Reverend insanity: Heaven devouring demon venerable

Ning Zu entered the quiet solitude of his kitchen, the low light reflecting off the cold stone walls, giving the space an almost cave-like atmosphere. He moved to the corner where a large jar had been sitting, fermenting for days. As he lifted the lid, a sweet but metallic scent filled the air—honey from his father's last mission, mixed with the blood of tigers he'd slain and other secret ingredients. 

The heady fragrance brought memories rushing back from his previous life, of desolate forests razed for rare materials just to brew this very wine. Back then, he had used the blood of desolate beasts, but this this simpler version would suffice for now.

Ning Zu allowed himself a brief moment of nostalgia, recalling how he once brought entire ecosystems to ruin for this exact taste. But his thoughts shifted back to the present, to the strength competition looming ahead. With a sigh, he tucked the jar beneath his arm and left the kitchen, making his way to the academy.

The classroom was empty when he arrived. The usual hustle of students was nowhere to be seen, giving him the perfect opportunity to hide the jar beneath his desk. He would return for it later—after he dealt with the day's challenges. After all, his plans for the cave would have to wait until after the competition. With that, he turned and left the room.

---

The training field was vast, enclosed by towering stone walls, their surfaces etched with the scars of countless battles. Today, however, a different kind of test awaited the students—one of raw physical strength. The strength competition had arrived, and the air crackled with tension and anticipation.

Xiong Yan Fang, the day's instructor, stood at the head of the group. His expression was as unreadable as always, his sharp eyes scanning the group of eager students. 

He was a tall man with a thick frame, he wore a robe marked with a large "2," symbolizing his authority as one of the highest-ranked instructors. Though powerful, Xiong Yan Fang's true notoriety came from his undying loyalty to the academy elder, Xiong Fen, which earned him the less flattering title of the "dog of the academy elder" among the students.

Xiong Yan Fang's voice sliced through the murmurs, commanding the students' attention.

"Today is the strength competition you have be preparing for these past days. You will be tested without the use of Gu worms, only testing the strength you built up these past few days" he began, his tone cold and severe. "Anyone caught cheating will be thrown into the clan's prison." He paused, letting the threat sink in. "And you all know the prison isn't a place you want to end up. Even a Rank 4 Zombie Gu Master has been rotting there for ages."

The mention of the prison chilled the group. Everyone knew the stories—the brutal conditions, the demonic Gu Masters locked away, stripped of their freedom and Gu. 

Ning Zu stood at the back of the group, unfazed by the mention of the prison. He knew fear, but it no longer controlled him like it did others.

To demonstrate the test, Xiong Yan Fang activated his Earth Wall Gu. The ground trembled as he summoned a towering, thick wall of earth from the ground before the students. The wall seemed to grow from the earth like an unstoppable force of nature, dense and unyielding.

"The rules are simple" he said 

"Hit this wall with everything you have," Xiong Yan Fang ordered. "The one who does the most damage wins."

He stepped back, leaving the students to face the formidable obstacle. 

The first student, a nervous boy with sweat pouring down his brow, approached the wall. He took a deep breath, balled his fists, and threw a punch with all his strength. His fist collided with the solid wall, but it was the boy who broke. His bones cracked audibly, and he screamed in pain, collapsing to the ground. 

A group of healing Gu Masters rushed forward, their hands glowing as they mended his broken hand. Xiong Yan Fang, unimpressed, called for the next student without even glancing at the boy.

One by one, the students struck the wall, each leaving only faint cracks at best. The wall seemed to heal itself almost instantly, its surface as smooth and pristine as ever.

The sight left many in awe. Even among the strongest, it was known that piercing Xiong Yan Fang's defense was an achievement few could boast.

But Ning Zu remained indifferent, standing at the back, lost in thought. He and Xiong Mo knew the truth behind Xiong Yan Fang's strength. The Earth Core Wall Gu was no ordinary Gu; it drew upon vast reserves of primeval essence to summon an earth barrier, and its size and thickness depended on how much essence was used. 

Ning Zu mused about the Earth Path, thinking of the venerable who came after Spectral Soul:

Paradise Earth Immortal Venerable.

He couldn't wait to talk to the venerable's will, as it was a habit of his.

But he was still quite disappointed, he knew of earths path's potential, as even he explored it for some time.

 The venerable had focused so much on defense, but Ning Zu saw the potential for offense within Earth Path.

As his mind wandered, Xiong Mo's turn arrived. The crowd grew silent as he approached the wall. 

Xiong Mo was a formidable student, known for his strength. His muscles bulged unnaturally as he activated the Bear Strength technique—a secret passed down through the clan leader's faction. 

Unlike others, just using the Bear Strength Gu to get the strength of a bear, this technique allowed him to store strength in his heart and distribute it to any part of his body when needed, and he can stack a lot of power there compered to just using the Gu normally. 

However, the technique carried risks—overusing it could cause his heart to explode, and once the stored strength was used in any muscle, he would be left weaker than a mortal for a time.

With his muscles swollen to an enormous size, Xiong Mo took a step back and, with a roar, slammed his fist into the wall. A deafening crack echoed through the training field as a gaping hole appeared in the center of the wall, surrounded by deep fissures. Xiong Mo's arm shrank back to its normal size, but the pain in his muscles was evident as he winced. However, he quickly hid his discomfort and returned to the group, clicking his tongue in frustration.

Xiong Yan Fang, visibly pleased, allowed a small smile to creep across his otherwise stern face. The students murmured in admiration, but Ning Zu remained impassive, unimpressed by Xiong Mo's display. The wall began to repair itself, the cracks vanishing as though nothing had happened.

Next, it was Xiong Wei Xu's turn. Ning Zu's eyes narrowed as he observed the changes in him. 

Xiong Wei Xu's skin had a coppery sheen, reflecting the sunlight and giving him the appearance of a man forged from metal. He had changed drastically since being sent to the clan's prison—a punishment meted out by his grandfather for losing the Liquor Worm Gu. 

What the others didn't know was that it was Ning Zu, in another body, who had stolen the Liquor Worm with the help of the Plunder Gu. 

Xiong Wei Xu's punishment had been severe. His grandfather had intentionally sent him to the brutal environment of the clan's prison, a place where demonic Gu Masters fought for survival daily. Unlike the other prisoners, Xiong Wei Xu had been allowed to keep his Bear Strength Gu, a calculated move by his grandfather to ensure that he not only survived but also learned the true importance of strength.

And now, the result was clear. Xiong Wei Xu had emerged stronger than ever. His newly acquired Copper Skin Gu made his body even more resilient, and his time in the prison had honed his skills.

Grinning confidently, Xiong Wei Xu approached the wall. He struck the same spot where Xiong Mo had landed his punch, and the wall groaned under the force of his blow. Cracks spread outward, covering the entire structure, leaving it barely standing. The students gasped, and Xiong Wei Xu smirked in triumph as he stepped back, clearly pleased with himself.

Ning Zu watched silently, a small smirk playing on his lips. "He's gotten smarter," Ning Zu thought, "but he's still just a pawn—a tool for heaven's will to counter me for sure. He'll have to be eliminated as soon as possible."

Xiong Yan Fang, now thoroughly impressed, absorbed some primeval essence from a pile of stones before destroying the wall with a single kick. He summoned another wall, thicker than the last, and turned to the remaining students.

But none of them dared to step forward. They had seen the strength of Xiong Mo and Xiong Wei Xu, and they knew they stood no chance. One by one, they forfeited, leaving only Ning Zu.

Ning Zu walked to the front with an air of calm confidence. As he stood before the wall, he turned to Xiong Yan Fang and asked, "How do I win first place?"

Xiong Yan Fang, still happy from Xiong Wei Xu's performance, replied, "If you want to win first place, you'll need to destroy the wall completely."

Ning Zu nodded, his expression indifferent. He took a deep breath and stepped forward. Without any visible effort, he drew back his fist and struck the wall.

The result was immediate. The wall shattered completely, crumbling into countless pieces that scattered across the ground. The dust settled, revealing the stunned faces of Xiong Yan Fang and the other students. Even Xiong Mo and Xiong Wei Xu, who had been brimming with confidence moments before, were left speechless.

Xiong Yan Fang's mouth hung open, unsure of what to say. The students murmured in disbelief. No one had expected Ning Zu to perform at such a level, especially without using the Bear Strength Gu these past few days.

After a moment of stunned silence, Xiong Yan Fang snapped out of his shock and reluctantly declared Ning Zu the winner.

Ning Zu returned to his place, a satisfied smirk tugging at the corners of his lips. He had spent countless days eating White Tiger meat, using the power of his Glutinous Beast King Gu. It had been a gamble, but now, standing before the shattered remnants of the wall, he knew it had paid off.

Xiong Yan Fang hid his shock, and announced to all the students that Ning Zu was the winner of this competition.

After crushing the competition with a single punch and ignoring the shocked whispers and gawking stares of his classmates, Ning Zu retraced his steps back to the classroom. By the time he returned to the academy building, the bustling noises had dispersed, as he was now pretty far away.

Ning Zu entered the now-silent classroom and retrieved the jar from beneath his desk. He smirked to himself, glad that the earlier chaos had allowed him to return unnoticed. 

With the jar back in hand, he slipped out of the academy unnoticed, heading to the cave he had been preparing for days.

---

The cave was dark, lit only by faint patches of bioluminescent moss clinging to the damp walls. The floor beneath Ning Zu's feet was veined with what looked like pulsating lines of blood, each one converging at a small pool in the center. As he settled himself down near the pool, he muttered softly about Spectral Soul, the one who had once wielded unimaginable power. His words were half to himself, half to the empty space around him, his contempt clear.

With deliberate care, Ning Zu opened the jar of wine, the strong, sweet scent filling the confined space. The blood veins on the ground twitched at the aroma, as if awakened by the scent alone. But Ning Zu paid them no mind, tipping the jar to his lips and taking a long swig. The taste was rich, deep—an echo of the past, though far from the refined brew he'd once made from the blood of desolate beasts. A chuckle escaped him as he thought of Ming You, who had once teased him for drinking straight from the jar like a common drunkard.

"Why did you make me promise to cultivate food path of all things?" he mused aloud, his voice echoing through the cave. It had been Ming You's last request before his death—a promise Ning Zu had no choice but to keep. Though he was a quasi-supreme grandmaster in both human and soul path, Ming You's wish weighed heavily on him. "A promise is a promise," he muttered, but there was a sly smile on his lips as he added, "though I'll still cultivate other paths."

Finishing the jar with a satisfied sigh, he pricked his finger and let a few drops of his blood fall into the remaining dregs of wine. Then, with a sharp flick of his wrist, he poured the entire mixture into the pool of blood at his feet. The blood veins reacted instantly, convulsing and retracting into the pool like tendrils seeking sustenance.

From the folds of his robe, Ning Zu produced a small jar containing a Despair Gu—a vile creature that normally fed on the hopelessness of others. The Gu flitted restlessly around him, eager to destroy, but knowing full well that Ning Zu's aperture wouldn't be enough to sate its hunger. "I'll give you something better," Ning Zu said, his voice slurring slightly, a faint drunkenness creeping in.

With a flick of his hand, he pulled out two insects—a butterfly and a mosquito, both missing their wings but still alive, though barely. He tossed them into the blood pool, followed by their severed wings. The Despair Gu, now agitated by the sight of the struggling insects, dove into the pool without hesitation.

Immediately, the pool began to roil and bubble. The veins of blood were sucked into the pool, disappearing one by one as the blood in the pool thickened and began to shrink. Ning Zu watched, his eyes gleaming with fascination. "Insects in the wild mutate into Gu to survive, or to grow stronger," he remarked, his tone casual. "If I had to transform into a Gu to survive, I'd do it in a heartbeat."

As the pool of blood diminished, a transformation took place. From the murky remains, a new Gu emerged—a vivid red creature with the wings of a butterfly but the sharp, needle-like proboscis of a mosquito. It fluttered around Ning Zu in an almost playful manner, its hunger momentarily sated.

Ning Zu smiled, a satisfied gleam in his eyes. "Looks like I've succeeded," he said, watching the new Gu with amusement. "Bloodthorn Monarch Gu—that's what I'll call you."

The Bloodthorn Monarch Gu circled him once more before perching itself on his shoulder, its red wings shimmering in the dim light of the cave. Ning Zu leaned back against the cold stone wall, feeling the weight of the day's events lift ever so slightly. The competition was over, the wine was gone, and his new creation was complete. Now, it was time to move forward—both with the food path Ming You had demanded, and with all the others he would cultivate in secret.

His promises would be kept, but he would still chart his own course.

——

(My English sucks so I changed some things, I hope you guys can understand 🙏)