Cultivating To Immortality

At the same time, between the desolate valley and the mountain forest, a small green snake quickly swam towards Song Yan.

When Xiao He saw the corpse in the field, her heart panicked, and she immediately transformed into her human form, stumbling and running to Song Yan’s side.

Snake Babe’s small face was pale, her expression flustered, and her small hands trembled slightly as she touched the corpse.

"Yan Yan..."

Her pale little hand gently poked Song Yan’s frozen face, as if afraid of disturbing anything.

"I’m already here, you, you, you can wake up now."

"Quick, quick... hurry up, you said you would come back to life!"

But nothing happened.

All of a sudden, her heart was in extreme panic.

Although Yan Yan had promised her that he wouldn’t truly die, what if he was lying to her?

What if he really died? Where would she go?

Little Snake Babe felt an intense scent of loneliness, surging from all directions, threatening to engulf her.

"Wuwu..."

She could no longer hold back, wrapping her arms around Song Yan’s corpse and wailing, "You can’t do this..."

"Wuwah..."

The mountain wind was fierce.

That eerie Qi converged, transforming into a white-robed woman, who slowly walked towards Xiao He.

She looked at Xiao He, her cold and beautiful face filled with heartache.

Bai Qi walked over and gently patted Xiao He’s shoulder as a gesture of comfort.

She had been a Cultivator for over a hundred years, having transformed from a white snake through a fortuitous Opportunity.

The Cultivators on Shangtong Mountain were somewhat like a gathering place for Loose Cultivators, without too many rules or restrictions, so she occasionally mingled among human Cultivators.

Over a hundred years, she had seen far too many so-called Geniuses.

Without exception, none of them were able to Cultivate peacefully.

Among them were those who were arrogant and disdainful, and once someone appeared to be more outstanding than themselves, they would become anxious, unable to maintain their Heart-Nature, and eventually be drawn into a vicious cycle of slaughter and unorthodox paths.

There were also those who were sharp and famous, not knowing how to hide their strength, only wishing to be renowned throughout the world and look down upon their peers.

But there is an ancient saying among humans: ’A tree that stands out in the forest will be destroyed by the wind.’ Such dazzling people who don’t know how to protect themselves often die young.

In her opinion, Song Yan belonged to the latter category.

"Xiao He, the dead cannot be brought back to life. Please accept your grief and move on."

For Bai Qi, seeing a Genius like Song Yan fall was certainly a pity.

But more than that, she felt relieved.

Perhaps this way, Xiao He would be able to leave with her.

This child’s talent was truly astonishing, and Bai Qi was determined to have her join the monsters.

It wasn’t that staying with Song Yan was bad, but he was, after all, a human Cultivator and had no research into the Cultivation methods of monsters, which meant no one to guide Xiao He.

Without guidance, Xiao He would have to comprehend the monster Cultivation methods on her own, wasting precious time.

"Ah..."

Xiao He trembled all over when she heard that phrase.

’Please accept your grief and move on.’

This phrase was so strange, yet so familiar.

She remembered.

Back on Stone Ridge, on the day her grandfather passed away, she hid in the corner of the thatched cottage and heard countless villagers say such words to Song Yan.

Countless times.

The panic in her heart was replaced by intense sorrow. Had Yan Yan really died?

He was like her grandfather, never moving again, never speaking again.

Would she never hear him call her name again?

"Alas..."

Bai Qi shook her head slightly. Life and death separation, perhaps this was also a tempering of Xiao He’s Heart-Nature.

She stepped forward, "Whether you accept it or not, he is already dead. You should bury him quickly and let him rest in peace."

Humans should have their dignity.

Considering he had taken care of Xiao He for so many years, Bai Qi felt she could lend a hand with his post-mortem affairs.

"No, no, no!"

"No!" Xiao He hugged Song Yan’s corpse even tighter, the crimson blood crystals pressed against her small face, cold and icy.

"Yan Yan said no one should get close to him."

"He can still come back to life!"

Come back to life?

Bai Qi sighed in her heart, knowing that this statement was just the little snake being unwilling to part with this human and refusing to accept it.

In the Cultivation World, there were indeed methods to avoid death and prolong life.

However, most of those were only for temporary evasion of fatal attacks, such as life-substituting secret treasures.

Not only humans, but monster Cultivators also had similar Spells.

For example, the Golden Cicada Shedding its Shell or Snake Molting Rebirth.

She had never heard of a true secret Divine Ability that could bring the dead back to life.

At least, it wouldn’t appear in a remote Border Region like the Chu Kingdom.

Children’s thoughts are always more stubborn, and it is indeed difficult to accept things they don’t want to happen.

She gently reached out, wanting to stroke Xiao He’s head, her lips slightly parted, wanting to comfort her further.

However, her hand movements suddenly stopped.

She seemed to sense something and looked up slightly.

Rustle... A black crow flapped its wings from above and flew down.

It landed steadily on Song Yan’s chest.

A crow?

Bai Qi frowned slightly.

This crow had jet-black wings, a well-proportioned body, and exuded a sharp aura.

Its golden bird eyes quietly watched her.

An inexplicable feeling of being seen through arose.

"Xianxian!" Xiao He’s face was full of surprise.

Snake Babe was not unfamiliar with this crow; sometimes when Song Yan Cultivated, Xianxian would assist him from the side.

"Caw—!"

The crow cried out to Bai Qi, and its feathers began to flutter down, scattering over Song Yan’s corpse.

More and more black feathers appeared, transforming into sharp Sword Qi.

The Sword Qi surged, gathering in the air, and actually began to vaguely condense into a human-like shape.

However, this human shape was only an outline, completely enveloped by those sharp black Sword Qi.

In just a blink of an eye, the crow’s figure vanished without a trace, and the Sword Qi human form completely solidified.

It had no face.

The Sword Qi surged, as if burning within it.

Suddenly.

Amidst a surge of darkness, a pair of golden eyes opened.

"You are the one who has been teaching Xiao He Cultivation methods..."

"...Fellow Daoist of the monster Cultivators?"

He gently raised his right hand and tenderly stroked Xiao He’s soft hair.

His gaze, however, remained fixed on Bai Qi: "Pleased to meet you."

This voice was ethereal and otherworldly, unlike anything a human Cultivator could produce.

His tone was neither warm nor cold, making it impossible to tell if he was friendly or wary.

However, Xiao He immediately recognized whose voice it was.

"Song Yan..." Bai Qi’s pupils dilated, her face showing shock.

The art of bringing the dead back to life?!

She stood rooted to the spot, watching the mass of "burning" black Sword Qi flames slowly merge into Song Yan’s corpse.

The red crystals that had solidified around the corpse rapidly disintegrated under the arrival of the black Sword Qi.

Xiao He gradually felt the body she was embracing begin to warm up.

Thump... thump... Song Yan’s corpse actually began to regain its vitality.

Before long, he slowly opened his eyes.

"Hoo—"

His lips parted slightly, exhaling a mouthful of turbid Qi.

"Wah! You scared me to death!"

Snake Babe bounced, wrapped her arms around Song Yan’s neck, and clung to him.

Snot and tears, all sticky, smeared all over his Daoist robe.

Song Yan smiled and gently patted her back.

"It’s okay, it’s okay. See? Didn’t I keep my word?"

Xiao He hummed, sniffling.

"How did you do that?" Bai Qi asked from a distance, a hint of curiosity in her voice.

"Is there really a Spell that can bring people back from the dead?"

Her tone was extremely sincere and open, not like a test, nor did it carry any malice.

Her directness and sincerity lowered Song Yan’s guard against her slightly.

He put the Sword Sect Jade Chapter, which he had been holding, into his sleeve, but shook his head at Bai Qi: "It was just a prepared measure, not some secret art."

He answered, yet it was as if he hadn’t answered at all.

This was a secret art of the Sword Sect, and of course, it was impossible to easily reveal it to others, even if the other party was just curious.

Bai Qi paused slightly. Having mingled among humans for so long, she now recovered from her surprise.

She realized her question had been a bit overstepping.

Song Yan looked at Xiao He and asked, "You haven’t introduced this elder sister to me yet, what is her name..."

Xiao He suddenly realized, as if just remembering there was an outsider here.

She somewhat awkwardly got off Song Yan, her expression a bit shy: "This is Elder Sister Bai Qi, she is also a monster, a white snake, you know."

Song Yan nodded, looking at Bai Qi: "I must also thank Fellow Daoist Bai for teaching Xiao He the Cultivation methods of monsters."

Xiao He tilted her head, looking at Song Yan with a guilty conscience.

She wondered how Yan Yan knew about this.

"I had originally intended to sit and discuss the Dao with Fellow Daoist Bai, and share drinks, but the Fellow Daoists from Dragon Pool Mountain will arrive soon."

"Fellow Daoist, you should leave quickly."

It wasn’t that Song Yan was dismissing her, nor did he intend to be overly polite with Bai Qi.

In fact, for a long time, Song Yan had noticed something: Xiao He would occasionally disappear from his sight for a period of time.

He didn’t know where she went, but each time she returned, she would diligently Cultivate for a while.

It wasn’t until Song Yan Cultivated the Insightful Void Sword Eye that he could see an aura of Demonic Qi on Xiao He that didn’t belong to her.

However, since the other party never seemed to do anything to harm Xiao He, he hadn’t said anything.

From their conversation just now and Bai Qi’s actions, she didn’t seem like a vicious person.

On the contrary, she was very concerned about Xiao He.

For such a person, even with little contact, Song Yan naturally developed a small degree of trust.

"If there is an Opportunity in the future, you are welcome to visit Cave Abyss Sect."

Bai Qi nodded, saying nothing.

She gave Xiao He a meaningful look, then slowly retreated backward until she disappeared.

Song Yan.

He seemed to be a human much more interesting than she had imagined... Song Yan’s Divine Sense fully expanded until he was sure the other party had completely left the area, then he relaxed.

Actually, Bai Qi’s appearance was not within Song Yan’s expectations.

In his original plan, he had even made the worst-case scenario preparations, which was to abandon this original body.

He hadn’t expected Xiao He’s arrival to also bring this mysterious guest, driving away Hermit Xin Shan.

This allowed Song Yan to successfully revive in his own body.

On this point, he was very grateful to this monster Cultivator Fellow Daoist.

This original body had undergone Body Refining with Qilin Blood Essence.

If he had directly used the Sword Sect Jade Chapter to teleport back to the Sword Sect at that time, waiting to reshape his body, he truly didn’t know if he would ever have such an Opportunity again in his lifetime.

Right now, the feeling of weakness brought by this secret art was extremely severe. If the other party had truly attacked, he would have only been able to teleport back according to his original plan.

Fortunately, everything he worried about didn’t happen.

"Hoo—"

He let out a long breath.

He looked down at Xiao He and smiled.

"This elder sister is your good friend, why didn’t you introduce her to me?"

Xiao He herself was a monster. Logically speaking, she shouldn’t have worried that he would have any particular view of Bai Qi.

But she had never revealed Bai Qi’s existence to him.

This left Song Yan a bit puzzled.

"The Cultivation method you are practicing, did she teach it to you too?"

Upon hearing Song Yan’s question, Xiao He’s expression became somewhat flustered and shy.

She first nodded, then stammered, "That’s because..."

"That’s because you used to say that Xiao He is an amazing monster, she’s different."

"She can Cultivate without anyone teaching her."

Snake Babe occasionally stole glances at him: "I want Yan Yan to think I’m special, that I can learn to Cultivate on my own."

"She’s a very powerful monster..."

Song Yan was slightly stunned, then burst into laughter, laughing so hard that his already weak body began to cough violently.

"You, you, you, what are you laughing at!"

Xiao He seemed to feel Song Yan’s mockery.

Puffing out her cheeks, she bounced in place, jumped onto Song Yan’s shoulder, and bit him with an "awoo."

"In my opinion, Xiao He is already a unique monster."

Song Yan’s voice was gentle: "She is the number one monster in the world."

"..."

When Hermit Xin Shan attacked him, his False Core Realm Qi was fully revealed.

Cultivators near Dragon Pool Mountain should have noticed it.

Soon, several auras of Foundation Establishment Realm Cultivators arrived from the distant sky.

One of them was Xu Ziqing.

"Song Yan!"

He frowned, quickly reining in the Sword Light beneath his feet, and landed in front of him.

Song Yan looked at the crowd; many of them were Cultivators who had participated in the Hu Family’s purge.

It seemed the Hu Family’s affairs were almost handled.

Everyone looked at Song Yan, also showing confused expressions.

They wondered what had happened here.

Didn’t he go after that Qi Refining Perfection Disciple of the Hu Family? How come... Song Yan was now weak in vitality, his Qi was chaotic, and his Daoist robe was covered in bloodstains.

Xu Ziqing said nothing, slowly stepped forward, placed his hands on Song Yan’s back, and slowly channeled spiritual power into him.

"Junior Brother Song, what happened?"

"Cough, cough..."

Song Yan coughed a few times: "That fleeing Hu Family Disciple was a Demonic Cultivator in disguise."

"This person must possess special means to conceal his Qi, even a Golden Core True Monarch didn’t detect him..."

Xu Ziqing’s expression turned stern: "Do you know who the opponent is? What Realm..."

"It should be a Seed Demon Path Demonic Cultivator, Hermit Xin Shan."

"False Core Realm cultivation."

False Core Realm?!

Everyone gasped in cold air.