Chapter 737

But Zhu Erniang only had one true body; how could she command the other five sloughs to act in coordination?

Hey, that's not right; he clearly remembered that Zhu Erniang only had four sloughs left in the Demon Nest. Where did this fifth one come from?

He looked at Zhu Erniang with this question and suddenly discovered that compared to when she was in the Demon Nest... she had slimmed down.

Shrunk by a whole circle.

Before He Lingchuan could ask, Zhu Erniang had already rushed over! Her target, without a doubt, was Mother Zhu.

He Lingchuan and Dong Rui subconsciously stepped aside. Mother Zhu restored herself to her original size, planting her two front chelicerae on the ground: "Stop."

This action made the ground tremble violently, and Zhu Erniang stopped in front of her as expected.

The immortal slough was larger than all the other sloughs, and Zhu Erniang had to look up at it.

"I took a great risk to send the immortal slough back to you." Mother Zhu said slowly, "You must also keep your promise."

Dong Rui, who was listening, thought she was referring to the adventure of fighting the Heavenly God in Xushan. In reality, from the moment Mother Zhu's soul left her sister and was temporarily stored/sealed in the ancient ocarina, she had taken a great risk.

Whether He Lingchuan would go to Beijia, when he could reach Lingxu City, and whether he could finally find the immortal slough and blow the ancient ocarina—all were full of variables.

These questions, even He Lingchuan himself, who had just left the Demon Nest at the time, didn't have the answers to. How could Mother Zhu?

For an ancient demon immortal like her, 'uncertainty' is the greatest risk.

But she still accepted the conditions Zhu Erniang set out and followed He Lingchuan, even though the chance of success for this trip was extremely small.

Conversely, high risk must correspond to high return. Now, she was demanding a reward.

The world of demon immortals is just this realistic.

Zhu Erniang turned her head and waved her claw at the smallest slough: "This is the shell I just shed; it's yours."

He Lingchuan understood as soon as he heard. No wonder Zhu Erniang herself looked smaller again; it turned out she had molted again recently, keeping the freshest shell for her sister.

Mother Zhu was dissatisfied: "So small!"

"The small one is more suitable for you to use."

That makes sense. After all, Zhu Erniang's previous sloughs were difficult to control in the current spiritual energy environment.

Mother Zhu didn't make a sound either, looking at her sister and shouting: "Scatter!"

An opening immediately appeared on the forehead of this slough, and then, with a 'whoosh', countless burrowing spiders poured out from inside!

This scene was very much like boiling water overflowing from a pot, except what overflowed were Zhu Erniang's descendants.

Even though He Lingchuan and Dong Rui were people who had seen the world and had witnessed the scene of the Xushan eruption, seeing this scene in person still made their scalps tingle, and they couldn't help but step back two paces.

He Lingchuan finally knew why the sloughs could move.

Zhu Erniang had stuffed all her descendants into the sloughs, and he didn't know what method she used to control them to move in perfect unison.

Although humans cannot understand this approach, doing so actually kills two birds with one stone: it can move the sloughs and also move the descendants, so you don't have spiders following you everywhere you go.

Her descendants numbered in the thousands, and once they migrated, it was exceptionally spectacular, and long-distance trekking easily alerted the locals.

Then, the other sloughs were probably all using this routine. He Lingchuan had just been wondering where all her descendants had gone.

Did Zhu Erniang use this method for all her major migrations, from moving from the Panlong Wasteland to Beijia, and then from Beijia to the Demon Nest? Otherwise, those big sloughs would be hard to move.

After the burrowing spiders in this smallest slough had scattered, Zhu Erniang pushed out a particularly large white cocoon from under her belly, almost half a person high, and then carefully placed it into the empty slough.

He Lingchuan noticed that this cocoon was wriggling the whole time, as if something was growing inside or about to run out.

"Now begins the flesh and blood filling; it will take at least seventy days, and at most ninety days to complete." Zhu Erniang walked over and gently touched heads with Mother Zhu, "Come back; your divine soul must also be very tired."

No sooner had the words fallen than a wisp of white smoke drifted out from Mother Zhu's eyes and mouth, floating into Zhu Erniang's mouth.

This pair of sisters had lived together since ancient times, sharing one body, so Mother Zhu returning to the gate was a familiar path.

It seems Zhu Erniang is very trustworthy and won't go back on her word, and Mother Zhu is also relieved to hand the immortal slough back to her. Just as her sister said, she had been running around with the immortal slough for more than twenty days, and although she slept halfway, her divine soul was actually exhausted and urgently needed a long-term immersive recuperation.

Three months might be just right.

He Lingchuan pointed to the slough and asked: "Is this flesh and blood regeneration?"

"Correct, this is a secret technique unique to my clan, which can transform specific egg sheaths into flesh, blood, and organs, slowly filling the entire slough." Zhu Erniang pointed to the immortal slough, "This is different from the forced flesh and blood growth before escaping Xushan; there will be no sequelae."

When He Lingchuan blew the ancient ocarina, the situation was particularly critical, and Mother Zhu directly forced the growth of flesh and blood from the spider eggs remaining in the immortal slough to fill it. But this emergency method could not last long, and after the time limit, the flesh, blood, and nerves would all atrophy.

Zhu Erniang's current method was stable and solid.

"Sister helped me retrieve the immortal slough, so according to the agreement, I will give her a slough. Three months later, the flesh, blood, nerves, and organs in this slough will all grow out, becoming a normal flesh and blood body, and she will be able to use it without any obstacles and continue to cultivate."

Dong Rui couldn't help but ask: "If that's the case, why didn't you give it before?"

Zhu Erniang snorted, too lazy to pay attention to him.

It seems there are still some unknown secrets between these two sisters.

He Lingchuan had once persuaded Mother Zhu to travel with him after completing the task.

There is no need to elaborate on the benefits of having an old expert from the ancient era following you.

He originally thought this lobbying would be very difficult, as old antiques are stubborn. Who knew Mother Zhu would agree so readily, saying she had nowhere else to go—after having a body, it wouldn't be convenient for her to live with her sister anymore; after all, one mountain cannot hold two tigers, and one nest cannot hold two ancestors.

Zhu Erniang was also unwilling to let her share control of the burrow, so Mother Zhu's departure was a foregone conclusion.

It was only Mother Zhu who would so straightforwardly tell the whole story without hiding anything from him.

Within three months from now, the flesh and blood of the slough will be reshaped, and Mother Zhu will be able to go with them.

"Let's go, let's go tidy up the house." He Lingchuan stretched and said to Dong Rui: "During the time Zhu Erniang is reshaping the slough, we happen to be able to go to another place. Uh, didn't you say you know the Xunyang Sandbar like the back of your hand, as if it were your own kitchen?"

"Of course. But I don't have a kitchen at home." Dong Rui had no objections either, just moving his heavy steps toward the desolate village.

Having traveled for so long on the Snail Toad, exhausting both mind and body, he had lost a whole circle of weight, and what he needed most right now was rest.

(End of chapter)