Way of the Devil

Central plains, Zhao Nation.

The night breeze blew across the lands. The moon was obscured.

In a middle-sized manor outside Wushan County’s town, Luo Cheng yawned and got up from the bed. He carefully searched for the flint and lit the fire for the lantern.

Then, he carried the yellow lantern and walked out of the room in a daze.

The breeze from the outside came in bone-chilling waves. It swiftly swept the sleepiness he felt away.

Luo Cheng gave his own body a shake and stomped down a few times. When he finally felt his body warm up, he walked in the direction of the manor’s courtyard.

He walked along the corridor until he reached the courtyard. Black water vats of similar sizes filled the courtyard, and each of them was covered with a wooden lid.

Luo Cheng proceeded cautiously. He slowly uncovered the vats one by one and gave the contents a stir with a wooden rod to inspect them.

They were clothes, clothes in the process of being dyed. The Luo Family’s Clothes Shop had been operating in the county town for decades. Although business was not flourishing, they were known for their ability to produce striking and beautiful colors. That was how they managed to stand their ground in the county town where competition was fierce.

After Luo Cheng inspected all the clothes in the vats, he went to look for some incense, which he lit and left in the courtyard to prevent bugs from approaching.

When he finished doing all this, the skies were slightly bright already.

Luo Cheng yawned. He changed his clothes and readied himself to open up the shop in the county town.

“Morning, Brother.” From another room in the courtyard, a cute young maiden with deep crimson hair walked out to greet him.

The young girl appeared sleepy as well. The thin white pajamas were completely insufficient to hide her fair skin.

The girl appeared quite careless. Her bearing and actions would not seem out of place if they were seen on a muscular horse-riding man. However, on a sweet-looking young teenage girl who was hard not to love, it made her seem heroic. She was full of defenseless temptation.

“Luo Ying, don’t you want to sleep a while longer? Why’re up so early today?” Luo Cheng walked up to her while feeling slight pain in his heart. He removed his own coat and draped it over his little sister’s body.

By the way, his sister Luo Ying was not a child from the Luo Family’s bloodline.

She was an abandoned babe Luo Cheng’s parents found in the snowy lands when they were younger. Hence, the color of her hair and eyes was different from Luo Cheng’s.

Luo Cheng’s eyes were pure black, and so was his hair, which was also thick and straight.

On the other hand, Luo Ying’s eyes were a deep red, the same color as her hair. She was born with it. It was said that only foreigners from the distant lands had such a bloodline.

Also, compared to Luo Cheng’s body, which could not be counted as buff, Luo Ying was only fourteen years old, but the protrusions on her body were already pronounced. Her waist was thin and her legs slender. Also, her facial features were solid as she had a tall nose and her eyes were big and bright. When she trained her eyes on someone, she would appear especially serious.

“You can also sleep for a while more, Brother. You’re always sleeping late and waking up early. If you keep this up, your body won’t be able to take it, you know?” said Luo Ying with slight worry.

“I’m fine, don’t worry. I know my own body, I’ll be alright.” Luo Cheng smiled. “I have to earn more money. Perhaps we’ll have the opportunity send you into the Hanmei Academy in the future.”

Luo Ying had advised Luo Cheng in such a manner many times throughout the years, but her words always fell on deaf ears.

Helpless, she looked on as Luo Cheng found another coat—which he put on—and pushed the door open with baggage of various sizes in his hand. He walked in the direction of the county town.

It was impossible for her to go with him. She had to look after the dyeing vats in the manor.

Soon after Luo Cheng left, Luo Ying heard the shuffling sounds of Aunt Zhao waking up. Aunt Zhao was the person who was hired to prepare their meals. She got up to light the fire with which their breakfast would be prepared.

Luo Ying returned to her room alone, and sat in the chair. She picked up a wooden stick and prodded the charcoal brazier so that the red coals would burn brighter.

“Spirit Master, are you still undecided?” Suddenly, a low and hoarse voice of a man sounded in the room.

A blurry black silhouette silently appeared in the corner of the room. He was staring at Luo Ying.

“The longer you stay here, the greater the possibility that you’ll bring that young man harm.”

“I…” Luo Ying was silent. Her eyes implied that she was at a loss, and betrayed her deep reluctance to part.

“The Spirit Slayer has already made his move. If he discovers that you’re still here, not only will he bring you back, even this young boy will be tangled up in this matter as well.” The voice continued to advise her. “Please think about this.”

Luo Ying bit her lips hard. Her thoughts were in chaos.

She was not from the central plains. Instead, she hailed from a mysterious nation far away, Sky Nation.

The Sky Nation did not have many cultivators. They were completely different from the immortal sects that controlled the political landscape from the shadows, for the power of the country was gathered in the hands of unusual individuals from the Scarlet Blood Spirit Clan.

The Scarlet Blood Spirit Clan passed down its inheritance perfectly. They fought with the Yin Shadow and their blood, and would make formidable opponents.

Luo Ying was from one of the esteemed bloodlines that escaped from the Scarlet Blood Spirit Clan.

When she ran away, the family she belonged to was in a precarious situation. They were on the brink of being wiped out. However, after so many years, her family had restored their glory, and now stood in the upper ranks of the empire. That was why they sent someone out to fetch her back.

“Let me think about this…” Luo Ying lowered her head and fell silent.

She had actually felt the sincere yet shady feelings her brother had toward herself. They grew up together, and they bathed and played together. However, at some point in time, they suddenly started sleeping on separate beds and showered on their own. That was when they started to change.

“I understand the bond between the two of you, but Luo Cheng is only a child of an ordinary family. The difference between him and you is too great. Compared to him, you’re like the brightest star in the sky, while he could only look up at you from the ground,” said the man helplessly.

“Brother Luo Cheng… I believe he can.” Luo Ying closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and raised her head. “I’ll go with you, but you have to promise me three things.”

“Really?!” The man was instantly excited. He had wasted almost a year here. He did not expect to make progress today.

“Yes…” Luo Ying nodded seriously.

***

The bright sun hung high in the skies at noon as Luo Cheng returned to the manor from the county town. When he left, he had only brought a few things with him. When he returned, he pushed a wagon and rumbled into the manor.

“Little Ying, I’m back!”

The moment he stepped into the manor, he heard a shout.

“There you are! You’ve finally returned. The young lady is gone! The only thing she left is a letter for you on the table!” When Aunt Zhao saw him enter, she quickly rushed up to meet him.

“I’ve searched everywhere, and she’s nowhere to be found. Lady Ying left a letter on the table, but I can’t read… You can’t blame me for this. I was preparing the meal. I didn’t expect her to be missing when I came to call her to eat!” Aunt Zhao’s forehead was drenched in sweat. It was apparent that she had been searching for quite some time.

When Luo Cheng heard this, he felt slightly light-headed. He swayed and nearly lost his footing.

“Where’s the letter?!” He stabilized himself and squeezed the words out from his mouth.

“It’s in your room.” Aunt Zhao had not even finished when Luo Cheng dashed into his room.

As expected, there was a letter on his study table. There was also a small black metal box.

In truth, Luo Cheng had already sensed that his sister was hiding some of her troubles from him. He could actually tell that his sister’s background was anything but ordinary from the differences in their appearances.

However, he did not expect this day to have come so soon.

Anger, silence, pain, suffering… a plethora of emotions welled up in his heart. Luo Cheng opened the letter while feeling extreme sadness. He opened the black box as well.

The letter did not contain much. It only explained the reason why she left in simple terms. In truth, Luo Cheng knew this all along. This was because someone had already reminded him in secret to leave his little sister.

He paid attention to the items his little sister left behind. Other than the letter, there were two silk pamphlets.

One of them was titled “Theological Meditation”, while the other was titled “Pan En’s Book of Darkness”.

Other than that, the bottom of the black box contained a strange pill the size of a longan.

The books were meant for him to build his foundation, while the pill would enable him to be born anew and temper his tendons and bones so that he could cultivate the contents of the books.

The final sentence of the letter immediately rekindled a spark of hope within Luo Cheng.

“…if you can cultivate the contents of these two books to their highest tiers, maybe, one day… we may meet again… Farewell, love. Ying.”

When he read this, Luo Cheng could no longer hold back his tears. They fell down his cheeks like loose beads.

“Don! Don! Don!”

He did not even have the time to cry out when the court’s doors were being knocked on.

“Is anyone in?”

Luo Cheng’s body shook. He snapped back to his senses, hastily put the items away, and walked into the courtyard. Aunt Zhao had silently taken her leave. Perhaps she was worried that Luo Cheng would hold her responsible.

There was nobody in the courtyard.

“Don! Don! Don!”

The knocks on the door were heavy and loud.

Luo Cheng wiped away his tears and displayed a helpless smile. In truth, he was already prepared for this. However, when it actually happened, he did not expect himself to still feel such sadness.

He took a few steps forward and lifted the bar. Then, he proceeded to open the doors.

“How may I help… you…” When he opened the door, Luo Cheng was slightly startled.

Two people stood before him. One of them was a gorgeously beautiful young girl with long black hair. The other person was a big, tall, and handsome young man.

However, these details were besides the point. The point was that this man resembled his father too much.

“Young man, is this the Luo Family Manor? Is Luo Xing here? Or maybe Xu Yejun of the Luo Family?” The man fixed his eyes on Luo Cheng as he spoke in a gentle tone.

Luo Cheng stared back blankly for a moment before he snapped back to the present.

“Luo Xing… is my father. Xu Yejun is my mother. They’ve both passed away six years ago… You are…” He had never met this man before. However, judging by how similar his appearance was to his father’s, it was highly probable that this man was related to him in some way.

“They’ve passed away?” The man was taken aback when he heard this. How would he settle the karma if the person had passed away?

“Yes, this is the sixth year since then. He had some complications of his lungs, and did not survive the winter.” Luo Cheng managed a smile. “And the two of you are…”

The man sized up Luo Cheng carefully. He suddenly reached out and pinched his face. His gaze immediately turned gentle.

“You look very much like your grandfather…”

“You… You…” Luo Cheng was shocked. He started and retreated backward.

However, his arm was immediately grabbed by the girl beside the man.

“Test his blood,” said the man drily as he loosened his fingers.

“Understood.” The beautiful girl nodded, and then smiled at Luo Cheng.

“Pcchht!”

Luo Cheng only felt his vision blue when a red line flew out of his wrist. Then, it floated in the air and was gathered into the girl’s palm.

The girl closed her eyes and felt his blood. She quickly opened her eyes and nodded toward the man.

“It’s him.”

Luo Cheng was still at a loss when he felt that he was hoisted up by the man.

“You’re the only remaining member of the Luo Family?” asked the man.

Luo Cheng nodded blankly.

“If that’s the case, then from this day onward, you’re the sole heir to me, Mu Yun! The only thing the Four Seas Sect lacks right now is a sect master. The demons shall gather under the Four Seas Sect! All will be subdued by its decrees!” The man produced a jade crown and placed it on Luo Cheng’s head.

“Come! Return to the North Sea with me and take up the post.” He carried Luo Cheng and was ready to leave.