In The Cultivation World, Are There Only Demonesses Left?

Chapter 23: The Beggars Frozen to Death in the North of the City

When the first drop of rainwater fell to the earth, Upper Jade Capital began to quake and tremble.

Li Qingcao instantly knew something had gone wrong.

“Quickly, leave Upper Jade Capital!!!”

It was already too late.

The black rain falling from the sky, once it touched a cultivator, would take root like a tree, binding the cultivator completely.

The black qi was using cultivators as nourishment, absorbing their power to break free from its seal.

Even with Li Qingcao’s heavenly cultivation, at this moment he was also entangled by the rooting black qi.

His eyes went black.

When he opened them again, he had returned to that rainy night more than twenty years ago.

It was when he had not yet stepped into the Immortal Path and was still a beggar in the mortal world.

This was the nightmare he least wished to recall.

The woman he loved had married into an official’s family, while he had been persecuted into becoming a beggar.

This black rain would force one to relive the most humiliating moments of the past.

If unable to break free, one would be slowly drained to death by the black qi.

Not far away, by the stone bridge near Lake of Retained Affection, a young girl strolled forward under an oil-paper umbrella.

The raindrops struck the umbrella, but because the umbrella ribs were strong and resilient, the surface was not destroyed.

The tips of her embroidered shoes lightly stepped upon the water, treading delicately upon the stone steps.

Though the curtain of black rain carried the power to overwhelm the heavens, not a corner of her robe was touched.

The reason was simple.

From the moment of her birth, nothing in this world had ever been able to disturb her heart.

Her heart was like glazed glass, like a bright mirror, unstained by the faintest dust.

The National Preceptor, entangled by the black rain himself, stared in disbelief at this scene: “Your Highness, what is this!?”

Su Youwan stretched out her hand to catch a drop of rain.

Against her skin, the black rain made her complexion appear all the more delicate and fair.

“The Rain of Desire Demons. Someone has released the Great Demon. This is the rain the Great Demon summons to collect heart demons in order to shatter the seal.”

“The Great Demon? The Great Demon!?”

The National Preceptor only knew that the Demon-Suppressing Sword suppressed a demon, but he had never imagined that the sealed demon would be this vicious—that even without being fully unsealed, it could already affect the whole of Upper Jade Capital.

He cried bitterly: “Our dynasty is finished.”

“Why?”

Su Youwan’s voice was like a feather.

As the National Preceptor was about to lose consciousness, dragged into his nightmare, he mustered the last of his strength: “Upper Jade Capital will be destroyed. Our people… our people…”

Then he too was pulled into the nightmare.

“Our people will not be harmed.”

Su Youwan stood upon the long stone bridge, gazing at the falling black rain.

She leapt onto a raft floating in the lake, her hairpin trembling lightly with her movement.

“This rain only harms cultivators, not the people.”

Just as mortals could not be corrupted by Desire Demons.

Those without cultivation would not be entangled by the black rain, nor would they become its nourishment.

What should be done?  

Lu Changyuan pondered this question.

The black rain only drained those with cultivation.

But then, what about Xia Lianxue?  

The answer was right before him.

Caught unawares, Xia Lianxue had been touched by a few drops of rain.

She too was dragged into a nightmare, surrounded completely by black rain—yet it could not harm her.

She was a cultivator.

But without cultivation.

Stuck in between.

Lu Changyuan himself was completely unaffected.

In fact, he even felt a little sleepy.

There existed no heart demon in the world that could invade him.

The Supreme Pure-Spirit Forget-Immortal Technique circulated.

Lu Changyuan pressed his finger lightly against Xia Lianxue’s forehead.

~~~~~~~~~~  

A thousand miles of ice, ten thousand miles of silence.

Between heaven and earth remained only an endless expanse of white.

Mountains stretched on in unbroken chains, an unending hell of snow and ice.

Where was this?  

Lu Changyuan knew he had entered Xia Lianxue’s past, though he did not know at which age of her life.

Someone walked slowly forward, leaving footprints upon the soft snow.

That person seemed to be searching for something, yet could not find it: “Where is it, where exactly is it?”  

Lu Changyuan watched quietly.

He had already guessed the person’s identity.

That was True Person Hanshui.

Because the person wore an old-style white Daoist robe—the robe of the Feather Moon Immortal Palace—that Lu Changyuan would never forget.

But upon its hem was embroidered the same Pure Lotus he had once seen on True Person Han Yi.

True Person Hanshui suddenly rose into the air, searching for something above.

Whoosh!  

A bitterly cold wind swept in.

Night descended abruptly.

Whispers, indistinct and unintelligible, howled in his ears.

“Cease your noise!”  

True Person Hanshui drew her sword.

With a single strike, the wind ceased its howl, the mountains grew still, even the avalanches stopped.

The great might of the Sixth Realm, Dawning Sun Stage, was thus revealed.

Unaware, she continued to walk forward, step after step.

In the distance, a point of starlight suddenly flared.

True Person Hanshui exhaled in relief: “I’ve found it!”  

Before her eyes appeared countless stone sculptures.

Strangely, these statues had ferocious faces and ghastly visages, yet all were kowtowing in the same direction.

From ahead came a sound—blurred, chilling, incomprehensible words.

“Snow demons.”  

True Person Hanshui saw them.

Beyond the countless statues knelt a horde of snow demons, worshipping something.

These snow demons were dying.

They kowtowed again and again, endlessly, until death claimed them.

Then, at a speed too fast to be believed, they petrified into stone sculptures.

Shriek!!!  

As if sensing True Person Hanshui’s arrival, the snow demons leapt toward her, intent on tearing her apart.

With just one sword strike, the heavens and earth grew bright and clear.

True Person Hanshui descended, coming to stand before the stone stele the snow demons had been worshipping.

Before Lu Changyuan could look closely—  

The scene dissolved into illusion, only to condense again in moments.

～～～～～～～～～  

Once more, drifting snow mercilessly blanketed the land.

Another winter had come.

When Lu Changyuan opened his eyes, he saw a snow-covered city.

The streets within were buried in white, icy winds howling through, cutting the face like blades.

Yet inside the rice shop by the city wall, there was warmth.

Looking closely, he saw that a brazier had been lit, hot air flowing from within.

Someone spoke: “Several beggars froze to death in the north of the city.”  

“Them dying is no surprise, isn’t it the same every winter?”  

“True enough. Beggars dying saves us the trouble of their noise outside my door.”  

Immortals did not know spring and summer, but mortals knew autumn and winter well.

Lu Changyuan looked at the rice shop’s owner and his assistant.

They were warmly dressed, but their words revealed they no longer regarded beggars as human beings.

The world had always been like this.

People said immortals did not treat mortals as people.

But if mortals had power, even just a little wealth, they too never treated those beneath them as people.

“The rice in your shop—I will buy it all. Distribute it to those beggars. Also buy them some charcoal for warmth. I am a True Disciple of the Jade Temple. Do not dare cheat me.”  

Someone approached, tossing down a pouch.

It was Xia Lianxue.

She wore no veil, her brows soft and arched, like a celestial in the snow.

Another girl said: “Senior Sister, why pity mortals? Mortals have their destined fates.”  

But Xia Lianxue only shook her head: “Do as much as one can.”  

“Senior Sister, you were born with extraordinary talent, and your beauty is unmatched. Now, with such kindness of heart—if the few male disciples in the palace were to learn of this, then we sisters would truly stand no chance.”  

Xia Lianxue smiled helplessly.

Of course she knew she was beautiful.

Since her coming-of-age, whenever she practiced sword by the lakeside, many would secretly watch her.

Among them, female disciples were many, but male disciples even more.

But each time, the female disciples would chase the men away, then step forward themselves to ask her about swordsmanship.

Her temperament was tranquil, with no interest in matters between men and women.

So regardless of gender, she taught the sword sincerely.

Then another girl added: “We never had any chance anyway. Half the male disciples are watching Senior Sister Xue, and the other half… they all go to watch Senior Sister Yuehan.”