Chapter 171: Waiting for the Clouds to Part to See the Moon

Long Qi wrung the water from his clothes while glancing sideways at Liu Xia, but Liu Xia seemed not to see him at all, merely turning his head to the side as if admiring the surrounding scenery.

Seeing Xinyi like this, Liu Xia hurried forward to ask if something was amiss, but Xinyi only shook his head, frowning as he pondered other matters; after a long while, he finally spoke to Luoli: "I ask you, was it you who moved all the water from Fengwu Village to this place?"

Luoli nodded in affirmation, and when Xinyi pressed him for the reason, Luoli sighed and looked toward Doukou in the water.

"If a Merfolk stays away from water for too long, they will die of exhaustion. Though I do not fear death, Doukou is now hanging by a thread, and her life depends entirely on my daily infusion of Spirit Power. If I were to die, there would be no one left to save her..."

Upon hearing this, Banxia put away the Talisman in her hand, straightened her body, and asked: "Isn't it said that a Merfolk Pearl can cure a hundred illnesses? Since you are a Merfolk, then just make another one."

Luoli sighed again at these words: "Merfolk Pearls are not as easily obtained as words suggest. Some Merfolk may never shed a pearl in their entire lives, and those who do shed tears that turn into pearls have mostly spent their whole lives nurturing that one single pearl. Furthermore, this water is far too bland compared to the vast ocean; even if I had the heart to shed a pearl, I lack the strength to do so..."

"You mean you need seawater that is saltier and fishier?" Banxia interjected.

Luoli shook his head again: "The blandness I speak of does not refer to saltiness. In our Merfolk Clan, there has always been a saying that the earth was birthed by the ocean."

"Before the earth existed, the world was entirely a vast expanse of water. At that time, the sea and sky were one, indistinguishable in their turbidity. Later, a Merfolk appeared among them; it is unknown what power he used, but he actually separated the sea and sky, and afterwards transformed himself into the earth, giving rise to all the scenes of the mortal world we see today. Therefore, the Spirit Qi in the sea is the most concentrated, and if the Merfolk Clan wishes to condense tears into pearls, they must be in such an environment surrounded by Spirit Qi for a long time to succeed."

Hearing this, Banxia sighed inwardly; this Luoli was already so difficult to deal with, and if he were allowed to stay in the seawater, she feared he could defeat the lot of them in an instant.

Liu Xia, however, frowned upon hearing this and leaned toward Xinyi, saying: "This sounds remarkably similar to what we say about the great god Pangu creating the world, and what he says seems even more convincing. Could it be that Pangu was a Merfolk?"

Xinyi pondered for a moment before asking Luoli again: "If the Merfolk have such characteristics, that is understandable, but you cannot monopolize all the water sources, including the rainwater. How are the common folk at the foot of the mountain supposed to live?"

Luoli replied with guilt: "I am truly sorry for those people at the foot of the mountain, but I truly have my own hidden difficulties."

"Hidden difficulties?" The group was greatly puzzled. "Let us hear them."

"If this water cannot remain flowing, it will inevitably become filthy. Once a Merfolk comes into contact with filthy water, they lose their magical powers, which is why I had no choice but to gather all the water here to ensure the purity of the source. Furthermore, although Doukou is in a coma due to my Witchcraft, the fetus in her womb is still growing. Even though Doukou is only a mortal, her child can be considered half-Merfolk; if it is not nurtured in pure water, I fear it will die in the womb."

No wonder he was afraid of Banxia's Talisman; so that was the reason.

But upon hearing this, Banxia was furious: "Your wife is already in such a state, yet you are still thinking about the child? Could it be that you only treat her as a tool for bearing offspring?"

Luoli hurriedly explained: "I naturally love Doukou dearly, but you do not understand, Miss. Before Doukou fell into a coma, she repeatedly urged me to ensure the child was saved. Even if I were unwilling, I would not want to go against her wishes..."

Looking at Doukou, who was deathly pale in the water, Luoli felt a pang of heartache. As everyone knew, the further Demon Poison progressed, the more severe it became; with Doukou in this state, it was likely beyond saving...

Thinking this, tears fell from Luoli's eyes, and as they hit the ground, they immediately condensed into crystals. But just as the group thought these were Merfolk Pearls, they saw the tear-crystals shatter and explode one by one, emitting sounds like breaking glass.

It seemed that what Luoli said was not false.

Just as the group was sighing, they heard Zhao Wuyang shouting from not far away: "Xinyi Dage, come quickly! Come and save Seventh Brother!"

They had been so busy interrogating Luoli that they had forgotten about Long Qi!

The group rushed toward Zhao Wuyang, only to see that Long Qi had become a bloody mess, with blood continuously seeping from the wounds inflicted by Luoli.

Xinyi hurriedly pulled back Long Qi's clothing, only to see that the wounds on his body were spreading, as if being corroded.

"This is the result of the Witchcraft I cast..." Luoli said from the side.

Hearing this, Zhao Wuyang immediately stood up, grabbed Luoli's robe, and shook him while roaring: "Since it is your Witchcraft, then hurry and undo it! If anything happens to Seventh Brother, I will certainly not let you off!"

Long Qi had ended up like this entirely because he was protecting him; feeling guilty, Zhao Wuyang was naturally a bit more volatile.

Xinyi quickly pulled Zhao Wuyang back, and while doing so, asked Luoli: "My brother is in this state; since it came from your hand, I assume you must know how to undo it."

Hearing Xinyi's question, Luoli hesitated for a moment: "I do know how to undo it, but..."

Hearing this, Banxia violently tugged at Luoli's clothing and shouted urgently: "What 'buts'? You were in the wrong for harming someone first, and now you've injured someone else. If you don't hurry and treat his wounds, I'll slap a mud Talisman on you!"

He was only wearing a thin piece of cloth to barely cover his modesty; with her tugging, it was on the verge of falling off, so Liu Xia hurriedly pulled her away to the side.

"Why are you so impatient? Just listen to what he has to say first."

Banxia glanced at Liu Xia, then snorted at Luoli: "Although I am not close to Long Qi, I once received instruction from Fucang Elder. Now that her disciple is in trouble, I naturally have to help. Come to think of it, this Long Qi is your brother; I see you aren't in any hurry, which is quite strange."

Liu Xia looked innocent as she spoke: "It is not that I am not in a hurry, but in the current situation, we should think of a proper solution. Being anxious won't help, will it?"

He truly did not understand why Banxia was so full of hostility toward Luoli. Logically, they should be meeting for the first time; what deep hatred could they have?

Hearing this, Banxia shook off Liu Xia's grip and sat angrily on a large rock nearby: "If you aren't in a hurry, then don't be. He isn't my brother anyway, so whether he lives or dies is none of my business!"

Seeing her like this, Liu Xia could do nothing, but with Long Qi's injuries being so severe, he had to find a way to save him first.

Thinking this, Liu Xia said to Luoli: "Since there is a way, please hurry and treat him. A life is at stake; we cannot afford to delay."

Luoli frowned and hesitated for a moment, then said helplessly: "Then take off his clothes and send him into the pool..."

Banxia's face turned red, and she hurriedly got up from the rock and ran away—so he had to be stripped clean; no wonder he was so hesitant.

"Must... must he be stripped completely naked?" Zhao Wuyang hesitated. "Is... is this really okay?"

In a daze, Long Qi felt as if he had fallen into the clouds; his whole body felt soft and limp, unable to muster even a shred of strength. However, despite his weakness, he felt an unbearable chill throughout his body, and he couldn't help but...

"Achoo!"

With a sneeze, Long Qi suddenly woke up. He opened his eyes in a blur, and the first thing he saw was Zhao Wuyang's concerned face. A quick glance revealed that Xinyi and Liu Xia were both crouching beside him.

"Seventh Brother! Seventh Brother! How do you feel? Is there anywhere you are uncomfortable?" As soon as Zhao Wuyang saw Long Qi open his eyes, he immediately began shaking him.

Long Qi felt a wave of dizziness and hurriedly grabbed Zhao Wuyang's hand: "Even if I were fine, you'd shake me into a state of illness..."

Seeing that Long Qi's grip on his hand was still strong, Zhao Wuyang finally felt relieved, but he couldn't help but shed tears. Seeing him like this, Long Qi began to tease him: "How old are you now, still acting like a child? A man does not shed tears easily, and besides, I'm not dead yet!"

Seeing him like this, Liu Xia knew he must have recovered, and said with a smile: "I thought you were definitely going to have your soul wander into the Grand Void this time, and I was even wondering how I would explain it to Lingxiang later!"

Hearing this, Long Qi gave Liu Xia a punch in annoyance and struggled to sit up, but...

But he had only been covered by an Outer Robe earlier. Now that he sat upright, he realized he was completely naked, and just as he discovered he was stark naked, he happened to see Banxia opposite him...

Long Qi panicked instantly, hurriedly curling his body up and grabbing the Outer Robe draped over him to cover his chest. But whether the robe was too small or what, it would cover his upper body only to expose his lower body, and if he covered his lower body, it would expose his upper body.

He kept pulling it up and down, and while doing so, shouted at Liu Xia and Xinyi: "Where are my clothes! What did you do to me!"

Long Qi's appearance was exactly like those in plays who had been defiled. Xinyi and Liu Xia wanted to laugh, but were too embarrassed to do so in front of him, so they could only turn their heads and hold their breath.

Although Banxia had turned her back, hearing Long Qi's shrill, high-pitched tone behind her made her feel it was somewhat amusing. A desire to tease him arose in her heart, and she cleared her throat and said: "What are you shouting about? What's the big deal? I'm a woman and I've been subjected to this eyesore, yet I haven't shouted, and here you are shouting instead, making it seem as if I wanted to look." As she said this, she made a show of turning around.

Long Qi kept his eyes fixed on Banxia, and seeing this, hurriedly shouted: "Don't you move!" Then he asked Zhao Wuyang about the whereabouts of his clothes.

Banxia naturally wouldn't turn around; even if she was unconventional, she still possessed the reserve of a woman. She had only wanted to tease Long Qi earlier.

"The men in our village are the real men, strong and sturdy. If nothing else, look at Chengkai; that's a real man. With that scrawny frame of yours, you don't even have two taels of meat on you, what is there to hide?"

As Banxia spoke, she turned her back again, but Liu Xia felt uncomfortable hearing this; the way she said it made it sound as if she had seen them before.

Just as Liu Xia wanted to say something, she heard Banxia speak again: "Besides, it's not like it's the first or second time you've been seen in the buff; you're an experienced hand at this, what is there to be shy about..."

Hearing Banxia say this, Long Qi immediately stopped the motion of putting on his clothes, looked at Xin Yi and the others, and asked in a low voice: "You... which one of you told her something?"

Although it was a low voice, Banxia heard it clearly: "How would they tell me these things? I naturally heard it from Fucang Elder."

Hearing this, a bitter look immediately appeared on Long Qi's face: Lingxiang must think he isn't being honest enough; it was one thing for her to have seen it, but to actually tell these things to others, this... this...

How is he supposed to face people after going back like this!

Long Qi decadently put on his clothes, complaining about Lingxiang in his heart incessantly. Just as he finished dressing properly, he saw Luoli standing by the Pool not far away.

Upon seeing Luoli, Long Qi was startled, hurriedly pulled Zhao Wuyang behind him, and looked around searching for the Seven-Star Dragon Abyss. Seeing him like this, Liu Xia hurriedly reached out and grabbed him.

"You were able to recover so quickly all because you were saved by him. He doesn't look like a bad person either; perhaps there is some misunderstanding." As she spoke, she recounted the matter of Luoli to Long Qi.

Upon hearing this, Long Qi looked toward the pool with half-belief, only to see that there was indeed a woman lying at the bottom of the pool, but what was strange was that the woman's complexion was somewhat odd...

At this moment, Luoli suddenly sighed. The crowd was very puzzled, and Liu Xia hurriedly stepped forward to ask the reason. She saw him shaking his head, then raising his hand to point at the water.

The crowd looked into the water. The pool water, which had been clear to the bottom, now seemed somewhat turbid. Perhaps it was because Long Qi had just been soaking in the water, the water color was like it had been dotted with Cinnabar, though it was not very obvious.

"I had gathered the Moonlight Spirit in this water, which is why it had healing properties, but it has been tainted by blood. Now, I cannot enter this pool again. But if I don't go in, I fear I won't live much longer..." Luoli looked at Doukou at the bottom of the pool, his eyes full of reluctance.

It was at this moment that streaks of blood actually appeared in the pool water, swimming like tadpoles and drilling into Doukou's body. Luoli was greatly alarmed at the sight and hurriedly tried to jump into the water, but he was held back by Banxia at his side. He was extremely anxious and struggled to take off his robe, but he did not know what method Banxia used, as he could not break free no matter what.

"You just watch carefully, don't be so impatient!"

Hearing this shout from Banxia, Luoli surprisingly listened to her words. The crowd hurriedly looked into the water, only to discover that in the churning water, it was actually Doukou absorbing those blood streaks, not the blood streaks drilling into her body. And as the blood streaks were absorbed, Doukou's complexion did not look as pale as before, and gradually began to have some color.

Seeing this situation, Luoli was wild with joy; that Doukou could be like this meant the Demon Poison in her body was being diluted!

Just as Luoli was overjoyed, the churning in the water suddenly stopped. Just as the crowd thought it had returned to calm, they saw blue mist slowly seeping out from Doukou's body.

"It's Merfolk Demon Poison!" Luoli shouted out loud.

They saw the Demon Poison continuously seeping out in the water, like a Brush dipped full of ink being dropped into a pool of water used for washing ink, constantly blooming and spreading, and also like the steam on a soup bowl filled with delicacies, constantly rising.

After about the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, the water in the pool had turned azure blue, like the seawater seen from afar!

And there was no more Demon Poison seeping out from around Doukou at the bottom of the pool!

It was at this moment that her eyes were seen to tremble, looking...

Looking like she was about to wake up!

Seeing this, Luoli hurriedly tried to jump into the water, but Banxia was still holding him tightly.

"If you jump in now, you will lose all your Spirit Power!"

But Doukou was clearly about to wake up; she couldn't just stay in the water forever, could she? Besides, this water was still full of Demon Poison!

It was at this moment that Banxia looked at Long Qi.

Long Qi was confused by the look, turned his head to look at Liu Xia, his eyes asking what that meant. Liu Xia frowned, immediately understood Banxia's intention, and so decisively kicked Long Qi...