Chapter 71

Chapter 71: The Abnormal Ancestor

In the night sky, the moonlight shone brightly, and a few clouds leisurely floated about.

But outside the cave abode on the Sixth Peak, the Vajra Sect ancestor looked somewhat gloomy as he stood with his back to the moonlight.

The shadow cast by his form made the sadness on his face appear even stronger.

In fact, he didn’t really care about those stolen belongings. What made him cough up blood back then was his anger from the destruction of the mountain gate.

Those spirit stones weren’t important and only looked like they had been carefully hidden.

But what he was really worried about was that the enemy would become stronger and stronger in Seven Blood Pupils.

At that moment, his heart was filled with anxiety as he raised his head and looked at the cave abode in front of him. No response came from within, only silence.

After a stick of incense’s worth of time, a sigh finally echoed out from within the cave.

"Master Wandering Spirit[1], long time no see."

The Vajra Sect ancestor’s Daoist name was Master Wandering Spirit. However, within the Vajra Sect’s sphere of influence, everyone respectfully called him Ancestor. Thus, it had been a very long time since he’d heard someone call him by his Daoist name.

Hearing it now at this moment, the Vajra Sect ancestor seemed to recall some faraway memories and sighed softly.

“Long time no see.”

As his voice echoed, the shut stone gate slowly rumbled open, and a figure slowly walked out from within the darkness of the cave abode.

This figure’s gait was a little strange; each step seemed to be the exact same distance from the previous one. Finally, the figure stepped out fully into the moonlight. It was an old man wearing a dark blue Daoist robe. His long gray hair framed a stern and rigid face.

When he stopped after walking up to the Vajra Sect ancestor, the mountain breeze blew over, lifting a corner of his robe. The lifted robe revealed a pair of legs that were clearly not flesh and blood…

His legs were obviously forged from materials meant for refining equipment. Under the moonlight, they gave off a cold blue glow.

“Since it’s been a long time… what did you come here today for?” The old man in the dark blue robe spoke lightly, raising his head to look at the clouds in the night sky.

He and the Vajra Sect ancestor were obviously the same height as they stood together, but the scene somehow gave the impression that the blue-robed old man was much taller than the Vajra Sect ancestor.

The Vajra Sect ancestor’s face turned gloomy. After a long silence, he eventually talked about the matter with Xu Qing.

“My sect encountered an unexpected calamity… Before that little thief left, he brutally plundered my sect’s resources and viciously set it on fire. My Vajra Sect is now completely burned down.”

“If he was just an ordinary person, it would have been fine, and I wouldn’t have taken it too seriously. But after I spent a lot of money on an investigation, I found that he joined Seven Blood Pupils and is gradually standing tall here. All day long, anxiety eats away at my heart, and I keep thinking about those ancient books that I’ve read over the past years.”

“According to my experience after reading countless ancient books, after comparing him to the characters in those books, I found that most of the characters who were similar to him were in possession of great fortune. Back then, I was too muddle-headed. I shouldn’t have only brought two elders to kill him, I should have used all the power of the entire sect to kill him at any cost, or I should have turned weapons of war into gifts of friendship, offering an apology to settle our grievances…”

“Sigh, it’s a pity that I missed the opportunity. According to my analysis, if I can’t crush him while he’s still growing… then I’ll definitely die once he fully matures!”

“I have a strong premonition that once this person rises up, your Seven Blood Pupils will definitely be drawn into a bloody catastrophe, facing the danger of extermination. It’s always written like that in those ancient books. At that point, I’m afraid that my Vajra Sect will be completely wiped out with just a word from him.”

After the Vajra Sect ancestor finished speaking, he lowered his head bitterly.

The blue-robed old man standing in front of him looked at the Vajra Sect ancestor with a queer expression. After a while, he shook his head.

“Master Wandering Spirit, so many years have passed. You… you’re still an abnormal person. Just a trifling disciple, in your words, suddenly became a person with great fortune who will bring a bloody calamity to Seven Blood Pupils, even causing it to face the danger of extermination? With a word from him, your Vajra Sect will be annihilated? You can even come up with such a delusion…”

“You don’t understand. I trust my instincts…” The Vajra Sect ancestor sighed.

Seeing the Vajra Sect ancestor like this, the blue-robed old man shook his head slightly. He didn’t have a deep friendship with the other party, and they had only met a few times many years ago. At this moment, he was already feeling somewhat indifferent.

"Which peak did that kid enter?"

"Seventh Peak… according to my expensive investigation, his name is Xu Qing, and he entered the Homicide Department." The Vajra Sect ancestor knew that he couldn't hide this and spoke in a low voice.

“It doesn’t matter what department he entered. Unfortunately, although the mountain-foot disciples are raised like Gu and the sect doesn’t really care if they kill each other, there are certain rules in the sect that mustn’t be broken.”

After speaking, when he saw the Vajra Sect ancestor’s bitter expression, the blue-robed old man sighed.

“Forget it. At most, I can help you knock the kid down a peg and make him spit up what he swallowed from your Vajra Sect. If he already spent it all, he can pay it off with his own belongings.”

With that, he took out a jade slip and sent a few voice transmissions before pointing at the Vajra Sect ancestor.

“All right, I’ve made the arrangements. But you… if you have time, you should cultivate well. After so many years, you haven’t progressed at all from the early stage of Foundation Establishment. Stop those nonsensical ancient books. If you keep reading, I’m afraid you’ll develop a heart demon.”

The Vajra Sect ancestor opened his mouth to speak but hesitated. This wasn’t exactly what he’d had in mind, but seeing the blue-robed old man’s resolute expression, he sighed in his heart and finally cupped his fists and bowed.

…

The night passed uneventfully.

When dawn arrived, Xu Qing opened his eyes from his cross-legged meditation and looked over at the leather bag beside him.

This leather bag was a present from Huang Yan. Inside, there were three materials from mutated bests.

There were two diamond-shaped bones and one feather.

Each of them shone with a red glow, and they seemed to have come from the same source. Their auras were extraordinary, but unfortunately, they seemed to be oriented more towards spells and speed than the sturdiness that Xu Qing wanted.

“I wonder how many spirit stones I can sell these for.”

“And… I’ve already accumulated almost a thousand more White Pills…” Xu Qing took inventory and left the magic boat, going to the breakfast shop that he went to every day.

The middle-aged shop owner had no cultivation; he was an ordinary civilian with an honest-looking face. Upon seeing Xu Qing, his face broke out into a grin.

He had a deep impression of this beautiful youth from the Homicide Department. Unlike normal Seven Blood Pupils disciples, this youth never revealed any viciousness and was always very polite. Thus, Xu Qing didn’t even need to place an order; soon, the shop owner served up a few steamed buns and a steamed egg, along with a plate of side dishes.

Xu Qing thanked him and sat down, picking up a pair of chopsticks and eating slowly. By now, he was already used to using chopsticks. After he cleaned his plate, he stood up and left a spirit coin on the table before heading over to the Homicide Department.

Checking in at the Homicide Department was very simple. All he had to do was tap their identity token on the blue boulder in the Black Division courtyard.

Xu Qing finished checking in with great familiarity and left. Taking advantage of his patrol duty, he strolled around the streets under the morning sun.

On his way, he encountered some disciples from the Homicide Department, most of whom greeted him politely. After the battle against Night Dove, Xu Qing had already achieved some amount of fame in the Homicide Department.

As he walked on the street, Xu Qing bought some pears from a stall and ate them on the way to the pharmacy. He planned to sell his White Pills first before seeing how much he could sell Huang Yan’s materials for. After that, he would check how far away he was from buying the giant whale skull.

It didn’t take long before the pharmacy appeared in the distance. It was the same one that he’d met Huang Yan in last time, and it was very lively, with a crowd of people coming and going.

Xu Qing could be considered a regular here. When he stepped into the pharmacy, the busy shopkeeper’s eyes lit up. The shopkeeper walked out from behind the counter and approached Xu Qing with a smile.

“I haven’t seen you for a while. Are you here to buy herbs or sell pills today?”

“I’m selling pills.”

Upon hearing Xu Qing’s words, the shopkeeper’s smile grew even wider. When Xu Qing took out the pills, he just glanced over them briefly before happily handing over twenty spirit stones.

“You’re not going to check them?” Xu Qing looked at the shopkeeper.

“Your pills don’t need to be checked.” The shopkeeper smiled and waved his hand.

Xu Qing nodded. In fact, he was confident that the pills he sold were all of high quality, so he just cupped his fists and left the shop.

When Xu Qing’s figure disappeared into the distance, the shopkeeper quickly took out a jade slip and sent a voice transmission to his boss before calling a staff member over. He placed Xu Qing’s pills in a box and ordered the staff member to immediately send the box to the Second Peak.

This staff member was sharp and saw that the shopkeeper seemed to attach great importance to these pills. Thus, ran quickly after leaving the shop and took a shortcut to the Second Peak.

Soon, the box was delivered to a cave abode on the Second Peak and placed in front of a young girl.

This young girl looked to be about sixteen or seventeen years old, and she wore a light orange Daoist robe. She took a pill out of the box and lifted it up to her eyes for inspection.

Under the sunlight, her skin was as fair as snow, and her eyes were like pools of clear water. Her jet-black hair was tied up in a bun, which was held together by a beaded flower hairpin. Tassels hung from the hairpin, revealing a sense of liveliness.

This girl was the owner of the pharmacy, and she was also the person Xu Qing had met at the pharmacy’s entrance previously.

As she inspected the pill, the girl let out a noise of surprise. Her delicate eyebrows slightly rose, and her eyes revealed astonishment.

“The purity is actually higher than before?”

She had inspected Xu Qing’s pills before, and found that although she could achieve a similar purity, she couldn’t do it with his consistency. Thus, she couldn’t help but feel a sense of competitiveness rising within her heart.

“A Seventh Peak disciple can do it, so there’s no reason an alchemist like me can’t!”

The girl waved her jade-like hand, and medicinal herbs from all around flew to her side. Her expression turned serious as she began to refine.

As the girl began to pit her pill-refining skills against Xu Qing’s, the person in question was walking around the streets, looking around at the Sixth Peak disciples’ refinement workshops. His brows wrinkled imperceptibly, and a hint of bewilderment flashed through his eyes.

Maybe he was just seeing things, but Xu Qing felt that when he passed by the shops today, some of the shopkeepers seemed to glance at him as though confirming something.

It wasn’t like this in the past.

“Are they watching me?” Xu Qing narrowed his eyes. This abnormal scene triggered his vigilance, so he decisively gave up on entering any of the Sixth Peak’s shops.

In the end, he didn’t sell his materials but carefully returned to his berth at Dock 79 to cultivate.

Several days passed, but no major events occurred. Xu Qing hesitated, but he remained vigilant. Every day, he passed by the Sixth Peak shops on his patrol, and secretly observed them many times.

The previous issue with the shopkeepers watching him never occurred again, but Xu Qing was still wary and decided to wait for a few more days. After confirming that nothing abnormal happened, Xu Qing found a shop that had never had its eyes on him from the beginning and prepared to head over.

After all, if he wanted to upgrade his magic boat, he had to go to one of the Sixth Peak’s shops to purchase materials. Almost all of the shops that did business with magic boat materials were in the port area, so even if he went to another district, they wouldn’t necessarily be able to help him.

Thus, even if he was slightly uneasy, Xu Qing still had to give it a try.

Xu Qing vigilantly walked through the streets with quick steps, but just before he arrived at the shop, a familiar voice suddenly came from behind him.

"Xu Qing."

Xu Qing turned around. Not far behind him was the figure of the little fatty Huang Yan.

Huang Yan had seen Xu Qing from a distance and waved enthusiastically as he quickly ran over. The flesh on his body jiggled as he ran. When he arrived, he opened his mouth with a smug expression.

“Xu Qing, guess what! My Senior Sister sent me a voice transmission again. Haha, let’s go. I’m in a great mood today, so I’ll treat you to another egg.”

After he finished speaking, he reached over to pull Xu Qing away. Xu Qing stepped back to avoid him, but when he thought about that strange egg and how the other party had gifted him materials a few days ago, he hesitated.

“I have to sell some materials.”

“Selling materials? Hey, just tell me what you need and I’ll get it for you.” Huang Yan said generously.

Xu Qing shook his head.

“Fine, then I’ll accompany you to sell your materials, and you’ll accompany me to eat eggs. Alright, it’s decided.” Huang Yan had a happy expression on his face, and it was clear that he was anxious to share his joyous matter with someone else. As he spoke, he looked around, eventually pointing to a nearby shop.

“Let’s go in there. I’ve been there a few times, it’s not bad.”

Xu Qing turned his head to look at the shop that Huang Yan pointed out. In fact, that shop was his original destination for this trip. Sweeping his gaze over, Xu Qing saw that there were many disciples buying and selling materials inside, and he even saw an acquaintance.

It was Zhang San. He was also shopping for materials, and when he noticed Xu Qing outside, he smiled in greeting.

“Let’s go, let’s hurry and sell everything and then go eat eggs.” Huang Yan said impatiently, looking at Xu Qing.

Xu Qing glanced at the shopkeeper inside before stepping in without hesitation.

This shop was very large, and it even had a second floor. Inside, there were a variety of materials from mutated beasts, and each of them was extremely valuable. As the pair entered, the shopkeeper behind the counter raised his head.

The shopkeeper was a middle-aged man with a mustache that made him look very shrewd. He looked at Xu Qing and opened his mouth with a smile.

“Two fellow disciples, what business are you here for?”

“I’m selling materials.”

Xu Qing spoke calmly and walked up to the counter. Under the shopkeeper’s gaze, he took out some materials from his leather bag. It wasn’t just the items that Huang Yan gave him, but also some things he had taken off the bodies of wanted criminals.

The shopkeeper looked at Xu Qing before scanning the materials on the counter. He picked up a few items and pondered for a while. After looking over them carefully, he raised his head and gave Xu Qing a deep look.

His expression gradually became gloomy, and a sharp light appeared in his eyes.

"Little friend, there is something wrong with these items of yours."

“A few days ago, the Vajra Sect reported to my Sixth Peak that there was a robbery and many of their resources were stolen. These items are yours… are all written in the records, and they’re precisely those items that were stolen from the Vajra Sect. Little friend, you came to my store and tried to sell us stolen goods. What is the meaning of this?”

“Could it be that the robbery at the Vajra Sect is related to you?”

“Could it be that you, a dignified disciple of Seven Blood Pupils’ Seventh Peak, actually plundered the Vajra Sect?”

The shopkeeper was clearly doing this on purpose. His voice grew louder and louder and spread through the entire shop. In an instant the many disciples from various peaks who were looking through items inside all fell silent and looked over simultaneously.

Xu Qing wasn’t surprised, only letting out a soft sigh within his heart. He thought he had already been careful enough, but he still couldn’t avoid it in the end. However, he also knew that this definitely had something to do with the Vajra Sect ancestor. Killing intent instantly arose in his heart, and he felt a heavy sense of crisis. Someone was obviously helping the Vajra Sect ancestor, and this person clearly had some standing within the Sixth Peak.

He swept his gaze over the shopkeeper’s neck and scanned the item racks all around the shop before looking in the direction of the sea. A cold light appeared in his eyes. In his heart, he was weighing whether he should suck it up and leave, or stay and fight with reason.

But just as Xu Qing was weighing the matter internally, Huang Yan’s eyes immediately widened. His fat body stood up straight and he heavily slammed his hands on the counter with a loud bang.

“Stolen goods? These are stolen goods?”

The little fatty picked up the mutated beast bone that he’d given to Xu Qing. His eyes were filled with unprecedented fury, as if he had suffered a great humiliation.

“This is my stuff, you bastard. You dare call my stuff stolen goods?!”[1]

The little fatty flew into a rage. He directly flung the bone in his hands at the shopkeeper’s face.

[1] Huang Yan refers to himself as “老子” here, which literally means “father” but is basically a very rude and arrogant way of referring to yourself.

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