The Beauty Cultivation Technique

Chapter 32: Settling Old Scores

The heavy stone doors fell into place, sealing off the sound from the outside world. Ji Yaoge could no longer hear the deafening buzzing nor feel the trembling of the ground. Yet, the sense of unease and danger grew stronger in the unnatural silence, amplifying like the sound of a heartbeat in the dead of night, becoming louder the quieter it got.

The sudden turn of events showed that the usually noisy little girl reacted the fastest, earning a degree of newfound respect for her composure. This arrangement might not be the best, but with no better option at hand, it would have to do. Leaving Bai Yan and Xiao Bai outside was undoubtedly risky, but the design of Shigong Ridge should include defensive formations, evident from Xiao Bai's reactions. They seemed prepared, just not fully, when the situation changed.

Now, Ji Yaoge couldn't ponder who "Brother Yuan" Xiao Bai mentioned or the "master" Old Yuan spoke of, and whether or not they were the person who had saved her in the past. If they were, what about her lost spirit essence...

Questions abounded, but she couldn’t afford the luxury of piecing everything together now. Surviving the immediate threat took precedence. Their cultivation levels were low, and the beasts outside, affected by the myriad beast venom, had lost their senses and would devour anyone, treating humans as food. As Xiao Bai said, their only hope was protecting the person inside; only he could fend off the beasts. If he died, their chances of escaping the swarm unscathed were slim.

As she walked and thought, Ji Yaoge quickly reached the end of the passage. The second door stood before her, firmly shut. She had never been through it before and didn't know how to open it. Debating whether to wait or find a way in, she heard a faint scraping sound from the corridor.

Could it be? Had the beasts already breached the cave?

Ji Yaoge turned cautiously, gripping her broken Xiá Sword in her right hand and three Guang Talisman in her left, staring tensely at the entrance. The sight made her scalp tingle. The long passage was suddenly filled with people, moving stiffly and silently towards her. Another glance revealed they were emerging from the stone chambers along the corridor—chambers typically used for storing bodies…

Realizing their origin, she quickly deduced they were animated corpses.

He must be using corpse manipulation.

Yet, corpses lacked consciousness and attacked indiscriminately. With only one way into the cave, anything entering was an enemy. Leaving these dead here was a defensive measure, but now…

Seeing these corpses advancing towards her, Ji Yaoge silently cursed—she was the only living person here!

Boom—

The stone door behind her suddenly opened as she swallowed her curse, accompanied by a deep male voice echoing from all directions.

"Come in."

Without hesitation, Ji Yaoge dashed into the second door.

"Elder Yuan? Miss Xiao Bai sent me to assist with your protection," she called out upon entering.

Through the final door, she still couldn’t see anyone. Behind the second door was a large stone chamber, walls and floor covered in arrays, likely set for this crisis but incomplete and non-functional, explaining Xiao Bai's decision to send her in.

“Hmm, stay here,” the voice, faint and weak, came from beyond the tightly shut door, giving no more instructions.

Suddenly, the walls lit up, with blue stone patterns transforming into scenes, half showing the chaos outside the cave, the other half the interior passage. What was happening outside was clear on the walls.

Shigong Ridge was in complete disarray.

——

Dark clouds blocked the sky, making it appear night-like. Beasts swooped down from the sky, aiming for the hanging cave. Many were smashed mid-air by giant stone figures, but more landed, frantically crashing against the cave entrance. On the ground, countless fierce beasts surged forward relentlessly. While the stone figures were powerful, they couldn’t stop the flood-like wave of beasts.

Sand and rocks flew everywhere, occasionally flashing with spells like lightning cutting through the darkness. The herb garden was trampled and destroyed, the caged spirit beasts either crushed or killed, lying lifeless.

Snow soaked in crimson blood, with a pervasive smell of blood, and more beasts approaching from afar.

Judging by their numbers, Ji Yaoge suspected the entire Tiyu State's fierce beasts were converging. Beast cultivation was tougher than human; evolving from mindless to low intelligence before taking human form took ages. While humans might form a Golden Core in 800 years, it took beasts over a millennium. A shaped beast, though capable of ruling a mountain, shedding its beastly traits altogether required forming a Nascent Soul.

In the countless red eyes, Ji Yaoge saw a few with lingering intelligence. Bad news—it indicated several millennia-old beast cultivators among them.

She quickly identified three: a Hook Snake, a Red Flame Bird, and a Ginger Horn Lion.

These crafty beast cultivators didn’t attack directly. Hiding behind the frenzied beasts, they used their numbers for cover, creeping closer to the cave entrance. From the overall scene, Ji Yaoge understood the stone formation outside was Xiao Bai’s doing, serving as the first line of defense with Bai Yan guarding her. Xiao Bai had no cultivation, necessitating Bai Yan’s protection. As long as she remained steady, the first defense line would hold.

However, the three beast cultivators also noticed this and were closing in fast. Bai Yan set up a vine wall, but the Ginger Horn Lion’s sheer force smashed it quickly, collapsing the barrier with its horns. Fortunately, Bai Yan was prepared, releasing a Fiery Blast, driving the Ginger Horn Lion back with a blast of flames.

The Ginger Horn Lion roared in retreat, singed. The Hook Snake and Red Flame Bird joined, transforming into human forms—Hook Snake as a sleek woman in scale armor, Red Flame Bird as a sharp-faced youth, and Ginger Horn Lion as a burly red-bearded man. They advanced on Bai Yan together.

Ji Yaoge knew this was trouble—the trio’s combined strength outmatched Bai Yan.

Indeed, Bai Yan was pushed back, shot by an arrow from the Red Flame Bird but managed to dodge the follow-up strike from the Ginger Horn Lion. A crash under the lion’s claws would severely wound him. Ji Yaoge tensed, but—

Xiao Bai acted swiftly, summoning two nearby stone figures to block the Ginger Horn Lion, buying time. Bai Yan and Xiao Bai exchanged a relieved glance, even Ji Yaoge sighed. That ‘silly’ girl proved far from foolish, showing strong adaptability.

Taking out numerous beasts, Ji Yaoge belatedly realized the danger inside. Black ants, the size of fingernails, swarmed the stone door. She looked outside, spotting the Hook Snake stealthily releasing these ants. The Myriad Beast Venom extracted from the general chaos allowed the ants to burrow unnoticed.

“Molten Gold Ants?” Ji Yaoge gripped her sword tighter.

Molten Gold Ants were terrifying, possessing corrosive saliva that melted metal—capable of eroding the stone door.

Quickly, the ants turned the door to powder. Instantly, a horde of beasts charged into the passage.

"No!" Bai Yan shouted in alarm, rushing towards the cave.

"Stop," Xiao Bai held him back. "Guard the outside. Leave the inside to her."

Directing the battle, her calm authority left no room for argument. Though uneasy, Bai Yan obeyed, refocusing on the fight. Distracted, the Ginger Horn Lion struck again, with Bai Yan narrowly evading. Xiao Bai couldn’t dodge, her arm severed by a claw swipe.

Bai Yan, horrified, unleashed another Fiery Blast, forcing the lion back, guilt-ridden. Xiao Bai, still poised, urged, “Focus, Bai Yan! Do our part, and trust her.”

Trusting Ji Yaoge meant trusting herself.

——

The passage was chaos. Beasts surged in, clashing with the corpse army. Agile Hook Snake and Red Flame Bird slipped in among the beasts, advancing towards the inner cave.

Amid snarling and battling, more beasts entered, overwhelming the corpses. Despite their strength, the corpses, like stone figures, lacked intelligence and adaptability, gradually losing ground.

Molten Gold Ants swiftly reached the second door, gnawing through it. Hook Snake and Red Flame Bird engaged the corpses but quickly caught up to the ants as they entered.

Inside, only a single sword hovered in the air. Unfazed, the ants approached, only for a golden glow to flash, accompanied by an angry voice, “Acting tough before your bug ancestor, tired of living?”

A giant golden mildew appeared, squashing many ants. The surviving ants scattered but remained still before the dominant presence of Gao Badou, a 3600-year-old spirit insect.

"Get lost!" Gao Badou commanded, his enlarged form issuing an imposing order.

Transformation size was his only talent.

Cowed, the ants retreated out.

Outside, Hook Snake and Red Flame Bird, having shaken off the corpse army, arrived to see the retreating ants. Ignoring Hook Snake's commands, ants were equally pressured by Gao Badou’s presence behind and their master ahead, causing a berserk frenzy, biting both beasts and corpses indiscriminately.

Alarmed, Hook Snake realized something was wrong inside and proceeded with Red Flame Bird.

Inside, only the sword remained, with no sign of Gao Badou. The broken Xiá Sword, glowing gold, suddenly sparked blinding light, forcing the pair to avert their gaze as someone silently descended from the ceiling, stabbing Hook Snake in the back. Screaming, the Hook Snake shifted into its serpent form, pinned by Ji Yaoge’s dagger, writhing in agony.

Red Flame Bird recognized the ambush, seeing a Foundation Establishment female cultivator. He screeched sharply, launching feathered arrows. Ji Yaoge flipped to dodge, casting a freezing spell on the stone room, slowing the Red Flame Bird’s attacks.

In haste, Ji Yaoge devised the Condensing Ice Formation, basic but effective against the fire-element Red Flame Bird.

Outmatched by these three, she aimed to buy time, hoping the person inside emerged quickly.

Freezing the Red Flame Bird, pinning the Hook Snake, she handled the weaker beasts pouring in, using the broken Xiá Sword’s sharpness. Combining her Twelve Celestial Demon Dance footwork with her sect’s Mu Xiang Swordplay, Ji Yaoge unleashed deadly strikes.

Blood rained with each sword flash as beast corpses piled up. Despite the cold, the Red Flame Bird kept attacking, using its flames to melt the frost.

Five hundred years of cultivation, Ji Yaoge had rarely faced such peril. Fighting for life, she spared nothing, sustaining multiple wounds, her clothes and hair singed, limbs cut. Yet survival mattered most, her spiritual energy depleting.

The stone door remained shut after a whole day. Frustrated, she shouted, “Still hiding? How much longer?”

She wouldn't sacrifice herself for a stranger.

Silence from behind, but a figure burst in, the Ginger Horn Lion breaking through Bai Yan, joining the fray. Three-on-one, Ji Yaoge had no chance.

Frost cracked, the cave burning with heat, overwhelming her tactics.

“Die!” The Ginger Horn Lion lunged.

The Red Flame Bird’s fire scorched, evading one attack, she couldn’t dodge the next. Struck by the Ginger Horn Lion, Ji Yaoge flew back like a broken kite.

Landing just before the third door, it opened, blinding golden light enveloping her.

“You call me a coward?” A young male voice, tinged with subtle amusement.

This settled an old score from 198 years ago.

She had once called Yuan Huan a cowardly turtle.