Rebirth as a Demonic Cultivator: Starting with a Zombie Planet

Chapter 55: Opening a Cave Dwelling, Naming it Water Curtain Cave

By the time Chu Xuan and the other three arrived, the mountain peak ahead had been sheared entirely flat, transformed into a sprawling Daoist practice ground.

Nestled at the dead center of the surrounding peaks, it was the perfect arena for the disciples of the Extreme Yin Cave to spar and exchange pointers.

*Whoosh.*

A fierce gale swept over the stone. Wan Wuying materialized before them.

Chu Xuan and the others immediately cupped their hands, bowing in flawless, deferential unison. “Master.”

Wan Wuying gave a curt nod. “This location boasts the densest Spiritual Qi within a thousand miles. I have already informed the Tianyin Sect. The territory within a thousand miles of this practice ground now belongs exclusively to our Extreme Yin Cave.”

He swept his gaze over them. “The four of you may carve out your own cave dwellings anywhere within this radius.”

A faint, cold smile touched Wan Wuying’s lips. “Manage this land well. As long as we draw breath and our legacy remains unbroken, our resurgence is inevitable.”

“Yes, Master!” Chu Xuan and the others nodded with solemn obedience.

“Focus on establishing your dwellings for now,” Wan Wuying continued. “I will personally extract whatever cultivation resources you require from the Tianyin Sect. Hmph. They need the Extreme Yin Cave’s strength. They wouldn’t dare refuse me.”

His eyes narrowed. “Once we are settled, we will begin migrating mortals. We will drag these surrounding, uncivilized barbarian lands entirely under the heel of the Extreme Yin Cave. Only then will our foundation be absolute.”

Outwardly, Chu Xuan nodded in deep, respectful agreement. Inwardly, his mind whirred with cold pragmatism.

This was exactly how the Wuji Sect operated. The moment a cultivator ascended to the inner sect, they were granted over a hundred mortal slaves to serve their every whim. Those mortals had no lives, no futures, and no purpose other than to prepare meals, scrub cave dwellings, and bleed for their betters.

Cultivators were the apex predators, but the sheep were indispensable for maintaining the ecosystem.

Beyond daily chores, the grueling labor of tending spiritual plants for alchemy or mining raw ores for artifact refining was beneath a cultivator. Such backbreaking work was meant for mortals. Only the rarest, most volatile resources required a cultivator’s personal touch.

More importantly, the mortal herds acted as breeding grounds for “spiritual seedlings”—children born with spiritual roots. Once tested and plucked from the dirt, these seedlings were dragged into the Sect to cultivate, study, and eventually replenish the ranks.

Those with high aptitude would claw their way toward higher realms. The failures were cast out to establish mortal families and breed. Since the bloodline of a failed cultivator still held a higher chance of producing spiritual seedlings, it created a ruthless, highly efficient farming cycle.

A flourishing Sect was nothing more than a towering monument built on the crushed bones and endless labor of millions of mortals.

Chu Xuan had never underestimated the value of livestock.

Having delivered his piece, Wan Wuying vanished in a blur of motion.

A moment later, a deafening rumble echoed from the edge of the practice ground. Clearly, their Master was already carving out his own domain.

“I’ll take the north,” Li Xuanming said, pointing toward a jagged ridge.

Liu Zhenxiong and Wu Teng exchanged nods before flying off to claim their own territories.

Chu Xuan didn’t linger. He summoned his Heavenly Dipper Flying Sword and shot southward alone. He didn’t care about scenic views or dense spiritual veins. He only needed absolute isolation.

After all, he had to periodically vanish from the Cangxuan Heaven and Earth to harvest the apocalyptic wasteland of the Hailan Planet. Prying eyes were a liability.

Standing atop his Heavenly Dipper Flying Sword, Chu Xuan circled the southern expanse for a long time before his gaze locked onto a secluded valley.

A roaring waterfall cascaded down the sheer cliff face, crashing into a pristine, emerald lake teeming with silver-scaled fish and translucent shrimp. Dense groves of green bamboo and ancient, twisting trees ringed the water. It was elegant, quiet, and entirely cut off from the rest of the world.

*This will do.*

A rare flicker of dark amusement crossed Chu Xuan’s mind. He decided to carve his dwelling directly behind the roaring veil of the waterfall.

With a flick of his wrist, he summoned the Fiend Soul Chain. He gripped the dark, sinister artifact and lashed it forward like a whip.

*Boom! Boom! Boom!*

The solid cliff face exploded under the sheer kinetic force. If the malevolent spirits trapped within the Fiend Soul Chain had any lingering consciousness, they would likely weep at being used as a glorified pickaxe.

Jagged boulders and stone shrapnel rained down into the lake, sending the silver fish scattering in a blind panic. Yet, no matter how desperately they thrashed, they could never escape the confines of the lake.

A fitting metaphor for life itself.

In a matter of minutes, a massive, cavernous hollow was blasted into the cliffside. To smooth out the jagged interior, Chu Xuan casually cast a few *Turn Stone to Mud* spells, melting the rough edges into a flat, workable surface.

The spell was a low-level utility art, incapable of transmuting anything larger than a fist—which was exactly why he had used the Fiend Soul Chain to violently excavate the bulk of the stone first.

Finally, he condensed a massive sphere of water and sent it surging through the cavern, flushing the remaining mud and gravel out into the lake below.

The cave dwelling was complete.

Next came the Formations. Chu Xuan moved with practiced, methodical efficiency. In less than an hour, he had woven a layered defense grid around the valley: a Maze Formation to confuse intruders, a Fiendish Qi Formation to slaughter them, an Early Warning Formation, and a Spirit Gathering Formation to fuel it all.

Unless a Golden Core cultivator personally descended upon him, no Foundation Establishment cultivator was breaking through this array anytime soon.

*Unfortunately, it still lacks a Formation Soul to anchor it,* he thought, inspecting his handiwork. *With a Formation Soul, the defenses could operate autonomously while I’m off-world.*

He filed the thought away for later and stepped back into the damp, echoing cavern.

The layout was brutally spartan. Four hollowed-out stone chambers: a cultivation room, an alchemy room, an artifact refining room, and a spiritual plant room.

All of them were completely bare. Chu Xuan had zero intention of storing anything of actual value here. This place was nothing more than a theatrical prop to maintain his cover.

Just then, a voice echoed from beyond the waterfall. “Junior Brother Chu, where are you?”

It was Liu Zhenxiong.

Chu Xuan stepped onto his Heavenly Dipper Flying Sword and glided through the rushing water, emerging into the sky above the valley. Sure enough, Liu Zhenxiong, Li Xuanming, and Wu Teng were hovering nearby.

“Senior Brothers,” Chu Xuan greeted, pasting a warm, collegial smile onto his face as he cupped his hands. “Are your dwellings all sorted?”

Liu Zhenxiong let out a hearty laugh. “What difficulty could blasting a hole in a rock pose? Naturally, it was a breeze.”

Wu Teng peered down at the lush valley and the roaring waterfall. “Junior Brother Chu chose this place? Not bad at all. Quite the scenic view.”

Li Xuanming smiled. “And what have you named your new abode, Junior Brother Chu?”

Chu Xuan’s smile deepened slightly. “Water Curtain Cave.”

The three men’s eyes lit up. “A fine name! It carries a certain ancient charm!”

The four of them exchanged pleasantries for a while, allowing Chu Xuan to map out the exact locations and names of their respective bases. It wasn’t until the sky bruised purple with dusk that the group finally dispersed.

The moment Chu Xuan returned to the Water Curtain Cave, the polite smile vanished from his face. He immediately activated every single Formation.

Sitting cross-legged on his cold stone bed, he began to ruthlessly calculate his recent gains.

*A highly profitable venture,* he mused. *First and foremost, securing a place under Wan Wuying. My identity is completely scrubbed clean. I am now a legitimate Tianyin Sect cultivator.*

*I am no longer a stray demonic cultivator hunted by every self-righteous hypocrite with a sword.*

*Secondly, the Fiend Soul Chain.* He thought of the tortured, feral soul of the monk Huikong now bound within the artifact. *Given Huikong’s current level of mindless ferocity, I’ve secured a brutal new trump card.*

*Thirdly, the Steel Thread Gu has achieved its second rank. I just need to invest the time to nurture it into my Life Gu.*

*And lastly… the loot.*

He pulled out the Storage Bags he had stripped from the corpses of Sun Shi, Huikong, and the other Foundation Establishment cultivators.

*I’ve already picked Sun Shi’s bag clean. Now, let’s see what our ‘righteous’ monk was hiding.*