Seeking Immortality in a Bizarre World-Chapter 550 - 545: Bloodsucking Tick, Seal Wish Bizarre_1
"Bizarre Demons?!"
Anyone who saw the figure with three heads and six arms, combined with the rampant Bizarre Demons outside, would make the connection. The only strange thing was that Lingyuan City had shown no reaction. In the past, any Bizarre Demon that approached Lingyuan City would be repelled, unable to get close.
"Bizarre Demons my ass! After the Bizarre Demon tide, I hid in an evil-repelling treasure. For some reason, this treasure got buried deep within Di Yuan."
"If I hadn’t retained enough resources and broken through to the Late Nascent Soul Stage, achieving great success in my divine skills, I would have died at the hands of Bizarre Demons long ago."
"After so many years, I finally see living people again!"
The Insect External Incarnation adopted a crude demeanor, inventing a backstory as a lucky survivor of the Bizarre Demon tide.
Disguising as an envoy from the Mysterious Realm wouldn’t work. The upper echelons of Lingyuan City were already one with the Wish Bizarre in terms of interests and wouldn’t welcome an envoy from the Mysterious Realm. Moreover, who could guarantee that there were no spies left by the Bizarre Alliance within Lingyuan City, monitoring every move? Parading around as an envoy from the Mysterious Realm wouldn’t help him seal the Wish Bizarre. Instead, it might attract the Bizarre Alliance and the Heart-devouring Illusion Bizarre. It was even possible someone would pay a huge price to wish for his death. Compared to that, creating the identity of a survivor from the Bizarre Demon tide was more likely to arouse their sympathy.
"Late Nascent Soul Stage? No wonder you’ve survived until now!"
"Which Sect are you from?"
Not everyone was convinced; some questioned him, trying to ascertain his origins.
The Insect External Incarnation did not respond, coldly gazing at the speaker. Although that person was at the Golden Core Stage, he showed no sign of fear.
"Let him in! Lingyuan City has always kept its doors open for convenience."
The stronger a cultivator’s realm, the more nourishing the power generated for the Wish Bizarre when they made a wish. Therefore, Lingyuan City wasn’t worried he could destabilize it.
The gates opened, and several figures dressed in uniform black robes filed out. A token fell before the Insect External Incarnation, lighting up with a glow.
"If you want to enter Lingyuan City, you must hand over your evil-repelling treasure!"
"You can only enter if you agree!"
The Insect External Incarnation nodded, aware of the rules, and took out a dark inkstone. It was a supreme-grade evil-repelling magical treasure he had purposefully prepared to fabricate his identity.
The light fell upon him, and there was no further change.
He wasn’t sure whether the Demon-Sealing Spirit Tower hidden inside the Heaven and Earth Mountain and Sea Pearl would be detected by the Wish Bizarre. The best solution was, as before, to let the evil-warding treasure be carried by someone else. The main body and the incarnation swapping places would allow him to enter Lingyuan City in a manner akin to divine soldiers descending from heaven. Approaching the Wish Bizarre to seal it afterward wouldn’t be too late.
He entered Lingyuan City smoothly, but before he could rejoice, the Guards began to explain the rules.
"To reside in Lingyuan City, you must pay enough Abyss Coins as a residential fee. For a Nascent Soul Stage Cultivator, it’s ten thousand Abyss Coins per day. If you’re unwilling, you may leave Lingyuan City."
"You want to cause trouble? First, see if the Divinity Transformation Cultivators in the city agree."
Although the few Guards were merely at the Golden Core Stage, their attitude was anything but courteous, showing no regard for an outside Nascent Soul Stage Cultivator. Such a situation would be unimaginable outside. This was the domain of the Wish Bizarre and the powerful elites of Lingyuan City. Here, even if you were a dragon, you had to lie low and behave.
Divinity Transformation Cultivators? In Jia Ren’s memory, the upper limit of the realm in Lingyuan City was the Late Nascent Soul Stage; this was the cultivators’ realm cap. Only envoys from the Mysterious Realm would not be affected, their maximum limit reaching the complete stage of Divinity Transformation. This was to ensure that the Guardians possessed absolute strength to suppress any unstable elements. The last time he came to Lingyuan City, the highest realm for cultivators was merely the complete Nascent Soul Stage. After its growth, could the Wish Bizarre and Lingyuan City now break those limits? Even though they were Divinity Transformation Stage Cultivators unable to leave Lingyuan City, the mere mention of it was intimidating enough. With Divinity Transformation Stage Cultivators in Lingyuan City, they naturally wouldn’t care about Nascent Soul Stage Cultivators. Once inside Lingyuan City, one had to work obediently.
"I understand the rules and will certainly abide by them."
The group didn’t say much more and swaggered off.
The Insect External Incarnation’s gaze swept over the cultivators of Lingyuan City. Most people had cultivation levels but possessed very few treasures. Deeper in, many Medicine Men, with Spiritual Medicine growing on their bodies, exuded an aura of decline. They were numerous, accounting for more than seventy percent of the population. Another portion consisted of the privileged class, with ruddy complexions and many treasures.
All in the same city, all cultivators, yet their treatment was worlds apart. Some were high and mighty, exclusively enjoying an endless flow of resources. Others were as lowly as ants, giving their all merely for a chance to stay in Lingyuan City.
The high-ups of Lingyuan City weren’t afraid people wouldn’t pay the entry fee. Without Abyss Coins, one couldn’t stay in Lingyuan City. Facing the terrifying Bizarre Demons outside, how many could survive?
Rebel? Not to mention that their strength didn’t permit it, Lingyuan City had a rule against violence within its walls. Forcibly causing trouble in the city was tantamount to suicide. The elites of Lingyuan City had their city realm and could kill any rebel. The only thing the oppressed could do was to endure silently, allowing the blood-sucking ticks to slowly drain them dry.
Lingyuan City had always been this way; it had never changed. Only with the outbreak of the Bizarre Demon tide did Lingyuan City become humanity’s sole haven of hope. Cultivators were compelled to stay in Lingyuan City, which in turn caused the higher-ups of Lingyuan City to exploit them even more desperately.
Jia Ren headed towards Yang Shengwu’s residence, following the directions in his memory. The streets and dwellings had changed greatly and were completely unfamiliar. Thankfully, as a cultivator, he had a photographic memory and roughly remembered the specific location.
"Who are you looking for?"
An aged man with a hunched back and graying hair stepped out from the courtyard. This place had changed hands; these were not the familiar faces he remembered.
"Do you know Yang Shengwu?"
The old man shook his head, indicating he did not.
Had Yang Shengwu left? Or had he already died? Too much time had passed; unless one became a Nascent Soul Stage Cultivator, it wasn’t possible to still be alive. Without his assistance, Yang Shengwu and Yun Niang could at most have reached the Golden Core Stage.
The Insect External Incarnation sighed and strode toward the most central area of Lingyuan City.
「Half a day later,」
He caught sight of the massive Wishing Platform and the numerous stone wishing houses. The number of stone wishing houses had skyrocketed, organized according to the twelve Heavenly Stems. Each Heavenly Stem zone contained three thousand stone houses, amounting to thirty-six thousand in total. Queues could be seen in front of every stone house.
The Insect External Incarnation had just arrived when a white-haired youth approached him.
"Sir, are you looking to make a wish?"
"We can make wishes on your behalf, charging varying amounts of Spirit Stones or Abyss Coins depending on the wish’s level."
Make wishes on his behalf? He wasn’t surprised by this. Many aristocrats in Lingyuan City kept death-slaves whose purpose was to make wishes for them, satisfying various needs. Since the advent of the Profound Vein Spirit Pill, numerous forces had employed death-slaves to make malicious, competitive wishes.
Jia Ren paused for a moment but ultimately decided against using the youth’s services to ask the Wish Bizarre about Yang Shengwu. He was probably already dead...
"No, thank you."
Having said that, he began to queue.
The youth, his eyes welling with tears, decisively knelt before the Insect External Incarnation.
"Please, sir, give me a chance!
"My parents are nearly out of lifespan from trying to keep me in Lingyuan City; I don’t want them to die!
"Just give me one chance to make a wish for you, and I will be eternally grateful for your immense kindness."
He knelt on the ground, kowtowing until his forehead was bruised and bleeding profusely.
If it weren’t for sheer desperation, who would choose this path? There were many low-ranking cultivators in Lingyuan City. The aristocrats kept their own death-slaves; there wasn’t even a chance for others to beg for such a position.
The Insect External Incarnation sighed. With a wave of his hand, a white light fell upon the youth’s forehead, healing it instantly.
Upon seeing this, the youth looked up at the Insect External Incarnation, his expression a mix of shock and joy. "You’ve agreed?"
The Insect External Incarnation shook his head, and the light in the young man’s eyes dimmed. In that short span, hope and despair had alternated.
"Only you can save yourself. Do not place your hopes on others."
"This vast city is soiled throughout and has decayed for far too long. It’s time for its destruction."
The youth looked up again, but the figure had disappeared into the distant crowd; even his back was no longer visible. The youth did not take Jia Ren’s words to heart. He withdrew his gaze and searched for other high-order cultivators to make wishes on their behalf.
The mere cost of living in Abyss Coins was enough to leave the lower ranks of Lingyuan City breathless, with no capacity to yearn for more. Wish for Abyss Coins in Lingyuan City? Impossible. Wish for Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures? Lingyuan City wasn’t short of Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures, Elixirs, or other valuable items. However, recklessly making wishes to obtain Abyss Coins was a gamble; success depended on luck, and one could still be forced to accept low prices. In comparison, making wishes for others could earn more Abyss Coins.
There were many cultivators in similar straits—some elderly and frail, others young with white hair—all striving with all their might merely to survive in Lingyuan City.
The Insect External Incarnation queued for a long time until it was finally his turn. He entered the stone house and saw an orb of light—it was an extension of the Wish Bizarre. One simply had to state their wish and pay the price for it to be realized. If one couldn’t meet the requirements, the price would still be taken, but the wish would remain ungranted. It was not a fair exchange.
The white orb of light waited quietly, but the person before it showed no reaction for a long time.
"Lingyuan City has existed for far too long. Now is the time for its downfall!"
"I must continue what was left unfinished hundreds of years ago!"
The Insect External Incarnation established a connection with his true self. The figures of the two began to blur as they switched positions.
This exchange was exceedingly difficult, as if a special Formation was hindering them, creating a barrier. Lingyuan City had learned from past experiences and added similar Formations. Unfortunately, the level of these Formations was not sufficient to completely restrain them.
After ten breaths, the true self and the Insect External Incarnation had completed the switch.
BOOM!
Lingyuan City trembled as if sensing a great threat.
At the center of the altar, myriad bolts of electricity emerged, transforming into a colossal Thunder Spirit. The Thunder Spirit exuded the complete aura of the Divinity Transformation Stage, deep and abyssal. The Thunder Spirit split into nine, which then became eighty-one, and ultimately transformed into seven hundred and twenty-nine thunder manifestations. This was a defensive measure added by the aristocrats of Lingyuan City after Jia Ren’s last disruption, when they sensed the danger of the city’s destruction. The Wish Bizarre could not make wishes for itself, but it could use those attached to it to make wishes, creating its own protective force. Each of the seven hundred and twenty-nine thunder manifestations possessed the full strength of the Divinity Transformation Stage, their combat power no weaker than that of actual cultivators. Hundreds of exterminators who had previously come to sweep through had suffered heavy losses and were forced to flee, leaving Lingyuan City to its existence.
Terrifying thunder erupted, forming scorching white lightning that swept toward Jia Ren. Amidst the expanse of white lightning, a golden divine light surged like a tidal wave, erupting from the Wishing Platform at its center.
The Suppressing Demon Divine Light eclipsed the lightning, enveloping Lingyuan City, becoming the sole illumination in the area.
