There's Something Wrong With My Immortal Path

Chapter 5: Tiger of the Seventeenth Cave

The path of cultivation is fraught with difficulties.

A slight misstep can lead to a fatal end.

Many cultivators, realizing that they cannot progress any further, choose to seek a way out for themselves, gradually withdrawing from the path of cultivation and finding a place of peace.

Li Dahua, a cultivator from the Seventeenth Cave of Soul Capturing Cliff, is such a cultivator. He is nearly fifty years old and has been stuck at the ninth level of Qi Refining for decades.

Li Dahua, who has no hope of breakthrough, has come to Soul Capturing Cliff to accumulate some capital for retreat.

Disciples like Li Dahua are tacitly accepted by the sect.

The source of many settlements at the foot of the mountain is these retired disciples.

Allowing their existence is, to some extent, cultivating the future of the sect.

Moreover, disciples like Li Dahua are extremely diligent in their work.

After all, they are working for their own future and will not slack off.

These senior disciples, whether in terms of work experience or endurance, far surpass ordinary disciples.

Take Li Dahua, for example. He has been mixing in Soul Capturing Cliff for decades.

Experienced and even developed his own method of exploring acupoints.

So Li Dahua's work in Soul Capturing Cliff is not as simple as it seems. He is saving up for his retirement.

The agreement reached between Li Dahua and the former elder of Soul Capturing Cliff is one in ten.

In other words, for every ten items he obtains from a corpse, Li Dahua can extract one item from them.

The profit is quite substantial!

In just a few years, relying on the wealth of the dead, Li Dahua has accumulated dozens of spirit stones.

When Li Dahua first heard that there would be a change of elder in Soul Capturing Cliff, he was a little uneasy.

Later, he spent some spirit stones to establish some connections, and Li Dahua suddenly felt more secure.

Jiang Liang, a mere Foundation Building Late Stage cultivator with no notable background, was able to obtain such a lucrative position.

He must have gambled his entire fortune on Soul Capturing Cliff, hoping to make a big gamble and advance to Core Formation!

If that's the case, he has to rely on me!

You see, although Soul Capturing Cliff is a lucrative position, it also has quotas.

Since the establishment of the Great River Sect, the rules have been strict. Even a Core Formation elder must abide by the rules.

If he cannot fulfill the sect's quotas, Jiang Liang will also face punishment.

If he wants to fulfill the sect's quotas and even profit from it, Jiang Liang has to cooperate with an old hand like me!

I am the only old hand left in Soul Capturing Cliff.

Without my help, does Jiang Liang rely on those menial disciples?

Or... does he plan to do it himself?

Even if I leave Soul Capturing Cliff, I can find a good place for myself. But what about Jiang Liang?

Jiang Liang has staked his wealth and life on Soul Capturing Cliff.

With these thoughts in mind, Li Dahua had a smug expression on his face.

Since he had already guessed Jiang Liang's weakness, Li Dahua had to take advantage of it.

Facing Jiang Liang's visit, Li Dahua directly extended his palm.

His palm opened, and then he made a gesture of one.

One in five.

Faced with Li Dahua's provocation, Jiang Liang left in a huff.

One in five?

Li Dahua! Aren't you afraid of spending your life?

Although Jiang Liang was itching with hatred, he really had no way to deal with it.

Strictly speaking, Li Dahua is not a member of his Soul Capturing Cliff; he is just registered here.

Otherwise, Li Dahua wouldn't dare to provoke Jiang Liang like this.

Facing Jiang Liang's departure, Li Dahua remained calm.

Why panic?

What is there to panic about?

Jiang Liang will definitely come back.

And so, the next day, the matter of Yin Shiqi came up.

Even a fool knows that Yin Shiqi is definitely a big fat sheep, and this kind of fat sheep was directly pushed into the Seventeenth Cave.

After all, Li Dahua is experienced and skilled, and there is no better choice than him.

But faced with such a fat sheep, Li Dahua hesitated and dared not make a move.

When the news reached the higher-ups, Jiang Liang directly smashed the long table in front of him with a palm.

Good dog's courage!

I can tolerate being bullied by Hai Dafu, the steward of the miscellaneous duties department, but you, a mere outer disciple, dare to manipulate me!

While angry, Jiang Liang slowly sat back down after smashing the long case.

In the Great River Sect, rules must be followed.

Moreover, considering the current situation, he couldn't completely fall out with Li Dahuzi.

Li Dahuzi can hand over the soul stones to replace his own incompetence, but what about Jiang Liang?

As a steward of the Soul Capturing Cliff, if he fails to achieve the established goals, how will the sect view him?

Does he really have to agree to that guy's proposal of a five-to-one ratio?

Even if it were a ten-to-one ratio, Jiang Liang would not agree.

Jiang Liang came to the Soul Capturing Cliff to make money, not to lose money.

In this moment of hesitation, Jiang Liang thought of that audacious disciple of the miscellaneous duties department.

- Xia Ming.

That audacious kid seems to have an unusually fast investigation speed...

Why not?

Let him give it a try?

After a slight hesitation, Jiang Liang directly dispatched a patrol officer to arrange this matter.

At the same time, in the seventeenth corpse collection cave, Li Dahuzi also heard this news.

Quietly watching everything unfold, a cold smile slowly appeared on Li Dahuzi's lips.

Send him to the thirty-seventh cave?

A mere disciple of the miscellaneous duties department?

Jiang Liang, Jiang Liang, are you resorting to desperate measures?

Hmph... Hmph.

Jiang Liang, I'll be waiting for you to come back and beg me.

...

With a crisp sound, Xia Ming put down the long slender dagger in his hand.

Looking at the scattered objects in the lacquer tray, Xia Ming let out a long sigh of relief.

This Yin Seventeen... is really fat!

In the midst of his sigh, Xia Ming heard a low whisper from outside the cave.

"Let's go, come with me to see Elder Jiang."

Stepping into the cave, Xia Ming casually glanced at the objects in the lacquer tray, and the gaze of the black-robed patrol officer involuntarily tightened.

Wow!

This kid is not simple!

In just two hours, he opened six places, sold five items, and obtained twenty items.

Elder Jiang really hit the jackpot this time.

If this patrol officer knew that Xia Ming actually only took less than an hour, he would probably be shocked.

Following the footsteps of the patrol officer, Xia Ming walked up the winding stone steps step by step.

When he reached the second level, Xia Ming saw a pair of sinister eyes in a cave.

The person was half hidden in the darkness, like a crouching tiger ready to pounce.

Looking up, Xia Ming saw three big characters: Cave Seventeen.

Taking a deep breath, Xia Ming continued to climb up.

When he reached the topmost level and took a step forward, the sky and earth opened up before him.

The setting sun fell perfectly on Xia Ming's face, and the free wind gently stirred the strings of the young man's heart.

Greedily inhaling a breath of fresh air, Xia Ming turned his head and looked down at the winding and mysterious path below.

Clutching his fist tightly, Xia Ming vowed that one day he would leave this ghostly place.

Waiting outside Jiang Liang's quiet room, Xia Ming, lost in thought, unintentionally caught sight of the bloodstains on his fingers.

For a moment, Xia Ming felt a sense of confusion.

There was a time when he didn't even dare to kill a chicken.

And now, he was making a living doing this.

It must be said that humans are incredibly complex creatures.

For the sake of survival, for the sake of living better, they can become incredibly terrifying.

...

(End of this chapter)