Chapter 258 - 253: If You Undergo Possession, I Will Find You

The "Annihilate" Sword Intent, now nearing Great Success, had given Du Youqian many pleasant surprises.

Although he had yet to use it in actual combat, he was quite confident. With the "Annihilate" Sword Intent at the level of Great Success, he could not only slay an enemy before him but even "annihilate their clan."

It would annihilate the immediate enemy and three generations of their bloodline, all at once.

No matter how far away they were, as long as they were in the same world, they could be annihilated in an instant.

And this was while Du Youqian’s Cultivation was still insufficient, preventing him from unleashing the full potential of the "Annihilate" Sword Intent.

Back in the day at the Cyan Yang Sect, Elder Blood Slaughter’s "Annihilate" Sword Intent could not only "annihilate a clan," but it could even strike a phantom and have the effect carry over to implicate the entire Cyan Yang Sect in the Human World.

This kind of Sword Intent sounded like something straight out of a myth.

This made Du Youqian marvel. The Blood Slaughter Sword Scripture was indeed a profound and extensive Sword Scripture, and it was a form of Swordsmanship purely for slaughter.

The boost to his strength was immeasurable.

However, if he wanted to comprehend all the remaining Sword Intents in the Blood Slaughter Sword Scripture, gain the recognition of the Blood Slaughter Sword, and become its master... that was likely impossible in this lifetime.

After obtaining the complete Blood Slaughter Sword Scripture, Du Youqian understood that this was not something that could be accomplished in one or two hundred years, or even three to five hundred.

Even with the "Annihilate" Sword Intent as his foundation, comprehending another powerful Sword Intent would take time measured in centuries.

And in the future, if he truly mastered all the Blood Slaughter Sword Intents and became the master of the Blood Slaughter Sword... becoming unrivaled in the Human World would naturally follow.

But that was all too far in the future.

Du Youqian estimated that getting back on his feet in this lifetime would be very, very difficult.

Besides, spending his time and energy on it wasn’t a worthwhile trade-off.

He might as well finish what he needed to do and then reincarnate.

In his next life, he would attempt to use a Body Refining Technique to achieve Core Formation, pass through the channel, and travel to the world beyond.

But some things had to be arranged in this life.

「The next day.」

The women finally stopped coming all at once.

This time, it was the fox.

"My dear disciple, how does it feel to be one of the Living Dead?"

Feng Xiaoyi asked cheerfully through their Divine Sense connection.

Du Youqian could almost see her smile, as charming and cunning as a fox’s.

"You’re welcome to try it for yourself, Master. Hearing about it is no substitute for personal experience."

"Never mind, never mind. This master isn’t as foolish as you. I came to ask you how to handle that Monkey Demon."

"What Monkey Demon? I don’t know what you’re talking about, Master."

"Heh," Du Youqian could almost hear Feng Xiaoyi’s cold laugh, "did you think you could hide that from me? My soul is special. I could tell at a glance that it was a member of the Demon Race, not an ordinary monkey. It misses you dearly and has been trying to return to the Holy Blood Sect to see you. I’m the one who’s been stopping it."

"...Tell it I’ll go find it in the future. For now, just let it stay in the Hundred Thousand Mountains."

"Alright then. My dear disciple, tell your master, when do you plan to attempt Possession?"

"...Not for now. I feel like there’s still a chance for me to recover. Besides, the Sect’s rules forbid Possession."

"When you’re ready to attempt Possession, tell your master. I will help you. That’s all!"

Just as she had arrived, Feng Xiaoyi departed with a sway of her hips.

Because Du Youqian hadn’t completely opened his mind to Feng Xiaoyi, their Divine Sense communication remained a question-and-answer exchange.

With Lin Sha, however, he opened his mind almost completely, allowing them to exchange vast amounts of information in an instant.

Of course, sometimes, secrets he didn’t intend to share would be unintentionally exposed... but it was a mutual risk.

As a result, his secret of being able to reincarnate was no longer a secret from Lin Sha.

In truth, Lin Sha had long suspected it anyway, so after some consideration, he had decided to be honest with her.

There were certain matters he absolutely needed someone he could trust completely to handle.

From these tasks, she could have inferred that he was making arrangements for the future anyway.

It was better to be frank than to let Lin Sha grow suspicious and harbor resentment.

As for Fang Hua, Luo Jinyu, and Meng Xiao, it wasn’t that he didn’t trust them. It was simply that a secret of this magnitude was best known by as few people as possible.

In the eighty years he had lost, Du Youqian’s gains had actually been enormous.

But there were also many regrets.

For example, Gu Xiaofang had passed away decades ago.

Ever since being attacked by a member of the Demon Race sent by Yin Ruozhen, an Innate Divine Ability had damaged his soul. He fell into a coma, entering a vegetative state from which no medicine or treatment could rouse him.

He ultimately passed away far too early.

Then there was Fang Simin, who had established a Cultivation Clan in the Jin Kingdom. He had successfully reached Core Formation, becoming a titan of the Momenan Cultivation Realm.

Fang Simin reaching Core Formation was a good thing, so why was this a regret?

Because Du Youqian hadn’t been there to observe his process of reaching Core Formation with the Seven Transition Celestial Dance Scripture.

This was truly an immeasurable loss.

Furthermore, now that Fang Simin’s status had risen, he would naturally discover that no Core Formation Master named "Fang Zhongying" ever existed in the Cultivation Realm. It would be difficult for Du Youqian to ever again use the identity of "Fang Zhongying" to ask him for insights into the Cultivation of the Seven Transition Celestial Dance Scripture.

Of course, there was another possibility: Fang Simin had long realized that "Fang Zhongying" was merely an alias for Yu Fei, a Core Formation Master from the Holy Blood Sect. Back when he was relying on another’s charity, he could only feign ignorance.

After all, anyone capable of reaching Core Formation could hardly be called a fool, and it would be impossible to say that of Fang Simin.

Many of the small details didn’t really stand up to scrutiny.

His respectful demeanor over so many years was a clear sign that he understood the circumstances and was a very clever man.

And now, Yu Fei had become one of the Living Dead...

Fang Simin was naturally free of his fetters, free to soar as high as he pleased.

A few days later, Lin Sha visited the Soul Calming Hall again.

Du Youqian entrusted her with several tasks, and she agreed to them all without hesitation.

But after communicating for only a short while, Du Youqian found it difficult to continue.

Communicating via Divine Sense was not an easy feat, given his current physical condition.

He preferred to spend his limited energy comprehending Sword Intent and analyzing the Body Refining Technique from the Great Compassion Temple and the methods of utilizing Human Dao Fortune that Meng Xiao had previously collected for him.

The Great Compassion Temple had its own well-developed system for using Human Dao Fortune to aid in the Cultivation of Body Refining.

Although Du Youqian couldn’t practice Cultivation at the moment, he could use the powerful computational abilities of a Core Formation Master to better deduce and analyze these techniques. This would allow him to avoid pitfalls when he began his actual Cultivation in the future.

A few more days passed, and Fang Hua came to visit.

Du Youqian had a few things to entrust to her as well.

After resting for a few more days, it was Luo Jinyu’s turn, and then Meng Xiao’s.

These consecutive conversations exhausted Du Youqian. In the end, he decided that, barring any special circumstances, he would only see each of them once a year.

In fact, back when he was cultivating, especially after reaching Core Formation, it was common to enter seclusion for months or even years at a time.

So, none of them felt that meeting once a year was too long of an interval.

When no one came to see him, Du Youqian focused on comprehending Sword Intents and Cultivation Techniques in peace.

Time flew, and in a flash, another thirty years passed.

On this day, it was Fang Hua’s turn to see him.

"Has the body of that Demon Race’s Great Saint Incarnation been found yet?" Du Youqian asked.

"Not yet. It’s said that both the Holy Blood Sect and the Taihe Sect have been searching in secret for a long time but have found nothing. Honestly, everyone thinks that Elder Blood Slaughter’s sword strike must have completely obliterated the Great Saint Incarnation, body and soul, just like what happened to Yin Ruozhen."

"No..." Du Youqian felt a faint sense of dread. "How tough do you think the physical body of a Great Saint Incarnation is? It far surpasses that of an ordinary Tier Six expert. And Elder Blood Slaughter had not reached his optimal state. I was the Sword Holder. I know for a fact that strike did not destroy the Great Saint Incarnation’s body."

Fang Hua was clearly unconvinced—her emotions were impossible to hide in their Divine Sense communication—but she still agreed, "I will pay more attention to this matter."

"I’m counting on you."

"What did you have Master Qingqiu do? She hasn’t been seen in more than a decade."

"I gave her some instructions."

Fang Hua seemed a little displeased, but also hopeful. "I can do many things for you too, Brother Yu."

"Is that so? You’ve become quite capable, haven’t you, Fang Hua? In that case, I really will have very important tasks for you in the future."

"You can give them to me now."

"Let’s wait a while longer."

Ten years later, Lin Sha arrived.

"Fortunately, I have not failed my mission."

A rare look of joy crossed Du Youqian’s consciousness. "You got it?"

"I did."

"I will tell you a location. Go and hide it there."

"No," Lin Sha refused unexpectedly. "I don’t want to hide it in the place you specify."

"Then what do you intend to do?"

"I will hide it somewhere, but I won’t tell you where. Not unless you come and find me yourself after you reincarnate."

Du Youqian was reluctant to agree. "I might have other arrangements."

Lin Sha replied with mischievous delight, "Then we’ll just have to wait and see."

Du Youqian fell silent.

’I’ll deal with this later,’ he thought.

「Another hundred years passed in a blur.」

Du Youqian calculated that he was already 340 years old.

His body was getting progressively worse.

His moments of lucidity grew shorter, and the periods of deep slumber grew longer.

This body was deteriorating, and there was no way to stop it.

Fortunately, over the past century or so, his gains had been significant.

All the necessary arrangements had been made.

After he reincarnated, he could easily re-enter the Cultivation Realm if he chose to.

If he chose not to, he could still use certain methods to obtain intelligence and protection without revealing his identity.

The resources he would need in his next life, all the way up to Core Formation, were ready for him to retrieve at any time.

He had long since redeemed all the Secret Techniques from the Holy Blood Sect that he was interested in.

His only regret was the incomplete Supreme Cave Truth Nine Revolutions and Nine Transformations Celestial Dance Scripture. It was said to have been borrowed by Elder Pang many years ago, but it had vanished upon his death and was not found among his remains.

On this day, Du Youqian decided it was time to reincarnate.

Over the course of the following year, he told Lin Sha of his intentions.

To Fang Hua, Luo Jinyu, and Meng Xiao, however, he only said that his body was deteriorating and he probably wouldn’t last much longer.

Although they were saddened, Du Youqian had already been lying there, neither dead nor alive, for over two hundred years. They had long since come to accept his fate.

Except for Fang Hua.

She wasn’t sad at all. Instead, she asked, "Master Qingqiu doesn’t seem the least bit sad. Brother Yu, are you hiding something from me?"

’This clever girl...’

Her usual slowness wasn’t a sign of foolishness, but of a pure heart. Her mind was entirely focused on the sword.

Du Youqian naturally remained silent. Fang Hua didn’t press him, only saying calmly, "I’ll find the answer myself. I still remember our agreement, Brother Yu. I trust you remember it too. I’ve already become a Core Formation Female Sword Immortal. When will you come to fulfill your part of the bargain?"

"..." Du Youqian couldn’t answer.

"Your lifespan isn’t over. As a Core Formation Master, even at the Early Stage, you can live for five hundred years. You have at least a century of life left. Chun Xiao Master hinted to me that you might attempt Possession. I don’t know why you won’t tell me the truth, Brother Yu. But it doesn’t matter. If you attempt Possession, I will find you."

Du Youqian remained silent.

It was in this very year.

The True Inheritor at Core Formation, Yu Fei, who had rendered great service to the Holy Blood Sect, finally passed away.

The Holy Blood Sect held a grand funeral for him, and many from the Momenan Cultivation Realm came to pay their respects.

In truth, Du Youqian had kept a low profile back in the day and made very few friends.

But during the turmoil caused by the Demon Race, he had been simply too brilliant. Every Core Formation Master from that era remembered him well.

During Du Youqian’s funeral, someone secretly infiltrated the palace in the Holy Blood Sect where the Life Soul Plates of the True Inheritors were kept. They found the already-cracked Life Soul Plate for "True Inheritor Yu Fei" and crushed it to dust...