Chapter 157: Innate Evil’s Holy Light Imp
After bidding farewell to Senior Student, Yuan Zhu saw that the time was just past 10 o’clock, still early for a proper meal. So he turned direction and headed towards the small church within the academy.
Today’s church was still deserted, with only Cui Miao Zhu in the hall, kowtowing and performing rituals before the plaque of Tai Huang Dao Master, murmuring under his breath. The continuous echoes transformed by the Power of Holy Light reverberated endlessly in the church, creating a subtle effect of spiritual influence that compelled conversion.
He was also an insider practicing Holy Light, easily shielding himself from this summons. At the same time, his mental state was purified and cleansed by the echoes of Holy Power, becoming refreshed and relaxed.
This old man has some real skill.
Hearing the footsteps, the old man finished his daily worship, turned his head, and immediately saw Yuan Zhu’s highly distinctive dark red pupils and messy seaweed hair. Immediately after, the old man quickly recalled recent events.
“Eh? …It’s you. I recognize you; not long ago, you imprinted a Holy Mark here. What brings you to see me today? Have you finally saved up enough money to choose a Secret Holy Seal that suits you?”
He had a deep impression of Yuan Zhu; from the first glance, he felt the young man was talented. Moreover, he had used their Yellow Heaven System’s unique three-animal sacrifice ritual to complete the Holy Mark Brand, possessing innate faction affinity.
By time calculation, the other party had stepped onto the Holy Light Path for less than a month. This amount of time was enough for a newbie to familiarize themselves with controlling Holy Light and understand the promotion methods of this system.
It was time to determine the first Holy Seal.
Presumably, the fine young man before him had shopped around, visited other factions’ holy churches in Running, and after seeing those garbage Holy Seals, finally realized that their Tai Huang Dao Inheritance was the best and most precious in Running.
So the old man revealed a pleased smile: “Good taste!”
“…?”
Yuan Zhu showed an awkward but polite smile on his face, then drew a small amount of Holy Light from the Soul Crystal, slightly stimulating the Sanctuary to release holy fluctuations. This offset the lingering ‘Holy Power afterglow’ in the church, showing off a little.
“Uh?!”
In an instant, the old man suddenly widened his eyes, showing an expression as if he had almost choked to death, staring intently at Yuan Zhu and exclaiming in surprise: “You… ? This… !”
He hurriedly rushed to Yuan Zhu’s side at a speed unfitting for his age. At the same time, he formed a seal with one hand and flicked his wide sleeve robe towards him, producing a resounding crack in the air.
Invisible fluctuations quickly swept over his body surface; Yuan Zhu felt no discomfort, but the old man showed joy: “How long has it been, and you’ve already achieved great success in Seal Casting? Even… you’ve started condensing Soul Crystal. Genius, genius!”
Cui Miao Zhu had an expression of delight at finding prey, itching to reach out with both hands and thoroughly grope him from head to toe to assess the quality of his Bone Structure.
Fortunately, he remained rational; the Yellow Heaven Way was already a thing of the past.
So he quickly stopped, still wearing a kindly smile, constantly stroking his beard and nodding in approval: “Not bad, not bad! Dignified bearing and impressive demeanor, with heroic spirit between the brows reminiscent of my youth.”
“…?!”
Yuan Zhu: Old thing, what nonsense are you spouting? Why not go look in a mirror.
He grumbled inwardly, but still feigned modesty: “Senior flatters me. I was just lucky, had a few fortuitous encounters, and barely completed Seal Casting by continuously purifying pollution with Holy Light to collect Soul Embers.”
The old man was pleased yet tinged with regret, pressing: “To complete Seal Casting in such a short time proves your talent. Unfortunately… what did you choose for your first Holy Seal? How many marks? Where did you get it? If I’d known you had such fortune, you should have directly joined our Tai Huang Holy Dao back then.”
“Sanctuary, 7 marks. Have you heard of it, old senior?”
“Sanctuary?” The old man recalled briefly, then grew happy again. “Good, good, good. This Holy Seal is of high quality, with rare attributes, suitable for Foundation Establishment. And it doesn’t belong to other factions, still fated with our Tai Huang Dao. Young man, what brings you here this time? Preparing for your second Holy Seal?”
Hearing this, Yuan Zhu felt it was time to consult about the second Holy Seal. It didn’t have to be Tai Huang Dao, but hearing the old senior’s advice couldn’t hurt.
So he nodded: “That’s part of the reason. But this visit is to consult about a puzzle in my heart.”
“You’ve entered the dao for a short time yet ascended straight to completing Seal Casting. Though exceptionally talented with extraordinary encounters, your Foundation is insufficient like a castle in the air. When in doubt, ask more. I suggest you settle down for a while, learn from those ascetic cultivators, do more basic cultivation, and ignite yourself more to illuminate others. This cultivation not only tempers Holy Light but also precipitates the Soul.”
Yuan Zhu: “I’ve learned from you. Old senior, during cultivation, I used Life to ignite Holy Light to purify Polluted Monsters, then absorbed Soul Embers for Seal Casting, ultimately birthing a Holy Light Skill during the Seal Casting process.”
Cui Miao Zhu considered this normal: “Holy Seal newbies, when practicing Holy Light and massively purifying the same category of Polluted Monsters, have a chance to parse ‘Pollution Law Fragments’ from the many Soul Ember fragments. Once absorbed and digested by Holy Light, they comprehend a new exclusive Holy Light Skill.”
“When you continuously Get Stronger and condense multiple Soul Crystals in your Soul, you can slice individual Soul Crystals. However many marks the Soul Crystal has, you can slice that many pieces. A thin slice of Soul Crystal is a Holy Seal imprinted with a Skill. Since you cast with Sanctuary, your Soul Crystal can certainly slice Sanctuary, but it can also slice self-comprehended Holy Light Skills to bestow on other Holy Cultivators.”
Holy Seals are slices of Soul Crystals? So in the future, he too could slice his Soul to make Holy Cough and Holy Breathing to sell to others, letting other Holy Cultivators’ Souls innately carry his ‘Soul Traces,’ becoming his subordinates? Create his own faction?
Cui Miao Zhu: “What is the puzzle you’ve encountered?”
Yuan Zhu: “The skill I comprehended through Seal Casting is clearly a ‘Divine Blessing,’ but when applied to believers, it gets completely purified by other priests’ Holy Light Baptism. I can’t understand it, can’t accept it! When encountering Holy Light Purification, Divine Blessing should clearly be reinforced. Why does it get erased for me? Is this reasonable?!”
Old Temple Priest was also stumped by Yuan Zhu’s description: “Wait, let me sort this out. First, theoretically, this phenomenon is definitely unreasonable. But specifics need specific analysis. I… can think of three possibilities.”
Yuan Zhu was astonished; there were actually three possibilities?
“Which three?”
Temple Priest: “First, the ability you comprehended isn’t a blessing but a curse, hence purified clean by Holy Light. Second, both your Holy Light and Holy Seal have Fallen, walking the Fall Seal Path. Third, perhaps two opposing Holy Light Systems, their Holy Lights clashing and canceling each other.”
“First, rule out Fall Seal possibility. Your Holy Light quality isn’t pure enough, but the holy attribute is always very strong. Second, your Seal Casting is newly completed, Holy Seal not one of the Eight Holy Kings, no possibility of cancellation.”
The implication was that Yuan Zhu’s achievements in the Holy Light System were still very low; a Sanctuary without faction affiliation wouldn’t provoke targeting or clashing from any side.
Yuan Zhu bristled in rebuttal: “So, the ability I comprehended isn’t Blessing but Curse? But how is that possible?!”
Of course he couldn’t accept his Holy Cough Blessing being a curse.
His first seal had continuously birthed two skills, mutually compatible and progressive. Only with Holy Cough blessing and reinforcing the Lungs could there be the subsequent Holy Breathing.
As for the so-called Holy Cough parasitizing the Lungs like a chronic disease, slowly consuming others’ Vitality? So it’s evil.
Then let me ask you!
In the Holy Light System, is there any operation that doesn’t burn believers’ Life? Tell me!
Answer: None at all! All Holy Light operations, whether the caster themselves, the victims receiving Holy Light irradiation, or the Meat Batteries providing Life, everyone is burning Life.
So the claim that Holy Cough slowly burns Vitality = curse doesn’t hold!
Because all Holy System Skills are burning Life, either intensely or slowly.
Old Temple Priest was extremely calm, somewhat expectant: “Release your Blessing for me to see.”
“Good!”
Yuan Zhu didn’t hold back, unleashing a Holy Cough straight at the old man. Unfortunately, the Holy Light Particles failed to invade and penetrate the opponent’s Lungs before being rejected by the old man’s internal Holy Light, compressed into a ball held in his palm for Perception and inspection.
Old man: “Hmm… it does feel a bit strange. This ‘Holy Light fluctuation’ seems familiar. What kind of pollution did you purify? What Embers did you absorb?”
“A Disease System Polluted Monster, characterized by flesh mutation, full Vitality, continuously releasing contagious diseases, and endowing ‘diseased Organs’ with Supernatural Root for Transformation.”
“Disease System? Indeed, multiple Disease Pollution Incidents have occurred in the Spirit Layer behind Running. Eh…? No, that’s not right! I’ve seen plenty of Holy Cultivators specializing in Disease System; their Seal Casting and Holy Light are completely different from your Blessing in nature!”
Yuan Zhu: “How different?”
“Other cultivators exterminate Disease System Demonic Creatures and recover Soul Embers, causing their own Holy Light or even Holy Seals to birth specialized counter attributes and skills. Simply put, if I massively clear ‘hemorrhagic fever’-like Disease Demonic Creatures with Holy Light, my Holy Light would naturally carry attributes to ‘suppress and heal hemorrhagic fever,’ even skills countering such Disease Pollution.”
The old man looked at Yuan Zhu with a strange gaze: “Almost all Holy Cultivators are like this. Subjugating which pollution and absorbing Embers evolves Holy Light and skills countering that pollution. But you… how strange. Your Holy Cough isn’t a curse, but it hasn’t evolved towards ‘Disease countering’ either. Instead, it actively embraces and integrates into the disease, pulling Holy Light along to disease-ify and harmless-ify.”
Old Temple Priest truly hadn’t seen such a freak. Holy Light was a power of the heart, but it shouldn’t be this perverse.
After massively eliminating a ‘Disease Pollution’ and absorbing Embers, Holy Light should logically become the corresponding ‘vaccine.’ But this guy’s Holy Light directly became ‘Holy Light Version disease.’
Inheriting the disease’s attributes yet displaying Holy Light’s benevolence, as if forcing a prostitute to virtue. Making this ‘disease’ reform and shine in the Holy Light camp, continuing to infect more patients for society’s benefit.
Letting Holy Light tour the patient’s body in disease fashion for holy healing… hard to say if it’s Purification or disease? More pathological than traditional Holy Light, but more holy and righteous than Disease Pollution.
Yuan Zhu: “Is my situation normal?”
Cui Miao Zhu: “Perverse, too perverse, but not quite Fall Seal. This means your Brain isn’t good; be extra careful in future cultivation, don’t easily stray onto the Fall Seal evil path.”
Yuan Zhu: “So, my Holy Cough Blessing will still be erased by other Holy Light?”
Old Temple Priest fell silent: “Your situation is special; perhaps… you could try ‘reverse Sanctification of curse-type skills’? If Blessing gets erased, make your Divine Curse unable to be purified by Holy Light, instead growing stronger the more it’s purified. Your puzzle baffles me too… For now, let’s talk about your second seal. Care to consider joining Tai Huang Dao?”
Yuan Zhu wasn’t satisfied with the old man’s explanation but had no choice.
Little Spicy Stick: “Big Brother, you’re truly an innately evil Holy Light imp. Holy Light that should have evolved into ‘Special Effect Medicine/vaccine/anti-disease special attack’ was instead cultivated by you into integrating with disease, becoming disease, surpassing disease! If this old man hadn’t explained, I wouldn’t have thought Holy Cough had any issues? But now looking again, this Holy Cough is wrong everywhere, exuding an eerie vibe. How can you be so evil, corrupting Holy Light!”
Happy Home not only has Evil Righteous Big Sister, but also innately evil Holy Light Big Brother.
Yuan Zhu ignored Little Spicy Stick’s response, looking at the old man: “What benefits are there to choosing Tai Huang Dao System for the second Holy Seal? If not choosing one of the Eight Holy Kings’ factions, what consequences?”
Old man: “After condensing Soul Crystal, you should have felt that immensely grand power, right? As if omnipresent, constantly calling your name, attracting the Soul Crystal to form a deeper connection?”
“Yes, what is that?”
Temple Priest: “That’s the Supernatural Root of the Power of Holy Light. Explained by Yellow Heaven System, it’s the supreme Holy Light Heavenly Dao. This primal Origin blankets the world in Holy Light Network form. Soul Crystal is the node capable of perceiving and connecting to Holy Light Network.”
“Upon this most primal, grandest, most foundational Holy Light Network (Heavenly Dao), the Eight Holy Kings each built their own Holy Light Network Systems. If you choose Tai Huang Dao Holy Seal as your second seal, you’ll feel the ‘Little Heavenly Dao’ belonging to Tai Huang Dao Master.”
Under the temple priest’s explanation, Yuan Zhu quickly grasped the difference between the two.
The primal Holy Light Great Origin is the grandest and strongest, source of all Holy Light. Though largest, it’s like internet platform + satellite network. Divided among every Soul Cultivator, it’s like 1G traffic: slow speed, little data; but signal everywhere, connectable anywhere.
Choosing an Eight Holy Kings system is like building respective ‘telecom companies’ on the Holy Light Great Platform, enjoying 2G speeds and more data, but factions oppose each other with different territories, so signal range shrinks dramatically.
Additionally, a wild Practitioner like Yuan Zhu has no faction Brand. Sanctuary is even a ‘Holy Seal’ passed from a wild Angel, connectable only to the grandest yet weakest Holy Light Source Network.
If he doesn’t join the Eight Great Camps and chooses to rely on wild Angels, he could enjoy stronger 3G data, but narrower range, simpler service packages.
If going solo to build his own Holy Church faction, it’s like constructing a private signal station in a small City. Top-tier data within base station range, but weakens drastically outside territory.
Thus, joining a certain Angel King camp grants access to many ‘higher Holy Light camp’ internal benefits. Much better than lone wild ghost soloing.
After much consideration, Yuan Zhu didn’t decide to join Tai Huang Dao. He’d finally gained a clean body, even sensing many potential Holy Cough patients in Insect City linking to his Holy Light.
Of course he didn’t want to miss this hard-won ‘solo flight opportunity,’ so he verbally said he’d think it over carefully, then left the church. Deciding to check Happy Home to see if the Exchange List had refreshed new Holy Seals.
