Chapter Twenty-Six: The False Immortal

That was a demon clan tribe boasting over a million members, composed of various demon species. The exact number remained unknown to Xi, for she and her companions had been confined within a valley, and the little she knew was gleaned from overhearing the conversations of their caretakers. The demon clan consistently underestimated the intelligence of humans and regarded their strength with contempt, so they spoke freely of private matters before them, carelessly spreading gossip and rumors as well.

“Demon God?” Luo Zu caught the term instantly.

“Yes, the Demon God is an immortal in the heavens. The grandfather of the tribal chief is one of those Demon Gods,” Xi affirmed.

“Which Demon God?” Luo Zu pressed.

The demon clan governed the heavens, the sorcerer clan the earth. The demon clan established the Celestial Court and countless Demon Gods, most famously the three hundred sixty-five Star Gods. Yet beyond those, the Celestial Court held many other Demon Gods, largely unknown and perhaps not famed in the great war between demons and sorcerers. But to Luo Zu, each was a mountain—a towering range blocking the “cave dwellers” from gazing back toward their homeland, Mount Buzhou.

“I don’t know,” Xi replied, as Luo Zu had expected. Such secrets were far beyond her reach.

“How far is that tribe from here? Did you ever calculate how long it took you to get here?” Luo Zu asked again.

“I don’t know how long, but it was a very, very long time. I even gave birth to three children along the way,” Xi answered.

Three children—that was indeed a lengthy journey. In the primeval age, humans bore one child per year, so three meant more than three years. If they traveled by flying vessel for two years—especially one designed for transport—then it must have been swift; the tribe must be exceedingly distant, at least a hundred million kilometers away. Luo Zu had little sense of the speed of those demon clan flying vessels, but he imagined it must be far faster than airplanes of his former life.

“And what about the place where you crashed?” Luo Zu inquired.

That was crucial; the demon clan might still be searching for survivors. Luo Zu also wished to learn more about the destroyed vessel.

“I ran for three thousand sunrises,” Xi replied.

This figure was an estimate; the real number could be even greater. Her pace was likely not fast, so the journey was perhaps only tens of thousands of li.

Afterward, Luo Zu asked about her experiences along the way. She recounted only the most recent events; her earlier memories were too blurred to recall.

Luo Zu could only accept this; her tales mostly concerned places already explored by the “cave dwellers.”

“By the way, do you know about cultivation ranks?” Luo Zu asked.

Xi pondered. “Cultivation ranks?”

“Have you heard them mentioned?”

“No, not at all,” Xi shook her head.

Perhaps the term was obscure, so Luo Zu explained, “It’s like how some are stronger than others, that sort of rank.”

“Is it like official positions?” Xi asked cautiously.

Luo Zu nodded. “More or less.”

“They have minor commanders, major commanders, lords, grand lords, and tribal chiefs.”

It seemed she misunderstood.

“And what about differences in strength?”

“Oh, I don’t know exactly. The caretaker said the chief is a Heavenly Immortal, Adada the grand lord is a True Immortal, Yamuli the lord is a True Immortal, Tiger Jade Immortal the major commander is a True Immortal…” She continued, naming many, listing all the ranks she’d heard the caretaker mention.

Her memory from her time in the demon clan was quite sharp—perhaps because she was well nourished then.

Luo Zu summarized: from minor commander up to grand lord were all True Immortals, though there were varying degrees among them; the chief was a Heavenly Immortal, the strongest in the tribe. Below True Immortal was False Immortal—those who had stepped onto the path of cultivation. Others, even if possessing supernatural abilities, but not yet cultivating, were not even False Immortals, collectively called Mortal Demons.

Once on the path of cultivation, they transcended the mundane and were no longer called mortals. But without formal recognition from heaven and earth, they remained False Immortals.

Luo Zu himself was a False Immortal, as were the “cave dwellers” now, and some members of the smaller human communities.

The primeval age was truly worthy of its name—everything was so simple and brutal. Perhaps because the great figures were born as True Immortals or Heavenly Immortals, they disdained finer distinctions below True Immortal and simply lumped them as False Immortals.

And the lesser folk didn’t think to rebel, muddling through cultivation without refining the False Immortal stage.

Of course, Xi’s knowledge was perhaps too superficial; some information could only be clarified by direct contact with cultivators of the primeval age.

What lay beyond Heavenly Immortal? Xi did not know. The caretakers only mentioned Golden Immortal, Great Luo, and Sage.

Once Luo Zu had learned enough, he told her to rest for now; later he would assign suitable work.

But she possessed few skills, and her supernatural abilities were almost ruined. The demon clan, to prevent human escape, had manipulated the valley somehow, causing their powers to awaken but never grow—and even diminish.

While living in that valley, she needn’t worry about food; the caretakers brought meals, so she never learned farming, hunting, or gathering, only relying on instinct after escaping.

Yet after such a long journey, she still hadn’t mastered hunting or gathering. Many times, she nearly perished in the wild, often going hungry.

But she had learned a “universal skill” of the human clan—identifying poisons.

She could quickly distinguish poisonous fruits and herbs, and those carnivorous plants that devoured all.

It was thanks to this skill that she managed to travel so far without succumbing along the way.

She was of the sixth generation of humans.

The demon clan, seeking more food, accelerated the breeding of the humans they confined, committing many acts that violated Luo Zu’s memories of morality.

But the demon clan cared little for such things.

By forcing rapid reproduction, they filled that small valley with over three hundred thousand humans.

Humans often rolled naked through filth, barely distinguishable from livestock—indeed, often worse.

When Xi recounted these events with numb expression, Luo Zu clenched his teeth and declared, “If ever I attain the Dao, I will never allow humanity to suffer such humiliation again.”