The next morning dawned.
Within an abandoned village.
The sky was overcast, and a fine, continuous drizzle drifted down.
A chilly wind blew, cold to the bone.
The people scattered in the simple dwellings throughout the village gradually woke from their sleep.
After a day of ragged running, they were caught up in this damp and cold weather.
Those who were weak felt even weaker, some fell ill.
The caravan had no choice but to delay their departure by a day, taking time to recover in this place.
...
Inside a still-intact earthen house.
A red clay stove was placed at the doorway, where crimson charcoal burned within, constantly radiating heat to the surroundings.
Atop the stove, a black pottery crockpot bubbled with noise, white steam spewing from the edges of the lid, occasionally lifting it.
Cheng Ming, the young Taoist acolyte, sat beside the stove, his eyes drowsy from sleep, yet his nose continuously sniffed towards the crockpot.
No matter how much the squat and plump Heh Taoist coaxed him, he didn't move an inch.
"Young Master Chen, I am so sorry," said Heh Taoist with an embarrassed face as he looked at Chen Mu.
Based on their initial encounter, he was still somewhat fearful of Chen Mu.
Cheng Yi had once firmly claimed that this young master was possessed by an evil spirit.
Although it was later proven to be a misunderstanding, Heh Taoist still harbored a wariness.
"It's no trouble, let him eat with us," said Chen Mu.
Whether it's herding one sheep or two, Chen Mu glanced at Jie Jia, who sat next to Cheng Ming, nonchalant.
He had grown accustomed to the two gluttons, the old and the young.
...
After the meal, from the cloth bag he was carrying, Chen Mu took out two fist-sized gray cloth bags.
They contained finger-sized fruit and meat jerkies. He threw one bag to both Jie Jia and Cheng Ming.
Chen Mu then ducked into a dilapidated house on the west side of the courtyard.
With nothing to do during a day's rest, Chen Mu couldn't help wanting to improve his proficiency.
"I should start with the Shape Cultivation Technique first."
In the previous three months, he had only focused on recuperation and researching the Pharmaceutical Technique in the first two months. Stay informed at m-vl-em,pyr
Other abilities had barely been touched, and his proficiency in them all was not high.
Only the Shape Cultivation Technique's proficiency was more than halfway there.
"First, I need to improve my physical fitness," he thought.
The room wasn't large, which was just right for practicing the dodging technique.
As long as it was combined with the Breathing Method cycle, proficiency could be increased.
"After resting for so long, I'll practice a few more repetitions today to make up for what I've missed."
...
By evening, the fine rain had stopped, the dark clouds had dispersed, and the setting sun glowed red like blood.
The quiet village all day long became lively.
After a day's rest, the disheartened people recovered.
Fires blazed in the deserted houses, with smoke curling up and the fragrance of cooking spreading.
In the small courtyard where Chen Mu was.
Right away, he flipped the dagger, slid his right hand to the side, and then viciously pulled back. The sharp blade fiercely aimed at the soft flesh of the waist.
Clang!
The sound of metal clashing sent Cheng Yi into a complete panic.
It seemed he realized something. He gave up any thought of defense or escape and began stabbing the dagger towards various parts of Wu Yin's body without stop.
Clang, clang, clang...
Thump!
Finally, the dagger pierced into the right side of Wu Yin's neck.
Sparks flew, and just then, the tip of the dagger broke off!
Unbeknownst when, Wu Yin's neck was covered with a layer of pitch-black film, akin to armor tightly adhered to the skin.
The sharp dagger couldn't inflict the slightest injury on him.
Wu Yin just stood there in place, his face always wearing a mocking and enigmatic smile.
"Shell Soul?! Is this the Shell Soul?!" Staggering backward, Cheng Yi murmured in complete despair, "But I've already drunk the Elixir of Longevity. If it were just two days later, just two more days and I could have..."
"The Elixir of Longevity? You drank the Elixir of Longevity?" Wu Yin looked at Cheng Yi in astonishment: "Don't tell me you poisoned Feng Ren just to seize the Elixir of Longevity?"
"I live for the Dao, and I die for the Dao, I am not wrong!" Cheng Yi bellowed with bloodshot eyes.
"Ah ha... ah ha... hahaha..."
"After drinking the Elixir of Longevity, Essence, Qi, and Spirit become tainted by external matter, and you won't be able to see immortality ever again," Wu Yin laughed so hard he bent forward and back. "And you still want to seek the Dao? That's too funny!"
Cheng Yi was struck as if by lightning, standing completely frozen.
"That's right, such Evil Path practices, he certainly wouldn't teach his disciples."
"Senior brother actually got poisoned by his own disciple over this? Hahaha... I can laugh at this joke for ten years!"
Wu Yin left, laughing uproariously, hand in hand with the little chubby boy.
His old-fashioned senior brother was killed because of his own stubborn ways, which was extremely amusing!
"Impossible, impossible, absolutely impossible!"
In the entire Ancestral Master Hall, only Cheng Yi's angry and desperate roars remained.
...
"Impossible, absolutely impossible!" Zhang Ye adamantly shook his head: "What treasure could there be in this poor and remote Qingshan County?"
"But those adventurers running towards Qingshan County seem so sure," Zhen Fan hesitated, "They claim that the great fire was sparked by the emergence of the treasure."
"And that earthquake."
"It is said that the treasure was originally buried beneath the East Minor Hill. It was only disturbed because of Qingfeng Observatory's founding and the building of the altar."
Hearing this, Zhang Ye also began to lose confidence.
He could not help but look towards the few people sitting at the table.
"Want to check it out?" Chen Mu grinned.
Zhang Ye nodded like a pecking chicken.
"Go then," Jie Jia said indifferently.
Zhang Ye was elated at once.
"We won't wait for you, though," Cheng Ming said with a cheeky grin.
Zhang Ye: "..."
He had put in so much effort to perform all day long just to coax a group to take a look. At the very least, they could wait for him a bit.
Not only did Jie Jia and Chen Mu see through his intentions, but even that little brat dared to tease him.
"Get lost, get lost, get lost! Just stay put!" Zhang Ye smacked Zhen Fan's shoulder without any good temper.
He had spent a lot of money in Zhu Yi Pavilion for the sake of safety on the journey to Nanyang Prefecture.
He definitely couldn't waste this expensive ticket just for a bit of curiosity.