Chapter 50: The Intercalation Method
Night had fallen deep.
Li Rulong had already reached Peak Completion in the Qi Ingestion Realm. He no longer cultivated, instead sitting cross-legged as though savoring this rare moment of peace.
At his side lay a secret manual.
The manual appeared rather ancient; its corners were worn and damaged. On the part not covered, two characters were revealed—“Intercalation.”
“What elegant leisure, Daoist friend!”
Suddenly!
A faint breeze stirred, the hidden spring surged, and a figure stepped into the tent—it was none other than Luo Dacheng!
Clang!
The Army-Stabilizing Sword left its sheath and fell directly against Luo Dacheng’s brow, leaving a streak of blood.
“No… you are not him!” Li Rulong stared at Luo Dacheng as he was now, his expression abruptly changing. “Who are you?”
He did not call for the other cultivator guards, because there was no need.
Moreover, this was the variable he had been waiting for!
Luo Dacheng clasped his hands behind his back and leisurely surveyed the surroundings. “Daoist friend has even sealed off the surroundings? Not bad, not bad…”
“Give me a reason not to kill you.”
Li Rulong snorted coldly.
“The Ragged Old Daoist!”
Luo Dacheng smiled faintly and spoke a name that caused Li Rulong’s pupils to contract.
“You… are one of senior’s people?”
Li Rulong was somewhat astonished. Was this still the same Luo Dacheng who lusted after women as if his life depended on it?
Or had that lecherous nature merely been a disguise?
‘As expected… I gambled correctly.’
Fang Qing, who was manipulating everything from Jade Island, felt joy stir in his heart. ‘The Ragged Old Daoist’s contact with Li Rulong indeed had another purpose… very likely to let him live!’
Given the current situation, whether it was the Pu Family Ancestor or the Black Moth Sect’s Purple Palace cultivator, both only wanted Li Rulong dead!
A dead man held no value whatsoever.
The suddenly appearing Purple Palace cultivator was the true variable!
‘Damn it, Purple Palace cultivators scheming against Qi Ingestion… have they no shame?’
Fang Qing inwardly mocked, while fully aware how dangerous it was to become entangled in a Purple Palace-level scheme.
Yet he felt not the slightest fear. If they had the ability, let them cross between the two worlds and kill him!
Besides, the one taking the risk was Luo Dacheng. What did it have to do with Fang Qing?
It was precisely because he knew how perilous this situation was—and that Purple Palace cultivators had intervened—that he had come. If it could implicate the Luo Family of Tianshui, that would be even more delightful.
“Not so… I merely could not bear to see a Daoist friend who sought to save the people and bring peace perish at the hands of petty villains.”
Fang Qing, controlling Luo Dacheng, spoke truthfully. “May I ask, how much chance of survival does Daoist friend have in your current plan?”
Li Rulong gave a miserable smile. “With Purple Palace divine abilities watching me, even half a chance would be rare… That is already thanks to senior’s assistance in obscuring the Heavenly Secrets for me.”
‘Coincidentally, I have not obscured any Heavenly Secrets for Luo Dacheng at all…’
Fang Qing smiled inwardly. “Where lies the difficulty?”
Li Rulong pondered. At this moment he truly feared nothing; he would seize even the smallest life-saving straw.
“The one on the cliff ignores me entirely. Therefore, those who truly want me dead are only the Pu Family Ancestor and the Black Moth Sect Ancestor—two Purple Palace cultivators… If I escape this fatal calamity, there will inevitably be a Purple Palace cultivator blocking my path. Senior can stop one for me, but there remains another… extremely troublesome.”
Fang Qing pondered for a moment. “Would the Luo Family of Tianshui be enough to draw a Purple Palace cultivator’s attention?”
“A Dao Foundation cultivator is barely worthy to serve as a lackey beneath Purple Palace. One more or one less makes little difference.”
Li Rulong rapidly calculated. “To lure away a Purple Palace cultivator, it must involve Purple Palace-level secrets or spiritual objects…”
“I understand. I wish Daoist friend success.”
Fang Qing grasped the implication and controlled Luo Dacheng to depart.
In his heart, a faint plan had already formed—perhaps he truly could carve out a sliver of survival for Li Rulong.
Even if it failed, it would merely cost Luo Dacheng’s life.
‘It is time to test the weight of Great Sun Purple Qi in this world.’
‘Luo Dacheng meeting Li Rulong is the eye of the storm. He does not possess “As If Within the Calculation.” Even with a legitimate reason, he will attract Purple Palace attention… If he also carries another supreme treasure? The thought is rather exhilarating.’
Fang Qing then thought of himself. Though he bore Great Sun Purple Qi, he was shielded by “As If Within the Calculation,” and thus never fell within Purple Palace calculations.
If not for that, he did not know how many times he would have died already.
But Luo Dacheng was clearly not the same.
“Three days later? Just in time to reach the Luo family encampment…”
…
Inside the tent.
After watching Luo Dacheng depart, a trace of pain surfaced in Li Rulong’s eyes. He picked up the secret manual once more.
“Why must it be so? Clearly… clearly I had already decided to give up…”
Under the moonlight, the two characters “Intercalation” shone with particular brilliance.
…
Two days passed in the blink of an eye.
Night.
Within the tent.
Li Rulong sat in the seat of honor, raising his cup with a smile. “Tonight we drink freely. At sunrise tomorrow, this commander shall duel swords with Zhao Wuxu. All of you need only await good news…”
Tonight he had hosted a banquet, inviting all mortal generals and Daoist friends.
Cups clinked and wine flowed; the atmosphere was lively.
Only Guo Tianhong looked at her elder brother with worry. “Elder Brother… that Zhao Wuxu is said to also be a sword cultivator, not easy to deal with. Is this… too reckless?”
“It matters not…”
Li Rulong held a scroll in his hand and suddenly raised it.
A streak of sword light sliced through the tent, revealing a crescent moon in the sky.
The moon curved like a hook, casting cool radiance.
“Everyone… how does this moon appear to you?”
Li Rulong drank a cup of wine, asking casually.
“The Lunar Yin is like water—truly wondrous!”
Madam Miaoyi answered gently.
“The moon has four aspects—Heart, Zhang, Bi, and Wei. Heart is the newborn moon, Zhang the full and flawless moon, Bi the waning and incomplete moon… This lunar phase belongs to 【Bi Moon】!”
Li Rulong spoke slowly. “【Bi Moon】 governs border troops invading the realm, weapons hunting across the land… In ancient times there was a demon sage of the demon race, ‘Bi Moon Crow,’ who could swallow metal and devour fire. Later he reincarnated as a barbarian great lord and contended for the Central Plains…”
Such cultivation secrets were rarely heard by loose cultivators. All listened with rapt attention, even setting down their cups.
Only Guo Tianhong, for some reason, suddenly felt that this elder brother was utterly unfamiliar.
“At that time, among the twelve Wardens of the Year, Neck Metal descended to block him, yet was slain by Bi Moon. From then on, the Bi Moon lineage could command the Neck Metal lineage…”
Li Rulong continued, though his voice grew increasingly strange.
By now, many cultivators sensed something amiss. Some attempted to flee, only to discover that at some unknown time, a formation had already been laid within the great tent!
“Ah… it is the Golden Dragon Boundary-Sealing Array!”
“Grand Marshal… what are you doing?”
Several loose cultivators exchanged uneasy glances.
“In those years, that barbarian great lord who contended for the Central Plains ruled supreme for a time, yet was ultimately defeated… At the end of the road, he sacrificed all his subordinates, followers, and even his closest kin and beloved… and ascended to the position of 【Bi Moon】. Thus, this ritual was left between Heaven and Earth.”
“Later generations, by imitating it, can invite the power of 【Bi Moon】… and alter their Dao lineage! This is—the ‘Intercalation Method’!”
Li Rulong smiled.
Every cultivator present was struck with horror.
Once a Qi Ingestion cultivation method was chosen, it could not be altered. Even purifying one’s True Power required spiritual objects such as Heaven-One Generating Water.
Yet there existed a method to change one’s Dao lineage!
Merely hearing of it reeked of blood and evil.
“Closest kin and beloved…”
Guo Tianhong stared at Li Rulong, disbelief filling her eyes.
Pfft! Pfft! Pfft!
At that moment, the Army-Stabilizing Sword flew from its sheath!
Blades and swords rang in unison; sword light erupted. In mere instants, Li Rulong’s trusted brothers and mortal generals were all beheaded!
Then… the loose cultivators who had followed him.
“Li Rulong, you will die without burial!”
Madam Miaoyi’s face turned deathly pale. She formed hand seals with both hands, yet was pierced through the chest by an incomparably sharp qi. As she fell, she cursed, “The Pu Family… will not let you off.”
“So you truly were a hidden pawn of the Pu Family.”
Li Rulong, a Peak Completion Qi Ingestion sword cultivator, wielded his Flying Sword like a god of slaughter—killing gods and Buddhas alike—until everyone in the tent lay dead.
The banquet tables were overturned, wine and blood intermingled, corpses piled high.
Compared to the previous revelry, it was like a ghostly realm!
In the heavens, the waning moon shone ever brighter. Streams of moonlight descended, forming a ritual.
An ancient ceremony that had always existed between Heaven and Earth was stirred!
Within the camp, wind, rain, frost, and snow suddenly manifested.
The tent seemed to transform into a cold pool, and a moon’s reflection descended, illuminating Li Rulong.
No!
It was not illumination—but devouring!
Imitating the ancient Bi Moon’s ability to swallow metal, using Bi Moon to swallow Neck Metal!
A trace of pain surfaced on Li Rulong’s face. Looking at his hands, he saw that several golden scales had already grown upon the backs.
Bi Moon favored the demon race. To cultivate Bi Moon required transformation into a demon!
Even Fang Qing had not expected Li Rulong to stage something on such a grand scale!
He had thought Li Rulong was a towering hero, a true man of valor.
In the face of life and death, only then did a cultivator’s true nature emerge!
Forcefully altering one’s foundation brought agony like being flayed alive, yet Li Rulong’s spine remained straight.
He silently gazed at the last person in the tent—the one closest and most beloved to him—Guo Tianhong!
“Elder Brother… are you truly… still my elder brother?”
Guo Tianhong did not resist. Perhaps her True Power was too weak, or perhaps her heart was already dead.
“I am… forgive me. From now on, I live only for myself!”
Li Rulong thrust his right hand into Guo Tianhong’s chest and tore out a bright red heart.
Two lines of tears flowed from his eyes at some unknown moment.
The moon’s reflection in the cold pool suddenly intensified, enveloping Li Rulong as the moon in the sky blazed brilliantly.
Metal arose from the moon; demon arose from man.
The Intercalation Method—completed!
…
The moon set and the sun rose.
Sun essence and lunar radiance intermingled between Heaven and Earth—an auspicious time for cultivators.
A streak of sword light came from Yulin Commandery, landing before the military camp. A figure emerged—it was Zhao Wuxu.
“Li Rulong… the appointed time for our sword duel has arrived! You—”
He should have been brimming with confidence. After this battle, he would have hope of Dao Foundation.
But Zhao Wuxu quickly sensed something wrong.
Whoosh! Whoosh!
Wind, rain, frost, and snow raged around him as a figure strode forth.
Golden scales covered his body; two small horns grew from his head. It was Li Rulong, transformed into a Half-Demon!
The brilliance of Bi Moon burst forth!
“Not good! This man restrains me!”
The thought flashed through Zhao Wuxu’s mind, and an ominous sense of impending disaster suddenly rose within him.