Starting with a blind date with a female constable, you acquire the Nine Swords of Dugu.

Chapter Thirty-Nine: The Legend of the Snake Immortal

Neither Gu Guanqi nor An Yi were particularly interested in eating snake meat, but going out for a meal was still an option.

Immediately,

An Yi then returned the money pouch that Tang Batian had thrown to him earlier, saying, "Then please lead the way, Fourth Young Master Tang!"

Tang Batian took the money bag and quickly said, "No, no, no, Senior Sister, you can just call me Xiao Si." He grinned and said, "Come on, come on, Senior Sister, please. I haven't had any snake meat from there for over half a year, and I've been really craving it!"

At this time,

Hua Jinhuan, who had been left waiting, finally found a chance to speak. She stepped forward, fanning herself with a folding fan, and said, "Miss An, you haven't answered me yet. How old are you? I'm twenty-six this year and still unmarried..."

Tang Batian reached out and covered Hua Jinhuan's mouth, dragging her out. He grinned and said to An Yi, "Senior Sister An, don't take it to heart. My friend is always a bit unreliable, but he's definitely not a bad person, hahaha!"

While speaking,

Tang Batian dragged Hua Jinhuan out the door and whispered, "Brother Hua, I beg you, I know you like to joke around, but please don't go looking for this one! Do you know how dangerous it is? My older brother was beaten up by my father for making a few flippant jokes about Senior Sister An!"

"As the saying goes, a beautiful and virtuous woman is the object of a gentleman's affections..."

"You're a gentleman!"

Tang Batian dragged Hua Jinhuan out the door.

An Yi and the others also got up and walked outside.

Gu Guanqi walked up to An Yi and asked, "You know this Fourth Young Master Tang?"

"Yes." An Yi nodded and said, "Our Medicine King Valley and the Mechanical Gate have always been on good terms. In the martial arts world of Yunzhou, we have always stood together and fought side by side, so we have a lot of contact."

This Tang Batian is the son of the Tang Sect Master, so we naturally know each other. However, in the past two or three years, I've taken over the affairs of the valley and rarely go to the Ingenious Gate, so I haven't seen him. He looks completely different; I didn't recognize him at first!

Gu Guanqi nodded slightly and said, "I must say, he really knows how to play a spoiled brat; his arrogance is quite convincing!"

"Hmm..." An Yi said, "That arrogance and domineering attitude shouldn't be an act. As far as I know, although he doesn't bully men or women, his usual behavior is really that arrogant."

Gu Guanqi chuckled and said, "His father can protect him."

An Yi said, "Perhaps because he's the youngest son, he gets preferential treatment. The Tang Clan Master's family is known for its strict discipline, but he's very indulgent towards this youngest son. As a result, this guy often gets into fights and causes trouble. However, fortunately, he's just arrogant in his actions, and his character isn't bad!"

Gu Guanqi nodded slightly.

……

After riding for more than half an hour, Gu Guanqi and his group finally arrived at a somewhat remote town.

The town is small, nestled against the mountains and beside the water. A relatively fast-flowing river runs through the town, its waters shimmering in the afternoon sun.

"This is it."

Tang Batian said, "This town is called Snake Mountain Town. It's especially rich in all kinds of snakes. I was shocked when I first came here. I'd never seen so many snakes in my life. Inns and restaurants from several surrounding counties come here to buy snakes!"

Tang Batian enthusiastically introduced Snake Mountain Town to An Yi, praising the delicious snake soup there.

However, before even reaching the town, An Yi smelled a pungent odor.

After a moment's examination, she recognized the scent as that of realgar.

My mind was immediately filled with doubt.

It's normal to find realgar powder in a place where snakes are abundant, but she didn't understand why it had such a strong smell.

but,

Once inside the town, An Yi understood why there was such a strong smell: every household in the town had sprinkled a large amount of realgar powder in front of and behind their houses.

It was sprinkled in great quantities, covering almost every inch of the ground, even the thresholds, windowsills, and gaps under the eaves.

An Yi frowned slightly, feeling quite puzzled.

What puzzled her even more was that there was a snake sculpture in front of every house. The sculptures varied in size and material, some were wood carvings, some were stone sculptures, some were exquisite, and some were rough, but without exception, there was one in front of every house.

In front of the sculpture, there are small incense burners filled with thick layers of ash. In some households, there are still unburnt incense sticks in their burners, with wisps of smoke drifting gently in the afternoon breeze.

An Yi frowned.

This scene is very contradictory.

Although she, as a doctor, was well aware that the idea that realgar powder could repel snakes was a misconception and not very effective, it was widely believed in folk medicine that realgar could kill snakes.

Now, all the households in this town are sprinkling realgar powder, the purpose of which is obvious: to repel snakes. Yet, they all have snake statues enshrined at their doors, which seems very strange.

"This..." An Yi's gaze swept over the snake sculptures one by one, her eyes full of doubt. She turned to Tang Batian and asked, "Tang Xiaosi, in a place famous for catching snake meat, why does every household worship snakes?"

Tang Batian also looked completely bewildered.

He sat on his horse, scratched his head, and said, "That's not right, Senior Sister An. It wasn't like this last time I came."

Last time I visited this town, many houses had snake cages hanging outside their doors. Even those who weren't snake catchers had snake cages in their homes because there were so many snakes in Snake Mountain Town that people would just catch them whenever they came across them. Back then, the streets were lined with snake cages, and you could hear the hissing as you walked. It was quite a sight.

He paused, glanced at the snake sculptures again, pursed his lips, and said with a hint of confusion, "I've never seen anyone worship snakes on my previous visits. Who would worship snakes for no reason!"

"They must have appeared recently," Gu Guanqi said. "Look at these snake statues, they don't look very old."

An Yi nodded slightly and said, "It is indeed quite new."

"Let's go to the restaurant first," Tang Batian said. "Let's eat first, then I'll ask around and find out what happened!"

An Yi nodded and urged her horse forward.

however,

When they arrived at the middle of the town, they were surprised to see many martial arts practitioners.

There are two restaurants in town, facing each other.

At this moment, the lobbies of both restaurants were filled with martial arts practitioners wielding various weapons, creating a lively and bustling atmosphere.

"Why are there so many martial arts practitioners?" An Yi asked in confusion.

"I don't know!"

Tang Batian dismounted and said, "Let's go, let's go in and ask. Surely not everyone comes here just to eat snake meat, right?"

An Yi, Gu Guanqi, and others also dismounted.

Tang Batian walked to the entrance of one of the restaurants and shouted, "Waiter, where have you been? Come out and get the horse!"

Tang Batian shouted loudly, which immediately startled many martial arts practitioners in the hall, who all looked over.

A waiter who was pouring tea for a customer quickly put down the teapot and prepared to come over.

suddenly,

A surprised voice came from the side of the restaurant: "Tang Xiaosi, what are you doing here?"

Tang Batian looked over and saw an elderly man who appeared to be around sixty years old. He was immediately startled and said, "Uncle Lin?"

This person was none other than Pan Lin, one of the four hall masters of their organization, and also his father's number one confidant.

at this time,

Tang Batian suddenly noticed that the people at the two tables over there were all from the Mechanical Gate. He was full of doubts and walked over.

"Uncle Lin, what are you doing here?" Tang Batian asked in surprise.

Pan Lin asked, puzzled, "Shouldn't I be asking you that?"

Tang Batian said, "I've been tracking down a group of thieves for several days now, and I'm here to have a meal. What are you all doing? And why are there so many of you?"

Pan Lin paused for a moment, then looked at Gu Guanqi and the others who were still standing at the door, and said, "Are those your friends? Let them come in and sit down first. The sect leader will explain the rest to you later."

Tang Batian exclaimed in surprise, "My father is here? Why isn't he at home preparing for the birthday banquet? What's he doing here?"

Pan Lin waved his hand and said, "You'll find out soon enough. Your father's at that restaurant across the street entertaining people from various factions!"

"Alright."

Tang Batian nodded and said, "Uncle Lin, the people outside are Young Master An of Medicine King Valley. They went to celebrate my father's birthday and happened to run into me, so we came here together."

"Why didn't you say so earlier?"

Pan Lin hurriedly went out the door and immediately saw An Yi. He quickly cupped his hands and said, "Young Master An!"

An Yi recognized Pan Lin and quickly cupped her hands in greeting, "Hall Master Pan!"

Pan Lin walked over and said, "What a coincidence! Come, come, please come in!"

As he spoke, he waved to the disciples behind him and said, "Aren't you going to help lead the horse to the stable?"

Several disciples from the Mechanical Sect immediately came forward to take the horse.

An Yi, Gu Guanqi, and the others handed over the reins and then followed them inside.

As soon as I entered,

Many people in the inn recognized An Yi and stood up to greet her.

An Yi kept returning the greetings with clasped hands, and it took her a while to walk to the inner side, where there were several empty tables.

Pan Lin quickly invited the disciples of Medicine King Valley to take their seats.

An Yi then let Gu Guanqi sit next to her.

Pan Lin noticed that An Yi's attitude towards Gu Guanqi was unusual, so he asked, "And who is this?"

Tang Batian and Hua Jinhuan were also full of curiosity.

An Yi then introduced, "Master Pan, this is Gu Guanqi, the great swordsman from Qingzhou, known in the martial arts world as the Sword Immortal!"

Pan Lin paused for a moment, then suddenly remembered and quickly asked, "Is it the chivalrous hero Gu who killed dozens of assassins from the Four Extremes Hall in Wei County a while ago?"

An Yi nodded and said, "Exactly!"

Pan Lin hurriedly said, "My apologies, my apologies! I was blind and didn't recognize you, Master Gu!"

Gu Guanqi quickly cupped his hands and said, "I have long admired Master Pan's reputation, and it is an honor to meet you today."

"Please sit down, please sit down!"

"please."

After exchanging a few polite words, the two took their seats.

An Yi inquired, "May I ask, Master Pan, what has happened here? Why are so many martial arts practitioners gathered here?"

Pan Lin sighed and said, "Young Master An, you may not know this, but recently, as the Alliance Leader's birthday approaches, many sects in Yunzhou have sent their disciples to our Mechanical Sect to offer their congratulations."

However, along the way, members of no fewer than ten sects were attacked, and some disciples were kidnapped. All the sects rushed to the Gate of Mechanisms for help, but they found no clues whatsoever.

Just three days ago, someone delivered a letter to the Gate of Mechanisms, demanding that our sect leader come here personally to pick up the people, or else they would all be killed. Therefore, our sect leader and members of various factions came here; we only arrived recently ourselves!

Tang Batian roared, "Who is it? They're utterly audacious! Do they intend to make enemies of the entire martial arts world of Yunzhou?"

Pan Lin shook his head and said, "We still don't know who they are. We've only been here for half an hour, and they haven't shown themselves yet."

"I'd like to see who has the audacity to mock all the major sects like this!" Tang Batian sneered, then asked, "Uncle Lin, have you ordered any food? We're all starving!"

"We've ordered," Pan Lin said. "However, there are a lot of us, so the kitchen will be slow to prepare."

"Have you ordered snake meat?" Tang Batian asked. "The snake soup in Snake Mountain Town is absolutely amazing!"

"No, not at all," Pan Lin said. "I've never been here before and didn't know it had this specialty, nor did the shopkeeper recommend it. However, every household here worships snake statues; it doesn't seem like a place that would cook snake meat, does it?"

"That's what you don't understand."

Tang Batian shouted, "Manager, come here!"

A middle-aged man in his forties, slightly overweight with a round face and a small mustache, trotted out from behind the counter. He said very respectfully, "Sir, please give me your orders!"

Tang Batian said, "Bring a bowl of your signature Eight Treasure Snake Soup to every table. Don't try to fool me. I've eaten here before, I know how it tastes. If it's not good, I'll tear this place down!"

The shopkeeper's smile froze on his face, his complexion turned deathly pale, and fine beads of sweat appeared on his forehead. He hurriedly said, "Sir... we don't sell snake meat anymore!"

Tang Batian roared, "Stop talking nonsense! Snake meat is the specialty of your Snake Mountain Town. Do you think I can't afford it?"

"No, no, no,"

The innkeeper quickly replied, "How could I dare to treat you so disrespectfully, sir? Alas, you don't know, our Snake Mountain Town has suffered retribution. It's because we've killed too many snakes that the Snake God couldn't bear it any longer and sent down punishment. Now, in Snake Mountain Town, anyone who dares to kill a snake will be taken by the Snake God!"

Tang Batian roared, "You old bastard, are you telling me a story here? Snake Immortal? I'll give you a piece of my mind! Speak properly, stop spouting nonsense!"

The shopkeeper quickly replied, "Sir, what I'm saying is true! You must have seen it all along the way. Nowadays, every household in Snake Mountain Town is worshipping a snake spirit as an act of atonement!"

"You're still telling me stories?" Tang Batian roared, slamming his hand on the table. "If you keep talking about these things, I..."

"Tang Xiaosi," Pan Lin said, "Why are you in such a hurry? Let the shopkeeper finish explaining."

Tang Batian immediately suppressed his anger and said, "Fine, continue."

The shopkeeper said, "Our Snake Mountain Town has been raising and catching snakes for over twenty years. Many people make a living by selling snakes. Sir, think about it, if you weren't forced to, who would worship snake statues?"

It all started two months ago. On that day, Ma Laoyao, the best snake catcher in our town, suddenly went mad. He said that our Snake Mountain Town had killed too many snakes and was guilty of a grave sin. The Snake God was angry and was going to punish us.

At the time, everyone just thought Ma Laoyao had lost his mind and no one took it seriously. But no one expected that Ma Laoyao would die that very night, bitten by a snake. But it was only early spring, still cold, where would a snake have come from!

Following that, many more people died one after another. These were the people who killed and caught the most snakes in the town. In just a few days, more than a dozen people died. When the authorities came to investigate, the results showed that they had all died from snake bites.

The townspeople began to feel fear, remembering Ma Laoyao's dying words. Just then, a sorceress arrived in town. She cast a spell to summon the snake spirit, who said, "Our town is burdened with grave sins. We must atone for them by changing our ways from killing snakes to offering them as sacrifices. You must never kill snakes again; whoever kills a snake will die! And so it goes..."

"Wait a minute," Tang Batian interrupted the shopkeeper, saying, "You just said the Snake Immortal appeared? You saw it?"

The shopkeeper nodded and said, "Yes, many of us saw it. It was a huge python, as big as a washbasin, that could speak human language and even manifested as a human!"

Everyone looked at each other in bewilderment.

The shopkeeper continued, "Later, we all followed the instructions of the snake spirit, burned down the snake cages, put up snake statues in front of every household, and even changed the mountain god temple in the mountains into a snake spirit temple."

After that, no one died. But strangely, snakes shouldn't be around at that time of year, but they appeared frequently during that period, sometimes sporadically, sometimes in groups.

Some people in town, disbelieving in superstitions, secretly caught snakes. As a result, overnight, all the snake catchers were bitten to death by the snakes. A few days ago, some outsiders who bought snakes came; they also disbelieved in superstitions, killed snakes in town, and were then bitten to death as well!

Tang Batian snorted coldly and said, "What snake immortal? Nonsense! This young master is going to eat snake meat and drink snake soup today..."

The innkeeper was pale and sweating profusely. He stammered, "Sir, there are no snakes in this inn right now, and I dare not kill any."

Tang Batian frowned, about to erupt in anger, when Pan Lin spoke up, "Don't make things difficult for him." Then, he looked at the shopkeeper and said, "Shopkeeper, you may leave now."

"Yes, yes, yes!" The shopkeeper nodded hurriedly and left.

Tang Batian watched the shopkeeper leave, cursing, "Uncle Lin, why did you stop me? I suspect that old bastard was deliberately mocking and ridiculing me. To hell with that snake spirit, I really want to beat him to death!"

Pan Lin sighed and said, "Don't be so sensitive. He doesn't even know you. Besides, you should have seen it on the way here; the whole town is indeed worshipping snake statues. Is he trying to make fun of you by dragging the whole town into it?"

"snort!"

Tang Batian snorted coldly, curled his lip, and said, "Uncle Lin, I'm going to find my father." With that, he stood up, looked at Hua Jinhuan, and asked, "Brother Hua, come on, I'll take you to see my father!"

"Great!" Hua Jinhuan quickly stood up and said, "I've heard of your father's name in Chuzhou; I must meet him!"

As Tang Batian and Hua Jinhuan left, Pan Lin bowed to An Yi and Gu Guanqi and said, "Young Valley Master An, Hero Gu, the Sect Master will be here soon. I have to go across the street to greet the guests from various sects for him, so please excuse me."

"Alright, please do as you please, Master Pan," An Yi said, cupping her hands in greeting.

Gu Guanqi also cupped his hands in greeting. Once Pan Lin left, Gu Guanqi asked, "Why was Tang Batian so sensitive to the Snake Fairy?"

An Yi whispered, "Junior Brother Gu, you're not from Yunzhou, so you might not have heard the story of Sect Master Tang and the Snake Immortal?"

Gu Guanqi raised an eyebrow, intrigued, and said, "Tell me in detail."

An Yi took a sip of tea and said in a low voice, "When Tang Yu, the current sect leader of the Mechanical Gate, was young, his martial arts talent was very average. He was just an ordinary disciple in the Mechanical Gate."

One day, he happened to see a snake catcher catching a white snake on the street, and he suddenly made eye contact with the snake. Feeling a connection at that moment, he spent money to buy the white snake and then took it to the mountains to release it.

Many years later, Tang Yu had already started a family and established a career, but he still didn't have much fame in the martial arts world. He worked as an ordinary steward in the Mechanical Gate, and normally he would have lived an ordinary life like that.

Until more than twenty years ago, when he returned from a mission, he brought back a woman in white, a woman who always wore white. He took her as a concubine and brought her into his mansion.

Ever since the woman arrived at Tang Yu's house, people have frequently seen a large white snake appearing in Tang Yu's residence. Tang Yu only said that his concubine was skilled at raising snakes, and that the white snake belonged to his concubine.

There are many strange and eccentric people in the martial arts world, and it's not a big deal if someone keeps a python. As long as it doesn't harm anyone, no one will investigate it further.

However, after that woman came to Tang Yu's house, Tang Yu seemed to become a different person. Not only did his martial arts cultivation progress by leaps and bounds, but his expertise in mechanical devices also deepened. In just five or six years, he went from an ordinary steward to the head of the Mechanical Device Sect.

Later, when the old master of the Mechanical Mechanism Sect fell critically ill, a new master needed to be chosen from among the several hall masters. Tang Yu, the least favored, produced a magical drum made of white snakeskin and publicly defeated several competitors in martial arts. Furthermore, in the realm of mechanical contraptions, he produced the Thousand-Mechanism Umbrella, now the sect's premier hidden weapon, leaving all others in the dust, and became the undisputed new master!

Speaking of which,

An Yi hesitated for a moment, looked around, and then said in a low voice, "But strangely enough, after that day, no one ever saw Tang Yu's concubine in white again."

Later, a legend spread that the woman in white was the white snake that Tang Yu had saved from its tribulation, who then became a snake immortal to repay his kindness. However, Tang Yu later killed the white snake immortal in order to become the sect leader, using its skin to make the Thunder Sound Drum and its bones to make the Thousand-Mechanism Umbrella!

Say a few words

Brothers, we'll have to take a break for a few days. I'll only post one chapter a day, but the word count won't be small either, at least 5,000+.

I really can't take it anymore.

As I mentioned before the book was published, I deleted over 100,000 chapters from my archives, leaving me with no chapters at all. After the book was published, I continued to update frequently, posting over 10,000 chapters every day.

Today is the 29th, but I've already updated nearly 330,000 words. I've been busy from morning till night with absolutely no rest.

By now, I simply can't hold on any longer.

The long hours of typing have left my head in a mess.

I currently have no outline or detailed plan. I know the plot developments one day in advance of the readers.

I can't take it anymore. My body can't take it anymore, and my mind can't take it anymore either.

So, for the next few days, I'll post a little less each day, take some time to organize my thoughts, create a detailed outline, and also clear my mind to polish the plot.

Otherwise, people won't be happy with something that's been forced into writing.

Please understand and support us, thank you!

I will adjust my mindset as soon as possible and then resume daily updates of 10,000 words!