I Swear I’m Not a Demonic Cultivator - Chapter 17

Chapter 17: Blood Sacrifice Floating Pagoda Great Prison-Suppressing Formation

Yun Shuishui, having foiled the Azure Cloud Sect’s plans, burst into laughter as she elegantly teleported away aboard her Demonic Boat.

The Azure Cloud Sect’s countless high-ranking members felt worse than if they’d swallowed two pounds of iron.

Meanwhile, within the Demon Sealing Pagoda, space shattered.

The once-solid pagoda floor transformed into a vortex, a swirling abyss that devoured all in its path. Fang Zheng was pulled into the maelstrom by an irresistible force.

His vision vanished, leaving only endless tearing and rending.

Chaotic laws, like a billion steel blades, scoured his body from all directions. The pitch-black armor forged by the Human Emperor’s Hell-Suppressing Body emitted a piercing screech under the unbearable strain, sparks flying everywhere.

Agonizing pain surged through him.

Fang Zheng felt like he’d been shoved into a high-speed meat grinder, being mercilessly pulverized into dust.

Had this been any other Foundation Establishment cultivator, their soul would have long since scattered into oblivion.

Yet, Fang Zheng’s lips curled upward, against his will.

Hardcore!

So hardcore!

This is the ultimate trial the Sect has prepared for its Heaven Chosen! Even the teleportation process itself is a brutal test of both body and will!

He could even sense that each searing scrape of the spatial blades was tempering his physique, purging the final impurities from his Human Emperor’s Hell-Suppressing Body.

The Sect truly has gone to great lengths for this!

A cold alarm from the System belatedly sounded in Fang Zheng’s mind:

Warning! The Teleportation Formation is experiencing severe interference! Spatial Coordinates have deviated drastically!

Emergency Crash Landing Protocol activated!

Mode Locked: Random Affinity Attraction!

Scanning a 500,000-kilometer radius for the settlement of beings whose ‘Guardian’ Dao Heart resonates most strongly with the Host… Scan complete!

Seeing these notifications, Fang Zheng’s heart swelled with immeasurable gratitude.

Look at this! The Sect, fearing I might grow complacent, even faked a “failed teleportation” to temper my resolve!

The destination I’m about to reach must be a blessed land meticulously chosen by the Sect—a place where my ‘Guardian Dao’ is most urgently needed!

The Sect’s benevolence towards me is as heavy as a mountain!

The moment this thought formed, the tearing sensation vanished abruptly.

An irresistible force yanked Fang Zheng violently downward.

Bang!

Like a meteor, Fang Zheng smashed through a fragile barrier and crashed heavily into soft, foul-smelling mud.

After a long daze, Fang Zheng slowly opened his eyes.

His nostrils were assaulted by a pungent stench: a mixture of thatched grass, dirt, and livestock dung.

Gritting through the pain, Fang Zheng crawled out of the man-shaped crater he’d made, brushing off clumps of grass and mud.

Before him lay a remote, dilapidated mountain village.

The village had been blown apart.

Dozens of villagers, armed with hoes and pitchforks, converged from all directions.

They first stared at the massive hole in the roof of Wang Ermazi’s house at the village entrance, then turned their gaze to Fang Zheng, who was crawling out of the wreckage.

Shock was etched on their faces.

In the next instant, all eyes locked onto Fang Zheng’s armor—a pitch-black carapace bristling with bone spikes and etched with demonic runes, as if forged from a solidified nightmare.

Shock morphed into dead silence.

Dead silence then transformed into utter terror.

Clang!

The bare-chested butcher at the village entrance dropped his boning knife, which bounced off the ground and nearly sliced off his own toe.

A woman who had just pinned her wailing child to her lap, ready to strike, froze mid-motion. In the next instant, she clutched the child to her chest with frantic desperation, turning her back to Fang Zheng, her body trembling like a sieve.

“Demon…”

A child playing with mud by the roadside neither cried nor screamed.

He simply raised his grimy little hand, pointed at Fang Zheng, and clearly uttered the word in his pure, innocent voice, loud enough for the entire village to hear.

That single word ignited a fuse leading to a powder keg.

“Run!—”

A heart-wrenching scream tore through the air, no one knowing who had uttered it.

The crowd scattered in a chaotic stampede.

They threw down their hoes and pitchforks, scrambling back to their dilapidated huts on hands and knees.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Wooden doors slammed shut, windows were nailed shut with planks.

The once bustling village, filled with the sounds of chickens and dogs, instantly transformed into a ghost town.

Fang Zheng stood frozen in place, utterly bewildered.

He glanced down at his awe-inspiring “Human Emperor’s Sacred Body.”

Ah, I understand now!

My aura must be too overwhelming!

How could these ordinary mortals possibly withstand the supreme majesty radiating from this “Human Emperor’s Sacred Body”? They’re prostrating themselves in fear, trembling before the radiant light of my righteous Dao, unable to meet my gaze!

It seems this trial isn’t about brute force, but about cultivating a Heart Realm of ‘Returning to Simplicity’.

Fang Zheng steeled himself and immediately suppressed his aura.

The jet-black armor dissolved into black mist, merging back into his body. He reverted to his usual appearance: a handsome young man clad in the azure robes of an Azure Cloud Sect disciple.

Ding! The Novice Village Trial has begun!

Mission Name: Immerse Yourself in the Mortal World

Mission Objective: Establish ‘Friendly’ relationships with at least three villagers and listen to their ‘Wishes’.

Mission Reward: Merit Points.

The System’s notification confirmed Fang Zheng’s suspicions.

A warm, spring-like smile spread across his face as he walked toward the most imposing brick-and-tile courtyard in the heart of the village—the Old Village Chief’s residence.

He raised his hand and gently knocked on the courtyard gate.

Dong, dong, dong.

A deathly silence hung behind the gate.

After what seemed like an eternity, the gate creaked open a crack.

A frail old man with snow-white hair and deeply wrinkled skin peered out tremulously.

When he saw Fang Zheng’s harmless-looking face and the Azure Cloud Sect robes, he froze for a moment. Then, instead of diminishing, the terror in his eyes only intensified.

This Demon Lord can disguise himself!

Thump!

The Old Village Chief burst out of the gate, his knees buckling as he collapsed into a kneeling position before Fang Zheng, his entire body shaking uncontrollably.

“Immortal… Immortal Master, spare us! Have mercy!” he wailed, his forehead slamming against the ground with loud thuds as he kowtowed repeatedly.

Fang Zheng’s sense of justice surged. He swiftly stepped forward and helped the Old Village Chief to his feet.

His voice was as gentle as could be: “Elder, you misunderstand.”

“I am no Demon Lord. I have come to help you.”

These words fell on the Old Village Chief’s ears like the most venomous judgment.

He thinks our preparations are inadequate!

Or perhaps he wants to help us “die with dignity”!

The Old Village Chief’s face drained of color, his legs buckled, and he was about to kneel again.

Fang Zheng steadied him once more, his heart twisting at the sight of the man’s terror-stricken, vacant eyes.

These villagers had been oppressed for so long…

So long that they could no longer distinguish good from evil, nor understand words of kindness.

He decided to speak no further, choosing instead to prove his intentions through action.

Supporting the Old Village Chief, Fang Zheng solemnly pledged, each word carrying the weight of his resolve:

“Old man, rest assured!”

“From this day forward, as long as I am here, no malevolent entity shall harm a single one of you!”

“I will be this land’s Guardian!”

Upon hearing the words “Guardian of this land,” the Old Village Chief trembled as if sentenced to death. His lips quivered, and he finally broke down.

“The… the sacrifice… our village’s ‘sacrifice’… it’s already being prepared! Please… please grant us a few more days! We’ll make sure it meets your standards!”

Sacrifice?

The moment Fang Zheng heard that word, his eyes sharpened, and a surge of fury erupted within him.

Fang Zheng finally understood! This village had been cruelly controlled all along by a Demonic Cultivator or demonic beast, who used live human sacrifices! How utterly malevolent!

Releasing the Old Village Chief, Fang Zheng strode to the village’s central clearing and sat down cross-legged.

I must first establish a Guardian Formation to provide these poor people with the most basic sense of security.

From his memories, Fang Zheng selected the most fundamental and gentle defensive formation—the Clear Wind Guardian Formation.

When activated, this formation would create only a soothing, mind-calming barrier of gentle wind, filled with an aura of auspiciousness.

“System, I want to cultivate the Clear Wind Guardian Formation!”

Ding! Host’s unwavering aspiration to ‘Safeguard All Living Beings’ has been received!

Analyzing the surrounding environment… Detected high concentrations of decaying death qi and despairing resentment. Environment assessment: Extremely Malevolent!

Based on the ancient Guardian principle of ‘Absolute Deterrence Equals Absolute Security’, initiating the optimal solution!

Fang Zheng inwardly praised the System. It truly understands me! In such an extremely malevolent place, one must wield thunderous means with a Bodhisattva’s heart!

He immediately used his newly acquired Formation Mastery Card, extended his fingers, and, using them like a brush, drew upon the Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi.

Silently reciting his grand vow to protect the village, his fingertips traced arcane runes in the air before him.

In Fang Zheng’s eyes, the runes shimmered with golden light, brimming with Great Righteous Qi.

But to the villagers peering through the cracks in their doors, each stroke the youth drew in mid-air coalesced into a twisted, blood-dripping sigil—a cursed talisman.

As the runes multiplied, the sky darkened.

The sunlight was blotted out by an unnatural, swirling gloom, the temperature plummeted, and a bone-chilling wind whipped up dust devils that spiraled across the ground.

Yet Fang Zheng felt invigorated.

Look! The foul miasma polluting the heavens and earth is being purged by my righteous Dao!

Fang Zheng clasped his hands in a mudra and slammed them onto the ground.

嗡—

Centered on Fang Zheng, inky-black array patterns, as sinuous as living vipers, instantly spread across the village ground.

The earth turned an ominous black.

Faint, mournful wails began to echo through the air.

A satisfied smile bloomed on Fang Zheng’s face.

It’s done!

【Ding! Optimization scheme for the Clear Wind Guardian Formation has been generated…】

【Ding! Optimization successful!】

【Cultivation Technique has been upgraded to the Ultimate Guardian Edition——】

Fang Zheng closed his eyes, ready to receive the poetic name of his new technique.

The System’s icy voice echoed in his mind, each syllable ringing with chilling precision.

【Blood Sacrifice Floating Pagoda Great Prison-Suppressing Formation!】