Elder Yanxi

【The day of strengthening has finally arrived.】

【However, Elder Yan Xi's methods are extraordinary, not something an ordinary person could endure, but the effects are incredibly potent—surpassing Lin Xuan in just three months.】

【That's right, surpassing Lin Xuan, with a massive leap in cultivation, advancing from the peak of Qi Refining to the peak of Foundation Establishment.】

【With the treasures Elder Yan Xi bestowed, my overall strength has skyrocketed, making me one of the top disciples in the Seven Stars Sword Sect.】

【I'm quite satisfied with this outcome and was about to seek revenge on Lin Xuan. Unfortunately, Elder Yan Xi stopped me.】

【He told me the timing wasn't right yet and advised me to hide my strength. He promised I would get my chance to kill Lin Xuan properly.】

【I had no choice but to comply. Hiding my strength was indeed necessary. Otherwise, such a rapid increase in cultivation would raise suspicions, and Elder Yan Xi didn't want to expose himself.】

【The method he used to enhance my cultivation wasn't conventional—it had ties to demonic practices.】

【His so-called goodwill in helping me could be seen as either a kind act toward a "waste" or, more bluntly, as a human experiment.】

【Yes, his assistance was purely for his own research. His lifelong ambition was to prove that even a "waste" could become the strongest.】

【This brings us to Elder Yan Xi's background.】

【No matter where you go, there will always be those at the bottom of the cultivation world. Initially, Elder Yan Xi was one of them—a nameless figure in the Seven Stars Sword Sect, unable to catch up to the top disciples no matter how hard he tried.】

【Unwilling to accept this, he began researching ways to grow stronger. However, conventional methods had their limits, so he turned to unorthodox practices, delving into demonic alchemy.】

【He achieved some success, but the further he went, the harder it became to progress, and the damage to his body grew severe. He became afraid and stopped experimenting on himself.】

【Instead, he began using others as test subjects, applying the most effective results to himself.】

【For the sake of this experiment, he had already caused the deaths of countless low-ranking disciples in the Seven Stars Sword Sect. However, he operated in secrecy, and the sect remained unaware.】

【Step by step, he eventually became an Elder at the Nascent Soul level—a success by his standards.】

【However, Elder Yan Xi didn't consider himself a member of the demonic path. On the contrary, he disdained joining the demonic sects, not out of any sense of righteousness, but because he was satisfied with his current position.】

【Life in the Seven Stars Sword Sect was comfortable, and with his current status, he could wield significant influence in certain areas.】

【So, when Qin San repeatedly tried to recruit Elder Yan Xi into the Heavenly Demon Sect, he always scoffed. While he wouldn't join, he was willing to collaborate.】

【Elder Yan Xi had engaged in numerous transactions with the Heavenly Demon Sect. In exchange for demonic cultivation manuals, he provided the sect with intelligence about the Seven Stars Sword Sect.】

【This was why Qin San always showed Elder Yan Xi respect—because Elder Yan Xi consistently delivered valuable information to the Heavenly Demon Sect.】

【Elder Yan Xi's cunning didn't stop there. For a long time, under the guise of helping "waste" disciples of the Seven Stars Sword Sect, he implanted them with "Demon Seeds," a spell he had developed himself.】

【Activating this spell allowed these disciples to unleash power far beyond their normal capabilities, but they would lose their rationality and become consumed by destruction.】

【The Demon Seeds were deeply hidden, and unless an Elder-level figure conducted an extremely thorough investigation, they would remain undetected.】

【But why would Elders bother investigating such insignificant disciples?】

【Thus, Elder Yan Xi had amassed a hidden force within the Seven Stars Sword Sect. The disciples he had "helped" were deeply grateful to him. Those with exceptional potential were recruited as trusted subordinates, while the rest were treated as disposable tools.】

【Of course, controlling these disciples might not seem impressive, as they weren't high-level combatants.】

【But when the Heavenly Demon Sect launched its invasion, Elder Yan Xi, acting as an insider, sabotaged the sect's protective formations, triggered the Demon Seeds to turn disciples against their own, and even guided the Heavenly Demon Sect's forces.】

【The disciples he had "helped" played a crucial role in these actions.】

【His fervent assistance to the Heavenly Demon Sect wasn't out of a desire to join them but because he owed them favors. The Heavenly Demon Sect had provided him with demonic cultivation manuals multiple times.】

【Moreover, he had planned everything meticulously, leaving no trace of his involvement.】

【Elder Yan Xi operated from the shadows. In any other sect, he would have remained an Elder unscathed.】

【Unfortunately, Lin Xuan was here, and his schemes were eventually exposed, leading to his downfall.】

【Serves him right.】

【But for now, I should mourn my own fate. The price of this power boost was excruciating pain.】

【Over the course of three months, I had to undergo periodic treatments with Elder Yan Xi's "medicine."】

【His so-called medicine was essentially poison.】

【The process felt like being sliced open, having salt rubbed into the wounds, and then being roasted over a fire—repeated over and over.】

【The pain was so intense that my throat was raw from screaming. Each session left me feeling as though I had walked through hell.】

【During the first treatment, I nearly gave up. It was unbearable.】

【Even later, I never fully adapted. That's how extreme the pain was.】

【So, even though I gained strength, I couldn't feel happy about it. My talent was simply too poor, and this was the only way to improve.】

【After gaining power, I was humiliated by Lin Xuan. But before that, I was bound to show off, ignoring Elder Yan Xi's advice and revealing my strength to shock everyone. Then, I would be defeated by Lin Xuan, leaving everyone in awe of his power.】

【But that's still some time away. For now, I just need to endure these three months.】

Su Luo closed his diary and sighed, reminiscing about the first time he experienced that pain. It was unforgettable.

But then he remembered—he wasn't the same person anymore.

This time was much better. His physique had improved significantly, and his cultivation had advanced greatly.

Moreover, he could use the "Shared Pain" technique to make another villain share the agony.

Perhaps he even needed to act as though he was still suffering.

Everything was under control. Truly, relying on cheats was the way to go. Mutations were nothing in comparison.

【Diary completed. Reward: +3 Constitution, +4 Strength, one level of cultivation advancement. Current cultivation: Late-stage Golden Core.】

......

Although the diary's content wasn't extensive, it left Nangong Xiyun utterly shocked.

She never could have imagined that Elder Yan Xi had been involved in so many sinister deeds behind the scenes.

Her expression darkened instantly.

After careful consideration, Nangong Xiyun decided to take action.

First, she needed to verify who had been implanted with Demon Seeds.

Su Luo had written clearly—it was the nameless disciples of the sect.

Following this lead, Nangong Xiyun began discreetly investigating these disciples.

What she discovered was staggering—a total of 463 individuals, and that was just within the sect. Some were out on missions.

"What a cunning move, hiding so deeply," Nangong Xiyun sneered.

And so...

"Elder Yan Xi, open up. The sect has a 'gift' for you."