust trees over four hundred years old would be few in number and that they could simply check them one by one. It turned out he had oversimplified things—most of the trees from that era had not lasted until now. Lu Yang nodded, then asked, "When do you turn over the yang energy to Lord Mi?" "Tomorrow at dawn." "What is Lord Mi's cultivation level?" "He should be at the early Nascent Soul stage." That matched Lu Yang's guess. Within the demonic cults, regional heads of a commandery were mostly at the early Nascent Soul stage. Someone like Branch Master Chu of Yanjiang Commandery, who had only reached the late Golden Core stage, was a rare exception. After all, the overall cultivation level of cultivators in Yanjiang Commandery was relatively low, so there was no need to dispatch anyone higher to oversee the area. "Tomorrow, the three of you will follow my arrangements..." ... In Shoutian Commandery, inside a basement that cost twenty spirit stones a month. Lord Mi, head of the Nine Nether Cult's branch in Shoutian Commandery, was carefully pouring tea for a handsome young man. The young man's cultivation was not particularly high—merely late Foundation Establishment. "You are being too polite, Lord Mi. I am merely an ordinary, low-ranking member of the cult; I would not dare presume upon your honored presence." "I could never accept the title of 'Lord' from you, Young Master Qin. Just call me Old Mi." Lord Mi put on a fawning smile while cursing internally. *Who would dare treat you like a low-ranking member?* The young man took a slow, unhurried sip of tea, showing not a shred of deference to Lord Mi, as though the commandery head were merely his subordinate. "Lord Mi should already know the purpose of my visit." "Is it for the treasure Cult Master Qin hid in Guhuai Town?" The young man set down his teacup and remarked casually, wearing an expression of absolute certainty, "To be precise, it is for *my* treasure." Seeing Lord Mi hesitate, the young man folded his arms across his chest and leaned slightly back against the chair. "What? Does Lord Mi still doubt that I am the reincarnation of Qin Haoran?" "Young Master Qin must be joking. Who in our entire cult doesn't know that you are Cult Master Qin's reincarnation?" Though Lord Mi spoke with reverence, he secretly scoffed. At some point, a rumor had begun circulating within the cult claiming that the previous Cult Master, Qin Haoran, had comprehended a portion of the true essence of samsara. Although his life tablet had shattered and his body and Dao had perished, he had actually stepped into the cycle of reincarnation to prepare for the upcoming struggle of the Golden Age. Recently, three young men surnamed Qin had surfaced, all claiming to be the reincarnation of Qin Haoran and seeking to inherit the legacy he had left behind. Behind each of these three youths stood powerful figures from the upper echelons of the Nine Nether Cult. Nobody dared publicly refute their claims, nor did anyone dare affirm which one was truly Qin Haoran's reincarnation. This involved a high-stakes power struggle among the cult's leadership. Lord Mi suspected that the higher-ups had split into three factions, each eager to seize Qin Haoran's legacy, and had each pushed forward a purported reincarnated vessel of Qin Haoran as a pawn. The youth before him was one of those three suspected reincarnations, which was why Lord Mi treated him with utmost respect and dared not show the slightest negligence. What if the guy really was Cult Master Qin reborn? It never hurt to be polite. Besides, could someone like this travel without a Dao Protector? There was bound to be an expert concealed in the shadows, guarding this young man's safety. Lord Mi guessed that the youth's position was precarious, which was why he wanted to find the treasure Cult Master Qin had left in Guhuai Town to bolster the credibility of his claim. Opinions varied wildly regarding this hidden treasure in Guhuai Town. It had not been something Qin Haoran had disclosed on his own initiative. Rather, after his demise, one of his close confidants had let it slip. According to this confidant, Cult Master Qin had once placed several sheets of paper into a wooden box, and he had caught a glimpse of massive sums of spirit stones written on them—suspected to be drafts that could be redeemed for spirit stones at a chamber of commerce. Piecing together subtle clues left by Cult Master Qin, the confidant had deduced that the Cult Master had hidden the wooden box in Guhuai Town. At first, the confidant had paid it little mind. But after Cult Master Qin perished, greed got the better of him, and he wanted to claim the box for himself. Unfortunately, Cult Master Qin had placed a special seal on the wooden box, cutting off all external means of detection. The confidant had come to Guhuai Town several times, but found nothing. Once the cult's higher-ups learned of the matter, their searches turned up nothing as well. Nor did they dare turn Guhuai Town upside down in an overt search, as doing so would inevitably alert the imperial court. Thus, the matter was shelved, and Lord Mi was instructed to keep a constant watch. Lord Mi had monitored the town for several years without turning up a single lead. He merely made a habit of questioning the female ghosts every time he came by, just to demonstrate to the leadership that he was still actively searching.