Chapter 404

In the Blood Sea, within that palace.

Daoist Wen Jing's ghostly figure floated forward, circling halfway around the Asura girl. Then, her crimson lips parted slightly, and she gently blew a wisp of air into the girl's ear.

Although the girl tried her best to endure, a faint blush still crept across her cheeks, and her silvery-white long hair fluttered gently.

Wen Jing smiled, "What a promising talent. It would be a real shame to send her to Spirit Mountain; those old Daoists there wouldn't know how to appreciate such charm."

"Wen Jing," a hoarse voice from the corner continued, "our ancestor's sword is a crucial token of our clan."

The hoarse voice from the corner continued, "We have already submitted to Spirit Mountain. The Yuan Tu sword is in your Highness's hands, and Spirit Mountain would suffer no loss."

"Your words, I will bring them back exactly as they are," Daoist Wen Jing said with a light chuckle, her fingertip brushing past the silver-haired girl's face. "But whether they will be useful is beyond my control."

A sharp clang echoed. In another corner, a burly figure seemed poised to burst from the darkness, its rough voice laden with simmering rage.

"Mosquito King, what do you mean?"

"Exactly what it sounds like," Daoist Wen Jing said, lightly flicking her fingertips, a smile playing on her lips as her phoenix eyes cast a sidelong glance at the figure. "Disagree?"

The burly figure fell silent.

"Trash," Daoist Wen Jing scoffed softly, then suddenly turned. Her blood-red gauze dress swirled, illuminating the entire hall.

In various corners, Asura figures, old and young, weak and strong, sat, stood, or lay, most of them wearing angry expressions.

"The Asuras of the Blood Sea are long past their prime, yet they still fantasize about past glories, clinging to a sword all day. Have you forgotten how your ancestor died? What good is a sword, even if you found both Yuan Tu and A Bi? This Blood Sea might as well wither away; what's the point of struggling? Hahaha, hahahaha!"

Amidst the grating laughter, Daoist Wen Jing and the silver-haired girl vanished.

A wall was smashed by an iron fist. Suppressed roars echoed through the crumbling palace, but eventually, silence descended.

Within a streak of blood-red light flying towards the border of the Underworld, Daoist Wen Jing looked at the girl she held, pondered slightly, and a faint smile appeared on her lips.

"Never mind," she thought. "I can't contact Lord Sea God now. It's better to first complete the task Spirit Mountain gave me and avoid any complications.

*'I had intended to train a maidservant for Lord Sea God; after all, the bloodline of Old Ancestor Minghe is quite rare now,'* she mused.

Daoist Wen Jing's eyes narrowed slightly, and her spiritual sense swept towards Fengdu City.

She saw a group of battle-witches, carrying coffins and playing music, had already marched out of the city's grand pass, seemingly heading towards the border of the Underworld.

The Underworld's Soul-Reaping Marshal, wearing a hood, was currently sitting on a stone coffin, continuously swaying his muscular body to the rhythm of gongs and drums behind him.

Daoist Wen Jing's lips twitched slightly, and she suddenly felt that all her hard work as an undercover agent in the Western Sect was still not as good as directly pledging loyalty to Lord Sea God...

Such joy.

Just then, in the northwest of the Southern Continent, near a large human city.

Old Daoist Lu Ya, carrying a large gourd on his back, slowly descended from the clouds, his spiritual sense carefully searching the city's every corner.

Perhaps he was too focused, for just as he was about to land, his foot suddenly slipped. The dignified Crown Prince of the Demon Race, wielder of the Immortal-Slaying Flying Dagger, and the Heavenly Court's most wanted fugitive, inexplicably stumbled forward.

Lu Ya froze for a moment, but his reaction was swift. His figure subtly shimmered, and he instantly used a shifting spell, reappearing ten *zhang* away and standing firm.

Daoist Lu Ya frowned deeply:

"This feeling, this inexplicable misfortune... he had experienced it before..."

"What's going on?"

"Why is it happening again?"

"Is this bad luck circulating through the cosmos? Or is it due to the demon race's lack of fortune?"

"Hmph!"

"How could he, Daoist Lu Ya, be troubled by such bad luck?!"

Immediately, Daoist Lu Ya closed his eyes, carefully searching the nearby city with his spiritual sense. After locating the person he sought, he used a transformation spell, turning into a middle-aged woman.

Just as he was about to step into the city, Daoist Lu Ya's forehead involuntarily furrowed with annoyance.

The soft, spongy feel beneath his soles, the slight stickiness, and the faint 'fragrance' he caught a whiff of...

Lu Ya gritted his teeth, muttering curses about some ill-mannered beast, and walked out of the woods.

Along the way, Lu Ya inexplicably bumped into two fighting wolves, and as he walked, he inexplicably wandered into a den of mortal bandits.

Although these posed no threat to him, these encounters certainly dampened his mood.

*'This bout of bad luck feels much lighter than the last time,'* Daoist Lu Ya thought, recalling the time in the Sun Palace when he almost died from cultivation. He couldn't help but shiver, silently wishing for his Father Emperor's blessing as he emerged from the forest looking somewhat disheveled.

Yet, such minor mishaps were continuous.

The middle-aged woman he had transformed into would be inexplicably bumped by passersby on the road, and when two children played, they even managed to shoot a small bamboo arrow into his eye...

Or, a cloud would suddenly drift over and pour torrential rain within a hundred *zhang* diameter centered on him.

Lu Ya was so angered his Dao heart trembled slightly, but having learned from the previous lesson, he forced himself to remain calm.

He suspected someone was deliberately tormenting him, but his spiritual sense searched everywhere, yet found no trace.

Finally, he stumbled into the city. The middle-aged woman Lu Ya had become walked with her head down, silently arriving at a small alley beside the city's busiest tavern, and stood before an old man dozing at a table near the alley's entrance.

This was it: the senior's secluded residence.

This was a white-haired diviner who specialized in fortune-telling;

A table and a tablecloth emblazoned with the words 'Nine out of Ten Divinations are Wrong, Ten Divinations a Day' were the old diviner's entire possessions.

"Cough!" Lu Ya cleared his throat.

The old diviner didn't lift his head and replied weakly, "Can't do it. Today's ten divinations are used up; please come back another day."

"Is that so?"

Daoist Lu Ya transmitted his voice, "Since you have stayed here to see me, senior, why do you keep your head down?"

"Hm?"

The old diviner looked up, his aged eyes appearing somewhat confused, and mumbled:

"Madam, who are you? Have I, this old man, met you before? Eh? Madam, your glabella is dark; it seems you are in for a bloody disaster."

Daoist Lu Ya pulled over a long bench and sat directly opposite the long table, smiling. "It is precisely because of such calamities that I came to seek your guidance, senior. I wonder if this calamity can be resolved."

The old diviner stroked his grizzled beard, his slightly mischievous expression showing a hint of difficulty.

"How about, Madam, you sit here for another half a day?" the diviner suggested. "After midnight tonight, I can continue to divine for people, and giving you one divination among tomorrow's ten would be no problem."

Daoist Lu Ya frowned slightly and said, "Senior, it is not suitable for me to show my face here for too long. Why don't we find a secluded place to talk?"

"This, this simply won't do," the old diviner waved his hands repeatedly. "Although I, this old man, have neither wife nor children, I am still a reputable diviner within several hundred *li*. If I were alone in a room with you, Madam, it would likely stir up gossip."

Daoist Lu Ya lowered his gaze, a hint of helplessness in his eyes. "Senior, do you truly not recall our past acquaintance?"

"What's that supposed to mean?"

The old diviner immediately perked up, scrutinizing the woman before him. "I... know you?"

Daoist Lu Ya sighed, a sorrowful expression on his face, but knowing he couldn't force the issue, he stood up, bowed, and turned to leave.

"Cough! Your Highness? Why are you here?"

Suddenly, a transmitted voice came from behind him.

A middle-aged man in a short-sleeved shirt poked his head out of a ground-floor window of the adjacent tavern, holding an iron wok and flipping ingredients.

"Wait until I finish stir-frying this dish, just a moment, Your Highness, there are still two tables of guests waiting!"

Daoist Lu Ya's forehead was lined with dark marks, and his body trembled violently. He almost revealed his true form and burned the city down with a breath of true solar fire!

*'What will that Lu Ya do now?'*

On Little Qiong Peak, Li Changshou sat quietly contemplating before his alchemy furnace. Within the dark furnace before him, the elixirs nearing completion were already emitting rays of light.

At this moment, he was multitasking. Besides alchemy, he was also remotely monitoring the black panther's movements and concurrently contemplating specific measures for the Underworld's reform in his secret chamber.

The black panther was currently heading towards his own cave-dwelling;

But what the black panther didn't know was that the water demon, Miaomiao, had already packed her belongings and left this cave-dwelling two days ago.

As for why, Li Changshou didn't fully understand; perhaps it was...

'They had loved?'

Perhaps the water demon sensed the black panther was involved in a major karma, feared she couldn't bear such karma, and took this opportunity to leave.

The water demon left a letter for the black panther, and Li Changshou, out of respect for living beings, did not open or read it.

But to be safe, he used his spiritual sense to observe the water demon writing the letter.

The letter merely stated that their marital bond had ended, and they would go their separate ways, with no need to seek or worry about each other in the future.

The poor black panther currently didn't know what he would face upon returning home after his trip to Jin'ao Island.

It was also unknown how much of a blow the water demon Miaomiao's departure would be to the black panther, or whether it would affect his temperament...

What was the specific plan for this?

In truth, there was no specific plan. Li Changshou issuing a proclamation to hunt Daoist Lu Ya and revealing this news to the black panther was the entirety of his scheme.

He merely threw two stones, one large and one small, into the calm waters of the demon race. What ripples they would cause, or what scale of waves they would stir up, was unknown.

This time, Li Changshou... actually wanted to practice tranquil non-action.

It wasn't that he found the 'exhaustive method' of scheming and planning too tiresome; on the contrary, this was an attempt Li Changshou decided to make after self-reflection.

In Li Changshou's current understanding, non-action meant that all possible developments of an event were within his ability to handle;

No matter how the matter unfolded, it would not affect him personally, only varying in the benefits it brought him.

As for Lu Ya, whom the Heavenly Court issued a proclamation to hunt, the worst-case scenario would be... him being taken by Saintess Nuwa to the Saint Mother Palace for 'labor reform' for a few 'instants.'

This was completely within Li Changshou's tolerance, and he could even seize this opportunity to comprehend the Dao Rime of a Saint and elevate his own Dao realm.

He lowered his head, looking at his palm lines...

This feeling of not needing to painstakingly scheme, yet having everything under his control, was indeed excellent.

This was also a chain reaction brought about by his rising cultivation realm, increased influence within the Dao Sect, growing resources, and a more solid backing.

However, Li Changshou also knew that this was not true non-action.

Like Grandmaster Taiqing, who had already accepted him as a student, that was true tranquil non-action.

When Saint Taiqing encountered something not to his liking, he could casually arrange for excellent Dharma Artifact individuals to handle it, or at most, simply take action himself to resolve it.

The Grand Supreme Ultimate Chart of Heaven and Earth, One Qi Manifesting Three Pure Ones;

The pinnacle of the Six Saints, whose mere movement startles gods and ghosts.

The small realm he had just reached was still far from that.

*Buzz—*

The iridescent light in the alchemy furnace settled. Li Changshou stopped his musings, injected a wisp of immortal power into it, enveloping the elixirs within, and slowly expelled the remaining impurities.

Subsequently, the lid of the alchemy furnace opened, and plump, rounded elixirs flew out, floating in Li Changshou's palm, their iridescent glow gradually receding.

A faint, clean fragrance wafted through the alchemy room.

Li Changshou carefully sensed for a moment, feeling somewhat disappointed.

Was producing sixth-grade spirit elixirs the limit for this alchemy furnace?

What currently hindered his rapid progress in alchemy, besides the spirit herbs and precious medicines of heavenly treasure grade, were these hardware facilities.

Lord Laozi's Eight Trigrams Furnace, he could indeed borrow it now;

But going to Tushita Palace to borrow the Eight Trigrams Furnace for alchemy wouldn't that be indirectly asking Lord Laozi for elixirs? What if Lord Laozi disliked it and his Saint Master was displeased? Wouldn't that be penny-wise and pound-foolish?

"Little Changshou?"

A familiar voice came from the alchemy room's doorway. Li Changshou turned his head to look, only to see a head with medium-short hair poking in through the door.

"What good stuff are you concocting again? Let your Martial Aunt have a taste!"

"Here," Li Changshou said, his right hand sweeping past as his finger lightly flicked an elixir away.

The head at the doorway opened its mouth and swallowed the elixir with a gulp. Before it could even chew, the elixir had already transformed into a wisp of clear liquid, sliding down its throat.

"Whoa... why is there a bitter taste?"

The head mumbled, and the body, which had been hiding by the door, also leaped in accompanied by rays of holy light. It was indeed Jiu Jiu.

Li Changshou smiled, "This is refined for Lingli; its effect is to strengthen the physical body. If you've eaten it, you've gained something."

"What?" Jiu Jiu couldn't help but be surprised. "This thing strengthens the physical body?"

"What's wrong?"

"This Martial Aunt can't grow any more! Otherwise, it won't be harmonious!"

Li Changshou smiled, "That would truly be a great regret for the Primordial World... Cough, rest assured. Martial Aunt, are you here for wine? It's in the usual spot."

"Hehe," Jiu Jiu's eyes lit up at the words, and she skipped two steps to the nearby bookshelf, taking two miniature wine gourds. "Thanks, Little Changshou! Hmph hmph! This Martial Aunt will go back and continue to dominate!"

Watching Martial Aunt Jiu Jiu's satisfied figure depart on a cloud, Li Changshou chuckled a few times, a hint of emotion in his eyes.

"Was this not also a form of non-action?"

It was just that Martial Aunt Jiu Jiu was unconcerned with worldly affairs, dedicated to cultivating in the mountains, while he himself had to face various complex grand sect games.

Putting these elixirs away, Li Changshou's spiritual sense glanced at Xiong Lingli, who was cultivating in the forest, but he wasn't in a hurry to give them to her.

At this time, Xiong Lingli was two circles sturdier than before, exuding a fierce aura, her dormant Witch tribe bloodline fully awakened.

Li Changshou had already obtained a copy of the Eight-Nine Arcane Art, but it was not yet suitable to teach it to Xiong Lingli.

The Eight-Nine Arcane Art was considered an arcane technique tailor-made for those with powerful physical bodies; the stronger the body, the easier it was to master.

Li Changshou had only just begun to study the Eight-Nine Arcane Art and discovered that this arcane technique, authored by Houtu Niangniang, was not merely a physical body cultivation method; its most precious aspect was actually the enhancement of spirit-soul power through a powerful physical body.

Li Changshou also decided to attempt cultivating this arcane technique to moderately strengthen his own physical body;

This way, it would not only increase his personal safety, but also enhance his body's musculature and strength, increase his masculine charm, and boost his male confidence—truly a multi-purpose, rare, and discontinued Witch tribe cultivation method.

There was still no news about the Witch tribe secret records Houtu Niangniang had promised to send him. If he could also combine it with a Witch tribe secret record that could temporarily boost his physical strength...

Imagine this scenario:

One day, Li Changshou, with Old Man Pagoda above his head, would be surrounded by powerful enemies. The opponents would expend immense effort, temporarily suppressing, sealing, or knocking Old Man Pagoda away;

A group of powerful enemies would weep with joy, feeling that the dawn of victory was at hand, and launch a fierce assault on Li Changshou, countless Dharma treasures raining down, only to produce a series of light 'clinks.'

Swords breaking, rulers snapping, and bricks shattering...

Li Changshou calmly pulled open his Daoist robe collar, revealing his pale golden skin.

On a rainy day, the Golden Body of Merit and the Eight-Nine Arcane Art go even better together.