Chapter 126 Going Mad "Then why won't you let me see it!"...
It's still autumn, and although the nights are getting cooler day by day, the daytime temperatures are pleasant.
However, the Li family's villa had already set up a stove for heating early on. It was neither powered by spiritual energy nor by magical artifacts, but by putting in basins of real charcoal, which burned day and night.
Compared to the pleasant autumn coolness outside, Li Mengbai's bedroom was still trapped in summer. Servants would always be covered in sweat when they entered his room, but the young master looked very comfortable and at ease inside.
The charcoal in the gilded bronze basin with chrysanthemum patterns crackled and popped as it burned. A spark flew out of the basin, waking the person who was fast asleep.
The person on the bed groggily opened his eyes, his consciousness not yet fully withdrawn from the dark dream. The bright firelight immediately calmed his restless mind. The dream had been too dark, so dark he couldn't find his way out.
Li Mengbai didn't actually sleep comfortably. The bedchamber was hot and stuffy, and he slept with flushed cheeks and a layer of fine sweat on his forehead.
But he liked this temperature, the temperature produced by burning.
"Young Master, the Second Master has sent someone over, saying he has something important to discuss with you and wants you to return to the Master's residence."
A servant's urgent voice came from outside the door.
The young master has a habit of taking a nap, so even the most important matters can only be discussed after he wakes up.
"I won't see him. Tell him to get lost."
The servant's voice was hesitant, "But the Second Master said it was on the orders of the Master."
"Ha, here we go again..."
Li Mengbai scoffed. It was the same old trick again. At his age, all he did when something happened was run to his older brother to complain. He could imagine the ridiculous scene.
The younger brother, his face weathered by time, tearfully complained to his still-young elder brother about the mistreatment he had suffered at the hands of his nephews.
Sure enough, as soon as I stepped into that dark and gloomy building, a bloated figure walked towards me.
Holding an empty box, Li Changshui angrily questioned Li Mengbai, "Where's the vine? Where's my Earth Flame Vine?"
“The old doctor said you took it and gave it away. How could you give away something so important!” He pointed outside and said, “Go find that person immediately and get it back. Tell them it belongs to the Li family and cannot be given to outsiders.”
Li Mengbai seemed oblivious to his hurried attitude and calmly found a soft couch to sit down.
He glanced at Li Changshui once before looking away. His once handsome features had been worn down by time, turning him into an ugly, flabby figure that was truly unbearable to look at.
He shifted his gaze to the young-looking maid standing to the side, who already possessed a pair of amorous peach blossom eyes, and whose gaze was filled with boundless affection.
This glance made the beautiful maid blush, but almost at the same time, another fierce gaze followed. She immediately lowered her head, terrified. With her head bowed low, the purplish-blue marks on the back of her neck were clearly visible.
Li Mengbai leaned lazily against the armchair, "Although my uncle is old now, his character is still the same as before."
They also enjoy tormenting beautiful young girls.
Li Changshui's face grew even longer. He could tell that Li Mengbai was mocking him, but how could he swallow such an insult from a junior? So, in a fit of anger, he roughly shoved the beautiful maid away.
The door slammed shut with a loud bang.
“Li Mengbai, don’t push your luck. I’m still trying to reason with you here, but if you continue like this, your brother won’t tolerate you like I have. Don’t forget, he could throw you into the Netherworld and lock you up for a year back then…”
Li Mengbai gave him a cool look.
Li Changshui suddenly couldn't continue speaking.
The sinister smile on his lips was just as it had been back then. Li Changshui could never forget the way that child looked when he came out of the Netherworld. His tender body was torn and mangled by snakes, insects, and rats. Even though the corpses of those creatures were still hanging on his body, he smiled and begged the adults for a hug, innocent to the point of being wicked.
"Ah, Second Uncle has a good memory. It seems that Heaven compensated you for not giving you a spirit bone in this way."
Li Changshui's face immediately fell. "Don't talk nonsense. We're talking about the Earth Flame Vine now. The Li family only has this last one left. How dare you give it away so casually, especially to a woman! Who is that woman? If my brother finds out, he will definitely not let her off the hook."
Brother, brother… Li Mengbai got annoyed by the repeated calls. He suddenly stood up, teleported close to Li Changshui, and said in a low voice, “Uncle, what are you doing with the Earth Flame Vine? Do you think others don’t know?”
Li Changshui was intimidated by the chilling look in his eyes and unconsciously took a step back.
"Together with the Snow Spirit Grass, ice and fire mingle, dissolving the impurities in your body and helping you maintain your youthful appearance, right?"
Li Changshui's back was pressed against the cold wall, with nowhere left to retreat.
With a light kick, Li Mengbai sent his uncle, who had just been spouting nonsense and lecturing him, sprawled to the ground. He spoke slowly, his words vicious, "After all these years, you've still turned into this ugly mess. So much spiritual essence poured into your body, have you used even a single drop? You've stolen so many people's chance at immortality, yet you still can't cultivate a long life. Even a piece of wood would have become an immortal by now. You truly are a complete waste. A waste should be aware of its worth, so why are you both useless and greedy?"
"What's wrong with you? I'm your uncle!" Li Changshui struggled to get up from the ground, but Li Mengbai stepped on him again. Seeing the madness in Li Mengbai's eyes deepening, Li Changshui was terrified. "Are you having another episode? Let me go!"
Li Mengbai smiled gently, "Saying that I'm having an episode makes it sound like I'm the only one in this family who's sick. Don't leave yourself out."
He reached out and pressed his hand down on Li Changshui's head, causing the man to kneel heavily on the ground.
Li Changshui cried out in alarm, "You're insane! Li Mengbai, how dare you hurt me!" But seeing Li Mengbai's eerie smile, Li Changshui's fear intensified, and his aura weakened further. "I only asked you to retrieve the Earth Flame Vine and find that woman. If she refuses to return it, have the Li family kill her. Once you get it back, I won't blame you, and my brother won't know. Don't touch me."
Li Mengbai suddenly laughed out loud, "Take it back? That was to save his son." He slowly applied pressure to Li Changshui's head with his palm, "Tell me, in Li Shichuan's eyes, who is more important, you or his son?"
“Zhan’er…” Li Changshui thought of his nephew who left home at a young age and never returned. He was the only person in the Li family who would not despise his background.
With a "crack", the neck bone broke.
Li Changshui never expected that Li Mengbai would actually kill him. It wasn't because he thought Li Mengbai would show consideration for family ties, but because he knew the Li family's fear of their patriarch.
But when Li Mengbai goes crazy, he doesn't care about anything else.
The man, though dead, remained kneeling on the ground, his eyes bulging, still unwilling to believe his fate. Above his head, strands of emerald-green spiritual essence were creeping up Li Mengbai's hand, seeping into his body.
Li Mengbai tilted his head slightly and sighed softly.
So this is what it feels like to nourish yourself with the essence of others. He wasn't unaware that the good-for-nothings in his clan and the old fogies who had entered the five signs of decay would do such things, but he felt that he was naturally gifted and had excellent comprehension, so he had always looked down on such things.
But things are different now; he can feel the Heavenly Pillar Marrow within his body yearning for it.
So he satisfied it.
Beneath his magnificent purple robe, golden runes slowly climbed up his neck.
"How does it taste?"
A cloud of black mist gathered in the void, and from within the mist, a voice of indistinguishable gender asked him a question.
Li Mengbai curled her lips into a smile, her eyes growing increasingly mesmerized, and slowly uttered, "Extremely beautiful."
The black mist added, "You're too impatient."
Li Mengbai did not answer, as if he was still immersed in the satisfaction brought by the spiritual essence.
“You shouldn’t have killed him. Although you have obtained the Heavenly Pillar Marrow, the divine power you have refined is far from enough. You are still no match for Li Shichuan. Making an enemy of the Li family at this time will be detrimental to you.”
Li Mengbai, her eyes glazed over, laughed and said, "Who said I would be an enemy of the Li family? I love them too much to ask."
The black mist chuckled sinisterly in the void, seemingly satisfied with the answer. "That's good. Clean things up yourself and be careful in the future."
After he finished speaking, the black mist dissipated.
Li Mengbai looked down at the corpse at his feet.
Those who cultivate immortality open their spiritual meridians, using the spiritual power of nature to fill their bodies. Even in death, their bodies dissolve into spiritual particles and dust, returning to the cycle of heaven and earth.
Even in death, his half-baked second uncle's filthy body lay on the ground just like any other mortal's, not even reaching the level of autopsy. Such a useless thing, yet he was born into the Li family and shamelessly lived on for so many years.
He took out two talismans, one of which he struck on Li Changshui's corpse. The corpse instantly turned into dust. The other talisman hung in mid-air, stretched out horizontally for a moment, and then transformed into a human shape. Facial features gradually grew on the human shape's face, and finally it became the likeness of Li Changshui. The wrinkles and moles were perfectly replicated, except for a pair of empty and lifeless eyes.
Li Mengbai touched his forehead with her fingertip, and his eyes instantly lit up.
"Your name is Li Changshui, and you are going out to find the Earth Flame Vine."
The puppet repeated itself, its voice identical to Li Changshui's, only its tone was softer, mimicking Li Mengbai's accent.
"Now, go."
The second master and the young master walked out of the door one after the other. The maid, who was kneeling on the ground trembling, only saw the corners of their clothes and did not dare to look up at them. She also did not notice the second master's stiff and rigid body.
*
On their second day in Xidu, Jiang Yuhuo and Wen Yizhan set off again. Of course, they also brought along Xiao Jing, who had remained silent about where her home was.
The river purification ritual has been going on for many years and is not dangerous. Since Xiao Jing did not want to go home, Jiang Yuhuo temporarily took her with him.
Late last night, I received a letter on the talisman from the River Guardian, informing me of his location and saying that he would be waiting for them to meet up in Pear Blossom Valley.
Once aboard the Peng bird again, Xiao Jing had learned her lesson and clung tightly to her aunt, refusing to let go. She wasn't afraid of falling off during takeoff or landing, except—
"Auntie, what are you holding in your arms? It's so uncomfortable."
Xiao Jing complained softly, "It wasn't here yesterday."
The wind whistled past his ears, but Jiang Yuhuo, with his keen ears, heard it all clearly.
She took the things out of her arms.
Xiao Jing saw that it was a very small brocade pouch, tied with a ribbon at the top. She couldn't see what was inside, but the shape of the object that had been pressing against her earlier looked like beads.
"Did Auntie buy this at the market yesterday? I want to see it too."
Yesterday, when we were shopping together, my aunt clearly wasn't interested in anything. My aunt even thought she was broke and almost wanted to pawn her valuable jewelry for money. But then she remembered that each piece of jewelry had her name engraved on it, and if my aunt recognized her, she would definitely send her back immediately.
She kept it all bottled up inside, unable to fully enjoy shopping. There was only one rule: anything her aunt would buy had to be good quality!
Xiao Jing reached out to take it, but Jiang Yuhuo turned around and put it into the cultivator's storage space.
Xiao Jing was taken aback; her aunt wouldn't even let her see it! She pouted, "So stingy!"
Jiang Yuhuo patted her head to comfort her and smiled, "She's not a good person."
"Then why won't you let me see it!"
Jiang Yuhuo couldn't explain it either.
Wen Yizhan led the way on his sword, occasionally glancing at the person sitting on the Peng bird behind him.
After returning last night, he didn't ask anything and, as usual, truthfully told her the news he received. His junior sister said she would go to meet up with the seniors at dawn, and he didn't rush her at all. Of course, he was very happy that his junior sister didn't want to stay in Xidu City any longer.
He smiled and suppressed the inexplicable unease in his heart. No matter what, his junior sister was back, wasn't she?
The meeting point is in a valley on the banks of the Moyu River, a valley rich in spiritual energy, with pear blossoms blooming all year round on the slopes.
When Jiang Yuhuo arrived, the mountain mist had not yet dissipated, and the immortals were sitting under the flowering trees drinking wine.
The group of five, including the river guardians, were all cultivators from various peaks of Kunlun. They were all quite old, and even those with high cultivation levels showed signs of aging on their faces.
"Oh my, there's a little baby here too." A white-haired fairy saw Xiao Jing being held by Jiang Yuhuo's hand, put down her wine cup, stood up, and came over to touch Xiao Jing's face. "He's so cute."
Xiao Jing immediately frowned to express her dissatisfaction.
The white-haired immortal smiled, looking at Jiang Yuhuo with loving eyes, and said, "You must be Yizhan's junior sister. I've often heard him talk about you. I didn't know your child was so big already. They look so alike." She turned to Wen Yizhan and teased, "Yizhan, your junior sister already has a child. When are you getting married?"
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Author's Note: Sorry for the wait, I'm back! Back to my previous update schedule. See you tomorrow! [hugs][hugs]
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