Demonic Cultivator: Immune To Common Side Effects - Chapter 34

Chapter 34: Reckless Cultivation Technique, Unexpected Success!

Clutching the treasure, Su Chongyue remained oblivious to the dark figure slithering toward him like a venomous snake.

In the next instant, Su Chongyue whirled around, stomping his foot squarely on Li Yan’s shadow!

“Blood Shadow Art?”

“Boy, I don’t know who you are, but you dare secretly cultivate our Su Clan’s forbidden technique? You’re dead!”

Before Su Chongyue could finish, another shadow abruptly lunged forward.

The lower-grade storage ring on the shadow’s finger glowed, sucking the Blood Lotus Burning Lamp Technique from Su Chongyue’s grasp into the ring.

With the secret manual secured, the second shadow swiftly vanished into the darkness.

The coordinated maneuver of the two shadows—one acting as bait, the other as the thief—had completely outwitted Su Chongyue.

Third Elder Su Chongyue flew into a rage, his face contorted with humiliation: “You little brat! How dare you make a fool of this old man?!”

Indeed, the first shadow had merely been a diversion created by Li Yan to draw Su Chongyue’s attention. The second shadow was the true operative, tasked with stealing the secret manual.

Fooled by Li Yan’s feigned attack, Third Elder Su Chongyue’s face darkened with humiliation.

“Two shadows? You stole the Lotus Lamp!”

“Insolent brat! Daring to flaunt your meager skills before me! I’ll show you the true meaning of Blood Shadow Art!”

With lightning speed, the Third Elder unleashed his shadow—or rather, revealed that his shadow was his true form!

The dark figure surged forward, seized Li Yan’s shadow, and violently yanked it back toward himself. Li Yan felt a terrifying force tearing at his shadow, threatening to rip it from his body.

Without hesitation, he swiftly twisted the wick of the Lotus Lamp, extinguishing its light.

In an instant, the captured shadow vanished without a trace, leaving Su Chongyue grasping at thin air. The other shadow, now possessing the Secret Manual, swiftly rejoined Li Yan.

Having acquired the Cultivation Technique that complemented the Blood Glazed Lotus Lamp, Li Yan dared not linger. Without a backward glance, he fled deeper into Broken Sword Valley.

Behind him, the Third Elder of the Su Clan roared in frustrated rage, venting his impotent fury.

“Little thief! Don’t think this mist will protect you forever! I’ll scour every inch of Broken Sword Valley!”

“Su Clan Disciples, heed my command! Gather all forces and search the entire valley in groups of ten!”

Su Chongyue realized that this petty thief dared to be so audacious in stealing his possessions only because of the Restricted Mist within Broken Sword Valley.

Meanwhile, Li Yan was determined to seize his prize at any cost.

The Su Clan had sealed off the entire valley, vowing to leave no stone unturned until they recovered the Blood Glazed Lotus Lamp.

Now, he had no choice but to push forward recklessly, risking everything to obtain the Blood Lotus Burning Lamp Technique.

“I never expected the Third Elder to be so careless, allowing himself to be fooled by my two Shadows. I owe it all to the Restricted Mist, which shielded his Divine Sense.”

Li Yan knew this Mist Restriction was his lifeline.

But now, even that might not be enough.

Unlike the Tranquil Void Temple, the Su Clan cultivators had summoned all their surrounding disciples to the valley.

The number of Su Clan members in Broken Sword Valley was growing steadily, leaving Li Yan with fewer places to hide.

Worse, they were immune to the poisonous mist. Using the Blood Shadow Art, they controlled Shadows to scour the dense miasma for his location.

Currently concealed behind a stone pillar in the ruins, Li Yan could see countless dark figures flickering across the ground through his Mind’s Eye.

Without hesitation, Li Yan resolutely picked up the Blood Lotus Burning Lamp Technique.

Ever since the Su Clan had sealed off Broken Sword Valley, he’d had no choice but to pin his hopes on this secret manual.

The manual in his hands was the original Burning Lamp Technique, created by the Demon Shadow Sect, the earliest and most primitive version.

As Li Yan flipped through the pages, his mind instantly went blank.

“What kind of script is this?”

“Bronze Inscriptions? Stone Drum Texts? Small Seal Script?”

The characters swam before his eyes, leaving him utterly bewildered.

The text appeared to be written in Ancient Immortal Script, a pictographic script from the ancient era, distinct from the modern Standard Script.

Fortunately, most of the characters were pictographs, allowing him to decipher roughly half to two-thirds of the manual through educated guesses and pattern recognition.

Still, these Ancient Immortal Script characters, so eerily similar to Small Seal Script, sent shivers down his spine. His scalp tingled and his head itched, as if his brain were about to burst from growth.

With the pursuers closing in and their shadows flitting past outside, Li Yan gritted his teeth, determined to unlock his hidden potential.

As he strained to decipher the script, the Blood Glazed Lotus Lamp in his hand suddenly lit up.

System: Warning! The host is attempting to practice a cultivation technique blindly. Such reckless practice will result in severe side effects!

System: Side effect being neutralized for host.

System: Host is recklessly practicing a cultivation technique. Technique learning speed increased by a hundredfold!

“Huh?”

Li Yan, clutching the Heavenly Tome, stared in disbelief at the notification floating before him.

Reckless practice actually works?

Apparently, it did!

Reckless practice of cultivation techniques normally caused irreversible damage to the body—that was a side effect in itself.

With that worry gone, Li Yan had nothing holding him back.

Might as well keep recklessly practicing. He’d barely managed to decipher a few characters of the Ancient Immortal Script in half a day anyway.

Since even reckless practice yielded results, he decided to throw caution to the wind and embrace a laissez-faire approach.

From the line of text, Li Yan could barely recognize a few characters: “blood,” “Death Yin,” “seven orifices,” “transformation,” and so on.

As he continued his reckless practice, the Blood Glazed Lotus Lamp in his hand, which should have been emitting a crimson glow, began to radiate golden light.

The lamp’s light pierced through the Restricted Mist, quickly attracting the attention of Third Elder Su Chongyue.

Su Chongyue raised his hand. “You all wait here. I’ll capture this little thief myself!”

“Yes, Elder!”

The other disciples dared not approach, remaining rooted to the spot.

Guided by the radiant glow of the Blood Glazed Lotus Lamp, Third Elder Su Chongyue of the Su Clan easily tracked Li Yan to his hiding place.

“Boy, stop hiding!” Su Chongyue sneered. “The light from your lamp is leaking through the cracks. Do you really think this old man is blind?”

With a contemptuous laugh, he raised his hand and snatched away the stone pillar concealing Li Yan, exposing the youth’s true form.

The moment Li Yan was discovered, Corpse Puppet Su Mo immediately hoisted the Demonic Bone Greatsword and stepped forward to protect him. “Master, run!” she urged tensely.

Third Elder Su Chongyue burst into raucous laughter at the sight of Su Mo. “Well, well, Su Mo! After searching high and low… The Su Clan arranged your marriage to Green Gate Mountain, yet you dared to flee your wedding! Do you realize the Green Gate Ancestor awaits your Ghost Marriage? The old man favors you greatly, yet you dare break your betrothal!”

Blinded by the Mist Restriction, Su Chongyue failed to realize Su Mo was now a Corpse Puppet. Still believing she was alive, he planned to drag her back and bury her alive in the Green Gate Ancestor’s coffin.

As Third Elder Su Chongyue advanced relentlessly, Corpse Puppet Su Mo tensed, determined to protect Li Yan.

But…

With a flick of his sleeve, the Third Elder unleashed his shadow like a whip. It cracked against Su Mo, sending her flying backward.

After sweeping Su Mo aside, Su Chongyue fixed his gaze on Li Yan.

“Little brat, you dare steal my Su Clan’s Blood Shadow Art? You’ll pay the price.”

“Your shadow looks quite promising… heh…”

An eerie laughter emanated from the shadow beneath Su Chongyue’s feet. The sound didn’t come from the Third Elder himself, but from the shadow on the ground!

As the shadow transformed into a gaping, bloodstained maw, preparing to devour Li Yan’s own shadow, the boy, who had been standing with his eyes tightly closed, suddenly snapped them open.

Holding the Blood Glazed Lotus Lamp, he solemnly intoned three words:

“White Lotus, Ignite!”

The Blood Glazed Lotus Lamp unfurled, and an ethereal white lotus blossomed around Li Yan, utterly obliterating the Blood Shadow beneath him.

With a bloodcurdling scream, Third Elder Su Chongyue’s shadow disintegrated into ashes.