Ancient Being Predecessor of the Primordial Era: An OP Mc LitRpg - Cultivation - Development, page 28
Yin Hu’s eyes sharpened back into clarity. Focusing on Dong ZhenKang and the rest of the people in the courtyard with them. Everyone turned silent at some point. Waiting on him. No one dared to continue the discussion until he moved it along with either a non-verbal sign of recognition or by his words. Both of which they did not receive.
He took a few moments more just to reset himself. Shifting into a sitting position and giving himself a better angle to see the man and speak with Dong ZhenKang at the same time. He wanted to make sure the idiot either didn’t die or didn’t break anything.
Jun would be unconsolable if her little tree was broken or destroyed by someone under his watch. She was already taking heavy hits. Dong ZhenKang doing a number on her mentals ever since he showed up.
“Continue.” Yin Hu said, waving Dong ZhenKang to speak.
“Well,” Dong ZhenKang kept making a show of his reactions. This time scratching his neck. “The scroll was not something kind or peaceful. Rather it promised gruesome death.”
Yin Hu could get the gist of what the man was saying but refused to fall for the clear bait.
He was not about to play Dong ZhenKang’s games.
Dong ZhenKang took the hint. “News travels fast. Somehow, they were the first to figure who you were and informed me. They’ll be marching here for you. The Hu girls. Finishing what they started so many years ago. Eliminate the last vestiges of the Hu Clan they eradicated almost to the last. If it wasn’t for your arrival—”
The Gang Boss stopped for a second. Genuine fear crossed his face unlike all emotions before this. It was real. Yin Hu noticed it. Whatever the Dark Gate Palace would turn out to be, it wasn’t a push over. It was the tier above Dong ZhenKang.
Above the gang here and everyone that he had fought so far.
“—I would not have the courage to warn them of their coming demise. The calamity that is rumbling here with an army and a monster at its head. All within the next three days…”
Yin Hu zoned him out. Dong ZhenKang continued to speak but he could not hear him. His mind instantly churning to life. His plans and everything he wanted to happen relied on this sole moment. The decision he was going to make. It would affect them for the long term.
Should I move my plans ahead by a few weeks? Even months? I wanted the girls to finish D.E.Y.M.P. before we made our way out to the fake righteous groups, but now everything is made worse! Three days?! That’s it? Not even enough time to finish the next set of Tai Chi Katas!
Being stuck in these preparatory stages meant they weren’t able to fight or even consider the thought with serious cultivators. The girls were getting good at smacking low level thugs and bounty hunters, but that was still a low tier compared to what was supposedly an entire army coming their way. Even if they were stronger it wouldn’t matter. Not when armies were involved.
Aren’t arrays a thing in cultivation stories?
He could remember vaguely of what that might entail, but not quite exactly. Not that he intended to find out in any case.
They would escape this area before they were trapped by hundreds of Demonic Cultivators and their elders. Disappear in the night. He was sure there were capes and weapons within his spatial rice bag that would aid them. He’d be surprised if there wasn’t.
Yin Hu paused. Eyes blinking as he watched a stray root slowly crawl around the stones of the Greedy Demonic Tree. Attempting to get behind the strange man petting it. He could see it glisten in the sunlight, sharp, almost like it was made out of metal. Inching ever so closer to the man’s legs.
He watched with morbid curiosity as it wound up the man’s leg and up his body, slowly wrapping around his neck.
“—the elder has been known to target righteous cultivators specifically. His hatred beyond the standard demonic versus righteous blood and wars. Something much deeper. More primal—”
Dong ZhenKang continued to talk. No one seemed to notice what was happening other than him. As though they were blind. Unable to see what was screaming at them the moment someone separated from the initial group. He couldn’t understand why.
Especially Jun and Shui. Even affected as they were by Dong ZhenKang’s words, they still needed to be aware of their surroundings.
All his teachings hinged on this aspect.
If you weren’t aware of an enemy approaching from behind, you were doomed to be assassinated without recourse. He couldn’t have his nukes get picked off by some assassin group. Waste all of his resources. Hard work and time. Everything thrown away into the trash.
And, not that he would state it out loud, but he was kind of becoming fond of the two little girls. Them and their antics—
Yin Hu nearly jumped in his seat.
The tree erupted into action. Glistening root wrapped around the man's neck. Tightening. The man screamed and shouted. Fought against the smaller roots restraining his limbs. It picked him up into the air. Squeezing the life out of him.
Dong ZhenKang jumped from where he stood and directly to the side of Yin Hu. All his men rushed and scattered in different directions. Shui shouted in fear. Jun shouting in utter shock as she saw her little innocent tree as it truly was.
Greedy tree couldn’t help itself!
Yin Hu stood up, mostly to make distance from Dong ZhenKang. He pulled the girls away from him. Watching without much emotions. He would need to either burn the tree down or figure out how it reacted to him. His commands. Another nuke tied to the girls was never a bad thing.
“Hu Ancestor! Please save him!” Dong ZhenKang shouted over the man’s struggles and screams. “I do not wish to disrespect your authority within this abode.”
“Enough.” Yin Hu said. Making sure to study the greedy little thing.
It froze in its spot. No long squeezing and suffocating the man. He still struggled to breathe, but it was much better than the python constriction it had him in a moment earlier. Now he could even attempt to break free without panic. Even if it didn’t help him.
“Put the man down.”
It did as it was told, but did not remove its roots from his body.
Yin Hu smiled. Enjoying how it reacted to him and his words. “Now let go of him. He isn’t your meal today. Only enemies of the Hu are your sustenance.”
Jun gasped.
It unwrapped the man. He fell to the ground unconscious. Alive but asleep.
“When did the family’s great tree awaken?” Shui asked.
“As soon as I arrived on this plane of existence,” Yin Hu played his role perfectly. This was the most he had ever leaned into the persona. “How could it not, when I am its master.”
The Greedy Demonic Tree’s roots tried to reach for him. Attempting to suck his Qi. Yin Hu ignored it as he turned back towards Dong ZhenKang. He wasn’t about to let it touch him. Not now after it attempted to literally eat a man in front of them.
Greedy thing wasn’t satisfied with just Qi! Imma need to fix it too.
Dong ZhenKang bowed low. “Forgiveness. Hu Ancestor. We have shown a terrible face. I am ashamed.”
“You need to go. Now. You understand that, right?”
The Gang Boss nodded. He waved his hands, and all his men filtered out the courtyard. Picking up the unconscious body with them. Dong ZhenKang paused at the gate. He turned back bowing one last time before he too ran with his tail between his legs.
Now we have to leave. I don’t even know where to point towards! What the hell does the map even look like? Where do we go? How do we go?
Chapter 58 - Dark Gate Palace Elder
Cai Xuefang blinked his eyes. It did not change what he was seeing and how it affected him. Pitch black darkness. Night surrounded them. Moonless and far more foreboding than anything he had ever seen. A darkness that was thick and almost living.
He moved his hands, fingers trailing in the fog like night. Shadows moving. There was no sensation to it. No heat or cold. No shift in any sense at all. Nothing that would allow a less perceptive person to notice what it was or that it even existed. His current travel partner could not tell the difference if it smacked him in the face.
Someone screamed behind him, but he ignored all their pitiful cries and begging.
Rubbing his beard in thought did not help. His angular and sharp chin allowed him a perpetual ‘in deep thought’ persona that he used to get closer to people. Hide the demons within him, but it was completely for show. Cai Xuefang’s mind was quick. Sharper than a blade. More useful too.
Quicker than what he portrayed too.
Yet, he could not figure out what was happening. His massive font of knowledge did not allow him the understanding to piece together this puzzle without ridiculous answers. Wisdom and said font of knowledge would dictate that a master of the Shadow Arts that was also a Shadow Domain User who also was an Array Master had not only set up a profound piece of work, but also large enough to cover the entire forest around the Silver Mountain Gang’s little hovel.
No Qi lines. No focal points. No acolytes chanting, disciples and students repeating phrases. No sacrifices to continue providing their life energy to sustain a demonic and mighty array. There was nothing to indicate everything he had come to as a conclusion.
All set up where they stood now. Covering stretches so large, he wasn’t sure he could escape it in a single leap. He would need to teleport and waste decades of Qi cultivation.
Could a legendary assassin achieve this? Such great changes to the physical realm.
He laughed. If such an assassin existed, then they were all doomed to die by their blade. Not even his masters and the Heavenly Demon of his Dark Gate Palace would survive such a threat. Maybe. No one truly knew how powerful the old man was. And no one was willing to try.
More screaming as the torture session continued.
And even if there was an assassin on the loose around this area of such calibre. Cai Xuefang would survive them too. His will would prevent him from an incoming death. Escape and protection items ready. He had a dozen prepared.
Cai Xuefang's eyes drifted to the welp that had married his innocent daughter. A pup only a few decades old. Shao Yating was busy experimenting new torturing methods on a few of his servants. Enjoying every scream of agony thoroughly.
Maybe he would save this idiot too, but it would be through great harm to himself. Everyone else that had come with them would die a terrible death. Painful and gruesome. Or maybe a quiet one in their sleep if the assassin so chose it. He wasn’t sure if someone like that would enjoy the shouts of suffering Shao Yating seemed to partake in.
Darkness this thick could be used like a pillow. Suffocating the enemy.
It would only take a wave of the hand to kill the weak among them and anyone without a Liquid Stage Core. Nothing more than a flick of the rest.
Or maybe an Immortal Peak Realm cultivator. Those pups should have touched upon their domains slightly—
A whip cracked. The servant screamed one more time before falling limp.
Cai Xuefang sighed. “Yating. Must you torture a rat? It does not befit your new station.”
The whip cracked again on the now dead body. It happened three more times before Shao Yating was satisfied with his work. Studying it with a pleased expression.
“Father-in-law,” Shao Yating licked his lips as he waved his guards to take the body away. “Did you not advise me to never forget my roots? Well, here I am. Doing as you’ve so eloquently said. A final goodbye and reminder to all, my Spider Cult Valley is not to be trifled with.”
“Here is another lesson, son-in-law. Torturing the weak is beneath the mighty. Kill them and be done with it. We, the mighty, only torture the strong. Breaking their will. Only then is it worth cleansing the Qi and blood.”
Shao Yating gave him a sly smile. The one he had recognized as the ‘in one ear and out the other ear’ smile. “Yes, Father-in-law. As you say, I shall strive to do better.”
Cai Xuefang shook his head and turned away. There was only one reason he had accepted the idiot to marry into his bloodline. Sully his name. Ruining his reputation with such lowly character. Cai Xuefang would have killed him ages ago had he been given the chance.
But no. The Heavenly Demon of his Dark Gate Palace demanded otherwise.
A single item he had lucked upon had extended his life indefinitely. At least until he eventually failed to tame it. Only three of the past seventy owners to the damned thing had been able to unlock it. The rest had their souls eaten by it and added into its arsenal. Making it more powerful. Growing the number of demented things its next owner could call upon.
He let his fingers play with the thick shadow fog. The same one Shao Yating could not recognize existing around them. Blind to it even though he was both in the Liquid Stage Core and an Immortal Peak Realm cultivator.
Maybe these shadows are greater than I expected, but that makes no sense. How? Who could do such a thing? Or maybe this was a natural phenomenon?
He grabbed a handful of shadow fog and attempted to smell it. Nothing.
Another servant fought and screamed behind Cai Xuefang as they were dragged and tied onto the ground. Shao Yating began to whip them unceremoniously. Laughing loudly. This servant was more vocal than the last. His son-in-law enjoyed them more than the others.
“Tell me, Yating.”
Shao Yating stopped his whip halfway. “What is it now?”
“Have you ever heard of mythical tales or stories about fog-like shadows in this area? Anything, even if it's ridiculous.” Cai Xuefang pinched the shadows between his fingers again.
“No.” Shao Yating approached him. “Father-in-law. You’ve been pinching and making weird hand gestures ever since it became dark. And now you’re seeing fog? Here—”
The idiot waved his hand through thick shadows he did not recognize and was too weak to see or feel. Displacing it. Then he spun with his hands out. Dancing a little too. Making a show of what he was doing for no good reason.
“—See. Nothing there. Just a cloudy night. Nothing to worry about, especially with you around. You forget your own awe-inspiring power sometimes. Too busy thinking. Action shouldn’t need thought. It should speak for itself at all times. Only the weak and cowardly need to plot and plan.”
I’m going to strangle him—
The boy snapped his finger. Figures stepped out of the shadows of every tree and bush. Black robes. Black masks. Gloomy purple tattoos and runes covering their bodies. Eyes glowing the same color. They grabbed the dead servant from the side, pulling him into the shadows with a couple of them.
Another two grabbed the kicking and screaming servant that had been tied down and following the first pair.
Cai Xuefang smiled. He couldn’t help it. The display of the Jade of the Dead was always pleasant to his eyes. Even if it was held by a complete buffoon. That was why he had gotten to marry his innocent little girl. Even when stronger, more prestigious, and more capable suitors had been available. Shao Yating would not have been able to dream of touching her robes had it not been for the treasure.
“Maybe you are right.”
Shao Yating smiled something wide. “Of course, I am. I’m always right.”
Cai Xuefang shook his head and looked back in the general direction of their goal. The Silver Mountain Gang’s little hovel remained roughly a week away. They had been delayed. Shao Yating demanded time for his little torturing sessions every night when they could have been making ground.
It irked him, but he let it go for now. It didn’t matter if they were a day early or a month late. Dong ZhenKang would not escape him. The sly old fox had manipulated many people and for a long time to keep his head on his shoulders. While he could not respect the man’s stunted potential, he respected the fool's mind. Much more than a certain whelp around him.
Maybe I should cripple him instead. Keep him around. Get his insight on different situations and maybe a plot or two.
He could see how much pleasure he would get watching a long, thought out, and difficult plan came to fruition. Manipulating a dozen people. Bribing another dozen or two. Killing a few people here and there to make sure it worked. And if it didn’t, he could just turn everyone and everything into fine dust. That tended to do the job when his plans turned sour.
Chapter 59 - Mapping and Hidden Talents?
Yin Hu sat on the porch. Legs crossed. Hands leaned back and propping him up as he looked directly into the pitch black. He had never seen a night sky this foreboding. So dark it could have been ink. Then again, he had been in this cultivation world for only a few months of time.
He had no clue what was normal or what was strange.
Nor would he judge.
Yet, this was strange even for cultivation bullshit. A tier above anything else. The night had not been dark and gloomy when it started. The moon bright above their heads. Cloudy, yes, but not pitch black made perfect for the odd escapees and their attempts to get away. The world conspiring to help them out in any way possible.
Yin Hu didn’t believe that. He couldn’t. How’d the entire night change the way it did? None of it made sense. Again, he relied on his assessment of this being a cultivation world. Bullshit happening left and right. There was no need for careful thought of weather phenomena and night patterns.
He could leave that to someone else.
Jun shifted next to him, moving to sit better and get more comfortable in the long cloaks he had given them. Clearly uncomfortable with all three of them not doing anything for some time now. Shui had fallen asleep, with her head on Jun’s lap. They had been sitting here for a few hours after sunset. The day after the whole Dong ZhenKang debacle. With the hustler ruining weeks upon weeks of hard work he’d put into the girls’ mentals in only a few minutes.
“A-Ancestor? Is everything alright?” Jun said. She blinked at him, hand under Shui’s head to prop her neck better. “Is there something wrong with the moon? O-Or maybe is there an enemy hiding somewhere in the shadows of a building?”
She can’t see it? How? It’s right there. How could anyone miss the thick ink black darkness.
