Zhou Qiyun's expression softened. "I came to see whether you had grown slack. You have done well, keeping my affairs in mind."
Xu Ying bowed slightly. "Entrusted by another, I remain loyal to their cause. How would I dare be negligent?"
"It would be even better if you didn't just talk without doing anything," Zhou Qiyun remarked.
Xu Ying flushed slightly. Over the past few days, he had been occupied fooling around with Yuan Weiyang, Guo Xiaodie, and the others, not to mention his secret meeting with Xiao Fengxian. Where would he have found the time to decipher Granny Tuo's Immortal Scripture?
Zhou Qiyun's remark was meant only as a warning to keep him on his toes. "The sorrow-faced old man who came looking for trouble with you has already been taught a lesson by me," he added. "He will almost certainly not trouble you again in the near future. I came here specifically to tell you this."
Xu Ying looked up in surprise. After a moment, he asked, "Is Old Ancestor Zhou still the same snake-catching youth of Yongzhou from all those years ago?"
Meeting his gaze, Zhou Qiyun replied coldly, "I am not. Do not let your imagination run wild. I feel no kindred sympathy toward you; you are merely useful to me."
He turned and walked away, adding, "Do not keep me waiting too long."
Xu Ying said with a smile, "Respectfully seeing off Old Ancestor Zhou."
Once Zhou Qiyun was gone, Xu Ying calmed his mind. Taking up his brush, he set about deciphering Granny Tuo's Immortal Scripture character by character, line by line, working with deep focus. Before long, Yuan Weiyang came over and joined him in the deciphering upon seeing what he was doing.
A while later, Guo Xiaodie poked her head in. Seeing both of them engrossed in deciphering the immortal scripture, she waited off to the side, but after only a few moments she grew restless.
She leaned in beside Yuan Weiyang to watch him write, marveling inwardly, *Brother Weiyang's handwriting is so elegant.* Then she moved beside Xu Ying, thinking, *He calls this handwriting? It looks like little bugs crawling across the page.*
It took Xu Ying and Yuan Weiyang only two days to completely decipher the remainder of Granny Tuo's Immortal Scripture.
"Once we hand this over," Yuan Weiyang said, "we may be killed."
Xu Ying looked toward the immortal scripture and pondered for a moment. "Not necessarily. Zhou Qiyun already knows that Granny Tuo's Immortal Scripture is incomplete. If he forces himself to cultivate it, he will only turn into a woman. A man as proud and arrogant as he is, with such an overpowering need for control, will certainly never let an art dictate his fate."
Yuan Weiyang stepped beside him. "Monster King Xu, do you mean...?"
Her eyes flashed. Taking up a brush, she wrote three characters on the paper.
Xu Ying looked and gave a subtle nod.
Guo Xiaodie, Yuan Qi, and the bronze bell also crowded in to look. They saw that Yuan Weiyang had written the name "Zhou Qiyun" using homophones typically chosen for female names.
They wanted to laugh but didn't dare. Seeing their reactions, Uncle Xiao came over for a look as well and couldn't help chuckling. "Young Master, that isn't how you write Zhou Qiyun's name..."
He caught on a heartbeat later and burst into laughter. "Wait, isn't that a woman's name—"
Suddenly realizing the danger, he slammed his mouth shut. Keeping a stony face, he fell silent, cold sweat beading on his forehead as he thought, *If Old Sister Zhou were here right now, I'm afraid my body and soul would both be obliterated.*
Xu Ying said, "He intends to complete Granny Tuo's Immortal Scripture and break free from its constraints, and he possesses absolute confidence in his ability to do so. Having dealt with him for so long, all of us can tell that he is extraordinarily proud and fiercely confident. Therefore, he will definitely cultivate Granny Tuo's Immortal Scripture!"
Everyone was shocked and found it hard to believe.
Although Granny Tuo's Immortal Scripture was indeed a supreme art among Qi Refiners, it suffered from a fatal flaw: it lacked an exposition of yang. If a woman cultivated it, she would only grow more enchanting and alluring; but if a man cultivated it, he would simply turn into a woman!
How could a man as proud as Zhou Qiyun ever tolerate an immortal scripture changing his gender?
Xu Ying's eyes gleamed as he continued his deduction. "He has already cultivated it. Not only that, but he has also sensed his primordial yang slipping away and abnormal changes occurring in his body. However, he is the Zhou clan ancestor, after all—a Nuo immortal who has opened the Mud Pill secret depository to the ninth heaven. Controlling his body's vitality allows him to alter his physical anatomy at will."
Though Yuan Weiyang had not cultivated Granny Tuo's Immortal Scripture, her insights into the art ran extremely deep. Frowning, she said, "Even if he alters his physical anatomy to maintain a male body, changing a Great Yin physique will still prove difficult. After all, cultivating according to Granny Tuo's Immortal Scripture ensures that the Great Yin true essence in his body will never change."
Xu Ying smiled. "That is precisely where our chance of survival lies."
Yuan Weiyang understood immediately. "When he cannot resolve it himself, he will come looking for us to fix it for him."
Xu Ying said, "Cautious as he is, with his scheming and calculations ranking among the very best, he will certainly keep us alive just in case."
The two exchanged a smile.
Watching them analyze such a life-and-death matter thoroughly in a few short remarks, Guo Xiaodie felt both admiration and a touch of sourness. *The two of them are so intimate that I feel like a third wheel,* she thought. *Then again, they are both remarkable. This Monster King Xu isn't bad either—he's actually quite charming.*
Xu Ying and Yuan Weiyang handed in the deciphered parts of Granny Tuo's Immortal Scripture one after another. After waiting half a day without Zhou Qiyun coming to kill them, they knew their lives were safe, and both let out a sigh of relief.
They set off once more for Chaozhen Taixu Cave-Heaven to cultivate.
Xu Ying and the others did not stop at that isolated cliff. Descending the mountain, the group sat atop the head of the giant snake, Yuan Qi. The serpent slithered forward, carrying them across the cave-heaven, until they unwittingly arrived beneath the ascension rosy glow.
Xu Ying said, "After I drank the tea, I vaguely heard that sorrow-faced old man say that this rosy glow isn't an ascension glow at all. Instead, it was formed when a Qi Refiner undergoing tribulation here was blasted to pieces, their physical body and Primordial Spirit reduced to dust."
Everyone listened in horror.
Xu Ying continued, "People mistook it for an ascension rosy glow, so many Qi Refiners came here to undergo tribulation in succession, only to die in this cave-heaven. Not a single one was spared."
Guo Xiaodie asked, "Monster King Xu, what kind of tea did that sorrowful old man give you to drink?"
Xu Ying hesitated briefly before replying, "I once saw Meng Po soup on the Naihe Bridge. Its color was quite similar to the tea he served me."
Everyone took fright. Uncle Xiao blurted out, "How could anyone drink Meng Po soup and be fine? Wouldn't you forget your past and present lives entirely? What you drank was almost certainly not Meng Po soup!"
Xu Ying agreed. "When I drank the tea the sorrowful old man gave me, it went straight to my head with tremendous potency. The more I drank, the stronger the lingering punch became, leaving me with a splitting headache. Still, the flavor was wonderful—it had a sweet aftertaste, soothed the throat, and made my mouth water."
The bronze bell spoke up suddenly. "Ah Ying, if that pot of tea you drank truly was Meng Po soup, then the state of your soul can no longer be explained by a dozen or so Myriad Spirits Pills."
Xu Ying did not understand what it meant.
The bronze bell explained, "Formidable as the Myriad Spirits Pill may be in mending the soul, it still cannot withstand Meng Po soup. Your ability to drink Meng Po soup and retain your memories cannot possibly be credited to the effects of the Myriad Spirits Pill."
Guo Xiaodie laughed. "So what Monster King Xu drank definitely wasn't Meng Po soup! I love tasting fine tea. Next time someone invites you, call me along—I'll freeload a cup to taste it too."
Xu Ying readily agreed.
Cultivating while taking in the sights of the cave-heaven, they had Yuan Qi carry them onto the back of a primordial behemoth, winding between the mountain peaks rising from its spine.
Enormous as Yuan Qi was, he seemed trivial compared to the primordial behemoth, which did not even bother paying them any mind.
Yuan Qi slithered all the way onto the beast's head. Mountains stood upon its crown, alongside several ancient buildings that had half-collapsed, though fortunately a pavilion remained intact.
They swept the area clean and took their seats in the pavilion.
The structures here had presumably been built thousands of years ago by ancient Qi Refiners. Now that millennia had passed, the ancients had become mere legends, their traces swallowed up by the river of time.
Yet unexpectedly, the behemoths remained. They were the true masters of this cave-heaven, continuing to roam peacefully through Taixu Cave-Heaven.
Guo Xiaodie brought out tea utensils and brewed tea, saying with a grin, "Try the tribute tea I brought from the imperial palace. It won't necessarily fall short of Meng Po soup."
Everyone took their seats. Even Yuan Qi shrank his form, turning into a modest strange snake coiled on a stone stool as he waited to drink tea.
While waiting, Xu Ying recounted his experiences from that night, omitting only Guo Xiaodie slipping into his bedcovers and Xiao Fengxian having met him three thousand years ago.
"Xiao Fengxian said she witnessed an upheaval in the world: the heavens and earth twisted and spun, after which she plunged into darkness and lost consciousness. When she woke again, three thousand years had already passed, bringing her to today,"
Xu Ying said. "This whole matter has always struck me as strange. Who sealed the world three thousand years ago? Who possessed such immense power to seal it? Furthermore, first came the Nai River's encroachment, followed by the Netherworld's invasion, and vast stretches of new territory appeared out of nowhere along the riverbanks. Could this new territory be the very world that was sealed away back then?"
At his words, Yuan Weiyang instantly noticed the anomaly as well. "Monster King Xu, thinking it over, could that great sealing of heaven and earth Xiao Fengxian spoke of be the very thing that caused the extinction of the Qi Refiners?"
Her words served as a wake-up call. Neither Xu Ying, the bronze bell, nor Yuan Qi had considered this point before.
The decline of the Qi Refiners had occurred in an even more ancient era, but their total extinction was very likely linked to that great sealing of heaven and earth!
"My master vanished without a trace right after that great sealing. For the next three thousand years, I never sensed his presence again,"
the bronze bell said excitedly. "In that case, my master might have been sealed away as well! He and I will definitely meet again! Ah Ying, when that time comes, I'll let you witness what a true genius looks like!"
Xu Ying laughed heartily and complimented it. "Lord Bell's master must be extraordinary; I wouldn't even hold a candle to him."
Yet the bronze bell felt a little guilty, thinking, *My master's talent might actually be just a tiny bit inferior to his—not much, mind you, just a tiny sliver.*
Pouring tea for them, Guo Xiaodie chuckled. "If the Qi Refiners were all sealed away three thousand years ago, then with the emergence of the new territory, won't those ancient Qi Refiners all be coming back?"
The moment she spoke those words, everyone froze.
Xu Ying stood up, holding his teacup as he gazed out across the vast expanse of Taixu Cave-Heaven, murmuring softly, "Are the Qi Refiners of three thousand years ago truly still alive?"
If the ancient Qi Refiners had been sealed away along with that world, would the current balance of the world change once they returned?
What shifts would overtake the lofty great families of today, the imperial power ruling the secular realm, and the divine authority governing the Netherworld?
The bronze bell let out a melodious toll, musing, "If the Qi Refiners were sealed away with this world three thousand years ago, it would explain the mystery of their disappearance. They were the masters of that era. When the old masters return to confront the new ones, what will happen?"
Cupping her teacup in both hands, Yuan Weiyang took a gentle sip, her expression placid. "What is even more terrifying is this: who sealed away the ancient world, and who is releasing it now?"
Guo Xiaodie tugged at her bodice to fan away the heat within her. She downed the cup of tea in one gulp, and finding it unsatisfying, grabbed the teapot to chug straight from the spout.
Wiping her lips, she hitched up her skirt, planted one foot on the tea table, and declared loudly, "There must be a massive conspiracy behind this!"
As for what that conspiracy was, she could not say.
Yuan Qi nodded repeatedly. Sipping his tea in a remarkably demure, refined manner, he whispered, "The one stirring up the mud behind the scenes is the most frightening of all. I suspect this whole thing is..."
He paused, then lowered his voice. "...a conspiracy by the human bastards targeting our ancient monster Qi Refiners! By sealing away the Qi Refiners, they destroyed our monster race's history, turning us into pathetic wretches who can only cultivate to the Qi Harvesting stage, condemned to endure servitude and discrimination! That is, until Monster King Xu made his miraculous debut, breaking past Qi Harvesting, courageously knocking on the pass, and leading our monster race down a path of rebellion against human tyranny—"
He abruptly stopped, noticing Guo Xiaodie, Yuan Weiyang, Uncle Xiao, and Xu Ying all staring at him with bizarre expressions.
Yuan Qi coughed, resuming his tea-drinking as if nothing had happened, and muttered under his breath, "Sooner or later, the truth will come to light."
Everyone looked at him again, expressions growing stranger.
Yuan Qi coughed once more, sitting upright with his eyes fixed straight ahead, and murmured softly, "Justice is never late; it just never shows up. Sooner or later..."
Paying no further heed to the snake demon's ramblings, the others continued sipping tea and cultivating, chatting and laughing in great ease.
Guo Xiaodie had never practiced Qi Refinement before, but now that she was cultivating Granny Tuo's Immortal Scripture, her cultivation progressed by leaps and bounds.
Xu Ying and Yuan Weiyang worked together to study whether they could help Yuan Qi open his Mud Pill secret depository. The two argued heatedly over whether the human body could only open a single secret depository.
As for Yuan Qi, he served as their test subject while stealing Xu Ying's Dao seeds on the side.
The bronze bell and Uncle Xiao both slacked off together. One hung suspended in Xu Ying's Dao field, waiting for Dao seeds to fall upon it before pilfering them, while the other sipped tea constantly, admiring the sunset.
Before they knew it, evening fell. With only two suns left hanging over the western mountains, they finally began making their way toward the other half of Mount Jiuyi's cliff.
Xu Ying suddenly remembered the staff-wielding elder who had warned them to beware of nightfall, and chuckled. "Do you remember that kindhearted old gentleman? He even warned us to watch out for the fierce ghost Qi Refiners here at night!"
Remembering him, the others sighed with feeling. "A truly benevolent man!"
Yuan Qi said, "Having braved so many perils, we feared ghosts, yet ghosts have never harmed us—it is the human heart that is truly wicked."
The bronze bell chuckled. "Did you forget being drained of your yang qi by ghost children and having two of your spirit fires blown out?"
Xu Ying asked, "Lord Bell, how much has your injury recovered?"
"Ten percent!" the bronze bell replied happily.
At that moment, inside the Subduing Fiends Hall, the staff-wielding elder sat upon the divine altar, his walking staff resting by his side. Staring into the water vat with gleaming eyes, he let out a low chuckle. "Those little brats truly came again."
He stood up, a ferocious glint in his eyes. "Today, I'll feast all for myself!"
Chapter 76