CHAPTER 343: CHAPTER 40: MARTIAL EMPEROR CITY

"His Highness the Saint Son, this, this, this..."

The ghostly figure rode the Mechanical Turtle with Space Attribute, disappearing into the void. Thunder Dragon Ancestor’s first instinct was to give chase, but he worried the enemy might turn back to harm Lin Jing, leaving him stuck in place momentarily.

"Senior, what about your avatar?" Lin Jing asked.

"The avatar has long died!" Thunder Dragon Ancestor replied, realizing Lin Jing wanted his avatar to pursue.

Having such a useful thing as an avatar, any cultivator couldn’t resist using it recklessly; there’s no reason to keep it intact.

Cultivators who reach a high level with intact avatars are extremely rare.

Lin Jing: "...Forget it."

"But His Highness the Saint Son’s turtle..."

"No worries, we’ll just take it back later. It’s just a turtle made entirely of mechanical materials with no independent intelligence. There’s no need to worry about it being abused. As long as the parts aren’t damaged, even if it falls apart, it can be reassembled," Lin Jing shook his head.

Originally intending to pass on the ghostly figure’s information to the Heaven-Sundering Sword Ancestor, Lin Jing realized the conflict was bigger than anticipated.

...

Meanwhile.

Bodhi Temple.

The Abbot of Bodhi Temple had been experimenting with the effect of the mutated Bodhi leaf for some time.

According to Lin Jing’s description, the third-grade mutated Bodhi leaf could work effectively on cultivators at that corresponding level for a year, though its efficacy decreased when used by those with higher cultivation.

The Abbot, though tempted to directly test its efficacy, worried that the third-grade Bodhi leaf won’t last long enough on his own body, so he decided to gift this opportunity to his disciple.

"Master, I..."

At this moment, a young monk was cultivating a mysterious magic under the Abbot’s protection.

"Master, I’ve succeeded, I’ve succeeded; it seems I genuinely am pregnant,"

The young monk, sensing the movement of the fetal essence, showed an expression of surprise and joy.

"Good, good, good."

The Abbot was quite surprised at the usefulness of the mutated Bodhi leaf, just as the Demon Court Saint Child claimed.

"This time, you should be able to sever worldly thoughts, right?"

"Thank you, Master." The young monk was incredibly grateful; taken in as an orphan, he was supposed to become a prodigy in the Buddhist sect, yet after hearing his late parents’ final words, he couldn’t shake a persistent obsession.

His deceased parents hoped he could extend and revive the annihilated family.

However, the Buddhist Cultivation Technique he practiced prohibited him from contacting women.

This obsession prevented him from progressing in Buddhist Techniques.

In such a case, the only solution was to reproduce offspring without sexual relations.

Many demon beasts have this capability.

Even some human powerhouses have this need.

Thus, an ancient secret technique for self-reproduction was created long ago.

However, while the technique is not too difficult for women to cultivate, it is exceedingly challenging for men and generally unsuitable for male cultivators.

Only some exceptionally gifted male cultivators barely succeed in cultivating it.

Evidently, the young monk was not one of them; he had been training for a long time without any progress.

Now, thanks to the mutated Bodhi leaf, he finally conceived a bloodline, his joy indescribable.

Thus, his parents’ wish to revive the family line was fulfilled, allowing him to keep advancing in Buddhist Techniques without hindrance...

"It seems the Demon Court Saint Child was not wrong," the Abbot pondered deeply, continuously fingering his Buddha beads.

"However, regarding the sacred Buddhist tree, I need to consult with the Buddha Lord for a moment..."

......

"So, you came for this Bodhi Tree."

Under a Bodhi Tree, Lin Jing and Gao Sheng were drinking tea and discussing their recent experiences.

"What an unpredictable world," Gao Sheng remarked.

"Even if you became the Gu God Sect’s Saint Son, it seems more likely than becoming the Demon Court Saint Child to me."

"Not really; I never imagined that the second generation who sneaked out using a token for demon extermination would actually be able to uncover intelligence capable of changing the Ancient Country’s structure on their own," Lin Jing smiled.

Gao Sheng sighed, "Honestly, I hope I don’t have that kind of luck. You have no idea how conflicted I am... Anyway, since I’ve made the decision now, I must venture down this path, hoping my choice isn’t wrong."

"If I were you, I’d make the same choice; don’t be too burdened mentally," Lin Jing comforted.

"You understand me well." Gao Sheng drank heavily from his tea, "At first, I didn’t realize, but years in the Demon Extermination Bureau made me see numerous ’demon cultivator trials,’ increasingly aware that something is amiss in the Ancient Country."

"The initial Ancient Emperor established order in the chaotic times to prevent human suffering, thereby creating the Ancient Country. Later, only with the country’s fortune did he cultivate the True Dragon Secret Technique, not for mere cultivation, but to protect humanity."

"But now... the causality has reversed; the stability of the Ancient Country outweighs everything. To maintain national fortune, various means continue providing cultivation fortune for Ancient race elites, even at the cost of sacrificing lower-level cultivators and common folks, which has become all too common. Cultivators, initially labeled ’demon cultivators’ over minor offenses, face harsh disposal, transforming Ancient Country’s methods. I, as a ’beneficiary,’ see this contradicting my initial intent when joining the Demon Extermination Bureau."

"I aim to eliminate demons harming commoners; I seek to kill monsters causing chaos, not those arbitrarily defined as demonic by the Ancient Country."

"Thus, I want to retain the ghostly figure’s intelligence from the Ancient Country, unsure if allowing the Celestial Sword Sect to activate the Immortal Sword will alter the status quo." Gao Sheng found the tea bland, asking Lin Jing for wine.

"I’m still a child, so I can’t drink wine yet," Lin Jing softly explained, "You should refrain too, speak less, and consider such matters after your cultivation has further advanced; in whatever world, small people like us can only survive within the gaps for now."

"Rest assured, I’ve sent someone to find Ling Yue Sword Immortal..."

"Oh?"

Lin Jing was suddenly surprised.

"Found her."

"So quickly." Gao Sheng was shocked.

"To be precise, just obtained her trail of movements," Lin Jing explained, "Earlier, a demon beast tribe at the edge of the Western Desert claimed to have seen Ling Yue Sword Immortal heading toward Martial Emperor City, likely having left the Western Desert, though it remains uncertain whether her destination is Martial Emperor City or if she’s returning to the Ancient Country."

"Why so quickly back, no wonder I searched for so long in the Western Desert without finding her!" Gao Sheng groaned.

......

Martial Emperor City.

The eight great martial arts families.

The Feng Family.

Ling Yue Sword Immortal Feng Ning actually didn’t want to return to her family, but the Ghost Bride was determined to view the Feng Family ancestor’s portrait and relics, leaving her helpless; could the Ghost Bride consider the Feng Family ancestor her fiancé? Even if so, that person had been deceased for so many years...