Chapter 582: Master, This Person Is Not a Good Bird

The Old Ancestor of the Vajra Sect instantly grew wary, his gaze fixed intently on the old man outside.

On the street, the old man cried out loudly, “Benefactor!”

The single word was imbued with profound emotion. His expression was filled with excitement, his entire body trembling, eyes welling up with tears. His countenance clearly betrayed a state of overwhelming emotion.

“I’ve been searching for you for so, so long!”

“Your life-saving kindness back then is something I’ve always held close to my heart. My only regret is that I was deeply engrossed in my cultivation that day. By the time I awoke, you had already departed. You didn’t even charge me a single cent for the consultation or the elixirs!”

The old man’s voice quavered. Suppressing his anxiety and fear, he bravely, albeit tremblingly, took a few steps forward. He stopped a dozen yards from Xu Qing’s pharmacy. “This matter has weighed heavily on my conscience, which is why I’ve been looking for you.”

“Heaven truly has eyes, to allow me to find you today!” The old man wiped the corners of his eyes. Standing outside the pharmacy, he solemnly bowed to the expressionless Xu Qing within.

When he looked up, the old man gazed at Xu Qing, his expression now pleading. “This time, please, I beg you, give me a chance to repay your kindness. You *must* accept this grand gift I’ve prepared for you, my Benefactor.”

Enduring the pangs of reluctance, the old man swiftly produced his three storage bags, holding them up with both hands. Chen Fanzhuo watched this scene unfold. A sense of bewilderment rose within him. He could feel the sincerity and excitement radiating from this old man who had moments ago appeared so imposing.

He particularly noticed that the man only possessed three storage bags, yet was now offering all of them in repayment. This moved him, but also struck him as incredibly peculiar. Instinctively, he followed the old man’s gaze towards the master of the pharmacy behind him.

Inside the pharmacy, Xu Qing coldly eyed the trembling old man, his hand playing with a transparent elixir bottle. In his mind, the Old Ancestor of the Vajra Sect’s urgent message echoed: "Master, this person is deceitful and incredibly cunning; clearly not a good sort. Characters like him in common tales are always treacherous, unlike me."

Ignoring the Old Ancestor of the Vajra Sect, Xu Qing stepped out of the pharmacy. He saw through the old man’s petty schemes with perfect clarity. These little tricks might work on others, but they were useless against him. Xu Qing hadn't forgotten that this man had managed to escape him in the past, and now that he’d encountered him again, he had no intention of letting him go. The Old Ancestor of the Vajra Sect also sensed Xu Qing’s killing intent and began to gather his power from the rafters, awaiting Xu Qing’s command to strike.

As Xu Qing approached, immense pressure settled upon the old man. Sweat beaded on his brow as he saw the coldness in Xu Qing’s eyes, his heart churning. Seeing his methods fail, he anxiously glanced at Chen Fanzhuo, then gritted his teeth.

Suddenly, he cried out, “Benefactor, your kindness to me, Li Youfei, is greater than the heavens! Today, please, you *must* accept my gratitude, Li Youfei’s humble gift!”

Hearing the name Li Youfei, Chen Fanzhuo found it familiar and began to search his memories.

Seeing this, the old man grew more anxious, thinking, *Is this fellow not from around here? How has he not remembered yet?* He loudly continued, “I, Li Youfei, have lived in the Bitter Life Mountain Range for sixty years, a lifetime of hardship, surviving through struggle. I know the importance of gratitude most of all. Benefactor, that day when you left, I, Li Youfei…”

At this point, Chen Fanzhuo’s mind suddenly stirred. He remembered the name, his eyes widened, and he cried out in surprise, “You are Immortal Li Youfei, Senior Li!”

Chen Fanzhuo was deeply moved. Thirteen years ago, the infamous Lin Blood Sect, known for using newborn mortals from the Bitter Life Mountain Range in alchemy, was wiped out overnight, saving countless children. It was widely rumored in the Bitter Life Mountain Range that the one who acted was Immortal Li Youfei!

And over forty years ago, the Blood Worship Sect, which engaged in rape, pillage, and bullying of many local towns, was largely slaughtered in three days. The legend also attributed this to Immortal Li Youfei!

Throughout these sixty years, whenever natural disasters or human calamities struck, the suffering mortals in various towns would receive food, which was also said to be Li Youfei’s doing!

Most recently, several months ago, peripheral rogue cultivators secretly aligned with the Scarlet Moon Temple, seeking to become Divine Slaves, began dying frequently. There were whispers...

Chen Fanzhuo’s breathing quickened as he looked at the old man before him, his heart filled with shock. He had heard many legends during his years in the Bitter Life Mountain Range, among them those concerning Li Youfei. It was said that this man was both righteous and roguish, possessing both heroic spirit and a bandit’s flair, but on the whole, his heroism outweighed his rogue tendencies.

“Senior, regarding the dwelling, all my belongings, I will return them completely. Please forgive this junior.” Chen Fanzhuo took a deep breath and bowed deeply to the old man. Though he appeared excited, anyone who could survive and maintain a small force in the Bitter Life Mountain Range was extraordinary. He naturally perceived that there was something unusual between the old man and the master. But regardless of whether the other party was genuine or not, he felt this was an opportunity to successfully resolve his own crisis.

When the old man heard this, he finally let out a sigh of relief. He was indeed Li Youfei, though he usually used his pulled-out self to act outside, hence his changeable appearance, while his true self remained hidden. This was truly a last resort. At this moment of life-or-death crisis, he wanted the old monster to know that he… actually still had value. He understood that the other party wanted to join the Reverse Moon Palace. Generally speaking, those who chose to join the Reverse Moon Palace were individuals harboring resentment. He wanted to tell Xu Qing that he was one of them. Although he hadn't yet passed the Reverse Moon Palace’s assessment and still lacked a sacrifice of a Divine Slave, he had been doing similar things in his own way all these years. This was, in fact, true.

Thinking of this, the old man looked at Xu Qing, his eyes pleading.

Xu Qing’s footsteps paused, his gaze falling upon the old man. He said nothing, and his silence made the old man’s heart tremble, feeling immense pressure. After a long moment, Xu Qing raised his right hand and grasped. Instantly, the three storage bags before the old man flew into his hand. Taking them, Xu Qing turned and walked back into the pharmacy.

As Xu Qing departed, the pressure enveloping the old man immediately dissipated. The sensation of having narrowly escaped death made the old man take a deep breath. He gazed at Xu Qing’s retreating back, bowed solemnly, then quickly turned and left.

However, he did not notice that an eye subtly opened and then quickly hid itself within his shadow. Xu Qing had temporarily spared Li Youfei. He intended to leave a shadow imprint to observe him. If he was truly as Chen Fanzhuo described, then letting him off would not be impossible. But if he proved to be deceitful, or harbored malicious intent, then no matter how small his actions, there would be no chance of survival. The shadow would control his body, making him devour himself until nothing but bones remained.

In the sky, after Li Youfei’s departure, though still dim, the mist had vanished.

Watching all this, Chen Fanzhuo’s reverence for Xu Qing reached its peak. He was immensely grateful for his earlier respect, and his attitude now grew even more humble. He bowed deeply towards Xu Qing’s pharmacy before backing away and leaving.

Inside the pharmacy, Ling’er blinked her eyes, gazing at the storage bags in Xu Qing’s hand. Xu Qing had already sensed Ling’er’s money-loving nature, which she had displayed since the pharmacy opened. So, he smiled, merged his divine sense into the storage bags, and after confirming there were no dangers, handed them to Ling’er.

Ling’er cheered, eagerly taking them and immediately examining the contents, like opening a treasure chest. She took out item after item with anticipation, her small face glowing with happiness and contentment.

Xu Qing watched for a while, then smiled and returned to the back room. He sat cross-legged, took out his mirror, and merged into it, continuing his bombardment.

Three days passed this way. In the early hours of the fourth day, at the terminus of the Reverse Moon Palace’s receiving light, Xu Qing stood, a mix of excitement and anticipation rising within him. After more than a month, he was finally about to complete this third assessment!

“It was so difficult,” Xu Qing mused. He raised his right hand, clenched his fist, and unleashed a powerful punch forward. With a series of crackling sounds, the final yard of the path was cleared and connected. A powerful burst of light enveloped Xu Qing’s entire body. He stepped forward as if passing through a cool sheet of water, appearing inside an ancient temple.

The temple was small, about ten yards square. There was no incense smoke, and nothing but an altar. Xu Qing’s position was on this altar, though not in his original form. He had transformed into a statue. The statue wore long robes, its face that of an old man, with a stern, self-possessed expression and a long beard reaching his chest, exuding an air of an immortal. Behind him was a large gourd. A faint sense of divinity seemed to flow around it.

After examining his statue form, Xu Qing extended his divine sense. But he quickly found that his divine sense could not penetrate the surrounding walls, only spreading within the temple. After confirming there were no other presences here, Xu Qing raised his hand. His stone statue hand was dark in color, as if it had once been painted, but with the passage of time, it had become mottled and covered with numerous cracks, both deep and shallow. Xu Qing lowered his hand, his gaze sweeping around.

“Is this the Reverse Moon Palace?” Xu Qing mused. He didn't know why he had become a statue, but he could feel that the statue contained a force of life, though it didn’t belong to him. It was more like armor bestowed upon him after entering this place.

“So, there was originally a statue here? And after I came in, I appeared inside the statue?” After a moment of thought, Xu Qing attempted to move.

As the altar trembled and dust scattered, Xu Qing controlled his statue body, slowly stepping down from the altar, reaching the ground step by step. He felt the inflexibility of the body. He moved around a bit more, until he had explored the small temple again, becoming more familiar with this statue armor. He also discovered that cultivation had no meaning here; it couldn't be channeled, as the statue isolated everything. To move here, he could only rely on controlling the statue’s body to walk. However, storage bags could be opened.

He then looked up at the temple door. The door, originally vermilion, now had a layer of cracked, flaking paint due to the ravages of time, its color significantly faded.

“Beyond this door is the Reverse Moon Palace, I suppose.” Xu Qing’s eyes showed anticipation as he controlled his statue body to walk forward. After a few steps, he reached the door. He stood there, took a deep breath, and pushed forward with force. But just as his hand touched the temple door, an anomaly suddenly occurred!

At the same time, on the edge of the Azure Sand Desert, outside the Bitter Life Mountain Range, a multicolored light streaked through the azure wind and sand. This light moved with extraordinary speed, occasionally flashing, instantly teleporting to a farther location, alternating forward, getting faster and faster. The dangers of the desert seemed to be nothing to it; as long as its speed was sufficient, it could ignore everything.

However, occasionally this light would pause in mid-air, as if searching for a direction. At such times, if one were to look closely, they could clearly see that the light contained none other than the parrot, the offspring of Wu Jianwu. Each time the parrot paused, its nose would twitch a few times, and its head would sway left and right, sniffing and searching. Now, high in the sky, far from the Bitter Life Mountain Range, its eyes lit up.

“Still, Grandpa I am the best! I finally found it!”

“In this situation, if my dad were here, he would surely be inspired to recite a poem. As the smartest of my dad's many offspring, I shall recite a poem on his behalf!”

“When this parrot emerged, its father was nothing! Quick, call your grandpa! Your grandpa is here!”

The parrot spoke proudly, its only regret being that there was no one around to applaud its truly talented poetry.