"Cultivation is endless….?" Hao Xuan was stunned into silence. He always thought there was a limit, a certain realm you could achieve and then you could be the strongest. But if it was endless, then…..
Meng saw the looked in Hao Xuan's eyes and knew exactly what was going through his mind. He had been there as well. When he first found out about this new reality, he didn't talk for days.
"But unless you change your mentality significantly, chances of you reaching a high realm are almost non-existent," he spoke up after a few mins.
"My mentality? What do you mean? Rather, how do even know what my mentality is?" Hao Xuan asked with a deep frown.
"I calculated with my fingers," Meng lifted up his right hand as he said that and grinned.
"What's wrong with my mentality then?" Hao Xuan asked with an annoyed expression. This guy kept coming up with new stuff out of nowhere.
"The heavens are merciless, kid. They don't care about your feelings or what you think is right and wrong. You have to be strong enough to shoulder the sky itself lest you want to lose everyone around you. And trust me when I say this, you don't want that," he sighed and took another big sip from the gourd. Hao Xuan knew to some extent that he would have to do things he wouldn't like but if there was another option maybe it could be avoided?
"Everyone says the road of cultivation is solitary but that's all gibberish. That's just some bullshit that people who weren't strong enough to protect their loved ones made up. But what IS true is that cultivation is a lonely path. Extremely lonely. You need someone to keep you company, someone to make you laugh, someone to cry for you, someone to talk to, someone to share your experiences with. Otherwise, you could go crazy, hahaha," he started laughing maniacally.
Hao Xuan moved back a few inches. For the first time since he met this guy, he felt some dangerous vibes from him.
"A-aren't you going to save your wife then? Isn't she in hell?" Hao Xuan asked after some time, trying to change the topic.
"All in due time. They sealed away her soul so she cannot feel any pain. She is simply sleeping right now. As long as they are not 100% sure that I am dead, they won't dare mess with her. Lest they want to lose everything dear to them," Meng shook his head. She was the only reason he hadn't waged war on hell itself.
"Anyways, come. Since we were fated to meet, I'll teach you a few things," he said with a wide smile and extended his hand towards Hao Xuan.
***
Meanwhile, General Li and Jin Wang were speeding towards the Poison Quarry. Within about 3 hours the gigantic jungle was in sight. Instead of stopping outside and walking on foot, the general's boat sped into the depths of the jungle without delay.
There were many flying beasts around and several of them tried to block their way but they were dead before even coming into contact with the boat.
After about 50 more minutes, a deep gorge came into view. This one was much, MUCH wider and deeper. There was fog everywhere and nothing below the first few meters was visible.
The boat stopped at the edge of it and they both got off. "Wait here," General ordered Jin Wang and jumped into the dark abyss without a second thought and disappeared within a second. From Jin Wang's point of view, it looked like the maw of a giant creature that had just swallowed the general alive.
General Li fell straight down for well over six minutes until the ground came into view. Yes, this seemingly simple gorge was over 3500 meters deep. He passed by many strange creatures that would instill fear in any normal cultivator. There were some that even he had to avoid.
"Halt, who goes there?!" Just as he landed on the ground, two figures came out of the darkness. They had human bodies but their skin was dark green like they were poisoned. They were dressed in full armor and had spears in their hands.
"Tell your Matriarch that the Demon of Mei has come to visit," he said casually. When the soldiers heard that, their expressions turned serious in an instant.
"Yes, please wait here," they said and left after bowing respectfully. This was a sign of respect from a junior towards a senior. Everyone was aware of the Great general's contributions to the kingdom of Mei so there wasn't much to be said in that aspect.
He didn't have to wait long until they came back with more than a dozen people. There were several old men and women in this party. They were dressed in grand robes and it was apparent that they held high positions in the hierarchy of this clan. Each of them looked different than the other.
"General Li," they all bowed respectfully just like the soldiers before.
"Mhmm," he nodded back in return.
"Please, this way," they led him inside. The entrance looked like a normal cave you would find anywhere else but as he entered, it quickly expanded. It was almost like entering another world altogether.
There were trees and vegetation everywhere. There was an underground river coiling around the place with emerald green water flowing through it. With some hills here and there and giant structures everywhere, it looked like an immortals dwelling. The spirit energy was extremely thick here.
The group quickly passed through many similar places. It truly was like a whole another world down here. Who would have thought something like this existed thousands of meters underground? This was an entire civilization.
They finally came to a stop outside a grotto and all the others stood on the sides while the general entered alone.
The inside of the grotto was pretty simple. There was a curtain in the middle of the room and a single chair on the general's side. He went up to it and sat down unceremoniously.
"Junior pays respect to the Great Demon," an ethereal voice came from the other side of the curtain.
"Where is the old Witch?" general Li asked without going along with the pleasantries.
"Royal mother has been in closed-door cultivation for several decades now. I have been overseeing things until she wakes up again," the voice said without getting angry in the slightest. The general and the spider Matriarch were old acquaintances so it was completely normal for them to refer to each other like that. She as a junior, had no say in this matter.
The voice belonged to the crown princess of these clans. There were rumors that she was so stupendously beautiful that the Matriarch didn't let her out in the world out of fear of being kidnapped.
"Can you speak for her then?" he asked after a moment of contemplation.
"Yes, mother has given me full authority. How can I help senior?" she asked politely from behind the curtain.
"I need the recipe for that thing." Neither of them said anything for a few minutes after that.
"Senior, that will be very difficult. That recipe is a secret of our clan. Even mother would not be able to give it to you," she spoke up after a while.
"I am short on time. Just state your conditions," he furrowed his brow in annoyance. Why did that old witch have to be in closed-door cultivation? When the princess heard the last sentence, she suddenly let out a giggle.
"I knew senior would understand. But I still cannot give you the recipe. What I can do is make the pill myself and give it to the patient. You don't even need to pay for the ingredients, other than one which you would have to get yourself."
"Hmm? What do you want in return?" there was no such thing as a free meal in this world and the general was well aware of it.
"Replying to senior, after thorough consideration I have decided that we should start to venture out more. In that regard, I would need seniors help. The young of our clan need to gain experience and we would like to cooperate with the Mei kingdom to create a city above ground. Of course, it will be under your control but our people would be its main residents."
General Li fell in deep thought. This was quite unexpected. Ever since the kingdom was created the spider folk had stayed underground, why the sudden change?
"Fine. I'll get it approved but some things will have to be negotiated," there was no other option at this point anyway.
"I knew senior would understand," her voice perked up in an instant and she clapped happily.
"Alright. Which ingredient do I need to get?"
"The venom of the Demonic Werebeast," she said casually but the general's eyes constricted.
"Child, don't speak nonsense. There hasn't been a sighting of a Demonic Werebeast in thousands of years. Where would I find something like that?" and even if there was one, it was not an easy thing to go against a creature like that.
"Actually there is one. It was sighted in the dark forest a few weeks ago. It shouldn't take you more than a few days to make the return trip."
"Hmm. Alright, send your people to bring Ninth here. He is in a camp not far away. One of my men is waiting outside, he will guide your people," after saying that the General got up and simply disappeared from the grotto. A few minutes later he appeared behind Jin Wang.
"I will go get an ingredient for the pill, their people will come soon, guide them to Ninth and bring him here. The princess will handle everything.. Bring the rest here as well," with that said he took out his boat and shot off further west at full speed before Jin Wang had time to even react.
