Chapter 151: Origin of the Martial Dao

After Lu Bai slew the Corpse Refining Sect cultivator, his Eye of Illusion suddenly saw a wisp of Soul Light fly from the man’s body. As if drawn by some force, it entered his chest.

"Hm?"

Lu Bai was momentarily stunned.

He hadn’t activated the Ancient Mirror just now.

Besides, the Ancient Mirror had previously only been able to devour things like Ghostly Creatures and other evil spirits.

It had never been able to absorb the souls of the newly deceased.

Lu Bai quickly immersed his Heart and Spirit into the Ancient Mirror.

On the mirror’s surface, there had originally been only three wisps of Soul Light.

But now, there was another one.

Making a total of four wisps of Soul Light!

Moreover, this wisp of Soul Light was a Level 2 Soul Light!

’Weird.’

Lu Bai was lost in thought.

’Has the Ancient Mirror evolved?’

’Can it now autonomously devour the souls of the dead?’

’If so, collecting Soul Light will be much easier.’

Lu Bai felt that it probably wasn’t that simple.

He would have to find an opportunity to test it later.

Lu Bai glanced at He Liangzhi out of the corner of his eye.

The man hadn’t noticed a thing.

After all, ordinary Martial Artists could only see ethereal entities like souls by activating a Heart Mirror.

Seeing that the commotion below had ceased, Ah Ming finally jumped down from the rafters.

This time, however, Ah Ming didn’t dare to jump directly onto the Black Dog’s back.

It hovered nearby for a long time, hesitating.

The technique the Black Dog had just displayed had truly given it a fright.

After testing the waters for a while and seeing that the Black Dog didn’t mind, it returned to its spot on the dog’s back, even using its golden beak to preen the dog’s fur in a very friendly manner.

It wasn’t the only one; Lu Bai had also been greatly surprised.

The Black Dog had now returned to its usual appearance, its second tail having vanished.

That technique was not something described in the Nine Netherworld.

Furthermore, the water dripping from that tail was clearly a powerful counter to Jiangshi!

The two White Jiangshi had dissolved directly into corpse fluid.

Even the Green Jiangshi couldn’t withstand it and was terrified.

’What on earth has the Black Dog cultivated?’

’It’s not going to mutate, is it?’

’Yu Daoxuan once said Ah Mo was just an ordinary black dog. Could she have been mistaken too?’

"Brother Lu, your dog..."

He Liangzhi trailed off, recalling what had happened.

Lu Bai paused for a moment before saying, "The technique Ah Mo just revealed... I hope Brother He won’t speak of it to others."

"Rest assured, Brother Lu. I understand."

He Liangzhi said, "A dog this miraculous... if word got out about its abilities, countless people would covet it and try to claim it for themselves."

"Exactly."

Lu Bai nodded.

Based on his interactions with him recently, Lu Bai had a good impression of He Liangzhi. He wasn’t some reckless youth who spoke without thinking.

When they ran into danger in the ancestral hall earlier, He Liangzhi’s first reaction was to tell him to escape first.

Later, while he was entangled with the Jiangshi and the outcome was uncertain, the man hadn’t fled on his own.

Lu Bai walked over to the Corpse Refining Sect cultivator’s body. Wary of Corpse Poison, he used his Cyan Cloud Sword to poke at it a few times before flipping up the Storage Pouch at the man’s waist.

He Liangzhi said, "You can take it for now. Later, you can ask a Foundation Establishment Great Cultivator to help open it and see what goodies are inside."

"Mm."

Lu Bai asked, "What’s the deal with the Demon Sect and the Corpse Refining Sect?"

"I don’t know the full details about the Demon Sect, either. I just heard a few things while drinking and chatting with some people from the Demon Suppression Bureau."

He Liangzhi said, "They say the Demon Dao is the most ancient of legacies, originating in the Ancient Times. It has been passed down to this day and now comprises the Eight Great Demon Sects, of which the Corpse Refining Sect is one.

Those from the Demon Sects are extremely vicious. They will stop at nothing to cultivate their Demon Techniques, which is why they are rejected by both the Righteous Dao and the various Vassal States. The Five Emperors are so renowned because, back in the Ancient Times, all five of them quelled uprisings from the Demon Dao."

Lu Bai asked, "Even with the power of the Five Emperors, they couldn’t completely eradicate the Demon Dao?"

"There was nothing they could do."

He Liangzhi shook his head. "Legend has it that among the Five Emperors, the Desolate Emperor fought to the death in his quest to eradicate the Demon Dao, and as a result, he never even managed to transcend his tribulation and ascend."

Lu Bai sighed with emotion at this.

He had a question in mind when he first heard the legends of the Five Emperors, and he took the opportunity to ask it now. "The Ancient Five Emperors are the White Emperor, the Cyan Emperor, the Black Emperor, and the Red Emperor. Logically, the fifth should be the Yellow Emperor. Why is this ancient expert known as the Desolate Emperor?"

"It was the Desolate Emperor’s own choice. There are said to be two reasons for it."

He Liangzhi said, "The Desolate Emperor had two great Ultimate Skills. One was the Innate Realm’s Eight Desolates Returning Essence Skill. One reason for his name is the character for ’desolate’ in this skill’s title.

The other was the Golden Core Realm Ultimate Skill he comprehended, the Creation Furnace Scripture. It could cultivate Blood Qi to its absolute limit. It’s said this Ultimate Skill is related to the origin of the Martial Dao."

"The origin of the Martial Dao?"

Lu Bai looked puzzled.

Legend says that at the dawn of ancient times, there were no Martial Dao cultivation methods. Ordinary people without a Spirit Root could only live as mortals. They struggled to survive in a world teeming with Demon Beasts and dominated by Cultivators, treated as nothing more than lambs to the slaughter.

Only after the Martial Dao appeared did mortals find a way to step onto the path of practice. By cultivating Blood Qi, they could gain combat strength comparable to that of Cultivators.

And the origin of the Martial Dao seems to be tied to that mysterious character for ’desolate’."

At this point, He Liangzhi shook his head and smiled. "This is all just legend, of course. It was all too long ago. Unless someone from that era is still alive, no one knows the true details."

Lu Bai nodded.

"The dozens of lives lost in Bai Family Village were likely this Corpse Refining Sect cultivator’s doing."

He Liangzhi’s brow furrowed. "If we hadn’t stumbled upon him, and if you hadn’t killed him, Brother Lu, I’m afraid even more innocents would have been harmed.

I just wonder if he has other sect members in Jing State."

He Liangzhi’s expression was grave.

The appearance of a Corpse Refining Sect cultivator in Jing State was not a matter to be taken lightly.

Wherever Demon Sect cultivators appeared, countless slaughters were sure to follow!

"What’s this?"

Lu Bai glanced at the Copper Bell on the ground, which was emitting a faint, dark glow.

"That should be the Magical Treasure of a Corpse Refining Sect disciple—the Corpse Heart Bell. They use that thing to control Jiangshi."

He Liangzhi was disgusted. "The Demon Techniques of this Corpse Refining Sect are truly perverse. Other Cultivation Sects refine Magical Treasures or Flying Swords, but these people refine Jiangshi!"

Lu Bai was lost in thought.

’I was only able to defeat this Foundation Establishment Cultivator from the Corpse Refining Sect because of the Black Dog’s help.’

’Otherwise, the outcome of this battle would have been hard to predict.’

’For an ordinary Cultivator, their physical body is their greatest weakness and vulnerability.’

’Once a Martial Artist gets close, they can only rely on releasing a Protective Talisman.’

’But the Demon Techniques of the Corpse Refining Sect, in a way, compensate for this shortcoming.’

’By refining Jiangshi that are immensely strong, impervious to blades and spears, and even covered in Corpse Poison, they create a formidable opponent that any Martial Artist or Cultivator would find extremely difficult to handle.’

He Liangzhi picked up his longsword from the floor.

The blade itself wasn’t damaged, but the two Blood Prohibitions on it had already become ineffective.

If it had only been soaked in Corpse Oil, it would have at most suppressed the Blood Prohibition Power.

But when the mysterious water released by the Black Dog had corroded it, the clash of the two forces had all but ruined the longsword.

He Liangzhi sheathed his sword and opened the doors to the ancestral hall. Fresh air rushed in, gradually dispelling the rotten stench inside.

Lu Bai found a piece of scrap cloth and wrapped the Corpse Heart Bell in it.

He planned to deal with it back in Jingzhou City and see if he could sell it for some money.

"What do we do about this place?"

Lu Bai glanced at the ancestral hall and the corpse of the Corpse Refining Sect cultivator.

He Liangzhi said, "Let’s just leave it. When we get back to Bluestone City, we can report this to the Demon Suppression Bureau. The Demon Suppression Guards will come and handle it then."

Lu Bai nodded.

The two of them scouted the area once more. Finding nothing else amiss, they finally left the ancestral hall.