Chapter 127: Nanhai Divine Nun

Red Sleeve Workshop, Little Quiet Pavilion, inside the pool beneath the grape trellis.

"You are already soaking in the pool; why must you still circulate the Fierce Tiger Divine Intent?"

Hong Qu looked at the two red carp floating belly-up on the water's surface and frowned, saying, "The Fierce Tiger blood-evil is too sinister and strange; not only does it harm others, but it will also affect your primordial spirit."

Even though Xiao Yu was not specifically targeting her, she felt extremely uncomfortable at this moment.

The erosion of the blood-evil energy on her body disordered her five senses; she felt both scorching heat and icy cold, a discomfort originating from the soul that was difficult to describe in words.

"I am not trying to torment you or these two fish; I am using the Fierce Tiger evil energy to clear the area, to prevent ghosts and gods from eavesdropping on our conversation." Xiao Yu submerged her head into the water, her voice perceived by Hong Qu through the ripples.

It was impossible to tell if it was heard by the ears or perceived by the spirit; it was truly miraculous.

"Are there ghosts and gods monitoring us?" Hong Qu closed her mouth and gestured with her hands.

"Did your father never tell you? Every move we make might be watched by ghosts and gods," Xiao Yu said.

Hong Qu gestured: "I know. I once even saw the Four Duty Merit Officers in the Luodu Guan Chenghuang Temple; they can instantly listen to all the major and minor affairs that have occurred in a neighborhood over the past few days.

But my father told me not to mind it. Heaven watches what man does; as long as it happens between heaven and earth, the Heavens will know.

The Dayi Gongcao gods are only responsible for recording; they are not judges, nor are they City Gods, and they will not interfere with our lives."

"Sigh, so there really are Four Duty Merit Officers, and the Dayi Gongcao gods are so formidable," Xiao Yu sighed helplessly. "Ordinary people certainly don't need to worry about the supervision of Dayi Gongcao gods, but I must be cautious and careful."

Two days ago, the Daoist boy Qing Song had already made it very clear: the Shu Kingdom would not leave her alone.

Therefore, the Guan Chenghuang General Guan would certainly arrange for Dayi Gongcao gods to tail her.

She still had to continue improving her realm and strength!

Without seeing the Dayi Gongcao gods and truly threatening their lives, she would never be able to obtain true freedom.

Hong Qu looked strange, "You don't even know about the Dayi Gongcao gods, yet you talk about preventing ghosts and gods from eavesdropping?"

"Whether I know about the Dayi Gongcao gods is not important; what's important is that I have always known that ghosts and gods can monitor mortals.

I am not sure if there are ghosts and gods watching us right now.

But the matter to be discussed next is quite important; being careful is never wrong."

After a pause, Xiao Yu added, "A few days ago, Granny Feng Ni even used the Heaven-Peering Earth-Mirror to discover me and you whispering at the bottom of the water! It is better to be cautious."

The Duty Dayi Gongcao arranged by Guan Chenghuang General Guan was indeed very secretive; Xiao Yu had not noticed it until now.

That she accidentally injured Wen Jiaju tonight was purely an accident.

She gained inspiration from the battle the night before last: since the evil energy of the Investiture of the Gods list could harvest the souls of human immortals, she would lower her requirements and only use the Fierce Tiger Divine Intent to deter nearby ghosts and gods; it should have some effect, right?

She wasn't sure, but there was no cost anyway, just consider it practicing. In fact, she was indeed practicing.

Having witnessed the power of the Investiture of the Gods list, she now valued the Tiger Soul Seven Kills even more.

She vaguely saw the realm beyond the "Proud Immortal Blade."

Before her personal freedom was completely guaranteed, she had no right to consider side effects.

"What important matter do you want to say?" Hong Qu gestured with her hands.

"The Chief Clerk in the Prince of Qinghe's mansion today was another clerk, the Lacquer Garden Clerk Li Dan; he asked me in detail about the assassination last night.

I told the truth.

He praised me for being capable and honest, and gave me a secret manual; perhaps you can practice it too."

"You, honest?" Hong Qu conveyed mockery with her eyes.

Xiao Yu said seriously, "I am truly honest. After killing your Uncle Zong last night, I also harvested their divine weapons.

After seeing Li Dan, I handed them over immediately without him even asking, not hiding a single piece.

The 'Moon-Draping Blade' of the Lingnan Blade Venerable and the 'Whisk Sword' of the Red Whisk Immortal, I could have used them, yet I kept none.

Li Dan was shocked by my simplicity.

I'm not lying; there was a look of shock and suspicion on his face for quite a while."

This morning, she saw the Red Sleeve Workshop preparing coffins for those who died the night before last.

Even for the top courtesan who died as collateral damage, it was only a thin coffin.

It was truly thin; the coffin lid even had gaps wide enough to stick a finger into.

Yet the four human immortals enjoyed top-tier dark wood coffins.

One coffin was worth a thousand taels of gold!

The managing aunt said the coffins were sent by the Prince of Qinghe, and later they would hire a Dharma master to escort them back to their hometowns all the way.

Hearing this, Xiao Yu began to comfort herself: divine weapons would only increase the difficulty of activating the Purple Mansion, so it was better to throw them away and return the great power to herself.

Uh, this was naturally nonsense.

Divine weapons were only a burden when deducing the "Extermination of the Weakling Foster Father."

When facing strong enemies, they were solid combat force amplifiers.

She just guessed that her spoils of war couldn't be kept, so she offered them voluntarily to gain an impression of being an "honest person."

"Only weapons, nothing else was searched out?" Hong Qu knew what she wanted most.

"Sigh, I really don't understand. After becoming human immortals, does everyone not need to study diligently? Why not carry a few secret manuals on your person and study them earnestly during leisure time?" Xiao Yu, who had failed to loot the corpses again, said unwillingly.

Hong Qu gave a mocking sneer, "Why don't you carry secret manuals on your person? Are you too lazy?

But you are currently practicing the 'Tiger Soul Seven Kills'.

Why don't you write out the heart formula, draw the blade manual, and hold them in your hands to study?"

Xiao Yu was silent.

Why immortal martial arts experts don't carry secret manuals with them is the same principle as why university students don't carry textbooks with them after starting work.

"Forget it, I didn't have high expectations anyway. Besides, the Prince of Qinghe is a good person; he gave me a 'Jade Pendant Golden Clasp Taiji Golden Book'.

I will recite it to you; let's study and learn together.

According to Chief Clerk Li, this secret manual can make people become immortals—not human immortals, but true immortals.

I don't know if he was bragging, but judging by the name, it certainly sounds like high-end goods."

Xiao Yu used "water wave transmission" to send the "Taiji Golden Book" into Hong Qu's mind, word by word.

The "Jade Pendant Golden Clasp Taiji Golden Book" had an original secret manual.

But Li Dan did not leave it by her side; he only let her memorize it before taking away the golden pages on which the secret manual was engraved.

After digesting it in secret for half an hour, Hong Qu spoke directly in shock, saying, "This 'Taiji Golden Book' seems to truly be an immortal classic."

"Don't speak, continue to simulate the Yin Talisman with gestures," Xiao Yu continued to transmit via water waves. "Chief Clerk Li made me take a poisonous oath not to pass the secret manual to a second person; don't let the ghosts and gods know."

Hong Qu was shocked, "What poisonous oath did you take?"

"To fall into the eighteen levels of hell after death," Xiao Yu said with a relaxed tone, speaking casually.

"Ah, you—" Hong Qu was both moved and very worried, "When the human heart moves a thought, heaven and earth know it all.

You didn't need to teach the 'Golden Book' to me; I don't need it either."

"I will not die; I want to be an immortal for one lifetime, to be honored for one lifetime, not seeking an afterlife; the afterlife is not me!" Xiao Yu said lightly.

If she really died and her soul fell into the hands of the King of Hell, her identity as a transmigrator would likely be exposed.

By then, being able to fall into the eighteen levels of hell would be a blessing.

Hong Qu was silent for a short while, then said, "The Taiji Golden Book is not complete."

"Hmm, only the upper volume, saying it's to help me fill the shortcomings in my breathing technique. Heh, once I enter the door and become unable to stop, they can use the middle volume, lower volume, or even the middle volume A, B, C, D, and lower volume A, B, C, D to manipulate me," Xiao Yu laughed.

"Then will you practice it?" Hong Qu asked.

"I want to use my body as a furnace, to melt a hundred scriptures, and finally achieve the Great Dao."

This was the standard cultivation routine for internet protagonists.

"Talking nonsense again! The Great Dao has three thousand paths, the righteous path is the only one; the Immortal Golden Core lies in purity," Hong Qu said with a serious expression.

Xiao Yu said helplessly, "I just want to become an immortal; I don't care about what is the righteous path or the side door. Given my conditions, I don't have the qualifications to be picky."

If someone gave her a secret manual that led directly to Heavenly Immortal, she wouldn't practice messy immortal martial arts secret techniques.

Hong Qu sighed lightly; wasn't she the same?

The ten great human immortals of the Lu Kingdom were all dead; who else could she count on?

It was better to start the path of cultivation with the "Taiji Golden Book"...

"Whoosh————"

An extremely sharp sound pierced the air, falling from the starry sky.

The speed was extremely fast; before the two women could hear the sonic boom, it had already pierced through the grape trellis and fallen toward the person in the pool.

The escape speed far exceeded the speed of sound.

"Who?"

Xiao Yu didn't have time to hear the sound, but she was stimulated by the sharp sword intent, making her fine hairs stand on end.

This was not a metaphor.

Her body submerged at the bottom of the pool had fine, transparent hairs standing up one by one.

She grabbed the sword hilt hidden at the bottom of the pool and slashed upward with a backhand.

She slashed at empty air.

Her reaction and speed were very swift, yet she was still slow and didn't keep up.

A small sword the size of a palm, flickering with dots of green light, hovered in front of Hong Qu.

The blade, thin as a cicada's wing and transparent in texture, emitted a "buzzing" vibration.

And only until this moment did the faint, sharp whistling of "thunder" enter the ears of the two women, causing the water surface in the pool to ripple with fine waves.

But the sword whistle was extremely condensed, sounding only within a narrow range; a few steps away, nothing could be heard.

"What is this?"

Xiao Yu popped her head out of the water with a "splash" and saw the small sword vibrating at high frequency; Hong Qu's expression was dazed, and there were faint dots of green light between her brows, echoing the green light displayed by the small sword.

"Oh, the 'Fate-Seeking Small Sword' actually flew here."

A pleasant, light sigh sounded by the side of the pool.

Xiao Yu turned her head while holding the sword, froze for a moment, and muttered, "Are you a fairy from heaven? Hongfu Hongfu Xianzi sister, have mercy and ferry me across!"

Standing by the pool was a young woman about one meter seven tall, with a charming appearance and a seductive figure.

She looked to be in her early thirties at most, seemingly wearing a monk's robe, but the color was an elegant lake green, the style simple, yet the material was exceptionally luxurious.

Moreover, she had a head of waist-length hair, thick and black like a waterfall, not decorated with gold hairpins or jade rings, just tied at the end with a plain hair ribbon.

"Hehehe, you are quite a clever little ghost." The woman's smile made her look even more graceful.

Xiao Yu hadn't seen the number one courtesan of Tianmen Town, Shao Yao, but she felt that Shao Yao definitely couldn't compare to the person in front of her.

Uh, if the woman in front of her knew she was comparing her to a famous prostitute, she would definitely slap her with a dark face.

"Junior Dou Sending Dou Gengyan pays respects to the Nanhai Divine Nun!"

Hong Qu was stunned for only a moment before excitedly rolling out of the pool, almost choking as she knelt and bowed.

"Oh, you know me?" The Divine Nun deliberately showed a look of confusion.

Hong Qu buried her head in the ground and said quickly, "My father often sighed about the Divine Nun's immortal appearance and extraordinary beauty in my ears."

Xiao Yu complained about the name "Nanhai Divine Nun" in her heart, but her actions were not slow at all.

She also hurriedly crawled out of the pool, knelt beside Hong Qu, and shouted, "Junior Yu Little Fengxian pays respects to the Nanhai Divine Nun, Divine Nun Old Mother, your Dharma is boundless, saving the suffering and rescuing the distressed, ferry all living beings!"

Hong Qu's face turned red with a "whoosh."

If the occasion weren't wrong, she would have wanted to turn her head and roar at Xiao Yu: You crazy person, can't you speak properly? This is the immortal fate I've waited a lifetime for!

Fearing that the Divine Nun would be scared away, she hurriedly explained, "Divine Nun, please don't blame her; Xiao Yu is a barbarian from the Northern Wilderness and doesn't understand etiquette, but she is a good person, loyal and righteous, determined toward the Dao, and her talent is so high that it is rarely seen in the world."

The Nanhai Divine Nun looked at the two of them meaningfully and smiled, "Sending Dou Gengyan, you and I are truly fated.

When you were just born, I was the same as today; while traveling in the secular world, I had a sudden whim and released the 'Fate-Seeking Small Sword' to find a child who had a master-disciple fate with me.

The Fate-Seeking Small Sword found you while you were still in swaddling clothes.

But your father suspected I wasn't a good person and politely declined me.

Our master-disciple fate was thus interrupted.

Today I released the Fate-Seeking Small Sword again, not expecting it to find you again.

It seems our fate is not broken; are you willing to cast aside the red dust of the secular world and follow me back to the South Sea to practice?"

"I am willing!" Two firm voices sounded at the same time.

Uh, Hong Qu was shouting, and Xiao Yu was also shouting excitedly.

The Nanhai Divine Nun glanced at Xiao Yu and shook her head, "Yu Little Fengxian, you should feel it; the Fate-Seeking Small Sword didn't find you; you and I have no fate."

"I feel it!" Xiao Yu raised her head, looked at the Divine Nun with sincere big eyes, and said emotionally, "Divine Nun, I have never seen my mother in my life, but seeing your kind and gentle, beautiful face, I feel as if I have seen my mother..."

Hong Qu quietly reached out and touched her.

——Facing a master from beyond the world, you must be sincere; do not be glib or insincere!

Xiao Yu tilted her head to look at her, then looked at the Nanhai Divine Nun with trepidation and said, "I truly feel that you are very much like the Great Merciful and Great Compassionate Bodhisattva Guanyin Bodhisattva, so I address you as 'Divine Nun Mother'; please do not take offense."

The founder of their Miaoshan Sword Sect was none other than Bodhisattva Guanyin Bodhisattva!

The Divine Nun felt only joy in her heart, but her expression remained kindly as she smiled and said, "For those who have left the secular world, the five aggregates are all empty; what one is called is not important."

"Divine Nun Mother!" Xiao Yu called out excitedly and bowed once.

Her expression was extremely sincere.

Truly, this bow was from her heart.

"You have given me the feeling of a mother; this is the greatest affinity!"

Seeing that there was no look of disgust on the Divine Nun's face, Hong Qu hurriedly helped plead, "Master, Xiao Yu is a natural seedling for cultivation. Her talent is far higher than mine, and she has excellent character; she is a good person."

The Nanhai Divine Nun sighed, "Since you have already called me 'Master', I will not use words to fob you off.

She is different from you; you have immortal fortune, but she does not.

If I teach her immortal arts, she will never be able to become an immortal in this lifetime.

If she were an ordinary person, I would just treat it as taking on a burden and let her be a maid who sweeps the floors.

But the karma on her body is too great and too much.

The Shu Kingdom might let you go, but they would absolutely not be willing to let her go; this is the first point.

Then there are the 'Eight Immortals of the West'; having died so many human immortals, they will not let it end there.

Just take the 'Hongfu Hongfu Xianzi Hong Fu' she sent to the Investiture of the Gods list the day before yesterday.

She is a disciple of Wang Xuan Lei Zhenzi of the Tongtian Sword Sect.

I have had a friendship of several hundred years with Wang Xuan Lei Zhenzi, and Hong Fu has poured tea and paid respects to me many times; she was very respectful.

If I take in Yu Little Fengxian, how can I face my old friend?"

Hong Qu said urgently, "Xiao Yu had no choice; they wanted to kill her, so she could only protect herself."

Seeming to feel that these words were too childish, she paused for a moment and then said earnestly, "Master, if you take Xiao Yu as a disciple, even if you bear some karma in the short term, in the long run, you will definitely not regret it.

Her talent cannot be measured by mere sword bones."

The Nanhai Divine Nun smiled, "You would rather say that if I give her up, I will regret it sooner or later, right?"

"This disciple would not dare!"

Hong Qu indeed thought so, but she was not stupid; how could she say it directly?

The Nanhai Divine Nun said indifferently, "Child, your 'long run' is not long enough.

Even if, as you say, I have a moment of regret, regret has no meaning for an immortal.

Because for an immortal who exists forever, all negative emotions can be calmed by time.

After a hundred thousand or a million years, if I still haven't forgotten her and recall that past regret, I will only smile at myself, with no ripples in my heart."

After speaking, she no longer gave the two women a chance to talk. A flying sword flew out from her sleeve, turning into a three-zhang green light that swept up Hong Qu, who was kneeling on the ground, and rushed into the clouds. The Nanhai Divine Nun also disappeared at the same time.

Xiao Yu only saw Hong Qu in the green light look astonished for a moment, then hurriedly make a gesture to her: wait for me.

"Wait for you, my foot!"

Xiao Yu stood up, raised a middle finger to the sky, and shouted, "I will definitely be able to become an immortal, and become one earlier than you! I won't rely on anyone; I don't care about any gods, immortals, or Buddhas. Hong Qu~ Dou Sending Dou Gengyan, you just wait!"

She let her hands drop powerlessly, smiled at herself, and jumped into the water pool with a "plop."

That night, she was like a lonely corpse abandoned in the pool by someone, head down, arms spread, floating in the water, never rising again.

Uh, the "Divine Nun Mother's Method of Extermination" had been activated. She was so excited that she couldn't sleep all night, studying it for the whole night.

Whether the Nanhai Divine Nun will regret it in the future, perhaps only "time" knows.

Anyway, Xiao Yu only felt a little regret, but was more happy—happy that her good friend Hong Qu had once again become the "free and proud Dou Sending Dou Gengyan."

Of course, she was also happy for herself; the Nanhai Divine Nun is an immortal!