Chapter Seventeen: The Situation

The man in fine clothes seemed well-prepared, immediately extending his palm toward Xu Cheng. In the center of his hand was a symbol resembling a rune. Within the rune, it was as if thousands of people struck out with their palms simultaneously; these combined strikes transformed into a golden dragon, which charged straight at Xu Cheng.

“What an impressive martial art,” Xu Cheng murmured softly. In the next instant, his figure retreated at incredible speed, narrowly evading the fierce blow. However, the house behind him was utterly demolished.

“Dragon Battle in the Wild!” the man in fine clothes shouted, bringing his palms together before his abdomen. Suddenly, an even larger and fiercer golden dragon materialized before Xu Cheng, baring its fangs and claws.

“Again? Netherwind Vortex! Swallow it for me!” Xu Cheng opened a black vortex in his palm. The dragon that charged toward him was instantly devoured, yet the Netherwind Vortex did not subside, continuing to draw toward the man.

“You… you can’t kill me! My father is an official in the imperial court!” The man, clearly not ordinary, felt a mortal threat from the vortex in Xu Cheng’s palm.

The tinkling of a bell sounded again—a familiar wind chime. “Taoist, you really mustn’t kill him!” A crisp voice rang out, and after a swirl of smoke, a person appeared—it was the strange-looking woman from the night before.

All Xu Cheng knew of this person named Yan Mengdie was that she belonged to the Luoyu clan, but whether she was friend or foe remained a complete mystery.

Seeing Xu Cheng withdraw his magic, Yan Mengdie encircled him in a ring of mist. Then, both vanished from sight.

“Young master!” Struggling to their feet, several attendants supported the man in fine clothes. Resisting the pull of the Netherwind Vortex had greatly sapped his strength.

“Hmph! Daoist sects again! Let’s go!” Snorting coldly, the man in fine clothes flicked his sleeves and left with his retinue, leaving only the ruined Tianfeng Tavern behind.

It seemed Yan Mengdie specialized in manipulating mist and smoke—a mysterious power, whether for escape or combat.

As the haze cleared, Xu Cheng found not only Yan Mengdie at his side but also Yi, who, as it turned out, had already made his escape.

“Senior brother, you certainly run fast!” Xu Cheng said, irritated. Yi’s behavior was little better than those teammates in games on his previous world who deserted their allies.

“You can’t blame me for this! It was her who sent a message telling us not to clash directly with people from the imperial court! That’s why I came here to find her!” Yi protested, as if he felt wronged. Xu Cheng wanted to give him a piece of his mind, but now was not the time.

“So, Mengdie, why shouldn’t we confront the court head-on?” Xu Cheng asked, puzzled.

“It seems you two are still naïve. Simply put, the imperial court is powerful. They’ve long wanted to act against the Daoist sects and us descendants of the Immortal Beasts, but lacked an excuse. If you, as a Taoist, really took action, the entire Daoist order might suffer as a result,” Yan Mengdie explained offhandedly.

“Why does the court want to act against us?” Xu Cheng pressed on, still not understanding.

“It’s better you don’t know for now. When your cultivation is strong enough, you’ll understand,” she replied, her expression unreadable beneath the black cloth covering her face. “But you could join my group! We’re resisting the court together.”

“You’re already resisting the court?” Xu Cheng was surprised that she would form a team in such turbulent times. “In that case, if I’d used magic to swallow that man earlier, it shouldn’t have been a big deal!”

“And then pin the blame on us, right? You’re crafty enough. It’s not impossible, but unfortunately, in a small place like Fulai Town, there’s a court-appointed expert at the Unity Realm. He usually doesn’t care about the fights between the court and Daoist sects. But if you killed that man, it would certainly attract his attention. Do you think you could outrun a master of the Unity Realm?” Yan Mengdie laughed lightly, seeing through Xu Cheng’s intentions.

Hearing there was a Unity Realm expert, Xu Cheng fell silent. The deeds of the snake demon last time were still vivid in his memory, and he could only hope to reach the All-Methods-Return-to-One stage soon to redeem himself.

“The outside world is too dangerous, junior brother. Let’s return to the sect for now,” Yi suddenly changed his troublesome demeanor, apparently deciding it was best to be cautious for a while.

“You’re right. Neither of you has even reached the Unity Realm yet! Better to return and cultivate diligently,” Yan Mengdie wasn’t disappointed. Their abilities were indeed lacking; only at the Unity Realm could one be considered strong. “Shall I escort you back?”

“No need! You go tend to your own matters,” Xu Cheng waved her off.

“Very well, you two take care. I have matters to discuss with my clan elder,” Yan Mengdie replied, then disappeared in a swirl of mist.

On the way, Xu Cheng sought to make up for his lack of knowledge about this world—about who Yan Mengdie really was, and about the distinctions between Immortal Beasts and Demon Beasts.

Immortal Beasts followed the path of the immortals. Though they were animal cultivators, they pursued transcendence and nature, seeking ascension, and were therefore considered kindred spirits with the Daoist sects. Demon Beasts, on the other hand, corrupted any magical art they touched, violating the natural order. Worse, they treated ordinary people as ants, slaughtering them at will to fuel their cultivation.

“As they say, magic itself holds no good or evil; it all depends on the heart,” Yi concluded. Xu Cheng silently added the rest: “Used righteously, it is righteous; used wickedly, it is wicked.”

Returning to the Xuantian Daoist Sect took them three days and two nights. They didn’t rush, instead enjoying the grandeur of the Great Xia Dynasty’s lands and studying various miscellaneous records along the way.

Now, with his mind enlightened, Xu Cheng possessed an extraordinary memory, easily committing everything Yi said to heart.

Upon their return, Yi was immediately scolded by Master Lingyu. “Go accept your punishment,” Lingyu finally said, sending Yi off with a bitter face toward the Cold Prison.

The Cold Prison was infused with an icy spell, its intensity controlled by the sect leader. Since Yi cultivated the Southern Blaze True Fire, Master Lingyu thoughtfully increased the power just for him.

Even with the Southern Blaze True Fire running at full strength, Yi was soon covered in frost.

“Jade must be carved to make a vessel! I’ve long wanted to discipline that rascal, Yi. At last, I have my chance!” Master Lingyu stroked his white beard, delighted as a child. When he saw Xu Cheng, his eyes gleamed.

Xu Cheng’s heart trembled under his gaze—did Master Lingyu intend to punish him too?

“Senior brother, leave my disciple to me!” Before Lingyu could speak, Lingxu hurriedly interjected. “Liaowu, go to cell thirty-six in the Cold Prison, now!”

“Yes, Master!” Xu Cheng had hoped that his youth might excuse him, that he could claim Yi had dragged him into trouble and thus avoid punishment. But it seemed he would suffer too.

He shot a resentful glance at Yi in cell thirty-five, but seeing his senior brother encased in frost, he felt a little better. Still, he silently hoped that his lazy master Lingxu would go easy on him.

The moment he entered the Cold Prison cell, the chill numbed all his senses.

Cold was the only thing he felt. Activating the Iron Skin Technique only made it worse, so he abandoned it and began focusing on forming the talismans for the Supreme Golden Body Art.

Spurred on by the biting cold and the power of his Heavenly Eye technique, Xu Cheng found himself able to condense talismans at the astonishing rate of four hundred and ten per day.