SFS Chapter 158 The Harvest
Chapter 158 The Harvest
Niu Gao's voice was low as he continued to stare at Mu Shan, saying, "Moreover, you and I should both know that whether it's the Yunxia Sect or the Qingchi Demonic Sect, even if no one uses us as resources, if we break through without the permission of the two sects' late-stage Foundation Establishment Grand Masters, we will still face certain death."
"Although I don't know why, the Grand Masters of the two sects seem to have the same tacit understanding. They will kill those cultivators who attempt to establish their foundation in the outside world without prior agreement."
"This is also why we have never heard of a rogue cultivator attempting to establish a foundation. Among rogue cultivators, there are many exceptionally talented individuals, but when they try to draw upon spiritual energy and attempt to establish a foundation, those True Immortals will annihilate them immediately."
Gan Shu's gaze was complex. Even though his stance differed from Mu Shan's, he still hoped that Mu Shan would refute Niu Gao's words.
Is my sect not the righteous path?
Why is it like this now?
Niu Gao really didn't lie to me?
Qian Shu's Dao heart was constantly crumbling. Looking back on his past adherence to justice, he now only felt it was laughable.
A bead of sweat appeared on Luanmo's forehead as he looked at Niu Gao and Mu Shan facing off, feeling both bewildered and fearful.
Having been in the Qingchi Demonic Sect for so many years, he was well aware that upper-level cultivators often used lower-level cultivators like them as resources.
But the former Chaos Demon felt that he had already broken through to the late stage of Qi Refining and reached the half-step Foundation Establishment stage, which made him useful to the sect. He no longer needed to worry about being sacrificed at will by those True Immortals.
But now it seems he was wrong.
No one ever told him that only those who were permitted could build a foundation.
Moreover, the chaotic demon thought.
Long before he came to these two countries, he had visited the same master who gave him the resources to break through from the late stage of Qi Refining to the half-step Foundation Establishment stage.
If that True Person already knew that only cultivators permitted by a Grand True Person in the late Foundation Establishment stage could establish their foundation, wouldn't that mean that his Chaotic Demon form had already been regarded as someone else's resource?
"You've said so much, but it's all just to buy time."
Mu Shan smiled dismissively, as if nothing Niu Gao said could move him.
Mu Shan lightly lifted the Heavenly Slaughter Sword in his hand and calmly said:
"But no matter how much you delay, it will all be in vain. After all, you and I are different. For an old man like you who has been lucky enough to achieve half a step of Foundation Establishment, you will never know that the so-called Foundation Establishment is just the beginning of the path of cultivation."
"The so-called Great Immortals are nothing more than ants on the path to immortality in this mortal world. The only ones they can stop are weaklings like you."
"Since you know..."
Niu Gao raised an eyebrow, and the magic sword in his hand emitted a golden light.
"How dare you allow this old man to act freely here?"
Niu Gao was somewhat puzzled, but his incantation was even faster. He lightly tapped Qian Shu's spot with his finger, and a spiritual seal was instantly imprinted on Qian Shu's forehead.
Mu Shan looked at him with amusement, seemingly still not taking it to heart.
"Niu Gao, what have you done?"
Qian Shu suddenly spat out a mouthful of blood, never expecting that Niu Gao, who had been explaining and advising him with a kind face, would suddenly attack him.
Niu Gao sighed:
"Fellow Daoist Qian Shu, to be honest, I didn't want to take action against you. After all, seeing your sincere appearance reminded me of myself when I first embarked on my official career. Back then, I was just like you, full of goodwill and hope for the world."
"But unfortunately..."
Niu Gao's movements never faltered for a moment. As he spoke, he lightly twisted his fingers, and Qian Shu's body was pulled by Niu Gao like a silk thread.
It wrapped around his magic sword, and at the same time, the golden light on his magic sword grew brighter and brighter.
"What kind of sorcery is this? No, I should have known!"
Feeling his body being pulled away inch by inch, Qian Shu was filled with panic and anger. He felt like a ball of yarn being pulled by Niu Gao, completely unable to control himself.
His body grew weaker and weaker, and the sensation of tiny ants constantly cutting his flesh with their pincers continued to sting his body.
Qian Shu cursed in regret:
"You wicked cultist who uses disciples as resources, I should have known long ago that you approached me with no good intentions. How hateful! For so many years in these two kingdoms, you've been scheming against me all along!"
"Qian Shu! Everyone has their own mission."
Niu Gao's smile remained unchanged.
"Your first half of life came from an ordinary family in the Great Jing Kingdom. Your father was cruel and your mother was gentle, but you told yourself that you should be a righteous person and never bring suffering to others like your corrupt father."
"Later, you embarked on the path of immortality and entered the Yunxia Sect. You accidentally found a Golden Element cultivation technique on a cliff on Zayi Peak. This technique seemed to be perfectly suited to you, allowing you to quickly break through your cultivation level."
"Until you reached the pinnacle of Qi Refining and your cultivation hit a bottleneck, your ridiculous sense of justice often led to conflicts with others. As a result, the sect often sent you to guard remote markets. Until decades ago, you were fortunate enough to get a lucrative position during a sect transfer and came to this land between the two countries, becoming the number one person after me."
"With the help of the resources here, your cultivation, which has not been able to break through for a long time, seems to have improved again, and you have successfully condensed your first divine power."
Niu Gao looked nostalgic as he slowly drained Qian Shu's life force, seemingly wanting Qian Shu to die knowing why.
Gan Shu's lower body had been almost completely drained by Niu Gao, while his upper body was bound in the air by magic. He cursed ferociously, "Old thief, I didn't expect you to have investigated me so thoroughly. No wonder I fell into your trap. You old devil, you're full of evil intentions. I told you I'd haunt you even as a ghost!"
As he spoke, Qian Shu suddenly thought of something and desperately urged his divine sense to shatter everything in the storage bag.
"You old scoundrel, even if I die here, you won't get anything from me!"
Yes, even at the cost of his life, he was unwilling to let his past opportunities fall into Niu Gao's hands.
"What a pity, Qian Shu, you still don't understand."
Niu Gao sighed, shook his head, and looked at Qian Shu with pity.
"The reason I didn't imprison your consciousness or seize your storage bag immediately, even though I knew you possessed that strange cultivation technique you obtained by chance, is not for any other reason than that everything about you is within my calculations!"
"Your struggles are meaningless to me. Even if you destroy that technique, so what? Not only have I already mastered three divine abilities, but that technique was something I deliberately had you find!"
Niu Gao said with pity:
"Upon discovering your spiritual root and the hidden metal elemental spirit within you, which are perfectly suited to serve as my resources, I immediately bestowed upon you that cultivation technique to firmly control you."
"Besides, do you think your transfer to these two countries was just a coincidence? It's only because my cultivation has finally reached the end of the half-step Foundation Establishment stage, and it's time to reap the rewards of the seed you planted so early!"