Chapter 407 - 375: Different Lives (Part 2)

Chapter 407: Chapter 375: Different Lives (Part 2)

If it were merely a rule against marrying outsiders, it would not be a difficult matter. Given the long lifespans of Cultivators, after many long years of procreation, relations would become distant enough that intermarriage would once again be possible.

But the Chen Family’s pursuit of bloodline purity had reached an almost obsessive degree.

After all, when Bloodline Cultivators procreated, their bloodline would inevitably be diluted. Thus, the Chen Family’s marriages were not concerned with any other factors. As long as both the man and woman possessed a pure Flood Dragon Bloodline, their status was irrelevant.

As far as he knew, using others to sire or bear children was commonplace in the Chen Family.

Under this fanatical pursuit of bloodline purity, bloodline fusion—while not considered heresy in the Vast Sea Cultivation Immortal World—was clearly exceedingly rare.

It would undoubtedly be extremely difficult for him to find any reference material.

Chu Mu, however, did not particularly care whether bloodline fusion was superior or if bloodline purity was the one true path.

After all, he was not a Bloodline Cultivator. He walked the orthodox path of Cultivation Immortal.

The root of his research into bloodlines was still the Bloodline Divine Techniques he had previously detected.

His current research into bloodline fusion was twofold: first, to find other possible paths of advancement for Wangcai, and second, for the sake of those same Bloodline Divine Techniques.

He hoped to use the various transformations that occurred during bloodline fusion to glimpse the deeper mysteries of the bloodline.

As long as his knowledge of bloodlines was broad and deep enough, everything from fusion and purification to even Bloodline Divine Techniques would surely be within his easy grasp.

’Perhaps... I need to conduct further experiments...’

As his thoughts churned, Chu Mu looked at the Demon Beasts, each with its altered form and aura. A glint appeared in his eyes.

After a moment of contemplation, he took out a Sound Transmission Order and sent a message. A reply arrived shortly after.

He stood up, left the backyard, and leaped into the air. A Tunneling Light manifested, streaking across the sky.

In less than fifteen minutes, a city completely shrouded and concealed by an Array Prohibition came into view.

’The Beast City.’

The city was imposing and its gates were tightly shut. While he was still some distance away, a figure flew out to greet him.

"Elder Chu."

As Chu Mu descended from the sky, the man who had come to greet him bowed respectfully.

"Elder, my master has already informed me."

"This way, Elder."

Chu Mu nodded. He glanced up at the "Beast City" plaque hanging high above, his eyes deep in thought. As he watched, the tightly shut city gates slowly swung open.

"How much human livestock is in this Beast City?"

Chu Mu asked the man beside him casually.

The man replied cautiously, "In response to your question, Elder, the Chixia Beast Farming City is quite small, with only about a million."

Chu Mu was surprised. From his vantage point in the sky, the Beast City did not seem very large—roughly the size of an ordinary county town in the mortal realm of Great Chu.

With a leap, he landed atop the city’s gate tower. As he looked down, the scene that met his eyes seemed to answer his question.

The buildings within were not arranged in the usual courtyard layouts. Instead, they were multi-story wooden pavilions, all identical in style, packed closely together and stretching as far as the eye could see.

And the streets...

Chu Mu’s expression grew skeptical. ’Given the purpose of a Beast City and the fate of its human livestock, this place should be a scene of lifeless despair and misery.’

Yet, as he looked at the city now...

The streets were bustling and noisy, filled with hawkers and vendors shouting their wares. It seemed no different from a mortal town in Great Chu.

At a glance, it even gave off an air of peace and prosperity, like a city in a golden age.

Noticing the change in Chu Mu’s expression, the man beside him seemed to guess his thoughts and quickly explained, "The city is overlaid with a special Array Prohibition that can calm the spirit and delude the minds of the human livestock."

Chu Mu’s brow furrowed for a moment before relaxing. ’Compared to living in endless misery and despair from birth, a carefree life like this seems somewhat better.’

"How much human livestock will you be needing, Elder?"

the man asked cautiously.

"Not too many. I have an experiment to run."

Chu Mu shook his head and looked at the man. "I need to select them myself."

"Please wait a moment, Elder."

The man understood. After acknowledging, he hurried away.

In just a few moments, several thousand people—men, women, old, and young—had gathered in an orderly fashion below the gate tower.

"Elder, please make your selection. If there are not enough, I can summon more..."

"Very well."

Chu Mu nodded, his gaze already fixed on the orderly gathering below the gate tower... the "human livestock."

The Beast City’s method of raising humans had clearly long since become a systematic, large-scale operation.

As far as he could see, the thousands of men, women, and children all wore peaceful, smiling expressions, showing no trace of any negative emotion.

Through his Divine Sense Perception, he could feel the Grand Array enveloping the city. It emitted waves of calming energy that pulsed through the city with extreme regularity. The fluctuations were very faint, effective only on ordinary mortals.

These fluctuations were clearly the fundamental reason these "people" were so peaceful and serene.

By soothing their Divine Souls, suppressing negative emotions, and adding the mental confusion from an Illusion Array, it was entirely possible to easily weave a virtual worldview for them.

For example, it would be a simple matter to glorify their eventual deaths, making these "people" not fear dying, but yearn for it instead.

In the minds of these "people," this "farming" might not even be perceived as such. It was simply their life—a life they considered perfectly normal.

It might seem unreasonable, but in truth, it was perfectly, utterly reasonable.

Take himself, for instance. His worldview and perspective on life had been shaped by growing up in the prosperous world of his past life. The man before him, on the other hand, had grown up in the barbaric and chaotic Vast Sea Cultivation Immortal World.

He found the practice of raising human livestock immoral because of the worldview and moral code formed by his own upbringing.

The man, however, found it perfectly reasonable due to the worldview and moral code formed by his.

There was no right or wrong in this, for a person’s perception of the world, their moral concepts, and their code of conduct are all shaped by their environment—by what they see and hear as they grow.

He had his upbringing, and the man before him had his. The Cultivation Immortal Realm and his past life were two different societies. The Great Chu Cultivation Immortal World and the Vast Sea Cultivation Immortal World were also two completely different worlds.

The environment in which the "human livestock" below the gate tower lived was also completely different from the outside world.

They had their own unique living and growing environment, shaped by this system of farming. Naturally, they would form their own unique worldview and outlook on life as well.

Perhaps he had simply seen too much. Things that had once moved him, or even disgusted him, now felt somewhat routine, almost to be expected.

His Divine Sense spread out, and he carefully observed the Demon Beast Bloodline contained within each person’s body.

Without exception, the bloodlines of these "human livestock" were all extremely thin.

In the context of the orthodox Cultivation Immortal System, their aptitude was probably equivalent to not even possessing a Spirit Root.

In a Beast City, however, this was undoubtedly quite normal.

Any who mutated to possess a pure bloodline would never be allowed to remain in the Beast City. Upon their discovery at birth, they would be taken away, either to join one of the major powers or to be... put to other uses.

Chu Mu took his time selecting, placing a Seal on several hundred men and women of varying ages.

He gave a command, and the man led the several hundred people out of the city.

With a wave of his sleeve, Chu Mu’s Magical Power surged, enveloping the hundreds of people. He leaped into the air and flew off in the direction of the True Understanding Pavilion.

...