The Yunluo Market, near the Lingbao Sect, saw about thirty thousand itinerant cultivators on a regular basis. As the once-in-a-decade disciple recruitment ceremony of the Lingbao Sect drew near, the human traffic soared, multiplying the number of cultivators by several tens of times. The vast market was thronged everywhere with cultivators, including Qi Refining Stage Cultivators who had traveled thousands of miles with their children, making long and arduous journeys. There were also Divine Transformation Cultivators who arrived on flying boats and giant birds, bringing their descendants in tow. As a supreme Sect in the Mysterious Realm, the Lingbao Sect boasted top-notch resources in terms of cultivation techniques, Divine Skills, and Spiritual Treasures. Joining the Lingbao Sect could save its junior members decades of detours.

This was only the beginning; with half a year left until the grand ceremony of the Lingbao Sect, the number of arriving cultivators would only continue to increase.

Jia Ren had been using the Teleportation Array for a long time, instantaneously covering a distance of a million miles, leaving him mentally exhausted. He intended to rent a cave residence, but unfortunately, due to the excessive number of cultivators gathered in the market, all available rentals were occupied. Not sparing any expense, he rented a courtyard for nearly ten thousand Spirit Stones.

After resting for three days, Jia Ren's mental fatigue had vanished, and he was back to his peak condition. Without leaving his home, he used the Earth Listening Technique to glean news about the Lingbao Sect.

"The standards for accepting disciples at the Lingbao Sect have increased. Starting this year, they will only enroll disciples with Top Grade Spiritual Roots and special constitutions."

"The requirements increase every year, and today I've completely lost hope..."

"After much difficulty, our family finally produced a child with a Superior Grade Spiritual Root, and now there's no hope? This isn't fair!!!"

"There are too many cultivators. Those coming from a million miles away using Teleportation Arrays, trying to join Lingbao Sect, make the competition for disciples too fierce. It's really hard to stand out."

The number of Mysterious Realm Cultivators has been growing annually. Over the past millennium, their population has exploded, outnumbering the Magical Beasts... Despite ever-increasing entry requirements, the number of Lingbao Sect's cultivators continues to rise each year.

What attracted people most to the Lingbao Sect was that upon entry, one obtained a Spiritual Treasure. With the backing of a top Sect, the future was promising. Merely starting off was beyond what many could achieve in a lifetime. The number joining the Lingbao Sect each year was overwhelming, with each year having surpassed the last.

There were many Spiritual Treasures, but with an ever-growing number of disciples, there were not enough to go around. The Lingbao Sect's solution was to raise the standards for disciples, reducing the number, and secondly, to make acquiring Spiritual Treasures harder. Even so, this did not deter cultivators' desire to send their offspring to join the Lingbao Sect.

"It's not easy to be a Protector. Over three hundred Nascent Soul Cultivators applied, and it's rumored that today only fifty will be recruited..."

Jia Ren keenly heard this piece of news and headed straight toward the source of the sound. A teahouse, packed to the brim, was filled with cultivators sipping Spiritual Tea and chatting. Hailing from all corners of heaven and earth, they ordered cups of Spiritual Tea and exchanged information. Most of them had worried expressions and seemed in low spirits. They had traveled great distances—hundreds of thousands, even a million miles—to the domains of the Lingbao Sect, escorting their offspring to join the sect, or to become Protectors for the sect's disciples.

With an excessive number of cultivators, the competition was fierce, and they were forced to vie intensely for a spot. The Top Grade Spiritual Roots and special constitutions required for Lingbao Sect disciples eliminated ninety-nine percent of the competition. The Protectors were also caught in the turmoil, with the numbers reaching a six-to-one ratio.

This was just the beginning; more cultivators would continue to arrive, and the competition would become even more intense. For Nascent Soul Cultivators, becoming a Protector for a disciple of the Lingbao Sect had become extremely difficult. In the end, it was because there were just too many cultivators...

There were three ways to join the Lingbao Sect. With fierce competition for disciples and Protectors, only the path of donating Spiritual Treasures to the sect remained. Unfortunately, Jia Ren only had a God Transformation Level Magic Treasure and did not possess a Spiritual Treasure. He also lacked a path to learn the Demon Soul Refining Art.

First, I must solve the problem of the excess Evil Qi!

If the cultivators of the Seven Fiends Temple could detect the problem of overabundant Evil Qi, it would be even harder to hide it from the Lingbao Sect.

I still have that cultivator from the Seven Fiends Temple; hopefully, I can gain something from him.

Jia Ren returned to the courtyard he rented, activated the Formation, and entered the Mountain and Sea Pearl. Dong Yutang was lifeless and witless, akin to a walking corpse. He had spared this man's life, thinking that he might later create an incarnation or a Second Nascent Soul out of him. He might not know such secret techniques yet, but that didn't mean he wouldn't learn them in the future. Apart from that, the most important aspect was the Seven Fiends Temple's Cultivation Techniques. Perhaps the Seven Fiends Temple had a way to neutralize the problem of excess Evil Qi.

Dong Yutang's Storage Bag contained only a million Spirit Stones and a few decent Magical Treasures, but no Cultivation Techniques or Divine Skills from the Seven Fiends Temple. The Insect External Incarnation took out a Corpse-Eating Bizarre Pill and, using its power, consumed the flesh and blood. After consumption, he didn't learn any Divine Skills, and there was no change.

Eh, what's going on?

Is it because he's not dead?

Dong Yutang wasn't truly dead; he could only be considered living dead. Perhaps for this reason, the Corpse-Eating Bizarre Pill was ineffective. This also confirmed one of Jia Ren's suspicions: consuming the flesh and blood of the living did not enable one to learn others' Divine Skills and Cultivation Techniques. The Corpse-Eating Bizarre Pill is only effective on the deceased!

What a shame. I can only switch targets to refine an incarnation...

A surge of pale cyan finger light obliterated Dong Yutang's Nascent Soul, killing him. The Insect External Incarnation then absorbed the essence of his flesh and blood to obtain his Cultivation Techniques and Divine Skills. The main body recorded them, with the Divine Skills entering the Proficiency Panel, never to be forgotten.

The Insect External Incarnation hastily ingested an Elixir to detoxify, while Jia Ren recorded the most valuable Cultivation Techniques, Divine Skills, and secret techniques. The Cultivation Technique Dong Yutang practiced was called the Seven Killings Heart Technique, a method that absorbed both Evil Qi and nature's spiritual energy for cultivation.

The Seven Killings were Yin Sha, Killing Sha, Corpse Sha, Fierce Sha, Spirit Sha, Dark Sha, and Demonic Sha. All seven types of Evil Qi were rare, with Yin Sha being obtainable in places of extreme yin or by methods used by those who command ghosts. Corpse Sha mainly relied on Corpse Refining—the Corpse Sha Qi produced by the corpse. Fierce Sha, Spirit Sha, and Dark Sha were special types of Evil Qi born in certain extremely dangerous places. Demonic Sha was related to the Demonic Sect's nurturing of demon heads.

The threshold for obtaining Killing Sha was the lowest, but it was very difficult to acquire in large quantities. Killing Magical Beasts with cultivation levels lower than one's own yielded little Evil Qi of poor quality. Only by killing targets with cultivation levels similar to or higher than your own could one obtain a large amount of Killing Sha. If one focused on Killing Sha as the main method of acquiring Evil Qi, the best approach was to kill powerful opponents and challenge those beyond one's level. Such individuals died the fastest, but those who survived by chance were definitely the most terrifying existences.

Jia Ren's Killing Sha came from Magical Beasts; the weakest of the beasts he killed were at least Third Rank, and there were many of them, which added up to a considerable amount.

The Seven Killings Heart Technique absorbs Evil Qi much faster than it does Spiritual Energy.

No wonder this person, knowing I possess astonishing amounts of Evil Qi, was so eager to make a move on me.

Transforming Evil Qi for one's own use? Converting to practice the Seven Killings Heart Technique, can Evil Qi help me quickly improve my cultivation level?

Using Ancestral Fish Sage Pills and Ancestor Beast Holy Pills to lure Magical Beasts, hunting beasts to accumulate Evil Qi, and rapidly increasing one's cultivation level?

He hadn't found the Lingbao Sect's Spirit Treasure Cultivation techniques but had found techniques that relied on using Evil Qi for cultivation. According to the description of the Seven Killings Heart Technique, with astonishing Evil Qi, one's cultivation speed would definitely progress by leaps and bounds. With such an opportunity before him, how could one not be tempted?

The Seven Killings Heart Technique flowed through his mind once, and Jia Ren regained his rationality. Though the Seven Killings Heart Technique was excellent and allowed for very fast cultivation with sufficient Evil Qi, that was the biggest advantage of the techniques of the Demonic Path. But the drawbacks were also obvious. Killing Sha easily affected the mind, leading to bloodthirstiness and a craving for slaughter. Jia Ren did not want his thoughts to be influenced by the technique; the risks were too grave.

Besides, using a large number of Ancestral Fish Sage Pills and Ancestor Beast Holy Pills could also easily bring about trouble. Those who often walk by the river can hardly avoid getting their shoes wet. Even hunting beasts in the ocean could attract the trouble of two Fifth Rank Magical Beasts. There were even more cultivators on land; once a Magical Beast tide was triggered, it would surely attract the attention of many cultivators. Once targeted by a High-Order Cultivator, it would mean certain death for him.

Corpse Sha was easy to acquire, but the downside was that it could lead to a fondness for corpses, eventually leading to a loss of emotional fluctuations, much like a corpse. Demonic Cultivator techniques sought quick success and instant benefits, but the hidden dangers were immense. The Seven Killings Heart Technique was good, but it had to be treated with caution.

Jia Ren wanted to switch techniques. It would be best to acquire the Lingbao Sect's techniques first, compare their strengths and weaknesses, and then make a decision. Beyond the Seven Killings Heart Technique, he also obtained two powerful Divine Skills for killing: the Mysterious Killing Sha Sword and Dark Sha Palm. Secret techniques included the Piercing Sha Heart Eye and Sha Energy Corrosion.

Dark Sha Palm was a Divine Skill primarily based on Dark Sha; without Dark Sha Qi, its power was not strong. The Piercing Sha Heart Eye was a Special Pupillary Technique to observe Evil Qi, allowing one to see Evil Qi invisible to ordinary people. Sha Energy Corrosion was a method of attacking the enemy with Evil Qi, which was formless and intangible, making it difficult to defend against. Once afflicted by Sha Energy Corrosion, the victim's body and Divine Soul were influenced by the Evil Qi. The body would begin to decay, and the mind would become lost and irrational due to the influence of Evil Qi.

Mysterious Killing Sha Sword!

This Divine Skill suited him best. The Killing Sha condensed into a Mysterious Killing Sha Sword, and the power of this Divine Skill depended on the concentration of Killing Sha. The heavier the Killing Sha, the stronger the power of the Mysterious Killing Sha Sword was. It was a Divine Skill with a high ceiling and a low floor. The Mysterious Killing Sha Sword required very little Spiritual Power to use, and its strength depended on the amount of Killing Sha. If the quantity of Killing Sha was small and of poor quality, its power was comparable to the Metal Finger Technique used to kill insects. If the Killing Sha was powerful... its strength was no less than that of a Great Divine Power of legend.

I was worried before about how to hide my heavy Evil Qi, but now... the problem is solved!

Jia Ren practiced this Divine Skill, and the Killing Sha gradually condensed into a blood-red long sword emitting a terrifying Evil Qi that struck fear into hearts. All the Magical Beasts and Spirit Insects within the Mountain and Sea Pearl were intimidated by the Evil Qi, becoming panicky and fleeing in all directions.

"Collect!"

With one thought, the sword appeared; with another, it vanished. Even the mere display of the Mysterious Killing Sha Sword's deterrent ability was already remarkable, unnerving an enemy before the fight even began.

What a pity, there's no target to test its power.

The Xuan Gui Shield had good defensive capabilities, but its counterattacking ability was very strong, and he did not wish to court death.

All the Killing Sha has been drained!

Jia Ren used the Piercing Sha Heart Eye to confirm that there was no Evil Qi remaining in himself or his Insect External Incarnation. His main body and Insect External Incarnation were one and the same; he could also draw away all the Evil Qi from it.

What a pity, there's no Divine Skill for Corpse Sha...

With a large number of Silver Moon Yakshas, he wasn't short on Corpse Sha, but he lacked the Divine Skills to transform Corpse Sha for his own use. The Seven Fiends Temple had many Divine Skills, with corresponding Divine Skills and secret techniques for each of the seven types of Evil Qi. Unfortunately, Dong Yutang mainly practiced Killing Sha and Fierce Sha; the Fierce Sha Divine Skills were useless, and he hadn't learned other types.

I can only hope to find another opportunity to learn the Corpse Sha Divine Skills in the future...

After resolving the issue of Evil Qi within himself, Jia Ren's face showed satisfaction. Then he hurried off in the direction of the Lingbao Sect to sign up as a Protector.

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