Netherworld Painted Skin Scroll

Chapter 412 Getting Ashore Isn't That Easy
They walked all day without stopping to rest. This was nothing for those at the Golden Core and Qi Refining stages, but it was a real ordeal for Kong Youxin. First, the soles of her feet were blistered, and then her head and neck were hit several times. By the time they set up camp that night, she was so exhausted that she couldn't even speak, let alone move.

This was perfect for Sun Ji, who began bustling around busily. In reality, Li Wuxiang suspected she was doing it on purpose. During the day, Zhou Xiang had thought of Kong Youxin, but whenever she felt like taking a break, Sun Ji would giggle, open her arms, and run forward, acting like a carefree, youthful girl. Zhou Xiang would immediately be captivated, like a dog, and quickly chase after her, hands behind her back, laughing, leaving Kong Youxin behind—a stepmother full of wicked schemes, the child was truly pitiful.

Li Wuxiang came to a conclusion: This guy is severely sexually repressed; as long as his temperament matches, he's not picky at all.

However, upon closer examination, it makes sense. The cultivators of the Five Mountains True Form Sect are inherently sexually repressed, and wasn't Lou He's betrayal partly due to his wife's influence? Within the sect, mortals and cultivators are strictly restricted in their marriages and relationships. Although everyone is used to it, habit is one thing, and instinct is another.

Lou He is right. Although Zhou Xiang holds a high position within the sect, he probably doesn't have much power. In Li Wuxiang's opinion, he's more like a deposed crown prince. Not only can he not be willful, but he also has to be extremely cautious. He should just stay at home and drink alcohol most of the time. If he wants to do anything outrageous—many people are watching.

Oh, Zhou Xiang also practiced the Lesser Calamity Sword Scripture. Although he practiced it terribly, at least it tempered his physical body and made his qi and blood vigorous. On one hand, he was sexually repressed, on the other hand, his qi and blood were vigorous, and on the other hand, he couldn't do anything reckless. This was truly torment.

He even suspected that Zhou Xiang had ulterior motives for bringing Kong Youxin out—but since they hadn't been out for long and he was too proud of his master-disciple relationship, he hadn't dared to make a move yet.

Sun Ji was truly meticulous in his work. He leveled the ground, gathered stones to build a fire pit, and laid out bedding. He didn't let Zhou Xiang do anything, and told Kong Youxin to rest well. He even set up the small pot that Kong Youxin had brought, and cooked a meal using the various seasonings he had brought, along with their rice, dried meat, and wild vegetables they had picked along the way.

Not wanting to interfere with the two female spies' performance, Li Wuxiang sat under a tree with a gloomy face, huddled in the shade of the woods, and used a piece of sandstone he had picked up to sharpen four swords he had found.

After the meal was prepared, only Kong Youxin and Feng Yuxing ate it. None of the three Golden Core cultivators were hungry. Zhou Xiang and Sun Ji walked away and continued their affectionate moments. After a while, Sun Ji giggled and ran off, with Zhou Xiang following gracefully behind, before turning into a grove of trees.

Li Wuxiang immediately sent his spirit into his body and followed through the woods to see what was going on—the campsite was on a hillside at a considerable altitude. There were pine trees where they were, and beyond the pine forest lay alpine meadows.

Sunji was running on the meadow under the moonlight when he tripped and fell. He didn't get up after falling, but just lay there quietly on the ground, looking up at the bright moon in the sky.

The situation was ambiguous, so ambiguous that even Zhou Xiang noticed it, and stopped three steps away from Sun Ji.

"Come here and sit next to me," Sun Ji said in a commanding tone.

Zhou Xiang hesitated for a moment, then obediently walked over and sat down.

Li Wuxiang shook his head – so this guy has this kind of taste.

"That's wonderful." Sun Ji let out a long sigh, still looking up at the sky, but reaching out to twirl Zhou Xiang's clothes between his fingers. "Before meeting you, Senior Brother, I thought that my master and I wouldn't live much longer, and that we would be trapped there to die sooner or later. But now I'm so happy, and I feel like I have no worries at all."

Zhou Xiang simply replied, "Yes."

Sun Ji turned to look at him: "Senior brother, are you happy too?"

Zhou Xiang glanced at her. And once he did, he couldn't look away.

Sun Ji had been running around so much that the collar of his Taoist robe had come undone. Now, as he turned his head to the side, the graceful curve of his neck was revealed, along with half of his collarbone. Zhou Xiang felt her heart skip a beat, and she almost couldn't catch her breath, unable to speak.

Sun Ji smiled at him and loosened her grip on his clothes. When she fell, her hair had been pressed against her body; now she raised her arms and tugged at it—the tug sent her dark hair scattering across the grass, a few strands brushing against her lips. Her eyes became unfocused, and she began to twirl her hair with one hand as she looked at Zhou Xiang.

Zhou Xiang swallowed hard after a long pause, then made a move to stand up: "Junior Sister Sun, it's getting late—"

Sun Ji reached out and grabbed Zhou Xiang by the collar. With a little force, Zhou Xiang was pulled close to him, and their lips met.

Li Wuxiang thought to himself, "The people of the Five Mountains True Form Sect would never have imagined that their young master would fall for a honey trap the very next day after leaving the sect."

—He didn't even plant the seed of lust in Zhou Xiang!

He just watched. He realized that Zhou Xiang was truly inexperienced, and this was very likely his first time. But Sun Ji was very experienced. He carefully guided him at first, and as he gradually got into the swing of things, he took the lead, galloping his horse around with great abandon.

At first, Zhou Xiang seemed a little embarrassed, like a thief. But then she completely lost herself, letting Sun Ji do as he pleased. Both of them were Golden Core cultivators, so their stamina was naturally good. They went at it again and again, and only after a full hour were they satisfied. They hugged each other, covered each other with their clothes, and whispered sweet nothings. As she spoke, Sun Ji sobbed, and then giggled. Li Wuxiang knew without guessing that she was talking about how innocent she had been in the past, but had met the wrong person, and how lucky she was to have met him today.

Li Wuxiang didn't enjoy spying; he was just wary of Sun Ji suddenly making a move. Realizing there was no risk that night, he withdrew.

A quarter of an hour later, the two returned one after the other. Zhou Xiang walked with his hands behind his back, looking very serious. Sun Ji followed behind him and suddenly said, "Thank you for instructing me in swordsmanship, Senior Brother. After practicing a few times, I feel completely refreshed, it's wonderful! Senior Brother, when will you teach me again next time?"

Zhou Xiang's face flushed instantly. The firelight still illuminated it, so the redness wasn't obvious. She could only stammer a laugh: "Oh...tomorrow then. Tomorrow when we're resting."

Sun Ji smiled and said, "Then I'll rest for now. I'm quite tired after practicing a few times."

Her and Feng Yuxing's bedding was separated from the campfire by a clump of low trees, like a private room. After saying this, she walked behind the tree, and as her figure was about to disappear, Zhou Xiang blurted out, "I wasn't very familiar with those moves just now. I'll have a few better ones tomorrow."

Sun Ji turned and smiled at him, her smile radiant.

Li Wuxiang patted his head and sighed, thinking to himself that Zhou Xiang was completely under the thumb of this "heroine of the martial world who dares to love and hate".

For the next two days, Zhou Xiang lived a blissful and shameless life, practicing swordsmanship with Sun Ji every night. Feng Yuxing and Kong Youxin also quickly became sworn sisters, seemingly able to talk about anything.

Li Wuxiang acted quite sensibly, following along with a sour face, gathering various wild vegetables and fruits along the way. Sun Ji and Feng Yuxing, in their view, had completely grasped the situation, knowing there was no point in fighting anymore, and could only try to make themselves as useful as possible.

And so, on the fourth night, they rested at Heyuan. It was called Heyuan because it was the source of the Dahu River. In summer, this place would be a marshy wetland, dotted with lakes of varying sizes like stars scattered across the plains. But now, it was almost late autumn; the wild grasses had withered and turned yellow, and the smaller lakes had dried up, making it look quite desolate.

But Zhou Xiang was in high spirits, and after settling in for the night, he invited Sun Ji to practice swordsmanship together.

This time, Sun Ji refused—Li Wuxiang saw her say a few words to Zhou Xiang from afar, then pointed into the distance, and Zhou Xiang could only nod in disappointment. Judging from her lip movements, Sun Ji probably meant that the area was completely exposed and there was nothing to hide from, which was inconvenient.

Li Wuxiang knew that Sunji had probably investigated the area thoroughly. So after they ate, Li Wuxiang told Zhou Xiang that there was a kind of ground fruit near the source of the river that looked a lot like a potato. Although it was poisonous when eaten raw, it could be eaten as a staple food after being repeatedly cooked, dried, and ground into powder. He said he was going to dig some up. Zhou Xiang, like a child who wanted candy but was ruthlessly refused, absentmindedly called him to go.

Li Wuxiang carried the box and left the camp alone, hiding at the bottom of a gentle slope a hundred paces away.

Based on his judgment, Sun Ji had been extremely generous with both material and emotional support in the past few days, but her sudden refusal today must mean she felt she already knew enough and therefore immediately stopped investing. If she wanted to make a move against Zhou Xiang, it would likely be tonight.

Sure enough, not long after, he saw Sun Ji also say a few words to Zhou Xiang, and then get up and walk in his direction.

Li Wuxiang waited quietly in place, watching Sun Ji walk up the slope. Seeing him standing there, Sun Ji seemed slightly taken aback, then walked down the slope and said, "I thought Fellow Daoist Li was leaving. What, are you really going to dig for earth fruits?"

Li Wuxiang smiled and asked, "Why do you think I'm leaving?"

"Because if you don't leave now, your Senior Zhou might have to tell you to leave too—you're a Golden Core cultivator, and so is your Senior Zhou. Why do you insist on staying by his side? What do you want?"

Li Wuxiang frowned: "If it weren't for your interference, Senior Zhou would have already—" Sun Ji laughed and raised his hand to interrupt him: "Fellow Daoist, speaking like that is underestimating me, isn't it? I've figured it out these past two days. You're not some naive greenhorn. The reason you insist on following Zhou Xiang is because you've also discovered that his background is strange, isn't it?"

Li Wuxiang fell silent.

Sun Ji stopped laughing: "So you know he's a member of the Xuanjiao sect, right?"

Li Wuxiang looked at her: "This is what I told your disciple."

Sun Ji nodded: "That's right. But I dug out more information. You know he's a member of the Xuan Cult, but do you know what part of the Xuan Cult he is?"

Seriously, Zhou Xiang? You've already given up in just three days??

Li Wuxiang thought for a moment, then frowned and said, "Is there a difference? Anyway, since it's someone from the Xuanjiao sect who has left the sect, I can just take him to the swordsmen of the Taiyi sect."

"Oh, so that's what you're thinking." Sun Ji pointed behind him and said in a low voice, "It's still too close here, he might hear us. Let's go a little further away before we talk."

She took the first step and walked away. Li Wuxiang hesitated for a moment, then followed.

But he knew that Feng Yuxing was no longer at the camp, so he made an excuse and ran in circles towards the direction he and Sun Ji were going. To his surprise, judging from Feng Yuxing's methods of concealment and flight, she was not a Qi Refining cultivator as he had previously thought—she seemed to be a Golden Core cultivator as well, only she had just formed her core.

He followed Sun Ji for several dozen steps until they reached a dried-up lake. Sun Ji turned and stood by the lake, saying, "Ordinary wandering cultivators wouldn't dare to take him to the Taiyi Sect after knowing he's a member of the Xuan Sect."

He took another step closer to Li Wuxiang, squinting at him: "So I guess you're not an ordinary person either. You're the same kind of person as Dao Shiye."

Li Wuxiang relaxed his body and laughed: "Since you can guess it, then you and Dao Shiye are the same kind of people."

"Alright, let's get straight to the point. You know the current situation. Zhou Xiang is infatuated with me, and his disciple is on good terms with my apprentice. If I just whisper a few words in his ear, you won't get any benefit. You just said you were going to dig up earth fruits, and I thought you had figured it out and were leaving. But since we've come this far, you should really go."

Li Wuxiang snorted: "What if I don't?"

Sun Ji smiled and turned his head to the side. Feng Yuxing's voice rang out behind Li Wuxiang: "Then you really can't leave."

Li Wuxiang turned his head and saw Feng Yuxing holding a net the size of a handkerchief in her left hand and five talismans between her right fingers, staring coldly at him.

"If you hadn't noticed my disciple coming up behind you, you should have known what would happen if the three of us started fighting. We're all after wealth and immortality, Fellow Daoist Li, don't make things difficult for yourself."

Li Wuxiang sighed: "Alright, you're quite shrewd. Let me ask you one more question: what do you plan to do? If you want to fight him, I can help. We're not familiar with the methods of the True Form Sect, so I can cover for you if anything goes wrong. If you also want to send him to the Taiyi Sect, then one more person won't make a difference, and then—"

“Brother Zhou and I are deeply in love, and I’ve truly fallen for him. Why would I want to harm him?” Sun Ji laughed. “Originally, I just wanted to seek immortality and find a powerful backer. He’s such a good person, and he holds a high position within the True Form Sect. Isn’t that exactly what I wanted?”

Li Wuxiang was taken aback: "I understand. Fellow Daoist Sun is trying to clear his name and go ashore."

Sun Ji nodded: "You're right. So you should know what I should be most wary of right now. Fellow Daoist, please heed my advice—"

As she finished speaking, Li Wuxiang suddenly felt a gentle breeze from behind. It was Feng Yuxing who had made her move—with a flick of her right hand, the five talismans between her fingers burned out simultaneously, and with a push of her left hand, the small net in her palm pressed against his back and, through his clothes, instantly disappeared into his body.

Sun Jili laughed: "Alright, alright, I told you to leave but you wouldn't, now you really can't leave."

She clapped her hands lightly as she paced around Li Wuxiang a few steps, her smile turning cold: "Now that you've been connected to the magic net, your flesh, bones, and meridians are all tied to this artifact. With just one incantation from my master and me, you'll be left wishing for death. Listen carefully, I'm asking you, besides you, has anyone else seen him these past few days?"

Li Wuxiang didn't answer, so Sun Ji hissed, "Give him a taste of his own medicine!"

Feng Yuxing grinned and clenched his fists tightly—

Sun Ji walked up behind Li Wuxiang at this moment, and saw Li Wuxiang lower his head and bow his body with the handshake, his shoulders trembling slightly.

"How does it taste? Let me tell you, the real challenge is yet to come—" As she said this, she paced around to Li Wuxiang's side, then suddenly widened her eyes, stood rooted to the spot, and froze in place.

Feng Yuxing frowned, realizing something was wrong, and shouted, "Master!"

He immediately darted from the other side to stand in front of Li Wuxiang—

The two were stunned at the same time, feeling a chill run down their spines and a rush of cold blood to their heads... What they saw was not a person! Instead... a head split in two, its head open; a body split in two, its head also open.

What was exposed was not organs and flesh, but a jumbled pile of ghastly red bones inside the body. Countless blood-red tentacles sprouted from the two layers of skin, writhing and coiling within the pile of bones like a dense mass of worms and tiny snakes!
His open head was also filled with these blood-red tentacles. Suddenly, with a gurgling sound, two eyes emerged from within, staring at the master and disciple. With another gurgling sound, countless tentacles wriggled in unison—the small net that had been injected into his body was pushed out and fell to the ground!

The two of them realized at the same time... This thing wasn't human!
Sun Ji immediately retreated, opening her mouth to shout Zhou Xiang's name. She shouted it out and leaped back four or five steps, but a beam of energy suddenly swept past her, trapping her voice! Then she felt countless streams of true energy pierce through her pores, firmly nailing down every muscle, every bone, and every bit of true energy, suppressing her on the spot!
Now she could only move her eyes, which she turned with difficulty, glancing to the side. Her heart sank to the bottom—Feng Yuxing was also completely unable to move!
Sun Ji felt utterly terrified, a wave of despair washing over him—what kind of monster was this?!

He used only his aura to pin down the energy within his entire body!

What level is it at?! Nascent Soul? A Nascent Soul level monster?!
Li Wuxiang snapped his head and body together, and a line of blood quickly disappeared, while his two eyeballs popped out of their sockets again.

"You two want to find a backer?" He sneered. "Want to find the Five Mountains True Form Sect as your backer? You're not worthy! Let me tell you who the biggest backer in the world is right now—it's the Blood God Sect!"

Sun Ji's eyes were practically bloodshot from staring, his head tilted back desperately, trying to get as far away from the monster as possible, but he couldn't move. He could only watch helplessly as the monster walked step by step towards him, raised its hand, and brought it down—

...not bombardment.

It was placed gently on her face, and then gently patted.

"Open your eyes."

Hearing the monster speak, Sun Ji's eyelids twitched violently, finally managing to open a crack.

"explain."

"Say...say what?" The next moment, Sun Ji realized what was happening and immediately recounted everything she had gathered over the past three days. As she spoke, Feng Yuxing also realized what was going on and began to speak as well. Their voices overlapped, a jumbled mess. But Li Wuxiang simply listened, and after he finished, he raised his hand, and both of them immediately shut their mouths tightly.

"You two go back in a bit. Then, while he's asleep, leave immediately. But before you leave, leave a few words as I told you."

(End of this chapter)