For ten years I practiced Gu poison in Southeast Asia; all living beings revered me as a deity.

Becoming an immortal or a saint!?

Is it true that some people in this world can become immortals or saints?

Even though Diao Wudou said that, Luo Feng was still full of doubts.

"Ghosts are indeed very special, but can that state truly be called 'immortal'?"

After hearing Diao Wudou's explanation, Luo Feng was still quite skeptical about the so-called "reversal of life and death, becoming an immortal or a saint".

It's easy to understand that the dead become ghosts.

How can a ghost turn back into a human?

Luo Feng had dealt with those evil spirits, and the only thing he could sense was that no matter what a ghost was like in life, it became an anomaly after death.

Ghosts, cruel and cold, devoid of humanity.

If a person really becomes this kind of thing after death, how can they be reborn and become a living person again?

In his view, this was completely unreasonable.

"I've never seen anything like becoming an immortal or a saint before, so I certainly wouldn't dare say it's a sure thing."

Diao Wudou explained: "However, there are indeed various methods in the world to change one's fate and prolong one's life. In ancient times, Zhuge Liang lit the Seven Star Lamp in front of Wuzhang Plain to prolong his life."

Later generations also practiced methods of prolonging life, such as "planting a living grave," which, if arranged properly, offered the opportunity to alter one's fate, conceal heavenly secrets, and seize a sliver of hope for survival.

He suddenly sighed again: "But it's only a sliver of hope... In this life, birth, aging, sickness, and death should follow the will of Heaven. To forcibly change one's fate will surely bring divine retribution."

"So, one's destiny can be changed, and lifespan can be extended, but these methods all have their limits."

Luo Feng continued, "Otherwise, there must be immortal people in the world, but I have never seen such a person."

"You're really smart, kid."

Diao Wudou laughed.

"I have never seen a person who is immortal... According to the legends passed down through generations of our Datuk Temple, the Nine Incomplete Ancestor was a person who had the opportunity to truly become an immortal. He was cultivated by He Yeyun and obtained a treasure map, from which he comprehended the wonderful method of ascending to immortality."

Legend has it that the Nine Incomplete Ancestor was endowed with a destiny different from ordinary people, and was born with a proud and arrogant spirit, possessing the bones of an immortal. After comprehending the mysteries of the treasure map, he summoned eight evil spirits, subdued them, and swore an oath with them. He then divided his own destiny into eight parts, storing each part within one of these eight evil spirits.

"Destiny...divided into eight?"

Luo Feng frowned.

He had never heard of the idea that fate, such an ethereal and intangible thing, could be separated.

"The method of entrusting one's life to another is passed down in various schools and sects, and is not unusual."

The old man continued to explain: "However, the method of the Nine Incomplete Ancestor, who divided his own destiny into eight parts and then stored them in the bodies of eight evil spirits, is indeed inconceivable... In short, he superimposed his own destiny with the destiny of the eight evil spirits, and only then was he able to use the power of the evil spirits to refine his physical body into a ghost."

"Wait a minute..." Luo Feng paused for a moment, then asked, "Ghosts also have fates?"

"have."

Diao Wudou nodded.

"Humans have lives, and ghosts naturally have ghost lives... However, the method of interpreting the fate of ghosts has been lost in our Datuk lineage."

However, the fates of the eight Yin Masters have been passed down since ancient times. When I examined your bones to determine your fate, I did so to find out which Yin Master's fate was closest to yours, so that you could get closer to that Yin Master.

Between humans and ghosts, and between different destinies, there are degrees of closeness and distance; some are compatible, while others are incompatible. If one cannot clearly discern this, it may bring misfortune upon oneself…

Next, Diao Wudou went on and on, saying many things, all about the secrets of the Nine Incomplete Ancestor.

Luo Feng didn't reply, but his thoughts were racing.

He was organizing the various pieces of information in his mind. The information he had obtained from Diao Wudou revealed some key details.

The Nine Incomplete Ancestor did indeed turn into an evil spirit.

This is because the patriarch divided his destiny into eight parts, which were then stored in the bodies of eight "yin masters".

However, doing so will result in one's physical body being constantly corrupted by the power of evil spirits, gradually turning into a ghost.

To ensure that he would not wreak havoc on the human world after becoming an evil spirit, the Nine Incomplete Patriarch used the Taoist method of entering a state of deep meditation to put himself into a state of slumber and stillness, so that his essential nature and spirit would not be corrupted by the evil spirit.

This essential aspect of his mind remained untainted, while his physical body remained completely dormant over a long period of time. When the Nine Incomplete Ancestor was able to regain his consciousness one day, he could reclaim his destiny, be reborn from the dead, and be completely revived.

This is equivalent to "being resurrected from the dead." Once the Nine Incomplete Patriarch completes this process, it is equivalent to successfully ascending to immortality, comparable to the immortals who achieve the "corpse liberation" in Taoism.

"Unfortunately, the 'Eight Immortals and Five Saints' miraculous appearances in the sea' passed down by the patriarch was damaged due to various reasons and became incomplete... Later generations of disciples were unable to study the complete Eight Immortals and Five Saints map, nor could they imitate the patriarch to practice this strange method, so naturally they could not verify the so-called method of ascending to immortality."

Diao Wudou shook his head, his tone full of disappointment.

"On the other hand, although the Nine Incomplete Ancestor chose to remain silent, his physical body had become an extremely terrifying evil spirit."

This evil spirit will definitely harm people, and the first to suffer will be the disciples of our Datuk Temple lineage.

Luo Feng's eyes flickered.

He recalled seeing the statue of the Nine Incomplete Ancestor. At that time, Diao Wudou had warned him that if he accidentally saw the true face of the ancestor, he would be killed by the evil spirit that the Nine Incomplete Ancestor had transformed into.

"The physical body of this evil spirit was sealed away by the ancestors of previous generations and hidden in a certain place in the Central Plains."

A portion of the evil spirit's own power also transformed into filth and was gathered into the statue. The wood carving of this sculpture was done by the second patriarch. This patriarch was originally a woodcarver who made a living by carving Buddha statues.

In order to suppress the power of the evil spirit, the patriarch used the method of teleportation to make the evil spirit that was transformed from the body of the Nine Incomplete Patriarch only have a part of its filth attached to the statue.

Each generation of Datuk temple lineage holders, upon their death, infuses their own soul and spirit into the statue, covering it and sealing away its evil nature.

The old man paused for a moment after saying this.

"My disciple Miao Sheng, now do you understand why your master is telling you this?"

"I understand your intention."

A look of seriousness appeared in Luo Feng's eyes.

"Master, you're planning to hand over the position of altar attendant to me, but I don't understand why it has to be me... Shouldn't there be someone more suitable than me in our sect?"

"wrong."

Diao Wudou said in a deep voice, "None of them are suitable. Originally, my favorite disciple was Zhou Jing, but unfortunately I expelled him from the sect... Guangyang is a good-natured and kind person, but to control the Tongtian Altar, one needs to be calm and decisive."

Aunt Shen is a young girl, and she's not suitable for the position of altar attendant. As for the other disciples, after today's events, I have some doubts about them. There might be a traitor among them sent by the Mifune Sect, but unfortunately, I don't know who it is.

"That Mao Geng from the Mifune Sect has already lost in the previous magical duel."

Luo Feng countered, "Are you perhaps worried that they might come back for a comeback?"

"Mao did not die."

Diao Wudou exhaled a long breath of stale air.

"He was expelled from the Datuk Temple back then because he was secretly practicing evil magic, which my father discovered—it was a kind of evil magic that could peel people's skin and steal their lifespan... Just now, I used the Flower Demon Goddess's magic treasure to ruin his decades of hard work!"

The old man suffered a huge loss this time. For the next ten years, Mao will have to focus all his energy on recovering from his injuries and will have no time to deal with external affairs.

The wrinkles between the old man's brows also became deeper.

"What a pity, that old devil Mao Geng still won the gamble... because I don't have another ten years to keep entangled with him."