Chapter 210: Taixuan Zhiling Peak, Zhang Xuling!
“What pure strand of foolish Mist Gauze Qi. Hmm, so it’s that old toad from Yue Shan Daoist Academy, a disciple or grandson of Pan Hu…”
Master Zhang stepped on escaping light, formed a spell with hand seals as spiritual light gathered, and a strand of White Qi fell into his palm.
He couldn’t help but clap and chuckle lightly, saying,
“Afflicted by Mist Gauze Heavenly Law, one gives birth to seven kinds of Mist Gauze Qi: foolishness, greed, obsession, hatred, joy, anger, and fear. They arise from the Conscious Spirit of living beings, can be used as medicine, increase cultivation, or even sacrificially refine spells and treasures… the more the better, the more the better.”
Traces of Immortals in the world are like true dragons hiding their scales, mere glimpses that leave behind all sorts of legends among mortals.
Thus, countless seekers of Immortality visit Immortal Mountains everywhere, seeking the Immortal Path, all for Longevity.
Yet until their lifespan’s end, with body withered and spirit decayed, it’s nothing but flowers in a mirror or moon in water.
In this process.
The more obsessed, the more greed, obsession, hatred, joy, anger, and fear arise…
The more pure the Mist Gauze Qi contained becomes.
Waiting only for an Immortal to appear in person, it can then be absorbed, turning into provisions for the Immortal Path.
This is Taiyi descending to the mortal world, an Immortal appearing in person, also known as a Mist Gauze encounter.
And between higher realm Immortals and lower realm Immortals, it’s the same.
Even more cruel.
Master Zhang is a Qi Gathering Cultivator, his realm even higher than the Tian Xuan Saint.
But as the saying goes, ‘splitting lean meat from a heron’s leg, scraping oil from a mosquito’s belly’—cultivation lies in these ‘stitching skills’ sewn stitch by stitch.
No gain, however small, can be ignored.
Master Zhang rode escaping light, his figure turning into a tiny spore, smaller than dust, nearly merging with the void, heading toward Wuqing County.
Passing Bajia Village, he seemed to sense something, turned his escaping light, and suddenly landed behind the Mass Grave, in that Black Market newly relocated here.
Though it was merely sunset with the moon just rising, the Black Market already had many stalls set up, with calls rising and falling.
Mainly because recent Heavy Snow sealed the mountains, ships were stalled, prices soared in the Capital Region, times were tough, and everyone was poor.
The Black Market bosses could only extend working hours, setting up stalls earlier.
Stepping into the Black Market.
Master Zhang glanced indifferently at the Old Lady not far away, who was sheltering in an abandoned grave, her teeth black as pitch.
Beside the Old Lady were a big fat boy and a gaunt man.
Master Zhang discerned the terrain’s Qi, clearly seeing the lay of the land, and found a spot in the Black Market where Yin Energy was leaking.
Escaping light flashed, Master Zhang landed here and burrowed into the Grass.
Time passed, the moon hung high, people came and went in the Black Market.
Finally, it was nearly time to close stalls.
The Old Lady had guarded all night with no Client coming.
She couldn’t help but show some anger, grumpily tapped her Tobacco Pipe on the ground, then packed up her stall, tucked the big fat boy in her arms, and headed familiarly toward the direction of leaking Yin Energy in the Black Market.
The gaunt man He Qiang silently followed behind the Old Lady.
There was a black rope tied around his ankle.
One end extended into the Old Lady’s wrist.
“Good child, your Xiao Su has only just revived not long ago, her memory shattered, that’s why her temperament changed so much… She’s your own wife, endure a bit more, teach her more, and she’ll get better.”
Seeing He Qiang’s face tense, the Old Lady couldn’t help but comfort him warmly.
“Rest assured, once I hook that big debt and get the Fortune, I’ll rebuild your Martial Path Foundation for you, make you a proper True Intent Master again!”
At this, the Old Lady paused, her eyes showing suspicion.
Strange, the Client who last traded for the Obscure Bright Sand, why hasn’t he used it yet?
If you don’t use it, the debt remains virtual, not solidified.
Then I can’t hook the debt and take the power of Fortune.
It turned out the Old Lady had mixed in the Black Market for a century, taking no Money, only bartering.
No matter what Treasure a Client wanted, from all over the world or exotic Western Mysterious Items, she could find a way to get them.
And the Reward was for them to fetch this Black Gold Mountain Treasure Lamp from Wuqing County’s Private Agency.
In truth, this Black Gold Mountain Treasure Lamp was no remarkable treasure, with no divine wonders—just an old gauze lantern, worthless.
Even more, this lamp was originally the Old Lady’s own.
She had specially placed it in the county’s Private Agency for repeated fishing.
As long as others fetched the Black Gold Mountain Treasure Lamp, then bartered with it for what they needed.
In the Darkness, a certain debt formed between the two.
In value, the Black Gold Mountain Treasure Lamp was far below what the Client sought.
The greedier the Client, the bigger the lion’s mouth.
The greater the value gap, the greater the owed Karma, or debt.
Then the Old Lady could collect the benefits from it.
This was a once-and-for-all method, harming others to benefit herself.
But…
Why hasn’t that previous Client, the old man, used the Obscure Bright Sand yet?
He seemed quite urgent, probably preparing some trump card or backup.
No reason it’s taken this long without using it!
It can’t be that he bought it just for a sense of security, then shelved it unused?!
The Old Lady was thinking this as she passed a weed-choked, Yin Energy-laden place.
The next instant, a silent figure tailed behind the Old Lady, revealing Master Zhang’s form.
Master Zhang said nothing, attacking from behind.
He slapped his forehead, exhaled with a shout, Qi and Blood surging as he sprayed a blood arrow.
The blood arrow hit the air and sizzled like corrosion, rising into a blue-indigo light mist that swept all directions like miasma covering the sky, plague infecting the land, instantly engulfing the Old Lady.
Looking closely, the light mist from the blood arrow was clearly tiny dust-like particles, seemingly spores released by some strange spiritual mushroom.
Penetrating everywhere, like maggots in the bones!
“Aaaah!!!”
A shrill scream rang out.
In the light mist, pieces of dark Pig Skin rained down.
The Old Lady spat several mouthfuls of Essence Blood, using the moment the black Pig Skin blocked to dart away, her face deathly pale like a female ghost.
She looked at Master Zhang in horror.
Especially as the Old Lady sensed Master Zhang’s aura, she was on the verge of tears.
Mid Qi Gathering?
No, late Qi Gathering, even higher!
Your realm crushes mine, and you seem from a superior Dharma lineage, complete system pointing straight to the Great Dao…
And you specifically squatted in the Grass to ambush me?!
Seemed like quite a while too!
The Old Lady hurriedly said,
“Fellow Daoist, misunderstanding! I’m from Fu Rang Sacred Cult. May I ask where you sought the Dao on which Immortal Mountain?”
Seeing the ambush fail without slaying the Old Lady in one strike, Master Zhang felt some regret.
He silently withdrew his hand, his gaze returning to warmth, calmly saying,
“Ao Shan Daoist Academy, Tai Xuan Mushroom Spirit Peak, Qi Gathering Immortal, Zhang Xuling!”
Tai Xuan Mushroom Spirit Peak?
From Tongzhou Zhang Family?
The Old Lady gritted her teeth and said,
“Fellow Daoist, we have no prior acquaintance, no grudge—why come to Life and Death blows?”
Zhang Xuling heard this and strangely glanced at the Old Lady, saying,
“Didn’t you tell me to come here confessing my wrongs to see you?”
“I’ve come, so don’t run.”
…
“Ran pretty fast… Fu Rang Sacred Cult’s fur-changing skin-shedding technique?”
A moment later.
Zhang Xuling narrowed his eyes at the bloody Pig Skin underfoot, with half-exposed Organs and pig bones beneath.
Seeming to prove the Old Lady was not human.
The surroundings were a mess of broken trees and cracked earth, nearly scorched land.
The air still lingered with undissipated Yin Sha Qi, hugging the ground like thin gauze over the slope, blocking even daylight.
No matter how much commotion had erupted here or how the terrain changed, the Black Market crowd not far away remained oblivious.
Even the occasional passersby afflicted by the Yin Sha Qi saw it as normal, unaware of their mysteriously lost Lifespan.
Zhang Xuling shook his head, reached out to gather some debris from the ground.
Though the Old Lady had escaped with half a remnant life, she was stripped bare, unable to take anything.
“Eh, this lamp… this wretch has no shame, scamming mortals here? Truly a disgrace to our kind.”
Zhang Xuling took one look at the Black Gold Mountain Treasure Lamp and knew its use, shaking his head as he pocketed it…
If there’s a chance, he could Extort a bit.
Extort the Old Lady.
Extort the mortals scammed by the Old Lady.
Even mosquito legs are meat…
Then, Zhang Xuling looked at the big fat boy sprawled on the ground, looking like a lucky doll.
The red cord tied to him was fully snapped.
Zhang Xuling smiled lightly: “An Xiantian demon thing, a Spirit Ginseng King turned sentient—hurry and show your true form. Follow me back to the peak to comprehend the Tai Xuan Great Dao? Better than being caught by Yue Shan Daoist Academy as medicine dregs.”
The big fat boy looked at the Daoist before him, instinctively feeling some Intimacy, didn’t resist, rolled on the spot, and turned into a spiritual ginseng with a green leafy stem on top, as long as a forearm.
Whoosh, it burrowed into Zhang Xuling’s sleeve.
Zhang Xuling nodded in satisfaction, about to step away.
“Immortal Master!”
Suddenly, a hesitant trembling voice rang out.
He Qiang stared dazedly at Zhang Xuling, his gaze shaking with awe, yearning…
Thud!
Suddenly, he knelt, kowtowing like pounding garlic, begging Zhang Xuling,
“Please, Immortal, revive my Xiao Su. Even if I serve as your ox or horse for ten lifetimes, I’d do it willingly!”
“Tch!”
Zhang Xuling shook his head, saying,
“A mere mortal whose Foundation is ruined isn’t qualified to serve me as ox or horse… The dead can’t revive, and what’s revived isn’t the original person. Don’t be so obsessed, and don’t mix with that old hag—it’s disaster, not fortune for you…”
With that, Zhang Xuling was about to step on escaping light and leave.
In the end, he froze, looked up at the sky, eyes blank.
He paused silently, turned around, his gaze warm as he cupped hands to He Qiang, saying,
“This brother, what’s happened in Wuqing County? I’m looking for someone.”
Moments later.
Zhang Xuling drifted away.
He Qiang stood lost in the same spot.
Dawn light just washed over the dark peaks’ tops, casting flickering borders at the base that hid He Qiang within.
Not long after, he seemed to make some decision, the confusion and dullness in his eyes fading.
His expression resolute, he ran a few steps, then plunged into the shadowed base of the peaks where sunlight couldn’t reach.
That was the direction the Old Lady had fled.
