This chapter was sponsored by James 412!

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Chapter 12: Atone For Your Sins

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At the same time, Huang Xue had consumed several miracle pills that were used for recover a person’s young appearance and body. Coupling the medicines with a secret body refining art that Huang Xue knew, he was able to revert back to his body’s earlier years. His current appearance was that of a sixteen or seventeen years old. The only thing that remained relatively the same was Huang Xue’s snow white hair, which he did not bother changing. It gave his appearance a unique point.

Moreover, the main reason of Huang Xue’s bodily transformation was to help hide his identity from the other two Absolute Grand Sects. He needed to stay low for a while as he go about his plans...

However, cultivators are possessors of strong memory, especially the higher one goes. Some of the old generation may recognize Huang Xue’s appearance when he was younger. As such, Huang Xue had permanently altered a few, minor facial bone structures to be more shapely, while adjusting his dantian and breathing to give off a completely different body aura. This way, not even those ancestral-level figures would be able to recognize Huang Xue anymore!

After recovering his youth, Huang Xue had just about finished his investigation and found a lead to where Gan Long may be. There had been quite some rumors in the Grand Sect about this elder’s sick practices, but no one had said anything due to the Gan Long’s status as an elder.

In other words, those who knew could be considered accomplices in breaking the law that was set down across the martial arts world by countless factions and powers. It was a universal agreement to not dabble in inhumane arts like using humans to refine pills or consuming fellow cultivators to increase one’s ability. To do so was considered breaking the ‘laws’, bringing the entire world upon themselves!

For long distance travels that was more than five thousand miles, Huang Xue traveled through spatial tears for convenience. While it consumed a larger portion of his power, this method was much quicker. This was how Huang Xue was able to travel to the Yuan Empire so quickly. And to keep a low profile, Huang Xue had decided to move around through space rather than simply flying through the sky that was heavily guarded in some areas.

As such, he was able to easily locate and arrive before Gan Long. And upon seeing that someone was in danger, Huang Xue had promptly lent a hand. The attacker was the one he had been searching for anyways.

A blurry figure danced through the dense forests, appearing and disappearing around the grassy areas. Meanwhile, several miles ahead another figure in cyan robe, covered in a red glow, was rapidly flying forward, weaving in and out of tall trees. A crazed look was on his face as blood dripped from the corner of his mouth.

Feeling the looming presence draw closer behind him, Gan Long pushed his entire Qi energy inside his body to max. He desperately wanted to escape this god forsaken place as soon as possible! But was it truly possible?

“Stop running and accept your punishment already.” A solemn voice sounded beside Gan Long. Swirling his head around, Gan Long instantly felt his blood run cold when he saw the white-haired youth leisurely ‘walking’ through the air beside him. Although Gan Long was already flying as his highest speed, he was still unable to outrun the other party!

“Senior, why must you pursue me so? I admit I was wrong to practice the taboo arts, but if you let me off this time, I swear I will not take revenge. Instead, I will be forever indebted to you..” Gan Long said, trying to persuade the other individual to let him go.

As cultivators, he naturally knew that while the other person looked very young, it was actually not their real age. The amount of power the white-haired youth wielded had already proved so. And even if the other party was indeed a mere youth, in this world strength ultimately determines the seniority! Age is merely a number for the weak.

“Haa...even at the end of your road, you still are unwilling to own up to your sins. If so, enough talking. Go down.” Huang Xue gave a sigh before his eyes flashed a dangerous light.

*Pch!* *Pch!*

Before Gan Long could say something, both of his legs suddenly exploded!

“Ahhhh! My legs! My legs!” Gan Long howled in pain as his body lost its balance, falling straight down towards the ground. Right before he hit the dirt ground, Gan Long managed to envelope his body in a Qi armor to protect him from the impact.

While there were Qi attacks, there were evidently defensive usage of energy inside one’s body known as Qi armor. This was often used to defend against another cultivator’s Qi attacks, as a regular body would easily fall in front of such mystical might. Normal attacks become ineffective in front of Qi armors.

Clutching the one of his bloody stumps where his leg used to be, Gan Long looked up at Huang Xue, who was slowly descending, with hatred and madness in his eyes.

“You bastard! To think you actually dared injure an elder such as I to such an extent! Do you not fear my Eternal Sword Spirit Palace will hunt you down until the end of your days?! You are dead, dead you hear?!”

The sudden shock and pain of having both legs unknowingly destroyed caused Gan Long to descend into despair and utter insanity. Even with his regenerative ability as a peak 9 Cycle Heavenly Wang, he would still be unable to completely regenerate a missing limb! Unless a Empyrean Hun-level cultivator or God-tier alchemist was willing to help him, Gan Long could only live out the rest of his life as a cripple...if he was even able to live through today at all!

“Your sins run deep, and yet you still dare mouth off so arrogantly before me. Finishing you off would be too kind of me. I shall allow you to experience a taste of Hell first before you go down there.” Huang Xue coldly said as he hovered above the bloodied elder.

Reaching out with his right hand, Huang Xue began to draw strange symbols in the air, each stroke leaving a glowing trail in its wake. When Gan Long saw this, his eyes became wide and he could not help but shout out: “Y-you were also an Array Spiritualist?!”

Huang Xue did not reply as he continued to form complex symbols in the air.

In the Continent of Feng Shui, cultivators who were able to pierce into a new dimension of comprehension in the arts of symbols and formations were known as Array Spiritualists. They were practitioners of the Formation Dao, one of the Sheng Daos. Because of the difficulty in advancing in this aspect, as it required one to train both their mental and Qigong abilities at the same time, there was a scarce amount of Array Spiritualists in this world. However, there were many powerful factions who desired such practitioners.

After all, not only were Array Spiritualists able to lay powerful formations that could attack, defend, and create all sorts of mystical effects, they were able to call upon other worldly beings for assistance. They were even able to control monsters known as Evil Beasts, which were found in every corner of the world. These beasts were ferocious monsters that often leave a path of carnage in their frenzied wake.

Cultivators tend to engage in combat with such beasts in order to strengthen themselves or help defend a city from their onslaughts. In general, while evil beasts were ranked similarly to cultivators, the former was stronger in cultivators due to their origin of birth in the wild and the wild nature imprinted in their genes. At the higher levels, there were even evil beasts that possessed the ability to speak in the human tongue!

Thus, for Array Spiritualists who were able to take control of such beings, it would mean another huge increase to their battle power. To do so, they often captured them using what is known as a ‘Gate’. This is a special formation portal that only Spiritualists were able to construct, allowing them to control evil beasts and summon monsters, or even otherworldly beings, from other domains.

While the Continent of Feng Shui was large, in the cracks of space and time, there were naturally a countless number of existing small worlds called ‘domains’. Some of those domains were inhabited by humans while others were filled with foreign races. However, any one of those domains contained inhabitants that were generally much stronger than the people who lived in the continent of Feng Shui.

This was why, for Array Spiritualists to be able to summon such beings at their command, was greatly valued at strong groups. To any faction, more power usually entailed greater benefits for them! Thus, the status of an Array Spiritualist was exalted and quite rare as well. Not everyone could be one after all.

Furthermore, these spiritualists were graded into Ranks, from 1 to 12, with higher ranks representing greater level of strength and quality of their ability in regards to formations and the likes! The standard cultivation is not in line with an Array Spiritualist’s ranking system.

Meaning, a strong cultivator may not necessarily have an equally like Spiritualist rank, and the opposite holds true as well. It would all depend on one’s affinity, mentality, and talent in the arts of formation and symbols!

In just a few strokes, Huang Xue completed the formation in the air. As a God of Dao, he was naturally adept in Dao of Formation, the art of creation and destruction. To be able to utilise the energy between Heaven and Earth to form complex laws known as 'formations'.

While his body may have changed, Huang Xue’s knowledge was still there. As long as his body had enough power, he could easily conjure up several high level Daos and techniques on his will. This was one of the major benefits in comprehending several Dao paths!

With a light tap of his index finger, Huang Xue sent the mini glowing circular formation towards Gan Long, who was on lying on the ground. Seeing this scene, Gan Long panicked as he tried to move out of the way, but in his current condition was just impossible. In the end, constructing a Qi armor and using booth of his arms in front of him to defend against the nearing formation construct, Gan Long embraced himself for a deadly impact.

However, the glowing circle had easily bypassed through Gan Long’s Qi armor as if it was air! Without time to react, the formation had already landed on Gan Long’s defending arms.

At first, there was no sensation. But immediately, it was as if every pore inside Gan Long’s body was on fire as the elder felt his body burning with severe pain! Soon, he began to feel his body turning extremely cold as his skin turned a grayish pale color. Gan Long could not help but start shivering. Yet in another moment, he began to felt a sharp stinging sensation on his body before blood spurt uncontrollably from his orifices. In the next moment, his body began acting up as waves after waves of indescribable pain assaulted his body. But the most horrifying thing was that Gan Long could vaguely feel something was minutely healing his injuries, just enough to keep him alive amidst this torture!

While Gan Long suffered in silence, with all his teeth having been broken from clenching down too hard in pain, a cold voice resonated from above him.

“With this [Liquescent Body Formation], it shall slowly drain your own life force and continuously heal your body, keeping you barely alive to feel this ever-changing pain! Once your life force is done with, it will slowly melt your body until not even your ashes shall remain. This is the consequence for your unlawful sins.”

Gan Long shakily lifted up his head only to find that the white-haired youth had already left. He furiously shouted out amidst his burning pain, but what came out of his mouth were only muffled cries as he awaited an agonizing death...