Chapter 111 Netherworld 3 "I am Xu Xing's Daoist partner."
The spirits had no tears, yet Xu Zhen felt his vision blur and his lips tremble, barely able to speak.
After confirming each other's identities, he asked his first question, "Good boy, where are you from?"
Xu Xing sat in the courtyard and briefly told Xu Zhen about how he met Zuo Qiuxu, Xiang Yuquan, and Chen Du, three disciples of the immortal sect, and how he accidentally entered the Yuxiao Sect and discovered his identity as a demon.
"I'm really good at this now! I can refine pills and forge weapons, and even the ghosts love my cooking! I'll show you my skills later!"
"I also became an apprentice of a powerful sword master. With a master, senior brothers, and..."
Xu Zhen listened silently, his gaze never leaving Xu Xing.
That silent child from back then has grown up so much! She can even cultivate immortality and will have a long lifespan and a wonderful life.
very nice.
Xu Xing glanced shyly at Xu Zhen, who was smiling at her, and whispered, "I've found a Daoist partner. He's outside. Father, would you like to see him?"
Chen Du and Su Jing stood at the alley entrance. Su Jing was curious about this silent cultivator. "I heard from my father that you are a sword cultivator?"
Shen Du's attention was focused on the tightly closed courtyard gate, and he only nodded slightly.
"You look quite different from Xu Xing. How did you two meet?"
"Xu Xing said she used to run a shop. What about you? What do you do for a living?"
"How boring, why hasn't Xu Xing come out yet?"
"..."
Shen Du finally understood why Xu Xing and Su Jing hit it off immediately and could talk about anything.
This little prince of the demon race is really heartless.
After an unknown amount of time, Su Jing told Shen Du about his brother's several secret trips to the outside world. Just when Shen Du thought Su Jing was about to recount his entire life story, the courtyard gate finally opened.
Xu Xing poked his head out and waved to them.
Su Jing had been here many times and knew the place like the back of her hand, while Chen Du, who was usually calm and composed, seemed a little nervous.
He stood outside the door, first casting a cleansing spell on the person, then checking their clothes to make sure there was nothing wrong before cautiously stepping into the courtyard.
"This must be Xu Xu's senior brother, right? He is indeed a handsome man."
Xu Zhen had a good impression of Shen Du, who had saved her many times, as Xu Xing had mentioned, but deliberately ignored the word "Daoist partner".
"yes."
Shen Du's hands, hanging at her sides, clenched slightly. She turned to look at Xu Xing, and seeing the smile in her eyes, she couldn't help but call out, "Father..."
Su Jing's eyes widened in surprise, and he blurted out, "So Shen Du is also Master Xu's child?"
"..."
Xu Xing suddenly missed his senior brother Zuoqiu, feeling that he must have a lot to talk about with Su Jing.
Shen Du explained earnestly, "I am Xu Xing's Daoist partner."
"Oh, oh!" Su Jing nodded repeatedly, then asked blankly after a while, "What is a Daoist partner?"
Xu Zhen's gentle smile suddenly faltered. He coughed and said awkwardly, "Please sit down."
According to Xu Xu, Shen Du was at least twenty years older than her. Although cultivators don't care about age, and the other party was a genius who had reached the Nascent Soul stage at a young age, Xu Zhen was only in his early thirties when he died. He had just reunited with his daughter and couldn't accept suddenly having such an old son-in-law.
The three of them stayed in Xu Zhen's courtyard for a long time, until the dark moonlight appeared in the sky, and Xu Xing reluctantly said goodbye.
Although Xu Zhen didn't mention Sheng Qing all day, Xu Xing couldn't help but ask before leaving, "Father, are you staying here because of Sheng Qing?"
Xu Zhen paused, his voice still gentle, "You've seen her?"
"No."
Xu Xing hesitated for a moment, then decided to conceal the fact that Sheng Qing had disappeared. "I just arrived at the Golden Serpent Palace not long ago, she's too busy."
"If I can see you again before I disappear, I will have no regrets."
Xu Zhen gently patted Xu Xing's hand, but the icy touch made Xu Xing's eyes well up with tears. She looked away and said, "Father, I'll come to see you again tomorrow."
King You is the lord of the underworld; he must have a way to help Xu Zhen return to the mortal realm.
If it weren't for Xu Zhen's years of nurturing kindness, Xu Xing might not have been able to come here from another world. Now that she has used this perfectly suited body, she should repay her kindness.
"Do you know that the return of wandering spirits to the world disrupts the order of reincarnation?"
Xu Xing disagreed. Did refining Yin spirits not disrupt order? In the end, how to deal with Yin spirits was entirely up to the King of the Underworld.
However, she did not show it on her face, and said respectfully, "All matters of the Netherworld are under your control, please grant me your mercy, King of the Netherworld."
"What if you have to pay an equal price?"
Xu Xing remained calm and said, "Please enlighten me, King You."
Have you ever heard of the Resurrection Pill?
The Rejuvenation Pill is a legendary elixir that has no grade distinction, but in the thousands of years of the Spirit Martial Continent, no alchemist has ever been known to have successfully refined it.
King You pondered and said, "I do not have a Resurrection Pill, but I can give you the formula. If you can really refine it, it means that Heaven has also agreed to let you take away Xu Zhen's soul."
"I have only one request: you must stay in the Netherworld and refine pills for the Netherworld King's Palace for ten years."
Ten years is not a long time for a cultivator, and Xu Xing agreed without hesitation.
Back in his room, Xu Xing was still thinking about how to bring it up with his senior brother.
The Ghost Realm lacks spiritual energy. Although there are spirit stones to support cultivation, the progress is much slower compared to the outside world.
She couldn't selfishly ask her senior brother to stay here with her for ten years just because of her own situation.
But before Xu Xing could speak, Shen Du asked first, "Is there any way to bring Father back to the human world?"
In just one day, her senior brother had already started calling her "Dad" more fluently than she had...
Xu Xing did not hide anything after all, "I promised King You that I would stay here for ten years."
The sinking was not unexpected; exchanging ten years for Xu Zhen's return to the world was a worthwhile deal.
"That's good. If Yu Jingzi and the others can't find you, they won't be able to do anything no matter how many schemes they have."
Xu Xing smiled, slowly stepped forward, leaned against Shen Du's neck in silence for a long time, and finally spoke: "Senior brother, I hope you leave the Ghost Realm."
"..."
Before Shen Du could respond, Xu Xing didn't even look up at his expression. He simply explained in a low voice, "The power of the Netherworld will erode your body. Staying here for too long will not do you any good."
Xu Xing said in a relaxed voice, "Ten years is just a short moment. Maybe I'll be back when my senior brother goes into seclusion."
Shen Du tightened his grip on Xu Xing's hand slightly and said softly, "For you, is ten years apart really nothing?"
He had been separated from her for decades in the illusion, and every day without seeing her felt like an eternity. He was unwilling to be separated from her again.
"No, Senior Brother, don't be angry. I just feel that staying here is of no help to your cultivation..."
Xu Xing was worried that Shen Du was angry, so he quickly explained, but Shen Du pulled him closer and buried his whole body in his strong chest.
Chen Du sighed softly, "There's no life in it."
He will never be angry with Xu Xing.
He lowered his gaze and gently kissed the forehead of the person in his arms, whispering, "Let me stay with you, okay?"
Xu Xing was a little dazed from the kiss and couldn't bear to say anything about letting his senior brother leave alone.
Oh well, she and her senior brother still have a long time ahead of them, so losing ten years of cultivation isn't a big deal.
Actually, she didn't want to be separated from her senior brother either.
He picked Xu Xing up and carried him straight to the bed. "Since we can't cultivate normally, why don't we try other methods?"
As his sea of consciousness was gently opened and his primordial spirit merged with his, Xu Xing, whose body was weak and whose mind was hazy, finally understood what his senior brother meant by "other methods"...
Having agreed to refine pills for King You, Xu Xing changed his previous lazy ways and, while refining pills for King You as agreed, also studied the pill formula.
The recipe requires a great many materials, including rare spiritual herbs unique to each realm, as well as two herbs that can only be found in the Demon Realm.
However, she obtained quite a lot of the Netherworld Spirit Grass, which is unique to the Netherworld, from the Netherworld King's Mansion.
"The outside world is indeed full of talented people; they can even refine elixirs without any poison."
King You sighed deeply and became even more respectful towards Xu Xing, thinking that she must be a highly respected alchemist in the human realm. However, it seemed that the ghosts who resided in the human realm had never mentioned her.
"I hope we can continue to cooperate after we leave the Underworld."
"sure."
Xu Xing always enjoyed doing business with such generous buyers as King You and Shui Yunxian.
She originally thought she would be working for King You for free for ten years, but to her surprise, he not only provided all the materials for refining the pills, but also paid her in full!
Doesn't this just give her a perfect place to grind experience points?
There are losses involved in alchemy. After Xu Xing handed over the elixirs, he would keep some for himself. King You never said anything. He was an excellent employer who was rich and easy to work for.
King You greatly underestimated Xu Xing's alchemy speed. What would take other alchemists ten days to refine, she could finish in half a day at most, and each one would be of excellent quality and without any flaws.
She spent her spare time with Xu Zhen, cooking for Su Jing to satisfy his cravings, and researching puppets. She also crafted two protective shields to isolate herself from the erosion of the Netherworld Qi.
Xu Zhen's physical body had long since turned into bones, and before refining the Resurrection Pill, Xu Xing had to give him a suitable body.
But it is unknown how Shengqing created "Xu Xing" back then. Although the puppets created by Xu Xing can also help her, they are no different from magic weapons. They cannot carry souls at all, let alone have flesh and blood like her, and are no different from ordinary people.
Xu Xing thought to herself that it seemed she would have to find a way to look for Sheng Qing after leaving the Ghost Realm.
Oh, and there are also wandering ghosts out there; perhaps she could ask the Ghost King for help…
Xu Zhen was initially unaware that Xu Xing had stayed in the Underworld for him, but after seeing Xu Xing every day for a month, he finally realized something was wrong.
"The aura of the netherworld is bad for your health, so you should leave as soon as possible. Seeing you has relieved my obsession, and I can leave in peace when the Reincarnation Platform opens next time."
Xu Xing said, "Father, wait for me, I can take you away."
Xu Xing knew that Xu Zhen's obsession was not with her.
She didn't know what had happened between Xu Zhen and Sheng Qing, or how a mortal could know the Snake King, even take care of the Snake King's "children," and ultimately die from snake venom.
All she knew was that she had to take Xu Zhen away and take him to see Sheng Qing.
The rest is up to them to handle.
Xu Zhen looked gently at the graceful young woman in front of him and asked again in a very soft voice, "Where are you from?"
Xu Xing suddenly froze. At that moment, she realized that Xu Zhen had already seen through her when he first asked this question that she was not the original "Xu Xing".
The man who had meticulously cared for an unfeeling puppet for seven years knew all along that his "daughter" would never truly grow up.
Xu Xing remained silent for a long time before saying softly, "I came from a very far place, and I can no longer go back. The Spirit Martial Continent is my final destination."
She was somewhat afraid to look Xu Zhen in the eye. "I'm sorry, I took over 'her' body."
But instead of scolding or questioning, Xu Zhen gently patted her head, just like he did when they were children. "No, you are 'Xu Xing.' You gave this body a soul. I should thank you."
"Thank you for showing me what her child should look like when he grows up."
Xu Xing felt a pang of sorrow and choked out, "They are your children too."
That day, after returning to his room, Xu Xing sensed a familiar presence late at night.
A familiar, icy sword aura descended from the sky like holy light. It pierced through the darkness of the underworld, through Xu Xing's fluttering hair, and stabbed straight into the wall.
"It must be Master!"
Xu Xing stepped forward to investigate and, sure enough, discovered Fu Shuang's spiritual message coming from the sword energy. She was overjoyed, "Master has found us!"
“Master said: If we are safe now, we should stay here for now. She is going to find Yu Jingzi to fight.”
Xu Xing read the spiritual message over and over again, and then gave Chen Du a brief "translation".
Shen Du smiled slightly, thinking, "This is exactly the kind of thing my master would do."
"Now that Master is alright, we can stay here in peace."
Xu Xing said happily, "Master is really amazing! The sword energy can even penetrate the Netherworld. It's a pity that we can't send a message to Master and tell her our current situation."
Shen Du gazed at the sword energy, lost in thought. Perhaps he could give it a try too.
However, there's no need to tell your junior sister before you succeed.
-----------------------
Author's Note: The setting is that Shen Du is 22 years older than Xu Xu, but since we're cultivators, age doesn't matter. Please don't think my senior brother is too old, hahaha~
From beginning to end, there is only one "Xu Xing" (meaning "walking slowly"), and the little girl from Xiahe Village originally had no consciousness or soul.
-
Thank you to 浅浅若雪, Mayjean, momo, 禾叽, 梦寻,天天睡到自然醒, 严言, 芷依, 开心每一天, 幸福喵, 25656288, and 梦寻 for the nutrient solution! [Sprinkling flowers]
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
