Chapter 408 - 389: Surely Nothing Can Go Wrong There, Right?

Chapter 408: Chapter 389: Surely Nothing Can Go Wrong There, Right?

Su Ling’er’s cold voice echoed before the sect gates. With her hands clasped behind her back, she turned and walked toward the sect’s interior. The three hundred-odd "newcomers" followed behind her in a vast procession.

Su Ling’er had already planned out the first stop on her perfect "discouragement tour."

’Hmph, first I’ll take you to the Artifact Refining Pavilion to open your eyes! I’ll let you witness for yourselves how our senior brothers and sisters of the Guixi Sect toss living, breathing bodies onto the Forging Platform like materials to perform that inhuman "flesh and blood refining"!’

’The sight of splintering bones and melting flesh, those heart-rending screams... I refuse to believe you people will still have the guts to stay after seeing that! Won’t you all be scared shitless, crying and begging to leave the mountain?’

Then, her Divine Sense quietly swept towards the Artifact Refining Pavilion they were approaching.

And then, the smile on her face froze.

Inside the Artifact Refining Pavilion, there were indeed a few players who had returned to the sect and some who had just logged on, hammering away at metal with a CLANG CLANG CLANG.

’But... what happened to the flesh and blood refining? What happened to forging swords from living people?’

The players were gathered around a pile of high-grade ore, swinging their hammers and humming some unknown tune.

’Where are the people? Where are the Evil Cultivators meant for the sacrifice?!’

’So you mean to tell me that when I came by, or when little junior brother came by, you were all performing blood sacrifices, but now that I’m leading a tour, you decide not to? Is that it?’

’Ahem... Well, no matter. An evil sect has more than one terrifying aspect.’

Her steps didn’t falter in the slightest. At a fork in the road, she made an extremely natural, sharp turn, as if the Artifact Refining Pavilion had never been her destination in the first place.

"Keep up, don’t fall behind!"

The sprawling procession followed her, and then, abruptly, made a sharp ninety-degree turn toward another building that emanated a rich medicinal aroma occasionally mixed with a burnt smell—the Alchemy Pavilion.

Su Ling’er began plotting in her mind once more.

’The Artifact Refining Pavilion was a bust, but the Alchemy Pavilion has to have something, right? I saw it with my own eyes! I saw how they toss living people into the Pill Furnace to refine that vile "Human Essence Elixir"!’

’That despair of being burned alive to ashes by pill fire... It will definitely scare the wits out of this group! When they, the weaklings, can’t take it and insist on leaving, it won’t be my fault.’

’It’s their loss, not a problem with my Guixi Sect. This way, the Guixi Sect saves face as an evil sect, and I successfully save their lives.’

As she walked, she once again used her Divine Sense to "scout" ahead, preparing to greet the hell on earth she anticipated. And then...

Her expression froze once again.

Inside the Alchemy Pavilion, several Alchemy Masters were sitting cross-legged before a Pill Furnace, carefully controlling the flame.

There were no screams from the Pill Furnace, no struggles, only a furnace full of... fragrant... Dragon and Tiger Yang Elixir.

’What the?! When I came by before, if you weren’t busy performing flesh and blood refining, you were making pills from living people! I know there aren’t many people in the pavilion right now, but how is it that the moment I bring people for a tour, you all turn into perfect gentlemen?!’

’Dragon and Tiger Yang Elixir?! What are you trying to do?! Are you devils? No, wait, how can you *not* be devils anymore! I need you to be devils to save these people!!’

Su Ling’er’s expression remained unchanged. Just as they were about to reach the entrance to the Alchemy Pavilion, she made another abrupt, sharp turn, leading the three hundred-odd people behind her down yet another path.

By now, the three hundred-plus people behind her were completely baffled by their guide’s meandering.

They were like a flock of ducks being led on a walk, following the fairy in front of them through this Immortal Realm of a sect, turning left one moment and right the next.

’This... Is this fairy just messing with us? Or... is this part of the test? A test of our sense of direction and... stamina?’

’Why does it feel like she was about to take us to that pavilion up ahead with the black smoke, but then halfway there, she turned around and left?’

’Then she was going to take us to that fragrant pill room, and we were almost at the door, but she turned again? This fairy... is she terrible with directions?’

Just as the crowd was filled with confusion, with some even beginning to suspect the fairy was toying with them, a slightly bolder youth cautiously stepped forward, bowed, and asked respectfully:

"Reporting to you, Fairy... I... I wonder where the Fairy is leading us? We are slow-witted and fear we cannot keep up with your pace. It would be good to have some advance preparation..."

This question drew everyone’s attention. Over three hundred pairs of eyes turned in unison to look at Su Ling’er, awaiting her answer.

Hearing this, Su Ling’er stopped and slowly turned around.

She was on the verge of going crazy inside, but her face still wore that profound, inscrutable, and cold expression.

’How the hell should I know where I’m taking you?! I’d also like to know where my senior brothers and sisters who kill without batting an eye have all disappeared to! Usually, they’re either refining pills from living people or performing flesh and blood refining! I can accept that there are fewer people around, but couldn’t you at least give me some classic evil-sect-members-killing-each-other drama? Did you all decide to become vegetarian monks instead?!’

Her gaze hardened, and a wave of pressure unique to a Late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator swept over the crowd, causing the youth who had spoken to instantly turn pale, breaking out in a cold sweat.

"Preparation?" Su Ling’er let out a cold laugh. "The path of seeking the Dao is filled with tests at every turn and choices at every moment. How could it be something you can simply ’prepare’ for?"

"You will follow wherever I take you! You will learn whatever I show you! Put away your pathetic curiosity and useless speculations! In the Guixi Sect, your job is not to ask ’why,’ but to ’obey’ unconditionally!"

"The Great Dao is ruthless, and the strong are revered! My Guixi Sect is an orthodox sect of the Mystic Gate; we don’t raise flowers in a greenhouse! If you can’t even comprehend this test of ’going with the flow,’ if you lack even the awareness to ’let your Daoist heart follow your guide,’ it only proves that the path of immortality is not for you!"

"If you don’t wish to follow my guidance," she said, extending a slender finger and pointing toward the sect gates, "you can leave the mountain at any time! The Guixi Sect will never accept useless trash who can’t even follow a path!"

Her words were incredibly domineering, yet every sentence was peppered with high-sounding terms like "test," "Daoist heart," and "orthodox sect of the Mystic Gate."

The crowd was momentarily stunned by this theory of "domineering orthodoxy" and came to vastly different interpretations.

The group of mortals who yearned for the path of immortality were shaken by her words, and they couldn’t help but feel that what the fairy said... actually made a lot of sense?!

’The path of the Great Dao is inherently filled with the unknown! Without a sincere heart, a heart that unconditionally trusts one’s guide, how could one ever overcome the obstacles ahead?’

’Could it be that the fairy’s actions are meant to temper our impetuousness and make us understand the principle that ’a master’s command is heaven’s will’? Is this what righteous Cultivation is really like?’

Some of the undercover agents from righteous sects had already glimpsed a corner of the world of Cultivation. Hearing Su Ling’er’s words now, alarm bells went off in their minds.

’The Great Dao is ruthless, and the strong are revered? What kind of orthodox sect of the Mystic Gate is this? This is clearly the ’law of the jungle’ that the demonic path follows!’

’And ’let your Daoist heart follow your guide’? The righteous path emphasizes that ’the Dao follows nature, and one’s true heart is singular’... Every ’righteous’ principle this fairy speaks of has the naked logic of the ’demonic path’ at its core! And she even packages it all so sanctimoniously!’

*A sharp intake of breath...* ’This Guixi Sect... their actions are perverse, and their philosophy is bizarre. The demonic path nowadays can’t even be bothered to disguise itself anymore. Is this Guixi Sect wary of something? Or... are they plotting something even bigger?!’

Meanwhile, the group of undercover agents from the demonic path listened with peculiar expressions, some even wanting to laugh.

’Interesting, truly interesting. They’re clearly engaged in the demonic business of ’those who obey me shall prosper, those who defy me shall perish,’ yet they insist on flying the banner of the righteous path. Not bad, not bad at all. Some of our demonic sects do the same.’

’Why does it feel like... they’re even more hypocritical than my sect? When our sect wants to recruit a disciple, we just say, ’Either die or be our dog.’ How direct is that? The righteous path is weak now; who has time for all this fancy nonsense?’

’Still... she established her authority, gave them an out, and even made those fools just starting their immortal journey feel grateful... The method is old-fashioned, but effective.’

Su Ling’er observed the expressions of the crowd below and felt a little more at ease.

’Speaking of which, I wonder how Mu Ling and Wang Xiedi are doing. But right now, the most important thing is Eldest Senior Brother’s situation!’

’It seems I’ve intimidated them for now, but... I need to find a place to show them the true colors of an evil sect. Just talking isn’t intimidating enough.’

’That’s it! The Spirit Beast Garden! She remembered it clearly. The spirit beasts and demon beasts there were all cruelly exploited like slaves by the senior brothers and sisters, forced to labor day and night without rest! I’ll let them see just how cold-blooded and heartless a sect that doesn’t even spare beasts can be!’

She took a deep breath, composed her expression once more, and turned to the "newcomers" behind her, each with their own thoughts. "It seems your Daoist hearts are barely passable. In that case, I’ll take you to witness the Guixi Sect’s ’way of hospitality.’"

...

Su Ling’er turned again, her steps firm as she headed toward a mist-shrouded area deep within the sect. This time, her objective was clear: the Spirit Beast Garden.

Behind her, the three hundred-plus "newcomers" followed as silent as cicadas in winter, matching her every step.

After that "domineeringly orthodox" lecture, no one dared to question Su Ling’er’s guidance again. All that remained were the footsteps and suppressed breathing of over three hundred people.

The procession moved along a mountain path paved with white jade. Cranes danced in the air on both sides, Spiritual Springs tinkled, and exotic flowers and rare grasses vied for beauty, painting a scene of peace and serenity befitting an immortal abode.

Everyone around was stunned by the scenery. They even felt fortunate, thinking that they were lucky to have been tricked by a swindler into coming to this sect, otherwise they might have missed their chance at immortality.

Even many of the undercover agents began to feel disdain for their own sects.

Su Ling’er walked at the very front, blind to the beautiful scenery around her. All her focus was concentrated on the upcoming segment of the tour.

’Hmph, you were lucky I didn’t run into those people at the Artifact Refining Pavilion and Alchemy Pavilion! But the spirit beasts and demon beasts in the Spirit Beast Garden can’t have all been moved, can they?’

’In a moment, I’ll let you see the despair in the eyes of those spirit beasts and hear the anguished howls of those demon beasts! Although it’s not as impactful as their internal flesh and blood refining, what renowned righteous sect would ever abuse spirit beasts and demon beasts like this! This will be enough to cement the Guixi Sect’s true nature as a ’cold-blooded and heartless’ evil sect!!!’

’Nothing could possibly go wrong there, right?’

At this thought, an unconscious smile touched the corners of Su Ling’er’s lips.