22: Chapter 22 Heavenly Demon Transformation Technique

Intent and sword must align; only when one's Concept harmonizes with the sword they wield can it be achieved.

Shen Moyan's single sword stroke not only obliterated the arrogant half-Yao but also severed his mortal attachments across three lifetimes.

Leaves fell, the wind ceased. Shen Moyan stood with his back to Ni Gaoyuan, the Concept in his eyes dissipating as his vision and perception fully returned.

Ni Gaoyuan's massive Yao body was split in two, the bird head rolling away with eyes wide in death, bloody froth flying from its beak.

The forest behind him collapsed in swathes, the stumps' surfaces smooth and even. Viewed from high above, one could see a crescent moon rising from this newly cleared woodland.

But at the center of the crescent moon remained a vacant shadow, as if a lone swan had alighted upon it.

Shen Moyan slowly used spiritual power to cleanse the blood from his longsword. He stored all the corpses into his storage ring, leaving only Ni Gaoyuan's bird head behind.

He adeptly activated the Soul Searching Art, gathering as many of the other's secrets as possible before Ni Gaoyuan's brain consciousness completely faded.

"So that's how it is." Shen Moyan now understood the entire cause and effect.

It was more or less as he had anticipated.

This was merely a group of nobodies trying to turn their fortunes, escape the City Lord, and rebel against their fate of being worked like cattle. After killing their boss and absconding with the funds, a bright tomorrow seemed within reach, only to be intercepted and killed by Shen Moyan halfway.

"Their plight is relatable, but what does that have to do with me?"

Shen Moyan felt no regret whatsoever. For the sake of his own purpose on this journey, he killed them, and that was that.

Moreover, these people had previously coveted his heavenly demon sword.

"The harvest is substantial. Aside from Spirit Stones and Magical Artifacts, dragging that Yao body back for stew should yield a few fine dishes."

Shen Moyan toyed with a blood gourd containing vast quantities of blood qi. Irrigating his Physical Body with this blood water would likely accelerate the transformation of spiritual power into Dharmic power.

"However, this Ni Gaoyuan was quite an interesting character."

Ni Gaoyuan was originally a half-Yao, wandering the Hundred Thousand Great Mountains, groping his way through cultivation in the wilderness. But one day, after straying into Dongshan City, his potential was discovered by City Lord Chu Sheng, who valued him highly.

On the surface, for decades, City Lord Chu Sheng treated him as a confidant, entrusting him with everything.

In reality, City Lord Chu Sheng had designs on Ni Gaoyuan's half-Yao body.

Ni Gaoyuan naturally became aware of this. So, he conspired with the two Loose Cultivators, Meng Chen and He Qiaoer, to set a killing trap for City Lord Chu Sheng. To confuse the True Lord behind City Lord Chu Sheng, they deliberately drew the Biyang Sword Sect, the Holy Court, and the Yao Race into the scheme.

It was just a pity that, right after succeeding and making their escape, they encountered Shen Moyan.

"And the greatest reliance enabling Ni Gaoyuan to scheme everything was an Opportunity obtained from the wilderness."

"A fragment of a Guizang Realm Cultivator's remains, and a Guizang Realm Cultivation Technique called the 'Heavenly Demon Transformation Art'."

In Ni Gaoyuan's memories, the Path of Immortals consisted of: Qi Refining, Foundation Establishment, Golden Core, Nascent Soul. The corresponding Twisted Immortal Path was: Qi Gathering, Mortal Transformation, Purple Mansion, Guizang.

But there should be Realms beyond these.

After all, the might of the Holy Court's [Nine Songs Wenchang Immortal Lord] could not be described by these few Realms alone.

"Speaking of this 'Heavenly Demon Transformation Art', it is a remnant fragment of a supreme Demonic Technique."

"This technique only contains cultivation methods related to 'Heavenly Demons', along with other cultivation plans for various [Demon] types."

Transformation means appearing suddenly without support, relying on Karma.

Karma is very abstract, not something Shen Moyan can currently comprehend. But in his rudimentary understanding, Karma is the energy accumulated by individual and collective life within the world, primarily consisting of Good Karma, Evil Karma, and Neutral Karma.

Heavenly Demons use this Karma as bait, with human hearts as their breeding ground, descending upon the world.

After mastering the 'Heavenly Demon Transformation Art', one can use a Demon Seed as a medium to draw upon the obscure Heavenly Demons, attacking an enemy's mental state, causing a Heavenly Demon to transform within the enemy's thoughts, simultaneously breeding Heart Demons and evil miasmas.

If one Cultivates the Heavenly Demon Eye, they can also invoke the will of Heavenly Demons, bypassing the need for a Demon Seed. Within their line of sight, they can use others' Karma to feign a Heavenly Demon's will and demonically corrupt the enemy.

"Heavenly Demons and Heart Demons are not on the same level."

"Heart Demons are merely a Cultivator's own Inner Demons, classified among [Demons] as [Inner Demons]."

"Whereas Heavenly Demons are a manifestation of a great Dao, born through transformation by relying on worldly Karma, classified among the myriad [Demons] as [Outer Demons]."

Shen Moyan couldn't help but suck in a sharp breath.

"And Demon Seeds are the remnants of Cultivators completely devoured by the myriad [Demons], or the drifting fragments of their Divine Souls and lingering thoughts."

When a Cultivator is eaten by a [Demon], their residual body and soul fragments dissolve into the Mountain and Sea, and Demon Seeds naturally scatter.

It was precisely in the Hundred Thousand Great Mountains that Ni Gaoyuan picked up a flake of skin from a Guizang Realm Cultivator, who had died by [Demon] Path methods.

"The Demonic Path in this world differs quite a bit from my understanding of it." Shen Moyan shuddered.

This world was already a complete mess; Sects harming the common people and cultivating human talent like livestock was Demonic Path enough. Yet, placed before the true [Demons], it paled in comparison.

Because the [Demons] of this world are the great Dao, they are rules.

Shen Moyan looked up at the sky. A cold breeze blew past at that moment, and he felt as if he had plunged into an ice cellar.

Rules are omnipresent.

"Besides Heavenly Demons, categorized by inner and outer, there are extremely many types of [Demons]."

"And to resist [Demons], one must start with [Karma]."

"Good Karma can, to a certain extent, resist the invasion of [Demons]. However, because the effect is too minuscule, the Cultivators of this world do not emphasize Good Karma."

Unless you perform good deeds daily, saving hundreds of millions of lives, accumulating Good Karma into Meritorious Virtue, forging the legendary Human Dao Meritorious Virtue Golden Wheel, otherwise, when a [Demon] invades your body, your Good Karma is but a layer of paper, torn apart with a single rip.

"No wonder the people of this world, knowing that consuming humans creates Evil Karma, still insist on doing it. It seems the benefits outweigh the risks." Shen Moyan nodded.

Merely sacrificing morality and bearing a bit of negligible Karma could yield cultivation gains equivalent to bitter practice for ten or even a hundred years, living for centuries or even millennia.

To keep or discard morality or the Path—the human heart makes its own judgment.

"There's also a question: how are these ethereal things like Good Karma, Evil Karma, and Neutral Karma divided?"

"Heavenly Dao rules? Or man-made divisions?" Shen Moyan fell into deep thought.

Compared to heaven and earth, humans are like fireflies to the bright moon—truly insignificant.

But why would the rules of heaven and earth operate according to human moral will? What happened in this world's past?

"Enough. In a cultivation world, anything is possible. I cannot make subjective assumptions." Shen Moyan calmed the agitation in his heart.

He could not use his own subjective thinking to speculate about this damned world, or he would suffer greatly.

His previous life, being picked up and planted as a ginseng, was a brutal lesson. Trapped in a dim, lightless jade pot, that feeling of powerlessness was deeply etched into Shen Moyan's heart.

"Alright, time to go into seclusion for a Breakthrough."