Chapter 241: Three Years

“Immortal cultivators must purify their hearts and sever worldly attachments. Junior Brother Weng, you concern yourself with too many people. These attachments will be exploited by the Heavenly Tribulation during your Demonic Heart Tribulation, becoming your weakness that leads to tribulation failure.”

“I don’t agree with that.”

Several old men were discussing matters related to tribulations and cultivation. At their level, the most pressing concern was the Demonic Heart Tribulation, which consumed the majority of their focus.

As a major sect spanning across domains, Qiong Hua Sect naturally possessed extensive materials on tribulations.

Mei Xuan, having reached the peak of the Foundation Establishment stage and accumulation period, had naturally reviewed numerous relevant texts. Particularly, the Demonic Heart Tribulation was his primary focus.

“People have seven emotions and six desires - joy, anger, sorrow, pleasure, love, hate, and desire.”

Weng Jiang shook his head. The path he followed differed from Mei Xuan’s. To this day, Weng Jiang still protected his clan. Though his blood relatives within the clan were separated by several generations, he continued to safeguard them, believing this was the true meaning of immortal cultivation. Due to this belief, he often clashed with Mei Xuan.

“Family bonds are part of cultivation too. Senior Brother, you’re too extreme. It’s the heartless who stray from the path, becoming vulnerable to the Demonic Heart’s influence.”

The two continued their discussion, but neither could convince the other.

Beside them, Gong Cheng stood apart from the pair. The old man was taciturn, rarely speaking. Even after months at Qiong Hua Sect, Chen Luo had only ever exchanged a single word with him:

“Is the Old Demon about to awaken?”

Chen Luo’s attention remained fixed on the Blood Pool. For days he had observed its surface, where slow-bubbling air currents signaled the awakening of the ancient entity below.

“Junior Brother Chen, who do you think is right?” Mei Xuan and Weng Jiang, having exhausted their debate, turned to the young cultivator.

This had become a daily ritual.

“Both Senior Brothers make valid points,” Chen Luo replied dismissively. The pair didn’t press further, well-acquainted with Gong Cheng’s reticence and unwilling to waste breath on him.

Circulating his Demonic Heart Art, Chen Luo resumed his cultivation. Though the Old Demon remained dormant, the Blood Pool’s environment proved ideal for his practice - the art flowed unimpeded here. Since joining Qiong Hua Sect, Chen Luo’s life had grown tranquil. Beyond occasional alchemy missions outside, his days were spent meditating in the Blood Pool’s secret chamber.

Compared to the tranquil atmosphere of the Qiong Hua Sect, the demonic cultivation realm was a different story.

After the Blackstone Ancestor’s birthday celebration, the demonic cultivation realm grew increasingly unstable. The shadowy manipulations of the Blackstone Ancestor became bolder, plunging the entire realm into chaos. Powerful cultivators died periodically from ‘Core Formation secret techniques’, their eyes bloodshot as they slaughtered each other without restraint.

Many families and friends turned against each other.

Taking advantage of the chaos, the Qiong Hua Sect’s infiltration efforts intensified. An unknown number of individuals had secretly pledged allegiance to the sect. As an Inner Sect elder of the Qiong Hua Sect, Chen Luo easily obtained intelligence others would pay dearly for.

Whoosh!

A streak of light flew into the room. Chen Luo caught it with one hand.

The white glow dissipated, revealing a black communication talisman. It was sent by Ding Zhao. Ever since Chen Luo used the Substitution Technique to escape last time, Gu King Peak’s situation had become passive. Their marketplaces were under attack, and the Thirteen Families’ caravans, which had once spread far and wide, were now constantly under assault by unknown forces. For the past half year, they had been forced to continuously retreat.

Fortunately, Gu King Peak was protected by a second-rank formation set up by Chen Luo. As long as the Blackstone Ancestor didn’t act, no other Foundation Establishment cultivators dared to approach. The reputation of the “Pill Formation Master” still held sway, and no one wanted to invite trouble. It was just like the case of Gu Demon Khan Jiu, who had vanished for years, leaving no one willing to set foot on Gu King Peak.

“That’s the current situation on Gu King Peak.”

Chen Luo crushed the communication talisman in his hand, reducing it to dust. Ding Zhao, as expected of a disciple from the God Lake Immortal Sect, had handled the mountain affairs well. Chen Luo had previously tasked him with recruiting Mu Xiaoyu, a heaven-grade spiritual root disciple of Shangren Yinwind, into their mountain sect.

A heaven-grade spiritual root disciple is certainly worth paying attention to.

Ding Zhao had been focusing on this matter recently. As soon as he completed the task, he immediately reported back to them.

“A message from home?”

Mei Xuan and the others also noticed the commotion. These cross-regional communication talismans weren’t cheap. It was only because Chen Luo himself was also a second-rank talismancer that he could afford such extravagance. Other cultivators wouldn’t waste second-rank communication talismans on anything but urgent messages.

“Nothing important.”

Chen Luo didn’t elaborate, and the others didn’t press for details. The cave fell silent once more, leaving only the Blood Pool’s steady bubbling to break the stillness.

At the pool’s bottom, a disheveled figure sat shackled to the stone wall, iron chains binding his body as he slowly exhaled bubbles through his lips.

Time flowed like water. Months turned into years.

In the twenty-fifth year of Chen Luo’s cultivation - twenty years since he’d left the God Lake Immortal Sect - his spiritual energy cultivation advanced by two more levels. Now at eighty-five, he drew ever closer to the late-stage’s perfection.

During these months, the ancient entity within the Blood Pool had erupted once more. Seizing this opportunity, Chen Luo successfully cultivated two additional spiritual energy dragons. The Demonic Heart’s energy allocation remained unchanged: seventy percent for him, ten percent for each of the others.

All believed this suppression would buy them time. Yet within two months of the apparent calm, the Old Demon stirred again. Even with Chen Luo’s assistance, Elder Gongcheng reached his limit and was forced to withdraw. With his departure, the Blood Pool’s guardianship reverted to its original trio.

The Qiong Hua Sect was at a critical juncture in its invasion of the demonic cultivation realm. With no late Foundation Establishment cultivators available, they had no choice but to maintain the current three-man team, which could still hold out for some time.

After two consecutive uprisings, Chen Luo’s Demonic Heart Art had reached its limit, and his spiritual energy had surged to eighty-six channels.

During this process, Chen Luo sensed a problem.

The seal array of the Blood Pool had deteriorated further, with the breach widening. The Old Demon, trapped beneath for centuries, had weakened the seal with each uprising. Over countless such events, what was once an ant’s nest had been expanded by the Old Demon into a gaping hole. This very breach was accelerating the Old Demon’s recovery speed and increasing the frequency of its uprisings.

For Chen Luo, this was good news.

He had come here precisely to scheme against the Old Demon. The real problem lay in the demon remaining trapped beneath.

The Old Demon’s uprisings were actually helping Chen Luo advance his cultivation - a win-win situation.

Time passed. Two years flew by in the blink of an eye.

ROAR!

The Blood Pool shook violently. This eruption far surpassed previous ones, causing the ground to tremble.

“Damn it! Why now, during these final three days!”

Mei Xuan’s face darkened. His three-year mission to guard the Blood Pool was nearing completion, yet at this critical juncture, the demonic forces beneath erupted once more. Waves of crimson energy surged upward, carrying the thick Demonic Heart’s bloody essence that crashed against the seal formation’s edge like a relentless tide.

The surrounding iron chains swayed violently under the impact, several locks already showing signs of damage. Cracks appeared along the lower sections of the barrier, dark red blood seeping through the fractures.

For the final two years, Chen Luo and Mei Xuan had been the sole guardians of the Blood Pool.

Elder Weng Jiang had applied for rotation half a year prior. His strength paled in comparison to Mei Xuan’s - enduring two and a half years was already his limit. Even Mei Xuan, a great cultivator at the peak of his realm, had reached the maximum accumulation of Demonic Heart Power during these three years. It would take at least ten years of seclusion to dissipate this potent force.

Originally, the sect needed to send a third person to guard this place. But now that the situation in the demonic cultivation realm had reached a critical point, even the peak lord had gone there. In the entire Qiong Hua Sect’s garrison, there were only five Foundation Establishment experts in total, and that number included both of them. The remaining three were Gong Cheng and Weng Jiang, who had previously withdrawn, and a junior who had just reached the initial stage of Foundation Establishment. He wasn’t qualified to participate in the Blood Pool at all.

“Senior Brother, you go out first. Leave it to me,” Chen Luo said to Mei Xuan, his face full of concern.

For someone who hadn’t cultivated the Demonic Heart Art, enduring three years in this place truly meant pushing to his absolute limits. If he continued, it might damage his foundation. This made Chen Luo understand the true nature of the Qiong Hua Sect’s power structure even more clearly.

This was a sect with real cohesion.

Once he succeeded in Core Formation, he might really need to use their channels to leave. At that time, what harm would there be in being a Qiong Hua Sect disciple?

“Junior Brother, be careful. If you can’t hold on, leave immediately. Don’t force it! There’s still the Stone Spirit outside.”

Mei Xuan checked his internal condition, then gritted his teeth and flew out of the cave.

When the last person left, the mountain cave’s stone door thunderously descended.

With no outsiders present, Chen Luo relaxed instantly, finally free from the need to conceal himself. Gazing at the churning Blood Pool before him, he soared above it and, like a whale swallowing its prey, consumed the entire pool in one gulp! All Demonic Heart Power surged toward him, causing the spiritual energy dragons within his body to rapidly coalesce.

Ninety lines, ninety-one lines…

The Demonic Heart energy from the pool formed a vortex, absorbed by his own Demonic Heart energy and transformed. In the blink of an eye, Chen Luo’s cultivation reached ninety-five lines, nearly matching the progress he’d made during the Demonic Heart Tribulation.

Gurgle!

The Blood Pool’s churning intensified.

As the vibrations increased, the cracks around the pool widened. With a sharp crack, an iron lock finally snapped under the strain. The dense black runes below, eroded by the blood-red energy, began to fade.

With the formation damaged, the Demonic Heart Power retreated, and the Blood Pool chamber regained its clarity.

“Something’s off.”

Hovering above, Chen Luo observed the Blood Pool below, sensing an anomaly. Though the Demonic Heart energy had dissipated, the pool remained agitated. The blood above churned more violently, as if a shadowy figure were struggling to emerge from within.

Pulses of heart-pounding energy radiated outward.

“Wasn’t the Old Demon supposed to be dead?”