Chapter 390 - 385: I Just Want to Kill Him

In the end, Du Youqian accepted the terms proposed by Ge Sheng and Fairy Tao Yao.

He was already dissatisfied with the various problems that had arisen after his breakthrough and was planning on Scattering and Re-Cultivation anyway. Besides, he needed to return to Momenan as soon as possible to bring out the people he needed to, lest some mishap occur.

Now, someone was paying him a high price to take action. After this job, he could go ahead with his reincarnation. Whether the Qingxu Commerce Association took a loss or not didn’t matter; for him, it was pure profit.

He had originally wanted Master Yao Tao, the head of the Qingxu Commerce Association’s Endless Desert Western Domain branch, to vouch for the deal as well. However, Master Yao Tao was away visiting a friend and had not yet returned, so in the end, Du Youqian could only reach an agreement with Ge Sheng and Fairy Tao Yao.

The Qingxu Commerce Association would provide the Four Principles Sect with three hundred years of protection and discounted services, two free Nascent Soul Spiritual Objects, and a more complete version of the Supreme Cave Truth Nine Revolutions and Nine Transformations Celestial Dance Scripture.

The last item had already been confirmed. Fairy Tao Yao had given him the Cultivation Technique as payment in advance.

Du Youqian had checked it and confirmed that it was indeed far more complete than the version he previously possessed.

Moreover, comparing the two, it was clear that the portion previously completed by Pang Master was actually full of flaws.

’Good thing I didn’t follow it for my cultivation.’

The version Fairy Tao Yao gave him was much better.

Most importantly, although this version was also somewhat incomplete—only allowing cultivation up to the Divinity Transformation Stage—it very clearly stated that this Cultivation Technique required Nine Transitions.

For the first three transitions, one had to perform Scattering and Re-Cultivation upon reaching the Core Formation Realm!

After re-cultivating three times, one could achieve Nascent Soul Formation without any bottlenecks and greatly increase the success rate.

For the middle three transitions, one had to perform Scattering and Re-Cultivation upon reaching Nascent Soul Formation!

After re-cultivating three times, one could achieve Divinity Transformation without any bottlenecks and greatly increase the success rate.

For the final three transitions, one had to perform Scattering and Re-Cultivation upon reaching Divinity Transformation!

After these Nine Transitions, one could advance to the Void Step Realm without any bottlenecks, and it would also increase the chances of advancing to the Void Step and Harmonization Realms to a certain extent.

It was, without a doubt, a top-tier Cultivation Technique!

According to Fairy Tao Yao, it was even half a step above a Cultivation Technique like the Crimson Scripture of Profound Mystery and Spiritual Mechanism!

However, because it required Nine Transitions, cultivating this technique was suicide for anyone whose cultivation speed wasn’t fast enough or whose talent wasn’t good enough.

This was a Cultivation Technique prepared exclusively for geniuses!

After careful consideration, Du Youqian felt that the Four Principles Sect would have to change its Sect’s Foundation Technique in the future.

Neither the Seven Transition Celestial Dance Scripture nor the Supreme Cave Truth Nine Revolutions and Nine Transformations Celestial Dance Scripture was suitable as an Inheritance for the Sect.

Any Cultivation Technique designed for geniuses was unsuitable as a sect’s inheritance.

’Well, unless I establish a new sect in the future where the minimum requirement for disciples is an Earth Spirit Root...’

’At that time, I could consider passing down the Supreme Cave Truth Nine Revolutions and Nine Transformations Celestial Dance Scripture as the Sect’s Foundation Technique.’

The benefits were in hand; now it was time to get to work.

The Cultivator Du Youqian had agreed to eliminate for the Qingxu Commerce Association was Elder Wen Wuxin, from an outside Nascent Soul Sect called the Binyin Sect.

The information provided by the Qingxu Commerce Association was quite detailed, even recording the Cultivation Technique he practiced, the Magic, Divine Abilities, and Treasures he had revealed.

The man was over eight hundred years old and still held hope of advancing to the Nascent Soul Late Stage and Perfection.

He was stubborn and vengeful over the smallest of slights.

As for what he had done to obstruct someone’s path to wealth, causing them to hire the Qingxu Commerce Association to kill him, Ge Sheng didn’t say.

Even if he had, Du Youqian wouldn’t have believed him.

Smearing someone’s name before killing them was standard practice.

Du Youqian wasn’t naive enough to think that just because the Qingxu Commerce Association had shown him some goodwill, they were some pure and innocent white lotus.

In a cruel world like this, a commerce association that could grow so powerful and spread throughout the entire Human World must have walked over mountains of bones to get there.

All of this went without saying.

In short, Ge Sheng promised to arrange for Wen Wuxin to attack Du Youqian of his own volition. The timing would likely be right after Du Youqian’s Nascent Soul Ceremony.

Du Youqian just needed to kill or severely injure him in self-defense.

At the same time, Ge Sheng warned Du Youqian, "After you kill Wen Wuxin, you’d best go into hiding for a while..."

"And never come back."

"Otherwise, you’ll put us in a very difficult position, and it won’t be convenient for us to continue protecting the Four Principles Sect."

"You have that much faith in me? That I can kill him? He’s a Nascent Soul Middle Stage Cultivator, after all," Du Youqian had retorted.

"I do. Senior Brother Yao Tao has performed a Divination," Ge Sheng said.

Du Youqian was surprised. "He can divine my fate?"

Ge Sheng frowned, looking Du Youqian up and down. "Do you have some kind of special constitution? Or a Divine Ability like ’Beyond Divination’? Why would you think my Senior Brother can’t divine your fate? With his Level Five Divination Skill, Senior Brother Yao Tao can even glean a thing or two about Divinity Transformation Cultivators."

Du Youqian just smiled and didn’t respond.

A secret is something you don’t tell others. He naturally wouldn’t go blabbing to everyone about his unique circumstances.

Ge Sheng didn’t press the matter. "It is strange, though. My Senior Brother really can’t get a clear reading on you... but it doesn’t matter. He can divine Wen Wuxin’s fate."

Du Youqian asked with great interest, "So, what did he find?"

"Wen Wuxin will soon face a great calamity, and it’s highly likely he will perish, his Dao dissipating." Ge Sheng smiled faintly, appearing even more confident than Du Youqian.

After returning to the Four Principles Sect, Du Youqian went into seclusion to conserve his energy and prepare to kill Wen Wuxin after the Nascent Soul Ceremony.

After killing his opponent, he didn’t plan on hiding. He planned to burn his lifespan during the battle. Once he finished off his opponent, he would reincarnate.

’If Ge Sheng and Fairy Tao Yao dare to break their promise, I won’t let them go even if I become a ghost!’

’Alright, it seems I won’t actually become a ghost...’

’Then I’ll never let them go after I reincarnate!’

’I’ll make a note of it. When the time comes, I’ll settle the score with them, just like I plan to with Master Wu Ji and Shi Shentong.’

~~~~~~~~~~~~

Before the Nascent Soul Ceremony, Du Youqian made a special trip to see Meng Xiao and Xi Mengran.

The two ghosts were both doing well. Xi Mengran was already a Ghost Cultivator at the Core Formation Realm; she clearly hadn’t wasted the last twenty years.

When Du Youqian first appeared, he hid his cultivation. She tried to bully him a little to vent some frustration, but he easily suppressed her with a single finger.

If he hadn’t seen that she had no killing intent and was just playing a prank, Du Youqian would never have allowed her to continue existing as a ghost.

In truth, after becoming Ghost Cultivators, both Xi Mengran and Meng Xiao had become like blank slates, very simple and pure.

But simplicity could be simple good, or it could be simple evil.

For now, they both seemed to be leaning toward the side of good.

’How strange.’

After all, Du Youqian’s impression of Xi Mengran when she was alive hadn’t been very good.

But after becoming a Ghost Cultivator, her personality had done a complete one-eighty.

After listening to her recount her experiences over the years (which were incredibly simple), Du Youqian sparred with her. Compared to a Human Race Core Formation Cultivator, a Ghost Cultivator was significantly weaker.

However, the strange ghostly techniques included in the Night Illuminating Nine Heavens Soul-Seeking Immortality Technique she cultivated were impossible to guard against. If she were to fight without holding back, a Human Race Core Formation Cultivator would probably not come out on top.

Meng Xiao’s condition had also improved greatly. His speech was more coherent, and his cultivation had progressed significantly. Clearly, the Night Illuminating Nine Heavens Soul-Seeking Immortality Technique had benefited him immensely.

It had accelerated the recovery of the intellect he possessed in his previous life.

But he hadn’t recovered many of his memories, which was an unfortunate reality.

After visiting his old friends, Du Youqian gave Li Fei some instructions.

Li Fei sensed that his words had the tone of someone arranging their final affairs and became frightened and uneasy.

"I’m just being cautious, just in case," Du Youqian comforted her.

Li Fei looked at him sorrowfully. "I want to hear the truth, Brother Zong. Don’t lie to me."

Du Youqian thought for a moment. ’After all, she will be in charge of the Sect in the future. If she’s too naive, it will likely be detrimental to the Sect.’

So, he laid the cruel truth before her. "The situation in the Western Domain is calm on the surface, but a storm is brewing beneath. Many people do not wish to see a new Nascent Soul Cultivator emerge, especially one as young as I am. It would mean that the Four Principles Sect would dominate for the next millennium, squeezing out others’ living space and even unifying the entire Western Domain. And the outside world doesn’t want a unified power to appear in the Western Domain, one that could centralize resources to help its Cultivators break through. Such a power, once it can no longer plunder resources internally, will inevitably venture into the outside world and begin competing with them for resources. They would rather nip such a possibility in the bud."

"So? Will someone come to kill you? But you’re so powerful, you can beat them, right?" Li Fei said urgently.

"Perhaps. But it doesn’t matter. Just as you said, no matter who comes, I will be the one who wins in the end." Du Youqian smiled confidently.

Li Fei forced a smile. "That’s good, that’s good..."

A few days later, Ge Sheng came running over. He grabbed Du Youqian and tried to drag him into a private chamber, nearly ruining Du Youqian’s reputation.

"What’s so urgent?"

Ge Sheng’s face was as dark as thunder. "News just came in. During a seclusion two years ago, Wen Wuxin successfully broke through to the Nascent Soul Late Stage. He’s just been keeping it a secret."

Du Youqian froze for a moment.

Ge Sheng sighed. "If you feel this is too difficult, you don’t have to do it. Consider the Supreme Cave Truth Nine Revolutions and Nine Transformations Celestial Dance Scripture a gift. Let’s just say we’ve made a friend."

Du Youqian shot back, "What’s difficult about it?"

Ge Sheng was stunned. "Nascent Soul Late Stage!"

"Yes, I heard. Nascent Soul Late Stage. But what’s difficult about it?"

"No," Ge Sheng asked, confused, "the man has advanced to the Nascent Soul Late Stage, what are you planning to do? You can’t possibly think you can severely injure him while jumping two minor realms, can you? We agreed that you must severely injure him to fulfill your side of the bargain."

Du Youqian looked up at the sky as if in deep thought.

After a long moment, he looked at Ge Sheng and said, "Are you sure he’s not at the Divinity Transformation Late Stage?"

Ge Sheng flicked his sleeve, displeased. "I’m not joking with you."

"I’m not joking either," Du Youqian said. "It’s just the Nascent Soul Late Stage, right?"

Ge Sheng didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. "What do you mean, ’just’ the Nascent Soul Late Stage? You’ve only just reached the Nascent Soul Realm, haven’t you?"

"I have."

"And you think you can severely injure him?"

Du Youqian shook his head. "No."

Ge Sheng breathed a sigh of relief. "Good, you haven’t gone crazy yet."

Du Youqian said, "I wasn’t thinking about severely injuring him. I was just thinking about killing him."