บท 16: Third Layer Dungeon
After deciding that he would continue to raise his cultivation via slaughter, Yaan began spending more time in the execution chamber of the first layer dungeon than ever before. Under Great Elder Wan's orders, he was fetched ten prisoners each day to execute.
It made him wonder just how many people died at the hands of this sect everyday. The first layer dungeon only homed mortal prisoners. There were actually two more layers to this dungeon though, each holding cultivator prisoners.
After speaking with the other core disciples, Yaan gathered that the second and third layers of the dungeon were smaller and less crowded. The second layer held those members of the Heavenly Path Sect who were being punished for their wrong doings, whilst the third and lowest layer was filled with enemies of the sect.
Ten days passed by, during which time, Yaan executed another 100 mortals. At first, he worried about the Slaughter Aura affecting his mind, but over time, he discovered that even if he killed multiple mortals consecutively, he still wouldn't encounter any serious issues.
The killing intent and resulting negative emotions that assaulted his mind were no less intense than before, but his endurance and ability to resist had increased ten fold. After discussing this with Great Elder Wan, they both came to a decision.
Yaan was to visit the third layer dungeon, where he could execute Qi Gathering Realm cultivators. Doing this would allow him to refine the higher quality Slaughter Aura which would be released upon their deaths.
He was oblivious to this fact back when he targeted Xinti in Zong Village, but the Slaughter Aura released from cultivators was far more intense compared to that released from mortal humans. For someone to absorb their very first strand of Slaughter Aura from a Qi Gathering Realm being like Yaan had done, would usually lead to that individual losing themselves on the spot. It was impressive that Yaan had somehow managed to keep his sanity in check at that time.
As they travelled down the tight spiral staircase and into the ever-darkening depths below the surface, Great Elder Wan noticed Yaan's nervousness.
"Don't worry Yaan, these people are all crippled and can not hurt you." He comforted Yaan softly whilst glancing down at him and keeping an eye on his mental state as usual.
"Mm." Yaan nodded.
Mortals might view all cultivators as esteemed immortals, but this was far from the truth. Those at the Qi Gathering Realm were stronger than mortals, but if their limbs were broken and they were stripped of any treasures, then they would become a helpless cripple like any other.
"Even if they were in peak condition, it wouldn't be a problem for you to face those at the early or even mid stage of the Qi Gathering Realm." Rui reminded him.
Yaan knew that she was probably right, but he had no real world experience here. Since he had never properly tested himself against a cultivator in actual combat, he held onto some doubt regarding his own capabilities.
After refining another one 100 strands of Slaughter Aura from 100 mortal prisoners, Yaan finally reached the Early Qi Gathering Realm. This wasn't exactly a big achievement, as it merely meant that his dantian was 5% filled with Innate Qi. This was only slightly better compared to his entry into the initial stage, at which point his Innate Qi filled only 1% of the dantian's capacity for a Qi Gathering Realm cultivator.
Rui believed in Yaan's battle strength despite his lack of experience, because of Yaan's 1-Star demonic body.
Qi refining cultivators refined Innate Qi, they relied on treasures and spells to battle, but those who cultivated their body could fight bare naked if they needed to do so. Body cultivators possessed innately powerful flesh, supported by a power called 'Vital Energy', which ran through their very blood. On top of this, Qi Gathering Realm cultivators were usually quite poor and would not own any treasures, whilst spells could only be cast after ascending to the Innate Qi Realm. For this reason, a demon with a 1-Star demonic body would almost always have the edge over a Qi Gathering Realm human.
Whilst thinking about this piece of information, Yaan unknowingly arrived at the execution chamber of the third layer. The third layer was actually split up into multiple different sections, each with their own cells and execution room. Yaan was currently standing in the section of the third layer which held the Qi Gathering Realm enemies of the Heavenly Path Sect.
Each holding cell was segregated from the central round hall by a thick steel door. This was clearly a higher level of security compared to the mortal prison, but given that cultivators were being imprisoned here, that was to be expected.
Yaan turned towards the largest door. This door was pointed out by his teacher, and beyond this door, Yaan would find his cultivator victim. He watched somewhat nervously as the grey archway creaked inwards and revealed the dark room within.
"Go on Yaan. The prisoner is crippled, they are unable to hurt you." His teacher encouraged him with a gentle smile. Yaan nodded, putting on a firm expression and stepping past the steel door, entering the dark room beyond…
The room was quite similar to the execution chamber on the first floor, only, there were no weapons in this room.
Now that he was alone in here with this crippled prisoner, Yaan realised that he had been worrying for nothing.
A cripple was a cripple, and this woman on the floor could barely move. Just looking at her, it was obvious that she had been beaten beyond badly. Her face was so swollen that she couldn't even open her eyes. A continual soft whining sound was released from her mouth…were it not for this noise which she started making as soon as Yaan entered, he wouldn't even be able to tell whether or not she was aware of his presence.
Yaan held onto the crimson-stained execution sword from the first layer dungeon's execution chamber. He decided to keep this weapon as his own after using its sharp blade to harvest the lives of so many unfortunate victims. He remained silent for some time, looking down at her with a thoughtful expression.
"Elder Sun once told me that mortal lives are like dirt, but I don't really see how cultivators are any different…" Yaan muttered to himself in a strange tone.
Putting cultivators on a pedestal as if they were inherently more worthy than mortals had always bothered him. He had once despised Elder Sun's outlook on mortal life, and the way he looked down on mortals, as if their lives were worth no more than grass…but Yaan was starting to realise that perhaps, he just disagreed with the idea that cultivators were so much better.
Chi!
A sword through the heart and her life slipped away. She was once an esteemed cultivator, but now, she died just the same as any other mortal. This woman bled the same colour as a mortal and died just as easily under Yaan's blade.
His thoughts were interrupted as the Slaughter Aura stormed into his body, wreaking havoc through his meridians and worming its way into his mind. Yaan sat down and concentrated on refining this strand of malicious aura into Innate Qi.
As expected, the effect of this Slaughter Aura was far beyond anything he had absorbed after killing an ordinary mortal. Yaan was reminded of his days prior to completing his transformation into a true fined, back when he was forced to focus intently on resisting the bloody temptations which urged him to descend into mindless wrath.
This woman's cultivation was at the Mid Qi Gathering Realm, this was the strongest person he had killed to date. At first Yaan, was concerned that he would struggle to handle Slaughter Aura of this magnitude, but his worries dispersed within a single minute. The negative emotions settled down and Yaan realised that he was still in complete control. Even whilst feeling this bloodlust, he was able to restrain himself. His mental fortitude was clearly increasing, day by day.
When he departed from the chamber half an hour later, Yaan felt startled to see an unfamiliar man speaking with his teacher. This person was middle-aged and had a long black beard. He looked younger than Great Elder Wan, but at the same time, he did not seem more youthful.
The two stopped their conversation and turned towards him, causing Yaan to feel a disorientating pressure under the scrutinising gaze of this unfamiliar person. His mind became dizzy and he stepped back, clutching his face as his vision blurred.
"Jushu, stop bothering my disciple." Great Elder Wan frowned and stood between Yaan and the man, relieving the pressure upon Yaan's body and mind, and finally allowing him to breath. After recovering for a few moments, Yaan tilted his head, looking past his teacher and staring at this overbearing man fearfully.
So powerful!
Just a simple gaze could exert such a strong pressure, just who was this person?!
"I only intended to test him, after all, I have not yet met this disciple of yours, Saddo." The man replied with a light-hearted chuckle, as if him causing Yaan's heart to palpitate in terror was not a big deal.
Great Elder Wan sighed, then stepped out of the way and pointed lightly towards the man whom he called 'Jushu'.
"Yaan, this is the sect lord of the Heavenly Path Sect."
Yaan's body stiffened and he restored his posture immediately. He clasped his hands together and bowed ever so slightly. His actions and his tone immediately became respectful.
"Greeting, sect lord."
"Hmm…" The sect lord continued to observe Yaan carefully from head to toe. This time seemed to drag on for an eternity in Yaan's mind, until finally, the sect lord could only give up after finding nothing amiss.
"If there's nothing else, we will be taking our leave. Yaan, come." Great Elder Wan shot a side glance at the sect lord, before signalling to Yaan to follow after him. Yaan bowed again to the sect lord, then hurried after his teacher.
They were silent during their walk back towards the surface. During this silence which was accompanied by an unusual atmosphere, Yaan tried to think of something to say.
"Teacher…are there problems between you and the sect lord?" Yaan asked hesitantly, not knowing if he should be prying into this matter.
His teacher sighed heavily.
"Of course, there are always problems between the highest ranking members of a sect. Everyone is competing for power, resources and so on, so how can there be perfect harmony? The sect lord and myself share some history. It is only due to his slightly greater battle power that he obtained the position of sect lord, so naturally we have our problems. Don't worry about it too much Yaan, he won't create trouble for you without reason."
Yaan nodded silently, thinking to himself that he had become too complacent around his teacher, forgetting that he was actually a Peak Spirit Core Realm powerhouse…Great Elder Wan always restrained his aura around Yaan, so it was easy to forget this point. Yaan was only reminded of this humbling fact after experiencing that heavy gaze from his teacher's peer and equal, the sect lord.
As Yaan was thinking through these things, Great Elder Wan glanced down at him thoughtfully.
'Whilst Jushu is superior in terms of battle prowess right now, that will certainly change after I refine a demonic puppet. Even if I don't manage to breakthrough my cultivation realm, a demonic puppet should still allow me to surpass Jushu's level!'
Rui observed the situation silently, her thoughts unknown.
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