Chapter 484 - 462: Why Does This Sect Guide Look So Familiar?

Chapter 484: Chapter 462: Why Does This Sect Guide Look So Familiar?

Inside the Artifact Refining Pavilion, crimson tongues of fire licked at the void, the air long since warped by the scorching heat.

Just as Su Ling’er was about to get up, a large, calloused hand pressed down on her shoulder.

"Wait."

Su Ling’er: "!!!"

At the sound of his voice, Su Ling’er flinched instinctively. Seeing no blades, spears, swords, or halberds coming at her, she couldn’t help but breathe a sigh of relief.

She heard Shi Gandang speak. "The sword embryo is formed but not yet sharpened. A person is like a weapon; there is still the final quenching process."

"Brace yourself. This part will be a complete transformation."

Before his words had even faded, the aura around Shi Gandang abruptly changed. He raised the iron hammer in his hand high, bringing it down with the force of a thunderbolt!

"CLANG—!"

"AHHH—!"

This strike was an indirect blow that bypassed her body entirely, roaring deep within Su Ling’er’s soul.

A violent force instantly coursed through her entire body. The skin and flesh that had just healed split apart inch by inch under this extreme power.

Blood sprayed out like a mist, dyeing the anvil red.

Her flesh was torn and ragged, revealing the stark white bone beneath. At this moment, under the immense hammer, every fiber of her being was forced open, her body’s power completely fused together.

She was a bloody, gruesome mess.

At the same time, the Sword Refining Skill guided the power within Su Ling’er’s body. New flesh writhed and grew at a frantic pace, sealing the still-wet bloodstains beneath the surface.

Destruction and rebirth, at this moment, reached a bizarre equilibrium.

"Now is the moment! Quench!"

Shi Gandang let out a thunderous shout and single-handedly lifted an ancient cauldron.

Inside the cauldron was a mixture of frigid mystic ice and boiling medicinal liquid, into which the remaining blood essence had been integrated. Chilly air and hot steam clashed violently at the cauldron’s rim.

SPLASH—!

The medicinal liquid, a baptism of fire and ice, was poured over her head, instantly engulfing her slender figure.

HISS—!

White mist erupted, instantly filling the entire Artifact Refining Pavilion.

"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHH—!"

Su Ling’er’s body convulsed violently. Under the alternating baptism of extreme heat and cold, the nascent Fake Core within her solidified, then solidified again.

The mist gradually dispersed, and Su Ling’er finally stood up straight.

At this moment, she looked like a demon that had just crawled out of the Asura Blood Pool.

Her original red dress was a standard-issue Guixi Sect uniform, albeit a premium version that Lin Qingfeng had paid extra for. Because of this, it was still on her body, and the parts that had been torn by the hammering had even repaired themselves in the blink of an eye. However, its surface color was now unrecognizable.

Large chunks of dark brown blood had scabbed and hardened on the fabric, and purplish-black gore dripped from the hem.

Her newborn skin was pale but beaded with scarlet drops of blood.

Shi Gandang set down the cauldron and wiped the sweat from his forehead. A flash of approval crossed the eyes that were accustomed to seeing Divine Weapons, but then his brows furrowed slightly.

He pointed at Su Ling’er’s "tragic" state and said, "Junior Sister, now that your Fake Core is formed, according to sect rules, you can go collect a new set of disciple robes."

"Although this sect uniform has self-healing abilities, all this... blood and gore hanging off of it... Besides, don’t you have to receive the new disciples later? Isn’t this a bit too shabby? Why don’t you change into a new set before you go?"

Su Ling’er looked down at her own hands, which were still dripping with blood. Then she looked up and flashed Shi Gandang a brilliant smile. ℴℴ𝘮

The smile revealed her dimples, and her eyes crinkled prettily. But set against a face covered in blood and ghastly wounds, her sweet expression seemed utterly out of place, exuding an indescribable strangeness.

"Thank you for your concern, Mr. Shi, but... that won’t be necessary."

"The task Eldest Brother assigned me is urgent. If I go to change and wash up, I’m afraid I’ll keep the junior brothers and sisters waiting. As their senior sister, Ling’er must lead by example. A little dirt and mess is no big deal."

However, beneath her obedient exterior, her mind was on a completely different track.

’Change? Why would I change?’

’Eldest Brother chose this specific moment—right when my Fake Core is newly formed and my baleful aura is at its peak—to send me to receive the new disciples. Surely there’s a deeper meaning to this?’

’The world is foolish. They only yearn for the freedom of a demonic sect, but they don’t know the cruelty and bloodshed of the demonic path. If I greet them now dressed in fine clothes, wouldn’t that be painting a rosy picture, luring ignorant children into a trap?’

In that instant, Su Ling’er had a flash of insight.

’I get it! This is Eldest Brother’s well-intentioned plan!’

’He wants to use my current appearance—this demonic visage, fresh from a mountain of corpses and a sea of blood—to shatter the unrealistic fantasies of those mortals before they even set foot in the gate!’

’He wants them to see with their own eyes that this—this is the price of stepping into a demon’s den!’

’If it works well, they can scurry back to the mortal world and enjoy their few decades of wealth and comfort. That would be the greatest mercy to them!’

’This must be Eldest Brother’s will! To save the newcomers, using me as his instrument!’

At this thought, the smile on Su Ling’er’s lips grew even wider.

It should have been a gentle smile, but against the backdrop of her face caked in dried blood, it radiated a wicked energy.

Shi Gandang leaned against a large green stone, his tobacco pipe rolling gently between his fingers.

He watched the little girl who was smiling so "innocently."

After a long moment, he let out an almost inaudible sigh and shook his head.

’What a travesty...’

’Look what Eldest Brother has done, turning a perfectly good Sword Refining Skill prodigy into... this. The little junior sister has become this way entirely thanks to him!’

’We are clearly a grand and righteous sect, yet now our guide for newcomers looks like an Evil Cultivator, some ghoul from the underworld. The strange thing is, none of the new disciples have run away. In fact, all the talented ones have stayed. I wonder if the junior sister has some special technique for training new people, or if Eldest Brother is just that good at picking his people?’

’Ah, whatever. What’s the point of thinking about it? Maybe this is just the junior sister’s hidden talent?’

’Does she have some kind of hidden trait?’

’It’s possible. Otherwise, how could she have climbed a hundred steps on the Asking Dao Ladder on her first try?’

’Anyway, it’s not like I’m in charge of the sect. Everything has its own course; it’s not my place to worry about it.’

’Though, I did hear that those two boys, Ji and Shen Nong, have their eyes on a native sect recently. Too bad most of that sect is outside the explorable area; they can only reach a corner of a bamboo forest.’

’And even with that, they’re scheming about how to poach that sect’s oppressed disciple who has a special trait without revealing their own Cultivation...’

’Badass! Totally badass! I’ll have to check it out myself when I get back!’

"Go on, then. Do as you wish."

Shi Gandang raised his hand and gently tapped the bowl of his pipe against the sole of his shoe, making two crisp sounds—TAP, TAP—that seemed especially cold in the empty mountain valley.

"Ling’er takes her leave."

Su Ling’er bowed respectfully and turned to walk out of the hall.

Her steps were firm. With each one, she left a bloody footprint on the ground.

The trail of crimson marks stretched all the way to the mountain gate.

’Don’t worry, Eldest Brother. Ling’er will not fail this mission.’

’Today, I am the demon guarding the edge of the abyss, and I will scare those lost lambs out of their wits!’

...

「Inside the gates of the Guixi Sect.」

The west wind was biting.

Deep shadows lay at the foot of the towering walls.

Seven or eight figures were kneeling, facing the wall with their heads in their hands. Their bodies were stiff, like a row of lambs awaiting slaughter in the silent night.

You Gu lurked at the back of the group. His seemingly cloudy old eyes were secretly surveying his surroundings through the gaps between his fingers.

His legs were already aching and numb.

This humiliating posture was an immense burden on his frail body, a body on the verge of collapse.

But he didn’t dare move.

Those four identical "door gods" had already vanished, but the feeling of being watched, like needles on his back, lingered. When someone had tried to leave, the four elders would reappear to stop them.

’Why hasn’t the so-called sect guide arrived yet?’

’What is the purpose of this "reception"? Why are we being held here like prisoners?’

’Are they testing our resolve, or are they breaking us in like they train falcons...’

You Gu’s heart tightened.

’Using such methods to shatter the pride of new disciples and crush their self-respect, just to make them obedient in the future?’

’This move does seem like a sect’s method—more direct than the righteous path, yet not as cruel as the demonic path.’

By now, with the cessation of Su Ling’er’s screams, the surroundings had fallen completely silent.

Only the man in brocade next to him had teeth that were chattering violently, a sound that was jarring in the quiet night.

Farther away, a young man had buried his head between his knees, his shoulders shaking. It seemed his spirit had broken.

You Gu looked away, a sense of desolation and a soft sigh rising in his heart.

’With such a weak will, even if they’re lucky enough to enter an immortal sect, they’ll likely just be cannon fodder, incapable of achieving anything great. In a demonic sect, though, they could still be useful material.’

’But...’

’When did those bloodcurdling screams stop?’

You Gu’s ears twitched.

About half an incense stick’s time ago, the wail of someone seemingly being flayed alive had abruptly ceased.

In the night, this sudden silence after the screaming was far more terrifying than the noise before it.

’Did they die?’

’Did the one being tortured finally expire?’

’Or... is the punishment over?’

’If it’s the latter, does that mean the butcher’s knife is about to fall on us?’

Just then.

THUD.

Drip.

THUD.

Drip.

The sound of footsteps slowly approached from the depths of the darkness.

The sound was bizarre. It wasn’t like a normal person walking, but more like something heavy being dragged across the ground, accompanied by the "drip" of viscous liquid.

’They’re here?’

’The sect’s guide?’

The few people huddled at the base of the wall trembled violently.

You Gu’s brow furrowed slightly. He thought he could smell the faint scent of blood.

From the shadows at the end of the mountain path, a silhouette slowly emerged, a black mist drifting along with it.

In that instant, You Gu’s pupils shrank.

BOOM—!

A wave of oppressive power swept over them.

The aura of the Fake Core Realm!

But this aura was laced with a monstrous, baleful energy and the stench of blood, as if it belonged to a demon who had just crawled out of a mountain of corpses and a sea of blood, still carrying the lingering malice of having slaughtered thousands!

The person finally stepped out of the shadows.

Was it... a woman?

Her clothes were a blackish-purple, the result of being repeatedly soaked in blood, allowed to dry, and then soaked again.

Su Ling’er approached, step by step.

She held no sword.

Just moments ago, understanding Eldest Brother’s intent, she had used the Sword Refining Skill to merge the Wooden Sword into her own body to better intimidate the new disciples, activating a demonized state.

As she walked, wisps of black and red mist spewed from the pores of her skin, swirling around her. Faintly, it seemed as if thousands of resentful souls were wailing mournfully within it.

Most of her face was covered by a crust of blood, leaving only a pair of blood-red eyes that shone terrifyingly in the darkness.

The new disciples: "!!!"

You Gu: "!!!!"

’This sect guide... why does she look so familiar?!’