Severing Ties: The Sect Regrets My Departure

Chapter 231: The Ten Thousand Demon Dao Platform! Bloodline Thread Connection!

“Is this… the Demon Ancestor Dao Platform?”

Inside the quiet room, Gu Xiu sat cross-legged, his consciousness immersed deep within his own body. Just moments ago, his seventh Dao Platform had fully materialized, settling firmly atop the White Soil Green Moss Dao Platform.

It was an anomaly among Dao Platforms.

To call it a “platform” felt inaccurate; it resembled a living sculpture more than a foundation. Yet, even “sculpture” was a difficult descriptor, for it possessed no fixed form. It was a mass of flux, shifting like amorphous clay, transforming into a thousand different shapes in the span of a breath.

However, a closer inspection revealed the truth. These constantly shifting forms were the visages of countless demon beasts.

It was a coalescence of the faint Demon Ancestor essence extracted from ten thousand beast bloodlines. Naturally, it manifested as a shifting parade of their ancestors.

“Strictly speaking, calling it a Demon Ancestor Dao Platform isn’t precise enough,” Gu Xiu mused. “It should be named the Ten Thousand Demon Ancestor Dao Platform.”

Moreover, the most unique aspect of this Dao Platform was not merely its appearance. Its true singularity lay in the fact that… it could be extracted.

Gu Xiu willed it.

Hum.

In an instant, a brilliant crimson light erupted from his body. As the bloody glow dissipated, a spectral Demon Ancestor statue hovered in the air beside him, materializing out of thin air.

It seemed like a simple summon, but the implications were earth-shattering.

If any other cultivator were to witness this, they would likely descend into madness on the spot.

A Dao Platform was the foundation of the Dantian, the anchor of the Qi Sea. If the Qi Sea was a tempestuous ocean, the Foundation Establishment Dao Platform was the needle that stilled the waves. The stronger the platform, the more stable the cultivation, and the higher the future potential.

Furthermore, a Dao Platform provided passive enhancements to the cultivator. Each layer amplified one’s strength. This was precisely why Gu Xiu had expended so much effort pursuing the perfect Dao Platforms.

But traditionally, a Dao Platform was an internal organ of cultivation. Its buffs were strictly for the owner. Transferring that power to an outsider was fundamentally impossible.

Until now.

With the Beast Ancestor Dao Platform hovering outside his body, Gu Xiu felt a faint, bloody halo enveloping him. This was the platform’s enhancement.

But this time, Gu Xiu shifted his focus away from himself. His gaze landed on the sleeping Bone-Discarding Yin Ape curled up in the corner.

Connect.

A crimson thread, visible only to Gu Xiu, shot silently from the hovering statue and tethered itself to the little black monkey.

Immediately, a faint red glow wrapped around the ape’s body.

Gu Xiu didn’t stop there. He tested the connection on the Du Xian Sword, the Star Shattering Forging Platform, the Carefree Jade Pendant, and even attempted to link with Xiao He.

The results were consistent.

There seemed to be no hard limit on the number of connections—or if there was, it was high enough to be negligible.

“The crimson glow on the targets isn’t as intense as the one on me,” Gu Xiu noted. “Clearly, the enhancement provided to outsiders is diluted compared to the user. But…”

Big or small, an enhancement was still an enhancement.

A sharp glint of understanding flashed in Gu Xiu’s eyes. “As expected. It really is that move.”

“Bloodline Thread Connection!”

To the cultivators of this era, and perhaps even to the demon race of the Ten Thousand Demon Kingdom, this name would be utterly alien.

This technique should not exist in this world. Gu Xiu had seen it in only one place.

The Forbidden Realm that had imprisoned him for five hundred years.

Back then, he had encountered entities who would casually summon sculptures to bolster the strength of themselves and their allies. The effect was similar to a Battlefield Spiritual Treasure—like a war drum or a command flag—but infinitely superior.

Battlefield treasures required complex setups, array flags, and constant protection lest the enemy destroy them.

But this? This was a Foundation Establishment Dao Platform.

Theoretically, the cultivator could summon it at will or retract it instantly into their Dantian to hide it. In a chaotic melee, this Bloodline Thread Connection was essentially unsolvable.

Furthermore, Gu Xiu possessed the Indestructible Dao Platform. The moment this new platform was forged, it inherited that indestructible attribute.

Because it was a Dao Platform, it moved with his thoughts, making it impossible to track or target. And even if the enemy managed to hit it, it couldn’t be broken.

“I can simply throw it out during a fight to buff my side and then ignore it completely,” Gu Xiu realized. “It’s an invincible support beacon.”

This was a weapon of war.

If Gu Xiu were to walk the path of a Beast Tamer or a Puppeteer, this Dao Platform would provide a legendary advantage.

“It is a pity that the control range isn’t very large, and I cannot select which Demon Ancestor manifests,” Gu Xiu said, noting the flaws after further testing.

He identified two limitations.

First, the range of the Bloodline Thread Connection was finite. While the number of targets seemed boundless, the effective radius was only ten zhang. Beyond that distance, the connection would sever, and the buffs would vanish.

Second, the RNG factor.

Gu Xiu realized he couldn’t control the shapeshifting nature of the statue. It constantly cycled through different Demon Ancestor forms, and each form provided a different buff.

One statue might induce fearlessness and bloodlust (Berserk); another might boost speed; another might sharpen attacks; yet another might bolster defense.

It was a roll of the dice. Gu Xiu couldn’t choose the buff he needed in the heat of the moment. At least, not yet.

“Minor flaws,” Gu Xiu decided, dismissing the concerns. “The surprise outweighs the defects.”

The platform had only just been forged. It would grow. As he poured more resources into it and his cultivation advanced, the platform would evolve. These issues might resolve themselves in time.

“And I have the little black monkey to thank for this success.”

Gu Xiu looked at the ape with a satisfied smile.

Previously, he had struggled to complete the forging process because his subconscious resisted the power. He had refused to accept the rules of the demon bloodline, fearing they would become shackles on his humanity.

After witnessing the horrors of the Forbidden Realm, Gu Xiu knew better than to trade his freedom for power. He would rather abandon the Ten Thousand Spirit Respect Vein than accept a “gift” that came with a leash.

He believed in himself. Even without the bloodline of a pseudo-Demon Ancestor, he could reach the peak.

So, he had devised a compromise.

Waste not, want not.

The Ten Thousand Spirit Respect Vein was a supreme treasure. Discarding it would be a crime against the Dao. The solution? Let someone who was already “shackled” carry the burden.

The little black monkey was a demon beast. It was already bound by the laws of bloodline hierarchy.

So, Gu Xiu had called the monkey over and shared the gift. He offloaded half of the bloodline infusion—and the accompanying rules—onto the beast.

The gamble paid off.

Gu Xiu successfully forged the Ten Thousand Demon Ancestor Dao Platform without suffering the bloodline suppression or the structural “shackles.”

Meanwhile, the little black monkey, having absorbed the massive influx of power, remained subject to the suppression, but its bloodline underwent a qualitative evolution.

It now possessed a true Demon Ancestor Bloodline.

Not a dilute, pseudo-bloodline, but the orthodox, supreme ancestry that commanded the worship of all demons.

It was a perfect win-win.

However…

Just as Gu Xiu finished reviewing his harvest and prepared to step out of the room, his brow furrowed.

“Master, someone is breaching the array!”

“Someone is tampering with the grand formation of our courtyard!”

The Star Shattering Forging Platform and the Carefree Jade Pendant transmitted urgent mental messages simultaneously.

They didn’t need to report it. Gu Xiu had already sensed the disturbance the moment it occurred.

Someone was right outside the Listening-to-Rain Pavilion, quietly dismantling the outer layers of his defensive formation.

The intruder was extremely cautious. They had no intention of alerting the master of the house, nor did they seem intent on launching an immediate attack.

They were probing. They wanted to see everything inside the courtyard.

Gu Xiu remained calm. He could sense the spy’s high state of vigilance; the intruder was ready to flee at the first sign of trouble.

But this is my territory, Gu Xiu thought coldly. My formation. My rules.

He formed a hand seal and tapped a small mirror he had retrieved from his Storage Ring.

The surface of the glass rippled like water, revealing the scene outside the Listening-to-Rain Pavilion.

There, tucked into a perfect blind spot, was a figure…