37: Ascension to Immortality

The next day, when Fang Huai arrived at the Skinning Room, Luo Heng did not show any special attention to him.

He only gave him a look when it was time to clear the area.

Fang Huai understood perfectly, deliberately slowing down and lingering until the very end.

After the crowd had dispersed, he stepped forward to thank Luo Heng.

"Thank you for the treasure, Senior Brother! After using it yesterday, my cultivation efficiency increased significantly, even becoming a few points faster than in the Sect's Cultivation Room."

Luo Heng smiled and said, "Junior Brother Fang actually trusts me so much! I wonder if there were any other reactions after using the blood jade leaf, besides the increased cultivation speed?"

Fang Huai feigned contemplation. "There seemed to be some hallucinatory sensations. In a daze, it felt as if I were becoming an immortal ancestor. I wonder if that's normal?"

"Normal, naturally normal!"

Luo Heng nodded with satisfaction upon hearing this, walked up to Fang Huai, and suddenly grabbed his wrist.

Fang Huai's heart tightened. Had his disguise been seen through?

Spiritual power quietly gathered at his fingertips, ready to respond to any sudden change.

Luo Heng said, "You make it sound real, but whether you actually used my kindness or just accepted it in spirit still needs to be personally verified."

Violent spiritual power suddenly surged into his meridians, causing Fang Huai's heart to sink in alarm.

First, he hadn't touched the blood jade leaf at all yesterday, and Luo Heng's spiritual power probe might discover something was amiss.

Second, two Corpse Fall Worms, one large and one small, were still dormant in his body. If such strange insects were detected, the consequences would be unimaginable.

But for some reason, when the spiritual power swept over the two worms, it treated them as if they didn't exist and passed right through.

Could this worm evade spiritual power probes?

Fang Huai didn't know, but since the Corpse Fall Worm could suppress Poisonous Miasma Gu and had illusion-breaking effects, having a few more miraculous properties wasn't too far-fetched.

After about five breaths, Luo Heng withdrew his spiritual power, an apologetic look on his face.

"It seems Junior Brother Fang did not deceive me; you indeed used the blood jade leaf. From now on, we are on the same side.

Don't blame me for being cautious, Junior Brother. There were some accidents before that caused the Ascension Society to lose many members, so we have to be careful."

"This Fang is not someone who doesn't know how to appreciate kindness. Senior Brother treats me well, and I can't wait to repay you. How would I dare deceive you?"

Fang Huai spoke words of flattery, but his heart was filled with doubt.

Ascension Society?

How come he had never heard of such an organization?

He suppressed his doubts, feeling more of the relief of having survived a disaster.

If Luo Heng had realized he hadn't used the blood jade leaf at all, he would almost certainly have turned hostile and struck to kill, never giving him a chance to explain.

As for why there was a misjudgment, it was probably because he had been eroded by Blood Jade Worms at the Zheng Family of Nanze.

"Junior Brother Fang, the matter of using the blood jade leaf must never be leaked. Otherwise, both of us will have our souls extracted and spirits seized by the Sect!" Luo Heng said solemnly.

Fang Huai frowned. "I thought Senior Brother gave me an Immortal Plant, but now it feels like I've boarded Senior Brother's pirate ship."

Luo Heng laughed. "You haven't boarded a pirate ship; it's an immortal ship, a divine ship, a lucky ship leading to the shore of eternal life.

Who comes to the Corpse Fiend Sect to Cultivate without wanting to break through their shackles and become a supreme being?

But with our Aptitude, we wouldn't even touch the threshold of Foundation Establishment until the day we die. We might as well take a gamble and join the Ascension Society."

"Ascension Society? What kind of organization is that?"

In a short time, Luo Heng had already mentioned it twice. The name not only sounded unreliable but even like a cult.

Luo Heng's eyes flickered as he patted his shoulder. "Before joining, your fate was to become withered bones in the Miasma Valley. After joining, you will walk the path of Immortal Ascension."

Fang Huai was certain Luo Heng had been brainwashed. Immortal ships, divine ships—if such good things really existed, how could it be their turn?

He wondered if Luo Heng would regret it enough to slap himself a few times on the day his Gu worms erupted.

Fang Huai said, "Then why did you choose me?"

"It's simple. The worse one's Aptitude, the higher the improvement from the blood jade leaf. You have no Spiritual Root; using it will definitely make you soar to the sky."

"You've finished talking about the benefits for me, but what about the benefits for you?"

Fang Huai didn't believe Luo Heng was being good to him out of pure kindness.

Back then, he had only fainted by the roadside, yet Luo Heng could sell him like cargo. Now, such generous gift-giving and guidance toward Foundation Establishment must involve some scheme.

"Hehe, I won't hide it from you, Junior Brother."

Luo Heng's eyes shone as he looked at Fang Huai like a treasure. "The leaves distributed every month are limited, but as long as you recruit people into the society, you'll get extra leaves;

If I recruit a Qi Refining Cultivator with no Spiritual Root like you, the extra leaves I get are doubled!"

As expected, multi-level marketing tactics could be used even in the cultivation world.

In the Corpse Fiend Sect, most are low-level Disciples with three or fewer Spiritual Roots, and they remain in a state of slow cultivation for a long time.

Anyone who has tasted the benefits of the blood jade leaf even once will surely become obsessed with the feeling and frantically recruit others into the society.

After all, as Cultivators, everyone has a dream of becoming an immortal ancestor.

If there's a shortcut to achieve it, then even if they know it's a trap, they will surely scramble to get in.

He just didn't know what special use Cultivators without Spiritual Roots had for the Ascension Society.

Fang Huai clearly felt that the Corpse Fiend Sect had been eroded until it was teetering; perhaps before long, its Foundation would become unstable.

Although he was caught in a massive conspiracy, after their frank conversation, Fang Huai's days in the Skinning Room became much better.

When assigning Yao Beasts, Luo Heng would prioritize giving him those with low difficulty and vigorous vital energy.

When conflicts arose, regardless of who was right or wrong, Luo Heng would unconditionally side with Fang Huai.

After only a few good days, Luo Heng stopped him again. "Tonight at the Hour of the Pig, I will lead you into the society."

Fang Huai narrowed his eyes. "Is it possible that I don't need to join and can just be your external worker?"

Luo Heng chuckled, placed his hand on a Yao Beast's bone on the skinning table, and with a little force, the bone crumbled into dust.

"Meet at the eighth entrance in the southeast of Miasma Valley at the Hour of the Pig. If I don't see you then, I guarantee you'll be lying on the skinning table tomorrow."

————

Luo Heng and Fang Huai took advantage of the night to quietly slip into the Miasma Valley.

Wrapped in oversized robes, they observed their surroundings as they walked, fearing they were being followed.

Fortunately, besides the occasional Devil Head or Baleful Corpse, there were only low-tier Yao Beasts around.

But as they went deeper into the valley, the Miasma Valley, which should have been deserted, gained some sneaky black figures.

The black figures shared the same destination as them: a bluestone beside a gloomy withered tree in the middle of the Miasma Valley.

"In a moment, don't speak out of turn. Do exactly as I tell you," Luo Heng said solemnly.

Fang Huai nodded. "I will follow all your instructions, Senior Brother."

Luo Heng tapped the boulder three times lightly and five times heavily, and a sand vortex immediately appeared in front of it.

"Jump!"

After saying that, Luo Heng didn't wait for him and jumped right in.

Fang Huai hesitated, but seeing the black figures gradually approaching from behind, he sighed and jumped in after him.

It was his first time encountering such a sand-textured teleportation entrance, and he had no experience to draw from.

As soon as he stepped in, a strong sense of spatial tearing swept over him, and countless fine sand particles entered his mouth and nose, making him extremely uncomfortable.

By the time he remembered to seal his seven orifices, it was too late, so he simply gave up and let the sand and mud pour in.

After about ten breaths, he was finally spat out by the vortex.

Looking around, he found himself in a dim hall. At the same time, Luo Heng's somber voice came through:

"Lower your head, the Hall Master is coming!"