Chapter 18 Encountering Rongxing at Lingwu Mountain
Suddenly, something strange happened deep in the forest. Bright red vines emerged from under the decaying leaves, and before Huali could react, her feet were tightly wrapped and she was sent flying backward.
"Lotus Wash!"
Lian Zhuo took a cypress bead from her wrist and shot it out. The vine broke, and the rosewood tumbled in the air before landing.
"What's going on?"
“There’s demonic energy here.” Lian Zhuo reached out and pulled Hua Li behind her.
“Your spiritual power hasn’t recovered yet, so don’t always think about rushing to the front.” Hua Li stepped forward. “Ao Bai, check if there are any unusual movements around you.”
Ao Bai nodded and ran off into the distance.
"Actually, when I came to Fufeng City, I also encountered demonized monsters and that Ting Nu. There was clearly a controller behind her."
Lian Zhuo was well aware of this. He had been poisoned by the Gu poison while sealing the demonic dragon. The demonic dragon had been asleep for a thousand years, and why it had suddenly awakened was still shrouded in mystery, let alone its frenzied and erratic behavior. There must be a reason behind it.
Ao Bai ran back from a short distance away, "Host, there's someone unconscious up ahead."
Huali: "Aobai said he saw someone ahead and went to check it out."
The two quickly weaved through the vines and arrived at a locust tree that would take four people to encircle. Lying under the tree was a young man dressed in white, with a large hole in his abdomen, from which blood was gushing out.
Huali reached out and gently checked his breath. "He's still breathing."
The young man sensed someone approaching and weakly opened his eyes. "Cough cough... Who goes there..."
“We are Buddhists.” Huali automatically categorized herself as a Buddhist disciple. “You are seriously injured. Do you have any medicine?”
The young man clearly didn't believe it, and tightened his grip on the sword hilt slightly.
"Amitabha." Lian Zhuo stepped forward.
Huali watched as the young man breathed a sigh of relief upon seeing Lianzhuo.
Huali: "......" This world of double standards.
The young man pulled a blood-stained letter from his chest. "I have a favor to ask of you, Venerable Master. Please deliver this letter to Young Master Songran of Chenliu City..."
Ao Bai scratched at his clothes with his claws and said to Hua Li, "This man is about to make his final arrangements."
Karin shrugged and squatted down.
After the young man finished speaking, he closed his eyes and fainted.
But the next second, a sharp, needle-like pain shot through his philtrum, abruptly pulling him back from the brink of unconsciousness.
He suddenly opened his eyes and stared at Huali across from him.
Huali quickly wrapped the wound on his stomach, saying, "Don't rush to die, I think there's still a chance to save him."
A hint of helplessness flashed in Lian Zhuo's eyes as she reached into her Qiankun bag, took out a pill, and handed it to him, saying, "Take this."
"Life-Giving Pill?" A spark of life ignited in the young man's eyes. "Thank you, Master and young lady." He quickly swallowed the pill after expressing his gratitude.
A moment later, a wisp of spiritual energy surged back into the depleted meridians, and the wound on the young man's abdomen finally stopped bleeding and began to heal slowly.
He opened his eyes with gratitude, "I am from the Astrological Platform, Fusion Star."
"My name is Huali, and this is Lianzhuo." Huali was in charge of the diplomatic affairs this time. "We are also preparing to go to Chenliu City, but since this letter is so important, you should deliver it yourself."
Rongxing nodded, "Of course, I am deeply grateful for your life-saving grace. Once I am healed, I can cast a divination for each of you if needed."
Ao Bai jumped from the ground onto Hua Li's shoulder, licking his paws: "The Astronomical Observatory is good at divination and fortune telling. They can observe the celestial phenomena at night. We can let them see the direction of the other chosen ones."
"That's right." Huali's eyes lit up; having a direction would make the rest of the process smoother.
Having tasted the benefits of card upgrades from Renju, Huali is now full of enthusiasm.
"What demon injured you?" Lian Zhuo asked.
“It was just a hundred-year-old half-demon with fox ears.” Rong Xing said with lingering fear, “I saw it alone in Lingwu Mountain, so I went up to ask it. But when it heard that I was from the Astrology Station, it went berserk.”
"Your astrology department isn't very popular?" Karin asked curiously.
Rong Xing shook his head, his eyes filled with pride, "When it comes to divination in this world, no one can compare to the Astrology Platform. Cultivators are just mortals with longer lifespans. As humans, they have desires. The Astrology Platform has always been bustling with visitors, making many good connections."
Karin didn't believe her. "Really?"
Rong Xing immediately backed down: "Okay, I did offend some people by telling the truth, but it's not my fault." He sounded aggrieved.
She knew it! Karin snorted.
He hadn't paid much attention to his injury at first, but now Rong Xing noticed the strangeness in the girl beside him. He scratched his chin and said in surprise, "Such strange things exist in this world. Why can't I see your fate... um..."
Huali stepped forward and covered his mouth, "Aren't you injured? Stop talking!"
Rong Xing's face turned red as he nodded frantically.
Karin finally released him, her heart filled with astonishment. What exactly was this astrological observatory? How could this kid have seen that she didn't have a life star?
In the cultivation world, everyone has a destiny star. If the destiny star falls, it means that person has completely perished. Conversely, if a person dies but their destiny star remains, they can try to be resurrected through a method similar to possession.
The Buddhist monk watched quietly as Huali and Rongxing chatted back and forth, then suddenly spoke up: "It's getting late, Huali, let's go."
Rongxing shivered for no reason; why was it suddenly so cold?
Unaware of what was happening, Huali responded and returned to Lianzhuo's side, "Let's go."
The Buddhist disciple's gaze shifted from deep to calm, and he nodded.
"Wait a minute!" Seeing them about to leave, Rong Xing quickly clutched his injured abdomen, grimacing as he jogged to catch up. "You just said you were going to Chenliu City, right? It's on the way, why don't we go together?"
He really didn't want to stay alone in the demonic Lingwu Mountain. Who knew if the half-demon fox he had just forced back was still lurking in the shadows?
However, no one welcomed his enthusiastic participation.
The Buddhist monk frowned slightly, while Huali shook the rattle-drum vigorously.
What a joke! You can tell about your destiny star in such a short time. If you travel with us, you'll see all our wealth!
"I misspoke earlier, we're not going to Chenliu." Huali was afraid the Buddhist disciple would agree, so she warned him with her eyes as she spoke.
A hint of helplessness flashed in Lian Zhuo's eyes, but she ultimately did not refute it.
The Gu poison relentlessly assaulted his meridians, and he had almost become accustomed to the pain.
Ultimately, it was because his cultivation was insufficient, and his desires were hard to quell. Thinking of this, Lian Zhuo continued to silently recite the Heart-Cleansing Mantra in her heart.
Even a fool could see through such an obvious perfunctory response.
Rongxing has been out for so many days, and if he doesn't deliver the letter to Songran soon, it might cause a major delay. Right now, he's seriously injured, and he can't afford to travel alone any longer for the sake of his life.
So Rongxing played his trump card again, "I am the most powerful diviner in the astrological arena, otherwise I wouldn't have been sent to deliver this Celestial Mission."
"If you let me go with you, I'll give you a free fortune telling opportunity."
Huali scoffed, "Free? You make it sound like you're expensive."
"Don't you have a communication stone? Don't you usually go on Xianbo?" Rongxing's eyes widened. "If you don't believe me, search for it yourself."
The communication stone is usually only used for quests, and Huali hasn't used it in a long time.
She stared at Rongxing suspiciously for a moment, then opened the Xianbo search.
The next second, her suspicion turned to astonishment. She opened her mouth wide and suddenly raised the communication stone, exclaiming, "One hundred high-grade spirit stones?!" One million!
Seeing Huali's appearance, Rongxing, who had regained his confidence, smiled smugly, "This is just the starting price. If you want to know more, that's a different price."
Huali pretended to be calm as she put away the communication stone. "Wait a moment, let's discuss this."
She pulled Lian Zhuo close, her eyes sparkling, "Did you hear that? He charges a hundred spirit stones for each divination."
Having already witnessed Huali's greed for money, Lianzhuo helplessly reminded her, "Don't let greed take hold."
Buddhist temples and monasteries are decorated with gold and jewels. Buddhists have seen this since childhood and do not find anything wrong with it. However, for a piece of rosewood, this is a huge sum of money.
Hua Li and Ao Bai squatted under the tree, one human and one cat facing each other. "In a little while, we can say to Rong Xing that if he wants to travel with us, he can, but he needs to come for two more divinations. Wouldn't that be a huge profit for us?"
Ao Bai immediately understood: "That's right, there are so many people seeking divination from Rong Xing anyway."
Huali: "We'll just sell the spots directly then, let them compete for them, starting at one million, and the highest bidder wins."
The thought of being able to guarantee at least two million without any investment made Huali feel like her life was complete.
Lian Zhuo listened from the side and shook her head. Just as she was about to speak, a fog suddenly rose in the air.
Huali's feet suddenly tightened, and she was dragged into the ground.
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