The Ancestor of All Demons

Back in the day, Ruan Zheng, along with Monk Xiao, Shen Tuhong, and others, impulsively slew an overseas independent immortal. They were caught by Dragon Slayer, who bagged them up and delivered them to Qi Shuming at Fishing Rock in the East Sea.

Dragon Slayer, Shen Xiu, had once been restrained by Master Xiao Yue due to her excessive killing nature. She was handed over to Master Chang Mei, who expelled her from his sect, sending her to become a nun under Xin Ru Nun's guidance.

This time, even Qi Shuming could not protect them, expelling them from the sect to experience tribulations outside for over eighty years. Especially Ruan Zheng, who had to reincarnate three times before returning to the sect.

Throughout these three lives, memories would sporadically return at times, while at other times, they would not. Sometimes he felt mutual attraction with Ming Shu; at other times, he was intent on distancing himself.

The pledges of love sworn by Shi Pi the Elder belonged to past lives, even earlier lives. He had now fully recovered his memories, focused solely on the Heavenly Immortal Position, uninterested in romantic affairs. Shi Pi the Elder, aggrieved and furious, locked him up here with intentions to torment him to death.

Upon seeing Shi Zhu, he understood that he was the reincarnation of Elder Kuzhu, possessing great mana and the potential to escape. Yet the complex relationship between the Emei Sect and Shi Feiyang deterred him from asking for rescue.

He still held gratitude towards Elder Kuzhu because, in a past life, when helping Zhuge Jingwo ascend the Outer Heaven Divine Mountain to kill Shi Feiyang, Elder Kuzhu had personally lent a hand.

However, now that Shi Zhu had sealed his past life memories and no longer acknowledged himself as Elder Kuzhu, discussing their past ties seemed inappropriate.

Shi Zhu looked at him and suddenly smiled, inspecting the arrays within the Demon Prison while speaking: "The torture you're enduring now is the most severe in the Asura Sect, excruciating to the extreme, beyond what ordinary people can endure. You've held on this long; impressive indeed. Why not ask for my help to ease your suffering through spell-casting?"

Ruan Zheng chuckled bitterly: "I've thought about asking for your assistance, senior, but I fear you may harbor resentment over my past offense against Master Yuan Yang; the matter is too complicated for words, I..."

Shi Zhu laughed heartily: "You worry that my master holds grudges, and that I, too, hold them on his behalf, so that I won't save you? You truly underestimate my current master!"

Holding the Six Roots Pure Bamboo, he tapped the ground around him and continued, "Though my memories are not fully restored, during the spell attack by those two demons, various past events occurred to me. Back then, taking advantage of my master's tribulation, we went to Outer Heaven Divine Mountain to harm him. If harshness were to be measured, I went even harder than you. Yet, when did Master ever bear a grudge against me? This life, he guided me into the just path of the Mysterious Sect,

taught me the True Skill of the Mysterious Sect, and carefully protected me through reincarnations, shielding me from many calamities. Even bestowed upon me the peerless treasure, Xuanyuan Sword. Such weighty guidance and vast tolerance not controlled by enmity have transformed even my narrow heart once labeled 'one of the monsters of the Great Wilderness Mountain' in past lives."

He discerned the crucial points of the array and suddenly stopped in his tracks, turning around, and raised the green bamboo, pointing repeatedly at Ruan Zhen, sending out six streams of green energy to dissolve the magic binding Ruan Zheng, along with the hooked blade, golden spear, and other items impaled in his body.

With a "thud!" Ruan Zheng fell from the wall, collapsing on the ground. With several bloody wounds on his body, he was drenched in sweat, momentarily unable to stand.

Though deeply trapped in the Demon Prison, Shi Zhu's mood was remarkably cheerful: "I finally know what Master sent me to Divine Sword Peak for—to save you!"

Ruan Zheng managed to sit up against the wall, his face full of astonishment: "How could it be... to save me?"

Shi Zhu smiled and said: "With Master's vast divine skills, he surely foresees that the matter with Shi Pi the Old Demon is irreversible. He sent me far here to deliver a message; it couldn't possibly be a scheme to trap me. Shi Pi the Elder, with intentions, deliberately sent me here to take you away, and simultaneously take his daughter away, offering her a future retreat."

This puzzled Ruan Zheng even more: "Shi Pi the Elder wants you to take his daughter away too?"

Shi Zhu nodded but did not elaborate further.

Ruan Zheng looked at Shi Zhu with complex emotions: he was one of the seniors he most revered in his past life, especially because, back then, he helped him and Zhuge Jingwo go to Outer Heaven Divine Mountain to slay the dragon in revenge. Despite failing disastrously, he always remembered this debt of gratitude.

Shi Zhu, possessing only fragments of memory, wandered around the Demon Prison a few times before sitting cross-legged in the center, not entering meditation for cultivation, but conversing with Ruan Zheng.

Ruan Zheng noticed that Shi Zhu's character had genuinely changed, becoming especially sunny and open, enthusiastic and talkative, wide-hearted—unlike before. Back then, Elder Kuzhu, although approachable, always carried an invisible pressure from above, making people speak cautiously, fearing any word might provoke him.

Now, however, he was like an older brother from next door, seemingly no forbidden topics, speaking wrongly was of no consequence, and he wouldn't get angry. He took particular pride in his master, mentioning him in at least one of every ten sentences, with evident pride in his tone.

Within the Emei Sect, they tended to be reserved, even when proud of their own sect and mentors, they wouldn't frequently vocalize their gratitude towards them.

It was clear; he truly felt deep gratitude towards Master Yuan Yang from the bottom of his heart.

If in his past life Elder Kuzhu, externally looking like a youth with a gentle temperament, was internally withered and senile, a true Kuzhu (withered bamboo).

In this life, Shi Zhu was a new bamboo newly matured, having even a hint of tender sprout-like energy...

When people are born, they are soft and weak, but in death, they become firm and strong.

Shi Zhu opened the conversation box, chatting with Ruan Zheng about experiences around the world, discussing cultivation techniques, and even asking him about the future world structure, how Qi Shuming and Li Yingqiong viewed it, and what the Emei Sect planned.

Ruan Zheng carefully answered what he could.

After chatting for most of the day, Shi Zhu suddenly asked, "Do you know why I'm here chatting idly with you?"

Ruan Zheng shook his head, "I don't know, senior."

Shi Zhu tapped with his bamboo staff, "I'm just waiting for your beloved."

Ruan Zheng didn't know what he meant, but soon, one wall of the demon prison started to fade, the metal wall cracked open, but the runes on it all flickered with red light, like hollowed-out patterns burning with blood flames.

A girl in red, her hair disheveled, barefooted, appeared outside, with six golden swords pinned to her chest and three golden sabers pinned to her forehead, holding a blood-stained bead in her hand, crying outside, "Brother Ruan... Brother Ruan..."

Ruan Zheng was taken aback by the sight, quickly struggling to crawl over, "Ming... Princess, what are you doing?"

Ming Shu squatted down, looking at him through the burning blood flames of the demon talisman, "I begged my father to release you, he wouldn't agree, insisting on taking you as his son-in-law. I know you definitely wouldn't agree, he said if you never agree, he would use the Asura Blood Flame to completely refine you, body and soul will be destroyed, sob sob..."

She saw Ruan Zhen battered and bruised, with several bloody holes, heartbroken, wanting to reach in, but her fingers were burned by the blood flames, she painfully pulled her hand back.

Ruan Zheng sighed, "I have transcended many lifetimes, bravely pursuing the Immortal Path, this heart and will never changing. I cultivate the Mysterious Sect's true skill to cultivate my Yang God, your father's Demon Fire can only harm me but cannot destroy my Primordial Spirit..."

"My father says you are still one step short, your Primordial Spirit has not achieved Pure Yang, and cannot last three years, after three years you will inevitably turn to ashes."

Ruan Zheng smiled bitterly, "This is my tribulation, as a disciple of the Emei Sect, my past might have been too smooth, even when I reincarnated, I had the protection of my sect... Now in this situation, it's only fair I endure this tribulation. I must refine the last shadow remnants in these three years, achieve Pure Yang, so your father cannot kill me."

"But what if you can't? Suffering the torment of the Asura Great Technique day and night, how can you cultivate?"

"If I can't, I would be ashamed of my master's teachings, let me then turn to flying ashes!"

"Sob sob..." Ming Shu cried again painfully, "I don't want that, I want you to live well, even if you don't want to be with me, you must live well... sob sob... Brother Ruan, I begged father to release you, he wouldn't listen, I swore to my Lifebound Demon, if you were killed by him, I won't live either! I will be destroyed with you, and I will never forgive him...

I risked my life to see you one last time, going back to endure the ritual of offering to the Demon, also to suffer three years, when you are free, I will be free, when you turn to flying ashes, I will also turn to flying ashes. I want to open the demon prison to rescue you, but father's mana is too high, even my Lifebound Demon can't open this demon prison..."

She cried as she spoke, very emotional, the blood on her forehead mixed with tears, making her look extremely miserable.

"Why do you need to do this!" Ruan Zheng did have feelings for her, after all, their destinies were entangled for several lifetimes, but he must cultivate into a Heavenly Immortal, who must be free of desires, otherwise, the Yang God is hard to cultivate.

Those desires are the shadow remnants in one's nature.

He watched Ming Shu crying pitifully, single-heartedly for him, and felt heartache, wanting to reach out to touch her, but was also blocked by the blood flames of the demon talisman.

Suddenly, he recalled what Shi Zhu said earlier, abruptly turning to look at Shi Zhu, who already sat with eyes closed, as if in meditation.

Ruan Zheng turned and knelt in front of Shi Zhu, enduring pain, pleading, "Senior said before you would save me, and also take her away? I may not understand senior's deeper meaning, but I only ask for a little assistance to relieve her from the sacrifice to the Demon..."

Shi Zhu opened his eyes, "She herself willingly swore to and gambled with the Demon, sacrificing herself, what can I do? Even her father, as the Asura Sect Master, in Demon Path Techniques is ten times more skillful than I, he also can do nothing about such things. In the whole world, the only one who can forcibly strip away the Demon is probably my master, there is no second person."

He asked Ming Shu, "What is your father doing now? I just calculated a divination in my heart, it seems he is dueling with someone?"

Ming Shu replied, "My father and uncle Fire Spirit God had a dispute, I don't know the specifics either."