“Is this suggestion not good?” Seeing that no one was speaking, Jiu Hui smiled shyly.
“No, it’s very good.” The Palace Master of Changshou Palace regained her senses. “The Qi of Extreme Evil can harm all living beings. Although the cultivation of a ten-thousand-year-old great yao can be called a demigod, it is not a god after all. Sect Master Bu, why don’t you give it a try?”
“A fresh mind is indeed useful. Why didn’t I think of such a good method?” The Sect Master of the Wanhuo Sect exclaimed excitedly, “The Qi of Extreme Evil is feared by both ghosts and gods. If we put it together with an evil yao, one of them will definitely die. Sect Master Bu, I also agree with little friend Jiu Hui’s suggestion.”
Bu Ting put away the Cosmos Sword and turned to face Jiu Hui. “The original form of the evil yao in Zhenyao Prison is a Chi Quan pool. If it’s in the same place as the Qi of Extreme Evil, there are only two possible outcomes. One, the evil yao absorbs all of the Qi of Extreme Evil, then suffers from the torment of the evil energy day after day, and finally dies from the depletion of spiritual energy. Two, Chi Quan uses most of its cultivation to absorb all the evil energy, barely managing to stay alive.”
The evil yao, who had lost most of his cultivation, was no longer his match, even if he had managed to keep his life. Jiu Hui’s suggestion was the best way to deal with it at the moment.
Upon hearing the words “Chi Quan,” Zhi You lifted his eyelids to look at Bu Ting. “Is that the legendary Chi Quan that is said to prolong life and youth when consumed?”
“The legend is a lie. Not only does Chi Quan not prolong life, but it also causes the drinker to wither away and die. The blood of the dead becomes part of the Chi Quan, nourishing it.” Qiu Hua arrived on the wind, her hairpins loose, indicating that she had also come in a hurry. “The only thing that can truly prolong life is the Gan tree.”
After everyone greeted Qiu Hua, Qiu Hua glanced at the unconscious demon cultivator. “The Demon Cult’s prince intended to destroy the Zhenhe Cauldron. This matter should be known to both the demon and yao worlds. Otherwise, wouldn’t it make us human cultivators seem weak and incompetent?”
“If… if you have the guts, go attack the Demon Realm.” The Demonic Cultivator slowly regained consciousness and said weakly, “It’ll only be lively if humans, demons, and yaos are all fighting.”
Jiu Hui clicked her tongue in her mind. The Demon Cult’s First Prince couldn’t destroy the Zhenhe Cauldron, so he wanted to make the humans, yaos, and demons fight each other. The more chaotic the situation, the better?
If you say he was smart, he did get caught doing something bad.
Call him stupid, but he was able to steal the Demon Realm’s treasure, and even when he was beaten into a little spinning top, he didn’t forget to provoke the humans, demons, and yaos, determined to kill more people.
It was clear that his desire for revenge was strong, and his evil spirit was quite pure.
“I told you before, I’m too lazy to listen to your nagging.” Picking up two stones from the ground, Jiu Hui stuffed them into the demon cultivator’s mouth and cast a sealing technique to keep his mouth shut. Jiu Hui bowed to Qiu Hua. “Immortal Venerable Qiu, please continue.”
Almost amused by Jiu Hui’s actions, Qiu Hua coughed dryly, turned to the Palace Master of Changshou Palace and the others, and said, “The one who intended to destroy the Zhenhe Cauldron was the Demon Prince. It’s hard to say whether this was the intention of the entire Demon Clan. If the yao clan becomes dissatisfied with the Demon Clan because of this and some conflicts occur, it’s not something we can control. What do you think, fellow Daoists?”
“The yao clan is weak, so they probably won’t fight the demons.” The Palace Master of Changshou Palace pondered for a moment. “Unless the Demon Lord has lost his mind, he won’t dare to touch the Immortal Cauldrons. I’m afraid the yao won’t believe it so easily either.”
“Whether you believe it or not is not important. As long as this news spreads throughout the demon and yao clans, it will naturally arouse suspicion among some of the yaos and demons.” Qiu Hua walked to the edge of the barrier and looked at the Zhenhe Cauldron with hatred, pain, and nostalgia in her eyes. “The demons really deserve to die for polluting the immortal cauldron with such a disgusting thing.”
She brushed away the dust on the Zhenhe Cauldron with her sleeve and used her spiritual energy to wipe it clean. Her tone was cold as she said, “Sect Master Bu’s methods for killing demons last time were still too neat. Hand over this demon cultivator who tried to harm the world’s creatures to me, and I will make him regret approaching the Zhenhe Cauldron.”
The Palace Master of Changshou Palace wanted to say something but stopped herself. In recent years, Qiu Hua rarely approached the Ten Great Immortal Cauldrons, but if someone attempted to make a move on the Immortal Cauldrons, her methods were more ruthless than anyone else’s.
Perhaps their generation of cultivators were all toyed with by fate, nevertheless they could not escape the pitiful fate that it had arranged for them.
“Since you’ve already discussed it, I have no objections.” The Sect Master of the Wanhuo Sect was most afraid of occasions when Bu Ting and Qiu Hua appeared at the same time. He found an excuse to fly away without even daring to look back.
Seeing this, the Sect Master of Wenxing School also quickly slipped away. The Palace Master of Changshou Palace had some personal connections with Qiu Hua and wanted to persuade her, but she didn’t know where to start. In the end, she could only sighed and then left.
By the Lanyue Lake, only the two Bu Ting and his disciple, Qiu Hua, Jiu Hui, and Zhi You remained. Jiu Hui gave Zhi You a look, preparing to find an excuse to slip away.
Zhi You took out the gourd that had absorbed a lot of Qi of Extreme Evil and casually tossed it to Nan Feng.
Nan Feng quickly reached out to catch it, fearing that the gourd would fall to the ground and release the evil energy. “Thank you, Fellow Daoist Zhi You.”
“No need to thank me.” Zhi You’s tone was indifferent. “Protecting the world is also our duty.”
He summoned his flying sword and turned to Jiu Hui. “Jiu Hui, let’s go.”
“Wait.” Jiu Hui ran to the lakeside, retrieved the Water-Condensing Pearl that had been thrown into the lake, and bowed to the two Sect Masters. “This junior will take her leave.”
“Jiu Hui.” Qiu Hua called out to Jiu Hui, looking at the Water-Condensing pearl in her palm. “Thank you for not letting the evil energy taint the Zhenhe Cauldron.”
Jiu Hui was slightly taken aback. “Immortal Venerable Qiu, as a disciple of Wangshu Pavilion, it is my duty to guard the Immortal Cauldrons.”
Qiu Hua gave a bitter laugh. “She has always been a clean freak, so she definitely wouldn’t like the smell of resentful spirits’ blood.”
“Sect Master Qiu!” Bu Ting interrupted Qiu Hua, his face cold. “Jiu Hui and Zhi You are still young. If they leave the sect for too long, Pavilion Master Yu will worry.”
Qiu Hua looked at Bu Ting with mockery in her eyes, but when she saw the evil energy in Bu Ting’s Cosmos Sword and his slightly pale face, she swallowed all the harsh words with a grim expression and turned to Jiu Hui with a gentle smile, “Sect Master Bu is right. It’s getting late. You and Zhi You should go back early.”
Jiu Hui jumped onto the flying sword and rushed out of the dense forest. From afar, she saw her master and Elder Mo riding a gourd flying towards her. Seeing this gourd, Jiu Hui recalled the days when she and Zhi You traveled back to Wangshu Pavilion from Wenxian City, enduring the wind and rain on the gourd.
“Master, Uncle Mo, the matter has been resolved, you don’t need to go.”
“Why are you two here?” Seeing the two of them, Yu Jing became a little more anxious: “Are you injured?”
“Master, don’t worry. Zhi You and I are fine.” Jiu Hui gave a brief account of what had happened, and exclaimed, “The Palace Master of Changshou Palace was quite efficient when it came to beating people up.”
“The best fighter in Changshou Palace is her.” Yu Jing was a little annoyed. “If I had known you were here, I wouldn’t have delayed on my way here. Fortunately, you’re all right, or this teacher would have been a white-haired person sending off a black-haired person.”
“Bah, bah, bah.” Elder Mo spat several times. “My nephews are all promising candidates to attain immortality. Senior Sister, you mustn’t speak such nonsense.”
“Ugh, ugh, ugh, slip of the tongue.” Yu Jing clasped her hands together. “Heaven above, those last few words don’t count, don’t take them to heart, old man.”
Jiu Hui put away her flying sword and jumped onto the gourd, beckoning Zhi You to sit on the gourd with her: “Master, don’t worry, the heavens are busy, how could they have heard what you just said?”
“It’s better if they can’t hear it.” Yu Jing’s expression suddenly turned gloomy. “Just now, you said that Zhi You gave the gourd containing the Qi of Extreme Evil to Nan Feng?”
Jiu Hui raised her head and met Yu Jing’s gaze. Then they both looked at Zhi You and said in unison, “The gourd!”
“The gourd… what happened?” Zhi You looked back at Jiu Hui.
“I’m worried that after they release the evil energy, they’ll forget to return the gourd to you.” Jiu Hui felt uncomfortable at the thought that Zhi You might lose a gourd magic weapon. “No, we have to give Fellow Daoist Nan Feng a subtle reminder so that he doesn’t forget to return the gourd.”
“It doesn’t matter…”carpreads.pages.dev
“How can it not matter!” Jiu Hui crossed her arms over her chest and said very seriously, “They took our thing, so they must return it. You made a great contribution to this matter, so even if there is no reward, we can’t let you pay for it. Our small sect can’t afford to be so wasteful.”
Yu Jing nodded. “Jiu Hui is right.”
“When I get back, I’ll help you write a letter to Nan Feng to ask for the gourd back.” Jiu Hui patted the gourd. “Sect Uncle Mo, tell the gourd to fly faster.”
“Don’t be in such a hurry, young man. Don’t be so impatient.” Elder Mo took the wine from his waist and took two sips. He pinched a magic formula, and the slow gourd finally sped up a little.
“Sect Uncle, can’t we really go any faster?”
“If we go any faster, we’ll need to fill the formation with spirit stones. Are you going to pay for them?”
“Forget it, forget it, I’m not in a particular hurry.”
“I’ll put……”
“You’re gonna do what?” Jiu Hui tugged on Zhi You’s sleeve. “This speed is just right!”
“Oh.” Zhi You glanced at his sleeve and shut his mouth.
After returning to the sect, Jiu Hui watched as Zhi You finished writing the letter and asked the Crane Immortal to deliver it to the Jiutian Sect before she could finally relax.
Zhi You glanced out the window. “The stars are very bright tonight.”
“Really?” Jiu Hui stuck her head out the window. “It is very bright, but unfortunately there is snow everywhere outside, and it would be uncomfortable to lie on the tree.”
Zhi You walked silently to her side and opened his palm, gently swiping it through the courtyard.
In an instant, the snow melted, flowers bloomed, and withered plants sprouted new buds from the soil. Countless flowers bloomed in competition, turning the entire courtyard into a sea of vibrant colors.
“It’s ready now.” Zhi You pushed open the door, walked into the yard, and said to Jiu Hui, who had followed him out with a face full of surprise, “This is a simple Withered Tree Spring Revival Technique, but it’s slightly more refined than the technique Bu Ting used at Lanyue Lake.”
“Immortal Venerable Bu?” Jiu Hui was admiring the flowers when she heard Zhi You mention Bu Ting. She tried hard to recall for a long time. “Are you talking about what happened today when he revived the trees and flowers on the shore of Lanyue Lake?”
“Mm.” Zhi You pursed his lips.
“I didn’t really pay much attention.” Jiu Hui tucked a peony flower into her hair and took out a mirror to look at herself. “Why bother comparing? Of course, our courtyard looks better.”
Zhi You’s tense lips relaxed, and he put his hands behind his back. “At that time, you were staring at the little flowers by your feet, so I thought you liked it.”
He used a magic technique to conjure two rocking chairs and a low table. After Jiu Hui sat down on the chair, he conjured a jade vase on the low table, picked some flowers, and inserted them into the vase. “The flowers that Bu Ting revived are sparse and bland. The flowers in full bloom are much more beautiful.”
-—–
Beneath Zhenyao Prison, the snow had not melted for several days. The dirty slush mixed with fallen leaves, making it look even more dilapidated and desolate.
“Bu Ting, you little brat, you’re here again?” Chi Quan let out a mocking laugh. “You haven’t been able to find a way to get rid of me in all these years, so what’s the point of coming here?”
Bu Ting cut his index finger and used the blood from his heart to open Zhenyao Prison’s teleportation formation, sending the Qi of Extreme Evil into the top floor of the prison.
“Poison?” Chi Quan said arrogantly, “This Venerable fears no poison in the world… This is Qi of Extreme Evil?!”
“As the head of a righteous sect, how do you have the Qi of Extreme Evil?!” Chi Quan let out a piercing scream. The sound of him rolling and crashing against the walls echoed from within the pagoda. “Who? Who on earth told you?!”
Chi Quan’s screams grew more and more intense. “Bu Ting, you’re a ruthless hypocrite! To deal with me, you actually used the blood and bones of the world’s resentful spirits to refine evil energy. Aren’t you afraid that the world will find out?”
“It turns out that what you fear is the Qi of Extreme Evil.” Bu Ting listened to Chi Quan’s curses and wails, and took a few steps back with an indifferent expression. “A ten-thousand-year-old great yao is nothing more than this.”
“Bu Ting, this Venerable curses you to never ascend or fulfill your wishes for all eternity!”
Bu Ting calmly said, “Why are you cursing?”
Nan Feng came over with a letter and retorted in a low voice, “The curse of an evil yao has never worked.”
“Ah——”
Chi Quan’s cries became even more miserable.
Author’s Note:
Zhi You: Isn’t it just a withered tree blooming in spring, with flowers blooming all over the garden? Who doesn’t know how to do that?