Chapter 96: Differences

Fragrant mist lingered intimately, while water flowed with a gurgling sound.

Wisps of light smoke slowly rose from the cracks in the palace halls; the moist haze seemed to press only against one's face, soft and curling, clear and jade-smooth.

"You want to test me?"

Chen Heng had long since switched his fetal breathing to the attribute of "Ding Jin Zhen Qi" used at the Qi Refining realm.

His entire being possessed a golden, sharp nature, incredibly keen; even when his gaze shifted, it seemed as though it would strike up the piercing sound of grinding sand against a blade, clanging and unbearable, assaulting the eyes and ears.

His qi, blood, and essence had also been largely concealed by the Scattered Scenery Form-Concealing Art, leaving only about two-thirds visible.

At this moment, he appeared merely like a genius from a minor sect.

When his qi mechanism was released, although it was highly arrogant and unrestrained, fierce and surging, it lacked a bit of the fundamental nature of the Daoist gate.

If a cultivator of high attainment were present, a single glance would suffice without needing further inspection to know this was merely outward strength masking inner weakness.

It was like a pillar installed in a wall or an adobe brick at a kiln head; clearly, he had not received the true transmission of the Great Dao.

Though he might display power for a time, in the end, it would not last long.

Unrefined by fire and water, untempered by cold and heat, should a day come of pouring rain or flooding river tides, within no more than an hour and three quarters, the immediate result would be the miserable collapse of house and home; with such a weak foundation, one could not hope for supreme immortality.

In fact.

Those genius disciples from minor sects, such as Zhou Zhou Xingling of White Crane Cave, Qin Xian of the Blood Lotus Sect, or Yan Zhen of the Xuanzhen Sect, all displayed this same appearance.

For the true qi of the Nine Ranks and Thirty-Six Grades, between every single grade there existed a difference as vast as heaven and earth.

Between disciples of great sects and those of minor sects, merely the difference in the first step of the Qi Refining method had already created a gap as deep and wide as the abyss between heaven and the depths...

Ever since seeing through Cave Master Master Huaiwu's ulterior motives, what Chen Heng showed to the world had always been this attribute of the Xuanzhen Sect's "Ding Jin Zhen Qi," concealing the inner reality of "Tai Shi Yuan Zhen."

Even while in Cave Master Master Huaiwu's cave, when battling those cultivators from the Blood Lotus Sect, he had deliberately controlled his qi mechanism to prevent it from leaking out.

Otherwise, there would be no need for the Tai Su Yu Shen.

Merely his fetal breathing skill, which was comparable to ordinary true qi, would have been sufficient to deal with the situation.

As sparks flashed in Chen Heng's eyes, although he harbored some caution in his heart, the situation was now like an arrow on the string that must be released; if he hesitated and could not decide, he feared he would merely arouse Cave Master Master Huaiwu's suspicion in vain and ruin important matters.

Thus, he paused only for a few breaths before striding forward with a sweep of his sleeves.

Just as he was about to part the doors of the palace hall.

Among those colorful-clad female attendants, the one leading them, a woman with a pear-blossom mark between her eyebrows and a charming, beautiful appearance, suddenly bowed gracefully and spoke to Chen Heng.

"Honored Guest, please wait a moment."

Chen Heng glanced at her, stopped his steps, and said nothing.

"Please allow us sisters to change our clothes first, and then we will serve the Honored Guest in his bathing."

This leading woman who spoke appeared to be around twenty years old; her skin was fairer than snow, her lips like cinnabar, and unlike the other female attendants, she wore a brilliant, glowing bright pearl at her waist, its rippling light further highlighting her different status.

She glanced at Chen Heng with a look mixing shyness and coquettish anger, her eyes flowing with movement, naturally possessing a bewitching and multifaceted charm, and laughed in a delicate voice:

"This humble one is Lu Zhu; I do not know what style of clothing the Honored Guest prefers; during the bathing, my sisters and I can change into all of them for the Honored Guest's enjoyment, and also—"

"I have no need for anyone to serve me."

Before Lu Zhu could finish speaking, Chen Heng coldly interrupted her:

"Cave Master's sermon is imminent; within the Dharma field of a senior, how could I possibly indulge in pleasure with his female attendants? Withdraw quickly, and speak no more!"

"Honored Guest, there is no disrespect in this; having us sisters serve you is something the Master specifically ordered, it is—"

Seeing the cooked duck was about to fly away.

Lu Zhu could not help but become somewhat anxious; disregarding all decency, she reached out to grab his sleeve.

However, just as her fingers, green and spring-like as scallions, began to move, Chen Heng swept a glance at her with an expressionless face.

In an instant, she suddenly felt as though her skin had been scraped by a knife, generating unbearable pain in waves.

For a moment, fragrant sweat poured down like rain; as if being stared at by some predatory beast, her body froze stiff.

Only after a good while did she barely steady her mind, realizing with shock that her clothes were already soaked with sweat, and much of the fragrant makeup on her face had run.

"... It seems my withered willow appearance is clearly not worthy of the Honored Guest's Yuan Yuan Fayan, or perhaps the Honored Guest has different tastes and does not love women?"

This was the first time in her life she had been rejected without any face being saved.

Lu Zhu's face turned red and white in turns; finally, she forced a laugh, took out a wooden tablet, and waved it once.

Suddenly, a pavilion in the distance swung open, and a team of men, clad in light gauze that barely covered their bodies, handsome and bewitching, leaped out like fish.

These men all wore makeup depicting young girls; their clothing was bold and unrestrained, almost exposing their chests and abdomens, waiting only for Lu Zhu's summons to approach.

"Honored Guest—"

Lu Zhu had just barely squeezed a smile onto her face and was about to ask a question.

When she saw Chen Heng turn around with an expressionless face; between the opening and closing of the doors, his figure had already vanished from the spot.

"..."

Her complexion instantly became even uglier; she bit her teeth fiercely, her charming jade-like face twisting and changing color.

After a long while.

She waved the wooden tablet again, drove that team of men back into the pavilion, said not a single word, turned around, and left.

Only after she had gone far, entering a side hall, did she allow the crowd of female attendants to close the hall doors.

Only then did Lu Zhu, as if venting her anger, tear the ink painting on the wall into shards, smash numerous jade plates and fine porcelain, shout and scream for a while, and finally let out her breath.

"Sister, this person is clearly going to be refined into a Demon Kin by the Lady today, just like us; why are you in such a rush now? Why vent such anger in vain?"

A female attendant who knew Lu Zhu gently embraced her hand and advised:

"Once he also becomes a Demon People, he will naturally be in a state where the seven emotions cannot be suppressed and the six desires burn his body; Sister, you are a Red-Robed Demon personally conceived by the Lady with her own heart's blood, your lineage is far above his; if you want him to do something, how could he possibly disobey you?

By that time, not to mention getting into his bed.

Even if you wanted him to bark like a dog and wag his tail to beg for your pity, would that be any difficulty?"

These words made all the women cover their lips in amusement, and finally caused Green Pearl's expression to soften slightly, revealing a faint smile.

She reached out, pinched the half-slab of facial skin that had slipped down and was dangling loosely against her cheek, and pressed it back into place.

Carefully leaning before the mirror, she smeared several layers of waxy, yellow, greasy ointment over it until it finally adhered firmly, covering the mass of rotting maggots and flies beneath the flesh and masking the overwhelming stench.

"You speak rightly! I am a Rouge Demon personally nurtured from the Lady's own heart's blood, destined to bear blood heirs for the Young Master in the future; my breeding is surely far superior to his, so how could he disobey me!"

Green Pearl let out a cold laugh, then pressed hard again on the half-face she had earlier removed, saying:

"In my rage attacking my heart, I nearly burst this fine appearance apart; indeed, the fault is mine."

She turned and gave an order, whereupon several maids in colorful robes walked out of the hall with bright smiles, and within moments, returned leading several sturdy, muscular men.

Once brought inside, those men offered no resistance; though their bodies were towering and brimming with vigorous blood-qi, their faces wore only a blank, joyous expression, with drool trickling from the corners of their mouths as if they had already become mindless fools, left entirely at the mercy of others.

"It is a pity that I was nurtured for too short a time; I can only consume mortals and those in the Fetal Breathing stage, but cannot yet devour Qi-Refining cultivators."

Green Pearl sighed inwardly.

The most crucial ingredient for a Rouge Demon to advance in rank is the essential qi of human beings; regardless of whether male or female, yin or yang, so long as enough is harvested, the Blood Elixir technique will be accomplished.

But since she had only recently been born, even the single strand of fetal breath from a Fetal Breathing cultivator was difficult for her to digest, let alone a Qi-Refining cultivator with deeper cultivation.

"Once I advance in rank, surely the Old Master and the Lady will value me even more; neither my Rouge Demon nor the Young Master's Strength-Anomaly Demon are ordinary beings, so to ease my mind, they should grant some small requests of mine."

While pondering this, Green Pearl flipped onto the bed, waved her hand to draw a sturdy man toward her, and simultaneously lowered the gauze curtains, thinking to herself:

"Although that person just now was a man and truly impolite, why was he so exceedingly handsome! He made my eyes burn with desire! I nearly wished to engage in the joy of fish and water with him right then and there!

However, it is not so easy to keep him by my side...

I fear that if the Lady sees him, she too will covet him and fight me for him, which would be truly headache-inducing!"

Filled with such troubled thoughts, the bed shook violently, and the sounds of panting rose and fell in turns.

It took no more than a few dozen breaths.

As the dark green gauze curtain stirred, a human figure was sent flying heavily outward, rolling several times across the ground until it barely came to a stop upon hitting the door threshold.

At this moment.

That man, originally as robust as a lion or tiger, was now merely a fragile sack of skin wrapping bones; his breath was faint as a gossamer thread, his oily skin thin as a cicada's wing, nearly revealing the dark red internal organs writhing within.

In just a few dozen breaths, he seemed to have aged sixty years; his hair turned flower-white, and after one short, gasping exhale, he tilted his head to the side and fell utterly silent.

In the next instant, amidst Green Pearl's satisfied laughter, another large man lifted off the ground, involuntarily flying toward the bed.

Just as the mandarin duck quilt was overturned and the crimson silk curtains stirred.

On the other side.

Chen Heng, having changed his clothes and cap, continued under the guidance of other maids in colorful robes toward the ritual altar of Cave Lord Master Huaiwu.

"Just now, a divine sense swept over repeatedly; judging by that evil aura, nine times out of ten it was that Wicked Wrath Yin-Victory Demon... Fortunately, you used the Scattered Radiance Concealing Form technique to hide your Fetal Breathing well, so it did not detect anything amiss, otherwise it would have been trouble!"

Suddenly, the voice of Fuchan Fuchan Laozu echoed in his mind:

"Why make you bathe and change clothes in the hot spring first? I understand now! Clearly, they feared you might be wearing some inner armor, or carrying some protective means within your undergarments, and thus maintained precautions!

Not only that, but your Qiankun Bag was scanned inside and out; your entire stash has been laid bare to the heavens!"

"Can Heavenly Demons actually perceive things inside a Qiankun Bag?"

Hearing this, Chen Heng felt slightly surprised and transmitted his voice in reply.

"What is so strange about that? Heavenly Demons are inherently void locusts, let alone one that is a Wicked Wrath Yin-Victory Demon; although this inferior-grade talismanic artifact, the Qiankun Bag, possesses the ability of an inner landscape, it is extremely crude, so naturally it is difficult to hide from its eyes and ears."

Fuchan Fuchan Laozu laughed loudly:

"Nowadays you are penniless and empty-handed; apart from those few battle talismans, you truly possess nothing else! Rest assured, rest assured, that stupid demon certainly cannot recognize the marvelous utility of battle talismans and will not suspect anything!"

"Is there no method—"

"Once you achieve the Purple Mansion realm, you will be able to store items within your Purple Mansion; that is an inner landscape world created by heavenly principles, absolutely, absolutely impossible to peer into!"

Before Chen Heng could finish speaking, Fuchan Fuchan Laozu had already guessed his thoughts and explained helplessly:

"Besides, the one scanning your Qiankun Bag was a Heavenly Demon; only the outstanding ones among these locusts possess such prowess!

If it were that so-called Cave Lord Master Huaiwu, he wouldn't be able to see a damn thing; you lad, don't be too suspicious, always doubting ghosts and spirits every day!"

Hearing this, Chen Heng fell into thoughtful silence, pondering for a moment.

Along the way, the two of them chatted aimlessly about various matters.

Fuchan Fuchan Laozu harbored immense curiosity regarding the affairs between Chen Heng and Wei Wei Lingjiang, repeatedly attempting to pry out the truth and refusing to stop until he had gotten to the bottom of it.

But alas, the person before him kept his mouth tightly shut; no matter how Fuchan Fuchan Laozu probed indirectly, he could not discern his true thoughts.

This angered Fuchan Fuchan Laozu until his face turned green then purple, then purple then green, until finally he could only give up in dejection.

"It is a pity you lad do not sit in a death cell; with such a tight mouth, even a crowbar couldn't pry it open, and torture would be useless!"

Fuchan Fuchan Laozu cursed and grumbled, just about to speak again.

When suddenly he frowned and abruptly fell silent.

"Stop transmitting voices; we have arrived at their territory..."

After speaking these final words, he sank into silence.

Chen Heng raised his eyes to look.

He saw that not far away stood a palace entirely bright yellow, its four gates wide open and utterly empty, save for a ritual altar built of water-jade standing in the center of the palace, about thirty-three feet high, upon which sat a tall old Daoist dressed in neat and solemn attire—none other than Cave Lord Master Huaiwu.

Below the ritual altar, three apricot-yellow meditation cushions were arranged in a row, upon which two people had already taken their seats.

"Honored guest, please proceed."

The maid in colorful robes who had led him here glanced deeply at Chen Heng, then inexplicably covered her lips with a smile, gathered her skirts, and withdrew.

"Greetings, Cave Lord; greetings, two Daoist brothers."

Chen Heng did not hesitate; sweeping his sleeve, he strode boldly to the foot of the ritual altar and gracefully performed a bowed salute.

"Young Daoist friend, you appear to be in excellent spirits; very good, very good."

Cave Lord Master Huaiwu waved his fly-whisk, paused slightly, and smiled: "No need for excessive courtesy; please take your seat."

"Fellow Daoist has arrived, please, please."

The other two on the meditation cushions dared not show the slightest negligence either; they hastily rose to return the courtesy, their attitudes exceedingly respectful...

Because Yuan Yuan Yangsheng had sensed something amiss and used the Flying Fortune Fruit to flee beforehand, the seat he left vacant was now filled by a Qi Cultivator from the Blood Lotus Sect.

Chen Heng, the rogue cultivator Lu Yu, and one Qi Cultivator from the Blood Lotus Sect.

That made the total.

The top three fortunate enough to attend this Dao lecture—

After exchanging courtesies, the few did not indulge in much small talk, merely seeking out meditation cushions to sit upon.

After uttering a few formalities, Cave Master Master Huaiwu offered no further words; getting straight to the point with a faint smile, he expounded upon a sublime Daoist art that used armor and mail to alter one's form, swapping bodies to cheat death.

Like clouds, like rain, chaotic heavenly flowers rained down.

Talismans, Qi gathering, pills and arrays, spirit refining, puppets...

Speaking once of the Profound, debating a round of the Dao.

Cave Master Master Huaiwu hid nothing, seeming to hold nothing back; his voice rang clear like gold and resonant like jade as he spoke in gentle detail.

And the experiential Daoist treatise of a Great Refiner of the Cave Profound realm, let alone for rogue cultivators, was undoubtedly a heaven-sent opportunity even for sect disciples.

Everyone below the altar was utterly enchanted, completely immersed within it, unaware of how much time had passed.

Half an hour slipped by quietly.

Suddenly, Chen Heng's mind sounded an alarm; inexplicably, he snapped his eyes open.

Beside his ear remained Cave Master Master Huaiwu's warm, thick voice; this time, he spoke of the smelting methods for Great Treasure Yellow Pellets, while the rogue cultivator Lu Yu and that Qi Cultivator from the Blood Lotus Sect listened with rapt attention, eyes closed and minds sunk deep.

Yet in his ears, what was originally an ordinary pill formula grew increasingly absurd and ferocious.

Rivers of blood, corpse wax, skulls, rotting flies...

Screams emerged from who knew where, slowly drilling out, growing louder! Growing louder!

Finally.

The void before him suddenly parted hazily like a gauze curtain.

A flayed blood corpse, wailing, squeezed into the present world, violently threw open its arms, and embraced him!