Chapter 50

He had promised not to do anything that would make his Master unhappy. In the beginning, the demons Jiang Tan sent out were only for them to put pressure on the cultivators. Later on, when he dealt with the Zhongxuan Sect, he spared the disciples who were innocent.

“It seems like the Lotus Core is in your body.” Jiang Tan’s voice was calm and emotionless. The special flame[1] he’d lost before had a great impact on cultivators and refiners. If one uses it properly, they can refine their body and improve their cultivation. The person who was kneeling in front of him had internalized the special flame and cultivated with it.

This was supposed to be his master’s.

The teeth that were tightly clenched were shivering, Li Rong’s pupils widened as the hand in front reached towards him. The pressure that he felt made him almost unable to breathe, much less speak.

Fear.

When the demon attached to him, he had lost his reason. He helped the Demon race ambush and kill the elders in his own sect. Afterward, he even admitted that he was the one who had killed Ye Yuan…

He didn’t need to think to know that everyone in his sect must be cursing him. His reputation was completely destroyed.

The hand that reached over penetrated his chest and the pain that was a hundred times more intense than breaking bones nearly made Li Rong pass out. However, a cultivator’s body was very strong, he couldn’t faint. Instead, he experience the bone crushing pain.

In the end, this couldn’t really be considered penetrating his flesh. Jiang Tan stared at him coldly, forcefully ripping the special flame, that had almost fused with his soul, out of his body.

It was complete, not a single spark wasted. During this length of time, Jiang Tan had the demon who was holding Li Rong block his mouth so that he didn’t need to hear the other person’s unpleasant scream.

Storing the flame in a spiritual sealing bottle, Jiang Tan scrunched his eyebrows. This gift had come late, he didn’t know if his master would like it or not…

Keeping the bottle in his hand, Jiang Tan then glanced at the cultivator who had a face full of pain. He specifically ordered his subordinates to send him back. He would certainly not let the other man die so easily.

The other person was now a Jindan stage cultivator. In the cultivation world, this level of talent could be considered a genius.

“No, you can’t…” Seeing the hand reach towards him, Li Rong shuddered and the fear made him shrink backward. However, the two demons were holding him, not allowing him to move the slightest.

Crushing his Jindan core, Jiang Tan didn’t spare a second glance to the person whose body was twitching like a dying fish. He calmly faced the two demons in front of him, “Take him away and take good care of him, but don’t let him die yet, or else you will join him.”

The meaning of the word ‘care’ was very clear. Even if he didn’t say the last part, the two demons who heard this wouldn’t dare to let this human cultivator die in their hands.

They didn’t dare to look into his ink-black pupils; the darkness in them was like a bottomless evil. They merely bowed their heads in response and quickly picked him up.

Knowing that the other person’s greatest pride was his own talent, Jiang Tan crushed his Jindan in order to let him experience despair. His body would have no problem living for another hundred years but the rest of his life would be spent painfully in the abyss.

Holding the spirit bottle in his hand, Jiang Tan walked towards the palace. After tyrannically placing a matrix on his Master, he was not worried that he would encounter any problem while cultivating.

Any malicious attack would be completely mitigated. The overbearing part is that even if it was not an attack, as long as anybody tries to touch him, they would be burnt by this matrix.

His spiritual force was recovering well and Gu Yan had already recovered most of his cultivation. The only difference was that in order to recover as soon as possible, he had used all the time that he would usually spend resting to cultivate, such as now.

When cultivators are meditating, their vigilance would drop but not to the extent of becoming completely oblivious when somebody touches them.

Something soft in his lap pulled Gu Yan out of his semi-conscious state. Before he opened his eyes, Gu Yan already reached a hand out towards the weight on his leg.

If he noticed that his master was making a breakthrough, this Taotie beast would obediently stay one side and not climb onto his body.

Seeing that the beast in his lap was holding something in his mouth, Gu Yan could now react promptly and knew that this was something meant for him.

“What is it…” Gu Yan paused and looked at the sealed bottle that was placed in the palm of his hand, it carried a bit of warmth, “Lotus core…?”

The moment his voice fell, Gu Yan heard a low purr. He lifted a hand to stroke the soft, furry beast. He could somewhat guess what had happened. Ye Yuan’s scattered soul was handed over to him after it had been repaired.

Seeing the Taotie beast sticking to him, Gu Yan directly picked him up into his arms even though the big cat still couldn’t be satisfied.

His cultivation had already returned to the Jindan realm and would soon be able to reach the Yuan Ying stage. It has to be said that the path he had taken before was no longer as difficult the second time or perhaps it was due to being favored by the ‘Rules’.

The situation had mostly been settled. Although the beast in his arms had come into contact with the demon race as according to the original plot and also became their ruler, the difference was that…

Raising the furball in his arms a little higher, Gu Yan looked into the pair of beautiful pale green pupils and saw the big cat squinting at him, “Meow?”

It looks like the rotten ending wouldn’t happen after all.

If the demons do not go to the human world, the chances that the various sects of the cultivating world would take the initiative to break into the abyss of the Underworld will drop significantly. The lifespan of a cultivator is much longer than that of ordinary people. This time, they had a long time ahead of them together…

“Qiuqiu, be good.” Gu Yan raised his eyebrows and kissed him on the forehead.

Confused by the gentle look in his clear eyes, this Taotie beast also didn’t think before he returned back to his original human form. There was something that had been hidden in his heart for a long time.

Gu Yan actually discovered a ‘Rule’. Usually, whenever the furball he held in his hands suddenly turned back into a human, in the next second, he would either be hugged or pushed down by the other person.

However, this time, without hugging or pushing him down, the young man in front of him merely held one of his hands.

“Disciple wants to become Dao companions with master.” Not knowing why, he felt that he should be kneeling at this moment. Jiang Tan held the youth’s left hand and after saying this, he gently kissed the long, slender fingers. Afterward, he carefully observed his master’s expression.

A disciple and master becoming Dao companion was not something that hadn’t happened before, but it is indeed extremely rare and can also be considered by a small group of people to be abnormal.

Jiang Tan was unsure of what needs to be done to become Dao companions. When he was young, he had no feelings for anybody other than his master. When he was young, he was slow and didn’t understand the feelings he had for the person in front of him.

In the past, Jiang Tan only thought that he would stay by his master’s side as a disciple forever and strived to be a disciple who could make his Master proud. Being Dao companions was something he had never thought of.

But now…

“To become Dao companions, we must be recognized by the Heavens.” Gu Yan didn’t pull his hand back but only threw that sentence out. Earlier on, he had indeed been surprised, but now, he can’t help but find it funny.

The Qiuqiu of both worlds were ignorant when it came to proposing marriage. However, their attitudes were completely serious, making it hard for him to refuse…

Plus watching how he carefully kissed his fingers, It was hard not to be moved.

Realizing that this phrase was evident of his Master’s consent, Jiang Tan’s eyes contracted into vertical slits. The narrowed pupils stared carefully at the youth’s face. He then kissed his Master’s fingers. He honestly didn’t understand and asked, “Recognized by the Heavens…?”

What did it mean to be recognized by the Heavens? No matter what it is, he will do it all.

“It is when both parties make a vow to each other in front of the gods. It can also be considered an agreement between both sides. Once this vow is made, the Heavens will be our witness. Whoever violates this oath will suffer the consequences.” Gu Yan’s finger became ticklish from the kisses and jerked his hand, but the next second, he was suddenly pulled into an embrace.

“Apart from Master, this disciple will not like anybody else.” The dark pupils were fixed on the youth in front of him. There was a kind of paranoia in those eyes that seemed to be overflowing.

After saying this, Jiang Tan leaned in closer and gently caressed his earlobes. He said softly, “If disciple violates this pact, how about letting disciple’s soul be destroyed? “

Although it sounded like a question, Jiang Tan was, in fact, making a vow with his own soul when he said that.

“Disciple is very satisfied with master.” He only longed for this person and only desired this person.

Jindan stage – Core formation stage

Yuanying stage – Nascent soul stage

[1] Remember the flame that he sealed in the bottle but was taken away before he could give it to his master? That thing is also the ‘Lotus Core’.