Chapter Forty-Four
The fake River God, a carp spirit, returned to his cave ahead of schedule, leaving Pei Xuanji alone in the cave, where she encountered an unprecedented crisis.
Baozhu, who was trying to swim into the cave, was unknowingly in danger.
While she was in the cave, Baozhu had already seen the lake in front of it. It was neither too big nor too small. When she swam to the bottom of the lake where Lai San was imprisoned, it didn't seem to take much effort.
However, after emerging from the lake, the hidden injuries that Baozhu had sustained during the battle with the goddess statue in Sanzhen Mountain began to flare up again.
Her limbs became cold, and she felt sluggish when she moved.
So the journey back through the cave seemed exceptionally long.
To make matters worse, as the fox demon struggled to swim in the lake, she suddenly sensed a large aura of demonic energy approaching her from ahead.
Fortunately, the lake water was clear, and when she looked closely, she saw many half-human, half-fish monsters in the water, grinning at her.
Baozhu immediately changed direction, paddling through the water, trying to escape.
When she first saw these fish demons, she thought they deliberately left behind the appearance of fish to scare mortals.
But after discovering that the fake River God's wife was pregnant in the cave, Baozhu suddenly understood when she saw these monsters again—they were half-demons, monsters born from the mortal wives by the Golden Carp Spirit.
Therefore, these fish demons, like the pearl, cannot speak in the water; this is a characteristic of creatures on land.
As Baozhu pondered, she swam forward with all her might. She used her magic to create gusts of wind in the lake, which swirled her upper body forward.
But she knew demonic magic, and so did the half-demons. Several half-demons emitted soaring demonic energy, and their speed increased significantly compared to before.
The distance between them kept shrinking.
With the lake shore right in front of them, the fastest swimming half-demon, who was closest to the pearl, was only an arm's length away.
The half-demon suddenly lunged forward, opened its mouth wide, revealing sharp teeth that gleamed with a cold light, and was about to bite Baozhu's foot.
Baozhu reacted quickly, pulled her foot back, stepped on the fish's head instead, and pushed off hard, propelling her body forward quite a distance.
The half-demon was stomped on by the pearl and tumbled in the water. When he looked up again, the fish-headed man's eyes were red with anger. He simply gathered his strength, swung the water hard, and leaped out of the lake, half of his body flying out, trying to reach out and grab the pearl's ankle.
Baozhu naturally had to dodge and fight back, and the two demons fiercely fought on the water.
While the leader of the half-demon was locked in combat, the other half-demons following behind quietly approached. They silently surrounded the two fighting demons, and more than ten half-demons all opened their mouths wide at the pearl.
In such a predicament, only if the pearl grows wings and becomes a bird can it escape!
In despair, the pearl mustered all its strength and slashed its claw fiercely across the face of the half-demon before it, piercing one of his fish eyes and causing it to burst open. As the demon screamed in agony, the pearl immediately turned back and struck again, attempting to break through the encirclement.
There were too many half-demons. One of the half-demons who was attacked by the treasure pearl screamed and sank into the lake. His brother immediately stepped in to fill the vacancy.
However, the pearl couldn't exert any force in the water and couldn't move fast.
These fish-headed monsters, perhaps using some unique sorcery, made Baozhu's every move seem to be entangled by water.
Then another half-demon, taking advantage of Baozhu's inattention, bit her arm hard.
His sharp teeth tore through the fox demon's flesh. Baozhu gritted her teeth and didn't utter a sound. She forcefully pulled her arm out of his mouth. In an instant, blood and bits of flesh rippled in the lake, centered on Baozhu.
The half-demons, having caught a whiff of blood, became even more excited. Their eyes gradually filled with bloodshot veins, and a few foolish ones even went so far as to bite their brothers who were also stained with blood.
However, it wasn't just the half-demons who were attracted by the flesh and blood of the pearl.
As he grappled with the half-demon, the pearl, whose entire upper body was protruding from the water, could be faintly seen, and there was a shimmering light in the distant lake.
It seemed that many things exuding a sinister aura had surfaced from the bottom of the lake, peering at everything before them.
Baozhu realized that even in the water, she could find help.
"Hey, you ghosts, come help me!" Baozhu shouted.
She used both hands to scratch any half-demon she could find, leaving him covered in blood.
The blood energy of the half-demons mingled with that of the pearl in the water, stimulating the less-than-perfect half-demons to begin tearing and biting indiscriminately, without distinguishing friend from foe.
In the chaos, many ghosts covered in yin energy obeyed the pearl's call and slowly approached the half-demons. Several ghosts suddenly exerted their strength together, grabbing the half-demons' legs and pulling them down sharply.
There were many half-demons, but after the water ghosts in the lake revealed themselves in dense numbers, these dozen or so half-demons were not enough for them to share.
The water ghosts were naturally not as powerful as the half-demons, but with so many water ghosts together, they could still hold off the half-demons for a while.
One by one, the half-demons were dragged to the bottom of the lake, and after a while, only the pearl remained on the surface of the lake.
Baozhu waded through the water, clutching her arm, panting heavily.
The fox demon had fought such a fierce battle in the water that she was almost exhausted and could barely float on the surface without falling.
The water ghosts around her observed her carefully for a while, and seeing that she was really exhausted, they appeared under her and carefully swam towards the shore with her on their backs.
Baozhu was carried ashore by the water ghosts and collapsed on the bank.
She raised her arm and looked at it closely, noticing that blood was still seeping from it, which looked quite gruesome.
Baozhu reached out and touched it, wincing in pain; the wound needed treatment. She sighed and stood up, intending to bandage her arm.
Suddenly, the lake water on the shore started to splash loudly.
Baozhu turned her head and saw several clean and beautiful water plants being washed ashore by the lake water.
She went forward, picked up some water plants, and wrapped them around her injured arm, whereupon a cool sensation immediately spread through the wound.
Several water ghosts were hiding in the lake, secretly watching Baozhu's movements.
"Come out! What are you doing hiding in the lake?" Baozhu looked at them, puzzled.
The water ghosts looked at each other, then slowly poked half their bodies out of the lake to look at the pearl.
"How did you die?" Baozhu asked.
“They drowned,” the ghost said. “They died many years ago, before those monsters even came.”
"They were eaten. They were eaten by those fish demons a few years ago." The speaker was a female ghost.
"I think I died a few days ago." The female ghost closest to the pearl thought for a moment, her face showing some doubt. "Wasn't I married off to the River God? How did I suddenly die?"
Ghosts prefer darkness and water. Because of the suitable environment, the ghosts in the water seem to be much smarter than the ones Baozhu met in the mountains before. They not only know when they died and why they died, but they also remember the time.
After sending 100,000 ghosts to their deaths, Baozhu seemed to possess an aura that only ghosts could detect, making it very easy for her to win their favor.
Good things come to those who are good; if it weren't for these water ghosts, Baozhu would probably be dead to the fish today.
While feeling relieved, she asked, "Do you know about the Golden Carp Spirit?"
"I know. That monster is both wicked and powerful. Over the years, it has fathered many half-demons with mortal women. They are everywhere in the lake and water."
"Those half-demons weren't very good-looking, some were incredibly stupid, and they often couldn't resist eating people."
“I was eaten by them. That day was just like any other day. I went to the lake to wash my clothes when suddenly a fish head popped out of the water and dragged me down with it.”
Baozhu asked in surprise, "When I came here, I heard from the villagers that no one has ever drowned in the river since the River God came."
The female ghost who was eaten by the fish demon pouted and said, "After I died, my husband's family went to ask the carp spirit, who said she had never seen me. So they assumed I had run away and cursed me day and night."
"Then why don't you go find them?" Baozhu asked.
“I dare not go. The carp spirit is very fierce. It usually eliminates ghosts as soon as it discovers them. If I show my face, I will be reduced to ashes.”
How could they know that! The ghosts in the water are much smarter.
Baozhu sighed, "Then we can only try to deal with that carp spirit. Alas, if Lai San were still the River God, many of you probably wouldn't have died."
The water ghosts also sighed, "Lai San is a good monster."
Just as Baozhu was exchanging a few words with the water ghosts, more water ghosts rushed over from the lake and said to Baozhu, "We can't catch them anymore, those half-demons are here."
"Oh no! Something terrible has happened!"
"Hurry up, hurry up."
The water ghosts on the shore rushed up in a flurry, urging Baozhu to hurry up and leave.
"We'll set up a barrier here for you, hurry up and run further away!" they said anxiously.
Baozhu stretched leisurely, feeling her strength return. She reassured the water ghosts, "Don't panic. I can't fight them in the water, but I'm not afraid on the shore."
She's been braving wind and rain these past few days, her demonic energy constantly replenishing and depleting itself, making her incredibly powerful.
"Then you'd better be careful," the water ghosts said, still worried. "We'll hold them back here for you."
Before the ghosts could finish speaking, many bubbles surged up from the lake, and then a group of half-demons, with bald fish heads, rushed towards the pearl.
But as soon as they stepped onto the lake shore, they all suddenly tripped and fell flat on their faces.
Baozhu laughed and rushed forward like a whirlwind. Her claws were as sharp as knives. Before the half-demons could react, the fox demon suddenly stabbed them from behind. After several screams, several half-demons were pierced through the heart, and blood gushed from their abdomens.
Those who were still able to move immediately pulled their brothers back into the water.
The lake water was stained red with the blood of the half-demons.
The fox demon and the half-demons faced each other across the lake shore. The half-demons dared not go ashore, and Baozhu dared not step into the lake.
The half-demon who appeared to be the most complete stared at the pearl for a long time before slowly uttering a harsh threat: "Let's go back and tell the River God that he won't let you get away with this."
“I’m going back to tell the River God—” Baozhu gestured wildly on the bank, mocking him sarcastically, “Why don’t you say you’re going back to tell your father? Don’t you have a father?”
“We…” The half-demons’ fish heads showed no change in expression, but their voices lowered, “We have a father…”
"You still call yourselves River Gods even though you have fathers? Is it because your fathers don't recognize you or think you're stupid?" Baozhu made faces at the half-demons.
The half-demons, their secrets exposed by the pearl, had no choice but to retreat towards the center of the lake, carrying their injured brothers.
"You wait, the River God will not let you get away with this!"
The half-demons shouted loudly and vanished before the pearl.
Baozhu breathed a sigh of relief and sat down to rest on the shore.
A water ghost surfaced from the water and whispered, "You're quite something."
“Of course,” Baozhu replied without any modesty.
"But it doesn't seem as powerful as the carp spirit," the water ghost blinked and added.
Baozhu was momentarily speechless, then changed the subject, asking, "When does the River God usually return to his cave?"
One by one, several water ghosts emerged from the river. Hearing Baozhu's question, they all asked in confusion, "He's already gone back."
"What?!" Baozhu exclaimed in surprise, leaping to her feet. "Oh no! My friend is alone in the cave!"
The water ghosts obeyed the pearl's summons and carried her in the water. The pearl stepped onto the water ghost boat and sped towards the cave at three times the speed it had come from.
Just as she could see the cave, Baozhu heard a huge noise coming from it. She was sweating profusely and kept urging the water ghost at her feet, "Please hurry up!"
Luckily, the water ghosts had stopped breathing, otherwise they would have been panting like broken bellows.
After a hurried journey, Baozhu and the water ghosts finally arrived at the cave.
Before the water ghost boat had even come to a complete stop, Baozhu was eager to rush into the cave to save Pei Xuanji. However, just as she lifted one foot, she seemed to suddenly remember something, turned around and scooped up dozens of water ghosts from the water.
The water ghosts gasped in surprise, and before they could ask any questions, the precious pearl was put into their right hands.
"Where am I?!"
"How am I alive again! Did I get reincarnated?!"
"Oh my god, I've turned into a right hand!"
The water ghosts screamed and shouted in the right hand of the pearl, nearly scaring them to death again.
Baozhu mentally shushed the water ghosts in her right hand, coaxing them, "Don't be afraid, stay in my right hand for a while. When I beat up that carp spirit, you can beat him up too. After that, I'll release you."
Having said that, he lightly slipped into the cave.
As soon as Baozhu stepped into the cave, she found that it was different from when she left. Pei Xuanji and Jin Liyu had obviously fought a fierce battle that shook the earth. The cave was in a mess. Apart from the dozen or so wives who were stuffed in a corner, there was no place to stand.
Pei Xuanji was wielding a bladeless sword, locked in combat with a golden carp. Her face and body were covered in wounds, and the magic array set up on the ground was in disarray. Upon closer inspection, Pei Xuanji's face was pale, and her right hand holding the sword was trembling.
Looking at the person opposite her, the golden carp only had a few bloodstains on its face, but its demonic aura was still overwhelming.
If the pearl hadn't appeared, Pei Xuanji probably wouldn't have lasted more than ten rounds against the golden carp.
However, the appearance of the pearl did not change the situation in the cave. With Pei Xuanji fully focused, there was no way she could be distracted by the pearl. The golden carp realized that the pearl was alone and not very strong, so it decided to kill Pei Xuanji first and then deal with the pearl.
At this moment, Pei Xuanji already knew in her heart that she was no match for the golden carp. She wanted to weaken this monster and buy some time for the precious pearl. She gritted her teeth and, in a last burst of energy, thrust her sword at the golden carp a few times.
Caught off guard by this desperate counterattack, the golden carp was stabbed in the arm, causing him to momentarily stagger.
This was a once-in-a-million opportunity that Pei Xuanji had created for Baozhu.
Baozhu didn't miss; with lightning speed, she struck the golden carp on the back.
The golden carp's back was covered in shimmering golden scales that ordinary swords and claws could not pierce.
Therefore, the golden carp could withstand a monster's light slap with its scales, and it didn't take it seriously.
The demonic energy emanating from the golden carp repelled the pearl. He frowned, looking at Pei Xuanji, who was already unsteady on her feet, and thought that he should cut her down first.
But as soon as he took a step forward, an extremely cold and malevolent aura suddenly appeared in his body, surging from the palm print left by the little demon towards his heart meridian.
The golden carp stopped what it was doing and froze in place.
He had no choice but to withdraw all his demonic power to protect his heart meridian.
Pei Xuanji, standing in front of him, did not miss the opportunity. With her last bit of strength, she thrust her bladeless sword forward and plunged it into the belly of the golden carp.
Then, Pei Xuanji, who fought desperately against the golden carp to the very last moment, collapsed softly.
She was exhausted at this point, and the golden carp could easily pluck Pei Xuanji's head off with a single reach.
But his attention wasn't on what was in front of him.
The pearl, which had been flung away by the demonic energy of the golden carp, somehow returned to his back. She used all her strength to strike the original palm print again.
In an attempt to alleviate the yin energy flowing into his body from the precious pearl, the demonic energy within the golden carp's body became a chaotic mess. Veins bulged on his handsome face, and his lips twitched uncontrollably.
Amidst the rampant demonic and malevolent energy, the golden carp slowly knelt on the ground.
Baozhu, panting heavily, turned to face him, drew her bladeless sword, and prepared to deliver the final blow.
The bladeless sword, which could cut melons and vegetables with ease in Pei Xuanji's hands, became a fire poker in Baozhu's hands.
Helpless, she could only sheathe the sword back into her hand.
The golden carp stood frozen in place, its face turning from green to white, then back to green, but its expression gradually relaxed.
Baozhu weighed the situation in her mind. Their condition was too poor at the moment. If they continued to be deadlocked and waited for the demon to get better, it was hard to say who would die here.
So she gritted her teeth, picked up the bladeless sword, carried the paralyzed Pei Xuanji on her back, bypassed the immobile golden carp, and walked towards the cave entrance.
“A monster associating with a Taoist priest? I’m ashamed of you.”
Seeing that Baozhu and Pei Xuanji were about to leave the cave, the golden carp managed to squeeze out a sentence through gritted teeth.
"A carp spirit stole the identity of a toad spirit and hid in this village, giving birth to a bunch of monsters that are neither human nor demon. You're not ashamed to hear them call you 'father,' so why should I be ashamed?"
Baozhu snorted coldly and limped away, carrying Pei Xuanji on his back. He didn't care about the golden carp behind him roaring and screaming, since he couldn't move for the time being anyway.
Upon reaching the cave entrance, Baozhu stopped again and said with a smile, "I'll allow you to live a few more days."
After saying that, she boarded the ghost boat outside the cave and left.
Baozhu, aboard the water ghost boat, looked into the distance and saw the shadowy figures of half-demons. Extremely impatient, she smirked, bared her teeth at them, and shouted, "Go check on your father! You'll be fatherless!"
The half-demons immediately dispersed.
The water ghosts successfully brought them to the shore.
Baozhu returned the water ghosts in her right hand to the lake and thanked them.
Despite the awe in the eyes of the water ghosts, she carried Pei Xuanji on her back and struggled to walk away from the water.
Halfway there, Baozhu felt her legs go weak and had to stop to rest.
Pei Xuanji, who was on her back, blinked and finally came to her senses.
She lay on Baozhu's back, watching the scenery rushing past on both sides, and vaguely thought to herself that this was the second time Baozhu had carried her.
Pei Xuanji thought for a moment, then slowly said, "Baozhu, you are very good."
"Pei Qi, you're not bad either."
Baozhu smiled and replied.
The setting sun shone through the gaps in the bamboo forest, illuminating Baozhu's face.
"Pei Qi, don't worry, I have a plan. That carp demon won't escape our grasp." Baozhu was physically exhausted, but her spirits were high. "We can win."
Her eyes shone with the afterglow of the setting sun, making her look incredibly vivid.
Pei Xuanji twitched the corner of her mouth and hummed in agreement.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com