I Swear I’m Not a Demonic Cultivator - Chapter 22
Chapter 22: Cleansing Zhao Xun
The Spirit Bodies of all the villagers trembled violently, beyond their control.
It wasn’t fear.
It was a surrender and longing that sprang from the depths of their souls.
Like a wandering child finally seeing the path home.
“This is the Human Emperor Banner,” Fang Zheng’s voice rang out, solemn and divine.
“The origin of the Human Dao, the source of all protection. Follow me into the banner, and henceforth, where I dwell shall be your homeland. I will grant you eternal life!”
The Old Village Chief was the first to react.
His eyes blazed with fanatical fervor.
“We pledge to obey My Lord’s Divine Decree!”
Without the slightest hesitation, his Spirit Body transformed into a stream of light and plunged into the Human Emperor Banner.
Buzz!
The golden figure on the banner flickered brightly.
Fang Zheng felt the connection between himself and the Old Village Chief solidify tenfold in an instant!
He could clearly sense the Old Village Chief’s absolute loyalty and devotion, like the purest fuel, causing his power to surge anew!
With the first, came the second and third.
“We are willing to die for My Lord!”
“We are willing to eradicate the Demons for My Lord!”
All the villagers, vying with each other, transformed into streaks of light and plunged resolutely into the Human Emperor Banner.
In an instant, the once-crowded village was deserted, leaving only Fang Zheng kneeling on the ground and Zhao Xun, the Hundred Herbs Valley disciple, whose body had been twisted beyond recognition by Divine Punishment.
Fang Zheng held the banner aloft and gently waved it.
Whoosh!
The static pattern on the banner’s surface vanished, replaced by a hazy world. Within it, shadowy figures moved amidst rising wisps of cooking smoke, as if a miniature realm had come to life.
Countless devout faces flashed across the banner’s surface, silently kowtowing to Fang Zheng.
Fang Zheng felt an unprecedented surge of power coursing through him.
He even had the delusion that with a single wave of the banner, he could darken the heavens, shatter mountains, and cleave rivers asunder!
This must be the power of the Guardian!
Suppressing his surging emotions, Fang Zheng turned his gaze to Zhao Xun.
This man’s sins are unforgivable.
But he cannot die yet.
He still needed to extract all of Hundred Herbs Valley’s crimes from this villain’s lips to console the innocent souls they had slaughtered!
Fang Zheng approached Zhao Xun and crouched down.
From his memory, Fang Zheng retrieved a Cultivation Technique called the Heart-Calming Universal Salvation Divine Inquiry Mantra.
According to Classic Texts, this mantra possessed gentle spiritual power capable of soothing a Cultivator’s Divine Soul, allowing them to reveal their innermost thoughts in a tranquil state. It was considered the epitome of compassion.
“System, I want to use the Heart-Calming Universal Salvation Divine Inquiry Mantra on this evildoer!”
Ding! Host’s resolute vow to ‘Punish Evil and Promote Good’ acknowledged!
Analyzing target’s condition… Detected extreme corruption of the Divine Soul. Conventional purification methods will be ineffective.
Activating optimal solution based on the ancient judicial principle of ‘fighting poison with poison, evil with evil’!
Cultivation Technique has been replaced with the Ultimate Interrogation Edition—
Myriad Souls Heart-Devouring Mind Searching Scripture!
What an excellent name! Fang Zheng marveled inwardly.
For dealing with such a vile villain, it was only fitting to use his greatest fear—the Myriad Souls—to devour his filthy heart and scour his depraved mind!
The System truly understood the art of retribution!
Fang Zheng extended a finger, its tip glowing with what appeared to him as an incomparably serene golden light, and gently pressed it against Zhao Xun’s forehead.
“Confess the sins of Hundred Herbs Valley, and I can grant you release.”
His voice was gentle, yet brimming with the righteous authority of the Dao.
But to Zhao Xun’s perception, the moment that finger touched his forehead, it felt as if the vengeful spirits of the countless villagers he had just slaughtered transformed into the most malevolent wraiths, screaming and tearing their way through his forehead, invading his Sea of Consciousness!
“Aaaaaaahhhhhh—!!!”
Zhao Xun let out a hundred times more harrowing scream than before.
His Divine Soul was repeatedly torn apart and forcibly pieced back together, forced to witness the generations of suffering endured by the villagers.
His will was subjected to the most brutal torment from the very first instant.
“I’ll talk! I’ll talk! I’ll confess everything!”
Zhao Xun’s body convulsed violently as black, foul-smelling liquid gushed from his mouth and nostrils.
Like spilling beans, he howled out all the secrets of Hundred Herbs Valley without reservation.
“Hundred Herbs Valley… worships the ‘Flesh and Blood Ancient God’! All the medicinal materials… are ‘Human Pills’ refined from living people!”
“There’s a Flesh Altar in the valley… Every forty-nine days, they sacrifice nine hundred and ninety-nine mortals!”
“Our Hundred Herbs Valley controls thirty-six ‘Medicinal Field’ villages like this!”
“The Valley Master loves nothing more than gifting Wangzai Xiaoqiao a million yuan! All the other money goes to repairing the Flesh Altar!”
“We’re the ones who steal Primogems from Genshin Impact players! We exchange them for Blue Fates and delight in watching their despair when they pull Mona or Keqing instead of the characters they want from the Standard Banner!”
“We even banned the headmaster from installing air conditioning anywhere except his own quarters!”
“And we transformed the Northern Pearl into a laser cannon that attacks the poor…”
Tears streamed down Zhao Xun’s face as he spilled each horrifying crime.
Fang Zheng listened in silence.
With each revelation, the chill in his aura deepened.
By the end, the air within three feet of him seemed frozen solid.
An uncontrollable rage surged through him, piercing the crown of his head.
This was no longer just a demonic deviation from the Dao.
This is an act of utter depravity, a crime that enrages both gods and mortals, a deed fit only for beasts!
Fang Zheng slowly rose to his feet. The Human Emperor Banner in his hand stirred without wind, its surface rippling with the angry roars of countless phantom figures.
“Hundred Herbs Valley,” Fang Zheng said, lifting his gaze into the distance. His voice was ice-cold, utterly devoid of emotion.
“I, Fang Zheng, swear by the name of the Human Emperor,”
“To uproot you completely, to grind your bones to dust, to deny you rebirth for eternity!”
He lowered his head, looking at the lifeless corpse of his Junior Brother Zhao Xun on the ground.
“Your sins, too, are unforgivable.”
Fang Zheng extended his hand towards the corpse and made a gentle summoning gesture.
“I shall grant you ‘purification,’ forcing you to endlessly repent for your transgressions in life!”
A wisp of black qi flew from his palm and sank into the corpse.
The body convulsed violently, then slowly rose to its feet in a grotesque, unnatural posture.
Two eerie green flames burned in its empty eye sockets.
A perfect Prison-Suppressing Corpse Puppet had been born—tireless, fearless, and utterly relentless.