Be the Hardest Working Demon Cultivator!

What is propriety?

Performing sacrificial rituals to seek blessings is propriety, self-regulation of morality is propriety, social customs and ceremonies are propriety, behaviors that align with the interests of the ruling class are propriety, and gifts that express good sentiments are propriety.

And one must not be without propriety, as it was the killing rule of the ghost that had once been the Calamity Witnessing Sword Qi.

This is an almost unsolvable and terrifying rule.

Once caught in it, basically no one can escape, only facing an inevitable death.

Tan Shuchang was able to easily capture ghosts that held such killing rules, not only because of the various Ghost Suppressing Techniques that were widely spread to an exaggerated extent in the Jiawu Realm but also due to his unique self.

Originating from the power of his birth mother, which seemed both alive and dead, both silent and extinct, Tan Shuchang possessed an extremely high immunity to the power of ghosts.

To put it simply, that is— the killing rule did not affect him.

Therefore, the fact that Tan Shuchang could so easily kill ghosts in an instant did not mean that other cultivators of the Jiawu Realm could do the same. Moreover, the ghosts in that bizarre game were fundamentally different from the native ghosts of the Jiawu Realm.

The ghosts in the bizarre game all possessed the power of rules.

The ghosts of the Jiawu Realm, at most, had a domain of evil spirits, and to acquire additional methods, they would have to rely on self-enlightenment or gain them through cultivation.

As the killing rule was triggered, layers of faint red light, like red gauze, rapidly spread over the street.

Seemingly alive and twisting like snakes, they wrapped around the area Tan Shuchang was looking at.

In that instant, the street in Luoja Mountain holding the Peace and Goodwill Gathering mysteriously darkened, a cold wind rose, and woo-woo it blew—not chilling the body but piercing the heart.

The rule erupted!

There was no particular anomaly, only a crack—it was heard, and a dark jade pendant fell from the other person’s body. Hitting the ground, it turned into a pile of powder, but the person seemed unaffected by anything.

Since he was unharmed, he didn’t realize that he had just walked a hair’s breadth away from death’s door.

As a result, he cupped his fists in apology to Tan Shuchang, "My name is Long Zhangyuan, a disciple of the Heavenly Sword Mansion. It was an accident, and I hope the fellow Daoist will look past it for the sake of the Heavenly Sword Mansion."

Long Zhangyuan knew that most who could attend the Peace and Goodwill Gathering were not mere nobodies.

Especially since the other party had responded in an instant, taking his fully powered Sword Qi strike head-on, Long Zhangyuan knew that the other party was not to be provoked.

As the one who had unleashed the Sword Qi, he was well aware of the sheer power of this particular strike of Sword Qi. Not to exaggerate, but that strike of Sword Qi could directly shave off half a mountain.

Such a mishap, even if it led to a mortal feud, would not be an exaggeration.

Therefore, Long Zhangyuan had brought up the name of the Heavenly Sword Mansion.

In the past, Long Zhangyuan hated those who bullied others by flaunting their power the most, but he was not someone with firm moral boundaries.

Also, doing this would minimize his troubles to the least!

However, it was not only Tan Shuchang who was unlucky; the Sword Qi that Long Zhangyuan had unleashed with a top-grade flying sword, after shattering, turned into a sky full of sword force, and the cultivators that it injured made up one-fifth of the street!

So, after Long Zhangyuan finished speaking, a young man covered in blood couldn’t help but sarcastically say, "Heh, the Heavenly Sword Mansion, what an impressive name indeed!"

This was obviously a sarcastic jibe.

Long Zhangyuan naturally heard the implications, but feeling somewhat guilty, he refrained from lashing out immediately,

for he had yet to find a suitable excuse.

However, as the first victim, Tan Shuchang, was silent at this moment. Although his expression seemed unchanged, the corners of his eyes were keenly scanning his surroundings.

This was because after the dark jade pendant on Long Zhangyuan was flung and shattered into dust, several faint traces of Qi had begun to target him.

Having already guessed that this man was the so-called Son of the Heavenly Mandate in the grand plan of righteousness from Heavenly Sword Mansion, Tan Shuchang instantly realized that these mysterious traces of Qi were most likely the Protectors sent by Heavenly Sword Mansion.

And in fact, that was indeed the case.

This street which was used for hosting the peace and goodwill gathering seemed to have only a surface layer, but in reality, there was a hidden layer beneath. At this moment, in that hidden second layer, several cultivators were fixating their gaze on Tan Shuchang.

"Who is this person? What technique did he use just now? Even the life-saving jade pendant given by the sect leader to nephew Long has been shattered!"

"He’s so young, yet the profoundness of his cultivation when he made his move suggests at least twenty years of hard work. Which family is fostering such a talent and willing to invest so much? Yet, I’ve never heard of him before; could he be someone created by a certain family to challenge Heavenly Sword Mansion?"

"He used a sword, could it be from Heavenly Sword Mansion?"

"No, that’s not right. Although we haven’t descended the mountain for many years, I remember that Heavenly Sword Mansion has a young girl, and she’s not as old as he is."

The few cultivators discussed amongst themselves.

However, within them was an elder who remained silent from beginning to end. The others considered him a recent addition to Heavenly Sword Mansion, unfamiliar with many matters and thus hesitant to speak; but in truth, the elder was profoundly shocked.

This kindly-looking elder was none other than the former leader of the demonic sect, the one who had taught Tan Shuchang the Heavenly Power Treasured Tome, Shadow Retaining Immortal Secret Tome.

"To have mastered the first volume entirely, and have also comprehended Divine Skills that suit his own abilities?" If not for the inopportune timing, the former demonic leader would have wanted to shout out these thoughts.

For from the time he had taught the Shadow Retaining Immortal Secret Tome to this point, only a few days had passed!

"This lad is truly born with a demon’s bones! My Cultivation Technique has not been passed on in vain; the demonic path has found a worthy inheritor! It’s just a shame that even if you were to cultivate the subsequent volumes to the same extent, you would still be inevitably restricted when facing other Heavenly Power Treasured Tomes…" the former demonic leader thought to himself with a sigh.

Having cultivated for over two hundred years, he still felt inferior to those righteous disciples who had cultivated the Heavenly Power Treasured Tomes for mere decades; how could the elder bear this?

Therefore, with a lifespan far longer than other cultivators, the lord of the demonic sect considered faking his death to make a strategic retreat, reform his identity, and join Heavenly Sword Mansion.

Unlike the "unshakable as a mountain" demeanor of the former demonic sect leader, the other cultivators were becoming restless because the young man’s sarcastic words had led to many cultivators beginning to openly praise and covertly criticize Heavenly Sword Mansion.

After all, everyone refrained from using Magic Artifacts for the peace and goodwill gathering except for Heavenly Sword Mansion. Furthermore, they did not just bring one but had also initiated a conflict here.

This was a disregard for Luoja Mountain and Qitian Pavilion!

As for Caiyun Valley, although their disciple was the one who got beaten, the Caiyun Valley disciple leading the group had been advised beforehand and also harbored some resentment towards those beaten disciples. Therefore, they now remained silent.

"Brother Dao, should we do something?" the cultivators from Heavenly Sword Mansion asked the elder for advice.

Though their own cultivation levels were not weak, this elder was a Centenary Cultivator and he maintained a good relationship with Elder Chen, so they looked to him for leadership.

"This peace and goodwill gathering has caused such a commotion, yet the young master of Luoja Mountain has yet to show his face, and the four masters of Qitian Pavilion have done the same, clearly holding some grudges against us.

It seems we must clean up this matter ourselves, and since it’s inappropriate for me to show myself, I’ll have to ask my fellow Daoists to step forward," the former demonic sect leader pondered before saying so.

"I’ll go then! I was already getting irritated listening to those young upstarts, and I would love to see who’s foolhardy enough to run into Zhao Huaiji’s hands!" One of the more temperamental ones among them immediately nodded in agreement, huffing with resolve.