Immortality and cultivation begin with drawing talismans.

Chapter 266 Demonic Energy! [Seeking monthly votes at the beginning of the month]

Five Dragon Island.

"This record seems very much like mysterious black mist."

On this day, Lin Chang'an finally found a similar record on a jade slip containing strange tales in a shop that was operating under the banner of the Bihai Palace.

Legend has it that this ancient book contains most of the strange tales discovered by human cultivators over the past tens of thousands of years.

This shop naturally belongs to the Sixth Elder.

Lin Chang'an is famous for his hobby of collecting ancient books containing various strange tales and records, as well as jade slips containing insights and experiences on various formations.

Therefore, Lin Chang'an's casual discovery of the book and his subsequent rubbing of it did not arouse suspicion.

This is also an effect of status. If he is a Foundation Establishment cultivator, he still needs to spend spirit stones, but since his strength and status are different, he naturally does not need to spend spirit stones.

"Ghostly energy and demonic energy are both similar to this mysterious black energy, and both have the ability to erode and make people lose their minds."

True ghost energy, also known as Yin-Yang spiritual energy, is said to exist only in Yin-Yang lands. It is recorded that it can erode a cultivator's body and affect their intelligence.

Even more terrifying is that the more Yin and Nether spiritual energy an ordinary cultivator absorbs, the faster their lifespan is consumed.

"The corrosive nature of this dark and ghostly energy, as well as its influence on the mind, seems to be very similar to this black energy."

Lin Chang'an frowned upon seeing this.

"The Yin and Yang spiritual energy is highly poisonous to ordinary cultivators and creatures, but for ghosts and even ghost cultivators, it is an excellent source of spiritual energy that can replenish the body's energy, allowing them to grow rapidly... and it has many other wonderful uses..."

Upon seeing this, Lin Chang'an memorized the record and then looked at another record.

"Legend has it that tens of thousands of years ago, cultivators from the upper realm appeared in the cultivation world, including the most terrifying creatures from the demon realm, and the demonic energy flowing from the demon realm is even purer..."

"It also possesses corrosive properties, capable of eroding the intelligence of any living being, captivating the soul and affecting the mind. Even terrifying demonic creatures are affected by it, becoming cruel and tyrannical..."

Upon seeing this, Lin Chang'an frowned and appeared deep in thought.

"The Yin and Nether Qi and the Demonic Qi have all sorts of wonderful uses. It is said that if you cultivate them using some top-level techniques, they can have miraculous effects."

For example, in the cultivation world, the spiritual energy of heaven and earth is unclaimed. If a cultivator wants to transform it into their own magical power, they need to absorb it through cultivation techniques and then refine and transform it into their own magical power.

The same principle applies to the yin and ghostly energy and demonic energy, but both have great drawbacks, and only special beings living in them can utilize them.

"It is said that pure Yin energy has a miraculous effect on strengthening the primordial spirit of cultivators."

"And pure demonic energy is an excellent spiritual energy for body refinement. It is said that long-term cultivation can also have various miraculous effects such as cleansing one's spiritual roots..."

Upon seeing this, Lin Chang'an couldn't help but gasp in shock.

If what's recorded here is true, then the cultivation world truly holds too many secrets, and he feels increasingly insignificant.

"Whether it's Yin energy or demonic energy, I'll know once I get back and test it out. But no matter which it is, it's a spiritual treasure of heaven and earth..."

His profound spiritual energy possesses purifying power.

Thinking of this, Lin Chang'an couldn't even imagine how many people would covet it if word got out that he possessed it.

Although the records are not detailed, each of these two is a poison to cultivators, but also a rare spiritual object.

Yin and Yang spiritual energy targets the primordial spirit, while demonic energy targets the physical body.

At this moment, Lin Chang'an already had some vague guesses in his mind, leaning towards one of the possibilities.

However, it could also be a reaction resulting from the mutation of the Green Horned Ox.

In other words, it is very likely to be one of these two, or it could be something other than either of these, but that possibility is relatively low.

"If it really is one of the two, then it's terrifying that it can corrode such a large Fusang Divine Tree!"

Thinking of this, Lin Chang'an couldn't help but swallow nervously.

The Fusang Divine Tree was originally a nemesis of all evil, and could be said to be the bane of these two, but now it has been corrupted.

This can be imagined as the phoenix being devoured by ghostly energy.

The fire consumed the water!
There are only two possibilities for something that completely violates the principle of attribute restraint.

"One type is where the restrained party has a higher quality than the opponent, resulting in a situation where the attribute reverses the suppression; another type is where both parties have equal quality, but the restrained party is infinitely powerful..."

Furthermore, considering that this item was obtained from a secret realm, and that as far as he knew, the former Nascent Soul Old Demon of the Xuan Yin Divine Sect and the Blood Fiend True Man at the peak of Core Formation had already perished deep within the Cloud Mist Mountains.

"What secrets lie deep within these Cloud Mist Mountains that have driven even True Monarch Lu to travel thousands of miles to plot his Nascent Soul cultivation?"

Lin Chang'an sighed softly, then shook his head. These were not things he could consider. Right now, he needed to go back and investigate the situation of the Fusang Divine Tree first.

After all, this concerns his natal magic weapon.

Dark and demonic energy!
The cultivation world is not lacking in spiritual bodies and mutated spiritual roots of the extreme yin and demonic types.

Cultivating these kinds of techniques transforms the spiritual energy of heaven and earth into one's own yin energy and demonic energy, but all of these are acquired through cultivation.

According to ancient records, the legendary Demon Realm and the Underworld are where this kind of spiritual energy was born, pure yet violent.

Unfortunately, the records are limited and many things are not explained clearly, which made Lin Chang'an sigh softly.

Tens of thousands of years of records have only glimpsed a corner of the cultivation world; the path of cultivation is truly irresistible.

The more one learns, the more one becomes addicted and unable to extricate oneself. This is one of the reasons why countless cultivators in the cultivation world are filled with resentment as their lifespan is about to end.

There are just so many beautiful sights in this world that I want to see properly.

……

Tianquan Peak.

As soon as Lin Chang'an returned, the sword attendant was already respectfully waiting at the entrance of the cave.

"Owner!"

I glanced at the sword servant; he looked much better recently. His once pale complexion now had a rosy glow on both sides of his cheeks.

"Practice well."

Turning his head, Lin Chang'an saw the Green Horned Ox still lazily basking in the sun, and couldn't help but shake his head. Then he called out:
"You simpleton, come in with me."

At Lin Chang'an's command, the Green Horned Ox lazily raised its head, yawned, and then got up, splashing water all over the ground.

He slowly followed Lin Chang'an into the cave, leaving only the sword attendant outside.

The sword attendant showed no dissatisfaction whatsoever, and didn't even consider what Lin Chang'an would do. He simply raised his hand habitually and used the Body-Body Technique.

The wet ground along the way separated into water droplets in the next moment, which floated in the air. With a casual wave of the sword servant's hand, these water droplets returned to the pool.

The area outside the cave became much cleaner and tidier in the next moment.

"While my master is in seclusion, I must seize the time to cultivate as well."

With her petite, chubby face and a seemingly aloof, adult-like demeanor, the swordswoman never considered anything else.

Right now, all she wants to do is seize every moment to cultivate.

Over the years, she has gradually adapted to this place.

……

Inside the Earth Fire Cave.

The giant hibiscus tree was rooted in the magma of the earth, and the phoenix chirped excitedly when it saw its master enter.

However, upon seeing the green horned cow, another round of mockery ensued.

"A gluttonous, stupid cow!"

"Moo!"

Ever since the last incident, the Green Horned Ox has been constantly mocked like this, which makes it feel frustrated and let out a muffled moo.

However, even his master, Lin Chang'an, never paid any attention to the fact that he had suffered a loss again.

We are in the wrong.

Lin Chang'an ignored the two beasts and went straight to a corner of the formation, where he took out a jade bottle containing mysterious black energy stored in the corner.

The black energy inside the jade bottle was from purification that he had previously used his magic power to remove; it wasn't much. "Moo!"

Upon seeing the jade bottle again, the Green Horned Ox widened its eyes, bellowing, its gaze still revealing a trace of fear.

"Now you know fear? Why weren't you scared when you ate my bottle back then?"

Lin Chang'an sneered. Under the incredulous gaze of the Green Horned Ox, its master actually handed the terrifying black gas bottle to its face.

"Moo!"

The green-horned ox seemed puzzled about what its master was going to do, but Lin Chang'an's next words made it widen its eyes in disbelief.

"Listen to me, inhale that black smoke again!"

As Lin Chang'an's gentle voice echoed, even the phoenixes nearby widened their eyes in fright.

The green-horned ox was terrified; if it weren't covered in fur, you could probably see its face turn white with fright.

"Moo!"

The green-horned ox bellowed excitedly and shook its head as if to say no.

Last time it accidentally ate something and almost died, but this time its owner actually let it inhale it.

"Listen to me, this time your master is here, just take one more puff, I promise I won't let you get hurt."

The monsters, having learned their lesson, have categorized this substance as highly poisonous and will naturally avoid it again.

However, Lin Chang'an coaxed and reassured him, saying that it wasn't that he didn't want to use other spirit beasts for the experiment, but that even the thick-skinned Green Horned Ox almost burst from the strain.

Not to mention low-level spirit beasts, and there are already some that haven't been damaged, so there's no need for him to waste spirit stones to buy new high-level spirit beasts.

"Moo!"

"Don't worry, with my magic power, nothing will happen."

When the phoenix-like bird saw its master bewitching the simple-minded ox, its little eyes darted around, and it secretly warned itself that it must never be easily fooled by its master in the future.

"And you can't escape either!"

As if it were a matter of wishful thinking, the Phoenix Bird's eyes widened as Lin Chang'an turned his head, as if to say, "I want to suck it too?"

Lin Chang'an naturally nodded.

Finally, the two beasts were subdued by Lin Chang'an's divine power. First, the Green Horned Ox mooed pitifully, and then cautiously inhaled a wisp of the liquid.

Lin Chang'an was speechless for a moment, then said irritably, "What can you possibly learn from this? Hurry up and take some more."

"Moo!"

With a pitiful moo, the Green Horned Ox closed its eyes and gulped down most of the food in one go, making even the Phoenix Bird stare wide-eyed. This stupid ox was too daring!

At this moment, Lin Chang'an's expression changed.

"This feeling!"

As his palm touched the hide of the green-horned ox, he continuously poured his magic power into it to soothe it. The purified black energy in the bottle did not cause the same backlash as before.

Instead, the Green Horned Ox narrowed its eyes, revealing a comfortable expression.

"This mysterious black energy is actually nourishing the Green Horned Ox's body, and even affecting its magical power. This feeling is somewhat similar to when it took the Spirit-Replenishing Pill before..."

At this moment, Lin Chang'an, with his eyes tightly closed, was filled with shock.

For several days, and a full half month later, after the Green Horned Ox had completely digested this small portion of black energy, Lin Chang'an's mood remained unsettled for a long time.

"It strengthens the physical body, cleanses the spiritual roots, and even purifies magical power."

Lin Chang'an was shocked. If it only had the function of nourishing and strengthening the body, he could still be sure it was demonic energy.

However, he still noticed the effect of this cleansing of his spiritual roots, even though it was very weak.

"If I hadn't taken the Spirit-Replenishing Pill and deeply experienced this change, I probably wouldn't have noticed it."

At this moment, Lin Chang'an's mind was buzzing. Demonic energy? It seemed to far exceed the functions of demonic energy recorded in the records.

"Could this be the legendary demonic energy? Or perhaps a more advanced form of demonic energy?"

He then turned to look at the enormous Fusang Divine Tree rooted in the Earth Fire Cave. According to the records, normal demonic energy should not have the ability to erode this restraining divine tree.

It did erode!
"Although the specifics are unclear, this change may be an enhanced version of demonic energy, much like the spiritual springs and elixirs in the cultivation world, but of significantly higher quality."

Lin Chang'an pondered to himself, just like the spiritual energy in the world of cultivation, there are also purer spiritual springs and liquids in some spiritual veins.

There is even the legendary "ten-thousand-year-old spiritual milk".

Then this legendary demonic energy should also exist in the demon realm and the underworld.

"This explains why the Fusang Divine Tree could be corrupted."

Just as Lin Chang'an was pondering this, he looked up and saw the aggrieved look in the Phoenix's eyes.

"Master, this black energy is my weakness, I..."

"Just a wisp, it's nothing."

Under Lin Chang'an's expectant gaze, the phoenix knew it couldn't escape, but it became even more cunning, absorbing only an extremely weak wisp of it.

This made Qingjiao Niu, who was gloating and ready to see the joke, widen his eyes in surprise. Could this really be happening?
Why not tell it!
That's so unfair to the cows!
However, the next moment, Lin Chang'an frowned, and sure enough, the changes in the Phoenix Bird's body were different from those of the Green Horned Ox.

After he purified the black energy, it no longer had any violent aura.

However, within the Phoenix Bird's body, the two are clearly incompatible, exhibiting a complete elemental advantage.

Finally, Lin Chang'an forced out this wisp of black energy, while also borrowing an equal amount of magical energy from the Phoenix Cry Bird.

Two strands of magical energy, one black and the other gold, were intertwined and suspended in the air.

In less than half an incense stick's time, the golden spiritual energy was stained black, but it also dimmed a bit, clearly indicating that a lot of energy had been consumed.

This feeling is similar to the feeling of the Fusang Divine Tree being eroded.

Lin Chang'an's pupils shrank upon seeing this.

"The quality of this black energy is even higher than the magical power of the Phoenix!"

It was supposed to be an attribute advantage/disadvantage relationship, but with the same amount, it turned out to be the other way around.

There's only one point: the quality of this black energy is significantly higher.

It should be noted that after this black energy eroded the Fusang Divine Tree, the clash of its attributes should have already affected its quality, yet it still possessed such power.
"This is the Golden Flame Divine Phoenix. In terms of quality, its internal magical power is already a level higher than that of an ordinary phoenix, yet it still suffered a backlash!"

The final result was beyond Lin Chang'an's expectations, and his mind was in a daze.

Despite its high quality, it was still purified by the Xuan Tian magic power within his body, which means the Xuan Tian Immortal Vine is of even higher quality.

Lin Chang'an frowned, then casually waved his hand. The Phoenix Bird, as if granted a pardon, hurriedly flew to the Fusang Divine Tree. The Green Horned Ox also glanced at it cautiously before leaving the cave.

It should go sunbathe.

Only Lin Chang'an entered the secluded cave and began to study the mysterious black energy with a solemn expression.

"With such quality, it can cleanse one's spiritual roots and physique, and strengthen one's physical body. It is simply a treasure of heaven and earth."

Lin Chang'an's eyes flickered. According to ancient records, this black energy was exactly the same as demonic energy, not yin and yang spiritual energy.

But it's an enhanced version.

"The Fusang Divine Tree has been eroded, and there are plenty of these things. Doesn't that mean I can use them to cultivate, and even improve my spiritual root aptitude, saving me the need for spirit-replenishing pills?"

Lin Chang'an was taken aback, and then decided to go into seclusion to study it carefully and see what effect this thing would have on him and even the Xuan Tian Immortal Vine.

　Thank you to fellow Daoist '夏凉ii' for the 200 spirit stones.

　　Also, thank you to all the fellow readers who support the author. The monthly votes actually reached four thousand before midnight last night, hehe... Thank you.

　　As a token of my gratitude, I plan to work hard on my writing this month. In the latter half of the month, I will try to update more chapters in a big way to give back to all my fellow readers without compromising quality.

　　Ahem, there's still no double monthly pass bonus for August, so I'm asking for some support at the beginning of the month to boost the numbers.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)