Pay-to-Win Cultivation: I Get 10,000x Returns

It was over. The demons had fallen, the Nest had crumbled, and the sun was shining once again.

Yet, a strange, lingering unease gnawed at Zhang Xian’s heart.

It had gone too smoothly. So smoothly, in fact, that it felt wrong. The Black Venerable had been slain by the Lingxu Sword Sect. Daoist Qianji had fled. The White Venerable had self-destructed. A Demon Nest that had been painstakingly built over hundreds of years had collapsed in a single day like a house of cards.

Zhang Xian swept his gaze over the sunlit ruins, suspicion growing in his mind. But where was the flaw? He couldn’t put his finger on it.

Eventually, he shook his head with a self-deprecating chuckle. Maybe I’ve just read too many web novels. I’m so used to plot twists that a straightforward victory feels unnatural.

“I’m probably overthinking it,” he muttered, tightening his grip on Yun Wanqing’s slightly cool hand.

The brutal battle that had raged for an entire day finally drew to a close.

The Southern Region’s Righteous Alliance had launched a thunderous raid on the Demon Nest and achieved total victory. Thousands of demonic minions were either slaughtered or captured. The core forces that had entrenched themselves here for centuries were uprooted in twenty-four hours.

Led by Lin Xiaozhu, a team of cultivators proficient in divination and arrays swept through the Secret Realm and the desolate minor worlds surrounding it. They left no stone unturned, eradicating the last pockets of resistance and capturing nearly a hundred remnants who still retained a shred of sanity.

At the edge of the plaza, on a hastily erected Clear Heart Platform, countless captured cultivators knelt prostrate on the stone. Righteous elders sat in a circle around them, chanting incantations in an attempt to purify their souls and strip away the corruption of [Desire].

“Ugh… Grahhh!”

“Kill… Kill them all! It’s all mine!”

“Hehe… Beauties… mine…”

Some captives immediately let out bestial roars. Their eyes turned bloodshot, and black mist churned around their bodies as they struggled against their magical restraints like rabid animals.

Lin Xiaozhu watched with an impassive expression. She stepped up to a captive deeply entrenched in madness and fired a Clear Heart rune into his chest.

The man convulsed violently. The red light in his eyes faded for a split second, only to be replaced by an expression of even greater agony and confusion before the madness took hold again.

Lin Xiaozhu shook her head. “The [Desire] has taken root in his marrow. His Golden Core is corroded beyond repair. There is no saving him.”

Her words sealed the fate of these wretches. They were slaves to their own cravings, lost in self-woven illusions. Their bodies were nothing more than walking corpses.

Other captives reacted differently to the baptism.

Some froze as if struck by lightning. Their bodies trembled violently, tears and mucus streaming down their faces as they let out heart-wrenching wails.

“I was wrong! I was wrong! I’m not human! Please, just kill me!”

It was as if they had woken from a long, terrible nightmare, crushed by the weight of their sins. Others clutched their heads and rolled on the ground, screaming in sheer psychological agony. These were the ones whose corruption was lighter; their eyes still held fear and a desperate will to survive.

“Take them away and guard them strictly,” Xia Xuanyin ordered, his voice carrying the unquestionable authority of an Emperor. “When we return to the Southern Capital, they will be handed over to the Ministry of Justice and the sect elders for interrogation. We will uncover the cause of their fall and the extent of their crimes before passing judgment!”

Two days later.

The flying boats of the various sects began to rise into the sky, embarking on the journey home.

Li Fuxi was clearly in a foul mood. Since the battle ended, she had locked herself in her quiet room, refusing to see anyone.

In contrast, Lin Yinyin was buzzing with excitement. Her face was flushed as she dragged Zhang Xian around, chattering non-stop. This was her first large-scale war. She had gone from nervousness to the thrill of combat, and now to the joy of victory. Her mental state had undergone a baptism by fire, and her cultivation showed faint signs of improvement.

Yun Wanqing, however, had shed her usual armor of toughness. She buried herself in Zhang Xian’s arms and cried until she had no tears left.

The complete dissipation of the White Venerable had severed the last thread connecting her to the past. The resolute killing intent he showed, and the tainted Golden Core turning to ash, told her clearly that the man she had waited two hundred years for was gone.

What remained had been nothing but a monster twisted by [Desire], wearing her husband’s memories like a skin suit.

Zhang Xian held her silently, feeling the tremors in her body until she exhausted herself and fell into a deep sleep.

He tiptoed out of the room, closing the door softly behind him.

As he turned into the corridor, he saw Xia Chengyan leaning against the wall, a meaningful, roguish grin plastered on his face.

“Yo, Brother Zhang. Fancy meeting you here.”

Zhang Xian opened his mouth to explain, but Xia Chengyan waved him off with a knowing look.

“Say less, bro. I know exactly what went down in there.” He threw a heavy arm around Zhang Xian’s shoulder. “Come on, let’s go to my cabin. Have a seat, drink some tea.”

Zhang Xian smiled helplessly and let himself be dragged along.

Inside the Prince’s cabin, Lin Xiaozhu was sitting primly by a tea table. In front of her were two transparent jade bottles.

One contained a wisp of black energy that writhed like a living parasite, emitting a cold, sinister aura—a remnant of [Desire]. The other held a few drops of white liquid radiating rich Life Essence.

She was fully focused on manipulating a delicate array disk, projecting complex holograms of light to analyze the substances.

Xia Chengyan poured Zhang Xian a cup of spirit tea, then pulled out a familiar object. It was the bottle of Earth-Grade Spirit Recovery Pills Zhang Xian had tossed him during the fight.

“Brother Zhang, here. I’m returning this treasure to you.”

Before Zhang Xian could speak, the Prince continued. “Xiaozhu and I have to head back to the Central Continent immediately, so we won’t be saying goodbye to the others. Meeting you on this trip to the Southern Region… it’s been a real pleasure, man.”

“The thing is, the ‘Seven Emotions Evil Thoughts’ are running rampant back home, and the Alliance Leader is breathing down our necks. If my old man hadn’t sent a message, I wouldn’t have dragged Xiaozhu out here. Now that the Demon Nest is gone, we gotta bounce.”

Lin Xiaozhu didn’t look up, but she added, “The [Desire] and Life Essence samples from this place are invaluable for our research into the source of the evil thoughts in the Central Continent. This battle provided us with new data.”

Zhang Xian didn’t even glance at the bottle of pills. He pushed it back across the table.

“Although the [Desire] here is gone, the Central Continent sounds like a mess. Keep them. To me, these pills are just worldly possessions—pocket change. But for you guys? They might be an extra life when it counts. Take them. Consider it a parting gift.”

Lin Xiaozhu finally looked up. Her clear, analytical eyes flashed with rare surprise.

Earth-Grade Spirit Recovery Pills were strategic resources. Even in the Central Continent, major powers fought wars over them. The value of this single bottle was enough to buy a small sect, yet Zhang Xian was giving it away like it was a box of cheap snacks?

Xia Chengyan stared at him, finally understanding the true depth of Zhang Xian’s wealth.

“Holy sh*t. Brother Zhang… you’re actually serious?”

Xia Chengyan slammed his hand on the table, grinning ear to ear. “You’re a badass! I, Xia Chengyan, officially acknowledge you as my Big Brother. Seriously, when you come to the Central Continent, I’m rolling out the red carpet. I’ll make sure you’re treated like a king.”

He didn’t refuse again, solemnly storing the pills away.

Zhang Xian smiled and nodded. “It’s a promise.”

He paused, then turned his gaze to the scholarly girl. “Miss Xiaozhu, in your professional opinion… how can [Desire] be completely eradicated?”

“It is very difficult.” Lin Xiaozhu set down her array disk and slowly shook her head.