Netherworld Painted Skin Scroll

Chapter 413 The Villainous Male Supporting Character Breaks Up the Couple
Li Wuxiang said he was going to dig for earth fruits because there really were some nearby. After sending the master and apprentice away, he actually dug up some before slowly heading back.

Sun Ji and Feng Yuxing hadn't left; they were still safely at the camp. One couldn't help but admire their professionalism—they had just been terrified, but now they were chatting and laughing with Zhou Xiang and Kong Youxin as if nothing had happened.

Li Wuxiang knew this was because he had just revealed his identity as a member of the Blood God Cult, not as a swordsman.

Different identities are needed to deal with different people. When dealing with organized sects, aristocratic families, or renowned masters, it is better to identify oneself as a swordsman. This is because these people have strong foundations and reputations, just like the prominent figures from his own circle—they have concerns and weaknesses, and they won't act recklessly without considering the consequences. Therefore, the identity of someone like the Taiyi Sect, which is relatively more official, is more intimidating.

To deal with rogue martial artists like Sun Ji, who act alone and have no bottom line, it's better to reveal their identity as members of the terrifying and evil Blood God Cult. They're more like hot-blooded thugs or teenagers who act impulsively and don't care about anything—official status is nothing; only the ruthless, the dark, and the utterly shameless can instill fear in them.

Now it seems that Sun Ji and Feng Yuxing were genuinely afraid of this evil Blood God Cult, genuinely afraid of their own terrifying appearance just now, so afraid that they even suppressed the thought of fleeing immediately.

He returned to the camp, put down his pack away from the campfire, and then took out a dozen or so ground fruits, slowly washing off the mud in a nearby puddle.

After spending some time cuddling with Sun Ji, Zhou Xiang saw him and walked over, asking, "Have you ever eaten this before?"

Li Wuxiang knew he was just making conversation.

Based on observations over the past few days, Zhou Xiang seemed quite kind to his subordinates. However, at that time, Li Wuxiang wasn't sure what kind of kindness it was—one was genuine kindness, and the other was kindness that treated people like cats or dogs, not like human beings. This kind of kindness was fake; it would immediately reveal its monstrous side in an emergency.

But judging from what Sun Ji has revealed in the past few days, Zhou Xiang's kindness is the first type.

That fool really told Sun Ji everything—he was a descendant of the Great Emperor Zhou Er. Their Zhou family had a single heir per generation. This single heirship was intentionally controlled; as long as a child was born, regardless of gender, he would bear the surname Zhou, and then take charge of the Jingtang Hall on Immovable Mountain, serving as the hall master, while simultaneously cultivating the Lesser Tribulation Sword Scripture and the Original Immovable Scripture of the Five Sacred Mountains True Form Sect.

The head of the Jingtang Hall can accept disciples, up to a maximum of thirty-six personal disciples. Personal disciples only cultivate the Unmoving Sutra. If they can progress further after reaching the Refinement of Spirit realm, they must leave the Jingtang Hall and become disciples within the sect. If they can only remain at the Refinement of Spirit realm, they will stay on Unmoving Mountain until their youth and lifespan are exhausted, at which point they will join the coffin like everyone else.

In Li Wuxiang's view, this design, besides preventing Zhou Er's bloodline from cultivating its own powerful forces, was also a surveillance mechanism—promising disciples who, after reaching the Refinement of Spirit, came from Immovable Mountain to other parts of the sect to seek apprenticeship, would certainly be open about everything that happened within the Quiet Hall in order to gain recognition. This surveillance was entirely an open conspiracy, and Zhou Xiang had no way to counter it.

This lineage has been passed down from generation to generation, and this direct bloodline of Zhou Er has long since extinguished all delusions, seeking only peace and happiness.

Zhou Xiang is now forty-four years old and has only left Immovable Mountain twice. Once was when he took over as the head of the Quiet Hall, when he went to the main altar and met with the sect leader. The other time is now.

The Five Sacred Mountains True Form Sect's doctrine reveres the Five Sacred Mountains Emperors and nature. Its core tenet is to view all people as mere straw dogs, believing that humans, mountains, lakes, and seas are all formed from the spiritual energy of heaven and earth and are no different. Therefore, filling coffins with human remains is not a cruel act, but rather a religious ritual of uniting with heaven and earth—when people are alive, they draw spiritual energy from heaven and earth, and now they are simply returning that energy.

It's quite reasonable for True Form monks, who have been influenced by this doctrine, to be cruel to outsiders—they don't really think it's cruel.

However, Zhou Xiang also cultivated the Lesser Tribulation Sword Scripture, which inevitably led him to come into contact with the doctrines of the Taiyi Sect. The core philosophy of the Taiyi Sect was relatively more normal, believing that humans are the essence of heaven and earth, and are the most sublime beings in the world. The principle is to love others first, and then love others—one could say they were "royal" believers.

Influenced by this environment, Zhou Xiang's mind was slightly more normal compared to others in the sect. However, growing up in an extremely repressive and closed environment inevitably led to a distorted mind, forming a contradictory mentality of both pride and inferiority, resulting in a sensitive personality. Li Wuxiang believed that because his physiological functions had remained at their peak after his cultivation and the external environment had been peaceful and unchanged, Zhou Xiang must have been in a repressed period of adolescent rebellion until now.

Therefore, rather than saying this person is an adult, it's more accurate to say he's a teenager who looks like an adult.

Li Wuxiang accepted all the information Sun Ji had gathered without any doubt. The fact that Zhou Xiang had revealed these things meant that there was absolutely no possibility of falsehood in what he said.

He even envisioned the future—after "finishing his business" at the Blood God Sect, he and Sun Ji would find a place to live in seclusion, establish their own sect, and teach her the Lesser Calamity Sword Scripture. The two would slowly take on disciples and gradually build their power. When the world descended into chaos thirty years later, and the Blood God Sect, the Taiyi Sect, and the Six Departments of the Mysterious Sect began their struggle, his status and the power they had built would become an indispensable part of the conflict.

He planned to seek the sect's support at that time, and take control of the Five Mountains True Form Sect as a descendant of Zhou Er. Once he became the sect leader, Sun Ji would become his wife. He also planned to change the sect's rules—only sinners would be sent to fill coffins, and all disciples could live to a ripe old age. Forced marriages would be abolished; any couple in love could become husband and wife. These past few days, he and Sun Ji had been spending all their time together, dreaming about these things.

Therefore, Li Wuxiang realized that Zhou Xiang seemed to be a really kind person.

For example, right now, he must feel that he has been neglecting Li Xiao, who once saved him, these past few days, so he came over to talk to him.

Li Wuxiang frowned slightly and said, "Yes, I've eaten it. Once this thing is prepared, it becomes the Demon Jade."

"Demon Jade?" Zhou Xiang thought for a moment, then smiled. "That's an interesting name."

Li Wuxiang ignored him.

Zhou Xiang seemed a little embarrassed and raised her hand to touch her nose: "Li Xiao, is something on your mind?"

Li Wuxiang knew what he was going to ask was, "Why do you seem unhappy? Is it because I haven't been paying much attention to you these past few days that you're upset with me?"

He sighed, stopped what he was doing, glanced back slightly, and said, "Senior, I feel... well, I can't quite put it, I'm worried about the two of them. We're not familiar with them, and you seem to be... too... too..."

Zhou Xiang smiled: "Oh, you're worried about that. Li Xiao, I know what I'm doing, so you can rest assured."

Is your sense of propriety to reveal all your secrets in less than three days? But Li Wuxiang is just putting on a show—I warned you in advance last time, and I'm warning you in advance this time too.

He sighed again: "Okay, then I was just overthinking it."

This time, Zhou Xiang didn't say anything like he had in the North Cave, telling him not to "compete for favor." It was probably because Li Wuxiang's performance there had already reassured him, and he might even be a little grateful. He simply patted Li Wuxiang's shoulder and whispered, "In a few days, when we find another blessed land, you can stay there with Feng Yuxing and Kong Youxin. At that time, I'll teach you the Lesser Calamity Sword Scripture."

The poor teenager with low self-esteem was not only kind-hearted but also habitually eager to curry favor with others. Li Wuxiang sighed inwardly, but widened his eyes and feigned surprise: "Senior...really!?"

Zhou Xiang laughed twice: "Of course it's true. No need to say more, you should get some rest."

……

Zhou Xiang hadn't slept at night for the past few days, so tonight Sun Ji really managed to coax him to sleep. After coaxing him to sleep, he and Kong Youxin were given a sleeping potion to make him sleep even more soundly.

After doing all this, she stood there staring at Zhou Xiang for a while before slowly walking away with Feng Yuxing. When Li Wuxiang also walked over, Sun Ji was still looking in Zhou Xiang's direction. Only when he got close did he look away, his expression extremely sorrowful: "Senior, I really like him, and he really likes me too... He said he was going to your Blood God Sect on business. Aren't you on the same side? Senior, why don't you let me stay and gather information for you? He's now..."

Li Wuxiang gave a cold laugh: "Fellow Daoist Sun, what you're saying now is a major taboo."

Sun Ji was taken aback: "What?"

"Generally speaking, if a woman of the night falls for someone and develops genuine feelings, she's doomed. You wouldn't end up deceiving yourself, would you?"

Sun Ji was silent for a moment, then his eyes welled up with tears: "Senior, I'm telling the truth. I wasn't born a bad person, I really was before... But Zhou Xiang is truly a good person, I..."

"That's enough." Li Wuxiang frowned and waved his hand, looking at her and then at Feng Yuxing. "Did you leave the note as I instructed?"

"I...I forgot, I'll write it down now." Sun Ji wiped his face, took out a talisman from his pocket, and then took out a piece of charcoal pencil. While writing on the talisman, he glanced tearfully at Zhou Xiang sleeping on the ground in the distance.

Li Wuxiang stared at the talisman paper; it was written in plain language—

“Zhou Lang, I am but a humble woman who only desires peace. I admire you, but I fear the people of your sect. How could someone of my status be worthy of you? If we were to encounter someone from your sect, we would likely be separated, and I would be killed, or, as you said, captured and used as a substitute in a coffin. These three days have been the happiest three days of my life, and I will never forget you for the rest of my life. But since you are a member of the Xuan Sect, I truly do not have the fortune to spend this life with you. You hate the rules of your sect, and I hate them even more. Forget about me.”

She finished writing slowly and deliberately, then handed the paper to Li Wuxiang. Li Wuxiang glanced at it, then held the paper out to her again, saying, "Cry." Sun Ji was taken aback. Li Wuxiang said, "What, do you want me to hit you before you cry?"

Sun Ji, lost in thought, burst into tears, each tear dripping onto the paper. Seeing that the paper was mostly soaked, Li Wuxiang withdrew his hand, walked to Zhou Xiang's side, and tucked it into his arms.

The master and disciple remained standing in the same spot. Li Wuxiang walked back and smiled slightly: "If it were Dao Shiye, he would probably be fighting to the death right now. You two are quite interesting. Instead of plotting against me, you're so obedient and don't even bother to tell him?"

Sun Ji lowered his head: "If I tell him, you might kill him too, senior."

Li Wuxiang stared at her for a while: "Oh? You really like him that much? Then why did you suddenly become so self-important last night? I thought you got the information and immediately didn't want to bait me anymore."

Sun Ji suddenly looked up, her face flushing red. Then, realizing what she had just said, she bit her lip and stammered, "I just...I just..."

"You've just fallen in love and decided to be a good woman worthy of him, so you've started to love yourself?"

"I really am..."

Li Wuxiang smiled: "Anyone who would believe you is no different from Zhou Xiang. Do you think I'm that kind of person?"

Sun Ji sighed softly, "Senior, what are you going to do with us? I... can I ask you for a favor?"

"what's up?"

"Can the two of us, master and disciple, be cultivated into one Corpse Immortal? I've heard that the Corpse Immortals of your Blood God Sect are still clear-headed, but the two of us..."

"Oh, you think I still want to use you corpse-refining immortals? You both knew about this too?" Li Wuxiang now understood why these two people didn't resist at all. Because they felt they still had a way to survive.

Sun Ji nodded: "I've thought about it... Actually, my youth and lifespan are about to run out. I've thought about this and even asked about it. Now that I've met you, senior, it can be considered as encountering a predestined connection with the immortals..."

Li Wuxiang laughed twice: "A chance encounter with immortals, huh? You're quite clever. You two want a chance encounter with immortals? Come on—"

He raised his hands and opened his arms.

Sun Ji and Feng Yuxing were both stunned. They exchanged a glance, and Feng Yuxing reacted first, immediately snuggling into Li Wuxiang's arms: "Senior, please don't be angry with me for being rude to you earlier. It was just that I was young and ignorant. I just turned eighteen this year—"

Sun Ji bit her lip and moved closer. Just as she was about to speak, before Feng Yuxing could finish her sentence, the two of them suddenly felt darkness before their eyes, which then became bright again—Li Wuxiang took a step back, and the two found themselves in a courtyard.

There are still people in the courtyard!
There were more than twenty people, each holding a small sword with a string attached to it, who looked like they were originally doing evening prayers.

There was also a person at the entrance of the main hall, with hair like flames, wearing a vermilion robe, hands behind his back, and an extremely imposing aura... The two only glanced at him before hurriedly looking away—they didn't know how deep this person's cultivation was... or rather, they didn't know if he was even human!

Then it dawned on me that there was an even stronger aura behind me!

Sun Ji turned to look at Li Wuxiang—he was just a step away from him, looking exactly the same as before. But now, his figure seemed to blend into this world, as if this was not some place in the mortal realm, not a blessed land, but a sacred mountain, a heaven beyond heaven, and he was the ruler of this place, a true spirit in the world!
The swords in those people's hands... the aura of the person before her... Sun Ji's mind went blank for a moment, and five words jumped out of her head—Divine Lord! Li Wuxiang!
While Feng Yuxing was still staring in disbelief, still looking around, and still reaching into her sleeve for something, Sun Ji suddenly knelt down and punched Feng Yuxing in the back of the knee, making her kneel on the ground as well.

"By the Supreme God Lord Taiyi, my master and I were blind!" Sun Ji pressed her forehead to the ground, not daring to lift it. Her heart pounded wildly. She didn't know whether to be happy or afraid, whether she had truly encountered a divine opportunity or had truly embarked on a dead end. Thinking of everything that "Li Xiao" had done before and everything he had asked her to do, it all seemed to have a profound meaning. She couldn't figure out whether he really wanted to use her to deal with Zhou Xiang or was testing her and Feng Yuxing.

Then, as if granted a pardon, he heard the red-haired master speak: "These are the two? They've got Zhou Xiang completely infatuated?"

"Ah."

"What are you going to do with bringing him back? Our Sword Sect can't just accept anyone."

"Lock him up first, he might be useful later—you handle this personally."

"Haha, it's almost at the Nascent Soul stage, of course I have to handle it personally. What's the situation now?"

"I'm waiting for him to cry. I'm going to get back to work now."

Li Wuxiang flashed out of the Myriad Transformations Formation, walked to the fire, lay down, and closed his eyes.

He did sleep for a short while, about half an hour, before Zhou Xiang woke him up.

Li Wuxiang opened his eyes first, was slightly stunned, and immediately jumped up—a Golden Core cultivator wouldn't sleep very soundly, and should have found himself bewitched as soon as he woke up.

Zhou Xiang's expression was very unpleasant: "Are you asleep?"

"I..." Li Wuxiang looked around, his tone turning serious, "Senior, I...I wasn't bewitched?"

He glanced at the fire again, his expression changing once more: "Where are the two of them? And what about your things, Senior—"

Zhou Xiang waved his hand with a gloomy face: "I didn't lose anything! Didn't you see the two of them? You were asleep too?"

"yes……"

Zhou Xiang, like a lost and bewildered lone wolf, didn't even bother to wake Kong Youxin. He walked quickly around the campfire, but seemed unsure of where to go. Li Wuxiang noticed that his shoes were completely wet, indicating that he had already run around and searched far before waking him, hence the autumn dew soaking them.

The time had come. He pointed towards Zhou Xiang's chest: "Senior, there—"

Zhou Xiang looked down and saw a small piece of talisman paper sticking out from his chest. He pulled it out and carefully read the words on the tear-stained talisman paper.

Sun Ji had written very few words, but Zhou Xiang spent almost a quarter of an hour looking at them—first standing, then looking around as if he wanted to chase after them. But he took a half-step and stood down, then looked at the note again. Afterwards, he walked listlessly to the fire and sat down, looking at it a third time. Then, his hand holding the talisman lay limply to the side, with only two fingers holding it, as he stared blankly at the fire.

After he sat there for a while, Li Wuxiang cautiously asked, "Senior... what did they say up there?"

Zhou Xiang remained motionless, as if she were unconscious.

Are they threatening you?

Zhou Xiang gave a twitching smile, loosened his grip, and the talisman fluttered to the ground.

Li Wuxiang was shocked—was this meant for him?! He'd been dealt such a blow!?

He tentatively walked over and reached out to pick up the paper, but Zhou Xiang didn't react at all. Li Wuxiang picked up the paper, read it twice, and said in shock, "Senior, were you deceived by her, having your yang energy drained to replenish your yin?!"

(End of this chapter)