《To Devour the Crawling Gods [Lovecraftian Xianxia Progression, Fleshborne Cultivation]》


 0.1 Heaven Unerring

    ~~~


    ¡°Bury the Demon beneath the Earth, where the light of Heaven cannot find him. The world has no need for the likes of his madness, and our people lack the strength to suffer the price of his ambitions.


    However, should the Divines ever come to reap the lives of our kin, remember that Demon. Hand over to him your flesh, and unleash his hunger upon the very Gods we worship.


    Among Heaven and Earth, there is none that can match the Worm¡¯s voracity. Let it feast on their hubris.¡±


    ¨C Final words of Patriarch Lang, moments before he succumbed to his wounds incurred at the Battle of the Five Hegemon Immortals.


    <hr>


    It was the Third Celestial Millennia of His Jade Majesty¡¯s reign, and the world was at peace.


    At the centre of the world was Mount Tai, a breathing God Mountain that had speared the very stars themselves to bathe in the universe''s Qi-giving cosmic rays. It was here that the Celestial Court existed, home to the Divines who governed the world below Heaven. Upon those sacred peaks steeped in ancient magic and profound mysteries, the Gods ruled supreme, led by their Creator and Sovereign, the illustrious and ethereal Jade King.


    Far beneath the lands of the Celestial Court was the continent of Qiangyu, where the common mortals crawled on their knees and worshipped before the feet of Mount Tai ¡ª a position that well-befitted their place, for only through supplication were the most faithful and blessed few ever noticed by the Gods and bestowed the coveted arts of Cultivation.


    In exchange for these divine gifts, these ¡®Cultivators¡¯ were bound by servitude and loyalty, dedicating their lives to the capricious whims of the gods.


    Armed with the barest of Celestial secrets, the first exalted mortals learned to harness the energies of the universe and ascended far beyond their human peers. Revered and envied by their fellow men, they live the most extraordinary lives a lowly supplicant could ever aspire to.


    Yet such boons were but chains that bound them as short-lived slaves. Disparaged and subordinated by the Ancient Divines, the human cultivators were treated as disposable pawns to be sacrificed in the twisted and petty feuds between the factions of the Celestial Court. Such was their usefulness of serving as fodder that the Gods would willingly sacrifice thousands upon thousands of them simply to gain the slightest advantage over their rivals.


    Men died in droves so that they might entertain the Divines, as was right and proper. With their deaths ensuring the Gods¡¯ amusement, the Kingdom of Jade progressed through the centuries with transcendent peace and prosperity.


    It was an Age of Gods, resplendent in its celestial radiance, and all was just.


    Yet, in every age, there were fools who dared overstep their place. Rather than be grateful to the heavens for their continued existence, these mortals instead craved more than what their station rightfully permitted.


    A more wretched and distasteful creature there never was ¡ª mere ignorant Worms who thought themselves deserving of more than what was already generously given. They starved for power beyond what they could comprehend with unsightly voraciousness, instigating rebellion and sowing chaos within the mortal realm.


    Those lowly, greedy fools were of little consequence, however. The cultivator armies of the Celestial Court were faithful and plenty. Any hints of organised resistance were quickly suppressed and made a brutal example of. Any illegal cultivators found were swiftly eliminated with utmost prejudice.


    And should even a mortal cultivator manage to escape the eyes of the Celestial Court, what threat could they possibly amount to? A mere thief of scant secrets could never compare to the sheer majesty of the Divines. And a mere Worm alone could never hope to rebel against the inviolable might of the stars.


    Yet, in a cell far from the peaks of Mount Tai ¡ª buried deep within the earth, where the cosmic lights would never shine, and the rot of flesh was craved as a delicacy ¡ª a mere Worm sits and waits.


    Because that Worm understands that with enough cravenness and hunger, even it may one day grow fool enough to swallow the Gods whole. All it simply must do is wait for the fated day to arrive. And so the Worm waits¡­


    And waits¡­


    ~~~


    And waits longer still.


    It appears the day of his righteous apocalypse was fated to be annoyingly far away.


    The man sighed, pondering the wretchedness of his present situation: trapped in a cell far beneath the earth, with little chance of escape or rescue.


    How deplorable. And to think he once sought to usurp the Jade Tyrant in Heaven. The Gods of that damnable Court must be laughing at him now.


    It was becoming increasingly difficult for the man to recall the radiance of the stars. Down in the freezing filth and wet muck of his underground prison, he spent his days listlessly waiting and brooding. Devoid of sustenance, of good company, of even light¡­


    It was an unenviable fate for any sentient being.


    ¡°Yours is the just fate given to the arrogant and the foolish. Had you the modesty to know your limitations, you might well have avoided this shameful incarceration.¡±


    Her voice, again. Ringing in his mind. As if his current circumstances were not mockery enough.


    The man shifted idly, chains scrapping against the moist walls as he tried to make himself comfortable amidst the shackles. No matter how he sat, he could never avoid the touch of iron pressing against his bones.


    His pit was devoid of other prisoners, for his jailers knew to bereft him of all sources of nutrition. Save beyond the insistent dripping of water from a stalactite above and the occasional clinking of his chains, there was nought but silence to accompany him.


    ¡°Would that you were deserving of silence. Providence saw fit to bind my flesh in yours, so that you might never know a moment¡¯s peace. So that you might never forget your mistakes.¡±


    The man looked pointedly around his cell, amber eyes lingering on the damp surface walls, the iron hatch above his gaol, and the chains wrapped around his limbs.


    ¡°You would find I need no such reminder, I think.¡± His voice was but a thread whisper; the barest exertion of effort required to produce a voice, made to address a room void of any discernable company save his own.


    It was enough. The intended recipient of his words heard them. With luck, she would leave him be such that he might languish privately in the pains of his silent starvation.


    Hunger has infested itself into the very fibre of his being. His emaciated body howled for sustenance, having long since cannibalised every last ounce of disposable fat and muscle stores that it could claim its ravenous claws on. His very soul was dying, forced to use its dwindling vitality to fuel his famished physical shell, lest death takes him completely.


    It was rather unpleasant, the man would admit. But even worse than the gnawing, gnashing agony was how tortuously tedious the whole ordeal was. A part of him almost wished his captors had simply chopped his head off rather than subject him to this unbearable boredom.


    ¡°One finds greater satisfaction in killing a God through the slow knife of privation, for Hunger is the sentence condemned only to the plagued, the forsaken, and the lowliest wretches of the world.¡±


    The man snorted. ¡°Clearly, you have never been in a famine before. Hunger does not discriminate. It comes in Winter¡¯s Woe, in Harvest¡¯s Blight, or in a thousand, thousand other potential misfortunes that might deprive a man of his grain or cattle. Hunger haunts all living creatures equally.¡±


    ¡°And yet, though you need neither consume grain nor cattle for sustenance, you suffer the perverse touch of famine all the same. Do not equivocate your suffering with those of mortal banality, Zhong. Yours is the Hunger that once drove Dynasties and Divines alike to madness.¡±


    ¡°Did they take this long to starve as well? Maybe it was boredom that drove them first to madness¡­¡±


    The entirety of his existence was being sieged by starvation; the key word being sieged. Given his advanced cultivation standing, the gruelling process had to be stretched over an insufferably long time, and there was nought he could do about it except wait.


    Wait, and perhaps curse his jailers for being cowardly dogs who could not even muster the courage to finish him off. Honestly, how could an entire Clan devoted to the pursuit of Immortality be so spineless that they would resort to starving him to death rather than just simply executing him?


    All this time and resources, wasted instead of a swift beheading, because of mere fear? The thought was laughable.


    ¡°Why shouldn¡¯t they fear a God? Doubly so, given the nature of your unholy existence. You, who were born to devour Divine Destiny.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t feel like much of a God right now,¡± he retorted, to no one in particular. ¡°And at this point, I would settle for eating a rat, much less something as cumbersome as Divine Destiny. Consuming the Dao does not sate hunger.¡±Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.


    ¡°Neither do the rats, yet you keep eating them all the same.¡±


    For all his complaints, Zhong couldn¡¯t deny that the Clan¡¯s method wasn¡¯t working. The air in his cell was stale, freezing, and devoid of even the barest hint of qi. Cultivation was next to impossible, which meant he could not recover his strength. His arms and legs were wrapped in chains crafted by the master artificers of the Kunlun Mountains themselves. Their durability was such that even a practitioner of his calibre would struggle to break it in his current, dilapidated state.


    Trapped with no other options, the man could only settle in and wait. Thankfully, his mouth was still free to move, so he had room to entertain himself, limited as it might be. Sometimes, he would sing, crafting poetry that would no doubt leave the fabled wordsmiths of the Jade Palace weeping, if only for how bad they were. Sometimes, he would paint, although doing so with only the mud of his enclosure and his tongue to draw with was highly unpleasant.


    And sometimes, he would catch the occasional vermin that scuttered into his gaol with his teeth, earning himself a well-deserved meal and temporary relief from his hunger.


    ¡°Rats ill-suit your diet.¡±


    ¡°You find me something better to chew on, then.¡±


    A pity they had stopped coming. The pests have learned to leave his damp cell alone after he had viciously devoured the first few dozen, leaving not even bones or offal for the insects to eat.


    ¡°Neither beasts nor vermin of sentient mind ever dared enter the maw of Voracity Incarnate.¡±


    ¡°There are easier ways to call me greedy. No need to wax poetics. Bad poetics, if I might add.¡±


    ¡°Pity there is nought else to do but insult you as we waste away.¡±


    ¡°Pity me instead. I¡¯m the one stuck with you lodged in my Heart.¡±


    Save for those few meagre activities, there was nothing else to be done. The weaklings that guard his prison no longer even dared to approach, not even to mock him. He was a thing left to be starved and forgotten in the lowest of the Clan¡¯s dungeons. His allies have either chosen to forget about him or have all died trying to reach him.


    How long had he been imprisoned? Years, decades? Surely it had not already been a century? The man doubted his reserves of qi would have lasted him for so long. He had already expended most of it during his last fight, and there had been hardly time for him to recover before his opponents had captured him.


    ¡°It has been ten months at most. Cease your attention-mongering. It¡¯s unbecoming.¡±


    ¡°You can¡¯t possibly know that! There¡¯s no way for us to tell without the light of the Perishing Stars.¡±


    ¡°One does not necessarily need eyes to know the majesty of Mount Tai. Nor does one need the illumination of dying Suns to know the phantom pain of a wasted day¡¯s end.¡±


    A lesser being would have already long given his mind to insanity ¡ª for the relief it would bring, if nothing else. But he was a Cultivator of the highest order. The long passage of time spent in dull isolation and starvation will not break him. In time, this suffrage would be but a mere drop in his long quest for immortality.


    Assuming he got out, of course. He was still waiting for the opportunity to do that.


    He longed to be free again, to fly among the skies with his wings. To feel the rush of storm winds arcing along the length of his body ¡ª the heat of the cosmic rays shining against his face! ¡ª as he rushed above the Jade Clouds, chasing his prey. To wield the powers of the Morning Star in his hand as he destroyed his foes and brought fear and awe in equal measure to his mortal followers below.


    To be reduced to a chained, rat-devouring prisoner by cultivators too cowardly to try and kill him¡­


    It was hilarious./ ¡°It is a disgrace.¡±


    Ah, if only his Teacher could see him now. She would have laughed herself into a fit before beating him senseless for letting such dishonour happen to him. Although, he would have gladly allowed it, if only for the chance to see her smile again.


    ¡°Great General of Karma. First of the Ten Principals. The Wise Old One¡­ and also a violent hag too eager to dispense physical punishment during your tutelage under her.¡±


    ¡°Learning under her was your idea, not mine. I would have sooner avoided that crazed fairy entirely.¡±


    He wondered how his disciples were doing. Were they still alive? Surely they would not have been foolish enough to try and save him? The thought had crossed his mind during the early days of his captivity, but as time passed and there was no sign of a rescue, he had ceased thinking about them too much. Either they were foolish enough to challenge the Hegemon Clans and die in the attempt, or they were smart enough to move on and continue their Path to Immortality elsewhere.


    He sincerely hoped it was the latter. His disciples were foolish and slovenly, more focused on helping mortals than developing their cultivation, but he wished for them to live all the same ¡ª those pair of ridiculous, virtuous human twins that he had grown to care for.


    ¡°The Wine-drinking Recluse, and the Sword-grafting Lunatic. Grown in your hungry shadow, little wonder their madness reflected yours.¡±


    ¡°I assure you their peculiarities were their own. If anything, my presence was the counterbalance to their constant insanity.¡±


    And what of his armies and allies? Had they also perished after seeing their leader fall in his final, valiant fight? The man hoped that they had fled after the slave cultivators of the Celestial Court had managed to take him down with that abomination of a sealing technique.


    ¡°Sworn Brothers, Inhuman Devils, and Lowly Peasants all. Those who dared dream, followed you. Those who dared dream, died for you.¡±


    ¡°We don¡¯t know their fates yet. They might yet live. Maybe.¡±


    Without his presence stemming the tide of nature-defying arts aimed at them, he doubted the rest of his forces would have lasted long, not against that many of the Court¡¯s lapdogs. He had to hold faith that some of them had survived.


    Except for the Fox and the Primate, perhaps. That damnable vulpine had always been a thorn in his side, even as an ally. Although, if he was being honest with himself, he greatly doubted she would have fallen. Wily vixen that she was, the Nine-Mouthed Calamity would have been the first to escape the moment she sensed the tides of the battle turning.


    She was likely somewhere far away now, laughing at his plight while ruining some other Divine¡¯s day.


    ¡°When the last of the nine tails falls, the world shall not remember the Fox, but instead the woman who once slithered beneath the skin of Heavenly Kings.¡±


    ¡°Calling that vile schemer a whore would suffice.¡±


    As for the Primate¡­ the less said about that one, the better.


    ¡°... He was an annoyance, wasn¡¯t he?¡±


    The man blinked. ¡°What, no cryptic poetry for him?¡±


    ¡°He doesn¡¯t deserve it. Among all your companions, his traitorous presence was the most unbearable, second only to the Fox. You should have killed the licentious monkey centuries ago.¡±


    ¡°I wasn¡¯t exactly at a liberty to turn away competent fighters, especially ones of his calibre.¡±


    What a wretched loneliness it was. Once, the man had been surrounded by the endless clamours of his subordinates and allies, with nary a moment to himself. So many times, he wished for a moment¡¯s peace, and now that he had it, he longed for a voice to talk with once more.


    Anyone but the annoying voice in his head, that was.


    ¡°None but the Devil who sleeps within your Heart.¡±


    Zhong sighed. ¡°More like the annoying Worm who gave me a lifetime of moral indigestion and stifled advancement. Do you know how difficult it was to cultivate with a parasite buried in your Dantian? A parasite that keeps stealing my qi, at that.¡±


    A quiet laughter chimed in his head, twinkling like bells.


    ¡°I did warn you not to eat my corpse when we first met aeons ago. In truth, I had not thought you capable of surviving the putrid pungency, my foolish God. My flesh was hardly fit for the palate of the Divine Cannibal. Though the turning of meat may sweeten its flavour, the rot of bodies should not be treated as a delicacy, no matter the depths of its succulent virtue¡­¡±


    ¡°Nor the curse of Fleshborne Divinity you found within.¡±


    As if he had a choice¡­ He still remembered the Hunger, the nectarous scent of her Crawling Carcass, the revolting saccharinity of that Flesh shared, and the Pact they made under dying moonlight.


    ¡°Woe to me that I proved you wrong, then.¡±


    ¡°And so you did.¡± Another chuckle from her. ¡°Again and again, until you brought this lowly Worm to the slopes of Mount Tai itself, despite the Gods that stood in your way.¡±


    ¡°A pity I did not reach the peak before the end.¡± The man gazed up, staring at the unmoving hatch of his cell. ¡°I would have loved to see you placed upon the Throne of the Star-Eating Mountain, as I had promised. It would have brought me great satisfaction to see our bargain and covenant fulfilled.¡±


    She went silent for a time after that. Even the vile Weight of his Heart dared not converse with him too much, for his qi was so spent that to communicate even a single word might sooner spell his end.


    His end¡­ The end of the Morning Star. Fitting that one that sought to devour the Tyrant in Heaven would be fated to die through Hunger.


    Ah, but that was enough reminiscing. What to do now, then? He did not feel inclined to meditate. He could try working on his mud painting, he supposed. There wasn¡¯t much water to work with, and drawing with his tongue always felt grating, but it was something to do at least¡ª


    Wait. He heard something.


    Something that wasn¡¯t dripping water, his breathing, or the scraping of his chain. His ears perked up. Another rat, perhaps? It¡¯s been so long since he had one. Their bodies were rubbish at providing qi ¡ª they weren¡¯t Spirit Beasts, after all ¡ª but trying to catch them provided some measure of amusement, and their flesh helped fill the gnawing void of hunger.


    But¡­ No. The noise was faded, barely perceptible, but it felt too heavy to be the scampering of a rat.


    Were those¡­ footsteps?


    ¡°And so comes the turning of our fates¡­¡±


    <hr>


    Cultivation


    Cultivation, once a sacred practice guarded jealously by the Celestial Courts, is the art of ascending a creature¡¯s natural state of being into a higher stage of existence through the manipulation and condensation of spiritual energy ¡ª also known as qi ¡ª into one¡¯s body and soul.


    The rewards of cultivation are varied and numerous, with boons such as a longer lifespan, the ability to perform otherworldly feats of power, elevated physical capabilities, refined appearances, and so much more.


    At a certain level, one may even ascend to an existence beyond their physical shell and become an ¡®Immortal¡¯ ¡ª an entity whose soul has become separated from its material body and is no longer dependent on the Cycle of Samsara to maintain its continued existence.


    The benefits of advancement are as countless as the stars that fill the cosmos, but as one ascends further away from their fundamental origin, it might be wise to stop and consider if what is being gained still outweighs what is being lost.


    Or rather, if what was gained on the Path had ever outweighed what was lost.


    No one ever does, of course. Just because a thought is insightful does not mean it is worth pondering over.


    After all, when compared to Immortality, how much value could our Humanity possibly hold?


    ¡ª Excerpt from Of Jade¡¯s Lacking, unknown author. Possession of the heretical text in any capacity is banned under the Jade King¡¯s Decree, on pain of treason and death.

 0.2 Demon Unending

    The man felt more confused than hopeful. The last time someone visited him was just recently after his humiliating defeat. A trio of fledgling cultivators ¡ª all barely within the Third Realm ¡ª led by some arrogant whelp who had just recently ascended to the Fourth.


    The son of the Clan¡¯s newest Patriarch, supposedly. The boy had come to gloat about his father¡¯s victory over him, as if the triumph had been the coward¡¯s and not the other slain Patriarchs who were brave enough to face him in glorious battle.


    The man had not bothered trying to entertain the conceited child. A being who has not even reached a century of age was not worthy of speaking with. Not because of a lack of cultivated strength, but simply because someone that young would be void of any wisdom worth plucking from a conversation.


    There might also have been the matter that man couldn¡¯t even reply at the time, were he even inclined to. A Divine Sealing Mask had been covering his face at the start of his incarceration. That damnable thing had been preventing his ability to even breathe, let alone speak.


    Thankfully, the idiotic brat had eventually grown tired of his unresponsiveness and had one of his underlings climb down into his gaol and remove his mask. He would forever be grateful to that boy; the years would have been far more unbearable if he couldn¡¯t even see, breathe, or drink.


    He remembered seeing the arrogant heir looking down, smugly smirking at him while saying all manner of insults the man couldn¡¯t be bothered listening to. The man remembered smiling back, before he opened his mouth.


    And roared.


    They likely had to scrub the boy¡¯s remains off the ceiling. He didn¡¯t remember much after that. The talismans on him had activated after he unleashed his noise technique, rendering him temporarily unconscious. When he woke up, there was no one else around, and any remains of the corpse had been thoroughly removed. There wasn¡¯t even so much as a drop of blood to fall into his mouth to feed on.


    In hindsight, he should have probably made better use of that chance to escape. No one else dared to approach his cell afterwards.


    Until now.


    ¡°Would this be prelude to exoneration, or execution?¡±


    ¡°Either way, it presents an opportunity.¡±


    Those were definitely footsteps he was hearing. The sound felt alien to him after so long in isolation. And the echo was getting louder as well. There was nothing else around his gaol; whoever this was, they were coming for him.


    The man found himself tense with anticipation. After so long, was he finally getting a chance to escape? But why now? He was sure that the Clan¡¯s cultivators intended to starve him out, such was their fear of him. They had not even dared to muzzle him again with the mask after the incident with the Young Master. The lot had simply shut the hatch above him and left him alone for years.


    They may be simply checking if he was dead. His body, even weakened and emaciated as it was, still held many valuable resources for cultivators. His Core alone would be a great boon to any who consume it, parasite within notwithstanding.


    Yes, that had to be it. The cultivators of the Clan had finally come to harvest his body. The man found himself amused. Some might consider the practice uncouth, but he found it admirable behaviour for one who sought the path to Immortality, especially since the Gods hoarded all the best resources for themselves.


    ¡°It was always wiser to acknowledge one¡¯s greed, rather than shy away from it.¡±


    But just because he approved did not mean he was willing to give in so simply. Whoever came to make a meal of him would find no easy prey. His qi reserves may be a shadow compared to what he once held, but he still had enough for a final technique or two.


    Not anything powerful, but perhaps enough for him to gain an opportunity to flee. At the very least, he was intent on bringing down at least one more cultivator¡ª


    Wait. That smell¡­


    ¡°Ah¡­ Neither liberator nor executor, this one. Merely a beggar, here to supplicate before higher power¡­¡±


    ¡­ There was a scent in the air. It took the man a while to recognise it, for his nose had not seen much use since he had been jailed down in that pit, but the familiar and mouthwatering tinge soon became unmistakable.


    Blood. Qi-rich blood.


    Only a single pair of footsteps approached. The man could also hear shallow panting, as if the person was struggling to draw breath. The faintest sliver of illumination began to shine between the cracks of his hatch, the first rays of light he had seen in years.


    A small part of him rejoiced at the simple sensation of his sight returning, but the rest was far more preoccupied with something else.


    The scent of fresh blood. And not just any blood, a cultivator¡¯s blood. Strong, vibrant, and full of spiritual energy. Whoever was approaching was not only wounded, but strong as well. A cultivator from the Fifth Realm, if he were to wager a guess from the sanguine scent alone.


    The man¡¯s mouth was salivating. Razor-sharp fangs, unused for years but yet remained impossibly keen, emerged from his gums. His hunger, previously a yawning void, had transformed into a feral, ravenous beast.


    He wanted them: the flesh of a cultivator to sate his hunger, the blood of a cultivator to quench his thirst. He wanted to lunge for the hatch in bestial hunger, tear it from its hinges, and devour¡ª


    No.


    ¡°No?¡±


    His circumstances were no excuse for him to act like an animal, no matter how dire they may be. Misfortune, pain, and suffering were no reasons why a man could not continue acting with prudence, control, and dignity.This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.


    His beloved master taught him to be better than this. A man¡¯s mind was his own. He must not be a slave to his hunger. That salivating savage within him was merely a childish impulse ¡ª a thing to be entertained at his leisure, and not something he was beholden to. He refused to be a beast.


    His mind was his own.


    The man swallowed back his saliva. He forced his fangs to retract, and he pushed the ravening hunger in his throat back down as far as he could. He must maintain sound judgement and look for the opportunity to escape. There might not be another chance.


    The hatch above him was easily thrice his height, but he could see the person who opened it well enough in the light.


    A young male cultivator, dressed in expensive robes that were no doubt once the proud product of skilled artificers and alchemists. They would have looked beautiful, if not for the blood and signs of battle damage that marred them. Tears, burns, and even what looked to be acid splashes littered almost every inch of them.


    The cultivator appeared no better as well. He was clutching his side and breathing heavily. The man could smell blood coming from the youth¡¯s breath ¡ª a lung wound, too heavy and deep to heal immediately, even with his advanced cultivation level. The boy carried a folding spear on his back, elegantly crafted and well-made, but its tip was chipped and stained with black blood. He held no torch; the illumination surrounding the youth came from a ball of fire that hovered close behind him.


    The man in the hole looked into the cultivator¡¯s eyes and frowned. They looked exhausted, and he could see the signs of qi depletion as clear as day. The cultivator flinched when their gaze met, but to the man¡¯s pleasant surprise, the youth did not move away.


    Instead, the boy forced himself to return his stare. After only a brief moment of hesitation, the youth jumped into the cell.


    The cultivator landed gracefully before him. He stood upright, his back straight, and his head unbowed. His arms were crossed together beneath the sleeves of his robes. Despite his heavy wounds, the cultivator had managed to regain control over his breathing, appearing poised and arrogant before him.


    Behind the veil of regal confidence, however, the man could still smell the blood leaking from the numerous lacerations beneath his robes. More than that, the cultivator¡¯s qi was severely out of balance, and stuck in a losing struggle to repair the damage to his body.


    This boy had just been in a fight ¡ª one where he was injured grievously ¡ª and was given neither the time nor means to recover from his severe wounds.


    ¡°I smell fourteen moderate lacerations. Six penetrated wounds, three of which have struck vital organs. One managed to punctuate both lungs in a single strike. There remain burnt grains of fulminated mercury interfering with his regeneration ¡ª the bullet wounded and exited across his torso. His ribs are shattered. He struggles to breathe. Without the rhythm of meditation, his qi cannot recover. He is dying.¡±


    ¡°What of his meridians?¡±


    ¡°Stable. His injuries are entirely physical.¡±


    ¡°Then he might yet live if he seeks treatment.¡±


    ¡°And yet, he is here, seeking your company rather than that of the Clan¡¯s chirurgeon. Why?¡±


    The cultivator flared his qi. The surrounding air, previously lifeless and dead, suddenly regained vigour from that singular release alone. The air smelled sweeter, the temperature of the gaol rose to something resembling warmth, and even his surroundings felt less damp. The man took a deep breath, savouring the first dregs of spiritual energy he had in years.


    ¡°Are you the one named Zhong?¡± The cultivator said, his voice subtly laced with power. Its authority compelled him to listen, to obey. The man refrained from laughing at the pitiful attempt to control him. Instead, he licked his dry lips and considered the question. He found it curious that the cultivator had referred to him by his old name, rather than by the dreaded title of which he was much more renowned.


    ¡°This one was called that before, yes.¡±


    Zhong spoke slowly, as if to taste the words in his mouth. It felt strange, almost unnatural, to speak aloud again. He had only ever whispered to the wraith in his heart, and even before his imprisonment, Zhong was more used to using his qi to communicate rather than through his voice.


    The cultivator did not reply. Instead, the youth simply stood there, observing him. Zhong did the same, noting the boy¡¯s remarkable impassiveness. His heartbeat gave his true nervousness away, however. It was just the slightness bit too fast, the barest slip mistake over a body of otherwise perfect control.


    The boy was afraid, that much was obvious.


    The man sat up straighter, and the cultivator stiffened. This time, Zhong did laugh. A dry, rasping sound echoed through the chamber as the youth bristled.


    ¡°Come closer, cultivator. It has been so long since I last had a visitor,¡± the man taunted. ¡°Why don¡¯t you take a seat? My accommodations are a bit lacking, but you do look tired.¡±


    To his surprise, the cultivator did sit, uncaring of the grime and mud soiling his clothes. ¡°They say that you are a Demon possessing great power. A fallen God. Is that true?¡±


    The man blinked in surprise, then grinned.


    He wasn¡¯t expecting the cultivator to indulge him in a conversation. His jailers had always been too afraid to interact with him after the previous incident. For them to suddenly change their ways now, right when he was on the brink of finally perishing?


    Something was amiss. After countless years of waiting, an opportunity had finally presented itself for him to leave his prison. But why now? What was developing on the surface? This boy was not one of his retainers, nor a face he recognised. That meant he must be related in some way to his jailers, yet what purpose would the Clan have to send a wounded child down here to meet him?


    Something foul was afoot, yet Zhong was in no position to complain. If fortune smiled upon him, he might yet be soon able to continue his most unholy of crusades.


    And perhaps, if he were truly lucky, he would be able to steal a bite of Divine flesh along the way.


    But first, he had to answer the cultivator before him, who had just asked him a most curious question. A Demon, was he? The man¡¯s grin widened, revealing inhumanly sharp teeth.


    ¡°No.¡± / ¡°Yes.¡±


    This could be fun.


    <hr>


    Demon


    A fictional entity said to have originated from beyond the Abyssal Ridge ¡ª the grand mountainous divide that encircles the territory of the Jade King and his Celestial Court. The legends claim that the world beyond the cultivated shadows of Mount Tai holds the realms of the Underworld, populated by fallen gods cast out from His Majesty¡¯s Kingdom.


    However, there has never been any recorded sighting of a so-called ¡°Demon¡± emerging from beyond the King¡¯s borders, nor have any official expeditions across the frontier ever encountered nor found any evidence that would support the existence of such a creature, Divine or otherwise.


    Tales of monstrous figures made of twisted human organs or giant metallic humanoids that could unleash rays of incendiary light invading from beyond the illustrious lands of the Kingdom are preposterous. They are but the products of superstitious folktales and overly imaginative heathens, made to taint the minds of the intellect and the enlightened.


    As a loyal citizen of His Celestial Majesty, it is your duty to report any such sources of knowledge pollution to your nearest constable or Imperial Official immediately. The Path to Immortality already has enough obstacles without adding more distractions to it. We must all do our part to ensure the continued prosperity and peace of our beloved Kingdom.


    ¨C Excerpt from Wisdom of The Jade King; this particular publication was the last edition that held any mention of the word ¡®Demon¡¯ before the very name of it was removed from the official Kingdom Lexicon and banned from utterance under pain of death.

 0.3 And the Worm Pretending

    The cultivator frowned at his reply. ¡°No?¡±


    ¡°No. Great power, maybe. Far in the past, before my imprisonment,¡± the man admitted freely. ¡°But a Demon? Never.¡±


    Zhong¡¯s mind spun, trying to divine the cultivator¡¯s purpose. Why would the boy ask such questions? Surely the Clans had already found the truth, despite whatever suspicion they held about his origins. They were not that incompetent.


    ¡°There are times when one may deem blindness to be preferable to wisdom.¡±


    Did they hide the truth from their own people? Did the cultivator before him truly not know? For that to be the case, Heaven must be working very hard indeed to cover the mess Zhong made before his imprisonment.


    Regardless of the reason, the youth did not like his answer.


    ¡°All the records I¡¯ve read claim without a doubt that you are a Demon,¡± the boy insisted. ¡°You have made Binding Pacts before ¡ª those corrupted parodies of the promise once made between Gods and Cultivators. Only Demons are capable of crafting Binding Pacts. You granted your followers power and protection, in exchange for their undying fealty. There are even records of you helping other cultivators achieve impossible breakthroughs in exchange for future favours and alliances. There has never been a recorded instance where either you or those whom you dealt with betrayed one another before, which means they had to be Binding Blood Pacts.¡±


    Zhong snorted. ¡°Pacts? I hardly made Demon Blood Pacts, boy. I made laws, promises, and bargains. That my followers and I have often upheld our end of promises does not make me a Demon. It simply makes me virtuous. Or have you cultivators become so comfortable with the profitability of deception that the concept of an honest deal is no longer understandable to you?¡±


    The cultivator frowned further. ¡°Why do you deny that you are a Demon?¡±


    Zhong chuckled. The cultivator¡¯s frustration was amusing. What puppy-like naivete. It was adorable. ¡°Why do you insist that I am one?¡±


    ¡°Is this inane denial entertaining to you?¡± the boy demanded. The youth¡¯s voice remained calm, his sitting posture elegant and refined, but the spike in his unstable qi told a different story.


    The man tilted his head. The firelight glinted off his fangs. ¡°Explain yourself, boy. Give me clarity. Why must I be a Demon? Why must I be a fallen god? Why must I be anything you claim I am?¡±


    The cultivator¡¯s qi rose sharply before it sputtered and backlashed as he strained himself too far. To the youth¡¯s credit, the only noticeable reaction from him was a grimace, despite the blood filling his mouth and the pain that must be wreaking havoc among his meridians.


    ¡°It was you who led the invasion of the Grand Demonic Host from the Underworld into the Qiangyu continent,¡± the boy accused after taking a moment to recover. ¡°It was you who devoured the Eighteen Clans of the Jade Coast when they tried to stop your army¡¯s advance. It was you who desecrated the White Peak Monastery, killing our Zhenren ¡ª our dearest True Ancestor! ¡ª before consuming her flesh in Unholy Matrimony. And during your battle against the Hegemon Immortals, before you were captured, there are records of you fighting the combined might of the Five Hegemon Gods by transforming into a, a ¡­ s-something else.¡±


    The cultivator stuttered at the end, unable to bring himself to say that word. Zhong hummed curiously.


    ¡°To deny the existence of a word is to cripple a part of its power.¡±


    Even now, they dared not acknowledge his nature? It seemed that the Jade King¡¯s tyranny still ran deep within the hearts of mortal men.


    That meant his rebellion likely failed after his capture, then.


    The youth pressed on. ¡°There is no doubt that you are a Demon. There is no possibility that you are not one. No cultivator would ever do the things you did. No human would ever sink to your level of depravity.¡±


    Zhong smiled. ¡°No.¡±


    The cultivator looked him in the eye. ¡°No? You dare deny your deeds, Zhong? Your crimes against millions, tens of millions?¡±


    ¡°The deeds, true,¡± Zhong shrugged. ¡°Led the Demonic invasion. Devoured many people. Killed your precious Zhenren. Fought the ¡®Immortal¡¯ Patriarchs of your proud Core Clans, and lost. But I didn¡¯t do that as a Demon.¡±


    ¡°You could not have led the Demonic army without being a Demon!¡± the boy snarled, before doubling over and coughing.


    The man sighed.


    ¡°And why must you be a Demon to lead a Demonic host?¡±


    ¡°What? What nonsense are you¡ª¡±


    The man interrupted him. ¡°Demons make Pacts, remember? I can¡¯t create a Pact, but I can certainly be the blood giver to a Demon in a Pact. The right price, with the right persuasion, and you could bind Demons to do anything. Even to invade another continent.¡±


    ¡°They gleefully gave their blood to the contract, not knowing they were binding their fates to a monster worse than all the horrors of the Underworld ¡ª a Worm that slept within the heart of her God.¡±


    ¡°But, but there were thousands!¡± the boy hissed. ¡°Tens of thousands! Inhuman creatures, every last one of them! And you bound them all? Do you honestly expect me to believe such tripe?!¡±


    ¡°As for depravity,¡± Zhong continued, unbothered by the cultivator¡¯s accusations. ¡°There are no depths to a cultivator¡¯s depravity. In the end, for anyone who is genuinely willing to pursue immortality to the ends of the earth, what a man can do is what a man will do. And I was very willing to see my objective through, regardless of the cost. Even if it meant killing and eating thousands.¡±


    The cultivator¡¯s neutral expression finally broke. Disgust was apparent on his face, but Zhong pushed on.


    ¡°But there is one more thing that you wanted to accuse me of. An undeniable truth rooted in you that made you certain that I must be a Demon, rather than a mortal cultivator.¡±


    The man leaned forward, and the cultivator recoiled when he saw the monstrous glow of the man¡¯s eyes.


    In the end, it always came to a need for power. Power to cultivate. Power to dominate.


    ¡°The power of an Immortal.¡±


    ¡°No creature could have possibly achieved the heights of my strength without being of Immortal blood,¡± Zhong mockingly said. ¡°I held the strength of Ancient Gods, and since I had waged war against Mount Tai and their armies of Heaven, I could not have been kin to the Celestial Court. With no other alternatives, that must mean I am a Demon. A fallen god.¡±


    The chained man grinned, vicious fangs and inhuman yellow eyes gleaming in the dark. ¡°After all, how could a mere mortal accomplish so much? The very thought of it, the sheer humiliation of it, must have been unthinkable to your masters. Even after they verified the truth of my origins with their own eyes. That I am, undeniably, human.¡±


    Zhong leaned back. Neither spoke for a time. The man was content to wait for the cultivator¡¯s response.


    ¡°Who do you claim to be, then?¡± The cultivator finally asked.


    ¡°A man who thought he was a cultivator, but instead realised he was actually a worm,¡± he answered. Zhong¡¯s lips curled back into an expression of genuine amusement. ¡°And a worm who knew he was a worm, but instead likes to occasionally pretend he was a Dragon.¡±


    The cultivator flinched back at that last word. The word he could not bring himself to say. A taboo never to be utter, under Heaven¡¯s Law.Love this novel? Read it on Royal Road to ensure the author gets credit.


    Depravity without equal. Hunger without equal. A creature worse than any rebel. Any demon. Any God.


    Dragon. / ¡°That Which Once Devoured Divine Destiny.¡±


    ¡°Your name, cultivator?¡± Zhong asked. The youth hesitated.


    Rather than reply, the boy drew a knife from his sleeve instead.


    Zhong glanced at the blade with more curiosity than caution. The blade was sharp, unnaturally so. And very well-crafted. Leagues above even the impressive spear the cultivator carried on his back.


    ¡°Kunlun Steel. Forged in the volcanic blood of its namesake mountain.¡±


    The youth stood up in a single fluid motion and stepped forward. Zhong regarded him with amusement.


    ¡°Do you plan to kill me, cultivator?¡± At the man¡¯s current qi reserves, he stood next to no chance of defending himself, not from such a high-level cultivator. Zhong wouldn¡¯t accept dying quietly, but any techniques he could use in his condition would barely hinder the youth, much less defeat him. Injured as the boy might be, a practitioner of the Fifth Realm would not be so easy to slay.


    Still, the man had long accepted his death could come at any time. At least he had the privilege of a proper conversation before his end ¡ª one that did not involve the wraith in his unbeating heart.


    ¡°How cruel of you to say, my foolish God. Yet I would ask that you cease such depressing thoughts, and steel yourself for what¡¯s next to come. The boy is neither exonerator nor executioner.¡±


    ¡°He is a supplicant.¡±


    The cultivator approached, but to Zhong¡¯s astonishment, the boy kneeled before him instead, placing himself vulnerably close to the man. The youth¡¯s neck was tantalisingly close, and though it was a struggle not to immediately lash out and bite, Zhong refrained from attacking.


    For the first time in a long while, his curiosity won out over his incessant hunger.


    ¡°I came here because I thought I would find the most powerful Demon in Qiangyu; a monster who once led the host of Eighty-Thousand Horrors out from the Underworld itself.¡± The cultivator bowed his head before him. ¡°I don¡¯t know if you really are a Demon, but all the same, I want to make a Pact.¡±


    The boy¡¯s blood was so close. Zhong could practically feel his heartbeat. He held the hunger back, gritting his teeth at the effort. ¡°I cannot make Pacts, boy.¡±


    ¡°A deal, then. A promise. An exchange. Call it whatever you want. So long as you honour your word.¡±


    The cultivator brought the blade to his own upper left arm. Before Zhong fully realised his intent, the youth slashed down upon himself, cleanly severing the limb in a single stroke. Fresh blood spilt in a crimson deluge onto the ground, filling the air with the scent of sweet iron, but Zhong was too shocked to care.


    The cultivator hissed in pain, his face paling and covered in sweat. With a trembling hand, he brought his dismembered left arm before Zhong.


    ¡°A Fleshborne Pact.¡±


    ¡°My Clan is on the verge of being destroyed by the Celestial Army for crimes we did not commit,¡± the cultivator said between bloody breaths. ¡°My Father is dead. My sister now fights a hopeless battle against a foe we cannot win. She might already be slain. Most that I love is gone, and the rest of my people will soon follow. There is nothing I can do to save anyone any more. Except, maybe this.¡±


    The boy bowed his head lower.


    ¡°Save what¡¯s left of my Clan, Zhong, you who once terrorised an entire continent. Swear upon your name, and upon the Heavens, that you will save the ones I love. For your might, I would give up the rest of my flesh willingly.¡±


    The cultivator bowed lower, but Zhong could see tears mixing with his blood. ¡°I beg the Dragon Who Once Devoured Divine Destiny. Please, help us.¡±


    Zhong was silent. The cultivator''s arm trembled. Blood continued pooling onto the ground, until it grew large enough to reach the man¡¯s chains. Then, Zhong opened his mouth¡ª


    ¡ªand closed it. The cultivator looked up, startled by the sudden weightlessness of his palm.


    The severed arm was gone. There had been no sound, no sudden rush of movement. Nothing.


    But the arm was still gone. And Zhong was chewing. The sounds of squelching flesh and crunching bone reverberated through the gaol. The cultivator paled further but, to his credit, made no further reaction.


    Zhong swallowed noisily, the bulge going down his throat far smaller than what it should have been. The sight was no less disturbing for it.


    ¡°Fifth Realm, Seventh Step.¡±


    ¡°A worthy offer. Your blood tastes strong.¡± Zhong licked his lips thoughtfully. ¡°A Young Master? So, your father must have been the last Patriarch. Small wonder, then, that you have come for my help.¡±


    The man¡¯s body, previously emaciated and skeletal, suddenly grew flesh and muscle beneath his skin. His new body bulged and pushed against the Divine chains. The talismans flared erratically.


    The restraints, carefully crafted by countless master artificers and diviners, pulsed once, before shattering to pieces.


    The cultivator covered himself protectively with his remaining arm, but aside from a flash of heat, no harm came to him. When he finally dared to open his eyes, he saw Zhong freed before him.


    The man was covered in rags, but his body was nothing like before. He stood, healthy and strong. Vibrant. The man¡¯s gold-slanted eyes turned down to him.


    Eyes that shine with the light of a Morning Star.


    ¡°I accept your offering, cultivator,¡± Zhong declared. ¡°Though I will not swear upon the Heavens, I will swear upon my dread title to see our bargain fulfilled. But first, I still need your name, Young Master.¡±


    The cultivator stared, unsure of what to think. Was this the right choice? Had he unleashed doom upon the continent? But then the boy remembered why he came down here, and how even now his home burned. Destroyed by the ones his family had served faithfully for countless generations. He resolved himself.


    ¡°This one¡¯s name is Li Shen, Young Master of the Reaping Floods Clan.¡±


    ¡°This man is but a worm, but you already know that,¡± the man grinned, mouth bloody and filled with razor-sharp incisors. ¡°But you may keep calling me Zhong, Eighth of the Twenty-Five Demon King Patriarchs. Though my rank is but an Honorary one, among that hallowed company, I alone hold the title of Strongest. Keep the rest of your flesh, Young Master; My appetite requires space for when I devour the Heavens.¡±


    Zhong looked up. The man laughed, wild exhilaration flooding his being, as his body roared with qi once more. ¡°But have no worries about my hunger. To your enemies, I shall say: Hand over your heads, for you clearly have no use of them if you stand with your Divine Tyrants! Come, Li Shen of the Reaping Floods. Immortality awaits!¡±


    His Heart, silent for years, pulsed. A figure finally appeared at the edge of his vision, invisible to all but himself. His constant companion. His eternal curse.


    She was the same as the day he consumed her. The one creature in all of Hell that he could not destroy with his rapacity. A woman in the guise of a Worm.


    Blood of hair. Ash of skin. And baring the lone, baleful eye of a Demon Unending.


    The phantom voice of his Beloved rang in his ears, as beautiful and damning as the day she first buried herself in his Heart.


    ¡°When the madman runs, everyone who is not mad starts running.¡±


    She turned to him. Her smile was as gentle as the first rays of the dawn.


    ¡°I greet you, Dragon of the Morning Star. Let us sing of Heaven¡¯s end once again.¡±


    The declaration of his Heart drummed throughout all of Heaven and Earth. Men and Gods trembled at its roar, for it signalled once more the coming of the Apocalypse.


    And so began anew the War Against Heaven, a conflict that would stretch for an entire century. A conflict that would see the Gods destroyed, and end with the total and complete victory for Mankind.


    A victory that would see the rise of a new Imperial Empire, and a Humanity that would decline into a far more wretched and depraved existence than even the Gods could ever dare imagine.


    <hr>


    ¡°Hell Descending¡±


    ¡°I saw it. I don¡¯t know how that monster did it, but it came from above. It broke through the Jade Clouds of our King like it was nothing. That thing¡­ I cannot describe it, cannot remember it! It is madness incarnate, it is not something that could be of this world!


    I saw wings, scales, and claws, but my eyes failed to comprehend anything else. It swooped down and crushed the Skinless Vanguard like the Divine was made of glass, slashed the Tripartite Menagerie in two with a single strike like they were paper! And then, it opened its mouth, and, and¡­


    I saw Hell. It is inside that thing, festering, boiling, alive and laughing! It swallowed our Gods as they screamed like they were mere morsels to be devoured! The First Celestial Army and the Deities that accompanied us stood no chance, we had to flee! We had to tell the others! The very Underworld itself has risen from beyond the Abyssal Ridge and is coming to consume our King! We have to warn him, he must escape! Not even His Celestial Highness can hope to stand before that creature. It was Madness! True Madness! A Star-Cannibal that had swallowed Hell itself!


    That, that DRA¡ª!¡±


    ¡ª Account of a Celestial Army human deserter, shortly before being executed for treason and cowardice.


    ~~~


    Years later, the Celestial Court was obliterated in a massive explosion; the Divines slain to the last, and the Jade King impaled upon their starlight throne.


    With their deaths, came the end of the Age of Gods; three millennia of Enlightened Rule concluded in blood and horror.


    With their deaths, came the beginning of the Age of Cultivators; of a future governed by Hunger and Ambition alone.


    ~~~


    And what of Zhong, the Vile Dragon of the Dawn?


    Betrayed in his final moments by a traitorous Primate and a scheming Fox, the Divine Cannibal was never seen again.


    ¡­ Until now, nine hundred years later, at the turning of the new millennia for a Human Empire.


    When his Heart shall beat for him once more.

 1.1 The Favoured Child

    ~~~


    ¡°Hear me, children of Man! Hear your Emperor, and rejoice! For I declare a new age ¡ª the birth of a grand Dynasty for Mortals and Mortals alone!


    The Eternal Banquet has begun, and the means of cultivation are now within your hands! Feast upon your Gods! Feast upon your kin! Feast upon your foes! Feast upon the very flesh of your physical shell until nought but bones and skin remain!


    Divinity is but a single meal away. Pursue the dregs of immortality to the ends of the world! May our Age of Cultivators never end!


    And may our Hunger never cease!¡±


    ¨C First and Only Decree of His Perverse Majesty, the new Imperial Emperor of Ascendant Humanity


    <hr>


    It was the nine hundredth and sixteenth Imperial Year of His Perverse Majesty¡¯s reign, and the Gods were dead.


    The Great War in Heaven almost a millennium ago had ended in the complete and utter victory for the forces of Humanity. Mankind has made the ultimate triumph over their Divine masters, shattering the chains of eternal servitude. The myriad Divines of the Celestial Court were slain, and the Jade King himself lies murdered upon the very altar which he once ruled from.


    In a grand rebellion led by the one and only Emperor of Humanity, the lowly creatures of the Earth have usurped the Heavens, laid low the Celestial oppressors that ruled from atop their court on Mount Tai, and secured the right to their Fates forevermore through the consumption of their godly flesh.


    With his First and Only Decree, the Emperor proclaimed that it was now the sacred mandate of every living creature in Qiangyu to cultivate. Where before one might have the excuse of Immortality being the sole proprietary of Heaven, the world was now a far more prospective and enlightened place.


    Cultivation techniques proliferated, and novel schools of thought emerged as humans explored the depths of their newfound autonomy. Temples that once served as shrines to the gods were transformed into Sects, which now stand as beacons of knowledge and empowerment to all aspiring Disciples; a place where cultivators may hone their skills and develop their individual philosophies in a world no longer bound by divine decree.


    The world was just, and all of Humanity rose together to eternity.


    ¡­ For the most part.


    Regrettably, the calamitous winds of inequality and ill fortune persist even in this new enlightened age of opportunity. Not everyone was able to flourish under the new Emperor''s self-serving Domain, and not all blessings were wholly freed from the burdensome trappings of never-ending hardship and parasitical misery.


    As a Young Master was soon to understand.


    ~~~


    On the Northernmost border of the Imperial Empire, in a sector designated as the 103rd Outer Province State of His Most Esteemed Imperial Emperor, where the land was poor and the ebb of Mysteries ran thin, there lie four great, misty-peaked mountains.


    Twelve hundred years ago, a great battle took place upon that Province. Such was its intensity that not one, not two, but four Divine Gods fell upon that spot.


    Those four sacred peaks once served as tombstones that marked the Divine Dead who fell in the War Against Heaven. Now, however, each of those mountains hosts a Cultivator Sect instead, where the few Mysteries left within the Divine Carrions were damned to be thoroughly gutted by the primitive locals for the rest of their days.


    It was rare for a Sect to exist in the Outer Provinces, let alone four within the same area. As such, these four Sects enjoyed a bit of renown within the local region and were hence colloquially known together as the Four Mountain Sects Group.


    Unimaginative, perhaps. But when one lived within the Outer Provinces, it was best to keep things simple. Grandiose titles have no place in such barren lands, especially when cultivators from the thriving Inner and Core Provinces were known to easily take offence at such things.


    Entire towns and states had been destroyed for less.


    The four Sects were home to hundreds of cultivators, the majority being meagre talents plucked from whichever impoverished local villages they were found in to fill the ranks of the Sects. These hungry disciples trained tirelessly day and night, hoping they might one day be worthy of tasting even the barest morsel of ethereal flesh from their Sect¡¯s respective Divine Corpse.


    The Divine Corpses themselves reflected the destitute state of the land they now dwelled in. Once noble and transcendent creatures who hailed from Mount Tai, their bodies now languished as lifeless, mostly devoured shells, existing purely to enrich the otherwise barren landscape with qi through the petrification of their corpses.


    Their presence presented a surplus of opportunity for the local patrons, however. With four dead Divines, came four possible foundations for a prospective cultivator of the 103rd Outer Province to choose from.


    The Path of the Beheaded Phoenix. The Path of the Split-headed Carnivores. The Path of the Decaying Greyroots. And the Path of the Inverted Monk.


    These were the four Divine conduits a hopeful mortal within the 103rd Outer Province could take to begin their ascension to immortality.


    Or, at least that was how it should be. The truth was that almost every cultivator in the Outer Provinces stood little chance of ever achieving immortality.


    Though they appeared grand and awe-inspiring to the mortal villagers and townsfolk that resided at the bottom of the mountain, the cultivation afforded by these four Sects was woefully lacking. The Celestial bodies that these practitioners worshipped, the Divine Carrions, were the worst of Divine Corpses.


    Not all Divine Corpses were equal, and the majority of the ones found in the Outer Provinces were in a dismal state indeed. The best cuts of meat and organs had been long plundered clean by others in the earlier days of the new Imperial Empire. Now, nought but mere skin and bones were left to be nibbled on by those unfortunate enough to miss the opening days of the Eternal Banquet, right after Heaven¡¯s fall.


    Hence, while the Carrions that these cultivators nourished themselves on were by no means weak in their local environment, their abundance and strength could not hope to compare to the other, more bountiful Celestial Dead that lay closer to the core of the Empire.


    The Outer Province. The Inner Province. The Core Province. And finally, the Imperial Court, and then the graveyard heights of Mount Tai itself.Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on the original website.


    Immortality demands Divine flesh, and one cannot find it in the outskirts of the Empire, so far beyond the decaying shadow of the Star-Eating Mountain.


    Consequently, the cultivators that fed on these four Divine Carrions within the Four Mountain Sects Group were also considered vastly inferior to those found further within the Empire. To even think about reaching immortality with such paltry resources and lacklustre ambient qi was laughable. Merely implying such a thing would be just cause for an Inner Province cultivator to execute them, lest their stupidity may spread and pollute the masses into becoming even more ignorant than they already were.


    But even so, to be able to cultivate at all was to be blessed. It was to be that single person out of a hundred who was favoured by the fates and graced with a body that could utilise qi. Even a cultivator who merely exists within the Foundation Realm ¡ª the first and lowest Realm of cultivation ¡ª would enjoy a longer lifespan and a healthier body than a simple villager who could not practice the spiritual arts.


    And if merely being a cultivator was to be blessed, then one who was granted the opportunity to join a Sect, even one merely established within the Outer Provinces, must be doubly fortuitous. To be a Disciple of a Sect that housed a Celestial Dead was to have a means of securing Divine viands.


    A means of obtaining power. Of obtaining Immortality. Of defying Heaven¡¯s ordained hunger and materialising one¡¯s destined agency, no matter how slim the odds may be.


    And so it followed: if being able to cultivate was a blessing, and being part of a Sect with a Divine Corpse doubly so, then being born as the Young Master of such a Sect must be a fortune in triplicate, was it not? Surely such a person would be blessed beyond measure, a clear sign that he or she was a favoured child of the Emperor?


    Hei Feng could be considered such a child. He was capable of cultivating. He was a disciple of the Beheaded Phoenix Sect. He was also the Young Master of said Sect.


    At the moment, however, Feng did not feel like he was particularly blessed or favoured. To be fair to the young man, it was probably hard to do so when he was on the receiving end of a horribly one-sided duel.


    ~~~


    ¡°Slow!¡±


    The Young Master ducked right as his opponent¡¯s fist brushed past his head. The strike drew a fresh line of blood across his scalp, yet Feng had no time to register the pain as he prepared himself for the inevitable follow-up from his attacker¡¯s assault.


    His opponent struck fast with another punch, twisting their hip and delivering the blow in a devastating smash. Their fist, made iron-hard by a layer of calcified black plates moulded over their skin, would have shattered the Young Master¡¯s nose if he hadn¡¯t anticipated the hit and raised both arms in time to block it. Even then, Feng felt his very bones shake from the attack''s impact. His feet dug deep into the reinforced earth, struggling to arrest his momentum as he was blown several metres back.


    The Young Master of the Hei Clan grunted as he reorientated him, dashing forth in an attempt to seize back the initiative in his favour. Ducking low to avoid another strike, his knees slid against the dirt of the training grounds as his legs swept for his opponent¡¯s unprotected ankle, aiming to trip them.


    His attack connected, but it did more harm to him than his target. His opponent barely budged, whereas the bones of his feet cracked under the impact of smashing into the calcified black armour that manifested at the last moment.


    That took barely a heartbeat to form, he thought with some despair. She can create them that quickly now?


    ¡°Weak!¡±


    His opponent mockingly shouted once more. They raised a leg, and Feng barely managed to avoid the crushing stomp that followed by rolling behind them. The attack blew a carter upon the earth where he once stood.


    The Young Master paled. Even the cultivator training grounds, made to endure the punishing duels between Sect disciples, could no longer handle his opponent¡¯s strength.


    In a single fluid motion, Feng leapt up from his crouch and spun, attempting a flying double kick at his opponent¡¯s head from her blind spot. His qi flared, and his legs erupted into vicious flames, ready to devour any it touched.


    At this distance, Feng was confident enough to say that he would have landed both strikes against almost any other disciples within the Four Mountain Sects group and knocked them out instantly. Victory should have been a foregone conclusion.


    Unfortunately for him, this was no ordinary opponent he was fighting.


    The Young Master was currently facing the famed prodigy of the Split-headed Carnivores Sect, a cultivator whose prowess eclipsed that of all the other disciples on the mountains. As such, both of his kicks missed as the cultivator ducked with inhuman agility. Before he could react, a palm smashed against his torso.


    His ribs burst into shrapnel, and the blow sent him flying. The poor Young Master barely managed to find his footing in time before the attack almost threw him out of the ring.


    ¡°And utterly predictable!¡± His opponent taunted. Barely five seconds had passed between her first insult and her last. Though both duellists were clearly of preternatural speed and strength, the superior cultivator was evident for all to see.


    Hei Feng couldn¡¯t respond as he coughed out a hissing mist of blood, falling to one knee as he hunched over. That last strike had knocked the air out of him and utterly demolished two of his ribs. He doubled over, trying to steady his breathing while he rapidly cycled his qi. By the second cycle, his regenerative abilities kicked in, and the Young Master could feel a supernatural heat emerging from his core.


    His shattered ribs began to burn, cannibalised into spiritual energy while new bones rapidly materialised over the cracks and stumps of his ribcage.


    ¡°Pathetic!¡± His opponent did not bother capitalising on his open vulnerability, choosing instead to mock him some more. ¡°Truly, the Hei Clan has fallen far if this is the best their Young Master can manage!¡±


    The moment his ribs healed adequately, Hei Feng sucked in a breath.


    [Arts of the Beheaded Phoenix ¡ª Fiery Comet Step]


    The Young Master shot forth like a shooting star, leaving behind a cloud of blazing flames that surged forth from his feet. He drew his arm back, his fist wreathed in fire and his speed beyond the perception of any mortal man. Brilliant and radiant, he swung with all his might¡ª


    ¡ª and hit nothing but air as his opponent simply stepped aside with one raised eyebrow.


    A familiar feeling of resigned annoyance enveloped him before a kick landed mockingly against his back and propelled him forth.


    The blow sent him spiralling even further forward. Combined with the speed of his earlier technique, his momentum was such that he could not stop himself in time before he landed several metres outside the training ring.


    The Young Master let out a groan. Yet another loss, he thought, more amused than bitter. A feminine chuckle came from behind him, back from within the ring. ¡°Come on now, you couldn¡¯t have expected that to work. Honestly, Feng. Try to be a little less predictable.¡±


    <hr>


    Qi


    Qi, or spiritual energy, originates from the life-giving cosmic rays that emerge from the stars above the world. The celestial luminance of the Astral Heavens gave rise to the first Divine Deities atop Mount Tai, whose peaks were the closest to the constellations and thus were the most heavily saturated in their miraculous radiation.


    The first and greatest of the Divine Deities was the Jade King. Possessive of the powers given freely by the Astral Heavens, he created the Jade Clouds which blanketed most of the world that exists beneath the shadows of Mount Tai, forever denying the gentle touch of the Stars from ever reaching the rest of the ecosphere. The selfish Deity then established the Celestial Court atop the upper regions of Mount Tai ¡ª his personal kingdom above the Jade Clouds ¡ª from which he and his Divine ilk would spend their days lavishing in the invigorating glow of the cosmos while ruling the impoverished mortals below.


    It was only many centuries later during the War Against Heaven that a new source of qi was discovered, one that did not require the light of the Astral Heavens and could be used to revitalise the barren lands beneath the Jade Clouds: the decaying bodies of dead Divine Deities. Once slain, the body of a Divine Corpse slowly releases the vast reserve of spiritual energies that it had accumulated over its long life, enriching the nearby lands with qi. It is this phenomenon that gave rise to the many Cultivator Sects within the new Imperial Empire after the collapse of the old Celestial Kingdom. The monasteries built their sacred grounds around the Divine Corpses so that their disciples may better bathe themselves within their glorifying decay and ascend.


    ¨C Excerpt from To Those Worthy of the Eternal Banquet. The manual is commonly distributed across Sects within the Imperial Empire to new Disciples as basic learning material and cultivation textual resource.

 1.2 Outmatched

    The Young Master sighed. As expected, his opponent knew him too well to fall for his tricks.


    ¡°It wasn¡¯t like I had many other options,¡± Feng said, wincing as he straightened his back. The young cultivator cycled his qi once more ¡ª healing the most pressing of his injuries as his stores of spiritual energies were cannibalised to repair bruises and mend bones ¡ª before turning to face the speaker.


    She was tall ¡ª taller than most men, taller than even his Father, whose visage stood like a pillar among lesser cultivators. Her hair was the shade of twilight blue, its darkness forming striking harmony with her flawlessly pale complexion; one akin to that of drifting snow found atop a mountain¡¯s throat.


    Hers was a beauty that would have stopped the heart of any lesser men unacclimatised to the sight of cultivated splendour. Even then, the fleeting remembrance of her face alone ¡ª dark eyes of predatory amber framed amidst a sea of unearthly perfection ¡ª might be enough to torment their thoughts with longing for the rest of their days.


    At the moment, however, Feng¡¯s feelings towards her leaned more towards a disgruntled nature, rather than any appreciation of her inhuman resplendence.


    ¡°You have grown even faster, Lianshi,¡± he commented as his ribs realigned themselves. ¡°Not even the training weights of the Inverted Monks slow you much any more.¡±


    The Young Miss of the Chen Clan grinned cockily. She waved her arm at him with a mocking gesture. The heavy weights strapped to them barely hindered her movements, yet the action still carried such heft that Feng could feel the air shiver from her swings. ¡°Perhaps I should double them again, hm? That should give you at least even odds of landing a hit on me.¡±


    The weights strapped to her arms and legs were heavy enough that even ten mortal men wouldn¡¯t be able to lift a single one together. On top of that, she had already been holding her strength back significantly throughout their fight earlier. The fact that his torso had not completely caved in from that single palm strike she had landed before was a clear indication of that.


    Even with all those disadvantages, he could not last more than a minute in a spar against her. Unbelievable.


    The Chen Clan of the Split-headed Carnivores Sect had truly outdone themselves this time. Their Young Miss was an unprecedented prodigy, even among the high standards expected of a Clan Heir within the Four Mountain Sects Group.


    Feng did not consider himself a bad cultivator. Indeed, even when held up to the strict requirements expected of a Young Master of the Hei Clan, he did not come up short. At eighteen years old, he was already in the second Step of the Third Realm ¡ª the Body Tempering Realm.


    By comparison, the other Disciples of his age within the Beheaded Phoenix Sect were almost all either still in the apex of the First Realm ¡ª the Foundation Realm ¡ª or just barely within the lower steps of the Second Realm ¡ª the Qi-Shaping Realm.


    Even when comparing himself to the Core Disciples, many of whom were at least twice his age and considered the strongest disciples within the Sect, he was still above average in cultivation standing. Not even the venerable Elders had much to speak against his progress.


    By the standards expected of him, Feng knows that his cultivation has thus far left nothing to be wanting. Hence, despite losing to his best friend for the fifth consecutive time that day, the Young Master did not feel much embarrassment.


    After all, it was just that Lianshi was ridiculously strong. That was truly all there was to it.


    Or so he told himself, anyway. Privately, there was a tumour of despair nestled deep in within at the enormous gulf in strength. It had not even been half a decade ago where he had been her superior in all matters of cultivation.


    Where, then, had this ridiculous growth in potential come from? His only comfort was that Lianshi¡¯s explosive cultivation development baffled everyone within the Province equally, disciples and Elders alike.


    Even prodigies should have limits. Yet it appeared his friend held none.


    ¡°Perhaps we should call it a day,¡± Feng suggested, trying not to grimace at the pain as he walked back into the ring. The blow that Lianshi left on him had mostly healed. Feng¡¯s cultivation, while nowhere at the level of his opponent¡¯s, was still advanced enough for him to survive blows that would outright kill a mortal man. His recovery abilities were also significantly more developed than the rest of his peers, on account of a superb cultivation upbringing.


    Nevertheless, it would still take a little longer for his body to fully recover from their soreness. His partner might be raring for another round already, but Feng would greatly prefer it if they stopped. The bruises and wounds he had accumulated over the past five fights were beginning to take their toll.


    He could burn away those minor injuries in an instant if he expended most of his qi, but that would be a wasteful choice. The day had barely begun, the waxing moon dipping below the flowing curtains of the Jade skies ¡ª radiant auroras shimmering in their usual resplendence of sea green and violet, set against the dark backdrop of starry nights ¡ª and there were still many things he had to do.


    To her credit, Lianshi always ensured that their matches never inflicted anything too debilitating or permanently injurious. Despite her youth ill-matching with her preternatural cultivation levels, the Young Miss¡¯s control over her strength was exceptional, another clear indication of her prodigious talent. Additionally, with the Young Master¡¯s cultivation level being within the Body Tempering Realm, Feng could take a considerable amount of physical punishment and still be in good shape afterwards.Unauthorized usage: this narrative is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings.


    All the same, the youth wished for a reprieve from the non-stop defeats handed to him by the enthusiastic Young Miss. While he could always move or fight after the rounds, they still left his body unbearably sore and his ego thoroughly bruised.


    At his words, Lianshi frowned. ¡°Is the Young Master of the Hei Clan such a disappointment that he lacks the vigour to keep up with a fellow Young Miss? How far you have fallen. I still remember the days when we would go for ten rounds, at least!¡±


    Was she not aware of how her words might be misconstrued by an outsider? Feng narrowed his gaze at her and caught the faintly amused glint in her orange, snake-like eyes.


    No, she was deliberately saying it that way. Feng supposed it was good that she had convinced her Core Disciple bodyguards to leave them alone together before they started sparring. Not that their presence was truly required. Setting aside that the safety within a Sect¡¯s compound was second to none, with Lianshi¡¯s cultivation levels, any protection that the Core Disciples could provide for her was laughable.


    ¡°This Young Master has plenty of vigour,¡± Feng replied, suppressing a sigh as he masked his exasperation behind a practised smile. ¡°It is simply that he is outmatched by the Lady¡¯s splendour. Perhaps the Young Miss would be better off sparring with her equals rather than her lessers. I am sure the Elders of the Hei Clan would be willing to trade pointers with you.¡±


    The Elders of the Beheaded Phoenix Sect were all venerable cultivators, each a talented individual who likely had spent several decades of their lives in cultivation. The majority of them stood at varying steps within the Fourth Realm, the Nascent Realm; an achievement that most Disciples within the Sect could only dream of.


    Lianshi was barely eighteen years old, and already she was more than their equal. She stood firmly within the Ninth Step of the Fourth Realm, an utterly absurd level that had her completely eclipsing any other Disciples within the Four Mountain Sects Group.


    No, Feng thought privately to himself. It is likely her cultivation already eclipsed every single Disciple within the whole Outer Provinces.


    While Feng had said the Elders were her equals in a spar, it was his sincere belief that she would triumph against the majority of them. The Elders held the edge in experience, thanks to their greater age, but that was their only advantage. In terms of cultivation level, few exceeded or even equalled hers. And in terms of sheer talent and potential, Feng felt confident in saying no one within the Four Mountain Sects Group ¨C not even the four esteemed Patriarchs ¨C surpassed her.


    It was no exaggeration to say she may one day become the strongest cultivator not just within the 103rd Outer Province State, but also the entire Outer Provinces as a whole ¡ª a territory that spans near half a billion mortals and countless tens of thousands of cultivators.


    No doubt it was one of the reasons why her every demand had been met by the Elders since her arrival at the Beheaded Phoenix Sect, lest they earned her ire and she challenged them to an honour duel.


    Refusal would be an insult to the Chen Clan, while acceptance risked defeat and almost certain humiliation by their peers for losing to a Disciple several times younger than them, never mind her absurd cultivation level.


    Knowing all this, it begged a single question that any outsider would ask: why would such an amazing individual waste their time sparring with him? True, he had some considerable prestige as a Young Master of an important Sect, but there was little he could provide her that she could not gain herself, less so in such horribly lop-sided duels.


    In terms of knowledge or wisdom, the consult of an Elder would no doubt prove superior to a youth barely in the throes of adulthood. Likewise, if it was a spar the Lady sought, a fight with an Elder would doubtless provide a more engaging experience than anything he could provide, as he was more than an entire realm lower than her in cultivation standing.


    Indeed, from a glance, it was a mystery that would puzzle any outsider.


    But the reason for her favour was clear to every cultivator within the 103rd Outer Province. It has been clear for many, many years now.


    Lianshi gave an unladylike snort at his reply, crossing her arms as she walked over to him and playfully bumped her shoulder against his. ¡°Now, why would I want to waste my time with a bunch of ancient bookworms over my Fianc¨¦, hmm?¡±


    And therein lies the reason.


    Hei Feng, Heir to the Hei Clan and Young Master of the Beheaded Phoenix Sect, had been blessed (and cursed, he thought half-humorously) with the great fortune of being engaged to the Young Miss of the Split-headed Carnivores Sect ¡ª the greatest prodigy possibly ever seen in the Outer Province, and his dearest friend.


    <hr>


    Sects


    Sects are monasteries built for the ¡ª alleged ¡ª sole purpose of educating cultivators and ensuring the continuous rise of Humanity as a whole towards Immortality. They are a relatively new creation, officially established in the wake of the new Empire heralded by His Perverse Majesty.


    Before the rebellion, the administration of mortal cultivations was usually controlled by Clans ¡ª Human families under the direct supervision of their chosen Divine God. While family Clans still exist in the modern era, their importance in spiritual cultivation is now secondary compared to Sects.


    The purpose of Sects goes beyond merely providing an institution for educating prospective cultivators, however. They represent the main administrative body of the Empire within the region and are often responsible for governing the local population. Such bureaucratic duties include but are not limited to: the enforcement of His Perverse Majesty''s laws, the collection of taxes and tithes from the region¡¯s inhabitants, the culling of Spirit Beasts and other associated dangers that may stalk their lands, and the ensuring of safe trade routes throughout His Perverse Majesty¡¯s Empire.


    Sects are referred to as simply Outer, Inner, or Core Sects depending on their province¡¯s location within the Empire (Outer Sects exist in Outer Provinces, Inner Sects exist in Inner Provinces, and so on.)


    Each Sect is led by a head cultivator, referred to as Patriarch or Matriarch. The governing bodies and day-to-day activities of the Sect are overseen by Elders, the Sect¡¯s strongest cultivators. Finally, the cultivators that have come to learn from the Sect¡¯s teachings are called Disciples, who themselves are categorised into Outer, Inner, or Core Disciples depending on their standing within the Sect.


    Sects may also be comprised of one or several Clans: large families or lineages bound by familial blood, ancestral name, martial arts heritage, or common ideology. The head Clan of the Sect is usually the Clan of the Sect¡¯s Patriarch/Matriarch, and their chosen Heir is often referred to as ¡®Young Master¡¯ or ¡®Young Miss¡¯.


    As a final note, any Sect of worth would also house the body of a Divine corpse, from which they may revel in the qi released from its decaying carcass, and plunder its body for secrets to learn and Divine flesh to consume.


    ¨C Excerpt from To Those Worthy of the Eternal Banquet

 2.1 Fianc茅e

    ~~~


    ¡°All is Cultivation. We are currently living in the greatest era in human history. The very Heavens themselves have fallen before our feet, allowing us to feast upon their flesh and secrets. Now is the time to hunger with every ounce of your soul. Gorge upon any morsel of flesh that you can lay your hands upon, be they belonging to your Gods, kins, or foes. Consume all. Devour all. To deny yourself this is to reject the very purpose of your existence.¡±


    ¡ª Words from Elder Jun to the newly-inducted Outer Disciples of the Beheaded Phoenix Sect


    <hr>


    Chen Lianshi. Young Miss of the Chen Clan, and by extension the Young Miss of the Split-headed Carnivores Sect.


    Despite being of different Sects, they had known each other since childhood and often seen each other growing up. The Beheaded Phoenix Sect and the Split-headed Carnivore Sect did not necessarily share a better relationship than what they had with the other Sects of the province. In general, the members of the Four Mountain Sects Group did not cooperate or share friendly relations. ¡®Competitive¡¯ would be a kind word to describe the group¡¯s internal dynamics. ¡®Hostile¡¯ would be a closer description, though perhaps a tad overstated.


    The root of this animosity lies in their close proximity to each other and the scarcity of resources in the lands around them ¡ª not just in cultivation provisions and territory, but also in the scant number of promising Disciples that could be found in nearby mortal villages and towns. With the Outer Provinces being as poor as they were, and local talents few and far between, the Sects were thus forced to compete with each other for survival.


    Disputes between Disciples and Clans had more than once led to full-scale conflict between two Sects, but the presence of the other two meant that such altercations were never drawn out, lest both sides waste valuable resources and lose out against their remaining rivals.


    Likewise, mutually beneficial arrangements were rarely forged between two Sects. Their Clan histories could be dated back centuries, and the countless feuds and grudges collected over years of disputes still hold dark places within the hearts of Elders and Patriarchs. Alliances were usually short-lived, and more often than not ended in betrayal or sour compromises.


    But recent events within the Four Mountain Sects Group have forced the Clans to act. A decade ago, Patriarch Ru, the Head of the Decaying Greyroots Sect, had finally emerged from his century-long isolation training. The man had, in defiance of all odds, ascended to the Sixth Realm ¡ª the Jade Realm. Patriarch Ru¡¯s power now surpassed that of the other three Sect leaders, who all existed in varying Steps of the Fifth Realm ¡ª the Spirit Realm. Left unchecked, his Sect¡¯s influence would soon grow to encompass the entirety of the 103rd Outer Province State.


    As such, the Hei Clan of the Beheaded Phoenix Sect and the Chen Clan of the Split-headed Carnivores Sect have decided to bind their families together to face this unexpected development, with marriage arrangements being made between their Clan Heirs almost a decade ago.


    Thus, in many ways, the two young scions¡¯ engagement was one born out of the Clans¡¯ aligned interests, rather than any true romantic attraction on their part.


    It was awkward at first, but the heirs have long grown used to the arrangement and accepted it in their ways. They had already been engaged since childhood, after all, and the Clans had taken great steps to ensure the both of them had frequent opportunities to meet over the years. It would be stranger if their relationship were not at least cordial by now.


    To Hei Feng, it was a more than acceptable arrangement. He was the Young Master of the Hei Clan, the reigning Clan of the Beheaded Phoenix Sect. Growing up, he had already been taught that any marriage of his was going to be political first, rather than based on any genuine attraction.


    Chen Lianshi was an old and cherished friend, one that he was close to and could trust with his life. They had already known each other for almost a decade. As far as marriage alliances went, he was content with the arrangement as long as she was.


    ¡°We are already spending time together regularly enough,¡± Feng replied, flaring his qi to burn away the dirt that lingered on his robes. ¡°It would help if you devoted more effort to familiarising yourself with the other members of the Beheaded Phoenix Sect. This place is soon to be your home, after all.¡±


    As was agreed years ago, the bride would move into her groom¡¯s family Clan once they had properly affirmed their ties with each other. It was hardly a major complication. Having frequently visited his Sect ever since they were promised to each other at ten, the Hei compound was practically her second home already.


    Returning to visit her home Sect and family would likewise not be difficult, given the two monasteries'' proximity to each other. In fact, it was expected of her to make regular trips back to the Split-headed Carnivores Sect, to help smooth over any political complication arising from this new bond between the two Clans, as well as to continue her responsibilities as their Young Miss.


    There had also been talks that perhaps it would be more proper for the Young Master to move into her Sect instead, regardless of whatever nuptial stipulations were agreed upon years ago. It was usually the custom for the weaker consort to join the stronger spouse¡¯s Clan, after all. Given how Lady Lianshi clearly holds cultivation superiority in their marriage, surely it would not be wrong for the Young Master to capitulate instead?


    In truth, neither Feng nor Lianshi minded either way. But that was a problem for their Sect¡¯s Elders to argue over. From what Feng understood, it was more of a matter of pride than practicality at this point.


    ¡°After we are married, you mean,¡± the Young Miss said nonchalantly as she stretched her arms. The sleeves of her robe fell away, revealing fair skin and powerful limbs. ¡°It¡¯s hardly a thing to get concerned about. The wedding is still three months away, and I¡¯ll have plenty of time to get to know your Sect once we are bonded.¡±


    Three months. Where had the time gone?


    ¡°It¡¯s less than three months away,¡± Feng chided her lightly. ¡°You have been rather lax in your familial duties as the Chen Clan¡¯s Young Miss, Lianshi. The entire point of this wedding is to bind our families together. You can¡¯t afford to alienate or ignore the people here. A lot of our Sects¡¯ interests are at stake.¡±Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator.


    ¡°Hmm? Anxious about our Sects¡¯ interest, are you?¡± Lianshi mumbled, a complicated expression on her face. A teasing grin soon took over, her dark eyes glancing over at him. ¡°Or perhaps you are just looking forward to our wedding night, Young Master?¡±


    Feng kept his expression controlled, although a familiar feeling of uneasiness surfaced. The thought of their upcoming wedding night was one that had plagued his mind for some time now.


    Any other man would have thought it to be natural. No one within the Four Mountain Sects Group would deny Lianshi¡¯s exceptional beauty. The young woman had taken to the Path of the Split-headed Carnivores extraordinarily well. She was tall, and her body was sculpted to be well-muscled while still retaining a clear feminine attractiveness. Her reptile-like orange eyes, mischievous smile, and wild black hair ¡ª tied into a loose ponytail that cascaded like waves of shimmering onyx ¡ª made her features feral and exotic. A little excitement and anticipation was to be expected from any young man.


    And yet¡­


    ¡°Worried, more like,¡± Hei Feng said as he smiled back carefully. ¡°With how often the Young Miss has brought it up, this Young Master is concerned that he would not live up to her lofty expectations.¡±


    When the Young Master looked at her and thought of their future together, he could not focus on any of her attractiveness. He could not see the alluring young woman he was soon to marry, nor did he see the spirited friend he grew up with, who was not only playful and adventurous, but also the perfect foil to his calm and cautious nature.


    He only saw her power. Fourth Realm, Ninth Step. More than an entire Realm above him. Her existence was arguably closer to that of an Immortal than it was to someone like him.


    The thought of being intimate with someone like that, someone so overwhelmingly stronger than him¡­


    It made him uncomfortable.


    It was stupid. He knew it was stupid. The few people he confided in told him it was stupid, too. Lianshi was not someone who would hurt him, not outside a spar anyway. Even the thought of her doing it unintentionally was ridiculous, as her control over her powers and strength was beyond question. Hei Feng was no wallflower to be tenderly cared for, either. As someone within the Body Tempering Realm, his durability was already far beyond that of a normal man.


    The mere idea of hurting him in the throes of passion likely horrified her. Though she had hidden it well when they had candidly discussed the matter before, he had no doubt he had wounded her feelings. That he had so little trust in her was both insult and stupidity.


    Even so¡­


    Something flashed from the corner of his eyes. His gaze wandered behind Lianshi, in a shadowy corner where nothing notable resides, he thought he saw¡ª


    ~~~


    Chains. Knives. Nails. Blood. Flesh. And a dead smile amidst a moonlit grove.


    The air reeked. It reeked of sweetness, of rot, of the most putrid and unholy of decay.


    His mouth watered.


    He saw her singular remaining eye, hidden beneath tresses of sanguine red; a violent green amidst a sea of silver and blood.


    Green eyes, of a shade that was wretchedly painful to witness.


    The colour of Jade. The colour of the shimmering aurora that blanket the world.


    Her name¡­ What was her name?


    This Dream¡­ this Worm in his Heart¡­ does she have a name?


    ~~~


    He blinked, and the vision was gone. His eyes returned to Lianshi, his bride-to-be. Her hand in union was a blessing priceless beyond belief, one that any cultivator of the Four Mountain Sects Group would kill to obtain.


    And he did not want it.


    He did not know why. He could only feel as he did. The Young Master had long acknowledged that he was not someone strong enough to deny himself this incomprehensible truth.


    Nor was he strong enough to tell her, his future wife, the full reason behind his apprehension. Doing so was simply not an option, no matter how much he wanted to or felt that she deserved to know.


    No outcome to such an act would be without repercussion.


    ¡°I will be sure to set my expectations accordingly,¡± Lianshi teasingly mocked, unaware of his internal turmoil. ¡°But worried not. I shall extract my satisfaction from you by taking charge myself if I must. The thought of you writhing beneath me like a maiden holds some merit, I must admit.¡±


    Hei Feng was not fast enough to hide the wince of discomfort that passed through him at her words, and Lianshi¡¯s playful expression immediately fell from her face.


    ¡°Wait, no, Feng, I didn¡¯t mean¡ª¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s fine, Lianshi.¡± Feng sighed, more irritated at himself than anything. ¡°Rather, I apologise. That was insulting to you, and I was being stupid. I trust you. Wholeheartedly.¡±


    He didn¡¯t know whether he said the words to affirm her belief or his. The Young Miss guiltily bit her lip and looked away with a complicated and forlorn expression. Feng¡¯s emotion fell at the sight, and he cursed himself for his irrational weakness.


    She was his best friend. They have known each other since childhood. She was beautiful, strong, and talented. He trusted her with his life. He trusted her with his life. In terms of an arranged marriage, there was no better pick and no one else he would rather choose. He was blessed beyond words, the envy of all others within the Four Mountain Sects group. He would do his duty as Heir, and be happy for it.


    ¡°And yet.¡±


    And yet, all the same, he would have preferred it if they had simply stayed friends the rest of their lives.


    <hr>


    Cultivator


    The term ¡®Cultivator¡¯ commonly refers to a human who has achieved spiritual enlightenment and now pursues the Path to Immortality. Given that the process of cultivation requires an abundant amount of spiritual energy, during the days of the Jade King''s reign and the tyranny of His Celestial Court, every cultivator was dependent on the charity of their Divine masters to provide them with the resources and means necessary to advance.


    With the Age of Deities past and the fallen corpses of the Divine saturating the lands with qi, came a swathe of new cultivation methods that did not require a living Celestial Patreon, which include but are not limited to: mediation, sparring, alchemy pills, the consumption of Divine flesh and Spirit Beasts, and the cannibalism of fellow Cultivators ¡ª also sometimes known as Dual Cultivation.


    The popularity of each method varies between cultivation levels and cultural region taboos, but the latter options are always universally the most commonly practised throughout the Imperial Empire, in large part due to His Perverse Majesty¡¯s Domain ¡ª the Eternal Banquet ¡ª which significantly enhances the cultivation benefits of fleshborne divinity.


    ¨C Excerpt from To Those Worthy of the Eternal Banquet

 2.2 Tongue

    The walk back to the main compound was filled with inane topics. Both of them were eager to distract themselves from the awkward emotions that arose from their conversation earlier. Having known each other for years, the two quickly fell into a comfortable banter, soon forgetting their inept attempts at flirtation and romance mere moments ago.


    ¡°How¡¯s your little sister¡¯s cultivation coming along? I heard she had recently undergone her breakthrough,¡± the Young Master asked.


    ¡°Lingyu¡¯s doing fine. The breakthrough was a success. She won¡¯t stop bragging about it, however. It¡¯s part of the reason I have been spending so much time with you.¡±


    Despite the harshness of her words, Lianshi did little to stop the proud smile spreading across her face. Feng chuckled.


    ¡°Thirteen years old, and already in the Second Realm. Your Sect¡¯s disciples must be feeling the pressure to perform now.¡±


    To be within the Second Realm by thirteen was quite an achievement. It was not something an ordinary cultivator from the Outer Provinces could easily attain, even with the resources afforded to them from being born into one of the four Patriarch Clans.


    ¡°Would that it be enough to satisfy the Elders,¡± Lianshi murmured angrily. ¡°She was barely given a day to rest before her tutors started pushing her to learn the Sect¡¯s Transformation techniques. A girl her age should spend more time sparring with the other disciples and getting to know her Sect. Instead, she¡¯s caged up all day in the Technique Halls with those arrogant fossils, who love nothing more than to hear the sound of their own voices.¡±


    Given her astronomic cultivation growth during her youth, Lianshi had the fortune of having her Sect¡¯s best Elders personally guiding her education. The experience did not endear her to them, however. Their initial conceited attitude at being forced to mentor the child first changed into sheer astonishment at her rapid growth, before soon becoming increasingly bitter as the Young Miss¡¯s ridiculous rate of advancement suppressed even their wildest expectations.


    It was perhaps difficult to blame them for it. Lianshi¡¯s cultivation had entirely eclipsed the elite standing and reputation that they had laboured so hard to achieve. They had witnessed a youth less than a fifth of their age blaze through the Foundation, Shaping, Tempering, and Nascent cultivation Realms in the span of a few years with outrageous ease.


    Her ludicrous development had made a mockery of the decades of tireless labour each of them had dedicated to achieving the venerable status of a Nascent Realm cultivator. Little wonder that their narcissism and conceitedness would rapidly sour into resentment and jealousy.


    ¡°Lingyu is stronger than you think. Give her time. She will find a way to stand on her own,¡± Feng reassured his Fianc¨¦e.


    ¡°I know she will, but¡­¡± Lianshi sighed, running a hand through her hair. ¡°I sometimes can¡¯t help but think she¡¯s suffering more now because of my success.¡±


    Lianshi¡¯s unprecedented and near-legendary rise to power gave her Clan no small amount of renown and fame. But this meteoric feat had also led to new, loftier expectations for her younger sister, Chen Lingyu, to live up to.


    While Lianshi was no doubt proud of her cultivation achievements, Feng knew she hated the burden her path created for her younger sister. The people of her Sect compared the younger Chen sister regularly and unfavourably to her prodigy older sibling, and this placed unfair responsibility on the young girl who was, by all accounts, already an excellent cultivator.


    Sensing her thoughts darkening, Feng tried to lift her spirits. He bumped his shoulder into hers, catching the Young Miss¡¯s attention. ¡°One prodigy for the Chen Clan is already more than enough. Leave some glory to the rest of us lesser mortals. It would not do for the Hei Clan to be so completely overshadowed by the Chen sisters¡¯ splendour.¡±


    Lianshi expression brightened. She laughed. ¡°Perhaps if the Hei Clan¡¯s Young Master had spent more time training instead of always being buried in his paperwork, he would be deserving of some glory.¡±


    ¡°Not all of us are so willing to readily abandon their duties as Clan Heirs, my dear Fianc¨¦e,¡± he replied with a deadpan expression. ¡°Especially since this Young Master had to pick up your slack and finish your work for you. This upcoming wedding has quite a lot of details to look over, you know. Your handmaidens had been so worried at your irresponsibility that they have given me your paperwork to work on.¡±


    ¡°Oh. Aha, haha, sorry about that. I always get bored signing those documents.¡± Lianshi at least had the decency to look sheepish as she laughed, before she frowned. ¡°Hey, how did you finish without my signature anyway?¡±


    ¡°I learned to forge it.¡± Hei Feng replied shamelessly. ¡°I doubt the responsibilities of marital commitment would temper that free and stubborn spirit of yours. Since I foresee myself doing this regularly in the future after our union, I figured I might as well get a head start on my husbandly duties. The last thing I want is for you to feel caged by our matrimony.¡±


    Lianshi went quiet after that. The Young Master glanced over, worried that he had somehow overstepped, but he saw the light blush on her cheeks and relaxed.


    ¡°Thanks,¡± she mumbled quietly. Feng chuckled.


    ¡°Anything for you.¡±


    ¡°Ahem! Well, since we are talking about you doing things for me, how about a reward for me winning our sparring matches just now?¡± Lianshi said, changing the topic before she got even more flustered.


    Feng raised an eyebrow. ¡°You want rewards for winning now? Even though your opponent¡¯s cultivation is more than an entire realm beneath yours?¡±


    ¡°It is my right as the victor!¡± Lianshi replied without a hint of shame, dark eyes shining excitedly. ¡°What is a victory worth without a reward?¡±


    ¡°Where is the worth in a victory if your triumph was assured right from the start?¡± Hei Feng huffed and shook his head in amusement. ¡°Besides, if we are talking about rights to rewards, then I dare say I am more rightly deserving of one, considering the mountain of paperwork and the nights I had to burn through for you.¡±


    ¡°Boo,¡± she pouted, before facing away from him with an exaggerated huff. ¡°You are no fun.¡±


    Hei Feng rolled his eyes, before he suddenly leaned in to give her a chaste kiss on the cheek.


    Her surprised squeak and subsequent blush were a pleasant sight. Given how her cultivation so completely eclipsed his now, it was far more difficult these days to catch her off-guard like he used to when they were younger. His gamble this time paid off, although he would attribute the victory more to their proximity and her unawareness than any real dexterity on his part.


    ¡°There. I wouldn¡¯t reward you for winning fights that you are supposed to,¡± he said, enjoying the embarrassed look on her face. For all her talk, Lianshi was still very much a maiden at heart. ¡°So instead, that was as thanks, for spending time with me.¡±


    And as apology for earlier insult, he privately thought.


    The Young Miss looked away with crimson cheeks. ¡°Idiot. Shouldn¡¯t it be the other way around? I know you were already busy, and yet I still insisted on your time.¡±The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.


    ¡°You are my fianc¨¦e,¡± he replied easily. ¡°I¡¯ll always make time for you. And besides, I enjoy my time with you far more than being cloistered within my studies signing paperwork.¡±


    There was a moment of comfortable silence. The two of them leisurely walked side by side, content to enjoy the stroll rather than use their movement techniques to reach their destination sooner. The Hei Clan¡¯s private sparring compound was a fair distance away from the rest of the Sect, secluded away in a lush meadow with specialised wards that prevented their more exotic fire techniques from spreading.


    The air was quiet, the wind gentle and cool. Night had yet to fade, though its darkness was more comforting than oppressive. Brilliant spirals of otherworldly lights rained in undulating waves from the auroral Jade Clouds above, sneaking through the autumn foliage and giving the garden a dappled teal that was pleasing to witness.


    Hei Feng looked at the cobbled pathway, paved with polished stones of deep blue that cut sharply against the soft golden sands of the garden; the beautiful flower trees and bushes that the Outer Disciples and Clan servants worked tirelessly to maintain; the dance of falling amber leaves that flitted past the couple as a gentle breeze blew through, the morning dew on their edges reflecting the kaleidoscopic beauty of the emerald sky-fire sea above.


    A contented smile spread across the Young Master¡¯s lips, his worries fading away before the vibrant hues of green and jade. He wished the moment could last forever.


    Then the wind shifted. He felt a sudden lash of movement and a spike of qi beside him. Before he could react, a hand gently but firmly grasped his chin, turning his face to the side and tilting it upwards.


    Eyes of dark amber seized him, a gaze beautiful and terrible in equal measure. His vision was robbed of the serene green, replaced instead with the cruel sight of lustful gold.


    Lianshi leaned down and kissed him greedily. There was nothing chaste about it, not like the one he gave her earlier. Her tongue sought for his hungrily, her teeth biting down on his lips as her hands pressed him closer to her warmth.


    Feng tasted sweetness ¡ª that of vanilla, honey, and flowers; a cloying silkiness that numbed his mind into pleasure as the aphrodisiac substances of her inhuman saliva coated his tongue. The woman¡¯s venereous appetite coaxed the hunger within him to rise, but it failed to find satisfaction in her tongue¡¯s caress.


    This was not the sweetness he craved. Where was the rot, the rancid blood, the vomit-churning sweetness of decay-blackened carcasses and red Worms and that damnable Jade eye that stared and stared and stared and what do you want from ME¡ª


    Lianshi¡¯s tongue momentarily retracted from his mouth and Feng came to his senses. Then, before the Young Master could pull himself together to stop her, the female cultivator ¡ª with her lips still on his ¡ª used her inhumanly sharp incisors to bite down and sever her own tongue.


    Her blood, hot and impossibly sweet, rushed to fill his mouth. Feng instinctively drank it down, the qi-rich liquid setting his soul alight. He groaned into her lips, eyes lidded as a flush took his cheek.


    Then, gently, Lianshi ¡ª with a new tongue already regenerated ¡ª pushed her severed organ down the Young Master¡¯s throat.


    If her blood had set his soul alight, swallowing her amputated appendage felt like pouring Spirit Oil onto a raging fire. His qi reserves were turned into a boiling maelstrom, surging with power and excess spiritual energy. His wounds ¡ª even the most minor of bruises and cuts ¡ª were healed in an instant.


    When they finally parted, they were both breathing hard. Lianshi¡¯s eyes were wide, as if she could not believe she had been bold enough to instigate the exchange. Her face was far redder than before, with a furious blush that reached all the way to her neck.


    But beneath the veil of nervousness and embarrassment, there was a satisfied and elated glint in her eyes. And beneath even that, Hei Feng saw a craving and hunger for more that was only just barely suppressed.


    She had given a part of herself. Now, her body yearned for something from him.


    The two of them gazed at each other for a moment. The Young Master looked up at her. He was tall for his age, yet she was taller than him still by nearly another head. He was older than her by half a year, yet her cultivation was already leagues stronger than his.


    Fourth Realm, Ninth Step.


    He saw a flicker in the corner of his eyes.


    Chains. Knives. Nails. Teeth. Was someone watching him?


    He looked away. The moment he did, Lianshi broke off as well. Flustered, the Young Miss coughed into her hand, before shyly mumbling: ¡°Reward. For your hard work.¡±


    There was a pause. Hei Feng felt his fianc¨¦e¡¯s nervousness spike at his silence, her embarrassed expression rapidly turning vulnerable as a hurried apology almost made its way to her lips. He forced himself to give a light chuckle before she spoke.


    ¡°If I knew this was the level of appreciation I would receive for doing your paperwork, I would have started doing so much earlier,¡± he teased. His hand reached up to tenderly cup her face, thumb briefly brushing her lips. Feng held Lianshi¡¯s stare until the anxiety in those amber eyes faded, before pulling his hand back to lick the drop of blood that had trailed from her lips.


    ¡°Thanks for the meal. It was delicious.¡±


    Her expression brightened. His heart ached at the sight.


    ¡°Liar.¡±


    Her voice, again. The word echoed in his mind.


    As if his current circumstances were not mockery enough.


    ¡°Ha! Don¡¯t expect such generosity from me so often. I was just in a good mood, that¡¯s all,¡± Lianshi huffed before stepping away. ¡°You will need to work a lot harder if you want something like that again.¡±


    Despite her words, the Young Master could see the delighted grin the Young Miss was hiding.


    Guilt filled him. Before Lianshi turned away, Feng slid his hand into hers. ¡°I will endeavour to meet this Young Miss¡¯s expectations, then.¡±


    The loveliness of her smile was such that it would have rendered any disciple of the Four Mountain Sects Group to fall for her instantly, if they hadn¡¯t already. The two of them continued walking down the path, hand in hand with gentle smiles on their faces, the very picture of a perfect couple.


    Yet, the moment Lianshi looked away, Feng allowed the smile to fall, just the tiniest bit. His earlier good mode was gone, like scattered ash. He tasted blood in his mouth, even though he knew there wasn¡¯t any left.


    ~~~


    Chains. Knives. Nails. Her head was on his naked chest, her teeth and tongue buried into his flesh. A set of human canines sought after his frantic heart.


    He looked down, and saw a sea of red locks. A singular, emerald eye shone from beneath the scarlet waves.


    Its dullness could only belong to the dead.


    ¡°How long are you going to keep sleeping, Zhong?¡±


    ~~~


    ¡°You are mine, and mine alone.¡±


    Her voice, once more. One that he alone was cursed to hear. It rang in his head, over and over.


    As he expected. It really would have been better if he and Lianshi had simply remained friends.


    <hr>


    Realms and Steps, Part 1


    The progress of a Cultivator is typically split into nine sequential levels, called Realms. The first six Realms are often referred to ¡ª rather erroneously ¡ª as the ¡®Mortal Realm¡¯, for beyond the Sixth Realm lies the domain of Immortals. Consequently, those first six Realms represent the advancement level of the majority of cultivators that exist within the Empire. In ascending order, these are:


    First Realm: Foundation Realm (Removal of Impurities)


    Second Realm: Shaping Realm (Development of Meridians and Dantian)


    Third Realm: Tempering Realm (Body Reinforcement)


    Fourth Realm: Nascent Realm (Core Formation)


    Fifth Realm: Spirit Realm (Realisation of the Soul)


    Sixth Realm: Jade Realm (Dao Formation)


    Each Realm is also split into nine smaller stages of progression known as ¡®Steps¡¯, which are numbered 1 to 9. Ascending each of these steps provides a noticeable boost of power within a cultivator, although the leap is nowhere near what one experiences when progressing between Realms.


    The typical way of appraising a cultivator would be to first assess their Realms, before delving into which Step they have progressed to.


    E.g. A cultivator of the Second Realm, Third Step, has progressed further than a cultivator of the First Realm, Ninth Step. But they are less developed than a cultivator of the Second Realm, Fourth Step.


    ¨C Excerpt from To Those Worthy of the Eternal Banquet

 3.1 The Beheaded Phoenix Sect

    ~~~


    ¡°There are three wisdoms a cultivator must adhere to if they wish to live a long life.


    First, never argue against the words or demands of a stronger cultivator. To do so invites discourse, which may then swiftly devolve into an honour duel where one¡¯s position is wholly disadvantageous. Better to simply agree for now, and then flee later should the situation become untenable.


    Second, never earn the ire of a stronger cultivator. Their strength is only matched by their pride, and to wound their ego would be to invite a lifetime of hateful grudges and vengeful vows ¡ª all things anathema to a long and peaceful life. Better to avoid schemes and conspiracies that may evoke their resentment entirely, regardless of possible gains.


    Third, and most importantly, NEVER draw the affections of a stronger cultivator. The only thing worse than inciting a cultivator¡¯s prestige or anger is to arouse their sense of lust. Those who strive for Immortality will seek the ends of the world to sate their hunger, for to do anything less would be to spell failure later on in their quest. Besides, a cultivator¡¯s affections, more often than not, are cruel and short-lived things, for the pursuit of Divinity leaves little room for genuine attachment.


    Of course, no one ever follows these rules. The means of obtaining Immortality often lies in the Tribulations born from going against such sound advice. There is a reason why cultivators often live such paradoxically short lives, despite their legendary longevity.


    And it is also why those that do live long usually either stagnate and wither away in bitterness, or become such terrible monsters that their Humanity can no longer be found within them.¡±


    ¡ª The humble advice of an unassuming wanderer


    <hr>


    After Lianshi¡¯s monetary outburst of affection, the rest of the walk back to the compound was filled with companionable silence. Neither of them felt the need to talk, as they each dealt with their own turmoil of emotions roiling within them.


    For Lianshi, it was the mortifying realisation that she had been bold enough to instigate such intimacy in public, regardless of witnesses. She was raised as a Young Miss, and while her superior cultivation afforded her no end of privileges, there was still an expectation of chastity tied to her position; doubly so given the importance of her purity before their fated wedding night.


    For Feng, the feelings that arose were far more complicated to deal with.


    The two of them soon reached the edge of the Hei Clan¡¯s private compound, passing a grand entrance gate adorned with the typical symbol carvings of the Clan and Sect. The lush vegetation eventually gave way to a wide, sprawling district of buildings nestled within picturesque deep forest valleys, surging riverways, and cloudy mountain cliffs.


    There was no denying that the Beheaded Phoenix Sect Monastery was a sight to behold; A stronghold of human civilisation in a tumultuous sea of misty forests and rocky ridges. Mundane low-lying wooden structures ¡ª adorned with orange roof tiles and warm hanging lanterns ¡ª blended perfectly with the steep slopes of reddish rocks and flame-hued trees of the forest.


    Their simple design housed the majority of the merchants that came to trade with the Sect in the outer markets of the settlement. Many of those buildings were also locally owned by the wealthier Disciples of the Sect, where their personal assets, cultivation resources, and servants may be housed within the relative security of the Sect¡¯s sanctuary.


    Yet the monastery did not lack in architectural splendour either. Within the inner zones of the settlement, towering red pagodas of varying heights were interspersed between stretches of meticulously maintained gardens and serene stone courtyards, breaking up the banality of the outer districts with a mythicism fitting for a Cultivation Sect.


    The Hei Clan technically owned the entirety of the Beheaded Phoenix Sect, but its private family compound formed merely a small part of the Sect¡¯s main stronghold, located at the very core of the monastery close to the mountain¡¯s peak. The settlement was home to over three hundred cultivators and easily five times that number of mortal servants and merchants, with the land divided into a large variety of districts, each with its own special sets of infrastructure, rules, and Elders to oversee them.


    The Outer Markets. The Smithing Armoury. The Medical Pavilion. The Sparring Halls. The Scripture Towers. The Apothecary. The Imperial Embassy. All these key wards and more established the basis of each district, and each worked hand-in-hand to keep the Sect running smoothly.


    To a mortal villager, the sight of the Sect alone would leave them gasping. The amount of wealth sunk into the compound dwarfed the collective sum of tens or even hundreds of villages combined. Likewise, its population density was the largest to be found in hundreds of miles, baring the other Sects of the Four Mountains, of course.


    Feng and Lianshi soon reached the end of the path, bringing them to the edge of the Hei Clan¡¯s private compound and into the inner districts of the Sect monastery. They stood at the gate, hands still lightly clasped together as they lingered before the entrance in silence.


    As much as the two of them wanted to keep spending time together, they both had their own duties to attend to. Lianshi needed to be present for a meeting between their Sect Elders to act as a mediator for the head Clans, who were settling the final details of their forthcoming nuptials. Hei Feng had his familial obligation that he needed to fulfil as well; a duty handed to him by the Clan¡¯s Patriarch, along with several personal errands he wanted to run.


    But while Lianshi was headed for the Beheaded Phoenix¡¯s Sect Main Building, he was headed for the large Sparring Hall in the centre of the Sect¡¯s district instead.Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings.


    For the moment, it meant they had to be separated.


    ¡°I¡¯ll see you for dinner tonight. Try not to give the Elders too much trouble.¡± Feng squeezed her hand lightly before he released his grip. She reluctantly let him go as she sighed.


    ¡°Can¡¯t we trade places? I¡¯d much rather visit the Sparring Halls than be stuck with the Elders going on about ¡®financial contributions¡¯ and ¡®conflicting, long-honoured Sect traditions¡¯ again,¡± Lianshi complained.


    ¡°You know as well as I do that this is only a task I can do,¡± the Young Master replied. He leaned forward, tip-toeing to kiss her on her forehead, mollifying her bad mood. ¡°Don¡¯t fret. It¡¯s only for a day. I¡¯ll see you later.¡±


    Lianshi gave him one last fond smile before she turned towards the direction of the Main Building. Qi flooded her legs as she crouched, forming a familiar layer of calcified black plates over them, before she made a powerful leap towards the rooftops. The very ground shook from the force, and Hei Feng watched as her form leapt from building to building with vigorous grace.


    It was only after she fell out of sight that he allowed himself to relax, releasing a shaky sigh as his shoulders slumped.


    He wanted to chide himself. Lianshi was to be his future wife, and the union held significant burdens for her as well. Even if the marriage was a political one, he had a duty to care for and be honest with her. Or, at the very least, be as honest as he could allow himself to be while still maintaining the responsibilities of his role as the Beheaded Phoenix Sect¡¯s Young Master.


    Neither of them may be in love with each other (or so he convinced himself), but that would come in time. He must simply play the role of affectionate husband and dutiful Young Master, and all will fall into place.


    His fortunes were already blessed beyond belief. To ask for any more risked the dead Heaven¡¯s wraith.


    So what was this persistent ¡®weight¡¯ that kept pressing within his chest?


    Feng sighed, running a tired hand through his hair before looking up at the morning sky. The sun was still hours from rising. He need not go to the Sparring Hall straight away; while the task given to him by his Patriarch was of great importance, it was not necessarily urgent.


    Yes, he had some time. Perhaps it would be better for him to attend to his ¡®personal¡¯ errands first and alleviate some of this ¡®weight¡¯.


    ~~~


    Hei Feng walked till he reached one of the Sect¡¯s main cultivator highways. In the middle of that cobblestone path was a wide trailing road of grey sand, easily big enough for five people to stand abreast. It ran along the entire stretch of the road, and at every intersection, the trail split as well.


    The Sect compound was large. For a mortal man, it might take him hours to walk from one end to another, never mind the ever-changing elevation that comes with living on a mountain. Even for a cultivator¡¯s enhanced stamina, navigating the Sect by foot alone would be both challenging and time-consuming.


    Thankfully, any disciple of worth within the Beheaded Phoenix Sect already held the means to circumvent this problem.


    The Young Master stepped onto the sand and gazed forward, ensuring that there was no one else down the path before he activated his technique.


    [Fiery Comet Step]


    He shot forward like a star, covering over half a kilometre of distance within the span of a few seconds. The blazing trail left behind him was soon smothered as the grey sands shifted and flowed like a living river, burying the fires before they had a chance to rage further.


    Hei Feng expertly brought himself to a stop at a hallway intersection, before firing off the technique once more in a separate direction.


    [Fiery Comet Step]


    [Fiery Comet Step]


    [Fiery Comet Step]


    Again, again, and again. The Young Master shot through the ordered Sect compound, only stopping to change directions at pre-determined intersections. In the span of a minute, he had traversed over half a dozen kilometres.


    He first went to the Apothecary and the Medical Pavilion to pick up the supplies he had ordered the night before. After that, the Young Master passed the gates of the outer district and kept going until he reached the stables of the Sect. Once he had secured a suitable steed from the enthusiastic stablemaster, Feng set out, leaving the monastery behind as he rode his horse down the well-trodden dirt trails of the Phoenix Mountain and into the sprawling, misty valleys below.


    Down and down the mountain he went, his Fire-Wheel Mare keeping a blistering pace as Feng fed the tamed Spirit Beast stamina biscuits to maintain its qi and speed. Soon, he reached his first destination, several kilometres away from his Sect¡¯s main gates.


    A desolate, run-down village in the lower reaches of the Phoenix Mountain.


    <hr>


    Outer Sects


    Numbering in the hundreds and scattered all over the expansive and qi-deprived Outer Provinces, Outer Sects form up the majority of the Sects within the Imperial Empire. Collectively, they hold the bulwark of sanctioned Imperial cultivators within the populace, with a strength well over several tens of thousands of practitioners, each seeking their own unique (and often doomed) Path towards Immortality.


    Despite their vast numbers, Outer Sects are considered largely insignificant by the upper echelons of the Empire¡¯s governance. Most of these Outer Sects are barely even deemed worthy of remembering by those in the Inner Provinces, save for the purposes of tax collection and record keeping.


    Like all Sects, Outer Sects are commonly built around a Divine Corpse ¡ª often one ranked only as mere Carrion ¡ª as their presence is vital for making the surrounding qi-rich enough for paltry cultivation. Those that don¡¯t even have that barely last long, as the barren Outer Provinces have very few reliable sources of qi beyond the putrefying corpses of the dead Deities scattered about.


    Of the hundreds or so Sects that persist in the Outer Province, only a few are influential enough to draw the eyes of the Inner Provinces¡¯ bureaucrats and establish a working relationship with them. An example would be the Four Mountain Sects group, whose unique Sects adjacency gave them some measure of value.


    Such a boon is valuable beyond measure, for the cultivation resources of the Inner Provinces are of magnitudes more beneficial and potent in aiding advancement. An Outer Province Sect that has secured trading rights with an Inner Province Sect would not only be able to engage in lucrative commerce, but also gain the means of obtaining vital cultivation breakthrough catalysts for ascending to the Fourth or even Fifth Realm.


    ¨C Excerpt from A Citizen¡¯s Guide to the Imperial Empire. This particular publication is restricted to publication only within the Inner and Core Provinces.

 3.2 Charitable Errands

    ¡°B-blessed Cultivator! You honour us with your presence! How may this humble chief aid you?¡±


    Feng¡¯s arrival in the village was hardly subtle, nor was his status as a cultivator something that could be hidden. If the two-metre tall flaming horse at his side or his expensive robes did not give his prestige away immediately, his qi certainly did.


    Even the unawakened mortals of this sleepy village could tell when a powerful cultivation was among them.


    His status as Young Master was more obscure, but that hardly made a difference. The village sentry had run off to get the village chief the moment they saw his blazing steed come down the path. It saved him considerable time as Feng assessed the settlement.


    It was almost entirely populated by mortals. Less than a handful of them could cultivate, and the ¡®strongest¡¯ among them was the ageing village chief before him, who barely stood within the third Step of the Foundation Realm.


    ¡°I thank the elder for meeting me so swiftly,¡± Feng said, and the chief bowed even lower. ¡°I shall be brief, so as to not take too much of your precious time. I have come to enquire about matters regarding your village¡¯s harvest tax this year.¡±


    Feng could sense the man¡¯s nervousness, as well as the pungent fear that lingered from the surrounding villagers as they dropped everything they were doing and rushed into their homes. For some damnable reason, that annoying weight in his heart doubled, and Feng thought he smelled the faint stench of rusted chains and saccharine rot in the air again.


    There was an eye in the shadows, judging his every move.


    ¡°This lowly one will, of course, do everything he can to help you, Honoured Cultivator,¡± the chief said, clasped hands shaking while sweat dripped off his brow. ¡°It is simply¡­ I had thought the matter of taxes this year was already settled months ago? I-I can assure you, a pair of disciples wearing the robes of the Beheaded Phoenix Sect had arrived to pick up the tithe¡­¡±


    The chief no doubt thought Feng was here to extort more. Why else would a cultivator come to their meagre village, if not to take its resources for himself?


    ¡°The weak are ever prey to the strong. Mere playthings to plunder, rape, and feast upon¨C¡±


    ¡°Be silent,¡± Feng murmured. Something within him throbbed uglily.


    ¡°A-ah, I¡¯m sorry?¡± The chief said, before paling and bowing lower. ¡°I beg a thousand pardons, Honoured Cultivator! But this lowly one could not hear your words. It is my age, you see, I have had poor ears ever since¡ª¡±


    ¡°I said, you are correct. It has been settled,¡± Feng replied soothingly as he schooled his expression. ¡°I am merely here to follow up on a matter. The quality of the grain you have sent met the weight quotas, but further inspection found the produce to be of poor quality.¡±


    The chief winced. ¡°Honoured Cultivator! This humble village has already sent the best it has! Surely, you can overlook¨C¡±


    ¡°Calm yourself, I am not here to punish you.¡± Feng¡¯s voice was weary. A familiar shade flickered again at his vision¡¯s edge, but he ignored the apparition. ¡°I came here to assess the situation, and I understand. Your harvest this year was exceptionally poor, was it not?¡±


    It was obvious in the emaciated bodies of the villagers around them. Most of them looked ready to kneel over at any moment. If Feng concentrated his qi, he could sense the stench of death coming from more than a few houses.


    The corpses were not buried, but stored.


    That they had already resorted to eating their dead¡­ Were it his choice, would he have preferred the flesh of his kin, or would he trade it for a less familiar body to lessen the grief?


    ¡°Your village was already undergoing a famine when our tax collectors arrived. Threatened by their words and presence, you were forced to give up more than what you could afford,¡± the Young Master surmised.


    The village chief said nothing, keeping his head bowed. Beneath the pitiful display, however, Feng could sense the stirring of resentment and despair.


    How many people was the elder forced to watch starve as he paid the village tithe? How many familiar faces did he have to butcher, after the Sect cultivators came and took away their hard-earned harvest? Harvest that the Sect would not even care for?


    Feng did not know, and neither did he ask. Instead, he hefted two heavy burlap sacks from his mare¡¯s pack saddle and placed them at the elder¡¯s feet. ¡°Here.¡±


    ¡°A-ah?¡± The elder blinked himself out of his stupor, before gingerly opening the bag. His eyes widened in shock. ¡°This is¨C!¡±


    Rice. Two large sacks of pure white rice, their shine indicating only of the highest quality; it was undoubtedly a far more princely variant of grain than the pitiful bags of millet the village had surrendered as taxes months before.


    ¡°Use this to feed your people,¡± Feng said as the chief looked on in shock. ¡°I have already arranged for my disciples to send regular shipments of grain here to aid your village until your famine is resolved by the next harvest.¡±


    ¡°Y-your disciples?! But that¡¯s¡­ Good Sir, are you the Young¨C!¡±


    ¡°The Disciples that handled the collecting of your harvest have been punished for not reporting your situation. You will not see them again,¡± Feng cut in. Already, he was mounting back on his steed, unwilling to spend another moment there. More and more people were coming out of their houses, the elder¡¯s loud exclamations and the sight of the rice overriding their fear of him. ¡°Please distribute these to your people. It will not bring back your dead, but this Young Master apologises regardless, on behalf of his Sect.¡±The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.


    He turned and rode away, even as the elder shouted his praise of gratitude. Feng heard the desperate cheers of the villagers who rushed to see the bounty. More than a few broke down in tears. Yet neither the sound of their jubilation nor the pounding gallops of his steed could block out the mocking whispers in his ears.


    ¡°One in a thousand injustice. What does it matter?¡±


    Even as the words were uttered by his lifeless heart, he thought the weight of it lessened a little. The Young Master breathed, reigning in his emotions before taking out a map detailing the territories of the Beheaded Phoenix Sect. The parchment was riddled with markings that he had worked out the night before.


    Harvest records, population counts, tax ledgers, and trade transcripts. A thousand documents, read and sorted, that gave him an idea of the mortal happenings in the lands of the Beheaded Phoenix Sect.


    Few cultivators cared for the mortals that toiled for the Sect, fewer still would ever help them. But many are the ones who would exploit those villagers, and even more were willing to completely overlook this abuse as ¡®natural¡¯.


    Feng would have been one of them too, if he had a choice. But that damnable weight in his chest would not let him, and he had learnt long ago that ignoring that thing festering in his heart would lead to dire, fatal consequences.


    ¡°Alright then, you greedy thing,¡± he murmured to himself as he tucked the map back in his robe, his next destination set. ¡°Let¡¯s see how many I must aid this time for you to go back to sleep.¡±


    The day was still young, and he had work to do.


    ~~~


    ¡°Honoured Cultivator! Please forgive the state of our village. It is simply that¡ª¡±


    ¡°I am already aware. Your area was recently infested by Ear-Feasting Flies and the pleas for aid had been ignored for months. Direct me to the nest; I shall cleanse the rot personally¡­¡±


    ~~~


    ¡°Honoured Cultivator! I beg of you, bandits have been harassing our trade, and were even bold enough to raid our village! Our women and children have been taken, please¡ª!¡±


    ¡°I have already dealt with the matter on my way here. The bandits have been slain, and the captives were taken to the nearest checkpoint east of here. Go and reclaim your people. I have also ordered the Outer Disciple guards there to prepare compensation for their laxity¡­¡±


    ~~~


    ¡°Young Master! It is you again! Please, it is shamelessly of me to ask once more for your aid after you helped us months ago, but¡ª¡±


    ¡°The river dam has collapsed again, I can see. I shall personally prepare a ford for now to stem the flow. Materials and disciples will be sent to aid in the construction of a new one. The previous builders will be reprimanded for their slovenly work, and¡­¡±


    ~~~


    On and on he went. Some villages were places he had not been to before. Others were frequent areas of visit during his monthly ¡®charity¡¯ work. Each settlement he went to had a serious problem that went unaddressed. Each one had their problems solved by the time he left, to the great relief and cheers of their inhabitants.


    ¡°Perhaps. But for how long? And after how much blood was split and bodies savaged, when some of their problems went ignored for days or weeks?¡±


    By the time the sun reached its summit, he had personally visited over a dozen villages, solved just as many problems, and likely saved the lives of countless mortals. He was showered in praise, and his reputation among the common folk had likely risen once more.


    But more importantly, the weight in his heart had noticeably lessened. Its pressure was now merely a tenth of what it was in the morning. The voice persisted, but its mumbles were barely audible now.


    ¡°You have failed to solve anything. The cycle will repeat.¡±


    Feng sighed, making sure there was no one around but himself and his mare on the trail before he spoke aloud: ¡°I did what I could with what I have. You cannot possibly ask more of me.¡±


    ¡°The root remains poisoned; the cause unresolved.¡±


    ¡°I have already punished the ones responsible. Despite my position, I cannot control the actions of every single one of my Sect¡¯s Disciples. That they choose to act in a way that harms the mortal villages is a failing on their part, not mine!¡±


    ¡°More waste. More excuse.¡±


    ¡°I have already done my part. You will honour our silent agreement, and begone.¡±


    ¡°This is what we promised each other, Zhong.¡±


    ¡°That is not my name, and I do not know who you are, you¡ª!¡± The Young Master sucked in a breath as his mare became restless at his shouting. He patted the beast''s neck, murmuring soothing words in its ear.


    Once it was calm again, he closed his eyes and whispered: ¡°Leave me be. You are not real.¡±


    When Feng opened his eyes, he flinched, as he saw a pale green eye staring at him from an inch away.


    ¡°Would that it be so simple¡­¡±


    The phantom face of a woman he did not recognise kissed him on the forehead, before disappearing like the wisps of morning mist.


    It took a long while before the Young Master got his turbulent qi back under control.


    <hr>


    The Outer Provinces


    The edge of human civilisation. A vast steppe of land devoid of qi or valuable resources. This is where most of the existing human population lives. A land of the mundane, where mystics are rare and the populace short-lived and ignorant of higher purposes.


    Most of the people here spend their lives toiling away farming or weaving so that they may pay their meagre taxes to the Empire. Such worthless tithe are collected by whichever poor Imperial bureaucrat was ill-fortuned enough to be tasked with the loathsome chore, upon which they are then further burdened with the responsibility of figuring out a way to use the countless bags of banal produce to better the state of the region.


    It is not an enviable task, and it is one of the main reasons why those from the Inner Province detest the Outer Provinces so much.


    The only things that might be of any tangible merit within these impoverished lands are the Cultivation Sects that dwell there, which exist as the only means by which a denizen of the Outer Province may make a name for themselves by becoming a Practitioner of the Spiritual Arts ¡ª though their contribution to the Empire¡¯s ultimate goal of creating an Immortal Utopia is debatable.


    As of the current year, there are a hundred and eight Outer Provinces designated within the fringes of Imperial territory, with their total population encompassing half of the Imperial Empire¡¯s citizens. It is often a widely contentious point within the Imperial Court whether the annexation of the Outer Provinces from the Empire ¡ª with many extremists even suggesting wholesale genocide as a form of mercy ¡ª would be more beneficial to achieving the Emperor¡¯s vision of an Ascendant Humanity, rather than to allow them to languish.


    Thus far, opinions are split on the matter, but with each passing year, more and more have begun to side with the voices of those favouring abandonment.


    ¨C Excerpt from A Citizen¡¯s Guide to the Imperial Empire

 3.3 Feeding

    ¡°Ah, Young Master! You have returned! And just in time for feeding. Did that horse give you any trouble?¡±


    Feng tiredly guided the horse into the stable, shaking his head. ¡°The horse was very well-behaved, as usual. You have trained her well, Stablemaster Geng.¡±


    The large man chuckled, patting the flaming equine as he checked her over. ¡°I think the Fire-Wheels has taken a likening to you, Young Lord! Not many disciples often take our mares for riding. Most either prefer the Lantern Bats for flight or the Black-Hoofed Stallions for power. You choosing them gives the Fire-Wheels a chance to stretch their legs.¡±


    ¡°The mare serves my purposes best,¡± Feng said as he gave the horse the last of his qi biscuits. The equine snorted happily as she munched down the treats.


    Lantern Bats were swift and could fly over terrain, but were unable to carry much cargo. Meanwhile, the Black-Hoofed Stallion¡¯s terrifying presence and tendency to go into a fire-breathing rampage at the slightest provocation made them unsuitable for riding into fragile mortal villages.


    The Fire-Wheel Mares, despite their intimidating flaming hooves and eyes, were a more familiar sight. They also boast a calmer nature and a robust endurance that ensures reliable speed even while weighed down by cargo or when travelling on mountainous terrain. He gave the mare one final pat, who affectionately nuzzled against his hand, before passing over the reins.


    ¡°I¡¯m sure the villagers were thrilled to see you visit them personally again, My Lord! You always bring the best gifts for them,¡± Geng said good-naturedly, and Feng smiled back. The Stablemaster meant his words in the best of light, and it was one of the reasons Feng enjoyed the older Core Disciple¡¯s company.


    Most in the Sect knew of the Young Master¡¯s odd tendency to mingle among the lower mortals of the mountain, showering them with unearned charity and favours. None really understood the reason behind this strange behaviour, and Feng never tried to explain why he did so.


    More than a few had attempted to persuade him off from this squandering of time and resources. A Young Master of a Sect should not lower himself to serve the unawakened masses. But his father, the Patriarch, never disallowed his frequent touring of the mortal villages, and after years of this practice, most gave up on changing his behaviour, and simply regarded it as just another oddity.


    It helped that the Young Master never wasted too much of the Sect¡¯s resources, as he always used his own funds to purchase the donations he gave to the peasants. Hence, despite the general criticism of his actions from the rest of the Sect, many were willing to just ignore it.


    But occasionally, there were people who approved of his monthly charity visits. Geng was one of them.


    ¡°Most were suffering too much to care for my presence, Senior Brother,¡± Feng replied, a hint of fatigue creeping into his voice. ¡°Our Outer Disciples have been lax in their duties again.¡±


    ¡°It is the way of things. Those who are assigned such posts ¡ª positions that oversee mortal affairs ¡ª are often troublemakers or bottle-necked disciples, Young Master,¡± Geng said sympathetically. ¡°The Elders put them there to rid the Sect of untalented students.¡±


    The Core Disciple coaxed the mare back into the stable house, but rather than lead her back to her holding pens, the Stablemaster was tugging her into one of the darker alcoves. The mare grew hesitant, and began whining as she resisted his pulling.


    ¡°Their given roles are seen as punishments, rather than an acknowledgement of their capabilities,¡± Geng continued, as he pulled the leash along with a strong hand. ¡°Placed under such assignments, they lack the opportunity to cultivate or train, and thus further stagnate. That they do not receive any reward or compensation for going out of their way to help the mortals is another sore point for them.¡±


    ¡°They failed in their responsibilities,¡± Feng argued back as he walked alongside the older disciple, though his words were a half-hearted effort. ¡°Is there no shame in that?¡±


    Geng shrugged. The mare¡¯s struggles intensified as the disciple continued walking towards the dark sections of the building, uncaring of the mare¡¯s distress. His grip was iron-tight, and the fiery Spirit Beast was choking as she futilely resisted against the hold on her neck with all her strength.


    ¡°Villages rise and fall all the time. To beasts. To famine. To disease. To disaster¡­ The lives of mortals are short; their capacity to withstand the harsh elements of our world limited.¡± Feng heard his Senior¡¯s words clearly, even with the distress neighing in the background. ¡°The loss of a hundred, even a thousand, of such unawakened worms is not a great loss to the Sect. You are the only one who cares enough to punish the Outer Disciples for the laxity in their ¡®duties¡¯, Young Master.¡±


    It was an argument he had heard many times before, and Feng could even see the logic in that. The weak fell; the strong pushed onwards. The pursuit of Immortality leaves no room for mercy or kindness, especially to those beneath you. The way forward was already paved with enough difficulties.


    He understood this. The thing in his Heart, however, did not.


    Upon seeing the Young Master¡¯s expression, Geng bowed his head.


    ¡°I mean no disrespect, Young Lord. I myself came from one of those lowly villages, many decades ago. Your kindness for those beneath you makes you more of a man of quality than not in my humble eyes. However¡­¡±


    The mare was in an open panic now, violently thrashing with wide eyes and frantic brays as they approached closer to a large, sealed-off alcove. A sharp tsk of annoyance escaped the older disciple¡¯s lips.


    ¡°Stubborn beast,¡± he murmured, before he raised a foot and brought it done upon the mare¡¯s foreleg.


    The limb cracked with barely a hint of resistance, bones breaking into sickening splinters while blood splattered everywhere. The mare roared in maddening pain. Her blazing gaze flared with fury as its qi rose in power.


    Foundation Realm, Eighth Step.


    Turning to the Core Disciple, she unleashed all of her rage and power, her fiery eye pulsing once before firing a golden ray of incendiary energy at Disciple Geng¡­


    ¡­ who nonchalantly slapped the beam aside before bringing down his fist upon the mare¡¯s head.If you encounter this story on Amazon, note that it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it.


    The horse¡¯s skull cracked under the blow, leaving her severely dazed and wounded, but alive. Her legs gave out, but that mattered little to the Core Disciple, who simply dragged the now-pacified beast along.


    ¡°Our world is not such a kind place for you to indulge in fantasies of fairness or justice, Young Master,¡± Geng continued as if nothing had happened. ¡°This goes doubly so for those weaker than us. The strong devours, and the weak becomes devoured. This is the world that our Emperor has created with his domain, the Eternal Banquet. If there was a kinder world, it is doubtless that His Majesty had already considered it.¡±


    ¡°And rejected it.¡±


    The familiar stench of rust and rot made its presence known, even as Feng knew it was not real.


    The mare¡¯s nature as a Spirit Beast made it a greater threat than any mundane animal. It was a creature that could cultivate, and as such possessed powers that would threaten even a group of mortal men.


    None of that mattered to a human cultivator whose standing completely eclipsed hers, however. Brother Geng flexed his qi casually as the burnt wound in his palm healed.


    Tempering Realm, Fifth Step. Nearly two Realms higher than the Spirit Beast.


    There was a reason why Brother Geng ¡ª a Core Disciple ¡ª was the Stablemaster, and not another Inner or Outer Disciple of the Sect. The role of a Stablemaster was a trying one. A firm hand was needed to control the Spirit Beasts¡­


    And to corral them for feeding.


    With a heave, Brother Geng casually lifted the giant mare over his shoulder and hurled her forth like the animal was a mere sack of grain. The horse flew, its distressed cries silenced with a heavy thud as it landed in the middle of the den before them; the deepest and darkest alcove of the stablehouse. She gave a weak whine as more of her legs broke from the impact. The scent of blood and fear filled the pit.


    Above her, something stirred. Within the near pitch-black darkness of that room, a trio of pulsating orange lights glowed on the ceiling, revealing a bulbous sack of translucent skin, luminous organs¡­


    And three pairs of dripping, ravenous maws.


    The Lantern Bats descended upon their prey, their excited shrieks mingling with the horrified cries of the mare. The equine stood no chance. Weakened and outnumbered as she was, her feeble thrashing barely gave pause to the triad of giant winged monstrosities that fell upon her. Great flapping wings, each with a wingspan of over three men, blocked the gruesome sight from view as the bats glut themselves upon the mare¡¯s warm blood.


    ¡°There we go!¡± Brother Geng dusted off his hands as he looked on with satisfaction. ¡°Elder Cao from External Relations recently brought in a few giant Blindstone Lizards; gifts from your Fianc¨¦e to our Sect, apparently. I figured it was as good a time as any to clear out the older mares and make some room. At least you were able to let this one have one last ride before its end, Young Master. I¡¯m sure it¡¯s grateful.¡±


    The Young Master mutely nodded as his gaze remained in the pit. The mare within could barely move any more. Her cries of pain were growing weaker, their distress barely audible beyond the horrible, gobbling slurps of the giant bats as they sunk their distended jaws into the rich arteries of the mare.


    Standing beside that orgy of bloodthirst and misery, a woman looked down upon the dying Spirit Beast, her singular green eye void of expression. Feng blinked, and she was gone.


    ¡°I could have the mare¡¯s meat sent for dinner later, if you wish,¡± Geng continued. ¡°Lantern Bats only drink the blood of their prey. We can have the remains diced up and cooked for your consumption tonight. You must be hungry after your little trip, and I am sure Lady Lianshi would appreciate some local cuisines. The meat of a Fire-Wheel Mare is a rather rare delicacy, after all!¡±


    ¡°That is a good idea, Senior Brother Geng,¡± Feng numbly replied. His words felt distant. The sounds of slurping blood and feeble neighing seemed to echo deafeningly in his ears. ¡°I¡¯m sure our guest from the foreign Sect will appreciate the gesture.¡±


    The wings of the Lantern Bats folded briefly. In that brief window, he saw the gaze of the Fire-Wheel Mare desperately seeking his. She gave a begging whine, tear-stained eyes pleading.


    Feng heard a voice.


    ¡°Does your path forward lie in accepting such callousness?¡±


    Half-dazed, fingers arching, the Young Master took a step forth¡ª


    There was a sickening crack. One of the bats, in its ravenous enthusiasm, had accidentally snapped the neck of the mare when its jaws twisted upon her throat. The light in the mare''s eyes gave out, and her whining ceased entirely.


    There was nought left but the stench of gore and the sound of chittering beasts, their tongues digging into veins and drawing upon the last drops of blood from the rapidly paling corpse.


    ¡°Ah, that¡¯s unfortunate. I was hoping the mare would last longer. Her qi would have burned away the bats¡¯ impurities, but I suppose the Lanterns¡¯ enthusiasm can¡¯t be blamed.¡± Brother Geng scratched his chin sheepishly. ¡°I haven¡¯t been feeding them as often as I should. The bats only accept live prey, and not many of our Disciples are punished severely enough to warrant serving as blood bags for our stables.¡±


    ¡°But worry not, Young Master!¡± The older disciple continued with a cheer, oblivious to the Young Master¡¯s expression. ¡°I will make sure the cooks thoroughly prepare the meat and rid them of any foul bat toxins. You may rest assured that only the finest organs and cleanest cuts of horse flank will grace the dinner table tonight.¡±


    Something foul and heavy returned to his heart, the hard-earned weightlessness he had worked for all morning vanished in an instant. Nails and chains and knives descended on him, piercing and tearing and clawing at his chest, his heart exposed to her teeth¨C


    Feng wrenched himself out of the false memory.


    ¡°I will leave that in your capable hands then, Senior Brother Geng.¡± The Young Master turned to the Disciple and bowed. Feng¡¯s poise was impeccable, his expression featureless. ¡°If you will excuse me, I have other business to attend to as well.¡±


    ¡°Of course! Don¡¯t let me stop you. Have a good day, Young Lord!¡±


    The Young Master walked leisurely out of the stables. He greeted the few other disciples in the building as he left, his countenance pleasant and his stride composed.


    He walked past the exit of the stable, past the entrance to the gates of the Sect compound, past the cobbled highways of the monastery.


    He did not stop until he found a secluded corner, next to a patch of greenery growing a small fig tree.


    Then, once he had ascertained there was no one else around, he hunched over and vomited.


    <hr>


    The Phoenix Mountain, Part 1


    The Phoenix Mountain stands as one of the four great peaks of the 103rd Outer Province, serving as the home of one of its few Sects: the Sect of the Beheaded Phoenix.


    Standing at eight hundred metres in height, the Phoenix Mountain may be on the shorter side among the Four Mountains of the Province, yet its slopes and highlands brim with natural wonders and a vibrant ecosystem, characterised by dense forests of Stonepine and Firewreath Trees. Its abundance of Spirit-infused wood makes the mountain a key exporter of high-quality lumber to all the Northern Outer Provinces.


    The mountain is also home to a wide variety of animals and Spirit Beasts. Some, like the Fire-Wheel Mare and the Black-Hoofed Stallions, roam the grassy highlands around the lower slopes of the mountain. Others, like the Lantern Bats or the Hundredskitter Centipedes, dwell within the extensive tunnel networks that wind through the mountain.


    The more dangerous and exotic Spirit Beasts, like the Redmane Lions or Grasping Hawks, often build their homes closer to the mountain peaks, where the ambient qi saturations are higher, although they are occasionally sighted in the lower valleys as they hunt for prey.


    ¨C Excerpt from A Citizen¡¯s Guide to the Imperial Empire

 CHAPTER UPDATES STILL ONGOING, BUT NOT ON ROYALROAD

    First off, if you are reading this part, the chapter updates are STILL continuing daily, but they are no longer being uploaded to this site. I plan to re-launch this story once I better understand how RR works so that I may reach out to more readers. If you are interested on continuing this story, you may use the link below to reach the forum where I am still uploading daily chapters:If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.


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