Beyond The Primordials

A province"s name was determined by it"s current ruler, and would often be named after the ruling clan as a mark of pride. While most provinces were ruled by a single undisputed overlord, this was not the case for the Tang Province. While the Tang Clan held the majority of the power, they were heavily contested by the powerful Yan Clan. A rival clan that possessed many high-level cultivators. The inhabitants and other provinces generally acknowledged the province as the Tang Province, but those who lived closer to the Yan usually called it the Yan Province out of respect.

Yin Tou did not have much energy left when sending Yin Hui off. Therefore, the range and distance of the portal was very limited. Yin Tou simply did not have the strength to move him out of the province, so he decided to just send him as far away from the Tang Clan as possible.

When Yin Hui emerged from the portal, he found himself in a large forest with trees so tall they blocked the sky. Yin Hui took a moment to take in his surroundings before quickly moving on. His main priority was to locate a nearby settlement and find out how far he was from the Tang Clan"s influence.

Yin Hui went to secure provisions while keeping an eye out for travelling mortals. Even though he was a cultivator, he wasn"t at a level where he could go without food or water yet. With his Spirit Waking cultivation, he took down packs of wild animals with ease. As for water, Yin Hui found a special gourd inside Tao Shou"s bag of holding. The gourd was unique and could instantly purify river water if it was stored inside.

When Yin Hui finished gathering supplies he began to walk on a trail he found while hunting. He enjoyed the peace and quiet, as it was a nice change from the barking orders he would constantly hear back in the Tang Clan.

As he was leisurely strolling, his eyes narrowed when he heard what sounded like angry shouts up ahead. Yin Hui ran towards the voices and stopped to find three burly men surrounding a frightened young boy. The boy was even younger then Yin Hui, looking no older then 12. He also held a small wooden chest in his arms. Two of the men around him were wielding daggers and looked extremely angry.

"Yu Zhuwa! You certainly know how to court death! We brothers have already paid your pathetic village for it"s hospitality, yet you dare come back and attempt to steal from us?!" One of the men shouted.

"Your mountain bandits! You probably stole this chest from a innocent traveler anyway!" The boy called Yu Zhuwa shouted back. His voice was so shrill and whiny that it sounded like he was crying rather then trying to make a point.

Yu Zhuwa was curled up like a ball, hugging the chest tightly against his body. He had a very innocent looking face and a weak demeanor that would naturally make others feel bad for him.

"Hah! So what if we stole it? Not only are we brothers bandits, but we"re also cultivators! Two of us have already pa.s.sed the bones and blood stage of the Impurity Cleansing realm, while oldest brother has already purified his organs too! What can you even do?!" Another bandit mocked.

The final brother who had yet to speak walked up to Yu Zhuwa, placing his foot on his head and pushing him to the ground.

"Yu Zhuwa, the cultivation world is a world where strength is everything. We may have stole this chest from a innocent traveller, but they had no one to blame but themselves for their own bad misfortune. You as well have no one else to blame other then yourself for being weak enough to be caught." The burly man took out a long black whip that was attached to his waist and cracked it, sending an echo throughout the forest.

"The weak who are caught stealing from the strong are punished. Ten lashes and some time tied up in a bear cave should teach you!"

As the whip descended, Yu Zhuwa closed his eyes bracing himself for the pain. However, after about five seconds he still didn"t feel anything. Yu Zhuwa opened his eyes to see a youth with long black hair and violet eyes standing in front of him. The young man held the whip firmly in his hand, preventing it from hitting Yu Zhuwa.

"Sorry, but I just hate it when children get hit by an angry man holding a whip. Personal experience you see." Yin Hui felt no pain at all when he blocked the whip. Even without his Spirit Waking cultivation base, the whip he intercepted paled in comparison to the one imbued with flames that Tao Shou used back in the Tang Clan.

"Who are you?!" The oldest brother shouted.

The two bandits beside him looked around in confusion. Yin Hui was so fast that the two brothers didn"t even notice him until he already broke through their circle.

Yin Hui strengthened his grip on the whip and tore it right off the handle. The man that was called oldest brother took a few steps back. This youth had just broken through their circle without any of them noticing. Being cultivators, this meant that the person before them possessed a higher cultivation then all of them.

The oldest brother trembled as he stared into Yin Hui"s violet eyes. His eyes emitted a ferocity similar to that of a vicious killing intent, one that made him feel like death itself was looking right at him.

"F-F-Fellow daoist, I"m afraid there has been a mis-misunderstanding. I-I-If we knew that Yu Zhuwa had such a senior by his side we would most certainly have f-f-forgiven him."

Yin Hui stepped forward. A black aura leaked out of him that gave him the appearance of a demon.

"I believe you said that in the cultivation world, one can only curse their own misfortune for being too weak. In that case, curse while you can as all of your fortunes are about to end."

The oldest brother screamed and ran away as fast as he could, his two younger brothers following close behind. Unfortunately, no matter how fast they ran they could not outrun Yin Hui and his Spirit Waking cultivation base. Before they even made 20 meters of distance, Yin Hui quickly caught up to the three brothers and gave them each a strong punch to the side of the face. The punch was so strong that their necks snapped from the speed at which their heads turned, killing them instantly. Yin Hui then activated the Evil Fiend Devouring Technique and devoured their souls. Because they were Impurity Cleansing cultivators his qi storages did not expand, but Yin Hui still felt his physique grow a little stronger.

"While this is indeed a world where the strong prey on the weak, the label between who is weak and who is strong can change in a heartbeat."
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Yin Hui returned to Yu Zhuwa who was shaking in fear over what he just witnessed.

"D-D-D-Demonic c-c-cultivator..."

Yin Hui sighed and gave the boy a pat on the head.

"Yes, I am a demonic cultivator, but does that automatically mean I"m a bad person? After all I just saved you." Yin Hui smiled.

With his fierce appearance, Yin Hui"s smile looked very sinister. However, behind it Yu Zhuwa saw a trace of genuine warmth and slowly calmed down.

"What is your name senior brother?"

"Yin Hui. Your Yu Zhuwa right? Where are your parents? You are simply giving them worry by engaging a bunch of mountain bandits on your own like this."

Yu Zhuwa looked down in embarra.s.sment when he heard Yin Hui say his name.

"I don"t have parents. I was found by the village leader as a baby and she took me in. The village calls me Yu Zhuwa because I am as clumsy as a pig, but have the tongue of a golden frog."

"Do you not have a real name?"

Yu Zhuwa shook his head.

"The only thing the village leader gave me was the surname Yu. She said that names are powerful and that she didn"t give me one because she wanted me to decide for myself who I was."

Yu Zhuwa sighed. He had long wondered who he wanted to be and what really defined him, but could never get close to finding an answer.

Yin Hui stroked his chin, intrigued by the wisdom of the village leader. Perhaps the village head was a cultivator as well. If that was the case, there was a chance she might be willing to share some knowledge as payment for saving Yu Zhuwa.

"I would very much like to meet this village leader of yours. Do you think you can take me to her? Just so you know ahead of time, I don"t have any treasures worth stealing on me."

Yu Zhuwa let out a carefree laugh.

"Don"t worry senior brother! I wouldn"t dare to steal from a benefactor such as yourself. Come! I"ll show you the way to the village!"

Yin Hui let out a wry smile as he followed Yu Zhuwa. The boy truly had the tongue of a golden frog. For a moment, just listening to his voice made Yin Hui unconsciously drop his guard for a brief moment. If Yu Zhuwa had really tried, he probably could"ve robbed Yin Hui right then and there.

"Yu Zhuwa, how close is your village to the main capital of the Tang Clan?" Yin Hui asked. If the Tang Clan capital was a significant distance from Yu Zhuwa"s village Yin Hui would stay for a while. If it wasn"t, he would quickly leave once the boy was safely returned home.

Yu Zhuwa told Yin Hui that his village was located around the outer region of the Tang Province. He also mentioned that his village rarely dealt with cultivators, due to being too small to be noticed by the neighbouring sects.

Yin Hui felt a huge weight being lifted off his shoulders when he heard this. Since Yu Zhuwa"s village was far from the Tang, he speculated that the clan did not have a very strong influence there. If so, it would be the perfect place to cultivate undisturbed.It was also a good opportunity to learn more about the current politics of the province.

They approached a small settlement that housed around 300 people. The village looked poor, but the people seemed content and satisfied with their lives. As Yu Zhuwa led Yin Hui inside, some of the townspeople snickered. They saw the small chest in Yu Zhuwa"s hands and a.s.sumed that he had cheated it off of Yin Hui with his golden tongue. Yu Zhuwa escorted Yin Hui to a large wooden house that was far more elegant then the others. When Yu Zhuwa knocked on the door, Yin Hui inquired more about the village head.

"By the way, Yu Zhuwa. How is your village head"s relationship with the Tang Clan?"

"The Tang Clan? I a.s.sume pretty good, after all one of their messengers is here right now speaking with her!"