Worldwide Awakening: My Soul Kinds Are Lost-Chapter 653: Demon Path Sect, Culture of the Survival of the Fittest_1

Xu Ling opened his eyes. He was now a cultivator at the Second Layer of Qi cultivation.

As expected of the highest quality living souls. Just three Living Soul Stones allowed me to successfully break through to the Second Layer of Qi cultivation. Xu Ling had killed ten zombies in the Apocalypse World and used the Blood Soul Technique to refine their living souls into ten Living Soul Stones. That was how he managed to break through using merely three of them. If I had used lower-quality Living Soul Stones, even a hundred might not have been enough for a successful breakthrough. Living Soul Stones naturally vary in quality. Even the lowest-grade Living Soul Stone was not something he could easily obtain, yet he had extravagantly used top-tier ones for his Cultivation.

Apart from the resources required for practicing the Human Soul Refinement Scripture, he had also successfully refined a Ghost Banner. Refining a Ghost Banner was easy; successful refining was only the beginning. The next step was to incorporate Evil Ghosts into the banner. Evil Ghosts also needed to be refined from living souls. Fortunately, once the living souls were incorporated into the banner, the Ghost Banner could function. The Ghost Banner also had different grades. The more Evil Ghosts it contained and the more living souls it refined, the stronger it became.

Unfortunately, I can't sell these top-tier Living Soul Stones. Otherwise, I could exchange them for all the other Qi Cultivation Techniques. Xu Ling looked regretful. To exchange for Cultivation Techniques from the Huangquan Sect, contributions were required. There were only a few ways to earn contributions: either by completing Sect tasks or by handing over various supplies. The only valuable items he possessed that could be exchanged were Living Soul Stones. However, if he dared to bring out even one of these top-tier Living Soul Stones, he would undoubtedly draw unwanted attention. Within a day, he could be forcibly disappeared and interrogated to reveal its origin.

To put it simply, these top-tier Living Soul Stones were resources that even cultivators at the Transcendence Tribulation Stage could use. Using such high-quality Living Soul Stones directly for Cultivation was a blatant waste of precious resources. They were excellent auxiliary materials for alchemy, artifact refinement, and more. Producing Living Soul Stones of such high quality was indeed very difficult; perhaps only one might appear in a million. Xu Ling knew this, which was why he dared not sell them.

If I were at the Golden Core Stage—no, even just the Foundation Establishment Stage—selling one wouldn't attract any attention. But how could a mere Qi Cultivation Stage disciple, an Outer Disciple at only the Second Layer of Qi cultivation, possess something so precious?

In another month, it's the Sect's grand competition. I need to finish refining the Ghost Banner and find a way to take on some missions.

Without Evil Ghosts, the Ghost Banner was just a semi-finished product. It would only become fully functional after Evil Ghosts were incorporated. As for taking on missions outside, that was simple too. He just needed to disguise the origin of his Evil Ghosts and have an explanation for his Cultivation breakthrough. Otherwise, if I stay within the Huangquan Sect, how can I explain all this? Ultimately, it would only point to me, an Outer Disciple, having stolen from the Sect's treasury.

However, if he obtained Evil Ghosts or achieved his Cultivation breakthrough outside the Huangquan Sect's territory, no one would care or ask how. Although life in the Huangquan Sect was brutal, the Sect did not openly seize opportunities from its disciples. In secret, however, it was a different story. After all, if one improved too quickly, someone would inevitably try to make a move on them. Attempting to harm someone outside the Huangquan Sect risked elimination by a Righteous Sect. But inside the Sect, as long as one wasn't discovered, robbery and murder were not issues. Even if caught, it wasn't a major problem. They would just have to hand over an equivalent value in materials. This was commonly known as paying a fine. There was nothing that couldn't be resolved by paying up. Otherwise, why would it be called a Demon Path Sect? The higher-ups didn't care at all about the deaths of low-to-mid-level members; their only concern was whether they had enough resources for their own Cultivation.

I just need to pick an easy mission for now. After that, I'll have time... Xu Ling wasn't particularly concerned about the mission itself, but rather about the Sect Grand Competition. This was an opportunity to openly kill fellow disciples. However, there was a disadvantage. After killing a fellow disciple, half of the spoils would be confiscated by the Sect. Therefore, every Sect Grand Competition was a bloodbath, with everyone eager to kill their fellow sect members to gather enough resources for their next stage of Cultivation. 𝑓𝘳𝘦𝑒𝑤𝑒𝘣𝘯ℴ𝘷𝘦𝓁.𝑐𝑜𝑚

Fortunately, the Sect Grand Competition had a degree of fairness. Disciples of each level would only face others of the same level. A disciple at the Qi Refining First Layer would not encounter someone at the Qi Refining Ninth Layer; Qi Refining First Layers only fought Qi Refining First Layers. Of course, if a disciple at the Qi Refining First Layer wished to fight disciples at the Second Layer of Qi cultivation or Third Layer of Qi cultivation, that was also permitted. The rule was primarily to prevent the strong from preying on the weak. If those at the Qi Refining Ninth Layer were to indiscriminately slaughter those at the Qi Refining First Layer, it would lead to a generational gap in the Sect. The higher-ups of the Huangquan Sect naturally wouldn't care about a generational gap itself, but such a gap would lead to a shortage of their Cultivation resources, so they maintained rules that benefited them.

Xu Ling didn't plan to advance his Cultivation further for now. Instead, he intended to focus on enhancing his Magical Artifacts and Spells, primarily to protect his life. He didn't want to stand out in this grand competition; he aimed to be inconspicuous. Compared to other Outer Disciples, he wasn't lacking resources. There was no need to expose himself for such a meager amount. The winners of the competition naturally received resource rewards. However, he had already checked: the reward for the Qi Cultivation Stage was Living Soul Stones, all of inferior quality—too poor for him to even consider using for artifact refinement. Enhancing Magical Artifacts and Spells could be achieved simply by expending a large number of Living Soul Stones.

When it comes to Cultivation, if you lack Talent, you make up for it with resources. If you have neither sufficient Talent nor resources, you can only languish at the bottom. If you have nothing yet still wish to pursue Cultivation, you're probably just here to be cannon fodder.

Deciding to act immediately, he organized his belongings and prepared to accept a mission.

Fifteen Lower Grade Spirit Stone fragments should be enough for this trip's expenses.

This was the entirety of Xu Ling's assets. The currency used in the outside world was Spirit Stones. The Huangquan Sect was isolated, and within it, Spirit Stones only circulated among those at the Foundation Establishment Stage. Disciples in the Qi Cultivation Stage used Living Soul Stones, which were considered internal resources. However, his predecessor had saved up fifteen Lower Grade Spirit Stone fragments before transmigrating. He had completed missions and exchanged contributions for them, originally intending to use them for Cultivation. Regrettably, his predecessor had died before getting the chance to use them.

The missions his predecessor undertook were all within the Huangquan Sect, offering meager rewards and often being deliberately made difficult. Missions outside the Sect offered greater rewards but came with the risk of danger, and one had to pay their own travel expenses. Otherwise, how could one traverse the thousands of miles of territory outside the Sect?

The process of accepting the mission and leaving the Sect went smoothly. However, all fifteen Lower Grade Spirit Stone fragments were used up. Travel expenses alone cost ten Lower Grade Spirit Stone fragments. The remaining five were spent on bribes; otherwise, leaving so easily would have been impossible, and he would have surely faced obstructions. The entire atmosphere of the Huangquan Sect was steeped in greed and cruelty. With superiors setting the example, various corrupt practices naturally emerged down the ranks.

Only after leaving the territory of the Huangquan Sect did Xu Ling finally heave a sigh of relief. The oppressive environment there had made him extremely uncomfortable.

Sooner or later, I will have my own Storage Magical Artifact! Xu Ling felt frustrated. To think that a dignified Cultivator like him had to go out laden with bags. But he had no choice. The minimum requirement to use a Storage Magical Artifact was reaching the Foundation Establishment Stage. Such artifacts required not only Mana but also Divine Sense. Divine Sense only awakened at the Foundation Establishment Stage. So, even if he possessed a Storage Magical Artifact now, he wouldn't be able to use it and could only stare at it helplessly.

But that's alright. With the help of the zombies in the Apocalypse World, I'll soon become a Foundation Establishment Stage Cultivator! Xu Ling believed.

After confirming no one was around, he unhesitatingly pushed open the bronze gate in his mind. The next moment, his surroundings twisted and changed. When he looked again, he had arrived in the Apocalypse World. He was still in the same location he had left from; nothing had changed.

Something's not right... I don't remember seeing a blood moon before. Xu Ling looked up and noticed something amiss. This time, upon his arrival, a blood-red moon hung in the sky—one that hadn't been there before. Under its light, the entire world seemed to be submerged in a sea of blood.

"Of course, there wasn't. I prepared it specially for you."

A figure suddenly appeared beside Xu Ling, putting him on high alert. Before Xu Ling could ask who it was, he felt his mind become a chaotic blur, losing control, and then he plunged into darkness. He lost consciousness before he could even react.

"It's been a month. I wonder what you've been up to." Wang Linchi gazed at the unconscious Xu Ling. He had been waiting so long he was about to lose patience.