The Transmigrator's Cultivation

Arc 16: Tai Gu Desert | Chapter 307: Exterminating Devils

This demon lair had countless stone chambers, all filled with demon cultivators seeking pleasure and entertainment.

Xu Ziqing’s expression grew solemn as he searched one room after another.

At that moment, he could not feel any pity in his heart, only a surge of anger. He hoped to find a stone chamber that did not have such a tragic scene, but every single one was distressing, truly disappointing him and making his strikes more decisive.

Around the perimeter, there were eighteen caves, and in each cave, an innocent woman was a victim. Some had already exhausted their vital energy; even the best among them could only hold on for a brief moment, unable to utter a final word before dying.

Xu Ziqing suppressed the impulse to slay these beasts, allowing the demon vines to silently absorb their life force.

His movements were extremely quick. In just a moment, he had already killed more than thirty demon cultivators, all foundational cultivators, all deeply guilty!

Eventually, the naked bodies of the women could no longer be concealed. In order to kill a few more demon cultivators, Xu Ziqing could not unleash his spells recklessly at this moment, fearing it would alert others. Thus, he had to strip off the outer garments of those demon cultivators and cover the many mortal women with them.

Xu Ziqing felt a deep-seated rage.

These demon cultivators were entrenched in the wilderness; he had already killed dozens of them. How many victims had they harmed in total?

Amidst the endless yellow sand, who knows how many corpses of the victims were hidden away, how many innocent people could not return, and how many ordinary families were filled with grief and sorrow!

The further he went in, the stronger his killing intent grew.

In the past, Xu Ziqing had felt that his Shixiong’s method of killing to stop evil was not without merit, but he himself had not wanted to act that way. Yet today, upon witnessing this situation, he suddenly understood that the reason evil people do evil is that few can punish them. If they knew they would die for their wrongdoings, how could they dare to act recklessly again?

His Shixiong chose this path, perhaps to eradicate all evil in the world. He, too, could not stand by idly; he must strive to eliminate evil!

After finishing the outer ring of caves, they entered through a small path, leading to many more spacious stone rooms.

Xu Ziqing used his breath-holding technique to the utmost, slightly swaying his figure until he reached the outside of a stone room, peering inside through the crack in the door.

To avoid detection, he could not scan with his spiritual sense and could only observe with his eyes.

Inside this stone room, there was only one person.

It was a later-stage foundational demon cultivator, whose spiritual light was very abundant and fluctuating, currently lying on top of a person, rising and falling.

That person had their limbs spread wide, with their wrists and ankles bound by some kind of spiritual artifact, tied to the four corners of the room. The entire body was half suspended, exposing themselves completely.

This person was a young man with thick eyebrows and big eyes, his eyes filled with rage, seemingly wanting to burn the person on him to ashes!

Xu Ziqing could see that the spiritual light from the young man was flowing like water toward the demon cultivator, decreasing by three parts from the young man’s body while increasing by one part on the demon cultivator. After a few movements, the light in the young man’s eyes was about to dim.

The young man’s life force… had already been depleted to the utmost. Now he could only shoot glances of hatred, fueled by his intense feelings.

Seeing that the young man had not yet died, Xu Ziqing did not hesitate and immediately unleashed the demon vines.

The demon vines transformed into a long whip, aiming straight at the demon cultivator’s back!

The demon cultivator shouted angrily, “Who is it?” and actually jumped, narrowly dodging the demon vines!

Xu Ziqing felt a chill in his heart. Previously, when eliminating those foundational cultivators, he had not encountered this situation. But he did not panic; instead, he remained calm, raising his other hand, causing dozens of vines to burst forth, binding the demon cultivator tightly… In an instant, blood flowed from all the places the demon was bound, immediately devoured by the vines, leaving him unable to utter a single word as he was completely consumed!

The young man widened his eyes, looking at the two who had suddenly entered.

Xu Ziqing walked over, remaining silent. He first tested the spiritual artifact and realized he couldn’t easily open it. If he used too much force, he was afraid it would attract the attention of other demon cultivators, so he turned to Yun Lie, his eyes filled with a plea.

Yun Lie immediately understood, without needing much prompting, and walked over to gesture a few times.

Then, the four chains were cut as easily as tofu, falling to the ground.

The young man dropped to the floor immediately, his limbs free and no longer restrained. Although the shame and anger on his face had not faded, his hair suddenly turned white, and his skin gradually began to wrinkle. In just a few breaths, his appearance had aged considerably.

Xu Ziqing was greatly shocked. “What… what’s happening?”

The young man opened his mouth; his throat was dry, producing a very hoarse sound.

At that moment, Yun Lie spoke, “The soul-locking artifact can bind a cultivator’s spirit, cultivation, life force, and energy all within their body.”

The young man gradually regained his composure and smiled bitterly. “What you said is correct, senior. My life force has already been drained mostly, my cultivation is nearly gone, and my energy is…” He clenched his fist, a flash of hatred crossing his face. “Now that I’ve been freed, I reveal this old appearance.”

Cultivators can maintain their youthful appearance because of the supply of spiritual energy and true essence within their bodies, supported by their lifespan. However, once these are depleted, cultivators become no different from ordinary people.

The soul-locking artifact had restrained the young man to prevent him from self-destructing or escaping, as well as to lock him in his youthful form for the enjoyment of the demon cultivators. But with the artifact removed, the young man’s true appearance emerged. He was even aging further; if it continued like this, he would soon die of old age.

While cultivation could still be somewhat supplemented with pills and medicines, lifespan is a natural limit. There are very few things in this world that can extend lifespan, and neither Xu Ziqing nor the young man had any. Even Yun Lie had never seen such things.

Therefore, no matter how anxious Xu Ziqing felt, he could not save the young man’s life.

After a moment of anger, the young man gritted his teeth and asked, “Are you two seniors here to exterminate the demons?”

Xu Ziqing nodded solemnly. “Yes, we indeed came for that.” His expression darkened. “It’s a pity we arrived too late; we can’t…”

The young man took a deep breath. “There are no good people among these demons. Since you seniors have this intention, please be cautious. I overheard by chance that there are two half-step Nascent Soul demons in the cave, not just one as the outside world claims. Previously, those who thought they could eliminate the demons were harmed by those two working together. I hope you seniors will be very careful.” After speaking, he quickly shared details about the levels and locations of the other demons, showing that he indeed knew a lot about the situation.

But how did this captured cultivator know all this?

Xu Ziqing thought for a moment and quickly deduced the clues, feeling increasingly disgusted with those demons.

After saying a few words, the young man aged even faster, looking up and lamenting, “I was just a wandering cultivator, struggling to reach this point, and I could see myself entering the immortal sect, yet I was violated by these demons. I hate it; I hate it so much—” His voice was as faint as a mosquito’s buzz, and before he could finish, his spirit dissipated. He passed away.

Xu Ziqing felt a hint of sorrow on his face and quickly pulled the bedsheet from the bed to cover the young man’s body.

Afterward, he calmed down, knowing that he must be even more cautious during the next demon elimination.

According to the young man’s words, Xu Ziqing indeed found demon cultivators on the upper left and right sides. Since he had some understanding of their strength, when he struck, he moved several vines together, quickly eliminating a few more.

These demon cultivators had captured only cultivators, both male and female, most of whom were only one or two realms weaker than the demons.

Like before, as long as the soul-locking artifacts were removed, regardless of gender, all aged and died.

Having fallen to this state, it was clear they had been drained many times, seeming to have been alternately siphoned off until they reached this level.

Among them were cultivators from small sects, but most were still wandering cultivators. Regardless of their type, they were all immortal cultivators, with not a single demon in sight.

Xu Ziqing learned from a dying female cultivator that she and her junior brother had originally fought a pair of demonic men and women but encountered the people of this demon lair and were both captured.

The demonic woman was killed first, while the demonic male cultivator was instead absorbed. She and her junior brother then became the victims of this siphoning… The male cultivator had only been at the tenth level of Qi Refinement but managed to build his foundation after harming several people.

With this news, Xu Ziqing understood.

This demon lair only siphons the energy of immortal cultivators and ordinary people; it seems that demonic women cannot be siphoned but must be killed. However, any male, as long as he is a demon cultivator, can practice this siphoning technique. This clearly shows the danger of this technique; if one wants to eradicate this demon lair, the siphoning technique must be destroyed as well.

Gradually, Xu Ziqing killed all the foundation-building demons he encountered, but he still had yet to see a single transformation stage demon.

However, the deeper he ventured into the demon lair, the more he felt a sense of impending crisis.

If he wanted to ambush again like before, it would likely not be that easy…

After navigating through several paths, he finally saw an open area, where a spell had been laid down, creating an illusion resembling a paradise on earth, appearing exceedingly luxurious.

Within the illusion were several grand halls. Xu Ziqing was about to discern their nature when he was stopped by Yun Lie. He didn’t dare to speak aloud and transmitted a message: “Shixiong?”

Yun Lie responded with a transmission, “The first three and last four halls are all false; you go to the middle hall, and I will head to the rear hall.”

Xu Ziqing understood. He grasped Yun Lie’s hand and quickly said, “Shixiong, be careful.”

The middle hall was surely where the transformed cultivators, as described by the victims, were located, while the rear hall must be where the two half-step Nascent Soul demons resided.

Now, he had to part ways with his Shixiong, which was both a test for him and for Yun Lie.

Taking a deep breath, Xu Ziqing added, “I will do my utmost, and you should return victorious.”

Yun Lie’s figure swayed slightly as he walked several steps away. “I will return.”

The two hurriedly passed each other, and Xu Ziqing transformed into a green light, diving into the middle hall.

Upon entering, sounds of laughter and lewdness filled his ears. The “sizzle” of water and the sound of bodies colliding were incessant, accompanied by many teasing voices, enjoying limitless pleasures.

Even outside the door, he could sense the abundant spiritual energy within, along with some elusive fragrances that, upon the slightest whiff, made his head spin.

Xu Ziqing quickly dispelled the enchanting fragrance and reached the doorway, only to be greeted by the sight of naked bodies.

Many young men and women, all Foundation Establishment stage or higher, were stripped and tied up in various poses, their bodies flushed and gasping for breath. No matter how they struggled, they could not escape.

Additionally, six or seven Core Formation stage cultivators, wearing robes but no pants, were freely indulging in the bodies of those men and women, taking turns siphoning their energy.

Most eye-catching were two boys, seemingly no more than twelve or thirteen years old, lying on a couch, their faces pale and terrified, being pinned down by two burly men, who were incessantly entering and exiting, letting out pitiful cries…

However, just as Xu Ziqing was about to unleash his demonic vines, the two burly men atop the boys suddenly looked up at him.

“Who are you?!”

At that moment, Xu Ziqing no longer needed to worry about alarming the snakes in the grass. He flicked his fingers and shot out dozens of seeds.

In the next moment, the hall suddenly sprouted into dense forests, each tree reaching the ceiling, along with many waist-high stalks of grass swaying. Every movement seemed intent on binding people.

Blood-red leaves crawled up the walls, creating a bizarre sight, obscuring the vision of many.

Pure wood energy pervaded the hall in an instant.

At the same time, Xu Ziqing’s figure suddenly vanished.

Translator: Lynn

Translations are not 100% correct. Please let me know if there are typos/mistakes in the chapter.

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