Chapter 5 Treasure Hunt 2 She's a monster! Catch her! ...
Seeing their serious expressions, which didn't seem like they had obtained a treasure and now wanted to see the village chief, Xu Xing couldn't refuse the cultivators' request nor did she want to bring disaster to the village. So she cautiously asked, "May I ask what business the two immortals have with the village chief?"
"Little sister, you'd better not ask too many questions, just take us there quickly! Otherwise, disaster is about to strike!"
Zuo Qiuxu was always an impatient person. Although his words were meant to scare Xu Xing, they also showed the seriousness of the matter.
Xiang Yuquan glanced at him, his gaze somewhat disapproving, but he didn't stop him.
Xu Xing gripped the crack in the door tightly. Due to malnutrition, she was much shorter than girls her age, barely reaching the waist of two boys. Her limbs were also thin and weak, making her look very pitiful.
But when she looked up at Xiang Yuquan, her gaze was firm. “The storyteller’s play contains tales of murder and robbery. I know that immortals have great supernatural powers. If you have ill intentions for the treasure, although I cannot stop you, I also cannot lead you to harm everyone.”
Xiang Yuquan was somewhat surprised. This little girl lived alone in this remote place, in such a dilapidated environment, which showed that she had no elders to take care of her. Yet, at such a young age, she was able to think so much about the other villagers. She was kind-hearted and... very courageous.
Xiang Yuquan patiently explained, “My name is Xiang Yuquan, and this is my junior brother, Zuo Qiuxu. We come from the Eastern Jade Cloud Sect, which has strict rules and would never do anything to harm mortals.”
"May I ask your name, young lady?"
Xu Xing was already seven or eight parts convinced, and she whispered, "My name is Xu Xing."
Xiang Yuquan nodded. “Miss Xu, my fellow disciple and I do indeed want to take the treasure from the mountain, but we did not expect it to be so valuable and not yet mature. Once it matures, it may bring disaster. We wanted to find the village chief to inform him of this so that you can take precautions in advance.”
"Senior Brother Xiang, why are you saying so much to a little girl?" Zuo Qiuxu muttered. "We're here to save someone. If we really had bad intentions, why would we be wasting time here..."
Although Xu Xing had not yet witnessed their abilities, she knew that crushing her would be no different from crushing an ant. Knowing the reason, she did not ask any more questions and immediately tried to lead the two of them to Zhao Desheng's house.
"Wait a minute," Xiang Yuquan moved his right hand slightly, and a spirit sword with a faint glow appeared in mid-air. He lightly touched the ground with his toes, leaped onto the sword, and said softly, "Excuse me."
Xiang Yuquan grasped Xu Xing's right arm and lifted her onto the spirit sword. "Please show me the way, Miss Xu."
Xu Xing was lifted up like a chick, and before he knew it, he was already several feet in the air.
Flying on a sword?!
Unexpectedly, she would actually get to experience a legendary skill essential for cultivating immortality. Xu Xing couldn't hide her excitement. She calmed herself down and pointed towards the village below.
Xiang Yuquan shouted, "Let's go!"
The spirit sword responded immediately and sped away, cutting through the wind.
A gentle breeze brushed against Xu Xing's cheek, and she couldn't help but feel as if she were flying in the air. The village below her was spread out below her and looked so small.
"My God! What's that in the sky?!"
"Someone's there! Someone's flying in the sky!"
The autumn nights fall early, and some farmers who were returning home late were still eating when they soon spotted a group of people flying overhead on swords.
Several surprised shouts rang out, and immediately some people who were still awake peeked out to see what was going on.
"It's an immortal! It must be an immortal!"
"Why is there a little child here?"
"That child seems to be... from Doctor Xu's family?"
Xiahe Village is not large. It only takes about fifteen minutes to walk from the back mountain where Xu Xing lives to Zhao Desheng's house. Given Xiang Yuquan's speed of rushing over like a ray of light, even with a little girl in tow, they wouldn't be much slower.
Xu Xing faintly heard the villagers' discussions below while in the air, and then realized that Xiang Yuquan had probably deliberately slowed down.
She looked back and saw Xiang Yuquan standing behind Xu Xing with his hands behind his back. He noticed her gaze, smiled slightly, and said nothing.
A moment later, the two flying swords landed steadily in Zhao Desheng's courtyard.
When Zhao Desheng was woken up by his son, he even doubted his ears. A celestial being had arrived? How could that be?
Has his son gone mad?
When he saw the two elegant and refined people in the courtyard, his eyes lit up and his hands trembled with excitement. He couldn't even put on his clothes properly, and in the end, his wife had to dress him.
"A celestial being has come to visit! I am so sorry for not welcoming you properly! I hope the celestial being will not be offended..."
Zhao Desheng bent down deeply.
Xu Xing stood in the corner of the courtyard, watching this scene with a sigh in his heart. Cultivators were indeed of high status. These two people looked so young, but the old village chief, who was already of such an age, still had to bow to them, for fear of being slighted.
Fortunately, they were kind-hearted and didn't hold her "offense" against them.
"Village chief, you're too polite. There's no need to be so courteous."
Zuo Qiuxu reached out to help him up. Although he was from a wealthy family, he had joined the Jade Cloud Sect at a very young age and was surrounded by cultivators. Therefore, he was not used to the fearful attitude of ordinary people.
Xiang Yuquan’s voice was clear and bright. “We are disciples of the Jade Cloud Sect. We happened to pass by this place and found that something was wrong with the Huiling Mountain. It seemed that there were evil spirits around, so we came to investigate.”
Evil spirits?
Zhao Desheng was shocked and was about to say something when Zuo Qiuxu suddenly took something out of his storage bag and threw it out.
A large wild boar, its head almost cleaved in two, suddenly appeared in the yard, covered in blood. It was five or six times larger than an ordinary wild boar, resembling a small mountain and taking up almost half the yard. Its mane was thick and stiff, and its tusks gleamed with a chilling light. Even in death, it still inspired fear.
"Ah! It's a monster!"
"My God! It's so big!"
Zhao Desheng was closest to the scene and was startled by the bloody sight. However, as the village chief, he quickly regained his composure despite his pale face.
"It has been more than ten years since the Huiling Mountain has seen any man-eating monsters. I have heard that there are wild boar monsters in the Cangcui Mountain, hundreds of miles away, which have repeatedly injured people. I never thought that Huiling Mountain would also hide such a big one."
Zhao Desheng wiped the sweat from his brow. "Thank you, immortal, for ridding me of the evil beast!"
Xiang Yuquan frowned slightly. No demonic beasts had appeared for more than ten years? That means there used to be some. Something was definitely wrong with this mountain.
"I wonder if there are any cultivators in the village?"
Zhao Desheng quickly replied, "There are two Body Refinement stage martial artists in the village, both at the third rank. There was also a fifth-rank martial artist, but unfortunately, he went to the township recently..."
The Body Refinement stage has nine ranks. After reaching the first rank, one's strength is greater than that of an ordinary person; at the second rank, one can split rocks with bare hands; at the third rank, one's physical body is strong and tough, and ordinary weapons are difficult to injure one.
Although no demonic beasts have caused trouble in Huiling Mountain in recent years, there are still ordinary wild animals. The three martial artists from Xiaohe Village will patrol the mountain regularly to prevent wild animals from harming people.
The spiritual energy here is thin, so Xiang Yuquan was not surprised that martial arts were not thriving. "It's alright, let's invite those two martial artists over to discuss this together."
Zhao Desheng gave a wink, and his youngest son dashed off to find someone, while his eldest son, Zhao Bo, was one of the third-rank martial artists.
Zuo Qiuxu looked around and said, "This matter is of great importance. Please dismiss everyone else, Village Chief."
He doesn't have the habit of being watched like a monkey.
Zhao Desheng tiptoed past the two men and looked back. Sure enough, he saw about a dozen villagers who had heard the commotion and were crowding around the gate, peering out. They saw that the wild boar looked terrifying, and gasps could be heard from the crowd from time to time.
The villagers, though ignorant and intimidated by the immortal's imposing presence, couldn't resist watching the spectacle.
Zhao Desheng's face hardened, and he shouted, "A celestial being has come to visit! How dare you be rude! Hurry up and go home!"
Zhao Bo immediately went over to block the onlookers' view and made them leave. He was strong and capable of breaking a tree with a single punch, so no one dared to disobey him. However, some people noticed Xu Xing in the corner of the yard.
"Immortal! Immortal! There's a little monster here! Catch her quickly!" Zhao Youming shouted. "You must teach her a lesson!"
Zhao Youming was dragged out of bed by his parents and did not see the scene of Xiang Yuquan bringing Xu Xing on his sword.
He was initially afraid, but seeing that Xu Xing, a mere simpleton, was shamelessly staying at the village chief's house and didn't seem to be going to be sent home, he immediately shouted. Zhao Youming felt a little smug; now that the immortal had discovered his identity, Xu Xing was definitely in for a rough time.
Zuo Qiuxu now understood why his senior brother Xiang insisted on taking that little sister with him on the sword. He raised an eyebrow and said, "We thought she was just an ordinary mortal, but it turns out that this little brother's cultivation is actually above ours. He was able to see her true form. My apologies for my overconfidence."
Zhao Desheng then remembered that the immortal had indeed landed with a little girl, but he was so excited and apprehensive about the immortal's visit that he hadn't paid attention to the little girl. Now, as Zhao Youming shouted, he looked over and realized that the little girl standing quietly to the side was actually Xu Xing.
"Nonsense! How could Xu Xing be a monster?" Zhao Desheng roared. "Zhao Dabao! Get your son home now!"
This brat! If Xu Xing really is a demon, then isn't Xiahe Village harboring a demon clan? Besides, what is the status of an immortal? How dare a mere brat point fingers at him?
The fact that the immortals were so kind as to bring her here shows that Xu Xing could not possibly be a demon! If there were anything wrong with her eyes, the immortals would have noticed it at a glance!
Zhao Desheng felt somewhat guilty because of those strange eyes. Xu Xing had had a very difficult two years because of the misunderstanding. He felt ashamed of himself for failing Dr. Xu!
“Immortal, you misunderstand. Although he has the talent of a martial artist, he has not yet entered the path of martial arts and has no cultivation. It was just a quarrel between children that caused him to talk nonsense. I will definitely make him kneel in the ancestral hall to reflect on his actions for a few days!” Zhao Desheng said with a smile. “Please don’t be offended, Immortal.”
Zhao Youming was about to speak when his father covered his mouth tightly and dragged him away.
Xiang Yuquan remained indifferent, showing no concern.
Zuo Qiuxu also looked away out of boredom. So he had martial arts talent. No wonder the village chief was protecting him.
The speed of a third-grade martial artist is unmatched by ordinary people. After receiving the news, another third-grade martial artist in the Body Refinement stage from Xiahe Village rushed over.
Seeing that Zuo Qiuxu did not pursue Zhao Youming's offense, Zhao Desheng breathed a slight sigh of relief. When he saw that the person had arrived, he said, "Please come in and let's talk in detail, Immortal."
"We are very grateful to Miss Xu for leading the way. Miss Xu is courageous and intelligent. Please join us in discussing this matter."
Xiang Yuquan turned his head and glanced at Xu Xing.
Upon hearing this, Zhao Desheng's breath hitched again.
I've heard that immortals in those cultivation sects also take mortal servants. If Xu Xing catches the eye of an immortal...
Thinking about the village's indifferent attitude towards Xu Xing over the past two years, Zhao Bo couldn't help but feel worried.
Xu Xing naturally knew that Zuo Qiuxu's words were meant to help her clear her name of the monster accusation in the village, and that her life in Xiahe Village would definitely be much better from now on. Knowing that she might not have the chance to repay him, Xu Xing still secretly remembered this kindness.
But she didn't expect them to ask her to participate in the discussion. What could a "child" like her possibly discuss?
However, she was also really curious about what exactly was in those mountains that even these two cultivators couldn't handle...
The group entered the house, and Xu Xing sat awkwardly among the adults. However, she didn't feel uncomfortable and just waited for Xiang Yuquan to explain.
Xiang Yuquan asked, "The village chief just said that no monsters have harmed people on Huiling Mountain in recent years. I wonder why?"
Zhao Desheng stroked his beard. "It's strange, really. There used to be some monsters on that mountain. But ten years ago, during a rainstorm, Huiling Mountain was struck by lightning and thunder. The lightning was as terrifying as a purple dragon, but it only struck the mountain and didn't affect other places."
"After that day, there were no more demonic beasts on Huiling Mountain, only some ordinary wild animals, which made the village much more peaceful."
Xiang Yuquan frowned slightly. It seemed that the village chief didn't know much either. "Does the village chief know why this mountain is called 'Huiling'?"
"When I was a child, I heard from my ancestors that a snake goddess once descended on that mountain, which is why it was named that. But I have lived for so many years and have never seen her. I suppose it is just a legend."
Besides, snakes are demons, how can they be called "gods"?
Xiang Yuquan looked out the window at the distant mountains and said slowly, "Perhaps, that is not just a legend."
A note from the author:
----------------------
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
