“Of late, my mood has been far from sanguine.”

The leader of the Gate of Hell, a figure of striking handsomeness, sat upon a mountain stone. The mountain wind whipped through his long hair and the edges of his robes, yet his expression remained remarkably placid. High mountains, devoid of paths, could not deter a cultivator.

A tall, slender figure, borne by the wind, materialized atop the peak. He wore a Yama mask, and etched into the pale white gate on its forehead were two blood-red characters: “Song Emperor.”

“Why so?” He halted at a respectful distance and inquired thus, his voice resonant with power.

Among all the Yama, only Qin Guang Wang, who openly displayed his true face, gazed leisurely at the layered mountains stretching into the distance. His tone was casual. “Because there is a person who owes me a significant debt, yet shows no inclination to repay it.”

“You could seize him, inflict cruel punishments, and torture him severely,” King Song Emperor suggested. “Or you could entrust this matter to me. I only require a one percent handling fee.”

Yin Guan turned and cast a glance at him. “So generous?”

“You are the esteemed leader!” King Song Emperor replied.

Yin Guan sighed faintly. “He cannot be seized. That fellow has fled too far.”

“How far could it possibly be?” King Song Emperor’s tone was relaxed. “Is this not our very trade?”

“Likely within the Source Sea,” Yin Guan stated.

King Song Emperor’s relaxation vanished. He let out a dry chuckle. “That is indeed quite distant.”

“It seems you are serious,” Yin Guan remarked.

King Song Emperor appeared bewildered. “Serious about what?”

“Going to the Source Sea to pursue my debt.”

These words, though delivered with utmost gravity by Yin Guan, sounded like a jest.

King Song Emperor, without a word, instantly conjured a whirlwind around himself, pushing back the unseen forces that locked onto his form, intending to soar wildly upwards, straight towards the clouds!

But he could not.

This whirlwind, just as it ascended, was stained a vibrant green. It then hung stagnant in mid-air, resembling a vast, withered flower, its petals falling one by one. His power withered thus. He then plummeted to the ground, utterly silent.

The third-ranked Yama of the Gate of Hell was slain thus effortlessly, as commonplace as a fallen dead leaf.

A cold female voice then echoed. “You did not ask him why he betrayed the organization?”

Gazing at King Chu Jiang, who had appeared atop the mountain, Yin Guan’s voice was indifferent. “I do not expect loyalty from any man. He need only bear the price he is due. As for the rest… it is of no consequence.”

King Chu Jiang said, “At least inquire what reward the Jing Country offered him. It would allow me a choice.”

“Next time, certainly,” Yin Guan replied.

King Chu Jiang, though perhaps devoid of excess emotion, possessed a voice like an iced, quiet stream, carrying a piercing chill. “Your cousin’s whereabouts have been leaked by him. How fares it? Shall I accompany you to rescue her?”

A piece of paper drifted smoothly to her hand.

Yin Guan spoke softly. “The address King Song Emperor leaked is false. Su Mu Qing is here. You shall convey her far away, ideally to a place unknown to any, that she may live her own life.”

Beneath her mask, King Chu Jiang’s lips curved slightly. “You do not plan to see her?”

Yin Guan rose to his feet and spoke casually, as if in idle conversation. “I know not why, but today I feel as though someone is cursing me.”

King Chu Jiang, surprised, said, “You are the ancestor of curse techniques. Who could possibly curse you?”

Yin Guan shrugged. “I have committed much evil, slain men like cutting hemp. It is not strange that some in their hearts revile me, hoping I die early, and die miserably.”

King Chu Jiang, holding the paper bearing the address between her index and middle fingers, shook it lightly, producing a rustling sound. “You still have not answered my question.”

Yin Guan did not speak, merely stepped into the void and walked directly away.

Within the Flower Guild, Elder Yuan’s influence was far more substantial than Chai Asi had imagined. A mere visit to the Flower Guild headquarters and a brief meeting with the president were enough to effortlessly suppress the matter of Yuan Yong’s death, rendering it calmer than the demise of his grandfather, who had been crushed by a carriage. He smoothly filled Yuan Yong’s vacancy, becoming one of the five great incense masters of the Water Curtain Hall.

The great ancient god, of course, knew that the cunning Elder Yuan was originally the most deeply hidden incense master within the Flower Guild, his influence deeply rooted. It was only because he enshrined a demon-ghost, forcing him to constantly offer blood and food, that he deliberately downplayed his influence to avoid attracting the attention of security officers, allowing rising stars like Yuan Yong to ascend.

Now that the demon-ghost had awakened, the Yama had descended, and the newly promoted Faceless Cult had been established with grand ideals, Elder Yuan, in his eagerness to rapidly expand his religious influence, naturally bestowed meticulous assistance upon the sword-wielding Chai Asi. He gathered allies and subdued capable subordinates while also seizing control of Flower Street, making it convenient for secret proselytization.

Compared to the seasoned, ruthless Elder Yuan, Chai Asi was indeed far too immature. Yet, as a heaven-chosen demon bearing the ancient god mirror, the great ancient god did not abandon him. Having become an incense master, Chai Asi did not relocate, choosing instead to remain in the old house his grandfather had left him. Following the guidance of the venerable ancient god, he tightly grasped the words “fame and fortune,” distributing the money gained from his position as incense master to his subordinates, which surprisingly endeared him to the demons. Compared to the greedy, violent Yuan Yong, this new incense master could truly be called righteous, chivalrous, and benevolent beyond compare.

As Chai Asi practiced his sword technique two hundred times over, returning to his room exhausted, the voice of the great ancient god resonated at the opportune moment: “You have become the incense master of the Flower Guild’s Water Curtain Hall, and your several actions have earned you a decent reputation. Now is the time to strive towards the champion of the Jin Yang Platform martial arts meeting!”

“Ah?” Chai Asi was slightly taken aback. “I am already the incense master of the Flower Guild. Do I still need to compete for that championship?”

The ancient god within the mirror was equally surprised.

What did they call it? Small demon gains success, small wealth brings contentment! Before, he was clamoring to be the city lord, to contend with the sky demon. Now that he had become a minor incense master of the Flower Guild, he was simply too satisfied, all fighting spirit gone…

“Do you no longer desire Zhu Lan Ruo?” the ancient god in the mirror asked.

Chai Asi wiped a handful of sweat, somewhat embarrassed. “I feel that Yuan Xiao Qing is quite… good.”

Good heavens! The voice within the mirror turned cold. “Elder Yuan will not agree.”

Chai Asi, lost in fantasy, was utterly oblivious. He grinned, revealing two canine teeth. “Venerable, you do not know! Elder Yuan values me beyond measure, admires my demonic nature, respects my strength, gives me territory, money, and subordinates. He sees me entirely as a son-in-law candidate. As a rising star of the Flower Guild, an incense master of the same level as him, with Yuan Xiao Qing by my side, what reason would he have not to agree?”

That year, he had also admired a pure female demon. He pursued her bitterly for a long time, yet never even held her hand. He saved money for a long time and bought a box of expensive powder. In the end, he could only watch as she, with a face powdered beautifully, fooled around with other demons… He could only comfort himself, emphasizing participation…

Now, eh? He could flirt with beautiful female demons like Yuan Xiao Qing, fantasizing about growing old together. What cause did he have for dissatisfaction?

The great ancient god was dissatisfied! Before, it was “ancient god grandpa” with every other word. Now, he dared to say “Venerable does not know.” And he kept talking about how Elder Yuan valued him, utterly ignorant of who the Faceless Cult worshipped. Did he not believe that with a single divine oracle, Elder Yuan would immediately take a knife and chop him?!

But as a great ancient deity, joy and anger were not easily displayed. The voice transmitted from within the mirror was exceedingly kind. “Since you are already so outstanding, why can you not have both Zhu Lan Ruo and Yuan Xiao Qing?”

A single word awakened the demon from his dream.

Chai Asi suddenly slapped his thigh. “Right!”

“To be a rising star of the Flower Guild and the champion of the Jin Yang Platform martial arts meeting, does that not feel… good?”

“Excellent!”

“However, with your current strength, participating in the Jin Yang Platform martial arts meeting is still somewhat insufficient. This seat shall now bestow upon you a set of the 《Hundred Tribulations, Thousand Difficulties Invincible Golden Body》 to help you seize the martial arts championship and win the heart of a beautiful demon!”

Yes, the great ancient god still needed Chai Asi to participate in the Jin Yang Platform martial arts meeting, to enter military service, and walk the official path. The identity of the Flower Guild would not be an obstacle; instead, it could help him connect with the Ink Cloud Ape family, allowing this boy to rise quickly. At that time, controlling both the black and white paths, who would know whose name the Ink Cloud City truly bore… If this demon world was delayed in releasing him, waiting another three years, and then another three years, the entire Tian Xi Wasteland would be transformed!

Chai Asi, who had already practiced his sword until exhausted, upon hearing these words and the domineering name of this skill, immediately felt his entire body fill with strength. He immediately bowed: “Please, Venerable, grant me the skill!”

The skill set, 《Hundred Tribulations, Thousand Difficulties Invincible Golden Body》, had a very domineering name. Its training method… was also quite shocking. Fundamentally, it was developed by Jiang Wang specifically targeting Chai Asi’s physical condition. It used the Four Spirits Body Forging Decision as the main framework, combined with some understanding of Qin Zhi Zhen’s Iron Wall Divine Ability and Shang Yan Hu’s Steel Tribulation Body Divine Ability. With Jiang’s current strength and vision, creating a body-forging skill targeted at his own Divine Landing Realm was not even remotely qualified, and it was far from comparable to the Mystic Sky Glazed Palace. But creating something for the mere small demon Chai Asi was absolutely a masterpiece of this realm.

The first sentence of the skill stated: “So-called forging the body like forging iron, a thousand hammers and a hundred refinements reveal true steel.” It was, one could say, clear and concise from the outset. Simply put, get beaten more.

Jiang, being a man of his word, promised to practice what he preached. He said he wanted the dog demon to experience the suffering of the world, so it was impossible for him to complete body refining easily.

“Go fetch a hammer.”

Chai Asi laughed happily. “Venerable, do you intend to teach this small demon hammer techniques? This small demon feels his own sword technique is still not properly practiced!”

The voice within the mirror said, “Do you know what is meant by ‘hammer refining’?”

Chai Asi’s face instantly turned pale.

On this brilliant day in his own courtyard, the reborn small demon, Chai Asi, learned a new explanation of a word. The meaning of “hammer refining” was originally to refine using a hammer… Although when he refined, he wailed and cried…

“So-called internal nurturing of an invincible qi, external practice of a refined steel skin.”

“To cultivate this skill, first strike the entire body fiercely with a large hammer, beating the skin a hundred times, refining out diamond bones.”

“Wait until the Dao Yuan flows through the entire body, becoming a completely indestructible body.”

“Iron hammer strikes fiercely, a thousand kinds of smashing, ten thousand kinds of hitting. Break the stubborn to seek self, refine impurities in muscles, bones, and blood.”

“First hammer the four limbs, then hammer the torso. The entire body like iron, a hundred refinements become steel.”

“Hammer all over the body’s acupoints, every one hundred eight times as one set, nine sets return to one cycle. Completely like an iron wall, nothing can break it, no firmness not destroyed!”

Relying on the Heaven Absolute Earth Trap Secret Sword Technique and the Hundred Tribulations, Thousand Difficulties Invincible Golden Body, Chai Asi of the Flower Guild quickly gained a reputation. He not only swept through a large portion of Flower Street but also conquered two other streets, directly forcing the gang forces supported by the Ink Cloud Dog Family and the Ink Cloud Feather Family to retreat step by step. Along the way, everyone called him “Swift Wind Killing Sword Chai Asi,” referring to his sword being both fast and ruthless. Of course, those who truly fought with him, who had life-and-death confrontations, still knew that he possessed a body of copper skin and iron bones.

What was most important in the underground world? One was influence, and one was the ability to fight. Now he possessed both. Even those senior path brothers who saw him had to respectfully address him as “Master Chai.”

And he also, under the name of Chai Asi of the Flower Guild, formally signed up to participate in the Jin Yang Platform unlimited martial arts meeting.

Speaking of this matter still caused quite a few small demons to mock him in secret, feeling that he was overestimating his strength. After all, gaining a reputation on Flower Street and gaining a reputation in the Jin Yang Platform martial arts meeting were completely different concepts. Flower Street was merely a single street within Ink Cloud City, while the Jin Yang Platform martial arts meeting gathered young experts from the Tian Xi Wasteland, Zi Wu Hills, and Shen Xiang Flower Sea, these three major areas! How many large cities were there in the Tian Xi Wasteland alone, how many streets? From that to this, it simply didn’t know the height of the heavens or the depth of the earth.

But Chai Asi, of course, didn’t care. To speak not of humility, with the guidance of the venerable ancient god, what Yu Xin, what Yuan Meng Ji, were all just mud and paper figures. How could his Swift Wind Killing Sword possibly pay them any mind?

This day, he once again carried large and small bags of medicinal materials back to his own courtyard. As his status and wealth increased, the medicinal materials he could collect also became better and better. So-called “body refining without using medicine is equivalent to not body refining.” The rapid progress of the Hundred Tribulations, Thousand Difficulties Invincible Golden Body, besides his own cruel self-hammering and the meticulous guidance of the venerable ancient god, also benefited from his daily non-stop medicinal baths, which he considered indispensable.

Of course, he did not know exactly who these medicinal materials were being used for. It was also a sign that the ancient god adult had a conscience, not purely giving him hot water; at least some medicinal dregs were added inside. Following the old rule, all the medicinal materials were piled together. With a roll of flames, the pile of medicinal materials had already disappeared. The bath tub, prepared beforehand, was already filled with heated water. The water itself was a faint golden color, emitting a pleasant, strange fragrance!

Chai Asi, unaware that all his perceptions were merely illusions, stripped naked and happily soaked in the bath tub. After soaking comfortably for a while, he suddenly thought of something and said seriously, “Venerable, should I not split with Elder Yuan?”

“Why?” the voice from the mirror asked.

Chai Asi had a serious expression. “I do not know if you noticed today, but Elder Yuan seems to be secretly stirring up an improper sect. He is worshipping some road’s bastard god and wants to pull me into his sect. I believe in the great god of Chi Yun Mountain! How can I worship his sect and believe in his god?”

The great ancient god: …

To speak of it, in order to test and better control the dog demon, the great ancient god always had to “sleep” for a while from time to time and would not respond to the mirror holder at every moment. If Chai Asi were to figure out the sleep pattern and take advantage to do something, he would then discover that his every move was within the great ancient god’s watch.

Regarding Chai Asi’s question, the great ancient god’s voice was also somewhat serious. “Silence! The path you walk is a strong path of great power self-grasping. You cannot speak of belief again! I do not respect gods in life, nor do I need to be respected by gods! You should believe in your sword, believe in your fighting instinct, believe in your original heart and your path!”

What kind of lofty thought was this, what kind of profound philosophy?

Chai Asi respectfully lowered his head. “This small demon receives instruction!” He could always, once again, feel the greatness of the ancient god!

Within the mirror world, the ancient god with the surname Jiang, while applying ointment to his own scars, transmitted his voice loudly outside the mirror. “You need not worry about this matter. The Flower Guild is your current springboard, and Elder Yuan is also your help. You cannot leave lightly.”

Chai Asi cautiously said, “But Elder Yuan seems determined to pull me into his sect. This small demon is afraid that the god spirit he believes in will discover something…”

The response of the great ancient god was grand and powerful, hitting the ground with a sound. “What hairy god dares to claim godhood before this venerable one? You just pretend, despite entering the sect, despite worshipping, everything shall be covered for you by this venerable one!”

“With this sentence from Venerable, this small demon is relieved!”

Chai Asi breathed a long sigh of relief. Thinking of his unbroken fate with Yuan Xiao Qing, he involuntarily smiled more brilliantly.