I Studied Abroad in the Modern Times-Chapter 274Book 2: : Flood of Visitors, Unwelcome Guests

Vol 2 Chapter 274: Flood of Visitors, Unwelcome Guests

The Myriad Demon Banner formed, and omens spread across ten thousand miles.

The Seven Great Sages were a powerful faction among the demon race. In Great Freedom Heaven, no fewer than a million demons were sacrificed—six of them Soul Formation cultivators—all refined into one banner. A terrifying feat.

The moment the treasure banner appeared, it resonated from the highest heavens to the deepest seas, with anomalies occurring everywhere.

In the sky, illusions of soaring dragons and startled phoenixes;in the ocean depths, shadowy images of Kunpengs and Xuanwu Turtles.

Even Jiushan Realm, separated by Liang Prefecture, could not ignore the sight.

On a collapsed mountain peak, Zheng Fa stood beside Head Seat Mingde and the others, gazing into the distance, both puzzled and worried by the sight.

"This..."

The Yaochi Soul Formation cultivator looked toward Head Seat Mingde. Mingde had the highest cultivation and Taishang Dao’s ancient inheritance—he was likely the only one who could understand what was happening.

"Dao Fruit..." Mingde did understand. "The Great Freedom Demon Ancestor wants to attain the Demon Emperor’s Dao Fruit?"

Hearing this, Zheng Fa naturally recalled what Mu Qingyan had said about the Demon Emperor.

By now, he had some theories about Dao Fruits—

Dao Fruits likely involved two aspects: the cultivation method and the audience.

The method might have to be unique, but the "audience" seemed surprisingly broad:

For instance, in the Immortal Sects, anyone cultivating a specific method counted.

As for the Great Freedom Demon Ancestor, his bloodline was his audience.

And perhaps the incense power within Jiushan Realm also played a role.

Thinking of this, Zheng Fa’s heart stirred. He recalled certain modern legends—

Things like founding religions, creating people, preaching the Dao, bestowing divinity—these aligned eerily well with the characteristics of Dao Fruits in the Xuanyi Realm.

That thought flashed by, and he heard Head Seat Mingde say, "But... how did the Great Freedom Demon Ancestor manage this?"

"The Demon Emperor’s Dao Fruit had long vanished. Among the various powers, preaching to the demon race always met with interference, even..."

Mingde trailed off, but Zheng Fa understood—

The demon race’s fragmented, chaotic state might actually be the result of the Xuanyi Five Sects' deliberate manipulation.

He looked up and met Senior Sister Zhang’s gaze.

Thinking back to those seemingly ridiculous biological experiments by the Great Freedom Demonic Sect’s predecessors, neither of them found it laughable anymore. On the contrary, perhaps... this was the Demon Ancestor’s ambition all along!

In this world, anything non-human that attains the Dao counts as a demon. Yet the demon race placed heavy emphasis on bloodlines, and under suppression by the Five Sects, they were disorganized and disunited. 𝐑ἈℕՕꞖЁS

If the Dao Fruit was tied to a unique cultivation method, then consider this:

After who knows how many years of biological experiments, had the Demon Ancestor actually found a way to fuse his own bloodline with various others? From then on, would the demon race finally have a universally applicable method of cultivation?

If so, the impact on the demon race would be enormous. In a sense, only with such a method could the demon race truly be called a "race."

The Demon Emperor’s Dao Fruit probably came from this. And those demons sacrificed in blood rituals were likely just the final step—possibly even an unimportant one.

If this guess proved true, the Demon Ancestor’s scheme was unimaginably long in the making.

Zheng Fa’s mind surged with waves of thoughts. Head Seat Mingde’s expression also flickered with uncertainty, as if shocked. Suddenly, four purple Talisman Edicts flew in from the horizon, landing in the hands of Mingde and the other three.

The four of them bowed and received the edicts, exchanging glances—it seemed they had already anticipated this.

Zheng Fa sensed something was up. Sure enough, he heard Head Seat Mingde say, "In that case, we should take a longer view."

...So you’re saying it’s time to retreat?

Mingde seemed to see his doubt and explained:

"The sect has sent orders. Since the Great Freedom Demon Ancestor is condensing the Demon Emperor Dao Fruit, we need not interfere."

"From now on, his focus should be the demon race. It won’t have much to do with us of the Xuanyi Five Sects."

This helped clear some of Zheng Fa’s confusion. He then heard Xie Qingxue say, "Dao Fruits are hard enough to kill. Now that he wields the Demon Emperor’s Dao Fruit, he’ll likely be even stronger."

That reasoning was rather practical.

What puzzled Zheng Fa was that, just a moment ago, everyone had been fighting tooth and nail, and now they were calling it off? The change was too abrupt!

Head Seat Mingde sighed, "We Immortal Sects prioritize the human race. Our ancestors wouldn’t waste strength clashing with the Demon Ancestor... The Demon Ancestor, by advancing, has withdrawn—he’s stepping outside the game board."

In other words... the Demon Ancestor pioneered a new technique, found a new blue ocean, and suddenly had no competitors?

Xie Qingxue nodded beside him, "Dao Fruits are hard to kill. Now that the Demon Ancestor has revived, we’re already at a disadvantage. If he becomes the Demon Emperor, he probably won’t want to provoke us again either."

The situation had shifted too fast. Only now did Zheng Fa finally understand the logic of the Five Sects—they didn’t fight out of principle, only for gain. The so-called righteous vs. demonic debate wasn’t even a concern for the sect leaders.

Having assessed the situation, they were now simply going to let the Demon Ancestor do as he pleased.

"The Demon Emperor Dao Fruit... and none of the Five Sects want to compete for it?"

"Our ancestors all tried. But Dao Fruits are hard to attain, and no one made any headway."

Yan Wushuang spoke up now. He seemed puzzled too: "So we’re just going to watch the Demon Ancestor regain his strength?"

Head Seat Mingde chuckled, seemingly resigned, "When it comes to Dao Fruit wielders, what we think doesn’t matter anymore..."

Zhenren Tongming, standing to the side, looked pale. If anyone had a grudge against the Demon Ancestor, it was him—Tongming Mountain was blown up. That was a deep, blood-drenched feud.

"Besides, the demon race has its own depth. For the Demon Ancestor to unify them and truly become the Demon Emperor—it won’t be easy."

"If he can’t seize the Qingping Sword or the Tranquility Bamboo, and wants to achieve the Demon Emperor Dao Fruit, he likely won’t stir up more trouble with us—it would do him no good."

Yan Wushuang still looked confused, as if he wanted to say something—but Xie Qingxue gave him a glare, and he didn’t dare.

Suddenly, he thought of something and looked toward Zheng Fa, his face full of worry.

The Xuanyi Five Sects were pulling out. Where did that leave Jiushan Realm?

Staying here—with the Demon Ancestor’s interest in him, and his desire for the Tranquility Bamboo—Zheng Fa would find no peace. It might even bring great danger.

Now that the Demon Ancestor was achieving the Demon Emperor Dao Fruit, he was stronger than ever.

As one side rose and the other fell, the situation looked bleak.

What’s more, the Tranquility Bamboo was still attracting Leiyin Temple!

That earlier rejection of Taishang Dao’s Head Seat Mingde was starting to look impulsive.

Head Seat Mingde seemed to have realized this too. He glanced at Zheng Fa but said nothing.

The Soul Formation cultivators from Yaochi and the others also looked at Zheng Fa with strange expressions.

...

"Chengkong, go find Zheng Fa!"

Just after everyone had parted, Zhenren Chengkong heard Head Seat Mingde’s voice through a transmission. He looked up in surprise and saw Mingde watching him, even looking a bit anxious: "Tell him, if he’s willing to join Taishang Dao, my offer still stands."

"...?" Chengkong looked totally confused. "Head Seat, why didn’t you just say that earlier?"

"Zheng Fa is still young and proud. If we asked him on the spot, he might’ve refused out of pride."

Mingde spoke first.

Zhenren Chengkong froze, his expression full of doubt: "Zheng Fa... is he really someone who cares about pride?"

"...Besides, he’s probably figured it out by now. Ambition is good, but between the Demonic Sect and the Five Sects, he’ll have to pick a side. His cultivation is still low, yet he’s got rare treasures and a technique for cultivating Heaven-and-Earth Spiritual Roots. Without backing from a major sect, he won’t get far."

That... made a lot of sense. Zhenren Chengkong nodded as he listened.

"But... Head Seat, if that's the case, why not wait for him to come to us?"

"..." Head Seat Mingde gave him a look and snapped, "Which of Jiushan Sect's troubles wasn’t stirred up because of our Taishang Summoning Order?"

"..." Zhenren Chengkong pressed his lips together. He honestly didn’t know how to respond to that.

Then he heard Head Seat Mingde say, "And wait for him to come to us?"

"You think Yaochi and Haori Mountain will wait until the day he comes begging to us?"

"Ah?"

...

Yan Wushuang paced back and forth in his room, face shifting between expressions. Eventually, he couldn’t resist going into the courtyard, pushing open his senior sister’s door, and shouting, "Senior Sister!"

Xie Qingxue opened her eyes and looked at him silently.

Yan Wushuang’s tone immediately dropped.

"Let Zheng Fa join our Tianhe Sect..."

Xie Qingxue didn’t seem surprised at his words, as if she had already guessed he’d say this. She stood up and gently shook her head. "Our Tianhe Sect isn’t like Taishang Dao. Our sect's inheritance is fixed—you know that..."

"Yeah..."

"Not to mention, our sect would never trust outsiders the way Taishang Dao does." Xie Qingxue let out a soft laugh. "Taishang Dao probably doesn’t even truly trust outsiders either."

Yan Wushuang lowered his head.

"Besides, have you considered Zheng Fa’s personality..."

Xie Qingxue’s words caught Yan Wushuang off guard.

"Zheng Fa..."

"Zheng Fa appears humble, but his pride runs deep..." Xie Qingxue’s gaze was sharp as lightning—she clearly had thought this over long ago.

"I can guess why he refused Taishang Dao."

"Our Tianhe Sect... likely couldn’t accept him either."

Yan Wushuang mumbled with some dissatisfaction, "Even someone like me can join..."

"The Sect Master isn’t your dad. Want to try again?"

Yan Wushuang shut up.

Xie Qingxue looked at him and shook her head again. "I acknowledge Zheng Fa’s talent too, but our Tianhe Sect is different. If he joins, it might not even be a good thing for him..."

She thought of something but stopped, then finally said after a pause, "If you value his talent and your relationship is already good, why force him to enter our sect?"

"..."

Yan Wushuang had nothing to say. Xie Qingxue added, "Making friends outside is never as effective as improving your own cultivation... If you truly want to see more talents in our sect, why not study the sect’s secret arts yourself?"

Yan Wushuang muttered, "That’s exactly why I’m... trying to study the Ancestor’s secret technique."

"Hmm?"

Seeing Xie Qingxue’s face go from blank to contemplative, Yan Wushuang realized he’d messed up and quickly said, "Senior Sister! I get it! I’ll go back and cultivate!"

He turned and tried to flee, but a cold shout rang out behind him:

"Stop!" 𝙛𝓻𝒆𝓮𝒘𝙚𝙗𝒏𝙤𝙫𝓮𝒍.𝓬𝒐𝙢

Yan Wushuang froze, turning his head slowly.

"Explain to me what you meant..." Xie Qingxue’s gaze was sharp as a sword. She stared at her junior brother, her expression severe. "What do you mean you’ll take good care of the Qingping Sword?"

"..."

"What do you mean, you’re studying the Ancestor’s secret technique?"

Yan Wushuang’s expression turned even paler.

"What did you do in Jiushan Realm?"

As she slowly placed her hand on the sword hilt, Yan Wushuang dropped to his knees with a thud and cried out, "Senior Sister, I swear I didn’t reveal a single shred of our sect’s inheritance!"

"You! Really! Dared!"

Xie Qingxue spat out each word with gritted teeth. The sword qi from the Qingping Sword in her hand was barely suppressed and on the verge of exploding.

"Really! I just tried to give it to him—he didn’t even want it!"

Yan Wushuang wailed.

"You’d better not leave out a single word—explain everything!"

Xie Qingxue looked at the calm and still Qingping Sword in her hand, recalling that overwhelming sensation of losing control, then looked at her junior brother—her voice full of killing intent.

...

Outside Jiushan Realm, Zhenren Chengkong watched as Zheng Fa escorted the Yaochi Soul Formation cultivator to the gate, both of them chatting and laughing like old friends—it made him incredibly anxious.

As soon as Head Seat Mingde had spoken, he had immediately understood.

In the past, only Taishang Dao had welcomed disciples with external skills;the other Xuanyi Five Sects preferred grooming their own.

But Zheng Fa was different!

Not only did Zheng Fa have incredible talent—

The current issue was—if they recruited Zheng Fa, they’d also gain a Heaven-and-Earth Spiritual Root!

And with Jiushan Realm’s method of cultivating Heaven-and-Earth Roots—who knew whether they could grow another one?

For Jiushan Sect, carrying the Tranquility Bamboo around felt like a child showing off gold in a marketplace.

But a kid who spits out golden ingots with every breath—who wouldn’t want to take him home?

All that mattered now was convincing Zheng Fa!

Was there any business more worth doing than this?

Over there, Zheng Fa was still expressing his thanks: "These Incense Beads... many thanks to Zhenren Lingxia..."

"Strictly speaking, you’ve saved my life twice already..." Zhenren Lingxia from Yaochi was all smiles, kind and lovely. She also noticed Zhenren Chengkong and said casually:

"These Incense Beads are from Leiyin Temple. Since Yaochi and Leiyin Temple are both in the Western Continent, we have some connections..."

"If you’re interested, join Yaochi—and you’ll get plenty more like these!"

She even added, "As for the Tranquility Bamboo issue, Yaochi can help you handle Leiyin Temple too."

Zheng Fa bowed toward Zhenren Lingxia to show he’d consider it seriously. Only after seeing her off did he turn to Zhenren Chengkong.

"This Zhenren Lingxia... how come she never mentioned any life-saving debt before she saw the Tranquility Bamboo?"

Zhenren Chengkong opened with a clear attempt to sow discord.

Zheng Fa shook his head. The Soul Formation cultivators from Yaochi and Haori Mountain had both visited earlier, and Zheng Fa could see it clearly—what they wanted most was the technique to cultivate Tranquility Bamboo.

Of course, they wanted the bamboo itself too.

"Also, Yaochi has always been matriarchal... male cultivators actually have lower status there."

Seeing he still didn’t speak, Zhenren Chengkong added.

Zheng Fa glanced at him, suddenly smiled, and pulled out a storage pouch. He took out five Incense Beads from it and said:

"I understand all that, but..."

"They give a lot!"

Zhenren Chengkong pinched his own storage pouch with two measly Incense Beads inside and, for a moment, felt a little inferior.

Just as he was about to say more, a fierce figure approached from the direction of the ruined mountains of Tongming Mountain.

Xie Qingxue, with the Qingping Sword in hand, looked at Zheng Fa as though he were a thief.

"Uh... Fairy Xie," Zhenren Chengkong was stunned by her expression and gently advised, "A melon forcibly twisted off is never sweet."