Chapter 474: Chapter 246: Eradicating Treachery and Evil, Aiding the Distressed and Vulnerable (Part 2)
No trade, no kill. Xu Qing, this person holds grudges. He had his revenge with the Daoists of the Ruyi Temple and the foxes of Baiyun Cave, but the dog Emperor seeking immortality behind the scenes is still alive and well.
If Xu Qing says this to others, he likely wouldn’t get a response, but coincidentally, the Yuan Gong he met was inherently a restless fellow!
Yuan Gong said, seemingly casually: "The human emperor is protected by national fortune, even if dynasties change, it is ordained by the heavens. If his fate is not to end, even gods descending cannot harm him.
Persisting in this way will not only yield nothing but will also bring about divine retribution."
Just when Xu Qing thought Yuan Gong was advising him to let go of his hatred and move on, Yuan Gong suddenly said:
"However, times have changed, they are not as they were. With the Heaven-Reaching Road closed, not only is the sky separated from the earth, but the fortunes of human emperors are also blocked. If the protection of national fortune is broken, even an emperor cannot resist the erosion of the Five Filthy Evil Worlds, and then, perhaps even an old woman could slay a dragon."
"Oh, why am I saying this? I am but a mud-soaked puppet, how can I be concerned with matters of the mundane world..."
"..."
Xu Qing fell into thought.
Coincidentally, in the Baiyun Cave Heavenly Illusion, Yuan Gong also found Xuan Yu and struck up a casual chat.
"From young Xu’s mouth, I learned that the fox demon of Baiyun Cave once entered his dream and was dispelled by him using incense."
"That wild fox is notoriously vengeful, Xu stirred her up, and in the future, it will not be easy for him!"
It is said that old people are wise, and old horses are slick; when gods get old, they become both wise and slick.
Yuan Gong could tell that the girl in front of him was full of concerns about Xu Immortal Family. To bait this girl, Xu Qing needed to be the lure.
Sure enough, upon hearing this, Xuan Yu the cat became tense.
"Is that fox demon really powerful?"
"More than powerful! Even if my true self descends, I might not be able to subdue her for a while."
Yuan Gong sighed: "With young Xu’s temperament, he usually wouldn’t entangle with the fox demon. Leaving the dream would naturally resolve everything, but he insists on not doing so."
"Can you guess why he is so adamant, determined to offend that fox demon?"
"Did the fox demon steal business from Xu Immortal Family?" Xuan Yu instinctively considered severe possibilities. The cause for resentment must be significant, such as stolen business or bodies.
Stealing bodies meant for Xu Immortal Family is indeed a serious matter.
If that’s the case, it’s not surprising that Xu Immortal Family wouldn’t let go of the old fox.
Stealing business? What business?
Yuan Gong shook his head and said: "All of Baiyun Daoist’s skills were taught by that fox demon. Without the fox demon of Baiyun Cave, you wouldn’t have lost a life."
"He was seeking vengeance for you, choosing to offend that fox, even though she had already become a celestial fox."
"..."
Seeing Xuan Yu silent, Yuan Gong continued: "Heavenly deities do not intervene in the mortal world; with the balance of yin and yang lost, the seal of Baiyun Cave will eventually be broken by that fox, and with young Xu’s skills, he couldn’t possibly be a match for the celestial fox."
"However, fortunately, young Xu inadvertently dispelled one of the fox demon’s manifestations in the dream, causing her significant harm. To break the seal, she would take at least another dozen years to recover."
Yuan Gong mused: "This fox demon, eager to escape her bindings early, would certainly let out another manifestation, waiting for someone to find Baiyun Cave. She’d then teach the evil technique for seizing fate, thereby shortening or even erasing that loss of years."
Xuan Yu perked up its ears and listened quietly.
"Unfortunately, she already knows young Xu’s aura. If he approached Baiyun Cave again, her manifestation wouldn’t allow him entrance into the dream."
"Only unfamiliar auras would be granted access."
Upon hearing this, Xuan Yu suddenly understood why Yuan Gong was telling it these things.
The old fox hadn’t seen its aura, so if it went to Baiyun Cave, the manifestation of the old fox might lure it into the dream.
Yuan Gong observed the deep-thinking Xuan Yu and spoke again: "The only thing the fox demon of Baiyun Cave relies on is that Ghost-Head Divine Blade. Though formidable, it is not invincible."
"The Profound Lady once used the Profound Lady Sword Formulas and the Female and Male Sword Pills to break the real body of the divine blade, let alone the divine blade used by a mere manifestation."
Xuan Yu lowered its head in silence. Before coming to Yunmeng Mountain, it feared the events from seven years ago and dared not even think of avenging against Baiyun Daoist.
The old hag in Baiyun Cave is, in some sense, the master of the Ruyi Temple demonic Daoist; how mighty must she be?
In the past, Xuan Yu would never choose to risk so brazenly seeking revenge against the old fox. This is tied to the feline nature—cats avoid injury...
But ever since leaving the Jin Sect and returning to Yunmeng, Xuan Yu was no longer the timid cat it once was!
The girl’s gaze became more determined.
Since Xu Immortal Family suffered due to the severing of an old hag’s manifestation because of it, then it should also go to Baiyun Cave, deceive that old hag out, and sever one of her manifestations in return. This is what companions should do for each other.
Outside Mingyue Gully, Xu Qing was clueless; the only change he noticed was Xuan Yu training harder.
From dawn to dusk, nearly every time he returned from practicing the Celestial Scripture’s escape technique, he’d see Xuan Yu refining sword pills and practicing facing the enemy with swords.
Xu Qing stopped and watched, feeling from afar the killing intent embedded in the two sword pills.
Who offended this cat?
The last time Xu Qing saw Xuan Yu in this state was facing Baiyun Daoist at the Ruyi Temple.
Xu Qing had a nagging feeling something was wrong. Not long ago, Yuan Gong had approached him, wanting Xuan Yu to act as bait to lure and kill a strand of the holy witch’s manifestation.
Xu Qing hadn’t agreed, as he hadn’t quite grasped how powerful Baiyun Cave’s holy witch’s manifestation was. Back then, he aimed for a swift resolution, directly stacking the Celestial Ax Technique’s eighteen tiers, obliterating the so-called holy witch with a single swing.
Yet, regarding the specific strength of the old fox’s manifestation, Xu Qing couldn’t guarantee that Xuan Yu could defeat her in the dream and escape unscathed.
He didn’t want Xuan Yu to take risks. Seven years ago, Xuan Yu lost a life here, and if anything happened to him again...
Xu Qing wouldn’t feel comfortable.
Realizing Xuan Yu’s unusual behavior, Xu Qing immediately thought of Yuan Gong.
This old white ape had rebellion hidden behind its mind, never following rules, likely orchestrating things in secrecy.
There stood Xu Qing using the Divine Travel Celestial Scripture. Within a twenty-mile radius of Mingyue Gully, a map unfolded in his mind. With a single thought, he appeared before Yuan Gong’s statue.
Feeling the magical power drain within him, even Xu Qing, now adapted to the escape technique, found it hard to handle.
This teleporting Celestial technique was beyond his current capability, although Xu Qing harnessed five layers of magical power: Black Corpse transformation, Fur Corpse transformation, Fire Corpse transformation, plus the innate metallic magic of zombies, and the earth-element magic aligning with the land, all accessible to him.
Among these, the water-aspect power of Black Corpse was the strongest, yet a mere ten-mile precise teleportation had drained half of his water strength.
Until he becomes a Celestial Corpse Kui Ba, he can’t fully wield the power of this escape technique.
Xu Qing placed the Water-Soaked Bowl on his head, much like the water monkey raised by the Waterworker Daoist, and prepared to question Yuan Gong, only to find the stone statue before him had somehow closed its eyes and no longer harbored any divinity.
Using incense offerings from Bao Sheng Temple bore no result either.
The last manifestation of Yuan Gong left in the human realm had already dissipated.
Xu Qing decided to find Xuan Yu, to discover what had been going on!
However, returning to where Xuan Yu was supposed to be, Xu Qing found the cat already gone.