573: Symbiotic Contract! One Person, Multiple Roles!

The Thousand-Hand Demoness wobbled and flew onto Su Lie's shoulder, settling down with great effort: "This time, I've really lost out!"

With that, she burst into tears.

Su Lie listened, somewhat baffled, but he remained still, patiently listening to the Thousand-Hand Demoness "venting."

After crying for a while, the Thousand-Hand Demoness suddenly lifted her head, wiped away her tears, and said, "I was tricked by the Formless Ghost Ancestor and Black Demon! My greatest ability was stolen!"

"The Formless Ghost Ancestor actually wants me to assist Black Demon in becoming the Shadowless Sect Master!"

"That guy only knows how to play it safe! Everyone together..."

She then rambled on about the past.

Only then did Su Lie understand.

Originally, the Formless Ghost Ancestor intended for the Thousand-Hand Demoness to be the Shadowless Sect Master.

The Thousand-Hand Demoness took it seriously and began to work towards that goal.

But who knew?

This mission was actually a scheme concocted by the Formless Ghost Ancestor and Black Demon.

The Formless Ghost Ancestor personally stripped the Thousand-Hand Demoness of her strongest power and her position, which was that of the Sect Master.

And he handed this power and authority over to Black Demon.

This Black Demon was a Formless Ghost that had taken over the body of Xuan Yu, the Heavenly Sword Peak Master.

The Thousand-Hand Demoness grumbled for a bit, and finally, endless resentment emanated from her body: "Damn it! Don't let me catch a chance! Otherwise, I'll eat you all!"

"Ah!"

She screamed wildly.

The sharp sound pierced through the room's walls and traveled far.

This caused the Formless Ghosts monitoring around the underground secret chamber to retreat.

At this moment, the Formless Ghost Ancestor, who was on Heavenly Sword Peak, turned his head to look at the location of Emperor Sword Peak.

Xuan Yu, who was beside him, asked solemnly, "Formless Ghost Ancestor! Yu Jianying won't cause any trouble, will she?"

"Hmph! This fellow wouldn't listen to me, insisting on merging with all sorts of strange things to create some 'myriad hands'! It's simply absurd! If she hadn't almost destroyed the heart of time, why would I have set this trap!"

The Formless Ghost Ancestor snorted coldly, turned his head, and said to Xuan Yu, "Black Demon! The reason I let you merge with the heart of time is because you are steady! You think thrice before acting in everything you do! Don't disappoint me and become as crazy as the Thousand-Hand Demoness!"

"Otherwise! She will be your fate!"

This caused Xuan Yu's expression to change slightly, and he quickly knelt and kowtowed: "Formless Ghost Ancestor, rest assured! Black Demon will never betray your expectations!"

"Very good! The sect is not peaceful right now; there are powerful individuals hidden within, causing wanton destruction! This fellow's methods are very clever, even deceiving us! I suspect it might be an Undying monster from another tribe hostile to the Sword Sect, or perhaps a rule-based life form from the Formless Ghost Clan!"

The Formless Ghost Ancestor was very satisfied with Xuan Yu's attitude, and his tone tightened as he spoke again: "I want you to arrange quickly..."

...Also at this time.

The Thousand-Hand Demoness was looking up at Su Lie: "My dear! I've lost the heart of time, and there's no possibility of further advancement! I can't even eat you anymore!"

"You can rest assured and stay by my side to assist me!"

Under her affectionate gaze, Su Lie actually lowered his head, his eyes looking at the Thousand-Hand Demoness: "Is that so?"

The Thousand-Hand Demoness was startled by this sudden development: "Holy crap!"

A sense of alarm rose in her heart.

Just as she was about to unleash her power, a buzzing sound filled the air.

Buzz!

Su Lie had already used his Time Stop Skill.

Before the Skill took effect, the rules began to judge whether this Skill could affect the Thousand-Hand Demoness based on Su Lie and the Thousand-Hand Demoness's time authority.

[Buzz!]

[Congratulations! Skill successfully cast!]

Soon, a prompt appeared in Su Lie's vision.

Immediately after, the Thousand-Hand Demoness was frozen in place, her expression still maintaining a look of shock and disbelief.

Only then did Su Lie stretch his limbs.

His first action was to identify the Thousand-Hand Demoness.

As a result, he only saw the Thousand-Hand Demoness's name and tribe.

All other information was question marks.

Su Lie sighed inwardly at this, then used the Memory Reading Skill on the Thousand-Hand Demoness.

"Hmm? It's indeed in Tang Valley Demon Prison!"

He quickly discovered the origin of the Formless Ghost Clan.

At the same time, Su Lie also saw the inhumane treatment and various experimental researches the Thousand-Hand Demoness endured in Tang Valley Demon Prison.

He learned from the Thousand-Hand Demoness's memory that the Formless Ghost Ancestor was the first negative emotion spirit born in the Demon Prison.

He possessed his current power after undergoing modifications and transplantation.

And he had been helping the Sword Sect people in the Demon Prison to absorb negative emotions and malevolent energy, maintaining the Purity of the Demon Prison.

He also assisted the Sword Sect's "biological experiment personnel" in biological modification activities.

The Thousand-Hand Demoness, Black Demon, Black Pepper King, and the other twelve Formless Ghost Clan members were second-generation spirits created by the Sword Sect personnel based on the Formless Ghost Ancestor.

They each underwent different modifications.

The Sword Sect's purpose in modifying them was to integrate them with swords, to refine a type of magic sword that could absorb special powers such as demonic energy and evil energy.

This would allow Sword Sect disciples to calmly and effortlessly deal with the Eerie of evil demons.

However, because their experiments were too cruel and they were extremely brutal towards the experimental spirits, the spirits, led by the Formless Ghost Clan, began to seize control of the Demon Prison through the method of Seize the orifice parasitize.

Afterward, they created a large number of Formless Ghost Clan members from the Demon Prison and released them into the Sword Sect, secretly taking over the bodies of disciples and elders from various halls.

This scheme lasted for a full twenty years.

The reason Xuan Yu killed Yan Fei back then was because Yan Fei had glimpsed the truth within the Sword Sect's Demon Prison.

At that time, Xuan Yu was still the body of the Formless Ghost Ancestor.

Subsequently, the Sword Pavilion Ancestor personally took action.

In that battle, not only Yan Fei died, but also the Sword Pavilion Ancestor, who was caught in the scheme.

Therefore, the Formless Ghost Clan then used the Transformation Technique body-shedding technique to give Xuan Yu's body to another Formless Ghost, while he himself occupied the body of the Sword Pavilion Ancestor.

Since then, the Formless Ghost Clan's actions within the Sword Sect became increasingly swift and audacious.

The Formless Ghost who occupied Xuan Yu's body died from severe injuries in another battle, which is why Black Demon came to occupy this body.

After reading the Thousand-Hand Demoness's memories, Su Lie felt no sympathy for the Sword Sect's plight: "This is entirely their own doing!"

After more than ten minutes, Su Lie finished reading all of the Thousand-Hand Demoness's memories.

He also discovered that the Thousand-Hand Demoness's heart of time could allow her to adjust time in a small area.

This ability was very strong!

"No wonder she's filled with unwillingness! No wonder she's filled with resentment and anger!"

After Su Lie mumbled softly, he took out a servitude contract.

This was a new type of contract Su Lie had learned from the Rune Sword Path.

This type of contract differed from the mist rule contract.

It didn't require a signature; only a drop of blood was needed to complete the ritual.

And this binding didn't require recognition and judgment by the rules.

Instead, it directly linked Su Lie's life with that of the pet, achieving a state of shared prosperity and shared loss.

This type of contract was also known as a symbiotic contract.

"Here, I can only use the rule contract of this world! I'm afraid using the mist rule contract would invite divine punishment!"

The day's experience still left Su Lie trembling.

After he forcibly obtained a drop of essence blood from the Thousand-Hand Demoness's heart, he then dripped his and the Thousand-Hand Demoness's blood onto the contract document.

Buzz!

In an instant, the rules of the contract transformed into two invisible golden threads, binding Su Lie and the Thousand-Hand Demoness together.

Once completed, Su Lie then released the Time Stop's restraint.

The Thousand-Hand Demoness was stunned, and the next second she was about to attack Su Lie.

But the power from the contract prevented her from acting.

"What did you do to me?" the Thousand-Hand Demoness asked, looking at Su Lie in disbelief.

She was now terrified and extremely panicked.

Yet, her feelings for Su Lie were more intimate than before.

Su Lie said to the Thousand-Hand Demoness, "Naturally, it's a symbiotic contract!"

"Damn it! You've ruined me! You bastard!"

Upon hearing this, the Thousand-Hand Demoness quickly checked.

After seeing it, she immediately abandoned her plans.

She simply sat down and asked Su Lie, "You... can also control time?"

"Something like that!"

Su Lie looked at the Thousand-Hand Demoness and said again, "I've already seen your memories; you have no privacy from me now!"

"Ah!"

The Thousand-Hand Demoness's cheeks flushed, and she suddenly stood up, her eyes wide with disbelief, and asked Su Lie, "You... you wouldn't even know about my... that, right?"

"It's perfectly normal! As a living being! It's normal to have desires!"

Su Lie nodded.

The Thousand-Hand Demoness immediately covered her head with her remaining hand: "Holy crap! You have no shame, but I do! How am I supposed to talk to you in the future!"

"Alright! I have a few things I need your cooperation with! First, I need you to help me get the complete set of cultivation techniques from Emperor Sword Peak! Of course, if you can also get me the techniques from other peaks, that would be even better!"

Su Lie immediately made his request.

The Thousand-Hand Demoness's eyes widened again after hearing this: "Holy crap! You have a huge appetite! Aren't you afraid of choking?"

"That only proves I'm excellent enough!"

Su Lie laughed.

The Thousand-Hand Demoness sighed: "No! I can't help you! I can only help you get the inheritance of Emperor Sword Peak; the inheritances of other peaks can only be opened by their respective Peak Masters in the Sword Pavilion, and I don't have that authority!"

"Alright then! I need a large amount of the Sword Sect's resources! Access to the Sword Sect's treasury! Or the Sword Sect's knowledge classics!"

Su Lie made another request: "This can be done slowly! But I only have 11 days!"

The Thousand-Hand Demoness's eyes widened again, and she looked at Su Lie in shock, exclaiming, "Holy crap! You're not a Sword Sect disciple! You damn spy! You've deceived me terribly!"

She couldn't accept it.

This was someone she had personally chosen.

Who would have thought that this guy was just like them, stealing everything from the Sword Sect?

Su Lie chuckled: "Don't worry! If you can help me, I can help you become stronger! And I can take you out of here! Free you from the Formless Ghost Ancestor's control, and maybe even help you kill him!"

"Really?"

The Thousand-Hand Demoness's heart stirred, and a hint of ruthlessness flashed in her eyes: "If you can really do that, I promise to help you!"

The human and the ghost sat in the stone chamber, discussing through the night.

By the next day, Su Lie, as usual, went to Heavenly Sword Peak to bathe in the holy sword's light, and he said to the holy sword, "Holy Sword! The Dragon Palace has been contaminated by the Eerie, the old dragon must be dead, or his body has been taken over and sent outside!"

"Hiss! So, the Sword Sect is beyond saving?" The holy sword was stunned, then said, "No! The Sword Sect still has me!"

"You lie low, I will find a way to enter the Sword Tomb to search for the Supreme Elder Council!"

Su Lie then told the Sword Saint his plan.

After completing today's bathing, Su Lie went to eat in the dining hall with the other Sword Sect disciples.

Everyone chatted about ordinary topics and didn't discuss anything important.

After finishing his meal, Su Lie bid farewell to everyone.

Only then did he return to Emperor Sword Peak.

At this moment, Yu Jianying was gravely looking at Xuan Yu: "Hmph! You really are something! You actually helped the Formless Ghost Ancestor harm me!"

"This is because you were too reckless!" Xuan Yu said seriously.

He told Yu Jianying what the Formless Ghost Clan had told him yesterday.

Yu Jianying's heart sank after hearing this, and she immediately said, "Now I have no hope of advancement! I can only assist you! However, Su Lie, under my command, is an excellent talent!"

"I want him to be my deputy!"

"But he doesn't have much management experience, so I need you to place him in places like the sect's resources, treasury, and scripture transmission hall for training!"

"This guy has learned the Artifact Sword Path, so you arrange for him to go to the Artifact Hall, Rune Hall, and Formation Hall to help with learning and management!"

She made a string of demands: "I want him to be exposed to such a multitude of tasks every day!"

Xuan Yu was somewhat speechless after hearing this: "Junior Sister! Aren't you too harsh on him! He's probably going to be worked to death!"

"It doesn't matter! This is my test! Besides, the Shadowless Sect is about to replace the Sword Sect; if he can't quickly grow and familiarize himself with everything, what use is he to me!" Yu Jianying said again.

After thinking, Xuan Yu did not immediately answer Yu Jianying's request. He first contacted the Formless Ghost Ancestor via jade talisman, and after receiving an affirmative reply, he agreed to Yu Jianying's request.

When Su Lie returned, Yu Jianying told him about the matter.

Su Lie was overjoyed and immediately began his daily work according to his usual habits.

At 12 PM, he went to Heavenly Sword Peak to find Xuan Du.

Xuan Du patted Su Lie's shoulder with a pained expression and said, "Brother! Peak Master Yu seems to want to heavily promote you! She even arranged for you to come to Heavenly Sword Peak to learn management! But these tasks are truly too heavy! Alas!"

"Haha! If I, your junior brother, gain power in the future, I will never forget Senior Brother Xuan Du's promotion and help!"

Su Lie laughed and secretly slipped a contribution token to Xuan Du.

These were the sect contributions he had earned through labor over the past few days.

Xuan Du was immediately overjoyed after seeing it and became even more enthusiastic: "Don't worry! I've arranged everything for you; you just need to proceed step by step!"

With that, he took out many management manuals.

After handing the items to Su Lie, Xuan Du said seriously, "Our Sword Sect's management of various affairs has reached a fully automated management method that integrates formations and Runes. Whether it's a warehouse or a spiritual field, you just need to set and tally daily according to the rules, and the task is considered complete!"

"You don't even need to personally go to the warehouse to inspect everything one by one; everything is assisted by formations and Runes, it's very simple!"

"However, the matter of transmitting techniques is quite cumbersome and concerns the future of inner disciples! You need to treat it with caution! The time I've arranged for you is from 3 PM to 4 PM, one hour!"

...