Ascension Day

Xu Ying shook his head. "I don’t actually want to be that special. I’d much rather get along with everyone."

Da Zhong asked tentatively, "When you say ’get along,’ do you mean it in the social sense, or the literal ’beat them all into a single pulp’ sense?"

It felt that this young man’s definition of "get along" was a little different from others’.

Xu Ying said, "The Mud Pill Secret Treasury must be opened. I figure, since Qi Refiners and Nuo Masters follow two completely different Cultivation Systems, why can’t I cultivate both? They shouldn’t conflict. Therefore, I’ll take them both."

Da Zhong was stunned.

’Aren’t you supposed to decide which is better, being a Qi Refiner or a Nuo Master? What kind of logic is there in choosing both?’

’Besides, won’t cultivating both cause a conflict?’

Xu Ying walked into Qinyan Cave, a puzzled look on his face. ’Strange,’ he mused. ’With the Underworld’s invasion, the entire surrounding landscape has changed drastically. How did County Magistrate Zhou find this place?’

Not long after he left, a sudden rustling sound came from the mountain forest. Countless little green-clad figures, each only about a foot tall, came swarming over the mountainside.

These little green-clad people had slender bodies and were dressed in emerald-green clothes, with pointed hats on their heads and straw sandals on their feet. Each one looked sharp and capable, glancing around and searching everywhere they went.

This was precisely the Zhou Family’s Nuo Art, the Grass and Trees as Soldiers Technique.

The little green-clad people were soldiers formed from grass and trees, brought to life by Nuo Art to be used for assassinations or scouting.

A Grand Nuo of the Zhou Family could even use this Nuo Art to create an entire army, take to the battlefield, and overwhelm the enemy with sheer numbers.

Suddenly, one of the little green-clad people happened to look up and saw Zhou Yang pinned to the cliff face, letting out a cry of alarm. The others immediately swarmed over. They chittered amongst themselves in an incomprehensible language as they stacked on top of one another to scale the cliff.

Working together, they pulled out the Treasure Swords one by one and carried Zhou Yang’s corpse into the depths of the mountain forest.

By evening, the little green-clad people had carried Zhou Yang’s corpse over mountains and through valleys, arriving at Yilin Temple. Yilin Temple and Wu Wang Mountain had originally been very close. But when the Naihe River invaded, the Underworld and the Mortal World collided, causing vast new mountains and rivers to materialize out of thin air. Not only had Wu Wang Mountain become Wuyang Mountain, but Yilin Temple had also been thrown forty li away.

The land between the two locations was now mostly Underworld territory, making the path arduous, fraught with danger, and nearly impassable.

As the little green-clad people carried Zhou Yang’s corpse into Yilin Temple, tears welled up in Zhou Yihang’s old eyes. Trembling, he reached out and closed his son’s eyelids.

"Let there be no wind. I don’t want my son’s Ghost Soul to be disturbed," he instructed the surrounding Officials, ordering them to shut the doors and windows tight.

When night fell and the Naihe River’s influence crept in, Zhou Yang’s Ghost Soul appeared, floating before its own corpse. The feet of the Ghost Soul were connected to the feet of the body.

Normally, Ghost Souls are invisible to the naked eye. But since the Naihe River’s invasion, it has begun to interfere with reality, making Ghost Souls visible at night.

Zhou Yang’s Ghost Soul cried out, "Xu Ying killed me! Father, you must avenge me!"

Tears streamed down Zhou Yihang’s face as he choked out, "My son, rest assured. Your father will stop at nothing to slay that fiend and offer his head in tribute to you!"

Zhou Yang’s resentment abated slightly. "The cold wind... it hurts me," he said.

Zhou Yihang wiped away his tears. "I have already ordered men to carve a Divine Statue. When it’s finished, I’ll have it gilded with gold leaf to make a Golden Body for you. After the first seven days of your passing, I will make the commoners of Lingling City worship you. In just a few years, you can become a Divine Spirit! Then, we, father and son, can see each other again!"

Zhou Yang wept and kowtowed.

Zhou Yihang closed the door, his expression grim. He gazed toward Wuyang Mountain and whispered, "Wuyang... it means ’unexpected disaster.’ It signifies calamity and chaos. Xu Ying, even if you have heaven-defying talent, I will take your life to avenge my son! The name Wuyang itself is a prophecy of the disaster about to befall you!"

Down at the foot of Wuyang Mountain, Xu Ying saw that Yuan Qi was still in the middle of his metamorphosis. He decided to slip out of Qinyan Cave to take a look at the Naihe River.

As the sun set, the Naihe River appeared once more, its vast waters rushing forward. A ghastly aura instantly filled the air, and strange things flew out from all over Wuyang Mountain, darting about the landscape. Other things crawled out from abandoned graves, calling to their friends to drink and make merry.

Xu Ying spotted a brightly lit village at the foot of the mountain. A wealthy family was hosting a banquet for their guests. He was surprised. ’How come I didn’t see a village here during the day?’

There was no food in Qinyan Cave. For his three daily meals, he had to catch fish from the water and pick fruit from the trees. Although it was enough to fill his stomach, without proper staples like rice or noodles, he always felt a gnawing emptiness inside.

He walked over. The townspeople had no ghostly aura about them and were extremely enthusiastic, inviting him to join the feast. The town was full of handsome men and beautiful women. An old man even offered to act as a matchmaker and arrange a marriage for him. The prospective bride was a young woman as beautiful as a flower, utterly charming and captivating.

Xu Ying’s face turned beet red. "I... I don’t have a bride price..." he stammered.

"A bride price? Why would we need that?"

The elder stroked his black beard and chuckled. "If I were to ask for a bride price, wouldn’t that be the same as selling my daughter? That would be a moral failing. When the Hu Family marries off a daughter, we are the ones who provide the dowry. If you are willing, I will give you two storefronts and a courtyard home on a bustling street in Yongzhou City, plus five hundred taels of patterned silver."

Xu Ying was incredibly tempted. He glanced at the Hu family’s daughter and found her even more radiant and lovely than before. Just as he was about to agree, a woman’s voice suddenly called out from outside the town, "A pack of seductive vixens, how dare you trick an ignorant human boy! Do you really think no one can put you in your place? Now, scram!"

At these words, the faces of the townspeople changed drastically. Yellow fur sprouted from their faces as they all transformed into demon foxes, scurrying about in a panic before ducking into the houses to hide.

’What a shame,’ Xu Ying thought to himself. ’If I could get two storefronts, a courtyard home, and marry a beautiful fox-woman, what’s so bad about being an ignorant young man?’

At the very least, he had gotten a full meal out of it. He bowed toward the hiding demon foxes and said, "Thank you all for your hospitality. My name is Xu Ying, Demon King of Wuyang Mountain. We’re all neighbors here, so there’s no need to be so tense."