Elderly Martial Saint: Sixty Times the Cultivation Speed ​​at the Start

"Da da da"

The knocking on the door was soft, three light knocks with a steady rhythm.

Yi Yang opened his eyes from the futon.

The true essence of Yi Wood within his body was still circulating in his meridians, and the medicinal power of the demon core had only been refined to thirty percent, so the fluctuations in his Qi Sea had not yet subsided.

He stood up and walked to the door.

His mental power had already told him who was standing outside the door.

Open the door.

Chief Inspector Lu Quan'an stood in the corridor, his half-white long hair tied back, his black outfit neat and clean, his hands behind his back.

The moonlight fell on his shoulders, casting a long shadow over him.

"Your Excellency, Chief Inspector."

Although he didn't know why the other person had come to see him in the middle of the night, Yi Yang still stepped aside to let the other person into the house.

Lu Quan'an stepped inside. He didn't look at the furnishings, but his gaze lingered on Yi Yang for a couple of moments.

"Were you cultivating just now?"

"There is still some distance to go before reaching the peak of the True Qi Realm."

It's not a question, it's a statement.

The fluctuations from Yi Yang's recent cultivation had not yet subsided, and he made no attempt to conceal them, making him easily seen through by a powerhouse of Lu Quan'an's caliber.

"Yes." Yi Yang did not deny it. "I killed several True Qi Realm demonic beasts in Donglai County before and luckily obtained a few demonic cores."

Lu Quan'an nodded, accepting the answer. He didn't find a stool to sit on, but just stood in the middle of the room.

Moonlight shone down through the gap above his head, falling directly on his half-white hair.

Yi Yang waited a few breaths.

Seeing that the other party did not speak, he asked:

"Chief Inspector, is there something you need so late at night?"

Hearing Yi Yang's question, Lu Quan'an turned his gaze from the rooftop to Yi Yang's face and said:

"It's because of the Jin Yang Temple incident."

Yi Yang's ears perked up.

"After finishing up here this afternoon, I went to Jinyang Temple by myself."

"I learned some things from Kong Wu. He mentioned the Demon-Subduing Cave behind Jin Yang Temple. So I went to investigate and finally understood what had happened over a decade ago."

"I just got back."

Yi Yang calculated the time in his mind. From afternoon until nightfall, including the round trip and the investigation, it had taken at least five or six hours.

Jin Yang Temple is not close to Xuan Jian Pavilion, so Lu Quan'an's speed was not a problem. However, the fact that he was able to understand the situation so quickly shows that this chief inspector is very knowledgeable about things in the prefectural city.

"What did you find out, sir?"

Lu Quan'an did not answer directly.

He walked to the window, pushed open the half-open window that was still intact, and the night wind blew in from outside, carrying the smell of burnt pine wood.

Do you know why Kinyo-ji Temple went from being a famous sect to becoming like this?

Yi Yang shook his head. He had spent the first half of his life in a small village, so how would he know anything about these important figures?

"Jinyang Temple was once the head of the three major sects in the prefectural city. It has been established for more than 300 years, and many eminent monks have come out of that mountain gate."

Lu Quan'an, with his back to him, looked out the window at the Xuanjian Pavilion's front hall, burned to a skeleton, with a strange feeling in his eyes:

"It's all because of Xuan Yi and his son Xuan Ding."

There was something indescribable about his tone.

It wasn't anger, nor regret; it was more like a cold mockery.

"Do you know why the Nine Evil Sect has been lying low for over a decade? Why 'Yinxi' hasn't shown its face for over a decade, and is now rushing to escape the moment it appears?"

Yi Yang had indeed thought about this issue.

Before he joined the Sky Patrol Division, although the Nine Evil Cult had strongholds in various places, it had never launched a large-scale operation. The mid-level core members, such as the incense masters and altar masters, acted independently and lacked unified command.

He had always thought that the suppression by the Sky Patrol Division was the reason why the Nine Evil Sects couldn't hold their heads high, but after witnessing the power of "Yin Breath" today, this explanation no longer held water.

Even if an elder at the Tongxuan Realm were to lie low, it's impossible for his subordinates to be so scattered.

Unless he has a reason to lie low.

"I don't know," Yi Yang answered honestly.

Lu Quan'an turned around, moonlight shining through his back, his face falling into shadow, only his deep brown, almost black eyes could be seen slowly revealing a message:

"More than a decade ago, I encountered the 'Yin Breath' deep in the southern region of Bailongze."

Upon hearing this, Yi Yang's breath hitched.

Bailongze.

He recalled the blood-red vortex he had seen at the bottom of the water in the southern region of Bailongze, and the scene of "Zongsha" and Qin Wuli emerging from the vortex.

The Nine Evil Sect clearly had ulterior motives in White Dragon Marsh; what lay beneath that body of water was far deeper than he had initially thought.

Lu Quan'an had been there more than a decade ago.

"I was doing something else at the time." Lu Quan'an didn't explain what it was, casually glossing over it, "I just happened to run into 'Yin Qi,' who had just broken through to the Tongxuan Realm."

Just broke through.

The Profound Realm is a level above True Qi, and there are no beings of this level openly in the entire Sui Ning Prefecture.

"Yinxi" had already reached this level more than a decade ago, which was enough to shake up the entire city at the time.

But he was unlucky and ran into the unfathomable Lu Quan'an.

"I beat him badly when we met that time." Lu Quan'an's tone was as calm as if he were dealing with a trivial matter. "He was on the verge of death at the time. I had other troubles to deal with, so I didn't chase after him to deal with them."

Yi Yang's lips twitched.

You beat a Transcendent Realm expert half to death, and you didn't pursue him because you "had other things to do"?

What could be more important than hunting down a Nine Evil Cult elder at the Tongxuan Realm?

The question lingered in Yi Yang's mind, but he didn't voice it.

"He didn't show up for more than ten years afterward. I thought he had died in some remote corner," Lu Quan'an said, briefly recalling what had happened over the past decade.

"Without a leader, the Nine Evils Cult is like a pile of loose sand, acting haphazardly and unable to cause any real trouble."

Besides, it didn't seem like the state capital had sent any new elders, so I didn't take it too seriously.

He walked to the middle of the room and stood directly under the moonlight.

"I went to the Demon-Subduing Cave of Jinyang Temple today and learned that 'Yinxi' did not die back then."

Yi Yang leaned forward slightly, wanting to know what had happened:

"After he escaped from Bailongze back then, I beat him so badly that he was barely alive."

"The knife you're carrying should be the one he brought from Bailongze."

Lu Quan'an pieced together the events from his own information and said, "He must have just stumbled into Jin Yang Temple's territory. Given his condition at the time, encountering a Xuan Yi at his peak, while still within Jin Yang Temple's territory, he was naturally no match for him."

"Your sword has fallen into the hands of Kinyoji Temple."

I'm not sure if Xuan Yi had any murderous intent at the time.

"But the result was that the 'yin breath' was suppressed into the Demon-Subduing Cave."

Yi Yang never expected that the origin of "Xuan Yuan" was actually related to Bai Longze. The following words reminded him of what Kong Wu had told him before.

Before Kongwu left Jinyang Temple, Abbot Xuanyi led eighteen believers into the Demon-Subduing Cave. Kongwu smelled blood and heard eerie laughter.

And there's that shocking news: Xuan Ding is actually Xuan Yi's son, and the Yin Qi actually appeared in Xuan Ding's face at the end.

All the clues came together.

"Xuan Yi didn't kill him because of Xuan Ding," Yi Yang said, revealing his guess.

Lu Quan'an glanced at him and nodded.

"You already know they are father and son."

"Xu Yuhu told me."

Lu Quan'an hummed in agreement and continued speaking.

"Back then, Xuan Ding went to the Xuanjian Pavilion alone to steal the Xuan Nian Stone, but was severely injured by Xu Yuhu's sword. Xuan Yi spent all the resources that the sect had accumulated over the years to save him. His life was saved, but Xuan Ding's foundation was destroyed."

"The path of martial arts has come to an end."

Yi Yang filled in the scene in his mind. A genius on whom everyone placed high hopes failed to break through to the Profound Realm and his cultivation regressed. After finally stabilizing, he was crippled again because of his own greed.

Anyone would go crazy in that situation.

"There is a Buddhist practice called the 'Prajnaparamita Subduing Demon Heart Sutra'," Lu Quan'an's voice deepened. "This method of cultivation uses one's own great will to subdue demons, thereby tempering one's mind and improving one's cultivation. If one can successfully convert a powerful demon, the cultivator himself will also gain tremendous benefits."

Yi Yang understood.

"Xuan Yi left the 'Yin Breath' to Xuan Ding."

"That's right."

"A True Qi late-stage cultivator whose foundation has been destroyed, going to subdue a half-dead Profound Realm heretic. This deal sounds like a wild fantasy."

However, the Demon-Subduing Cave contains sealing techniques left behind by successive eminent monks of Jinyang Temple, and given that the 'Yin Breath' itself is on its last legs, it is theoretically possible to succeed.

His tone was disdainful and mocking towards the two eminent monks of Jinyang Temple.

"In theory."

Yi Yang rested his fingers on his knees and remained silent.

"Xuan Ding has been in the Demon-Subduing Cave for more than ten years." Lu Quan'an's gaze darkened. "More than ten years, a full ten years. Xuan Yi would go to see him every now and then, bringing some supplies, and each time he would come back and say to others that 'the subjugation is progressing smoothly.'"

"The progress is indeed going smoothly." Lu Quan'an scoffed, "However, it's not Xuan Ding that's progressing smoothly, but 'Yin Xi'."

Yi Yang felt a tightness in his spine.

"The 'Yin Breath' is a branch of the Nine Evil Sects that worships the 'Spirit Blood God.' Their secret techniques differ from other branches; they specialize in using flesh and blood, and those who break through to the 'Profound Realm' can even use their divine will to erode the host with their own flesh and blood."

"For the past ten years or so, 'Yinxi' has been working in conjunction with Xuanding's 'conversion', but in secret he has been using secret techniques to gradually dissolve his own flesh and blood, seeping into Xuanding's body, which is now almost crippled."

Lu Quan'an raised his right hand, slowly clenching his five fingers, and sighed at the Yin energy:

"He used a clever trick to escape, dissolving his own will and soul, which then permeated into Xuan Ding's body."

Yi Yang took a breath.

No wonder.

No wonder a monk's figure flew out of Zhao Xunge's body today, and no wonder Xu Yuhu recognized "Xuan Ding's" face at a glance.

That was actually Xuan Ding's body, only the person inside had been changed.

"Xuan Yi and his son thought their efforts to convert the monks had been successful." Lu Quan'an's voice turned cold. "And just like that, the huge Jin Yang Temple fell into the hands of the Nine Evil Sects step by step."

"About a year ago, 'Yinxi' completely took over Xuan Ding's body, but Xuan Yi still discovered it because of the methods used in the Demon Subduing Cave."

Yi Yang was somewhat surprised, not expecting such a turn of events, and couldn't help but ask, "What happened after you found out?"

"He didn't kill Yinxi."

The room was quiet for three breaths.

"That was, after all, his only son." Lu Quan'an shook his head, as if commenting on a foolish act. "Xuan Yi chose to use the monks' sacrifice to stabilize Xuan Ding's condition, thinking that he could completely suppress the 'Yin Qi' and let Xuan Ding's consciousness take over."

Yi Yang recalled the "believers" that Kong Wu had mentioned who had been taken into the Demon-Subduing Cave and never came out again.

"Things have become completely out of control recently," Lu Quan'an said, taking a step forward.

"The 'Yin Breath' has taken control of Xuan Yi and the core of Jin Yang Temple, gaining the chance to see the light of day again, but it knows that I am still in my position."

To carry out that plan, he had the remnants of the Nine Evils Cult unleash a beast tide in the Beast Ridge Mountains, diverting my attention to Donglai County.

"Then he led the monks of Jinyang Temple to seize the Xuannian Stone."

Yi Yang pieced all the fragments together.

The beast tide was not a natural disaster, but a man-made one. A three-headed, late-stage True Qi demon led an attack on Donglai County, forcing Lu Quan'an to personally lead the expedition. Taking advantage of the absence of the elite forces of various sects, Jin Yang Temple attacked the Xuanjian Pavilion's mountain gate. He Dingbo betrayed them, Xu Yuhu was seriously injured, and Zhao Huai'ren died in battle.

The entire game of chess was started a year ago.

A Nine Evil Cult elder at the Tongxuan Realm spent over a decade orchestrating a complex scheme within a scheme.

From being beaten half to death by Lu Quan'an to being resurrected, devouring sects, launching a beast tide, and seizing treasures, he took every step with great patience.

Unfortunately, it still ended up crashing.

No matter how good your chess skills are, if you encounter someone like Lu Quan'an who can overturn the chessboard, all your calculations are in vain.

Yi Yang remained silent for a moment.

"Is there anything you wish to instruct me on, sir?"

Lu Quan'an glanced at him, a glint of light flashing in his eyes.