Fellow Daoist Entrusts His Child: Immortality Begins with Nurturing a Demoness

Chapter 10 The Soul Banner: Becoming a Beneficiary

On the other side, in Yanyun City, at the county government.

"Qiuyun, this journey is fraught with danger. If my father does not return, do not seek revenge for me."

The candlelight flickered, Ling Youdao's expression was solemn, and hundreds of blood lines swirled around his body, all pointing towards the Four Paths Mountain Range.

Inside the openwork screen, blood mist filled the air, and thick blood plasma piled up into a pool. In the center, Ling Qiuyun's delicate body was submerged in a bronze cauldron. Her bare shoulders were as white as snow, and on her alabaster-like back, twisted and terrifying blood-red Sanskrit characters could be seen.

Dozens of corpses lay piled up beneath the cauldron, submerged at the bottom of the pool; all were members of the Ling family.

Their faces were contorted in grotesque expressions, and their bodies were covered in piercing wounds from daggers, each one potentially fatal.

The blood transfusion technique is against the natural order, and the recipient will inevitably bear the consequences. Moreover, the process is like being cut into pieces, causing unbearable pain.

"Father, Qiuyun is waiting for you to come back."

The blood in the pool boiled, and Ling Qiuyun felt as if she were being burned by a raging fire. Wherever the blood streaks passed, every inch of her skin spasmed and groaned.

Her pretty face was sometimes pale, sometimes flushed, and her lips were bitten until they bled, yet she still managed to squeeze out a serene smile.

"I will stay with my father until the very end."

Ling Youdao looked at him with pity. He gripped the Soul Banner tightly, his gaze gradually hardening. He rode the black wind and fled, heading straight for the Four Lines Mountain Range.

"Is this retribution?"

Her nasal cavity was filled with the stench of blood, and Ling Qiuyun's willow-leaf eyes were brimming with tears, like a white lotus soaked in mud, delicate and fragile.

Since her father fell into demonic possession, she has been filled with intense guilt. If it weren't for her frail health, the Ling family and even the many beings who refined the Soul Banner would not have suffered such a calamity.

Now, the excruciating pain of this blood transfusion, like a thousand ants gnawing at her heart, has actually lessened her sense of guilt somewhat.

"I hope my crippled body can be a help to my elder sister."

Ling Qiuyun gently stroked the blood pool with her delicate hand, gazing at the ripples spreading across its surface. It was as if she saw Ling Moxue's reflection in the pool.

Ling Youdao swiftly fled through the Four Mountains and towering peaks.

The sense of the blood essence mark was faint, as if shrouded by something with spiritual energy. As he quickened his pace, he couldn't help but become vigilant.

Cao Mengde, that scoundrel, once used witchcraft to deceive him completely, and it cannot be ruled out that this villain might use the same trick again.

"This scoundrel is truly cunning."

Ling Youdao cursed inwardly, tilted his head back and swallowed a Concealing Breath Pill, and the fierce and malevolent aura vanished without a trace.

He gripped the soul banner tightly, knowing it might be a trap but having no choice but to go. This witchcraft was of low quality, and its efficiency in utilizing true essence was extremely low. With Cao Mengde's cultivation level, making two in a short time was already the limit.

Cao Mengde only had one more chance to deceive him.

He continued to advance along the steep cliff face. As he approached the summit, the bloodline on his body gradually became more agitated, indicating that he was not far from his target.

He slowed his pace and proceeded cautiously, releasing his true essence to probe.

"How could there be demonic energy here?"

Ling Youdao was slightly taken aback. The smell of blood lingered around his nose, and his face gradually darkened.

Further ahead, one could see the deep marks left by the wriggling of snakes and insects. Ling Youdao gripped the Soul Banner tightly, and ghostly figures appeared on his body.

He summoned more than ten ghostly companions and commanded them to explore the surroundings. Amidst the howling of ghosts, several ghostly figures passed close to Luo Fanchen.

Fortunately, the two had taken the Concealing Breath Pill beforehand. This ghost, which was not yet of a high rank, noticed something unusual, but due to its lack of intelligence, it turned away and missed the opportunity.

"Soul Banner? That damned Ling Youdao is a disciple of the Demonic Sect?"

At the same time, in a small pit hidden by weeds, Luo Fanchen cursed Ling Youdao for being too cautious, and was even more startled by the soul banner, breaking out in a cold sweat.

Is he seeing things? A soul banner, a genuine high-grade soul banner?

Are you kidding me?
Demon cultivators are ruthless and unpredictable, despised by all cultivators. Anyone who has done something that angers both heaven and man can be called a demon cultivator.

However, if we really consider the cultivation philosophy and methods, only those who come from the three major demonic sects and have obtained the methods of inheriting their demonic treasures can be considered true demonic cultivators.

The Heavenly Demon Sect, the Three Corpses Sect, and the Bodhi Academy are collectively known as the Three Demon Sects, along with the righteous Heavenly Origin Sect and the Purple Cloud Pavilion, forming the Five Great Profound Sects.

Among them, the Soul Banner is the inherited demonic treasure of the Heavenly Demon Sect.

Those who can forge the Soul Banner must at least be from the core vassal state of the Heavenly Demon Sect.

Sects with orthodox demonic cultivators and Foundation Establishment cultivators should be kept at a distance, let alone a rogue cultivator like him with no background.
Luo Fanchen felt an urge to run away immediately.

Orthodox demonic cultivators have extremely short healing abilities; often, killing the younger ones will attract a bunch of old, undead cultivators who will seek revenge.

He killed Ling Youdao today; he will never have peace again.

"Master Luo, what's wrong?"

In his arms, Ling Moxue's almond-shaped eyes were filled with a thin mist, clearly frightened by the ghostly howls that had stirred up her inner turmoil.

She nestled in Luo Fanchen's arms, and even through his clothes, she could feel his heart beating faster and faster.

"It's nothing. Quietly refine the medicinal power. I will avenge your family."

Luo Fanchen's face remained calm, but inwardly he cursed Ling Leng for causing him so much suffering. If Ling Youdao had revealed his identity earlier, he would have offered Ling Moxue to him with both hands.

Now that we're on the wrong side of the law, it's a fight to the death. The only chance of survival is to eliminate Ling Youdao.

On the other side, Ling Youdao gathered up the soul banner, took the few strands of hair and blood beads found by the ghost with his five fingers, and frowned deeply. "Damn it. Cao Mengde is a scoundrel and deserves to be killed."

Using strands of hair and beads of blood as a medium, Ling Youdao once again performed a secret technique to pinpoint the location of the essence blood, and the blood lines all over his body still pointed towards the cave.

This cave is inhabited by a demonic snake, and the location marked is from inside the snake's belly.

Knowing he was no match for him, Cao Mengde decisively abandoned the Heavenly Demon Puppet and fled, feeding it to the snake demon to distract him.
"No, this demon is not one to suffer a loss. If I push him to the brink, he will surely fight to the death."

"A diversionary tactic? Is he planning to target the county government?"

Ling Youdao murmured to himself, intending to turn back to the county government office to protect Qiu Yun, but after taking only two steps, he hesitated and stopped.

The fact that the Blood Essence Secret Technique could still sense Ling Moxue indicates that her blood essence has not yet been refined.

If the snake's belly is cut open at this time, nourished with blood-medicine treasures, and then a blood sacrifice is performed by mortals from Yanyun City, it may be possible to replenish its physical body and provide it for Qiuyun to possess.

"Without this Heavenly Demon Spirit Puppet, Qiu Yun would surely die. Even if we return to save her, it will be of no use."

Ling Youdao's eyes struggled, but were then replaced by a sinister look.

If Cao Mengde wanted to escape unscathed and gain benefits by holding Qiu Yun hostage, he would certainly not kill her.

The most urgent task is to retrieve the Heavenly Demon Spirit Puppet before the demonic serpent refines Ling Moxue; only then will Qiuyun have a glimmer of hope.

His expression was icy. He immediately rummaged through his storage bag and took out various evil artifacts. He mixed blood essence, corpse oil, and human skin and engraved hexagonal blood-red seal script around the cave. He then used the soul banner as the central structure and nailed it to the cave entrance.

"Wronged souls and vengeful spirits heed my command! Their spirits scatter and fly into my banner; their resentment condenses and locks them in all directions; all vengeful spirits from all directions gather here!"

Ling Youdao's pupils rolled back, and he chanted an incantation. A strong gust of cold wind arose, causing willow trees to bend.

Amidst the flying sand and swirling stones, blood-red patterns and malevolent light gathered on the soul banner, and over a hundred vengeful spirits devoured by the snake demon burst forth from the earth, their chilling aura enveloping an area of ​​two hundred meters.

Wherever the Yin energy covers the area within the formation, ordinary creatures cannot discern their location. If they try to escape, they will inevitably fall into a maze-like illusion.

"As expected of the Soul Banner's unpredictable and wondrous abilities, who among those of the same level wouldn't fear it?"

Luo Fanchen swallowed silently. Although both were first-grade low-level magic artifacts, Ling Youdao's soul banner was equivalent to ten of his magic swords.

Looking again at the demonic serpent, it had already been awakened by the eerie wind. It opened its mouth and spewed out long trails of green smoke, causing the grass and trees to wither wherever it passed. More than ten vengeful spirits were unable to dodge in time and were completely reduced to ashes.

"So it was you, you serpent! You managed to escape back then, hiding in these Four Lines Mountains. No wonder I couldn't find you for so long."

Ling Youdao was panting heavily. His body was already at its limit, and the immense burden of controlling the Soul Banner with all his might was almost causing him to break through his Ren and Du meridians.

His eyes, mostly white, were bloodshot, and he roared ferociously, "Today, I will act on behalf of Heaven and subdue you, you monstrous snake."

Upon hearing that the demonic cultivators were going to act on behalf of Heaven, Luo Fanchen, who was not far away, almost burst out laughing.

"Heart Sacrifice, Bloodstained Curse!"

Ling Youdao kept making hand seals, and with each spell he cast, the wrinkles on his face deepened.

As his straight back gradually hunched over and his life force rapidly drained away, the ghosts under the Soul Banner seemed to be divinely aided, their forms becoming increasingly solid, with blood-red light flowing around them. They were not afraid of the blue smoke and bared their fangs and claws as they pounced on the demon snake.

The serpent was agile, but its enormous size and the fact that it was trapped in the cave made it difficult to escape.

Before long, more than a dozen ghouls crawled all over his body, gnawing at his flesh and scales until large chunks of flesh and blood were torn out.

The ghoul devoured the food greedily, and Ling Youdao's face also showed greed as he chewed silently, as if savoring a divine wine.

"Roar--"

The giant tail of the demonic serpent swept across, severing all the ghosts in its path. They were quickly reshaped by the call of the soul banner and tirelessly attacked the demonic serpent. Moreover, the ghosts were poisoned by corpses, and over time, the demonic serpent became exhausted.

Ling Youdao also suffered a backlash from the Soul Banner, and his condition was extremely poor. In the short time it takes to drink a cup of tea, he had exhausted 80% of his true energy.

He swallowed two Qi-gathering pills and struggled to stay afloat, his face and the back of his hands already corroded by the green smoke, leaving his flesh rotten.

"What a vicious and venomous poison! You wretched creature, how many citizens of my Yanyun City have you harmed?"

Ling Youdao took two more antidote pills, and his bluish-purple complexion eased slightly, but he was still not cured and was in excruciating pain all over his body.

"Eating two at once is quite a luxury."

Luo Fanchen looked on with envy. He watched from afar and could see that Ling Youdao had taken a low-grade first-level antidote pill, which cost three spirit dusts per pill. He had once bought one and divided it into five portions for backup.

Is this smoke poisonous?
Luo Fanchen looked puzzled. Last time, he was shrouded in the smoke for a long time and inhaled a lot of it, but he did not feel any discomfort except for the fishy smell.

Fortunately, the smoke was blocked by the blood mist and could not escape to his location, so there was no need to worry about Ling Moxue being poisoned.

"Tsk tsk, so true essence can be used to control magical treasures in this way. Let's fight!"

Luo Fanchen had never fought against cultivators before, and he was happy to witness this rare spectacle of a deadly battle.

This demonic snake was far more resilient than he had imagined; he estimated that it might have reached the late stage of the first tier at its peak. Ling Youdao's performance also surprised him.

The Soul Banner is a natural counter to the Snake Demon, giving Ling Youdao a significant advantage, yet his performance was quite poor.

This beast, having been attacked for so long without success, was weakened by its unstable true energy and exhausted vitality; ninety percent of its skills were contained in this soul banner.

Unfortunately, Ling Youdao couldn't withstand the backlash from the Soul Banner and couldn't cast spells at full power, so the situation that should have been a quick victory became a stalemate.

"As expected, he has a hidden ailment. Well, that's good, it's a bargain for me."

Luo Fanchen breathed a sigh of relief, thinking to himself that heaven was on his side and it seemed he could be the one to reap the benefits.

(End of this chapter)