Chương 12: She Could Fall Out of the Sky Just Like That?
Biên tập viên: Atlas Studios
"Assassin Turtledove's aura is gone. That Immortal Du Sect disciple in the Ninth Stage of Soul Formation has disappeared as well. This is very strange."
Deep in the dense forest, in a mysterious valley, several black figures were hidden in the shrubbery. They seemed to be discussing something via voice transmission.
One of them scolded, "There's an 80% chance that he took the money, killed the person, and then ran away! Hmph! People like that cannot be trusted. We have to nurture our own subordinates. They will be more reliable!"
"Is the Dragon-Trapping Array ready?"
"It has been set up. We can trap the Immortal Du Sect's Perfected Immortal."
"Very good. Although there have been unexpected changes in the situation, it should not be too big of a problem," the man in charge said in a low voice. "Send a message to Fourth Young Master later. Arrange for a wave of people to attack him on purpose. That will lure the Immortal Du Sect's Perfected Immortal over."
"We will personally capture those two disciples and bring them to the trapping array. Then, we will trap the Perfected Immortal. This matter concerns the restoration of our country, and the Sixth Princess is our best bet. We have to control her. At the same time, Fourth Young Master will get what he desires."
The black figures chuckled. The man in charge clenched his fist, and then everyone left one by one, very quickly.
Half a day later, a few men in black clothes suddenly attacked Yuan Qing and Youqin Xuanya. Yuan Qing immediately crushed his communication talisman.
Jiu Jiu, who was sitting cross-legged above Wang Qi and Liu Yan'er, immediately jumped. She turned around and charged towards the south-east. Yuwen Ling gave all that he could in order to keep up with Jiu Jiu.
The moment Jiu Jiu flew away, more than ten types of aurae appeared below. There were two cultivators in the Dao Requital realm among them, who knocked Wang Qi and Liu Yan'er unconscious and took them away at once.
An hour later, Jiu Jiu flew back quickly, leaving Yuwen Ling hovering over Yuan Qing and Youqin Xuanya to keep watch.
At that moment, Jiu Jiu smelled something out of the ordinary. However, she was traveling too fast. By the time she found Liu Yan'er and Wang Qi, she already found herself deep in a certain array. There were white clouds all around her, and even as far as her immortal awareness could reach, she could only see a patch of white.
She took Wang Qi and Liu Yan'er in her arms and then flew around the trapping array. Jiu Jiu was no expert in array formations, to begin with, and soon, she found herself right where she started.
'At least, I left the hunky general to watch over Yuan Qing and Xuanya.'
Jiu Jiu heaved a sigh of relief. She wanted to quieten her heart down to look for a way to break out of the array formation. However, once again, she recalled the warning Li Changshou had given her before entering the Chaos Treasure Forest.
"Aunt-Master Jiu, this person has come for unknown reasons and is slightly suspicious. Don't trust him easily."
'Could this Yuwen Ling be—'
At that moment, beads of cold sweat appeared on Jiu Jiu's forehead.
It was all linked in a chain—it looked like she had fallen into their trap right from the beginning!
'What has happened to Li Changshou? His cultivation level is low. Could he have been killed? There's an 80% chance that these people are after Xuanya and Yuan Qing. I should have realized this sooner!'
Jiu Jiu could not help but shout curses. "You lousy baddies! If you have what it takes, come and fight 300 rounds with me! How can you still call yourselves cultivators after using these wretched tricks?!"
Yet, there were nothing but poisonous insects and a few similarly-lost poisonous beasts in the array. There was no response.
"Aiya!"
Jiu Jiu tossed the two unconscious people onto the ground, and then paced back and forth. The threads in her already tattered short-sleeve top tightened. It threatened to snap at any time under the immense pressure.
"These array formations and whatnot frustrate me to death!"
…
'Immortal-Emancipating Herb, this is really hard to find."
On the twelfth day in the North Continent, Li Changshou emerged from the Chaos Treasure Forest. Then, he headed 800 kilometers towards the north-west. Finally, he arrived at the marked-out region on his map 'on time'.
This region measured about 150 kilometers in radius. The terrain was extremely complicated as there were hills, swamps, mountain ranges, and the like. As Li Changshou traveled deeper into the North Continent, the poisonous beasts and insects became even more ferocious.
Li Changshou remained extremely cautious throughout. Very carefully, he searched for the 'poisonous herb' that he wanted. After searching for six days consecutively, he found all sorts of poisonous herbs and spirit herbs. Yet, he found no trace of the one he had taken the risk of coming to the North Continent for in the first place.
At noon, it started raining, and each raindrop falling from the sky was extremely poisonous.
Li Changshou did not dare to stay out and wander around. Thus, he found a precipice and dug a hole in it, hiding inside. He released his spiritual awareness to inspect his surroundings. Li Changshou was going to wait for the rain to stop before he continued his search for the herb.
In these six days, he had searched almost every area in the region. Unfortunately, he had found no trace of the Immortal-Emancipating Herb.
'Immortal-Emancipating Herb, Immortal-Emancipating Herb, why are you playing hide-and-seek with me? Why not come out and meet me?'
Li Changshou yawned and sat cross-legged in his cave. Then, he began to adjust his body back to his peak state.
He had learned from an ancient text that this region was where the Immortal-Emancipating Herb grew.
Coming here would be the lowest price he had to pay for finding this herb. If he did not succeed, Li Changshou decided that he would go back to the town on his way back to try his luck.
So what if he had to spend the spirit stones and treasures that he had spent years cheating… ahem, working and saving up? It would all be worth it if he could obtain an Immortal-Emancipating Herb.
Well, if even that didn't work, Li Changshou would have no other way. He could only start planning again when he returned to the mountain.
The rain started all of a sudden, and it showed no signs of stopping any time soon.
It was rare for Li Changshou to get some rest. He slowly relaxed his mind. Although he had the Saliva of Red Yang Poisonous Dragon, and he could prevent poisonous beasts and insects from coming close, he was in a dangerous place after all. It was difficult for him to tell himself to relax.
'Aunt-Master Jiu should be fine, right?'
Li Changshou thought about the cultivator he killed nine days ago. He took out the Soul-Conserving Pearl, intending to look at the snapshots of memories within. However, the remnant soul inside it was gone.
'Forget it. This has nothing to do with me, anyway.'
That fellow had a well-thought-out plan. He also had the insider-help of the warm Yuan Qing. Given Aunt-Master Jiu's intelligence, she probably would easily walk into the trapping array.
Aunt-Master Jiu had a high cultivation level and an adorable personality, but sometimes she was too rash. Once the alcohol went to her head, she would not be careful.
Youqin Xuanya was more pitiful. She had cultivated for so long within the immortal sect, yet she still could not avoid the political fights in the world. Her childhood friend, who had always been by her side, was also harboring unfathomable motives.
Li Changshou never saw himself as a hero, and he would never try to save the princess. He had no intention of changing his own fate. In his eyes, Youqin Xuanya was only well-packaged trouble. He would avoid this karma and being implicated as much as possible.
Boom! Boom!
The sounds of thunder reverberated in the sky.
Li Changshou began to inspect his various resources. He had enough pills and talismans, and the Saliva of Red Yang Poisonous Dragon could last him nine more days. That would be enough for him to leave this area after he completed his search. If he could move faster after the rain and complete his search of this area sooner, he would be able to head north or west to continue searching.
'Immortal-Emancipating Herb, Immortal-Emancipating Herb, I am getting very irritated.'
Boom!
The precipice suddenly shook.
The way it shook startled Li Changshou. Thus, he quickly used his spiritual senses to survey the surroundings and detected a strange occurrence in the clouds above him. The clouds had formed a whirlpool, and lightning was flashing within. It looked like something was trying to 'squeeze' out.
Li Changshou squeezed his fingers together to analyze the situation, and found that huge changes were occurring in Heaven and Earth!
Li Changshou produced a cover with his Dharmic powers and burst out of the cave. He quickly landed on the ground, prepared to employ the Dragon Swimming Across Clouds footwork.
Yet, the moment he landed, Li Changshou heard another a booming sound from above. A fiery-red figure charged out of the whirlpool. At the speed of lightning, the figure dropped onto the ground.
The figure landed just thirty feet in front of Li Changshou and was covered in mud.
Li Changshou quickly retreated, the three paper effigies already in his palm!
However, when Li Changshou saw the figure wrapped in a layer of light-red light, he frowned.
'This…'
Was Heaven upset that his search for herbs was going too smoothly? Was that why Heaven was making things more difficult for him?
Or had he offended some kind of demon, which controlled his fate so that he could not avoid this disaster?
The figure dressed in the fiery-red skirt and lying in front of him was no outsider—it was Youqin Xuanya!
Youqin Xuanya was seriously injured. There was an open wound on her left shoulder, so deep that Li Changshou could see her bone. Fresh blood mixed with the poisonous rain and flowed down her jade-like arm. Her right hand clutched her big sword tightly—she seemed to have lost her sword sheath. Her sword was covered in scratches that resembled spider webs.
There were at least ten wounds on her body, and yet she was not in critical danger.
Just as Li Changshou recognized her, Youqin Xuanya saw a figure in front of her in the rain. She bowed her head and spat out a mouthful of blood. Her eyes were filled with determination as she used her sword to get onto her feet. It was then that she realized the figure in front of her looked familiar.
Li Changshou frowned. Just then, he used his spiritual senses to survey the surroundings. No attackers were pursuing her.
He recalled what happened earlier. It seemed like Youqin Xuanya had activated some kind of treasure to escape—she must have used a cosmic technique to get there.
The most frustrating thing was she appeared there, out of all places.
Li Changshou had come face to face with his fellow sect member, yet he did not try to rescue her. If Youqin Xuanya survived and returned to complain to the sect's elders about him, he would be in deep trouble. Yet, Li Changshou did not want to be implicated in this conflict. This matter had nothing to do with him in the first place.
Although he would be in deep trouble if Youqin Xuanya told on him, the most he would suffer would be a deduction in monthly allowance.
Li Changshou mumbled to himself and turned around calmly, "Ah, the rain is so heavy. My vision is impaired. I can't see anything." He faced the cliff wall behind him and lifted up his hands, ready to employ the Earth Escape.
If he stayed there any longer, he would be a fool!
'Quickly!'
"Senior… Senior Brother Changshou?"
Youqin Xuanya looked at Li Changshou's back through the rain, astonished. She bowed her head and coughed out another mouthful of blood. Then, she said anxiously, "Quickly, run, don't care about me! Your cultivation level is too low. There are… many of them—"
Before she could finish her sentence, Youqin Xuanya's eyelids weighed down. Her aura was in a complete mess, and her wounds were grievous. She and her sword fell back into the mud at the same time.
A flash of lightning appeared In the dark clouds, and the rain became even heavier.
'Forget it. On account of your good conscience, I will use Earth Escape to help you halfway. After that, I really cannot help you. I can only let Heaven decide your fate.'
"Cough! Cough, cough!"
It was just a few coughs, but Youqin Xuanya felt pain all over her body. This caused Youqin Xuanya to jolt awake from her sleep.
'Where am I?'
Youqin Xuanya sat up cautiously. A hint of red glow appeared in her black eyes, causing the dark cave to become as well-lit as if it were exposed to broad daylight. Everything became clear to her.
It was natural for cultivators like her, who were in the Fourth Stage of Void Return, to be able to see in the dark. There was no need for her to learn special techniques to do so.
The first thing she saw was the huge, round boulder at the mouth of the cave. The boulder had probably been dug out from the ground—it looked one with the rest of the cave. The little gap that it left allowed a bit of light through.
It must have been night time as the light rays looked extremely dim.
Youqin Xuanya released her spiritual awareness and found that there were several poisonous beasts within kilometers of her. However, apart from her, there were no other humans.
'Have I been saved?'
Several images surfaced in her heart. Many thieves had surrounded her. Youqin Xuanya had been captured after a bitter fight, but while the enemies had been preparing poison, she had found a chance to slip away. That was when she retrieved the Life-Saving Talisman from her Master and escaped 500 kilometers away.
Youqin Xuanya could not choose her destination. It was an extremely risky move, but she had landed in a place where it had been pouring. In the heavy rain, she had seen a Senior Brother whom she had met only recently.
'Did he save me?'
Not far away from her hand, Youqin Xuanya saw two stacks of talismans and a couple of porcelain bottles. She was shocked.
Then, Youqin Xuanya looked down at her body. Her normally pale, fair face suddenly flushed red. Gently, she bit her delicate, thin lip.
What a pity. An extreme beauty like her was looking uncharacteristically shy and bashful. Yet, there was no one around to appreciate the view.
Li Changshou had already left a long time ago.
Youqin Xuanya became so shy because the wounds all around her body had already been treated and bandaged.
The bandages were the Blood-Stopping Qi-Gathering Bands distributed to the Immortal Du Sect's disciples. These were made out of linen infused with various types of herbs and medicines.
Speaking truthfully, the bandaging was done quite perfectly. The insides of the Blood-Stopping Qi-Gathering Bands were even smeared with spirit ointment used for treating poisoned wounds. Currently, most of her wounds had mostly recovered. It was just that the pain had not yet subsided.
However, the wounds in her shoulder and below her left rib were particularly deep. What's more, the bandage went across her chest. This meant that the person had to remove the top part of her dress by sliding it off her shoulders.
Youqin Xuanya suddenly lifted up her right hand to slap herself across the cheek. With a strong voice, she said, "Senior Brother Changshou saved my life. He also dressed my wounds so patiently. How can I doubt my Senior Brother's character?"
Calm and peace were quickly recovered in her gaze. She surveyed herself internally and found that her aura had stabilized. Overall, the wounds in her body were recovering well.
It was obvious that someone had adjusted her aura.
Youqin Xuanya tilted her head to look at the place where she was lying down earlier. There was a neat stack of sheepskin, which had been placed under her head as a pillow. There was also some blood on it, which looked like a line of words.
She picked it up to study it closely, and found a line of words, as well a simple map.
'We are from the same sect. It is not a big deal to help one another out. This place is 1,000 kilometers from the Chaos Treasure Forest. Below is a map. You can make a detour to leave this place.
'Make survival your priority. There are Miasma-Repelling Talismans, Track-Concealing Talismans, Detoxifying Pills, and Essence-Nurturing Pills beside you.
'Junior Sister, I'll give you a word of advice: There is no knowing what is in a man's heart. Do not trust others so easily. The road ahead is dangerous. I hope you will take good care of yourself.
'—Written by a man who does not want to leave his name.'
Youqin Xuanya blinked as she reread the last line. There was a deeper meaning hidden within.
Suddenly, the words flashed lighter and darker. A few seconds later, they disappeared completely. The good thing was that the map below had not been enchanted in the same way as the words were. The drawings and scale of the map were quite detailed. He had even marked out Youqin Xuanya's current location.
It was worth mentioning that the path marked out on the map was completely opposite from the path that Li Changshou had taken.
'Senior Brother Changshou is a considerate and kind man.'
Youqin Xuanya frowned subtly, rolled up the sheepskin, and put it away. A serious expression appeared on her face as she muttered, "There is no use thanking you in words for this big favor. If Xuanya survives this, I will give my all to repay Senior Brother."
Once she finished speaking, she gave a Dao salute to the sheepskin and kept the map.
She lowered her head and saw that a Miasma-Repelling Talisman and Track-Concealing Talisman were stuck on her shoulder. At that moment, both of them were still effective. There was no need to change them yet.
After packing the pills and talismans, Youqin Xuanya began to adjust her aura, so that she was once again at her peak state.
Her huge sword was lying in the corner. The spirit glow around it was recovering as well.
Slowly, two figures appeared in her heart. The one on the left was her so-called childhood friend, Yuan Qing. He had joined the sect at the same time as she did and would appear whenever she needed help.
Long ago, Youqin Xuanya had realized that the person who had grown up and joined the sect with her was not as simple as he appeared. That was why she had purposely been maintaining a distance all this time.
However, she had not expected to find an evil, incorrigible man underneath the kind, warm disguise he had been putting on every single day!
What happened over these few days? There is no knowing one man's heart. Senior Brother Changshou's words were true indeed.
At that thought, Youqin Xuanya laughed mirthlessly. All of a sudden, the world seemed like such a cold place. She was infuriated, but also extremely lost.
Yet, among the two people who appeared in her heart, the one on the right looked quite blurry and faint at first. However, he became clearer as time went by. It was just the side view of someone turning around and a back view that she had a deeper impression of.
Before this Priming Meet, Xuanya had never met Senior Brother Changshou. When she had found out that a cultivator in the Ninth Stage of Soul Formation was going to the North Continent to look for herbs, she had felt shocked.
The thing that had left the deepest impression on Youqin Xuanya was that this Senior Brother had a disease that would make him convulse every time he came into contact with women.
'Wait! Senior Brother Changshou has an illness like that, and yet he endured the pain of the convulsions and the frothing to treat more than ten of my wounds!'
This was a display of utter selflessness and righteousness!
In her mind, Youqin Xuanya filled in the gaps in her memory with her imagination: In the dark, narrow cave, a certain Senior Brother was trembling and panting. His limbs were deformed, and his expression was twisted with pain, and yet his eyes remained resolute. He extended a helping hand to her…
Slap!
Youqin Xuanya slapped herself once again.
'Senior Brother endured the pain to treat me! How dare I doubt his character earlier?! Youqin Xuanya, when did you become so despicable?'
Youqin Xuanya bit her lip and gave another Dao salute to the sheepskin map.
"If I have the opportunity to repay Senior Brother Changshou in the future, I must not be stingy, and I must not hesitate."
As she made this promise out loud, Youqin Xuanya's gaze became more resolute. She packed her items and raised her hand to grip the handle of her sword.
Youqin Xuanya went into a half-kneeling position, as her bloodied dress spread out around her. With her left hand, she held up the tip of her sword and made it stand erect in front of her. Her aura began to surge and tremble at once!
'Survive!'
Youqin Xuanya would expose Yuan Qing and repay Senior Brother Changshou, the kind, and righteous man. She would send a message to His Majesty, her father, and make him beware of these wretched traitors!
Youqin Xuanya's right hand, which maintained a tight grip around the handle of the sword, began to flash fiery-red.
"Nine Spirit-Gathering Essence, Thousand Mind-Strengthening Lotus!" she shouted in a low voice, and her huge sword emitted beams of fiery-red light. Clear patterns appeared overhead, and the scratches on the sword disappeared one by one.
Youqin Xuanya's long hair danced around as fiery-red lotuses appeared around her, lighting up her delicate skin and starry eyes.
"Immortals are in the north, and men are in the south. The Heavens swallow clouds of fire, and the glory of the four seas are extraordinary! Fire Lin Sword Case! Open!"
There were three resounding 'clanks', resonating with all the swords within five kilometers!
The boulder at the mouth of the cave exploded, and a fiery-red figure shot out of the cave. Tens of flying swords revolved around her!
After flying hundreds of feet, Youqin Xuanya got rid of the fiery-red glow around her body and quickly disappeared into the dense, dark forest. She turned to face the south-west first, and then sped up toward the north-east direction!
'According to my instincts, I should be heading in the south-west direction. As long as I follow the directions Senior Brother Changshou left for me, I should be able to avoid those evil thieves. I must! Survive!''
…
Presently, 300 kilometers north of the cave where Youqin Xuanya was hidden, Li Changshou was climbing up a cliff, carefully inspecting the miasma-filled cracks.
After plenty of hard work, Changshou could only shake his head and leave. This meant that he had not gained anything from this area, which the ancient texts described as a place with Immortal-Emancipating Herbs.
Li Changshou found a plain and sat down cross-legged. He pulled out a dagger and began to draw a map on the ground of the areas where he had searched. Then, he fell into deep thought.
He would head north and continue searching for three more days.
He had expended so much effort, and yet he could not find the Immortal-Emancipating Herb. Naturally, he felt indignant. After all, he had spent so much time preparing for this searching trip to the North Continent beforehand.
"Keep trying!" He slapped his knee and stood up, heading towards the north. In the night, he only left shadows behind him.
Perhaps due to the heavy rain the day before, gaps had appeared in the miasma in this region. Coincidentally, the moonlight shone through the gaps and lit up the path in front of Li Changshou.
The cultural hipster in Li Changshou acted up. He found a good spot, where he could remain hidden, and basked in the moonlight, appreciating the moon.
'Ah, the moon is so long…
'Heh, the shape is so white…
'Ah, the crescent moon is round and big…'
As the poisonous fog traveled towards him, the rare moonlight disappeared.
'Older Brother, is this getting old?'
Li Changshou raised his eyebrows and shook his head, laughing. Then, he stood up and advanced forward, becoming one with the night.
Dao companions and whatnot—having those would be even scarier than having a Junior Sister. It would be a nuclear warhead of unstable karma…
He could not afford it and dared not think about it.
What's more, compared to Youqin Xuanya, an extremely beautiful cultivator in his generation who had a complicated background, Li Changshou felt that he would feel much safer being with a strong female immortal like Aunt-Master Jiu Jiu.
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