Chapter 128: Sister Yan Jing

This female apparition seems a bit different.

Li Lin frowned.

"County Commandant Li, I have also heard of your name," the female apparition said, sitting upright and slowly combing her hair. "You are a good person and a good official, which is why I am here to speak with you."

Li Lin looked at Huang Ying beside him. "It seems the problem is not with her, but with you."

Huang Ying smiled, feeling somewhat embarrassed.

Li Lin sat down and said, "Since someone is willing to vouch for you, let us talk."

"I have no intention of harming people," the female apparition said with a smile.

Li Lin sighed. "You must have a name. Before we discuss matters, we must have a form of address."

"Forgive my rudeness," the female apparition said, rising and bowing slightly. "I am Sister Yan Jing. I have lived in this brothel for over thirty years."

"Over thirty years?"

"Yes," Sister Yan Jing said with a smile. "Every so often, I switch bodies and possess a new one."

"Then how can you say you do not harm people?"

"They were willing to let me possess them," Sister Yan Jing said, sitting down again. "After working in a brothel for a long time, when they grow old and lose all hope, they give their bodies to me and vanish themselves."

"But this body of yours looks very young."

"As an apparition, I naturally possess some unique abilities."

Li Lin nodded, accepting her explanation. "Then what do you want with me?"

"You are the new County Commandant, with no tolerance for corruption. I do not wish to make an enemy of you," Sister Yan Jing said with a smile. "Rather than waiting for you to investigate me on your own, I thought it better for me to contact you first, as a gesture of sincerity."

Li Lin understood her meaning.

She wanted to continue living in Yulin County as a courtesan.

"But how can you guarantee you will not harm anyone?"

"I have lived here for over thirty years. Is that not enough?"

Li Lin shook his head. "Although you have blood qi to sustain you and retain your sanity, you lack the restraint of an altar."

Sister Yan Jing fell silent.

"Rather than staying in the brothel, why not become a Taowu Zhenjun?"

Sister Yan Jing frowned slightly, her enchanting appearance intensifying. "But... that would be too hard."

"Becoming a Taowu Zhenjun involves no hardship."

"I would go hungry," Sister Yan Jing said. "But here, I can eat my fill, even to the point of being stuffed."

"That is precisely my concern," Li Lin said, looking at her. "You can eat your fill and become stuffed, your strength will grow ever stronger, yet you have no restraints. How can we trust you?"

Sister Yan Jing cast a resentful glance at Huang Ying beside her.

Huang Ying smiled awkwardly. "Sister Yan Jing, I only agreed to introduce you to my brother-in-law. I did not guarantee that he would necessarily accept you."

"A man's words are like a lying apparition's," Sister Yan Jing said, tears welling in her eyes.

Huang Ying's smile became even more awkward.

"So, is becoming a Taowu Zhenjun not a good thing?" Li Lin asked with a smile.

"Sigh, may I have a few more days to consider?"

"No problem."

Li Lin stood up, preparing to leave, but suddenly turned around and asked, "Was it you who threw that 'Hui Character Art' to Zhao Xiaohu?"

Sister Yan Jing paused, her expression becoming strange.

"So it was you," Li Lin said, sitting down again. "Why?"

Li Lin had only guessed that this female apparition was involved after a sudden flash of insight.

Zhao Xiaohu's social circle was quite simple; besides the villagers and the Spirit Hunters, the only other group he frequented for a time were the brothel patrons.

And here was an elderly female apparition; perhaps Zhao Xiaohu was even one of her clients.

Sister Yan Jing forced a difficult smile. "County Commandant Li is truly as meticulous as a hair. You discovered even this."

"Why?"

"He possesses that talent," Sister Yan Jing said, looking at Li Lin. "I know his background."

"What exactly is the Hui Character Art?"

Sister Yan Jing smiled. "You want to know? Then agree to the condition I mentioned just now."

Li Lin stood up and strode away.

"Wait, County Commandant Li. I was wrong just now," Sister Yan Jing said, standing up. "I will tell you everything I know immediately."

She feared that if Li Lin left and returned, he would bring several Spirit Hunters with him.

Li Lin sat back down. "Speak."

"County Commandant Li truly knows no pity for flowers or jade," Sister Yan Jing said resentfully.

Li Lin merely chuckled lightly.

Is my own wife not better built than you?

Is my own Tree Spirit Lady not more elegant and beautiful than you?

"The Hui Character Art... is a cultivation method for immortals."

Ah!

Huang Ying cried out in shock beside them.

Sister Yan Jing looked at him. "You did not know?"

Huang Ying shook his head, then asked in a low voice, "Is it the immortality cultivation I know of?"

Sister Yan Jing nodded.

"How about you give me a copy?" Huang Ying asked cautiously.

"You won't be able to learn it." Sister Yan Jing looked at him. "Only a Spirit Hunter can possibly learn even the slightest bit."

Huang Ying immediately felt disappointed.

"What about martial artists?" Li Lin asked.

"That is Immortal Cultivation; do you think it is learning a martial technique?" Sister Yan Jing continued. "Those who can cultivate immortality are all individuals with outstanding talent. Martial artists... they transform blood qi into primal qi. While it is indeed very formidable, it is only formidable at killing. The more yang energy one possesses, the less they can see the spirits."

"Is there anything wrong with not being able to see spirits?" Huang Ying asked curiously. "I have heard that formidable martial artists are ones that spirits are unwilling to approach. They can ward off evil."

Sister Yan Jing sneered. "Living beings are part of heaven and earth; are spirits not also part of heaven and earth? The union of yin and yang is the true path. Spirit Hunters cultivate both martial techniques and yin energy together. Unfortunately, they lack a good cultivation method to protect the body, so their bodies are weaker and their lives shorter. Otherwise, how could martial artists be so arrogant?"

Huang Ying looked at Li Lin. "But brother-in-law does not appear to have the look of someone with a short life."

"As for the noble families, they always possess some powerful family heirlooms." Sister Yan Jing smiled. "County Commandant, why not come sit with me from time to time? I can assist your cultivation."

Li Lin paid no attention to the other's teasing and instead asked, "Have you ever heard of anyone who has mastered the Obscure Character Technique?"

"Mastered it?" Sister Yan Jing covered her mouth with her water sleeve and laughed. "The Obscure Character Technique has existed for so long, yet no one has ever mastered it. Never. I have not even heard of anyone who has entered the initial stage."

Li Lin frowned. "Your words are somewhat contradictory. If no one has mastered it, then how do we know this is an Immortal Cultivation Method?"

Sister Yan Jing paused. "Oh, that's true... but that is how the world spreads the rumor."

"Have you practiced it?"

"Naturally, I have seen it, but gained nothing."

Sister Yan Jing turned around, took a book from under her pillow, and placed it in Huang Ying's hands. "This is the Obscure Character Technique."

Li Lin glanced at the cover and discovered it was another printed edition.

Huang Ying immediately opened the book and began to read.

Li Lin looked at the other person, stood up, and said, "Sister Yan Jing, either you enter the altar to become a Taowu Zhenjun, or... you become a Spirit Hunter's spirit pet."

"Is County Commandant Li trying to recruit me?"

Li Lin shook his head. "You find someone else."

He feared the Tree Immortal Lady would get jealous.

"I think there could be a third path." Sister Yan Jing also stood up. "I am willing to accept your commission... as a gesture of sincerity."

Oh?

This actually seems like a good method.

"I will return and discuss it with the others."

(End of this chapter)