The Hehuan Sect was special, much like the Shiluo Sect. They held a unique position among the Demon Sects, and few dared to provoke them.
The Shiluo Sect's strength lay in its individual power. As long as one kept fighting, destroying, and killing, they would grow stronger, nearly unbeatable at their own level.
However, the Hehuan Sect's strength was in its connections.
Influential figures in the Demon Sects almost always had a close friend or three from Hehuan. A word in the ear from a lover was all it took to get them to show respect.
If you crossed someone from the Shiluo Sect, you'd either be killed on the spot or manage to flee. The Shiluo Sect rarely held grudges, and the matter would be considered settled.
But if you crossed someone from the Hehuan Sect? Those women were incredibly united. If one sister was wronged, a whole crowd would come to her aid. They would rally their friends, summoning a horde of powerful Demon Sect figures to back them up.
After all, even Demon Lords care about their face. If you bully my good friend, you're slapping me in the face. If I don't back her up, how will I ever get a chance to be with her?
For this reason, those who offended the Hehuan Sect were hunted relentlessly, until death.
Even in death, they found no peace. Their essence was taken by the Xie Xue Sect, their bones by the Bai Gu Sect, and their souls by the Gui Wang Sect and Xuan Ming Sect. They were denied reincarnation.
It was a truly miserable fate.
Cultivation-wise, the Hehuan Sect's methods were vastly different from other Demon Sects.
The techniques of other Demon Sects were mostly based on "killing one's own kind" or "consuming one's own kind" to accumulate demonic energy.
The Shiluo Sect was a bit different. They didn't necessarily have to kill or consume their own kind; constant slaughter, destruction, and annihilation could also forge pure demonic energy.
As for the Hehuan Sect, they revered the Six Desires Heavenly Demons among the Heavenly Demons. Their specialty was controlling the emotions and desires of all things, letting people experience ultimate pleasure.
They gained their demonic energy from two main sources.
The first was "Cai Bu," or essence absorption. Hehuan Sect disciples could grow their cultivation through dual cultivation, but their method was completely different from the orthodox Daoist tradition.
The orthodox Daoist dual cultivation focused on balancing yin and yang, a mutually beneficial relationship. It was about spiritual and physical unity within a disciplined, regulated practice.
The Hehuan Sect's dual cultivation, however, was a one-sided absorption technique.
Through special techniques, a Hehuan disciple could perform "Cai Bu" on their partner, either absorbing yin to supplement yang or yang to supplement yin, draining the other's primal essence to fuel their own demonic energy.
After being "absorbed," the target's primal essence would leak away, and their lifespan would be shortened to some degree.
However, Hehuan cultivators were cautious. They wouldn't drain a target completely in one go. They would take a portion, let the person recover, and then continue absorbing.
On the surface, this looked no different from someone who had overindulged in pleasure.
This way, deaths didn't happen immediately, and even if one did occur, it wouldn't seem like the work of a demonic cultivator.
It would look more like the victim lacked self-control and died from excess, a common occurrence in major cities that went unnoticed.
Furthermore, the Hehuan women were low-key and never made enemies easily.
Of all the demonic cultivators, those from the Hehuan Sect were the best hidden. Using their sect's secret aura-concealing arts, they blended into the human cities, making them extremely difficult to find.
It was even possible that many righteous cultivators had been "served" by them, becoming honored guests. They might sit and discuss the Dao, sharing in a joyous time together.
Of course, for those cultivators who had formed their divine sense and could detect the loss of their own essence, the Hehuan disciples wouldn't dare to risk absorption. They would usually resort to their second method.
The second method was "Shi Yang," or consuming the lamb.
For a sentient being, consuming one's own kind was the easiest way to gain demonic energy, and the Hehuan Sect was no exception.
However, their "consuming the lamb" was different from the traditional meaning. They didn't eat a whole, formed lamb, but an unborn one.
A normal person eating this could never generate demonic energy.
But the Hehuan Sect's techniques were special and mysterious. They could refine these essences into pure demonic energy, which was incredibly potent for both cultivation and combat.
The stronger the shepherd's cultivation, the more nutritious the lamb's essence became.
If one could get on the good side of a prodigious giant and consume the essence of a sacred lamb they had raised for years, it would be immensely beneficial for a Hehuan disciple's cultivation.
A single "Shi Yang" session could save months of bitter training.
Because of this, although Hehuan disciples often appeared as delicate and fragile, few of their peers could match them in a real fight.
After all, a Demon Sect with power, strength, resources, and connections was truly terrifying.
Yu Dai Immortal was one of the Hehuan Sect's Protectors in Zhuque City. An expert in their aura-concealing arts, she often disguised herself as a young songstress, frequenting the city's finest pleasure houses.
When she needed to absorb essence, she would randomly pick a few attractive men and spend a night of pleasure with them.
Of course, the price of such pleasure was steep. The essence drained was equivalent to at least three years of lifespan.
In a bad mood, she might drain eight or ten years at once.
Nourished by countless virile men, Yu Dai Immortal's cultivation soared. At a young age, she had already reached the sixth level of the Golden Core realm, making her a rising star highly favored within the sect.
Today, she was at the Qunfang Garden, looking for prey as usual.
She never expected to run into Huang Yunchong from the Sanqing Immortal Sect, who was there with his junior disciple for fun.
Yu Dai Immortal was wary of Huang Yunchong. They were like rivals in the same profession. If he discovered her true nature, it was hard to say who would be playing whom. If the pleasure was too intense and her aura-concealing art faltered, exposing her demonic energy would be a disaster.
Besides, Huang Yunchong's dark, deep-set eyes and his appearance of someone who had overindulged were not to her taste.
The young man in white beside him, however, was ridiculously handsome. His skin was fair, his features sharp and well-defined. With sword-like brows and star-like eyes, his aura was otherworldly, like a celestial immortal who had descended to the mortal realm.
The type that repressed desire! She absolutely loved that type.
The moment she saw Wang Xiu, Yu Dai Immortal felt her long-dormant desire stir once more.
To be honest, she craved his body.
But even though she craved him, she still had her basic wits about her.
The reputation of the Sanqing Immortal Sect among the Demon Sects was terrible.
Other sects, like the Longhu Immortal Sect's Daoist masters or the Dajin Gangsi Temple's Buddhist masters, would often turn a blind eye to Hehuan Sect women in pleasure houses, as long as no murders were involved.
But the Sanqing Immortal Sect was different. Their sense of justice was overwhelming. If they discovered a demonic cultivator, they would pull up their pants and deny all knowledge.
They would simply draw their swords and attack.
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