Cultivation: I Can Traverse Otherworlds

Xing Suanzi led the way, his expression grim. Zhu Ju followed unhurriedly, hands clasped behind his back. The somewhat unhinged Wan Zian had even tagged along, laughing loudly as he entered Jile Workshop, surrounded by a crowd.

It was as if he wanted to see how this fine spectacle would end.

PENG!

Upon reaching the rear courtyard, Xing Suanzi waved a hand, and the two wooden doors before them swung open heavily. He turned, his face cold as he looked at Zhu Ju.

”The Visualization Image is inside. The only question is, do you dare to look?”

”What’s there to be afraid of?” Zhu Ju laughed heartily.

”Are you sure the Visualization Image is in there?”

”Rest assured,” Xing Suanzi sneered.

”For thirty years, the Night Parade of Hundred Ghosts has never left this room. There’s no need to lie about that.”

”Good.” Zhu Ju stepped inside, even cupping his fists in a salute to the other man.

”Much obliged.”

”Hmph!” Xing Suanzi grunted coldly. The two wooden doors swung shut again, and no further sound came from within the room.

”You just let him go in like that?” Wan Zian asked, a peculiar expression on his face.

”I thought you were going to toy with him for a while. This isn’t like you at all, old Daoist.”

”There’s no need.” Xing Suanzi turned around, his tone icy.

”He’s a dead man already!”

”A dead man?” Wan Zian stroked his chin.

”Did you tamper with the Visualization Image?”

As for the Secret Medicine...

Zhu Ju had come prepared, so of course he had his own Secret Medicine. Even if Xing Suanzi had offered any, he wouldn’t have used it.

”The Night Parade of Hundred Ghosts was a gift from the Celestial Capital Great Master. This old Daoist doesn’t have the ability to tamper with it,” Xing Suanzi said with a smile.

”However, is a breakthrough through Visualization ever an easy matter?”

”Without a Mage protecting him, his Divine Soul will inevitably become trapped in the Hundred Ghosts Illusion Realm, unable to escape. It’s a one-way path to death.”

”Oh!” Wan Zian said with dawning understanding. Then he added,

”But what if he actually succeeds in breaking through?”

”That’s absolutely impossible.” Xing Suanzi waved his hand dismissively but didn’t explain why.

”Tonight’s mood was ruined by that man Zhu. It is this old Daoist’s fault. Let this old Daoist invite Young Master Wan to view the Hundred Beauties Painting.”

”Excellent!” Wan Zian’s eyes lit up, and he roared with laughter.

”This young master has long heard of Jile Workshop’s famous Hundred Beauties Painting, but you, old Daoist, have always kept it hidden away.”

”Finally, I’ll get to broaden my horizons.”

”It’s not that this old Daoist was unwilling. It’s just that the young master was too young before. Viewing it rashly could have harmed your body,” Xing Suanzi explained with a faint smile.

”But now, it should be fine!”

”Young Master Wan, this way please!”

”Let’s go!” Wan Zian shouted.

”Let’s go, let’s go, let’s go see the beauties.”

The group went up to the second floor, arms around each other’s shoulders, laughing and joking, completely unaware of the new, unfamiliar guests in their midst.

”Sister Ye.”

A large man in purple robes gestured with his eyes and spoke in a low voice,

”It’s Xing Suanzi.”

”I see him.” Disguised as a handsome, middle-aged man, Ye Baici’s expression remained unchanged.

”Don’t rush.”

”The Meridian Fire Force still needs some time to reach its maximum power. We will all strike together then.”

”Yes!”

In the crowd, a few inconspicuous gazes met briefly, then the individuals feigned nonchalance, turning back to joke and laugh with the women beside them.

*

*

*

The room was not large.

About five or six square meters.

In the empty room, there was only a single, unfurled scroll, its contents hidden beneath a black cloth.

In the very center.

was a meditation cushion.

Zhu Ju sat cross-legged on the cushion. After a moment of contemplation, he smiled freely, took out the Dragon’s Whisper Dew, and consumed it.

An icy-cold liquid slid down his throat and into his stomach, followed by a sharp, piercing pain. A wisp of heat shot straight toward the spot between his eyebrows.

”Huu...”

As if stimulated by something, the Profound Light suddenly flared brightly.

It was like a bonfire that had just been fed more wood; before the fuel was consumed, the flames burned with a brightness that far surpassed their usual intensity.

Steading his mind.

Zhu Ju flicked his long sleeve.

SWOOSH...

The black cloth covering the scroll floated up silently and drifted to the floor, revealing the contents of the painting.

The Night Parade of Hundred Ghosts!

The Celestial Capital Sect had three great Visualization Images.

Heaven, Earth, and Ghost.

Heaven was the Longevity Painting of the Immortals.

Earth was the Netherworld Thousand Layers Map.

Ghost was the Night Parade of Hundred Ghosts.

Among them, the Painting of Immortals was said to lead directly to a realm beyond that of a True Man. It was a gift from an Immortal, not some Mortal Grade item, and only a select few, like the Celestial Capital Sect Leader, were allowed to view it.

The Netherworld Map, on the other hand, could only be passed down to the core members of the sect.

Only the Night Parade of Hundred Ghosts was available to all, regardless of background; anyone in the world with the right affinity could view it.

Of course.

The Night Parade of Hundred Ghosts also had a legend associated with it.

It was said that the painting was created by a drunken Judge of the Underworld, who used a fragment of the Mirror of Sin as a brush and the Water of Oblivion as ink.

It depicted a scene from the Underworld.

Zhu Ju focused his gaze on it. The scroll was one zhang and six chi long, with an indigo base washed over with black ink. A hundred ghosts of various shapes and sizes were arranged in a procession, the end of which was hidden in a thick fog, making it seem endless.

Faded dark red stains covered it, looking like Blood Coagulation. A few extra glances were enough to make one’s heart pound and skin crawl.

A Magician’s breakthrough was an extremely perilous affair.

The slightest carelessness could lead to an unstable Divine Soul, or in severe cases, madness and death. It was essential to have a Mage standing guard.

Zhu Ju, of course, needed no such thing. Having someone guard him would only serve as a distraction.

He took out two sticks of Calming Incense, placing one on each side of him. With a flick of his finger, two wisps of flame shot out and lit them.

’Visualization Image!’

He took a deep breath, the stray thoughts in his mind slowly dissipating. Zhu Ju stared at the Night Parade of Hundred Ghosts and, following the Cultivation Method of a Magician, released his Divine Thought.

Instantly.

The scroll before him seemed to come alive. Myriad ghosts leaped from the painting and charged into his Sea of Consciousness. His mind was immediately swarmed by a hundred milling ghosts, all of them roaring and screaming.

Along with them, a flood of information poured into his mind.

Visualization!

Hundred Ghosts!

Divine Soul!

’So that’s how it is!’

Realization dawned on Zhu Ju. He subtly changed his Spell, and the fire-like Profound Light suddenly converged, forming a Golden Needle that pierced toward his Forehead Ancestral Acupoint.

”Open!”

「On the second floor.」

Xing Suanzi, who had been embracing women on his left and right, suddenly froze. His expression turned to surprise as he sat up straight and glanced behind him.

”So soon?”

”No wonder he dared to attempt the breakthrough alone.”

”What a pity!”

His eyes narrowed. He formed a Seal Technique with his hands and muttered in a low voice,

”Change!”

「In the Quiet Chamber.」

Zhu Ju sat silently, his mind racing. The Hundred Ghosts Illusion Realm in his Sea of Consciousness had not affected his reason in the slightest.

’This world’s method of opening the Forehead Ancestral Acupoint is remarkably similar to the way Innate Qi Refiners open the Nine Acupoints.’

’However, using Innate True Qi to break open the Acupoints must be done gradually. While the speed can vary, its greatest advantage is safety.’

’This world is different.’

’They use Secret Medicine for stimulation and a special Method to forcibly break open the Acupoint. Success makes you a Mage, but failure will inevitably lead to injury. Without a Mage watching over you, it’s indeed far too dangerous.’

”No wonder so many Magicians don’t dare to try,” he muttered. ”For one, they don’t have the money for Secret Medicine or the chance at Visualization. For another, they fear the backlash from failure.”

”But I am not afraid!”

Zhu Ju’s eyes narrowed.

”I have an exceptional Talent for the path of Magic, and I have already reached the Innate realm. My Divine Soul Power far exceeds that of an ordinary Magician.”

”I can even withstand the backlash of failure.”

”If I don’t succeed...”

”...that would be the truly strange thing!”

”Hm?”

”What is this?”

At some unknown point, the Hundred Ghosts Illusion Realm, which had originally existed only in his mind, seemed to have become real.

One ghost after another tugged at his body, pulling him down into an endless darkness.

These ghosts shrieked ceaselessly, not only shaking his Divine Soul and Sea of Consciousness but even devouring the Essence of his Physical Body.

A living person would likely be sucked dry into a withered corpse within a few breaths.

The Night Parade of Hundred Ghosts, which was supposed to help one achieve a breakthrough, had transformed into a man-eating Demon, dragging Zhu Ju’s Divine Soul and flesh toward the scroll.

”Xing Suanzi!”

How could he not know the cause of such a sudden change? Zhu Ju’s eyes flew wide open.

”You’re courting death!”

”Earth Evil True Body! Get lost!”

BOOM!

Rampant Evil Qi burst from his body. Struck by the Evil Qi, the surrounding ghosts shrieked and howled as they dissolved into wisps of green smoke.

Evil Qi Breaking Method.

This was the source of his confidence.

PENG!

「On the second floor.」

Xing Suanzi slammed the table and shot to his feet.

”Good brat, you actually broke my Magic!”

”No wonder you dared to talk back to this old master. It seems you came prepared. In that case, don’t blame this old master for being impolite! Everyone, attack!”

WHOOSH...

A sinister wind howled.

Jile Workshop had guards on patrol. At that moment, the eyes of certain guards flickered, and their figures silently vanished from where they stood.

And those walking with them didn’t notice a thing.

If a Mage had been present, they would have been able to ”see” Papermen leaping through windows and over roofs, rushing toward a certain room.

「In the Quiet Chamber.」

Zhu Ju remained seated and motionless, the Profound Light Like Fire slowly prying open his Forehead Ancestral Acupoint.

A sheet-like Paperman drifted in through the crack under the door. With a flash of white smoke, another person appeared in the room.

The newcomer was dressed as a brutish thug, carrying a pig iron scale weight of a hundred jin, his face cold and his eyes filled with killing intent.

PENG!

PENG!

One by one, Papermen entered the room, transforming into human figures.

There was a merchant, a beggar, a one-eyed woman, and a grotesque dwarf—all of them staring intently at Zhu Ju.

”Painted Skin!”

Zhu Ju’s eyelids twitched.

”Xing Suanzi, are you really determined to fight to the death?”

”Hmph!” The fat man in the room holding the Golden Abacus sneered upon hearing this. With a shake of his long sleeve, he shot out dozens of copper coins.

”You offended my master and still expect to leave here alive?”

Copper Coins Ask the Way!

This was a Magic he had mastered when he was alive, incorporating various techniques like divination, Breaking Technique, and Hidden Weapon arts.

It was unfailingly effective against ordinary Magicians.

Unfortunately,

today he had run into Zhu Ju.

CLANG CLANG CLANG...

When the copper coins came within five chi of Zhu Ju, they collided with an Invisible Gang Force, clattered to the ground, and vanished.

These people were all Papermen under the effect of the ’Skin Painting Technique.’

Some had been captured and refined by Xing Suanzi, while others had willingly submitted, trading for a long life in the form of a Painted Skin.

They possessed the skills they had in their previous lives and, enhanced by the Skin Painting Technique, were fearless against the weapons of Mortals.

”He really has some tricks up his sleeve.”

The merchant’s eyes narrowed.

”Attack together!”

SWISH!

The brutish thug who had arrived first was the first to strike. He swung the hundred-jin scale weight so fast it left afterimages.

”Go!”

The scale weight left his hand, shooting forward like a bolt from a Powerful Crossbow.

Another, a woman, giggled coquettishly, using her voice to affect the minds of others while simultaneously shooting out strands of spider silk.

There was a Swordsman, sword in hand, whose Sword Light flashed brilliantly.

A juggler controlled more than ten Flying Sabers, which weaved through the room, searching for an opening.

For Xing Suanzi to have taken them in, they must have all possessed considerable skill in life. Their methods were truly extraordinary.

However...

PENG!

CLANG CLANG CLANG...

Sparks flew in the room. Zhu Ju remained seated, not even moving to retaliate. His formidable Physical Body alone was enough to render the group’s attacks useless.

”What a powerful Hard Skill!”

”What kind of Magic is this?”

”Hee hee...” the woman giggled.

”No matter. He’s opening his Forehead Ancestral Acupoint right now. We don’t need to defeat him, just keep him from succeeding completely.”

”Attack!”

As she spoke, she shook the Copper Bell in her hand. The ringing intensified, accompanied by the shrieks of ghosts, causing Zhu Ju’s brow to furrow involuntarily.

He could be fearless against the methods of Mortals, but he still had to divert his attention to circulate his Cultivation Technique to defend against them. Besides, he was no Saint; he couldn’t just ignore everything.

Disturbed, his Forehead Ancestral Acupoint actually showed signs of closing.

”Courting death!”

His eyes narrowed, and his right hand was already resting on the hilt of the saber at his waist.

The next instant.

Ghost God Limit!

First Limit—Thousand Mountains Locking Mist!

Countless streaks of saber light appeared from nowhere, weaving into a dense net. The Saber Qi condensed without dispersing, gathering with the force of mist-shrouded mountains. In an instant, it enveloped the entire room, and the ghosts and Papermen were annihilated by the crisscrossing Saber Qi.

Its momentum was not yet spent.

It continued to expand outward.

BOOM!

The room shattered, the shockwave spreading in all directions. The terrifying killing intent even swept through the entirety of Jile Workshop.

On the first floor, the few people hiding their identities turned pale at the sound. They glanced at each other, seeing the confusion in one another’s eyes.

”What’s happening?”

”Someone’s fighting in the back!”

”Who is that? Such powerful Saber Intent!”

”...” Ye Baici’s expression changed. She suddenly flipped the table in front of her and produced an oil lamp in her hand.

”Now!”

With a flick of her finger, a wisp of flame ignited on the lamp. The flame swelled in the wind, rapidly engulfing its surroundings.

BOOM!

In an instant, Jile Workshop was transformed into a sea of flames.