Chapter 569: Swallowing Sea Demon Skill

Pure Nine-Lotus Treasure Lamp

Upon hearing Madam Ming's telepathic message, Chen Mo stopped guiding Hong He's movements. "I just remembered something. You can leave first."

"Yes, Sect Master!"

Although slightly surprised, Hong He nodded, respectfully turned, and left. "What's going on?"

Chen Mo took out the Soul Nurturing Wood, and a silvery-gray figure emerged from it, recounting its discoveries.

"Reporting to the Saint Son, his spiritual energy is mottled and complex. Besides the primary water-element spiritual energy, the rest is due to the demonic art's devouring and refining of spiritual energy from similar cultivation methods."

After listening to Madam Ming, Chen Mo recalled that when he previously deduced Hong He's Core Formation, he had indeed noticed issues with his spiritual energy in this regard.

He had always thought it was because Hong He had consumed too many elixirs. "Are you sure you haven't misidentified it?"

"Saint Son, the origin of this demonic art is the Black Emperor Abyss Scripture, one of the Five Classics of our sect. When the second-generation Saint Son apostatized, he modified this cultivation method into the Nine Abysses, Nine Nether Sea Swallowing Art."

It's a pity the apostate Saint Son was unaware of his own plight.

At that time, Madam Ming often fought against people from the Four Abysses Demonic Sect to contend for the position of a candidate Saint. Both sides hunted each other to gain merit.

"Before the Everlasting Sect disappeared, the Four Abysses Demonic Sect also gradually faded into obscurity."

His cultivation was so profound that even a Celestial Venerable could do nothing against him.

"Hong He might have cultivated a demonic art, and you cannot remain uninvolved. So, using the Sea Demon Lord Spiritual Rice as an excuse, I will keep him here. When he upgrades the Ye Hao land and plants spirit bamboos, I will also have the sect inspect your Gu family more often, under the guise of spiritual field supervision, and you can take the opportunity to observe him..."

"This Ye Hao-Yan spiritual rice has low water requirements, and fortunately, the Rain Country, being near Cloud Dream Lake, has abundant rainfall year-round. If your Gu family is willing to upgrade Gu Yan to a Grade-2 Gu Yan of around seventy acres, I will exclusively transmit the cultivation method for this Sea Demon Lord Spiritual Rice to you."

Recently, Zhuo Ming also heard Liu Wenbai say that Liu Jingxian planned to fill in all the family's ancestral ponds and convert them from aquaculture to spiritual plant cultivation, expanding and strengthening their spiritual rice business.

After some thought, the Shenmu Sect Master decided to feign ignorance, as Luo Yixuan might also need to cultivate a demonic art in the future.

Faced with the Sect Master's questions, Zhuo Ming, though not understanding why, still meticulously described the scale of her family's Gu Yan farmland.

After all, he didn't know the Everlasting Sect's foundation. That Saint Son, who apostatized, probably did so because he knew this and simply wanted to survive.

Upon hearing this, Zhuo Ming immediately made a Dao Heart oath, vowing not to transmit this information to anyone else, not even to members of the Gu family.

The Sect Master gave Zhuo Ming the right to choose, but after just two breaths, she nodded in agreement with a determined expression.

Zhuo Ming was a little surprised to be summoned by the Shenmu Sect Master and rushed to pay respects. Zhuo Ming was absolutely certain!

He had many Grade-1 and Grade-2 spiritual rice strains accidentally obtained from Ye Hao's hybrid spiritual rice experiments, many of which were not suitable for large-scale planting.

Unfortunately, at that time, the Phoenix Tear Bamboo already had the shadow of Xuanxiao Dao Palace beside it, so most people chose to wait and see.

"However, most of the fragmented inheritances remained. Some were absorbed by the Fourteen Demonic Sects, while others were integrated into the Eastern Earth Imperial Court, becoming Qian Yuan Island, one of the Ten Directions Halls."

"Besides this matter, I actually have another task for you to undertake." Overjoyed, Zhuo Ming bowed deeply to the Shenmu Sect Master.

The Sect Master was adapting to local customs, learning from the Star Heaven Dao Sect.

Therefore, the aura of the Sea Swallowing Demonic Art on Hong He's body couldn't be hidden from Madam Ming at all.

However, as for Ye Hao, he still needs to be carefully observed. If he truly uses a demonic art to absorb other cultivators' abysses for his own use, then it would be best to find an excuse to have him leave Phoenix Tear Bamboo in the future.

By now, the Liu family was already making a fortune from spiritual rice.

"And when he apostatized and was being pursued, that Devouring Sect Master even devoured the Abyssal Sea True Monarch within the sect. After that, his demonic art was perfected, and no one could stop him."

It wouldn't even require the Shenmu Sect Master to act personally. The small team of Foundation Establishment cultivators he brought from Phoenix Tear Bamboo, combined with the sect, would be perfectly capable of accomplishing this.

"I have a Grade-2 Sea Demon Lord Spiritual Rice, which was unintentionally cultivated during the Daanan Mountain Gu Yan experiments. It can mature in three years. However, because planting Azure Jade Spiritual Rice in the spiritual fields is more cost-effective, the cultivation method for this spiritual rice has always been sealed."

However, Ye Hao would clearly not be so audacious as to use a demonic art while the Sect Master was still in the Rain Country.

"After this spiritual rice matures, because its carrier is spiritual bamboo, it can yield two hundred catties per acre. I will have Ming'er provide the best rice seeds to them, but after the harvest, ten percent will go to Ye Hao, and eighty percent will go to us."

"Yes, Sect Master!"

"Whether you accept this task or not is entirely up to you. If you don't wish to, simply make a Dao Heart oath to forget everything I just said."

The Shenmu Sect Master recalled the scene where he had previously examined Hong He's qi channels, and indeed, his Nine Abysses were exactly like the characteristics of the Sea Swallowing Art.

Her dream was simply to acquire a higher-yielding, low-grade Grade-1 spiritual rice seed for her family.

If he were to act personally, there would certainly be no problem.

This way, even if it's exposed in the future, at most it would be an unfilial disciple appearing within Ye Hao's family, rather than the entire spiritual field being remnants of the demonic path.

For this reason, Zhuo Ming, who was considered Madam Ming's close associate, naturally became the Rain Country's lifeline.

Between her and the Sect Master, it was merely an employer-employee relationship. Madam Ming usually handled spiritual field matters in the Divine Wood Hall, sometimes secluding herself in her wooden house for cultivation, and the times she spoke to her were few and far between.

However, the Phoenix Tear Bamboo sect alone could certainly not plant Ye Hao crops across the entire Eastern Barrens, so cooperating with local forces was the most natural method.

This was also something the Everlasting Sect was very famous for in ancient times. After that Saint Son apostatized, he combined demonic secret arts, achieved great mastery of both, quickly perfected his cultivation, and proclaimed himself the Sea Swallowing Demon Lord.

The Shenmu Sect Master smiled slightly, extended a hand, motioned for Zhuo Ming to rise, and then orally recounted the cultivation method for the Sea Demon Lord Spiritual Rice.

After all, Hong He's cultivation was at the early Foundation Establishment stage, and he cultivated all three major arts of essence, qi, and spirit simultaneously, with no weaknesses.

"Actually, there are only a total of 184 acres of Ye Hao land. Seventy-seven acres are low-grade Grade-1 Gu Yan, 140 acres are mid-grade Grade-1, seventy acres are high-grade Grade-1, and there are also fourteen acres of Grade-2 Gu Yan."

After considering the words, the Shenmu Sect Master felt that calling the Four Abysses Sect a demonic sect was somewhat excessive.

The Shenmu Sect Master considered who would be suitable to investigate this matter.

After all, Madam Ming's youngest disciple had been missing for a long time, and she lacked someone to care for her. Zhuo Ming also had some thoughts about that position.

They only knew that the Fourteen Demonic Sects had left their inheritances there, and among the Fourteen Sects, there was no mention of the Four Abysses Demonic Sect.

"Can you tell me about the Nine Abysses, Nine Nether Sea Swallowing Art?"

Hong He, as Fu Zongjue's disciple, had always cultivated the ordinary water-attribute cultivation method, the Azure Wave Art, which further corroborated this point.

"Sect Master's benevolence, this disciple will never forget." "Four Abysses Demonic Sect?"

"Sect Master, please speak!"

The Shenmu Sect Master wanted to understand everything clearly before making a judgment.

"Rise. I previously heard you say that your Gu family opened four hundred acres of Gu Yan here in the Rain Country, planting Grade-1 high, mid, and low-grade crystal rice, making you the largest local supplier of spiritual rice."

If Hong He were to attempt Core Formation in the future, the Nine Abysses stage would likely become a bottleneck.

Earlier, during his Core Formation grand ceremony, he had subtly brought up this matter to the Foundation Establishment cultivators from various countries under his command.

If they were truly discovered, as long as it was reported to him, the Four Heavens Demon-Exterminating Sect would practically always send people to investigate.

Just as Zhuo Ming was bracing herself to speak to the Shenmu Sect Master about this, the latter proactively summoned her.

In that case, he could only choose from the few people he had brought this time.

With the cultivation method for the Sea Demon Lord Spiritual Rice, Zhuo Ming saw hope for further advancement in her cultivation in the future, and her heart was filled with excitement.

Zhuo Ming did not know about the Grade-2 Sea Demon Lord Spiritual Rice, but her relationship with Madam Ming was good.

So, after the Shenmu Sect Master completed his tour of the Eastern Barrens, he chose the Rain Country as the first stop for inspecting the spiritual fields, which greatly pleased the four major cultivation families of the region.

Who knew that a pie would fall from the sky? The Shenmu Sect Master actually directly gave her this exceptionally precious Grade-2 spiritual rice. After the Sea Swallowing Demon Lord achieved minor success in his cultivation, he founded the Nine Abysses Demonic Sect, specifically to oppose the Everlasting Sect.

As for the Rain Country, being the farthest from Giant Wood Ridge previously, their reverence for Phoenix Tear Bamboo was insufficient. Not a single family chose to accept Phoenix Tear Bamboo's spiritual rice seeds during the Core Formation grand ceremony.

It was precisely for this reason that even in this remote part of the Eastern Barrens, major powers and families kept a respectful distance from demonic cultivators.

Zhuo Ming's heart blossomed even more upon hearing this.

"After planting this spiritual rice, the soil will need to be improved to be suitable for the Sea Demon Lord. You don't need to return with me; just stay in the Rain Country and ensure this task is completed."

However, the cultivation theory of the Heavenly River Realm cannot be as perfect as that of the Immortal Sect. When cultivating the Sea Swallowing Art, the Nine Abysses would be mottled and the foundation unstable.

The Shenmu Sect Master did not want to delay his Incorporeal Puppet here for such matters, as it concerned the more important two-world teleportation.

Chen Mo's words reminded the Shenmu Sect Master of the primordial energy theory from the Immortal Sect. Perhaps she could catch Madam Ming's eye and also join the Daanan Mountain sect. And this cultivation method, in Madam Ming's eyes, was a demonic path method.

Most crucially, the Shenmu Sect Master also implemented a new policy: a portion of the spiritual rice collected by Phoenix Tear Bamboo from the subordinate families would be converted into contribution points and returned to the Liu family, allowing the Liu family patriarch to exchange for items only sold internally within Phoenix Tear Bamboo at the Spiritual Treasure Pavilion.

After Core Formation, the Sect Master had thoroughly learned about the Three Regions of the Eastern Earth. However, information about the most mysterious and wild Eastern Li Region was scarce from their Eastern Barrens side.

The Immortal Sect, however, used this to develop the five-element vital qi, artificially synthesizing various types of Earth Fiend Qi.

And this Sea Swallowing Art was clearly created upon discovering that similar energies were easier to merge.

"Saint Son, when I interacted with Tu Daohua, I asked him this question."

Outsiders thought she could freely enter and exit Madam Ming's secluded cultivation spot, the Everlasting Wood Dao Field, making her a trusted confidante.

However, her family had, after all, raised her, and the majority of the resources for Zhuo Ming to become a Foundation Establishment cultivator under Phoenix Tear Bamboo were provided by her family. Therefore, while she could ignore the requests of the other four major families in the Rain Country, she had no choice but to find a way for her own family.

But with the strength of the Phoenix Tear Bamboo sect alone, it was certainly impossible to plant Ye Hao crops across the entire Eastern Barrens, so cooperating with local forces was the most natural method.