Speaking Off the Cuff

Yan Nu listened, utterly bewildered, not understanding what Shen Leling was babbling about.

She had been sobbing this morning about losing twenty years of Dao cultivation. Now she claimed to have cultivated for ninety years, and her name had even changed.

Huang Banyun, however, gasped, "So you're a celestial maiden from the Shen Family of Leling! My father once had the honor of meeting True Person Shen Wuxing. May I ask your relation to him?"

Leling was in Pingyuan Commandery, and the Shen Family was a powerful clan there, a middle-upper grade family. He naturally knew of them, though the only cultivator from the Shen Family he'd heard of was Shen Wuxing.

He hadn't expected the celestial maiden before him to also be from the Shen Family. Father and son both encountering powerful figures from the Shen Family – what a coincidence!

Seeing his question, Shen Leling immediately replied, "That child Wuxing, he's my nephew, I suppose."

"If you really want to talk about it, Yan Nu'er, I took you as my younger brother, so I'm even a generation older than Shen Wuxing."

Huang Banyun looked at Yan Nu in disbelief, completely stunned.

As someone from a lower-class impoverished family, Shen Wuxing was already the most formidable cultivator his family had ever encountered. He never imagined that the young man who had just wielded... well, one should say, displayed such masterful simplicity, was actually a generation higher in seniority?

All he could say was... this powerful figure from the Shen Family was truly unconventional and playful... or rather, elegant.

Yan Nu was equally confused, but he simply asked, "Sister, are you healed? I heard the Dog Demon of Flag Mountain is very powerful. I was afraid it might harm you."

"Hehehehe..." Shen Leling's laughter was like a clear spring flowing into a pond. "A mere little demon. It's fortunate it wasn't in the mountain. If it were, I could have destroyed it with a flick of my hand!"

"Oh..." Yan Nu scratched his head.

Huang Banyun didn't know how Yan Nu came to recognize such a powerful being as his sister, but he assumed this powerful figure from the Shen Family was kind and approachable, acting freely.

So, he tried his best to join the conversation, "What True Person Shen says is indeed true!"

"My father died sixteen years ago while trying to eliminate this demon. Since then, almost every year, wandering knights have attempted to slay it, but all have failed."

"This wild demon has killed countless people and been backlashed by Mortal World Fire many times. It probably doesn't cultivate Dao at all!"

"It's likely only in the last few years that it began to value its reputation and disguised itself as 'Old Daoist Wulong,' trying to genuinely improve its cultivation."

"However, even with the Dog Demon's powerful magic, it's definitely no match for True Person Shen."

"True Person Shen, this demon has committed many evils and plagued the region. Please slay it and bring peace to the people!"

Shen Leling smiled lazily, "I have no enmity with this demon, so why should I needlessly kill?"

"But..." Huang Banyun hadn't finished speaking.

Shen Leling glanced at him lightly, "Your father died at the hands of this demon. Don't you want to take revenge yourself?"

"I do!" Huang Banyun's eyes reddened at her words, his hands trembling. "Banyun dreams of revenge every night!"

He lowered his head, suppressing his emotions, and said with a tremor, "Please... please grant me your favor, True Person!"

"You shouldn't beg me, you should beg him."

Huang Banyun looked up in confusion.

Shen Leling pointed at Yan Nu and said plainly, "First, kowtow to him three times."

"Thump, thump, thump!" Huang Banyun kowtowed to Yan Nu without hesitation three times, and continued to do so, until his blood stained the earth and stones.

However, in an instant, a chill surged through his heart, and icy water wrapped around him.

A clear voice echoed, "Once I take your Essence Soul, I will avenge you..."

"Ah?" Huang Banyun was entangled by a stream of water, his entire body chilled to the bone.

Yan Nu quickly thrust his spear, severing the water flow. "Sister, why are you killing him!"

Seeing the water flow continue even after he cut it, he simply flashed past and blocked the flow with his own body.

Shen Leling knew he would intervene and immediately retracted the water flow. "The Zhang Family members will arrive soon, and the Dog Demon could return at any moment. If I don't absorb his Essence Soul, how can I heal my Primordial Spirit?"

"Healing the Primordial Spirit requires a rich Essence Soul. This Huang Banyun is a scholar, not old, with Second Stage Body Tempering plus twenty years of cultivation. He's just right."

"Sister, didn't you absorb thirty-five of them?" Yan Nu remembered Shen Leling's rampage, draining the Zhang Family's subordinate troops.

Shen Leling shook her head. "Their bellies are full of Yellow Springs Water! While their Essence Souls can be refined to supplement other things, my Primordial Spirit is injured. It's a miracle if I don't worsen it!"

"Their preparations are all interconnected. They must have other tricks to deal with me."

"Fortunately, I've already healed my physical body using the spring eye. As long as my Primordial Spirit is healed, and since I have no Dao cultivation, the more debts I have, the less I'll be burdened. Only by going on a killing spree directly will I have a chance!"

Yan Nu didn't understand the esoteric arts. Hearing her say so much, he had no grounds to refute and was extremely anxious. "Sister, why don't we just run?"

Shen Leling gazed at him. "If I don't recover my Primordial Spirit, I will surely die."

"'Surely,' you said..." Yan Nu could only desperately rack his brain, thinking of a way to help his sister heal her Primordial Spirit without Huang Banyun having to die.

At the same time, Huang Banyun hugged the monkey in his arms, trembling as he looked at Shen Leling, both from the cold and from anger!

"You... are you a monster?" he gritted his teeth, ashamed and furious at being so easily deceived by a monster.

He truly hadn't expected someone would recognize a monster as their sister. He was certain Yan Nu was human, and even his benefactor.

When Yan Nu called out "Sister," he saw Shen Leling, who was as graceful and elegant as an immortal, stepping on the waves. His first reaction was that she was an immortal.

It could only be said that his ingrained stereotype of monsters was too strong, preventing him from realizing that a monster could possess such a pure, elegant, and graceful demeanor.

Let alone him, many young noble family sons had been deceived.

Shen Leling glanced at him. "I noticed you long ago. You were supposed to die in the mouth of a wild dog. Living even a moment longer is already a great fortune."

Huang Banyun knew there was nothing to discuss with a monster. He glanced at Yan Nu, who was deep in thought.

Suddenly, he grabbed the little monkey around his neck and threw it with all his might.

"Benefactor, I'll return my life to you. Please let my Wanzi go!"

The monkey shrieked and tried to run back, but Huang Banyun glared at it fiercely.

Then, Huang Banyun sat down on the ground, closed his eyes, and offered his neck for slaughter: "You can kill the Dog Demon, and I will die with no regrets."

Shen Leling looked at him deeply, her eyes narrowed, and she said nothing. She merely turned her gaze back to the contemplative Yan Nu.

Yan Nu suddenly spoke, "Sister, there's a fierce big yellow dog below. What kind of Spirit Dog is it? Will its Essence Soul do?"

"It'll do too..." Shen Leling replied casually.

Yan Nu's eyes lit up, "Then let's absorb it!"

Shen Leling said, "But I didn't bother that dog when I came up the mountain. Do you know why?"

Yan Nu shook his head.

"That dog wasn't enlightened by the Heavenly Dao. It was born from the Flag Mountain Dog Demon and a wild dog... Creatures like it are very fertile, and their offspring have a chance to awaken Spiritual Apertures. If I ate it, the Dog Demon would never rest until I was dead. I came here to heal, and we were minding our own business. There's no need to provoke a powerful enemy," Shen Leling said with a serious tone.

Yan Nu, however, raised an eyebrow, "Isn't it just a small demon that can be destroyed with a flip of the hand?"

"..." Shen Leling rolled her eyes. "Don't you know I was lying just now?"

Yan Nu nodded, "I guessed... Anyway, you were either lying to him, or you were lying to me before..."

Shen Leling pouted. "That Dog Demon has been entrenched on this mountain for many years without being eradicated. How could it be simple? It has devoured too many Martial Artists and has powerful Magic Power. Although I don't know exactly how much, I am now in the Mystical Stage, and I am definitely not its match."

"Where is this monster?" Yan Nu had killed his way up, but he hadn't seen the legendary great Dog Demon. The most powerful was that big yellow dog that had gained sentience.

To this question, Shen Leling remained silent for a long time. Instead, she suddenly looked at Huang Banyun.

"It must be in Fei County. The Dog Demon hasn't returned for several days, it's all..." Huang Banyun felt a lack of movement, so he opened his eyes to answer, only to meet Shen Leling's intense gaze.

Instantly, sweat beaded on his brow. He lowered his head and finished, "...It's possible."

Shen Leling's lips curled into a cold smile. "Alright, call your monkey back. It's almost dying of anxiety nearby."

"Kill me, but please let Wanzi go!" Huang Banyun's expression was anxious.

"What's the point of you saying this? It's so close to you, it must have been born because of you... The obsession of a demonic creature does not change for eternity. If you die, this monkey will not live alone," Shen Leling said in a deep voice.

Huang Banyun was stunned. He had lost his mother when he was young, and his father died when he was twelve. The only company he had was a little monkey he had picked up. He was almost driven to despair.

To get revenge, he practiced his spear techniques every day, enduring the hardships of winter and summer, shedding countless drops of sweat. Every time he missed his father, he would hug the monkey and cry, shedding who knows how many tears.

He and the little monkey depended on each other for survival through countless days and nights.

Then one day, he discovered that the monkey could understand his words, and later, it could even practice with him.

Huang Banyun had thought it was born with spiritual intelligence, but he never expected that it had awakened a Spiritual Aperture midway because of him?

"Why?"

Shen Leling said calmly, "When one's emotions and desires are extremely focused on an object, the Heavenly Dao may sense it and enlighten it to become a demon."

"Beasts are the simplest; they already have a certain level of intelligence and desire. Plants are second. It's even harder for inanimate objects in the human world; after experiencing the vicissitudes of life and being influenced by the turbid mortal world, there's only a slim chance."

"And the most difficult are natural things of heaven and earth; only under a fortuitous encounter is there a slight possibility."

Yan Nu asked curiously, "Sister, what were you born from?"

Shen Leling shook her head. "Of course, I am... the Spiritual Elegance of heaven and earth, the profound mystery of Creation!"

After speaking, she flicked a finger, and a water droplet shot out, instantly entering Huang Banyun's body.

"For Yan Nu's sake, I'll spare your life for now. But my magic can kill you at any time. Go! Go down the mountain and guard. Recover and recuperate as quickly as possible... If any Martial Artists arrive, you can use your True Qi to impact the water droplet, and I will know."

Huang Banyun worriedly touched his chest, then stood up. "Yes, as long as I can kill the Dog Demon, I will do anything."

"Banyun, it's too dangerous for you without a weapon. Here's your Mysterious Iron Spear." Yan Nu felt that he could use any weapon.

Shen Leling chuckled, "No need!"

She formed a hand seal, and the light on her fingertips was rich with moisture. She asked, "How long is your spear?"

"Ten feet!" Huang Banyun replied, surprised and uncertain.

Shen Leling said nothing more. She pointed at a fallen tree by the roadside and said, "Heh!"

Instantly, the fallen tree made crackling sounds, like tearing silk.

Huang Banyun walked over and tapped it. The entire surface of the log crumbled like fine powder, revealing the wood's core, which was a spear!

The shaft was ten feet long, the material was tough, and the spearhead was sharp, with barbs.

Huang Banyun picked it up and swung it a few times, nodding slightly. His family's Six Marvelous Golden Spear was both rigid and flexible, not limited to iron spears.

Such a wooden spear, although far inferior to his Mysterious Iron Spear, still required a craftsman's meticulous grinding and complex procedures to complete. It would at least last for two or three battles without breaking.

Huang Banyun hadn't expected Shen Leling to be able to "Command Wood to Become Spear"!

"This weapon is enough, but if the Spirit Dog attacks me on the way down the mountain, I'm afraid..."

Shen Leling said coldly, "I'll go get its Essence Soul right now!"

Huang Banyun understood and immediately bowed to the two of them. He glanced gratefully at Yan Nu before taking the monkey down the mountain.

Shen Leling waited for Huang Banyun to go ahead before leading Yan Nu halfway down the mountain to find the Spirit Dog in the cave dwelling.

The vicious wolves and wild dogs of Flag Mountain had basically been cleared out by Yan Nu; this was something Shen Leling had anticipated long ago.

Those wild beasts were nothing more than a war of attrition, and Yan Nu feared attrition the least...

Therefore, when Shen Leling entered the mountain and discovered hundreds of wild beasts, she wasn't worried about Yan Nu at all. As for that Spirit Dog, it was cunning and sly, and she figured Yan Nu could handle himself well enough to survive, but not necessarily to hunt it down.

The only thing that surprised Shen Leling was the improvement in Yan Nu's cultivation, which far exceeded her estimations.

"Hiss! So many?"

"It actually worked... Is there any justice in this world?"

Shen Leling examined Yan Nu's cultivation with shock. Purely from an energy perspective, Yan Nu had already surpassed her!

p.s: Apologies.