77: The Cult Leader's Fury and the "BUG" Plan

The back of Black Wind Mountain was a complete mess.

Over a dozen corpses of evil cultivators lay on the narrow path in various twisted postures, their wounds diverse: some looked as if pierced by ten thousand needles, some were burned to charcoal, and others strangled by vines. The common denominator was the look of terror and disbelief frozen on their faces.

The remaining members of the Blood Fiend Cult gathered at the exit, looking at each other, none daring to take that step to pursue. The pale silver, halo-like Domain, with its internal flow of Five Elements radiance, had become an indelible nightmare in their hearts.

"Trash! A bunch of useless trash!"

A roar filled with fury and a bloody scent came from the direction of the main hall on the mountaintop. The sound waves rolled, shaking the rocks loose. A blood-red escape light tore through the miasma and instantly landed at the back mountain exit.

The light dissipated, revealing a gloomy-faced middle-aged man wearing a dark red robe. His eyes were deeply set, his lips thin as blades, and his entire body exuded a dense, palpable aura of Blood Fiend Qi. His aura had already surpassed the Qi Refinement Stage, reaching the level of Half-step Foundation Establishment!

It was the Blood Fiend Cult Master, Bloody Fierce!

He scanned the corpses on the ground, then looked at his subordinates, who were silent with fear, his face so ashen it looked like water could drip from it.

"Dozens of people, blocked here and slaughtered by a junior at the Qi Refining Fifth Layer? You have completely shamed the Blood Fiend Cult!" Bloody Fierce's voice was icy and piercing, carrying an invisible pressure that made the evil cultivators' legs tremble.

"C-Cult Master, it's not that your subordinates are incompetent, it's that kid... that kid is too wicked!" A leader argued reluctantly. "His Domain is nothing like what someone in the Qi Refinement Stage should possess! Inside it, our spiritual power circulated poorly, our Spells were greatly weakened, and our movements were sluggish. It was... simply letting him slaughter us!"

"A Domain?" A bloody light flashed in Bloody Fierce's eyes. He squatted down, carefully examined the wounds on a corpse, and sensed the residual energy fluctuations in the air, his brows furrowing tightly.

"It contains Star Power, yet it interweaves the Five Elements, generating and overcoming each other, forming its own cycle... This is absolutely not a common Cultivation Technique of the Qingxuan Sect! Could it be a True Heir secretly groomed by some Elder?" His heart was filled with uncertainty and suspicion. "But if he is a True Heir, why is his style of action so... sneaky? Specifically choosing the back mountain path to rescue some useless Mortals?"

He couldn't figure it out. According to common sense, when a Genius Disciple from a major Sect eradicates evil cultivators, wouldn't they launch a frontal assault to display their military might? Acting so sneakily, hitting and running, and covering their retreat so cleanly, was completely illogical!

"Investigate! Find out everything about that kid!" Bloody Fierce ordered sharply. "Also, the mine shaft has been destroyed, and the blood crystal stone mining is interrupted. The Ones Above are pressing hard! If we delay the 'Tribute,' both you and I will be refined into Blood Puppets!"

Hearing the words "Blood Puppets," all the evil cultivators shivered, their faces showing extreme terror.

"Cult Master, what should we do now..."

"Increase vigilance! Activate all Formations and traps! They rescued the people, so our target is exposed. The Qingxuan Sect's subsequent eradication campaign is likely to follow!" Bloody Fierce's eyes were sinister. "As for that kid named Wen Youyi... he must die! I must obtain the bizarre method of Domain Cultivation he possesses, and the secret of how he can deploy such a Domain at the Qi Refining Fifth Layer!"

He licked his lips, his eyes revealing greed and cruelty. In the midst of the crisis, he also saw an opportunity. If he could seize that miraculous Domain method, he might truly Break through the Foundation Establishment Bottleneck, and perhaps... gain more leverage in future struggles against The Ones Above... Meanwhile, in a hidden mountain valley dozens of miles from Black Wind Mountain.

The dozens of Mortals who had been rescued were survivors of a catastrophe. They gathered around a bonfire, wolfing down the dry rations and clean water brought by Wen Youyi and his group, finally recovering some Life Qi on their faces.

Zhao Iron Pillar took out a specialized Signal Talisman, injected spiritual power into it, and a faint, almost invisible starlight shot up into the sky, flickering briefly before extinguishing. This was the signal to notify the rendezvous personnel.

"Youyi, you were too fierce just now!" Zhao Iron Pillar excitedly slapped Wen Youyi's shoulder, then grimaced and pulled his hand back. "Hiss—Your Domain has serious power. I could feel that 'don't mess with me' aura even from the outside!"

Wang Wu nodded, still feeling lingering fear: "Indeed. That Domain seems to have changed some kind of rule within its range, making the enemy feel as if they were sinking into a quagmire. As one's power wanes and the other's grows, it can be called a Divine Skill."

Senior Brother Li and Senior Brother Zhang also cast looks of admiration. Blocking dozens of evil cultivators single-handedly without sustaining any injury—no one would believe this achievement if they heard it.

Wen Youyi's face was still pale. He waved his hand and gave a wry smile: "Don't jinx me. This Star Evolution Five Elements Domain consumes too much. Just now, my spiritual power is almost depleted, and my head feels like it's being pricked by needles. Moreover, this is only a preliminary Fusion, and there are many imperfections."

He wasn't being modest. Maintaining the Star Evolution Five Elements Domain requires precise simultaneous control of Star Power and the flow of the Five Elements, demanding extremely high control over Mental Energy and spiritual power. A slight mistake could cause the Domain to collapse and backlash against him. What seemed effortless just now was, in reality, extremely perilous.

[However, the effect was indeed good.] Wen Youyi messaged his companions via the Mind Net. [It validates one direction of our 'Technological Explosion'—confrontation at the rule level. The spirit net, or rather, the net, is essentially an imposed rule. If we can change the rules of combat on a small scale, we might be able to shake larger rules in the future.]

[Youyi, are you saying... we can patch these 'Heaven and Earth Shackles' like changing code?] Zhao Iron Pillar's imagination ran wild.

[Patching might be too soon,] Wen Youyi chuckled. [But finding its BUGs, exploiting BUGs, or even creating BUGs is worth considering. Does our rescue operation this time count as a successful 'Data Deception' under the surveillance of the net?]

Everyone's eyes lit up. This metaphor was very programmer, very Wen Youyi!

"Alright, let's get serious." Wen Youyi composed himself. "Although we successfully rescued the people, we have alerted the enemy. The Blood Fiend Cult will inevitably step up their defenses. That Half-step Foundation Establishment Cult Master, Bloody Fierce, probably won't let this go."

"Who cares about him!" Zhao Iron Pillar glared. "If he dares to come, we'll let him taste the power of the Star Evolution Five Elements Domain again!"

"Don't underestimate him." Senior Brother Wang shook his head. "Half-step Foundation Establishment means his spiritual power quality and total volume far exceed ours. Although your Domain is strong, its consumption is huge, and whether it can trap him for a long time is unknown. Moreover, evil cultivators use bizarre methods and must have powerful evil Spells saved up."

"Senior Brother Wang is right." Wen Youyi nodded. "A direct confrontation is not the best strategy. Our mission goal is to 'investigate and eradicate the stronghold.' We've investigated half of it; eradication requires more strength and strategy."

He pondered for a moment, a wise light flashing in his eyes: "What if we turn this 'stronghold' itself into a massive 'BUG'?"

"A BUG?" Everyone was confused.

"A BUG that makes the 'Shepherds' feel conspicuous, makes the Scavengers feel uncomfortable, and gives the Blood Fiend Cult and The Ones Above potentially behind it a headache," Wen Youyi explained. "We don't necessarily have to launch an immediate assault to eliminate them, but we can make them lose control, expose them, and cause internal problems."

"Such as?" Senior Brother Zhang became interested. He was best at this kind of "technical" sabotage.

"For example, interfering with their Formations, causing their defense System to malfunction occasionally? Or spreading rumors that are hard to distinguish as true or false, triggering internal conflict? Or cutting off their supply of a crucial resource, like... the blood crystal stone?" Wen Youyi counted off ideas on his fingers. "We could even try using the Mind Net to infiltrate the consciousness of their low-level Disciples, spreading fear, or stealing intelligence?"

Everyone listened dumbfounded, then grew excited. This line of thinking was too unconventional! It completely ignored conventional play!

Wasn't this what Youyi often called "Dimensionality Reduction Strike"? Using higher-dimensional (imaginative) thinking to strike lower-dimensional (brawn-focused) enemies!

"Brilliant!" Senior Brother Li clapped his hands. "Make them restless, suspicious, and cause them to collapse without a fight!"

"Hehe, I like this one!" Zhao Iron Pillar rubbed his hands together. "I'm good at causing destruction!"

[Then it's settled.] Wen Youyi made the final decision via the Mind Net. [We will first return to the Sect to hand over the mission and secure the visible Karma. Then, we will activate the 'BUG' Plan and have a good time playing with the Blood Fiend Cult. And incidentally... see if we can bait out The Ones Above behind them.]

He had a hunch that the blood crystal stone mined by the Blood Fiend Cult, and the so-called "Tribute," might be related to the Harvesting System of the Creation Heavenly Court. Black Wind Mountain might not just be an evil cultivator stronghold, but a tiny node in the operation of the Ranch.

Removing it might not just be about Karma, but a probing attack against the net!

The group finished resting and regrouped with the Outer Sect Disciples sent for the rendezvous. After properly settling the rescued common people, they set off to return to the Qingxuan Sect.

What they didn't know was that shortly after they left, an invisible, subtle fluctuation quietly swept across the sky above Black Wind Mountain, like the System's self-check procedure. It paused briefly over the Blood Fiend Cult stronghold area, recording "Data Anomaly: Mine Shaft destroyed, energy residue abnormal (Rule Perturbation)," and then vanished silently.

The "BUG" had been preliminarily flagged.

And Wen Youyi's "Virus" journey had just begun.

(End of Chapter)