Chapter 104: What Did I Do to Deserve This?!
Nangong Mengxiang was straightforward and wouldn’t stand on ceremony with Luo Xue.
The reason she specifically asked Shangguan Yu for a Nine Revolutions Soul Returning Pill was to give it back to Luo Xue.
As for herself, she rarely used medicine.
Because every injury a body cultivator sustained was a part of their growth, and using medicine would only make them weaker.
“…”
Luo Xue also knew that when Nangong Mengxiang said she didn’t need it, she really didn’t need it, not just being polite.
She could only sigh and put away the Nine Revolutions Soul Returning Pill.
“What do we do now?” Luo Xue asked. “Find a place to stay in the Ghost Demon Gang’s territory?”
There was still some time before Ghost Demon Pass opened, and with the recent conflict between the Medicine Gang and the Tianhai Gang, both Nangong Mengxiang and Luo Xue’s identities were awkward, so they couldn’t go back.
“Yes, but it smells bad here, we’ll have to endure it.”
Nangong Mengxiang frowned in dissatisfaction.
Luo Xue didn’t think it smelled bad. The smell of blood and decay was everywhere in the borderlands, just varying in intensity.
The territories of the Tianhai Gang and the Medicine Gang weren’t much better.
And staying in the Ghost Demon Gang’s territory actually made Luo Xue feel safer, perhaps because of the faint Yin Poison in the air.
“…Wait,” Luo Xue suddenly realized something and asked, “When you said it smells bad, you weren’t referring to the Yin Poison, were you?”
“Yes, I didn’t continue staying on Mount Fengyin because I hated that smell.” Nangong Mengxiang nodded.
No wonder… Nangong Mengxiang hadn’t made Mount Fengyin her base, even though it was her master’s former residence.
If not for this, Daoist Ziyang wouldn’t have had the chance to occupy it and turn it into his cauldron refining grounds.
And it was normal for Nangong Mengxiang to hate the smell of Yin Breath Poison, as she was a pure Yang body cultivator, naturally averse to Yin Poison.
“But it’s still bearable.”
Despite saying this, Nangong Mengxiang still looked unhappy.
Her emotions were always written on her face, never concealed.
“Anyway, let’s settle down for now.”
Luo Xue made up her mind and, led by Nangong Mengxiang, found a shop she had robbed before to stay in, waiting for Ghost Demon Pass to open.
…
Meanwhile, the friction between the Tianhai Gang and the Medicine Gang intensified, and a full-blown war was about to break out.
At this sensitive moment, the rebuilt Youxiang Restaurant received an unexpected guest.
—Yu Haoqiang, the Gang Leader of the Tianhai Gang.
He didn’t make a grand entrance, but walked into the restaurant like an ordinary customer.
After entering, Yu Haoqiang ordered a pot of wine and, ignoring the waitresses’ attempts to stop him, walked straight to the pavilion in the center of the restaurant and sat down in front of the Zither Witch.
The surrounding waitresses were terrified. Although they didn’t know the Zither Witch’s true identity, from the respectful attitude of the restaurant manager, they could tell that this woman who played the zither here every day was definitely an important figure.
“You can all leave.”
The Zither Witch still had her eyes closed, gently plucking the strings, the melodious music echoing.
“Yes, my lady…”
The waitresses, relieved, quickly bowed and retreated.
The restaurant manager also tactfully activated the restrictions, isolating Yu Haoqiang and the Zither Witch from the surroundings.
“It’s been hundreds of years, how have you been?”
The Zither Witch said faintly, as if greeting him, or perhaps just talking to herself.
“I’m fine,” Yu Haoqiang said, taking a swig of wine. “You knew all along that Fengyin’s disciple was here, didn’t you?”
“I didn’t know.”
The Zither Witch said.
“I don’t believe you.”
“Suit yourself.”
“Is she Fengyin’s daughter?”
“I don’t know.”
“Is Fengyin still alive?”
“She’s dead.”
Yu Haoqiang’s expression turned somber, and he seemed lost in thought.
“She… is really dead.”
There had been rumors for hundreds of years since her disappearance, but he hadn’t believed them.
Until today, hearing this unbelievable news from the Zither Witch, Yu Haoqiang finally accepted reality.
He had thought he would be devastated by True Person Fengyin’s death… but now, he only felt a sense of loss.
But the Zither Witch’s next words instantly enraged him.
“It’s said that her remains were refined into a magical treasure.” The Zither Witch continued, her tone indifferent. “Even her soul wasn’t spared.”
“What!” Yu Haoqiang’s eyes widened, and the wine cup in his hand shattered. “Who!”
“I don’t know,” the Zither Witch didn’t look up, the shattered fragments of the wine cup floating before her zither before falling. “But he has already been completely annihilated.”
The impact of the incident on Mount Fengyin was far greater than Luo Xue had imagined. The spreading Yin Breath Poison had permanently changed the surrounding environment.
The Temple of the Nether Spirit, located not far from Mount Fengyin, naturally sent out investigation teams, and even a Soul Transformation ancestor intervened, restoring the events that transpired on Mount Fengyin.
Besides the existence of Luo Xue and Su Yiyao, and the fact that the innermost courtyard had been completely erased by some force, the Temple of the Nether Spirit had deduced the general course of events.
The pitiful Daoist Ziyang, after his death, not only had his body and soul eroded by Yin Breath Poison, but they were also forcibly condensed and violently searched by a powerful being.
And the whereabouts of True Person Fengyin, who had disappeared hundreds of years ago, were finally revealed. She had died silently and unnoticed in this desolate corner, a truly regrettable end.
This news hadn’t reached the Immortal Domain yet, as it was basically unrelated to them. Currently, only the higher-ups of the Demon Abyss’ forbidden areas knew about it.
“How… could she…”
Yu Haoqiang’s mind was in turmoil.
To outsiders, he always seemed indifferent, even his position as the Gang Leader of the Tianhai Gang was just because of a mission from his sect.
Because his heart had died hundreds of years ago, only touched slightly by the Supreme Forgetfulness Scripture, which finally led him to take this step.
But the news he received…
Yu Haoqiang closed his eyes, took a few deep breaths, and finally calmed down.
Opening his eyes again, although his anger hadn’t subsided, he forced himself to regain his composure and said,
“Can you tell me what Fengyin has been doing all these years?”
Communication between the Immortal Domain and the Demon Abyss was extremely limited. Even with spies, it was difficult to obtain much information.
Moreover, True Person Fengyin was a rogue cultivator without a sect, and her hiding place, Mount Fengyin, had only been recently exposed.
“I don’t know.”
The Zither Witch said, her tone as flat and emotionless as ever.
“…Zither Witch, I’m willing to give half of the Tianhai Gang’s assets to the Ghost Demon Gang.” Yu Haoqiang said in a low voice. “And I promise not to attack the Ghost Demon Gang for three hundred years.”
“I… just ask you to tell me, even if it’s just some vague information.”
“I don’t know means I don’t know, even if you give me everything, I still don’t know.” The Zither Witch shook her head, her fingers stopping their movements. “Also, in a few days, the Ghost Demon Gang will be no more.”
“What!” Yu Haoqiang’s eyes widened slightly.
“As you wish, the Temple of the Nether Spirit is abandoning Ghost Demon Pass.” The Zither Witch said. “The reason I’ve been staying in Ghost Demon Pass is to give the Nascent Soul elder stationed here time to evacuate.”
“…”
Yu Haoqiang fell silent.
He realized the implications of the Temple of the Nether Spirit’s actions.
“Yes, the Immortal-Demon War is about to begin,” the Zither Witch guessed what Yu Haoqiang wanted to ask. “The Peerless Summit Sect stopped it hundreds of years ago, but they could only delay it. The inevitable war cannot be changed.”
“How much… time is left?”
“I don’t know.” The Zither Witch shook her head again. “Perhaps tomorrow, perhaps in a hundred years. It depends on when the next great tribulation arrives.”
Yu Haoqiang was silent again for a long time.
He looked up slightly at the four private rooms above the Youxiang Restaurant.
The scene from a few days ago was still vivid in his mind. The figure of the woman cultivating the Supreme Forgetfulness Scripture as she leaped across the pavilion remained in his memory, just like the woman he remembered.
“If there’s a chance… please take care of her.”
“Fengyin’s disciple, someone will take care of her.”
The Zither Witch didn’t agree to Yu Haoqiang’s request, but she didn’t refuse either.
Yu Haoqiang sighed softly and stood up.
He looked deeply at the Zither Witch and said in a low voice,
“After today’s parting, when we meet again, we will be enemies.”
“…Teacher.”
The Zither Witch’s expression didn’t change at all.
“You’re not worthy.”
“Heh, indeed… I’m not worthy.”
Yu Haoqiang was speechless and chuckled self-deprecatingly.
He turned and walked towards the door.
The time he spent as a student, cultivating alongside Fengyin under the same master, was completely gone.
Back then, True Person Fengyin was still Nangong Fengyin, Yu Haoqiang was still a cultivator of joy, and the Zither Witch was still Zither Fairy.
But all of that was gone.
“One last thing.”
The Zither Witch opened her eyes slightly, a strange, sinister aura emanating from her pure white eyes.
Yu Haoqiang stopped.
“Inform the Peerless Summit Sect. Their disciple, ‘Luo Yan,’ is wanted in the Demon Abyss. The highest level bounty, issued personally by the Holy Maiden.”
“Hmm?”
Yu Haoqiang was stunned. He had naturally heard of the Holy Maiden’s reputation and was quite wary of her.
Once the Holy Maiden reached Core Formation, even he might not be her match.
After all, she wasn’t even half a jiazi old!
But Luo Xue… who was that?
He had never heard of her.
Was such an unknown disciple worthy of a personal bounty from the Holy Maiden?
“What’s… their relationship?”
“…I don’t know.”
…
Half a month passed quickly. The Tianhai Gang and the Medicine Gang finally went to war, the conflict escalating, and Foundation Establishment cultivators started dying.
But fortunately, the Sha sisters were lucky. Their small inn was outside the war zone and wasn’t affected.
Luo Xue was relieved when she learned that they were safe.
On the other hand, the Ghost Demon Gang’s territory, which she had thought would be dangerous, was… quite boring.
Luo Xue and Nangong Mengxiang’s daily routine was as follows:
In the morning, they would go to the more chaotic eastern area for some “shopping” (read: looting). At noon, they would eat in the relatively stable northern area. In the afternoon, they would go to the southern area, which resembled a flea market, to scavenge for treasures.
At night, they would return to the shop they had robbed to rest. Luo Xue would drink some Immortal’s Kowtow and go to sleep, while Nangong Mengxiang would guard her while sleepwalking and occasionally killing someone.
For Luo Xue, small doses of Immortal’s Kowtow worked quite well as a sleeping aid, and her cultivation would increase every time she woke up.
After half a month, Luo Xue had consolidated her mid-stage Spirit Condensation cultivation and was about to reach the late stage.
This was because Luo Xue deliberately suppressed her cultivation, worried that advancing too quickly would make it difficult to control her power and result in an unstable foundation.
Finally, the day arrived when Ghost Demon Pass opened, and Luo Xue and Nangong Mengxiang blended into the crowd, heading towards the city gate.
Just like when entering the city, there were guards at the gate.
But before, Luo Xue had encountered the Tianhai Gang’s guards, and now it was the Ghost Demon Gang’s. They all looked like they couldn’t wait to get off work.
“Did you hear? The Ghost Demon Gang is leaving! Ghost Demon Pass will have a new name soon!”
“Really? I don’t believe it.”
“Don’t believe it? Have you seen any Core Formation elders recently? Not even many Foundation Establishment cultivators…”
“The Ghost Demon Gang has been declining for years. They’re no match for the Tianhai Gang and the Medicine Gang. Being forced out is only a matter of time…”
The crowd chattered, and Luo Xue overheard quite a bit of gossip.
Besides the rumor of the Ghost Demon Gang completely withdrawing from Ghost Demon Pass, there didn’t seem to be anything noteworthy.
Just as Luo Xue was leaving Ghost Demon Pass with the crowd, a few whispers reached her ears, catching her attention.
Because…
They were talking about her.
“…Luo Xue… rich… Peerless Summit…”
“Hmm?”
Luo Xue paused slightly, intending to listen carefully, when she saw a familiar portrait on the city wall from the corner of her eye.
…Herself.
White hair, petite, a young girl.
It was her.
“Holy crap!”
Luo Xue was startled and quickly pulled Nangong Mengxiang closer.
However, because Luo Xue was too short, and the surrounding crowd was too dense, she couldn’t see the details of the portrait clearly.
So, Luo Xue had Nangong Mengxiang lift her onto her shoulders.
And then, Luo Xue heard the voices mentioning her, right near the portrait.
“100,000 Earth-rank Qi Condensation Pills! Holy moly, what a fortune! It would take me years to earn one or two…”
“It’s a wanted notice from the Temple, after all. Every one of them is a vicious criminal… Wait, Innate Realm? Really just Innate Realm?”
“Could it be a fake… If it’s just Innate Realm, is it worth this much…”
The more Luo Xue listened, the more confused she became. At this moment, Nangong Mengxiang had forcibly cleared a path through the crowd with her brute strength.
Of course, her reputation from robbing people these past few days had already spread, and people could only obediently make way for her.
“Let me see…”
Luo Xue looked closely and finally saw the details of the portrait on the city wall.
After reading it, Luo Xue could only say,
“What the hell did I do to deserve this?!”
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