My disciples are all villains.

Brackish Mountain was usually shrouded in darkness. Without knowing when it began, it never stopped snowing as well. In a snowy land that had lost sunlight along with the biting cold, it was difficult for people to be compelled by the scenery.

The cold wind entered the graveyard through the only opening on the ceiling. It howled like a war horn. At the same time, it sounded as though the bones in the Melilot Graveyard were lamenting their fates and lives that were filled with regrets.

Everyone in the Nobleman Nation sought longevity. They wanted to go against the heavens, change their fates, and break the bonds of their shackles. Now, everything laid in ruins.

Yu Shangrong sometimes wondered why the heavens treated them differently when they were all humans? He left this place in his youth to change his fate. With his mortal legs, he traversed the lands, ventured through dangerous forests, and cultivated… He was finally at the peak of human cultivation. He would be lying if he said that he did not feel wronged in the slightest.

Wuu...

The wind's howling intensified.

It pulled Yu Shangrong back from his thoughts. He rose to his feet and surveyed his surroundings. He looked at the ingenious design of the graveyard and shook his head. He looked at the wall on which the word 'longevity' was carved. He felt slightly emotional.

Clack.

With a crisp sound, the characters moved.

'A contraption?'

Several dozen projectiles shot from the walls to the sides. Yu Shangrong did not even have to use his Primal Qi. He only needed his protective energy to keep the projectiles at bay. They were weak projectiles. They were arrowheads forged by the hands of men. They were refined, solid, compact, and exquisite. They were truly works of art, and yet, they could do nothing against cultivators.

The projectiles fell harmlessly to the ground.

A hidden bracket appeared on the wall.

Without hesitation, Yu Shangrong pressed it.

The second stone door slowly slid open, revealing a round space. The lighting in this room was better than the previous one. However, the howling of the wind was still audible. His ears were growing accustomed to the humming sound.

There was a round stone table in the center of the round room. A brocade box rested on the table. The box was surrounded by withered melilots. Perhaps, it was due to the passing of time, the melilots only left behind vague outlines. The physical bodies had rotted away long ago.

Yu Shangrong waved his sleeve softly. The melilots and dust scattered. He looked at the brocade box. Petals of a melilot decorated the lid of the box. He did not think much about it and waved his arm again.

Click!

The brocaded box opened, revealing several books and pills.

Yu Shangrong picked the books up and casually flipped through them. There was nothing special about the books. They were the cultivation methods of the Buddhist, Daoist, and Confucian sects. Indeed, they would be considered treasures for ordinary people. However, for Yu Shangrong, they were nothing but a pile of useless paper. He would not even deign to look at them twice. Some Primal Qi surged in his palm, and the books were reduced to ashes.

As for the pills, after all this time, their effects had certainly deteriorated. Judging from the shapes of the pills, these pills should have been low-grade longevity pills. Like the books, they were not much use to him. These were indeed precious items to the people of the Nobleman Country in the past. He did not expect them to be placed inside the Melilot Graveyard.

'Did nobody cultivate or consume these?' Yu Shangrong sighed softly and smacked his palm down.

Bam!

The brocade box fell to the ground.

Suddenly, a strange item that looked like a painting fell from the bottom of the brocade box.

Yu Shangrong shifted his gaze toward the painting. To be more precise, it was a sheet of paper with various symbols. He suddenly recalled the paper and mission his master entrusted to him. The symbols on the paper he was given seemed to match those on this sheet of paper.

He took out the paper that his master had given and laid it next to the sheet of paper to compare them. Many of the symbols were similar, there was a handful that was complete matches. There were more symbols on the sheet he found. Clearly, the contents on the two sheets of paper were different, but they had been written in the same style.

"Does this belong to master?" Yu Shangrong was curious. Why was his master's possession here? He did not think that the other items were precious, but he guessed this sheet had to be very precious.

Yu Shangrong studied the symbols on the paper, but he could not understand any of them. In the end, he gave up trying to make sense of it. Then, he folded it carefully and placed it inside his pocket. The fact that it survived the years quietly inside this box without being affected by the weather proved that the material of this sheet of paper was extraordinary as well.

After that, Yu Shangrong turned to look at the stone door. "Should I head back?"

Then, he walked out of the second stone door.

The howling of the wind intensified.

Yu Shangrong felt that something was amiss. He raised a hand, and his Hundred Tribulations Insight avatar appeared. His Golden Lotus was still tainted by the purple curse.

"Won't it go away?" Yu Shangrong frowned slightly.

If his avatar was fine, he would be able to return to the Evil Sky Pavilion in seven days if he flew at full speed. However, at the moment, he was sure that his avatar would fall apart halfway through his journey. There were many beasts in the wilderness. He would become their prey if he was not careful. Without his avatar, his cultivation base was only equivalent to a Nine-fold Body Tempering cultivator. He could handle manual labor, but he could not hasten his journey and pass through dangerous forests. He did not think that he could count on having the same luck he had in his youth.

When he thought about this, Yu Shangrong stopped. He did not intend to break the door. He crossed his legs and sat down. Then, he circulated his Primal Qi to suppress the erosion of the purple curse. He adjusted his breathing as he entered a meditative state.

…

The entire day passed in just a blink of an eye.

If it were not for the source of light from the Melilot Graveyard's ceiling, it would be difficult to tell that it was already bright outside.

Yu Shangrong summoned his Hundred Tribulations Insight avatar again… Indeed, the spread of the purple spots had slowed. However, this suppression was merely delaying the spread of this poison, it was not a cure. He could not allow this to drag on…

Yu Shangrong had been searching for a way to overcome this throughout the night. Yet, he could not stop the erosion of this curse.

As the Sword Devil who remained undefeatable in the cultivation world over the years, this was his first time feeling powerless and helpless.

Yu Shangrong stood up and passed through the second stone door. He sat down with his legs crossed again to adjust his breathing while he tried to come up with something.

...

On the fifth day, Yu Shangrong summoned his avatar again. The Golden Lotus of his Hundred Tribulations Insight avatar was almost completely tainted. Perhaps, it was due to the pressure of his Golden Lotus's imminent destruction by the curse, a sudden and terrifying thought came to Yu Shangrong's mind unbidden. Sever the Golden Lotus!

He knew the consequences of that act. This was because he did the exact same thing to countless other avatars with his Longevity Sword before. Fiend Zen avatars, Daoist avatars, Confucian Heavenly Energy avatars, Buddha Golden Bodies. Regardless of the avatar, when they were cut by a heaven-grade weapon, the cultivator would be gravely injured. Cutting off his Golden Lotus was akin to committing suicide.

Yu Shangrong was surprised to find his fingers trembling. He tightened his grip on the scabbard of the Longevity Sword. The Sword Devil of the generation was clearly nervous.