It is precisely this situation that has led to fewer and fewer people coming to our sect to become demon cultivators. Even those who accidentally join without knowing, once they find out, all leave one after another. Most of those who stay secretly switch to other cultivation methods. It’s said that even the sect master was only able to break through to the Nascent Soul stage by relying on other techniques. Because of this, you are the only disciple our sect has accepted in over twenty years. That’s why, the first time I saw you come in, I thought you were a complete fool and couldn’t even be bothered to pay attention to you. Joining our sect means that from now on, your path of demon cultivation will have to be lived with your tail between your legs. There isn’t a single sect on Soul Severing Mountain that we can afford to provoke. If you don’t want to die young, don’t leave the sect gates, lest you run into other sects and bring humiliation upon yourself. Several of our disciples have been insulted outside, couldn’t bear it, and were killed on the spot, ending up with their souls scattered. The sect leader Nathan Thompson doesn’t even dare to ask about it, claiming to be in seclusion and ignoring everything. Truly pathetic…” The more this person spoke, the more heartbroken he became, his expression filled with pain!

At this point, Brian Carter finally had a clear understanding of the Wuji Demon Sect, and realized that his initial impression was correct—he really had boarded a pirate ship!

But now it was too late for regrets. Not to mention that he couldn’t handle the eruption of the Eight-Winged Purple Python inner core on his own, even if he tried to join another sect, they might not accept him.

If he tried to escape, as long as Eric Brooks revealed that he had the Eight-Winged Purple Python inner core and a young Eight-Winged Purple Python on him, he would immediately be treated by cultivators as a treasure as precious as the Tang Monk. With the myriad secret techniques cultivators possess, given his beginner abilities, no matter who he encountered, death would be the only outcome. Even dying with his body intact would be a luxury!

After weighing the pros and cons, Brian Carter still decided to stay in the Wuji Demon Sect for now. Precisely because of its decline, it was actually safer—no one would pay any attention to it. Although progress in cultivation was slow, for Brian Carter, who had no other techniques, it was still better than nothing!

And although the techniques in the library were all basic, they were just right for a beginner like Brian Carter!

Tomorrow would be the time when the Eight-Winged Purple Python inner core erupted again. Since he had already made his decision, Brian Carter stopped overthinking. The Eight-Winged Purple Python inner core absolutely could not be discovered by anyone. The best and most hidden place to cultivate was, of course, the cave behind the cold pool!

Because so many disciples of the Wuji Demon Sect had left or died, there were plenty of empty cultivation caves. Brian Carter could just pick one to use. Since he hadn’t reached the Nascent Soul stage and couldn’t fly, he had to go around the cold pool and chose a cave surrounded by vines and at a rather secluded angle.

This cave was about five meters deep and three meters wide. Other than a straw mat for meditation, there was nothing else—quite simple.

He stuck a talisman to repel insects at the entrance, gathered a few piles of grass to roughly cover the cave mouth. The insect-repelling talisman was the simplest kind to make: just apply yelan flower juice in a certain pattern on yellow paper and infuse it with spiritual power to use. It had no offensive function, only confused animals and ordinary people. Brian Carter had made a few before coming.

After carefully checking again and confirming that the insect-repelling talisman was truly effective, he sat cross-legged on the straw mat and began his first closed-door demon cultivation!

Chapter 006: First Closed-Door Cultivation

After Brian Carter began his closed-door cultivation, he didn’t start training right away. As the saying goes, to do a good job, one must first sharpen his tools. He first reviewed the most basic cultivation knowledge stored in his jade slip.

The main goal of the Qi Refining stage is to open the eight extraordinary meridians, the Ren and Du meridians, so that true qi can flow freely through the channels. This can be done by oneself or with the help of others. If cultivating alone, it often takes ten or twenty years, but with the help of the Eight-Winged Purple Python inner core, Brian Carter believed he could greatly shorten this process.

After entering meditation again, Brian Carter could already fully sense the fluctuations of true qi running through his body—though still very faint.

This true qi was slowly circulating along the path of the Wuji Demon Technique, returning to the dantian after each cycle. The spiritual energy provided by the Eight-Winged Purple Python inner core was still only a little, but Brian Carter already felt greatly benefited. The true qi in his dantian was growing stronger, and Brian Carter’s mind was completely immersed in this cultivation!

No one knew how much time had passed when Brian Carter suddenly felt the rhythm of the Eight-Winged Purple Python inner core become abnormal. First, it stopped following his own path, then it began to throb slowly, making Brian Carter feel as if he had two hearts in his body.

Brian Carter knew the time for the Eight-Winged Purple Python inner core to erupt had finally come. There was no fear in his heart, only anticipation. For him, this was the most critical moment. Although he knew the inner core posed a threat to his body, he also knew it could bring him even greater benefits. Brian Carter liked challenges.

The Eight-Winged Purple Python inner core began to emit a scorching power. Brian Carter could feel the terrifying spiritual energy contained within the small inner core. The spiritual energy grew from small to large and began to go out of control, completely beyond Brian Carter’s control. The heart-piercing pain from last time returned!

Because of his cultivation over the past two days, Brian Carter’s body had already built up considerable resistance and had not yet reached the point of being unbearable. The spiritual energy of the Eight-Winged Purple Python inner core finally became violent. His body seemed to become the center of a storm, and waves of stabbing pain began to assault Brian Carter’s body and nerves!