I Swear I’m Not a Demonic Cultivator - Chapter 1
Chapter 1: Two and a Half Years of Perseverance
Azure Cloud Sect, Outer Sect Martial Training Ground.
Pop.
A soft sound, like a bubble bursting.
After an entire hour of painstaking effort, the three-inch-long, milky-white sword radiance Fang Zheng had finally condensed at his fingertip shattered.
The shattering force was another wisp of Sword Qi—casually flicked from the fingertip of the prodigious disciple, Li Mu.
Effortless, dismissive, and laced with mockery.
The surrounding air hung in dead silence.
Then came the suppressed eruption of laughter.
“Ha ha ha! Did you see that? Fang Zheng’s Vast Righteous Sword Qi, honed for two and a half years, couldn’t even withstand Senior Brother Li Mu’s casual strike!”
“What ‘diligence conquers mediocrity’? What a colossal joke!”
“A useless piece of trash, no matter how hard he tries, will always be useless!”
The mockery cut like knives, each word a Heart-Slaying strike.
Fang Zheng stood frozen, his blood seeming to congeal in his veins.
He lowered his head to gaze at his hands—calloused, scarred, and bearing several unhealed sword wounds.
For two and a half years, through countless sunrises and sunsets, he hadn’t slackened for a single day.
While others still slumbered, he would practice his swordplay facing the rising sun on the Back Mountain. While they frolicked and laughed, he soaked his aching body in the Sect’s lowest-grade medicinal bath.
He carved the four characters “Heaven Rewards Diligence” into his bedpost, etched them into his heart, and branded them into his very bones.
He firmly believed that with enough sweat and effort, he could surely surpass those so-called geniuses.
But now, reality had delivered him the most resounding slap in the face.
Two and a half years of solitary practice, shattered in an instant.
“Fang Zheng.”
A frigid voice cut through the air from ahead.
Li Mu stood a short distance away, his robes immaculate, his entire being like a sheathed blade about to be drawn.
He didn’t even spare Fang Zheng a glance, as if the sight would taint his eyes.
“You’d better not participate in next month’s Outer Sect Grand Competition.”
“Someone like you would only tarnish the reputation of our Azure Cloud Sect.”
With those words, he turned and strode away, leaving behind a proud, solitary silhouette.
Fang Zheng clenched his fists so tightly that his nails dug deep into his palms, drawing blood. The piercing pain was nothing compared to the agony tearing at his heart.
No!
I’m not wrong!
Diligence… it’s not wrong!
Just then, the Outer Sect Deacon in charge of assessments approached, his voice utterly devoid of emotion.
“Fang Zheng, Li Mu is right. Your Vast Righteous Sword Qi shows no progress whatsoever. If it remains unchanged by the time of the Grand Competition, the Sect will revoke your disciple status. You may descend the mountain on your own.”
Boom!
If Li Mu’s humiliation had been a sharp sword, the Deacon’s words were the final straw that broke the camel’s back.
Expelled from the Sect!
These four words crashed like thunder in Fang Zheng’s mind.
Dazed and dejected, he stumbled back to his wooden hut, tucked away in the most remote corner of the Outer Sect.
The hut was tiny, containing only a hard plank bed and a table.
On the table lay a well-worn copy of the Vast Righteous Sword Qi introductory manual, its pages curled and dog-eared from frequent use.
Fang Zheng reached out to pick it up, but his arm felt as heavy as a thousand pounds.
His body slid down the wall until he collapsed weakly onto the ground.
Pain… such pain!
Two and a half years of unwavering dedication, two and a half years of unwavering belief, had been crushed to dust in a single day.
Could it be… was I truly wrong?
Are those born into privilege forever beyond the reach of us mere mortals, no matter how hard we strive?
Resentment, fury, humiliation, confusion… a maelstrom of emotions churned within his chest, threatening to tear him apart.
Fang Zheng lifted his head, gazing through the dilapidated window at the gray, overcast sky. Summoning every ounce of his remaining strength, he let out a primal roar that erupted from the depths of his soul:
“Am I truly wrong for striving diligently?!”
“Someone, please help me!”
The words had barely left his lips when a cold, emotionless, mechanically synthesized voice echoed in his mind without warning.
Ding!
Detected Host’s intense obsession with walking the Righteous Dao…
Obsession Strength: Extremely High. Meets binding requirements.
Binding the “Heaven Rewards Diligence (Demonic Modification)” System…
1%…30%…70%…100%!
Binding complete!
Fang Zheng’s body jerked violently, his anguished roar abruptly cut short.
What was that?
A hallucination?
He shook his head, but the voice echoed again.
Greetings, Host. The “Heaven Rewards Diligence (Demonic Modification)” System is at your service.
This System aims to uphold the supreme law of “Heaven Rewards Diligence,” deeply optimizing all your “Righteous” cultivation endeavors, sweeping away all obstacles, and guiding you to the luminous pinnacle!
Fang Zheng froze, stunned.
A System?
He’d seen the term in popular tales—a supreme boon reserved for Ancient Great Powers!
My cry… it was heard?
Heaven Rewards… Diligence?
He trembled with excitement, so overwhelmed that he didn’t even notice the tiny “(Demonic Modification)” written in parentheses.
A spark of hope rekindled in his nearly lifeless heart!
System? Can you… can you really help me? Fang Zheng tentatively asked in his mind.
Of course, Host. This System is the ultimate reward for your diligence.
Please establish your ‘Righteous Goal’ and select the ‘Righteous Path Cultivation Technique’ you wish to optimize. This System will generate the most efficient cultivation plan for you.
Righteous Goal?
Li Mu’s arrogant face and the Deacon’s icy words instantly flashed through Fang Zheng’s mind.
His goal was crystal clear!
“I will cultivate the Vast Righteous Sword Qi! My goal is to defeat Li Mu fairly and squarely in the Sect Grand Competition a month from now, proving the true value of diligence!”
Host’s request received.
Goal established: To act justly in the name of ‘diligence’ and defeat the ‘arrogant’ enemy.
Cultivation Technique selected: Vast Righteous Sword Qi
Optimizing cultivation plan… Optimization focus: enhancing efficiency, amplifying power, and ensuring absolute dominance over the enemy.
Optimizing… Please wait…
Fang Zheng’s heart pounded wildly as he waited anxiously.
This was his last chance!
Ding! Optimization complete!
The original Cultivation Technique “Vast Righteous Sword Qi” has been replaced with the ultimate optimized version—”Myriad Souls Heart-Devouring Sword.”
Cultivation Efficiency Increased: 5000%
Cultivation Technique Power Increased: 10000%
A series of notification tones made Fang Zheng’s breath catch in his throat.
Myriad… Myriad Souls Heart-Devouring Sword?
This name… sounds a bit ominous, doesn’t it?
Just as a sliver of doubt surfaced in his mind, the System provided a timely explanation:
Cultivation Technique Explanation: The “Myriad Souls Heart-Devouring Sword” is an Ancient Righteous Method. Its core essence lies in invoking the Guardian Will of myriad unyielding Heroic Souls between Heaven and Earth, concentrating it into a single sword. With a single strike, it can instantly devour all arrogance, malice, and evil thoughts within an enemy’s heart, shattering their Dao Heart. Hence its name: Myriad Souls Heart-Devouring. This is a majestic and righteous Sword of Heart-Slaying, a Guardian of the Dao!
Ah, I see now!
Fang Zheng finally understood, his doubts vanishing like smoke.
Infused with the Guardian Will of myriad Heroic Souls!
Devouring the malice within enemies’ hearts!
This is the very essence of the Vast Righteous Sword Qi’s highest realm!
Heart-Slaying!
Guardian of the Dao!
Ah, what a true Sword of Righteousness!
Fang Zheng’s face flushed crimson with excitement, his blood burning like fire.
“System, I must begin cultivating immediately!”
【The cultivation method for the Myriad Souls Heart-Devouring Sword has been transmitted to the Host’s memory. Please sit cross-legged and guide your Qi back to its origin.】
Daring not to delay even a moment, Fang Zheng immediately assumed the cultivation posture according to the profound method that had appeared in his mind.
As he completed the first cycle of the technique…
Buzz—
An indescribably frigid aura instantly permeated his body.
The temperature in the wooden hut plummeted as if summer had plunged directly into the depths of winter.
In a corner, a spider weaving its web froze mid-motion, dropped to the ground with a soft thud, and instantly disintegrated into a small pile of black powder.
Fang Zheng remained oblivious to this.
All he could feel was Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi surging into his body from all directions with unprecedented ferocity!
This speed was more than a hundred times faster than when he cultivated the Vast Righteous Sword Qi!
“Good… so powerful!”
Fang Zheng’s heart surged with ecstatic joy.
He automatically rationalized the chilling sensation:
“As expected of an Ancient Righteous Method! Even the celestial phenomena it evokes are extraordinary! This icy chill must be tempering my will, keeping me true to my original self!”
More convinced than ever, Fang Zheng threw himself wholeheartedly into cultivation.
Unbeknownst to him, strands of black thread, finer than hair, were seeping from the void, slowly coiling around his body.
Outside the wooden hut, the once vibrant grassland was visibly withering, turning yellow and rotting at an alarming rate.
In the sky, a bright moon had been obscured by dark clouds.
Throughout the Azure Cloud Sect’s Outer Sect region, many disciples who had already fallen asleep felt a sudden, inexplicable heart palpitations in their dreams, instinctively pulling their feet under their blankets.
At the center of this maelstrom, Fang Zheng remained completely absorbed in the immense joy of his rapidly increasing power.
His eyes closed, his mind fixated on a single thought:
“Li Mu, just you wait!”
“This time, I’ll show you exactly what true diligence means!”