Xu Ying stood at the bow and gazed toward the shores. Along both banks of the Nai River, mountains and valleys shuddered incessantly. The Netherworld was still invading the mortal realm, and fresh peaks and ridges continuously surged out from the other world, crushing against the existing landforms in an awe-inspiring spectacle!
The multideck boat sped across the water, traveling faster and faster. Mountains and hills on either bank flashed past in a blur. Xu Ying marveled inwardly, *At this rate, I'm afraid this boat will cover a hundred li before long!*
The farthest he had ever traveled was merely a hundred li away. A wave of unease suddenly gripped him aboard the vessel. *If she doesn't bring me back, will I still know the way home? And I've heard some people sell off children...*
Inside his mind, the bronze bell sneered, thinking, *This brat won't even realize it when that demonic girl sells him off! That vixen definitely has an ulterior motive. Who knows what she sees in him.*
Unaware of what it was thinking, Xu Ying asked the maiden in the coffin, "What is visualization?"
The bronze bell bristled with rage. *You little rascal! You actually asked my enemy instead of me! Had you asked me, could I have refused to answer? Wait... he seems to have asked me earlier, but I forgot to mention it, only telling him how to practice inward observation. How careless of me—that witch beat me to the punch!*
Standing tall and graceful at the prow, the maiden said, "You do not know what visualization is? Ah, of course. The lineage of Qi Refiners has declined drastically by your generation, so your ignorance is entirely forgivable. In fact, by my own generation, a great deal had already been lost to history. The villain's impact was simply too vast."
She paused, then continued, "Visualization is creating forms out of nothingness to settle your divine sense. To create forms out of nothingness means using your divine sense to visualize a manifestation of the Great Dao within the void, taming the wild monkey of the mind and reining in the wayward horse of the will. When visualizing, you must conjure reality from the void, refining the illusory into truth. Only by using this to cultivate spells and divine abilities can one attain the Dao."
Hearing this, Xu Ying's heart stirred. "The cultivation method of visualization sounds somewhat similar to the Hidden Scenery."
"What Hidden Scenery?" the maiden asked, puzzled.
Xu Ying took out the scroll of the *Mud Pill Hidden Scenery Qi Refinement Technique* and said, "This Nuo master technique states that the Hidden Scenery is an image of the Great Dao, except it is refined from the power extracted from the Mud Pill secret depository. The Hidden Scenery also conjures something from nothing and refines falsehood into truth, allowing one to forge spells or divine abilities!"
As he unrolled the manual, a stray lock of fine hair fell across the open page. Xu Ying looked up and saw that the maiden had silently stepped beside him at some point, tilting her head to inspect the *Mud Pill Hidden Scenery Qi Refinement Technique* in his hands.
Her black strands draped over his shoulder.
Her skin was snowy white, and her slender neck contrasted against her dark hair, appearing all the more fair and delicate—nothing like an ancient corpse that had been sealed away for thousands of years.
To Xu Ying's surprise, she had no stench of decay about her. Instead, she carried a subtle, pleasant fragrance that tempted him to inhale a couple more times.
Being so close to her for the first time, Xu Ying felt his heart flutter and his thoughts stray. He turned the pages slowly so she could read in detail.
The maiden read intently. Xu Ying stole furtive glances at her, finding her profile even more breathtaking than seeing her head-on: eyelashes fluttering from time to time, eyes sparkling like gemstones, a delicate and straight nose, and lips as pink and tempting as cherries.
Xu Ying felt his heart race and hastily looked away. *Not only is this female ghost polite, she's actually very pretty.*
After all, he was still just a fourteen- or fifteen-year-old youth. Coming face-to-face with a beautiful girl naturally made his mind wander, even if that girl might be a ghost or a zombie.
Inside Xu Ying's mind, the bronze bell sneered secretly: *The brat doesn't know how to visualize, so seeing a pretty girl makes his thoughts run wild. What pathetic self-restraint—I bet he's already decided what their kids will be named!*
Even so, it still feared being discovered by the maiden. It silently brought its rim down over the chaotic primordial egg, thinking, *If I cover the Mud Pill secret depository, that vixen will mistake me for a chaotic egg and won't notice me.*
The maiden quickly scanned the entire *Mud Pill Hidden Scenery Qi Refinement Technique*. Closing the manual, she pondered for a moment before saying, "It is indeed rather crude. The Hidden Scenery described in this book is an incomplete technique. Cultivating it will lead you astray, needlessly burning through your lifespan. It is exceptionally insidious. You must not practice it."
"Burn through lifespan?" Xu Ying was chilled to the bone.
The *Mud Pill Hidden Scenery Qi Refinement Technique* was passed down by the Zhou clan to its disciples and retainers. With such a massive flaw inside, how could the Zhou clan not know?
*The flaw in this book definitely wasn't left behind by the Master of the Mud Pill Palace. That means the Zhou clan deliberately taught this defective method to their own followers!*
Cold sweat beaded on Xu Ying's forehead. The Zhou clan had these disciples risk their lives in service, while using this cultivation technique to eat away at their lifespans—what vile malice!
*That way, the Zhou clan's Nuo techniques will never leak to outsiders. Even if they leak, what spreads will only be a quick path to an early grave. That's how the Zhou clan preserves their standing!* he realized grimly.
The maiden continued, "Although the Hidden Scenery in this manual carries immense hidden dangers, the core concept behind it is outstanding—on par with the principles of Qi Refiner techniques. Deducing from this crude manual, the Hidden Scenery might not only be used to forge spells, but could very well be a method of latent transformation."
Frowning slightly in bewilderment, she mused, "Were the methods of Qi Refiners made obsolete? And yet, I do not believe latent transformation through the Hidden Scenery surpasses the techniques of Qi Refiners. What on earth caused the Qi Refiners to die out?"
Having been trapped for thousands of years, she found the modern world utterly unfamiliar.
Xu Ying asked, "Young lady, what is Hidden Scenery latent transformation?"
The maiden replied, "Judging by this manual, the goal of a Nuo master cultivating the Hidden Scenery is to forge a miniature immortal realm within their own body, ultimately latently transforming and concealing their true form inside it to achieve immortality. However, this text is too rudimentary; it does not clearly explain how to accomplish this latent transformation."
Xu Ying's eyes gleamed brightly. Forging a miniature immortal realm inside one's body, transforming and concealing oneself to attain deathless immortality?
Wouldn't that make one an immortal?
The legacy of the Master of the Mud Pill Palace did not sound so terrible after all.
"Then how does one cultivate the Hidden Scenery?" Xu Ying asked, suppressing the excitement in his chest.
The maiden looked somewhat displeased and remarked coolly, "You and I walk the same path. Your legacy is no weaker than mine, so why bother pursuing the latent transformation of the Hidden Scenery?"
Xu Ying was dumbfounded. Only after a long while did he recover his senses. *Is my heritage really that formidable? Wait a minute—where did I even get a legacy? Is it the Taiyi Guiding Technique?*
He was bewildered. The Taiyi Guiding Technique only contained the guiding exercises for the Qi Harvesting stage, with no follow-up methods whatsoever.
Suddenly, as the multideck boat traveled westward into the second half of the night, its speed began to ease. Xu Ying had lost track of how far they had journeyed down the Nai River, though he guessed it must be at least two or three thousand li.
*Is this Huaihua or Tongren? No, Huaihua is just west of Yongzhou, and Tongren is only a few hundred li away.*
He had no idea where the vessel had brought him. He was merely a country boy; the farthest places he knew were the commanderies and prefectures neighboring Yongzhou.
Looking ahead, Xu Ying saw the Nai River abruptly fork into numerous tributaries, spreading out like the veins of a leaf and flowing into the vast darkness.
Along the riverbanks traced by these tributaries, ghost fires flickered like dots of light. Viewed from afar, ghost fires blanketed the surrounding hundred-odd li, scattered like stars, turning the land into a veritable realm of specters!
Legend had it that the Nai River guided departed souls into the Netherworld to spare them from the ravages of wind and sun.
When a person freshly died, their soul departed the physical vessel to become a ghost; even the gentlest breeze could tear it apart, and the faintest ray of sunlight could scatter it to nothingness. Even the yang qi radiating from living mortals could batter a ghost.
Only after entering the Netherworld were spirits truly safe.
Xu Ying peered out, but the night was deep, limiting his view. All he could see were boundless ghostly fires.
"Why are there so many ghost fires here?" he whispered.
The vessel decelerated further, entering the main waterway among hundreds of tributaries of the Nai River. Ghost fires shimmered eerily along both banks, faintly illuminating villages and walled towns.
Likely because of the late hour, not a trace of human activity could be seen.
The maiden opened the upright black coffin, reached inside the outer casket, and rummaged for a moment before retrieving a whip two to three zhang long. Handing it to Xu Ying, she instructed, "Stay aboard. When the boat comes to a halt, set it ablaze. Once it catches fire, take this whip and lash upward into the sky until your strength is completely spent."
Xu Ying inspected the whip. It seemed utterly ordinary, plaited from slender hemp rope, with a tuft of golden hair dangling from the tip of the lash—likely taken from the tail of some unknown beast.
"Doing this can send off a deity?" Xu Ying asked dubiously.
When the maiden smiled, her eyes curved like crescent moons, captivating and lovely. "Naturally."
Xu Ying let out a sigh of relief and smiled. "Leave it to me, you can rest easy."
Yet she was not entirely at ease. "I refined this vessel three thousand years ago; mortal flames cannot ignite it. I shall grant you a flame."
Behind her, the maiden's Primordial Spirit extended its right hand, touching thumb to ring finger. At the fingertips rested a faint ember of flame, which she held out before Xu Ying.
Xu Ying did not know how to receive the flame, but the Primordial Spirit's right hand reached straight into his Realm of Xiyi. As her fingers parted, the tiny flame hovered quietly in the air.
"This flame is a Pure Yang anomalous fire that I chanced upon. Born of heaven and earth, it can aid your cultivation."
Stepping off the boat, the maiden drifted away, her crisp voice carrying back from the distance: "You need only circulate your divine sense into the flame to control its movement. After burning the vessel, refine this flame and use its true yang to temper your physical body and soul. It will help you forge a Pure Yang body."
Her figure quickly vanished into the dark, her voice growing fainter: "Wait an hour, then set the fire, lash the whip, and depart on your own. This place is fraught with peril; do not linger. Once my task is finished, I will seek you out and return you to Mount Wuwang!"
Xu Ying watched her recede into the distance. A warm sensation spread through him; the Pure Yang anomalous fire radiated waves of yang qi within his Realm of Xiyi, exerting an effect remarkably similar to Thunder Sound body tempering and Great Sun body tempering, actively refining his physique!
To his greater astonishment, as his vital qi passed through the flame, it grew increasingly pure!
*It can even temper vital qi!*
Utterly amazed, Xu Ying attempted to temper his divine sense. To his surprise and delight, his divine sense was also tempered, becoming tougher and purer!
*If I can use this fire to temper my body, divine sense, and vital qi all at once, my strength will skyrocket!* Standing at the prow against the chill wind blowing off the Nai River, Xu Ying was brimming with confidence and ambition.
The bronze bell flew out from behind his head and drawled, "Ah Ying, what are the two of you naming your children?"
Xu Ying asked in confusion, "Children? What children?"
The bronze bell sneered, "All that flirting and spooning with the demoness—haven't you thought about having babies with her?"
Xu Ying's face flushed crimson. "How could you say that? Besides, how are babies even made?"
"You just use your... Wait!" The bronze bell caught itself and abruptly clamped shut.
Just then, Xu Ying spotted a sallow, ragged man on the left bank of the Nai River, leaning on a wooden stick as he struggled out of the forest into the night.
Behind him, the woods rustled, and several more ragged elders and women emerged, likewise leaning on sticks and trudging with great difficulty.
More and more people filed out from the forest—men, women, old, and young, whole families moving together, supporting one another, yet all trudging forward in utter silence.
By the faint glow of the Nai River's ghost fires, horrifying festering sores could be seen where their clothing was torn, drawing swarms of flies buzzing incessantly around them.
Xu Ying followed the direction they had come from and saw a massive throng of refugees stretching for several li like an unbroken black dragon.
"They are..." Xu Ying murmured.
The bronze bell's tone grew grave. "They are plague victims, infected with pestilence."
Xu Ying looked farther into the distance toward the expanse where ghost fires drifted over a hundred li. The plague victims must have come from there.
"Wherever they came from, there was likely a flood, war, or famine," the bronze bell said somberly. "I hung alone on that rocky hill for three thousand years; I've seen this kind of thing many times."
Suspended in the ruined temple on the rocky hill, it had witnessed countless floods, wars, and famines over several millennia. Corpses would litter the plains, left unburied, and pestilence would inevitably breed.
The multideck boat drifted forward unhurriedly. More and more plague victims appeared on both banks of the Nai River; mountain villages and walled settlements were overrun with them.
They hobbled along the riverbanks, having no idea where they were headed.
People collapsed one after another, twitching a few times before breathing their last.
Yet the others paid them no heed, continuing on their way, their gazes vacant, like walking corpses.
"Ah Ying, this must be the source of the Nai River's course change," the bronze bell said gravely. "Someone went on a slaughter here to rescue that witch, deliberately sparking an epidemic. Ah Ying, her having you do her bidding this time is definitely ill-intentioned. She must have an ulterior motive!"
Xu Ying remained at the prow, staring blankly at the plague victims.
Having cultivated the Heavenly Eye, looking at the world through it made everything entirely different.
In the sky, thick, fleshy red tentacles drifted, hanging down in absolute silence.
These flesh-colored tentacles were extraordinarily nimble, seeming to reach out from the depths of another dimension, their origins nowhere in sight.
They crept behind the plague victims, splitting into countless slender tendrils that plunged into the festering sores of the sallow-faced people, squirming and suckling slowly.
Xu Ying gazed into the distance. Ghost fires blanketed the earth, and in the skies above those places, myriad tentacles likewise reached out from another realm, descending from the heavens into the darkness below.
Fleshy red tentacles crossed and interlaced from another world, filling the murky sky and blotting out the night stars. They branched into yet more tendrils, constantly swelling, shrinking, swelling, and shrinking, sucking away the vitality of the plague victims.
This scene was unnervingly real, yet impossibly surreal.
This was what his Heavenly Eye saw!
Xu Ying struggled to shift his gaze, his Adam's apple bobbing. "Heavens..."
As far as his eyes could see, the entire dim and murky sky was completely blanketed by ceaselessly squirming red flesh, stretching beyond the horizon.
An inconceivable creature had enveloped the heavens, dangling countless flesh-colored tentacles toward the people of the western lands.
Chapter 25