Chapter 182: Night Extermination

Deep in the darkness, the syllable from the evil spirit's mouth still echoed in his ears, making his eardrums throb with pain.

It was a complex, obscure, and awkward syllable, like a deeply hidden divine secret.

Ning Changjiu had never heard that language before, but the moment the entity spoke, he instinctively knew that the syllable meant "Asura."

Asura was an ancient term.

It referred to a callous and ruthless deity who, after reincarnation, was reborn as a human. Possessing a divine body and godhead, yet burdened by human emotions, desires, and the ties of good and evil, they would, through this muddled existence, cultivate themselves to the pinnacle of Daoist magic. This was known as Asura.

Earlier, after Ning Changjiu entered the ghost prison, he had originally intended to simply use his sword domain for protection and hold out for an hour. However, he felt a summons from deep within the ghost prison.

It seemed as if a voice was calling to him from within.

He broke through many barriers and reached the depths.

The monstrous creatures on the second level stared eerily at him as he advanced, remaining utterly silent.

This scene was as if a subject, summoned to an audience with the king, walked down a path lined with silent civil and military officials.

Ning Changjiu recalled the appearance of the monster deep within the prison.

The evil spirit was indescribable, like mere sludge wrapped in chains, with bubbles and tentacles constantly contracting and writhing within it, resembling a specter hidden in the deep sea.

After it uttered the syllable, Ning Changjiu understood, then turned and left.

He then returned to the first level and began to slaughter.

Everything was so uncanny; he felt as if he had been possessed, only gradually regaining his senses after killing the last monster.

Ning Changjiu recalled everything that had happened, unsure what it portended, but felt a faint trepidation.

He took a deep breath, suppressing all the swirling emotions within him.

Behind him, Shao Xiaoli looked at his pristine, unblemished back. Recalling the earlier scene, her heart pounded. Watching him return home, she felt as if she were seeing a ghostly robe fluttering through the fires of hell.

Shao Xiaoli gritted her teeth and followed him.

"Are you afraid of me?" Ning Changjiu suddenly stopped and turned to look at her.

The girl, standing on the stone path, paused, then smiled, her eyes curving. "No way! I've always admired you the most, Boss!"

Ning Changjiu gave a faint smile and said, "Come inside."

Shao Xiaoli mumbled "Oh," and tiptoed in after him.

Ning Changjiu sat on a chair, placing the pitch-black sword aside. Shao Xiaoli, as usual, quickly walked behind him and began to tap and massage his shoulders with her small hands.

Ning Changjiu closed his eyes, gradually easing the weariness from his face.

Shao Xiaoli looked at his profile and suddenly had an urge to reach out and pinch his cheek.

Of course, she didn't dare.

But her nerves had greatly relaxed. She thought, *The boss only kills evil spirits, and I'm so cute, why should I be afraid? Besides, how could such a handsome boy like the boss be a bad person...?*

*Asura... Hmm, Asura must be a term of praise.*

As she thought this, she remembered her earlier impudence during the assessment and felt a little nervous. Her hand movements became more earnest, carefully adjusting her strength to please him.

Meanwhile, Ning Changjiu was conversing with the Sword Scripture Spirit.

"What state was I in earlier, in the ghost prison?" Ning Changjiu asked.

The Sword Scripture Spirit had also lost its usual playful expression. Wrapped in its long, gray-white hair, its somewhat youthful face was revealed.

It stared at Ning Changjiu from within his Qi Sea, its voice like a surge of cold air: "Someone wanted to corrupt you."

Ning Changjiu hummed, saying, "No one can corrupt me."

The Sword Scripture Spirit neither confirmed nor denied, continuing, "It did fail, but you were like a madman then."

Ning Changjiu said, "I can't remember. I know I killed all the monsters on the first level, but I can't recall anything about it, like it was a dream."

The Sword Scripture Spirit said, "It could also be a curse."

Ning Changjiu frowned. "A curse?"

The Sword Scripture Spirit nodded. "Yes, that syllable he uttered might have been a spell."

Ning Changjiu asked, "Did you get a clear look at its appearance?"

The Sword Scripture Spirit replied, "I saw it, but I couldn't make it out clearly. That creature resembles an ancient evil entity, perhaps of the same kind as the 'Chong Sui' described in that ancient book. I just don't know how such a powerful being was captured by Severed Boundary City."

"What are you two masters talking about?" Bloodfeather Lord, inside the decaying sword, listened confusedly.

Ning Changjiu had used the black sword to slay these demons, wanting to test its sharpness. Bloodfeather Lord, however, remained imprisoned within the broken sword, unable to see, and had no idea what had truly transpired.

Ning Changjiu suddenly remembered something and asked, "Before that Red-tailed Old Lord died, did he say anything to you?"

Bloodfeather Lord shook his head and sighed. "Why would that old fox care about a small fry like me? Sigh, it was a peak Five Paths demon before, a true great demon close to the three legendary realms. If it could have been my master, there would be nowhere in Nanzhou I couldn't go..."

As Bloodfeather Lord spoke, he suddenly sensed the atmosphere was off and immediately changed his tone: "Luckily, Your Highness was more skilled, a divine calculation, killing that old fox and ridding the people of a menace!"

The Sword Scripture Spirit, listening from the side, sneered, "Another demon above the Five Paths? Ha, what kind of realm is 'above the Five Paths'? Ordinary Purple Court cultivators might not encounter such a thing in their entire lives. It really is you, isn't it? It seems demons along your path wouldn't dare attack you unless they've reached the Five Paths."

Ning Changjiu ignored its sarcasm. He said, "I'm going back to the ghost prison."

"Are you mad?" The Sword Scripture Spirit's smile vanished, and it immediately rebuked him. Its own life was still tied to his; how could it just watch him take such a risk for no reason?

Ning Changjiu said, "Not now, of course. Once the Golden Crow awakens, no one will be able to corrupt me."

The Sword Scripture Spirit frowned. "What exactly is the origin of that golden-feathered crow?"

Ning Changjiu was also unsure, so he didn't answer, merely sighing deeply and repeating the two words: Asura.

"Asura..." The Sword Scripture Spirit felt as if it had heard the word before, as if memories of these two characters existed from its very birth.

"That doesn't sound like a good word!" Bloodfeather Lord said, reaching a conclusion diametrically opposed to Shao Xiaoli's.

Ning Changjiu crossed his hands over his lower abdomen, his eyes still closed.

He knew more about the term Asura.

His memories of the Immeasurable Temple were shrouded in mist; he couldn't even recall his own past appearance. Only by seeing it again could he piece together every detail of that small Taoist temple.

And Asura...

Back in the Imperial City, Lu Jiajia had introduced them to cultivation knowledge, mentioning the Five Paths.

The Human Path, the Heavenly Path, the Demonic Path, the Ghost Path, and the Hell Path.

Ning Changjiu vaguely remembered that back at the Immeasurable Temple, his senior brother had told him that beyond the Purple Court lay the Six Paths.

He couldn't recall what the Sixth Path was.

Now, the sixth piece of the puzzle finally fell into place.

The Asura Path.

This path was also commonly referred to as the Demonic Path in the past, but it differed from the traditional concept of bloodthirsty fiends. Instead, it was a divine path forged in the gap between humans and gods.

Asura...

In today's world, could it be that Asuras can no longer enter the Dao?

It was clearly the same twelve years ago, so what exactly happened to sever a path that was once a road to the heavens?

And that ghost deep within the prison, was it truly just trying to tell him the words "Asura" when it tried to bewitch him?

What did this have to do with him?

He remembered the scattered corpses, severed limbs, and viscous, foul-smelling blood strewn across the ghost prison floor, and his body stiffened slightly.

"Boss, what's wrong? Am I kneading uncomfortably? My mom taught me this skill, so if you want to blame someone, blame my deceased mother..." Shao Xiaoli defended herself.

The girl's words brought him a measure of calm.

When is a person most likely to become a demon?

When they are alone in the world, abandoned by all, facing a bottleneck in their Daoist cultivation, or approaching the end of their lives...

All the unavoidable partings, deaths, sorrows, joys, and angers of the human world, suppressed deep within the heart during immortal cultivation, eventually erupt. At the end of the indifferent immortal path, when 'immortality' is no longer flawless in one's Dao Heart, these emotions and desires ignite fiercely, giving birth to something monstrous.

Thus, the malevolence, diametrically opposed to immortality, shatters its shackles and transforms into the power of becoming a demon.

Demons embody another kind of cold indifference.

They disdain everything, disregard human ethics, morals, and laws, and stand alone. They seek true freedom of body and spirit within the vast heavens and earth, boundless in the universe, and for this, they are willing to sacrifice anything.

This is another possibility for an immortal.

But this was not the path Ning Changjiu favored.

He was suddenly a little afraid: if his junior sister, Lu Jiajia, Zhao Xianger, or anyone else connected to him from the past were no longer by his side, would he, over time, lose his attachments and gradually walk down that winding path to the underworld?

He didn't know.

"Your mind is troubled," the Sword Scripture Spirit said.

"He must be missing His Highness again," Bloodfeather Lord speculated wildly.

Ning Changjiu ignored them. He opened his eyes, looked at the girl behind him, and suddenly smiled.

Shao Xiaoli's hand recoiled in fear at her boss's unusual behavior. With such terrifying events having just transpired today, even his gentle smile now seemed chilling.

"B-Boss, what's wrong?" Shao Xiaoli asked, full of trepidation.

Ning Changjiu smiled faintly. "Didn't you say you wanted to be the Red Lotus Maiden? What are you waiting for?"

"Oh!" Shao Xiaoli suddenly realized, instantly recalling her previous promise. But that was just something she'd blurted out... What could red lotuses and jade maidens possibly have to do with each other? Still, she couldn't show weakness in front of her boss. She immediately said, "I'll go prepare some food right away to reward you, Boss!"

Ning Changjiu didn't hold out much hope.

As expected, when Shao Xiaoli finally presented three dishes, Ning Changjiu could only manage a wry smile.

"This is the Red Lotus Maiden?" Ning Changjiu asked. On the plate before him, tomatoes were cut like lotus flowers, sprinkled with a few slices of clam meat.

Shao Xiaoli felt a little guilty and immediately said, "It's okay if you're not satisfied, Boss. I have two more of your favorite dishes."

Ning Changjiu's gaze shifted to the side.

Indeed, there were two more plates of food next to it: one was steamed egg with green onions wrapped in vegetables, and the other was flatbread rolled with mangosteen.

"This is..." Ning Changjiu looked at the first dish and asked, "The Sea-Stabilizing Divine Needle coiled around a Green Dragon?"

Shao Xiaoli's eyes lit up. She thought, *I've only cooked for the boss for three days, and he's already so in sync with me!*

She nodded vigorously, quite pleased with her signature dish.

"And this is... Old... Old Mountain?" Ning Changjiu looked at the other dish, deep in thought.

Shao Xiaoli confidently announced, "This is the Iceberg Flying Fox!"

"How do you figure that?" Ning Changjiu asked, humble enough to inquire.

"The 'bing' from 'laobing' (flatbread), and the 'shan' from 'shan zhu' (mangosteen). Iceberg..."

"Didn't you use the first character last time?"

"Cooking is like practicing swordplay; you have to be flexible and adaptable."

"Oh... and the 'flying fox'?"

Shao Xiaoli awkwardly picked up her chopsticks and lifted the edge of the flatbread. Her face flushed red, as if she were lifting her own skirt, revealing that one side of the flatbread was... burnt... charred.

"Oh..." Ning Changjiu suddenly understood, and with a cold chuckle, he praised, "You truly are a genius."

Shao Xiaoli smiled shyly and said, "When it gets cold, there will be a lot of edible things growing outside the city. Then the whole city will have enough to eat, and I'll make you more delicious food!"

Ning Changjiu didn't refuse her kind offer, simply humming softly in acknowledgment.

After a simple meal, he casually asked, "Do you have any congenital illnesses?"

"No, I seem to have been born with only good qualities..." Shao Xiaoli replied without thinking.

Ning Changjiu continued, "Then why do you feel like your clothes want to kill you?"

Shao Xiaoli crossed her arms and rubbed her shoulders, a little embarrassed. "How should I know?"

Ning Changjiu asked, "Has it always been like this since you were a child?"

Shao Xiaoli said, "Not really, it started after I came back from the snowy mountain expedition last time... Don't worry, it's nothing serious."

Ning Changjiu didn't press further.

The city was uncharacteristically quiet for the next few days. After the assessment, Canxiang hadn't come looking for them. Ning Changjiu had also deliberately searched for the location of the Star Spirit Hall, but despite traversing the entire royal city, he found no grand hall named as such.

Shao Xiaoli spent these days learning swordplay from Ning Changjiu, hoping to further refine her Northern Darkness Divine Sword.

"Boss, what's the name of this divine sword of yours?" One day, Shao Xiaoli pointed at the branch at his waist and asked earnestly.

Shao Xiaoli would never forget his unparalleled grace when he wielded the branch to break the grand formation. Although the branch looked ordinary, in her heart, it was revered as a divine artifact.

Ning Changjiu looked at the branch at his waist, now filled with the power of time, and also felt it deserved a name.

The Sword Scripture Spirit and Bloodfeather Lord also participated in this naming session.

In the end, Shao Xiaoli's suggestion of "Northern Darkness" prevailed over the Sword Scripture Spirit's "Moon Branch" and Bloodfeather Lord's "Divine Rod," chosen by Ning Changjiu as its name.

Shao Xiaoli greatly admired her boss's discerning eye for talent. If she knew that she had inadvertently defeated two minor demons in the process, she would have been even more delighted.

Ning Changjiu, meanwhile, had already memorized her recipes. Essentially, the moment Shao Xiaoli uttered one of her exaggerated dish names, Ning Changjiu could picture the meal.

Three more days passed unknowingly.

Only one day remained until Xing Yuan's expedition outside the city.

That day, Shao Xiaoli tossed and turned, too excited to sleep. Wrapping herself in her quilt, she got out of bed, walked barefoot to Ning Changjiu's door, and knocked it open.

"Is something wrong?" Ning Changjiu asked, looking at the little girl standing at the door.

"Boss, you absolutely have to protect me tomorrow," Shao Xiaoli urged.

Ning Changjiu said, "If you don't go to sleep right now, I'll throw you onto the ice plains tomorrow."

Having spent a few days with him, Shao Xiaoli's courage had grown. She pouted and whined, "Boss, I'm afraid of the cold..."

Ning Changjiu thought to himself that he really couldn't be soft-hearted; this little girl was already daring to be so bold.

Shao Xiaoli looked at his somewhat helpless face and continued, "Boss, once we leave the city, will you be leaving then?"

Ning Changjiu didn't hide it from her and nodded.

Shao Xiaoli said, "Take me with you."

Ning Changjiu couldn't answer.

Shao Xiaoli became dejected. She gathered her large cotton quilt around herself, her body bundled within it, making her appear somewhat bulky.

Shao Xiaoli asked, "Boss, did you have a wife in your previous life?"

Ning Changjiu said, "No."

Shao Xiaoli looked at him shyly. "What a coincidence, neither did I..."

Ning Changjiu said coldly, "If you say one more word, you can go get the whip and the washboard."

Shao Xiaoli wasn't scared at all; instead, she chirped, "Is Boss finally going to punish me...?"

"..." Ning Changjiu was speechless.

After finally coaxing Shao Xiaoli to sleep, Ning Changjiu touched her brow, putting her into a deep slumber. Then, as usual, he ventured out at night. He first circled the imperial city, checking for any anomalies, before heading to the library alone.

In the previous two days, he had searched the library for records of the ghost prison but found no answers.

Today, he infiltrated again, hoping to find some clues he might have missed.

He had long since memorized the library's layout.

Ning Changjiu quickly located the records of the monsters in the ghost prison. All known information about various creatures was clearly listed, entry by entry; even the most common demons had hundreds of pages of documentation and analysis.

Ning Changjiu flipped through them one by one.

However, these scrolls ended at the second level of the ghost prison; not a single volume remained concerning the third level.

In the darkness, Ning Changjiu's sword-eyes glowed faintly, the soft rustle of turning pages lingering between his fingers. Then, at one moment, like a spider's silk burned through by fire, the sound abruptly vanished.

Ning Changjiu's eyebrow twitched slightly.

A sudden tremor of alarm shot through his Dao Heart. That tremor made him abruptly turn and, without hesitation, thrust his sword forward.

The sword met something, then was blocked and halted.

Sword-fire instantly flared, turning Ning Changjiu's mirror-like sword-eyes crimson and illuminating the dark shadow that had suddenly appeared behind him.

Ning Changjiu's pupils contracted sharply.

At the moment danger arrived, he had considered many possibilities, but he had never imagined he would see *it* again.

It was an extremely dark figure, almost the same color as the thick night.

It was ugly, viscous, and lacked any discernible features or limbs.

It was the evil spirit confined in the deepest part of the ghost prison.

For some reason, it had escaped the confines of the ghost prison, entered the library, and appeared behind him.

Ning Changjiu couldn't see its eyes, but he felt a sharp gaze fixed on his chest and throat, as if with a mere squint, that gaze could transform into a sharp sword and pierce him through.

But none of that happened.

In the tranquil darkness, a silent light ignited.

It was a ball of golden fire.

The moment the evil spirit appeared, the Golden Crow within him, like a dog napping, suddenly heard the clanging of a food bowl.

The Golden Crow opened its eyes and let out a long-awaited cry, and suddenly all darkness and filth in the world could no longer approach him.

The golden flames held no heat, yet they illuminated the entire library brightly.

The malevolent spirit wasn't as powerful as he had imagined. It seemed to have lost much of its strength during its long years wrapped in chains, and at that moment, it was nothing more than an ugly wretch, rapidly dissolving and dissipating in the Golden Crow's light.

Once the outer layer of sludge-like filth dissipated, Ning Changjiu saw its eyes.

They were human eyes. Perhaps out of fear, the whites were exceptionally prominent, with the pupils occupying only a small fraction.

Those eyes stared at Ning Changjiu through the Golden Crow's light, ceaselessly repeating, "Asura, Asura, Asura..."

"Asura?" Ning Changjiu wanted to question it, but the entity endlessly repeated the same syllable, making any communication impossible.

"Asura, Asura, Asura..."

Its speaking speed grew faster and faster. The humanoid form wrapped in mud was so emaciated, and Ning Changjiu noticed that it was still draped in a regal robe, so corroded its original appearance was unrecognizable.

Light exploded around the two.

Ning Changjiu hadn't fully processed what had happened until the moment it completely dissipated and merged into the darkness. He had once imagined a life-or-death battle with this entity in the future, but he never expected this ghost to simply perish under the Golden Crow's natural suppression.

The Golden Crow landed on his shoulder.

Knowing it was unwise to linger, Ning Changjiu quickly left the library. As he departed, he spread out his divine sense like a net but observed no abnormalities around him.

Only after he had left, a figure subtly emerged in the library.

She wore a black hood, her hair silver, and a nostalgic smile played on her lips.

Back home, he took off Minglan, tossed it into his room, and then, ignoring Bloodfeather Lord's pleas, went to Shao Xiaoli's room.

With the Golden Crow now awake, Shao Xiaoli's physical issues could naturally be resolved with ease.

He had the Golden Crow divide some of its light to suppress the Sword Scripture Spirit. The Sword Scripture Spirit, while furiously cursing Ning Changjiu for hogging resources, indignantly retreated to the depths of the Qi Sea.

Ning Changjiu peeled back Shao Xiaoli's cotton quilt and gently pulled her body out from under it.

Ning Changjiu summoned the Golden Crow.

The Golden Crow, as if it had found a more delicious treat than darkness itself, directly merged into Shao Xiaoli's back, devouring the chill to its heart's content.

"Mmm..." In her sleep, Shao Xiaoli let out a soft murmur, her tender lips slightly parted.

When she was silent, she appeared so delicate, like a fragile blade of grass.

The room was lit as if by a lamp, placed in their midst, illuminating the boy and girl in the darkness.

Half an hour later, Ning Changjiu re-covered her with the quilt.

Ning Changjiu's lips, however, were covered with a thin layer of frost, making him look like a zombie.

He touched his chilling lips, then retracted the Golden Crow and prepared to leave.

"Boss..."

Behind him, the girl's voice suddenly rang out.

She had actually woken up early.

The girl seemed to have had a terrifying dream. She reached out, grasping at the air in front of her, looking utterly helpless.

He, who had intended to leave immediately, ultimately stopped, took her hand, and imparted a touch of warmth to her cold body.

"Boss..." Shao Xiaoli opened her eyes and looked at him. She didn't ask why Ning Changjiu was in her room, only repeated, "I just had a very scary dream."

Ning Changjiu sat down and, with rare patience, asked, "What did you dream about?"

"I dreamt there was a giant fireball in the sky... It was so red and huge, burning and burning endlessly. If it ever fell, it would surely burn the whole world down..." Shao Xiaoli said worriedly, her eyes filled with fear.

Ning Changjiu comforted her, "That wasn't a fireball; that was the sun."

"The sun?" Shao Xiaoli felt she had heard that word somewhere before.

"Yes, the sun. In the world outside, it's the sun that illuminates the entire heavens and earth. It rises in the east and sets in the west, never falling to the ground, and it has been this way for eons." Ning Changjiu explained.

"The world outside..." Shao Xiaoli's expression became distant.

"Yes, I'll take you out to see it someday," Ning Changjiu suddenly promised.

"We can't get out, we can't get out..." Shao Xiaoli suddenly curled up tightly, pulling her quilt even closer. She huddled inside, trembling uncontrollably.

Ning Changjiu didn't know what was wrong with her. He touched her forehead and asked, "Are you cold?"

Shao Xiaoli shook her head vigorously. "I'm not cold... I... I'm going to die. Boss, I'm going to die."

Ning Changjiu, who was usually patient with the little girl, said, "I will cure you; you won't die."

Shao Xiaoli suddenly closed her eyes, and at that moment, tears squeezed out. "I won't live much longer... I... I sold my time..."

"What?"

"I remember, I sold my time to someone... He bought my time..." Shao Xiaoli spoke somewhat incoherently.

Ning Changjiu's expression grew increasingly serious.

The little girl wiped her tears with her quilt, her words disjointed yet earnest: "In this city, many people have sold their time to him... I sold many, many years of mine, and that's how I met you, Boss. You mustn't leave me..."

Ning Changjiu gently touched her brow, steadying her chaotic thoughts, then softly asked, "To whom did you sell your time?"

"The monster in Snow Valley... There's a valley outside the city, and a great demon lives there... Boss, you really mustn't go, you'll be tricked."

Snow Valley...

Ning Changjiu remembered the records in the forbidden scrolls.

"Ye Chu," Ning Changjiu softly uttered his name.

A deep gorge, heavy snow, rugged cliffs, and craggy rocks.

A man slowly emerged from the cave entrance. He was handsome and refined, with exceptionally beautiful features. Ancient characters were inscribed in his pupils, each glyph shimmering like revolving stars, emanating divine radiance.

He gazed at the violently raging snow that perpetually filled the deep gorge, then, as if opening for business, unfurled a banner.

On the banner was a poem, its origin lost to time:

"A year passes as firecrackers burst forth."