I Have an Omen System-Chapter 39 - 38: Golden Core’s Scheme

The bottom of June Valley was bustling with activity.

Nearly a hundred Qi Cultivation Demon Cultivators who had successfully obtained a Blood Talisman were crowded together, creating a noisy hubbub.

"Junior Brother Qin, I knew you’d pass the Blood Pool Trial." Hou Qi’s eyes lit up when he saw Qin Xuan, his greeting exceptionally warm. However, Qin Xuan noticed an added layer of viciousness to Hou Qi’s aura and grew inwardly vigilant.

"Senior Brother Hou."

Qin Xuan asked, "If I may ask, Senior Brother, what’s going on here?"

Hou Qi replied, "We’ve passed the Blood Pool Trial and are now Outer Sect Stewards. The next step is to choose an Inner Sect faction to join. This is a privilege only granted to those who received Blood Evil Level Sword Patterns."

"Judging by your sturdy skeleton, you must cultivate the White Bone Yin Talisman, right? You’ll most likely join a Magic Altar under the Ten Thousand Corpses Hall."

’Only those with Blood Evil Level Sword Patterns can choose a faction to join?’

Glancing around, Qin Xuan saw Tang Tianhe, who had received the Burning Lamp Blood Talisman, was also in the crowd.

It seemed the Burning Lamp Blood Talisman, with its massive side effects, was also considered Blood Evil Level.

Qin Xuan asked, "Senior Brother, you have sharp eyes. May I ask what the difference is between joining a Magic Altar and not joining one?"

Hou Qi said, "Oh, the difference is huge. For starters, just by joining any Magic Altar right now, we can get a thousand Contribution Points for free."

"Besides that, we’ll have backing when we move about the Outer Sect in the future."

At this, Hou Qi’s eyes darted around, and he lowered his voice. "Most importantly, we’ll be able to give out loans in the name of our Magic Altar."

"Of course, we’ll also have to help take care of the dirty work that the Inner Sect Incense Masters can’t handle personally."

Realization dawned on Qin Xuan.

He instantly understood why the Stewards Wang Jian and Huang Feng had fought so fiercely before. It turned out they belonged to different Magic Altar factions!

’The major powers within the Demon Sect are truly a tangled mess. One careless step, and you could fall into eternal damnation...’

Above June Valley, several Foundation Establishment Great Demons stood with their hands clasped behind their backs. Some had vast, imposing auras, while others were bewitchingly alluring.

Among these Foundation Establishment Great Demons, Zheng Qi was arguably the one with the least prestige and the worst appearance.

For some unknown reason, his face was black and blue, his clothes were torn, and a smear of crimson blood was still drying at the corner of his mouth.

"In this Blood Pool Trial, five Magic Altars are recruiting subordinate Stewards. Which one you enter is entirely up to you. Of course, you can also choose not to join any."

Senior Brother Ji stood with his hands behind his back and was the first to speak. "I am Ji Bochang, Inner Sect Incense Master of the True Body Altar of Vast Qi Tower."

The Purple Skirt Fairy spoke, full of charm, "This humble one is Su Mei, Incense Master of the Joy Altar of Yihong Pavilion."

The Plague Gu Daoist spoke in a muffled voice, "This old man is the Plague Gu Daoist, Incense Master of the Plague Poison Altar of Ten Thousand Poison Peak."

The Evil Spirit Child shot Qin Xuan a vicious glare and shrieked, "This seat is Xie Qing, Incense Master of the Skull Altar of the Ten Thousand Corpses Hall."

Zheng Qi was last. He gave a light cough to hide his embarrassment. "I am Zheng Qi, Vice Incense Master of the Ten Thousand Laws Altar of the Talisman Decree Hall."

After the five Incense Masters gave their simple introductions, they let the nearly one hundred Demon Cultivators who had received Blood Talisman legacies make their choices.

[True Body Altar] [Joy Altar] [Plague Poison Altar]

[Skull Altar] [Ten Thousand Laws Altar]

The phantoms of five great Magic Altars stood tall in the sky.

They shimmered with iridescent light.

Aside from a very small number of Demon Disciples who had connections and had done their research beforehand, the vast majority looked utterly bewildered.

Without a second thought, Hou Qi walked straight toward Ji Bochang’s True Body Altar, knelt on one knee, and cupped his fists.

"Fierce Soldier Hou Longtao, at the Qi Cultivation Eighth Layer, implores Lord Master Ji to accept him!"

As soon as he finished speaking, Ji Bochang nodded slightly. "Granted!"

BUZZ!

A cyan ray of light descended, and Hou Qi’s Identity Token appeared within the phantom of the True Body Altar.

’That guy Hou Qi... he’s most likely awakened his Innate Wisdom from a past life.’

Seeing the new air of profound wisdom around Hou Qi, Qin Xuan understood at once.

Besides Hou Qi, Qin Xuan saw quite a few other familiar faces also joining the True Body Altar.

For example, Jing Quan and Gale Liu Chun, who had appeared in the Fierce Soldier assessment, also pledged themselves to Ji Bochang.

Just then, a drastically changed Tang Tianhe, who was now nothing but skin and bones, shuffled over.

Qin Xuan cupped his fists. "Senior Brother Tang."

Tang Tianhe gave an awkward smile. "Senior Brother Qin, you flatter me. You’re already at the Qi Cultivation Eighth Layer, while I’m only at the Qi Cultivation Seventh Layer. It should be me calling you Senior Brother."

Qin Xuan asked, "In that case, Junior Brother Tang, do you have a Magic Altar in mind?"

"Of course."

Tang Tianhe, through some unknown grapevine, had managed to dig up quite a bit of dirt on four of the Magic Altars.

"Logically, the True Body Altar should be the strongest of the five, but I’ve heard that Vast Qi Tower is hypocritical and that seniority is a huge deal there."

"What about the other altars?"

"Of the remaining ones, the Joy Altar has a terrible reputation. Master Su enjoys ’cultivating’ with others. The Skull Altar is unstable; Incense Master Xie is mercurial and kills his Stewards at the slightest provocation."

"Oh, and there’s the Plague Poison Altar. Senior Brother Qin, whatever you do, don’t join the Plague Gu Daoist. I hear that old man spends all his time with poisons and is the most insidiously wicked of them all. Not long ago, he even swindled Incense Master Xie of the Skull Altar out of a huge amount of Contribution Points!" 𝒻𝑟ℯℯ𝑤𝑒𝑏𝑛𝘰𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝒸𝑜𝘮

"In comparison, Master Zheng of the Ten Thousand Laws Altar is the most approachable for people like us."

Tang Tianhe extended an invitation. "I intend to join Master Zheng’s Ten Thousand Laws Altar. Senior Brother Qin, why don’t you join me?"

The advice from Hou Qi and Tang Tianhe now conflicted. One recommended he join the Ten Thousand Laws Altar, while the other had suggested the Skull Altar.

’Who should I trust?’

Qin Xuan was leaning toward joining the Ten Thousand Laws Altar.

After all, that thing Xie Qing, who was neither human nor ghost, harbored such deep malice toward him. Joining his altar would be certain death.

On the other hand, he’d had several interactions with Zheng Qi and was somewhat familiar with him.

Just as Qin Xuan was hesitating, the giant sphere of light in his mind suddenly began to flicker.

Four ancient bamboo sticks flew out from it.

[Top-Top Lottery: Choose to join the Plague Gu Daoist’s Plague Poison Altar. No personal restrictions, you will be left to your own devices. Free and unfettered. You can obtain a Seventh-Grade Opportunity. Greatly auspicious.]

[Middle-Middle Draw: Choose to join Ji Bochang’s True Body Altar. Restricted actions, numerous rules. You will be caught in the schemes of a Golden Core Blood Demon, making advancement difficult. Neutral.]

[Middle-Lower Draw: Choose either the Joy Altar or the Skull Altar. Treacherous undercurrents and frequent conflicts. Possible mortal danger. Inauspicious.]

[The Worst Draw: Choose to join Zheng Qi’s Ten Thousand Laws Altar. You will become kindling for nether-flames. Certain death. Greatly inauspicious!]

Seeing the contents of the four divinations clearly, Qin Xuan was stunned.

Joining the Ten Thousand Laws Altar was certain death!

’Damn it, Zheng Qi, you thick-eyebrowed bastard. You’re a real animal.’

Furthermore, the fact that a Golden Core Blood Demon’s scheme was at play in the True Body Altar also took Qin Xuan by surprise.

Even though the draw was "Neutral," it made Qin Xuan extremely uncomfortable. He shot Hou Qi a meaningful glance, wondering if this was related to him.

As for the mortal danger in the Skull Altar and Joy Altar, that fit perfectly with Qin Xuan’s stereotype of the beastly Demon Cultivators of the Holy Sect.

The Plague Poison Altar, however, was somewhat unexpected.

The various Incense Masters were also extremely curious about which Magic Altar Qin Xuan would choose to join, and all eyes were on him.

After all, this guy had just let Ji Bochang rake in a whopping eight million Contribution Points.

"Fierce Soldier Qin Xuan, at the Qi Cultivation Eighth Layer, hopes for Plague Incense Master’s favor and asks to be taken in!"

His words caused an uproar.

Like Tang Tianhe, the vast majority of the Demon Disciples present had heard from the grapevine that the Plague Poison Altar was the most dangerous. Where did this Qin Xuan come from, and how was he so bold as to choose it?

Tang Tianhe also shook his head slightly. ’Old Qin, rushing to your death. That’s really something.’

The Plague Gu Daoist nodded in satisfaction, a gratified smile on his face.

"A smart one."

Xie Qing’s mouth split into a grin that reached his ears, revealing bloody, sharp teeth. "Plague Bone, you old coot! If you dare accept Qin Xuan, I’ll have your Plague Poison Altar littered with corpses by tomorrow!"

The Plague Gu Daoist shot Xie Qing a disdainful glance and said coolly, "Granted!"

"YAHHHH! I’m going to die of anger!"

Enraged, Xie Qing tried to slap Qin Xuan to death, but before his hand could even reach him, he let out a piercing scream. His entire palm had begun to rot and stink for no apparent reason.

Xie Qing’s expression was one of horror.

"Plague Bone, you old dog! When did you poison me?!"

The Plague Gu Daoist smiled faintly. "A month ago."

Hearing this, Xie Qing’s face changed, his expression suddenly becoming amicable. "Senior Brother Wen, I was just playing with you."