Rebirth as a Demonic Cultivator: Starting with a Zombie Planet

Chapter 54: Taming Huikong, Fiend Soul Achieved

Wan Wuying shrugged. “How should I know?”

Chu Xuan suppressed a sigh. So much for keeping a low profile. His cheap Master had sold him out just to flex. Having a Master who loved the sound of his own voice was going to be a massive headache.

Outwardly, Chu Xuan bowed deeply, his hands cupped in flawless respect toward Zhao Wuya. “Senior Zhao, witnessing the destruction of the Wuji Sect opened my eyes. It taught me the cruelest truth of the cultivation world: the weak are prey to the strong.” He kept his tone earnest, almost reverent. “That day was an awakening. Combined with a few fortuitous encounters, my realm managed to soar. In truth, my aptitude pales in comparison to Senior Brother Li or Senior Brother Liu. I am merely lucky.”

Lucky indeed. Chu Xuan knew his own aptitude was garbage. If he hadn’t acquired the Blood Mirror and claimed the zombie-infested wasteland of Hailan Planet as his personal slaughterhouse, he would still be a nobody.

Seeing his disciple act so humble, Wan Wuying nodded in smug approval.

Zhao Wuya bought the act completely. Fortuitous encounters were the lifeblood of the cultivation world—unpredictable and highly coveted. Cultivators fell off cliffs every day, only to stumble into the forgotten cave mansions of ancient masters. Some even received direct empowerments, leaping from mere mortals to the Foundation Establishment realm overnight. Compared to those legends, Chu Xuan’s rapid rise over two years was impressive, but hardly earth-shattering.

“Old Ghost Wan, you’ve found yourself a good seedling,” Zhao Wuya sighed, nodding in appreciation.

Wan Wuying chuckled, practically glowing with self-satisfaction.

Zhao Wuya cupped his hands. “I will report this to the Sect Master. Expect official appointments within two days. Until then, please rest here at Feishan Hall.”

With a fierce stomp that cracked the stone floor, Zhao Wuya surged into the air on a current of Qi, vanishing into the horizon.

The middle-aged cultivator who had greeted them earlier hurried over, bowing deeply. “Senior Wan, I am Li Shan, an inner sect deacon of the Tianyin Sect. I oversee the affairs of Feishan Hall. I have already prepared temporary cave mansions for the Fellow Daoists of Jiyin Cave. As for you, Senior Wan…”

“Just arrange something simple,” Wan Wuying said with a dismissive wave. “Once the official orders arrive, I will carve out my own cave mansion.”

“Understood.” Li Shan bowed and retreated.

“Go rest,” Wan Wuying ordered his disciples.

Led by Tianyin Sect cultivators, Chu Xuan and the others dispersed to their temporary lodgings.

Chu Xuan selected a cave mansion carved into the midpoint of the mountain. The moment the heavy stone doors ground shut behind him, his humble facade vanished, replaced by cold, calculating paranoia. He swept the cavern with his divine sense, checking every crack and shadow for spying formations. Only when he was absolutely certain the cave was blind did he begin his own preparations.

He layered the entrance with arrays—confusion traps, early-warning triggers, and lethal ambush formations. Only when the cavern was a fortified death trap did he finally sit cross-legged on the cold stone bed and exhale.

Reflecting on the past few days, a faint, predatory smile touched Chu Xuan’s lips. I didn’t expect to be this strong already.

The monk, Huikong, had been a top-tier talent among the younger generation of Foundation Establishment cultivators. Yet, Chu Xuan had slaughtered him without even needing to deploy his Gu insects.

If I can crush him that easily, I can firmly suppress almost any early-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator.

He was only at the second layer of Foundation Establishment. Once he broke through to the third layer, even fourth-layer cultivators wouldn’t stand a chance against him. With the Blood Mirror in his grasp and the endless zombie hordes of Hailan Planet fueling his ascent, absolute power was well within his reach.

A sudden tremor interrupted his thoughts.

The Fiend Soul Chain.

Chu Xuan summoned the chain from his storage ring. The artifact’s core spirit had yet to stabilize. Originally, he had planned to use Sun Shi’s living soul as the primary fiend soul. But after ripping out Huikong’s soul, he had simply tossed the monk into the chain as well, letting the two spirits tear each other apart in the dark.

Now, the slaughter was over. A victor had emerged.

Roar! Roar! Roar!

Guttural, victorious howling echoed from the black metal links. Peering into the artifact’s internal space, Chu Xuan watched Huikong’s spectral form rip Sun Shi’s soul to shreds, devouring the glowing fragments in a few ravenous bites.

With a flick of his will, Chu Xuan dragged Huikong out into the real world.

The monk was no longer the pious, arrogant hypocrite he had been in life. Stripped down to a raw living soul, Huikong was a feral beast. His spectral eyes burned with mindless bloodlust, devoid of all human reason.

The moment he materialized, he shrieked and lunged at Chu Xuan, spectral claws extended.

Chu Xuan didn’t even blink. With a mere thought, the Fiend Soul Chain whipped through the air.

CRACK!

The black iron struck the soul with the force of a thunderbolt. Huikong shrieked in agony, his ethereal body flickering and dimming. Yet, driven by pure malice, the monk bared his fangs and lunged again.

CRACK!

The chain lashed out again. Huikong’s form grew fainter.

CRACK! CRACK!

Chu Xuan mercilessly whipped the feral spirit over a dozen times. The sharp cracks echoed through the cavern as the chain tore away chunks of the monk’s spiritual essence. Soon, Huikong’s soul was so faint it was nearly transparent, wavering like a dying candle flame.

One more strike, and the soul would shatter into nothingness.

Chu Xuan frowned, staying his hand. Enough. Any more and he’ll dissipate entirely.

The brutal beating had done its job. The mindless rage in Huikong’s eyes finally gave way to primal terror. The battered soul shrank back, hovering obediently beside Chu Xuan, not daring to make a single aggressive move.

Chu Xuan nodded in cold satisfaction. Tamed.

With his newfound ferocity and brutality, Huikong was the perfect fiend soul to anchor the artifact. In the future, any living souls Chu Xuan extracted could simply be fed to the monk to nourish and strengthen him. As Chu Xuan’s Natal Artifact, the Fiend Soul Chain would only grow more terrifying, and Huikong’s power would scale right alongside it.

“Good. Time to continue with the Soul Forging Incantation.”

Chu Xuan left the Fiend Soul Chain active, allowing Huikong’s spirit to drift aimlessly around the cavern. Closing his eyes, Chu Xuan circulated the incantation, methodically tempering his own divine soul.

A few times, Huikong glared at Chu Xuan’s meditating form with lingering malice, but the memory of the whip kept the spirit paralyzed with fear. In the end, the feral monk simply floated in the corner, docile and broken.

Two days passed in the blink of an eye.

“Chu… Uncle-Master Chu!” Xu Ming’s nervous voice echoed from beyond the heavy stone doors. “The Tianyin Sect’s orders have arrived! The Patriarch sent me to fetch you!”

Chu Xuan exhaled a long breath of stale Qi and ceased his cultivation. He disabled the arrays and strode out of the cave mansion. A sharp, predatory glint still lingered in the depths of his eyes, a byproduct of his soul tempering.

Meeting that gaze, Xu Ming shuddered, his heart clenching in instinctual fear.

“Speak,” Chu Xuan commanded, his voice cold and flat.

Xu Ming swallowed hard. “Our Jiyin Cave lineage has been officially absorbed into the Tianyin Sect. However, we aren’t relocating to their main mountain gate. Instead, we’ve been ordered to establish our own cave mansions right here in Wuzhou to help Feishan Hall expand their territory.”

Chu Xuan smiled faintly. Exactly as expected.

The Tianyin Sect wasn’t stupid enough to turn away a Golden Core master and four Foundation Establishment cultivators offering themselves on a silver platter. Keeping them stationed at the border to act as vanguard muscle was the most pragmatic move for both sides.

“Where is my Master?” Chu Xuan asked.

“He is currently scouting for a location with dense Spiritual Qi to carve out his new cave mansion,” Xu Ming replied respectfully. “The Patriarch said if you fly south, you’ll find him.”

“Good.” Chu Xuan summoned his Heavenly Dipper Flying Sword. Stepping onto the gleaming blade, he surged into the sky, cutting a path southward.

Watching him leave, Xu Ming’s eyes burned with a mix of awe and envy. One day, I’m going to be just like Uncle-Master Chu! he thought, clenching his fists in secret determination.

Chu Xuan rode the wind south. Before long, he spotted several streaks of light darting through the clouds. Li Xuanming, Liu Zhenxiong, and Wu Teng were hovering in mid-air atop their respective flying Magical Artifacts.

Chu Xuan banked his sword and glided over to join them.

“Junior Brother Chu,” the three greeted him, nodding with warm smiles.

Liu Zhenxiong studied him for a moment, his brows rising. “Junior Brother Chu, your divine soul… it feels significantly stronger.”

Chu Xuan nodded. “Indeed. I’ve successfully mastered the first layer of the Soul Forging Incantation.”

“That fast?” Liu Zhenxiong praised, genuinely impressed. “Most who attempt the Soul Forging Incantation need at least three to five years just to grasp the first layer.”

Before Chu Xuan could reply, a deafening rumble echoed from the mountain peak ahead. Plumes of dust and shattered rock exploded into the sky. Clearly, Wan Wuying had already begun violently carving out his new cave mansion.

“Come on, let’s head over,” Li Xuanming said, his eyes burning with anticipation.