Uncovering the Truth

Elder Xu slowly pulled a transparent glass vial from his sleeve. The liquid inside was a yellowish oil, swirling with a few strands of orange sediment. Somehow, it looked strangely familiar.

To An Jiaze, it was more than familiar. This was the same oily blood that had been blasted out by a low-level cultivator in front of the A Ya Fried Chicken Shop that day.

Back then, in a rush to complete his advancement, he had hastily ended the investigation and concluded that the problem lay with Xu Ya’s fried chicken. He had thrown Xu Ya and the other two into the dungeon. But now, could there really have been hidden truths left unexplored?

“This is one of the pieces of evidence presented to me by Young Friend Zhan,” Elder Xu said. “Quite the coincidence, really. This substance also happens to be a key clue in the Qixia Immortal Marsh massacre. To refine something like Yin Thread Sand, one must use a vile technique to forcibly extract blood and oil from countless living people, condensing their resentment. The chosen victims would turn into skeletons within a short time. The method is unimaginably cruel. And the more lives sacrificed, the more…”

“This substance may appear to be ordinary cooking oil, but in truth, it is a special corpse oil used to refine Yin Thread Sand. It must not be underestimated. Even the slightest contamination would cause the resentment of its owner to cling to objects like corpse-dissolving water clings to mortal flesh. The consequences speak for themselves…”

Corpse-dissolving water?

The gathered cultivators fell silent, exchanging uneasy glances. None dared to look directly at the glass vial. How could something so horrifying be connected to Yunmeng Immortal Marsh?

“I was invited here by Young Friend Zhan to help reveal the truth,” Elder Xu said. “There’s no need to panic. The evildoer has already been punished. Though Qixia Immortal Marsh’s deeds were far from honorable, with thousands of lives lost, resentment was inevitable. Now that the matter is closed, they may finally rest in peace.”

“The disciples of Qixia Immortal Marsh all bear a faint mark on the back of their necks, as if branded onto the soul itself. It becomes fully visible upon death,” Elder Xu continued. “May I trouble Young Friend An to inspect the back of Master Xu’s neck and confirm whether the mark is present.”

Having been called out, An Jiaze had no choice but to limp forward, his steps heavy with pain, toward the body that Shi Yuzhen’s Ink Sword had nearly torn apart. Fortunately, the strange strands of hair could still be brushed aside, revealing an untouched patch of skin.

Sure enough, the mark on the neck was clear and matched Elder Xu’s description exactly.

The cultivators were no fools. The path of cultivation required wisdom beyond the ordinary.

With this piece of evidence, many of them silently concluded that the internal slaughter within Qixia Immortal Marsh had likely been orchestrated by Master Xu himself.

“As for the other corpse,” Elder Xu asked, “has it already decayed so rapidly that the face is no longer recognizable?”

The group of cultivators who had gone to investigate had already returned to the dungeon. Hearing Elder Xu’s foresight, they all nodded in agreement.

When they arrived on the scene, only two corpses remained, rotted beyond belief. Though they had been burned by True Fire, the wounds didn’t match typical burn patterns, raising suspicion. But with so many shocking events occurring in quick succession, they hadn’t yet reported their findings.

“That’s right… Elder Xu, how did you know the state of the bodies?”

Elder Xu stroked his long beard, his aged face filled with sorrow as he fell silent for a moment. Then he sighed deeply. “Because he was already dead.”

Master Xu shook his head at last. “Now, at least, he can truly rest.”

Elder Xu explained that both Master Xu and Master Chen had once been disciples of Qixia Immortal Marsh. After fleeing, they established their own sect. Perhaps because they had reached a bottleneck in their cultivation, they began seeking solutions elsewhere. By chance, Master Chen visited the Supreme Dao Palace, hoping to meet Elder Xu.

He had spoken with sincerity, and Elder Xu, a living fossil of the cultivation world, had agreed to see him. Unfortunately, Master Chen’s cultivation talent seemed to have vanished into thin air. Even Elder Xu couldn’t offer a solution and merely promised to keep an eye out for opportunities. Unexpectedly, five years later, the Qixia Immortal Marsh massacre occurred. The disciples sent by the Supreme Dao Palace to investigate unearthed several years’ worth of records.

Among them were the names of Master Chen and Master Xu, both marked as “defectors.” There were many such names, and after investigating a few of them without result, the Palace had not considered internal slaughter as a possibility.

It was only after a deeper investigation that the Supreme Dao Palace uncovered the sordid dealings of Qixia Immortal Marsh. Elder Xu then recalled his conversation with Master Chen and decided to meet him again to reveal part of the truth.

But when he saw him again, Elder Xu immediately sensed that he was already devoid of life.

He had been puzzled, unable to understand the situation. Later, he learned that Master Xu was a powerful talisman cultivator. The truth became clear.

Master Chen had likely died long ago, his body turned into a puppet talisman controlled by Master Xu.

Beyond that, Elder Xu did not go into further detail about Qixia Immortal Marsh. At the end, facing Shi Yuzhen’s still-terrifying visage, he made a request: he wished to take Master Xu’s corpse back to the Supreme Dao Palace for a thorough investigation to properly close the case of the Qixia massacre.

Shi Yuzhen didn’t respond with words. With a flick of her Ink Sword, she lifted the edge of the corpse’s robe and unceremoniously flung the body in front of Elder Xu.

Elder Xu was not offended. He understood well the feelings of someone who had been a victim. If the Soul Snatching Talisman had succeeded, all of Shi Yuzhen’s efforts and talent would have been handed over without resistance.

He simply cast a spell and stored the entire corpse into a spirit pouch.

The cultivators’ emotions were like a rollercoaster. To learn the truth behind the infamous Qixia Immortal Marsh massacre—that Shi Yuzhen’s Great Senior Brother had been eliminating evil for the good of all—was staggering. How could such a vicious and malevolent criminal have hidden within Yunmeng Immortal Marsh, posing as a teacher?

Everyone was stunned, too shocked to speak. A chill crept over them, and many instinctively rubbed their arms.

Seeing this, Cai Wenle pulled a booklet from his chest and, amplifying his voice with spiritual power, delivered the final report to the gathered cultivators.

The names he read out were all cultivators from Yunmeng Immortal Marsh who had gone out on journeys and never returned. They included low, mid, and high-level cultivators. Even the eighteen-member rescue team sent out last time was on the list.

Until now, they had only been marked as missing, with no further information.

But now, Cai Wenle informed everyone that they had all been brutally slaughtered and refined into terrifying Yin Thread Sand by Master Xu. The evidence lay in the soul resonance—those were no longer normal souls, but vengeful spirits.

The continuous shocks left the cultivators speechless. It felt as if the very place they relied on for survival had become a battlefield. To live under the same roof as such a sinister and ruthless master—anyone would be terrified. Who knew when they might be reduced to a pile of black sand, used as fuel for Master Xu’s attempt to snatch Shi Yuzhen’s body?

Putting themselves in Shi Yuzhen’s shoes, if they had faced multiple attempts to have their body stolen, could they have handled it any better?

Xu Ya had listened to the entire account. Though she wasn’t a cultivator, she had at least received nine years of compulsory education. Still, she hadn’t expected Master Xu to be so evil. Everything traced back to the dark arts hidden within Qixia Immortal Marsh, which had ruined the advancement of countless cultivators. Master Xu had made one wrong step and continued down a path of no return, eventually inheriting the Marsh by coincidence. Xu Ya had mentally prepared herself, but hearing the full story still left her feeling stifled.

When she had been amnesiac and helpless, it was Master Xu who had taken her in. Could that have been a remnant of genuine kindness? Now that he was dead, she would never know.

Suddenly, An Jiaze appeared in front of Xu Ya. She was still lost in thought, eyes downcast, and didn’t notice. A Xi, with her round, wintry eyes, stared warily at the unfamiliar man who cast a shadow over them, clutching Xu Ya tightly in her arms.

An Jiaze said, “Thank you, Junior Sister, for the fried chicken earlier. And I also want to thank you for saving my life.”

Yu Manjing stood silently to the side: “…”

An Jiaze solemnly addressed everyone. “I was wrong in my judgment about the incident at A-Ya Fried Chicken. Now, in front of all of you, I offer a formal apology to Junior Sister Xu Ya. Her fried chicken truly has beneficial effects. During the battle just now, I was fortunate to receive some from her, and I recovered seventy percent of my strength almost instantly. I hope none of you will harbor doubts about A-Ya Fried Chicken because of my earlier misjudgment. I, An Jiaze, thank you all.”

In truth, quite a few cultivators had already eaten Xu Ya’s fried chicken. When that unfortunate incident occurred, their first thought was that the victim must have eaten something that clashed with the chicken.

Everything had happened so fast back then. Thinking back on it now, it all seemed rather suspicious. Take An Jiaze’s reaction, for example—how could he have responded so quickly? He must have been tipped off by Master Xu under some pretense.

Indeed, An Jiaze had been pulled away by Master Xu using an excuse. Otherwise, he was in the most critical stage of his advancement, where even the slightest distraction could ruin everything. Why would he come out and meddle in someone else’s business for no reason?

At the time, he had only felt irritated, but technically, these kinds of matters did fall under his jurisdiction.

Now that he thought about it, Master Xu had even put him on the body snatching list. That meant the trap had been laid long ago. No matter how things played out afterward, everything was still within Master Xu’s expectations.

Truly vicious.

An Jiaze suppressed the fury in his heart. If he hadn’t been completely drained of strength earlier, he would’ve forced that villain Master Xu to swallow a Reversal Nine Yin Pill and suffer a fate worse than death.

But the opportunity had slipped by. An Jiaze could only let it go for now. Having been severely injured in the ambush, his advancement would likely have to be postponed.

Ignoring the still-dazed Xu Ya, he shamelessly asked in a tone he had never used before whether there was any fried chicken left in stock.

Xu Ya finally snapped out of it and processed what An Jiaze had said. Understanding his meaning, she rummaged through her treasure pouch and indeed pulled out a delicate food box—clearly prepared for the male lead.

Should she give it to An Jiaze as an emergency measure?

【I absolutely forbid it!!!】The system let out a shrill screech.

【Host, don’t forget your mission. The male lead must receive the best treatment in the entire Immortal Realm!!】

Xu Ya was still hesitating.

A familiar figure appeared in a flash, casually snatched the food box from her hand, and turned to face An Jiaze with an expression of utter coldness.

An Jiaze seemed to sense a hint of provocation.

But when Shi Yuzhen reached out, Xu Ya let go without resistance, allowing him to take the food box. It seemed Junior Sister was willing.

An Jiaze could only swallow his frustration and let it go.

— Translator’s Notes —

– nine years of compulsory education: A modern reference to standard education systems, unusual in a cultivation context, suggesting the character has knowledge from the modern world.