I Cheated While Cultivating

“`

“With mere words, one cannot save a person,” Zhou Heng said indifferently, while in his palm, the five-colored divine light flickered, evolving the true meaning of the Five Elements Path.

This was a warning.

“I know that,” Liu Yufeng fell silent, his thoughts swiftly turning.

Since ancient times, there have been only two methods to save a prisoner.

One could either offer sufficient benefits to move the opponent or demonstrate enough strength to overpower them.

But under the current circumstances, the latter was definitely impossible.

Zhou Heng had already demonstrated formidable strength, with the entire Pure Yang Palace standing behind him as support, and he had previously made a Tao Lord’s true body perish and thwarted the arrival of an Evil God’s avatar. Who would dare to claim they could overpower him?

So, there was only one path left.

“We can simply gift you the Desolate Clock without any further dispute, plus two additional Celestial Man Divine Weapons, making a total of three pieces of Third-Rank Celestial weaponry to offer you in exchange for releasing these three individuals. Would that suffice?” Liu Yufeng asked gravely.

The Desolate Clock itself was a Celestial Man-level Divine Artifact, and with two more Celestial Man Divine Weapons, the price for reviving three Absolute Fourth Rank individuals theoretically seemed extremely high.

After all, Celestial Man Divine Weapons were as valuable as Celestial Men themselves, exceptionally precious.

Such terms were truly sincere.

Even the Qingxia God, standing behind Zhou Heng, was somewhat tempted, and the other formidable observers watching from a distance began to breathe heavily.

The Qing Emperor Palace lived up to its reputation as one of the top Martial Dao Sects of the current era, a legacy with Tao Lord level powerhouses, truly wealthy and bold, nonchalantly offering three Celestial Man Divine Weapons.

What a grand gesture!

But Zhou Heng frowned, a look of puzzlement on his face, “Liu Tianren seems to have miscalculated, there are clearly only two Celestial Man Divine Weapons. Where is this third one?”

At his words, the surroundings fell into a deathly silence.

The Qingxia God stood agape, Liu Yufeng was similarly stunned, and the strong onlookers in the distance also wore shocked expressions.

Too imposing.

Was he really disavowing the Desolate Clock?

“Does this mean you do not count the Desolate Clock?” Liu Yufeng took a deep breath, his chest heaving, and said in a deep voice, “That’s not how things should be.”

“Why should it count?” Zhou Heng remained puzzled, “The Qing Emperor Palace attempted to kill a true successor of the Pure Yang Palace with this treasure, with three Great Grandmasters ganging up against me in an act of bullying. I gambled with my life and luckily subdued the artifact with a Secret Technique. How could it be considered something given to me?”

The Qingxia God behind him had a stupefied expression on her face, rendered dumbfounded.

Gambled with my life?

Luckily?

Was that really the case?

She recalled the previous events where Zhou Heng had seemingly effortlessly knocked down and subdued the Celestial Man Divine Artifact, the entire process as easy as blowing off dust.

The watching strong ones felt a shiver down their spines, admiring the skill in barefaced lying to such an extent.

“What would you have us do, then?” Liu Yufeng’s chest continued to heave, clearly infuriated, but under someone else’s roof, one must bow their head. Lu Jingcang was still in the opponent’s hands, and they could not afford to completely rupture relations.

“`

For the Qing Emperor Palace, Lu Jingcang was extremely important. He was the disciple who had cultivated the Qing Emperor’s Dharma Body to the closest state of Perfection since the creation of the Qing Emperor Palace, a feat that even the current palace master couldn’t match.

Therefore, they must rescue Lu Jingcang and not let him die here.

“I don’t think so,” Zhou Heng suddenly shook his head, the five-colored divine light in his palm shifted, emitting intense fluctuations of primordial energy and principles. He said indifferently, “First, hand over the two Divine Weapons you mentioned earlier, as well as several types of Spiritual Materials.”

After that, he named a few more Spiritual Materials, among which were treasures of Absolute Fourth Rank.

These were materials for refining an imitation of the “Time Knife.”

He had always been clueless about gathering those materials, and now he took the opportunity to shear the wool of the Qing Emperor Palace.

“Fine,” Liu Yufeng gently bit her lip with reluctance in her heart, but still handed over the two Celestial Man Divine Weapons and a pile of Spiritual Materials she had brought with her, “These two Divine Weapons are known as the ‘Green Jade Longevity Sword’ and ‘Heavy Fire Incineration’.”

“The former is skilled in nourishing the life force, its Sword Dao gentle and the principles enduring, while the latter centers on the principles of flame, exhibiting the power of destruction. Both are of excellent quality as Celestial Man Divine Weapons. I wonder if Mr. Zhou finds them satisfactory?

“As for the Spiritual Materials, I have some here, but there are still a few that I don’t have on hand. Could you possibly give me a few more days to gather them all and bring them to you?”

“No need for that, this will suffice,” Zhou Heng dismissed them with a wave, putting the two Divine Weapons and the pile of Spiritual Materials into his Cave Sky world.

Then with a gentle press of the five-colored divine light in his hand, three screams rang out immediately, and three massive fluctuations of primordial energy and principles arose, as if Great Grandmasters had perished.

“Zhou Heng! What have you done?!” Liu Yufeng sensed the changes in the principles between heaven and earth; the signs were unmistakably those of a Great Grandmaster’s Dharma Body being destroyed, and she had a bad premonition.

“Just see for yourself.” Zhou Heng casually threw a streak of green light to Liu Yufeng and said indifferently, “Since you are unwilling to offer more and even forcefully included the Downfall Bell, the items I wanted are incomplete, so I can only return part of them to you.”

As he spoke, the five-colored divine light slowly dissipated, but the traces of Lu Jingcang and the other two Great Grandmasters with Dharma Bodies had already vanished.

“You, you actually destroyed Jingcang’s physical body?!” Liu Yufeng, after examining the situation within the green light, had her face instantly turn pale with rage rising in her eyes.

For martial artists who have not yet condensed their Dao seed, the physical body is incredibly important.

Before becoming a Celestial Man, the physical body carries the entirety of one’s cultivation and is the foundation for the Dharma Body. After becoming a Celestial Man, the Primordial Spirit and True Spirit reside in the void, nearing the Great Dao, and the physical body is the proof and anchor of one’s existence in reality.

It can be said that once the physical body is lost, there is no possibility of becoming a Celestial Man, and that path is cut off.

While recreating a physical body that appears identical on the surface is not a difficult task, with the cultivation realm of a Great Grandmaster, one can do it themselves, but such a body can only assure normal activities and cannot sustain the path of future cultivation.

For ordinary people and martial artists below the Sect Fifth Rank, this kind of recreated body may not differ much from the “original,” but for Grandmasters and even Great Grandmasters, it is tantamount to complete destruction of their path.

Even the most ordinary physical body responds to the myriad ways of heaven and earth, naturally cultivated by the cosmos, a product of the heavens.

True restoration to its original state is not a simple matter.

Normally, aside from Divine First Rank Tao Lords and those who condensed some special Dao seeds, no one can fully recreate the “original” physical body.

This is also the reason why many Dharma Bodies, and even Celestial Men who have lost their physical bodies, can only shift to the Path of Loose Immortal.

Now that Lu Jingcang’s physical body has been destroyed, one can say he has been thoroughly crippled. Even if his Qing Emperor Dharma Body remains, it no longer has any potential.

What awaits him is either the disintegration of the Dharma Body, with his soul dispersed, or the shift to the Path of Loose Immortal, and even then, he would be one who lacks the Immortal Yuan Spirit, barely transforming the Dharma Body into a spirit-like existence and qualifying as the weakest Loose Immortal, hanging onto life by a thread.

He would likely be even weaker than when his original physical body existed, faring worse than a Great Grandmaster at the peak of Absolute Fourth Rank, exemplifying a most feeble existence.

It was a pitiful situation.

“This is what you brought upon yourselves,” Zhou Heng said with an unfazed expression and calmly stated, “If you had generously produced three Celestial Man Divine Weapons from the start and prepared as much as possible for the ransom, none of this would have happened.”

“You!” Liu Yufeng couldn’t suppress her fury.

Her entire being surged with Dao power, causing the atmosphere between the heavens and the earth to fall silent, as if the sky itself turned oppressively dark and could crush down at any moment.

It was as if the heavens themselves were enraged!

Nevertheless, Liu Yufeng ultimately did not attack.

She dared not gamble on whether Zhou Heng still had any reserves from his previous life, facing this unpredictable reincarnation of a great being, any rash action could bring about her own demise.

But how could she report this outcome to Qing Emperor Palace?

Lu Jingcang, this highly valued successor, had his physical body destroyed right under her watch, leaving only a remnant of his Dharma Body, how was she to account for this?

“Is there anything else?” Zhou Heng spoke indifferently.

“Zhou Heng, has Pure Yang Palace decided to become sworn enemies with Qing Emperor Palace?” Liu Yufeng gritted her teeth, her voice squeezed through clenched teeth, “You’ve gone too far.”

“Everything is a consequence of their own actions, do they only have the right to kill me, without allowing me to fight back? Quite an imposing presence the Qing Emperor Palace has,” Zhou Heng said with a cold laugh. “Lu Jingcang managed to retain his Dharma Body because I chose to respect the apology you made to me, otherwise, he would have been destroyed both in form and spirit long ago!”

“I will report this matter to the Sect Master of the palace, this won’t end just like that!” Liu Yufeng trembled with rage, but not daring to strike, she could only resort to harsh words.

“Then have your Sect Master come to me personally,” Zhou Heng remained unfazed and said, “I’ve never feared anything, whoever comes, I always have a way to deal with them.”

“…” Liu Yufeng was rendered speechless and didn’t know what else to say, she could only harrumph coldly, “Zhou Heng, your arrogance will lead to retribution sooner or later!”

With that, she flicked her sleeve and left, transforming into a green rainbow that disappeared from sight in the blink of an eye, much faster than when she had arrived.

The words spoken were harsh but her departure was swift.

With this, Qing Emperor Palace’s actions were a complete failure, and the grudge between Zhou Heng and Qing Emperor Palace deepened significantly.

“Thank you, Tao Lord,” the Qingxia God thanked Zhou Heng with utmost respect, having completely lost the desire to reach for the Dao seed oath, recognizing Zhou Heng’s strength.

“Thank me for what?” Zhou Heng glanced at her, saying, “Come, tell me about the origins of that Desolate Bell.”

…

The Desolate Bell obtained from Lu Jingcang originally belonged to the Qingxia God.

She naturally knew its origins.

This was also what the Qingxia God had personally said when she sought help.

After leaving the Qingxia River, Zhou Heng took the Dharma Body of the Qingxia God back to Yuanhe Prefecture City to inquire about the Desolate Bell.

Although the Qingxia God was still in a state of severe memory fragmentation, recalling not much from her past life, fortunately, she had begun to remember parts related to the Desolate Bell.

This Desolate Bell was a relic from the ancients, an artifact of Celestial Men; when she first obtained this divine artifact, she had not yet condensed her Dao seed, and with it, she had reigned supreme for quite some time.

“Besides this Desolate Bell, what else was in that ancient ruin?” Zhou Heng inquired, “Is there information on the owner of the ruins?”

“No,” the Qingxia God shook her head, saying, “I found the ruins in a desolate mountain, which was a wasteland. Judging by some remaining fragments, there must have been many palaces there, but all had been damaged, without any intact writing.

“I found this Desolate Bell in an underground chamber deep within the ruins; the chamber was relatively intact, but apart from the bell, there was only a discarded copper furnace and some stone carvings on the wall.”

“What kind of stone carvings?” Zhou Heng pressed on.

“The lineage of fortune and virtue ends here,” said the Qingxia God.

“The lineage of fortune and virtue…” Zhou Heng’s eyes narrowed slightly upon hearing this. After a moment of silence, he said, “Is there anything else? Any other writings in the ruins?”

“No more; it’s as if someone intentionally destroyed them,” said the Qingxia God.

“Hmm, I roughly understand,” Zhou Heng nodded without asking further.

He was interested in asking the Qingxia God more about the Dark Era and the Ancient Era, but the results were disappointing.

Firstly, the Qingxia God’s restored memories were extremely fragmented, many things were disjointed and even reversed, almost without value.

Secondly, during the time the Qingxia God had lived, it had been quite a while since the era of the ancient gods, and countless heritages and texts had been destroyed, becoming historical dust.

This meant that even after the Qingxia God had later condensed the Dao seed and became one of the top thirty-six gods of the Dark Era, her understanding of the Ancient Era was still limited.

The initial chaos of the Dark Era had caused too much destruction.

Otherwise, the Ancient Era would not be referred to as the Mythical Era.

When true history becomes extremely fragmented and unclear, rich in mysterious unknowns, it tends to be regarded as myth.

…

In the following days, Zhou Heng temporarily stayed at the Bai family’s place.

Bai Yuejian and her parents were also brought back to Yuanhe Prefecture City by Zhou Heng, and the Qingxia God returned to reside within Bai Yuejian’s body.

Qing Emperor Palace did not make any further moves, seemingly having given up on settling scores with Zhou Heng.

It seemed as if this matter had come to a close.

After staying with the Bai family for another half-month, Zhou Heng set out on his journey to the Zhou Tian Boundary Officer.

Next, he needed to return to the right path and diligently advance his own Martial Path.

Cheating is one thing, but the fundamental growth of one’s own realm and cultivation is another.

To date, he had collected four of the Five Virtues’ energies: fortune, merit, holiness, and morality, just short of Yin Virtue Energy.

The conditions for training in the Three Treasures Wish-Fulfilling Fist were also met; it was time to delve into it seriously.

However, at this time, Da Qi was not well-suited for him to travel around to verify his Martial Arts, as it was unlikely there would be anyone daring enough for a spar, and it would be more appropriate to visit other worlds.

On one hand, to collect Yin Virtue Energy, and on the other hand, to temper his Martial Arts.

As for which world to visit, Zhou Heng had already made a plan in his heart.

The Mystical Vine Realm!

A world mentioned by the Star Officer “Heaven Prison” during the meeting at the Zhou Tian Boundary Officer. The strongest there were comparable to Absolute Fourth Rank, fitting for the current Zhou Heng.

Moreover, the Human Race in that world worshipped two ancestors.

Fuxi!

Nuwa!

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