Chapter 759: Old Fellow Meets Old Fellow

"Hmm..."

Shen Shan Laozu shivered slightly all over; having just arrived in Beizhou and luckily entered Qingguang Cave, his life and livelihood still depended on these senior brothers and sisters, so how could he dare offend Shu Yu Zhenjun?

Facing this senior brother's cold gaze now, he subconsciously swallowed his throat.

Why is Yu Chi doing this... it's not a bad thing.

That Taixu Danhuang certainly had some talent, but aside from escaping with his life from the hands of the Dragon-Suppressing Tiger-Taming Bodhisattva, after reaching third-rank, the other had no other noteworthy rumors.

Just for this one matter, he even offered up his master, Shenxu Laozu.

The so-called talk of a calamity-destined genius was merely Yu Chi's speculation, but the Shu Yu senior brother before him was a genuine Great Luo Immortal of the Six-Six Transformations, a pure and legitimate direct disciple of Qingguang Cave.

If he offended the other, life from now on would be hard to endure.

Moreover, that was a dojo; just occupying such a small piece meant he would no longer be a rootless duckweed in Beizhou, from now on he would stand firm, the prospects would be clear, and he could be considered to have made it through.

Just bet on this once; afterwards, stay safely in Tashan, with two ears hearing nothing from outside the window, and whatever damn great calamity would have nothing to do with him anymore.

Thinking of this, Shen Shan Laozu quietly glanced at Yu Chi beside him, gritted his teeth, clasped his hands, and said, "Thank you, senior brother, for your kindness."

"Having entered my Qingguang Cave, we are all one family; junior brother is too polite."

Finally hearing the response he wanted, Shu Yu Zhenjun's expression softened somewhat; he let out a long laugh, swept that cold gaze over Yu Chi once more, and then sat back down.

"..."

Yu Chi Laozu paid no attention to the other's threat and slowly withdrew both palms.

She lowered her eyes and sighed in her heart.

Kind words cannot persuade a ghost destined to die; Shen Shan had obviously been moved by greed, and no matter what she said, this person would not listen.

Having already faced life and death in Da Nanzhou, why still not see clearly? How can this great calamity be entered at will and exited at will? Whether it was that group of Bodhisattvas or the Southern Emperor and the other demon lords, before being slain, when had He Ceng ever thought they would end up in such a state?

Calamity qi clouds the heart; it is hard to save.

"Senior sister?"

Shu Yu Zhenjun looked forward again.

He saw the woman wearing a jeweled crown and a black skirt still in the same pose of closing her eyes to rest her spirit, as if completely uninterested in what was happening in the hall.

Her voice was cold: "In the calamity, everyone has their own fate; no need to ask me, and it has nothing to do with me."

"Junior brother understands."

Shu Yu Zhenjun lightly nodded his chin, smiling on the surface, but scoffed in his heart; he had long been disgusted by the other eating and drinking lavishly, occupying the four prefectures, yet completely ignoring the appearance of the junior brothers and sisters below.

Nothing to do with me? Nothing to do with me is best.

"..."

You Yao of course knew what these people below were pondering; they simply thought she had voluntarily stepped forward to take on the task of investigating Chaputi Sect, solely for her own Great Ming Wang, yet blocking their path to wealth.

She indeed needed Great Ming Wang, but not this kind of small fame on trivial matters, but rather a good name of being capable of handling affairs left with the elders in the sect, and a fierce name capable of intimidating that group of Monks in Chaputi Sect.

Only by combining the two could she open the path to becoming an Immortal Emperor for herself.

When one's thoughts are limited to a mere few prefectures, it is destined that one's achievements will not be great; if one can ascend to the position of Lord of Heaven and Earth, all the incense in this mortal world would be clutched in one's own hands.

Even if one needs to obey the orders of the Ruda Sect, purely to preserve the dignity an Immortal Emperor should have, what one can obtain would absolutely be second only to the Sect Master, far surpassing other cultivators.

This group of short-sighted people, still at the bottom of a well, made her truly unable to muster any interest.

"Senior brother Yun Miao, I have a few matters, so I will not keep you company any longer."

Shu Yu Zhenjun smiled at Yun Miao, then quickly left the hall with Shen Shan Laozu.

"..."

Yun Miao Zhenjun merely nodded, not speaking a single word from start to finish, as if this matter truly had nothing to do with him at all.

In the past, even if just doing some face-saving gestures, he should have said a few words for that Taixu Danhuang, but ever since the other rejected his face, he now hoped someone would give that boy a lesson, letting him know how deep the waters of Beizhou are, and how correct his own advice had been.

Around Kaiyuan Prefecture, in an unremarkable Xianshan.

Shen Yi walked slowly forward and stopped before a cave dwelling.

Chen Yi, who had only been able to silently observe, was now completely confused; as the Rain-Prayer Envoy of the Immortal Department of Beizhou, in its imagination, the General Who Stabilizes the Continent should all be such great figures who plan strategies and have steady minds.

Especially this General Who Stabilizes the South who turned the tide, it should be even more so; no matter how scheming and calculating he appeared, it would not be excessive.

But looking at the journey so far, where did the other have even a trace of the appearance of a "spy"?

This general had not even truly penetrated the interior of the Ruda Sect; according to reason, he should act low-key, reduce his own presence, and wait until he held a certain position within the sect before making other plans.

But the master was either causing trouble or on the way to causing trouble.

As if fearing others would not discover he had problems...

At the same time, inside the cave dwelling.

Four demon lords clad in that luxurious armor sat around a stone table; amidst clinking cups, the scent of wine was strong and pungent, and the laughter was grating.

Only when a youth in a Bai Shan robe walked into the cave dwelling did one of the demon lords, with drunken eyes, look over.

Shen Yi's leisurely look of surveying the surroundings made it pause in surprise; the other's posture was as if strolling through his own backyard garden.

After recovering its senses, it let out a sinister laugh and casually grabbed the black three-pronged fork beside it: "Which path of Immortal is this, coming here to seek thrills?"

Another goat-headed demon lord pressed down its weapon and sized up Shen Yi from top to bottom: "Taixu Zhenjun of Tashan?"

They were stationed nearby and occasionally had to inquire about what was happening around; such matters as establishing an Immortal Shrine were naturally reported by small demons, plus the characteristic of concealing one's face by some means made it easy for them to guess the identity of the visitor.

"This is the dojo of Shu Yu Zhenjun of Qingguang Cave; you have come to the wrong place, please return."

Of course, even after recognizing him, it did not make this goat-headed demon lord care too much; after all, they were all of the same cultivation realm, and in terms of strength, the four of them were not weaker than the other.

As for background, although they were demons, they had Shu Yu Zhenjun as a backer; this person looked like an immortal with wind and bone, but actually was not a member of the Sanxian Sect, so who was higher and who was lower was hard to say.

It was just that without a True Person speaking, they had duties to attend to, so there was no need to create trouble; just dismiss him casually.

Facing the polite words of this great demon.

Shen Yi was as if he had not heard, searching the surroundings with his divine soul; after confirming there were no fish that slipped through the net, he turned his gaze back to the four great demons.

Chen Yi had seen that look before, but mostly on demons and monsters — it was the gaze one casts upon prey, calm yet somehow unsettling.

It could be resentment, it could be killing intent, but it was so indifferent, as if long since accustomed.

How could such a predator's expression appear on the face of a General Who Pacifies the South, a man who supposedly cared for all living beings?

"……"

Shenxu Laozu cast a knowing glance at the little white dragon — this one was probably one of the few beings in Wan Yao Dian who had never offended the master, yet still got swept inside.

Truly never been beaten, had no idea how ruthlessly their master struck — how blissfully ignorant.

Shen Yi's gaze clearly stung the few Demon Sovereigns; even the most composed one, the goat demon, gradually darkened in expression, slowly lifting the hand that had been pressing down on his companion's weapon.

Until it noticed a translucent jade mirror had appeared in the youth's hand.

"A spiritual treasure?!"

The goat demon's eyelids twitched violently, the drunkenness clearing from his eyes in an instant.

Such a thing — even the direct disciples beneath ordinary Jin Xian might not each possess one, and could only borrow it from their sect when needed.

The other party was merely half a disciple of the Lingxu Cave — how could he hold such a heavy treasure?

And to summon a magic artifact meant he intended to fight.

The atmosphere within the cave dwelling, which had been alive with laughter and chatter moments ago, suddenly grew tense.

"Bah, you've got some nerve!"

The great demon who leapt out first, killing intent twisting his face even more, suddenly clenched his trident and made as if to pounce — but in truth wanted to use the chance to first leave this cramped cave. Fight or flee, he'd decide after seeing how things stood.

Yet the moment he sprang up, a spotless long boot appeared squarely on his broad chest.

Boom!

Amid a tremendous crash, the stone table shattered on the spot; the great demon was pinned hard to the ground, trident fallen, and he looked up at the youth with terror and uncertainty.

"Immortal Master, Master Shu Yu never intended to take your dao-field!"

The goat demon, seeing things go awry, hurriedly offered an explanation — but before the words had fully left his mouth, the other party cut him off with calm indifference.

"But I want his dao-field."

Shen Yi simply waved the mirror, sweeping all the great demons — who still hadn't grasped what was happening — inside, then tossed the jade mirror lightly aside and said casually, "Finish them."

Before the words had faded, the little fleshy Tai Sui had already leapt out with a vicious grin.

Chen Yi knew this "senior's" realm was profound, but only when that indigo-blue flesh began to grow wildly, pouring into the mirror in a frenzy, did he finally realize just how terrifying this great demon who styled himself "Southern Sovereign" truly was!

Even among those demons once tasked with breaching Beizhou, it would be hard to find one who could rival him.

And yet such a fearsome great demon, in daily life before the master, could only play cute and act harmless, putting on an utterly inoffensive air.

Shen Yi casually picked a still-intact stone chair and sat down, not bothering to look at the jade mirror floating in midair.

Clearly dressed in Bai Shan, every inch the immortal sage — yet in Chen Yi's eyes, both expression and bearing carried a distinctly sinister edge, utterly unlike the divine dynasty's great general he had imagined.

Obviously, this sort of house-clearing and clan-wiping business, the master had done countless times — well-practiced, the whole process flowing like water.

It didn't take long.

Soon the treasure mirror blazed with light again, and the Southern Sovereign, back in his fleshy Tai Sui form, hopped out, not looking the least bit exerted: "Reporting to my lord, it's all done."

"Mm."

Shen Yi glanced at the prompt flashing on his panel, rose smoothly, and walked toward the cave dwelling's exit.

Compared to scraping a bit of imperial qi from common folk, harvesting demon lifespans was indeed far more convenient — four Demon Sovereigns, another thirty-plus thousand tribulations credited.

He took Shenxu Laozu and Chen Yi straight into the void, leaving the Southern Sovereign and the jade mirror behind.

"Tsk tsk."

The Southern Sovereign held the jade mirror and restored the wrecked cave dwelling to its original state — fine dishes still warm, fine wine still fragrant — truly a fine place to lure the unwary in.

"Learn slowly." Shenxu Laozu patted the white dragon's head.

When the master was still at fifth-rank, he had already dared scheme in his heart about how to slaughter his own immortal-lineage ancestor; now that he had reached the perfection of third-rank, unless a Jin Xian emerged, there truly wasn't anyone in this vast Beizhou who could intimidate him.

……

Outside Qingguang Cave.

Master Shu Yu summoned his precious carriage, lounged onto it with a lazy air, waved his sleeve casually, and called out as if whistling a dog: "What are you standing there for? Get on."

Shen Shan Laozu was a figure of some standing in Da Nanzhou — after so many years as a patriarch, how could he have no temper? But now beneath another's roof, he truly had no choice but to bow his head.

He was silent for a moment, then followed with a fawning smile.

"You're all from Da Nanzhou, old acquaintances — what do you plan to do?" Master Shu Yu asked with a teasing glance.

"Hardly old acquaintances…" Shen Shan Laozu hurriedly shook his head. "Even his master Shenxu Laozu had no real dealings with me — at most we could say we knew of each other. Besides, to protect his escape, that Shenxu Laozu already died at the hands of the Subduing-Dragon-Taming-Tiger Bodhisattva. As for himself and me, we hadn't even met face to face."

"Ha." Master Shu Yu had never been very interested in matters of Da Nanzhou.

Even the Bodhisattva the other had praised to the skies counted for little in his eyes — merely someone whose cultivation currently surpassed his own.

The reason was simple: all of Da Nanzhou had but one Southern Mount Nan Xumi, while Beizhou was the place where the three sect masters taught the Dao. To truly compare, one would have to combine those three Mount Sumerus before there was anything worth discussing.

But now he propped himself up — who would have thought that the one feat worth mentioning about Taixu Danhuang actually contained such a huge exaggeration.

The Shenxu lineage was already skilled at fleeing, and one still had to add his master's desperate protection… with only this much ability, he still dared to occupy a dao-field in Beizhou and erect an immortal shrine — it was somewhat laughable.

"However, if you'll allow junior brother to speak."

Shen Shan Laozu drew a deep breath, recalled Elder Yu Chi's earlier speculation, and a fierce glint rose in his eyes: "Either don't do it, or if we do, we cut the grass and dig up the roots."

If there truly was such a thing as a tribulation-bearing heaven's chosen, dealing with this sort of person — once offended, if one couldn't take his life, disaster would surely follow.

Even Master Shu Yu hadn't expected this old fellow to resolve himself so firmly; after all, this group had fled Da Nanzhou together, surely there should be some fellow-feeling.

However…

"I like your temperament."

Master Shu Yu lightly clapped his hands — he had originally only wanted to borrow this man as a pretext to act — but now, comparing this Shen Shan with that Yu Chi, the former looked more and more like usable material.

Once he had occupied a large stretch of dao-fields, he could also let this man help keep watch.

"Fine, then we'll do as you say."

(End of this chapter.)