Longevity Strange Immortal
Chapter 137 - 138 They Ascended

Chapter 137: Chapter 138 They Ascended

The purge of the Inner City District was nearing its conclusion, and Qingjingzi was clearly having trouble containing himself.

A beehive-like arm-shaped Magic Artifact hovered midair above the Inner City District, its surface riddled with countless small holes, releasing thick, acrid smog.

To ordinary cultivators, the smog contained enough metallic toxins to corrode flesh and bone, infiltrating their bodies through their breath and pores. Within half a day, their paths to Cultivation would be completely destroyed.

Artifact cultivators, however, were different. They could not heal their injuries naturally, but metallic toxins could stimulate their wounds to mend and simultaneously bolster their magical abilities.

Li Mo immediately noticed Qingjingzi’s movements.

He was standing in the Heart Beast Sect’s Inner Sect disciples’ Refining Field, where they sparred. Without hesitation, he halted his Circulation Cycle and awaited the destruction of the Inner City District.

Li Mo observed as the Artifact Cultivators absorbed the metallic smog.

In a sense, Artifact Cultivators had already shed the essence of flesh and blood.

Li Mo was certain that once Artifact Cultivators were infested by the Death Disease, they wouldn’t transform into Deceit Beasts, but rather into another unspeakable kind of monster.

The Sub-Device Sect’s research into the Death Disease was far deeper than Heart Beast Sect’s.

Li Mo thought back to the Iron Cauldron Secret Realm, where piles of enormous Deceit Beast corpses were strewn.

It seemed that the Sub-Device Sect had been watching the Heart Beast Sect for a long time, but their interest was limited solely to the value of the Deceit Beasts.

Li Mo stashed away his Beast Skin Magical Artifact, using his leakless body to conceal himself.

The number of Inner Sect Deceit Beasts had dwindled to around ten or so, and the Sub-Device Sect disciples held an overwhelming advantage, capable of crushing their foes single-handedly.

With Inner Sect Deceit Beasts scarce and overpowered, Li Mo’s opportunistic actions went entirely unnoticed by the Sub-Device Sect disciples,

effectively safeguarding his life from the fight.

Li Mo wandered through various corners of the Inner City District in search of clues to the upheaval in Heaven and Earth, discovering eerie details within the Illusion Realm.

Exposed bones, bizarre and inexplicable illustrations of birds and beasts, decorations related to the Sacrificial Festival, and the warped characters for "Ascension" and "Feather Transformation."

It seemed that even after Heart Beast Sect cultivators descended into Beast Skin People, the sect maintained order nonetheless.

The ones maintaining order were none other than the Inner Sect Deceit Beasts that had transformed from spirit beasts, which still possessed Spiritual Wisdom at the time.

They were consumed by the madness of the Sacrificial Festival, embracing the descent of the feather-ascended ancestor, Tianchenzi.

The final Sacrificial Festival was the primary cause of the total collapse of the Inner City District, the straw that broke the proverbial camel’s back and severed Heart Beast Sect’s lineage.

After encountering various corpses of Inner Sect Deceit Beasts, the Creation Book began to stir, releasing ancient cultivation techniques with increasing frequency.

The "Dan Ding Hua Qi Miao Fa" from the Inner Pill Room, the "Mystical Refining Three Pure Ones" from the Inner Artifact Workshop, the "Four Refinements Great Roc Wing Stretching Scripture" from the Law Enforcement Hall...

Although these ancient cultivation techniques were no longer suited for the current framework of the Cultivation World, the Tao Seed did not scorn them; it accepted everything unequivocally.

It seemed that the affinity between Taoist Skills allowed ancient techniques to still hold some relevance.

What puzzled Li Mo, however, was that the Heart Beast Sect cultivators tied to some of the Inner Sect Deceit Beasts, both ancient and modern, were not individuals of high rank.

Wu Chenzhi might have been the chief alchemist, but his cultivation was only at the mid-stage Foundation Establishment level.

Li Mo remembered that the Outer Sect of Heart Beast Sect alone had seven managerial elders.

Not to mention the Inner Sect Peak Masters who wielded lineage inheritance, their direct disciples, the Inner Sect Elders, and the Sect Leader.

After their spirit beasts transformed into Deceit Beasts amid the upheaval, it seemed none of them survived in the Inner City District, leaving no trace behind.

Bang, bang, bang...

Li Mo’s train of thought was abruptly interrupted as Rong Town began to quake violently.

Qingjingzi no longer cared about the risk of aggravating the Death Disease as he personally acted against the remaining Inner Sect Deceit Beasts, muttering incomprehensible noises under his breath.

The Sub-Device Sect disciples inevitably grew wary, but given Qingjingzi’s Core Formation-level cultivation, escape from the range of the Inner City District was impossible for them.

Within a few days, the final Inner Sect Deceit Beast from the Dining Hall perished, and the dense fog blanketing Rong Town for thousands of years began to dissipate slowly.

The Inner City District gradually revealed itself to the cultivators.

The architectural structures retained an ancient Taoist aesthetic—green tiles, white walls, ponds riddled with traces of cranes, Yin-Yang Fish scattered throughout, and a desolate bamboo grove in one corner.

However, in the buildings closer to the inner section, the wind-eroded corpses of Beast Skin People could be seen.

This clarified that the Sacrificial Festival was not merely baseless delusions of the Inner Sect Deceit Beasts but an actual calamity that had occurred thousands of years ago.

Li Mo inadvertently glanced toward Qingjingzi, his heart momentarily stirred.

Qingjingzi hovered mid-air, his state growing increasingly unstable, especially the bare skin of his back, which was covered with countless tiny wriggling insects.

The insects’ tails were connected to two individuals—Han Cai and Shi Ji.

They were being tormented beyond recognition, their suffering evident. The insects seemed capable of transferring Qingjingzi’s bodily mutations continuously to both Han Cai and Shi Ji.

Han Cai was riddled with grotesque malformed arms, his cultivation regressing to the Late Teenage stage. Blood mixed with fragments of his internal organs occasionally gushed from his mouth and nose.

By comparison, Shi Ji fared somewhat better, his arm count being half of Han Cai’s. However, his swollen head seemed to house a living creature within it.

"Master Han?!"

Li Mo’s expression darkened; what on earth was going on? Most of the Puppet Cultivation groups had already shed their roles like the Golden Cicada, allowing the majority of cultivators to survive.

"Wait..."

He suddenly realized that Qingjingzi was likely drawn to the Inner City District by Tian Changwen, who had misled him into believing there were top-grade spirit stones here.

If Qingjingzi had taken such a risk, it was undoubtedly for the Hundred Beasts Blood Body.

But with Han Cai and Shi Ji now in Qingjingzi’s grasp, it was clear the plan had most likely failed, spelling doom for Rong Town as a whole.

Li Mo weighed his options internally, seeking a way to save Han Cai’s life.

Fortunately, the immediate danger was minimal. As Fake Core-stage Puppet Cultivators, their value alive far exceeded that of their corpses.

The range of the shroud condensed to about a hundred meters, and the Inner City District was about to be fully exposed, causing the atmosphere to shift to one of heightened tension.

Li Mo’s pupils dilated, his heartbeat quickening involuntarily.

The Tattooed Beasts began sending warnings as if instinctively afraid of whatever was about to emerge, urging him to flee Rong Town.

Li Mo calmed the Tattooed Beasts while focusing his gaze on the center of the Inner City District.

As the fog dispersed entirely, Qingjingzi spewed a multicolored toxic cloud from his mouth, attempting to obscure the Inner City District from the Outer Disciple’s view.

Thud, thud, thud...

Qingjingzi’s spell was interrupted, and all cultivators reflexively clutched their chests.

Intertwined cries of birds and beasts sounded, transporting them into what seemed to be the depths of a jungle. A curtain of dusk descended as the setting sun emerged on the horizon.

Li Mo squinted his eyes, inwardly pondering, "What truly happened with Tianchenzi and the Sacrificial Festival?"

Qingjingzi’s smile vanished, replaced by an expression full of deep suspicion.

Clearly, he realized the center of the Inner City District had no connection to the top-grade spirit stones. His leaking Spiritual Power immediately grew more chaotic.

The cacophony of bird and beast cries abruptly ceased.

As the sun set, the cultivators collectively revealed expressions of indescribable shock, completely bewildered by the sight emerging from the dissipating fog.

The sacrificial stone platform of the Sacrificial Festival came into view, its area spanning nearly a kilometer.

At the center of the stone platform stood a 500 to 600-meter-high statue of Tianchenzi, lifelike in appearance, with one hand pointing upward toward its head.

Surrounding the stone platform were numerous meditation cushions, upon which hundreds of Heart Beast Sect disciple statues were seated.

The statues remained utterly unmoving. They were the sect’s core cultivators, untouched by the passage of thousands of years despite retaining their beastified traits and awkward meditative posture.

Li Mo recalled the Sacrificial Festival at Black Wind Ridge; the stone platform’s layout was identical.

"Waa... Waa... Waa..."

The cry of an infant echoed from within the Tianchenzi statue.

Qingjingzi dove straight toward the platform without hesitation, prompting the other Sub-Device Sect disciples to exchange uncertain glances before following him.

Li Mo blended into the crowd, realizing that the upheaval in Heaven and Earth back then likely involved more than just Beast Cultivators turning into Beast Skin People.

"Sacrificial Festival, Feather Transformation..."

Qingjingzi rushed toward the statue of Tianchenzi, while Li Mo remained at the edge of the platform.

As Li Mo gazed at the statues, the Creation Book surged forth with memories, indicating that these figures were at least direct disciples.

"Huh?"

He noticed something unbelievable—the statues were not carved posthumously, but were instead hollow corpses.

The corpses consisted merely of thin human skin, with faint cracks visible at the back of their skulls.

Li Mo tested the size of the crack—it was just large enough for a five-year-old child to squeeze through, with traces of fingers pushing the crack open.

Inside the corpses, remnants of beast fur and bird feathers could be glimpsed.

The infant’s cries intensified.

Li Mo discreetly approached the statue of Tianchenzi; to his astonishment, it too was a gargantuan corpse enveloped in human skin.

The back of its skull also exhibited a crack, with the internal space roomy enough to house a creature 200 to 300 meters in size.

Qingjingzi had regained his composure and was scrutinizing the remains of Tianchenzi, while the other Artifact Cultivators dared not utter a word nearby.

Li Mo’s mind was a tumult of confusion.

Regardless of strength or rank, Heart Beast Sect cultivators were universally transformed into Beast Skin People under the upheaval’s effect, and those participating in the Sacrificial Festival were Deceit Beasts.

But Tianchenzi himself should have been dead for hundreds of years by then, his Tao dissipated and his lifespan exhausted, shouldn’t he?

It wasn’t until Li Mo noticed the claw-like marks at the back of the statue that a realization dawned upon him.

The memories within the Creation Book were irrefutable—Tianchenzi had died of natural causes long ago. Yet, his spirit beast, the Golden Feathered Phoenix Tail Sparrow, had survived.

Following the upheaval in Heaven and Earth, the Golden Feathered Phoenix Tail Sparrow underwent a monstrous transformation into a human-shaped Deceit Beast, identical in appearance to the deceased Tianchenzi.

Through the grotesque and absurd Sacrificial Festival, these creatures "ascended" by emerging from their old shells.

Li Mo’s deduction closely aligned with the truth.

At the heart of the Inner City District’s chaos was the relic of the Golden Feathered Phoenix Tail Sparrow’s ascension; in essence, it was Tianchenzi’s remnant.

Details scattered throughout the region revealed that the Golden Feathered Phoenix Tail Sparrow had genuinely believed itself to be the ancestor who founded Heart Beast Sect.

As the Sub-Device Sect disciples focused their attention on Tianchenzi’s remains,

Han Cai opened his murky eyes.

He glanced at Tianchenzi’s relic and subtly nodded toward Shi Ji. Qingjingzi and the other Artifact Cultivators were too absorbed to notice any abnormalities among the Puppet Cultivators.

Li Mo observed Han Cai awakening, immediately understanding that everything was part of Tian Changwen’s plan.

No one could have anticipated that the seemingly insignificant Puppet Cultivation factions in the Sub-Device Sect’s eyes would choose to gamble their Taoist inheritance and all their resources to enter the fray.

"I suppose I could lend them a hand."

Li Mo recalled asking Han Cai for details about the Spider Heart Human Face Magic, a highly discreet Telepathy Technique.

The only constraints were a limited transmission range and the need for a small blood-and-flesh medium, along with a prerequisite that the connected cultivator must not resist the spell.

The medium was easy to acquire—Han Cai was severely injured, leaving traces of his flesh and blood wherever he went.