Terror! Shock! Inconceivable!

Gazing up at the imposing figure within the dense dark clouds above, they saw those eyes, glinting with golden light, sweep down with icy ruthlessness through the cloud layers.

A group of Demonic Evil Cultivators fell deathly silent, not daring to breathe, huddling together. They waited in fear and trembling for this fearsome entity to depart.

"Hmph!"

With a cold snort, Qi Xiu's thoughts stirred. Reining in the murderous intent in his eyes, he leaped up and, riding the roiling thunderclouds, departed in a display of dominance.

It was the first time he had completely cast aside all caution, acting freely as he pleased. An indescribable sensation roiled in his chest and was then slowly expelled with his breath. Wisps of dark, mottled black qi dispersed into the air. The feeling of utter clarity and comfort was so profound that the Blood-Stained Double Realm he had recently broken through showed signs of loosening and becoming more active.

Thoughtfully observing the dissipating dark, turbid qi in the air, Qi Xiu's eyes narrowed slightly, an icy ripple flaring deep within his pupils.

「In the year 1756 of the Great Xuan Calendar, during the Grain in Ear solar term.」

On the Blood List established by the Demonic Evil Cultivators, a new name rocketed up from beyond the two-hundredth rank, charging into the top one hundred. Its position changed every two hours.

Finally, it stabilized at tenth place on the Blood List!

Qi Xiu of Shenxiao Sect!

This name, previously unnoticed on the Blood List, drew the frequent attention of countless Demonic Evil Cultivators, and even Human Cultivators, with its shocking emergence.

Starting from Meitan Prefecture, this person traveled from west to east, like a sharp sword, brazenly cutting across the entire Dianchuan Province!

He walked, and he killed!

Any Demonic Evil Cultivator who dared to block his path was, without exception, utterly annihilated, their soul also seized.

Thunder Magic!

Swordsmanship!

Talismanic Techniques!

Formation!

Alchemy!

Soul Skill!

These dazzling and terrifyingly complex methods left onlookers dumbfounded.

Yet, in Qi Xiu's hands, these six categories of Dharma Gates all displayed an extremely profound mastery—a level of depth that seemed attainable only after a hundred, or even hundreds, of years of immersion.

A cultivator in the Blood-Stained Double Realm had actually mastered such a vast number of profound Dharma Gates.

Terms like "heaven-gifted talent" or "monstrous genius" were insufficient to describe this individual's terrifying nature.

Thus, a nickname that made even Qi Xiu himself not know whether to laugh or cry gradually spread.

Six Arts Dao Idiot!

"Six Arts" referred to the six categories of Dharma Gates he had mastered.

"Dao Idiot" was the Demonic Evil Cultivators' mocking sneer. In their view, only a fool—someone completely devoted to cultivation, focused on nothing else, whose mind was addled—could possibly master such an immense and vast array of Dharma Gates. It was impossible for a normal person.

And so, the day after this nickname spread, the designation "Shenxiao Sect" before Qi Xiu's name on the Blood List was replaced with this new title:

Six Arts Dao Idiot, Qi Xiu!

Six Arts? Dao Idiot? Heh, it doesn't sound particularly unpleasant.

His eyes unleashed a terrifying bolt of Golden Thunder, abruptly piercing the chest of a Great Demon. With a grand sweep of his sleeve, a vast force descended upon it.

The Great Demon, its chest pierced, was activating its Tao Blood to repair its body when it suddenly found its surroundings plunged into darkness. Looking up in shock, it saw an enormous sleeve falling like a sun-obscuring curtain.

The next instant!

Heaven and earth warped, the cosmos transformed.

A terrifyingly large hand, its fingerprints like mountain ranges and vast rivers, slammed down, snatching the Great Demon before it could react.

CREAK—

Fingers closed; flesh splattered.

Angry roars of defiance erupted from between the fingers, along with beams of demonic light as it struggled desperately to pry open the hand and regenerate its flesh. But what it received in return was an even more ferocious crushing and grinding, utterly obliterating its Immortal Blood Body!

Expressionlessly, Qi Xiu withdrew his hand from his sleeve. He held a wailing soul, and with a mere thought, tossed it into his Ancestral Aperture. Under the immense pressure of the Yama Golden Body, it was instantly subdued, becoming one of the many figures prostrating before Yama's Palace.

"Phew... Killing my way here has not only loosened my cultivation, allowing it to steadily advance towards the Blood-Stained Triple Realm, but my command over the various Dharma Gates has also become much smoother."

A ball of purple fire ignited in his right hand, incinerating the blood and flesh staining it. Qi Xiu took a long breath, then surveyed his surroundings, his fingers nimbly performing calculations to pinpoint his location.

"The coordinates Daoist Yunming gave me are nearby."

His eyes narrowed. Qi Xiu formed a spell with one hand, and in an instant, his pupils filled with a purple light as he activated the Observing Qi Skill.

In this special vision where black and white intertwined, the mountains, rivers, lakes, and landscapes all became faint, ethereal shadows. Amidst them, however, an aura like the dusky yellow of twilight pulsed within a yellow mountain, exceptionally conspicuous.

There?

With a thought, Qi Xiu transformed into a streak of swift lightning and instantly traversed to the location of this perplexing aura.

Atop a mountain in the vast wilderness stood an ancient, solitary inn, as if guarding some secret. The inn was timeworn, its exterior dilapidated and overgrown with moss and vines. A weathered wooden signboard, bearing the three bold characters "Half Step More," dangled precariously above the doorway.

A dense miasma of yin energy permeated the surroundings, seeming to seep from the very depths of the earth. Thick fog churned and swirled, showing no signs of dissipating even at high noon. A string of lanterns hung at the inn's entrance, their blood-red color vivid and striking as they swayed gently in the wind. Despite their faint light, the color was startlingly prominent.

Beneath the lanterns, shrouded in the dim light, indistinct figures flickered in and out of view, their features obscured. Drawing nearer, one could hear the wooden door panels knocking with a dull, rhythmic thud against the frame in the wind. Each gust, accompanied by creaking sounds, sent a shiver down the spine.

This is the entrance to Hundred Coffin Mountain?

Standing a hundred meters from the Half Step More Inn, Qi Xiu remained quietly poised, not daring to barge in recklessly. He was here to rescue people, not to cause more trouble. This eerie and enigmatic inn was clearly no ordinary place; rushing in carelessly would likely get him trapped as well, turning him into a burden.

Forming a Daoist Incantation, a cloud of fog rose beneath Qi Xiu's feet. His figure slowly faded into the mist, merging with the fog that enveloped the inn until he was completely hidden from sight.

"Can you hurry up? I finally managed to get some spirit money. If you keep dawdling, I'm going in alone!"

Within the thick fog, two figures stumbled forward, one after the other. Qi Xiu, silently observing from within the mist, turned his gaze towards them as they approached.

"Nag, nag, nag, that's all you ever do! Marrying you was my curse for eight lifetimes! Tell me, aside from your pathetic performance in bed, what else are you good for? Two of us couldn't even take down one injured demon. Instead, we got our souls tainted and our bodies ruined! Even characters in novels aren't as unlucky as we are!"

Clutching her abdomen, from which dark blood oozed, a woman with her black hair in a bun and a voluptuous figure shuffled forward. This woman, Wanru, was nearly fifty, yet time seemed to have been kind to her, as she still possessed a mature charm. Even now, gravely injured and pale, she exuded a certain pitiable allure.

"What are you talking about? You were the one who saw that injured demon and insisted we attack it! I always tell you, when we're out, safety first, safety first! Look what's happened now. Our only hope is to seek refuge in Half Step More to save our lives."

The man, rail-thin and tall like a bamboo pole, spread his hands with a woeful expression. "If you ask me, if we survive this, we should leave for another province. Dianchuan is too chaotic and dangerous now. It's no place for Loose Cultivators like us. If you keep being so stubborn, I reckon we'll both meet our end here sooner or later."

The skinny man was named Tian Mingtang. He was one of the most ordinary among the many Loose Cultivators in Dianchuan Province. Relying on a cultivation method passed down through his family, he and his wife had struggled and endured hardships for over sixty years, barely managing to reach the Initiate Realm.

The recent great disaster in Dianchuan, and the Human Path Merit that came with it, had given the couple a sliver of hope. They had planned to seize this opportunity, hoping to ride the wave of this major event and break through to the Blood-Stained Realm.

Unfortunately, when they tried to ambush an injured demon, not only did they fail, but their souls were tainted and their bodies damaged by the demon's Magic Artifact. At this rate, they would perish, their cultivation dissipating, in three months at most.

Desperate, Tian Mingtang had used all his connections to acquire a few pieces of spirit money. With these, he hoped to enter Half Step More, a place existing on the border of life and death, to seek a way to prolong their lives.

"Stubborn? You call me stubborn? Tch! I must have been blind to marry you! No talent for cultivation, and when it comes to *that*, you're done in three minutes! Tell me, what use are you? I should have married that fellow Sun back then! Even if I were just a concubine, it would have been better than suffering a lifetime with a good-for-nothing like you! I... I ought to strangle you right now!"

Infuriated by Tian Mingtang's words, Wanru, ignoring her injuries, lunged at him, intent on choking her worthless husband.

"Look at you, getting worked up again! I didn't even say anything!"

Apparently quite henpecked, Tian Mingtang panicked and bolted. He hadn't run more than a few steps before he slammed solidly into a wall.

Ouch! Where did this wall come from?

Clutching his throbbing head, Tian Mingtang cried out in pain. He squinted, trying to see what was in front of him.

Through the swirling fog, a young Daoist in a Deep Blue Taoist Robe, with a fair and handsome face, materialized before him.

"You are..."

Seeing Qi Xiu suddenly appear, Tian Mingtang instinctively stepped back, moving to shield his wife.

"I am Qi Xiu. Greetings to you both, fellow Daoists."

Qi Xiu raised a hand slightly as he introduced himself. But Tian Mingtang promptly let out a sharp, incredulous cry:

"You're Qi Xiu? The Six Arts Dao Idiot, Qi Xiu? HOLY CRAP! Wife, come quick! It's the living Six Arts Dao Idiot!"

Pinching his own cheek in disbelief, Tian Mingtang couldn't fathom that the renowned Blood-Stained Realm great cultivator, the Six Arts Dao Idiot, Qi Xiu, was actually standing right in front of him, alive and breathing.

Hmm? Could it be... are we saved?

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