Mortals: Take Mo Juren at the start

"Young friend, you just mentioned that Senior Xuanming has already ascended to the Spirit Realm. I wonder where he is now?" Coming back to his senses, the Cave Heaven Rat King asked again impatiently, even his tone becoming much more polite.

"I don't know either." Mo Juren shook his head slightly, and without waiting for further questions, gave his explanation directly.

"I suppose you know that the world I live in was severely damaged and could not ascend normally, so I could only go through spatial nodes."

That was the choice we made at the time, but we encountered danger along the way and ended up getting separated. I have no idea where Senior Xuanming and the others are now..."

"I see!" The Cave Rat King suddenly looked enlightened, and after a moment of rapid thought, he suddenly said,

"Is there another possibility that they might not even be in the spirit world?"

"Not in the Spirit Realm?" Mo Juren was stunned. During his previous trip to the Xiao family, he had already confirmed Wei Yurou's location as being on the Thunder Continent. Shouldn't the others be in the same situation?
"Think about it," the Cave Heaven Rat King explained, "if they really did reach the Spirit Realm, then my avatar would likely follow suit. But why hasn't it contacted me? We have a special way of communicating; even if it's in the lower realm, it won't be affected." Hearing this, Mo Juren breathed a sigh of relief.

"What you say makes sense, senior, but it's not necessarily correct. What if your clone is deliberately not contacting you?"

"Deliberately avoiding contact, why?" This time it was the Cave Rat King's turn to be stunned. Seeing this, Mo Juren simply shook his head slightly, then replied meaningfully,

"These are just my guesses, and they are not to be taken seriously. As for the reasons behind them, only you, senior, can figure them out."

Seeing the rather intriguing expression on the other party's face, the Cave Rat King was slightly taken aback. After a moment of thought, his expression suddenly turned ugly.

"You mean, he wants to be independent?"

"That was your backup plan, so it probably doesn't have much binding force. If one could gain freedom, who would be willing to be subservient to someone else and become an extension of another?"

"This..." Upon hearing this, the Cave Rat King fell completely silent.

Indeed, as the other party said, because it was a backup plan, the clone not only had all the original's memories, but also had little binding force.

At most, they can only communicate with each other; otherwise, they can be regarded as two independent individuals, each with its own independent consciousness.

In this situation, even if it were him, he would not want to have too much to do with the original body. Moreover, he has now latched onto Senior Xuanming's coattails, and his future is limitless. It is even possible that he will turn the tables and surpass him as the original body in the future.

As the saying goes, there can only be two suns in the sky. Once the clone grows up and even surpasses the original, the two may not be able to coexist peacefully.

The reason is simple: both originate from the same source, and if one absorbs the other's source, it will be of great benefit to oneself.

Such things are commonplace in the demon realm, but they are also quite common in the spirit realm, especially when there are not enough constraints, the possibility is extremely high.

For a moment, he suddenly panicked. Although he had already foreseen a great calamity in the future, it did not mean that he would definitely not survive it. The clone was just a precaution.

If I don't die because of the great calamity, but instead fall into the hands of my clone by some twist of fate, wouldn't that mean I've dug a hole for myself?
Thinking about all this, he felt terrible.

What should I do?
He was also somewhat bewildered. His clone possessed all of his memories and had considerable talent. Now, it had even climbed up to Senior Xuanming, so its cultivation speed would surely be advancing by leaps and bounds.

It won't take long to catch up with your stagnant self.

"wrong!"

But at that moment, he suddenly thought of something and looked at Mo Juren.

The problem doesn't seem so difficult to solve, does it?

If the clone can climb onto Senior Xuanming's coattails, why can't I?

The man in front of me is the best target. As long as I can build a good relationship with him, why should I worry about not being able to gain Senior Xuanming's favor in the future?

As long as Senior Xuanming is willing to step in, even if his clone rises to power one day, it won't be so easy for him to attack the original body.

At the very least, it would be good if both sides could maintain their independence.

Yes, that’s it!
Thinking of this, an unusually bright smile immediately appeared on the rugged face of the Cave Rat King:
"I must thank you for this time, young friend. If it weren't for your reminder, I would still be completely clueless. Now that we have this relationship, we are no longer strangers. From now on, how about I address you as Brother Mo?"

"Uh, senior, you flatter me. With my abilities, how could I possibly be qualified to be your brother..." Mo Juren was taken aback by the other party's sudden change in attitude and was about to refuse when he was interrupted again.
“What are you saying, Brother Mo? We met in the mortal realm and now we’ve met again in the spirit realm. What a profound fate this is! Why bother with those old customs and formalities? From now on, I’ll call you Brother Mo, and you don’t need to call me senior. Just call me brother.”

"..."

Mo Juren was at a loss for words. At this moment, he gradually came to his senses and vaguely guessed some of the other party's ulterior motives. Therefore, he was not surprised by the other party's sudden enthusiasm.

After thinking it over, he finally agreed, even though he knew that the other party's intention was to use him in order to indirectly establish a relationship with Fairy Xuanming.

He didn't care about any of that. Right now, being on friendly terms with the other party was beneficial to him, so why not?
"Then how about I shamelessly address you as Brother Dongtian?"

"That's more like it! I knew it. My brother is not the kind of person who is shy and hesitant to achieve such remarkable success at such a young age!" Upon hearing Mo Juren's address, the Cave Rat King was overjoyed. After thinking for a moment, he suddenly flipped his hand, and a purple light appeared, revealing a palm-sized purple jade box.

"I'm sure you know my identity, my brother. I'm quite wealthy. Now that we're brothers, I, as the older brother, need to show my appreciation."

Judging from your cultivation level, you've likely reached the peak of the mid-stage Nascent Soul realm, which means you're not far from the Void Refinement realm. I happen to have a pill here that can increase your chances of breaking through to the Void Refinement realm, so I'll give it to you.”

"A pill to break through to the Void Refinement Realm..." Mo Juren was greatly shocked. It was extremely difficult for a cultivator to break through to the Void Refinement Realm, and the value of a pill that could help with this was immeasurable.

Although his current cultivation level is only at the mid-stage of the Nascent Soul realm, he has already begun preparing to break through to the Void Refining realm. For example, the Five Elements Fruit he obtained earlier is the main ingredient for refining the Five Elements Condensing Essence Pill.

Unexpectedly, before the pill was even finished being refined, a medicine with similar effects was obtained, and he was naturally overjoyed.

"Thank you for your generous gift, brother. It would be impolite of me to refuse." Mo Juren did not pretend to be modest and accepted it directly. Seeing this, the Cave Rat King was even happier and continued to explain, "This medicine is called 'Nine-Flower Pill'. It is a top-grade treasure medicine from ancient times. The main ingredient used to refine it, 'Nine-Flower Primordial Yang Grass', has long been extinct, so it is impossible to refine it now. This is the only one left."

I obtained it by chance when I entered the ruins of an ancient cultivator. I kept it because I didn't need it myself, but now I'm giving it to you, my brother.

Unfortunately, the difficulty of breaking through to the Void Refinement Realm is beyond imagination; a single pill is far from sufficient. Brother, you should prepare more thoroughly before attempting this breakthrough.

"Thank you for the reminder, brother. I will be careful." Mo Juren nodded solemnly, but then a thought suddenly struck him, and he asked again, "..."
"I'm sure you're quite familiar with the cultivation method I specialize in, the Five Elements Dao Proving Chapter. Do you have any insights into it?"

"Of course I have it, I almost forgot if you hadn't asked." The Cave Rat King suddenly realized, and without hesitation, took out a jade slip and handed it over.

"That's it. Take a look when you have some free time, it should be of great help."

"Thank you, brother!" Mo Juren accepted the jade slip with exceptional sincerity. Even though the relationship was established out of mutual benefit, the other party had indeed given something of real value, so he naturally had to accept the thanks.

"These are all useless things to me, but I'm glad they can help you, brother." The Cave Rat King waved his hand, said no more, and turned to look ahead.

"I didn't have time to ask before, but you and Fairy Fengyu have come to this far north and are even going to enter the Forbidden Land of No Life. What are your plans? Could there be some kind of opportunity in this forbidden land? Of course, if you don't want to say, then just pretend I didn't ask and don't worry about it."

“There’s nothing I can’t say, but it’s not what you think, brother. There’s no such thing as some kind of opportunity. We’re here for something else…” Mo Juren didn’t hide anything and immediately explained the whole story.

Upon hearing that they were looking for someone, rather than seeking some kind of opportunity, the Cave Rat King was speechless. He had been foolishly following behind, thinking that he could intercept the opportunity once it came his way.

It turned out that it wasn't like that at all; the person was simply looking for someone, and it had nothing to do with any kind of opportunity.

Thinking of all this, he couldn't help but sigh. Sure enough, opportunities are not so easy to come by. He had been completely presumptuous before. Fortunately, he knew this in advance, otherwise he would have foolishly followed them into the Forbidden Land of No Life.
After some thought, he said again:

"Since you've come here to find Xuanjin Sanren to come out of seclusion, coincidentally, I might be able to help."

"Brother, is what you say true?" Upon hearing this, Mo Juren's face lit up with joy, and then he asked again, somewhat incredulously.

"Of course it's true." The Cave Rat King nodded slightly, then began to explain.
"Brother, you may not know this, but besides cultivation, my greatest hobby is studying all kinds of books related to cultivation, not only those about humans and demons, but also those about various alien races. Over the years, I have gained some knowledge."

I also have some knowledge about the art of curses, and I have known Fellow Daoist Xuanjin for a long time. We have even discussed and exchanged ideas on this path in the past.

Although they aren't exactly close friends, they are old acquaintances, so getting them to come out of retirement shouldn't be a problem for you.

"I see!" Mo Juren suddenly understood, and his heart filled with even greater joy.

"Since you have some knowledge of curses, do you know anything about the so-called 'Seven Emotions Locking Heart Curse'?"

“I know what you mean, but unfortunately, although I have some understanding of this art, it is only superficial and I cannot be considered proficient. Ordinary spells are fine, but I am not very confident in high-level spells such as the ‘Seven Emotions Locking Heart Spell’.”

Therefore, it would be best to ask Fellow Daoist Xuanjin for help. He has dedicated his entire life to studying this path and has already reached a level that is difficult for others to attain. Asking him for help is the safest option.

"It seems I oversimplified things. I must thank you for the reminder, brother. Also, when Senior Feng Yu returns later, I'll need you to go with me."

"It was nothing, brother, no need to be so polite..."

"..."

As their relationship changed, the interactions between the human and the demon became increasingly pleasant.

About fifteen minutes later, Fairy Phoenix Feather finally returned. The moment she saw the Cave Heaven Rat King, her mind suddenly sharpened, and she immediately prepared to attack.

Fortunately, Mo Juren reacted quickly and spoke up to stop them, then gave a brief explanation.

After hearing this, Fairy Phoenix Feather was completely stunned, feeling as if she were living in a dream.

Mo Juren, a human cultivator at the Nascent Soul stage, actually became sworn brothers with the infamous Cave Heaven Rat King—it's simply a fantasy!

This is just too outrageous. Are you sure this isn't a joke? If word gets out, it'll shock so many people.

The Cave Heaven Rat King, one of the seven great demon kings, stands at the pinnacle of both the human and demon races. What exactly did he see in the other? And even if he did have feelings for him, surely not to this extent?
Back to Mo Juren, the more you get to know him, the more you feel that this guy is simply a legendary existence. I don't know what kind of charm he has, how he can always get in touch with experts in the Integration Realm.
That Hua Qingyao, the Qinghua Saint of the Nine Saints Palace, and even the Tianli Daoist of the Xiao family, are all incredibly powerful. Now, with the addition of the Cave Heaven Rat King, it's truly hard to know what to say.

Even you yourself, after knowing the other person for a while, don't you also develop feelings for them?

Demon!
This guy is definitely not normal; I'd better keep a close eye on him in the future.

"How did your investigation go, senior?" Mo Juren, unaware of the other's wild thoughts, took the initiative to ask.

"We miscalculated!" Upon mentioning serious matters, Fairy Phoenix Feather's expression immediately turned serious.
"The situation inside is much more troublesome than I expected, especially the existing curses, which are endless and all-pervasive. Even with the protection of the 'Heavenly Buddha Glass Mirror,' it is still impossible to stay inside for too long."

The problem now is that neither of us knows the exact location of the Profound Forbidden One, nor can we be certain when we can find him. If too much time passes, and we are both deep within the forbidden area, problems are highly likely to arise.

"It should be inside Ice Soul Valley," Mo Juren promptly reminded him.

"Ice Soul Valley, that's the deepest forbidden area." Fairy Phoenix Feather frowned again, pondering how long the Heavenly Buddha Glazed Mirror could last. Reaching the destination shouldn't be a problem, but returning seemed impossible!

If you arrive at Ice Soul Valley and meet Xuanjin Sanren, and he is willing to help, then there is nothing to worry about. But what if he is unwilling? Wouldn't that be troublesome?
It's easy for me to leave, given my own abilities, but I don't have enough confidence to ensure Mo Juren's safety.

Just as he was struggling with this, Mo Juren looked directly at the Cave Rat King beside him, who did not hesitate and then chuckled:
"Fellow Daoist Feng Yu, there's no need to worry. I should be able to help." (End of Chapter)