Chapter 181: The Heart Array Stone
Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
"That... ahem!" Lan Hui gave a cough. "It's good that they are not influenced by the illusions."
Shen Ying: "Heh heh..." Suddenly she did not feel like coming to their rescue.
"Who are you?" The two men, who had just drawn in their swords, turned to face the three people who stood a short distance away, their expressions darkening. "Hmph! You still don't know when to give up! Now you've even transformed into three persons."
Lonemoon snorted coldly. Gripping his sword tightly, he prepared to charge at them.
"Wait! "Yi Qing pulled him back. "Let's make sure."
Stepping forwards, he scanned the three people before him, then turning to Shen Ying, asked, "Master, what do you want to eat for lunch?"
Shen Ying's mouth twitched in irritation. She looked back at Father Niu, then said through gritted teeth, "Immortal crane!"
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Yi Qing: "..."
Lonemoon: "..."
OK, what she said was true.
"Where did you go, why did you take so long to come?" Lonemoon heaved a sigh of relief before walking over. He did not look surprised to see Chu Xuan, whose face was badly bruised and swollen, but exclaimed when he saw Lan Hua, "Why is he here?""
"These two "Chicken oil 1 " friends just reunited!" Shen Ying explained.
What "Chicken oil"?
Lan Hua looked baffled by their exchange, but in view of the current situation, refrained from asking. Pointing to the flower meadow, he said, "This is the Illusion Valley. All these flowers can create a false illusion in the mind. Your other disciples are all trapped inside, save them quickly. They won't be able to escape if they stay too long here."
The two men's expressions darkened. Yi Qing asked, "Let me know their locations."
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"Thirty meters south-west and to the east..." Lan Hua answered, having already memorized their exact locations. "Time is short. Let's split up to look for..."
Before he could finish his sentence, Yi Qing turned around and struck out with his sword. Blades of sword qi shot out and then condensed to form several huge dragons. The dragons charged out in different directions. In their wake, grass and flowers were uprooted, earth and dust flew everywhere; an entire layer of ground was sliced away. Within moments, the whole flower meadow, apart from those near the five specified directions was reduced to a barren dirt field.
"Thanks!" Yi Qing summoned his sword and saluted.
Chu Xuan: "..."
Lan Hua: "..."
This sword qi... You call him a young emperor!! Who are you kidding? What happened in the immortal realm during the years he was cultivating to be a demon?
Shen Ying and Lonemoon walked towards the directions of their disciples as if nothing unusual had happened. As the flower meadow was now destroyed, the disciples woke up from their dream world.
"How do we... destroy this array?" asked Lonemoon.
Although they were now safe, there were several people still trapped in other locations that they had to rescue. Moreover they were still trapped in the primordial spirit stage and could not return to their bodies unless the array was destroyed.
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Shen Ying paused in thought for a moment, then turned behind to look at Chu Xuan.
Chu Xuan shivered and quickly told them all he knew. "That ... Actually the Illusion Valley is also located within the Immortal Execution Array so the Heart Array Stone... should also be somewhere nearby."
Chu Xuan did not expect that these people could deal with the illusion valley so easily. Although they had entered the array, it would not have trapped them for long.
"Then let's go and find the Heart Array Stone." Lonemoon gave a few instructions to Yu Hong and set up an array to prevent them from getting lost. Then he led the group of disciples and headed towards the cloud of fog.
"By the way." Shen Ying halted as a thought suddenly occurred to her. "Boss, put this necklace back on." He looked weird under that layer of black smoke.
Lan Hua paused in surprise. Was she... worried that the other immortals would find out that he was from the demon tribe when they regained consciousness? His heart warmed and a familiar feeling overwhelmed him. His hand moved involuntarily to his collar...
Wait a moment! Good Heart, don't be rash!
Σ(°△°|||)
Even if he had no immortal stones, he should not offer her his clothes!
Lan Hua felt an impulse to kill himself. Suddenly he had a eureka moment and turned to grab Chu Xuan.
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"You... wanted to repay your debt to me, right?"
Chu Xuan was overjoyed. "Master! You've... finally acknowledged me."
"Do you have a storage bag?" Before Chu Xuan could finish speaking, Lan Hua reached out his hand to him.
"Yes... I have." Chu Xuan handed it over.
So the next moment, he saw his benefactor open the bag, remove its contents one by one and then shove it to the Shen lady immortal in front of him. While removing the items, he said, "I don't know what these things are? But take them, take them!" As long as he did not have to remove his clothes.
Oh ho! So this Boss has his uses. Lonemoon's eyes gleamed. He fished out an empty bag from robes and handed it over to Shen Ying, saying, "Come, Shen Ying! Use this bag."
Yi Qing: "..."
All the disciples: "..."
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Chu Xuan: "..." His heart hurt deeply but he could not speak up.
It had to be said, emperors were a wealthy lot. Lan Hua kept fishing inside the bag for almost an hour before he confiscated all the priceless objects inside it.
"Emperor... Emperor..." blurted out Chu Xuan as he looked in disbelief at the empty storage bag he was holding. "How is this Shen... Exalted Goddess related to you?"
"She's my Good Heart. Can't you tell?"
"Good ... Heart?" Chu Xuan subconsciously touched his swollen face. "You're sure she's your Good Heart... and not your Demon Heart?"
"..."
————————
The group of them walked towards the cloud of smog. Apart from some flowers, they did not meet with any danger. After walking for about an hour, Lonemoon, the only expert in array formations, suddenly stopped in his tracks.
"The eye of the formation should be just ahead of us." He said, pointing ahead.
Yi Qing conjured a wind seal. Instantly, a huge gust of wind rose and blew away the thick smog, revealing a stone table. Atop it lay various glittering gold dharmic talismans, surrounded by different kinds of array images. A stream of reddish liquid was flowing along the array images and seeping into the ground.
A man sat cross-legged In the middle of the formation with his eyes closed. Blood was dripping continuously from a cut in his hand.
"Chen Ge!" Lonemoon exclaimed in surprise. Why was he here? And it was not his primordial spirit but his actual body sitting there.
"What's happening?" Lan Hua turned to look at Chu Xuan.
The expression in Chu Xuan's eyes as he looked at the man in the center of the array still bore a hint of resentment. In a grudging tone he explained, "This array was originally laid out using his blood as a catalyst. So his body is what maintains the eye of the formation." If everything went smoothly, the array would vanish once his body was drained of the last drop of blood and all his immortal qi dissipated completely. Besides, Chen Ge was the one in the array with the highest level of cultivation level, so naturally he was most suitable to be the eye of the array.
"He's now one with Zhu Xian, his body is controlled by the array and his primordial spirit is not in his body. The Heart Array Stone is under his feet. To destroy the array, we need to defeat him."
"I can't think of a way to make him leave the Heart Array Stone." He looked a little timidly at Shen Ying before continuing, "So... that's why I said it cannot be destroyed. If you want to destroy it, you have to fight him. One of you will be injured or even die. He's your Feng Cang Celestial Emperor, I'm sure you won't want to injure... Huh? Huh!"
Before he could complete his sentence, Yi Qing and Lonemoon had already rushed out with their swords. They showed no signs of hesitation as they swung their swords down on Chen Ge. At the same instant, the man inside the array, Chen Ge, opened his eyes. There was no focus in his gaze. His movements as he fought with them were as mechanical as a wooden puppet .
What luck! They had been waiting to beat this asshole for the longest time!
Chu Xuan: "..."
Was it an error of perception? Why did he have the feeling that these two sword immortals seemed overly eager to fight? Don't the citizens of Feng Cang continent look up to their emperor?
Chapter 182: A Vacancy For An Emperor
Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
Shen Ying's group left Heavens beyond Heaven the second day after the destruction of the array. They handed Chu Xuan over to Chen Ge immediately once all the emperors had regained consciousness. After all, this matter concerned the two continents and the Invincible Sect was a part of Feng Cang continent. Chu Xuan had set up the Zhu Xian Array to incite discord within the continent. Hence this matter was best left to Chen Ge, who was an emperor as well, to handle.
Chu Xuan accepted the matter well and did not put up any resistance when Chen Ge sealed all the immortal qi in his body. Whether due to being intimidated by the presence of Shen Ying or because he was certain that Chen Ge dared not do anything to him, no one knew for sure. He was He Chuan' ruler after all; his death would trigger an all out war between the two continents.
Although they did not know how Chen Ge would handle the matter, they guessed that it would keep him busy for some time.
Unlike the other emperors who were still indignant over the matter, Lonemoon was uninterested in this type of political intrigue and left with his group of disciples. Their immortal boat and just reached the entrance of Heavens beyond Heaven when a ray of dusky light flashed across the entrance and they saw a figure come running towards them.
"Wait a moment!" It was Chen Ge. He flew over hurriedly and stopped in front of the boat. "Sect master Shen and Sect Elders. Why didn't you inform me that you were leaving. I could have sent you off."
Lonemoon took a look at Chen Ge's face, which was still swollen and puffy and subconsciously turned his head away. Waving his hand, he unlocked the boat's defensive array. Then he saluted him and said, "Celestial Emperor, why have you come?"
"All of you are my old friends. You're leaving, so naturally I have to send you off." said Chen Ge as he descended to the boat. He turned to face the three people before him and curved his lips into a smile. However, this action caused the cut on his lip to tear, causing him to retract his smile in pain.
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Lonemoon and Yi Qing both looked up at the sky. Er, this had nothing to do with them.
"Thanks to you two Sect Elders, I and the other emperors were able to escape unharmed from the Zhu Xian array." Chen Ge's thanked them gravely, a look of gratitude on his face.
The three of them: "..."
They felt an inexplicable feeling of guilt. They realized that he had come alone, unlike before, when he was always accompanied by an entourage of palace staff.
"Ahem... Er, Celestial Emperor is too kind. We just did our duty as Feng Cang's citizens. Besides... wasn't it Celestial Emperor who destroyed the array?"
Everyone had come out of the array unscathed, except Chen Ge, who emerged with a swollen face. As this could not be easily explained away, Lonemoon and Yi Qing decided to tell everyone that the array was destroyed by Chen Ge. They were only his side-kicks. After all, during their fight, his primordial spirit was not within his body. He would not find out... they hoped?
"Fellow Immortal Lonemoon exaggerates my capability." Chen Ge gave a sigh and said with a grateful expression, "The rest of the emperors do not know the truth, but I do."
"What?" Lonemoon's heart leaped. Wasn't Che Ge's primordial spirit missing then? Has he come here to seek revenge?
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"At that time, my primordial spirit had left my body. I couldn't move, so how could I have destroyed the array and rescued the emperors?" Chen Ge sighed again. With a look of deep sincerity, he said, "So... you two were the ones who destroyed the array and you must have been the ones who protected my body in the array."
Everyone: "...." Do the other immortals know there is a hole in your brain?
"You did it to raise my standing in the eyes of the other emperors. That's why you told them that I was the one who destroyed the array." Chen Ge said with a look of conviction on his face.
"Hahaha..." Lonemoon laughed heartily and answered without a hint of embarrassment, "It seems nothing can escape your eyes."
Yi Qing: "..."
Shen Ying: "..."
With such thick skin, he's without doubt a true businessman!
"We haven't seen each other for a long time, I thought that we had grown apart," said Chen Ge, shaking his head. "I never thought that you would be the ones to come to my aid at the critical moment. This is the second time that the two of you have helped me. I'm... deeply grateful." He bent down and bowed deeply to the three of them.
Lonemoon suddenly felt that he had been too heavy-handed towards Chen Ge.
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"You're welcome, Celestial Emperor, it's... our duty." After all, they themselves had been trapped in the array. Moreover, the Invincible Sect was also a part of Feng Cang.
Chen Ge became even more emotional. Then seemingly recalling something, he frowned and said, "There was indeed a problem during the Immortal Competition. Hui Ling... It was my fault for not being strict with her. I have already withdrawn her champion's title and ordered her to stay in seclusion for a hundred years. I'll also launch an investigation to find out how she managed to win the competition."
So saying he waved his hand and an immortal artifact instantly floated in front of them. This was the prize given to the Earth Immortal's champion. "It was a negligence on my part. I wasn't aware of my disciple's wrong actions and was biased. I hope you won't hold this against me."
Lonemoon fell silent, not knowing how to answer him. Shen Ying reached out to take the dharmic artifact from Chen Ge, thanking him, "Don't worry. We won't."
Then she tossed the artifact to the disciple clad in purple behind her. "Little Violet, it's yours."
The disciple, who was originally the Earth Immortal's second placed winner, caught hold of it reflexively. Looking a little dazed, she said, "Thank you... thank you Sect Master." This prize is given by Sect Master! Happiness!
"Sect Master Shen is truly magnanimous. Chen Ge thanks you." Chen Ge saluted them and after exchanging some pleasantries with Lonemoon, turned towards Yi Qing and said, "Actually I have a request to ask of Fellow Immortal Yi Qing."
Lonemoon frowned. He had been wondering why Chen Ge had been so friendly.
"What favor?" asked Yi Qing.
Chen Ge took out a white object that looked like a seal and continued, "This is the immortal seal of the Chong Lan country. Ge You betrayed Feng Cang, so naturally he has lost the right to be its emperor. As Brother Yi Qing has the highest cultivation level in Chong Lan, I would like to ask you to replace Ge You as its ruler."
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"Ruler!"
Lonemoon and the other disciples were stunned. He had guessed that it would be no small matter, he even thought Chen Ge might ask Yi Qing to help him wage war against He Chuan. Yi Qing, with his skills, was certainly on par with Ge You. He never imagined that Chen Ge would request Yi Qing to take over as Chong Lan's ruler.
"Fellow Immortal Yi Qing is already a young emperor, as well as a sword cultivator. There is no one in Chong Lan who is as powerful as you. So you are the best..."
"I can't!"
"What?" Chen Ge exclaimed, seemingly surprised by his rejection. "Why?"
"Because..." Yi Qing replied gravely, " I won't have time to cook for Master then."
Chen Ge: "..." What the heck!
Lonemoon: "..." You're a bloody immortal chef!
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Shen Ying: "..." What a good chef.
Lonemoon's mouth twitched in exasperation. Sighing, he answered on behalf of Yi Qing. "Thank you for your kind offer. But this matter of a new ruler is of utmost importance, not anyone with a high cultivation level can take on the role. Yi Qing used to be an itinerant cultivator. I'm afraid he's not suited for governance." If Yi Qing took on the role, officially he would be the ruler, but knowing the freakish characters of the master-disciple duo, it would be left to him to do the dirty job! Taking care of the two hundred immortals in Invincible Sect was already sapping his energy, if he had to manage a whole country... Heh heh... He had no wish to shorten his lifespan!
This request has to be rejected!
"I know that all of you here have noble characters, fame and power hold no attraction for you. But..." Chen Ge looked conflicted. He had no choice, Chong Lan needed a ruler, and they were the most suitable.
"In that case ..." There was a gleam in Lonemoon's eyes as he suggested, "Shall I recommend someone to you?"
"Really?" Chen Ge's eyes shone in hopeful anticipation.
"Yes, yes, yes." Lonemoon nodded his head emphatically. "He's the best choice."
"I naturally trust Fellow Immortal Lonemoon's judgement. Who is he?"
"He's..."
***
A few miles away.
Ah choo!
Xun Shu, who was just about to lead his tribe members home, suddenly let out a loud sneeze. Why did he suddenly feel a cold draft behind him?
Chapter 183: Collective Buff
Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
Four hours later.
The Ten-Direction Ship finally left the Heavens beyond Heaven and headed in the direction of the country of Chong Zhen.
"Hey!" Lonemoon nudged the lump of mud who was curled up on the chair, munching on fruits. "What happened to you this time? You didn't seem like you at all – you forgave Chen Ge and his disciple so easily." Was she usually so magnanimous toward people who agitated her?
"Why shouldn't I forgive them?" Shen Ying looked at him suspiciously. "What did he do wrong?"
"Does that need saying..." He looked at her as if her Alzheimer's was acting up again.
"What did he do?"
"He..." Lonemoon suddenly stopped himself mid-sentence to think. It seemed like Chen Ge really did not do anything wrong. Instead, he was beaten up by both Lonemoon and Yi Qing for no reason. "Hui Ling... That little brat... I thought you couldn't stand her?"
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"Who says I can't stand her?"
"You must be kidding me!" Lonemoon scanned her from head to toe. Why did this saint-like character of hers only appearing now? "Did you forget what she said to you back at the main hall? She was obviously mistaken about your identity and jealous that you were the only emperor who was a female – that was why she tried to challenge you. She even tried to intimidate you in the name of being a disciple of the Celestial Emperor."
"I haven't forgotten that!" Shen Ying still looked lazy. She picked up a cup of green tea and sipped it.
"And during the competition, she cheated in front of everyone. if she had not depended on the person inside the necklace,
"Oh... and?"
"And then?!" Lonemoon's eyes widened. "There are already two matters and you're not in the least bit angry!"
"I am."
"Then you..." Lonemoon was really confused now.
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Shen Ying raised her head to look at him, and then looked around at the other disciples. Suddenly, she set down the fruit that she was munching on and sighed deeply. How troublesome!
"Father Niu, exactly what kind of person am I in your eyes?" She lowered her voice and sounded extremely serious.
"Huh?" Lonemoon paused, wondering why Shen Ying was asking him this.
"That little Green Tea girl did offend me, but I've already paid her back for it. She did cheat, but she was already exposed and she already apologised to Salted Fish. She also tried to make amends. She has been punished enough., is that not right?"
"But..."
"What do you want me to do? Smash her head?"
"..."
"Apart from these two matters, she has not done anything to harm anyone else right? If someone must be put to death just because she cheated in a competition and said some mean things to someone else, would that not be too scary?" Shen Ying was extremely stern. "I don't like her, and I think she's annoying and hypocritical, but I can't kill her just because I don't like her, right?"
"..."
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"In your eyes, am I such a... murderer who does not care for what the victim thinks? Someone who cannot accept an opposing view?"
"..."
"Everyone has the right to find other people annoying, but they cannot use their own morals to judge others," Shen Ying continued. "Take Salted Fish for example – I know that you hated him from the beginning because of the novel. But in actual fact, did he do anything wrong? As a Celestial Emperor, he tried his best to protect the various emperors under him. As a master, he tried his best to protect his student but also did his best to correct the situation the moment he realised something was wrong. He even personally punished his disciple. As someone we used to know, he invited us to join the Mystic Spirits and Immortals Meeting just to scare the various emperors into putting down their hatred. Should we choose to blind ourselves to all of these facts just because he's the male lead in the novel? Should we insist that he has ulterior motives to everything he does?
"..."
"Father Niu... Since when did I become such a narrow-minded and ignorant wastrel?"
Everyone in the ship was dead silent.
Lonemoon was extremely confused. It was only then that he started to truly reflect on everything that happened in the Heavens beyond Heaven in the past few days. Putting aside the prejudice he held against Chen Ge, it seemed like... he really did not do anything harmful toward them. Instead, from the beginning, he seemed to be on Invincible Sect's side. He ignored the request of the various emperors and even let the Invincible Sect take part in the great competition.
Although Shen Ying was there and the sect did not really care for his gestures, it was a fact that Chen Ge did not know this. He did not even know about the Immortal Execution Array. All along, he thought that Yi Qing and Lonemoon were the ones who broke the array. So he really... did all he could to help Invincible Sect. Although they did not need his help, could he really ignore all his efforts just because it did not benefit them in the least?
Of course, there was the fact that after Hui Ling offended Shen Ying, Chen Ge only punished her for one day and let her off the hook the next day. But no matter what, the most that Lonemoon could say was Hui Ling being rude to them. In modern times, this did not even count as an offence. As one of the disciples who was to compete as well – it did not seem all that unreasonable to lock her up for just one day.
Why was he treating the both of them so harshly?
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In his heart, he knew that the novel was the reason for the way he felt. Before this, he was afraid that things would develop as they did in the novel. It took him plenty of effort to accept that the novel was very different from reality, yet now he could not escape his view of the characters in the novel.
Just because Chen Ge was the male lead and Hui Ling being the new female lead, Lonemoon developed a prejudice against the both of them. He was sure that they would bring only harm to the people around them. This was the lasting impression that they made on Lonemoon. He did not even like Xuan Tong that much in the beginning. He only gradually accepted her after Hui Ling appeared.
Now, he was trapped in this impression of them and unable to see reality clearly. He even... he even thought of making the two of them disappear off the face of the earth forever.
Lonemoon's heart jumped and he stopped himself just before he fell off the ship. Suddenly, everything was clear. It felt like a fog that was there for a long time had finally cleared. He faintly felt something that had been buried inside for a long time threatening to explode.
"Shen Ying..."
"Huh?" Shen Ying paused. "You're not going to ask us to turn around so we can kill them, are you?"
"No, it's merely a suggestion."
"What?"
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Suddenly, Lonemoon broke into a grin. "The next time you want to have a serious conversation with me... Can we not do it in the sky?"
"Huh?"
Shen Ying had not even asked before a great burst of immortal Qi shot through Lonemoon's body. His entire body seemed to be glowing and the white light was blinding. Below his feet, the top-grade immortal artifact, the Ten-Direction Ship, suddenly cracked with a loud sound.
Holy shit!
Shen Ying lost her balance and almost fell over.
"Master!" Fortunately, Yi Qing reacted very quickly and caught her, placing her atop his flying sword. They flew outside of the reach of the immortal Qi.
"What's happening?"
"He's having an epiphany."
Damn! Father Niu's ability to have epiphanies mid-conversation was still going strong!
"Where's the rest?"
"I think.. they're also having epiphanies."
"..."
Shen Ying felt like she just activated a buff for the entire sect.
"Wait..." Shen Ying's expression changed. She subconsciously tried to go back to where Lonemoon was. "Father Niu! You haven't given me my allowance!"
"..."
Chapter 184: Stealing A Lamp In The Middle Of The Night
Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
Everyone's cultivation was greatly boosted in this group BUFF, especially Si Yu and Yu Hong, who directly rose to mystic immortals. Father Niu's cultivation was unchanged, he was still an exalted immortal, except that the immortal qi in his body had increased to the level of a young emperor. As they were not far from Heavens beyond Heaven, they headed back and made a trip to the Immortal Ascension Stage.
However, ever since their epiphanies, the immortal qi in their bodies seemed different from before. In the past, their Qi was clear and pristine, now it was colored with streaks of gold and pulsated around their bodies. This was true especially in the case of Father Niu, who had to rein in his Qi, else the golden streaks of Qi would certainly condense into material form.
Yi Qing investigated this phenomenon for almost half a day but still could not make out what these golden streaks were. Even Feng Ying, who used his system to scan it, did not get a conclusive result. All his system said was that it was harmless.
With all these delays, it was almost four months later before they reached Invincible Sect.
Everything was as usual at the Invincible Sect. Although they no longer had the demonic Qi to train in, with the aid of their numerous dharma treasures, their cultivation levels continue to grow. Especially Xuan Tong, who showed signs of developing immortal bones. Although her progress was slower compared to the other disciples, but taking into consideration that her cultivation was limited by the stabilisation effect of her necklace, the fact that she had improved this much showed commendable effort on her part.
Roasted Chicken Gal was naturally very pleased with her. In order that Xuan Tong could have a quiet seclusion for her cultivation, she asked permission from Lonemoon to build a cave abode at the base of the mountain where the immortal qi was densest. Every once in a while she would go there to check on Xuan Tong. This angered Feng Ying, who felt like a neglected boyfriend.
Two months later...
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"Hey, plant Radish at the back of the mountain later. I've left a plot on the north side for him. Plant him in the biggest pit there." With a wave of his sleeve, Lonemoon tossed a man-sized flower pot over to Shen Ying. A green radish lay in the center of the pot. It was throwing pebbles with its leaves in a bored manner. Every one of pebbles was aimed at Lonemoon. However, the defensive array formation outside the pot rendered his efforts futile.
"What for?" Shen Ying swallowed the last mouthful of rice and glanced at the pot. Didn't Radish already have his own pit at the back of the mountain?
"The old pit is too remote. We'll plant him inside the immortal vein so that the immortal herbs can grow faster." The herbs that Wu Hong and Biao Ting sent them had already sprouted. Those two immortal emperors, afraid that their herbs would not grow well, even insisted on giving them two immortal veins as gifts. Now that he had embedded the vein into the back of the mountain and adjusted the array there as well, Radish had to change his pit as well.
"It's so troublesome, why did you pick me to do it?" Shen Ying instantly felt her whole body starting to ache.
"If you don't go, you think Radish will be willing to be planted there?" Lonemoon rolled his eyes at her. Radish's stubborn character was all her fault. She had spoiled him. The once pure and innocent vegetation spirit was showing signs of turning into a rebellious teenager. "It takes anywhere from a thousand to ten thousand years for immortal herbs to grow. If Radish doesn't help them to ripen faster, how can we use them to refine pills to earn money?"
Shen Ying asked softly, "Do we still need to plant these weeds to earn money?" Didn't we hit the big time recently?
"Do we need to?" Lonemoon bellowed. He got up and pounded his hand on the table. "Actually we won't need to if you stop your habit of taking in freeloaders!" He turned and pointed at Lan Hua angrily. "Xuan Tong was a special case. But how do you explain this fellow?" Isn't he from the demonic tribe? Why is he still here and eating at our table? Don't you know that immortals and demons are sworn enemies?"
"Don't be so concerned over these small details!"
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"Small details my foot!"
As a demon, not only did Lan Hua not hide from immortal cultivators, he openly came to an immortal sect for a meal. Yet the sect master and her disciples treated this situation as if it were perfectly normal.
Bloody hell! They were decent and abiding immortals!
"You were the ones who first captured me and then dragged me to Heavens beyond Heaven." Lan Hua retorted angrily. "Hmph! If you hadn't done that, I wouldn't be here."
"Then why don't you leave!" Lonemoon glared at him. Now, nobody has tied you up or detained you. Why are you still free loading here?
"Er..." Lan Hua was stumped. He realized that he was indeed free. He did not understand why he had lingered and even sat down for a meal with Shen Ying.
But his legs refused to move when he thought of leaving. After racking his head, he explained, "I... I can't leave because my Good Heart is here." What if something happened to her?
"Bullshit!" Lonemoon glared at him. "You left happily enough the other time." He remembered a certain someone hiding in the willow forest.
"..."
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OK, you win Father Niu!
Glaring at the two useless bums on the table, Lonemoon said threateningly, "We in Invincible Sect don't accept useless people as members. If you want to stay, you need to work. Understand?"
"Yes, yes, yes." The two of them nodded and continued their meal calmly.
Seeing no response from the two, Lonemoon instructed, "Yu Hong, ask the disciple who went to buy groceries to return at once."
The person who had been busy eating, jumped to her feet immediately.
"Don't worry, Father Niu, leave Radish to me. I'll definitely ensure a good crop of high quality spirit herbs!"
Then she picked up the flower pot and disappeared down the mountain.
Lonemoon turned to look at a certain someone who had remained behind. "You.."
"I'll start work too..." said Lan Hua, waving a melon in his hand.
So in the short space of a day, under the eagle eye of Lonemoon, the multi-talented, immortal emperor Lan Hua toiled like a dog to reorganize the defensive arrays around the mountain and a hundred various arrays throughout the sect, refined three cauldrons of elixirs and two immortal weapons.
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It was when he flopped on his bed in exhaustion that a thought came to him.
Wait a moment!
That freak Yi Qing was not the one ordering him around, why should he be so obedient?
Σ(°△°|||)
——————
Late into the night.
A figure covered with white fur slipped into the front palace and scuttled in the direction of the palace wing until it reached a small building. It then jumped up to one of the windows and sat there with its two furry tails hanging out from the window sill.
The furry animal gently opened the window. Its two black eyes scanned the room carefully and suddenly alighted on a wooden table nearby. Its eyes widened and screeched excitedly, "Coo..."
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However, it covered its mouth immediately and panted silently. It scanned its surroundings alertly. After a while, as if satisfied that no one had detected its presence, it reached out to the table with its long tail.
There was a lamp on the table, its flames extinguished. The lamp seemed to be from jade, with flowery designs floating on top. Even though it was night, the lamp was still emitting a faint light.
The small, furry little animal tried hard to extend its tail as far as it could, but the wooden table was at the far end of the room, way beyond its reach.
It seemed a little anxious, waving its tail that was outside the window impatiently. After a while, it seemed to come up with an idea. It chanted a dharmic spell softly. Instantly, its fat tail began to elongate until it became twice its original length and almost touched the table. However, it was still not long enough to be able to wrap around the lamp.
It had wriggled almost half of its body through the window, but was still unable to reach the lamp. Shaking its furry body, it then extended its other tail. Opening its mouth, it bit down on its tail. Drops of blood immediately oozed out and flowed down the tail. The other tail began to grow longer until it became longer than the first tail.
Pleased with the result, the furry white animal totally forgot to stem the blood flow and reached its tail towards the lamp. It was about the touch the lamp when...
Shen Ying, sitting beside the table: "..."
The next moment, she reached out with her hand and quietly moved the lamp an inch away from the tail.
"..."
"You'll get burned," explained Shen Ying gravely.
"You.." White Fur got a start. His fur stood on end and a female voice rang out, "Why are you here!" When did this person come into the room? How could she have escape its notice.
There was a look of panic on White Fur's face. Suddenly it growled fiercely, "Give me the lamp!" Then its body emitted a red beam of light and its two tails elongated once again. Wrapping its tail over Shen Ying's hand, which in turn was holding onto the lamp, it turned and tried to escape through the window.
It tugged hard, thinking to drag both Shen Ying and the lamp with it, but found that it was unable to... move.
(⊙_⊙)
How could this be possible!?
It muttered a wind spell and then tugged even harder. But... nothing moved.
○| ̄|_
All it got for its effort was a tearing sensation at the tip of its tail. White Fur curled up in pain.
Shen Ying glanced at her hand that was entwined with a furry tail. She frowned in disgust and instinctively pulled her hand away.
White Fur, who was still trying to pull its tail away, instantly lurched forwards, its four claws still clinging onto the window sill. Bang! White Fur, together with the window sill, crashed into the room.
The force of the impact caused it to roll forwards until it reached Shen Ying's feet, whereupon it passed out.
Shen Ying: "..."
What was this thing?
A beast reared by their Sect... for their supper?
——————
Ten minutes later.
"Demon?" Lonemoon rushed in upon hearing the commotion. Picking up the little white animal, he said, "This is only a second-level demon! What is happening?" Turning to Yu Hong, he asked, "How did this weak demon beak into our sect?" It had even slipped into Shen Ying's room.
"I... I don't know," replied Yu Hong, shaking her hand.
"Are you telling me that none of you managed to spot such a conspicuous demon?" Lonemoon began to doubt the effectiveness of the newly set up arrays.
"There are many animals reared by our disciples. I'm not sure exactly when this demon infiltrated our sect."
Lonemoon's mouth twitched. "I thought that the animals you are rearing have not developed intelligence?" Did they think that he did not know that these animals were Shen Ying's backup food source in the event that he reduced their food allowance. "This is obviously a fox. A two-tailed Spirit Fox!"
"Fox?!" Yu Hong exclaimed, glancing at the ball of fur. No wonder they had not discovered its presence. "I thought it was a rabbit demon."
Si Yu: "I thought it was a goat demon.
Bitao: "I thought it was a pig demon."
Shen Ying: "Mmmn. It looks meaty."
Yi Qing: "Master, shall I get a knife?"
"Hey, that's enough!" Lonemoon glared at them. "Do you guys have anything in your brain other than food?" He knew that demons that had developed intelligence in the immortal world were either someone's pet or was related to an immortal demon. It definitely had an owner!
Lonemoon conjured a seal to awake the fox demon.
"Where did you come from and why do you want to steal this lamp?" He asked, pointing to the jade lamp on the table.
The fox demon was still a little dazed. Shaking its head, it subconsciously shifted its gaze to the lamp on the table. Instantly, its eyes widened. "Lamp! My..." Then it pounced towards the lamp.
It clutched the lamp fiercely with its two paws. Before it could pick the lamp up, it suddenly gave a loud whine and released its paws. The fur on its front paws started to turn black. There was a faint smell of burnt flesh.
Shen Ying: "..." I warned you it was hot. Do you want to be roasted? I prefer steaming.
Lonemoon frowned and immediately placed the fox demon back in its original position. Then he asked again, "Tell me the truth. Why would a Wind Spirit Root Fox Demon like you steal an old lamp?"
It was only then that the Fox Demon realized the predicament it was in. It looked timidly at them and curled up into a ball. It made no reply but kept looking at the lamp on the table.
"You refuse to tell?" Lonemoon's face darkened. "If you won't tell, I'll look for your master and ask him." He then conjured a contract display seal and waved it towards the fox. Whether they were spirit pets or relatives of a demon immortal, all demons that had reached immortal level in the immortal world had a contract seal, to prevent them from being mistakenly attacked. It was easy enough to find out who its owner was.
The white fox trembled. It seemed to realize what Lonemoon was trying to do and cried out in alarm, "Don't! Don't ... This has nothing to do with my master. He doesn't know about this. Don't look for my master!"
"Then why do you want to steal this lamp for?"
"I... I..." Its voice grew increasingly weak and it trembled even more. It was unable to give an answer.
"Yu Hong, fetch Lan Hua from the back palace." Lonemoon instructed. He could not be bothered to listen to this fat fox. This lamp was one of the objects that he had dug out from the pile of immortal artifacts. Not knowing what it was, he had placed it Shen Ying's room, to use as a light source. Now it seemed that the lamp had other uses.
"This is a Spirit Convening Lamp!" explained Lan Hua, who had just been dragged in by Yu Hong.
"Spirit Convening Lamp?" What was that?
"It's used to gather all remnant souls." Lan Hua said with a careless air. "There is nothing much useful about it, unless someone's soul is missing. But this lamp can only gather the remnant soul of mortals. It cannot recall the souls of immortals who are critically injured, the most it can do is to recall a part of its primordial spirit."
"There's actually an artifact that can recover immortal souls!" Lonemoon was surprised. From what he knew, souls that had left the body were almost impossible to recover. The souls of mortals were particularly fragile, and would disintegrate once it was expelled from the body.
"Who said this is an immortal artifact?" Lan Hua looked at Lonemoon as if looking at an ignoramus.
"Not an immortal artifact?" Then what was it?
"It's an authentic Ten Directions Divine Armament that I found in Yu Feng immortal city!"
Shen Ying: "..."
Lonemoon: "..."
Yi Qing: "..."
You even have a divine artifact! Is there anything else you haven't given Shen Ying?
Heh heh... So Shen Ying had been using this divine artifact as a lighting source?
The uses of this Ten Directions Divine Armament were indeed wide-ranging!
Chapter 185: Sending the Fox beyond Heaven
Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
"Great Immortals... please lend me this lamp." The fox demon seemed to have guessed that everybody knew what the lamp could do. She began to beg, "I... I promise that I will return it in ten days. I beg you!"
"Whose Primordial Spirit are you trying to fix with this lamp?" Lonemoon frowned.
"I... I..." The fox demon looked up at Lan Hua, hesitated, and then looked around guiltily.
Lonemoon was not in the mood to wait for her to come up with a story. He immediately conjured a spell and shot it toward her.
"No!" The white fox panicked and tried to stop him, but it was too late.
In a moment, the mark of a spell appeared on the snow white fur of the fox. On the mark was written: Xin Han.
The white fox immediately became pale.
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"Xin Han?" Who's that? Lonemoon turned around and asked, "Who has heard of this name?"
Everybody was shocked. One by one, they shook their heads.
The white fox on the ground paused and excitement filled her eyes. She seemed to heave a sigh of relief.
"Lan Hua, you're the oldest here. Have you ever heard of this name?" Lonemoon turned to address Lan Hua.
The oldest? What the heck did he mean?
"It sounds familiar... Xin Han... Xin..." He pondered for a long time and then shook his head. "I forgot!"
"..." What use are you? You're supposed to have been a Celestial Emperor in the past.
Lonemoon rolled his eyes and frowned even deeper. This is going to be difficult. They had no choice but to ask the newly-appointed Country Emperor Tao tomorrow.
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"There's someone who might know," Lan Hua suddenly suggested, as if recalling something.
"Who?"
"Wait for awhile, I'll call him over." He flew out as fast as the wind and returned in under two minutes. He was dragging a man in blue robes. With a serious expression, he exclaimed, "Him!"
"Exalted Goddess Shen, Fellow... Fellow Immortals, it's been a long time!" Chu Xuan smiled awkwardly.
Lonemoon: "..."
Shen Ying: "..."
Yi Qing: "..."
"Explain yourself!" Lonemoon pursed his lips and let out a sigh. He was trying to hold himself back from throwing a punch at Lan Hua. "Where did this man come from?" Weren't you locked up by Chen Ge? How did you get here?
"He... He appeared just last night." Lan Hua looked wronged. He came across Chu Xuan when he returned to the room the night before. He just had not had the time to chase him out yet.
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"Fellow Immortal Lonemoon, you are mistaken," Chu Xuan immediately begun explaining. "I did not escape. It's that rascal Chen Ge... Er, he let me go of his own accord. He Chuan paid a price for my release, and agreed never to fight with Feng Cang again. That's how the issue with the Immortal Execution Array came to a close. We are letting bygones be bygones." In any case, Celestial Emperor Lan Hua has been found. He would still have opportunities to return his kindness.
What's more, if he wanted to run, he would not have come here. He glanced at Shen Ying, who was picking at the fur on the white fox. Subconsciously, he retreated behind Lan Hua. For some reason, he felt pain in his body all over again.
"So..." Lonemoon still looked at him with contempt, then turned to glare at Lan Hua. "What has that got to do with you coming here?" Another rice-eater.
Lan Hua looked down to avoid Lonemoon's gaze. This had nothing to do with him. Chu Xuan came here on his own accord.
"I came to find Mas- the Celestial Emperor," Chu Xuan answered in a low voice. "Back at the Interspatial Arena, I did not have enough time to say everything I wanted to say, so..."
"So? How long are you planning to stay here?"
"Er... two or three days? Or a few months?" Much depended on the Celestial Emperor.
"Get out!" Both of you!
Lan Hua: "..."
Chu Xuan: "..."
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Do you take my Invincible Sect as a halfway house? Why was everyone coming here to seek refuge? Was it not enough that they were harbouring two demons? Why were there still Celestial Emperors who were enemies of the continent? If this carried on, they would become an easy target for all refugees.
"Ahya, Father Niu, he's a guest. Let's not bother with the details!" Shen Ying stood up and smacked Lonemoon's shoulder. She turned and addressed Chu Xuan, "Did you bring immortal stones with you?"
"Huh?" Chu Xuan paused, not understanding what she meant. After awhile, he pulled out several bags of immortal stones from inside his robe and handed them over. "I... I brought a few bags."
Say so earlier!
Shen Ying's eyes twinkled. So many stones! She took hold of them and handed them to Lonemoon.
Lonemoon's expression softened. "Heh... I'll let you off tonight. You have to go tomorrow!" I'm letting you go on account of your fees.
Chu Xuan: "..."
Why did he feel like they just tagged team to cheat him?
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——————
"Xin Han!" Chu Xuan looked shocked after listening to the fox demon's story. "Of course I know her. Wasn't that the child from Yi Shui?"
"Yi Shui Continent?" Lonemoon was shocked as well. "Don't tell me that Xin Han is the name of the Celestial Emperor of Yi Shui?"
"That's right!" Chu Xuan nodded. "Don't you know?" Isn't this common knowledge of the immortal realm?
Er...
The new sect of the immortal realm made clear that they did not know any of this.
"Yi Shui is Xin Han's territory," Chu Xuan said as he nodded. He looked down at the fox demon, frowned, and continued, "But the people from there are weird. They're cold and not easy to make friends with. They're not known to mix with people of other continents. I myself have only seen them a couple of times. Among the ten Celestial Emperors, only Chen Ge, that man of many faces, has formed any sort of relations with them."
So this fox is the Celestial Emperor's spirit pet! Lonemoon looked down and glanced at the innocent little animal. No wonder it looks so good.
"Since you're the Celestial Emperor's spirit pet, why did you still covet the Spirit Convening Lamp?" Lonemoon asked. The fox demon remained curled up in a ball, hellbent on staying silent. "If you don't say anything, we'll send you to the Heavens Beyond Heaven and ask Celestial Emperor Xin Han ourselves."
"No..." The white fox began to panic. Suddenly, she got up and pounced at Lonemoon, attempting to break out of the array. However, she was only a little fox demon that did not even know how to transform. How could she possibly break out of Lonemoon's array? The fox demon bounced back, revealing a patch of fur that was burnt where she made contact with the array. The pure white fox looked a little burnt on one side. She lay down on the floor, unconscious and whining.
Lonemoon conjured a coma-inducing spell that caused the fox demon to faint. This was a Celestial Emperor's spirit pet afterall. Lonemoon could not afford to hurt her too seriously. As for the reason that the fox tried to steal the lamp, Lonemoon would have to ask Xin Han himself to find out.
"It seems like we are not going to get an answer from this meeting." Lonemoon instructed, "Yu Hong, take this fox demon to the array on the rear mountain."
"Yes!"
"Find a time to send it back to Yi... Wait!" He stopped mid-sentence, his expression turning dark. "Shen Ying, put the fox down. I said you can't eat it!"
"Chey!"
"Chey your ass! Did you come from Guangdong? Wait... You can't eat the tail either!"
"..."
Damn it, it looked like he had to send the fox away as soon as he could. Immediately, right now!
——————
Father Niu and Yi Qing went to the Heavens Beyond Heaven to send the fox over. They were in such a rush because something happened to the fox in the middle of the night. It tried to run away and made contact with the meridian-protecting array on the rear mountain. It became almost entirely burnt. If Radish had not been in the area and fed the fox several immortal herbs, the fox likely would have been dead by then.
This fat fox was too tolerant of pain. It insisted on not speaking a single word. To prevent it from killing itself, Lonemoon had no choice but to bring forward the trip to the Heavens beyond Heaven.
He was not sure what the Celestial Emperor of Yi Shui was like. To protect himself, he dragged Yi Qing along.
Without the parents around, the Invincible Sect let itself go completely. Nobody did any chores or took care of the immortal herbs. Everybody in the sect began to analyse 101 ways to cook for Shen Ying.
Shen Ying was just wondering if she should organise a cooking competition when the fox demon that Father Niu took with him suddenly returned.
He fell into the rear with a loud crash, breaking through the roof and falling straight into the pot that Chef forbade anyone from touching.
Shen Ying: "..."
Everyone outside the house: "..."
So... does it really want to be used as an ingredient?
This was really an ambitious fox!
( ̄『̄)
Shen Ying pondered if she wanted to grant its wish. Suddenly, the fox crawled out of the pot and used two paws to hang on to her robes. In a female voice, it said, "Sect Master Shen, your disciples have been caught by demon immortals!"
"..."
Is that a pig demon?
"What happened?" Lan Hua was the first to react. He picked the fox demon up. "How did you come back?" And it was alone at that. "Where's the rest?"
"We... We... On the way... We met the demon immortal." The fox demon was trembling. Panicked, it continued, "They fought and then... got... got brought away. They saw that I was a demon and did not take me. You... Please go and save them!"
"Demon immortals!" Chu Xuan frowned. He asked contemptuously, "How does Chen Ge manage Feng Cang Continent? How can demon immortals come and go as they please?"
Shen Ying frowned, but did not say anything. The fox demon continued, "I took great efforts to escape and inform you. Those... Those demon immortals were very powerful. You have to be prepared before you go and save them."
"Where did they take them?" Lan Hua asked.
"I... I don't know." The fox demon shook its head. "I just saw them head south."
"South?" Chu Xuan pondered for a moment. "Then they should be headed for another continent. Shen... Exalted Goddess, demon immortals and immortal cultivators have never gotten along. Seeing that the elders of our sect have been taken away, I don't think it's anything good. We'd better hurry, or else..."
"No rush." Shen Ying sat lazily on a chair and lowered her gaze at the fox demon. "You said Father Niu and Chef both got caught – and by demon immortals?"
"Yes!" The fox demon nodded. "I saw it with my own eyes. You need to hurry and save them, or you wouldn't make it in time!"
"We need to get things clear first, don't we?" Shen Ying was extremely calm. "Let me guess – they are both Young Immortals. If these demon immortals could capture them, their cultivation level must be much higher – they're at least immortal emperors. But... you might not know this, but they are sword immortals! Put Father Niu aside – even the combined forces of 18 Immortal Emperors are not enough to hold Chef down."
When the white fox heard this, it trembled. Its anxious expression suddenly mixed with a slight panic as it looked away.
"In other words..." Shen Ying continued, "The people who took them away must have been Celestial Emperors – and there was more than one of them." She turned to look at Chu Xuan. "Hey! Boss Lan and that comrade of yours, how many demon immortals are there among the Celestial Emperors?"
Chu Xuan was taken aback. Why was she calling him "Chicken Oil" 1 ? Yet, he answered honestly, "Among the ten Celestial Emperors, three are demon immortals. Biao Ting of Qing Feng, Blackbird of Feng Tian and Tian Zhao's Bai Ti."
"There are only three of them. That makes things easier." Shen Ying narrowed her eyes and grinned at the fox demon. "I'll tell you something else. Little Birdie and Little Biao are on very good terms with Father Niu. They could not have been the ones who caught them. That leaves us with one suspect."
The white fox subconsciously curled up.
"That last Bai..."
"Bai Ti!" Chu Xuan repeated.
"Oh, we don't know this person. We have nothing against him – there's no reason he would attack us. Those people must have been coming for you." She lowered her gaze at the fox demon. "A group of people came especially to look for you. Those demon immortals were able to capture both Chef and Father Niu, yet they let you escape. That does not make any sense, unless..." She looked down at the floor, and then suddenly back up at the white fox. "You're in cahoots with them!"
"..."
"You did not succeed at stealing what you wanted and even ended up badly injured. You didn't escape at the crucial moment but came back to report what happened to us. Even Radish can tell that you're up to no good."
"..."
"You even just told us that we have to be well-prepared before we go over and save them. Of course, the more prepared we are, the better. Ordinary immortal weapons would not be good enough. We'd better take a couple of divine artefacts with us – like the Spirit Convening Lamp?"
The fox demon was violently trembling by now. Its entire body was now curled up into a ball. It looked like it was going to pounce out of the door and make its escape.
Shen Ying squatted down and got dangerously close to the fox. Slowly and deliberately, she said, "Lying little animals like you will be barbequed!"
The fox: "..."
The people: "..."
"Talk – What happened to the two of them?"
The fox demon whose plot was exposed did not answer Shen Ying. It suddenly straightened up and turned, intending to escape.
Lan Hua, who was next to it, waved his hand. A wave of demonic Qi shot past them and knocked the fox demon over. Its head fell hard onto the ground. It started to struggle for its life. "Let me go... Let me... I did not lie to you. They really got caught. I just wanted that lamp, I just wanted that lamp..."
No matter how hard it struggled, it could not free itself of the demonic Qi. Its pure white fur became streaked with wounds. It was only then that it stopped struggling and submit to its face. It whined, "I beg you... Give me the lamp! I will not tell anyone about this. I'll act like nothing has happened. If you don't believe me, you can kill me later! I just want to borrow that lamp to save someone. Wu wu wu... I beg you!"
"What did we do?" Shen Ying frowned. What was it talking about?
"I... I will not tell! I swear, I swear!"
"Tell me, what exactly happened?" Just say it!
The fox demon raised its head and said meekly, "You... you're hiding... hiding demons."
Shen Ying: "..."
Lan Hua, who was in hiding: "..."
Er... Was that the reason why it did not- for the life of it- want to say why it was stealing the lamp? The crux being... None of it made any sense. Shen Ying suddenly understood why Father Niu was so against Lan Hua staying with them.
"Forget it, I'm going to look for the two of them." They can wait until Father Niu returned to discuss everything else.
"Good..."
"Those who are in hiding should remain here!"
Lan Hua: "..."
"Com 2 ... I'm not too familiar with the road to Bai Zhao. Lead the way! And take this little animal with us."
Chu Xuan: "..."
It seemed like she was missing a word? Calling him "Chicken Oil" seemed better than calling him "Prostitute 3 "!
(ಥ_ಥ)