Volume 8, Chapter 499 – Immortals? Just a Bunch of Spineless Cowards

In the world of cultivation, ordinary people lived pitiable lives, and the Immortal Realm was even worse. The land was crawling with cultivators and immortals, and the sheer psychological disparity alone was enough to make existence torturous, not to mention the malevolent entities that ran rampant everywhere.

The young man currently picking mushrooms was clearly one of these pitiable souls. Yet, for some reason, his eyes burned with an intense desire to live. Perhaps this was what they meant by “even ants cling to life”.

As the corpse poison took effect, the young man’s pace slowed, and the hope in his eyes turned to despair. He knew he was doomed, this was a desolate mountain wilderness, and the chances of anyone being around were slim. Even if someone was here, they likely wouldn’t dare save him.

Finally, the young man could run no more. He slumped against a large tree, his body giving out.

The zombie wolves, seeing their prey lose the ability to resist, slowly closed in.

“Dad… I’m sorry.”

The young man lifted his gaze toward the distance. Tears rolled down his cheeks, mingling with the blood on his face, creating the illusion of bloody tears.

Lu Yao stared at the young man’s “bloody tears” and found herself inexplicably relating to him. A sliver of sympathy stirred in her heart, and in the next instant, she vanished from her spot.

By now, the young man had already shut his eyes in resignation, the zombie wolves were lunging at him.

“Awooo—”

But then, a series of whimpers, laced with fear, reached his ears. It sounded like the yelp of a stray dog that had just been kicked.

The pain he expected never came. Puzzled, the young man opened his eyes, only to see a slender woman standing with her back to him, clad in a striking crimson cross-collared ruqun. At first glance, she exuded an eerie, almost otherworldly aura.

Meanwhile, the zombie wolves were fleeing with their tails between their legs, looking no different from cowering strays.

Then, the woman turned her head and asked, “Are you alright?”

The young man was stunned. He had never seen a woman so captivating before. Even with her face half-hidden behind a veil, the delicate contours of her features were unmistakable. Her cherry-red lips glistened as if painted with fresh blood, their allure magnified by the hazy veil, tempting one to steal a kiss.

This woman was, of course, Lu Yao. As her cultivation advanced, her zombie physique had refined itself, purging impurities and enhancing her beauty to staggering heights.

“Dead?”

Lu Yao’s delicate brows furrowed slightly.

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“N-no! I—I’m fine! Th-thank you… thank you for saving me, miss!”

The young man finally snapped out of his daze, stammering his gratitude.

“You’re close, though. The corpse poison has already invaded your organs.”

Lu Yao delivered the blunt reminder with an impassive expression.

The young man’s face turned ashen, as if struck by lightning. After a moment, he let out a sigh. “Even so… I still thank you, miss. You’ve given me a little more time. Maybe… maybe I can still deliver these mushrooms back home.”

“Are these mushrooms that important to you?”

Lu Yao glanced at the basket of colorful fungi.

“Yes. I was counting on selling them to buy medicine for my dad. I just don’t know if I’ll make it back in time.”

A bitter smile crossed his face as he struggled to his feet, clutching the basket.

“I can purge the corpse poison for you.”

Lu Yao’s offer wasn’t out of pure kindness, she simply wanted to extract information about the Immortal Realm and the Celestial Realm from him.

“What?! You can cure corpse poison? Are you… a cultivator?”

The young man’s eyes lit up with hope, though a trace of reverence colored his voice.

“Not exactly. I just know a bit of medicine.”

Lu Yao brushed off the question. Ever since she had learned the true nature of cultivators, she had wanted nothing to do with them.

Of course, she wasn’t one herself.

“An ordinary doctor can treat corpse poison?”

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The young man looked skeptical, but with no other options, he dropped to his knees and kowtowed desperately. “Doctor! Please, save me! I still need to get medicine for my dad! If you help me, Qi Bing will serve you as a slave for the rest of my life!”

“Your name is Qi Bing?”

Lu Yao confirmed.

“Yes! I’m Qi Bing, from Qi Family Village nearby. My dad is all I have left, he’s sick and weak, and he’s counting on me to bring back medicine to save him.”

“I don’t need a slave. I just want to ask you a few things.”

Lu Yao shook her head, then crouched down and placed her slender, jade-like fingers on Qi Bing’s wrist.

Qi Bing stiffened. This was the first time a young woman had ever touched his hand. The sensation, soft yet cool, sent an electric jolt through him, leaving his body and mind tingling.

When he looked down, he saw her fingers adorned with what looked like black nail polish. The sight was intoxicating, as if he were lost in a beautiful dream.

Of course, had he known that the black wasn’t polish but the result of corpse poison erosion, that dream would’ve turned into a nightmare in an instant.

Lu Yao’s heart rotated slightly, generating a suction force within her body. Through her fingertips, she drew out all the corpse poison from Qi Bing’s system, a trivial task for her.

In the blink of an eye, she had absorbed all the toxins and stood up casually. “Done.”

“D-done? But you didn’t even use any medicine!”

Qi Bing stared blankly. He looked down and saw that the wounds from the zombie wolves’ bites were no longer bruised, and the blood oozing out had returned to a healthy red.

“I applied it through my fingers just now.”

Lu Yao lied without batting an eye.

Qi Bing, none the wiser, took a moment to assess himself. His mind felt clear, his vision sharp, and his body had regained some strength. Overjoyed, he dropped to his knees again in gratitude.

“Stop kneeling. If you want to repay me, just answer a few questions.”

Lu Yao waved him off impatiently.

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Qi Bing nodded eagerly and led the way toward Qi Family Village.

“First, how are the immortals of this realm ranked in terms of strength?”

Lu Yao seized the opportunity to ask.

“Uh… I’m just a commoner. I don’t know much about immortals, but I’ve heard they’re divided into six ranks: Heaven, Earth, Monarch, Kinship, Master, and Human. As for how strong they are… I wouldn’t know.”

Qi Bing answered vaguely.

‘Heaven, Earth, Monarch, Kinship, Master… and Human? The same classifications as protective talismans in the cultivation world? The “Human” rank likely represents the “self”. At first glance, this hierarchy seems to follow the principles of revering heaven, honoring ancestors, and respecting elders, but cultivators are supposed to defy heaven. “Revering heaven” makes no sense here.’

Qi Huang pondered silently. In truth, she had long questioned the classification system of talismans in the mortal world as well.

“No matter.”

Lu Yao dismissed it with a wave. Her power had already reached the limit of what this realm could contain. As long as these so-called immortals remained in this world, they were beneath her notice.

“But isn’t the title ‘Heavenly Immortal’ a bit inappropriate? Cultivators are supposed to defy heaven!”

Lu Yao voiced her skepticism, coincidentally mirroring Qi Huang’s thoughts.

“Shh! Shh!”

Qi Bing paled in horror, frantically gesturing for silence. “Defying heaven is what mortal cultivators believe in, not immortals of this realm, and certainly not the Celestial Realm! Doctor… don’t tell me you didn’t know?”

“Ah… I studied medicine under a reclusive old doctor. I’ve only just left the mountains.”

Lu Yao lied smoothly.

“No wonder! I must’ve been incredibly lucky to run into you.”

Qi Bing sighed in relief, then continued, “Above the Immortal Realm lies the Celestial Realm, the domain of the Heavenly Dao. The Heavenly Dao is the ruler of all worlds. Even immortals who ascend are only fit to be its servants. Who would dare defy heaven?”

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“Heh. A bunch of spineless cowards! Especially those who ascended from the mortal world. Before ascension, they rant about defying heaven, only to become obedient lapdogs afterward. No wonder they call themselves ‘Heavenly Immortals.’”

Lu Yao sneered in disdain.

“What choice do they have? I’ve heard that in the past, anyone who rebelled against heaven was utterly annihilated. Nowadays, even if someone harbors such thoughts, they wouldn’t dare voice them.”

Qi Bing sighed.

“Another question, how vast is this Immortal Realm? Who rules it? And what kind of place is this?”

Lu Yao pressed for more information.

“I don’t know. They say it’s enormous. As for its ruler… the entire cultivation world is governed by the Immortal Alliance, which oversees countless nations. The larger immortal nations are ruled by Immortal Emperors, the smaller ones by Immortal Kings. Even individual planets have their own officials. Our planet is called Mistveil Planet, located within the domain of the Fuguang Immortal Kingdom…”

Qi Bing explained in detail.

‘The Immortal Realm has an Immortal Alliance too?’

Qi Huang was surprised. According to Qi Bing, the Immortal Alliance here held even greater authority than its counterpart in the cultivation world, as its jurisdiction spanned both immortal and mortal domains.

“I didn’t expect the Immortal Realm to have an Immortal Alliance either.”

Lu Yao murmured to herself.

Just then, her brows twitched. Her senses had detected several figures approaching at high speed. Within moments, they had arrived.

“I-It’s the cultivators!”

Qi Bing’s face drained of color. After all, they had just been discussing rebellion against heaven.

“Was it you two just now, brazenly speaking of defying heaven, and insulting us as spineless cowards?”

A brawny middle-aged man at the forefront glared down at them, his voice dripping with contempt.