Begin your practice with the crane-shaped stance.

Chapter 127 Female Slave (Bonus Chapter for 2k Monthly Tickets)

Xia Dong is now a powerful centurion in the Eagle Wolf Guard of Pingyang County.

With the mutual support and hard work he and Zhao Ting have put into Pingyang County over the years, it can be said that Xia Dong is now an absolute "local tyrant" in Pingyang County that no one dares to mess with.

However, the larger he expanded his business, the more he felt the shortage of manpower.

The most direct reason is that there is no longer a capable and considerate housekeeping manager like Xiaohong by his side.

Those who run worldly businesses and have their own people inevitably engage in underhanded activities such as embezzlement or forming cliques.

Xia Dong could only turn a blind eye to these things. To put it bluntly, you can't see into someone's heart.

Even if he were to harden his heart and feed all his subordinates an extremely insidious poison like the "Three Corpse Brain God Pill," he could at most control their lives and deaths, but he could not guarantee their loyalty or their dedication to their duties.

Moreover, Xia Dong is focused on the path to immortality and has neither the time nor the desire to waste too much energy on the trivial affairs of these worldly forces.

Therefore, as long as those people don't go too far and don't cross his bottom line, he'll turn a blind eye.

On the other hand, as his cultivation improved, worldly gold and silver treasures had long lost their meaning for him.

To better conceal his activities, Xia Dong simply spent a large sum of money to build a rather large villa for himself on the front hill of Tiger Hill.

This mountain villa is nestled against the mountain and beside the water. Firstly, it can serve as a natural physical barrier, perfectly concealing the entrance to the Tiger Hill Cave on the back mountain and the energy of the array. Secondly, if Zhao Ting or his subordinates have important matters to report, this villa can occasionally be used to entertain guests without having to bring them into his cultivation cave.

As for the old house in Pingyang County, especially the dry well, it had been thoroughly cleaned and swept up inside and out several times, leaving absolutely no trace of the cultivator.

Subsequently, the courtyard remained vacant and abandoned.

After all, as he spent more and more time in seclusion cultivating, he returned to the city to live less and less.

Sitting cross-legged in the quiet Tiger Hill Cave, Xia Dong recalled his experiences over the years and couldn't help but sigh at the vicissitudes of life.

He originally thought that Xiao Hong, whom he had officially taken as a concubine, would stay with him in this secular world for a very long time.

But who could have imagined that this only confidante would later be chosen by Senior Lonely Moon and become the personal maid of a Grand Master of the Purple Mansion?

This is also Xiaohong's future, and Xia Dong still wishes her well in her heart.

In fact, given his former status and position, finding eight or ten young and beautiful personal maids would have been a simple matter of a word.

However, finding someone who is truly trustworthy and capable is incredibly difficult.

A housekeeper like Xiaohong, who is considerate, sensible, extremely reliable, and possesses excellent management and coordination skills, is truly hard to find even with a lantern.

Xia Dong put aside his chaotic thoughts, played with the newly acquired high-grade spirit stone for a while, and then put it back into his storage bag. He was preparing to start his attempt to break through to the Foundation Establishment Realm.

An unknown amount of time passed.

In the dimly lit cave, a trace of melancholy flashed through Xia Dong's heart.

He never expected that the two Foundation Establishment Pills he had taken would be completely wasted during his breakthrough attempt, and he still failed to enter the Foundation Establishment stage.

Feeling the magical power within his body gradually subsiding but still stuck at the point of perfect refinement, Xia Dong let out a long sigh.

The cultivation novels he had read in his previous life involuntarily surfaced in his mind. He vaguely remembered how many Foundation Establishment Pills the infamous "Old Demon Han" had consumed like candy in his attempt to establish his foundation. He didn't remember the exact number, but it was definitely far more than two.

Thinking of this, Xia Dong felt much more at ease and even comforted.

The most important thing in life is to be happy.

When you encounter something unpleasant, you should think about how unhappy others are, and this will instantly brighten your mood.

Just as he was pondering this, a slight tremor in the corner of the secret chamber of the cave interrupted his thoughts.

That was the sound transmission stone connecting to Tiger Hill Villa in the front mountain.

Xia Dong stepped forward and scanned the area with his divine sense. The frequency and rhythm of the spiritual light flashing on the communication stone matched perfectly with the code he had set in advance.

Xia Dong responded with the coded message, instructing the visitor to wait in the living room.

They then left the cave.

The mountain villa in front of the mountain is only a few miles away from the cave. For Xia Dong, whose magical power is now profound, this distance is nothing at all.

He skillfully used his already perfected Wind Control Technique, his figure as light as a feather, and quickly arrived at the manor.

The manor was deserted, without even a single servant to sweep or clean. After all, as a talisman maker, he had all sorts of talismans, such as dust-removing talismans, water-purifying talismans, and insect-repelling talismans. He could easily activate a few and clean the manor spotless, saving him time and keeping it quiet.

Xia Dong arrived at the villa's living room.

Inside the hall, a familiar figure stood quietly, dressed in a simple Taoist robe, with an elegant demeanor; it was Qin Wan.

However, when Xia Dong's gaze shifted slightly, he couldn't help but pause, a clear look of surprise flashing in his eyes.

Because beside Qin Wan was a woman dressed in red, with a slightly complicated and haggard expression—Pei Hongling.

Xia Dong's heart stirred slightly.

He clearly remembered that back then, in order to escape the control of Master Guyue, this Senior Sister Pei had gone so far as to undress and offer herself to him.

Now that Master Guyue has been in seclusion for a long time, Qin Wan and Pei Hongling should have been on guard against each other. How could these two people have come together for the first time and even took the initiative to come to his door?

He shook his head inwardly, and could only sigh to himself that he probably would never understand women in his entire life.

However, before he could even exchange pleasantries, Qin Wan stepped forward and directly addressed an important matter.

After hearing this, Xia Dong couldn't help but lose his composure.

"What? Senior Lonely Moon has been missing for four years?" Xia Dong's mind raced as he immediately calculated the time. Four years ago—

Just then, Xiao Hong came to run an errand for Senior Gu Yue and delivered the woven Taiyin Robe to him!

Xia Dong's gaze darkened slightly; he knew Xiao Hong all too well. Although that girl had become a maidservant of a high-ranking cultivator in the Purple Mansion, she always remembered him, her former master, in her heart.

If Xiao Hong had known back then that Senior Gu Yue was going to "leave" or even "disappear," she would have definitely tried to leave him a few hints, even at the cost of punishment.

Since there was nothing unusual at the time, it means that Senior Lone Moon's departure was extremely sudden, and even Little Red was kept in the dark, or was even taken away directly.

In the cultivation world, it's common for high-level cultivators to go into seclusion and remain completely out of contact for years, even decades.

Seclusion is one thing, but "disappearance" is a completely different concept.

If the outside world discovers that Master Guyue is not in seclusion to consolidate his Purple Mansion realm, but has completely disappeared, it will be a huge problem!

The Qixia Immortal Sect had suffered a major blow due to the previous internal strife. It was only with the help of the reputation of True Person Guyue who opened up the Purple Mansion that they were able to barely maintain order and recover some of their strength.

If this biggest layer of tiger skin is punctured, the entire sect may immediately face annihilation.

Of course, those lurking enemies, both inside and outside, would never dare to act rashly at the first opportunity. They would certainly act like hyenas, first probing frantically from the edges.

But once they are completely certain that Master Guyue will not be returning, then—

"This mess—" Xia Dong gritted his teeth inwardly, then immediately thought of his own situation.

To be honest, although he obtained the Ascension Order and successfully registered his immortal status through the Tongxuan Division, the fatal problem is that his immortal status is registered under the name of the Duke of Qi's mansion!

Of the thirty-six Daoist families in the Great You Dynasty, if one had to pick the easiest to bully, the now-declining Duke of Qi's mansion would be second to none.

Once he loses Senior Lonely Moon's protection at the Purple Mansion level, and if another test comes along like the one at Red Lotus Temple, the Duke of Qi's mansion might not be able to protect him.

Besides, the Wusheng Sect isn't completely extinct.

"I just want to cultivate immortality in peace, is it really that difficult?" Xia Dong sighed helplessly in his heart.

However, this shock only lasted a moment; Xia Dong quickly calmed down and fully accepted the fact.

Mountains may crumble, and rivers may flow away.

In the cannibalistic world of cultivation, any protection offered by others is always illusory and can collapse at any moment; this is perfectly normal.

Xia Dong began to quickly calculate his current trump cards in his mind.

Fortunately, Brother Snake recently broke through to become a genuine Foundation Establishment demon beast.

On the other hand, although he was unsure of the upper limit of the attack he could unleash by controlling the ancient bronze bell, the vengeful spirit that the Red Lotus Temple's Cixiang had transformed into in the underground palace was a genuine Foundation Establishment level evil creature.

But faced with the resounding bell tolling, the Foundation Establishment demon had no chance to fight back at all and was instantly suppressed and refined.

Such terrifying power must be worthy of the peak of the mid-Foundation Establishment stage, or even the late-Foundation Establishment stage, right?

Moreover, over the past few years, his own magical power has reached the ninth level of Qi Refining, and his divine sense has entered the early stage of Foundation Establishment ahead of schedule. His overall strength is much stronger than when he was in the underground palace.

After carefully calculating his combat strength, Xia Dong realized that things weren't so bad after all.

In Pei Hongling's eyes, Xia Dong's quick composure had a completely different meaning.

This demonstrates a high level of confidence.

Having endured years of harsh treatment, Pei Hongling is no longer the arrogant and impulsive naive young woman she once was.

She believed she had seen through the "truth" behind it all—the reason Xia Dong could remain so calm after his master's disappearance must be because there was an even more unfathomable figure silently supporting him!

With this in mind, Pei Hongling made a firm decision.

Anyway, she has nothing left to lose now.

Moreover, the Pei family used to bully others in the Qixia Immortal Sect and did too many despicable things that offended people. There are countless grudges against her from all sides.

She had no choice but to completely side with Xia Dong.

Inside the spacious villa hall, a man and two women experienced a brief but suffocating silence.

Pei Hongling broke the deadlock first. She turned to her junior sister beside her, her tone surprisingly calm: "Junior sister, didn't you say before we came that you were going to hand over my natal soul tablet to Fellow Daoist Xia? Now, give it to him."

Upon hearing this, a clear look of surprise flashed in Qin Wan's eyes.

Without hesitation, she took out a warm jade tablet from her storage bag and solemnly handed it to Xia Dong, explaining in detail the method of refining the soul tablet and its domineering effects.

Pei Hongling waited quietly for Qin Wan to finish explaining before turning her gaze back to Xia Dong, saying self-deprecatingly, "Now, my soul tablet is in your hands. In reality, I'm practically your slave. Fellow Daoist Xia, shouldn't you feel a little more at ease with me now?"

Holding the soul tablet in his hand, Xia Dong, despite his usually composed demeanor, couldn't help but cough lightly to conceal a subtle embarrassment. Then, his gaze cleared, and he said frankly, "Fellow Daoist Pei, you flatter me. We've become acquainted through a misunderstanding. As long as you're willing to work for me diligently from now on, I, Xia, will certainly not hesitate to give you the rewards you deserve."

Xia Dong secretly plotted in his heart: what would it take to have a female cultivator who had reached the Qi Refining stage and was well-versed in all the ways of the cultivation world as a servant?

This is definitely a sure-fire way to make money.

As for those petty grudges and scheming from the past, to be honest, they don't amount to anything anymore.

His business empire in Pingyang County and the secular world is growing larger and larger, and he is indeed in dire need of a trustworthy person who has the skill and ability to handle his tedious affairs.

Seeing that Xia Dong had accepted the soul tablet, Pei Hongling showed no flattery whatsoever. Instead, she directly analyzed their current predicament: "We don't know when Master will be able to return, or even—we don't know if he will ever return. So, Fellow Daoist Xia should know very well that the three of us are now tied to a broken boat, and the only thing we can rely on is ourselves."

She glanced coldly at Qin Wan and continued, "Junior Sister's situation is probably a little better than ours. After all, she has a clean background, no mortal enemies, and might even succeed in Foundation Establishment at any time. A female cultivator at the Foundation Establishment stage, as long as she's willing to humble herself in the cultivation world, will always have a way out. But Fellow Daoist Xia, you and I are different. We're both being watched closely by our enemies, aren't we? For me, my enemies are those Pei family adversaries who wish they could tear my soul apart; and for you, it's the demons of the Wusheng Sect, or perhaps the bald monks of the Red Lotus Temple—"

"Senior Sister, don't spout nonsense and sow discord here!" Qin Wan couldn't help but step forward when she saw Pei Hongling's words were so realistic and harsh. "No matter what happens, I will stand with Brother Xia through thick and thin, and I will never live on alone!"

Pei Hongling didn't turn around to respond to Qin Wan at all.

She continued, enunciating each word clearly: "Now, my life is entirely in your hands. Let's put aside all those vague feelings and get down to business—am I worthy of your trust now?"

Xia Dong glanced at Qin Wan beside him, who was eager to prove herself, and slightly raised her hand. Her voice was gentle yet had a soothing charm: "Wan'er, calm down. Let's hear what Fellow Daoist Pei has to say."

He sighed silently in his heart, but he had to admit a cold truth: as things stand, Pei Hongling's life and death were completely in his hands. From the perspective of pure mutual benefit, he did trust Pei Hongling more.

Xia Dong gave the woman in red in front of him a deep look.

This woman—she has truly undergone a complete transformation.

To be honest, he used to think Pei Hongling was just a clueless, arrogant fool. But he never expected that after being brutally beaten down by reality these past few years, she would have improved so much.

The Tao Te Ching says it is true: the weak overcomes the strong, and the soft overcomes the hard.

Pei Hongling's current strategy of voluntarily surrendering her life and placing herself in a completely vulnerable position to gain his trust and alliance is far more sophisticated than when she desperately undressed in the guest room years ago, attempting to win him over with her body.

Qin Wan stood aside, calming herself down, and watched Pei Hongling's tactic of feigning retreat, and couldn't help but be slightly lost in thought.

Her master, Master Guyue, couldn't help but recall his assessment. He had asserted that even a hundred Senior Sister Peis combined wouldn't be a match for her mentally.

In retrospect, it seems that our master really overestimated herself.

Xia Dong, who witnessed all of this, muttered to himself, "Wan'er, if you don't turn evil, you probably won't be able to beat your Senior Sister Pei in the future."

Pei Hongling continued to reveal her trump card, detailing the secrets of the tomb of the Golden Core cultivator of the Xuan Yin Sect.

"This is a top-secret information my father gave me before he died. No one else in the Pei family knows it except me," Pei Hongling said with certainty. "This Golden Core cultivator was active in the spiritually rich medieval era. However, if he had formed a high-grade Golden Core back then, his chances of breaking through to the Nascent Soul stage would have been very high, and he wouldn't have died at the Golden Core stage. Therefore, I speculate that he was probably only a mid-grade Golden Core cultivator."

Xia Dong didn't really care whether it was a high-grade or mid-grade Golden Core. What truly stirred his heart was the name "Xuan Yin Sect".

The cultivation technique he mainly practiced was the "Mysterious Yin Scripture," which shared the same origin as his own. Therefore, this great tomb held extraordinary significance for him.

Despite her burning desire, Xia Dong's face remained impassive.

He didn't immediately agree to explore the tomb on a whim, but nodded calmly: "I understand."

"Fellow Daoist Pei, since you've handed over your soul tablet, why don't you stay here at the manor and help me with some daily chores?"

He wasn't in a hurry to make a decision.

After all, as a centurion of the Eagle Wolf Guard, he naturally had ways to investigate secretly.

Once the authenticity and level of danger of the intelligence are confirmed, this great tomb will indeed be worth his trip if the opportunity arises.

After weighing the options, Xia Dong's thoughts returned to the disappearance of Master Guyue.

For a moment, he couldn't be sure whether Senior Lone Moon had really encountered some misfortune and disappeared, or whether he had taken the Ascension Token and crossed the ocean directly to the Penglai Dao Sect in the Three Islands Sea due to some urgent reason.

But why did you leave without saying goodbye?

This matter was shrouded in mystery, as it concerned a powerful cultivator who had opened up the Purple Mansion. Xia Dong keenly sensed an extremely dangerous aura.

In fact, deep inside his storage bag lay another ascension token from the Penglai Dao Sect, which came from the remains of the Eastern Palace's inner guards.

However, Xia Dong dared not bring it out into the light, let alone use it to search for the whereabouts of Master Gu Yue.

Fortunately, there is a ready-made "living evidence" right now—Pei Hongling.

Pei Hongling had a life-and-death curse personally planted in her body by Master Guyue.

If Senior Guyue were to encounter a fatal accident and perish outside, once this Life and Death Curse takes effect, Pei Hongling would certainly die on the spot as well.

Therefore, as long as Pei Hongling is still alive and breathing, it is the best proof that Senior Guyue is still alive in the world.

Having figured this out, Xia Dong felt much more at ease.

His lips moved slightly, and a highly secretive voice transmission was sent directly into Qin Wan's ear: "Wan'er, think of a foolproof way to spread the news that your Senior Sister Pei was cursed with a life-and-death curse by Senior Gu Yue within the Qixia Immortal Sect as discreetly as possible."

Qin Wan was slightly taken aback, then suddenly realized.

On the other hand, Xia Dong has now taken Pei Hongling as a female slave and has taken control of the soul tablet. This matter not only does not need to be concealed, but should be openly discussed.

In this way, those eyes that were watching with covetous intent would naturally assume that Master Guyue had recently emerged from seclusion and directly bestowed Pei Hongling, this wicked disciple who had made a mistake, upon Xia Dong as a servant.

This plausible "truth" is undoubtedly strong evidence that Master Guyue is still stationed at Qixia Immortal Sect.

In any case, the huge hole that Senior Lonely Moon has disappeared from can be covered up for as long as possible.

After instructing Qin Wan and Pei Hongling to act according to his plan.

Xia Dong returned to Tiger Hill Cave alone.

Throughout the conversation, a great question had been lingering in his mind.

Logically speaking, if Master Guyue really did leave without saying goodbye and go to the Three Islands Sea, using the teleportation array controlled by the Great You Dynasty would definitely be the safest and fastest way, given the endless dangers of the vast sea.

However, if she used the official teleportation array, this matter would definitely not be hidden from the all-powerful Tongxuan Division.

Given this, the higher-ups of the Tongxuan Division, at least the head of the Tongxuan Division, should have been fully aware that True Person Guyue had left the Great You Territory.

So the question is, why would the other party pretend to be deaf and dumb, and even help cover it up?

Xia Dong paced back and forth in the cave, completely baffled.

But after a moment, his tightly furrowed brows slowly relaxed.

Regardless of what grand scheme or ulterior motives the Master of the Profound Realm was plotting, the fact that the news of Senior Guyue's departure was not officially revealed was ultimately a great thing for him and for the Qixia Immortal Sect.

Even if we take a step back and assume that his deduction was wrong from the beginning, what if Senior Lonely Moon never went to the Three Islands Sea Area at all? Where would she be then?

Recalling Pei Hongling's statement, she was quite certain, through the connection between the Life and Death Curse in her soul, that Gu Yue Zhenren was currently extremely far from Lin Yuan Mansion.

Running so far away and not coming back for so long, something big must have happened.

"Verifying this matter should not be rushed, lest we slip up and reveal Senior Lonely Moon's disappearance. Since I failed to establish my foundation, I might as well try to break through to the True Intent Realm of martial arts first."

Becoming a martial artist at the True Intent Realm would greatly enhance Xia Dong's strength.

Xia Dong wasn't in a hurry to explore the Golden Core Tomb; he wanted to improve his strength as much as possible first.

Fortunately, he cultivated both immortal and martial arts, so when one door closes, another opens.

We won't be stuck by a Foundation Establishment threshold!

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