Immortal Cultivation: Starting from a Pharmacy Apprentice

Chapter 183: Chapter 183: Conclusion

The commotion at the royal palace was already common knowledge.

The old duke and his men had repelled several waves of rebel attacks before the Imperial City, at last forcing them to retreat.

He waited for a long while before summoning his deputy general.

"My Lord Duke?"

The old duke sighed.

"Tell me, are you all still willing to die for the Fire Cave Dynasty?"

The general he had summoned, a man past fifty, roared with laughter upon hearing his words.

"My Lord Duke, you jest. Who among us that followed you here is afraid to die?"

"What is your command?"

The old duke said, "Gather a few of our old comrades and go to the royal palace. See what’s happening."

"If the masters from the Upper Sect have succeeded, all is well. If not, you must risk your lives to... ensure His Majesty is dealt with."

"Otherwise, there’s no telling how much trouble the Fire Cave Dynasty will face in the future."

The deputy general’s expression turned grim.

"A deadly task, as I expected."

"Rest assured, My Lord Duke. Even if we cannot arrange His Majesty’s... timely passing, we can expose him for what he truly is."

"The Son of Heaven will be no more. From this day forward, the world will have just one more demon!"

He took off his helmet and turned to leave.

"Right, My Lord Duke, please look after my family!"

"Go on..."

The old duke gave a slight nod.

「Meanwhile, in the underground palace.」

The arcane inscriptions on the Son of Heaven’s skin were finally worn away completely.

The Fire Cave Dynasty’s own Foundation Establishment elder, an old retainer of the Son of Heaven, had stared until his eyes were bloodshot, yet he still failed to memorize them.

SWISH!

Without a second thought, a disciple from the Miaofa Sect shot toward the entrance of the underground palace.

By the time the Foundation Establishment Cultivators from the Douchen Sect reacted, it was too late.

With a CLANG, a sword pellet transformed into a hundred and eight thousand rays of sword light, sealing the palace entrance.

"The audacity!"

"Mo Qi! You’re not in the Foundation Establishment realm, after all. You can’t possibly hope to keep all of us here!"

A Douchen Sect Cultivator roared.

Mo Tianshu, however, turned to the two local Foundation Establishment elders.

"You attacked the Son of Heaven. That is a crime punishable by death."

"Help me take down these treacherous rebels, and you can earn a pardon from the new emperor."

The expressions on the two elders’ faces shifted.

"The Xuandao Sect still rules the skies of the Fire Cave Dynasty!"

"Fine!"

"Daoist friend from the Upper Sect, do not forget your promise!"

With a ROAR, several figures sprang into action.

Without a second thought, Wan Shenxiu threw out a life-saving Array Plate, which instantly formed a restrictive Array that enveloped them all.

All five outer sect disciples were enveloped by the halo of light, none left behind, unable to see what was happening outside.

Zhao Jingyu, having recovered from his near-death experience, let out a chuckle.

"That’s Brother Mo for you. As domineering as ever!"

Wan Shenxiu, however, didn’t seem so confident.

"Let’s just hope Brother Mo pulls it off. We’ll hide in the Array and wait for the dust to settle before we go out."

If Mo Tianshu were to be defeated, their situation would become quite awkward. They could only hope he had a plan.

CLANG!

A beam of sword light pierced the Array, getting stuck midway, its very tip slicing off two strands of Zhao Jingyu’s hair.

"Brother Wan, are you sure this Array of yours is reliable?"

Zhao Jingyu licked his lips, his voice trembling.

...

Half a day later, the old duke’s deputy general and his old comrades finally snuck into the royal palace.

He scanned his surroundings. Inside and outside the palace, unidentified Cultivators were locked in a standoff with Combat Puppets.

"Hmph. A bunch of schemers!"

The deputy general spat on the ground.

He shot a look at the men behind him, then leaped out.

WHOOSH!

He had just landed when an indistinct figure flashed past him, trailing wisps of strange Spiritual Qi.

He could vaguely make out numerous Talismans stuck to the person’s body.

"Those fools from the Douchen Sect are completely useless!"

The deputy general froze, then saw another person dash out of a half-collapsed grand hall.

"Move out!"

The man roared, and the Combat Puppets followed his lead, moving without any formation, simply plowing a path forward with their sheer physical might.

Seeing this, the remaining Cultivators’ expressions changed. With a shout, they too began to retreat.

The deputy general, after a moment’s hesitation, crept into the grand hall, only to see two people walking out with corpses tucked under their arms.

Upon seeing the deputy general and his men, the two elders, who radiated the aura of the Foundation Establishment realm, immediately lowered their heads and scurried away.

The deputy general only frowned after they had left.

"They looked awfully familiar. One of our old comrades?"

The old comrades behind him all shook their heads.

"Definitely not."

"Let’s be charitable. Even among us, few could have resisted the temptation of the opportunity His Majesty presented."

"Let’s give those old dogs a chance to live!"

Seeing the state of things, they had a good idea of the outcome.

Though they spoke casually, their hearts were in turmoil.

Sure enough, a few moments later, several Cultivators emerged from the underground palace.

Mo Tianshu saw the deputy general and straightened his somewhat disheveled robes.

"And you are?"

The deputy general hurriedly cupped his fist and bowed his head.

"By order of the old duke, we are here to clean up this mess."

"Heh!" Mo Tianshu chuckled.

"In that case, do as you see fit."

"I give you half a month. Support the new king’s ascension to the throne and drive the Douchen Sect Cultivators from the kingdom’s borders."

The deputy general’s heart leaped in alarm.

"As the Emissary commands!"

Steeling himself, he asked:

"May I ask... what of our Son of Heaven?"

THWAP!

A sheet of human skin appeared in Mo Tianshu’s hand. It unfurled in the wind, and the sight made the deputy general’s face twist in horror.

"The Son of Heaven of the Fire Cave Dynasty was bewitched by heretical cultivators and unwittingly fell to their evil ways. He has now been executed, leaving behind only this empty skin."

"Let this grim sight be a warning to you all for the future!"

The deputy general’s expression flickered, only returning to normal after he saw that the skin bore no marks of torture.

He sighed inwardly.

"We shall be sure to remember it!"

Mo Tianshu walked past him.

"We’ve already wasted too much time. Don’t dawdle."

Bai Mo and the others followed closely behind Mo Tianshu as they departed.

They could sense that Brother Mo was in a decent mood, which was a rare occurrence.

As for the Son of Heaven’s skin, it was the result of the Five Obstacles Pill’s corrosive effects after his life force had been extinguished.

Once the Son of Heaven perished, his flesh and blood seemed to soften, allowing the Five Obstacles Pill to corrode them with ease.

Zhao Jingyu whispered:

"That blast of Sword Qi Brother Mo unleashed just now—the one that cut down two people. Does anyone know its origin?"

In the end, Wan Shenxiu’s Array hadn’t held, shattered by two punches from the Douchen Sect Cultivators.

At the critical moment, Mo Tianshu had opened his mouth and exhaled, spitting out a torrent of white Sword Qi. It had cut down the two Foundation Establishment experts less than five feet from Bai Mo.

Scalding blood had splattered at their feet.

But anyone could tell that the powerful, heavy sword gleam was completely inconsistent with Brother Mo’s usual style.

’It must have been some kind of external aid.’

Wan Shenxiu was still shaken.

"It must have been a gift from a senior in Brother Mo’s lineage. They’re all master sword cultivators!"

"Then why was Brother Mo so happy?"

Zhao Jingyu asked again.

"Why do you care so much?"

Wan Shenxiu said irritably:

"Maybe he’s just happy it’s over. Or maybe he found some good scriptures. The sect has a tradition of collecting the texts of our enemies."

"Brother Mo looted several books off those guys!"

"We, on the other hand, should be thinking about what local specialties to bring back from the Fire Cave Dynasty."

He had been so confident in his Array, but in the end, it couldn’t even protect them. His mind was a mess.

Zhao Jingyu didn’t blame him. Instead, he turned to the others with a serious reminder:

"It’s rare we get a trip out like this. We should hurry and gather some things to take back. Once we’re back at the sect, we’ll never get these prices again."

Everyone wholeheartedly agreed.

The ores from the Fire Cave Dynasty were hot commodities anywhere.

Even if they couldn’t use the ores themselves, they could always sell them back at the sect for a tidy profit.