There were many demons in the cultivation world.
However, there were also many powerful cultivators and sects in the cultivation world. The demons that were cultivated by living beings could only hide in the shadows and cower in fear.
Even the Gold Core demons who had gone through the Heavenly Tribulation had to abide by the rules of the cultivation world.
Otherwise, the demons would not only be subdued and eliminated, but they would also be skinned. Their tendons would be pulled out, their bones would be broken apart, and their flesh would be cut into pieces to be refined into pills or boiled in soup. The experts of the Daoist sects who were extremely familiar with the process would never be merciful.
However, that was the cultivation world.
How could there be so many experts in the mortal world who could subdue demons?
Any demon that developed intelligence was at least in the Spirit Sensing Realm. Plus, these demons inherited all kinds of strange techniques from their bloodline.
Without the strength of a first-class warrior, one would not be able to return from an encounter with a demon.
Demons could run amok in the mortal world.
"Tell me, what did that demon look like?" Zhang Li looked at Zhu Yunshan.
He had only seen descriptions of demons in ancient books.
The living beings in the world were different, and the demons that transformed as a result of cultivation were also different.
"It looked…" Zhu Yunshan recalled the incident and said in a low voice, "It was quite beautiful."
Beautiful?
A demon?
"Don't laugh. Demons are great at the art of transformation." Seeing Zhang Li's expression, Zhu Yunshan quickly took out a green scale the size of a copper coin.
Zhang Li extended his hand to receive it. Faint spirit light enveloped his fingertips, and one could see that there were streaks of green light flickering on the scale.
This was a demonic aura.
It really was a demon.
It was not difficult for cultivators to identify a demon.
The power of Zhang Li's True Essence could make demonic energy vibrate.
It was just that demons were skilled shapeshifters, so cultivators could not always use their True Essence to probe them.
"Where did you meet this demon? Why did it try to kill you?" Zhang Li looked at Zhu Yunshan as he held the fish scale in his hand.
Was this the same demon who killed the guardian disciples in Luojing 10 days ago?
It was not impossible.
"Cloud Boat. The demon disguised itself as a maid and approached me."
"She thought I was drunk, but she didn't realize that I was pretending."
"I've cultivated for 150 years, and I'm a Level 2 Spirit Refinement expert. How can mortal wine make me drunk? I was just trying to get close to... Ahem, ahem."
Zhu Yunshan turned his head and cleared his throat. He brushed past the words that almost slipped out of his mouth and continued to narrate his encounter with the demon.
The demon disguised as a female servant had attacked quietly, so her cultivation was not weak.
She stabbed and slashed at Zhu Yunshan in the narrow cabin. Despite being a Level 2 Spirit Refinement immortal cultivator, he almost died.
At the crucial moment, Courtesan Liu Yue made a move and saved Zhu Yunshan.
Liu Yue was no match for the demon, though. Fortunately, there were many guards on the boat. Zhu Yunshan had the time to use a talisman, and he was able to repel the demon.
Liu Yue ended up exposing her identity as a Mystic Moon Guard in the battle, and Zhu Yunshan revealed his immortal Dao techniques too.
The Mystic Moon Guards were controlled by the Zhao state's eldest princess. They were one of the imperial guards.
"Therefore, Liu Yue only suffered some minor injuries. There was no need for her to take any healing pills."
"You're asking for the healing pill just to curry favor with me."
Zhu Yunshan's face froze when he heard what Zhang Li said.
It was true.
He came to ask for the pill because he wanted to curry favor with Liu Yue.
"Brother Zhu, I told you to practice martial arts, but you didn't listen. If you had martial arts cultivation, you wouldn't be in such a sorry state."
"I'm an immortal expert, after all, and I've already lost face."
Zhu Yunshan's face turned red with embarrassment.
Zhang Li shook his head and took out two jade bottles.
"The medicinal pill used for ordinary healing is this Pure Snow Pill."
"If you're heavily injured, the Golden Cloud Pill can save your life."
Zhu Yunshan was stunned when he reached out to take the pills.
He knew about these two pills. The Pure Snow Pill was not considered a precious item in the cultivation world, but the Golden Cloud Pill was worth two spirit stones.
It was so precious that it felt hot in his hands.
"Forget about the Golden Cloud Pill…" he murmured.
Borrowing one or two spirit stones was fine, but he could not bear to accept such a precious medicine like the Golden Cloud Pill.
"I'm not asking you to give it away." Zhang Li looked at Zhu Yunshan with a serious expression. "This is to save your life."
To save his life?
Zhu Yunshan's hand trembled slightly.
It was as if he was touched.
Seeing Zhu Yunshan's expression, Zhang Li appeared even more sincere.
In his previous life, Zhang Li would always treat potential financial backers sincerely whenever they tried to question him. That was how he secured big deals.
To the rich, money was not important. What they wanted the most was sincerity.
Zhu Yunshan was the same.
He could play the games of this world, but others might not treat him sincerely.
"You've already revealed your identity as a guardian disciple. Be it the other guardian disciples, the demon that failed to kill you, or the mortal experts, they'll probably come looking for trouble again," Zhang Li said softly.
The corner of Zhu Yunshan's eyes twitched, and his expression changed slightly.
"Why don't I hide here for a few days?
"Jing Yang Temple is the guardian of the Zhao state's Dao sects," Zhu Yunshan said softly as he looked around.
He stuffed the jade bottles into his pocket and seemed to make up his mind.
"I'll give the healing pills to Yue, and I'll come back.
"I won't leave Jing Yang Temple for the next month... no, half a month."
As he spoke, he walked out of the courtyard quickly.
Zhang Li looked at him and shook his head gently.
The world of cultivation was less chaotic. Although many people would cultivate for 100 years, their minds would be less tempered.
Once the guardian disciples entered the mortal world, they would indulge in wine, sex, wealth, and temper tantrums. In the end, they fell faster than the mortals.
Cultivation was a journey of cleansing one's heart and mind.
It was destined to be a lonely journey.
This realization in his heart stirred the True Essence at his center, and a trace of confusion flashed across Zhang Li's face.
He managed to gain enlightenment with this?
Cultivation was so simple. Would it not be a waste to prepare so many spirit stones and resources?
He could not let this opportunity to gain insight go to waste. He quickly returned to the quiet room and activated the Six Profound Elements Protection Array. Then, he took out a booklet and opened it before him.
He had chosen to continue with the Thousand Autumns Cloud Wave Technique after cultivating the Quiet Cloud Mist Technique to perfection.
This technique was gentle, and it could nourish one's body. One could even cultivate it until the Foundation Establishment Realm.
When he took a step back, he realized that there were truly many benefits.
Zhang Li felt different as he moved his True Essence according to the instructions.
Back when he cultivated the Quiet Cloud Mist Technique, the spirit energy that he absorbed into his body was like a trickle.
However, it felt like a surging river with the Cloud Wave Technique because it swept the scattered spirit energy into his meridians.
The speed at which the spirit energy flowed was so fast that it caused his meridians to tear and ache.
He did not know if it was because his cultivation technique was really powerful or because the spirit energy from the three shattered spirit stones around him was dense.
The spirit energy in the mortal world had been cut off, and he could only rely on spirit stones for the cultivation of his immortal path. This method of activating the array to isolate himself from the outside world and using the spirit energy in spirit stones to cultivate was really not something that ordinary people could do.
After he cultivated for four hours, Zhang Li opened his eyes and felt refreshed as if he was floating in the air.
With a wave of his hand, clouds seemed to gather and disperse before him.
The Cloud Wave Technique resulted in a greater amount of True Essence that was much denser than it was with the Quiet Cloud Mist Technique.
His Level 5 Spirit Refinement cultivation was stable, and his spirit senses and body had improved.
No wonder the author wrote that an epiphany could sustain him through a year and a half of bitter cultivation.
He just did not know if the author had been willing to spend spirit stones when cultivating.
Seeing that there was still a lot of spirit energy in his surroundings, Zhang Li chose to continue his seclusion.
His meridians and center swelled up, and he could no longer absorb spirit energy to convert into True Essence. As such, he decided to cultivate a sword path.
With a wave of his hand, the table before him was filled with books and jade slips.
The Azure Sun Sword Technique...
The Green Lotus Sword Technique...
Forging Sword Spirit...
The Wind Cloud Sword Technique...
He was faced with another multiple-choice question.