The next morning dawned.
Within an abandoned village.
The sky was overcast, and a fine, continuous drizzle drifted down.
A chilly wind blew, cold to the bone.
The people scattered in the simple dwellings throughout the village gradually woke from their sleep.
After a day of ragged running, they were caught up in this damp and cold weather.
Those who were weak felt even weaker, some fell ill.
The caravan had no choice but to delay their departure by a day, taking time to recover in this place.
…
Inside a still-intact earthen house.
A red clay stove was placed at the doorway, where crimson charcoal burned within, constantly radiating heat to the surroundings.
Atop the stove, a black pottery crockpot bubbled with noise, white steam spewing from the edges of the lid, occasionally lifting it.
Cheng Ming, the young Taoist acolyte, sat beside the stove, his eyes drowsy from sleep, yet his nose continuously sniffed towards the crockpot.
No matter how much the squat and plump Heh Taoist coaxed him, he didn’t move an inch.
“Young Master Chen, I am so sorry,” said Heh Taoist with an embarrassed face as he looked at Chen Mu.
Based on their initial encounter, he was still somewhat fearful of Chen Mu.
Cheng Yi had once firmly claimed that this young master was possessed by an evil spirit.
Although it was later proven to be a misunderstanding, Heh Taoist still harbored a wariness.
“It’s no trouble, let him eat with us,” said Chen Mu.
Whether it’s herding one sheep or two, Chen Mu glanced at Jie Jia, who sat next to Cheng Ming, nonchalant.
He had grown accustomed to the two gluttons, the old and the young.
…
After the meal, from the cloth bag he was carrying, Chen Mu took out two fist-sized gray cloth bags.
They contained finger-sized fruit and meat jerkies. He threw one bag to both Jie Jia and Cheng Ming.
Chen Mu then ducked into a dilapidated house on the west side of the courtyard.
With nothing to do during a day’s rest, Chen Mu couldn’t help wanting to improve his proficiency.
“I should start with the Shape Cultivation Technique first.”
In the previous three months, he had only focused on recuperation and researching the Pharmaceutical Technique in the first two months. Stay informed at m-vl-em,pyr
Other abilities had barely been touched, and his proficiency in them all was not high.
Only the Shape Cultivation Technique’s proficiency was more than halfway there.
“First, I need to improve my physical fitness,” he thought.
The room wasn’t large, which was just right for practicing the dodging technique.
As long as it was combined with the Breathing Method cycle, proficiency could be increased.
“After resting for so long, I’ll practice a few more repetitions today to make up for what I’ve missed.”
…
By evening, the fine rain had stopped, the dark clouds had dispersed, and the setting sun glowed red like blood.
The quiet village all day long became lively.
After a day’s rest, the disheartened people recovered.
Fires blazed in the deserted houses, with smoke curling up and the fragrance of cooking spreading.
In the small courtyard where Chen Mu was.
A foldable square table stood in the middle of the yard.
Chen Mu, Jie Jia, Cheng Ming, Zhang Ye, Du Huai, and a delicate-looking girl around eighteen or nineteen years old.
The girl’s surname was Bai, who had been staying in the last wagon. It was Chen Mu’s first time seeing her.
This was Jie Jia’s group purchase team.
Apart from these few core members at the table, each person had brought a companion.
Heh Taoist looked after Cheng Ming, Zhang Ye’s subordinate Zhen Fan, the former county magistrate Du Huai brought a middle-aged steward, and that Miss Bai had brought a brawny and stout maidservant.
They rested in the next courtyard.
“Fortunately, we left in time,” Zhang Ye said with lingering fear, “Some refugees just entered the village; they all fled from Qingshan County.”
“Qingshan County Town had a sudden fire, almost nothing left to the west of the city. The casualties were terrible.”
“Our county magistrate and his big nephew were both burned to charcoal,” Zhang Ye said, taking delight in the disaster.
He then looked at Cheng Ming hesitantly and added, “I heard that there was also a sudden earthquake outside the east of the city, and the scene was quite chaotic.”
Chen Mu felt a chill in his heart.
He thought of the sudden deaths in the dense fog the day before.
The so-called fire and earthquake were probably not so simple.
Although very curious, Chen Mu had no desire to investigate.
Whatever was causing such widespread disasters, it wasn’t something he could touch at the moment.
But an earthquake outside the east of the city? That little Qingfeng Observatory…
Chen Mu couldn’t help but look toward Cheng Ming.
“Big Brother Chen, don’t worry,” said Cheng Ming, who, though young, was very smart and quickly understood Chen Mu’s concerns, “My master and senior brothers are highly skilled in martial arts. A mere earth dragon turning over won’t hurt them. At most, it would collapse the observatory.”
“I’ve been tired of that broken observatory for a long time. It would be better for it to collapse! Just build a bigger one; after all, they have plenty of money.”
Chen Mu: “…”
“So audacious, huh? I wish I had a bold master or senior disciple.”
…
The East Minor Hill, Qingfeng Observatory, Ancestral Master Hall.
The earthquake yesterday caused the ritual altar to collapse.
The Qingfeng Observatory was affected, with many buildings collapsing, but only the Ancestral Master Hall remained intact.
In the center of the great hall, a coffin made of nanmu wood lay across.
A tall and thin old man stood beside the coffin with a yellow gourd hanging from his right waist; in his left hand, he held a chubby boy of about seven or eight years old.
The boy, courageous, was propped up on his toes, peeking inside the coffin.
The tall and thin old man looked down at the body of Feng Ren as well.”
“You always boasted about being on the righteous path, accusing me of murder and artifact refining as part of the Evil Path, even driving me away.”
“Aren’t you also killing for artifact refining?” the tall and thin old man asked with a face full of mockery.
Immediately after, with great interest, he said, “Now you’re also of the Evil Path, aren’t you?”
Gazing at Feng Ren’s deathly pale face, the old man showed a touch of regret: “I really wanted to see your reaction when you saw my face. Such a pity, you’re dead…”
“Uncle Wu Yin, my master passed away suddenly due to a lung ailment, perishing from illness. Please, accept my condolences,” Cheng Yi said with a saddened face.
Wu Yin turned to whisper into Cheng Yi’s ear, “The Silken Poison, it was you who administered it, wasn’t it…”
Cheng Yi’s eyes immediately bulged in shock!
As if by reflex, a dagger suddenly appeared in Cheng Yi’s hand, and he ferociously stabbed at Wu Yin.
Clang!
The sensation of striking steel made Cheng Yi’s face dramatically change.
Armor?!
Right away, he flipped the dagger, slid his right hand to the side, and then viciously pulled back. The sharp blade fiercely aimed at the soft flesh of the waist.
Clang!
The sound of metal clashing sent Cheng Yi into a complete panic.
It seemed he realized something. He gave up any thought of defense or escape and began stabbing the dagger towards various parts of Wu Yin’s body without stop.
Clang, clang, clang…
Thump!
Finally, the dagger pierced into the right side of Wu Yin’s neck.
Sparks flew, and just then, the tip of the dagger broke off!
Unbeknownst when, Wu Yin’s neck was covered with a layer of pitch-black film, akin to armor tightly adhered to the skin.
The sharp dagger couldn’t inflict the slightest injury on him.
Wu Yin just stood there in place, his face always wearing a mocking and enigmatic smile.
“Shell Soul?! Is this the Shell Soul?!” Staggering backward, Cheng Yi murmured in complete despair, “But I’ve already drunk the Elixir of Longevity. If it were just two days later, just two more days and I could have…”
“The Elixir of Longevity? You drank the Elixir of Longevity?” Wu Yin looked at Cheng Yi in astonishment: “Don’t tell me you poisoned Feng Ren just to seize the Elixir of Longevity?”
“I live for the Dao, and I die for the Dao, I am not wrong!” Cheng Yi bellowed with bloodshot eyes.
“Ah ha… ah ha… hahaha…”
“After drinking the Elixir of Longevity, Essence, Qi, and Spirit become tainted by external matter, and you won’t be able to see immortality ever again,” Wu Yin laughed so hard he bent forward and back. “And you still want to seek the Dao? That’s too funny!”
Cheng Yi was struck as if by lightning, standing completely frozen.
“That’s right, such Evil Path practices, he certainly wouldn’t teach his disciples.”
“Senior brother actually got poisoned by his own disciple over this? Hahaha… I can laugh at this joke for ten years!”
Wu Yin left, laughing uproariously, hand in hand with the little chubby boy.
His old-fashioned senior brother was killed because of his own stubborn ways, which was extremely amusing!
“Impossible, impossible, absolutely impossible!”
In the entire Ancestral Master Hall, only Cheng Yi’s angry and desperate roars remained.
…
“Impossible, absolutely impossible!” Zhang Ye adamantly shook his head: “What treasure could there be in this poor and remote Qingshan County?”
“But those adventurers running towards Qingshan County seem so sure,” Zhen Fan hesitated, “They claim that the great fire was sparked by the emergence of the treasure.”
“And that earthquake.”
“It is said that the treasure was originally buried beneath the East Minor Hill. It was only disturbed because of Qingfeng Observatory’s founding and the building of the altar.”
Hearing this, Zhang Ye also began to lose confidence.
He could not help but look towards the few people sitting at the table.
“Want to check it out?” Chen Mu grinned.
Zhang Ye nodded like a pecking chicken.
“Go then,” Jie Jia said indifferently.
Zhang Ye was elated at once.
“We won’t wait for you, though,” Cheng Ming said with a cheeky grin.
Zhang Ye: “…”
He had put in so much effort to perform all day long just to coax a group to take a look. At the very least, they could wait for him a bit.
Not only did Jie Jia and Chen Mu see through his intentions, but even that little brat dared to tease him.
“Get lost, get lost, get lost! Just stay put!” Zhang Ye smacked Zhen Fan’s shoulder without any good temper.
He had spent a lot of money in Zhu Yi Pavilion for the sake of safety on the journey to Nanyang Prefecture.
He definitely couldn’t waste this expensive ticket just for a bit of curiosity.