Chapter 22: By Decree of the Celestial Grandmaster

'A haven for gloom and erectile dysfunction.' As Xinzi's eyes swept the dim hall, these words sprang up in his mind. Rows of cracked skulls hung on tall ebony pikes. Tongues of gray fire gushed out of the skull's empty eyes, rising to light up tall blood banners that shimmered in eerie forces. A stairway followed the pikes, leading up to the cloaked woman's circular stone seat. Rarely had Xinzi come across such an unexciting scene, and the monk often wondered why villains had to come up with these creepy lairs. Couldn't they be like him and enjoy glory, splendor, wealth and rank?

Suppressing a sigh, the monk locked on the cloaked woman—observing her alongside Dong Ling, who trembled from the woman's pressure. Xinzi too trembled—how else could he fit his role? Chun Xu's eyes, however, ignored the figure entirely—instead locking on the colossal silver codex that hovered above her.

Dong Ling couldn't see it, and Xinzi pretended not to. Chun Xu's eyes narrowed at the codex, from which she felt energies of a complexity that transcended all she knew. Chun Xu's reaction diverted the cloaked woman's attention from Xinzi. "You can see it? Not bad. But can you feel the rhythm course through your veins?" She said, forcing Chun Xu out of her trance.

"Feel the rhythm?" Chun Xu's head tilted and her forehead creased in confusion. The cloaked woman waved her sleeve, releasing formless forces that snuck into and inspected Chun Xu's body.

"So that's it. You've refined a Wisp of Heaven's Breath, which added a Heaven's Wrath attribute to your Spiritual Root. This allows you to see and touch the codex. But unless you can feel the Celestial Rhythm, you can't decipher its content. Still, not bad," the cloaked woman said but forgot to add that if Chun Xu could feel the Celestial Rhythm, her life ended now.

"You, however, are disappointing. I didn't expect you to be able to feel the Celestial Rhythm, but at the very least, you should be able to see the codex," The cloaked woman said and removed her hood—revealing a bald young woman with exquisite features tarnished only by the dark-blue spiral marks on her neck and face. Her full red eyes shifted back to Xinzi, gleaming with malevolent energies. Instantly, Dong Ling and Chun Xu realized what they were dealing with, and their faces twisted into grimaces of pure horror.

'A Blood Spirit that successfully underwent Sanguine Reincarnation!' If at first, talks of invisible books drew her curiosity, once the woman revealed her face, Dong Ling's thoughts revolved only around how to escape.

In one evil way or another, all ghosts sought methods to return to life. But while some had to figure that path out on their own, others started with a clear-cut formula. Blood Spirits belonged to the latter camp. After absorbing colossal quantities of Blood Energy, they could undergo Sanguine Reincarnation and transform their spectral shells into entities of tyrannical strength. In those new bodies, soul and flesh became one—giving the Blood Spirit one last shot at life.

'Xinzi, what is the meaning of this?' Unprepared for such a formidable opponent, Chun Xu sent Xinzi a mental message.

'Oops.'

'Don't oops me! Please tell me you have a never-before-seen brilliant plan to get us out of here!'

'I don't.'

'Son of a...' Chun Xu stomped her foot in annoyance, but as both Dong Ling and she prayed the Heavens, Xinzi's mutant hand sneaked up their backs—releasing waves of Spiritual Qi that knocked them out instantly. The gals fell face-first and Xinzi dropped to his knees.

"Nun Tusha, Qiu Renyi, of the Mourning Shadow hall greets you!" Xinzi said and kowtowed at the nun. The blend of solemn deference and soaring emotions in Xinzi's tone barely stirred her heartstrings. The "Tusha" name and "Mourning Shadow hall," however, struck hard—making the nun leap from her seat.

"You recognize This Venerable?"

"My humble self dares not deceive Your Excellency. When I stepped into the Blood Spirit valley and felt the Celestial Rhythm, I realized that the Codex of Heaven's Will might be in this land. Unable to let go of such an opportunity, I led my partners here, and to protect myself from its owner's rage, I didn't react upon seeing the codex. However, never did I expect that Your Excellency would appear before me. Your appearance has changed somewhat, but we members of the Mourning Shadow hall learn all there is to about the Celestial Hall long before we start cultivating. I will never forget the faces of Grandmaster Qiu Meng and the four Infernal Nuns," Xinzi said, not lifting his forehead from the ground.

Tusha, Miejue, Haoyou, Nieyuan; 10,000 years ago, from orthodox practitioners to heretics, these four names haunted the minds of all cultivators. During the Great Desolation War that pitted the Celestial Hall against the Taiyang clan, these four demonesses opened the gates of the Infernal Paradise, enabling countless demonic legions to pour into the world and bring hell on earth.

"The Infernal Paradise sent us four sisters to pervert Qiu Meng and guarantee his smooth rebirth into the Demon Monarch. But not only did we fail to lead him astray, but Qiu Meng converted us to Lianism instead—we followed him thenceforth."

Though not a monk, the last Celestial Grandmaster, Qiu Meng, abided by Lianist teachings throughout his life and led many to embrace the Golden Lotus as either laymen or ordained monks. A pity that, at his darkest hour, no lotus appeared to save him.

"But who could expect that Xue Jingzhao, that traitorous slut, would betray master and reveal his Ancient Spirit lineage to Taiyang Yuan. Fearing the birth of another Demon Monarch, Taiyang Yuan led the cultivation world to obliterate the Celestial Hall. By the time we'd brought reinforcements from the Infernal Paradise, Taiyang Yuan had destroyed master's immortal soul and forced the few survivors into exile! August son of a bitch! I swear not to rest until the last of Solar Spirits wails in Hell!"

Tusha's screams shook the earth and hacked at Xinzi's eardrums. Blood trickled down his forehead and ears, yet the monk still stood as immobile as a corpse. Satisfied, the nun helped him up.

"Child, why is your cultivation base so weak?" In other circumstances, Tusha would have doubted Xinzi's words, but by revealing all his plans before she even considered asking for them, Xinzi displayed the kind of blind trust that only a disciple of the Mourning Shadow hall could. But while he earned her trust, the demonic nun still had to verify his identity.

"Following the destruction of the Celestial Hall, Your Excellencies salvaged a wisp of the Celestial Grandmaster's soul, gathered the survivors and established the Mourning Shadow hall. As our name implies, we exist to mourn His Holiness and thrive in the shadows of the Great Desolation World. For thousands of years, the Mourning Shadow hall has been increasing its strength, infiltrating and building alliances with the discontent forces of this world while hiding from the Central Domain. But while we've made major progress and avoided the Central Domain's notice, the elders believe that if we don't speed things up, even in another 10,000 years, we won't be a match for a random Taiyang elder—to say nothing of the August Divinity."

Here Xinzi paused and glanced at Dong Ling.

"The Zi clan of the White Immortal sect are direct descendants of the Nightmare Ridge's Amethyst Holy King. The elders plan to use them to draw the Holy King to our side and take over the Western Continent. For that plan, the hall established a monastery in Dongli, gave me the monastic name Xinzi, sealed y soul, and trained me to take over the White Immortal sect. I've already established my own temple and become an independent Abbot in the sect's walls. It won't be long before I conquer it."

"Who is the contemporary hall master? Qiu Sanzhen or Qiu Sanbao?" Before this question, Xinzi didn't know what to answer. Hesitation took hold and his face twisted into a frown. Sensing his discomfort, Tusha clenched hard at his shoulders. "What? Don't tell me that a disciple of the Mourning Shadow hall can't even give me his hall master's name!"

"Y—your Excellency, I am confused, the Mourning Shadow hall...doesn't have a hall master. This is the ancestral rule set by Your Excellencies. Only His Holiness Qiu Meng can claim ownership of the Mourning Shadow hall."

"Good! Very good! As expected of This Venerable's disciples. You have not let me down!" Satisfied by Xinzi's performance, Tusha burst into laughter. But noticing that the boy's confusion remained, she cast him a reassuring gaze.

"Child, be not afraid. This Venerable was merely testing you. If not for you, This Venerable would have missed this blessed opportunity to return to the hall. Not only will This Venerable grant you secret skills from the Codex but..." Tusha's lips curled into a maniacal grin, her mouth opened wide, and a ray of sanguine light flew into Xinzi's chest.

Reeling back, the lotus monk felt a tiny entity worm its way through his organs. Alarmed by this change, Xinzi scanned himself with his Spiritual Sense, and was shocked to see a blood-colored worm burrowing its way into his heart.

"What have you done to me?!"

"Xinzi, apologies, but since you've seen the codex, This Venerable must ensure that in life or death, you serve the Celestial Grandmaster!" Tusha arched her head back and burst into laughter. Sanguine veins pulsed across Xinzi's body, his eyes went bloodshot and he collapsed on the ground—writhing uncontrollably.

"Hahaha! Xinzi, you've just received This Venerable's Immemorial Blood Gu. Without This Venerable's blood to support it, the gu-worm will devour your essence and turn you into a Blood Puppet! But don't worry, as long as your loyalty to This Venerable doesn't waver, the gu shall bring you limitless benefits!" Tusha said, and as Xinzi squirmed in agony, his body mutated into a horrifying creature with six sanguine eyes, jagged teeth and chalk-white skin. A fanged mouth formed on his stomach, laughing uncontrollably.

A product of demonic cultivation, gu-worms were parasites typically bred by heretics to strengthen themselves or enslave other cultivators. But though knowledgeable, even Xinzi had never heard of a gu-worm enabling its host to turn mortals into demonic slaves.

"Congratulations, monk—no, Abbot Xinzi. Since you've passed my test, you can become the tool that spearheads the rebirth of the Celestial Grandmaster," Tusha said and squatted before Xinzi.

"The common people believe that demons and gods receive unparalleled gifts from Heaven. But little do they know that one existence stands above them, from birth destined by Heaven to reach the peak of all worlds: the Chosen!

"Akin to the protagonist of folk tales, once their destiny activates, even death can't stop the Chosen from reaching the peak. Good fortune, talent, wealth and looks, as long as they want it, there is nothing that Heaven's Chosen cannot obtain. But once they fulfil their destiny, Heaven swallows them—returning equilibrium to the world.

"However, should the Chosen fail, another one rises to replace them. And that...is where we intervene." Tusha leaned over Xinzi and held his cheeks.

"If I can offer enough sacrifices to the Lords of the Infernal Paradise, I still have a chance to resurrect our beloved master and let him inherit the mantle of Demon Monarch! This world doesn't possess better sacrifice than a Chosen's corrupted soul. So corrupted chosen souls we must acquire! And after millennia of studies, I've come to one conclusion. The surest way to twist men and drive them into demonism is...cucking! So Xinzi, here is your task.

"By decree of the Celestial Grandmaster, hunt down the protagonists, snatch their women and destroy their destiny! Then I will appear to twist their souls, lead them into demonism, and offer them in sacrifice to resurrect my master!"

"But what if the chosen one is female?" More curious than anything else, Xinzi broke Tusha's monologue.

"Cuck them still!"

"Madwoman, get lost!"

"You don't have a choice! Your body belongs to me, and with but a simple command, so will your soul!" Tusha's booming voice shook the hall, but as she peered into Xinzi's soul, the monk's grimacing face shifted to a bright smile and, stripped from the comfort of her hall by formless soul force, Tusha appeared in Xinzi's soul.

'Soul Melding? A trifling Qi Refinement ant dares use such an intimate skill on My Venerable Self? Laughable! Xinzi, for this blasphemous act, This Venerable can't spare you!' Tusha waved her sleeves, unleashing colossal waves of soul force that spread cracks throughout Xinzi's white Soul World.

'Impossible!' With but one glance, Tusha realized that besides cracking the seals somewhat, she'd not dealt any damage to Xinzi's soul. Alarmed, she raised her hand for another strike.

'No need. Since you're that eager to greet it, allow me to welcome you...to my true Soul World!' Xinzi's words reverberated in Tusha's mind and the seal keeping his soul shape hidden broke down—unleashing a jet-black world of all-consuming darkness that trapped the infernal nun instantly.

'No...no...noooo! It can't be! You can't be!' Tusha thrashed against the darkness' suppression, but despite her formidable strength, failed to put up a struggle. Her body shook, and her eyes glanced left and right—refusing to accept reality.

'Venerable this, venerable that. How insecure must one person be to reaffirm their status in every sentence? Then again, it's not like you are the real deal. A crazed mutt that traded her Demon Form for a trivial Blood Spirit reincarnation, still dares call herself Venerable before me?'

Amidst this world of eternal night, one tiny spark flashed. Chains coiled around it—another seal or something else entirely? Tusha had no time to care about that detail because, at last, she knew who and what she dealt with—the knowledge shattered all her hopes.

'You...are surnamed Hengye?'

'Hahahahaha! Hengye Zhen, of the Eternal Night Dynasty, greets Your Excellency!' Xinzi burst into a peal of maniacal laughter. Black chains poured out of the spark, piercing through Tusha to enslave her soul!