Who Let Him Cultivate？

Chapter 49: Demon Cult

“Who writes a letter to a tiger demon?” Lu Yang muttered, turning the heavy parchment over in his hands. “Hasn’t this beast been dodging cultivators its entire life? How does anyone outside these mountains even know it exists?”

The three of them stood in the dim light of the cavern, thoroughly baffled. Given the tiger demon’s extreme paranoia, its presence should have been a complete secret to the outside world.

“Just read it. What does it say?”

Meng Jingzhou snatched the letter, cleared his throat, and pitched his voice into a dramatic, resonant baritone. “‘Brother Tiger, it has been many days since we last met. How have you been lately?'”

He began to pace, gesturing grandly with his free hand. “‘Brother Tiger, you act with caution, unwilling to show yourself or let righteous cultivators know of your existence, choosing only to target mortals. This step-by-step cultivation method is truly admirable, but such a path is ultimately too slow. Now, a great era is approaching. Heroes are rising, and all factions are eyeing the Central Continent covetously. Didn’t Brother Tiger also seize this opportunity to leave your homeland, break away from the Qiongqi lineage, and infiltrate Song Mountain from the Demon Domain?'”

“You read too slowly,” Lu Yang deadpanned. He and Man Gu had already stepped up, sandwiching Meng Jingzhou between them so they could just read the parchment themselves.

“I’ll speed up, just back off!” Meng Jingzhou shoved the two of them away, smoothing his robes before resuming his theatrical delivery. “‘Being cautious is certainly not a major fault, but in this reviving era, one must be bolder to seize a Fated Chance. Take a gamble, purify your bloodline, and transform into a pure-blooded Qiongqi! Only then can one secure a foothold in the times to come.'”

Meng Jingzhou paused for dramatic effect. “‘I boldly suggest that Brother Tiger and your spouse join my Yanjiang Branch. Together, using cultivators as our prey, we shall conspire on great matters! Enclosed is my token. Brother Tiger may bring it directly to the Yanjiang Branch to find me, and I will personally recommend you for the position of executive. Yours respectfully, your younger brother, Qin Yuanhao.'”

The letter was short, but the implications were massive.

Lu Yang tapped his chin, his mind already dissecting the text. “The letter specifically mentions hiding from ‘righteous cultivators.’ That breaks normal speech conventions. No one actually calls them ‘righteous cultivators’ in casual conversation unless the writer is standing in direct opposition to them. This Qin Yuanhao… he’s a demonic path cultivator.”

It made perfect sense. It explained why a cultivator knew about the tiger demon’s existence but never reported it to the authorities.

In the Central Continent, the righteous path held absolute, overwhelming dominance. Because of this, demons, devils, and ghosts were natural allies of circumstance. The tiger demon was a prime example: it never attacked humans directly, instead using its Changui to lure victims into the shadows. Add in the fact that it possessed a Qiongqi bloodline and was a guaranteed Golden Core stage threat, and it was only logical that demonic cultivators would try to recruit it.

“So, this Yanjiang Branch is a Demon Cult stronghold?” Meng Jingzhou asked, his eyes narrowing.

“It fits,” Lu Yang nodded. “Demon cults love using local place names for their hidden branches. The only question is which of the cults this Yanjiang Branch belongs to.”

Just as the righteous path was governed by the Five Great Immortal Sects, the demonic path had its own ruling factions: the Four Great Demon Cults.

Unlike standard Sects, these were literal religions. The defining difference was their fanatical worship of a powerful, otherworldly entity. The beliefs of the Four Great Demon Cults varied wildly. Some scholars claimed they worshipped four distinct fallen immortals, while others argued they worshipped four different avatars of a single, maddened deity. Opinions varied, and facts were scarce.

The Demon Cults kept their secrets buried deep. Their movements were entirely elusive. The Great Xia Dynasty and the Five Great Immortal Sects had launched countless joint crusades to find their main headquarters, all to no avail. Whenever the righteous path purged a massive swath of cult strongholds, new followers would simply sprout up elsewhere like weeds after a spring rain. They seemed impossible to eradicate.

To the common folk, the Demon Cults were terrifying—mysterious, unpredictable, and ruthlessly cruel. But the reality was far less glamorous. It wasn’t that the cults were overwhelmingly powerful; it was that the righteous path was so terrifyingly strong that the cults didn’t dare show their faces in the daylight. They were forced to scurry in the shadows, relying on bizarre tricks and secrecy.

If their main lair was ever actually discovered, the Five Great Immortal Sects wouldn’t even need to lift a finger. The Great Xia Dynasty would simply dispatch its military, flip the cult upside down within five days, and salt the earth of every last hideout within a month.

That was the absolute confidence of the righteous path. The demonic path was, ultimately, a collection of rats hiding from the sun.

Lu Yang shook the envelope. A small bone token clattered into his palm. It pulsed faintly, carrying a trace of special True Qi—a unique signature left by Qin Yuanhao that would be impossible for an outsider to forge.

Man Gu leaned in, his polite, scholarly demeanor contrasting sharply with his towering, muscular frame. “Could we perhaps use this token to join the Demon Cult?” he asked, clearly calculating how many skulls he could crush for Sect merit. Discovering a cult stronghold was worth infinitely more than bagging two tiger demons.

Lu Yang shook his head. “No. If we just walk into the Yanjiang Branch with his token, Qin Yuanhao will immediately know something is wrong. Besides, we don’t even know where the Yanjiang Branch is.”

“Then what is our course of action?” Man Gu asked.

“Well, since it’s called the Yanjiang Branch, it’s probably in Yanjiang County,” Lu Yang reasoned, his voice perfectly level. “We go to the county. We ask around for a man named Qin Yuanhao. Since he referred to himself as a ‘younger brother’ to the tiger demon, his cultivation base can’t be higher than the tiger’s. So, we track him down, kill him, and take the token. Then we stroll into the Yanjiang Branch, claim we’re old friends of Qin Yuanhao coming to seek refuge, and sadly report his untimely demise.”

Meng Jingzhou and Man Gu stared at him for a second before their eyes lit up simultaneously.

“Brilliant,” Meng Jingzhou grinned.

“Keep searching the cave,” Lu Yang urged, clapping his hands together. “Let’s see what else they were hoarding.”

A few minutes later, Meng Jingzhou pulled a strange plant from a pile of debris. It was the size of a man’s palm, but instead of green, it was a vibrant, fleshy crimson that radiated a sinister aura.

“Jade Blood Grass?” Meng Jingzhou frowned, turning it over. “Why are the veins red? The main use of Jade Blood Grass is detoxification. The veins are supposed to be bluish-green, like rivers flowing over the earth. This looks like an open wound.”

Lu Yang squatted down, inspecting the plant closely. “You’re forgetting something. For humans, Jade Blood Grass is the main ingredient in detoxification pills. But for Demon Beasts, it serves an entirely different purpose.”

He pointed to the crimson leaves. “It refines bloodlines. The tiger demon must have been force-ripening this stalk by watering it with fresh blood, adapting the plant to its Qiongqi lineage. Give it a few more months to fully mature, and once the tiger ate it, its Qiongqi bloodline would have purified just enough to guarantee a smooth breakthrough to the Golden Core stage.”

That was the true origin of the “Blood” in Jade Blood Grass. Lu Yang had learned that little tidbit directly from the Little Medicine King.

“It’s completely useless for detox pills now,” Lu Yang concluded, standing up. “Only a demon race cultivator could eat this to purify their blood.”

“In that case, you two take it,” Meng Jingzhou said, tossing the crimson herb toward them. “Sell it at the Sect’s monthly market on the 15th. It’ll fetch a premium price.”

Plenty of disciples in the Dao Seeking Sect raised Demon Beasts as familiars. An herb that could enhance a beast’s bloodline was a highly sought-after commodity.

Lu Yang and Man Gu immediately began a fierce battle of politeness, each insisting the other take the valuable loot. In the end, Man Gu’s polite deflections were no match for Lu Yang’s sheer stubbornness, and the towering barbarian was forced to accept the grass.

“Just a heads-up,” Meng Jingzhou warned, pointing a finger at Man Gu. “Do not eat that yourself. The ancient barbarian race is a branch of humanity. That grass will do absolutely nothing for your bloodline.”

“Oh,” Man Gu said, looking genuinely disappointed.

It was a well-known piece of trivia. Legend had it that the ancient barbarian race originated from a deeply romantic marriage proposal.

In the ancient era, humanity lived in scattered, primitive tribes. The absolute strongest member of a tribe was granted the title of ‘Warrior.’ One day, two rival tribes crossed paths. A male warrior from the first tribe laid eyes on the female warrior of the second tribe and was instantly smitten.

Approaching her, he delivered his proposal: “Little girl, give this lord a smile. If this lord is happy, he’ll marry you.”

The female warrior offered a charming grin, hefted a massive boulder, and smashed it directly into his face.

A brutal, earth-shattering wrestling match ensued. In the end, the female warrior proved superior. She knocked the male warrior unconscious, dragged him by the ankles into her stone hut, and the two stayed awake all night.

Ten months later, the very first barbarian was born.