Chapter 29: Entangled

By keeping Tusha's true body in the Dream Mountain, Xinzi could not only keep her existence a secret but also use her to produce more resources for his cultivation. Still, the monk had to ensure that, whenever he needed Tusha to make a move, the nun would appear instantly. To that end, he had her place a portion of her soul in Chun Xu—effectively turning her into Tusha's vessel. This move would enable Tusha's vessel to cultivate Soul Force at a much faster pace, but as it bypassed the vessel's awareness and violated their soul, Xinzi would much rather impose it on Chun Xu than Dong Ling.

Unbeknown to herself Chun Xu stretched out her hand, reaching for Xinzi who still took advantage of the unsuspecting Dong Ling. Loud grating sounds echoed from Tusha's stone seat, forcing Chun Xu to snap out of her trance and seek the disturbance's origin. Xinzi and Dong Ling followed suit.

'Hateful nun, couldn't she wait a bit longer? And here I was getting to the good part,' Xinzi silently cursed his subordinate, forgetting that the infernal nun only followed his orders. As if reading through the monk's obscene thoughts, Dong Ling tilted her head, and her forehead creased. But still under the spell of that whole self-sacrifice thing, she restrained her fiery temper. At the same time, she had to admit that on rare occasions, getting taken advantage of could be quite comfortable.

All three stood up but, feigning weakness, Xinzi stumbled on his way up and fell face-first. Alarmed, Dong Ling reached out. But before her hand even grazed our monk's monastic garbs, Chun Xu raced past her and cushioned Xinzi's fall.

'Interesting.' The monk took note of this unexpected move and leaned on the Sword Fairy who, surprisingly, only smiled in response. Turned into a passive beholder, Dong Ling's cheeks puffed up and her eyes shrank.

"Senior sister, you shouldn't take all the burden upon yourself. Let me help you," Dong Ling said and lifted Xinzi's left arm, placing it over her shoulder while Chun Xu held onto the other one.

"It is no big deal. As your senior sister, I naturally can't let you worry about these trifles. Please go ahead, who knows what opportunity awaits us there?" Chun Xu voiced a protest and motioned for Dong Ling to get los—no, step forward.

"Whatever opportunity there might be, we will seize them together." Dong Ling didn't buy Chun Xu's piece, and the two settled into a stare-off contest.

'Not so long ago you had sword and goon ready to cleave his neck, but now you're playing the gentle and supporting gal card? Unredeemable harlot!'

'Good sister, don't think that because I treat you with courtesy, you can step on my toes without getting hacked to death.' The silent war went on for a couple more seconds before Xinzi cleared his throat, reminding the gals that quest and loot awaited.

Thus, the three set off. Stained by Tusha's blood, the stone seat moved leftward, revealing an underground passage that led our trio into a crypt lit only by floating balls of gray soulfire. Chun Xu and Dong Ling's eyes scanned the scene, but besides an ornamented marble-white coffin, the crypt had nothing to offer them.

Their faces shrank, but as the two were starting to feel disappointed by the lack of treasures, a column of light shot up from the coffin.

"Adequate aptitudes. Since we are predestined, I will allow you to carry out her legacy." A high-pitched voice resounded throughout the crypt—speaking in an archaic dialect that Chun Xu and Dong Ling could barely make sense of. Three tablets sprang forth, hovering before Xinzi, Chun Xu and Dong Ling.

"This must be the Snow Empress' grave," Chun Xu reasoned, mistaking the high-pitched voice for Qiu Meng, the Eunuch Immortal and last Celestial Grandmaster. Immortal or not, none could understand how Xue Lin—reigning empress of the Northern Continent—fell for and wedded the eunuch Qiu Meng. If not for her status and earthshaking cultivation base, most would have labeled her as the preeminent gold digger of her time.

Not lingering on the voice, Dong Ling and Chun Xu glanced at the tablets facing them. To not ruin the act, Xinzi imitated them. Mnemonics poured forth, filling all three's minds with unique cultivation methods. Having ordered Tusha to set up this play for his partners' sake, Xinzi had not expected authentic mnemonics to fill his brain. The merit-seeking nun, however, used the opportunity to share lesser versions of formation techniques such as the Blood Spirit Refining Portal and Great Blood Formation with him.

Forced into meditation, the three shut their eyes close, digesting the mnemonics—one word at a time. By the time their eyes opened again, they'd grasped the fundamentals already.

"A sage-grade qi cultivation method."

"A sage-grade soul cultivation method."

Dong and Chun said in tandem—both elated and fearful of these overwhelming gains. Dong Ling's qi cultivation method, the Extreme Yin Transformation, enabled her to transform her dantian into a miniature Ice Realm that not only functioned as a storage device, but paved the way towards one of the most destructive forms of qi under the Heavens: Extreme Yin Qi. However, the method raised a condition that Dong Ling didn't know how to deal with.

Chun Xu's Heart Chasing Immortal Law was more straightforward. On the one hand, it unlocked the means to cultivate a Sword Soul. On the other, it enabled her to turn into a myriad of sword forms for devastating spiritual attacks. Recovering from her stupor, Chun Xu cast a furtive glance at Xinzi.

'This is fishy. Dong Ling's qi cultivation speed cannot compare to Xinzi, Xia Hu or mine's, so a sage-grade qi cultivation method appears for her? My meridians are too unstable for further qi growth, so an ancient soul cultivation method appears for me? In what world can so many coincidences gather?' Chun Xu thought, but had to admit that, with the Snow Empress' grave standing right before her, she couldn't pin this one on Xinzi's head. Deep down, however, the Sword Fairy wondered if Xinzi plotting everything wasn't precisely what she craved. Unsettled by the thought's implications, Chun Xu shook her head.

"What did you get?" Ignoring Chun Xu, Xinzi focused on Dong Ling, whose face shifted between various grimaces.

"This cultivation method is too...evil," she said in an uncharacteristically soft and mellow tone. Following the Celestial Hall's destruction, the August Divinity had all members of the Xue clan put to death on grounds of demonic practices and replaced them with a dreadful barbarian clan loyal to the Central Domain. As a high-ranking member of the Hengye clan, Xinzi knew that the accusations didn't have an iota of truth, and therefore didn't expect Xue Lin's inheritance to carry unorthodox skills.

"Oh? Elaborate." Intrigued, Xinzi leaned over. But the closer his face got to hers, the more unsettled Dong Ling became. Trapped between conflicting emotions, the monstergirl played with her fingers—fidgeting to no end.

"That evil?" Chun Xu, who'd never seen Dong Ling look so conflicted, chimed in. Most righteous cultivators that chanced on a sage-grade method would reevaluate their priorities—no matter how wicked it was. After all, even the imperial clans of the four continents only had one such method each, using it to ensure their perennial dominance. Alas, Dong Ling was one of those few whose morals could get in the way of progress.

"Cultivation speed, battle-power, Dao foundation and even appearance; there is nothing that this method doesn't boost. However it is...it is…" here Dong Ling's cheeks flushed red and her voice cracked, "...a yang plucking method!" Forcing the words out of her throat, Dong Ling hid her face between her hands—unwilling to confront her partners' reactions.

"Huh?"

"Oh!"

Chun Xu and Xinzi marveled at the news, but for entirely different reasons. Dual cultivation thrived on the Yin-Yang supplementing principle. Men supplemented their yang qi with yin, whereas women supplemented their yin qi with yang.

To break through each level of the Extreme Yin Transformation, Dong Ling had to harvest large quantities of exquisite Yang Qi. This implied hours of dual cultivation with an outstanding mate. But in the area, Blood Yang Gorillas and Xinzi aside, none qualified. Dong Ling would naturally not throw herself into a gorilla's arms. Xinzi's name, however, made the situation more sensitive.

In that instant, Xinzi couldn't help but wonder what would have happened if he never set foot into the Ice-Fire cave. Would Xia Hu have rushed into the cave for another purpose, stumbled on Dong Ling, and snatched all these goodies with an irresistible swagger? From the Ice-Glazed Lichen to the Blood Spirits, to Tusha and now Dong Lin; did he somehow...hijack Xia Hu's fate?

But more importantly…

'Wait...was Qiu Meng a cuck?'