Chapter 37 The Cave Dwelling on Heaven's Pillar Mountain

“Mysterious Heavywater!”

Suddenly, two beads of Mysterious Heavywater appeared in Shen Yan’s hand and were thrust directly into the mouths of the two men.

“I’m giving you one day. Settle the matter and wait for me at the foot of Mount Sky Pillar. Otherwise...”

With that, Shen Yan gently relaxed his control over the Mysterious Heavywater, and the two men immediately doubled over in agonizing pain, nearly fainting.

After letting them suffer briefly, Shen Yan resumed his control to prevent the water from harming them further, and his figure vanished from where he stood.

The two men’s faces changed dramatically. They did not believe Shen Yan was bluffing; the pain just now had been a clear warning.

“Let’s just obey for now and keep ourselves alive,” Old Xu sighed, glancing at Old Feng, whose face was still full of unwillingness, and shook his head.

“You’re right. We are but fish on the chopping block; we have no other choice,” Old Feng replied dejectedly.

…

Meanwhile, Shen Yan stood before his parents’ graves for a long while. The faces of his mother and father had grown blurred in his memory, yet tears still welled in his eyes.

“Father, Mother, today I have destroyed the Yang family. Soon, Yang Yun will fall by my hand as well. If your spirits know of this, you may finally rest in peace.”

He added fresh earth to their graves, knelt and bowed in silence, then turned and left.

After slaying Zhou Shun and Ling Qian, Shen Yan had taken their storage pouches and magic weapons as spoils.

He found a secluded spot and began to inspect their treasures.

Zhou Shun’s weapon was a silver flying sword, but it was only a mid-grade artifact, far inferior to Shen Yan’s Flowing Cloud Sword. The blade bore three or four nicks, clear signs of its clash with Flowing Cloud.

He put the sword away and turned his attention to Ling Qian’s long saber. Though the saber was only a low-grade artifact, Shen Yan was surprised to find a mid-grade spirit stone inlaid in its hilt.

Spirit stones were valuable cultivation resources, filled with concentrated spiritual energy that was easier for cultivators to absorb than the ambient energy of heaven and earth.

In Jade Immortal Sect, for instance, ordinary servants received either a copper stipend or a single low-grade spirit stone each year—the two were of equal value in the cultivation world.

The spirit stone embedded in Ling Qian’s saber was a mid-grade one, worth ten low-grade spirit stones.

“No wonder Ling Qian, a mere late-stage Qi Refiner, was able to share the responsibility of guarding the Yang estate with Zhou Shun. Besides seducing him with her body, this saber played a significant part.”

Though the saber was only low-grade, with the spirit stone to supply power, it could unleash force comparable to a mid-grade artifact.

The idea of using spirit stones for an instantaneous surge of energy gave Shen Yan pause for thought.

Perhaps he could use the Heavenly Emperor Seal to mimic this technique.

However, spirit stones provided spiritual energy, while the Heavenly Emperor Seal generated spiritual essence—two fundamentally different things.

If he could master this method, he could channel spiritual essence into the Primordial Black Ice, increasing its potency tenfold.

…

The next afternoon, Shen Yan arrived at the foot of Mount Sky Pillar.

Mount Sky Pillar was renowned throughout Jin Prefecture, not for its scenic beauty, but for producing the finest iron ore in the Qian Kingdom.

The ore was notoriously difficult to mine, and countless miners lost their lives in its tunnels each year.

About an hour later, two presences approached from afar—Shen Yan knew the two cultivators were coming.

“Sir, the task you assigned is complete. All the women of the Yang family have been sent to the Disciplinary Bureau,” Old Feng reported, eyes filled with a trace of hope as he looked at Shen Yan, clearly wishing for the poison in his body to be removed.

Old Xu said nothing. Having survived in the cultivation world for decades, he did not believe Shen Yan would let them go; enslaving two Qi Refining cultivators was a tempting prospect for anyone.

To his surprise, Shen Yan spoke directly:

“Open your mouths.”

Old Feng’s face lit up with joy as he immediately complied, while Old Xu, stunned, wondered if this seemingly ordinary yet formidable senior truly intended to release them.

Trepidatiously, Old Xu opened his mouth as well, silently hoping Shen Yan would keep his word.

True to his promise, Shen Yan extracted the two beads of Mysterious Heavywater from their stomachs and spoke in a calm voice:

“You needn’t worry about me going back on my word. Two mere early-stage Qi Refining cultivators are not worth my integrity.”

He had lifted his control so easily partly because he disliked enslaving others, and partly because he still needed to locate their ancestor’s cave residence—removing the restraint would win their trust.

Most importantly, Shen Yan’s own strength was formidable; if he wished to kill them, he had no need for such measures.

“Many thanks, Senior!” Xu Rui and Uncle Feng bowed in gratitude, surprised and delighted by Shen Yan’s trustworthiness.

With a wave of his hand, Shen Yan signaled them to rise: “It’s a trivial matter. Now, tell me about your ancestor’s cave.”

Upon hearing this, the two exchanged a glance, and Uncle Feng stepped forward to explain: “Senior, the cultivator who left behind the cave in Mount Sky Pillar bore the surname Feng—my ancestor. He had a son and a daughter. I am the direct descendant of the Feng family, and his daughter was Xu Rui’s great-grandmother.”

Shen Yan nodded, understanding now why they were so certain about the cave’s existence—it belonged to their direct forebear, a cultivator of Nascent Soul rank.

“Yesterday, I sought you out mainly to have someone handle the women of the Yang family. The information about the cave was volunteered by you.”

He briefly explained the events of the previous day, then continued before they could interject:

“Rest assured, I am not one to covet what is not mine; I will not seize your ancestor’s cave by force.”

At these words, both Xu Rui and Uncle Feng showed visible relief—this senior seemed upright and principled.

“Thank you, Senior. However, while we located the cave, its restrictions remain intact. With our cultivation, we cannot hope to break them and enter,” Uncle Feng said with a wry smile, recounting their difficulties. Xu Rui sighed and added,

“Senior, your virtue is clear for all to see. We do not fear you coveting our ancestor’s relics. We simply cannot breach the restrictions ourselves. We implore you to help us break the seals—whatever you wish to take from within is yours. If there are any meager cultivation resources left that do not interest you, we beg you to grant us a share.”