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Chapter 1153: Chapter 1045: Reminder_2
The ordinary Soul-Seizing Technique isn’t this complex and rigorous, not only is it safer, but there are also ample choices.
However, the special Soul-Seizing he employed was quite random, and without the memories of his former life, he was no different from an ordinary person. As such, it was very possible that he would die, his Dao dissipated, before his memories awoke.
Awakening memories also depends much on luck; it might happen at the moment of adulthood, or perhaps never in a lifetime.
The benefit is that no one can tell that he is a person who has used the Soul-Seizing Technique!
For a Demon Cultivator like him, infiltrating the East Continent Immortal Tao, it is the best method.
Soon enough, the Demon Cultivators hidden within the East Continent were using this very technique.
Yet many Cultivators do not understand why this Demonic Tao Individual Immortal, who had never been discovered, didn’t continue to hide. With the previous cultivation experience, becoming a senior member of the Immortal Tao would not be difficult. So why suddenly expose his identity?
Perhaps the answer is known only to that Demon Cultivator himself.
And he has also vanished, likely to become an unsolved mystery in the future.
Cultivation knows no years, within the cave one evades karma.
Li Zhirui originally thought that the events had already passed for half a year and should have calmed down, but unexpectedly, a piece of news once again drew the attention of Cultivators.
Not long ago, the Demonic Tao saw the birth of an Individual Immortal, and this Demonic Tao Individual Immortal is the very person who went on a killing spree in the Secret Realm.
"Such a rate of cultivation, isn’t it too exaggerated?"
Although the Demonic Tao is indeed known for its quick cultivation, less than a year from Integration practitioner, surpassing Mahayana, completing Tribulation Transcendence, and directly becoming an Individual Immortal is still too exaggerated.
Among these, the fact that the Demon Cultivator is of the Individual Immortal Realm played a part, and more importantly, the essence blood and Mana from countless Cultivators and Devil Beasts provided him with an incalculable amount of energy.
Li Zhirui could imagine, once this news spreads, how many Cultivators would yearn for the Demonic Tao, especially those Loose Cultivators struggling with their practice, as well as Cultivators nearing the end of their lifespans.
They would not consider much, only knowing that the Demonic Tao allows for rapid improvement in cultivation.
However, these matters have nothing to do with Li Zhirui, no matter what, he would never join the Demonic Tao.
"It has been a hundred or two hundred years since I left the family; I wonder how they are doing."
In his spare time, Li Zhirui would think of his family.
He really wanted to return, but he hasn’t fulfilled the goal he set when he left; he wanted to break through the latter stage of Integration before returning.
After so many years of cultivation, Li Zhirui’s Dharma is already fifty-eight zhang tall, just nine zhang away from breaking through the latter stage of Integration!
Although he does not know how much time it will take, Li Zhirui has enough time and patience to wait.
To reach his goal sooner, Li Zhirui practices with great diligence, often venturing into Secret Realms for training.
...
High in the sky, two Cultivators stood facing each other.
Li Zhirui and Huang Shiqi confronted each other, their auras constantly colliding, as if they were about to start fighting at any moment.
Suddenly a dark cloud appeared above Li Zhirui’s head; the rolling black clouds, like thousands of beasts galloping, imposed a mighty pressure.
Boom— 𝑛𝘰𝑣𝑝𝑢𝑏.𝘤𝑜𝘮
The next instant, a deafening thunder ripped through the clouds, striking down at Li Zhirui with ferocious power that trembled one’s soul.
Li Zhirui, feeling the great pressure, looked solemn. His opponent’s combat strength was truly terrifying. If he didn’t use some real skills, he probably wouldn’t stand a chance.
With a motion of his hands, Spiritual Energy circulated around him, and within the breath, a streak of blue light seemed to tear through space. In the next instant, the roar of the ocean echoed through heaven and earth.
The ocean, encompassing all things, faced the violent thunder without any reaction, swallowing it directly. The ocean became wildly turbulent, setting off waves that shocked the onlookers.
Crack!
Huang Shiqi suddenly realized something was wrong, but before he could dodge, a wooden stick, which appeared behind his head at some point, had already heavily struck him on the head.
"Taoist Huang, you’ve lost this time."
Li Zhirui’s voice came with the wind, and the originally tumultuous ocean also returned to calm, then slowly dissipated, as if it had never existed at all.
"Alas! I did not expect that even though I cultivated the Qingxiao Divine Thunder to this realm, I am still not a match for you, fellow Daoist." Huang Shiqi said with a wry smile and a sigh.
Huang Shiqi was a cultivator Li Zhirui happened to meet by a stroke of fate in a certain Secret Realm, where they discovered together a Seventh Rank Pure Heart Fruit tree bearing five Spirit Fruits.
Eating the Pure Heart Fruit could clear away distracting thoughts, weaken the Heart Demon, and if these issues did not exist, it would become a means to enhance a cultivator’s comprehension! The duration would vary from person to person.
Originally, both wanted to fight over it, to decide the winner, and take possession of the five Pure Heart Fruits alone.
But just as they were about to take action, the Guardian Beast returned, and its strength was very formidable, likely having reached the peak of the Seventh Rank.
In fact, although neither of them was as strong as the Devil Beast, both had the ability to kill it, but by doing so, they would deplete too much strength to face the other cultivator.
Thus, after discussing, they decided to join forces to deal with the beast first, and during this process, whoever exerted more effort would take one more Pure Heart Fruit.
Out of caution, Li Zhirui didn’t go all out, while Huang Shiqi was much bolder, thus getting one more Pure Heart Fruit.
The two ended up hitting it off and gradually became familiar with each other afterward.
However, to say that their relationship was very good is not necessarily true, at least neither Li Zhirui nor Huang Shiqi revealed their origins.
Even though Huang Shiqi did not disclose his background, many aspects exposed his identity, definitely from a top-tier major power.
The relationship between the two now was more about treating the opponent as a sparring partner.
Up to now, the sparring sessions between them had been no less than a hundred times!
Overall, Li Zhirui won slightly more, but only by about eleven or twelve matches.
Huang Shiqi’s strength was not bad, even a bit stronger than Li Zhirui when the latter did not use the power of the Cave Heaven.
Perhaps because he specialized in the Thunder Method, which was too lethal, Huang Shiqi had many concerns in sparring and couldn’t fight freely.
Li Zhirui didn’t have these concerns, as the Divine Powers he mastered were far less lethal than the Thunder Method.
But even though Li Zhirui had quite an advantage, he did not win much more than Huang Shiqi in terms of winning rate, which shows how formidable his strength was.
Of course, since it was only sparring, both sides reserved their trump cards, so this could not be used to judge who was more powerful.
Today, another great battle came to an end.
"Thank you, fellow Daoist, for the years of sparring. I plan to return to the Sect." Huang Shiqi bid farewell.
Li Zhirui was not sad, only feeling it was a pity, for Huang Shiqi was a very good opponent in fighting, and after his departure, he could only go to the Secret Realm to battle with Devil Beasts.
"It seems that you have found the path forward, fellow Daoist. Then I congratulate you in advance on your breakthrough!" Li Zhirui perceived his reason for leaving.
To say he wasn’t envious would be false; Li Zhirui was currently stuck in the mid-Integration stage, unable to advance further, to break through to late Integration.
"Fellow Daoist, you are too overly cautious and lack a belief in bravely forging ahead, which is why you haven’t been able to take this step." Huang Shiqi also perceived the issue Li Zhirui faced and reminded him, "Being careful is not a mistake, but we cultivators all defy the heavens; if we are too cautious about everything, how can we advance on this thorny and rugged path? Sometimes, you just need to be a bit reckless!"
Li Zhirui was momentarily stunned upon hearing this. His state of mind did not immediately improve, as his caution had been ingrained in his bones, not something that could be changed with a few words.
But at the very least, the path forward that was originally somewhat hazy in his eyes was now fully revealed before Li Zhirui.
"Thank you for the guidance, fellow Daoist! I am extremely grateful!" Li Zhirui sincerely bowed to express his thanks for the enlightening words.
However, Li Zhirui did not like to owe others, especially when entangled with karma, so after thinking it over, he took out a purple-black Spiritual Object from space, sealed it in a Jade Box, and presented it before Huang Shiqi.
Huang Shiqi understood what Li Zhirui meant, did not refuse, and without looking closely, directly accepted the Jade Box.
