Records of Mysterious Things in the Southern Dynasties

Chapter 415 We Are All Insects
As soon as Ren Yuan came downstairs, the old monsters swarmed around him, looking him up and down as if he were a monster.

"Hey, how come you're not dead?!"

"Could it be that they were too scared to go in?"

"Nonsense, didn't you see that he no longer has any Yin spirit?" The Poison Granny rolled her eyes at the group of people who were making a fuss over nothing.

"Yes, you have successfully condensed your Yang Spirit." The old hunchback nodded approvingly and said, "Not bad, not bad, you are indeed stronger than us."

"The student should surpass the teacher," Ren Yuan said with a smile. "Otherwise, wouldn't we disappoint our predecessors?"

"Haha, well said!" The old monsters couldn't help but laugh. "Proud but not arrogant, just to my liking!"

"Won't you still have to be someone's slave?" the Poison Granny said calmly. "Don't be so arrogant once you get out. Even if you become a god, you will still die. Besides, you're not even a demigod."

"Yes, I will remember your teachings," Ren Yuan replied respectfully.

"Go on, go on," the old hunchback waved his hand and said, "Don't come back."

“Come back when you’re with us,” the old monsters laughed.

"I have a question to ask you," Ren Yuan said in a deep voice, knowing that they would never meet again. "Is the Xuanji Tower a passage connecting the other world and reality?"

"Yes and no," the old hunchback said vaguely.

"Why try to fool around with your own child?" the Poisonous Granny complained, giving Ren Yuan a clear answer.

"Back then, the Human Emperor banished the demon gods who were causing havoc in the world to the distant starry sky, and cast the Nine Tripods to seal the passage back to the human world."

"But later, a group of old monsters, hundreds of times older than us, went mad for some reason and reopened the passage. Although they only released some low-ranking demons, it was enough to wreak havoc on the human world."

"Alas, if the Human Emperor knew that his descendants were so unworthy, he would be turning in his grave," the old monsters sighed.

"What does that have to do with the Xuanji Tower?" Ren Yuan asked. "Could this be the passage from back then?"

"Yes and no," the old hunchback said mysteriously.

"Here we go again..." the old monsters grumbled together.

"To be precise, this is the site of the original passage," said the Poison Granny. "After the meteor shower in the first year of Gengshi, the Demon God descended, and the passage was destroyed."

"This Xuanji Tower was built by one of those old monsters," the old monsters chimed in.

"His original intention was to restore the passage between humans and gods, but those old monsters had already fallen out and could no longer be reunited, so he created this incongruous thing."

"One end of this tower connects to the starry sky where the demon god was banished, but the other end does not connect to the human world. Instead, by some twist of fate, it leads to the inner universe of a person."

"You should know very well what the universe within your body is. Even with the power of a demon god, it is impossible to break through to the mortal realm."

"Actually, when the demon god entered the body's internal universe, it was infinitely weakened by the laws of space. To put it bluntly, it became on the same level as the Three Corpse Gods, so what use is it?"

"Later, this tower was put to good use and became a magical artifact to help people digest external elixirs and acquire supernatural powers. It was quite useful..."

"I think it was designed this way on purpose, and that old man had no good intentions either," the Poison Granny said quietly.

"What do you mean?" Ren Yuan asked. "Haven't you noticed? Every time they fight against the invasion of external demons, it's always the Three Corpses and Nine Insects?" The Poison Granny stared at Ren Yuan with her bloodshot eyes and said:
"You've seen the scene of the three corpses and nine worms devouring the external demon many times, haven't you?"

"Hmm." Ren Yuan nodded and gave a muffled reply.

"Didn't you ever consider that this tower wasn't built to transfer your skills, but rather..." Granny Poison paused, then said in a chilling tone, "...to raise the Three Corpses and Nine Insects?"

"So-called enlightenment is nothing more than the result of the corpse worms growing stronger..." an old cripple chimed in.

"What about that supernatural power? Could it be a gift from the Three Corpses and Nine Insects?" Ren Yuan felt a chill run down his spine.

“That’s right.” The old cripple nodded and said, “The Xuanji Tower also has another function, which is to keep the three corpses and nine worms in line and not dare to cause trouble.”

“That’s why we’re hiding inside…” an old monster interjected.

"Don't interrupt!" Granny Poison glared at the old monster.

"The reason why people cannot use supernatural powers inside the tower is because the Three Corpses and Nine Worms are suppressed. So now you understand the relationship between the Corpse Worms and supernatural powers?"

"I understand." Ren Yuan nodded, but he didn't quite agree. It was obvious that his Three Corpses and Nine Insects had been bound by the Shangqing Jade Talisman, so he had no chance to use them or enjoy the fruits of victory.

Therefore, from beginning to end, his Three Corpses and Nine Worms showed no signs of growing stronger, but this did not prevent him from continuously acquiring supernatural powers.

Therefore, he believed that the supernatural powers originated from the demon god. However, it wasn't that humans would gain supernatural powers by having the corpse worms devour the demon god; rather, humans could gain supernatural powers simply by killing the demon god.

But this was just speculation, and it seemed to be of little importance, yet it concerned the secret of the Shangqing Jade Talisman, so he did not reveal it.

"In short, this Xuanji Tower is no good thing. It's not a good thing that you were able to unlock its secrets so easily." The Poison Granny laughed bitterly and said, "Actually, you don't even need to guess. Just look at our fate."

"Who are you seniors?" Ren Yuan had long been curious about their backgrounds, but out of respect, he had never inquired.

“That’s right, just as you guessed.” The old hunchback sighed, “We were among the first batch of poor wretches who used the Xuanji Tower to ascend to the Nine Apertures, but failed to obtain the Divine Fire and advance to the level of demigods.”

"After nine cycles of growth, the corpse worms are now invincible. Unless one is fortunate enough to obtain divine fire to restrain them, they will eventually be completely controlled by the corpse worms and transformed into mere insects with human appearances..." The Poison Granny sighed.

"In the end, even the human form will be lost, and we'll turn into those grotesque creatures you saw in the inner universe. We're lucky; we can hide in the Xuanji Tower, so we can still maintain our human form and don't completely turn into insects..."

"As for what will happen, it depends on whether you become a stronger Upper Corpse God or a Middle Corpse God." The old cripple looked Ren Yuan up and down and laughed, "Judging from your appearance, you should have become a Lower Corpse God."

"Don't talk nonsense, this kid is still a virgin." The old monsters laughed.

Ren Yuan was exasperated. Weren't we talking about serious business?
However, he was still very grateful to these seniors and bowed deeply to them, saying, "I will definitely find a way to help you seniors get rid of the corpse worms."

"Don't worry about things unnecessarily, just take care of yourselves." The old monsters laughed and said, "People outside think we're pitiful, but we think people outside are pitiful."

"Alright." Ren Yuan nodded with a wry smile, then clasped his hands in farewell again, saying, "Farewell."

"Go ahead, come back if you don't feel good about it, we welcome you to join us." The old monsters waved goodbye to him.

"Thank you." Ren Yuan was both amused and exasperated.

(End of this chapter)