Chapter 1 "Huang, Old Master!"

"You fiendish creature!"

The surrounding Chuma Xian (Spirit Possessors) were enraged at seeing Huang, Old Master, pinned to the stone chair. Their anger surged, and heedless of the disparity in power, they attacked Ji Xiang, braving the lingering echoes of his demonic might!

In an instant, immense demonic energy transformed into more than a dozen torrents, accompanied by various spells fueled by incense offerings. They cleaved through the remaining demonic aura and hurtled towards Ji Xiang!

The spells enveloped Ji Xiang! Several of the foremost "Changbai Mountain Immortals" manipulated their power, causing the spells to sprout roots like spiritual threads that pierced into Ji Xiang's body.

"Don't attack!"

Huang, Old Master's words came too late. The younger generation, bold and fearless, hadn't directly faced the demonic aura's impact. A young man with snake-like pupils reassured Huang, Old Master:

"Old Master, you suffered from a sneak attack! This guy isn't that strong!"

"Exactly, so what if he's pure Yang? A dozen of us are at the Xiantian (Pre-heaven) stage, each with our clan's secret techniques. How could we not suppress him?"

"Old Master, I'll break the spell for you!"

A young man with rat-like ears approached, intending to pull Huang, Old Master, from the stone chair. But the moment his hand touched the chair, he heard the same word in his ear—

"Sit!"

Boom! The young man with rat-like ears crashed to the ground. Something seemed to weigh on his shoulders, preventing him from rising. Only then did he clearly sense the invisible forces permeating the surroundings!

No, they weren't invisible!

This was a power that they, as demons, were intimately familiar with!

It was qi and blood!

Without moving, relying on qi and blood, using the power of words to cast a spell, he could render a person immobile, as if they were shouldering Mount Wangwu and Mount Tai, crushed to the ground by that immense force!

"Seventeenth!"

The other Hu (Fox) Family Immortals present panicked at seeing the rat-eared youth pinned to the ground. But then, a sword qi arced out, followed by the eruption of a second pure Yang power!

"Japanese!"

Seeing the attire of the suddenly appearing youth, the snake-eyed young man immediately identified him. After all, they were ostensibly here with Nurhaci, participating in the Korean war, and were very familiar with Japanese dress.

Miyamoto Musashi wielded two new katana. One was inherited from Shimazu Tadatsune, who had become one of the lost demons and couldn't return to his original form. So Musashi took this long sword as his new weapon.

The other, named Atagi Sadamune, was Oda Nobunaga's sword, already seized by Ji Xiang. It was merely one of the less important famous swords.

It was impossible to ask Ji Xiang for the Ama no Habakiri; that was unrealistic.

With two long swords in hand, Miyamoto Musashi crossed the blades.

In this era, there was no true Nito-ryu (Two-Sword Style) swordsmanship in the world. Before this, the so-called "two swords" in Japan, aside from the random, formless slashes of ronin, referred to a long katana and a wakizashi (short sword) used for seppuku. In direct combat, the long sword was used to attack, the short sword to defend, and when defeat was inevitable, the short sword was used for ritual suicide...

It wasn't until Miyamoto Musashi's father that a style using two long swords appeared.

"Niten Ichiryu, Dual Blades."

Having lost the Ama no Habakiri, the Tenshin Katori Shinto-ryu swordsmanship he had obtained from Hideyoshi was useless to Musashi. The Niten Ichiryu (Two Heavens as One Style) that he had practiced since childhood was more comfortable.

Niten Ichiryu was the predecessor of the Nito-ryu.

Two massive slashes were unleashed!

The demon cultivators scrambled to dodge, but as they turned, they saw more slashes following!

"Evade quickly!"

The power of the pure Yang-level slashes was terrifying, filling the Chuma Xian with shock and anger. The slashes nearly grazed their hairs as they streaked past. Just as they were about to regroup and attack Musashi…

The second slash struck even faster, following right behind the first!

Then, two slashes became four, and four became eight.

Up, down, left, right, converging from all directions, leaving no space to escape. Eight slashes fell from eight directions towards the center, accompanied by Musashi's third and fourth dual-sword slashes!

Sixteen Sword Style!

The initial eight slashes hadn't dissipated, and another eight slashes arrived as scheduled!

In just an instant, the sixteen slashes were complete. Huang, Old Master, stared wide-eyed, but then the smoke and dust were swept away by the sword wind, revealing the dozen or so young Chuma Xian. They hadn't suffered fatal injuries, but the surrounding ground had been completely pulverized by the sword qi.

Dong, dong...

At this moment, the old abbot of Honnoji Temple also appeared, chanting Amitabha's name. However, he spoke in Japanese, and his realm was merely Xiantian with an unstable aura, which caused Huang, Old Master, to exhale in relief.

He had thought another pure Yang cultivator had emerged.

But why were there so many Japanese?

"Miyamoto-san, stop fighting... a deterrent is enough."

The old abbot told Musashi to lower his weapons and not escalate the conflict.

"Damn it... this is humiliating us!"

The snake-eyed youth realized that although the other party was young, his strength had already reached the pure Yang realm. Moreover, his life force was vigorous and youthful. He was definitely not some old monster disguised in this form. How could such a talented individual appear in this desolate place?

"Oh dear, you didn't kill them. I thought you were going to chop them all up, which might have made things difficult for me and created a feud with Changbai Mountain."

Ji Xiang's voice echoed.

The snake-eyed youth revealed an incredulous expression, watching Ji Xiang effortlessly dispel the spells. The so-called root-drawing curse seemed to have never taken effect. Moreover, the brilliance on the spells had vanished at some point, and all the demonic power and incense offerings were gone.

"The taste is not bad. The incense offerings from Changbai Mountain are quite abundant. They say the shamanic religion isn't doing well, but I think it's still quite effective."

"You're already about to establish a country. Why don't you apply to the Ming court?"

Ji Xiang spoke to Miyamoto Musashi while addressing the dozen or so Chuma Xian. Musashi responded with trepidation: "Lord, you asked that demon cultivator to sit down from the start, showing no intention to kill. How would this subordinate dare to kill these people without permission!"

After speaking, Musashi retreated to the side, while Ji Xiang ignored the young Chuma Xian and looked at Huang, Old Master.

Huang, Old Master's body trembled uncontrollably. As Ji Xiang's gaze fell upon him, a sense of oppression nearly suffocated him!

"Huu!"

His breath paused for a moment before being expelled. His face paled noticeably.

Although he was about to advance to the pure Yang stage, he was essentially still in the refining spirit realm. The surrounding juniors were all elites from the past century, but they were merely at the Xiantian stage.

In the entire Changbai Mountain, there were only three pure Yang cultivators. Aside from the Kaitian Hongsheng Emperor, who frequently manifested to protect the mountain's immortals and deter demons, the other two pure Yang cultivators had become legends. Some ancient demons even claimed they might no longer be alive.

Although demons' lifespans seemed longer than humans' in common understanding, since the Song Dynasty, the world had been decaying increasingly severely, naturally affecting lifespans. Moreover, the idea that demons lived longer than humans was a fallacy.

Animals themselves had shorter lifespans than mortals. If they became monsters, they would naturally be inferior. Humans could cultivate, and so could demons. Humans lived for a century, while pigs and dogs died within fifteen to thirty years. There was a folk saying about thousand-year-old turtles and ten-thousand-year-old tortoises, but in fact, ordinary turtles only lived for about sixty years, which was similar to humans.

So, with the decline of spiritual energy, demon cultivators' lifespans were shorter than those of human cultivators. This was only to be expected.

The idea that demons lived longer than humans was simply because accomplished demons encountered ordinary mortals.

"I never expected this old one to have the honor of meeting an existence at the peak of the human realm... You call yourself a Heavenly Demon. Could you be... that kind of Heavenly Demon?"

Huang, Old Master, didn't dare to be too explicit, but Ji Xiang had no taboos and directly admitted: "The kind you're thinking of."

"A Trial-Dao Heavenly Demon."

Huang, Old Master's expression changed several times. After briefly adjusting his breathing, he was very puzzled:

"I have already reached the refining spirit realm, and have passed the ten demons and nine tribulations. Why would a Trial-Dao Heavenly Demon descend to test me?"

Ji Xiang waved his hand, his expression unwavering: "Don't try to deceive me. You know what you're doing, and you know whether I'm here to test you. Don't think I'm just a figure from a Trial-Dao illusion."

Huang, Old Master, was momentarily speechless with embarrassment.

He was indeed probing, trying to see if the scene before him was a Trial-Dao illusion. It was preposterous, but… well, reality was even more preposterous.

"This old one misspoke. I hope Holy Saint will not blame me."

"It's nothing major. Tell me, what are you doing here, and what does Changbai Mountain want to do?"

"..."

"Not going to talk?"

Seeing Huang, Old Master, remain tight-lipped and silent, Ji Xiang smiled.

"Are you not afraid I will tell Nurhaci to expose your actions and report them to the Shun Dynasty court?"

"Holy Saint, please forgive me. Since Holy Saint has already heard some of the things said earlier, why ask this old one? Isn't that redundant?"

That was how Huang, Old Master, responded, thinking, *What you've already heard, you've heard. What you haven't heard is not my fault. Words spoken cannot be taken back, but if I don't say the remaining words, you can't do anything to me anyway. Judging from your attitude, you won't fall out with Changbai Mountain.*

*Then I'll be stubborn. That's all I need to do.*

"Is that so? Then I'll use what I heard earlier to discuss things with you."

Ji Xiang didn't want to resort to violence, so he proactively released the maximum amount of goodwill.

Only the maximum amount.

*As long as I'm talking to you, that's goodwill. As for the outcome and process of the negotiation, I get to decide.*

"First, I want to tell you about the types of Heavenly Punishments. I don't know if you're clear on this?"

"?"

Huang, Old Master, was stunned, unsure of what Ji Xiang was going to say.

Heavenly Punishment was the term for the methods of punishment in the Heavenly Laws. Of course, he knew that.

"Holy Saint wants to say that this old one has broken the law? But that's not right. This old one is doing things here in Korea. It shouldn't violate the Ming Dynasty's Heavenly Laws, right?"

*You're using Ming Dynasty laws to judge matters in Korea... Wait, it seems like you really can?*

*No, no, vassal states have their own circumstances. Besides, Changbai Mountain is also a tributary state. Can't you be more tolerant?*

Ji Xiang ignored him, continuing to speak:

"The punishments for breaking the Heavenly Laws are roughly these:"

"Caning, hitting with a stick; penal servitude, doing hard labor; exile, banishment."

"Needle Judgment. This is a punishment executed by the Thunder Department deities. *The Supreme Three Caverns Divine Incantations* says this: 'Deities of the Law, holding needle hammers in hand, are displayed to the Three Realms.' This needle is a tool specifically for punishing criminal immortals. Needle Judgment generally isn't a capital punishment, because it's followed by exile."

"Beheading, which is decapitation; Dispersal of Form, which refers to the soul being scattered into ashes."

"Demotion to the mortal realm, which is self-explanatory."

"In addition, there are several rarely seen punishments, such as: Ten Thousand Deaths and Ten Thousand Rebirths, pouring molten iron, etc."

Huang, Old Master, swallowed hard.

Ji Xiang continued, "Your nature is that of household guardian deities. Although you are demons, you also receive incense offerings. The Ming Dynasty acknowledges your independence, but doesn't allow the establishment of formal temples for worship. So you maintain a form that combines shamanism and small shrines. Then, are you considered Earth Gods?"

"According to the Heavenly Laws, if ignorant commoners build licentious shrines to ghosts and deities within the local area, and the Earth God doesn't report it, they will be caned one hundred times. If they knowingly allow it to happen, they will be beheaded."

"What was that divine position that Huang, Old Master, was holding just now? Which deity is it? A folk deity or a Heavenly deity? An Earth deity or a Water deity? A foreign deity or a Western deity? A shamanic deity or a Mongolian deity?"

"Let this seat take a look?"

Ji Xiang made his demand, threatening execution.

Huang, Old Master's expression changed, and he immediately retorted, "The Heavenly Laws state that this crime must be committed within the area under the Earth God's jurisdiction. We are considered Earth Gods, but this is Korea, not a place under our jurisdiction!"

"Although I knowingly violated the law and established deities without authorization, this is an extraterritorial act. The Heavenly Laws don't have this clause!"

"There's no saying that deities can't establish deities, right! I'm collecting some incense offerings. Do the Heavenly Laws say that one can't collect incense offerings in other countries?"

Ji Xiang reminded, "There's also national fortune."

Huang, Old Master, "Then there's also national fortune. So what?"

Ji Xiang, "I asked you to take out your divine position for me to inspect, but you disobey my orders?"

Huang, Old Master, "I won't let you see it."

Ji Xiang rolled his eyes. "Then, is it one of the Eight Seasonal Divisions now?"

The so-called Eight Seasonal Divisions referred to the Start of Spring, Spring Equinox, Start of Summer, Summer Solstice, Start of Autumn, Autumn Equinox, Start of Winter, and Winter Solstice.

Without thinking, Huang, Old Master, replied, "Of course not."

He was thinking of just being stubborn with Ji Xiang, seeing that Ji Xiang seemed to be sent by the imperial court. But when did the imperial court have such a powerful and perceptive demon?

The world was really changing too quickly. This was a bit caught off guard.

Huang, Old Master's thoughts were racing, when he was suddenly snapped back to reality by Ji Xiang!

"Then, does stealing another country's national fortune count as harming that country?"

"This isn't harming the Ming Dynasty!"

"Haha! If Earth Gods wantonly incite harm outside the Eight Seasonal Divisions, seeking wealth and offerings, they will suffer Dispersal of Form!"

"!"

Huang, Old Master, was momentarily dumbstruck! After a brief daze, if he could raise his hand, he would really slap himself.

Was he suffering from the disadvantage of not understanding the law?!

Ji Xiang grinned sinisterly. "Don't tell me you weren't seeking profit, weren't seeking wealth, weren't seeking offerings! I heard everything clearly. Something about true teachings can't rise without the death of false ones, something about borrowing Korea's national fortune to complete the power of the deities, and then slowly converting them into Ming Dynasty deities in the future, something about opening a grand teaching, otherwise you can't protect yourselves... These are all acts of seeking profit, all acts of enjoying sacrifices. As for wealth, since you enjoy the sacrifices, naturally there will be donation money. This is just an added bonus."

Huang, Old Master's face turned as white as paper, while Ji Xiang reached out his hand to him:

"Come, let me see!"