Longevity through Upgrading Buildings Chapter 689 - 299: My Nascent Soul Father and My Nascent Soul Mother

"May I ask if you are a local expert from Shang Dong?"

Ji Yuan eyed the blue-robed, effeminate man standing before him with a fierce glare: "How did you know?"

Despite his intimidating exterior, Ji Yuan was poised to strike at any moment, spotting a resemblance to an old rival in this figure.

Hu Li.

That sly demon cultivator, elusive like a slippery eel, always vanishing quickest whenever peril loomed.

He shared the same effeminate traits, yet his appearance outshone this demon cultivator here.

...With such craftiness, he had endured Shang Dong’s harsh conditions in the past; who knows if another encounter would arise.

"Because, friend, your bold and commanding gait simply doesn’t match anyone from Shangxi."

The blue-robed demon cultivator smiled and bowed deeply.

"Are you ridiculing me?"

Ji Yuan thrust his right hand forward, summoning a massive bone claw from nowhere, poised as if to seize and pulverize the demon cultivator.

Yet it was merely a bluff; had he truly meant to attack, Ji Yuan would have unleashed a body cultivator’s brutal fist to shatter the foe outright.

The blue-robed demon cultivator swiftly morphed into dark mist and escaped, reappearing far off while urgently begging: "I meant no offense, spare me, honored friend."

"Then explain yourself!"

Clutching the Yin Claw, Ji Yuan sneered: "Do you dare to belittle me, Qiu Qianhai?!"

"I wouldn’t presume, I wouldn’t presume. We’ve just arrived from Shangxi and know little of Shang Dong’s lay of the land. We seek a local from Shang Dong to lead the way."

"Ha."

Ji Yuan scoffed: "You’ve lingered here ages, yet claim no guide? You only approach me because I appear solitary."

"Out with it—what’s your origin? State your name now!"

The blue-robed demon cultivator’s grin faltered; he hadn’t anticipated this brash-looking Qiu Qianhai to be so sharp-minded. Thus, his voice turned earnest as he responded:

"Since you grasp my purpose and care to hear more, you’ve clearly considered joining."

"I’ll be straightforward: we serve the White Bone Sect, part of Shangxi’s Three Sacred Sects, now based in the nearby Hundred-Year Town. If it intrigues you, come along with me to see for yourself."

"Oh, and I’m called Luo Ma."

...Luo Ma? Like tumbling from a horse?

Friend, that’s an unlucky moniker.

"White Bone Sect?"

Hearing this stirred Ji Yuan inwardly, though he masked it with fitting astonishment on his features.

The White Bone Sect ranked among Shangxi’s Three Demon Sects, wielding greater sway there than Shang Dong’s Six Immortal Sects.

Naturally, Shangxi boasted more than just those three demon sects; they were merely the mightiest. Stumbling upon a White Bone Sect cultivator now... proved somewhat fortunate.

This also clarified why Wang Luo, a Peak Foundation Establishment cultivator of Corpse Transporting Mountain, fell to a single deadly blow.

His killer hailed from equally formidable roots.

"Precisely."

Luo Ma unconsciously tilted his head back, baring his jawline.

To Shangxi’s demon cultivators, the White Bone Sect was a sacred realm, but to those of Shang Dong?

No, it loomed even grander as a holy ground.

Hence, uttering those three words alone would lure any Shang Dong demon cultivator, much like... this very moment.

"Very well, I’ll accompany you to check it out."

Truth be told, Ji Yuan’s interest piqued the instant Luo Ma named Hundred-Year Town, the closest demon hub around.

No wonder this guy showed up nearby.

"Friend Qiu, come this way."

With those words, Luo Ma soared ahead, Ji Yuan hurrying after him.

Hours passed before Ji Yuan beheld a modest town by the river, brimming with demonic qi; river fish and shrimp floated lifeless, the waters turned murky black.

None could say what foul deeds these demons wrought, but the nearby woods wilted visibly.

"Now that’s the real vibe of Demon Dao."

Ji Yuan offered hollow praise.

"Heh, friend Qiu must’ve missed out in his younger days, eh? Those self-righteous hypocrites wield demonic arts in the shadows while branding us the Demon Dao."

Luo Ma sneered: "Bet friend Qiu doesn’t know, but recently we slew a Foundation Establishment cultivator from Medicine King Valley. Care to guess what turned up in his storage bag?"

"What?"

Ji Yuan inquired with keen curiosity.

"A heart ripped out from a living human, plus some mutilated corpses. Medicine King Valley boasts of walking the righteous path, yet they refine pills using live people—is that true righteousness?"

Luo Ma let out an even colder sneer.

This scene couldn't help but evoke Ji Yuan's memories of procuring corpses close to the Water Dragon Sect, where such bodies were dubbed immortal materials. Hu Li had revealed that a Core Formation cultivator from the Water Dragon Sect masterminded the operation, though the culprit's identity stayed hidden.

"We’ve arrived, friend Qiu, come along with me."

Ji Yuan had effortlessly blended into groups during travels like this more times than he could count—from the Great Love Sect, to his encounter with Jiang Hong amid the Ancient Battlefield Ruins, right up to his Demon Cave visit a year back.

The routine stayed remarkably consistent each time.

Put simply, wandering the cultivation world under multiple personas carried zero hassle.

Nothing different this time around.

Tailing Luo Ma, Ji Yuan promptly came face-to-face with the fake pill realm demon cultivator called "Empty Soul Wanderer". Nobody knew his demonic art, which left him seeming utterly void of yang energy, his complexion ghostly pale and motions rigid like a lifeless puppet.