Chapter 87: You Can Only Work For Me
Some of the questions lingering from Luo Xue’s previous life were finally answered by Nangong Mengxiang.
Daoist Ziyang’s actions were indeed imitating True Person Fengyin, but True Person Fengyin’s purpose was to find a successor for the Phoenix Venerable’s inheritance.
While Daoist Ziyang’s goal was merely to break through to Core Formation and avoid being hunted by the Immortal Domain sects.
Evil cultivators like him were often just experience points for disciples of the major sects.
Unless they broke through to Core Formation or above, they wouldn’t have a place to stand.
However, what was most important now was…
“Nangong, do you still remember where Mount Fengyin is?”
Luo Xue asked in a low voice, a hint of urgency in her expression.
While browsing through the records at the Peerless Summit Sect, Luo Xue had deliberately looked for information about her previous life.
Besides the True Phoenix Inheritance, she also searched for information about Daoist Ziyang, True Person Fengyin, and Mount Fengyin.
Unfortunately, she found nothing.
The True Phoenix Inheritance was too mysterious, with no records of similar inheritances in any books. There were only rumors that it might exist in the ancient demon lands, sealed away by heaven and earth, but it was just speculation.
Daoist Ziyang…
An evil cultivator of his level would probably just be recorded in the archives as “a certain Foundation Establishment evil cultivator.” There was no point in searching for him.
And the legends of True Person Fengyin were all from hundreds of years ago, with only a few brief mentions, nothing about her life or background.
After all, True Person Fengyin was an evil cultivator, and her main area of activity was in the Demon Abyss, not interfering with the Immortal Domain, so there were no records of her.
As for Mount Fengyin… among all the named mountains in the nine provinces and four domains, there wasn’t a single one with that name.
This was also expected. It was probably just a random name given by True Person Fengyin, and Daoist Ziyang had also changed it to Mount Ziyang…
The reason Luo Xue kept searching for these things was that she wanted to know what happened after her previous life.
Whether Xiao Yao had survived, and how many years had passed since her previous life…
With the information she currently had, Luo Xue couldn’t determine any of this.
“Of course I do. It’s in the borderlands near the Ten Thousand Demons forbidden area.” Nangong Mengxiang said, resting her chin on her hand. “I went there two hundred years ago, but Master wasn’t there.”
“Ten Thousand Demons forbidden area… I see,” Luo Xue nodded thoughtfully, then her eyes widened. “Wait, two hundred years ago? Nangong, how… old are you now?”
“Two hundred and thirty-six years old.”
Nangong Mengxiang blurted out.
“…Then why are you only at the peak of Foundation Establishment?”
Luo Xue’s brow twitched. She remembered that the Holy Maiden of the Temple of the Nether Spirit was already at the peak of Foundation Establishment in her twenties. Why was there such a big difference between Nangong Mengxiang and her?
It didn’t make sense, did it?
“That’s something only a disciple from a major sect would say. Most peak Foundation Establishment cultivators are two or three hundred years old, okay.” Nangong Mengxiang chuckled. “But because I’m a body cultivator, my cultivation progresses slower.”
“…”
Luo Xue was silent for a moment.
Thinking about it carefully, it seemed to be true.
It was mainly the atmosphere in the Peerless Summit Sect, which gave people the impression that if one didn’t reach Foundation Establishment within half a jiazi, they had no hope of immortality…
In reality, cultivators who could reach Foundation Establishment within a hundred years were a minority. Most were in their two or three hundreds.
From this perspective, Nangong Mengxiang was actually quite normal.
However…
Since Nangong Mengxiang knew the location of Mount Fengyin, should she go and investigate?
Perhaps she could find the place where she died.
Of course, what was more important was information about Xiao Yao.
Before her death in her previous life, Xiao Yao’s heartbroken expression as she watched her walk towards death was still vivid in Luo Xue’s mind.
Therefore, Luo Xue was a little worried that Xiao Yao might have done something drastic after she died.
“Do you want to go back?” Luo Xue asked, “Back to Mount Fengyin.”
Luo Xue didn’t directly tell Nangong Mengxiang about True Person Fengyin’s death. For one, it was a matter related to her previous life, and for another… some things were better left unsaid for now.
“You want to go and see? That’s right, your technique is a bit similar to Master’s.” Nangong Mengxiang scratched the back of her head. “I heard that there was an outbreak of Yin Poison tide on Mount Fengyin recently… It’s difficult to go deep without a magical treasure for protection.”
Luo Xue’s expression tensed slightly upon hearing this.
The culprit behind the Yin Poison tide was sitting right in front of her.
“It’s rumored that a supreme treasure appeared, and many people went there to search for it. I say, Master doesn’t have any supreme treasures. She’s so poor from searching for a successor that she can’t even afford pants.”
When mentioning True Person Fengyin, Nangong Mengxiang’s expression was clearly relaxed and happy.
She… really liked her master.
Luo Xue sighed inwardly. It was a pity that True Person Fengyin was already dead, and the cause of her death was unknown.
When only a wisp of her soul remained, True Person Fengyin hadn’t mentioned why she died. It seemed there was more to the story.
…Wait a minute.
Luo Xue suddenly remembered something.
True Person Fengyin seemed to have called her Junior Sister, saying that it was because she was the true inheritor of Phoenix Venerable’s lineage, and calling her Junior Sister was elevating her status.
If that was the case…
Luo Xue looked at Nangong Mengxiang, and Nangong Mengxiang was also looking at her.
The two stared at each other for a moment.
“If I said that I’m actually your Martial Aunt, would you believe me?” Luo Xue coughed lightly and said.
“Ah, are you Master’s Junior Brother… oh no, Junior Sister?” Nangong Mengxiang said in surprise, nodding repeatedly. “I believe you, I believe you! Your aura is very similar to Master’s. Then I’ll call you Little Martial Aunt from now on!”
“Martial Aunt is fine, what’s with the ‘Little’…”
Luo Xue’s eyelid twitched, recalling her title of Little Junior Sister in the Peerless Summit Sect.
“You’re younger than me, shorter than me, and your cultivation is lower than mine…”
Nangong Mengxiang counted on her fingers.
“Stop, stop, stop… hold on!” Luo Xue quickly interrupted. “Let’s stop talking about this for now. We should find a way to go to Mount Fengyin.”
She hesitated for a moment, then said,
“At that time, I’ll tell you some things… about your master.”
She would tell Nangong Mengxiang about True Person Fengyin’s death later.
“Okay, okay!”
Nangong Mengxiang was delighted.
One of the reasons she stayed in Ghost Demon Pass was to search for her master’s whereabouts.
After all, this chaotic place was where information flowed the most freely.
“As expected, I’ve encountered Little Martial Aunt!” Nangong Mengxiang thought happily. “Finding Master is just around the corner.”
Luo Xue then chatted with Nangong Mengxiang about True Person Fengyin’s past and the situation around Mount Fengyin.
After listening, Luo Xue felt a chill down her spine.
If she had chosen another route and left Mount Fengyin from a different location, she would have continued deeper into the swamp.
At that time, she might even have encountered Nascent Soul level beasts or even stronger…
Then, she truly would have died without a burial place.
She could only be thankful that she had accidentally triggered the Yin Poison tide in the depths of Mount Fengyin.
Taking this opportunity, Luo Xue also asked Nangong Mengxiang about the Demon Abyss.
Ghost Demon Pass was the gateway to the Nether Spirit forbidden area. It opened once a month, and only then could one enter the Demon Abyss.
The Ghost Demon Gang controlled the pass, and it was said that they had the backing of the Temple of the Nether Spirit. Occasionally, important figures from the Temple would even come here.
It was because of this that the Medicine Gang and the Tianhai Gang hadn’t joined forces to crush the declining Ghost Demon Gang, but instead gradually encroached on their territory.
The next opening of the pass was about half a month away, and to reach Mount Fengyin, they had to pass through the Nether Spirit forbidden area.
Taking a slight detour, they could go to the border between Qing Province and the Ten Thousand Demons Sect’s territory.
—Near the Peerless Summit Sect’s sphere of influence.
“Going around in circles and having to go back again, I didn’t expect the places where I was born in these two lives to be so close.”
Luo Xue rubbed her temples, organizing the information she had obtained today.
Nangong Mengxiang, having nothing to do, organized yesterday’s loot.
Luo Xue glanced at it and thought that compared to the treasures in her storage ring, it was really nothing much.
Seeing that the downstairs seemed to have quieted down, Sha Yiyi and Sha Keke cautiously came down.
After discussing upstairs for a while, they decided to give up on this commission.
Mainly because of Luo Xue’s identity. If the matter of kidnapping a prodigy of the Peerless Summit Sect was discovered… they were afraid they wouldn’t even be able to stay in Ghost Demon Pass.
Although this was a lawless place, filled with ruthless individuals and targets of major sects’ pursuit, most of these wanted criminals possessed great strength, and ordinary people wouldn’t dare to provoke them.
Sha Yiyi was only at the mid-stage of the Innate Realm, and Sha Keke was only at the early stage.
Their strength was enough to deal with ordinary cauldron slaves, but against someone like Luo Xue… sending a few more would just be adding to the casualties.
Even if ordinary rogue cultivators were at the same realm as the prodigies of major sects, whether it was the difference in techniques or magical treasures, it was difficult for them to compete.
If they were put on the Peerless Summit Sect’s wanted list, even with the protection of the Medicine Gang through this inn, they would be hunted down and devoured, leaving no bones behind.
Luo Xue watched as the twin sisters hesitantly approached her, stood side by side before her, and bowed apologetically.
“We’re sorry… Miss Luo Xue.”
“Hmm?” Luo Xue was stunned. “What’s wrong?”
She knew that these two sisters might have some plans for her, but she didn’t expect them to confess so quickly.
“Actually… the reason we called you to the Youxiang Restaurant is because someone wants to capture you, and the transaction location is at the Youxiang Restaurant.” Sha Yiyi took a deep breath and said, “We don’t know who it is, but… we took the commission.”
“A commission? To capture me?”
Luo Xue frowned slightly.
Someone wanted to capture her? Who could it be?
The Peerless Summit Sect shouldn’t be looking for such unprofessional people…
But besides the Peerless Summit Sect, Luo Xue couldn’t think of any other possibilities.
She had just left the sect not long ago, and the only person she knew was Nangong Mengxiang.
Could it be because of yesterday’s incident at the alchemy shop?
That didn’t seem right either. Yesterday’s commotion was so big, how could it be a secret commission? It should be a public bounty.
However…
“Your cultivation… shouldn’t have reached Foundation Establishment yet, right?” Luo Xue looked at the twin sisters, a slight twitch at the corner of her lips. “How did you muster the courage… to capture me?”
Before the twin sisters could answer, Luo Xue continued,
“Oh right, you probably don’t know my true situation, because I’m just a cauldron slave…”
Although she had indeed been a cauldron slave, that was in her previous life.
Sha Yiyi and Sha Keke lowered their heads slightly, their faces flushing.
Nangong Mengxiang, who was listening, was confused.
“Are you two bad guys? Why do you want to capture Little Martial Aunt?”
“Li-, Little Martial Aunt…”
Sha Yiyi’s eyes widened. Luo Xue was Nangong Mengxiang’s Little Martial Aunt?
They were just addressing each other by name earlier, why did she suddenly become Little Martial Aunt…
“We just made a mistake.” Luo Xue said. “You two don’t seem like people who like doing bad things, why did you do this?”
Sha Yiyi and Sha Keke exchanged glances. Sha Yiyi hesitated for a moment, then sighed and told Luo Xue all about their troubles.
The inn’s business was too bleak, and they could barely afford the “protection fee” of the Medicine Gang.
Without the inn, they would have no place to stay in Ghost Demon Pass.
Luo Xue pondered for a moment, understanding the twin sisters’ predicament.
She thought for a while, then said,
“Besides taking on these kinds of commissions, what else can you do?”
“We can cook.” Sha Keke said seriously.
Sha Yiyi slapped her sister’s head. She understood Luo Xue’s intention and said,
“Gathering information, tracking, searching for people and objects—of course, the search range is limited to Ghost Demon Pass. We can’t go outside.”
“You’re quite versatile.” Luo Xue raised an eyebrow and picked up her cup of water.
“You flatter us, Miss Luo Xue,” Sha Yiyi shook her head, her expression bitter. “If not for some special skills, my sister and I wouldn’t have been able to survive in Ghost Demon Pass for fifty years…”
“Pfft!”
Luo Xue spat out a mouthful of water, spraying Sha Yiyi and Sha Keke.
“Fifty years?” Luo Xue’s eyes widened. “How… old are you?”
“This year… sixty-two.”
Sha Yiyi, covered in water, still answered honestly. “We were brought here by our parents when we were twelve.”
“My father was a traitor of the Everspring Pavilion, and my mother fled with him… but they’re both dead now.”
The Everspring Pavilion, one of the nine major sects alongside the Peerless Summit Sect, was known for its long-lived cultivators. Their lifespans were about two to three times that of ordinary cultivators, but their combat power was weaker compared to prodigies of the same level.
However, what they lacked in quality, they made up for in quantity.
The Everspring Pavilion had the most Nascent Soul cultivators among the nine major sects.
…But they were so weak that Luo Huaxin could enter and leave as she pleased, even stealing the Immortal’s Kowtow poison.
This also explained why the sisters, despite being over a jiazi of age, still looked like young women.
But for Luo Xue…
Sixty-two years old. In her previous, previous, previous life, her grandmother was also in her sixties…
Suppressing her shock, Luo Xue composed herself and said,
“Well, I do have some things I need your help with, but I have one condition.”
“What condition?”
Sha Yiyi’s expression was a bit tense.
Luo Xue narrowed her eyes slightly.
“You… can only work for me.”
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